PhysarumAI Dataset: Experimental Networks of Physarum polycephalum

This dataset contains a large-scale collection of controlled laboratory experiments documenting transport network formation by the slime mold Physarum polycephalum. The organism is known for its ability to form efficient, adaptive networks for resource distribution, making it a widely used biological model for studying decentralized network formation. All experiments were conducted under standardized conditions using square Petri dishes filled with non-nutritive agar. Nutrient sources (oat flakes) were placed at predefined spatial locations, representing network nodes. The plasmodium was introduced at a fixed starting position, and network development was recorded over time. The dataset includes multiple spatial configurations with repeated trials, enabling analysis of both reproducible patterns and biological variability in network formation. For each experiment, the dataset provides raw and processed images of the resulting networks, as well as structured representations in the form of adjacency matrices, distance matrices, probability matrices, and aggregated network representations derived from repeated trials. This dataset is intended to support research in biological network formation, bio-inspired engineering, graph theory, and data-driven modeling of transport systems. It can be used for comparative studies with classical geometric graphs, statistical analysis of network properties, and as training or evaluation data for computational and machine-learning models inspired by biological systems.