Better Than An eReader: Harvard Stores 70 Billion Books In DNA
Via Computer World:
Scientists have long seen DNA as a potential storage medium because of its atomic size, stability, and lifespan; and the nerds over at Harvard were recently able to blow their old storage records out of the water. They transcribed an HTML version of the book Regenesis: How Synthetic Biology Will Reinvent Nature and Ourselves in DNA into binary, then encoded 70 billion copies of it into DNA. In total, they stored 5.5 petabits, or 1 million gigabits, per cubic millimeter into the storage medium.
As a storage device, DNA could easily hold everything in the world—literally. "The total world's information, which is 1.8 zettabytes, [could be stored] in about four grams of DNA," said Sriram Kosuri, king nerd on the Harvard project.
How amazing is that?
News by Dave Reuss
Dave Reuss manages Outside Bozeman Magazine. He showcases his work and prostitutes himself to freelance clients at reusswriting.com.
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Comments
Amazing, but it'd be a bitch to read.
Now when I bite my nails I can say I'm "editing."
I want to store my favorite books in MY DNA.
@Jane- Your favourite books are already there. They're a part of you. /end cheese.
Two problems:
1. 70 billion copes of the same book? What library would be interested in that? Try 70 billion different books.
2. Storing them is only one problem. Reading them is an entirely different matter.