An Artificial Life Ecosystem Sim?

I've been toying with an idea for a while that I hope other people might get interested in. Do the users of these forums think that there might be enough people in SL interested in articificial life to buy and set up a cooperatively run sim for the express purpose of implementing an artificial ecosystem, with predator/prey groups, growing plantlife, food chains, simple evolution, etc, as part of a long term project. Surina Skallagrimson's fish and Briggi Bardon's frogs (both in Hypatia) would be the template for the kind of thing we'd implement. I've developed a hive species called gridlice (gross, I know) I'm currently in the process of perfecting and I'd like to see if we can set up more complex interactive and emergent behaviors between various species. Thing is, I'm too poor to buy my own sim. But I'd be thrilled to go in on one with a large enough group. I'm hoping there are like minded, but not too well off individuals out there who might want in.

I don't know any of the issues with group owned sims, so perhaps this is a good place for people to enlighten me on those problems as well.

If anyone is interested in helping set something like this up, reply here, IM me in world, or throw a brick through my window...something...

Thanks.

I sadly don't have any money/time to donate to this project, but it's something I've been wanting to see in SL for a long time. The world needs more dynamicness to it, and A-life would go a long way towards that.

Certainly sounds interesting.

You could try posting on the Artificial Life forum (a group forum on here for an inworld group), where you should get some good feedback on this:

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I need to break out my Bob artifical life critters again. The one-eyed yellow wonders are tucked away in my inventory at the moment

Can't you make some "intelligent" creatures and then sell them in a vendor?. If they're good enough then people will buy them and the whole of SL will become your ecosystem.

I think somebody did this already with Herpes Balls or something. They was free though.

I actually make a small bot (crow/fairy/droid) that is pretty smart, processes sentences according to artificial intelligence markup language (or as close as I could get to implementing it in LSL) like Alice. But I was interested in trying to setup an ecosystem of "dumb animals" to observe the kinds of complex behavior that emerges from the interaction of many dumg agents.


As for the ALIFE group...I'm not sure they are still operative....haven't heard much from them in a LOOONNNNGGGG time.

It's a great idea. However, scripters correct me if I'm wrong, but currently I don't think you'll be able to draw upon enough memory storage to accomplish what you want.

I don't know. Surina has a lot of fish, frogs, and flying birds at hypatia. Currently, though, they aren't interacting in the manner I'm wanting to implement (and the fish seem to have died...).

I'm not expecting a sim teeming with life. Just a school or two of fish, some flocks of birds, and some terrestrial animals (my bugs?). The number of animals isn't relevant to me so much as the fact that they are interacting with one another.

I'd like to see them. Maybe they can eat my grid lice.

I would love to see something like this.

Dude, you get this puppy up and running I'll blog it ASAP and alert the Boing Boingers. That's a promise!

Just wanted to toss my hat into the ring. I'd love to get involved with a project like this.

What are you people talking about? I see lots of them in clubs all over SL.

Ok...this sounds like one person who'd be interested in contributing...I'll IM you in world.


If we can get about 5-10 people willing to support this, it'd be doable for me.

It's a deal....but this will probably take months for me to figure out. Full time scientist here, and full time parent. And I have a cat stuck up a tree.

I'd be interested, wanted to for a while. Aalthough I'm not sure if the way I'd want to do it would sit with peeps who actually do AL; I'd want to use SL as the environment (prim limits as energy resources and stuff) rather than creating an abstract environment.

Trouble is, currently I'm rather skint and well busy. Could join in a couple of moths or so maybe.

Update:I've contacted several people about this in world. I will try and ensure that I get ahold of all of you by the weekend. The reaction I've received via IM looks promising. This might just happen.

keep your flexiprim tentacles crossed.

I'd be interested in contributing a little bit. Not a serious scripter, but very interested in A-Life and what can be accomplished in SL. Would like to keep in the loop!

I'm a hobbyist programmer and love the A-life concept. I'll do what I can to help -- scripting, modeling or project organization.

Sophie Grainger, Never Rust, I'll IM you in world.

Or you can just join the Ecosystem Working Group I've set up.

Also, there have been several offers of sim land in different capacities from different users for this project, mostly in exchange for helping to defray tier costs.

My gridlice are coming along nicely, and I'm looking for predators for them. Also plants that
seed (proportional to sim performance maybe, as a substitute for sunlight?). We need to get a few more committed individuals, so we can make this work economically for everyone. In a few days it might be worth setting up a meeting too...

I can't code worth beans, but I'm a reasonable builder.. If I can help, let me know. From a design standpoint, I'd love to see a mix of both Organic-styled lifeforms and Technological ones. (Not Tech vs Bio, just a mix) A kind of biotech ecosystem. But let me know if a scripter needs a body for an animal/bug or something.

Let me know when it's deer season in SL.

I realized I needed to use a different account for this project. I'll be participating as Polymerase Enzyme.

I will be able to donate First Land if that will make a difference.

Talk to you in-world!

Ketra, I would love to take you up on that offer. I can script (and have the *very* rudimentary beginnings of a predator) but am not what you'd call a builder of much note. A collaboration would be just the ticket I think.

-S

Sounds like a great idea, although you may need to set some 'rules' as the what is good or bad behaviour that is allowed as it could strain the limits of the system.

I'll be keeping an eye on what's happening here, not sure if I can actively contribute just yet though.