3 ms·
> Most of your time is wasted walking back and forth If the tunnel is two ants wide then the relay is basically the same as a long circuit. Every bit of dirt n
by repsilat 8y ago
> Most of your time is wasted walking back and forth
If the tunnel is two ants wide then the relay is basically the same as a long circuit. Every bit of dirt needs to be carried the entire length of the tunnel, so it doesn't really matter if one and carries it the whole way or if n ants do -- the number of ant-miles full and empty are the same, it's just the relative cost of passing manoeuvres and handoffs that matter (or nonlinear carrying costs -- maybe it's easier on the ants to have shorter, more frequent changes between carrying and not carrying.)
- thaumasiotes 8y agoWhat if the tunnel is two ants wide and seven relay-legs long? You can usefully employ 14 ants that way, where you'd be stuck at two without the relays. You're right about the ant-miles full and empty being constant; I guess the advantage of the relay is purely the ability to scale without congesting.
- repsilat 8y ago> you'd be stuck at two without the relays. You mean if you had two ants walking side-by-side? If it's two ants wide you can have one lane in each direction and use all the ants you like.