Science doesn't really answer "why". It only provides models that allow us to predict, more or less accurately, a future state of some system based on the current state.
There are two (at least) modes of relating to the world, one is a disassociated analytical stance, the "objective" observer, the other is an associated experiential stance, the "subjective" observer. The former leads to science while the latter leads to mysticism. Like the wave/particle models of light, each both gives something and takes something away.
If mathematical models are starting to bore you it's possible you're getting ready to explore subjective reality? (E.g. go to an aquarium and really look at a jellyfish.)
I'm a bit confused by this comment, because the article isn't really about the "why", it's mostly just a description of the phenomenon. Maybe you're responding to the clickbaity title? The nest is interesting to me, if for no other reason than that it's pretty.
That said, I can imagine that understanding the behavior of social insects, generally, might have practical implications in designing swarm robot behavior.
So that rule can implicit as well: avoid collision with the existing comb floor by ramping either up on top of it, or down underneath. The spiral staircase structure starts to appear as soon as you encircle the axis and choose a vertical direction to continue with. With each orbit, the structure becomes more obvious.
I don’t think there was any intention of trying to describe a comprehensive rule set in this thread.
I agree I was just trying to understand it further. I've always thought the idea of modeling the world was really interesting but it's always been a tad abstract to me so I was trying to get a little insight into it.
"Comb building may be better explained by the competing hypothesis of stigmergy, which holds that appropriate building behaviour is stimulated by previous construction. That is, each builder works according to an algorithm that tells her what to do when she encounters a structure at a particular stage of development. Her actions advance the structure to a new form that in turn stimulates the appropriate next step, either by her or by the next worker to encounter the building site."
Although her target audience is probably a bit younger than the people here, I still thought someone may find it interesting, especially if they hadn't thought about it much.
Edit: Also, if you have kids interested in math and these kinds of things, they may be interested in some of the other videos on her channel. She has a interesting way of presenting ideas on a few topics.
Tim Heard is a dedicated and personable ex-scientist who now makes and distributes Australian native bee hives. I have a couple in my backyard and appreciate the spiral nests when I split the hive each year. http://www.sugarbag.net
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[ 2.6 ms ] story [ 57.7 ms ] threadPart of feels like, so what? If we figured out a mathematical model that described the phenomenon, what then?
It's like the way that any time we do something that looks like AI, it's "not real AI" because we understand how it works.
There are two (at least) modes of relating to the world, one is a disassociated analytical stance, the "objective" observer, the other is an associated experiential stance, the "subjective" observer. The former leads to science while the latter leads to mysticism. Like the wave/particle models of light, each both gives something and takes something away.
If mathematical models are starting to bore you it's possible you're getting ready to explore subjective reality? (E.g. go to an aquarium and really look at a jellyfish.)
That said, I can imagine that understanding the behavior of social insects, generally, might have practical implications in designing swarm robot behavior.
"Make new honeycomb cells at the edge of the honeycomb."
"Don't get more than 10 cells from the old honeycomb."
There you go, a 10-cell-wide spiral.
I don’t think there was any intention of trying to describe a comprehensive rule set in this thread.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/282924880_Comb_Arch...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahXIMUkSXX0
Although her target audience is probably a bit younger than the people here, I still thought someone may find it interesting, especially if they hadn't thought about it much.
Edit: Also, if you have kids interested in math and these kinds of things, they may be interested in some of the other videos on her channel. She has a interesting way of presenting ideas on a few topics.