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Gaming the Future: The Book!

Category: Nanodot

Molecular motor may harness Brownian motion

from the random-walk dept.
New research indicates motor proteins inside cells may be able to harness the energy of Brownian motions — random motions caused by thermal energy ñ to move enzymes and other molecules along microtubules inside cells. In a paper published in the May issue of the journal Physical Review E, Georgia Institute of Technology physicist Ronald Fox argues that what appears to be a walk along the microtubule is really random motion cleverly constrained by chemical switching carried out by ATP. Fox believes his work may offer a new mechanism for generating motion in future nanometer-scale machines, in which thermal motion can be harnessed to do useful work.

Note: Some work has already been done to develop nanodevices that take advantage of Brownian motion. See this article on the Scientific American website for details.

Ecologists support "judicious use" of biotech

from the reasonable-caution dept.
The Ecological Society of America (ESA) has released a statement on genetically modified organisms (GMOs), which states the ESA "supports the judicious use of biotechnology." Concerning the release of GMOs, the statement says "Since long-term ecological impacts of GMOs may be extremely difficult to predict or study prior to commercialization, ESA strongly recommends a cautious approach to releasing GMOs into the environment. GMOs should be evaluated and used within the context of a scientifically based regulatory policy that encourages innovation without compromising sound environmental management. The process by which this occurs should be open to public scrutiny."

U.S. military lacks citizen researchers for nanoscience

from the selective-service dept.
According to an article from United Press International ("Lack of scientists hurts nanoresearch", by K. Hearn, 5 June 2001) research in nanoscience at U.S. military laboratories is being hampered a shortage of U.S. citizens trained in physical sciences and by social attitudes about foreign-born scientists. The U.S. military requires that researchers in its laboratories be U.S. citizens. The article also notes that in a speech in April, James Murday, head of the chemistry division at the Naval Research Lab in Washington, said other nations, Singapore and Germany especially, were also having trouble finding qualified scientists to conduct nanoscale research.

DoD awards funds for molecular, optical electronics research

from the light-stuff dept.
The U.S. Department of Defense has selected the Institute for Lasers, Photonics and Biophotonics at the University at Buffalo to lead a consortium in a five-year, $5 million effort to develop new materials in molecular electronics, photonics and opto-electronics. The consortium also includes researchers at Berkeley, MIT, Yale, and the University of Washington. The grant was awarded under the department's Defense University Research Initiative in Nanotechnology (DURINT) program. The researchers will focus on developing new materials on the molecular and nanometer scale, including theoretical modeling and chemical synthesis, characterization, device fabrication, and testing and integration of components into larger-scale systems. A prime focus is chemical self-assembly. One researcher will self-assembling DNA-templated assembly to organize photonic and electronic nanostructures. One goal is to use the DNA templates to produce nanowires and nanoarrays, which, attached to a substrate, would make up the integrated circuit component of a potential data-storage device.

Quantum effects may outweigh steric hindrance in molecular structures

from the itís-the-little-things dept.
An article in Science News ("Molecular Chemistry Takes a New Twist", by J. Gorman, 2 June 2001) describes new calculations by a research team at Rutgers University that seem to show that a basic tenet of chemistry is wrong: Ethane forms its most stable structure not due to so-called steric effects, but because of a quantum mechanical influence. This research is important because chemists have long attributed many of the structural properties of organic molecules to steric effects. As the article concludes, "Researchers can no longer assume that steric effects play the major role in determining stable forms . . . They should give more attention to quantum mechanical effects when studying biological molecules and processes such as protein folding."

Open Source movement responds to Microsoft

from the ideas-in-the-marketplace dept.
An article in the New York Times recaps the latest in the ideological war of words (and actions) between Microsoft and the Open Source/Free Software movement ("New Economy: Open-Source Movement Advances", by L. Flynn, 4 June 2001).

According to the article, "Microsoft has reason for concern, particularly where corporate clients are concerned. Despite the company's efforts to curb the movement, support for open-source software continues to grow here and abroad, led primarily by I.B.M."

The article also quotes a piece by Eben Moglen, a law professor at Columbia and general counsel for the Free Software Foundation: "Microsoft, which used to say all the time that the software business was ruthlessly competitive, is now matched against a competitor whose model of production and distribution is so much better that Microsoft stands no chance of prevailing in the long run. They're simply trying to scare people out of dealing with a competitor they can't buy, can't intimidate and can't stop." Moglenís comments were written in response to a speech in May 2001 by Craig Mundie, a senior vice president at Microsoft

Defining Nanotechnology

from the it's-about-time dept.
SteveLenhert at nanotech.about.com writes "Encyclopedia Nanotech is an attempt to minimize confusion resulting from interdisciplinary terminology. Recently I redefined assembler the way I understand the concept and introduced two specific types of assemblers – self-assembler and directed assembler. I'm also trying to clarify the concepts of self-replication and self-assembly. I welcome any suggested definitions of words relating to nanotechnology – in particular, the word nanotechnology itself!"

AIChE to offer NT sessions at annual meeting

The annual meeting of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. (AIChE) will include a number of special sessions on Nanoscale Science and Engineering. The conference will be held in Reno, Nevada from 4-9 November 2001.

Minnesota wants to catch nanotech wave

from the me,-too dept.
An indication of the increasingly common "me, too" scramble to get into nanotechnology can be found in this editorial from CityBusiness, a commerce journal in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area ("State needs to get involved in nanotechnology", 25 May 2001) by Jack Uldrich, Deputy Director Of The Minnesota Office Of Strategic And Long Range Planning.
After providing a lengthy list of nanotechnology research programs around the country and around the world, Uldrich says, "Can Minnesota afford not to get more involved in this exciting area of science — an area that is going to revolutionize everything from health care and the semiconductor industry to the energy, telecommunications and automotive sectors?
"I don't believe so, and that is why I would like to call for the establishment of a private-public commission to develop a strategy for how Minnesota can grow and profit from the inevitable changes that nanotechnology promises."

Student work a step toward an assembler?

from the budding-nanotechnologists dept.
Stuart Scott spotted this article from InfoWorld reprinted on the Small Times website: "There is an article in Small Times about the work of a summer intern that could be useful."

The article describes the work of Alex Wissner-Gross, a student intern at the MITRE Corporation in 1998 (he is now at MIT) in developing a system using "pattern structures to manipulate nanoscale objects. Alex's improvement generates millions of "nanofingers." These fingers might be used one day to handle multiple molecular-scale objects and possibly lead to mass-produced nanoscale computers."

The article actually devotes greater length to the excellent student intern program at MITRE, which has generated some excellent work in the field of nanotechnology under the guidance of James Ellenbogen, the Principal Scientist in the Nanosystems Group and also head of MITRE's summer employee program. An alumnus of the program, Christopher Love, won the 2000 Foresight Distinguished Student Award for his work in architectures for molecular electronic computers and nanomanipulation of structures on surfaces. He has contributed to nanotechnology research for seven years at three major U.S. research laboratories, starting in MITRE's Nanosystems Group at age 16.

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