Beyond Silicon: The Rise of Molecular Computing
When we look closely at any computer, one of the first things we do is take in its specifications, but behind all that we still find silicon. Now, the fact that it is so popular and useful does not make it the only option available. Many experts out there are exploring alternatives in molecular hardware such as DNA and biochemistry. The latest news comes from a team of scientists at the University of Rochester, who have created a DNA computer capable of calculating square roots up to 900, a limit impossible for its predecessors.
Silicon, copper, electricity... one might say that the essence of computer systems has not changed in recent decades, and from a certain point of view, they would be right. But there are developments that could change computing forever, as long as they prove useful beyond the laboratory. For example, we know that IBM managed to store a bit of information using only a single atom, and we also learned that Warner Bros. and Microsoft Research recorded movies inside quartz crystals instead of converting them into chips.
A DNA Computer That Goes Further
However, today we get to explore the concept of molecular hardware... computers made of DNA. A team of researchers at the University of Rochester has managed to build a “simple” DNA computer, but at the same time, far superior to its predecessors. What makes it special?
Primarily, the Rochester DNA computer can calculate square roots up to 900. Previous developments only processed perfect square roots of numbers that did not exceed four bits (0000-1111, 16 numbers counting from 0 to 15), but the researchers’ work has expanded that limit to ten bits, with a specific ceiling of 900.
This DNA computer uses a process known as hybridization. The team encodes a number in DNA using a combination of ten blocks. Each combination represents a number, and is connected to a fluorescent marker. Then, the team controls hybridization such that it modifies the overall fluorescent signal to correspond to the square root of the original number. The final result is determined by its color.
https://old.neoteo.com/supremacia-cuantica-google-que-significa/The future of this technology could give rise to molecular platforms and biochemical circuits that work just as well (or even better) than traditional computers. We are still far away, but if they have already reached the ten-bit mark for roots, it’s only a matter of time.
Source: NewScientist
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