Build the Delta Bridge like Ants
Unlike human road designs, there is no single ant having the big picture. The striking thing about ants is that they build their networks without any central planning. There are mathematical patterns that trigger their “on-the-fly” behavior, dispersed network-making ants build complex, resource efficient networks with no central planning—that’s definitely something humans can learn a thing or two about. If you have ever been to a park in Delta and look down, you’ll likely see a colony of ants scurrying about, ferrying food here and there, like us lining up to go throw the tunnel with our trunk full of Costco stuff. The way the ants work as a team is a classic example of how animals maintain a competent and active network design. The ants get and move their food in an efficient and low energy consuming routine. Every single ant has just a bit of information about what is going on. Still, due to very frequent interactions, the whole colony together manages to build good networks. These same skills could be useful for building our new bridge, although I hear the toll will be excessive and make sure you double that 3 billion dollar budget to get an idea what the real cost might be.
