Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
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Computing
Martyn Amos and Gerald Owenson
The abstract operation of complex natural processes is often expressed in terms
of networks of computational components such as Boolean logic gates or ar-
tificial neurons. The interaction of biological molecules and the flow of infor-
mation controlling the development and behavior of organisms is particularly
amenable to this approach, and these models are well established in the bio-
logical community. However, only relatively recently have papers appeared
proposing the use of such systems to perform useful, human-defined tasks.
Rather than merely using the network analogy as a convenient technique for
clarifying our understanding of complex systems, it is now possible to harness
the power of such systems for the purposes of computation. The purpose of
this volume is to discuss such work. In this introductory chapter we place this
work in historical context and provide an introduction to some of the underly-
ing molecular biology. We then introduce recent developments in the field of
cellular computing.
INTRODUCTION
Despite the relatively recent emergence of molecular computing as a distinct
research area, the link between biology and computer science is not a new
one. Of course, for years biologists have used computers to store and analyze
experimental data. Indeed, it is widely accepted that the huge advances of the
Human Genome Project (as well as other genome projects) were only made
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