S Y M C Y T O New Forms of Harvest

Ancient algorithms

Just as AI is creeping into our lives, nature poetically accelerates the endorsement of a lesser-known form of intelligence. As if to remind the world that hidden amongst ancient organisms is an organic intelligence — an OI — that demonstrates the power of evolutionary programming. This is slime mould: a left-field, decentralised, single-celled, pulsating problem solver.

Not actually mould

…but a collection of single-celled organisms closely related to the amoeba family. These organisms possess advanced capabilities and intelligence demonstrated by their spatial awareness and problem-solving skills. Several advanced algorithms have been developed based on numerous behavioural anomalies exhibited by this humble species.

Befriending Physarum polycephalum

To honour and help increase the awareness of this organism we have been collaborating with the flagship species, Physarum polycephalum. United, we have created a new form of harvest — a creative content branch that represents a fresh type of meta-fruiting body in the form of timelapse bio-art and documentary content. A mix of our own sculptural pieces and objects found in nature, combined with ongoing development of cultivation techniques and smart-enabled grow chambers.

Slime mould news & research

Slime Molds as a Valuable Source of Antimicrobial Agents

Given the emerging multidrug-resistant pathogens, the number of effective antimicrobial agents to deal with the threat of bacterial and fungal resistance has fallen dramatically. Therefore, the critical solution to deal with the missing effective antibiotics is to research new sources or new synthetic antibiotics. This article has focused on antibiotics from slime molds, especially Myxomycetes.

Vida Tafakori, Kharazmi UniversityRead article

Slime mould art & media

Our process involves cultivation of healthy, informed batches of slime mould which are introduced into smart-enabled mini studio ecosystems along with complementary objects. These objects can range from simple agar panels and natural environment sets to novel items found in nature or sculpted in-house.