No. 4 — The Free Data Hub for Ants
- Miriam Tocino
- Jul 15
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 4
In a good system, no one is left out: even the tiniest process matters.
Sometimes systems seem like they run all by themselves.
Neat. Smooth. Perfectly automated.
Until something small — maybe even invisible — changes everything.
This story is about that.
About hidden processes, overlooked workers, and how even the tiniest parts of a system carry meaning.
A story with scheduled rain, data-gathering ants, and a glowing sign that turns the system upside down.
Because in a good system, no one is too small to matter.
The Free Data Hub for Ants
Zerus had been going out to the garden for as many days as our RAM has bytes. Every morning, without fail, he stood in front of the wheat and lovingly recited:
Fire in the CPU — don’t let anything burn.
Air that blows through bits — no lost flies, please.
Earth full of data — calmly in the drawer.
And the fourth element, water… just don’t lose the connection!
But days passed, and nothing sprouted. Zerus kept at it, as if the digital miracle of the century might show up at any moment. One day, after checking once again that his wheat still hadn’t grown, he sighed:
“I don’t get what I’m doing wrong…”
“Don’t bring me your digital dramas, Zerus. I only see data,” Ona replied calmly. “Let’s take a look — first we analyze, then we act.”
She waved her hand in the air, and the interface popped open like a fridge door.
Time to see what was left inside.
“Fire, check. Air, check. Earth, check…”
Ona’s finger paused on the water icon. Zerus, who until then had only been brushing his antennae as if better grooming might spark better ideas, suddenly lit up:
“Let’s program a proper rainstorm! Maybe then my wheat will wake up.”
The rain came down gently from metal showerheads hanging overhead. The drops, lined up like a string of commands, executed across multiple threads.
Zerus stepped outside, excited. He was sure that this time something would finally sprout. But what he saw left him speechless.
Cric, cric, cric…
A line of ants was emerging from the soil — like the earth itself was sending a message. They moved in perfect order, like packets of data setting out on a journey.
“By my sacred circuits!” Zerus shouted, holding his antennae to stop his processor from overheating. “They’re hacking my wheat! We need to shut them down.”
Firewall.
Lasers.
Alarms…
Motion sensors!
“Zerus,” said Ona, completely unfazed, “ants loosen the soil. They’re part of the system. Our job isn’t to eliminate them — it’s to give them a better task.”
Together, they marked a corner near the ants’ exit with two small twigs, and piled up lost data, files, and digital cookies until they formed a colorful mountain.
“Now that’s digital trash in all its glory!”
To seal the deal, they projected a holographic sign, glowing in neon:
FREE DATA FOR ANTS
The ants stopped. They looked like they were processing the new mission… and then turned toward the colorful mountain.
Ona’s interface blinked, showing a new incoming message:
ANT-HUB ACTIVATED —
CODE 200: PROCESS SUCCESSFULLY REDISTRIBUTED
Big Questions for Small Thinkers
Do you remember which part of the garden the ants liked the most?
Ona said there was no need to get rid of the ants. Why do you think she felt that way?
If a system is like a team, why do you think it works better when everyone does their part well?
