- Paperback: 336 pages
- Publisher: Back Bay Books (April 1 1996)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0316738522
- ISBN-13: 978-0316738521
- Product Dimensions: 14 x 2.2 x 20.7 cm
- Shipping Weight: 454 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #2,213,347 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
From Amazon
K. Eric Drexler envisions a world in which poverty and hunger no longer exist, because food can be made out of thin air, and we never grow old, because cells can be regenerated as swiftly as they "age." Nanotechnology, the manipulation of matter at the molecular level, is what he's betting will make it happen. Ed Regis tells the story of Drexler's forays into this new science, showing the scientist's attempts to convince his colleagues that he hasn't descended into pulp fiction. He also fills in a lot of the historical and technical background, from the 19th-century arguments over whether atoms exist to modern experiments that have isolated and manipulated single atoms. Regis's prose is clear and straightforward, but not without a sly sense of humor. Apart from Drexler's own Engines of Creation, this is the book on nanotechnology to read.
From Publishers Weekly
Science writer Regis offers an accessible introduction to the mind-bending world of molecular engineering.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
An exciting introduction to a weak theory,
By Theodore (Ventura, CA United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Nano: The Emerging Science of Nanotechnology (Paperback)
The purpose of this book is to introduce the reader to an argument supported by nanotechnologists. "Nano" is defined as "one billionth" and a nanotechnologist is a person who achieves practical results by means of "a factory at the level of atoms" (p. 7). Regis explains how a factory composed of parts measured in billionths of a meter or nanometers would work."...(M)olecules would be stacked on tiny pallets which would move about on tiny tracks. There would be molecular conveyor belts and rollers, vacuum pumps and ball bearings" (p. 7). Invented by K. Eric Drexler and developed by Stanford researchers the infant technology will achieve universal peace. The nanotech argument is a conditional: if a thing is merely an arrangement of atoms, then manipulating an arrangement of atoms is the means of creating new things. Drexler states the argument succinctly: "If you have this very general ability to manipulate atoms in complex patterns...well, then you can make essentially anything that's physically possible" (p. 48). Given that the argument may be valid, it is no wonder that nanotechs are dreaming of manufacturing "so many material goods so cheaply that people would have every physical thing they wanted" (p. 6). Because the premise in unjustified the nanotech dreams are only dreams. While we may correctly state that every material thing is an arrangement of atoms, we must drop the term "merely" from the conditional's antecedent. Rearranging the atoms of a mineral will not cause it to become self-moving just as rearranging the pens on my desk does not make them pencils. These common observations contradict Regis' premise that "the properties of a given object...were a function of the arrangement of its atoms and molecules" (p. 5). The nanotech argument presented by Regis is very attractive but unfortunately has no force. The hope for universal peace cannot be realized by "a fleet of tiny, invisible robots" which would "do all the world's work", eradicate "disease and aging" and "turn dirt into steak"(pp. 4, 6) Despite the logical shortcomings in their argument, nanotechs have two qualities that are, in my view, necessary for bringing about world peace: enthusiasm and creativity.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
3.5 out of 5 stars (22 customer reviews) 7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
My perceptions of Nano! by Ed Regis,
By mpalmer@tne.net.au - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Nano: The Emerging Science of Nanotechnology (Paperback)
I found Nano an interesting read. As a book, it lacked a lot of the technical guts, and more importantly, a broad overview of the potential social issues involved. But although I found this a little dissapointing, I stand in defence of the author for the simple reason that the average person usually doesn't have the skill to read deep technical texts (a skill which is developed by a long interest and/or study in the area). As a primer to the extremely important concepts and issues concerning nanotechnology, I give it a thumbs up. He generally sticks to the realities of the technology, avoiding the inevitable sci-fi fan rubbish which can congeal around such concepts (look a space travel, after all). I can understand not going into the more social and political issues of such an emerging technology as it can scare people, but I still think he should have elaborated more in this area. People have enough trouble dealing with the technology of today, having them (even more) unprepared for future technologies can be extremely dangerous. The best read on Molecular Nanotechnology for the average reader would still remain 'Engines of Creation', by Dr. K Eric Drexler. The book is still value for money, regardless. I give it four stars.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good overview of the history of nanotechnology,
By Mark Hatala "Senior Book Review" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Nano: The Emerging Science of Nanotechnology (Paperback)
I enjoyed this book a great deal. Regis is a good writer and the subject matter is compelling. It doesn't get 5 stars for two reasons: the lack of counterpoint about the development of nanotechnology (IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN DAMMIT! WE CAN'T STOP IT): please. Also, the author shows almost no creativity on the effects of nanotechnology on future society. The deepest thoughts are about free steak and getting to sit around without working 9-5 jobs?This book is a very good history primer. If you're REALLY into nanotechnology though, read Drexler's works. 7 of 9 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's important to familiarize yourself with this...,
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Nano: The Emerging Science of Nanotechnology: Remaking the World-Molecule by Molecule (Hardcover)
This book provided me with my first FACTUAL survey of this science-fiction-ish area of scientific research. Nanotechnology, as the blurb up above says, is the emerging science of creating self-replicating robots the size of molecules. These tiny robots, if developed, should be able to have an almost unimaginable impact on human civilization. For example, they could be swallowed in the form of a tablet, which might release millions of tiny robots into the body with the aim of attacking cancer cells. They could be set to work transforming, for example, grass clippings into rice by monkeying around with the composition of grass at the atomic level. People are seriously researching scary stuff like this. There is a lot of science fiction out there about this kind of thing, especially dealing with the infamous (and not impossible) "gray goo" scenario, in which nanorobots run amok and accidentally rip the whole planet into undifferentiated submolecular slime. Ed Regis is careful here to present the actual state of the field, and also to give some interesting insights into the curiously cultlike following that has grown up around Eric Drexler. I recommend this book as a dispassionate assessment of what really COULD be one of the biggest technological revolutions since... oh, I don't know... the wheel comes to mind. Or fire. Or the printed word. My only problem with this book is that it's slightly behind the times nowadays. Nanotechnology is even less science fiction today, in 2001, than it was when this book came out. People should understand, while reading this, that IBM, Hewlett Packard, and other corporate behemoths are spending tens of millions of dollars RIGHT NOW to develop nanotechnology. Some of America's top business schools have Nanotechnology Clubs to monitor potentially lucrative developments in this field -- I'm thinking specifically of Wharton, which I know for a fact has such a club, and I've been told that Stanford and Harvard do as well. I don't think it's possible to be too highly aware of this field of study. I recommend buying this book, and talking about it with family and friends. Pass it around, encourage your friends to pick up a copy for themselves. If you are in school, or have children in school, ask your science teacher to try to do a unit on it. Heck, why not form a club. Try anything, it doesn't matter what you do specifically, just try to become informed. Also -- it is easy to find newsgroups and listservs online about nanotechnology. Just go to any search engine and type in "nanotechnology" and "listserv," and you'll find a source of valuable information for yourself. This book is very worth owning. Two thumbs up. |
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