From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!eagle!mhtsa!alice!npoiv!npois!houxm!houxa!houxk!houxj!wapd Newsgroups: net.arch Title: Re: Biochips... or bull chips? Article-I.D.: houxj.205 Posted: Wed Jan 26 10:10:39 1983 Received: Fri Jan 28 21:04:12 1983 References: brunix.1295 I have always thought that "biological computing" was a really great idea, and I'm sure that it will be done some day, but I am skeptical of claims that "it will be done in 5 years" and "it will be 100 million times faster than existing computers". Seems to me that the most feasible development is a large, SLOW memory. I don't see where the incredible speed would come from, and since biological systems use a lot of chemical reactions wouldn't signal propagation be fairly slow ? A memory would be the first product because its structure is very regular and simple. The benefits of biology for memories are : they can be incredibly large (depends on how much nutrient you want to pour in) and they can be self-replicating (self-repairing). A small benefit is that you can easily configure your memory to fit your needs (you can meet peak loads). That is, when you don't use the computer for a week, just have enough nutrient dribbled in to keep a handful of cells alive. When a big load comes through, shovel in some food and watch it grow ! The next product after a memory would probably be a huge array processor, with all of the configurability and self-repairing advantages that the memory exhibited. Fascinating area to speculate about. Something may come of it eventually. Bill Dietrich houxj!wapd