muzik wrote:So I was mucking around, trying to make one, and this thing (which I have nicknamed the "Infrequent Flyer, due to its slow fire rate) happened...
However, this is definitely far from perfect. There has got to be a smaller one. Is there?
How do I make it?
Does the MWSS gun have to fire at period 300, like your Infrequent Flyer, or are you just looking for the smallest bounding box for an MWSS gun of any period?
A good bet might be a 120 MWSS gun, using
Simkin glider guns, and moving the guns as close to the three-glider collision point as they can get without interfering with each other.
To move a gun incrementally closer to the collision point, select and cut it out of the pattern, run the pattern for four ticks, then paste the gun back in one diagonal cell closer. Unless there's a conflict with a nearby gun, the new version should still work.
You can also use a mirror-image gun if it will allow a tighter packing -- in Golly, copy the gun plus a couple of output gliders, type Ctrl+V, type 'x' or 'y' to get a mirror-image gun and '>' or '<" to rotate it back to the correct position. You'll probably have to run the pattern for two ticks after the copy but before the Ctrl+V, so that the gliders will line up.
EDIT: There are also clever tricks involving sparkers, to reduce the number of guns to two, or to knock out every other glider from the p30 streams to give enough time for the constructed MWSSes to move out of the way. Here's some old technology:
Code: Select all
#C P60 MWSS gun
#C David Eppstein, 22 August 1999
x = 47, y = 51, rule = B3/S23
16b2o$16b2o4b3o$13b2o6b5o$12b3o5bo3bobo$5bo7b2o6bo3b2o$3b2ob2o8b2o$16b
2o$2bo5bo$24bo$2b2obob2o14bobo$11b2o10b2obo7b2o$11b2o10b2ob2o6bobo$3bo
19b2obob3o6bo$3bo2bo16bobo2bo2bo2bo2bo7b2o$3bo20bo4b2o6bo7b2o$6b2o26bo
bo$7bo26b2o$5bobo$5b2o14bobo$21b2o$22bo$2o3b2o$o5bo5b2o$14bo$bo3bo6b3o
$2b3o8bob2o$16bo$14bobo2$10b3o$10b3o7bo$11bo9bo21bo$2b2o7bo7b3o19bo3bo
$2b2o7bo34bo$10bobo28bo4bo$42b5o$19b2o$10bobo6bobo$11bo7bo$11bo$11bo$
10b3o$10b3o14b2o8bo$27bo2bo6bobo$22b2o2bo3bo7bobo4b2o$21b3o2b2o2bo7bo
2bo3b2o$18bob2o16bobo$11b2o5bo2bo8b3o4bobo$11b2o5bob2o15bo$21b3o$22b2o!
You can even build MWSS guns at period 30 -- just need to use a different construction recipe:
Code: Select all
#C p30 MWSS gun
#C by Dietrich Leithner, 5/19/94
x = 63, y = 107
45bo10b2o$44b4o8b2o$27b2o14b2obobo$27bo2bo11b3obo2bo2b2o$19b5o7bo11b2o
bobo3b2o$18bo5bo6bo12b4o9bo$18bo3b2o7bo7bo5bo10b3o$19bo7bo2bo9bo14bo3b
o$27b2o9b3o13bob3obo$55b5o$34bo$34b3o$37bo$36b2o$47bo$45bobo8bo2b2o$
38b3o5b2o8bobo$38b3o14b2o$37bo3bo12b2o$54b2obo$36b2o3b2o12b3o2$5b2o$5b
2o49b2o3b2o$42b2o15bo$41bobo7b2o3bo5bo$43bo7b3o3b2ob2o$50bob2o4bobo$
50b3o6bo$43bo7bo7bo5$2b2o3b2o31b3o15b2o$4b3o32bo3bo14b2o$3bo3bo30bo5bo
$4bobo31bo5bo$5bo4b2o29bo$11bo27bo3bo$11bobo5b2o19b3o7b2o$12b2o5bobo
19b2o6b3o$22bo11bobo4bo7b2obo$2b3o14bo2bo10bo2bo4bo8b3o$8bobo11bo9b2o
5b2o10bo$2bobo4b2o8bobo8b2o3bo8b2o$b5o3bo9b2o11b2o10b2o$2o3b2o17bo8bo
2bo$2o3b2o15b2o10bobo$23b2o2$3bo12bo$b2o14b2o40bo$16b2o10bo2bo25bo3bo$
o31bo11b4o14bo$28bo3bo10bo3bo9bo4bo$bo2bo24b4o14bo10b5o$3b2o38bo2bo$9b
2o9b3o$bo7bo2bo9bo$o3b2o7bo7bo5bo$o5bo6bo12b4o9b2o$b5o7bo11b2obobo3b2o
3b2o$9bo2bo11b3obo2bo2b2o$9b2o14b2obobo$26b4o20bo$27bo21b3o$40bo8bob2o
$38b2ob2o7b3o$50b2o$37bo5bo$57b2o$37b2obob2o13b2o3$38bo$38bo2bo$38bo$
41b2o$42bo$40bobo7bo7bo$40b2o7b3o5b3o$48b2obo4b5o$48b3o4b2o3b2o$35b2o
3b2o7b2o$35bo5bo$55b2o$36bo3bo13bo$37b3o17bo$54bo2bo$54b2ob2o$56b2o$
43b3o$35b2o8bo$36bo7bo8b2o3b2o$33b3o17b2o3b2o$33bo20b5o$55bobo$25bo8bo
2bo$24bobo10bo17b3o$17b2o3b2o3bo5b2o3bo2bo$17b2o3b2o3bo4bobob2o3b4o$
22b2o3bo14b4o5b2o$24bobo5b2o8bo2bo5b2o$25bo16b4o$41b4o10b2o$41bo13b2o!
Code: Select all
#C p30 MWSS gun
#C The devices works by hammering a p30 LWSS stream with objects from
#C opposite sides. The upper hammer is simply a p30 oscillator
#C (prepulsar between four tubs). Its usefulness as a hammer was found
#C independently by several Life workers. The hammer "down under" was
#C found, appropriately, by David Bell. (DL, 11 Apr 1998)
x = 70, y = 49
44bo5bo8bo$43bobo3b3o6bobo$44bo3b2ob2o6bo$49b3o$22bo27bo$21bobo$11b2o
6b2o3bo27bo$10bobo4b2obo3bo9b2o15b3o$9b3o4b3obo3bo9b2o10bo3b2ob2o6bo$
2o6b3o4bo2b2obobo21bobo3b3o6bobo$2o7b3o4b2o4bo23bo5bo8bo$10bobo$11b2o
53bo$3b2o15bobo12bo2bo25bo3bo$3b2o15bob2obo13bo11b4o14bo$25bo9bo3bo10b
o3bo9bo4bo$22bo2bo10b4o14bo10b5o$23bo26bo2bo2$51bo$3bo40b2o4b3o$2b3o7b
2o30bo4b2ob2o$2b3o8b2o18b2o7bobo4b2o$12bo13bob2o3b3o6b2o5b2o$2o3b2o15b
o2bo3bo5b2obo11bobo$2o3b2o14b2o2bo4bo4bo2bo12b2o$20b2o5b4o4b2obo$19b3o
7bo3b3o20b3o3b5o$5b2o13b2o11b2o10b2o3b2o4bo4bob3obo$5bobo4b2o7b2o22b2o
3b2o5bo4bo3bo$7b2o2bobo8bo40b3o$6b2o3bo35b3o14bo$6b2o2b2o24bo10b3o$2b
3o31b2o10bo$27b2o2b2o4b2o27b2o$27b2o2b2o4b3o19bo6bo$31b2o4b2o20b2o6b3o
$36b2o20bobo8bo$2b2o3b2o27bo2$3bo3bo37b2o$4b3o37b3o3b2obo$4b3o27b2o5bo
b2o5bo3bo2bo$34b2o5bo2bo4bo4bo2b2o$41bob2o4b4o5b2o8b2o$44b3o3bo7b3o7b
2o$45b2o11b2o$5b2o50b2o$5b2o50bo!
I don't remember offhand what the newest best trick for building MWSSes might be, but the odds seem pretty good that the smallest gun will be period 120 nowadays. If you want higher periods, it doesn't take much space to double glider stream periods with
semi-snarks.
