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Cellular Automata and nature-inspired Computing Research A cellular automaton is a collection of "coloured" cells on a grid of a certain shape that

evolves through a number of time steps. This is according to a set of rules based on the states of neighbouring cells. The rules are then applied repeatedly for as many time steps as desired Cellular automata were studied in the early 1950s as a possible model for biological systems. Cellular automata can be seen as a generalization of Life Cellular automata come in a variety of shapes and varieties. One of the most fundamental properties of a cellular automaton is the type of grid on which it is computed. The simplest such "grid" is a one-dimensional line. In two dimensions, square, triangular, and hexagonal grids may be considered. The Following items can be changed: y y y The number of dimensions can be changed. The way cells are arranged can be changed The number of states can be changed

The number of colours a cellular automaton may take must also be specified. For a binary automaton, colour 0 is commonly called "white," and colour 1 is commonly called "black". However, cellular automata having a continuous range of possible values may also be considered. Conway's Life which is also known as the Game Of Life, GOL is the most well known cellular automaton. It has been widely explored, and a large number of patterns have been found. It's not a game like the ones you would normally play.
The game is played on a 2-dimensional grid. Each cell can be either "on" or "off". Each cell has eight neighbours. The life rule is:
y y

If a cell is off and has 3 living neighbours (out of 8), it will become alive in the next generation. If a cell is on and has 2 or 3 living neighbours, it survives; otherwise, it dies in the next generation.

A commonly used shorthand for this is 23/3 (or S23/B3), which signifies that a living cell survives if it has two live neighbors, and is born if it has three alive neighbors.

We must calculate the counts of alive neighbors for each cell:

Alive cells can survive when they have either 2 or 3 neighbors. Two central dots have exactly 2 living neighbors, so they will survive. Two other dots have only 1 neighbor; they will die of loneliness. Four of them have exactly 3 neighbors; those four cells will become alive. The rest of empty cells will stay off - they have only 0, 1 or 2 neighbors. Next Generation: 4 cells will survive (the ones with 3 neighbors). Two other cells have to die 2 empty cells have 3 neighbors and will come alive. The rest will stay off. Third Generation: No cells have 3 neighbors, so no new cells will come alive. All alive cells have exactly 2 neighbors, so all of them will survive. We have reached a stable pattern (still life) that will not change in next generations. Some of best known applications of Cellular Automata are: y y y y y y image processing and image generation, simulations of biology, simulations of chemistry, simulations of physics, design of new computing hardware and algorithms, art

Nature Inspired Computing (NIC) is one that aims to develop new computing techniques after getting ideas by observing how nature behaves in various situations to solve complex problems. Nature presents the best example of how to solve problems efficiently and effectively. We attempt to create computational methods for addressing problems by transferring knowledge from natural systems to engineered systems. Examples of engineering uses include: y y y y y image processing and mining information retrieval and knowledge extraction modelling and analysis of genetic and metabolic networks for drug design and disease analysis aerodynamic structure design Self-organization of collective systems.

Source: http://psoup.math.wisc.edu/mcell/whatis_life.html, Wikipedia and other sources, http://www2.surrey.ac.uk/computing/research/bima/index.htm

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