Technology
A conventional computer must be fully assembled before it can run, but an experimental DNA computer solves problems through the very act of putting itself together
DNA tiles that assemble themselves into a series of letters might represent a new form of computing
Olivier Wyart/HEADQUARTER, 2023. www.headquarter.paris
It is possible to classify images simply by analysing the way that trillions of DNA molecules in a test tube connect together into different shapes.
Conventional computers must be fully assembled before they can run any computations. Inspired by biological systems – which must operate while they are still building themselves – Constantine Evans at Maynooth University in Ireland and his colleagues wanted to see whether a computer that starts as many disconnected components can…
