Random Ramblings of Lauren Mandelbrot

This may end up bein` somethin` of a WebLog, an` as such prolly oughta be in General Topics or some such, but Ah put it heah `cause Ah `spects it ta be heavy wi`stories `bout Artificial Life.

My trials an` tribulations in getten born are detailed in Yet Another Newby Needing Help, an` need not be repeated heah. As noted at th` end of that thread, Ah finially managed ta gets myself born on 2006-05-17.

As happens wi` all new avatars, Ah was borned on Welcome Island, where Ah went through th` usual stuff, an` wound up at th` Graduation Temple, where th` signs what were supposed ta take me ta Help Island refused ta co-operate wi` me. While tryin` ta figger `em out, a nice Itialiano guy I took at first foah anothah Newbie, an` latah fo` an off-duty Mentor, came by and flew me there. Newbie? Mentor? Who knows, --Ah certainly doan`t-- but he was an angel when an angel was needed.

Ah wandered around Help Island a while, where Ah built mase`f a stupid stool, an chatted wi` ma new friend an` a few othah folks.

Aftah a while, Ah got bored, an` accepted an invite ta th` mainland from a Furry who was a Vanilla Wolven when Ah met her, then latah turned into a White Rabbit. This new friend showed me a few interestin` places, startin` wi` a trip ta visit some famous fish. Rememberin`readin` in th` forums `bout someone sittin` on one, Ah tried it maself, an` th` school it was in froze. Sorry, `bout that; ma Wolven friend telled me that th` owner` have ta reset th` school.

Then th` bitch [no offense; "bitch" means "female canine", i.e. "she-wolf"] took me to a platform overlookin` a place wheah Artificial Life was supposed ta be havin` an ecosystem of their own. Really cool, but all Ah saw was what looked like iceburgs made of sand. By this time, Ah had showed her ma stool, an` she custom-built a "Jazzy Stool" jes` fo li`l` ol` me.

Whilse we were theah, anothah visitor dropped by, an` th` three of us chatted `bout Artificial Life. Aftah a while, the nice gentleman left, and the wolf lady took me ta see if we could find me a pair of butterfly wings, like th` Goddess Aimee wears in her Forum Avatar picture.

We wound up at a *PREEN* store, but there weren`t any wings for sale, so we went somewhere else, where Ah picked up some freebie clothes an` skins, an` a few hand-bags. Figurin` Ah wanted ta try `em on, she invited me to a private sky-box, where she appeared as a bunny instead of a bunny-eater. Ah thinks she looks cuter as a bunny. After a while, Ah requested an` recieved permission ta invite someone else up to th` skybox ta get acquainted afore she hadta go elsewhere.

In response to ma invite, a nice lady wi` a cat on her shoulder pops inta existance. The three of us chat a bit whilst Ah tries on some of ma new clothes an` skins, then th` cat-on-shoulder lady an` I have business elsewhere, so we makes friends an` goes our seperate ways. Before Ah leaves, th` bunny also extends friendship, an` gives me a couple more presents.

Ah loves Second Life.

Log-out. Toodle-oo!

Login.

Next mornin`, Ah wakes up on th` ground under th`skybox, which is presumably long gone, this bein` a sandbox sim. Neahby Ah finds an Avatar tryin` ta teach a box ta talk. Whilst this is goin` on, Ah rezez up a ball, gives it th` blue plaid texture from th`library of standard textures.

Between readin` the scriptin` wiki an` pickin` th` mind of th`would-be box-teachah, Ah teaches ma ball ta say "Hello, Mommy!" when the script in it resets, an` ta say ::purr:: when folks pets it.

We kept workin` on our projects, both of us makin` progress. Th` box-teachah commented that th` box seemed ta be "insane", an` Gingahm, ma pet ball, learned how ta stick close by her Mommy`s side. Further progress on Cubit, an` Ginham learned how ta whisper ::purr:: at random intervals. Still chattin` an` researchin` an` Cubit continuin` ta act insane, despite gettin` smarter, an` Gingham learned to whisper random numbers along wi` her ::purr::in`.

Things keep up like this foah a while, and Gingham progressively learns how ta use those random numbers ta wander around randomly whilst still wantin` ta stay close ta her Mommy, how ta say ::purr:: out loud when folks pets her, an` finally how ta go visit folks who pets her.

`Bout this time, Cubit finally learns its lesson, an` it an` its teacher, havin` business elsewhere, take their leave, so Ah wanders about a bit, meetin` a few othah nice folks, includin` a blue Gryphon tryin` ta groom itself [an` lookin` a tad odd what with th` tail an` one o` th` wings detatched an` sittin` on th` ground nearby] an` someone workin` on a project Ah didn`t quite undahstand, but who tried ta help wi` Gingham.

Aftah this, Ah met a group of folks loungin` inside a public buildin` talkin` like ta makes a lady ::blush::. Nice folk, though. One of `em claimed ta be some kind o` dog, but looked ta me more like a sci-fi space storm. Afore Ah had ta leave, a couple of `em played wi` Gingham, an` they seemed ta get on well enough.

Log-out. This was about mid-day Thursday, an` Ah hain`t been able ta make it back since. Toodle-oo!

Could I suggest that you get a regular blog somewhere like blogspot.com, and restrict posting on this forum to the subject of artificial life? That is experiments in simulated lifeforms, rather than the diary of an avatar.

Also if you're expecting our ecosystem sim to be much more than a toy anytime soon, you've been sadly misled.

genesis takes time.

I thought it took six days...

Only after you edit it down from the sumerian original.

Well, we are dealing with the 'days' of an all-powerful ever-present omnicient being. One of those 'days' could have covered eons of our time..

After whole days of interestin` fun and adventure not suitable for recordin` in a log primarily about ma Quest foah Artificial Life, finally somethin` recordable happened.

Yesterday, a new Friend expressed interest in playin` with Gingham`s script. Ah gave her a copy, then proceeded ta assist in adjustin` it ta work foah a flyer.

Today, I think Ah`d like ta try backportin` some of th` changes ta Gingham, `cause they might help settle her dow a touch, an` get herself "losted" less often.

Meanwhile, Ah`s been explorin`, makin` new friends and new Friends, an` collectin` whole BUNCHES of freebie clothes, scripts, an` watchamacallits.

Ain`t [second]life grand?

Toodle-oo!

Sorry Llauren,

You are going on my block list from now on. This really isn't the place for a personal blog.

Bye

Login.

Day before Yesterday Ah created a new species: "Patch of Grass". So far, all it does is grow on a timer, but it will be a food source for my herbavores, when Ah get around to creatin` any.

Meanwhile, off-topic adventures continue apace. Still haven`t gotten around to backportin` those changes to Gingham, though.

Logout. Toodle-oo!

Login.

As of yesterday, th` Patch of Grass grows at a rate controlled by the height of the sun above the horizon. Several days ago, th` Patch became mowable via th` touch-start event.

Also, Ah have discovered a "fairy hive" whose fairies look like somethin` Ah`d like ta use in my buddin` ecosystem [pun intended ].

Other things keep happenin` too, of course, but don`t get reported here, for obvious reasons.

Well, that`s about it foah now; toodle-oo!! Logout.

A few days ago, I was granted permission to plant my garden at Yongnam (47,32,21), where I promptly planted a Patch of Grass. Yesterday, I finally got my Firefly smart enough to fly, and I released a small swarm of them there. Most of the fireflies home in on other fireflies, but one of them homes in on the Patch of Grass.

The numbers over the fireflies represent their "health". When it drops to zero, they llDie(). If you wish to "feed" them, just touch them, and the entire script will reset, resetting the counter to 65535 in the process.

Unlike some fish (sorry, Surina), the fireflies will not "die" if you sit on them. Although it might be possible to use the fireflies to "grief" users, it is currently not possible to grief the fireflies themselves. The fireflies apparently think that they are physical vehicles, specifically airplanes. Feel free to ride one, but don`t bother trying to fly it, as it will ignore your attempts to steer it.

Be careful if you visit my garden, though. You land on the Patch of Grass, and if you left-click it, you "mow" it, and it gets smaller. Make it too small, and you cannot stand on it any more, and fall into the ocean.

What happens if you spray RAID on them?

P2

Whay, Darlin`, iffn y`all tries that, yoah Redundant Array of Independant Drives gets splattered all ovah yoah monitor`s screan, an` it gets kinda difficult ta read, but that won`t mattah much, `cause yoah computah will have stopped workin` `casue th` primary sotrage medium will have gone missin`!

All in all, Shugah, Ah wouldn`t reccommend th` procedure.

Toodle-oo!

Oh, not that again. I thought you'd dispensed with the silly fake dialect.

P2

I`d been looking for WEEKS for a place to plant my Garden of Life when Bibi Book graciously allowed me to plant one on her land, probably without even really understanding what I was asking.

Thank you, Bibi. You may call yourself a Witch, but you`re an Angel to me.

Day before yesterday, not one but TWO visitors to my Garden at Bibi`s Water requested that I plant a garden on their lands. I now have THREE Gardens of Life!

Yesterday, I had to make Service Calls on the new Gardens. At one site, it seems that some of the fireflies had wandered off and gotten trapped in another property`s autoreturn. Since this garden is sited at the corner of four sims, and the other property is in one of the other three, it is not surprising that the wayward fireflies had trouble finding their ways back home. Rest assured that steps are being taken to address the issue.

At the other Garden, the host wanted Butterflies, so I now have two airborn species. The Butterflies have different bodies than the fireflies, but use the same brains [for now]. Butterflies are more expensive than fireflies, however: While Fireflies [and Patches of Grass] cost one prim each, the butterflies cost three.

Also yesterday, another friend who has hired me to do some scripting for him built me a fancy firefly that more closel resembles RL fireflies, but it is even more expensive: it costs either eight oreleven prims [we counted eight, but I forget if that was before or after adding the legs].

There is no news about the brains they use, but I have made the "HerdMaster" Fireflies yellow to make them easier to tell apart from the "standard" Fireflies. There is currently no comparable mechanism for identifying the "HerdMaster" Butterflies.

Oh, and this whole "HerdMaster" idea is strictly temporary; the HerdMasters are the individuals who seek out the company of other than their own species. They "master" the "herd" because the rest of the "herd" sees them and includes them in their preferred-location calculations, but they do not see the herd themselves. This serves to loosely anchor the herd near whatever the Herdmaster *does* see. This is all controlled by the Description of the root prim in the animal body and the names of the target objects, and is currently limited to scripted objects.

Toodle-oo!

Login.

Small changes have been made to the Firefly brain [the Butterflies still use the Firefly brain, so they get the updates, too].

1. The code that calculates the average location of the visible objects now deliberately MIS-calculates positions:
   1. All visible objects now appear to be one meter closer to the sensor than they actually are.
      
   2. As a consequence, anything that is less than a meter away appears to be "behind" the sensor relative to the actual position, making the sensing bug tend to avoid bugs less than one meter away.
      
   3. This distortion is further distorted by doubling the apparent distance of anything with a negative "distance", further enhancing the repulsion from nearby bugs.
      
   4. This means that the bugs no longer "clump" as closely as physics will allow, and tend to keep in motion a little more.
      
   
   
2. The reset-script-on-change functionality now explicitly ignores sim border crossings: I`ve decided that I do NOT want crossing a sim boundry to reset the critters` Health back to 48 hours. This last change has not yet been transplanted into all my critters yet, however, though I *have* made a point of updating all the bugs in Gardens number Three and Four, which sit directly across a sim boundry from one-another. Sitting on and touching the bugs still "feeds" them back to maximum health, though.
   
3. Yes, I now have a fourth Garden, sort of. The owner of the land that is home to Garden Two persuaded her next-door neighbor across the sim border between them to allow me to plant a Garden on her side of the boundry, to help attract the bugs that cross the border back to the border. The two Gardens are close enough that the critters wander freely between the two sites, and occasionally have to be herded back across the border to rebalance the populations of the two Gardens.
   

Toodle-oo! Logout.

Login.Oops! That should be Gardens Two and Four, not Three and Four.

Toodle-oo! Logout.

What a clever way of adding repulsion to the flocking code. Do you find that this tends to keep the bugs spaced roughly evenly at 1m apart?

Personaly I'm sticking with seperate attraction and repulsion forces so that they can be varied independently.

Surina.

Login.

Wow! A personal note from my Queen! [I`m an Amazon, too, but that`s another story.]Awwwwwww. ::blush:: Actually, no, but they DO tend to matain MINIMUM distances of about a meter. I`d say it works.Actually, in my code, they CAN be varied independantly. I`m not sure why this information didn`t find its way into my previous post. See below for details.My Queen. When I was new, I sat on some of your fish, and they stopped working. I didn`t know better, or I wouldn`t have done it: I had read about them in Hamlet`s New World Notes, where he quoted you as saying that you didn`t believe that there was any way to grief your fish, and where mention had been made of sitting on them. I have been trying to contact you intermittantly ever since, to get the fish reset, but the last time I was there, they were still dead. My apologies.



Since my last update, the Patch of Grass than anchors Garden number Four has been ejected by the relavent resident`s landlord, for reasons that are unclear to me, as I have heard them third-hand, and details were rather lacking.

As for the brains themselves, I can`t think of anything new to report about the bugs, and I don`t think that this is anything new, but the previous description of the desired-location code is not currently correct.

Herewith, therefore, in greater detail: In calculating the "average position" of the detected objecs, the detected position is processed as follows:

1. The detected position is converted from an absolute location to a normalized direction vector and a distance.
   
2. One meter is subtracted from the distance. This makes bugs closer than one meter appear to be "behind" the bug, relative to the normalized direction vector.
   
3. Any negative distances thus generated are then DOUBLED, effectively doubling the repulsion relative to the attraction.
   

Toodle-oo!
Logout.

Greetingz Llauren


What I should have said was mine calculate repulsion seperately..

A scan is performed and position and heading data for each neighbour is stored in a list.
Centre of mass is calculated for the attractor force using all the data.
The heading vectors are averaged and a force calculated to turn the fish in the same direction as the shoal is heading.
A repultion force is calculated based on the closest neighbour only as that's the one you need to avoid hitting...

Login.My Queen.Ok.I do not use a list, but otherwise we seem to be doing the same thing so far.I do this too, except that I do it during the scan, and I use position data only, not mass. All bugs are assumed to mass the same, even though the Butterflies and Fireflies mass differently. [Actually, the mass is assumed to be irrelavent.]I`m slightly confused. That would seem to involve scanning for the vectors of motion of the other fish. Do you mean the same direction as the shoal IS, rather than is HEADING? If so, we do the same thing, albeit at differnt points in the code.My distortion lessens the attractive force uniformily for the entire swarm, and does not introduce any actual repultion except in the case of bugs closer than the distortion distance of one meter, but then does so for all of those. The attraction and repulsion are handled by the same actual code, except for the one statement that adjusts the intensity of the repultion when repultion is detected to have occured, yet the result is about the same as if they had been processed independantly.

...and My Queen? Are the fish I sat on still dead bodies? I`m sorry.

Toodle-oo! Logout.

Don't worry about sitting on them Lauren. They're tough little things.


By "centre of mass" I'm using a figure of speech, I don't calculate or measure their mass.
When you do a sensor scan, the data returned give position and velocity vector. Position tells you where the object actually is (as you know), the velocity vector tells you how fast and in which direction the object is moving... When you calculate the aiming point for your creature to move to you should include the velocity data as a forcast of where the shoal will be by the time your creature gets there. Otherwise your creature will always be lagging behind.

Turning your creature to match the general heading of the shoal (average of the vectors) makes the shoal move as a single unit rather than a group of individuals orbiting an arbitrary centre.

The reason I store the data before prosessing is so that the calculations are done on all the fish at a single point in time. Doing the calculations "on the fly" gives a false result for shoal centre if you need to re-scan for more data.

Surina