an artistic illustration of molecular computing
A new and promising form of chemical computing made possible by lipid-forming characteristic of the human cells has recently begun.
This is a 1.8m-euro (£1.6m) project which will run for three years and funded by an EU emerging technologies program placing importance on biologically-inspired computing.
The project "Wet computer" also known as Chemical or Molecular computing is a form of computational model that mimics the characteristics of the human cells, particularly the brain cells called neurons.
As described by Dr. Klaus-Peter Zauner, project collaborator of the University of Southampton, "wet computer" takes advantage of the lipid-forming characteristic of stable "cells" that forms a coating spontaneously and uses chemistry to establish interactions among these cells similar to that of human neurons.
The project hinges on two critical ideas, says Dr. Zauner.
First, individual "cells" are encapsulated by the so-called lipids that spontaneously traps the liquid within the cell. And in a recent findings, interaction among these cells occur during collision of the lipids allowing chemical signaling molecules to pass.
Second, the cells' interiors will play host to what is known as a Belousov-Zhabotinsky or B-Z chemical reaction which can be initiated by changing the concentration of an element, say bromine by a certain threshold amount.
In essence, chemical computing will open up applications for controlling molecular robots, fine-grained control of chemical assembly, and intelligent drugs that process the chemical signals of the human body and act according to the local biochemical state of the cell.
Click here to learn more about "Wet Computer", Chemical or Molecular Computing.
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A very good introduction to molecular computing.