bacteria based computers?

[concernedsophist]

So, apparantly some scientists at Princeton have come up with a way to make bacteira behave in a way similar to computers.

here

Sounds cool, will be be using bio-based computers in the not-so-distant future?

 

[irwincur]

They have been working on this for more than a decade.

 

[itachi]

Originally posted by: concernedsophist
Sounds cool, will be be using bio-based computers in the not-so-distant future?

doubtful.. the "computations" done are in response to the environment of the bacteria, the result is a visual/chemical response that's not discrete (requires some sort of measurement tool at the point of extraction). can't imagine that this could ever be cheap with a high degree of accuracy. if there ever were to come a time that it could be, imo quantum computing still holds way more promise.

 

[eunsang]

and then the bacteria evolves to be lethal then breaks out of your case. then everyone's dead.

 

[Changlinn]

Yeah could you imagine if someone wrote a real virus on this... and there are some smart hackers out there, be very interesting, we are going to see simlar issues with augmentation, ie integration of cell phone, pc into a human body, this will be cool, make a backup of your memory etc, browse the net from inside your head, but what if someone worked out how to write a virus, ah well, we live in interesting times. I still want a cell phone implanted in my head

 

[Gibsons]

They are using E. coli I beleive, so there are already natural virii around. Usually called a phage, but it's the same idea.

Anyway, I wouldn't worry about microbe-based processing replacing electronics for any standard applications. Microbes as we know them have the following properties:
they need to be fed
they need waste products removed
they need water
they have a narrow operating temperature and their performance changes greatly with changes in temperature (much moreso than electronics)
they tend to grow and/or die if they're actually doing things
they can smell bad

 

[rezinn]

That article makes it sound like they invented plasmids. It also doesn't appear that the intended use of the bacteria is to replace computers, but they mimic very basic functions to show how the technology can be used in the future.