review articles

Doi: 10.1145/1400181.1400200

Natural computing builds a bridge between
computer science and natural sciences.
By LiLa kaRi anD GRzeGoRz RozenBeRG
the many
facets of
natural
computing
“Biology and computer science—life and
computation—are related. I am confident that
at their interface great discoveries await those
who seek them.”
— Leonard Adleman,
Scientific American, Aug. 1998

Natural computing is the field of research that investigates models and computational techniques inspired by nature and, dually, attempts to understand the world around us in terms of information processing. It is a highly interdisciplinary field that connects the natural sciences with computing science, both at the level of information technology and at the level of fundamental research. ³³ As a matter of fact, natural computing areas and topics come in many flavors, including pure theoretical research, algorithms and software

applications, as well as biology, chemistry, and physics experimental laboratory research.

In this review we describe computing paradigms abstracted from natural phenomena as diverse as self-reproduction, the functioning of the brain, Darwinian evolution, group behavior, the immune system, the characteristics of life, cell membranes, and morphogenesis. These paradigms can be implemented either on traditional electronic hardware or on alternative physical media such as biomolecular (DNA, RNA) computing, or trapped-ion quantum computing devices. Dually, we describe several natural processes that can be viewed as information processing, such as gene regulatory networks, protein-protein interaction networks, biological transport networks, and gene assembly in unicellular organisms. In the same vein, we list efforts to understand biological systems by engineering semi-synthetic organisms, and to understand the universe from the point of view of information processing.

This review was written with the expectation that the reader is a computer scientist with limited knowledge of natural sciences, and it avoids dwelling on the minute details of various natural phenomena. Thus, rather than being overwhelmed by particulars, it is our hope that readers see this article as simply a window into the profound relationship that exists between nature and computation.

There is information processing in nature, and the natural sciences are already adapting by incorporating tools and concepts from computer science at a rapid pace. Conversely, a closer look at nature from the point of view of information processing can and will

 

The vivid images peppered throughout this story offer glimpses of what can happen when nature, art, and computer science join forces. While not directly referenced in this article, these images serve to offer readers some startling perspectives of nature up close as only technology can provide.