| Turmite | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| General Info | |||
| Genre(s): | Graphics | ||
| Contributor(s): | SquareFingers | ||
| Release Date: | May 4, 2014 | ||
| Development Status: | Stable | ||
| Version: | 1.0.1 | ||
| Size: | 3496 B (3 KB) | ||
| Mode(s): | Single-Player | ||
| Language(s): | English | ||
A turmite lives on an infinite grid of squares (ideally). Initially, all those squares are usually black. The turmite starts in some 'initial state', which I call 'green'.
At any moment, the turmite is in some state ('green' or 'red' in my program), and it is on a square (black or white). The combination of these two factors is used to look up a rule table, and in each part of the rule table there are three instructions: the colour to paint the square, the direction to move, and the new state to assume. The turmite follows these instructions, possibly changing the colour of one square, changing its position, and possibly its orientation, and possibly its state. It then looks up the rule table again with its new state and the colour of the square it is now standing on, and repeats the process.
Though the rule table is small, surprising behaviour can result. Sometimes, it will just do something very simple, like move in a straight line, but sometimes, the turmite just goes crazy (or at least, appears to), and there is no apparent order or pattern. Sometimes, after being crazy for thousands of iterations, it will suddenly hit upon a pattern which makes its behaviour regular. Sometimes, it draws spirals.
For details, see page for Turmites on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turmite or Wolfram MathWorld: http://mathworld.wolfram.com/Turmite.html. The concept of the turmite can be generalized by having more states, more colours, a different type of grid (e.g. triangles or hexagons), or even a different number of dimensions (cubes!).
Instructions[]
Watch the patterns develop on the top screen. Change the turmite rules by tapping on the touchscreen, the D-pad, or the X and Y buttons, and clear the screen with the A button.
Changelog[]
Version 1.0.1[]
- Improved interface ("interesting rules" added).
Version 1.0.0[]
- Initial version, never officially released.
Future Plans[]
No firm plans, just a vague sense that I might have ideas for improvements... or I might not.
Videos and Screenshots[]
Pictures in the Wikipedia and Wolfram articles give a good idea what to expect.
Download[]
License[]
No license applied as of now.
Notes[]
No special notes.
0F_ADD[]
NOTE: This is not the program
This QR is for adding this program to the 0FILES system. Scan it, run 0F_ADD once, and the program on this page will appear on the 0FILES list.
Credits[]
- SquareFingers - Programmer