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Computers Will Be Built By Living Cells
axxackall contributes a link to Richard Black's report on BBC suggesting that "Computers of the future will be built not by factory machines, but by living cells such as bacteria. Scientists 'have described how wires can now be made by yeast organisms, and how solar panels could be built using substances produced by sea sponges. Researchers believe these kind of technologies will be essential if we are to continue to shrink the size of electronic devices.' But 'Computers made with these natural processes are not just around the corner -- it will be many years before the technologies can be developed that far.' While scientists think about small sizes and environmental benefits, I also think if it would be possible to implant such bacteria for additional computational power in human brains -- just in case we have to upgrade them." Update: 02/17 20:23 GMT by T : I chopped out that link accidentally, sorry.
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/sci_tech/2003/ denver_2003/2765077.stm
I can't find the article on BBC but United Press has one here
Biology to make mini machines
Friday, 14 February, 2003, 23:32 GMT
Biology to make mini machines
By Richard Black
BBC science correspondent
Computers of the future will be built not by factory machines, but by living cells such as bacteria.
That at least is the vision which has been outlined by scientists speaking at the American Association for the Advancement of Science annual meeting in Denver.
They have described how wires can now be made by yeast organisms, and how solar panels could be built using substances produced by sea sponges.
Researchers believe these kind of technologies will be essential if we are to continue to shrink the size of electronic devices.
Science of the small
Plants and animals produce an extraordinary variety of chemical substances, all designed to help them in their lives. But some of these substances - proteins or other kinds of molecule - might also be useful in the electronics industry, as it seeks ways of making silicon chips smaller and faster.
Another potential application is nanotechnology - science which is done at the scale of just billionths (nano) of a metre.
Materials fabricated at this level have unusual electrical and optical properties but are costly to produce. Getting the "machinery" that already exits in biological organisms to do the work has obvious advantages.
Some of the molecules that scientists are now investigating come from unlikely sources. Susan Lindquist, director of the Whitehead Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is using yeast to produce tough wires.
"We're using a protein from yeast that is actually called yeast prion," she said.
"It resembles the prions that are responsible for mad cow disease. They form long, long fibres.
"They are very thin - just 10 nanometres in width. But they go on for thousands and thousands and thousands of nanometres in length."
Dr Lindquist has discovered how to coat these strands of prion protein in gold and silver so they conduct electricity.
Captured rays
Through genetic engineering, it should be possible to make the protein strands - and so the wires - in different shapes and configurations, perhaps even forming entire electronic components.
Another researcher speaking here, Daniel Morse from the University of California, found a number of years ago that substances developed by sea sponges could be used to make silicon-based materials.
He has now discovered that the same substances could potentially make a new generation of solar cells.
They make a material, a special kind of titanium dioxide, which is very efficient at turning the Sun's rays into electricity.
Dr Morse believes that making devices through biology rather than through factories would have other benefits, including for the environment.
Human ingenuity
He said: "Biology and bio-catalysis offers the prospects of synthesis without the recourse to toxic chemicals that are presently the basis of human manufacturing of silicon-based materials today."
Computers made with these natural processes are not just around the corner - it will be many years before the technologies can be developed that far.
But sea sponges and yeast offer us the possibility of making devices smaller, cheaper and cleaner than human ingenuity could develop on its own.
Perhaps we should not be surprised, says Susan Lindquist. After all, nature has been working on the problem for a lot longer than the human brain.
She said: "For a long time man has been harnessing horses to plough and we're just beginning to understand how to harness molecules to other kinds of purposes and just the prospect of being able to do this for the benefit of mankind is really an exciting thing."
I'm reminded of one of my favorite science fiction books, Blood Music, by Greg Bear. Similar idea, a whole lot better than Prey. Much more thoughtful and interesting. I've been thinking about doing a review of it for Slashdot.
'In knowledge is power, in wisdom humility.'
For those that are interested, Michael Crichton's new book "Prey" uses this idea as a significant plot point. I'm not plugging the book one way or another, it just happens that I listened to that section this morning on the treadmill and I'm a firm believer in encouraging such cosmic coincidency thingies.
www.HearMySoulSpeak.com
At least in science fiction is a recurrent theme (I think the first book I read about this was "Fundation's Edge" from Asimov). A sentient live planet, a global mind or something like it.
In this context, well, if all those "cells" of a big network have a common concience, or as a whole gains it, well, will be similar. Like a collective mind in a global scale.
The OP is reffering to the Gaia Theroy, first laid out by James Lovelock at NASA. A write up is here Executive Sumurary;
The earths ecosystem, through it's massive network of interrelationships, exhibits behaviour similar to an organisim in maintaining itself. ie; less CO2 = more UV= alge blooms = more CO2.
"A language that doesn't affect the way you think about programming, is not worth knowing" - Alan Perlis