Small is Big. Very Big.

Editor's Note

October / November 07 By: Bob Cochnar Volume 5 Number 5

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It is difficult (at least for me) to get my arms around the concept of smallness in the nanoworld, which is invisible to the naked eye. You've got to be thinking about atoms and molecules and that will put you at the nanoscale. A nanometer, by definition, is one billionth of a meter.

To put that in some reasonable perspective, a sheet of paper is about 100,000 nanometers thick. If you're a blond, a strand of your hair is probably 15,000 to 50,000 nanometers in diameter, and if you're a brunet, your hair is a bit thicker (not that it matters much). Got the picture?

The manipulation of atoms and molecules has been going on for some time but not until recently has it wandered into the spotlight. Size, it turns out, really matters since at the nanoscale, "everything, regardless of what it is, has new properties," says Chad Mirkin, director of the Institute for Nanotechnology at Northwestern University. And that, he adds, "is where a lot of the scientific interest is."

In this issue of Innovation, devoted largely to nanotechnology, you'll discover that in a number of the national energy laboratories, nanotechnology is playing an increasingly more important role.

And a number of nanoproducts are already in the marketplace, with many more to follow. Examples are plentiful. Anti-bacterial wound dressings use nanoscale silver. A nanoscale dry powder can neutralize gas and liquid toxins in chemical spills. Batteries for tools are being manufactured with nanoscale materials to deliver more power, more quickly and with less heat. Cosmetics and food producers are "nano-sizing" some ingredients, claiming that improves effectiveness. Sunscreens containing nanoscale titanium dioxide or zinc oxide are transparent and reflect ultraviolet light to prevent sunburns.

Researchers are now working toward nanomanufacturing and a "bottom-up" approach to making things. The notion is that if you can put certain molecules together, they well self-assemble into ordered structures. This approach could reduce the waste of current "top-down" manufacturing processes that start with large pieces of materials and end with the disposal of excess material.

Best to add nano to your list of disruptive technologies and stand back: you ain't seen nuthin' yet.

Entrepreneurs and venture capitalists are now swinging aboard this fast-moving train. I urge you to read our fascinating cover story (starting, appropriately, on the cover, by Josh Wolfe, who edits the authoritative Forbes/Wolfe Nanotech Report). He quotes Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com's founder, who knows something about disruptive technologies:

"If I were just setting out today to make that drive to the West Coast to start a new business, I would be looking at biotechnology and nanotechnology."

And Jeff Immelt, GE's chief, says that "nanotechnology is absolutely critical to where we go in the future."

Now that I have your attention—at least I hope I have it—you may want to check out an upcoming conference, "Markets & Molecules: Inventing the Future. Investing in Nanotech," December 10-11 in Albuquerque. Organized by Forbes (Technology Ventures Corporation, Innovation's publisher, is one of the sponsors), the forum presents, among other things, ideas on what it takes to invent and invest in the future. For details, go to www.forbesconferences.com/nanotech.

Meanwhile, you should know that Fatos Nano is prime minister of Albania and Nano Mahmoud is an Egyptian soccer player.