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January 24, 2010, 4:23 pm
Slimy stuff and scienceScientists love slime - not to eat, of course, but to tell them about communication systems!
Source:
news.bbc.co.uk
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Grow your own slime moulds, either from those you have collected yourself, or using bought ones to start off with - see details about what you will need and what to do here
Teachers: Experiments using slime moulds for science lessons
What was discovered?
By watching slime moulds (or 'molds') carefully (you can see this in the video shown in the article), the patterns they produce as they grow were found to make a network similar to Tokyo's rail system!
How?
Video recordings were made of the real growth of the slime mould Physarum polycephalum on a wet surface, with oat flakes placed in the position of cities around Tokyo...
... and the networks that the slime mould made as it grew were seen to be like the rail links around Tokyo!
The scientists then made mathematical models of these very efficient growth patterns.
Why is is important?
These mathematical models can be used by engineers in real life designs, such as new communication systems, to make much more efficient networked systems.
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