Michelle Khine makes high tech out of children's toys. Doing medical nanotech with Shrinky Dinks and a toaster oven.
posted by idiopath on Nov 8, 2009 - 10 comments

The Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence has put up a some interesting media, including a variety of talks from the Singularity Summit 2006 and 2007, about the possibilites and progress of technological development. For an overview of the issues Ray Kurzweil talks about the ideas and promises of the singularity, while Douglas Hofstadter calls for deeper exploration of the implications and hazards of coming technology.
posted by MetaMonkey on Jan 21, 2008 - 44 comments

Bionic contact lens invented. That is all. [more inside]
posted by caution live frogs on Jan 18, 2008 - 44 comments

Nanotech. Apply directly to the bleeding. Nanotech. Apply directly to the bleeding. Nanotech. Apply directly to the bleeding. [RealMedia] Nanotech is not yet available at retailers nationwide.
posted by riotgrrl69 on Oct 10, 2006 - 39 comments

The Coming Death Shortage We've talked about Aubrey De Grey and gerontology before, but what about the Anna Nicole Smith syndrome and compound interest? This piece from the Atlantic online brings up a scenario that that we may well have to deal with as the maximum possible age increases. Generational warfare, government subsidized longevity treatments ,30 year old adolescence and bio-engineered nations are just some of the things we will live to see if this forecast is accurate. (via Plastic)
posted by daHIFI on Sep 29, 2006 - 52 comments

A billion smiley faces in a drop of water. In this month's Nature, Caltech researcher Paul Rothemund has described a method of creating nano-scale structures using DNA in a process simple enough for high-school chemistry class. This is the real nanotech.
posted by todbot on Mar 16, 2006 - 14 comments

The Nano-Road is paved with gold.

Rice University built these single-molecule vehicles which measure just 4x3 nanometers and have four buckyball wheels connected to four independently rotating axles and a organic chemical chassis. They're also building a "nanotruck" which uses nitrogen atoms to be able to carry a payload.
posted by TeamBilly on Mar 14, 2006 - 34 comments

Dermal Displays
Building on a Robert A. Frietas theory (4th paragraph down) from his book, Nanomedicines, Vol 1: Basic Capabilities, a 6 cm x 5 cm programmable display embedded into your skin made up of 3 billion display pixel nanorobots could be used to monitor and direct medical nanobots within your body.
Nanogirl has recently completed work on a three minute animation of the concept, available in both QT (8.1 megs) or WMV (10.4 megs).
posted by fenriq on Sep 29, 2005 - 8 comments

Scientists have created a miniature medical computer out of DNA that can detect cancer genes in a test tube and respond by releasing a drug. However, an injectable version [of the nanoscale robots] would have to work inside cells, and that accomplishment could take decades. Says Shapiro: "I'm not sure it will be within my lifetime."
posted by mcgraw on May 5, 2004 - 11 comments

Here's a little more nano for your Tuesday: carbon nanotubes. Currently in the r&d phase, this article promises that they could become hot stuff and technologically indispensible...

"They are stronger than steel and as flexible as plastic, conduct energy better than almost any material ever discovered and can be made from unexotic raw materials such as methane gas." [found on blogdex]
posted by moonbird on Oct 21, 2003 - 8 comments

Nanotech? Kids stuff. The nanotech industry and research community has been plugging away steadily since Eric Drexler's cheerleading for it in the early 80's. Now the National Science Foundation acknowledges (in the form of this Request for Proposals) that kids as young as 7th grade must be prepared for living in a nanotech world.
posted by badstone on Oct 21, 2003 - 2 comments

"Imagine having your body and bones woven with invisible diamond fabric." Sound like something Ron Popiel would say after spray painting a bald man's head? No. It's Nanotechnology. Also of interest is this idea of Ufog. Will it be a boon to all mankind or just to fat sexually frustrated nerds?
posted by Nyarlathotep on Jun 13, 2000 - 9 comments

"Breakthrough in nanotechnology"
posted by grumblebee on Jun 13, 2000 - 0 comments