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Beating computer bugs with biology

Steve Crouch, dean of the Institute of Technology; Doug Arnold, director of the Institute for Mathematics and its Applications; and William Rundell, director of mathematical sciences at the National Science Foundation. Photo by Patrick O'Leary

The next generation of computer-security programs put a new twist on the concept of virus protection. They use defensive techniques borrowed straight from the human immune system to control electronic invaders. The idea came from the Institute for Mathematics and its Applications (IMA), an innovative University of Minnesota think tank.

Most of the anti-virus programs on computers today are designed to take drastic counter-measures against bugs. But the cure can be worse than the disease. An aggressive reaction can drain system resources and cripple short-term performance, which is a problem particularly for big networks of interconnected machines.

When we get sick, our immune systems take a different approach. Rather than slash-and-burn, they work to contain the virus, then gradually bring our systems back to equilibrium. At a 1998 IMA conference, some of the best minds in math, computers and immunology came together to discuss how that contain-and-control approach, which biologists call homeostasis, could be a better model for computer security.

The idea evolved into a Ph. D. thesis, then software for the open-source Linux operating system. Now it's reaching the mainstream. Hewlett-Packard and other major companies are rolling out new security products built around the concepts generated at the IMA conference.

To nurture more bright ideas like that, in 2005 the National Science Foundation (NSF) gave the IMA a $19.5 million grant over five years. That's the largest single research investment the NSF has ever made in mathematics. The IMA is now the top math institute in the United States in terms of funding.

So what's next? Better methods for controlling soybean pests, metal alloys that can be shaped by magnets and strategies for minimizing electrical blackouts are just a few of the innovative solutions to real-world problems currently bubbling to the surface at the IMA.

Further reading

UMNnews: U math institute recognized for international excellence

Institute for Mathematics and its Applications

Innovative solutions for real-world problems