Computers have been able to beat humans at chess for quite some time now, which is really no surprise.

Modern computers are exceptionally good at calculating large amounts of data, which makes them almost unbeatable at chess.

Computers made out of DNA are a much newer technology, but they have incredible potential and according to a new study, they are making great strides that could someday revolutionize computing.

Up to this point, DNA computers were very good at storing data. It can, for example, store 1000 terabytes of data per cubic centimeter. When kept at 39 degrees Fahrenheit, it was shown that DNA systems can store massive amounts of data without degradation for 6000+ years.

The problem, however, is that when that data needs to be accessed it destroyed the files that were being stored.

The researchers who published the study found that when they use an enzyme that is able to transcribe the DNA into RNA, it can be accessed and used to compute information without destroying the original copy.

Albert Keung, an associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at North Carolina State University explained:

“We found that this marriage of DNA with a synthetic material gives you a whole host of new practical capabilities that weren’t possible before.”

More research is obviously needed, but as the abilities of these DNA computers continues to advance, they will be able to surpass traditional computers in every area.

DNA computers sound a little scary to me.

If you thought that was interesting, you might like to read about a quantum computer simulation that has “reversed time” and physics may never be the same.