One of the top four nanotech articles highlighted in the first issue of Nature Nanotechnology is “Making Molecular Machines Work” by Wesley Browne and Ben Feringa. Full text of the article is free, at least for now. From the conclusions: The exquisite solutions nature has found to control molecular motion, evident in the fascinating biological… Continue reading Molecular machines highlighted in 1st issue of Nature Nanotechnology
The idea of a nanotech-based matter compiler began in the U.S., and we do some relevant computer modeling studies, but the U.K is pulling ahead toward actually building one. Twenty to thirty lucky researchers will gather on January 8-12, 2007, to brainstorm how to do this, after which the U.K. government will spend about US$… Continue reading UK pulling ahead on nanotechnology matter compiler
One of the cover stories in Machine Design is by Mark Sims, CEO of Nanorex, on nanotech molecular modeling in CAD (computer-aided design). For those of us who have already been tracking the field, the most exciting part is at the end: The software does not currently output data that could drive such machines as,… Continue reading Next hot job: Molecular engineer for nanotechnology
Philanthropist Fred Kavli has extended his nanotech research giving to found the Kavli Institute for Bionano Science and Technology at Harvard. From the Harvard press release: The Kavli Foundation and Harvard University have agreed to establish the Kavli Institute for Bionano Science and Technology (KIBST). The endowment from the Kavli Foundation will help to boost… Continue reading Nanotechnology for medicine: Harvard's new Kavli Institute to develop tiny machines for nanomedicine
I just received two copies of a beautiful brochure from the California NanoSystems Institute describing the new nanotechnology facility they’re building at UCLA, opening informally this fall and formally on September 7-9, 2007 (there will also be one at UCSB). They’re looking for sponsorship. My first thought was, boy do they have the wrong list,… Continue reading Massive transfer of nanotechnology students to UCLA and UCSB expected
For those interested in nanobiology and nanoscale medicine, the site Nanomedicine and Nanobiology Research is worth exploring. The book section includes various books you’ll recognize (and quite a few you may not), there’s a nanomedicine-specific Medline search, and there are rankings for labs, researchers, and even science writers. Most interesting to me are the “Early… Continue reading Nanotechnology: Asia dominates in early career nanobio & nanomedicine
The term “bottom-up” was originally used to refer to molecule-by-molecule assembly of atomically-precise products. But more recently we’ve seen the term used to describe processes that produce products which are not atomically precise. The following Azonano item is an example of this usage. However, it seems likely that this kind of research — which does… Continue reading DNA-directed self-assembly of nanowires
Cees Dekker’s team at the Kavli Institute of NanoScience at Delft University of Technology have produced some intriguing work published in Science (400 KB pdf): Integration of biomolecular motors in nanoengineered structures raises the intriguing possibility of manipulating materials on nanometer scales. We have managed to integrate kinesin motor proteins in closed submicron channels and… Continue reading Dutch team uses molecular motors for sorting
Purdue University is extremely serious about being a leader in nanotech and they are putting serious money into that goal. They’ve just opened a new nanofabrication cleanroom that sounds unique: combining the usual semiconductor capabilities with nanobio work, in cleanrooms that connect to each other. This sounds very handy for cool cross-disciplinary R&D. From the… Continue reading Purdue builds one-of-a-kind nanotech lab
Accelrys is having a July 13 webinar, which I assume is free, on how to use their software for nanobio purposes. They say it enables “multiscale modeling that enables seamless design from the molecular level through full device”, which is pretty impressive. UPDATE: Yes, it’s free. —Christine Read more for the full press release
