What to watch
- Run it at moderate speed and watch the live population collapse.
- The reaction is long-lived but not stable.
- It is a compact benchmark for extinction behavior.
Methuselahs
Diehard
Die hard
A small pattern famous for eventually vanishing completely.
Diehard is useful because it looks lively for a long time but leaves no ash. It separates activity from survival.
Diehard is not a 3x3 pattern
Diehard has seven live cells in an 8 x 3 bounding box. It belongs next to the R-pentomino in a methuselah comparison because it stays active for 130 generations and then disappears completely.
Methuselahs7 cells8 x 3 box130 generations lifespanfinal: 0 cells
- Category
- Methuselahs
- Period
- Dies after 130 generations
- Movement
- bounded
- Population
- 7 cells
- Bounding box
- 8 x 3
- Lifespan
- 130 generations
- Final state
- 0 cells
- Known since
- 1993
How to use it
Use it to show that a noisy reaction can still be finite.
Open the pattern in the lab, reduce the speed, and use single-step mode when a phase change is hard to see. The green preview marks births in the next generation; red outlines mark live cells that will die.
Fast answers
Common questions about Diehard
Is Diehard a 3x3 Game of Life pattern?
No. Diehard has an 8 x 3 bounding box. If you want a methuselah that starts inside 3 x 3, compare it with the R-pentomino.
Why is Diehard useful to run?
It stays active long enough to look persistent, then completely vanishes after 130 generations. That makes extinction behavior easy to study.
Does Diehard leave any stable ash?
No. Unlike many methuselahs, Diehard eventually disappears completely.