from the I-want-one-of-those dept.
A NASA web page, The Right Stuff for Super Spaceships, touts the benfits of nanotechnology, in combination with information technology and biotechnology, "for making dramatically improved spacecraft possible." The focus is on the advantages of carbon nanotubes as very high-strength, very low-weight structural materials, as building blocks for molecular wires and sensors, as fuel storage elements, and as components of self-healing materials.

from the More-dollars dept.
Stan Hutchings writes "A Senate subcommittee held a hearing examining U.S. investments in Nanotechnology research. http://computerworld.com/managementtopics/manageme nt/itspending/story/0,10801,74341,00.html"

Foresight Advisor Jamie Dinkelacker points to a c|net article Nanotech funding bill in the wings further describing the proposed funding, "Sen. Ron Wyden has big plans for small technology."

from the what-does-it-all-mean? dept.
Long-time Foresight Senior Associate Richard Smith, now with Alternative Futures Associates, has announced a Forum on Nanotechnology Strategy that

… provides a practical understanding of how nanotechnology will impact how you compete, from recent developments to the frontiers of science. The forum gives you the insight of science visionaries and nano-entrepreneurs, business leaders and policy-makers to fully explore what this journey will mean in real terms for your organization. Only the Forum will help improve the return of your strategic investments in nanotech over the next decade.

Rather pricey, but if you happen to be a senior decision maker for an organization with substantial resources ….

from the promises-and-perils dept.
Chris Phoenix wrote Foresight to point out The Ultimate Tool?, the Sept. 9, 2002 issue of The Harrow Technology Report. "The 'Harrow Technology Report' recently included a blurb about nanotech assemblers, including a mention of my 'assembler timeline and weather forecast' [see Nanodot post of July 16, 2002] and a pointer to an article about the risks of assemblers [see Nanodot post of July 15, 2002]. Jeff Harrow appears to care about getting it right: when I wrote to point out that convergent-assembly manufacturing with tabletop factories would be fundamentally safe from gray goo worries (at least of the 'factory becomes rogue assembler' variety), he said he'd include a long clarification comment (more than a paragraph–he wants to give people background info) in the next report."

from the moving-toward-molecular-memory dept.
WillWare writes "William R. Cousert posted a pointer to a story on MSNBC [alternate URL] indicating that HP will make an announcment tomorrow in Europe about further advances in the work they were doing with UCLA in January":

Molecular grids are the central concept in HP's nanotechnology plans. In HP's vision, layers of molecular strands, laid down in a crisscross fashion like city streets, will form a mesh of tiny, intelligent circuits… In 2001, the two institutions were awarded a patent that addressed one of the key hurdles in using grids: how to connect the molecular wires, which can measure six atoms wide, to the tiny wires found in computer chips, which can be 70 times thicker.

There is a follow-up story on Yahoo: HP Labs Creates Densest Memory Chip

There is also an extensive article on the New York Times website: "Hewlett Finds a Process to Make Chips Even Smaller", by John Markoff, 10 September 2002.

from the foils-of-war dept.
Gina Miller writes "A company founded by two professors at Johns Hopkins University has developed a way to make A better bond by using a foil composed of nanoscale layers (from several atoms to hundreds of atoms thick) of two metals to join metals and ceramics for various purposes, such as armor to tanks or semiconductor chips to heat sinks."

from the there's-still-time dept.
Extended Deadline: Nominations for the 2002 Foresight Institute Distinguished Student Award are due by September 10, 2002.

from the green-gold dept.
Gina Miller writes "Nanoparticles of gold, silver, Europium, palladium, and iron can be produced by plants: No fairy tale: Researchers spin straw into gold. Alfalfa can concentrate gold from the soil into nanoparticles useful as tags for studying biological processes and as contacts for nanoelectronic circuits. The method is cheaper and less polluting than alternative methods, and the nanoparticles can be made more uniform by controlling the acidity of the growth medium. Oats work even better than alfalfa. Some technical details are available at Plants with the Midas touch: formation of gold nanoparicles by alfalfa plants."

from the rumors-and-speculations dept.
c/net reports Intel to unveil nanotechnology plans at a forum in San Jose next Thursday. A senior vice president of Intel is to reveal previously announced strategies for moving from the current 130-nm chip elements to less than 100-nm elements. The article speculates that unannounced research efforts to be revealed might include carbon nanotube use in chips. A Nanodot post of August 14 2002 reported Intel's first foray into nanotechnology with 'strained silicon' technology.

from the gecko-not-GEICO dept.
JohnPierce writes with an example where scientists studying a biological phenomenon gained an insight that might be useful with microscale and perhaps nanoscale design and fabrication. Scientists Prove How Geckos Stick, Unlock Secrets To Making Artificial Gecko Glue