"The worst impact is the loss of biological function that these wild animals fulfil in nature, " he told the BBC.

BBC: Brazil moves to curb wildlife trafficking

Instead of creating an artificial head-related transfer function, it uses the biological one that already exists in and around the human head.

ECONOMIST: How to reproduce the ambiance of a live concert in the home

With the increasing availability of machines that can peer into brains as they function, there has been rapid progress in understanding the biological mechanisms by which people transform information, such as from a golf lesson, first into actions and ultimately into automatic motor skills that don't require conscious thought to enact.

WSJ: Why Scientists Love to Study Golf

Advocates argue that in order to truly understand how basic biological processes work, they'll need to compare and contrast how different stem cell lines function.

BBC: Embryonic stem cells can be turned into any kind of cell

While it is likely that getting such a computer to function inside a living cell remains some way off, the remarkably rapid progress of biological computers in controlled lab conditions means that that distant day looks to be getting closer.

ECONOMIST: A biological computer diagnoses and treats cancer