On October 8, some of us were in the air on our way to the Productive Nanosystems Conference (pdf). Others — specifically, UgoTrade.com — were blogging about the new Nanotechnology Island in Second Life:
Dave Taylor, of the National Physical Laboratory (in the UK), explains that some of the key objectives are to:
“provide resources to nanotechnology-related individuals and organizations to help them get started in SL: mentoring, technical help, access to shared land and facilities, and subsidised SL development. This last part means that NPL will help cover the costs of developers for SL projects that are approved for display on Nanotechnology island.”
Dave then added more specifics about the services that would be made available:
“1) Free assistance with Second Life basics for Nanotechnology subject specialists new to Second Life. Nanotechnology Subject Specialists attending meetings can use the SciLands orientation zone and meet with our representatives in Second Life to learn about the basics (e.g. how to move around, how to communicate and give presentations, how to change your appearance, how to search, how to find more help).
“2) Free assistance with preparing, promoting and supporting suitable events on Nanotechnology Island.
“3) Free space (land) on Nanotechnology Island to host displays or exhibits relating to nanotechnology.
“4) Funding to help build (develop) an exhibit or display to be shown on Nanotechnology Island. Note: some simple exhibits (e.g. posters or simple molecular models) can be made for free.”
I’d been wondering when someone would set up a nanotech location in Second Life, and here it is. The UK folks beat out the US folks once again.
The blog post quotes someone being skeptical of molecular gears: “if you’ve seen pictures of molecular cogs made from individual molecules, these ignore the fact that molecules tend to stick together, for example).” I doubt that the gear designers ignored that fact. It’s pretty well-known. —Christine
