Monday, February 12, 2007

Picture of the day


NanoFoam


Ursula Freer, NanoFoam, NanoArt 2006


From NanoArt 2006. © Copyright Ursula Freer (click to see larger version)

NANOART is a new art discipline related to micro/nanosculptures created by artists/scientists through chemical/physical processes and/or natural micro/nanostructures that are visualized with powerful research tools like Scanning Electron Microscope and Atomic Force Microscope.

NanoArt could be for the 21st Century what Photography was for the 20th Century. We live in a technological society, in a new Renaissance period, and there is no reason for Arts to stay away from Technology. NanoArt is the expression of the New Technological Revolution and reflects the transition from Science to Art using Technology.


See all of Ursula Freer's NanoArt 2006 entries here, or visit her website.

Please contact me if you would like to submit an image. (rocky at bir-consulting.com)

Quote of the day

"Nanotechnology has tremendous potential to improve the quality of life for our citizens, create high paying jobs, and increase U.S. global competitiveness. Unfortunately, the government has not made the economic development aspect of nanotechnology much of a priority. We're going to try to do that."

~Gordon Smith (R-OR)



If there is one overarching grand challenge that nanoscience presents to us, it is the possibility to do an immense amount of good for humanity. From an economic perspective, the emerging NanoEconomy promises to create more jobs, fuel more innovative products, perhaps heal and cure more patients extending life and health.

~James Canton, Ph.D. CEO, Institute for Global Futures



"Investing in innovation is the key to a vibrant US manufacturing base and the continued generation of new jobs. Nanotechnology has the potential to create entirely new industries and radically transform the basis of competition in other fields."

~Mike Honda (D-CA)

Behind the Buzzword

I’m working on a major upgrade to my business site (bir-consulting.com) so today I would like to point readers to an excellent article by my friend and colleague Pamela Bailey, President tinytechjobs.

What working in nanotechnology really means

There's no doubt that a career in nanotechnology would be both interesting and challenging. But what, exactly, is nanotechnology--and what would a career in nanotechnology actually be like?

Essentially the ability to control the atomic and molecular building blocks of material, nanotechnology will be applied to change or create chemical, electronic, magnetic, optical, and structural properties in materials or nanostructures. These materials will then be assembled and/or utilized for new processes and devices. Nanotechnology is an enabling technology that will be used in many applications across many industries, including computing, communication, transportation, energy, materials, manufacturing, cosmetics, healthcare, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, the environment.

You can therefore work in nanotechnology in a range of settings. If you are not doing basic discovery work in one of the many university-based or government-funded research programs, you could be working in a biotechnology company on a nanoparticle-based molecular system for detecting biological warfare agents or fabricating a miniature terahertz laser for medical diagnostics. The adoption of nanotechnology-based applications by large pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, as well as diagnostic companies, means that you could have the opportunity to work on a new therapeutic drug or a novel drug delivery process.


To read the entire article, visit http://www.nanotech-now.com/products/nanonewsnow/issues/014/014.htm#Pamela-Bailey