Five years of creative exploration. Now in our fifth year since Adleman's seminal paper, we have seen an amazing growth of knowledge about how to compute with DNA. This field presents us with an unprecedented mandate: to engineer information processing systems that operate on individual molecules. We now have a wealth of theoretical models and steadily accumulating laboratory experience, and an equal wealth of challenges to confront.

This year's meeting, in an intense two days, will focus on the very best experimental and theoretical results, and aims to take stock of accomplishments, identify fundamental questions, and enrich interaction with related fields.