ULTIMATE COMPUTING - Quantum Consciousness Studies

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Toward Ultimate Computing 27
a lattice, Ising generators evolve to stable patterns in which states of opposite spin
align in one direction, and like spins align in another direction. A generalized two
dimensional Ising generator is shown in Figure 1.11. Cellular automaton models
in microtubules (Chapter 8) evolve to similar states in which opposite states align
in one direction, and similar states align in another direction (Figure 1.12).
Von Neumann studied how cellular automata could perform useful
computations. He assumed a large number of cells start in a quiescent, or inactive
state and that input was encoded by placing a number of contiguous cells in a
specific pattern. By then running the clock through a sequence of generations, an
output can be obtained by the patterns of states at a later time. A cellular
automaton is said to be universally computing if, for any solvable problem, there
is an initial configuration of the cellular automaton which evolves to a
configuration containing the solution. As far as implementing such computing
capabilities, access to every cell must be established to set its initial state and read
its final state. Von Neumann discovered a universally constructing cellular
automaton in which an initial configuration of a small number of cells (the
“constructor”) can set initial states of distant cells to the pattern required to solve
any problem. The constructor communicates with distant cells through
intermediate cells according to transition rules. If a cellular automaton is
universally constructing, it can be “programmed” to solve any problem, even if
only a few cells can communicate with the outside world. Several universally
constructing cellular automata have been devised in simulation; “constructors” as
patterns of cytoskeletal subunit conformation would be useful mechanisms for
biological computation.