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Gaming the Future: The Book!

Results for ""molecular nanotechnology""

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Future nanotubes use?

Richard B. Cathcart writes "The World Development Federation's FIRST Virtual Global Super Projects Conference has many interesting reports posted at its temparary WWW site–available probably through the end of December 2001. GO TO: www.conway.com/wdf/gspc/virtual2001. In Session #3 a molecular nanotechnology-produced super-rope is proposed a a means to block the Strait of Gibraltar with a tensioned-fabric curtain. Such protective submarine screen would be made even more effective if it were held in place with braided nanotubes."

Molecular electronics researchers awarded 2001 Feynman Prizes

The Foresight Institute announced the winners of the 2001 Feynman Prizes in Nanotechnology, which were awarded at a banquet on Saturday, 10 November 2001 during the Ninth Foresight Conference. Each year, two prizes are awarded in the amount of $5,000 each to the researchers whose recent work has most advanced the development of molecular nanotechnology. The separate prizes are awarded for theoretical work and for experimental work.

The winner of the 2001 Feynman Prize (Experimental) is Charles M. Lieber of Harvard University, a leading researcher in field of carbon nanotube applications. On Friday, 9 November 2001, Lieberís research team published a paper in the journal Science describing arrays of nanotubes that form transistors at their junctions.

The winner of the 2001 Feynman Prize (Theoretical) is Mark A. Ratner of Northwestern University, a pioneer in the field of molecular electronics.

Additional details on the awards can be found in this article on the Small Times website.

Article discusses potential dangers, misuse of nanotech

from the shadows-on-the-road-ahead dept.
An extensive article on the potential dangers and misuse of nanotechnology appears on the Small Times website ("Nanotech's dark side debated in the aftershock of Sept. 11", by John Carroll, 2 November 2001). The article quotes Foresight President Chris Peterson, as well as Foresight advisors Glenn Reynolds and Ralph Merkle. Foresightís voluntary guidelines for the safe development of molecular nanotechnology were mentioned as part of the articleís discussion of possible regulation or restriction of nanotech research and development.

Some of these issues were also presented in a New York Times article that appeared in September 2001.

Adieu, NanoCAD list?

from the roads-not-taken? dept.

NanoCAD represented a significant initiative to promote open development of software for molecular nanotechnology. Will Ware, the maintainer of the NanoCAD list, is now planning to discontinue the list, given the lack of traffic and his need to change ISPs.

This raises the question, is there enough interest to continue initiatives to develop software, and associated standards and licensing, that could be freely and openly shared by those interested in MNT?

Read More on the question of the NanoCAD list and initiatives for open source development of MNT.

Getting at the basics of replicating machines

The August 2001 issue of Scientific American has an interesting article ("Go Forth and Replicate", by M. Sipper and J. A. Reggia) on machine replication. (Unfortunately, it is not available online). The article describes attempts to develop a general understanding of self-replicating systems, with its roots in the work of John von Neumann, Stanislaw Ulam, and others. The article covers research into cellular automata simulations before moving on to describe more recent work by the authors and others that often employ evolutionary methods, including self-replicating systems that do not include an explicit self-description. They also mention the pioneering 1980 NASA study on complex replicating machine systems led by Robert A. Freitas Jr., now a researcher at Zyvex Corp. and author of Nanomedicine.

The authors, aware of the implications, state: "Researchers in the field of nanotechnology have long proposed that self-replication will be crucial to manufacturing molecular-scale machines . . . Recent advances have given credence to these futuristic-sounding ideas." They add that the study of such systems presents a "twofold challenge of creating replicating machines and avoiding dystopian predictions of devices running amok. The knowledge we gain will help us separate good technologies from destructive ones."

Read more for links to a few items related to nanotechnology and self-replicating systems.

Examining the legal implications of nanotech

from the future-tense dept.
An interesting and wide-ranging article on the legal and ethical implications of molecular nanotechnology ("At nanoscale, the laws of humans may not apply", by Michael Becker, 30 July 2001) appears on the SmallTimes website. The article includes extensive quotes from Robert A. Freitas Jr., author of Nanomedicine and a research scientist at Zyvex Corp.; and Glenn Reynolds, a Foresight Institute Director and professor of law at the University of Tennessee. The piece raises some of the thorny issues on regulating new technologies, intellectual property, open source development models, and others.

A basic intro to nanotechnology

from the Is-that-how-it-works? dept.
Stephanie Corchnoy brings our attention to a brief basic introduction to the concepts of advanced molecular nanotechnology ("How Nanotechnology Will Work", by Kevin Bonsor) that appears on the How Stuff Works website. The style is enthusiastic and a bit breathless:
"The promises of nanotechnology sound great, don't they? Maybe even unbelievable? But researchers say that we will achieve these capabilities within the next century. And if nanotechnology is, in fact, achieved, it might be the human race's greatest scientific achievement yet, completely changing every aspect of the way we live."
The piece is a bit out of date, mentioning events that occurred a year or two ago, but nothing more recent.

nanoTITAN announces nanoML early access release

from the NT-design-tools dept.
Rob Bishop writes "nanoTITAN, Inc. is pleased to announce the first early access release of nanoML, a markup language for the description and interchange of nanodevices. nanoML includes the molecular components and structure of a nanodevice — as you might expect — but goes well beyond that to include information about the properties, interoperability, operational characteristics, display, safety, and legal status of nanodevices.
It is our hope that nanoML will accelerate development of molecular nanotechnology by providing a common language for researchers, engineers and other interested parties. Our commitment is to evolve nanoML consistent with the needs of the nanotechnology community and to move toward an open standard. We would greatly appreciate a review of our work so far by the knowledgeable readers of nanodot.
More information can be found at:

Distant shores: nanotech concerns rural agritech advocacy group

from the concerned-but-confused dept.
For an interesting example of the distant shores the concept of molecular nanotechnology is washing up upon, and the concerns being raised about nanotech by people and groups not directly connected to the research and development community, take a look at this report issued by the Rural Advancement Foundation International (RAFI): The ETC Century: Erosion, Technological Transformation and Corporate Concentration in the 21st Century, by P.R. Mooney (February 2001). [Note: this is a link to an Adobe Acrobat PDF file, not a web page.]
Although the RAFI author does take note of the potential benefits of nanotechnology, concerns over the potential negative impacts seem more prominent.

RAFI is an international non-governmental organization headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, dedicated to the conservation and sustainable improvement of agricultural biodiversity, and to the socially responsible development of technologies useful to rural societies. RAFI is concerned about the loss of genetic diversity – especially in agriculture – and about the impact of intellectual property on agriculture and world food security.

Taking advantage of accelerating technological change

from the taking-the-long-view dept.
Many Worlds, a website devoted to technology-related business and investment information, has posted an interesting white paper on "Tracking Emerging Technologies and Trends: Taking Advantage of Technological Acceleration". (Note: this link is to an Adobe Acrobat PDF file of the report, not a web page.)
"We are on the cusp of a breakout in technological acceleration, a discontinuity in human history," the report states. "It will affect business along with the culture as a whole." And it offers some sound advice: "Those businesses that can most effectively grasp the deep undercurrents of technological evolution can use this to their advantage."
After considering a wide variety of emerging technologies, including molecular nanotechnology, nanmedicine and more, the report concludes: "Looking through the technologies noted above, it will become obvious that numerous technological convergences are occurring . . . The once-separate worlds of hardware and software are beginning to blur together to some degree. As matters grows in intelligence with the spread of embedded processors, wireless tracking, and ubiquitous computing, it becomes responsive to human desires and commands. Matter is increasingly becoming programmable like software. If the promises of molecular nanotechnology are realized, this process will be completed."

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