Ants use geometry, say experts

[Champ]

ANTS use angled signposts, using tiny scent markers, to find their way home or follow the path into the wilderness, according to a study published today.

University of Sheffield scientists looked at the foraging trails laid by Pharoah's ants (Monomorium pharaonis).

Scout ants would set the trail from the nest using pheromone scents as indicators for those coming behind them.

Wherever the trail forked to let the ants explore potential sources of food, one of the angles between the forks was always around 60 degrees, the researchers found in the study published in Nature.

http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,11706212%255E13762,00.html

[Forkboy]

1. This gets my vote for neatest story of the day

thanks for posting it!

[ScrewyRabbit]

2. Oh, it must be 'intelligent design'

unless of course we discover that that some simple routine leads to this kind of intelligent behavior, in which case it won't make it into the Penn. curriculum...

[Gothic Sponge]

3. I won't be impressed until they start using algebra!

:silly:

[WindRavenX]

4. or multi-variable calc!

Bah. Ants usin' geometry...they haven't mastered integration! ;)

[ScrewyRabbit]

5. ...YET!

[Apple Smoothie]

6. That's Hilarious

Anthropomorphication of Ants.

This is the problem with our city designs.
We use 90 degree corners, mostly.

Smart little buggers for such a tiny 'brain'.
Who gets paid to determine this stuff ?

Next thing you know they'll find ants have a 'verified voting' system.

[Placebo]

7. What do the "experts" know?

They still say that HUMANS evolved from APES! The kind of apes you see in the ZOO! :crazy: