Nanotechnology introduction 

Introduction

Nanotechnology is a relatively new field of research and scientific development. It has been speculated about for decades and the wonders and advantages of nanotechnology have been extolled by many. But not all.

The scientific community, in its never ending quest for information and knowledge, consistently fails to seriously acknowledge the dangers of "invisible" technology, such as nanotechnology, going haywire. Nothing is ever to go wrong according to them yet it always does somehow. 

In this respect, nanotechnology is not different from other new disciplines. We, as humans, don't seem to have the capacity to really learn to understand something before we start to mess with it on a big scale.

And when things do go wrong - just imagine an autodidactic nano-intelligence on the loose - we end up fighting the symptoms, pointing fingers at each other, and deny any or all culpability.

Forethought of possible consequences is usually far from our minds as we are caught up, or pushed by superiors, to make the research investment profitable as soon as possible.

Money seems to be all that matters these days, and so it is with nanotechnology. It will need to prove itself in the boardroom as much as the laboratory otherwise it will go the way of other developments that failed the "money test" and disappear into the archives and filing cabinets of the world.

But nanotechnology does have very dangerous potential, and we should be very careful with it.

Nanotechnology news and developments

Having said that, nanotechnology is a fast developing field. Keeping up to date with its developments is necessary if you are serious about gaining knowledge in this field.

New discoveries and uses are made frequently and from all over the academic and commercial world. Research results, applications and products are being published and marketed continuously.

While it's not difficult to imagine the dangers of nanotechnology, we should also acknowledge its positive potential.

As long as we refrain from building nano-robots that evolve into an intelligence set out to destroy us, there are many practical uses for this technology.

In the medical field alone, for example, nanomedicine can be a great help to conventional medicine. The detailed workings of human, and other, bodies are often on the nano-scale. Being able to work - and correct - at this level is far more attractive and can be much more effective than applying external factors such as surgery or pharmaceuticals.

Nanotechnology research

Nanotechnology definitions

Another popular way of defining or categorizing nanotechnology is as a "future technology". Below are some of the official definitions to which we have added our own.

Nanotechnology web sites

Nanotechnology reference materials