Simulating strange attraction of acellular slime mould Physarum polycephaum to herbal tablets

Abstract

Plasmodium of acellular slime mould Physarum polycephalum exhibits traits of wave-like behaviour. The plasmodium’s behaviour can be finely tuned in laboratory experiments by using herbal tablets. A single tablet acts as a fixed attractor: plasmodium propagates towards the tablet, envelops the tablet with its body and stays around the tablet for several days. Being presented with several tablets the plasmodium executes limit cycle like motions. The plasmodium performs sophisticated routines of movement around tablets: rotation, splitting, and annihilation. We use the two-variable Oregonator model to simulate the plasmodium behaviour in the presence of the herbal tablets. Numerical experiments confirm that using long-distance attracting and short-distance repelling fields we can organise arbitrary movement of plasmodia.