156 research outputs found
Cellular Automaton Belousov-Zhabotinsky Model for Binary Full Adder
© 2017 World Scientific Publishing Company. The continuous increment in the performance of classical computers has been driven to its limit. New ways are studied to avoid this oncoming bottleneck and many answers can be found. An example is the Belousov-Zhabotinsky (BZ) reaction which includes some fundamental and essential characteristics that attract chemists, biologists, and computer scientists. Interaction of excitation wave-fronts in BZ system, can be interpreted in terms of logical gates and applied in the design of unconventional hardware components. Logic gates and other more complicated components have been already proposed using different topologies and particular characteristics. In this study, the inherent parallelism and simplicity of Cellular Automata (CAs) modeling is combined with an Oregonator model of light-sensitive version of BZ reaction. The resulting parallel and computationally-inexpensive model has the ability to simulate a topology that can be considered as a one-bit full adder digital component towards the design of an Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU)
Implementation of Glider Guns in the Light-Sensitive Belousov-Zhabotinsky Medium
In cellular automata models a glider gun is an oscillating pattern of
non-quiescent states that periodically emits traveling localizations (gliders).
The glider streams can be combined to construct functionally complete systems
of logical gates and thus realize universal computation. The glider gun is the
only means of ensuring the negation operation without additional external input
and therefore is an essential component of a collision-based computing circuit.
We demonstrate the existence of glider gun like structures in both experimental
and numerical studies of an excitable chemical system -- the light-sensitive
Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction. These discoveries could provide the basis for
future designs of collision-based reaction-diffusion computers.Comment: Accepted for publication in Physical Review
Large and stable: actin aster networks formed via entropic forces
Biopolymer networks play a major role as part of the cytoskeleton. They provide
stable structures and act as a medium for signal transport. These features
encourage the application of such networks as organic computation devices.
While research on this topic is not advanced yet, previous results are very
promising. The protein actin in particular appears advantageous. It can be
arranged to various stable structures and transmit several signals. In this
study aster shaped networks were self-assembled via entropic forces by the
crowding agent methyl cellulose. These networks are characterised by a regular
and uniquely thick bundle structure, but have so far only been accounted in
droplets of 100 μm diameter. We report now regular asters in an area of a few
mm2 that could be observed even after months. Such stability outside of an
organism is striking and underlines the great potential actin aster networks
display
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