Dangers of Molecular Nanotechnology (MNT) Prt 1

If potential benefits of molecular nanotechnology (MNT) sound too good to be true, there is one caveat — the potential dangers of molecular nanotechnology. When nanofactories can arrange atoms into structures — playing with the building blocks of life itself, or in this case nanoblocks — theoretically anything allowable by the laws of physics can be created fast and cheap. Requirements include a few square feet for the nanofactory, the software, and an electrical outlet. Criminals, terrorists, disturbed individuals, governments, and antisocial groups of all stripes would be incredibly empowered by such technology. Additional potential dangers of molecular nanotechnology threaten the economy, environment, human rights, and world peace. The rush to gain supremacy through nanoweaponry could lead to a new arms race, while attempts to stranglehold the technology would likely result in independent, covert development. Unilateral, “open-source” international cooperation is another option that runs its own risks, and control in the public sector could lead to inequitable benefits and an Orwellian society. The probability factor of certain potential dangers of molecular nanotechnology will be higher than others, but all are possible within a scope of circumstances that, without prevention through forethought and planning, could feasibly come to pass. Some dangers cannot be discounted even with said planning, while others can reasonably be assumed to be goals of recognized …

Virtual Nanofactory

Our Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center (NSEC) has partnered with the Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design (ACCAD) to create a visual representation of the hierarchical structure of research within the Center for Affordable Nanoengineering of Polymeric Biomedical Devices (CANPBD). This ambitious project has been nicknamed VIE, or Virtual Interactive Environment. The VIE will allow a user to review our Center’s testbeds, core technologies, projects, and people as well as see how every one of those ties in to the others.

Personal Nanofactories

Thank you for visiting and supporting Personal Nanofactories. Personal nanofactories refer to a proposed system in which nanomachines (with tiny industrial robot arms) combine reactive molecules to build ever larger and atomically precise parts – not visible to the human eye. These, in turn, would be assembled by positioning mechanisms of assorted sizes to then build visible but still atomically-precise products.

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A typical personal nanofactory would fit in a desktop box. For an illustration of such a device, please see the video below. If and when personal nanofactories are built, many predict a severe disruption to the world economy because the old economy based on scarcity would be gone, and the new economy in which the input after raw materials (like toner) is basically just intelligent software.  The debate is now less on if the nanofactory can be built, but how to best disperse nanofactories throughout the world. Great benefits would be available if we make the right decisions.