1y ago

DNA nanobots can exponentially self-replicate: Tiny machines made from strands of DNA can build copies of themselves, leading to exponential replication. Similar devices could one day be used to cr...

www.newscientist.com DNA nanobots can exponentially self-replicate

Tiny machines made from strands of DNA can build copies of themselves, leading to exponential replication. Similar devices could one day be used to create drugs inside the body

DNA nanobots can exponentially self-replicate: Tiny machines made from strands of DNA can build copies of themselves, leading to exponential replication. Similar devices could one day be used to cr...::Tiny machines made from strands of DNA can build copies of themselves, leading to exponential replication. Similar devices could one day be used to create drugs inside the body

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Because of this the reaction will not work outside of carefully controlled laboratory conditions, ruling out apocalyptic scenarios where the process runs away and destroys all available DNA by building versions of itself with it.
This isn’t something that’s taking over the world just yet
So there’s always that kind of uncertainty; you think you can build safeguards in, but they’re not necessarily a guarantee that it will be safe
Very reassuring, nothing to worry about
- You could also have a copycat funded by terrorists or whatever. Just because they build safeguards doesn't mean the next person will. Fun.
  
  It's not that they built safeguards but probably more that replication is finicky and you need these specific conditions for it to work at all
  (but I don't have access to the cited paper)

Grey Goo!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_goo

That's a VIRUS.
Duh...
( yes, I know they are implementation-orthogonal, but it's the same concept. )
_ /\ _
- Off-top, but what's the meaning behind the last line signature? I've seen you use it before.
  
  Looks like steepled hands to me

nature hasnt reaally solved the replication problem (cancers). but we will? i guess its possible.
- Who says nature isn't cool with cancer? Nature don't give a fuck.
- Natures answer to cancer is to let it happen. Just like every other disease.
  The way it eradicates it, is that we eventually all die of it, and the few that survive live on to have immunity. It takes an extremely long time. The major problem is, things like cancer usually happen well beyond the point that we start reproducing.
  Evolution doesn’t really care about things beyond the point of reproduction. I mean, it kinda does, but not in the same way that dropping dead in childhood does.
  Not to mention, humans are actively meddling in evolution. Diseases that would wipe us out are handled with technology now. Meaning we have taken control of a lot of what nature used to do.
  
  nature cared enough to put a lot of effort into error correction preventing it.but youre right, just enough to keep'em coming
- Seeing compression, data decay, cosmic radiation flipping bit, I'm not too confident

@L4s Apparently no one remembers the "replicators" arc from the old "Stargate" TV series?

18 comments