Longhorn Crazy Ants (Paratrechina longicornis) swarming and attacking a much larger ant. They are harmless to humans and found in the world`s tropical regions.(Credit: ยฉ Brett Hondow | Dreamstime.com)
REHOVOT, Israel — Scientists have long been fascinated by collective intelligence, the idea that groups can solve problems better than individuals. Now, an interesting new study reveals some unexpected findings about group problem-solving abilities across species, specifically comparing how ants and humans tackle complex spatial challenges.
Researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science designed an ingenious experiment pitting groups of longhorn crazy ants against groups of humans in solving the same geometric puzzle at different scales. The puzzle, known as a “piano-movers’ problem,” required moving a T-shaped load through a series of tight spaces and around corners. Imagine trying to maneuver a couch through a narrow doorway, but with more mathematical precision involved.
What makes this study, published in PNAS, particularly fascinating is that both ants and humans are among the few species known to cooperatively transport large objects in nature. In fact, of the approximately 15,000 ant species on Earth, only about 1% engage in cooperative transport of heavy loads, making this shared behavior between humans and ants especially remarkable.
The species chosen for this evolutionary competition was Paratrechina longicornis, commonly known as “crazy ants” due to their erratic movement patterns. These black ants, measuring just 3 millimeters in length, are widespread globally but particularly prevalent along Israel’s coast and southern regions. Their name derives from their distinctive long antennae, though their frenetic behavior earned them their more colorful nickname.
Recruiting participants for the study presented different challenges across species. While human volunteers readily joined when asked, likely motivated by the competitive aspect, the ants required a bit of deception. Researchers had to trick them into thinking the T-shaped load was food that needed to be transported to their nest.
In experiments spanning three years and involving over 1,250 human participants and multiple ant colonies, researchers tested different group sizes tackling scaled versions of the same puzzle. For the ants, they used both individual ants and small groups of about 7 ants, as well as larger groups averaging 80 ants. Human participants were divided into single solvers and groups of 6-9 or 16-26 people.
Perhaps most intriguingly, the researchers found that while larger groups of ants performed significantly better than smaller groups or individuals, the opposite was true for humans when their communication was restricted. When human groups were not allowed to speak or use gestures and had to wear masks and sunglasses, their performance actually deteriorated compared to individuals working alone.
This counterintuitive finding speaks to fundamental differences in how ants and humans approach collective problem-solving. Individual ants cannot grasp the global nature of the puzzle, but their collective motion translates into emergent cognitive abilities; in other words, they develop new problem-solving skills simply by working together. The large ant groups showed impressive persistence and coordination, maintaining their direction even after colliding with walls and efficiently scanning their environment until finding openings.
The study highlights a crucial distinction between ant and human societies. “An ant colony is actually a family. All the ants in the nest are sisters, and they have common interests. It’s a tightly knit society in which cooperation greatly outweighs competition,” explains study co-author Prof. Ofer Feinerman in a statement. “That’s why an ant colony is sometimes referred to as a super-organism, sort of a living body composed of multiple ‘cells’ that cooperate with one another.”
This familial structure appears to enhance the ants’ collective problem-solving abilities. Their findings validated this “super-organism” vision, demonstrating that ants acting as a group are indeed smarter, with the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. In contrast, human groups showed no such enhancement of cognitive abilities, challenging popular notions about the “wisdom of crowds” in the social media age.
The research has implications beyond just understanding animal behavior. It could inform the design of robot swarms and provide insights into human team dynamics in various settings. When it comes to moving large objects through complex spaces, perhaps we humans could learn a thing or two from our six-legged counterparts.
Paper Summary
Methodology
The researchers created a standardized geometric puzzle that could be scaled appropriately for both species. The puzzle consisted of a T-shaped load that needed to be maneuvered through three chambers connected by narrow slits. For humans, this was constructed using metal grids and tarps at different sizes. For ants, scaled-down versions were 3D printed. Both species had to pull rather than push the load, with humans assigned to specific handles with force meters. All attempts were recorded on camera from above for detailed analysis.
Results
The study found that large ant groups solved the puzzle successfully about 80% of the time, significantly outperforming small groups and individuals. For humans, individuals solved the puzzle more efficiently than restricted-communication groups, who only succeeded about 40% of the time. Groups with full communication performed marginally better than individuals but spent considerably more time reaching decisions.
Limitations
The study primarily focused on one species of ant (Paratrechina longicornis) and human participants were largely drawn from one institutional community. The puzzle, while clever, represents just one type of problem-solving challenge. Additionally, the scaled nature of the puzzle meant that some aspects of the physical challenge might not have been perfectly equivalent between species.
Discussion and Key Takeaways
The research reveals that collective problem-solving abilities don’t always scale up with group size and can be highly dependent on communication methods. The study suggests that simpler individual cognition might actually facilitate better group coordination in some cases. This challenges common assumptions about the relationship between individual and collective intelligence.
Funding and Disclosures
The research was funded by the European Research Council under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research program and the Israel Science Foundation. The study involved 1,251 human participants and received appropriate ethical approvals from the Weizmann Institute of Science, the Israel Ministry of Education Chief Scientist, and the Ethics Unit of the European Research Council. The authors declared no competing interests. Prof. Ofer Feinerman holds the Henry J. Leir Professorial Chair, and the research team included Dr. Ehud Fonio from Weizmann’s Physics of Complex Systems Department, Prof. Nir Gov of Weizmann’s Chemical and Biological Physics Department, and Dr. Amir Haluts, along with Prof. Amos Korman of the University of Haifa.
Publication Details
This research article “Comparing cooperative geometric puzzle solving in ants versus humans” was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on December 23, 2024. The paper appears in PNAS 2025 Vol. 122 No. 1 e2414274121 with DOI:ย https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2414274121. The work was submitted to PNAS on July 17, 2024, edited by Marcus Feldman of Stanford University, and accepted on November 11, 2024. The research was published as an open access article under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License 4.0 (CC BY-NC-ND).
“their performance actually deteriorated compared to individuals working alone.”
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