We Are Nanotechnology

All life is composed of nanotechnology. From the original molecular structures that developed the ability to replicate themselves a billion or more years ago to the most sophisticated life forms, we all have resulted from an evolutionary process that started with, and uses at every level, nanotechnology concepts.  Life started at nano-scale, and a huge majority of all life forms, the greatest bio-diversity, still exists at nano-scale.

Nanotechnology Has Amazing Implications for Surveillance Industry

Could there soon be spy devices too small to easily detect? Imagine microscopic (or nanoscopic?) “bugs” that could be planted on a person through their food, inhaled, or sprayed on their clothes, and which would travel in their blood stream or hide in their hair or pores, transmitting audio or vital signs to nearby data collectors, themselves microscopic, which could forward the information farther along wirelessly. An intelligence agency could achieve greatly expanded capacity to observe and intervene, all without anyone being able to detect the devices with the human eye. Nanotechnology could certainly make the professional spy’s job easier.

Wi-Fi Equipped Nanobots Could Revolutionize Medicine

Nano-inspirations often hit first thing in the morning. A concept for nanobot application occurred to me when I awoke this morning that could revolutionize neurology. If nanobots can be built to receive radio signals, then they can also be engineered to detect weak electrical fields such as those that traverse our nervous systems. The proximity of nanobots in the bloodstream to the nerve cells would permit sensitivity to such weak fields, and if the nanobots could transmit weak, narrow-band radio signals to provide measurements of nerve activity, it is possible that much new information could be learned about the nervous system. Of course, the subject would need to be in an electrically quiet environment such as a Faraday cage (no cellphones allowed), and all equipment inside the cage would need to be carefully shielded and bypassed to further eliminate unwanted electrical fields, but the concept seems feasible. Since nano-scale radio receivers have already been demonstrated (link), it doesn’t seem far fetched to have them transmit as well, and, with enough sophistication and computing power, achieve the capability for Wi-Fi-like networking (link).  So how could this capability be applied?

A Trip to the Nanotech Dentist

Will nanobots someday clean my teeth? In the future, will my dentist spray a fine mist of nanobots into my mouth? Then, will he activate the nanobots with a remote control, after which the nanobots will identify where plaque and other undesirable materials bond to the enamel of my teeth and dissolve those bonds? Some of the nanobots would also move into the space between the teeth and gums and break up bacteria and the acid molecules they excrete, and possibly even repair cell damage. Then, ten minutes later, will I just rinse my mouth, have an inspection from the dentist, make my appointment for next time, and leave?

Nanotechnology Products, Like Many Others, Have Risks That Are Being Managed

Many products in current use have risks that must be managed. Many products we use every day have risks, and their dangers are managed systematically, not infrequently by force of government regulation. Gasoline, for example, is a known carcinogen, so regulations govern its handling and the warnings we are consistently given about it. As recent research has shown, carbon nanotubes also have risks that must be managed (link). Science doesn’t move ahead smoothly, however, and one study shows that toxicity of certain carbon nanomaterials could appear to be proven by one test, while other tests would show no toxicity (link).

Nanotech Ideas Fuel the Imagination

New nanotechnology developments appear frequently these days.  Solar cells enhanced by nanotechnology are being worked on by a number of companies (link).  But what about other radical ideas, such as microscopic noodles (link)?  How can a noodle bowl be combined with other nanotechnology for our benefit?

Material Questions About Nanotechnology

Can a nanobot break a molecule and change the material’s characteristics? If a nanobot deconstructs a molecule, could the pieces, being atoms or smaller molecules, have different characteristics that were not characteristics of the previous form? Could a nanobot destroy a physical object by degrading its substance, converting it into a weaker substance, possibly even a liquid or gas?  I have many more questions.

More Nano-Thoughts on Future Technological Possibilities

The emergence of nanotechnology in recent decades gives much fodder for speculation and daydreaming, and many questions around the potential of nanotechnology to help us acheive sustainability have come to me. As I find the topic intriguing, I will share some of my questions and speculations with you here, and hope to live long enough to see at least some of the knowledge involved being found, studied, and used to make life better for all life on Earth. Please read on, and I welcome you to add your ideas, concerns, and thoughts in the comments.