Slime Molds Solve Maze

I spent a year of college teaching rats to find their way through a maze, and now I find that slime molds, which don't even have brains, can do the same thing! Professor Toshiyuki Nakagaki of Japan's Future University Hakodate studies slime molds, which organize their colonies of cells to move toward a food source, using the most direct route.

"Humans are not the only living things with information-processing abilities," he said. "Simple creatures can solve certain kinds of difficult puzzles. If you want to spotlight the essence of life or intelligence, it's easier to use these simple creatures."

The research in slime mold organization may lead to information-processing breakthroughs, including the possibility of biocomputers. Link -via Arbroath

(Image credit: Flickr user Sentrawoods)