MULTISCALING PROPERTIES OF LARGE-SCALE STRUCTURE IN THE UNIVERSE

The large-scale distribution of galaxies and galaxy clusters in the un iverse can be described in the mathematical language of multifractal s ets. A particularly significant aspect of this description is that it furnishes a natural explanation for the observed differences in cluste ring properties of objects of different density in terms of multiscali ng, the generic consequence of the application of a local density thre shold to a multifractal set. The multiscaling hypothesis suggests ways of improving upon the traditional statistical measures of clustering pattern (correlation functions) and exploring further the connection b etween clustering pattern and dynamics.