Lifeboat Foundation

Researchers at the University of Eindhoven in the Netherlands have developed a DNA computer that can respond to the presence of specific antibodies and make calculations, with the potential for intelligent drug delivery in the future. DNA computing involves using DNA molecules and other molecular biological components as molecular circuitry, instead of traditional silicon-based circuitry in computer devices. The DNA sequence dictates which other DNA molecules a DNA strand can interact with, allowing researchers to program DNA circuitry.

Scientists have been trying to use DNA computing as a method to detect biomarkers of disease in the body. Using this technique, a DNA computer could make calculations and perform a specific function, such as release a drug or activate an enzyme, in response to biological stimuli such as disease biomarkers.

So far, the inputs of DNA computers have been other DNA or RNA molecules, which has limited their usefulness as diagnostic or therapeutic systems. However, in this study, published in Nature Communications, scientists have developed a DNA computer that can respond to multiple antibody inputs and perform calculations to formulate an appropriate response. Antibodies are biomarkers in a variety of diseases, meaning that the new system has significant potential as an intelligent drug delivery system. The system translates the presence of an antibody into a DNA strand, that can then interact with other DNA strands in the molecular circuitry in calculating the appropriate response.

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Combines, space, poetry, optics, stories, TV, cognitive computing, atomic food safety, astrophysics and quantum biology in a fun-packed programme for everyone.

Published: 2012/11/01 | ISBN: 311027325X | PDF | 349 pages | 12.06 MB

The subject of this book is theory of quantum system presented from information science perspective. The central role is played by the concept of quantum channel and its entropic and information characteristics. Quantum information theory gives a key to understanding elusive phenomena of quantum world and provides a background for development of experimental techniques that enable measuring and manipulation of individual quantum systems. This is important for the new efficient applications such as quantum computing, communication and cryptography. Research in the field of quantum informatics, including quantum information theory, is in progress in leading scientific centers throughout the world. This book gives an accessible, albeit mathematically rigorous and self-contained introduction to quantum information theory, starting from primary structures and leading to fundamental results and to exiting open problems.

Nice advancement in QC.

Trapped ions calculate more reliably but superconducting circuits are faster.

More on the QC Blueprint which enables others to use as a reference when building a QC.

According to Prof Winfried Hensinger of the University of Sussex in the United Kingdom, he and his team have the first practical design for a quantum computer. Like millions of others, I have struggled to come to an understanding of quantum mechanics and how a quantum computer might work.

It would use qubits rather than standard on/off or 1 and 0 bits used in traditional computers. A qubit can have a state of anywhere between zero and one, including all the “states” in between. Theoretically, a quantum computer can perform a very large number of calculations simultaneously using the ideas of super positioning and quantum entanglement. The theory is that all the necessary calculations are carried out at virtually the same time, e.g. working out all the factors of a very large number. This kind of problem can take a regular computer quite a while.

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For those interested in life extension and bionic / cyborg type enhancements, this CMU Robotics Institute Seminar gives an overview of the background and current developments in artificial vision. José Alain Sahel MD is a world leading ophthalmologist with a lengthy bio and numerous honors and appointments.

In the future, if you’re going blind, these sight restoration technologies may be used to remediate your vision loss.

Three major ideas are covered. 1) Implanting arrays of tiny 3-color LEDs under a failed retina to stimulate still-okay cells, and 2) using gene therapy to express a novel photoreceptor, borrowed from algae, to restore a form of sight to failed cells. These can be done together. Lots of studies in mice, primates, and humans. Some coverage is also given to 3) directly implanting electronics in the brain to send complete images to vision centers, but this is still at an early stage.

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Nice advancement; looking forward indeed to the day I know longer look or touch a keypad again or even markers to a white or imaging board.

Memristors are resistive elements retaining information of their past dynamics. They have garnered substantial interest due to their potential for representing a paradigm change in electronics, information processing and unconventional computing. Given the advent of quantum technologies, a design for a quantum memristor with superconducting circuits may be envisaged. Along these lines, we introduce such a quantum device whose memristive behavior arises from quasiparticle-induced tunneling when supercurrents are cancelled. For realistic parameters, we find that the relevant hysteretic behavior may be observed using current state-of-the-art measurements of the phase-driven tunneling current. Finally, we develop suitable methods to quantify memory retention in the system.

While the recent cases of Ebola and Zika contributed to an emphasis on research, response, and policy related to EIDs, the meeting also had presentations on emerging biotechnologies. Of particular note was the Synthetic Biology panel, which focused on the current state of synthetic biology, its use in the health security defense enterprise, and the policy conundrums that need to be addressed.

Synthetic Biology – Complexity through Simplification

The first presenter, Dr. Christopher Voigt of the Synthetic Biology Center at MIT, noted that synthetic biology was the application of engineering principles to biological systems. The end goal of this bioengineering framework is to leverage ever-increasing computer capabilities to simplify both the designing and writing of genomic sequences. Further simplification would then allow for the creation of more complex systems.

Continue reading “The Biotechnological Wild West: The Good, the Bad, and the Underknown of Synthetic Biology” »