Technology News: Nanotech

Extreme HD: IBM Makes MRI Tech 100 Million Times Sharper
January 13, 2009

Scientists at IBM Research, along with researchers the Center for Probing the Nanoscale at Stanford University, say they have developed and demonstrated magnetic resonance imaging technology with volume resolution 100 million times finer than conventional MRI. Results of the demonstration were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

IBM, Academics Seek to Create a Computer That's More Like Us
November 20, 2008

IBM and five universities are receiving funding from a government agency to build a supercomputer -- but not just any supercomputer. They've been tasked with building hardware and software that mimics the human brain. "There are no computers today that can even remotely approach the robust and versatile functionality of the brain," said Dharmendra Modha of IBM Research.

Intel Talks Up Our Wire-Free, Robot-Ruled Future
August 22, 2008

Intel outlined an ambitious vision of future technologies Thursday at this year's Intel Developer Forum held in San Francisco. In his keynote address Justin Rattner, Intel's chief technology officer, spoke about and demonstrated several technologies he said would be part of an evolution that closes the gap between humans and machines by 2050.

Researchers Sound Nanotube Cancer Alarm
May 21, 2008

Nanotechnology may be considered one of the most promising new technologies emerging today, but it's also the source of considerable concern about potential risks to the environment and human health. A new study published Tuesday in Nature Nanotechnology, adds further evidence that there's good reason for that concern.

The Perils of Nanotech, Part 2: Reining In Runaway Research
March 11, 2008

Advances in nanotechnology have given flight to some seemingly fanciful, and also alarming, projections and fictional scenarios. Yet the applications of nanotech are so diverse and far-reaching that scientists agree that the widespread ability to manipulate matter on the nano scale -- one-billionth of a meter -- opens up possibilities to completely transform every sector of the world's economic systems.

The Perils of Nanotech, Part 1: Dancing in the Dark
March 04, 2008

There's probably no field of applied scientific research with applications as diverse and implications as profound as nanotechnology. Advances are coming fast and the research environment is heady as billions of dollars each year go into nanotech research and development.

Nokia Tinkers With Morphing Phone Concept
February 25, 2008

Imagine what you'd get if you crossed Gumby with a smartphone, and you've got some idea of what a new, nanotech handset from Nokia could be like. The new Morph, which was jointly developed by the Nokia Research Center and the University of Cambridge in England, is a flexible and stretchable device that can be folded into pocket size and used as a handset, or unfolded and opened up to display more detailed information.

The New Battery Tech That Could Let You Talk for Days
January 18, 2008

A new technology using silicon nanowires boosts the ability of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries to store a charge by as much as a factor of 10, according to research conducted at Stanford University. The findings are published in the December 2007 issue of Nature Nanotechnology.

Scientists Fear Nanotech Threat to Environment, Health
November 26, 2007

The potential health and environmental consequences of nanotechnology are a source of greater concern to scientists than to the public at large, according to a new study. The research included a national telephone survey of American households along with a sampling of 363 leading U.S. nanotechnology scientists and engineers.

A Conversation About Cryonics
October 12, 2007

Last weekend, 150 people attended the Alcor life extension conference in Scottsdale, Ariz. The main subject was cryonics, the use of technology to cool and preserve the human body with the aim of future revival. The technology, still speculative, raises many present-world issues. In 2003, a daughter of Ted Williams attempted to stop the cryonic suspension of the Hall of Fame baseball player.

Physicists Score Nobel Win for Nanotech Breakthrough
October 09, 2007

The 2007 Nobel Prize in physics has been awarded to two scientists who discovered the technology that has made today's tiny hard disk drives possible. Albert Fert of France and Peter Grünberg of Germany are the joint winners of the award for their independent discoveries of Giant Magnetoresistance, an effect in which very weak magnetic changes give rise to major differences in electrical resistance.

Nanotubes Power Paper-Thin Battery
August 14, 2007

Clunky old batteries may soon be a thing of the past thanks to a new energy-storage device that looks and feels like a scrap of paper. Developed by a team of researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the nanoengineered battery is 90 percent cellulose, made up of the same plant cells used in nearly every type of paper.

Bush Signs Multibillion-Dollar Science Bill - Too Little, Too Late?
August 10, 2007

President Bush signed into law Thursday the America Competes Act, designed to boost research and education in math and the sciences through a funding package of about $42 billion. The bill aims to bolster basic research in the physical sciences, to improve instruction in math at the elementary and middle-school levels, and to expand access to advanced programs for low-income students.

IBM's New Nano Chip Process Takes Cue From Nature
May 03, 2007

IBM has developed a method of assembling microchips using nanotechnology, the company stated Thursday, a potentially revolutionary process for insulating tiny wires by allowing them to assemble themselves around air gaps. This advance could make next-generation chips dramatically faster and more energy efficient, IBM said.

D-Wave Claims Quantum Computer Breakthrough
February 16, 2007

In a move that could signal a massive leap forward in unlocking some of the most complex mysteries of our world, D-Wave Systems has demonstrated what it called the world's first commercially viable quantum computer. The theories behind quantum computing have been around for decades, and the first real-world delivery of quantum computing was expected to take decades more.

HP Researchers Give Chips a Nano Spin
January 16, 2007

Hewlett-Packard researchers announced Tuesday that they have developed technology that could significantly boost the performance capabilities of an array of computer chips, while cutting back on power consumption at the same time. If the research proves sound and makes it to market, its impact could be felt across a broad spectrum of technologies.