Researchers have created ‘living computers’ by genetically altering bacteria. The research demonstrates that computing in living cells is feasible, opening the door to a number of applications including data storage and as a tool for manipulating genes for genetic engineering. A research team from biology and the mathematics departments of Davidson College, Biologists and mathematicians added genes to Escherichia coli bacteria, creating bacterial computers able to solve a classic mathematical puzzle, known as the burnt pancake problem.