[extropy-chat] Plastic promises dense data store

[Robert J. Bradbury]

On Fri, 28 Nov 2003, Giu1i0 Pri5c0 wrote:

> A common plastic used to keep monitor screens clear of fluff could soon
> be used as a high-density computer memory. In the journal Nature, the
> US researchers behind the discovery say it could let them pack a
> gigabyte of data into a sugar cube-sized device.

Now this is interesting, if combined with the recent discussions
on home based 3D printers it suggests that one could devise a
storage device architecture and some printer "ink" that would
allow one to print out extra storage on demand.  The computer would just
have large trays structured to hold sugar cubes (like ice-cube trays)
and drop in additional storage cubes as needed.  Then if one
combined that with a home chemical/microbiological "mini-factory"
one could convert garbage into the required plastic pre-mix
(since garbage and plastic are largely alternate forms of
hydrocarbons).  Of course everyone doesn't have to have one
of these, it could easily work on an individual block or apartment
building basis.  So people come up to your door, hand you a bag of
garbage and you hand them back a couple of cubes (of a somewhat reduced
volume due to profit, depreciation, etc.).

Garbage into stored data -- if that isn't extropic, I don't know what is.

Robert