"Flocks, Herds, and Schools: A Distributed Behavioral Model"

"Flocks, Herds, and Schools: A Distributed Behavioral Model" explores how groups of animals—like birds, mammals, and fish—coordinate their movements without a single leader. Instead, each individual follows simple rules based on nearby neighbors, such as matching speed or direction. This decentralized approach allows for flexible, adaptive group behavior, making the whole collective efficient and resilient. The model helps us understand natural phenomena and can inform algorithms in robotics, artificial intelligence, and crowd management, demonstrating how complex, coordinated actions emerge from simple local interactions.