Simple lecture demonstrations of instability and self-organization

A dielectric liquid layer with an electric field created inside it is proposed as a means for demonstrating the phenomenon of self-organization. The field is produced by the distributed charge transferred by a corona discharge from the tip to the liquid surface. The theory of the phenomenon is presented. An analogy with the Rayleigh – Taylor instability is drawn and a comparison with the Benard instability is given. The practicality of the method for both natural sciences and the humanities is discussed.