Is it my imagination, or are the villagers congregating every time I check on them? It seems like they'll be gathered together in one or more groups, then when I zoom in on them to see what they're doing, they all run off in opposite directions. Are those little stinkers are up to something??

It's not your imagination. That's actually been around since the original release of Village Sim. It has to do with the way that villagers' positions are determined when the game is launched, and is affected by the current occupation or status of each villager. There are several locations that seem to "attract" many, if not most, of the villagers at startup: the research table, the well, and the "sickroom" (to name a few).

The sickroom? I suppose that this was added to 1.1. Wow. New buildings... sounds interesting. I had no idea...

I was referring to the clearing where sick villagers gather when they're not feeling well.