Sublime

Second, we foster good communication within the debating group, recognizing that this is how valuable information that is uncovered by one member will quickly reach the other members.

By operating without a leader, the scout bees of a swarm neatly avoid one of the greatest threats to good decision making by groups: a domineering leader. Such an individual reduces a group’s collective power to uncover a diverse set of possible solutions to a problem, to critically appraise these possibilities, and to winnow out all but the best o

The final role of their lives is to go out foraging, because this is the most dangerous task of all, and older bees are expendable.

swarm bees choose their new home without a leader integrating information from different sources or telling the others what to do.

Hunter-gatherers had not seen themselves as superior beings because they were seldom aware of their impact on the ecosystem. A typical band numbered in the dozens, it was surrounded by thousands of wild animals, and its survival depended on understanding and respecting the desires of these animals. Foragers had to constantly ask themselves what dee

Science articles begin with a mini literature review:

the heart of the bees’ decision-making process is a turbulent debate among groups of scout bees supporting different options (potential nest sites). These groups compete to gain additional members from a pool of scout bees who are not yet committed to a site. Whichever group first attracts a quorum of supporters wins the competition. The winning gr

able to outsmart, outhunt and outlast the bigger, stronger and faster members of the animal kingdom.

When we look at nature, we are only looking at the survivors. Stephen Budiansky, If a Lion Could Talk