Japanese Researchers Create A Crab-Based Computer 102
mikejuk writes "You can build a computer out of all sorts of things — mechanical components, vacuum tubes, transistors, fluids and ... crabs. Researchers at Kobe University in Japan have discovered that soldier crabs have behaviors suitable for implementing simple logic and hence — with enough crabs — you can achieve a complete computer. The Soldier crab Mictyris guinotae has a swarming behavior that is just right for simple logic gates (PDF). When two crab swarms collide they fuse to make a single swarm — and this is enough to build an OR gate."
Overheat (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Overheat (Score:5, Funny)
Yeah, but then you'll have to shell out for a new one. It might be nice in a pinch, but in the end I'll bet you'd just spend all your time trying to claw back some sort of function.
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You Sir, should have posted with an account.
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Oh stop trying to butter him up.
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seafood cooling? cooking your CPU? (Score:2)
One day (Score:5, Funny)
My crotch will become sentient!
Re:One day (Score:4, Insightful)
I wanted to mod this but there is no "ew, gross" option.
Re:One day (Score:5, Funny)
Mine already does most of my thinking.
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Sometimes I think mine already is.
You're a long way from a proof, buddy (Score:2, Interesting)
One of the hardest things about proving emergent automata to be equivalent to, for instance, Turing mahines, is not showing that specific operations can be duplicated. The hardest part is showing that the thing doesn't degenerate when more complex interactions are necessary.
If they could build more than just a simple gate -- say, a flip flop, I would be more impressed.
Re:You're a long way from a proof, buddy (Score:5, Funny)
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To a degree. ... than to add the extra complexity required for error tolerant computing.
It's more complex than this.
Mainstream computers basically assume error-free operation - because it's cheaper to run the devices a little slower - or to use more area or
You can construct computers with gates that are 99% reliable quite easily.
90% requires a lot more check logic.
By the time you hit something like 66%, the design is many times the size of the 'error free' one.
So, the next SONY VAIO... (Score:5, Funny)
I'd like to see.. (Score:5, Funny)
I'd really like to see what they wrote on their research grant application...
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The article ends with: "The results closely matched the simulation, suggesting that crab-powered computers could indeed be possible."
I translated that to: "We have seen enough hentai to know where this is going."
Also known as, "The summary doesn't match the article" because they only predicted the possibility, they didn't actually create a crab based computer.
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I broke my NIC! (Score:2)
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Are you insane? A NIC is useless against those massive claws.
Research > science fiction (Score:2)
Re:Research science fiction (Score:2)
Check out Accelerando, by Charles Stross.
Re:Research science fiction (Score:2)
Who needs an Ipad3? (Score:5, Funny)
Maybe (Score:1)
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Chips with everything?
Try Explaining That One To Airport Security (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Try Explaining That One To Airport Security (Score:5, Funny)
you can get that version in most shady motels and bars.
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Terry Pratchett's big mistake (Score:4, Funny)
Method and implementation of a digital computer in which binary digits are living beings [..]
Claim 36: A computer as described in Claims 1-30 in which the digits are members of the phylum Arthropoda
Claim 37: A computer in which the members of Claim 36 are further members of sub-phylum Crustacea
Claim 38: A computer in which the members of Claim 36 are further members of sub-phylum Insecta
Claim 39: A read only memory in which storage is by means of members of the Phylum Arthropoda which have both a motile and a sessile stage, such as barnacles.
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This sounds a lot like... (Score:1)
Hex.
Ponder Stibbons is real!
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Yes...yes I did.
How do you get an inverter? (Score:2)
And what is the memory density? How many crabs does it take to make a JK flip-flop?
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An inverter would be a swarm of crabs channeled in from outside through the VDD line, that run down the OUT line, as long as there are no crabs on the IN line.
As soon as crabs come down the IN line, they would merge with the crabs from the VDD line and the path of the combined swarm would be altered such, that they run down a third line instead of OUT, which I'd call GND.
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No need for special element, their AND gate is basically a 2-to-4 decoder (without 0 output line) - it has (NOT a AND b), (a AND b) and (a AND NOT b) outputs.
Just send a synchronized stream of crabs (damn, that's a nice combination of words) down one input and use corresponding output as NOT.
interesting (Score:3)
because norwegian researchers already have implemented the natural communication protocol for these sorts of computers:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_over_Avian_Carriers [wikipedia.org]
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And of course, the Matrix explained how we'd power such a computing device and network.
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you mean powered by kitsch and ponderous explication?
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grrr... Keany Reeves is *hot*!
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Not Logically Complete (Score:1)
They've got AND and OR gates, but no inverters. You can't really build a computer with that.
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> All you have to do is hold Y high and you have a NOT X gate.
That's a NAND gate, not an AND gate. You can do complete logic with NAND or XNOR. No other single gate is capable of it.
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And a Linux crab machine would have a nice shell.
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Inverters are easy with crab-tech.
See some posts above.
Obligatory... (Score:3, Funny)
But will it play Doom?
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No, but Farcry might be in the cards.
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If you use head crabs, you can play Half-Life.
So that's the secret.. (Score:2)
Human computer (Score:3)
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computing the question.
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Get your tin foil hat ready. What computer program are *we* running? Make the rich richer 2.0?
I'm thinking the USians are running Collapse of the Republic - Release 2 revision 3 build 118
(build 119 is due out in Nov, and may have a new Executive Module)
On a related note, someone at my local post office posted a rather clever graphic hack on the community bulletin board (in meatspace). The graphic depicts the sinking of the Titanic, nosing down into the ocean. The superstructure of the ship has been replaced by an image of the US Capitol building. In the foreground two longboats are depicted. On
First thought after reading... (Score:1)
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Misread it as "cheap network or sound crabs"
Could be done, electrically stimulate a crab to snap its pincers, employ good old pulse-width modulation and add some output filters.
Then get a bunch of them and make a polyphonic sound crab.
performance is described (Score:1)
He gets a lot right (Score:1)
I for one, (Score:3)
welcome our supercomputing, sidewise crawling crab overlords.
Creepy! (Score:1)
I'll won't believe it until... (Score:1)
Take over the world (Score:1)
With a Beowulf cluster of these, (and a few sharks with lasers, I could take over the world.
Important questions (Score:2)
These are the more pressing questions I didn't see answered in the article:
Will these crab-based computers play tentacle-based porn?
Will these computers be sold by weight or by volume?
Is there anything Japan *won't* do with seafood?
Crabs or Crayfish Based. . . (Score:1)