Worklog for Drak

Food chain simulation

Return to Worklogs

Progress(Posted 2008-09-08)
1. I've got some important things implemented into my new "tribal simulation" as I'm calling it. I've got my food gathering system pretty much worked out. Food is stored at the central hut. When anyone in the tribe gets hungry, they go and take however much food it takes to fill them up. When food stores get below a certain level, based on population, males go out and gather food. In my studies I've learned that what hunter-gatherer groups eat is roughly 20% hunted, and 80% gathered. So, when a tribesman decides to get food, he rolls a die and quite simply has a 20% chance to go hunting and an 80% chance to gather plants and berries. Simple to implement. If food stores get dangerously low, women will to go out and gather, but only fruits and vegetables. The women do not have the option to hunt. If game numbers are very low, an intelligence check is performed to see if the hunter will still hunt, or know enough not to kill animals with such a low population, which may cause extinction in the area.

2. I've also created a naming system which produces some funny names for my little simtribesmen. When they are created(in startup) or born(in-game) each picks a random name from about 30 first names and roughly 40 last names.


Building blocks(Posted 2008-09-07)
I'm using this food chain simulation as a building block for my next project, which is still in it's infancy. I want to take this project to the next level: human interaction with it's environment. Much of the ai programming I've implemented in this simple program can be used in my next project. Things such as each creature's "wants" and now genetics will carry over nicely.

I want to simulate a paleolithic hunter-gatherer society next. It's relatively straightforward when you look at it plainly. I simply put myself in their shoes and ask: "What would I do?" Is there food to eat right now? If there is, do something else. Is there food to eat tomorrow? If not, I better get some food today, so I can eat tomorrow! Does it make sense to walk 1/2 a mile to get nutrient-rich food or do I eat low-nutrient food that is 1/10th a mile away? There is enough food for my me, but what about the children in the tribe? Do they have enough food? Naturally the need for food is at the top of the list, superceding the need for shelter, or the need to make another basket, or whatever. Food in hunter-gatherer tribes is usually only stored for a few days at most, so there will always be a need for the gathering of food. Another interesting point I want to implement is that while hunter-gatherer groups usually only supported 10-30 individuals, each hunter or gatherer only spent about 15 hours per week actually collecting food. These societies have rich social lives because 15 hours per week is only about 9% of the time, each week. This leaves a great deal of time for thinking, playing, socializing, storytelling, teaching, etc, and from what I've learned led to the revolutions in science at the time. So with that, I'll also have to implement some sort of social society.

But first things first, I have to get some 3d "tribesman" out searching for food.


Updates(Posted 2008-09-05)
Edited 12/26/08
I don't think I ever posted a link to the new, updated file, so here is a link to it.
http://www.mediafire.com/?ohlxn2yhnh4
Updated 9/4/08

1. The simulation will now restart if all creatures have died out. Each time the program restarts, it will be noted as a "generation". How many generations have passed will now be read out at the top of the screen.

2. Mammals now have the ability and the desire to eat plants as well. They will no longer just eat insects. They do however, prefer insects.

3. The insect birth rate has been reduced by approximately .02%. While this seems very low, it is the chance that a well-fed insect that is currently looking for a mate, will mate and have offspring. A .02 chance, multiplied by, for instance, 200 insects, is 4. So in this case, the possibility of insect birth each cycle has been reduced by 4%.