Cellular automata guide

Overview

Cellular automata runs grids of cells that all follow one small rule.

Scattered mint-green clusters, blocks and blinkers on a dark grid of the Game of Life
The Game of Life after about forty generations, grown from the random grid the tool opens with.

A cellular automaton is a grid where every cell is on or off. At each step, every cell counts its eight neighbours and the rule decides what it becomes. One step for the whole grid is one generation.

The Game of Life is the best known rule. Its rule string is B3/S23: an empty cell is born (B) with exactly 3 live neighbours, and a live cell survives (S) with 2 or 3. Every other cell is empty next time.

From that, shapes appear that nobody drew: still lifes that never change, oscillators that repeat, and gliders that crawl across the grid. That is emergence.

The tool also runs Brian's Brain, WireWorld, Day & Night, Seeds, Langton's ant, Rule 110, and any B/S rule you type.

Open Cellular automata Start here

In this guide

  1. StartYour first run in five steps.
  2. Every controlEvery control in the panel, one line each.
  3. Three looksThree typed rules and the settings behind each picture.
  4. Keep your workThe PNG, the copied picture and the RLE text.
  5. KeysSpace to move the grid, and the lab's one shortcut.
  6. HelpWhat to do when something goes wrong.

It runs in your browser and draws on a 2D canvas; it needs no WebGL. Nothing is uploaded. A mouse, a trackpad and a finger all work.