24/7 Space News
EXO WORLDS
Optimal Learning Rates Revealed in New Study on Adaptation
illustration only
Reuters Events SMR and Advanced Reactor 2025
Optimal Learning Rates Revealed in New Study on Adaptation
by Robert Schreiber
Berlin, Germany (SPX) Nov 04, 2024

Researchers at the Complexity Science Hub and Santa Fe Institute have unveiled a new model designed to determine how quickly or slowly an organism should adapt to changing environments. According to their study, the ideal learning rate depends on both the speed of environmental changes and the life cycle of the organism.

Day by day, we adjust to our constantly shifting surroundings. This process is not only common to humans but also critical for organisms across the biological spectrum, from bacteria to mammals. Adapting efficiently can mean the difference between survival and extinction. Animals must learn where and when to find food, even as these sources evolve and shift with the seasons.

The process of learning requires time and energy - and striking the right balance between learning too quickly or too slowly can be crucial for survival. The researchers have developed a mathematical model to determine this balance and answer the question: What is the optimal pace of learning in a fluctuating world?

"The key insight is that the ideal learning rate increases in a consistent manner regardless of the pace of environmental change," explained CSH PostDoc Eddie Lee. "This indicates a generalizable principle that may underlie learning in many different ecosystems."

The researchers' model assumes an environment alternating between states, such as wet and dry seasons. Organisms need to perceive and remember past states, but older memories lose their importance over time. The key challenge is understanding how long an organism should retain these memories to maximize adaptation.

The model suggests that the learning timescale should align with the square root of the environmental timescale - for example, if an environment changes twice as slowly, the organism's learning rate should decrease by a factor of 1.4, reflecting the square root of 2.

This square root scaling is an ideal compromise, balancing the risks of learning too slowly or overreacting to minor changes. The diminishing returns on longer memories are also captured by this square root relationship.

Eddie Lee also noted that the model includes organisms that actively modify their environment, a behavior known as niche construction. For instance, beavers build dams, creating stable ponds that offer consistent food sources and protection. However, these constructed niches only provide evolutionary advantages if the organism can control the benefits. If other species exploit the stable habitat, the advantages can diminish. For instance, muskrats or fish taking advantage of beaver ponds may reduce the exclusivity of the beaver's efforts.

The model also considers the relationship between learning and metabolic costs. It predicts that for small, short-lived animals such as insects, the energy costs associated with learning and memory are critical. In contrast, larger animals like mammals have energy budgets dominated by basic metabolic overhead rather than learning.

This implies that smaller creatures might have finely tuned memories specifically optimized for their environment, whereas larger animals, such as elephants, may have more extensive but less specialized memories. Lee emphasized that it might be misleading to trivialize the memory capabilities of small organisms as the "memory of a flea."

The new framework provides an understanding of how organisms optimize learning to adapt to a dynamic world, highlighting how adaptation rates are linked to environmental variability and life expectancy across the biological spectrum.

Related Links
Complexity Science Hub
Lands Beyond Beyond - extra solar planets - news and science
Life Beyond Earth

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
EXO WORLDS
Astronomers Identify New Organic Molecule in Interstellar Space
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Oct 28, 2024
The element carbon, foundational to life on Earth and potentially elsewhere, is known to exist in vast quantities across space. However, locating substantial amounts of carbon in interstellar regions has proven unexpectedly challenging. A recent discovery, involving the detection of a complex molecule known as 1-cyanopyrene, offers new insight into how carbon-rich compounds form and persist in space. This finding redefines expectations of where and how these molecular building blocks of carbon can ... read more

EXO WORLDS
SpaceX prepares resupply mission to ISS

Students' Experiments Launch to Space Aboard SpaceX Resupply Mission

After pause, NASAs Voyager 1 back communicating with mission team

Students aid NASA's plant growth research in space

EXO WORLDS
Gilmour Space secures historic Australian permit for Eris orbital launch test flight

Russia launches record 55 satellites, including 2 Iranian-made

Southern Launch fully approved for Whalers Way rocket pad in South Australia

NASA offers virtual launch attendance, guest passport for next SpaceX supply mission

EXO WORLDS
Ancient Martian waterways carved beneath icy caps

Explanation found for encrusting of the Martian soil

Perseverance surveys its path as it ascends Jezero Crater

Red Rocks with Green Spots at 'Serpentine Rapids'

EXO WORLDS
Shenzhou 18 crew back in China after 6-month mission to Tiangong station

Chinese space station crew returns after six months in orbit

Shenzhou XIX Crew Joins Tiangong Space Station for Crew Rotation

Three-person crew enters China's Tiangong space station

EXO WORLDS
SAPA Pushes for Stricter Definition of 'Australian Business' to Enhance National Economic Complexity

Impulse Space selected for HALO Program by Space Development Agency

Hawkeye 360 enhances global monitoring with Clusters 9 and 10 now in opeation

Boeing exploring sale of space business: report

EXO WORLDS
NASA to transform in-space manufacturing with laser beam welding collaboration

A smart screen for cooling and sun protection

New AI microbiome tool offers breakthroughs in forensics and epidemiology

Wooden bricks set to sea off Denmark to track plastic waste

EXO WORLDS
Optimal Learning Rates Revealed in New Study on Adaptation

Ariel spacecraft prepares for rigorous tests at Airbus facility

Microbes thrive on iron in oxygen-free environments

Astronomers Identify New Organic Molecule in Interstellar Space

EXO WORLDS
Uranus moon Miranda may hold a hidden ocean below its surface

NASA and SpaceX Set for Europa Clipper Launch on October 14

NASA probe Europa Clipper lifts off for Jupiter's icy moon

Is life possible on a Jupiter moon? NASA goes to investigate

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.