Module 5: Emerging Technology

Nanotechnology 

Nanotechnology has been around for 1959 until K. Eric Drexler popularized the word 'nanotechnology' in the 1980’s; he was talking about building machines on the scale of molecules, a few nanometres wide (National Nanotechnology Initiative, 2012). Nanotechnology is the manipulation, understanding and control of matter at the nanoscale, at dimensions between approximately 1 and 100 nanometres. Literally nanotech was about shrinking down matter smaller than our red blood cell which enables us to make motors, robot arms, and even whole computers, far smaller than a cell.

Nanotechnology is helping to considerably to improve, even revolutionize, many technology and industry sectors we used today due to its flexibility. For example information technology, energy, environmental science, medicine, homeland security, food safety, and transportation can be intergraded and improved by nanotech. By understanding matter on microscopic level we are able to make many high-quality products at very low cost, but it will allow making new nanofactories at the same low cost and at the same rapid speed. Video below give a visual understanding of nanotechnology.

Social impact

The difficulty of meeting the world’s energy demand is compounded by the growing need to protect our environment. In the future, nanotechnology can also benefit the energy sector. The development of more effective energy-producing, energy-absorbing, and energy storage products in smaller and more efficient devices is possible with this technology. Such items like batteries, fuel cells, and solar cells can be built smaller but can be made to be more effective with this technology as shown on the video above.

Nanotechnologies are also changing how food reacts to us when we consume it. According to Science Daily (2012) scientists today are exploring nanotech’s potential to encapsulate and deliver nutrients directly into targeted tissues, enhance the flavour and other sensory characteristics of foods, and introduce antibacterial nanostructures into foods, among other applications. The potential benefits are not just in foods themselves but also in the things that “surround” foods, like food packaging, food processing and sensory systems, and basic food and nutrition science research. Nano-engineered materials in the food industry include nanocomposites in food containers to minimize carbon dioxide leakage out of carbonated beverages, or reduce oxygen inflow, moisture outflow, or the growth of bacteria in order to keep food fresher and safer, longer. Nanosensors built into plastic packaging can warn against spoiled food. Nanosensors are being developed to detect salmonella, pesticides, and other contaminates on food before packaging and distribution.

Nanotech fabric. Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/05/sci_nat_nanotechnology_in_our_lives/img/4.jpg

Microorganism like viruses, bacteria, and fungi cause many well-known diseases to human and they are all around us. With the help of nanotechnology we are able to live a better environment without dangerous microbes. Let’s start with our everyday materials we use, the cloth we are wearing. With the help of expanding nanotechnology additives in polymer composite materials we can make fabrics that resist bacterial growth, self sanitising and further modification even provide lightweight ballistic energy deflection in personal body armour. Also, nanoscale materials in cosmetic products provide greater clarity or coverage; cleansing; absorption; personalization; and antioxidant, anti-microbial, and other health properties in sunscreens, cleansers, complexion treatments, creams and lotions, shampoos, and specialized makeup. Besides that laptop keyboard can be coated in nanosilver to prevent the spread of bacteria.

According to National Nanotechnology Initiative (2012) nanotechnology application that holds the promise of providing great benefits for society in the future is in the realm of medicine. Nanotechnology is already being used as the basis for new, more effective drug delivery systems and is in early stage development as scaffolding in nerve regeneration research. Moreover, the National Cancer Institute has created the Alliance for Nanotechnology in Cancer in the hope that investments in this branch of nanomedicine could lead to breakthroughs in terms of detecting, diagnosing, and treating various forms of cancer as showed in the video above.

Nanotechnology medical developments over the coming years will have a wide variety of uses and could potentially save a great number of lives while making it affordable to everyone. Nanotechnology is already moving from being used in passive structures (external contact of medicine) to active structures (internal contact of medicine), through more targeted drug therapies or “smart drugs.” These new drug therapies have already been shown to cause fewer side effects and be more effective than traditional therapies. In the future, nanotechnology will also aid in the formation of molecular systems that may be strikingly similar to living systems. These molecular structures could be the basis for the regeneration or replacement of body parts that are currently lost to infection, accident, or disease.

These predictions for the future have great significance not only in encouraging nanotechnology research and development but also in determining a means of oversight. The number of products process is likely to grow as time moves forward and as new nanotechnology applications are developed.

Reference List

Answer. (2012). What are the advantages of nanotechnologies. Retrieved from Answer: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_are_the_advantage_of_nanotechnology

Johnson, D. (2012). The Future of Nanotechnology in mobile phone. Retrieved from ieee spectrum: http://spectrum.ieee.org/nanoclast/semiconductors/nanotechnology/the-future-of-nanotechnology-in-the-mobile-phone

National Nanotechnology Initiative. (2012). Nanotechnology 101. Retrieved from Nano.GOV: http://www.nano.gov/nanotech-101/what/definition

Science Daily. (2012). Nanotechnology. Retrieved from Science Daily: http://www.sciencedaily.com/articles/n/nanotechnology.htm

Which? (2012). Nanotechnology. Retrieved from Which?: http://www.which.co.uk/campaigns/technology/what-you-need-to-know-about-nanotechnology/where-is-nanotechnology-used/

Youtube. (2010, 6 14). Nanotechnology and food. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_iwH8AsqEDg