An MIT researcher has successfully demonstrated running the classic game 'Doom' on a display made from E. coli cells, using the bacteria as biological pixels. The achievement, while technically impressive, results in extremely slow gameplay due to the biological processes involved, with each frame taking about 70 minutes to render. This project pushes the boundaries of biological computing and demonstrates novel applications of synthetic biology in unconventional computing platforms.
Background
Since the release of Doom's source code in 1997, enthusiasts have been porting the game to increasingly unconventional platforms as a technical challenge. This tradition of 'can it run Doom?' has become a popular way to demonstrate programming skills and push the boundaries of computing.
- Source
- Lobsters
- Published
- May 19, 2026 at 03:06 AM
- Score
- 7.0 / 10