Nanomachines Thread

This is a subject that has been bothering me for a while now. We seem to be getting closer to creating these tiny little machines the size of atoms. These machines can do set tasks such as rebuild tissues, clean underware (yes they have already made this!) and break down structures.

Now while this all may seem like a really neat idea, has anyone ever conisdered what these machines could be used for. I'm not talking about maybe making you live forever. I'm talking about what possible dangers these things could cause if they fell into the wrong hands.

If these machines could be used to re-arrange atoms what would happen if it could be programmed to turn carbon into another substance (we are made of carbon), what if they were programmed to remove all the oxygen in the air, turn it into something like carbon-dioxide.

These things could be deadly in the wrong hands. So should we really be creating something that could lead to our eventual destruction?

That sounds like a bad sci-fi plot...

Yeah, like in that one stargate episode where a nano-virus infects the colonel because he has sex with this lady on another planet.

Technically we have already created (or refined) things that could lead to our eventual destruction. Nuclear technology, biological technology, antimatter, things of that nature.

Anyways, back on topic. If you are talking about a lone scientist that decides to go on a rampage, I don't think that would happen. It would be an efficient way to get back at the world, but it would require enormous amounts of money to create a machine that could build nanomachines (nanites), create a perfectly clean environment, hire staff to run the machine, and a building to put the damn thing in.

If you are talking about a government using nanites as a weapon, that will happen. No question. Using them to turn oxygen into carbon-dioxide is a good idea, military wise, although I do see a part where nanites are used to counteract the "bad" nanites. Besides, the relativly short lifespan of a nanite kinda diminishes its effect.

I think that the good that will be done by nanites outways the bad. Nanites could convert things like dirt into food or even repair the ozone layer. We could literally wipe out world hunger.

If its any consolation, we're probably going to be long dead before anything like a mass use of nanites to convert oxygen into carbon-dioxide happens .

My 2 cents.

Edited by: Hastings

1- They are bigger than atoms.

2- Read the book "Prey" by Micheal Crichton.

3- Did you know that the non-wrinkle shirts are products of nano-technology? xD xD xD (eh, these smileys look retarded)

Edited by: Cj_the_Dj

Prey was awsome until they started deciding that drinking... eh...

SPOILER

"Raw sewage" somehow cleansed your body when the damned things started taking over.

However the problem with Prey was not the nano-machines themselves but the artificial intelligence they gave them that was based off of bee behavior. More on topic, one of the most evident uses of nanotech would be to target and eliminate individual cancerous cells in a human effectively.

Ok, well Hastings, you have raised a very good point (several in fact). I guess yes it would take alot of time, money and effort to do something like that. But when you think about it, some people (terrorists?) would stop at nothing for religious beliefs.

As to where I got the whole idea for the desruction of the Earth, I read several books (Venus, Jupiter, The Precipace) by Ben Bova. I sat there for a while and thought, "shit, that could really happen."

But yes, I can see why nanomachines could help human life as well. Just as I can see good things for stem cells and cloning (but that my friends, is anotehr topic.)

Knives could also potentially be fatal in the wrong hands, however, I still plan to keep a set in the kitchen and use them for all of my culinary desires. Merely there has to be a hope that we have enough vigilant scientists as there are rogue to counter them, though our numbers are probably many times greater. As well, magnitude of such genocidal means tend to draw attention from various parties, sadly though using bullets has us with our hands tied, so I would worry less about the fact that a rogue scientist could potentially cause muscular deconstruction or viral transfer through microscopic machines, which can be identified, removed, and thus remedied with our own, and more about political machinations being led via armies for resource gains.

Especially considering that most means lacking any viral agent, which should potentially be remedied with nanomachines on the same hand, are considered to require such amounts of nanomachines to carry out such tasks that it would be difficult at best to suffer enough to cause massive distress via airborn. If say water supplies were used it could be, provided these did not become digested, since most nanomachines are made of less than durable materials. So just don't get injected via anyone you don't trust, if the government replaces every flu shot with this, you're already screwed...

FrozenSoul80 wrote: tiny little machines the size of atoms

If these machines could be used to re-arrange atoms what would happen if it could be programmed to turn carbon into another substance (we are made of carbon), what if they were programmed to remove all the oxygen in the air, turn it into something like carbon-dioxide.

Every thing you said there is imposible with out a reaction such a combustion!

Also it can't be made a a single atom thats imposible!

But yeah we have nanomachines actually working,
this is true scientist have / developing and tiny remote control nanobot that is used to get rid of blood clots!

Edited by (in order): Antmanic, Antmanic

If these machines could be used to re-arrange atoms.

Well, they can't, so you can rest safely now

Antmanic wrote:

FrozenSoul80 wrote: tiny little machines the size of atoms

If these machines could be used to re-arrange atoms what would happen if it could be programmed to turn carbon into another substance (we are made of carbon), what if they were programmed to remove all the oxygen in the air, turn it into something like carbon-dioxide.

Every thing you said there is imposible with out a reaction such a combustion!

Also it can't be made a a single atom thats imposible!

Seeing as an Atom is not the smallest known particle it's very possible. We're just not at that stage yet.

Though you are indeed right about a reaction in order to successfully change the atomic makeup of something. But if a nanomachine was designed to seek out and for instance eliminate O2 particles it very well could and easily. Though changing the 02 into something else would require a reaction.

lol
ok if you want to get an atom into quarks you will have to split an atom but bang there would be a nuclear explostion as a result !

Also if you could get quarks then how do you put them together with something that is a size of an atom at least!

And how will it be powered, say good bye to electricity because that works by electrons moving round the circit and all they would do is orbit bot if it where a size of an atom :p!

But there is still a threat because yes they are possible and have already been made but much much bigger than an atom and small enoughth to get into the blood stream but only for medical reason for now!

Edited by (in order): Antmanic, Antmanic

Yes, it doesn't have to be smaller than an atom in order to eliminate one.

Are we living in the dark ages? Nano technology do pretty common to day. Heck owe own body is a Nano lab. A good example on bad nano bots are Prions and Viroids. So using nano technology for evil purpose is of course possible. However the gray goo doom day scenario i not that likely. This is because the sher amount chemicals that a nanobot have to contend with. Is like making a bacteria that could eat the hole world. Their will always be something that stop it.

The idéa about making machines smaller then atoms out of quarks are just humbug. The reason is simple. Quarks can never exist in free form. They must always exists in bonds with other quarks. You can have them 2 quarks 3 quarks even 4 and 5 but never 1 free quark. Even then only one form of nucleon is stable and that is the Proton (And is Anti Proton.) If you are going to build a machine is it not best to use something that is stable at lest for more then 1 sec.

But it may be possible to build subatomical machinery using complex Quantum technology but it would probably require a unification of Quantum theory and theory of Relativity.

Anyone interested in Nano robots shod studie Prions, Viruses, Viroids, catalyst and Simple bacteria to get a basic understanding of atomic size machinery.

Edited by: Yokto