Future Computers?
If
you think your computer has got bugs in it, wait till you hear this: scientists
are working with a strain of magnet-making bacteria that may one day become
part of a biological computer.
When the bacteria ingest iron, proteins inside their bodies interact
with it to produce tiny crystals of the mineral magnetite, the most
magnetic mineral on Earth.
Having studied the way the microbes collect, shape and position
these nano-magnets inside themselves, the researchers copied the method
and applied it outside the bacteria, effectively "growing"
magnets that could in future help to build hard drives.
"We are quickly reaching the limits of traditional electronic
manufacturing as computer components get smaller," said lead researcher
Dr Sarah Staniland of the University of Leeds.
"The machines we've traditionally used to build them are clumsy
at such small scales.
"Nature has provided us with the perfect tool to [deal with]
this problem."
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