James Somers’s 2024 explainer describes chemotaxis: how E. coli moves toward nutrient-rich areas without a brain. Alternating straight runs and changes of direction, the cell compares current stimuli with its recent chemical state and increases movement in favorable directions. Related University of Illinois research material explains how CheY phosphorylation regulates motion and receptor methylation supports adaptation and short-term memory. This is an explanation of established biology, not a new experimental result, and provides no basis for equating such information processing with human-like consciousness.