Nanotechnology

Module 2: Nanotechnology

Introduction

What is nanotechnology? Nanotechnology is the manufacturing of efficient constitutions at the scale of molecules. According to the Center for Responsible Nanotechnology (2014), “K. Eric Drexler popularized the word 'nanotechnology' in the 1980's, he was talking about building machines on the scale of molecules, a few nanometers wide—motors, robot arms, and even whole computers, far smaller than a cell.” (CRN, 2014) Drexler then exhausted the next 10 years explaining and evaluating these machines, and answering to allegations of scientific works of fiction. Meanwhile, ordinary technology was fostering the aptitude to build guileless constructions on a molecular rule. As nanotechnology developed to be an acknowledged notion, the connotation of the term was altered to include the plainer types of nanometer-scale instruments.

The U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative was created to fund anything smaller than 100 nanometers with novel properties. A considerable amount of the effort being done today that is considered 'nanotechnology', is actually not nanotechnology from the initial start-up. Nanotechnology, initially meant constructing the atoms from the lowermost point and upwards, with atomic meticulousness. According to CRN, (2014) there are four generations of nanotechnology, “The current era, is that of passive nanostructures; materials designed to perform one task, the second phase is where we use active nanostructures for multitasking, and the third generation will feature nanosystems with thousands of interacting components.” (CRN, 2014) The fourth generation will be developing soon and it will be comprised of the first assimilated nanosystems, operating much like a “mammalian cell” with classified systems within structures.

Medicinal Nanotechnology

One area of nanotechnology application that may provide abundant benefits for society in the prospected years to come is in the department of medicine....