Ants: in colony they behave like a single brain

How do the ants to make the decisions? Also, how do they manage to do this through a single brain? Ants have one brain that works as one brain neural network. Their decision-making is based on external and internal input, causing the entire colony to act in the same way. Here is the conclusion of two researchers from Rockefeller University. An answer showing how ants make group decisions.

The study based its analysis on a common decision for most ants: when to leave the nest because it’s too hot. For example, the two scientists reconstructed an artificial nest with temperature monitoring under the eye of a camera. Then they built bigger and bigger ant colonies. They maintained a 2:1 adult to larvae ratio. Then they increased the temperature of the nest to control the ants’ response. It is confirmed that they will leave the nest sooner or later because of the heat, but the reason causing the exodus changes in proportion to the size of the nest. colony.

The colony consisting of 36 workers and 18 larvae ran away when it reached 34 °C. The colony instead consisted of 200 workers and 100 larvae resisting more than 36 degrees. However, the escape process is always the same. The ants continue to work until a certain threshold is reached. Then they all start moving together. What drives the decision? They are external (heat) and internal (colony size) factors and the calculation of costs and benefits that influences the collective decisions of the colony. Every ant is a neuron, so the colony is a brain. Many aspects are not yet clear that studies will certainly analyze better in the future.

At this point, we have managed to disrupt the system and accurately measure its effects; the ultimate goal is to be able to reverse engineer to understand exactly how the whole system works.

Daniel Kronauer, one of the two authors and scholars