Cellular automata, which includes Conway's Game of Life, is impressive because of the complexity that arises from simplicity. Starting from just a few simple rules and starting arrangements, structures can appear that you would never have expected.<p>Some people believe that our universe could be a type of cellular automata itself.<p>There are some interesting connections between our universe and the type of cellular automata like Conway's Game of Life. It is possible to predict events in the future by looking at the big picture. Various levels and hierarchies of structures are formed in Conway's Game of Life (e.g. gliders and glider guns) that seem to obey their own rules. However, these macro rules are nowhere close to the original micro rules of the simulation. While we can look at these macro rules to make certain predictions, the only way we can determine every cell's state in the future is by letting the simulation play out one generation at a time.