If you grew up with tech stories and news, you've probably heard the joke about how potatoes can be used to run the Linux operating system. Now, a group of researchers has taken that joke and built a "computer" out of mushrooms.
A group of researchers from Ohio University have developed a neuromorphic computer using shiitake mushrooms, which, according to the research abstract, mimics the operation of the brain.
Typically, a neuromorphic computer would require many difficult-to-produce components that require rare earth elements that are hard to find, and even harder to produce.
In this research, shiitake mushrooms were used as the memristor or memory resistor component needed for this computer. Shiitake mushrooms were chosen because of their large size and contain a network of mycelium, which are cells that are normally used to transport nutrients throughout the mushroom.
Once the mushrooms are grown to the desired size, they are then evaporated and rehydrated to a level sufficient for sufficient electrical conductivity to "power" this computer.
When used as RAM memory, the speed of this mushroom memristor has been seen to reach 5.8kHz with an accuracy of 90 ± 1 percent. The researchers say that this mushroom memristor has many applications for technology sectors such as aerospace, small computer systems and industries that require applications with low electrical energy consumption.
Not only that, this memristor is also seen to be durable and will not be affected by any radiation attack. It also has the potential to reduce dependence on rare earth elements. For now, it seems that research is still ongoing to use this mushroom as an alternative to computer component materials.
