1.2 Slime Mold

The most basic elements for the growth of Slime mold are food, water, sunlight, air, light, and space. Slime molds are a group of mold-like creatures that emit tentacles in search of food, automatically forming the most energy-efficient path. The principle is that if a tentacle cannot find food after long-distance travel (negative feedback), it will automatically die to save energy. Slime mold calculates the optimal path through trial and error. Using slime mold to simulate a rail network yields the most efficient network.

To comprehensively analyze the growth pattern, we employed image analysis software to quantify the number of branches and intersections in the network. Our findings demonstrated a notable level of self-organization within the slime mold, as the network efficiently optimized the distribution of resources throughout the vessel. Furthermore, we made an intriguing observation: the slime mold displayed a preference for specific regions on the surface of the oats and agar. It exhibited greater growth in areas with higher nutrient concentration, indicating its ability to sense and respond to chemical signals in its environment, effectively adapting its growth patterns accordingly.