According to the philosopher of science K. Popper “All life is problem solving”. Genetic algorithms aim to leverage Darwinian selection, a fundamental mechanism of biological evolution, so as to tackle various engineering challenges.
Flibs’NFarol is an Agent Based Model that embodies a genetic algorithm applied to the inherently ill-defined “El Farol Bar” problem. Within this context, a group of agents operates under bounded rationality conditions, giving rise to processes of self-organization involving, in the first place, efficiency in the exploitation of available resources. Over time, the attention of scholars has shifted to equity in resource distribution, as well. Nowadays, the problem is recognized as paradigmatic within studies of complex evolutionary systems.
Flibs’NFarol provides a platform to explore and evaluate factors influencing self-organized efficiency and fairness. The model represents agents as finite automata, known as “flibs,” and offers flexibility in modifying the number of internal flibs states, which directly affects their behaviour patterns and, ultimately, the diversity within populations and the complexity of the system.

Flibs’NLogo is an agent-based simulation implemented in NetLogo that models the evolution of perfect predictors through a genetic algorithm. The agents, called flibs (finite living blobs), are finite‑state automata whose behaviour is encoded in circular chromosomes. They inhabit a “primordial computer soup” and are tasked with anticipating a user‑defined periodic binary sequence. Each generation consists of 100 evaluation cycles, during which a flib’s fitness is incremented each time its output correctly matches the next environmental signal.
Reproduction follows an elitist scheme: a donor (current fittest individual) replaces a randomly chosen recipient either by cloning (complete genome substitution) or by bacterial‑like conjugation (unidirectional horizontal transfer of a random chromosome segment). A stochastic mutagenesis operator introduces point mutations in genes, while the reproductive strategy gene can also switch under a mixed-reproduction regime. Population dynamics are monitored via genomic diversity indices (Shannon‑Wiener, Simpson), a phenotypic simpleness metric that distinguishes the low number of states actually used from the genomic potential.
The model serves as a digital evolutionary laboratory for exploring the interplay among bounded rationality, collective adaptation, and the emergence of anticipatory behaviour. By linking evolutionary computation with cognitive concepts, Flibs’NLogo investigates fundamental transitions from reactive to predictive systems and allows for testing whether populations evolve toward minimal necessary complexity or exhibit an intrinsic drift toward structural elaboration.