The Nanogirl News~

From: Gina Miller (nanogirl_at_halcyon.com)
Date: 07/14/04 

Date: 14 Jul 2004 03:02:40 GMT

The Nanogirl News
July 13, 2004

Charles Accused over Science Warnings. The Prince of Wales was accused today
of raising unfounded scientific scares following his latest warnings about
the new science of nanotechnology. Eminent fertility expert Lord Winston
said it was "very unfortunate" that Charles had used a newspaper article
yesterday to raise the spectre of a thalidomide-style disaster. Instead of
fostering a mature debate on the pros and cons of the emerging technology,
Charles is feeding a growing suspicion of science in society, said Lord
Winston. (News.Scotsman 7/12/04)
http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=3191675
Also see the original Sunday article in the Independent:
http://argument.independent.co.uk/commentators/story.jsp?story=539977
Download the BBC news coverage video via RealPlayer:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/video/40369000/rm/_40369897_nano06_mcgourty_vi.ram

No big bang but big nano bucks. After decades of hype and science fiction,
nanotechnology is taking baby steps toward a trillion-dollar reality. From
health care to aviation, it promises to reshape business and make a few
pioneers very rich. But if you're afraid of Grey Goo or cyborgs invading
your home, you might want to take a second look because, as the National
Post's Joseph Brean reports in the first of a three-part series, the
nanofuture is as uncertain as it ever was. (National Post 7/3/04)
http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/artslife/reviewandbooks/story.html?id=1e61eb85-1443-40c8-99ba-c7aaf82586c8

Despite House's okay, little time left to pass nanotech bill this year. With
little time left on the congressional legislative calendar, the prospects
this year for new legislation recently introduced by Rep. Mike Honda,
D-Calif., aimed at helping to bring nanotechnology advances to market appear
dim. The bill (H.R. 4656) would create a public-private partnership aimed at
investing in nanomanufacturing. The measure calls for the establishment of a
new program, the Nanomanufacturing Investment Partnership, within the
Department of Commerce that would provide direct investments, which must be
matched by private sector partners, in "pre-commercial nanomanufacturing
research and development projects." (SmallTimes 7/12/04)
http://www.smalltimes.com/document_display.cfm?document_id=8159

Metallic Contacts to the Nanoworld. Method fashions nanosized electrical
leads on nanoscale semiconductors. Ever try connecting speakers to a stereo
receiver using automobile jumper cables? Of course not. The mismatch in size
makes the task clumsy. Yet researchers who study nanoscale electronics
usually wire up the nanometer-sized circuit components-carbon nanotubes, for
example-using electrical contacts that are enormous compared with the
nanotubes. They accept the size disparity because no one has developed a
viable way to avoid it. Until now, that is. (Chemical & Engineering News
7/5/04) http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news/8227/8227notw1.html

Nanotechnology-based applications are accelerating the development of
nanomedicine. With the potential for targeted therapy, and therefore reduced
side effects, nanomedicine holds the promise of significantly improving
quality of life parameters. At the same time, the adoption of
nanotechnology-based applications by large therapeutic and diagnostic
companies is accelerating the development of nanomedicine. The prospect of
site-specific therapeutic action and by extension of fewer side effects
means that nanomedical applications have an enhanced risk-benefit analysis
ratio. This is motivating their growing popularity as a therapeutic option.
(News Medical.Net 7/5/04) http://www.news-medical.net/?id=3067

Are nanotech fabrics any good? Imagine you're balancing a cup of coffee and
heading back to your workstation and the inevitable happens -- the coffee
spills. There are huge, blotchy coffee stains across your workwear. How can
you turn up like this for that important mid-afternoon client meeting? If
you're wearing stain-resistant clothing, you may not be badly off. The
chances of your favourite white shirt sporting an ugly, dull brown stain
post-wash are minimized if you are wearing shirts made of fabric that is
treated with nanotechnology. The menswear market today is flooded with
shirts and trousers that are wrinkle free, stain resistant and have cooling
properties. All of these essentially use what is called nanotechnology.
(Rediff.com 7/3/04)
http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2004/jul/03perfin.htm

Tuning the Nanoworld. New Methods for Constructing Nanostructures and
Calculating Their Electronic States. Scientists at Lawrence Berkeley
National Laboratory have found new ways of combining quantum dots and
segmented nanorods into multiply branching forms and have applied new ways
to calculate the electronic properties of these nanostructures, whose
dimensions are measured in billionths of a meter. (Berkeley Lab 7/7/04)
http://www.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/MSD-tuning-the-nanoworld.html

NSF grant funds molecular photosensor. Florida Tech researchers have earned
a $100,000 National Science Foundation grant for a nanotechnology project,
to develop a molecular photosensor. The photosensor will be based on
compounds, such as Vitamin A, found in mammalian retinae. Dr. Joel Olson and
Dr. Nasri Nesnas, assistant professors of chemistry, earned the grant to
develop the technology, which can be useful in the fabrication of miniscule
cameras--the size of a grain of sand--requiring very little power.
(EurekAlert 7/9/04)
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-07/fiot-ngf070904.php

Light on a Chip. An ultrafine nanometre 'drill' could be used to make some
of the tiniest lenses imaginable and may also allow scientists to harness
light for use in optical computers of the future, thanks to research
published today. Scientists from the UK and Spain describe in this week's
Science Express (8 July) how artificial materials with tiny grooves and
holes drilled into their surfaces could channel and focus light beams on a
chip. (Imperial College London 7/8/04) http://www.ic.ac.uk/p5394.htm

Patent for Coated Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Ropes Awarded to Carbon
Nanotechnologies. Carbon Nanotechnologies, Inc (CNI) announced today the
allowance of another U.S. Patent, this one for coated single-wall carbon
nanotubes and ropes of single-wall carbon nanotubes. The technology gives
CNI a patent on a composition that is single-wall carbon nanotubes with a
nanometer-scale coating of another material that can include polymers and
metals. This technology is part of the intellectual property developed by
Nobel-Prize winning scientist Dr. Richard Smalley and licensed exclusively
to CNI by Rice University in 2001. (PhysOrg 7/13/04)
http://www.physorg.com/news371.html

>>From Small Things, Big Things Will Come. For Germany's Degussa, Nanotronics
center is new way to turn nanotech research into products. Next April,
Degussa will inaugurate its new Nanotronics science-to-business center in
Marl, Germany. That's a short 10 months after the company's executives and
representatives of local and state governments and the academic community
laid the center's foundation stone in a gala ceremony at the end of June.
Over the next five years, Degussa will invest some $60 million in the
center,...(C&E 7/12/04) http://pubs.acs.org/cen/nanofocus/

Nanoparticles stiff from constant strain. Take something no wider than a
human hair and shrink it a thousand fold to a few nanometers across, and its
electronic and other properties change radically. But whether the crystal
structure of these nanoparticles remains basically the same is a matter
scientists continue to debate. Now, a new report by scientists at the
University of California, Berkeley, and Lawrence Berkeley National
Laboratory (LBNL) shows that's far from the case. Zinc sulfide nanoparticles
a mere 10 atoms across have a disordered crystal structure that puts them
under constant strain, increasing the stiffness of the particles and
probably affecting other properties, such as strength and elasticity,
according to the team's report. (UCBerkeley 7/6/04)
http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2004/07/06_strain.shtml

High-Yield Path to Dendrimers. A copper(I)-catalyzed fusion reaction of
azides and alkynes to form 1,2,3-triazoles has been applied to dendrimer
synthesis for the first time and has been found to give dendrimer yields
higher than those achieved with any other reactions. Dendrimers are large,
globular molecules comprising several branches--or dendrons--emanating from
a central core. A range of functional groups can be put on dendrimer
surfaces to endow them with specific chemical and physical properties. (C&E
7/12/04) http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news/8228/8228notw1.html

The Innovation Specialists. Thought the tech revolution came to an end when
the dotcom bubble burst? Think again. From nanotech (in your washing
machine!) to stem-cell research to Internet businesses, innovations are
coming fast and furious. Meet 10 leaders who are helping to shape the future
of communications, entertainment, medicine - and Laundromats. (Time 7/11/04)
http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/article/0,13005,901040719-662741,00.html

Building a better car - one atom at a time. Tiny assembly lines cut costs,
boost safety. Researchers are finding ways to make vehicles safer, lighter,
more powerful - and ultimately less expensive - by building materials one
atom at a time... Factories will run more efficiently with the help of
microscopic assembly machines. Injuries caused by accidents will be reduced.
And eventually the price of your dream car might finally be a little closer
to your budget. General Motors Corp. is already using nanocomposites to
build lighter but stronger running boards for several van models, as well as
cargo beds for the Hummer H2 and exterior panels for the Chevrolet Malibu
sedan. (Enquirer Cincinnati 7/11/04)
http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2004/07/11/biz_nanocars11.html

Wall Street falls for nanotech. The chief executive of Nano-Tex LLC warned
about the mounting hype around his company and other nanotechnology startups
at a recent investor conference. But the first question from the audience
showed how his message had been digested. "When is your IPO?"
Nanotechnology, or science at the atomic level, has become the latest fad on
Wall Street as the stock market shakes off its dot-com funk. Bankers and
venture capitalists are pushing for initial public offerings of nanotech
startups. Everyone, from day traders to fund managers, seems eager to get in
early on what they hope will be the next big thing.
(Globandmail 7/13/04)
http://www.globetechnology.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20040713.gtnano0713/BNStory/Technology/

Trade Group Calls for More Nano. Despite the best efforts of the Bush
administration, the U.S. semiconductor industry will still need a $1.5
billion shot in the arm to succeed in nanotechnology. The Semiconductor
Industry Association (SIA) today called for the creation of a
Nanoelectronics Research Institute (NRI) to direct and coordinate a massive
research effort and assure continued U.S. leadership. "The price for not
starting now on a massive, coordinated research and development effort in
nanoelectronics could be nothing less than a loss in just two decades of
U.S. economic and defense leadership," said John E. Kelly, III, senior vice
president and group executive of the IBM Technology Group, in a statement.
(Earthweb 6/10/04) http://news.earthweb.com/ent-news/article.php/3366581

(Interview) Tim Harper on NanoWater. Questions by Rocky Rawstern, Editor
Nanotechnology Now. Please talk about NanoWater, the reasons behind it, and
the goals and timeframe. Why water, as opposed to food or shelter, or other
basic needs? NanoWater is a very simple idea that grew out of a meeting with
Former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres at the World NanoEconomic
Congress in Washington DC last year. He made the only speech I have ever
seen that got a standing ovation at a nanotech conference, with the simple
message that perhaps technology could do something positive. We followed
this up with a visit to Israel just before Christmas last year to understand
at first-hand the problems facing countries with scarce water resources.
(nanotechnow 7/12/04)
http://nanotech-now.com/Tim-Harper-NanoWater-July04.htm

Laser Tweezer Traps Nanotubes. Researchers from Arryx, Inc. and New York
University have demonstrated that it is possible to trap and move carbon
nanotubes with optical tweezers. This is tricky because nanotubes' diameters
are orders of magnitude smaller than the wavelength of light used to move
them. The researchers used a wavelength of light that was strongly absorbed
by the carbon nanotubes. By strongly focusing the light, the researchers
were able to trap the nanotubes.
(MIT Technology Review 7/13/04)
http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/rnb_071304.asp

Is Small Different? Not Necessarily Say Georgia Tech Researchers.
Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology and NASA suggest that
materials on the nanoscale may sometimes be subject to the same physical
rules as their macro-world counterparts. The findings provide an exception
to the conventional scientific notion that objects small enough to be
measured in nanometers (one-billionth of a meter) behave according to
different rules than larger objects. A team led by Lawrence Bottomley in
Georgia Tech's School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Jonathon Colton in
the School of Mechanical Engineering found that the mechanical response of a
multi-walled carbon nanospring was remarkably similar to the rules that
govern the mechanical properties of springs on the macro scale. The results
are published in the American Chemical Society journal Nano Letters, Volume
4, Number 6.
(Ascribe 7/12/04)
http://www.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/spew4th.pl?ascribeid=20040712.091847&time=09%2028%20PDT&year=2004&public=1

(2pages) The Methuselah Report. Living to be 120 might be attainable, but is
it desirable? "I believe extraordinary longevity is absolutely inevitable,"
says Donald Louria, a professor at the New Jersey Medical School. "It's not
a matter of if we'll have extraordinary longevity, but when." -Genetics and
nanorobots discussed- (AARP July/August04)
http://www.aarp.org/bulletin/yourhealth/Articles/a2004-07-07-methuselah.html

Gina "Nanogirl" Miller
Nanotechnology Industries
http://www.nanoindustries.com
Personal: http://www.nanogirl.com
Foresight Senior Associate http://www.foresight.org
Nanotechnology Advisor Extropy Institute http://www.extropy.org
Tech-Aid Advisor http://www.tech-aid.info/t/all-about.html
Email: nanogirl@halcyon.com
"Nanotechnology: Solutions for the future."