Remotely programmable matrices with memories

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Definitions Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as is commonly understood by one of skill in the art to which this invention belongs.
All patents and publications referred to herein are, unless noted otherwise, incorporated by reference in their entirety.
As used herein, a matrix refers to any solid or semisolid or insoluble support to which the memory device and/or the molecule of interest, typically a biological molecule, organic molecule or biospecific ligand is linked or contacted.
Such materials include any materials that are used as affinity matrices or supports for chemical and biological molecule syntheses and analyses, such as, but are not limited to: polystyrene, polycarbonate, polypropylene, nylon, glass, dextran, chitin, sand, pumice, teflon, agarose, polysaccharides, dendrimers, buckyballs, polyacrylamide, silicon, rubber, and other materials used as supports for solid phase syntheses, affinity separations and purifications, hybridization reactions, immunoassays and other such applications.
The matrix herein may be particulate or may be in the form of a continuous surface, such as a microtiter dish or well, a glass slide, a silicon chip, a nitrocellulose sheet, nylon mesh, or other such materials.
When particulate, typically the particles have at least one dimension in the 5-10 mm range or smaller.
Such particles, referred collectively herein as "beads", are often, but not necessarily, spherical.
Such reference, however, does not constrain the geometry of the matrix, which may be any shape, including random shapes, needles, fibers, elongated, etc.
Roughly spherical "beads" are presently preferred.
The "beads" may include additional components, such as magnetic or paramagnetic particles ?see, e.
g.
, Dyna beads (Dynal, Oslo, Norway)! for separation using magnets, as long as the additional components do not interfere with chemical reactions, data entry or retrieval from the memory