Chapter 6: Synchronisation

Synchronisation occurs when large numbers of individuals co-ordinate to act in unison. When we use the word synchronisation we are ften thinking about time. Bank robbers synchronise their watches before a robbery, the instruments of the orchestra are synchronised by the conductor and the sound is synchronised to the pictures in a film. It is this narrower sense of the word synchronisation I use in this chapter. How and why do behaviours become synchronised in time.

Key ideas covered in this chapter: Rhythmic sychronisation; Kuramoto model; Audience applause; Phase locking; Firefly flashing; random synchronisation; chicken feeding; ant activity cycles; random to periodic synchronization; benefits and costs of synchronization; state-based synchronisation; leadership; predator vigilance; anti-phase synchronisation.

Links

Tim Clutton-Brock's homepage

Steven Strogatz's homepage

Yoshiki Kuramoto's homepage

Tamas Vicsek's homepage

References

Cole, B. J. 1991. Short-term activity cycles in ants: generation of periodicity through worker interaction. American Naturalist, 137, 244-259.

Collins, L. M. & Sumpter, D. J. T. 2007. The feeding dynamics of broiler chickens. Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 4, 65-72.

Neda, Z., Ravasz, E., Brechet, Y., Vicsek, T. & Barabasi, A. L. 2000. The sound of many hands clapping. Nature (London), 403, 849.

Strogatz, S. 2003. Sync: the emerging science of spontaneous order.

Strogatz, S. H. 2000. From Kuramoto to Crawford: exploring the onset of synchronization in populations of coupled oscillators. Physica D, 143, 1-20.

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