On folding pathways, recycling, and reversible programming
Anne Condon - UBC
Jan. 18, 2016, 4 p.m. - Jan. 18, 2016, 5 p.m.
Burnside 1205
DNA programs execute when sets of interacting molecules follow specific folding pathways, i.e., sequences of secondary structures. Longer pathways imply longer and thus potentially more complex computations. This motivates the question: is it possible to design a single DNA strand, or set of interacting DNA strands, that follow a folding pathway whose length significantly exceeds the total length of
the participating molecules? We'll describe some progress on this problem and connections with the theory of reversible, energy-efficient computing.
This is a joint colloquium with Discrete Mathematics and Optimization Seminar at McGill.
Anne Elizabeth Condon is an Irish-Canadian computer scientist, professor, and former head of the UBC Computer Science Department. Her research focuses on computational complexity theory, DNA computing, and bioinformatics. She has also held the NSERC/General Motors Canada Chair for Women in Science and Engineering from 2004 to 2009, and has worked to improve the success of women in the sciences and engineering.
