6 research outputs found

    Emergent communication enhances foraging behaviour in evolved swarms controlled by Spiking Neural Networks

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    Social insects such as ants communicate via pheromones which allows them to coordinate their activity and solve complex tasks as a swarm, e.g. foraging for food. This behavior was shaped through evolutionary processes. In computational models, self-coordination in swarms has been implemented using probabilistic or simple action rules to shape the decision of each agent and the collective behavior. However, manual tuned decision rules may limit the behavior of the swarm. In this work we investigate the emergence of self-coordination and communication in evolved swarms without defining any explicit rule. We evolve a swarm of agents representing an ant colony. We use an evolutionary algorithm to optimize a spiking neural network (SNN) which serves as an artificial brain to control the behavior of each agent. The goal of the evolved colony is to find optimal ways to forage for food and return it to the nest in the shortest amount of time. In the evolutionary phase, the ants are able to learn to collaborate by depositing pheromone near food piles and near the nest to guide other ants. The pheromone usage is not manually encoded into the network; instead, this behavior is established through the optimization procedure. We observe that pheromone-based communication enables the ants to perform better in comparison to colonies where communication via pheromone did not emerge. We assess the foraging performance by comparing the SNN based model to a rule based system. Our results show that the SNN based model can efficiently complete the foraging task in a short amount of time. Our approach illustrates self coordination via pheromone emerges as a result of the network optimization. This work serves as a proof of concept for the possibility of creating complex applications utilizing SNNs as underlying architectures for multi-agent interactions where communication and self-coordination is desired.Comment: 27 pages, 16 figure

    Integrative (Synchronisations-)Mechanismen der (Neuro-)Kognition vor dem Hintergrund des (Neo-)Konnektionismus, der Theorie der nichtlinearen dynamischen Systeme, der Informationstheorie und des Selbstorganisationsparadigmas

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    Der Gegenstand der vorliegenden Arbeit besteht darin, aufbauend auf dem (Haupt-)Thema, der Darlegung und Untersuchung der Lösung des Bindungsproblems anhand von temporalen integrativen (Synchronisations-)Mechanismen im Rahmen der kognitiven (Neuro-)Architekturen im (Neo-)Konnektionismus mit Bezug auf die Wahrnehmungs- und Sprachkognition, vor allem mit Bezug auf die dabei auftretende Kompositionalitäts- und Systematizitätsproblematik, die Konstruktion einer noch zu entwickelnden integrativen Theorie der (Neuro-)Kognition zu skizzie-ren, auf der Basis des Repräsentationsformats einer sog. „vektoriellen Form“, u.z. vor dem Hintergrund des (Neo-)Konnektionismus, der Theorie der nichtlinearen dynamischen Systeme, der Informationstheorie und des Selbstorganisations-Paradigmas

    Emergence of Temporal and Spatial Synchronous Behaviors in a Foraging Swarm

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    International audienceBiological populations often exhibit complex and efficient behaviors, where temporal and spatial couplings at the macro-scale population level emerge from interactions at the micro-scale individual level, without any centralized control. This paper specifically investigates the emergence of behavioral synchronization and the division of labor in a foraging swarm of robotic agents. A deterministic model is proposed and used by each agent to decide whether it goes foraging, based on local cues about its fellow ants' behavior. This individual model, based on the competition of two spiking neurons, results in a self-organized division of labor at the population level. Depending on the strength and occurrences of interactions among individuals, the population behavior displays either an asynchronous, or a synchronous aperiodic, or a synchronous periodic division of labor. Further, the benefits of synchronized individual behaviors in terms of overall foraging efficiency are highlighted in a 2D spatial simulation

    A complex systems approach to education in Switzerland

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    The insights gained from the study of complex systems in biological, social, and engineered systems enables us not only to observe and understand, but also to actively design systems which will be capable of successfully coping with complex and dynamically changing situations. The methods and mindset required for this approach have been applied to educational systems with their diverse levels of scale and complexity. Based on the general case made by Yaneer Bar-Yam, this paper applies the complex systems approach to the educational system in Switzerland. It confirms that the complex systems approach is valid. Indeed, many recommendations made for the general case have already been implemented in the Swiss education system. To address existing problems and difficulties, further steps are recommended. This paper contributes to the further establishment complex systems approach by shedding light on an area which concerns us all, which is a frequent topic of discussion and dispute among politicians and the public, where billions of dollars have been spent without achieving the desired results, and where it is difficult to directly derive consequences from actions taken. The analysis of the education system's different levels, their complexity and scale will clarify how such a dynamic system should be approached, and how it can be guided towards the desired performance

    SpikeAnts, a spiking neuron network modelling the emergence of organization in a complex system

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    International audienceMany complex systems, ranging from neural cell assemblies to insect societies, involve and rely on some division of labor. How to enforce such a division in a decentralized and distributed way, is tackled in this paper, using a spiking neuron network architecture. Specifically, a spatio-temporal model called SpikeAnts is shown to enforce the emergence of synchronized activities in an ant colony. Each ant is modelled from two spiking neurons; the ant colony is a sparsely connected spiking neuron network. Each ant makes its decision (among foraging, sleeping and self-grooming) from the competition between its two neurons, after the signals received from its neighbor ants. Interestingly, three types of temporal patterns emerge in the ant colony: asynchronous, synchronous, and synchronous periodic foraging activities − similar to the actual behavior of some living ant colonies. A phase diagram of the emergent activity patterns with respect to two control parameters, respectively accounting for ant sociability and receptivity, is presented and discussed
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