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Nanoscience - a fast burgeoning technology - is micro-paving
the way to a faster, cleaner future. Widely seen as having
huge potential to bring benefits in areas as diverse as
drug development, water decontamination, and information
and communication technologies, it is also enabling the
production stronger, lighter materials and attracting rapidly
increasing investments from governments and businesses
worldwide.
According to a July 2004 report by The Royal Academy of
Engineering (RAE), the estimated total global investment
in nanotechnologies is currently around €5 billion,
with the number of published patents having increased fourfold
from 1995 (531 patents) to 2001 (1976 patents) and having
the potential to be worth a global market value of US$1trillion
by 2011.
Yet, despite all the fervor amongst those researching and
investing in the science and technology, most of us know
very little about this little phenomenon.
In another study conducted by RAE in March of this year,
an overwhelming majority of people had not even heard of
nanotechnology, let alone understands its current applications
or future implications.
The results of the opinion poll show that just 29% of the
public claim they have heard of nanotechnology, while only
19% are able to give some definition of it, whether accurate
or not. Of those who are able to offer a definition of nanotechnology,
however, 68% said it would make things better in the future.
Commenting on the results, Professor Nick Pidgeon, a member
of the study team, said: “Nanotechnology involves studying
and working with matter at an ultra-small scale, and a nanometre
is just one-millionth of a millimetre in length. It is not
really a shock to discover that most people have not heard
about nanotechnology, because it is still a relatively young
field. But it is perhaps a little surprising that of those
people who know something about nanotechnology, most think
it will have a beneficial effect on the future, in view of
some of the media reports about the potential dangers of
nanoparticles and nanobots turning the world into ²grey
goo.”
So, what is it?
Back in 1977, while an undergrad at MIT, Eric Drexler – considered
the godfather of nanotechnology and the man who coined the
term - came up with a seemingly impossible idea. He imagined
a sea of miniature robots that could move molecules so quickly
and position them so precisely that they could produce almost
any substance out of ordinary ingredients in a matter of
hours. In his earlier vision, you could start with a black
box of so-called molecular assemblers, pour in a supply of
cheap chemicals, and out would flow a profusion of gasoline,
diamonds, rocket ships. In the body, tiny machines could
cure diseases. In the air, they could remove pollutants.
While Drexler's vision may not be entirely possible, it did
inspire a whole new generation of chemists, computer scientists,
and engineers dedicated to science at the nanoscale.
However, Drexler was not the first to envision this micro
world of industry. In his famous 1959 speech, "There's
Plenty of Room at the Bottom," physicist Richard Feynman
articulated the same vision. Feynman proposed that mechanical
systems (now termed molecular assemblers) could direct chemical
reactions, building atomically precise products. This molecular
manufacturing process, he thought, would enable digital control
of the structure of matter. This molecular manufacturing
has since been the focus of Drexler's work.
While the idea of tiny mechanical robots doing this work
is a little too lofty, the excitement generated by the concept
of nanoscience has led to big advances in nanotechnology.
We now have faster processors due to our ability to create
smaller faster microchip gateways. We can now create a fibre
so strong it can ladder us to the moon. We can now detect,
through miniature sensors, specific pollutants accidentally
or deliberately released into the environment – or
even remove them using nanoparticle filters. We can create
more efficient fuel cells… the list goes on.
Table - Country investment in nanoscience and nanotechnologies
| Europe |
Current funding for nanotechnology R&D is about 1 billion euros, two-thirds of which comes from national and regional programmes.
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| Japan |
Funding rose from $400M in 2001 to $800M in 2003 and is expected to rise by a further 20% in 2004.
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| USA |
The USA’s 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act (passed in 2003) allocated nearly $3.7 billion to nanotechnology from 2005 to 2008 (which excludes a substantial defence-related expenditure). This compares with $750M in 2003.
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| Australia |
Australian companies and research institutions are at the forefront
of nanotech fields. In the 2003–04 Budget, Australian Government
support for science and innovation was $5.4 billion |
| UK |
With the launch of its nanotechnology strategy in 2003, the UK Government pledged £45M per year from 2003 to 2009.
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| Canada |
Generous Canadian government investments in education and research have resulted in nanotechnology activities at 25 universities, 7 institutes of the National Research Council Canada, and a history of well funded university research and infrastructure programs by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.
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Other Resources
www.nanotec.org.uk
www.nanovip.com
www.foresight.org
www.nanobusiness.ca
www.nanotechnology.com.au
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