Add Bacteria To the List of Things That Can Run Doom
An anonymous reader shares a report: In a somewhat groundbreaking yet bizarre scientific feat, MIT biotechnology PhD student researcher Lauren “Ren” Ramlan has coaxed a simulation of the humble E. coli bacteria into a rudimentary screen capable of displaying the iconic video game. However, before you get too excited about playing games in a petri dish, there’s a catch. According to Ramlan’s simulation, displaying a single frame of Doom on these bioluminescent bacteria — should anyone attempt to do this with the real thing — would take roughly 70 minutes, with a full reset to the bacteria’s original state taking a whopping eight hours and 20 minutes.
Dubbed a step into the world of biological screens, Ramlan engineered a system where the bacteria would function as 1-bit pixels, toggling between light and dark states. This bio-display utilizes a well plate in a 32×48 array, each containing genetically modified E. coli that can be induced to fluoresce, creating a grid of pixel-like structures.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
An anonymous reader shares a report: In a somewhat groundbreaking yet bizarre scientific feat, MIT biotechnology PhD student researcher Lauren “Ren” Ramlan has coaxed a simulation of the humble E. coli bacteria into a rudimentary screen capable of displaying the iconic video game. However, before you get too excited about playing games in a petri dish, there’s a catch. According to Ramlan’s simulation, displaying a single frame of Doom on these bioluminescent bacteria — should anyone attempt to do this with the real thing — would take roughly 70 minutes, with a full reset to the bacteria’s original state taking a whopping eight hours and 20 minutes.
Dubbed a step into the world of biological screens, Ramlan engineered a system where the bacteria would function as 1-bit pixels, toggling between light and dark states. This bio-display utilizes a well plate in a 32×48 array, each containing genetically modified E. coli that can be induced to fluoresce, creating a grid of pixel-like structures.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.