Molecular Software and Hardware for Programmed Chemical Synthesis

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We intend to design a nanoscale chemical factory in which the machines, like the products, are molecules. The factory will not only build molecules but will be capable of evolving them to have desirable properties. The products will be linear molecules produced by linking together smaller building blocks in a defined sequence - at each stage the molecular machinery will be capable of choosing the correct building block from a range of possibilities. The system will be capable of synthesizing a library of molecules with different sequences and selecting 'successful' molecules for their fitness to perform a specified task. We will also develop designs for more powerful systems in which the molecular machinery responsible for chemical synthesis has internal computing power and can direct its own operation.