What the general between ants and the Internet? At first sight this question is simply absurd. Well, as a last resort, it is possible to see similarity between a huge number of ants in an average ant hill and number of users of a world wide web. It is possible to find still similarity in persistence with which ants perform work, and Internet users climb the various websites and forums. And, perhaps, all. But it turned out that this question is quite serious!
As a result of researches of the American biologists and computer experts it became clear that the behavior of red ants reapers in the course of getting of food very much reminds the protocols controlling the Internet traffic.
Ant society represents itself rigid hierarchical structure at the heart of which – hard work on a limit of forces and implicit obedience of the lowest ants by the highest. However, strangely enough it can sound, at each ant, irrespective of its place in hierarchy, there is only one commander – an instinct. It will implicitly obey it. But how ants learn what actions should be taken at any given moment? After long observations of red ants reapers the scientists came to a conclusion that the behavior of insects is similar to computer algorithms: "Such action will entail such consequences".
For example, such vital issue as search of food. Every morning the ant hill leaves big group of intelligence agents. Those ants to which the part of "furazhir" is assigned wait for their return. They at any time can go after intelligence agents, being guided on their smell, but prefer to know the result at first. If many ants return, it serves as a signal that a lot of food is found, and then a large number of furazhir sets off. Action on an algorithm is available: "Food returned a little a little, so. Food times a little – it is not necessary to leave". Or: "Food returned much much, so. In that case it is necessary to leave and bring it in an ant hill!" That is the number of the come-back intelligence agents likewise affects quantity of the furazhir leaving an ant hill as Internet protocols influence width of a data transmission channel. The American researchers called this phenomenon of Anternet (untranslatable word-play: in English "ant" - "ant"). The protocol of management of information (TSR) regulates the speed of transfer of data, allowing to bring the capacity and speed of transfer into an optimum combination. In the same way as well as the quantity of the ants participating in process of search and delivery of food directly depends on amount of available edibles. As you see, a question: "What the general between ants and the Internet?" was not absurd at all.