The determination to run 1993’s seminal shooter Doom on various unconventional platforms has become a well-known phenomenon. From tractors to pregnancy tests, people have made countless attempts to install Doom on anything that has technology. But what about living organisms? Well, as it turns out, someone is trying to get the iconic first-person shooter running on human bacteria.
Lauren “Ren” Ramlan, a PhD bioengineering student and “bioartist” at MIT, has embarked on this ambitious endeavor. In her paper titled “1-Bit Pixels Encoded in E. Coli for the Display of Interactive Digital Media,” Ramlan outlines the history of Doom being played on peculiar technology and explores previous attempts to teach cells to play the game. She then explains her own innovative approach of using cells as a pixel-like display.
Ramlan’s method involves growing cells in specific wells of a 1,536-well plate, similar to how pixels light up on a digital display to form an image. By programming the cells using a plasmid that can glow fluorescent green when not inhibited by another chemical, she creates a “programmable display screen.” This process requires complex calculations and Python code, resulting in a system that instructs which wells to light up their cells based on Doom screenshots.
The fascinating aspect of Ramlan’s work is not just the ability to generate a vague resemblance of Doom’s logo but the potential to run the entire game on cells. According to her calculations, it would take approximately 599 years to play a full game of Doom using this method. While it may seem like a distant future, Ramlan sees it as a testament to the peak of human engineering.
Of course, there are improvements to be made in the design, particularly in developing a memory and prediction system that would eliminate the need to switch pixels on and off between frames. However, the fact that Ramlan has managed to make the game somewhat functional on human bacteria is an impressive milestone on its own.
The endeavor to run Doom on unconventional platforms continues to push the boundaries of what technology can achieve. Who knows what other remarkable feats await us in the world of unconventional gaming?
FAQ Section based on the main topics and information presented in the article:
1. What are the previous attempts to run Doom on unconventional platforms?
2. What is Lauren “Ren” Ramlan’s new approach to running the game on human bacteria?
3. What is the application of this method?
4. How does the process of programming cells to create a “programmable display” work?
5. What are the challenges associated with this project?
6. Is it possible to run the entire game on cells?
7. What are the future possibilities for the development of this project?
Definitions of key terms and jargon used in the article:
– Plasmid: A small, circular DNA molecule found in bacteria that can carry genes.
– Programmable display: A display that can be reprogrammed to show different images.
– Python code: The Python programming language, which was used to program the cells.
Suggested related links to the main domain (not subpages) in the format link name:
– Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) – The official website of MIT, where more information about scientific research can be found.
The source of the article is from the blog crasel.tk