Category: Research

from the who-knew-tin-would-become-high-tech? dept.
An AAAS press release describes a "natural nanomotor" using metal. Excerpts: "The discovery of dancing tin, reported 24 November 2000 in Science's Nanotechnology Issue, may promise surprisingly efficient nanomotors, if researchers can harness this chemical locomotion system. By manipulating the surface energies that drive tin crystals to move across copper, it might also be possible to control such movements, thereby forcing alloys to form desired nanoshapes, according to researchers with the Sandia National Laboratories…Schmid's research 'can be viewed as a direct observation of a nanomotor,' according to a Science Perspectives essay… How powerful are these natural nanomotors? Tin islands crank out roughly 0.3 horsepower per kilogram of weight…By comparison, a car's power-to-weight ratio is about 0.1 hp/kg–making the natural nanomotors more efficient, in theory. 'The challenge,' they concluded, 'is to devise nanomotors whose motion can be controlled externally (so that they can be used to move things around at will) and that can be refueled.' " See the Quicktime movie.

from the now-we'll-really-see-who's-so-smart dept.
Senior Associate John Gilmore of EFF brings to our attention this item from BBC News. Excerpts: "US researchers believe they have identified the parts of the human genome involved in developing a person's intelligence. This means scientists could soon test the potential intelligence of new-born babies…The researchers, working for the US National Institutes of Health, analysed the DNA of 200 of the brightest kids in America and compared them with the genetic material from ordinary children. The results are due out next year, but the BBC Newsnight programme has learned that key differences have been found. In other words, the scientists are homing in on the genes for genius…[According] to Jeremy Rifkin…'Every parent wants the best for their child,' said Rifkin. 'In the future, the parent could become an architect and each child the ultimate shopping experience.' "

from the chemists-in-hot-pursuit dept.
Foresight chairman Eric Drexler calls our attention to a review in the 9 November issue of Nature "In Control of Molecular Motion" by chemist Ben Feringa of Univ. of Groningen, The Netherlands: "Nature [he means Mother Nature, not the journal –CP] leads the way when it comes to motors on a molecular scale. But chemists are in hot pursuit, designing controllable structures that can mimic muscles or rotary motors."
Read more for excerpts, see the paper journal in your library, or buy the article online for US$10.

from the better-late-than-never dept.
In November 1991, Science did a special issue on nanotechnology. Here's their next one. The 24 November Science special issue on nanotechnology includes:
* Is Nanotechnology Dangerous?
* Powering the Nanoworld
* Cantilever Tales
* NanoManipulator Lets Chemists Go Mano a Mano With Molecules
* Strange Behavior at One Dimension
* Nanoelectromechanical Systems
* From Micro- to Nanofabrication with Soft Materials
* Microfabricating Conjugated Polymer Actuators
* Powering an Inorganic Nanodevice with a Biomolecular Motor
* Atom-Scale Research Gets Real
* Coaxing Molecular Devices to Build Themselves
Free login will get you an overview page on this special issue. Excerpt: "…Robert Service surveys nanotechnology's near-term prospects: the role of funding infusions, such as the U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative and its European and Japanese counterparts, and the real promise of new materials and devices. He also takes a jaundiced view of some of the prophecies of boom and doom made by the field's boosters and critics. Meanwhile, amid the nanohype, researchers are forging ahead on several exciting fronts."

from the let's-put-these-machines-to-work dept.
About the 24 November Science special issue on nanotechnology [some parts accessible with free login], Foresight's Tanya Jones writes "Check out the article on Carlo Montemagno's efforts to build a molecular motor at http://partners.nytimes.com/2000/11/25/science/25NANO.html" Excerpts: "Writing in Friday's issue of the journal Science, scientists at Cornell University report that they hooked up a tiny motor to a metal propeller and spun the propeller around at up to eight revolutions a second. 'This is the first true nano machine,' said Dr. Carlo D. Montemagno, professor of biological engineering at Cornell and senior author of the Science paper…Since the motor draws its energy from the same organic molecules that power living cells, Dr. Montemagno suggests that scientists may one day be able to build robots much smaller than bacteria that will be able to repair cellular damage, manufacture medicines and attack cancer cells. 'This opens the door to make machines that live inside the cell,' Dr. Montemagno said. 'It allows us to merge engineered devices into living systems…We're going to have the device self-assemble inside the human cell,' he said. "That's what we're working on now.' " CP: You can download a video clip.