Physarum polycephalum, which literally has no brain, might make us rethink this characterization. This blob-like lifeform can perform surprisingly complex calculations, such as solving mazes or exhibiting basic forms of memory. To learn more about how Physarum molds make smart decisions with no brain, researchers from the Wyss Institute at Harvard University and the Allen Discovery Center at Tufts University tested their environmental awareness. The results revealed a “novel preference and sensing capability in the unicellular organism” in which the mold uses its body as “both a distributed sensor array and computational substrate,” according to a study published on Thursday...