Nov 12, 2022
Throwforward Thursday 77: DNA Data Storage
Every day, humans produce 2.4 quintillion bytes of data, and this
doubles every two years or so at the moment. Most of this is now
stored in "the cloud", which might be invisible to us, but is
actually in massive data warehouses all around the world. If this
continues at this pace until 2060, every single part of the planet
will need to be covered by data warehouses.
Of course, we will find ways to store data more efficiently, and to
reduce the size of hard drive space. But... add to all of this the
energy and water used, and we have a massive problem in the
making.
One possible solution is to store data in DNA (no... not inside
your body, but in DNA stored in controlled conditions). All of the
world's data could be stored in a location the size of a small
motor car, using almost no energy, giving off almost no heat, and
lasting for 50,000 years before decaying. It sounds like an
incredible solution. And it is coming soon.
Further Reading:
* Data Centers Are Unsustainable. We Need to Store Data in DNA.
https://www.realclearscience.com/articles/2022/11/08/data_centers_are_unsustainable_we_need_to_store_data_in_dna_863575.html
* DNA storage:
https://www.techradar.com/news/dna-data-storage-is-the-most-important-innovation-youve-never-heard-about