IFEG   20353
INSTITUTO DE FISICA ENRIQUE GAVIOLA
Unidad Ejecutora - UE
artículos
Título:
Optimal intermittent search strategies: smelling the prey
Autor/es:
JORGE REVELLI; FELIX ROJO; CARLOS E. BUDDE; HORACIO S. WIO
Revista:
JOURNAL OF PHYSICS A-MATHEMATICAL AND THEORETICAL
Editorial:
IOP PUBLISHING LTD
Referencias:
Año: 2010 vol. 43 p. 195001 - 195012
ISSN:
1751-8113
Resumen:
We study the kinetics of the search of a single fixed target by a searcher/walker that performs an intermittent random walk, characterized by different states of motion. In addition, we assume that the walker has the ability to detect the scent left by the prey/target in its surroundings. Our results, in agreement with intuition, indicate that the prey's survival probability could be strongly reduced (increased) if the predator is attracted (or repelled) by the trace left by the prey. We have also found that, for a positive trace (the predator is guided towards the prey), increasing the inhomogeneity's size reduces the prey's survival probability, while the optimal value of α (the parameter that regulates intermittency) ceases to exist. The agreement between theory and numerical simulations is excellent.