The Science
The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Likewise, living creatures are more than the collection of atoms they comprise. This image was generated by a simulation of the slime mold Physarum Polycephalum, which forages for nutrients on damp forest floors. The agent-based model is implemented as millions of computational atoms which sense and modify the image they move within. Despite the simple rules governing each agent/atom, complex behaviour of the organism can result. This phenomenon, known as emergence, is seen in systems made up of many interacting parts, such as ant colonies and flocks of birds.
The Artist
Tim McGraw is an Associate Professor of Computer Graphics Technology at Purdue University, (Indiana, USA). His areas of research interest are scientific visualisation, computational art and procedural content generation. He has previous industry experience as a mechanical engineer and as a game developer. Tim received his Ph.D. in Computer and Information Science and Engineering from the University of Florida in 2005.
Copyright statement. This work is published under the CC BY-NC-SA license