Thinking Small
by Harley Berger, Vice-President
Nanotechnology is the science of the ultra-small. A nanometer is
one-billionth of a meter, so small it takes one million to equal the
diameter of a pinhead. Nanotechnology is the creation and use of objects
less than 100 nanometers in scale and along with related microsystem
technology, is expected to have a greater impact on our lives in the next
10 years than the Internet has had in the last 10 years. As we become able
to manipulate ever smaller components, the potential for new and improved
products and technologies will have no boundaries. Consider a computer the
size of a cell phone, a cell phone the size of a hearing aid, and a
hearing aid the size of a pinhead. Advances in biotechnology will result
in manmade molecules that deliver drugs directly and only to sick cells
and molecular sugary to remove defective genes. It all sounds like science
fiction, but the basic technology to make these and innumerable other
advances possible is being developed now.
Come and learn more about this fascinating field of research and its
implications for the future of technology. Join us on Saturday, September
17, when our guest will be John Bedz, director of The
Michigan Small Tech Association, the state's economic development
initiative for microelectromechanical systems, micro and nanotechnology. |
