The energy cycle

By Kindlewild · 7 months ago

In the simulation, energy is never created or destroyed, but constantly changes form and location as it moves through the ecosystem. The way organisms interact with their environment and each other is fundamentally shaped by this cycle.

Sessile and motile feeding

Sessile organisms—those that remain fixed in place—draw their energy from elements in the soil. These elements are distributed throughout the world and act as the primary food source for sessile life. Motile organisms, on the other hand, are more opportunistic. They feed on other organisms, including both sessile and other motile types. This predation and consumption is the main way energy moves up the food chain.

Death and recycling

When any organism dies, its internal composition is not simply lost. Instead, a portion of its elemental makeup is returned to the environment. These elements are released back into the soil, becoming available once again for sessile organisms to absorb. This recycling is not total—only a fraction of the organism’s elements are returned, which means energy is always in flux, but never static.

The cycle

This system creates a closed loop: elements in the soil feed sessile organisms, which in turn become food for motile organisms. When motile organisms die, their elements are recycled back into the soil. The same is true for sessile organisms. Over time, energy and matter circulate endlessly through the world, passing from soil to plant to animal and back again.

Code and configuration

The rates at which energy is consumed, transferred, and recycled are all configurable. The amount of energy sessile and motile organisms consume, and the rate at which elements regenerate in the environment, are also controlled by parameters. This design ensures that the world never runs out of energy entirely, but also that energy is never so abundant that populations can grow without limit. The balance between consumption and recycling is what allows the simulation to sustain itself over many generations, with populations rising and falling as energy flows through the system.

At least that is the goal. Balance is very tricky.