1.7.9

LIFE:
a game that imitates real life.

This simulation is based on a game invented by mathematician John Horton Conway. Conway’s Game of Life is an example of “cellular automation” where all cells’ behavior on the grid are determined by a set of rules. The game board represents a community and each cell represents a community member. All members follow certain rules.

The rules are simple.
1. If a cell has too many (meaning 4 or more) neighbors the cell dies because of overcrowding.
2. If the cell is too lonely (meaning one or less neighbors), it also dies.
3. The last rule of the game is that if a cell has the right environment (meaning exactly three neighbors) a baby cell will be born.

This applet also has an added feature to make it easy to see the age of the cell – the color fades form red to blue (red being young cell and blue an older cell)

As you play, try using “step” instead of start and stop – it slows the action down. Think about which arrangements are stable and which are not. Why is this?