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The DNA computer works by layers of DNA logic gates attaching to a DNA origami seed (grey). Adapter strands [red] attach at specific locations on the seed, encoding the 6-bit input. DNA single-stranded logic gates [blue, brown, yellow] attach in locations that match the input, solving the algorithm as the system grows. Probably the most masterful and mysterious act of chemical computation is when a single cell usesits DNA to divide, multiply, and specialize to produce a fully developed organism. In research reported this week in Nature, computer scientiststook a small but important step toward harnessing the potential of chemical computation by constructingthe first broadly programmable DNA computer. The system executes a wide variety of 6-bit programs using a set of instructions written in DNA.