Goldbug variations (Q1777515)

The author considers problems of James Propp and Alexander E. Holroyd [cf. \textit{P. Winkler}, Mathematical puzzles. A connoisseur's collection (2004; Zbl 1094.00003)]. In the first problem ``bugs'' jump on the integer points \(n\geq-1\), where initially each point \(n\geq1\) carries an ``outbound rotor''. Whenever the bug lands on a point, the rotor is reversed (``outbound''\(\leftrightarrow\)``inbound''); when outbound from \(n\) the bug moves to \(n+1\); when inbound, it moves to \(n-2\); \(0\) and \(-1\) are sinks: a new bug starts at \(1\). In the Rotor-Router Problem bugs jump on the integer points in the plane. A bug which arrives at an ``unoccupied'' site \((i,j)\) occupies it, points a rotor to the East, and causes a new bug to be released at the origin; the next bug to arrive at \((i,j)\) turns the rotor counterclockwise one-quarter turn and moves one unit in the direction of the rotor. The deterministic Rotor-Router Problem was ``de-randomized'' from the Internal Diffusion Limited Aggregation problem (IDLA) [\textit{G. F. Lawler, M. Bramson} and \textit{D. Griffeath}, ``Internal diffusion limited aggregation'', Ann. Probab. 20, No. 4, 2117--2140 (1992; Zbl 0762.60096), \textit{G. F. Lawler}, ``Subdiffusive fluctuations for internal diffusion limited aggregation'', Ann. Probab. 23, No. 1, 71--86 (1995; Zbl 0835.60086), \textit{P. Diaconis} and \textit{W. Fulton}, ``A growth model, a game, an algebra, Lagrange inversion, and characteristic classes'', Rend. Semin. Mat., Torino 49, No. 1, 95--119 (1991; Zbl 0776.60128)], in which there is no rotor-router, and a bug jumps to a random immediate neighbour.