One of the oddest arguments of the molecular manufacturing community (the bunch that believe that nanofactories will lead to eternal life. personal freedom, and do away with the need for money, government, clothes and apparently, good manners or common sense) is their possessiveness of the term nanotechnology.This extract from a recent tirade is typical: By appropriating the term nanotechnology for …
Nanofactories: The Scientific Equivalent Of Defecating In a Swimming Pool?
Given the recent discussions of the effect of the Singlarity University, and the difficulty of discussing nanotechnology without getting sidetracked by discussions about life extension, nanofactories and human extension, someone recently commented that these ideas have ‘polluted the well (of nanoscience).’ The problem is that the propagation of these rather odd ideas is continuous, just when you think the last …
Debating Walruses & Ice Cream or “Responsible Nanotechnology?”
I spent the weekend discussing the various ways in which (nano)technology may be developed ‘responsibly’ which was, erm, quite interesting. I have parenthesised the ‘nano’ as many of the fears weren’t particularly specific to anything nano, and I am still rather mystified by the various definitions of the word ‘responsible’ which I’m sure will keep the ethicists, philosophers and lexicographers …
Is It Because We Is Scientists?
Today’s Times has a piece on the bust up between Ben Goldacre at Bad Science and the broadcaster Jeni Barnett over the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccinations – a bit of spectacularly bad science that terrified many people into not having their children vaccinated and which has resulted in the reintroduction of a previously eradicated childhood disease to the …
A Brave New Nanotech Utopia?
I’m grateful to UFO Digest for the following summary of what nanotech is all about. Unfortunately, it is uncannily, similar the the views of some of those involved with the new singularity university….and of course totally and utterly wrong. I do wonder how much the Singularians would agree about the post utopian scenario here? We are on the brink of …
Nano World Headquarters Ready To Boost Ailing US Economy
The US economy is poised for a much needed boost according to a press release from the rather preposterously named Nano World Headquarters. The Nano World Headquarters promises to use nanotechnology to rather presciently address almost every issue referred to in President Obama’s inugaration speech. All we can see is that the PR seems to be written by Mr Toad …
It’s nice to be proved right…eventually.
Our colleagues over at Lux Research have just had a Eureka moment and realised what we have been telling everyone since, ahem, 2002 is actually right; It’s hard to make money from nanomaterials! Doh! Wouldn’t that have been nice to know seven years ago?
Credit Crunch or Creative Destruction
In October 2008, I was asked at the World Economic Forum along with other experts to address the main challenges facing nanotechnology. While environmental, health and safety concerns had been the preoccupation of many for 2008, this question posed by the WEF combined with the world economic crisis led me to consider the challenges of funding and commercializing of nanotechnology …
The Ideal Breast…is nano?
“The ideal breasts are the ones that are round, laid high on the chest wall, large and firm. If the breasts are not meeting such criteria, this makes not only the women feeling down but her social value also gets tarnished since she feels ‘not so happening’ in any public places such as parties or some sort of get-together. Breasts, …
The First Clean-tech Nanoscam?
As oil prices go up, thousands of entrepreneurs are massing to sell all kinds of snake oil to people in order to increase their fuel consumption. Nanotech, being something advanced and sexy (well, to some people anyway) is seen as good hook. One of the latest money saving “nanotechnologies” is eeFuel from H2Oil. NanoTech eeFuel® Additive is the only multi-functional liquid nanotechnology …