= Life oscillator
{c}
{title2=$F^p(A)=A$}
A <Life oscillator> is a nonconstant <periodic orbit> of the <Conway's Game of Life> update <function> $F$. Its period is the least positive <integer> $p$ for which $F^p(A)=A$, comparing the entire live-cell <set> at the same coordinates. A configuration that never changes is instead a <fixed point>; a <Life glider> is not a <Life oscillator> on the infinite board because it returns at displaced coordinates. The <Life blinker> has period two.https://github.com/nathanieljohnston/game-of-life-book/blob/master/oscillators.tex[Johnston and Greene, chapter 3: oscillators and their periods]{ref}
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