Hi Rodrigo. I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed the article! There’s so much we can learn from natural systems, so glad to know that you found it interesting.

• I don’t know much about EO Wilson’s work, but it seems quite relevant, so thank you!
• I also haven’t spent too much time learning about bees, but to my understanding, they operate in a similar way. Worker bees are comparable to the foragers, drone bees are comparable to the patrollers. And in both cases the Queen is responsible just for laying eggs. But that’s the extent of my knowledge, so there’s likely much more to the story.
• Perhaps a common goal is a part of the puzzle, but I can think of many counter-examples in which groups have a common goal but still need a leader. Let’s just stick to animals to keep things simple: chimpanzees, wolves, etc. are led by an alpha, but you had to imagine that they share the common goal of survival. The reason why some groups have “leaders,” while others do not is a very interesting question though!