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T h e A s s e m b l e r May 1994
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Newsletter of the Molecular Manufacturing Shortcut Group
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##Table of Contents:
##1: ISDC in Toronto
##2: Officer Position Available
##3: One Timeline for MM Developement
##4: NSF Grant for Nanotechnology Developement
##5: Membership Info
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##1: ISDC in Toronto
This year's annual MMSG chapter meeting will be held at the
International Space Development Conference in Toronto.
The conference will take place from May 27th-30th at the Regal
Constellation Hotel.
At the door registration is $90US or $30US for students.
Room rates are: Sngl/Dbl $67US, Triple/Quad $77US. Reservations can
be made by calling (800)268-4838.
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##2: Officer Position Available
The Position of Secretary for the MMSG will be up for grabs at the
upcoming meeting in Toronto. The current Secretary is resigning.
The position of Secretary currently entails two primary functions:
To record the minutes of the annual meeting; and, to edit and
publish this newsletter.
The latter also involves gathering information and maintaining a
current membership roster.
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##3: One Timeline for Molecular Manufacturing Developement.
(taken from a letter from Tom McKendree)
I think it would prove quite useful if we could get a few people to
list what they consider to be the closer-term and longer-term specific
benefits of nanotechnology. The focus here, I believe, should be on the
application more than the technology.
NEAR TERM ( <10 years)
Mainly things for science and technology, since it does not seem
likely that you could make mass quantities of anything near term, but
information can be easily replicated with current technology.
More general probes for examining proteins and molecular surfaces.
Should include probes for making (some) specific molecular changes, and
examining the results.
A device for directly building prototypes of novel molecules, and the
information one gets from building and testing such (fairly) arbitrary
molecules.
A scanning probe system for "molecular archeology." Take something of
interest (like an HIV virus), fully characterize its outer surface to atomic
precision, slowly remove fragements, one by one, fully char- acterizing at
each step. In principle (and after building up experience, probably often in
practice), one would have a very powerful, very general technique for
characterizing in 3 dimensions, and to atomic precision, the structure of
things like viruses.
Designed pharma- ceuticals are along one path to molecular
nanotechnology, and they are a nearer term benefit of that path.
Kilobase/second DNA readers (for really fast genome sequencing),
MEDIUM TERM (5-15years) Molecular based computer memory.
Possibly (this is speculative before general molecular manufacturing)
some mass-producable molecular logic circuit that can be self configured
(e.g., training neural nets) and thus forms a useful, and probably very high
performance, computer capability.
Quite possibly, the ability to make bulk structures (Aircraft panels
and stringers, I-beams for buildings and bridges, etc) out of diamond-diamond
composite, or some other "wonder" material.
FAR TERM (>10 years)
The key technical capability is a general ability to build molecular
nanotechnology products. This includes the ability to bootstrap production,
which drives manufacturing costs to something very low (but not zero).
Something that looks like a microwave, and can build you anything in
the Sears catalog for ~$1 per pound, often in under an hour. Technologically
capable of building you another such molecular manufacturing system. With the
right systems design, individuals could have such machines build, at their own
home, personal cars, houses, airplanes, orbital rockets, and other advanced
systems. Publically available molecular manufacturing systems may deliberately
not have all these cabilities.
A single-stage to fly-to-orbit vehicle massing less than 5 tons loaded
(and less than 100 kg dry and empty) that can carry 4 people to orbit.
Affordable, robust, and potentially small, closed environment
life-support systems. A very general manufacturing capability, that will
probably be able to take advantage of most in-situ resources. All together,
the ability for many people to affordably live in space. This should include
the ability of typical first world citizens (at least) to afford to settle in
space without receiving a subsidy. The hope of getting something resembling
this is why MMSG supports the development of molecular nanotechnology.
Tiny computers, sensors and actuators, trivially cheap on a per-unit
basis, allowing things like smart paint, clothes, furnature, walls, paper,
jewelry, etc.
Given some time to develop medical capabilities, in general an ability
to repair physical damage when the correct structure is known. This should
allow curing essentially all physical diseases, including aging.
Virtual fog I have technical questions about, but it would in essense
be a network of nanomachines filling a volume. They would have the capbility
to appear invisible, or to appear visible in broad ways, and they would be able
to, as a network,transer forces. The network would have some very powerful
distributed computing capabilities. They could generate the illusion of nearly
anything in the volume. The best analogy is the holodeck in Star Trek: The
Next Generation, although it has also been suggested that virtual fog could
have other capabilities (such as personal defense).
Uploading, based on the theory that a person is the pattern of
interconnected information in their brain, is the idea of transfering that
information to a computer, at which point the person is the software on the
computer. Some people who support molecular nanotechnology are quite adament
about wanting to do this. One planned benefit is that such a person can have
a remote archive copy, and be restored after an accident that would otherwise
be fatal.
VERY FAR TERM (After you've done all the easy things with molecular
manufacturing, and push out capabilities)
As you get really far out, it becomes a Rorschach test. It should be
possible to do (almost) anything you want, so what you often hear is people
coming up with what they most want that isn't possible today.
My caveats are that
a) this will be such a big change that some of our wants will change;
b) costs will still matter, and
c) some things will still be impossible.
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##4: NSF PR 93-88
NATIONAL SCIENCE BOARD APPROVES CREATION OF NATIONAL NANOFABRICATION
USERS NETWORK
The National Science Board, policy making body of the National Science
Foundation (NSF), approved on November 19 an NSF recommendation to set up an
integrated network of nanofabrication facilities open to scientists and
engineers across the country. The National Nanofabrication Users Network will
encompass facilities at Cornell University, Howard University, Pennsylvania
State University, Stanford University, and the University of California at
Santa Barbara.
The board recommended that $3.55 million be awarded to the network for
fiscal year 1994, with total funding of up to $20 million over five years.
Three NSF directorates, engineering, mathematical and physical sciences, and
biological sciences will support the network. An internal NSF committee,
chaired by Linton Salmon, program director for solid state and microstructures
in the engineering directorate, will provide administrative oversight. A
network governing board, with representatives from the five universities as
well as from industry, academia, and government, will direct the network's
overall administration.
A fast-growing field, nanofabrication is a critical "enabling"
technology for a wide variety of disciplines. The network will help the
nation remain at the forefront of many burgeoning research areas, a number of
which have commercial applications.
Researchers from a broad spectrum of disciplines, including
microelectronics, micromechanics, physics, chemistry, biology, materials
science, and optics use the technology to create extremely tiny structures
required for research. These structures can have dimensions as small as a
nanometer--a billionth of a meter. (For comparison, a human hair is
approximately 100,000 nanometers in diameter.) At these extremely small
scales, structures can exhibit novel behavior, whether physical, biological,
or chemical. They display quantum mechanical properties, opening up
opportunities for new technologies--promising smaller, faster, and less
expensive computers, for example, and structures for DNA analysis, useful in
genetic studies.
For 16 years, NSF has sought to meet researchers' needs by supporting
a National Nanofabrication Facility at Cornell University, but the new network,
recommended by an external panel of scientists and engineers, will greatly
expand access to the technology across the United States. It will also open
up the use of nanofabrication for diverse disciplines, including some new to
the technology.
The new network will provide facilities and equipment too costly for
universities and most companies to support, as well as expert assistance for
individual researchers from both academia and industry. Cornell and Stanford
will offer a wide range of capabilities to outside users, while Howard,
Pennsylvania State, and Santa Barbara will each provide specialized
capabilities, such as novel materials and etching. An explicit goal of the
network is to develop new educational outreach programs for nanofabrication
science and engineering at all levels, including short courses and
undergraduate research opportunities.
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The National Science Foundation is an independent agency of the federal
government established in 1950 to promote and advance scientific progress in
the United States. NSF accomplishes its mission primarily by competitively
awarding grants to educational institutions for research and education in
the sciences, mathematics and engineering.
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##5: Membership Information
If this is your first issue or if the expiration date on the address
label has already passed, we request that you pay dues of $12.00 for a one
year membership to the Molecular Manufacturing Shortcut Group.
This fee covers the newsletter mailings and other fees associated with
the organization.
You will also receive other materials that will help you teach others
about the nanotechnology revolution.
To send in your membershipo fee please mail a check and vital
information: name, address, phone, e-mail to :
MMSG Membership
PO Box 10367
Blacksburg, VA 24062-03675