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Genome Methods Applied to Reverse-Engineering
L1TH10N writes "Wired news has an article on a truely innovative way of analysing network protocol reverse-engineering. Marshall Beddoe, a security analyst, is using algorithms used in bioinformatics to analyse closed-source and secret network protocols which he calls "Protocol Informatics".According to Beddoe, network conversations are full of "junk" -- usually the actual data being sent -- which interferes with the analysis of the occasional command sequence that controls what to do with that junk. This has parrallels with Bioinformatics that has to deal with a similar problem of finding known DNA sequences separated by long gaps of unknown data. Biologists have devised complex algorithms to discover whether DNA sequences are descended from the same ancestors by comparing the genetic differences with the known mutation rates of certain DNA components. Beddoe applied the same principles to mutating network conversations of evolving network protocols."
If we could find a way to apply said algorithms to spam at the gateway level.
If that could be implemented somehow (an attached appliance or something), it could drastically cut the amount of spam that goes through.
Striking fear in the authors of godawful fanfiction, I am here, appearing in darkness, Tuxedo Jack!
SLASHDOT: news for people who can't concentrate on work or have no life at all and got tired of yelling back at the TV.
I'm not sure I see anything to do with 'laws' in this. It does look like a novel approach and I applaud the kind of lateral thinking that caused someone to apply an algorithmic method to the task that was devoloped for something in such a (seemingly) different field.
I firmly believe that bioinformatics is going to the the next IT. Programmers will use compilers that create genetic sequences for bio-machines and bio-computers (the debugging process is the main scary part). The odd contrast to present IT is that the underlying 'hardware' isn't something we will have invented, but something we are just learning to use.
I always enjoy such articles.... Technology tranfer has been the cornerstone of innovation for how long? Companies study other industries in order to bring innovation to tired processes and technologies. It is responsible for many of today's disruptive technological achievement. Was it South West Airlines who did formal research on pit crews at Daytona (or something like that)? Regardless, keep up the good work... who knows the next great step in reverse engineering might come from examining how Vegas tears down their casino's, or is that just what I'm thinking for Windows. "It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education." --Albert Einstein --j
Well, the only good news is that Microsoft isn't able to reach accuracy 100% themselves, whether it involves exchange of Word documents between PCs, or between Macs and PCs.
Bert
Who started his own company and now understands first hand what his former secretary had to endure when battling with that productivity killer. We need competition to get rid of it. Any measure against Microsoft should involve opening the standard.
I work right in the middle of all that is biology at MIT(Center for Cancer Research, Biology, BioInformatics, Chemistry, Biological Engineering, Brain and Cog, Mathematics, Physics, Computer Science, etc..) and the geeks in each department are aware of the advancements made in other departments and how they can help themselves. In fact, MIT created something called CSBi, the Computational and Systems Biology Initiative(csbi.mit.edu), which has professors and students from all the departments listed above, and more. They collaborate, share students and projects, organize retreats and conferences. There's even a degree program in systems biology.
The majority of study is computer research applied towards biological methods and models, but I'm sure some of the cs geeks will be reading this article and grab the work done by the bio geeks.
And in the end, we will all have the best mouse trap ever.
Do you see the sig? Do you have it in your sights? Why yes, Miss Moneypenny...
Junk DNA acts as a protective buffer against genetic damage and harmful mutations. An overwhelming percentage of DNA is irrelevant to the metabolic and developmental processes, so it is unlikely any single, random insult to the nucleotide sequence will affect the organism.
I read something about this in NewScientist a while ago. Blocks of a certain base (guanine?) either side of important regions of DNA, which are more susceptible to damage (by free radicals?), serve to protect the important code, by being damaged first. Anyway, I thought it was really cool because it's basically analogous to bolting blocks of more easily oxidizable metal onto the hull of a ship, to prevent the hull from corroding. (What is this process called, anyone?)