The Origins of Communication Revisited

Arranz, J., Noble, J. and Silverman, E. (2011) The Origins of Communication Revisited. Eleventh European Conference on the Synthesis and Simulation of Living Systems (ECAL'11), France, 8-11 Aug 2011. (Unpublished)

Abstract

Quinn (2001) sought to demonstrate that communication between simulated agents could be evolved without pre-defined communication channels. Quinn’s work was exciting because it showed the potential for ALife models to look at the real origin of communication; however, the work has never been replicated. In order to test the generality of Quinn’s result we use a similar task but a completely different agent architecture. We find that qualitatively similar behaviours emerge, but it is not clear whether they are genuinely communicative. We extend Quinn’s work by adding perceptual noise and internal state to the agents in order to promote ritualization of the nascent signal. Results were inconclusive; philosophical implications are discussed.

• Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item
• Status: Unpublished
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Silverman, Dr Eric
• Authors: Arranz, J., Noble, J., and Silverman, E.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Health & Wellbeing > MRC/CSO SPHSU