DNA - from a programmer's perspective

I wrote this originally in 2006, and given the new interest generated by movies like “Prometheus” as well as cable shows like “Ancient Aliens,” it seems like a great time to put it out for some new eyes to read. If anything, it might give you something to think about… 

(QK, circa 2006)

The human body is composed of a staggering number of cells. Current estimates put the number at around 100 trillion. And inside each one of these – excluding red blood cells – is a highly complex molecule that contains the entire blueprint for a human being – DNA. Since it’s discovery some 50 years ago, scientists have been working hard to decipher the code created by the specific combinations and arrangements of only 4 distinct molecules (A-adenine, G-guanine, T-thymine, and C-cystocine) that comprise the building blocks of DNA. These four combine only in specific combinations – an adenine(A) base will only pair with a (T)thymine base, and guanine(G) only with cystocine(C). These naturally occurring restrictions result in only four possible pairings of the bases – AT, TA, GC, and CG. It is incredible to think that all of the diversity we see within the entire human race is produced by combinations of only four basic elements.

As a programmer, I find it fascinating how closely the logic behind the building blocks of the genetic code resemble the binary language understood by computers. Binary is a language with only two symbols – 1 and 0 – and long sequences of these two numbers interpreted by computers are responsible for everything you see and experience while surfing the web, building a spreadsheet, or playing a video game. Using only a 1 and a 0, it is possible to represent four different values: 00, 01, 10, and 00. It’s evident that the components of the genetic code could be easily represented in binary using only two numbers, or “bits” as they are referred to in computing terminology. So, in theory, the information stored in DNA could be represented in a format that we now use to store and transmit other complex information. In that sense, DNA is a kind of biological, genetic program, hence the widely used “genetic code” terminology.

What I find so captivating about all of this is how similar DNA and it’s components and functions (as related to humans) are to software and the computers that run it. If my computer is not able to edit photos, I can simply load some graphic editing software onto it, and I then have the capability to do what I wish to do. An article that can be reached by a link entitled “Genetic Upgrade” explains how scientists have discovered that a variation in a gene that arose almost 6000 years ago seems to have provided the human species with the capacity to increase brain size. Continuing with the allegory – homo sapiens wanted to increase their brain size, so a new gene was loaded into us, and now homo sapiens have the capability to do what they want to do. This is, of course, an oversimplified example, but the spirit of the idea is strikingly accurate. If it were not, scientists wouldn’t even imagine gene therapy or similar treatments. The reader is invited to do some self study about the subject of DNA and find out for yourself how fascinating the genetic code really is.

Of course, this brings us to the crux of this matter – how did these genetic variations, specifically the ones that led to the higher cognitive abilities of our species – arise? Many evolutionists and other scientists argue that natural selection and other neatly explainable circumstances led to our unique abilities. While I believe there is some truth to this, I find it difficult to believe that the action of impartial forces such as evolution and natural selection would result in these abilities manifesting in only one of the billions of different species that have inhabited this planet since its appearance in the universe.

Genetic Upgrade? – http://www.sciencemag.org/content/309/5741/1720.abstract