Collective behavior as a research area investigates how large ensembles of interacting agents—such as cells, animals, humans, or artificial units—generate emergent spatiotemporal patterns and coordinated dynamics that cannot be trivially inferred from individual-level rules. It integrates concepts and methods from statistical physics, nonlinear dynamics, complex systems theory, network science, and computational modeling to characterize phenomena such as synchronization, swarming, flocking, consensus formation, and phase transitions in social or biological systems. Research focuses on identifying local interaction rules, quantifying macroscopic order parameters, understanding robustness and criticality, and developing predictive, often multi-scale, models of group-level organization and decision-making.
From bird flocking to fish schooling, many biological systems exhibit some type of collective motion, often to improve performance and conserve energy. Compared to other swimmers, manta rays are particularly efficient, and ...
General Physics
May 6, 2025
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In a new Nature Physics study, researchers have provided evidence of universal conformal invariance in living biological cells. They show that a universal feature in the collective behavior emerges in groups of living cells.
Pressure waves propagating through bubble-containing liquids in tubes experience considerable attenuation. Researchers at the University of Tsukuba have derived an equation describing this phenomenon, demonstrating that beyond ...
Soft Matter
Apr 9, 2025
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While the daily ebb and flow of people across a city might seem chaotic, new research reveals underlying universal patterns. A study published in the journal Nature Communications by a team led by Chair Professor Bo Huang ...
Earth Sciences
Apr 8, 2025
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Researchers from Hanyang University have developed an innovative micropillar array capable of collective and rapid magnetic oscillations, demonstrating strong potential for advanced applications in robotics, fluid transport, ...
Nanomaterials
Apr 2, 2025
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Scientists have revealed how tiny swimming cells—such as sperm and bacteria—are able to move faster when traveling as a group, and the research could accelerate the development of microscopic robots that deliver drugs ...
Bio & Medicine
Mar 28, 2025
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Scientists know well how conventional materials conduct heat. However, things are not as straightforward under extreme conditions such as temperatures close to absolute zero combined with strong magnetic fields, where strange ...
Condensed Matter
Mar 19, 2025
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The collective motion of bacteria—from stable swirling patterns to chaotic turbulent flows—has intrigued scientists for decades. When a bacterial swarm is confined in small circular space, stable rotating vortices are ...
General Physics
Mar 17, 2025
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How does cold milk disperse when it is dripped into hot coffee? Even the fastest supercomputers are unable to perform the necessary calculations with high precision because the underlying quantum physical processes are extremely ...
Quantum Physics
Feb 6, 2025
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Researchers have developed a reliable and reproducible way to fabricate tapered polymer optical fibers that can be used to deliver light to the brain. These fibers could be used in animal studies to help scientists better ...
Optics & Photonics
Jan 15, 2025
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