Binary tree and Roman numerals for red forest ants, or as these insects consider
Dante wrote in the Divine Comedy:
With this quotation, the ethologist Zhanna Reznikova often starts talking about ants, who, together with an expert in information theory, Boris Ryabko, studies the language and number system of these insects. Although ants cannot multiply and divide, they are able to add and subtract.
Data transfer does not take place quickly, as Dante described - to tell you about the right way in a maze of six turns, the ant spends 200 seconds, but the same ant will tell you about three identical turns three times faster - which means that ants are able to optimize and shorten information. To test the abilities of ants, scientists used a "binary tree" and a simple maze comb.
Scouts are very important specialists in the ant family, it depends on them whether insects will find food. Like scouting people, such ants need a keen mind and resourcefulness, they must have a perfect orientation in space, memorize the road, and besides this, they must pass on information to their relatives who are engaged in collecting and delivering food. In order to assess the capabilities of the scouts, Russian scientists Zhanna Reznikova and Boris Ryabko used a binary tree.
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A binary tree is a labyrinth in which a bait is hidden — a cotton wool moistened with syrup. In the maze, the ant makes a choice of two options at each fork: right or left. This option is one bit of information. Thus, the maximum amount of information that a scout must transmit from such a maze is six bits, because not every person will remember seven turns.
Scientists were surprised by the amount of time it takes to transfer a complex path. For six turns scout spent 200 seconds. Deciphering the tongue of ants turned out to be difficult, because they make too many different movements for a long time. Later, scientists found that the description of the way from several turns in one direction takes three times less time.
Zhanna Reznikova speaks about frequent objections: ants-scouts do not tell anything, and foragers are following an odorous trail. In fact, within the framework of the experiment, two identical mazes are used, replacing the old one, which the intelligence officer visited, with a new one, which only foragers will use.
Another version of the maze, which was used by scientists, is a comb of 15 end points. The further the bait is from the entrance, the more time the scout needs to describe the path to the foragers. But if you place a bait on any branch more often, then the ants begin to use this branch as a new point of reference.
If branch number 10 is often used, then a little more than 10 times are spent on describing the path to 11 branches - that is, the ants describe the path as "10 + 1". And exactly the same result in time is shown by a twig 9 - that is, “10-1”. This is reminiscent of the Roman system of calculus - X, XI, IX. So scientists have proven that ants are able to add and subtract.
In the family of red forest ants, scouts make up to 0.3% of the population. Experiments with these "specialists" have shown that they, with a small number, are one of the most important groups.
Scientists were so enthusiastic about the experiment, during which the scouts were resettled from one anthill, they did not notice that almost half of the nest population died. Ants barricaded themselves and refused to eat. In the control anthill, where all the experts were in their places, this was not observed. This event Reznikova compares with the "philosophical steamboat . "
All ants can milk aphids, but the collector of the hell (the shepherd for aphids) will not be able to remember and tell about the road to food, like a scout.
So the ants, when faced somewhere,
Rubbing their stigmas to get it,
Perhaps, about the prey and about the path.
But just a moment the arms of friendship last
And with the first step on your path
Some others overshadow eager ...
With this quotation, the ethologist Zhanna Reznikova often starts talking about ants, who, together with an expert in information theory, Boris Ryabko, studies the language and number system of these insects. Although ants cannot multiply and divide, they are able to add and subtract.
Data transfer does not take place quickly, as Dante described - to tell you about the right way in a maze of six turns, the ant spends 200 seconds, but the same ant will tell you about three identical turns three times faster - which means that ants are able to optimize and shorten information. To test the abilities of ants, scientists used a "binary tree" and a simple maze comb.
Binary tree
Scouts are very important specialists in the ant family, it depends on them whether insects will find food. Like scouting people, such ants need a keen mind and resourcefulness, they must have a perfect orientation in space, memorize the road, and besides this, they must pass on information to their relatives who are engaged in collecting and delivering food. In order to assess the capabilities of the scouts, Russian scientists Zhanna Reznikova and Boris Ryabko used a binary tree.
')
A binary tree is a labyrinth in which a bait is hidden — a cotton wool moistened with syrup. In the maze, the ant makes a choice of two options at each fork: right or left. This option is one bit of information. Thus, the maximum amount of information that a scout must transmit from such a maze is six bits, because not every person will remember seven turns.Scientists were surprised by the amount of time it takes to transfer a complex path. For six turns scout spent 200 seconds. Deciphering the tongue of ants turned out to be difficult, because they make too many different movements for a long time. Later, scientists found that the description of the way from several turns in one direction takes three times less time.
Zhanna Reznikova speaks about frequent objections: ants-scouts do not tell anything, and foragers are following an odorous trail. In fact, within the framework of the experiment, two identical mazes are used, replacing the old one, which the intelligence officer visited, with a new one, which only foragers will use.
Roman numerals
Another version of the maze, which was used by scientists, is a comb of 15 end points. The further the bait is from the entrance, the more time the scout needs to describe the path to the foragers. But if you place a bait on any branch more often, then the ants begin to use this branch as a new point of reference.
If branch number 10 is often used, then a little more than 10 times are spent on describing the path to 11 branches - that is, the ants describe the path as "10 + 1". And exactly the same result in time is shown by a twig 9 - that is, “10-1”. This is reminiscent of the Roman system of calculus - X, XI, IX. So scientists have proven that ants are able to add and subtract.
Elite ant society
In the family of red forest ants, scouts make up to 0.3% of the population. Experiments with these "specialists" have shown that they, with a small number, are one of the most important groups.
Scientists were so enthusiastic about the experiment, during which the scouts were resettled from one anthill, they did not notice that almost half of the nest population died. Ants barricaded themselves and refused to eat. In the control anthill, where all the experts were in their places, this was not observed. This event Reznikova compares with the "philosophical steamboat . "
All ants can milk aphids, but the collector of the hell (the shepherd for aphids) will not be able to remember and tell about the road to food, like a scout.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/393449/
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