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Updated: Jul 4, 2025

Author Spotlight: Collective Behavioral Analysis of the Nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans
Published on: August 25, 2023
The power of weak, transient interactions across biology: A paradigm of emergent behavior
Paula A Vasquez1, Ben Walker2, Kerry Bloom3
1Department of Mathematics, University of South Carolina, United States of America.
Abstract:
A growing list of diverse biological systems and their equally diverse functionalities provides realizations of a paradigm of emergent behavior. In each of these biological systems, pervasive ensembles of weak, short-lived, spatially local interactions act autonomously to convey functionalities at larger spatial and temporal scales. In this article, a range of diverse systems and functionalities are presented in a cursory manner with literature citations for further details. Then two systems and their properties are discussed in more detail: yeast chromosome biology and human respiratory mucus.
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