Unconventional computing

Unconventional computing is computing by a wide range of new or unusual methods. It is also known as alternative computing. The different methods of uncoventional computing include optical computing, quantum computing, chemical computing, natural computing, biologically-inspired computing, wetware computing, DNA computing, molecular computing, amorphous computing, nanocomputing, reversible computing, and analogue computing.

Historically, mechanical computers have been used in industry before the advent of the transistor. Mechanical computers retain some interest today both in research and as analogue computers. Some mechanical oriented computers have a theoretical or didactical relevance, see Billiard-Ball Computer or hydraulic ones , and are actually simulated not really trying to use mechanic collisions of billiard balls. Domino computer is another theoretically interesting mechanic computing scheme.

Unconventional computating is, according to ^[1], "an interdisciplinary research area with the main goal to enrich or go beyond the standard models, such as the von Neumann computer architecture and the Turing machine, which have dominated computer science for more than half a century". These methods model their computational operations based on non-standard paradigms, and are currently mostly in the research and development stage. This computing behavior can be "simulated" using the classical silicon-based micro-transistors or solid state computing technologies, but aim to achieve a new kind of computing engineering inspired in nature.

See also

• Network computing
• natural computing and biologically-inspired computing,

References

1. http://www.springerlink.com/content/jn7x3365386phn46/
2. ^ Unconventional computation Conference 2007 , http://cnls.lanl.gov/uc07/
3. ^ C. H. Bennett, "The Thermodynamics of Computation -- A Review," International Journal of Theoretical Physics, vol. 21, no. 12, pp. 905-940, 1982.,