Life & Nature
Biological, ecological, flocking, growth, and nature-inspired simulations.
The Life & Nature category collects simulations inspired by biological, ecological, and natural systems. Each tool models a process — pattern formation, flocking behavior, growth — that emerges from simple local rules rather than top-down scripting. The tools are interactive, with click-and-drag input and tunable parameters that shift the emergent behavior in real time.
Reaction Diffusion runs the Gray-Scott model on the GPU via a WebGL fragment shader. Two virtual chemicals diffuse across the grid; one consumes the other and is fed by it. Different combinations of feed and kill rates produce stripes, spots, mitosis-like splitting, and Turing patterns. Click and drag on the canvas to inject the activator chemical and seed new growth from your cursor. The simulation runs at full screen resolution and exports PNG or JPG.
Boids Flocking runs the classic Reynolds boids algorithm. Each bird follows three local rules — separation, alignment, and cohesion — and the flocking pattern emerges from those rules alone. Adjust the weight of each rule, plus optional predator avoidance, to shift the flock from tight formations to loose swarms. Click anywhere to drop a temporary predator and watch the flock scatter and regroup. The simulation handles comfortably in the low hundreds of boids on a typical laptop.
Both tools in this category are interactive: your input shapes the system, and the parameters control the regime. Export to PNG captures the current frame.
