(August 17, 2012) When it comes to storing information, hard drives don't hold
a candle to DNA. Our genetic code packs billions of gigabytes into a single
gram. A mere milligram of the molecule could encode the complete text of every
book in the Library of Congress and have plenty of room to spare. All of this
has been mostly theoretical—until now. In a new study, researchers stored an
entire genetics textbook in less than a picogram of DNA—one trillionth of a
gram—an advance that could revolutionize our ability to save data.