Exploring Emergence
August 30, 2004 11:24 PM   Subscribe

Exploring Emergence. [Java]
posted by Gyan (8 comments total)
 
Mentioned in a thread long ago.
posted by Gyan at 11:24 PM on August 30, 2004


This is pretty cool, but I'm not sure it goes any way to explaining emergent behaviour. I've got a feeling that Cellular Automata, although buzzy and cutting edge at the moment is slowly going to slip out of the public conciousness.

I was also looking forward to seeing examples of emergence within more complicated systems. For me, this is equivalant to pulling back from the dots on a newspaper picture and gasping. "Look. Near is dots, but far away is picture of boat. woooh"
posted by seanyboy at 3:52 AM on August 31, 2004


Well, seanyboy, this is a demonstration of a concept. In order to demonstrate emergent systems you would need a much larger playing field and either a very fast cycle time or a very long time to sit on your hands. After all, life didn't develop on earth in a few minutes.
posted by PigAlien at 6:43 AM on August 31, 2004


seanyboy, I think you are missing the point. These were fun blinky lights that moved across the screen.

Really, I'm too dumb for emergence, but I enjoyed the presentation anyway, and the introduction to the phrase "life hackers".
posted by taz at 8:12 AM on August 31, 2004


Cool link, brought me back to my high school days mucking around with Life on an Apple ][

Those were the days, my friend . . .
posted by Outlawyr at 8:33 AM on August 31, 2004


Truth=beauty
posted by Laugh_track at 10:13 AM on August 31, 2004


Thanks, Laugh_track, that's great!
posted by PigAlien at 11:33 AM on August 31, 2004


The first thing I noticed was that the first java applet wasn't using the original rules of Life. Ignoring the article for the moment and going "ooo, cool. a really fast Game of Life simulator!" I tried to make a glider, and it didn't work.

The Brian's Brain rules are my favorite so far. Such fantastic gliders! Great squidgy things with pulsating jets of even more squidgy things with standing wavefronts that swept across the field like Mongol hordes, laying waste to all before while behind even more squidgy things shot out, reflected, and mutated with lusty gusto.

God. That link is so not safe for work. I need a cold shower, you rat bastard.
posted by loquacious at 2:14 PM on August 31, 2004


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