Life Oscillators and Pseudo-Oscillators

P2 | P3 | P4 | P5 | P6 | P7 | P8 | P9 | P10 | P12 | P14 | P15 | P16 | P18 | P30 | P36 | P44 | P45 | P46 | P50 | P54 | P56 | P60 | P72 | P75 | P88 | P100 | P144

In Life, naturally-occuring oscillators exist of many periods, and many additional periods are obtainable using highly artificial mechanisms. The oscillators shown here are ones which have known glider syntheses. (Also, some of these syntheses are infinitely extensible.)

In 1996, Buckingham revealed a suite of track components which use eaters and other still-lifes to move can move a Herschel heptomino (the 20th generation of B-heptomino, after it has left behind a block). By combining several of these, in much the same way as one assembles toy train tracks, one can produce circular conduits which take arbitrarily long to cycle a single Herschel. By placing multiple Herschels in such a conduit, one can obtain oscillators of arbitrarily small periods. (These were improvements over his earlier track components which used spark-producing oscillators as stabilizers; unfortunately, those can only produce oscillators whose periods are multiples of those of the spark-producers.)

Oscillators of all periods 58 and above can be obtained in this way. Since Herschels naturally release gliders, this also yields glider guns of all periods 62 and above. (The Herschels collide with each other if closer than 58 generations apart, and they collide with the escaping gliders if closer than 62 generations apart.) Recently, Dietrich Leithner has constructed oscillators of periods 56 and 57 by adding in one of Buckingham's earlier spark-stabilized sections.

This is basically a variation of the method described by Conway in the 1970's to construct oscillators of arbitary period using stable glider-reflectors. (Currently, all known stable glider-reflectors are derived from the above, turning a glider into a Herschel, shuttling the Herschel, and then turning the Herschel back into a glider.)
Thus, Life has known oscillators of all periods except 19, 23, 27, 31, 37, 38, 41, 43, 49, and 53. (Composite periods 33, 34, 39, and 51 are also technically unknown, but can be formed by combining two oscillators whose periods are the prime factors of the composite period.)


Period-2 oscillators and pseudo-oscillators.

Due to the the large number of oscillators, these are shown on a separate page, and the pseudo-oscillators are shown on another page.

Period-3 oscillators and pseudo-oscillators.

Due to the the large number of oscillators, these are shown on a separate page.

Period-4 oscillators and pseudo-oscillators.

Due to the the large number of oscillators, these are shown on a separate page.

Period-5 oscillators and pseudo-oscillators.

Due to the the large number of oscillators, these are shown on a separate page.

Period-6 oscillators and pseudo-oscillators.

Due to the the large number of oscillators, these are shown on a separate page.

Period-7 Oscillators:

P7 oscs
Burloaf- erimiter [27]


Period-8 oscillators and pseudo-oscillators.

Due to the the large number of oscillators, these are shown on a separate page.

Period 9 oscillators:

period-9 oscillators
Lonely bee [19] Double lonely bee [24] Triple lonely bee [29]
(n lonely bees [19+5n])
Cis triple snacker [25]
Snacker [17] Double snacker [20] Trans triple snacker [23]
(n snackers [14+3n])


Period 10 oscillators:

P10 oscillators
Eight blocks hassling two pulsars [30]


Period 12 oscillators:

period-12 oscillators
Loaf hassled by two blocks and two caterers [52] Crown hassled by HWSS emulator and two molds [30]


The 1 sixteen-bit period-14 oscillator:

16b P14
Tumbler [8]


Period-15 oscillators and pseudo-oscillators.

Due to the the large number of oscillators, these are shown on a separate page.

Period 16 oscillators:

P16 osc
Achim's period-16 [36]


Period 18 oscillators:

P18 osc
Two unices hassling block on block [14]


Period-30 oscillators and pseudo-oscillators.

Due to the the large number of oscillators, these are shown on a separate page.

Period 36 oscillators:

P36 oscillators
Two eaters hassling two T tetrominos [9]


Period 44 oscillators:

period-44 oscillators
Two pi heptominos hassled by two HWSS emulators and four blocks [68]


Period 45 oscillators:

period-45 oscillators
Four pentadecathlons shuttling a glider [14]


Period 46 oscillators:

P46 oscillators
Twin Bees [8]


Period 50 oscillators:

period-50 oscillators
P50 Traffic-jam [42]


Period 54 oscillators:

period-54 oscillators
Four eaters hassling Twin Bees [12] Two twin bees, each hassled by four eaters, hassling pentadecathlon [35]


Period 56 oscillators:

P56 oscillators
Two blockers hassling B-heptomino [19]


Period 60 oscillators:

(The toad-flipper and toad-sucker mechanisms can also be used between pairs of many oscillators which produce domino-sparks.)

period-60 oscillators
Toad flipper #1 [10] Toad flipper #2 [10] Toad sucker #1 [10] Toad sucker #2 [10] Toad sucker #3 [10] Two pentadecathlons shuttling glider [7]


Period 72 oscillators:

P72 oscillators
Two blockers hassling R pentomino [19]


Period 75 oscillators:

period-75 oscillators
Three pentadecathlons shuttling a glider [10]


Period 88 oscillators:

P88 oscillators
Pi-heptomino hassled by six eaters [16]


Period 100 oscillators:

period-100 oscillators
Centinal [16]


Period 144 oscillators:

P144 oscillators
Achim's period-144 [15]


Other types: still-lifes, pseudo-still-lifes, oscillators and pseudo-oscillators, spaceships, constellations, metheuselahs.

See also: Life objects sorted by: counts, gliders, name, size, or type.

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