39 replies to this topic

[atomicnacho]

If you have seen any scientific news in the past 5 or so years you have inevitably heard the term nanotechnology. (If you are in the scientific community, like me, you have been bombarded with nano-everything)

Strictly speaking nanotechnology is the use and investigation of materials that have size features between 1-100nm. (1nm = 1x10^-9 m) Nanomaterials include nanoparticles (usually magnetic iron oxide, or noble metals like gold or silver), quantum dots (which are semiconductor nanoparticles), carbon nanotubes, nanowires, etc..

Nanomaterials exhibit interesting properties that differ from the bulk material because of their small size. They have high surface area to volume ratios. They even have size tunable properties, ie solutions of semiconducting quantum dots of the same material can fluoresce (glow) with colors all through the visible spectrum. Smaller ones ~4nm glow violet, and getting larger they cover all of the colors of the rainbow to red.

Nanomaterials are finding application from making a better hard drive to finding a cure for cancer. But there is nothing particularly special about them, they are just smaller versions of materials that we have known about for centuries.

[Danieluchis]

yes, i heard that they are for introduce them to your body and the 'nanobots' are going to attack the cancerous cells in your body without damaging the healthy cells, but i wonder how much time would it take to do that, i've also heard of a thing (i dont remember if it's a polymer or part of nanotechnology) but's it's like a spider web that if it's put on the heart it would prevent it from growing bigger or something like that

[atomicnacho]

A lot of research right now is being devoted to creating nanocapsules that can deliver cancer fighting drugs directly to cancerous cells instead of chemotherapy for the whole body. I think that in the next 10 years or so we will see such things on the market.

[Lyon2]

It's the future!

For instance, didn't you see "The Iland"? When the doctor puts those litles robots thrue the eye of "Lincoln 6 echo"?

That's what investigators are trying to do! Their are trying to create a complete army to protect us from possibel illnesses and/or to cure us of illnesses that we already have.

Also, "that army" will have the ability to give specific info to your doctors.

Anyway, i that tech will be used in hour childs or grandsons.

[atomicnacho]

Well I was about to say that you were getting a little carried away with the whole robots thing, but I just saw this article linked over on slashdot.org. A nanocar? This type of thing is the reason that science will soon shy away from the "nano" as it is in the media too much.

Mods: I hope I'm not posting in my own thread too much. Please let me know if this is the case.

[broflovski]

hmm... think technology like robots, now on an EXTREMELY small scale. nano = small (really)
I think they're using nano's to create cell regenerators so that people can be frozen, and then brought back to life in the future (hahah! just like Futurama!)

[DreamCore]

lol, you all sound like scientists but anyway I hope that it in the future it will be robots the are helping at home and doing hard stuff (if you have...) But that I would like most that It coulde clean the house and helping me to clean after me...

But then peapole would let tobots to do evrything and thats too much...

[broflovski]

That'd be pretty hot if u didn't have chores to get in ur way!

I would so pay $$ for that.

[Unregistered 015]

Could this nanothing be used to alter someone's genetic chain? That way, some mutations are possible, and, of course, curing of some big deases (aids, cancer, etc.)

[FLaKes]

What if evil things are done with these nano bots. Since everyone is replying on how good can they be, what if this technology falls in the wrong hands or something. Though I dont really think this would happen its just a thought.