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Ian Latchmansingh - Feb 28 2005

How would define nanotechnology to an average person?
RR: I would start by telling them that there are several definitions. Today, there are at least three popular definitions, defined by different groups, each with their own agenda.

"Nanotechnology" has evolved over the years via terminology drift (and purposeful misapplication) to mean "anything smaller than microtechnology," such as nano powders, and other things that are nanoscale in size, but not referring to mechanisms that have been purposefully built from nanoscale components.

This "evolved" version of the term is more properly labeled "nanoscale bulk technology," while the original meaning is now labeled "molecular nanotechnology" (MNT) or "molecular manufacturing (MM)."

As originally envisioned by nanotechnology visionary Dr. K. Eric Drexler, "nanotechnology" meant "The ability to construct shapes, devices, and machines with atomic precision, and to combine them into a wide range of products inexpensively." Despite no viable criticism to the underlying hypothesis, this technology remains "on the drawing board" and is not being purposefully pursued by any known entity, but is being promoted by several (1). It is yet to be proven, primarily because there has been no substantial investment in developing a proof of concept (usually referred to as an assembler (2)). Recently, it seems as though agreement has been reached (3) to include a study of molecular manufacturing as part of the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act (despite the fact that the initial wording of the Act called for such a study, but was changed at the last minute (4)).

Today, the materials industry has adopted the term to mean "materials created at the nanoscale (0 - 100 nanometers) that because of their size have characteristics that differ from their macroscale cousins." Again, this is more properly labeled "nanoscale bulk technology," or "nanomaterials technology."

The National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) created this definition for nanotechnology, which makes sense for today's use of the term:

1. Research and technology development at the atomic, molecular or macromolecular levels, in the length scale of approximately 1 - 100 nanometer range.
2. Creating and using structures, devices and systems that have novel properties and functions because of their small and/or intermediate size.
3. Ability to control or manipulate on the atomic scale.

And the third "definition" comes from the nano-charlatans of the world who have hijacked the term and are using it to promote their products; products that are neither nanoscale mechanisms nor nanoscale materials (that meet the materials industry's definition). Read the news most any day and you will find one or more nano-poser promoting their wares, none of which are "nanotechnology" in any meaningful sense of the term. Their definition: "anything we can slap the label nanotechnology on and get away with."

What major advancements remain to be made before a true nano-revolution occurs?
If you mean nano-revolution in the sense of "when will the materials industry adopt nanoscale materials to a significant degree?" then we're looking at sometime within the next few years, and it's actually already begun - see the "Current Uses" page at Nanotechnology Now, here. So in this instance, we're already there; old materials are being replaced by their nanoscale counterparts; many with substantially better performance.

If you mean in the sense of "when will we see assemblers and/or fabricators (5)?" Estimates vary, depending on whom you ask. Those in the "we believe it will happed sooner rather than later" camp believe that provided a modest investment in research we will see them sometime within the next two decades. However, those in the "it's not going to happen anytime soon if ever" camp (whether they think this because of their stubborn refusal to extrapolate upon existing research trends or obvious enabling technologies) usually say many decades, hundreds of years, or not at all.

At Nanotechnology Now, we fall into the former camp, and believe that with an investment of several billion dollars in basic research and proof of concept, we'll see at least limited molecular nanotechnology (LMNT (6)) within the next decade, if not sooner. As time passes, the number of organizations that can afford the R&D (currently limited to only the largest governments) expands rapidly, such that after 5 years we're likely to see large corporations being able to afford it.

What do you expect the most devastating social effects of nanotechnology to be?
Job loss, and subsequent retraining. In the near term new technologies will - as they always have - create a need for workers in new fields, and will displace workers in areas where old technologies have been made obsolete. It is widely believed that nanotechnologies will enable a social revolution of a scope never before seen.

How might the spread of nanotechnology affect global relationships?
That's a tough question, and one that is being debated by the best minds, around the world. One of the very best sources of information and discussion on this topic is the Center for Responsible Nanotechnology (crnano.org). I encourage everyone to visit their site and learn about the potential of molecular manufacturing, and get involved in the debates.

What applications of nanotechnology would you expect to be the most immediate?
As I mentioned above, we're already seeing application appearing in the materials industries. Soon we'll see medical applications, such as the one we highlighted in our Best of 2003 (7), where gold nanoshells are being used to locate and kill cancer cells, while not damaging the surrounding tissues.

What possibilities of nanotechnology do you consider to be the most outrageous?
Grey Goo. Forget about grey goo (8) - it is an extreme extrapolation of nanotechnology, and very unlikely to happen without a massive and concerted effort. It will not happen by accident, only by design, which will be both difficult and unlikely.

Do you have a code of ethics that you would suggest for this new field?
Yes, see Ethics Of Nanotechnology

What do you consider to be the biggest advantages/disadvantages of widespread use of nanotechnology?

In the near-term:

Advantages - cheaper personal computers, which may help eliminate the digital divide; nanomedicines that enable single visit diagnosis and treatment of cancer; effective water treatment; cheap solar energy conversion; and many more.

Disadvantages - some job loss and the subsequent need for retraining workers; environmental hazards from nanoparticles (unlikely, but possible, and being studied).

In the longer-term:

Advantages (paraphrasing Dr. Drexler):

• Nearly free consumer products
• PC's billions of times faster then today
• Safe and affordable space travel
• Virtual end to illness, aging, death
• No more pollution and automatic cleanup of existing pollution
• End of famine and starvation
• Superior education for every child on Earth
• Reintroduction of many extinct plants and animals
• Terraforming Earth and the Solar System

Disadvantages (From CRN (9))

• Economic disruption from an abundance of cheap products
• Economic oppression from artificially inflated prices
• Personal risk from criminal or terrorist use
• Personal or social risk from abusive restrictions
• Social disruption from new products/lifestyles
• Unstable arms race
• Collective environmental damage from unregulated products
• Free-range self-replicators (gray goo) - downgraded as a risk factor
• Black market in nanotech (increases other risks)
• Competing nanotech programs (increases other risks)
• Attempted relinquishment (increases other risks)

(1) Including the Foresight Institute (foresight.org)
(2) Assembler - A nano-robotic device controlled by an onboard computer that can use available chemicals to manufacture nanoscale products. It has been proposed that advanced designs could communicate, cooperate, and maneuver to build macroscale products. (CRN)
(3) See: Molecular manufacturing back on the table link and Molecules, machines and miracles link
(4) See: Omission in the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act link
(5) Fabricator - A small nano-robotic device that can use supplied chemicals to manufacture nanoscale products under external control. Fabricators could work together to build macroscale products by convergent assembly. Similar to assemblers, but less complex, easier to build, and probably more efficient. (CRN)
(6) LMNT - An abbreviation for limited molecular nanotechnology; a narrowly specified type of MNT, using only diamondoid reactions; much easier to achieve than general MNT, but with nearly equivalent appeal and impact. (CRN)
(7) See Best Discoveries link
(8) Nanobots Not Needed link
(9) Dangers of Molecular Manufacturing link

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