Production year
2017
© Audrey DUSSUTOUR / CRCA / CNRS Images
20170060_0006
Fusion of three social amoebas, Physarum polycephalum, commonly known as the "blob", during a salt test. Salt is repellent for the blob. Here, three blobs have been placed in front of a salt bridge that they must cross to reach the food. One of them, on the right, has been habituated to salt, while the other two (centre and left) are "naive". It can be observed that the central blob is in the process of extending its pseudopodium onto the salt, demonstrating that the one on the right, habituated to salt, has shared its knowledge with the central blob. The blob’s numerous characteristics include the capacity, despite the fact that it does not have a brain, to learn from its experiences and pass on the information learned to other individuals by fusing with them, demonstrating that learning is not necessarily dependent on the nervous system. Lastly, it has a venous system that forms according to the same physical laws that govern the vascularisation of cancerous tumours, making it a model of interest for research.
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2017
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