This is the first in a series focused on Machine Learning. We'll be creating autonomous agents with simple pre-programmed responsive behavior. We will observer how complex group behavior can form from simple individual behavior.
An automaton is a concept of an abstract machine that consists of states (in this case, having a current color) and transitions (changing to another color ).
The automaton receives input (a neighbor's color) and depending on it's transition function (rock-paper-scissors) it makes a transition to another state (color).