Author: Foresight Editor

from the yet-another-actuator dept.
Jeffrey Soreff writes "Richard Terra and Christine Peterson originally pointed me towards an article on a chirality-switching molecule from NYU described at link

Quoth the press release web page:

A New York University team led by chemist James W. Canary has developed a molecule with switchable chirality*. (FOOTNOTE: Nearly all biomolecules are chiral compounds. That is, they exist in two forms (enantiomers) which are non-superimposable mirror images of each other. …) …The investigators were then able to switch the molecule's chirality by the addition or removal of an electron.

For more analysis by Jeffrey Soreff, click "Read More" below.

from the AIs-will-even-be-better-at-emoting dept.
ChrisP writes "James Matthews interviews Marvin Minsky on machine emotion and consciousness. Sample: 'Future machines will be capable of all sorts of emotions, and eventually they will invent new ones whenever this is found useful for solving different kinds of problems.' "

from the now-the-boss-will-pay! dept.
Looking for a way to get your company to pay your way to hear about nanotechnology in Vancouver this July? (You should be — Vancouver is wonderful.) Now you can: The dead-tree version of the journal Simulation reports that SCSC 2000 topics include "Nanotechnology and Molecular Manufacturing". The conference website boasts that "The theme for this year's conference is: MAINSTREAM Simulation. SCSC 2000 addresses the MAINSTREAM of simulation…in the MAINSTREAM of world-wide government and industry." (OK, we get the point.) Other topics and meetings held in conjunction help ensure that if you work with computers, you may be able to justify this trip. Can anyone recommend/disrecommend this meeting?

from the yippee-ti-yi-yo,-get-along-little-moieties dept.
alison describes a report on progress toward the ability to "herd" atoms and molecules using the electric and magnetic fields of an integrated circuit. Click below for details. "The manipulation of atoms with the magnetic and electric fields of integrated circuits strikes me as the most viable candidate method I have heard for a real 'assembler.' Note that by using Bose-Einstein condensates as the source for atoms, one can control not only their position, but also their orientation and state of excitation (ionized, vibrating, etc.). I believe that this approach is more viable than mechanosynthesis, although it's obviously still early in the game."

from the tinier-and-tinier-hammers-and-chisels dept.
Jeffrey Soreff points out an article in Science [registration required] describing silicon crystals grown with "nearly uniform" diameters of 4-5 nm. The feat was performed using diphenylsilane in supercritical hexane at 500° C and 270 atmospheres. Click below for Jeffrey's summary of the article.

from the it-was-right-here-just-a-minute-ago! dept.
WillWare writes "Heise On-Line recently carried this story about what appear to be working quantum dots, made by a couple of chemists in Essen. Translation below rendered by Babelfish with a little help where it made obvious mistakes."

(I think Babelfish means "prize" instead of "price" for the "Förderpreis".)

from the in-a-gattaca-vida dept.
Gina "Nanogirl" Miller writes "Cornell nano-researchers create component for a 'lab on a chip' that cuts DNA separation from a day to a matter of minutes. Researchers have long sought to create a "laboratory on a chip" that could greatly speed up the process of DNA sequencing. That goal has come a step closer with the announcement that Cornell University researchers have built and tested a nanofabricated device that can separate DNA fragments by length. (Cornell press release May 15, 00) link "