Clash of the Nanotech Titans
Chemical & Engineering News, in its cover story on the Eric Drexler/Rick
Smalley debates on molecular manufacturing, is allowing the world to
witness the latest in a long line of dialogues on the fundamental nature
of the universe that dates back to the time of the ancient Greeks and
the dawn of scientific and philosophical thought. http://nanobot.blogspot.com/2003_11_30_nanobot_archive.html#107028147173102174
Drawing a nano-sized line in the sand
Whether Iraq had a nuclear weapons program just before the U.S. invasion
will be debated for decades to come, but there is one indisputable fact
that should be dealt with in the short term: Iraq's science community is
now one of the country's richest untapped natural resources. http://nanobot.blogspot.com/2003_11_23_nanobot_archive.html#107008079669665397
Intel's 'Nano Inside'
Intel says it's now a master of the 65-nanometer domain. But are these
nanochips truly "nanotechnology?" I was surprised when "Engines of
Creation" and "Nanosystems" author Eric Drexler -- whom I had assumed to
be a molecular manufacturing purist -- told me he thought they qualified. http://nanobot.blogspot.com/2003_11_23_nanobot_archive.html#106979189884141792
Nano's got a brand-new bag: Politics
Tim Harper and Paul Holister at Cientifica ask in their latest edition
of TNT Weekly whether anybody here in the colonies actually read the
nanotech bill (PDF, 56.1 KB) or understand what nanotechnology is. http://nanobot.blogspot.com/2003_11_23_nanobot_archive.html#106969756709919883
Spending power
With all the talk about the nanotech bill, this plan from the Department
of Energy, "Facilities for the Future of Science," (PDF, 1.2 MB) did not
receive as much attention as it deserved. Much of it involves simply
building the infrastructure (28 new science facilities) to enable some
of the energy ideas that have been floating around for years, and of
course to come up with some new ones. Fusion and supercomputing top the
list of priorities, but nanotechnology gets a few perks thrown in there,
too. http://nanobot.blogspot.com/2003_11_30_nanobot_archive.html#107025391601151221
Nano not hep to this cat
Gordon Wozniak, who the Contra Costa Times describes as the Berkeley
City Council's "resident scientist," has a colorful way of telling his
fellow council members not to worry about unfounded fears that stray
nanoparticles will escape the molecular foundry being built at Lawrence
Berkeley National Laboratory. http://nanobot.blogspot.com/2003_11_23_nanobot_archive.html#106999801505587024
InstaAffirmation
Glenn Reynolds, in his latest Tech Central Station column, joins the
ranks of those of us who support the 21st Century Nanotechnology
Research and Development Act (PDF, 56.1 KB), but are a bit baffled by
the provision for a study on "molecular self-assembly." Reynolds writes: http://nanobot.blogspot.com/2003_11_23_nanobot_archive.html#106984025636072361
NanoBusiness As Usual
There's an interesting passage in a positively giddy-sounding
NanoBusiness Alliance newsletter: "(The nanotech bill), contrary to
earlier drafts, does not develop an elaborate feasibility study of
Drexler style molecular manufacturing." http://nanobot.blogspot.com/2003_11_23_nanobot_archive.html#106981883696966495
We're Number 6!
NanoBot is in the weekly Top Ten BlogSpot sites for the week, according
to a note I received this morning from Bloggerforum.com. Yes, this and
four bucks will get me an eggnog latte at Starbucks, but it's still good
to know that a few people read this blog last week. The Bloggerforum
site puts Howard Lovy's NanoBot at No. 6 for the week. No. 1 is Where is
Raed?, the famous Baghdad Blogger that put us all on the map -- not bad
company for a niche technology/science blog. http://nanobot.blogspot.com/2003_11_23_nanobot_archive.html#106967808921148471
