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1989-02-27
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L I F E L A B
===================
KENNETH L. KUBOS, PH.D.
* Contact - The Science Lab BBS (301) 444-0551 *
LIFELAB is a cellular automaton environment which will allow you to
manipulate the rules of a two-dimensional "Game of Life", as it has
been known.
All automata begin with a pattern of cells known as the 'seed'. A set
of rules is then applied to transform this pattern into the next
generation. This new generation, in turn, acts as the seed for ITS
successor. LIFELAB limits the number of generations to 500 or until the
EGA/VGA border is exceeded. The generation limit may easily be changed
from the included source code.
LIFELAB begins by selecting (1) Whether you will draw the seed freehand
or use a seed contained in a preexisting file, and (2) the rules by
which a pixel or 'cell' will live, replicate or die.
You will then taken to the 'arena' where "The Game of Life" will be
played out. If you selected 'freehand', you may now enter the seed of
your choice using the arrow keys of the numberic keypad. All 8
directions are implimented. 'Enter' erases a point. Press 'S' to save
your seed and play, or 'Q' to quit seed entry and play. If you selected
'S' to use a seed from the disk, type its name and press 'Enter'. The
seed will be loaded, drawn on the screen and game will the be executed
according to the rules you selected.
Pressing 'Enter' during play, recycles the program.
Pressing 'X' quits the program.
--------------------------
Various seed/rule combinations can result in interesting patterns which
when viewed in LIFELAB's animation, move, eat, die, replicate, leave
droppings (just leave 'em - no pooper scoopers here), etc. You will
also witness the growth of corals and the formation of crystals as
'living caps' organize 'thin air' into in a highly organized, dead
matrix.
Perhaps must breathtaking of all is the formation of exotic 'mandalas',
'yantras' or archetypal symbols resembling mystical vestments and
oriental rugs from simple square, rectangular or linear seeds. With
these, one realizes the wisdom of the sages who have said that it's not
the goal, but the process of reaching it that counts. As an interesting
aside, there is no method of specifying a seed, rule set and generation
number which will DIRECTLY produce the pattern observed in a particular
generation; the whole process MUST be played out to see that pattern.
----------------------------------------------------
USING THE CELLULAR AUTOMATON PROGRAM, LIFELAB.EXE
1) EGA/VGA color monitor is required.
2) You might want to 'shadow' your BIOS in RAM for
fastest operation.
3) You might need to remove some TSR's from 640K
machines if you're particularly TSR-heavy.
----------------------------------------------------
EXAMPLE: Using the file 'STEN' (solid square, 10x10 cells) as a seed.
S Z O (Isolation Charact.)
---------------------------------------------------------
Z | coral coral cancer
O | oriental rug stable rug "blinkers"
T | dying coral crystal growth living 'virus'
- ----------------------------------------------------------
^
S
t
a
t
e
#
=======================================================================
TRY THESE:
A. Seed with the file 'FIFTY' and use rules: Z, O.
B. Seed with a 6X6 solid square (file 'SSIX') and use rules: S, O.
=======================================================================