Conway’s Game of Life

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Life Lexicon

HWSS

A heavyweight spaceship, the fourth most common spaceship. Found by Conway in 1970 by modifying a LWSS. See also MWSS.

Game of Life pattern ’HWSS_(1)’

The HWSS possesses both a tail spark and a domino belly spark which can easily perturb other objects as it passes by. The spaceship can also perturb some objects in additional ways. For examples, see puffer and glider turner.

Dave Buckingham found that the HWSS can be synthesized using three gliders as shown below:

Game of Life pattern ’HWSS_(2)’

Game of Life Explanation

The Game of Life is not your typical computer game. It is a cellular automaton, and was invented by Cambridge mathematician John Conway.

This game became widely known when it was mentioned in an article published by Scientific American in 1970. It consists of a grid of cells which, based on a few mathematical rules, can live, die or multiply. Depending on the initial conditions, the cells form various patterns throughout the course of the game.

Rules

For a space that is populated:
Examples

Each cell with one or no neighbors dies, as if by solitude.

Each cell with four or more neighbors dies, as if by overpopulation.

Each cell with two or three neighbors survives.

For a space that is empty or unpopulated:

Each cell with three neighbors becomes populated.

More information

Video’s about the Game of Life

Stephen Hawkings The Meaning of Life (John Conway's Game of Life segment)
The rules are explained in Stephen Hawkings’ documentary The Meaning of Life
Inventing Game of Life (John Conway) - Numberphile
John Conway himself talks about the Game of Life

Interesting articles about John Conway

Implemented by Edwin Martin <>