DIGIHIVE
Simulations
Jet engine
Particles with random initial velocities are placed inside the opened container (the complex of particles). Only elastic collisions are allowed, thus randomly colliding particles act like a hot gas, exerting force on the walls of its container.
Click to view full movie: jet.mp4 (Right click->Save As.. to download)
Random structures
Particles are moving randomly. Inelastic collisions are allowed, i.e. collisions may trigger reactions (creating and removing bonds), which lead to emergence of random spatial structures (complexes of particles). Complexes of particles may be interpreted as programs which may affect the environment by catalyzing or inhibiting particular reactions.
Click to view full movie: structures.mp4 (Right click->Save As.. to download)
Cooperative behaviour
The goal of this simulation is to create the complex of particles of a particular shape, which is very unprobable to emerge randomly.
A set of programs builds the "snowflake" shape based only on local rules defined for each program (there is no single program that manages building process).
Note, that two particles were unintentionally "catched" inside the snowflake.
Click to view full movie: snowflake.mp4 (Right click->Save As.. to download)
Universal constructor - simple shapes
A universal constructor is a crucial part of non trivial models of self-reproduction. In this case, it is a connected set of programs being able to construct spatial structures according to their description contained in an information string (particular
complex of particles, depicted as a single white hexagon in the upper part of the picture).
The universal constructor builds a complex of particles (rhombus shape) according to its description encoded by the information string.
Click to view full movie: ecal.mp4 (Right click->Save As.. to download)
Universal constructor - constructing programs
The universal constructor can build other programs (as they are encoded by structures of complexes). In this simulation it builds a set of programs, which subsequently build the shape of "snowflake".
Click to view full movie: acal_0001.mp4 (Right click->Save As.. to download)