A - E collisions

There are three relative alignments at which A and E gliders may meet, which could be called high, medium, and low. Besides that, since the E glider is extensible, there is a whole infinity of E thicknesses, which are actually paddings with &alpha gliders. Therefore, the discussion of A-E collisions turns into a survey of &alpha demolitions.

 

Table 3.4: A mid-collisions with En are periodic, repeating every time n increases by 16, with the proviso that an additional B glider is always produced every time n increases by 8.

n	main	extra	n	main	extra
1	D1	.	17	D1	2B
2	E1	.	18	E	2B
3	EBar	A	19	EBar	A, 2B
4	EBar	B	20	EBar	2B
5	EBar	B	21	EBar	2B
6	F	B	22	F	2B
7	C1	B	23	C1	2B
8	C2	B	24	C2	2B
9	D1	B	25	D1	2B
10	EBar	2A, B	26	EBar	2A, 3B
11	E2	B	27	E2	3B
12	EBar	B	28	EBar	3B
13	EBar	2B	29	EBar	4B
14	BBar + F	B	30	BBar + F	3B
15	BBar + F	2B	31	BBar + F	4B
16	C2	2B	32	C2	4B

When the A glider meets the E_n glider in the low position, the reaction is very clean, always resulting in E_n-1 except that the nonexistent E₀ is a C3. Even so, the indexing is consistent because A collisions with C's lower their indices, C1 turning finally into an F.

  

Figure 3.7: Right: An A glider can be absorbed by an E glider which promptly transmutes into a D. Left: But in a different alignment, whatsoever E retracts, which makes a nice counterpart to the extension occasioned by B-E collisions.

  

Figure 3.8: An A glider can be absorbed by an E dimer which then reverts to an E monomer.

  

Figure 3.9: An A glider can be absorbed by an E trimer which thereupon reverts to a BBar rather than to an E dimer, emitting a rightrunning A glider in the process.

  

Figure 3.10: An A glider can be absorbed by an E quadrimer which reverts to a BBar rather than to an E polymer.