Dr. Nicholas J. Macias

Nick Macias has been studying computer science and mathematics since the 70s, and has always been intrigued by systems that analyze or interact with themselves. This interest found expression in the 80s while working on the Cell Matrix: a reconfigurable patform with a hardware-introspection capability. In 1999, he co-founded Cell Matrix Corporation, and is currently a director and vice president of the business.

Nick has written numerous conference papers, journal articles and book chapters on the topic of the Cell Matrix and self-configurtion. In 2011, he received a PhD from Virginia Polytechnic Institute for research on self-modifying hardware and its application to large-scale systems.

In January 2016, he began applying the lessons and themes of this prior work to an alternative model of computation. Starting with an extremely simplified version of a computer; imposing continuity on its operations and layout; and distributing the effects of each operation throughout the entire system, a new model -- EEXIST -- emerged. Using a virtual chemical implementation of the system, various experiments have been performed on EEXIST, and beginning in the Summer of 2017, useful behaviors (logic operations, game playing, etc.) began to emerge.

Whereas the Cell Matrix had 4 patents covering its design and operation, EEXIST is an open-source effort (see https://songlinesystems.com). Nick's hope for the project is to have others working on it, developing it in their own directions, with an eye towards learning more about EEXIST, what it is capable of, and what it represents. The text "EEXIST - Blending Computation, Continuity and Karma" is an attempt to present the background and current state of this work.