A good look at how nanotechnology will shape the next Hight is Nanofuture by J. Storrs Hall. You should be able to read it from the library, or make comments of your own if you wish.

Recall a magazine article back in the '90s (but not title or author) about using the self assembly properties of DNA. The idea was that the DNA could form a rigid structure/framework.

Then there has been the experimental use of DNA for computation, as I have posted before.

This would seem to blur the distinction between biotechnology and traditional engineering.

If the earliest nanomachines are self-assembled from DNA I imagine they will function inside a liquid medium. The obvious term would be soup-ware.

I had a professor who was really into long term projections of nanotech. University of Michigan has a really strong program and I get periodic updates on what's going on a few days earlier than the public. I usually send them to my professor after the embargo is released, and I'd be happy to post them here as well if you'd like.

K. Eric Drexler's Engines of Creation (1986) was the seminal work on the possible horrors of unbridled nanotech. You may have read a review or response to this book in the 90's article.

I recall reading somewhere that an early application would be selective destruction. Inject nano-devices into the human body and they would function like white blood cells do, destroying pathogens or cancer cells. I would imagine that the very first application would target infectious disease (like during our 4T?).

Originally Posted by Tim Walker

I recall reading somewhere that an early application would be selective destruction. Inject nano-devices into the human body and they would function like white blood cells do, destroying pathogens or cancer cells. I would imagine that the very first application would target infectious disease (like during our 4T?).

There might be more money for a first application of selective destruction that targets fat cells. Think of how much is spent on liposuction and other weight control treatments. Remember also all the news reports that state (maybe exagerate) the costs of America's "obesity epidemic." The bio-tech company that markets a fat destroying nano-med that actually works will satisfy our cultural demand for slender bodies without any hard work.

Special Edition On Nanotechnology


Articles about recent work.


And yes, DNA devices would be in solution.

The Molecular Lego article proposes an alternative to proteins as components-bis-peptides, which fold in predictable ways.

It is emphasized that these miniscule constructions are rudimentary.

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Book, copyright 2013. Radical Abundance How A Revolution In Nanotechnology Will Change Civilization by K. Eric Drexler.

Analysis on what nanotechnological factories might provide the world. (Another Industrial Revolution). What technological paths seem likely to lead to such factories.