For all we know, there could be a colony of billions of ants below us, plotting the destruction of humans and the eventual takeover of Earth. It's not that the concept is a bad one, but the connotations are a bit much. If you go poking around in the literature on artificial intelligence, you can find some of this stuff. What it boils down to is this. For others, the hard-wired stuff constitutes almost their entire behavioral repertoire.
Ants are in the latter group.
Some folks have worked up computer simulations to study what sorts of rules are needed to bring about patterns that match, for example, what we see ants doing in the real world. One fellow, Nigel Franks, has done some amazing simulations that replicate the seemingly complex behaviors of army ants using incredibly simple computer programs. Cecil's Mailbag is researched and written by members of the Straight Dope Science Advisory Board, Cecil's online auxiliary. Inc. All rights reserved. No material contained in this site may be republished or reposted without express written permission.