6 ms·

Hexagonal Langton's Ant 2 – Colors, Gliders and Highways

37 points by brtmr 11y ago

FWeinb 11y ago
Great work! I build[1] a classic javascript interpreter for Langton's Ant a few years ago. Just updated it to include support for custom rules. Thanks for reminding me about Langton's Ant it is always cool to recall things one build in the past. [1]: http://codepen.io/FWeinb/pen/CJpjl http://codepen.io/FWeinb/pen/CJpjl
rntz 11y ago
BSPSPSPSPSP - This program/configuration appears to execute a random walk. Hard to be sure.
- drdeca 11y ago
  Well, it's deterministic, because the program is deterministic, but it certainly does look random.
joshcorbin 11y ago
My versions of the same fwiw: - https://jcorbin.github.com/hexant https://jcorbin.github.com/hexant -- the hexagonal one I'm working on now - https://jcorbin.github.io/ants https://jcorbin.github.io/ants -- the square grid one I made several years ago
- joshcorbin 11y ago
  e.g., here's a neat one: http://jcorbin.github.io/hexant/#colors=light%28360%2C%20100%29&rule=ant%282L%2064F%202S%29&frameRate=65536&drawTrace http://jcorbin.github.io/hexant/#colors=light%28360%2C%20100...
  - brtmr 11y ago
    woa. that looks awesome ;) what am i looking at - whats the rule? and are you also coloring the spaces the ant has already been on, but that reverted to their original state?
    - joshcorbin 11y ago
      It's not the most obvious UX but hit "/" to open the rules dialog, this rule set is "ant(2L 64F 2S)". Click through to the project page and check out the README for more info on the key binds: https://github.com/jcorbin/hexant https://github.com/jcorbin/hexant. The coloring trick is a recent addition I call "redraw tracing"; essentially there are two color palettes: one for "cold cells" and "hot cells" (ones that haven't/have been visited "recently"). What makes it "redraw" tracing is that "recent" is simply defined as "since last full redraw". Full redraws are triggered when the ant hits an edge of the screen. I plan to expand the tracing to support "last-N" tracing where "recent" would mean something more comprehensible like "in the last 1024 iterations" f.e.
- brtmr 11y ago
  Nice! I like how the world grows with the movement of the ant, as opposed to my rather boring static one
jones1618 11y ago
Love it! Here are some cool patterns: * RPB - Looks like a 3D printer printing a bowl of Cheerios * PRLL - Simplest Eastbound highway * BRSS & BLPP - Nearly space-filling hex spirals
- brtmr 11y ago
  Thanks! I have also discovered a pattern that is fully space-filling: BPBBP - will slowly fill the entire screen with a growing green hexagon, with a single yellow dot at the origin.
dpc_pw 11y ago
I'd love that as an animated android background.
byron_fast 11y ago
So this is how the universe's only electron updates the state of every atom! Maybe.
indrax 11y ago
BRL - seems to have rotational symmetry, grows very slowly, not sure if it repeats. Would make a good loading spinner.

37 points by brtmr 11y ago

Great work! I build[1] a classic javascript interpreter for Langton's Ant a few years ago. Just updated it to include support for custom rules. Thanks for reminding me about Langton's Ant it is always cool to recall things one build in the past. [1]: http://codepen.io/FWeinb/pen/CJpjl http://codepen.io/FWeinb/pen/CJpjl

rntz 11y ago

BSPSPSPSPSP - This program/configuration appears to execute a random walk. Hard to be sure.

drdeca 11y ago
Well, it's deterministic, because the program is deterministic, but it certainly does look random.

joshcorbin 11y ago

My versions of the same fwiw: - https://jcorbin.github.com/hexant https://jcorbin.github.com/hexant -- the hexagonal one I'm working on now - https://jcorbin.github.io/ants https://jcorbin.github.io/ants -- the square grid one I made several years ago

joshcorbin 11y ago
e.g., here's a neat one: http://jcorbin.github.io/hexant/#colors=light%28360%2C%20100%29&rule=ant%282L%2064F%202S%29&frameRate=65536&drawTrace http://jcorbin.github.io/hexant/#colors=light%28360%2C%20100...
- brtmr 11y ago
  woa. that looks awesome ;) what am i looking at - whats the rule? and are you also coloring the spaces the ant has already been on, but that reverted to their original state?
  - joshcorbin 11y ago
    It's not the most obvious UX but hit "/" to open the rules dialog, this rule set is "ant(2L 64F 2S)". Click through to the project page and check out the README for more info on the key binds: https://github.com/jcorbin/hexant https://github.com/jcorbin/hexant. The coloring trick is a recent addition I call "redraw tracing"; essentially there are two color palettes: one for "cold cells" and "hot cells" (ones that haven't/have been visited "recently"). What makes it "redraw" tracing is that "recent" is simply defined as "since last full redraw". Full redraws are triggered when the ant hits an edge of the screen. I plan to expand the tracing to support "last-N" tracing where "recent" would mean something more comprehensible like "in the last 1024 iterations" f.e.
brtmr 11y ago
Nice! I like how the world grows with the movement of the ant, as opposed to my rather boring static one

jones1618 11y ago

Love it! Here are some cool patterns: * RPB - Looks like a 3D printer printing a bowl of Cheerios * PRLL - Simplest Eastbound highway * BRSS & BLPP - Nearly space-filling hex spirals

brtmr 11y ago
Thanks! I have also discovered a pattern that is fully space-filling: BPBBP - will slowly fill the entire screen with a growing green hexagon, with a single yellow dot at the origin.

dpc_pw 11y ago

I'd love that as an animated android background.

byron_fast 11y ago

So this is how the universe's only electron updates the state of every atom! Maybe.

indrax 11y ago

BRL - seems to have rotational symmetry, grows very slowly, not sure if it repeats. Would make a good loading spinner.