The density of digital storage media, akin to arduous disks, has elevated tremendously prior to now few many years. Not all that way back, it took a refrigerator-sized system to retailer a number of megabytes of knowledge; now, we are able to carry terabytes of storage round in our pockets. However regardless of these successes, there could also be a fair higher path ahead. In any case, high-density digital storage existed lengthy earlier than the pc age. To search out it, you want look no additional than inside your personal cells.
Inside every cell in your physique, there’s a tightly-coiled bundle of DNA just some microns in size. Unstretched, this strand of DNA would prolong to over six ft. Nonetheless, on account of its excessive stage of compression, a single gram of DNA can retailer over 215 petabytes of knowledge in its quaternary language.
Appears like a fairly good choice for general-purpose information storage, doesn’t it? Atlas Knowledge Storage thinks so, which is why they’ve developed their Atlas Eon 100 scalable DNA information storage service. By storing your information in DNA, 60 petabytes may be compressed into 60 cubic inches. And due to DNA’s pure sturdiness, that information will nonetheless be obtainable lengthy after it has been forgotten about.
Knowledge is saved in artificial DNA (📷: Atlas Knowledge Storage)
Earlier than you rush to purchase your personal DNA storage answer, it is very important perceive what Atlas Eon 100 is and isn’t. It’s a long-term information storage answer, however it’s not a random entry digital system which you could connect with a standard laptop. The essential concept is that you just ship the corporate your information, then they synthesize DNA strands that characterize it within the type of nucleic acids. As soon as the info is synthesized, it can’t be modified.
These strands of DNA are then dehydrated and saved beneath applicable situations. The information is all there when wanted, however studying it out requires using complicated and costly DNA sequencing devices. As such, it’s hardly a alternative for disk drives — but it surely might be a great different to tape backups. The information density of Atlas Eon 100 is about 1,000 occasions larger than LTO-10 tape, and, in idea, the DNA ought to safely retailer the info for for much longer as properly.
Atlas Eon 100 is certainly for very particular use circumstances at this level, however maybe future advances will in the end carry DNA-based storage to each desktop.
