Re: Biological Analogies in Manufacturing

[David Sumpter]

Dear Frank,

I work in self-organisation in social insects and can't say I have done any 
work 
in biological manufacturing systems. But am interested in what humans might 
learn from the organisation of bees and ants.

I'm not sure if you know about the  2nd International Symposium on Intelligent
Manufacturing systems this summer but if not then have a look at,

http://www.c3.lanl.gov/~rocha/ECMS98.html

Social insect people are trying to promote self-organisation as being useable 
in 
the design of multi-agent engineering systems. As to if the process of 
manufacturing has direct analogies in the hive of a honey bee - I am quite 
sceptical. But evolution has designed amazingly efficent processes of 
co-operation without centralised control. Understanding these would benefit 
anyone wanting to understand what makes a good organisation. 

Have a look at,

The Wisdom of the Hive by Tom Seeley. 

The final chapters give an overview of self-organisation in an abstract way. 
Applicable to any area.

David Sumpter.

---------------------------------------------------------------
David J.T. Sumpter
Mathematics Department, UMIST, P.O. Box 88, Manchester, M60 1QD

http://www.ma.umist.ac.uk/dsumpter/beesim/index.html
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