New Storage Devices
In technology, there is a constant struggle for more storage. As consumers, we are continually introduced to new ways to use computers to express ourselves, but those expressions require more and more hard drive space. Consider even that the standard storage of many MP3 players are several times larger than that of computer systems from just a few years ago. I often wonder if we’ll ever hit a limit with magnetic and/or flash storage, and whether some new technology will supplant that which is considered today’s standard.
Surely, hard drives will continue to get smaller, and ways to transport the data we store on them will continue to become more convenient. Today I got a glimpse into that future when I read about scientists who have discovered a novel way to store data using DNA. According to an article on the “Science Daily” web site, researchers at the University of California at Riverside (UCR) have discovered a way to encode digital information into DNA. The methodology eliminates the need for expensive sequencing machinery, presumably making it a more accessible process and conducive to use within a mass audience. It was developed by Nathaniel G. Portney, Yonghui Wu, Stefano Lonardi, and Mihri Ozkan from UCR’s departments of Bioengineering, Computer Science and Engineering, Biochemistry, and Electrical Engineering, and the Center for Nanoscale Science and Engineering.
You can read more about the process in “New Way to Store Information Via DNA Discovered” on the Science Daily web site.
Reading about this whole methodology made me curious as to the practical applications of this type of discovery. Firstly, storing information in DNA seems to be something still out of the realm of science fiction…what kinds of side effects would occur in the DNA as a result of its manipulation in order to store data? Second, decoding the information still is a more complicated process, so we’re not quite at the point yet of being able to interface directly with a computer using our finger and a scanner to store data within our own bodies. Perhaps, however, this kind use of our DNA isn’t far off.
I don’t purport to know everything there is to know about this topic; admittedly, it was something I happened to glaze over while reading possible articles for this week. Therefore, if there’s anyone out there in cyberspace who can maybe provide more insight on this topic, I’d be happy to hear your thoughts. I am always fascinated with any attempt to use our unique human characteristics to take the next evolutionary step in our use of technology.
