No. There is no such thing! Embarrassingly I believed that on some level, Bee’s have a hive mind (whatever that means).
The term first appeared in Galaxy Science Fiction, according to dictionary.com:
“The meaning of the term hive mind, “a collective consciousness, analogous to the behavior of social insects,” is pretty creepy to most of us. The phrase, appropriately enough, first appeared in Galaxy Science Fiction, an American pulp science fiction magazine, in 1950.”
and later popularized in Kevin Kelly’s book, “Out of Control” as described on Wiktionary.org.
However, what appears to be a hive mind is the complex decision making and problem solving of thousands of individual bees coming together as a collective (hive), each following relatively simple behavioural rules, all for the benefit of the entire colony. It's the emergence of intelligent group behaviour from individual actions.
No single bee, not even the queen, controls the colony's decisions. Instead, choices emerge from the interactions of many individuals. For instance, when a colony swarms to find a new home, scout bees effectively "vote" through their dancing intensity until consensus emerges.
Here’s what it’s not:
It’s not telepathy (as far as we can tell) - Bee’s don’t have shared thoughts; that’s why they dance their butts off!
There is no central planning system
Individual bees do not have awareness of the overall state of the colony
In closing
What bees really show is how complex systems can emerge from simple components, their approach has inspired research in artificial intelligence, robotics, and organizational management. And as I continue to expand my awareness and deepen my connection to the All That Is, I look forward to joining the hive (the wise collective) - an getting my dance on! It’s certainly not what I thought it was - 😜.
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