Semiconductor microfabrication technology has made remarkable progress, and soon it will be possible to integrate 10 billion transistors on a 1cm square silicon chip. This is comparable to the total number of neurons that make up the neocortex of the human brain, but will we ever be able to build a computer that can make decisions as flexibly as we do? We will explore this possibility using a different approach from the current technology. We will introduce a VLSI chip that simulates psychological phenomena by using the physical phenomena of the device as is for basic operations.

Recently, relatively short-stranded DNA and RNA derivatives that can selectively regulate gene expression have been attracting attention. In order to make them practical as drugs, it is important to improve the stability of nucleic acid derivatives in vivo by appropriate chemical modification. In this talk, I will introduce a new synthetic method for phosphorus-atom modified nucleic acid drugs that we have recently succeeded in developing. I will also report on the results of "academic fusion" in the Graduate School of Frontier Sciences.

In Japan, the early disappearance of submerged aquatic plants has led to a neglect of their water quality protection functions. In this paper, we will introduce overseas efforts to revive submerged plants and introduce the latest research on the mechanism of their water quality protection function.