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7545 |
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Date: October 16, 2024 at 19:41:32
From: mitra, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Scientists Found a Slime Mold Algorithm, And Asked It to Build a Unive |
URL: https://sciencealert.com/scientists-found-a-slime-mold-algorithm-and-asked-it-to-build-a-universe |
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Computers truly are wonderful things and powerful but
only if they are programmed by a skillful mind. Check
this out… there is an algorithm that mimics the growth
of slime mold, but a team of researchers has adapted it
to model the large-scale structure of the Universe.
Since the Big Bang, the Universe has been expanding
while gravity concentrates matter into galaxies and
clusters of galaxies. Between them are vast swathes of
empty space called voids. The structure is often
referred to as the cosmic web.
The cosmic web is the largest scale structure of the
Universe, and it's made up of filaments of galaxies and
dark matter that stretch across the gulf of space. The
filaments connect galaxy clusters with immense voids in
between.
This image from Farhanul Hansan's paper in the
Astrophysical Journal shows the large-scale matter
distribution and cosmic 'filaments' of the Universe are
more faithfully captured by the slime mold model than
the existing standard framework. (Farhanul Hasan)
The web-like structure has formed as a result of the
force of gravity pulling matter together since the
beginning of time. Studying the cosmic web helps us to
piece together the evolution of the Universe, how
matter is distributed, and the relationship with dark
matter.
Since the early '80s it's been known that the nature of
a galaxy and its environmental properties has an impact
on how it grows and evolves. The exact nature and how
this happens is still the cause of many debates. A team
of researchers believe they may have demonstrated how
galaxies evolve using a slime algorithm!
The team, led by Farhanul Hasan, Professor Joe Burchett
and eight co-authors, published their findings
'Filaments of the Slime Mold Cosmic Web and How they
Affect Galaxy Evolution' in August's edition of the
Astrophysical Journal. In the paper they report how the
mold algorithm has helped to unlock mysteries of the
cosmos.
Burchett recommended the slime mold algorithm could be
used for an astrophysical application. Hasan worked
with Burchett and altered the algorithm to help them
visualize the cosmic web. The team worked with graphics
rendering expert Oskar Elek to use the slime mold
algorithm.
The mold algorithm was designed to mimic slime mold
that could find its own food by reforming itself into a
structure much like the cosmic web. It took the team
several years to complete their work.
The result produced far more detailed discrete
structures than the old method, according to Hasan. He
added "I didn't know how well it was going to work or
not work, but I had a hunch the slime mold method could
tell us much more detailed information about how
density is structured in the Universe, so I decided to
give it a try."
Of the conclusion, Hasan and team found that the impact
on galaxies seems to have taken the proverbial U-turn.
In earlier epochs, the growth of a galaxy was
stimulated by proximity to larger structures. In the
near Universe, and therefore in cosmologically recent
times, we see that galaxy growth is limited by
proximity to larger structures.
This wasn't possible without the modified slime mold
algorithm. We can now map out the gas around the real
Universe using the algorithm across many different
times to help understand how the web has changed and
the Universe evolved.
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Responses:
[7546] [7548] |
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7546 |
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Date: October 17, 2024 at 06:19:04
From: shadow, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: Scientists Found a Slime Mold Algorithm, And Asked It to Build a... |
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Gadzooks! Talk about micro/macro…….
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Responses:
[7548] |
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7548 |
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Date: October 19, 2024 at 22:24:44
From: mitra, [DNS_Address]
Subject: Re: Scientists Found a Slime Mold Algorithm, And Asked It to Build... |
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We have four different types of slime mold here. It's
fun to watch them walk around, depending on the
weather, of course.
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Responses:
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