Ant algorithms

A review of E.O. Wilson’s latest in The NY Review of Books. Ants seem to get a lot done based on a few simple capabilities: they can lay down odors, detect and differentiate those odors, and count.

In Surely You’re Joking, Feynman recounts some great experiments he did on ants in his Princeton dorm room. See, e.g., here. My wife is totally uninterested when I do these types of things at home, but perhaps my kids will like it when they get a bit older 🙂