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Honeycomb Formation
Submitted by librarian on Mon, 2006-08-07 15:50. :: Category
WHAT IS IT?
This project illustrates how bees create honeycombs. Each bee moves around randomly, dropping a chemical behind itself as it moves. The amount of chemical present on the bee's current patch determines how far the bee turns and moves.
HOW TO USE IT
Select the number of bees you wish to create by adjusting the number slider. Click on setup to set the bees up. Then click on go to run the simulation.
THINGS TO NOTICE
The bees begin in the center of the screen and gradually spread out. As the simulation runs you will notice shapes appearing -- first circular and then hexagonal honeycombs appear. The honeycomb shape emerges out of the interactions between bees and the chemical trails the bees leave behind.
EXPLORATIONS
Whether or not the honeycombs are formed depends on the number of bees. Try changing the number of bees to see what happens to the honeycombs. As the simulation runs, try changing the number to see what how bee "birth" or "death" effects the honeycomb formation.
This project is based on "beehive," a project posted to starlogo-users by David Clark Little (email: 19521952@xs4all.nl).
Turtle procedures
patches-own [chemical]
to setup
setxy 0 0
fd random 10
setc orange
end
to go
rt int 4 * chemical
fd 1 + chemical * chemical / 60
set chemical chemical + 2
end
Observer procedures
to setup
ca
crt number
ask-turtles [setup]
ask-patches [set chemical 0]
end
to go
ask-turtles [go]
ask-patches [set chemical chemical * 0.99]
diffuse chemical .01
ask-patches [scale-pc yellow chemical 4 15]
end
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