This press release from the University of East Anglia tells us:
Scientists have found a way to "switch" the structure of DNA using copper salts and EDTA (Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) -- an agent commonly found in shampoo and other household products. It was previously known that the structure of a piece of DNA could be changed using acid, which causes it to fold up into what is known as an "i-motif." But new research published today in the journal Chemical Communications reveals that the structure can be switched a second time into a hair-pin structure using positively-charged copper (copper cations). This change can also be reversed using EDTA. The applications for this discovery include nanotechnology -- where DNA is used to make tiny machines, and in DNA-based computing -- where computers are built from DNA rather than silicon.
Wouldn't a chemical-based switch make for slower performance?
(Score: 2) by captain normal on Saturday August 22 2015, @02:35AM
Actually the human brain (an electro-chemical processor) is pretty damn fast. Just do a bit of google-fu you'll find it processes information faster than anything mechanical that takes less space than a football field.
Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts"- --Daniel Patrick Moynihan--