Overview

There is a close relationship between the work of the Advanced Computer Architecture Group and the work of the Non-Standard Computation Research Group. In particular, the idea of a neural network as a computational architecture is of interest to both groups.

Other work in the 'non-standard' aspect of computational architectures is looking at ways in which architectural elements such as logic gates may be implemented in a non-electronic form. For example, logic gates and simple circuits may be implemented in 'mechanical' architectures (collision-based systems exemplified by toppling rows of dominoes), and there is also interest in the use of distributed chemical reactions as amedium for logical operations (chemical reactions diffusing  in space carry information which is modified where the reaction frontiers meet).

This work is speculative and generally far removed from practical application.