Many thanks to the Forbes/Wolfe Emerging Tech Report for permission to reprint the following interview with Steve Jurvetson “Writing the Code of Life”, which appeared in their February 2009 issue. There aren’t many investors as sharp, quick or multi-disciplinary as Steve Jurvetson,Managing Director of Draper Fisher Jurvetson. His firm is a leading venture capital firm… Continue reading Steve Jurvetson on nature's nanotechnology
Charlie Stross, the British science fiction writer, recently posted a “21st Century FAQ” on his blog that has aroused some reaction in futurist circles. Let it be noted that I’ve had a few drinks with Charlie, and he is a pleasant, engaging, and very intelligent guy, and writes really excellent science fiction. But I have… Continue reading Forward to the past
An atomic force microscope (AFM) can be used to write and erase two-nanometer-thick conducting lines at the interface between atomic layers of two different metal oxide insulators.
The discovery that nitrogen-doped, metal-free carbon nanotubes make better electrodes than do platinum nanoparticles may open the way for inexpensive nanotech fuel cells.
This the fifth essay in a series exploring if, when, and how the Singularity will happen, why (or why not) we should care, and what, if anything, we should do about it. Part V: AIs: smarter or just faster? One of the primary phenomena invoked in the notion that the Singularity will come with an… Continue reading Singularity, part 5
Those interested in the economic-trends style of futurism will enjoy How the Crash Will Reshape America in the Atlantic. For background you might look at this 2006 essay by Paul Graham — they both embody some of the same theory of innovation as a driver to urban (or perhaps regional) vitality. Hat tip to Philippe… Continue reading Post-crash economic trends
A sawing and annealing process that creates regular nanoscale features on the surface of a sapphire crystal promises a way of making nanotech memories of up to 10 Terabits per square inch without the need of photolithography.
Over at IEEE Tech Talk, Dexter Johnson points out a flurry of interest in “nanobots” over the past week, casting quite a wide net that ranges from Nadrian Seeman’s experimental lab work to Ray Kurzweil’s hopeful dreams for the far future. He also tosses a bit of credit in my direction — thanks! — and… Continue reading The audacity of nano-hope
Plant viruses are a new addition to the long list of types of nanoparticles being investigated as next generation nanotech cancer therapies.
Two independently controlled nanomechanical devices can be positioned on a two-dimensional DNA grid so that they can cooperate to capture between them one of four DNA building blocks, determined by which of two possible states each device is set to.
