Observer Technology

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Observer Technology TECHNoLoGYOBSERVER The science and technology magazine created and Issue 2009-2010 Volume 01 published by students of Albert Dorman Honors College of New Jersey Institute of Technology. OBSERVING THE PRESENT, WITH AN EYE oN THE FUTURE. OBSERVING THE PRESENT, WITH AN EYE oN THE FUTURE. o OBSERVING THE PRESENT, WITH AN EYE oN THE FUTURE. OBSERVING THE PRESENT, WITH AN EYE oN THE FUTURE. TECHNoLoGY OBSERVER Editor-in-Chief Fatima Elgammal, ‘10 Managing Editor Matthew P. Deek, ‘11 Design Managers Fatima Elgammal, ‘10 Horane O. Henry, ‘10 Photo Editor Andrew “Twig” Harrison, ‘12 Copy Editor Andrew J. Helbers, ‘12 Writers Wasseem Abugosh, ‘10 Peter Besada, ‘12 FF :: Matthew P. Deek, ‘11 Fatima Elgammal, ‘10 Bishoy R. Hanna, ‘12 Bushra Hossain, ‘11 Sheba S. Khan, ‘10 Mohammad Nawaz, ‘11 David M. Thompson, ‘12 Layout Staff Hussam S. Eltoukhy, ‘11 Sta Muhammad Hoque, ‘10 Ashley M. Martins, ‘13 Mohammad Nawaz, ‘11 Shadia Saleh, ‘12 Photo Editing :: Basim S. El-Toukhy, ‘12 Christopher Fowler, ‘13 Adam Gomori, ‘13 Nathan J. Harmes, ‘12 Contact Us Technology Observer Albert Dorman Honors College Advisor New Jersey Institute of Technology University Heights Dr. Paul J. Dine Newark, NJ 07102 Assistant Dean of Student Programs The Technology Observer is a publication of Albert Dorman Honors College at NJIT, New Jersey’s Science & Technology University. Albert Dorman Honors College Visit Us at honors.njit.edu/news/technologyobserver 03 Message from the Editor 04 About NJIT and Albert Dorman Honors College 05 Message from the Dean 06 Climbing to the Stars Written by :: Mohammad Nawaz Exploration of space has continued to be a lucrative trove of knowledge and, in the near future, we will not need rockets to get to space 08 Nanotechnology in Medicine: The Next Big Thing is Small Written by :: Matthew P. Deek How medicine is using nanoscale tools to improve surgical procedures and drug S :: delivery, and the ethical implications of these emerging technologies 12 Improving the Next Generation of Soldiers Written by :: Wasseem Abugosh t With advances in nanotechnology, today’s soldiers are better equipped to face enemy bullets, chemical and biologial warfare, and survive severe combat conditions 14 The Edge in Sports Gear Written by :: David M. Thompson How innovative nanoscale technologies have allowed researchers to improve durability, efficiency, and safety of athletic equipment EN 16 Across Time: How Yesterday’s Science Influenced Today’s Technology Technology Observer 10th Anniversary Special Feature Designed by :: Mohammad Nawaz and Fatima Elgammal Introduced by :: Matthew P. Deek and Mohammad Nawaz Researched by :: Peter Besada, Matthew P. Deek, Andrew J. Helbers, Ashley M. Martins, t Mohammad Nawaz, and Shadia Saleh 22 Nano-foods: Giving Each of Us the Golden Ticket Written by :: Bushra Hossain N Nanotechnology enters nutraceuticals, agriculture, and microscopic encapsulation to improve the flavor, nutrition, and health of the population 26 In Vivo Disease Diagnosis by Nanorobots Written by :: Fatima Elgammal How nanorobots can detect, diagnose and treat diseases in vivo 30 New Jersey Institute of Technology in Action Written by :: Peter Besada, Matthew P. Deek, Bishoy R. Hanna, and Sheba S. Khan Introduced by :: Matthew P. Deek Co Studying the Principles of Marketing on a Global Scale Dr. Rajiv Mehta, School of Management Applying Mathematics to the Study of Life Dr. Horacio Rotstein, Department of Mathematical Sciences Looking Towards the Sun to Study Our Earth :: Dr. Haimin Wang, Space Weather Research Laboratory Modeling the Movement of Animals at the Speed of Life Dr. Gareth Russell, Federated Department of Biological Sciences Engineering a Way to Walk Again Dr. Mesut Sahin, Department of Biomedical Engineering 32 Reference Documentation application progress expertise insight nanotechnology “Without change there is no innovation, medicine drive creativity, edge “To raise incentive for improvement.” new questions, -William Pollard, Physicist and Priest new possibilities, agriculture to regard old problems from a research requiresnew creative angle, imagination and marks motivation real advance in science.” -Albert Einstein, Physicist observation vision quest space exploration exploration“The great thing in the creativity discovery world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction nanotechnology we are moving.” judgment -Oliver Wendell Holmes, Physician and Poet reason “When eating a fruit, think of the person who drive planted the tree.“ -Vietnamese Proverb Dr. Janet Bodner from Humanities, for helping the students bring curiosity out the best in their writing; Dr. Rajiv Mehta from the School of military Management, Dr. Mesut Sahin from Biomedical Engineering, Dr. deftness Horacio Rotstein from Mathematical Sciences, Dr. Gareth Russell “The most exciting from Biological Sciences, and Dr. Haimin Wang from Physics for their time and insight into their illustrious work. breakthroughs Extended thanks to Dr. Paul Dine, for his guidance on this project; of the 21st century will not occur Dr. Joel Bloom and the administrators and staff of the Honors because of technology but because skill College for their support; Romer Jed Medina for lending his time of an expanding concept of and photographing skills; Babette Hoyle, Jean Llewellyn, Johanna foresight Moroch, and Carol Pilla from University Communications, for what it means to be ensuring that we best represent the school; and Dr. Fadi P. Deek .” and Sylvana Brito-Rodriguez from the College of Science and human Liberal Arts for their valued input and suggestions. -John Naisbitt, Author capacity Of course, the greatest thanks are for the students who worked wisdom long hours and with much effort, without imagination whom this magazine would not exist. advancement knowledge discovery insight Message from the Editor “We are building the bridge to the future while standing on it.” medicine - U.S. Army Colonel from Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century by P. W. Singer for improvement.” -William Pollard, Physicist and Priest he mission of the Technology Observer has been to report on current developments in science and technology as students see it; students, whose curious minds are researchfertile for planting questions. Nourished by the motivation to learn, they search for the most relevant and inspiring projects to report on. This tenth-year anniversary issue is no exception. motivation TThe articles of this volume all deal with a specific aspect of nanotechnology’s expanding sphere of application. Innovations in areas such as drug delivery, disease control, and food nourishment have guided nanotechnology into sustaining and even augmenting our health. At the same time, nanotechnology has enhanced the sophistication of the military’s tools and defense. With so much to offer, it is no wonder that this time may be the Age of Nanotechnology, as termed by Michael Laine, co-founder and President of LiftPort Group, the company responsible for envisioning and engineering an elevator to space. To appreciate how far technology has trekked, we thought it appropriate to take a step back and space explorationobserve how far along we have come: to, somehow, recognize the scientists who had the courage to ask “why” and “what if,” the explorers who braved uncharted territory, and the inventors who strove to engineer methods and contraptions to enhance the quality of life. Hence, our tenth year anniversary special feature is a timeline delineating major milestones, inventions, or discoveries that have influenced each of the following four areas: agriculture, astronomy, medicine, and military. There was no lack of devoted students on this issue, and those who endured the strenuous and nanotechnologydemanding hours deserve the utmost commendation. The magazine was forged in 1999 by the dedication of self-driven students, and it thrives in their persistence to share what they learn in their reason experience of working on the magazine. Jeff Admon, the first editor-in-chief of the Technology Observer, and one of its main proponents, ended the first editor’s message stating, “We aspire to be the best, most innovative magazine in our Dr. Janet Bodner from Humanities, for helping the students bring field – and with time and assistance of our fellow students we will surely grow and improve to make out the best in their writing; Dr. Rajiv Mehta from the School of this a reality.” We aim to one day attain that aspiration as we continue to observe the present, with an Management, Dr. Mesut Sahin from Biomedical Engineering, Dr. eye on the future. Horacio Rotstein from Mathematical Sciences, Dr. Gareth Russell from Biological Sciences, and Dr. Haimin Wang from Physics for their time and insight into their illustrious work. Extended thanks to Dr. Paul Dine, for his guidance on this project; Dr. Joel Bloom and the administrators and staff of the Honors College for their support; Romer Jed Medina for lending his time and photographing skills; Babette Hoyle, Jean Llewellyn, Johanna Moroch, and Carol Pilla from University Communications, for ensuring that we best represent the school; and Dr. Fadi P. Deek and Sylvana Brito-Rodriguez from the College of Science and Liberal Arts for their valued input and suggestions. Of course, the greatest thanks are for the students who worked Fatima Elgammal long hours and with much effort, without Editor-in-Chief whom this magazine would not exist. discovery TECHNoLoGYOBSERVER 03 PH o T o GRA p HER: B ABA j I d E Ak ERE dol Kupfrian, Faculty
Recommended publications
  • Diamondoid Mechanosynthesis Prepared for the International Technology Roadmap for Productive Nanosystems
    IMM White Paper Scanning Probe Diamondoid Mechanosynthesis Prepared for the International Technology Roadmap for Productive Nanosystems 1 August 2007 D.R. Forrest, R. A. Freitas, N. Jacobstein One proposed pathway to atomically precise manufacturing is scanning probe diamondoid mechanosynthesis (DMS): employing scanning probe technology for positional control in combination with novel reactive tips to fabricate atomically-precise diamondoid components under positional control. This pathway has its roots in the 1986 book Engines of Creation, in which the manufacture of diamondoid parts was proposed as a long-term objective by Drexler [1], and in the 1989 demonstration by Donald Eigler at IBM that individual atoms could be manipulated by a scanning tunelling microscope [2]. The proposed DMS-based pathway would skip the intermediate enabling technologies proposed by Drexler [1a, 1b, 1c] (these begin with polymeric structures and solution-phase synthesis) and would instead move toward advanced DMS in a more direct way. Although DMS has not yet been realized experimentally, there is a strong base of experimental results and theory that indicate it can be achieved in the near term. • Scanning probe positional assembly with single atoms has been successfully demonstrated in by different research groups for Fe and CO on Ag, Si on Si, and H on Si and CNHCH3. • Theoretical treatments of tip reactions show that carbon dimers1 can be transferred to diamond surfaces with high fidelity. • A study on tip design showed that many variations on a design turn out to be suitable for accurate carbon dimer placement. Therefore, efforts can be focused on the variations of tooltips of many kinds that are easier to synthesize.
    [Show full text]
  • Molecular Nanotechnology - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
    Molecular nanotechnology - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molecular_manufacturing Molecular nanotechnology From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Redirected from Molecular manufacturing) Part of the article series on Molecular nanotechnology (MNT) is the concept of Nanotechnology topics Molecular Nanotechnology engineering functional mechanical systems at the History · Implications Applications · Organizations molecular scale.[1] An equivalent definition would be Molecular assembler Popular culture · List of topics "machines at the molecular scale designed and built Mechanosynthesis Subfields and related fields atom-by-atom". This is distinct from nanoscale Nanorobotics Nanomedicine materials. Based on Richard Feynman's vision of Molecular self-assembly Grey goo miniature factories using nanomachines to build Molecular electronics K. Eric Drexler complex products (including additional Scanning probe microscopy Engines of Creation Nanolithography nanomachines), this advanced form of See also: Nanotechnology Molecular nanotechnology [2] nanotechnology (or molecular manufacturing ) Nanomaterials would make use of positionally-controlled Nanomaterials · Fullerene mechanosynthesis guided by molecular machine systems. MNT would involve combining Carbon nanotubes physical principles demonstrated by chemistry, other nanotechnologies, and the molecular Nanotube membranes machinery Fullerene chemistry Applications · Popular culture Timeline · Carbon allotropes Nanoparticles · Quantum dots Colloidal gold · Colloidal
    [Show full text]
  • Green Goo: Nanobiotechnology Comes Alive!
    Communiqué January/February 2003 Issue # 77 Green Goo: Nanobiotechnology Comes Alive! Issue: If the word registers in the public consciousness at all, "nanotechnology" conjures up visions of itty- bitty mechanical robots building BMWs, burgers or brick walls. For a few, nanotech inspires fear that invisible nanobots will go haywire and multiply uncontrollably until they suffocate the planet – a scenario known as "Gray Goo." Still others, recalling Orwell’s 1984, see nanotech as the path to Big Brother’s military-industrial dominance, a kind of “gray governance.” Gray Goo or gray governance – both are plausible outcomes of nanotechnology – the manipulation of matter at the scale of the nanometer (one billionth of a meter) – but possibly diversionary images of our techno-future. The first and greatest impact of nano-scale technologies may come with the merger of nanotech and biotech – a newly recognized discipline called nanobiotechnology. While Gray Goo has grabbed the headlines, self- replicating nanobots are not yet possible. The more likely future scenario is that the merger of living and non- living matter will result in hybrid organisms and products that end up behaving in unpredictable and uncontrollable ways – get ready for “Green Goo!” Impact: Roughly one-fifth (21%) of nanotech businesses in the USA are currently focusing on nanobiotechnology for the development of pharmaceutical products, drug delivery systems and other healthcare-related products.1 The US National Science Foundation predicts that the market for nano-scale products will reach $1 trillion per annum by 2015. As with biotech before it, nanotech is also expected to have a major impact on food and agriculture.
    [Show full text]
  • Some Limits to Global Ecophagy by Biovorous Nanoreplicators, With
    make no preparation. We have trouble enough controlling viruses and Some Limits to Global Ecophagy fruit flies. by Biovorous Nanoreplicators, with Among the cognoscenti of nanotechnology, this threat has become known as the "gray goo problem." Though masses of uncontrolled Public Policy Recommendations replicators need not be gray or gooey, the term "gray goo" emphasizes that replicators able to obliterate life might be less inspiring than a single species of crabgrass. They might be superior in an evolutionary Robert A. Freitas Jr. sense, but this need not make them valuable. Research Scientist, Zyvex LLC , 1321 North Plano Road, The gray goo threat makes one thing perfectly clear: We cannot afford Richardson, TX 75081 © April 2000 Robert A. Freitas Jr. certain kinds of accidents with replicating assemblers. http://www.foresight.org/nano/Ecophagy.html Gray goo would surely be a depressing ending to our human adventure on Earth, far worse than mere fire or ice, and one that could Abstract stem from a simple laboratory accident. The maximum rate of global ecophagy by biovorous self- Lederberg [ 3] notes that the microbial world is evolving at a replicating nanorobots is fundamentally restricted by the fast pace, and suggests that our survival may depend upon replicative strategy employed; by the maximum dispersal embracing a "more microbial point of view." The emergence velocity of mobile replicators; by operational energy and of new infectious agents such as HIV and Ebola demonstrates chemical element requirements; by the homeostatic resistance that we have as yet little knowledge of how natural or of biological ecologies to ecophagy; by ecophagic thermal technological disruptions to the environment might trigger pollution limits (ETPL); and most importantly by our mutations in known organisms or unknown extant organisms determination and readiness to stop them.
    [Show full text]
  • Nanotechnology and Regulatory Policy: Three Futures
    Harvard Journal of Law & Technology Volume 17, Number 1 Fall 2003 NANOTECHNOLOGY AND REGULATORY POLICY: THREE FUTURES Glenn Harlan Reynolds* TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION..............................................................................180 II. A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO NANOTECHNOLOGY ............................181 A. How Nanotechnology Works....................................................181 B. What Nanotechnology Can Do.................................................185 III. REGULATORY RESPONSES ..........................................................187 A. “Relinquishment” and Prohibition ..........................................188 1. The Case for Prohibition: Children of Our Minds.................188 2. Problems with Turning a Blind Eye ......................................190 B. Restriction to the Military Sphere ............................................193 1. The Case for “Painting It Black”...........................................193 2. Problems with Military Classification...................................194 C. Modest Regulation and Robust Civilian Research...................197 1. Early Biotechnology Regulation ...........................................198 2. Evaluating the Biotechnology Model....................................199 IV. LESSONS FOR NANOTECHNOLOGY .............................................200 A. Research...................................................................................201 B. Beyond the Lab.........................................................................202
    [Show full text]
  • Nanotechnology K
    • Table of Contents • cen-chemjobs.org • Today's Headlines December 1, 2003 • Cover Story Volume 81, Number 48 CENEAR 81 48 pp. 37-42 • Editor's Page ISSN 0009-2347 Search • Business Advanced • Government & Policy Options • Science & Technology Related People • ACS News • Calendars NANOTECHNOLOGY K. Eric Drexler • Books Drexler and Smalley make the case for and against Richard E. Smalley • Career & Employment 'molecular assemblers' • Special Reports Related Books • Nanotechnology RUDY BAUM Engines of Creation: • What's That Stuff? The Coming Era of Nanotechnology by K. Back Issues Eric Drexler 2003 Go! Prey by Michael Crichton Safety Letters Chemcyclopedia Nanosystems: Molecular Machinery, Manufacturing, and ACS Members can sign up to Computation by K. Eric receive C&EN e-mail Drexler newsletter. E-mail this article to a friend Print this article PHOTO BY RUDY BAUM PHOTO BY LINDA CICERO E-mail the OPEN DEBATE Rice University's Smalley (left) takes editor issue with mechanosynthesis and molecular manufacturing Join ACS as set forth by Foresight Institute's Drexler. In this C&EN exclusive "Point-Counterpoint," two of nanotechnology's biggest advocates square off on a fundamental question that will dramatically affect the future development of this field. Are "molecular assemblers"-- devices capable of positioning atoms and molecules for precisely defined reactions in almost any environment-- physically possible? In his landmark 1986 book, "Engines of Creation: The Coming Era of Nanotechnology," K. Eric Drexler envisioned a world utterly transformed by such assemblers. They would be able to build anything with absolute precision and no pollution. They would confer something approaching immortality. They would enable the colonization of the solar system.
    [Show full text]
  • Large-Product General -Purpose Design and Manufacturing Using Nanoscale Modules
    Final Report Large-Product General -Purpose Design and Manufacturing Using Nanoscale Modules NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts CP-04-01 Phase I Advanced Aeronautical/Space Concept Studies PriPrnicincpialpa Iln Ivnevstesigtiagtaotor:r :C hCrihsr iPs hoPheoneinxi x CoC-Ion-Ivnevstesigtiagtaor:tor :Ti Thaihmeamre Tor Tthot-Fh-Feejjelel MaMayy 2 2, ,2 2000055 1 Cover page: The computer-controlled NIAC desktop nanofactory (top figure) uses nanoscale machinery (lower right) to manufacture a molecularly precise 3-D product—a high performance water filter—out of nanoblocks made using bottom-up techniques, in this case synthesized from 2-layer silsesquioxane deriviatives (lower left). The authors wish to thank Eric Drexler, Jeffrey Soreff, and Robert Freitas for helpful comments on portions of this document. 2 Table of Contents Table of Contents.............................................................................................. 3 Summary........................................................................................................... 5 Background 1. Incentives................................................................................................................8 1.1. Scaling laws............................................................................................... 8 1.2. Molecular Fabrication Advantages............................................................ 9 1.3. Exponential manufacturing ..................................................................... 11 1.4. Information delivery rate..........................................................................13
    [Show full text]
  • Nanotechnology in the Age of Posthuman Engineering: Science Fiction As Science
    Nanotechnology in the Age of Posthuman Engineering: Science Fiction as Science Colin Milburn Harvard University Now nanotechnology had made nearly anything possible, and so the cultural role in deciding what should be done with it had become far more important than imagining what could be done with it. —Neal Stephenson, The Diamond Age (1995) Long live the new flesh. —David Cronenberg’s Videodrome (1983) The Technoscapes and Dreamscapes of Nanotechnology K. Eric Drexler, pioneer and popularizer of the emerging science of nanotechnology, has summarized the ultimate goal of his field as “thorough and inexpensive control of the structure of matter.”1 Nano- technology is the practical manipulation of atoms; it is engineering conducted on the molecular scale. Many scientists involved in this ambitious program envision building nanoscopic machines, often called “assemblers” or “nanobots,” that will be used to construct ob- jects on an atom-by-atom basis. Modeled largely after biological “ma- chines” like enzymes, ribosomes, and mitochondria—even the cell — these nanomachines will have specific purposes such as binding two chemical elements together or taking certain compounds apart, and will also be designed to replicate themselves so that the speed and scale of molecular manufacturing may be increased. Several different 1. K. Eric Drexler, “Preface,” in K. Eric Drexler, Chris Peterson, and Gayle Pergamit, Un- bounding the Future: The Nanotechnology Revolution (New York: Morrow, 1991), p. 10. Configurations, 2002, 10:261–295 © 2003 by The Johns Hopkins University Press and the Society for Literature and Science. 261 262 Configurations types of assemblers, or assemblers with multiple functions, will act together to engineer complex objects precise and reproducible down to every atomic variable.
    [Show full text]
  • Self-Replicating Machine - Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
    Self-replicating machine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-replicating_machine Self-replicating machine From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia A self-replicating machine is an artificial construct that is capable of A simple form of machine self-replication autonomously manufacturing a copy of itself using simpler components or raw materials taken from its environment. The concept of self-replicating machines has been most notably advanced and examined by, Homer Jacobsen, Edward F. Moore, Freeman Dyson, John von Neumann and in more recent times by K. Eric Drexler in his seminal book on nanotechnology, Engines of Creation and by Robert Freitas and Ralph Merkle in their landmark review Kinematic Self-Replicating Machines[1] which provided the first comprehensive analysis of the entire replicator design space. The future development of such technology has featured as an integral part of several plans involving the mining of moons and asteroid belts for ore and other materials, the creation of lunar factories and even the construction of solar power satellites in space. The possibly misnamed von Neumann probe[2] is one theoretical example of such a machine. Von Neumann also worked on what he called the Universal Constructor, a self-replicating machine that would operate in a cellular automata environment. A self-replicating machine is, as the name suggests, an artificial self-replicating system that relies on conventional large-scale technology and automation. Certain idiosyncratic terms are occasionally found in the literature. For example, the term "clanking replicator" was once used by Drexler[3] to distinguish macroscale replicating systems from the microscopic nanorobots or "assemblers" that nanotechnology may make possible, but the term is informal and is rarely used by others in popular or technical discussions.
    [Show full text]
  • The Consequences of Physical Immortality: Can Humans Cope with Radically Extended Lifespans?
    ESSAY .83 The Consequences of Physical Immortality: Can Humans Cope with Radically Extended Lifespans? Bruce J. Klein Immortality Institute USA Bruce J. Klein considers himself to be a fairly aver- Yet, social resistance to change is persistent. There age homosapien, yet he believes his DNA is suicidal. In will always be some degree of resistance because of our order to overcome this problem, Klein hopes to eventu- evolutionary heritage. Our ancestors were successful ally shed his biological body for a more robust posthu- reproducers not because they took great risks. They man form. were successful on the whole because they were risk Kharin: How well are infinite lifespans matched to averse. Thus, evolution has selected for humans who finite environmental resources? Given popular resistance were somewhat resistant to change but not totally to the most basic forms of genetic modification, can we closed to opportunity. Once the benefits are made obvi- rely on science and technology to keep pace with expand- ous however, resistance turns quickly to support. ing lifespans? Remember the clamoring3 over "test tube babies"? In short, Yes. I think we can keep pace with popu- In the early 1970's, nearly all bioethicists warned against lation growth and we can steward environmental in vitro fertilization (IVF) and 80% of the American public resources successfully. Chiefly because we've already opposed test-tube babies. Today, over 100,000 babies been successful thus far. Looking forward, because of exist - 200,000 worldwide, from IVF. And now about greater fine tuning and skill at the manipulation of mat- 80% of Americans support IVF.
    [Show full text]
  • Molecular Manufacturing for Clean, Low Cost Textile Production David R
    Molecular Manufacturing for Clean, Low Cost Textile Production David R. Forrest, Sc.D., P.E. Naval Surface Warfare Center, West Bethesda, Maryland USA and Institute for Molecular Manufacturing, Los Altos, California USA ABSTRACT Molecular manufacturing is an emerging technology that is being developed to build large objects to atomic precision, quickly and cheaply, with virtually no defects. When it matures, it promises to be an energy efficient and environmentally benign way to make textiles and textile products. Current efforts to apply nanotechnology to textiles promise exciting innovations such as • Lightweight nanotube fibers stronger than steel • Fabrics able to sense temperature and control their breathability • Clothing able to sense injury and provided immediate delivery of medication to a wounded soldier However, molecular manufacturing will provide atomic control over the structure of a fabric, promising revolutionary changes far beyond current advances: • A garment could programmably increase or decrease its own size as needed • A fabric could change its own color and patterns on demand • The breathability of a textile could be variable and self-regulating • By integrating molecular robotic components into the material, a fabric could be made to be self-cleaning and self-repairing • A fabric could be programmed to move on its own accord, creating effects such as a flag flapping even without a breeze • Molecular fasteners could create new clothing design options for truly seamless garments. This paper summarizes recent advances in molecular manufacturing that are enabling the development of this radical new vision for the future of textile design and manufacture. 1 BACKGROUND Although the term “nanotechnology” is now used to describe a broad and diverse range of technological areas, it was originally used to describe a novel method of manufacturing first articulated by Richard Feynman: that molecular machines should be able to build substances by mechanically placing each atom into position exactly as specified [1].
    [Show full text]
  • Too Dangerous to Allow?1
    ______________________________________________________________________________________________________N04FR06 Molecular Manufacturing: Too Dangerous to Allow?1 Robert A. Freitas Jr* Institute for Molecular Manufacturing, Palo Alto, California, USA One common argument against pursuing a molecular assembler or nanofactory design effort is that the end results are too dangerous. According to this argument,2, 3 any research into molecular manufacturing (MM) should be blocked because this technology might be used to build systems that could cause extraordinary damage. The kinds of concerns that nanoweapons systems might create have been discussed elsewhere, in both the nonfictional4–6 and fictional7 literature. Perhaps the earliest-recognized and best-known danger of molecular manufacturing is * E-mail: see www.rfreitas.com. 1 An earlier version of this essay appeared as portions of Sections 5.11 and 6.3.1 in: Robert A. Freitas Jr., Ralph C. Merkle, Kinematic Self-Replicating Machines, Landes Bioscience, Georgetown TX, 2004, p. 199 and pp. 204–206; http://www.MolecularAssembler.com/KSRM/5.11.htm#p44 and http:/ /www.MolecularAssembler.com/KSRM/6.3.1.htm. Copyright 2006 Robert A. Freitas Jr. 2 Sean Howard, “Nanotechnology and mass destruction: The need for an inner space treaty,” Disarmament Diplomacy 65(2002); http://www.acronym.org.uk/dd/dd65/65op1.htm; Lee-Anne Broadhead, Sean Howard, “The Heart of Darkness,” Resurgence #221, November/December 2003; http://resurgence.gn.apc.org/issues/broadhead221.htm. 3 Bill Joy, “Why the future doesn’t need us,” Wired 8(April 2000); http://www.wired.com/wired/ archive/8.04/joy.html. Response by Ralph Merkle, “Text of prepared comments by Ralph C. Merkle at the April 1, 2000 Stanford Symposium organized by Douglas Hofstadter,” at: http:// www.zyvex.com/nanotech/talks/stanford000401.html.
    [Show full text]