In "End of Watch," Charlie claims that the gang member accused of murdering a police officer is probably innocent. He bases this on the likelihood that there was no way for the gang member to find a single safe path between rival gang turfs. He refers to 'Collective Behavior Theory' for a mathematical model known as 'Ant Colony Optimization' (ACO) to demonstrate this.
Students will use directed graphs to simulate an ACO.
Before the Activity
Download the attached PDF and look over the Teacher Page.
During the Activity
Discuss the materials from the Student Page with your class.
After the Activity
Encourage students to explore web sites and questions from the Extensions Page.