Data can now be read and written on DNA

[Tchay]

http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com ... dna-speck/

This is just too cool.

90 petabytes (1 million gigabytes) of data would be a cupful in size using DNA instead of conventional methods of storage.

Makes me wonder if you could have bio-circuitry. Or a couple of cells grouped together to process data. So instead of your main CPU being a chip on a motherboard, it would be a microscopic cell or group of cells. Crazy.

 

[samjc3]

And here was me trying to figure out where on earth they expected us to store the 4k video files we're gonna be pirating in a few years.

In another somewhat related thought, I suppose in the future we'll have an artificial tumours for data storage? Imagine when you get a virus and die of cancer.

 

[grossaffe]

the equipment to read the data, however, is not so convenient. For big DNA research labs, something like this could be feasible because they already have the equipment, but for anyone else, it probably won't mean anything to us.

 

[Antome]

Unless we can find a way to produce and sequence DNA in less than a day, at the moment its only legitimate use would be for archiving data, and even then DNA has a half life of 500 years, so it would have to be sequenced and re-encoded every century or three. Which isn't too bad, but the commercial use of this doesn't seem very convenient or useful.

 

[samjc3]

the equipment to read the data, however, is not so convenient. For big DNA research labs, something like this could be feasible because they already have the equipment, but for anyone else, it probably won't mean anything to us.

Sure, but flash didnt mean anything for us 15 years ago either, at least not upper gigabyte class. I recall when 4gb flash drives made it to $100. It was a miracle. Point is technology marches onwards. That's why I hold out hope for my own *Can'tSayThisOnTV*ing mech.

 

[Tchay]

Yeah, although it's insanely expense to write the data on DNA, that expense is reported to be decreasing exponentially. I have no idea what time frame we are looking at for public use. But I have no doubt there are many big companies out there with massive storage requirements who are keeping an eye on this tech.

 

[superben51]

My only worry would be contamination from other DNA. Like if I were to sneeze into a cup full of this stuff, wouldn't the reader read my DNA as data as well?

 

[klefmung]

I wonder if, since the data stored on DNA is just a string of combinations of 4 different amino acid, that we could just string together different varieties of molecules in an easier-to-manage format and have the same size, maybe greater efficiency, and easier reading.

 

[Prog]

My only worry would be contamination from other DNA. Like if I were to sneeze into a cup full of this stuff, wouldn't the reader read my DNA as data as well?

It would probably be covered like the platters of a current HDD.

 

[Hermaphroditus]

 

[XCVG]

I think we're closer to holographic data storage being commercially viable, but we'll see where this goes.