Molecular Software and Hardware for Programmed Chemical Synthesis

我们打算设计一个纳米级的化学工厂，其中的机器和产品一样，都是分子。工厂不仅能制造分子，还能使它们进化出理想的特性。产品将是线性分子，通过将较小的构建块按确定的顺序连接在一起而产生-在每个阶段，分子机器将能够从一系列可能性中选择正确的构建块。该系统将能够合成具有不同序列的分子库，并选择适合执行特定任务的“成功”分子。我们还将开发更强大系统的设计，其中负责化学合成的分子机器具有内部计算能力，可以指导自己的操作。

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.