The third of the four principles of multicellular systems is that much of the communication between cooperating entities (cells, social insects or computers) is indirect. The entities deposit long-lived cues in external structures -- connective tissue, te
Pierre-Paul Grasse first coined the term stigmergy in the 1950s in conjunction with his research on termites. Grasse showed that a particular configuration of a termite's environment (as in the case of building and maintaining a nest) triggered a response
n a new and novel study, scientists are looking to nature - specifically, to ants, bees and viruses - for ways to improve human collaboration during disaster relief efforts.
At the center of the scientists' sights are a sub-group of their own species - s