linkedin post 2020-10-24 05:48:07

THE PARAMETERS. “Termites can interpret this field because they act essentially as mobile φ-transducers. In the steady regime of the nest, (low- to null φ), termites will carry out their activities unperturbed. A threshold change of φ, however, elicits a marked shift of the swarm’s behavior. In response to a pulse of CO2, for example, termites immediately stop what they are doing and begin to move about vigorously. They do not move about randomly, however. Some termites will rush toward the source of the perturbation. Others, called tocsins (“bell-ringers”) run away from the source and agitate other termites that may not have experienced the pulse directly. Eventually, a large wave of termites runs toward the perturbation source, consisting of termites that have experienced the perturbation directly as well as those who may have experienced it only vicariously. This amplifies the swarm’s response to the perturbation.”

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12304-016-9256-5

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