277 research outputs found
Intrinsic adaptation in autonomous recurrent neural networks
A massively recurrent neural network responds on one side to input stimuli
and is autonomously active, on the other side, in the absence of sensory
inputs. Stimuli and information processing depends crucially on the qualia of
the autonomous-state dynamics of the ongoing neural activity. This default
neural activity may be dynamically structured in time and space, showing
regular, synchronized, bursting or chaotic activity patterns.
We study the influence of non-synaptic plasticity on the default dynamical
state of recurrent neural networks. The non-synaptic adaption considered acts
on intrinsic neural parameters, such as the threshold and the gain, and is
driven by the optimization of the information entropy. We observe, in the
presence of the intrinsic adaptation processes, three distinct and globally
attracting dynamical regimes, a regular synchronized, an overall chaotic and an
intermittent bursting regime. The intermittent bursting regime is characterized
by intervals of regular flows, which are quite insensitive to external stimuli,
interseeded by chaotic bursts which respond sensitively to input signals. We
discuss these finding in the context of self-organized information processing
and critical brain dynamics.Comment: 24 pages, 8 figure
Continuum limit of self-driven particles with orientation interaction
We consider the discrete Couzin-Vicsek algorithm (CVA), which describes the
interactions of individuals among animal societies such as fish schools. In
this article, we propose a kinetic (mean-field) version of the CVA model and
provide its formal macroscopic limit. The final macroscopic model involves a
conservation equation for the density of the individuals and a non conservative
equation for the director of the mean velocity and is proved to be hyperbolic.
The derivation is based on the introduction of a non-conventional concept of a
collisional invariant of a collision operator
Cognitive ability experiment with photosensitive organic molecular thin films
We present an optical experiment which permits to evaluate the information
exchange necessary to self-induce cooperatively a well-organized pattern in a
randomly activated molecular assembly. A low-power coherent beam carrying
polarization and wavelength information is used to organize a surface relief
grating on a photochromic polymer thin film which is photo-activated by a
powerful incoherent beam. We demonstrate experimentally that less than 1% of
the molecules possessing information cooperatively transmit it to the entire
photo-activated polymer film.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figure
Autonomous Motility of Active Filaments due to Spontaneous Flow-Symmetry Breaking
We simulate the nonlocal Stokesian hydrodynamics of an elastic filament which
is active due a permanent distribution of stresslets along its contour. A
bending instability of an initially straight filament spontaneously breaks flow
symmetry and leads to autonomous filament motion which, depending on
conformational symmetry, can be translational or rotational. At high ratios of
activity to elasticity, the linear instability develops into nonlinear
fluctuating states with large amplitude deformations. The dynamics of these
states can be qualitatively understood as a superposition of translational and
rotational motion associated with filament conformational modes of opposite
symmetry. Our results can be tested in molecular-motor filament mixtures,
synthetic chains of autocatalytic particles, or other linearly connected
systems where chemical energy is converted to mechanical energy in a fluid
environment.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures; contains supplemental text; movies at
http://proofideas.org/rjoy/gallery; published in Physical Review Letter
A triangle model of criminality
This paper is concerned with a quantitative model describing the interaction of three sociological species, termed as owners, criminals and security guards, and denoted by X, Y and Z respectively. In our model, Y is a predator of the species X, and so is Z with respect to Y . Moreover, Z can also be thought of as a predator of X, since this last population is required to bear the costs of maintaining Z. We propose a system of three ordinary differential equations to account for the time evolution of X(t), Y (t) and Z(t) according to our previous assumptions. Out of the various parameters that appear in that system, we select two of them, denoted by H, and h, which are related with the efficiency of the security forces as a control parameter in our discussion. To begin with, we consider the case of large and constant owners population, which allows us to reduce (3)–(5) to a bidimensional system for Y (t) and Z(t). As a preliminary step, this situation is first discussed under the additional assumption that Y (t) + Z(t) is constant. A bifurcation study is then performed in terms of H and h, which shows the key role played by the rate of casualties in Y and Z, that results particularly in a possible onset of bistability. When the previous restriction is dropped, we observe the appearance of oscillatory behaviours in the full two-dimensional system. We finally provide a exploratory study of the complete model (3)–(5), where a number of bifurcations appear as parameter H changes, and the corresponding solutions behaviours are described
The Effect of Sensory Blind Zones on Milling Behavior in a Dynamic Self-Propelled Particle Model
Emergent pattern formation in self-propelled particle (SPP) systems is
extensively studied because it addresses a range of swarming phenomena which
occur without leadership. Here we present a dynamic SPP model in which a
sensory blind zone is introduced into each particle's zone of interaction.
Using numerical simulations we discovered that the degradation of milling
patterns with increasing blind zone ranges undergoes two distinct transitions,
including a new, spatially nonhomogeneous transition that involves cessation of
particles' motion caused by broken symmetries in their interaction fields. Our
results also show the necessity of nearly complete panoramic sensory ability
for milling behavior to emerge in dynamic SPP models, suggesting a possible
relationship between collective behavior and sensory systems of biological
organisms.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figure
A Stochastic Approach to Shortcut Bridging in Programmable Matter
In a self-organizing particle system, an abstraction of programmable matter,
simple computational elements called particles with limited memory and
communication self-organize to solve system-wide problems of movement,
coordination, and configuration. In this paper, we consider a stochastic,
distributed, local, asynchronous algorithm for "shortcut bridging", in which
particles self-assemble bridges over gaps that simultaneously balance
minimizing the length and cost of the bridge. Army ants of the genus Eciton
have been observed exhibiting a similar behavior in their foraging trails,
dynamically adjusting their bridges to satisfy an efficiency trade-off using
local interactions. Using techniques from Markov chain analysis, we rigorously
analyze our algorithm, show it achieves a near-optimal balance between the
competing factors of path length and bridge cost, and prove that it exhibits a
dependence on the angle of the gap being "shortcut" similar to that of the ant
bridges. We also present simulation results that qualitatively compare our
algorithm with the army ant bridging behavior. Our work gives a plausible
explanation of how convergence to globally optimal configurations can be
achieved via local interactions by simple organisms (e.g., ants) with some
limited computational power and access to random bits. The proposed algorithm
also demonstrates the robustness of the stochastic approach to algorithms for
programmable matter, as it is a surprisingly simple extension of our previous
stochastic algorithm for compression.Comment: Published in Proc. of DNA23: DNA Computing and Molecular Programming
- 23rd International Conference, 2017. An updated journal version will appear
in the DNA23 Special Issue of Natural Computin
Vitellogenin Underwent Subfunctionalization to Acquire Caste and Behavioral Specific Expression in the Harvester Ant Pogonomyrmex barbatus
PMCID: PMC3744404This is an open-access article, free of all copyright, and may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose. The work is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication
Networking the nucleus
The nuclei of differentiating cells exhibit several fundamental principles of self-organization. They are composed of many dynamical units connected physically and functionally to each other—a complex network—and the different parts of the system are mutually adapted and produce a characteristic end state. A unique cell-specific signature emerges over time from complex interactions among constituent elements that delineate coordinate gene expression and chromosome topology. Each element itself consists of many interacting components, all dynamical in nature. Self-organizing systems can be simplified while retaining complex information using approaches that examine the relationship between elements, such as spatial relationships and transcriptional information. These relationships can be represented using well-defined networks. We hypothesize that during the process of differentiation, networks within the cell nucleus rewire according to simple rules, from which a higher level of order emerges. Studying the interaction within and among networks provides a useful framework for investigating the complex organization and dynamic function of the nucleus
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