3 ms·

this could perhaps actually be useful at the molecular level as a mechanical computing system. I wonder what possible advantages might be found for micro-mems c

• gumby 6y ago
  They've always seemed terrible to me for speed and thermodynamics reasons (it's so much easier and faster to move an electron than a bunch of neutrons). I suppose from a computational perspective you could do a simple, or set of simple computations in a machine more resistant to, or at least more resilient against, EMP (as the thing that is easy to move in a B field, that electron I mentioned above) is easier to move in undesired wave when subject to a large external B field. I doubt it though. However you do raise the possibility of longer-lasting computers in other harsh environments, specifically space. The Voyager probes work in part because the feature size of the components is huge (discrete transistors that are inspectable through a microscope and in some cases the naked eye). Such components are hard to come by these days. Micro mechanical devices might even be a superior approach. And for most space applications speed is not critical.
  • gwf 6y ago
    I don't think that you'd ever want to literally have sliding mechanics. However, the dual rail logic used is a type of reversible computation. Thus, thermodynamically it is theoretically much more efficient than standard (irreversible) computation because bits are never erased (which accounts for most of the energy loss).
    • gumby 6y ago
      I was thinking of microscopic mechanical machines; I agree truly sliding would not be optimal.