Ocellus is a period-114 oscillator credited to Noam Elkies and me in 2015. It uses my reduction of Elkies’ 180-degree reflector.
A relay construction
The 92-cell form documented on LifeWiki uses period-six thumbs to support a glider relay. Its state repeats after 114 generations. The construction belongs to a family that supports periods .
The reflector turns a glider back toward the other end of the relay. The supporting oscillator supplies the spark needed for that interaction.
The credits and later work
The underlying reflector and its reduction are distinct contributions. Jeremy Tan subsequently found a glider synthesis for Ocellus on September 5, 2021.
Ocellus was once the smallest known period-114 oscillator. A different construction surpassed it in 2022, so that claim describes its history rather than a current record.
LifeWiki includes the pattern and explains the related reflector reactions supported by different sparkers.
