Bacterial DVD Holds 50TB

CAMags writes to tell us that a Harvard Professor is claiming to have developed a new variant of a protein called bacteriorhodopsin (bR) that, when layered on a DVD, can store up to 50TB of data. From the article: "The light-activated protein is found in the membrane of a salt marsh microbe Halobacterium salinarum and is also known as bacteriorhodopsin (bR). It captures and stores sunlight to convert it to chemical energy. When light shines on bR, it is converted to a series of intermediate molecules each with a unique shape and color before returning to its 'ground state.'"

Comments

I read this in a science book

[Goblez]

About 10-15 years ago when I was just a young one, about time we see some harnessing of biological complexity for our own use.

Now I want to program in RNA so that it generates the DNA automatically for me. And then, watch the ____ out!

I bet these will have the same problem as CD-RWs

[basil montreal]

Any time you use an organic compound for storage, you need to worry about the organic half life of the device. Writable optical media uses organic dye, and will only last several years in storage. I didn't see anything in the article that indicated this technology would be any better...

Caveats?

[Vo0k]

Now I wonder what caveats are there to overcome.

Normal CDs are actually "damaged" by the laser during recording. Here it's about photochemical effect. Much lower power may be needed which may allow for more data but also for really fast erasing the DVDs by simply exposing them to light. More, how to return it to base state? Seems not to be rewritable. The data lasts a few years. Would there be some "refreshing process" needed?

And last but not least: Is there anyone interested in manufacturing it, or will the harddrive makers buy the patent, then bury it to prevent competition?
There were quite a few such "revelations" like TESA-ROM (1TB on a roll of transparent adhesive tape) but they all vanish without trace... why?

50 TB?

[eebra82]

I wonder why these numbers are so greatly exaggerated. Why can't scientists leave the theoretical figures behind and talk about realistic numbers?

Anyway, once we actually reach data storage of that magnitude on a disk, we'll have to face the problem of seek time and transfers. It would be ridiculous to post so much data on a disk, so when this technology is mature, I'm sure disks will be obsolete.

Scientists should spend more time on figuring out how to leave the world of milliseconds and approach the nanoseconds. Remember, the only thing that's running on milliseconds in a computer is based on platters. I'd rather move on from that and get my 50 TB later.

Re:I bet these will have the same problem as CD-RW

[fishybell]

Writable optical media uses organic dye, and will only last several years in storage. I didn't see anything in the article that indicated this technology would be any better...

FTA:

Since the intermediates generally only last for hours or days, Prof Renugopalakrishnan and his colleagues modified the DNA that produces bR protein to produce an intermediate that lasts for more than several years.

Straight from the horses mouth: not really. Honestly, I don't really need archival quality retention of 50+ years, I'd be fine if my removable media lasted reliably for 10+ years. As it is, I'm not convinced that database backups my company makes on CDs will last more than 5. Arguably we don't need data that's older than five years, but for accountability purposes I'd rather it be a gauranteed shelf life of 10 years, or at least as far back as the IRS would look in case of an audit.