Manu Prakash, an assistant professor of bioengineering at Stanford, and his students have developed a synchronous computer that operates using the unique physics of moving water droplets. Their goal is to design a new class of computers that can precisely control and manipulate physical matter.
[...] "In this work, we finally demonstrate a synchronous, universal droplet logic and control," Prakash said.
Because of its universal nature, the droplet computer can theoretically perform any operation that a conventional electronic computer can crunch, although at significantly slower rates. Prakash and his colleagues, however, have a more ambitious application in mind.
"We already have digital computers to process information. Our goal is not to compete with electronic computers or to operate word processors on this," Prakash said. "Our goal is to build a completely new class of computers that can precisely control and manipulate physical matter. Imagine if when you run a set of computations that not only information is processed but physical matter is algorithmically manipulated as well. We have just made this possible at the mesoscale."
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 10 2015, @10:33AM
What happens when a water based computer dumps core?
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 10 2015, @11:35AM
That'll be sqrt(-1)... or in other words: it's all in your head!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday June 10 2015, @11:43AM
(Score: 2) by stormwyrm on Wednesday June 10 2015, @12:00PM
Crunchly knows all about it:
http://www.catb.org/jargon/html/C/core-dump.html#crunchly76-07-18 [catb.org]
Numquam ponenda est pluralitas sine necessitate.
(Score: 3, Funny) by Balderdash on Wednesday June 10 2015, @03:09PM
I, for one, welcome our soggy overlords.
I browse at -1. Free and open discourse requires consideration and review of all attempts at participation.
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Wednesday June 10 2015, @06:02PM
What happens when a water based computer dumps core?
Worse: Divide by Zero error results in Noah's Ark 2.0!
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Wednesday June 10 2015, @07:21PM
The limit of 1/x as x approaches 0 is infinity