A. J. Wood

Evolving the selfish herd: emergence of distinct aggregating strategies in an individual-based model

From zebra to starlings, herring and even tadpoles, many creatures move in an organized group. The emergent behaviour arises from simple underlying movement rules, but the evolutionary pressure which favours these rules has not been conclusively identified. Various explanations exist for the advantage to the individual of group formation: reduction of predation risk; increased foraging efficiency or reproductive success. Here, we adopt an individual-based model for group formation and subject it to simulated predation and foraging; the haploid individuals evolve via a genetic algorithm based on their relative success under such pressure. Our work suggests that flock or herd formation is likely to be driven by predator avoidance. Individual fitness in the model is strongly dependent on the presence of other phenotypes, such that two distinct types of evolved group can be produced by the same predation or foraging conditions, each stable against individual mutation. We draw analogies with multiple Nash equilibria theory of iterated games to explain and categorize these behaviours. Our model is sufficient to capture the complex behaviour of dynamic collective groups, yet is flexible enough to manifest evolutionary behaviour.

Daisyworld: a review

Daisyworld is a simple planetary model designed to show the long-term effects of coupling between life and its environment. Its original form was introduced by James Lovelock as a defense against criticism that his Gaia theory of the Earth as a self-regulating homeostatic system requires teleological control rather than being an emergent property. The central premise, that living organisms can have major effects on the climate system, is no longer controversial. The Daisyworld model has attracted considerable interest from the scientific community and has now established itself as a model independent of, but still related to, the Gaia theory. Used widely as both a teaching tool and as a basis for more complex studies of feedback systems, it has also become an important paradigm for the understanding of the role of biotic components when modeling the Earth system. This paper collects the accumulated knowledge from the study of Daisyworld and provides the reader with a concise account of its important properties. We emphasize the increasing amount of exact analytic work on Daisyworld and are able to bring together and summarize these results from different systems for the first time. We conclude by suggesting what a more general model of life-environment interaction should be based on.

Critical effects at 3D wedge wetting

We show that continuous filling transitions are possible in 3D wedge geometries made from substrates exhibiting first-order wetting transitions, and develop a fluctuation theory yielding a complete classification of the critical behavior. Our fluctuation theory is based on the derivation of a Ginzburg criterion for filling and also on an exact transfer-matrix analysis of a novel effective Hamiltonian that we propose as a model for wedge fluctuation effects. The influence of interfacial fluctuations is very strong and, in particular, leads to a remarkable universal divergence of the interfacial roughness xi( perpendicular) approximately (T(F)-T)(-1/4) on approaching the filling temperature T(F), valid for all possible types of intermolecular forces.

Universality for 2D Wedge Wetting

We study 2D wedge wetting using a continuum interfacial Hamiltonian model which is solved by transfer-matrix methods. For arbitrary binding potentials, we are able to exactly calculate the wedge free-energy and interface height distribution function and, thus, can completely classify all types of critical behaviour. We show that critical filling is characterized by strongly universal fluctuation dominated critical exponents, whilst complete filling is determined by the geometry rather than fluctuation effects. Related phenomena for interface depinning from defect lines in the bulk are also considered.

Wedge filling, cone filling and the strong-fluctuation regime

Interfacial fluctuation effects occurring at wedge- and cone-filling transitions are investigated and shown to exhibit very different characteristics. For both geometries we argue that the conditions for observing critical (continuous) filling are much less restrictive than for critical wetting, which is known to require the fine tuning of the Hamaker constants. Wedge filling is critical if the wetting binding potential does not exhibit a local maximum, whilst conic filling is critical if the line tension is negative. This latter scenario is particularly encouraging for future experimental studies. Using mean-field and effective Hamiltonian approaches, which allow for breather-mode fluctuations which translate the interface up and down the sides of the confining geometry, we are able to completely classify the possible critical behaviours (for purely thermal disorder). For the three-dimensional wedge, the interfacial fluctuations are very strong and characterized by a universal roughness critical exponent ν⊥W = 1/4 independent of the range of the forces. For the physical dimensions d = 2 and d = 3, we show that the effect of the cone geometry on the fluctuations at critical filling is to mimic the analogous interfacial behaviour occurring at critical wetting in the strong-fluctuation regime. In particular, for d = 3 and for quite arbitrary choices of the intermolecular potential, the filling height and roughness show the same critical properties as those predicted for three-dimensional critical wetting with short-ranged forces in the large-wetting-parameter (ω>2) regime.

Wedge covariance for two-dimensional filling and wetting

A comprehensive theory of interfacial fluctuation effects occurring at two-dimensional wedge (corner) filling transitions in pure (thermal disorder) and impure (random bond disorder) systems is presented. Scaling theory and the explicit results of transfer matrix and replica trick studies of interfacial Hamiltonian models reveal that, for almost all examples of intermolecular forces, the critical behaviour at filling is fluctuation dominated, characterized by universal critical exponents and scaling functions that depend only on the wandering exponent ζ. Within this filling-fluctuation (FFL) regime, the critical behaviour of the midpoint interfacial height, probability distribution function, local compressibility and wedge free energy are identical to corresponding quantities predicted for the strong-fluctuation (SFL) regime for critical wetting transitions at planar walls. In particular the wedge free energy is related to the SFL regime point tension, which is calculated for systems with random bond disorder using the replica trick. The connection with the SFL regime for all these quantities can be expressed precisely in terms of special wedge covariance relations, which complement standard scaling theory and restrict the allowed values of the critical exponents for both FFL filling and SFL critical wetting. The predictions for the values of the exponents in the SFL regime recover earlier results based on random walk arguments. The covariance of the wedge free energy leads to a new, general relation for the SFL regime point tension, which derives the conjectured Indekeu-Robledo critical exponent relation and also explains the origin of the logarithmic singularity for pure systems known from exact Ising studies due to Abraham and co-workers. Wedge covariance is also used to predict the numerical values of critical exponents and position dependence of universal one-point functions for pure systems.

Universal phase boundary shifts for corner wetting and filling

The phase boundaries for corner wetting (filling) in square and diagonal lattice Ising models are exactly determined and show a universal shift relative to wetting near the bulk criticality. More generally, scaling theory predicts that the filling phase boundary shift for wedges and cones is determined by a universal scaling function R(d)(psi) depending only on the opening angle 2psi. R(d)(psi) is determined exactly in d = 2 and approximately in higher dimensions using nonclassical local functional and mean-field theory. Detailed numerical transfer matrix studies of the magnetization profile in finite-size Ising squares support the conjectured connection between filling and the strong-fluctuation regime of wetting.

A disorder point for filling transitions in 1+1 dimensions

We study a continuum interfacial Hamiltonian model of fluid adsorption in a (1+1)-dimensional wedge geometry, which is known to exhibit a filling transition when the contact angle θπ = α, with α the wedge angle. We extend the transfer matrix analysis of the model to calculate the interfacial height probability distribution function P(l;x), for arbitrary positions x along the wedge. The asymptotics of this function reveal a fluctuation-induced disorder point (non-thermodynamic singularity) that occurs prior to filling when θπ = 2α, where there is a change of length scales determining the decay of P(l;x).

Interfacial fluctuation effects at 3D wedge-wetting

Abstract We review recent advances concerning the nature of fluctuation effects occurring at continuous filling transitions pertinent to fluid adsorption in wedge geometries. Unlike continuous (critical) wetting transitions for planar interfaces which are an extremely rare experimental phenomena, continuous filling transitions should be easily observable in the laboratory since they can occur even if the underlying wetting transition is first-order. We argue that interfacial fluctuation effects at filling transitions are extremely strong and lead to a remarkable universal divergence of the interfacial roughness ξ ⊥ ∼( T F − T ) −1/4 on approaching the transition temperature T F , valid for all types of intermolecular forces. The results of renormalisation group and transfer matrix calculations of a novel interfacial model yielding a complete classification of the critical exponents for all dimensions and ranges of forces are given.