The widespread use of molecular-level motion in key natural processes suggests that great rewards could come from bridging the gap between the present generation of synthetic molecular machines—which by and large function as switches—and the machines of the macroscopic world, which utilize the synchronized behavior of integrated components to perform more sophisticated tasks than is possible with any individual switch. Should we try to make molecular machines of greater complexity by trying to mimic machines from the macroscopic world or instead apply unfamiliar (and no doubt have to discover or invent currently unknown) mechanisms utilized by biological machines? Here we try to answer that question by exploring some of the advances made to date using bio-inspired machine mechanisms.

分子水平运动在关键的自然过程中的广泛应用表明，弥合当今的合成分子机器（大体上起开关的作用）与宏观世界的机器之间的差距可能会带来巨大的回报。集成组件的行为同步，以执行比任何单独的交换机都更复杂的任务。我们应该尝试通过模仿宏观世界中的机器来使分子机器变得更加复杂，还是应用不熟悉的生物机器（毫无疑问必须发现或发明目前未知的机制）？在这里，我们尝试通过探索迄今为止使用生物启发式机器机制取得的一些进步来回答这个问题。