Physarum Machines: Computers From Slime MouldA Physarum machine is a programmable amorphous biological computer experimentally implemented in the vegetative state of true slime mould Physarum polycephalum. It comprises an amorphous yellowish mass with networks of protoplasmic veins, programmed by spatial configurations of attracting and repelling gradients.This book demonstrates how to create experimental Physarum machines for computational geometry and optimization, distributed manipulation and transportation, and general-purpose computation. Being very cheap to make and easy to maintain, the machine also functions on a wide range of substrates and in a broad scope of environmental conditions. As such a Physarum machine is a ‘green’ and environmentally friendly unconventional computer.The book is readily accessible to a nonprofessional reader, and is a priceless source of experimental tips and inventive theoretical ideas for anyone who is inspired by novel and emerging non-silicon computers and robots. |
Contents
1 | |
2 Experimenting with Physarum | 15 |
3 Physarum solves mazes | 37 |
4 Plane tessellation | 43 |
5 Oregonator model of Physarum growing trees | 53 |
6 Does the plasmodium follow Toussaint hierarchy? | 65 |
7 Physarum gates | 89 |
8 KolmogorovUspensky machine in plasmodium | 109 |
11 Routing Physarum with repellents | 159 |
12 Physarum manipulators | 175 |
13 Physarum boats | 185 |
14 Manipulating substances with Physarum machine | 201 |
15 Road planning with slime mould | 223 |
Epilogue | 247 |
249 | |
261 | |
9 Recon guring Physarum machines with attractants | 125 |
10 Programming Physarum machines with light | 135 |
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Common terms and phrases
active node active zones Adamatzky 2009 agar gel algorithm behavior Belousov–Zhabotinsky BZ medium cell channel Chap chemo-attractants color data points diffusion disk dynamics edges example excitable medium excitation wave experiments filter paper floater Gabriel graph gate P1 gradients growth cones h Fig illuminated domains implemented initial input intentionally left blank Kolmogorov Lacy Costello logical gates maze merge motorway Nakagaki non-nutrient substrate o’clock oat flakes operations Oregonator model oscillations output Petri dish Physarum gates Physarum machine Physarum polycephalum placed planar graphs plas plasmod plasmodia plasmodium is inoculated plasmodium network plasmodium propagates plasmodium wave propagating plasmodium protoplasmic network protoplasmic tube connecting protoplasmic tubes proximity graphs pseudopodia repelling fields represented robot salt scanned images sclerotium shown in Fig simulated slime mould snapshots sodium chloride sources of nutrients spanning tree stationary storage sub-excitable Toussaint trajectories traveling unconventional computing urban areas Voronoi diagram water surface wave fragments wave fronts