Super Brainy Slime Mold

By Bora Zivkovic | November 7, 2012 | 1

Share Share Email Print Print

Video of the Week #68 November 7th, 2012:

From: How Brainless Slime Molds Redefine Intelligence [Video] by Ferris Jabr and Anna Rothschild on our main site.

Source: Anna Rothschild of NOVA and Ferris Jabr Scientific American.

Scientists have recently come to understand that slime molds are much smarter than they look. One species in particular – the SpongeBob SquarePants – yellow Physarum polycephalum, can solve mazes, mimic the layout of man-made transportation networks and choose the healthiest food from a diverse menu—and all this without a brain or nervous system. This video was produced through a collaboration between NOVA and Scientific American. To learn more about slime molds and other amazing creatures, watch ‘What Are Animals Thinking?’ on NOVA scienceNOW, airing November 7, 2012 at 10 pm on PBS.

About the Author: Bora Zivkovic is the Blog Editor at Scientific American, chronobiologist, biology teacher, organizer of ScienceOnline conferences and editor of Open Laboratory anthologies of best science writing on the Web. Follow on Twitter @boraz.

More »

The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily those of Scientific American.

Previous: Diving rats

1 Comment

Add Comment

1. greenhome123 10:35 pm 11/8/2012

this slime mold reminds me that we should never underestimate the importance of trial and error.
Link to this

Add a Comment
You must sign in or register as a ScientificAmerican.com member to submit a comment.
Click one of the buttons below to register using an existing Social Account.