March - Vol 70, No 6 - International Technology and Engineering ...

light shining through a specimen, but rather by focusing a
beam of electrons through a specimen. Hiller would later
accept a job at the Radio Corporation of America where
he worked with a team to develop the first commercial
electron microscope. The invention of the electron
microscope enabled scientists to see molecular structures
and manipulate atoms that would eventually lead to the field
of nanotechnology (MIT, 2003).
The concept of nanotechnology was first introduced in
1959 by Richard Feynman at a meeting of the American
Physical Society. His speech, entitled There is Plenty of
Room at the Bottom, postulated that there was merit to
the idea of building from the “bottom up” through the use
of atoms as the building blocks (Klusek, 2007; Lindquist,
Mosher-Howe, & Liu, 2010). Thirty years later, Drexler
further developed Feynman’s concepts of nanotechnology
by defining the way small and large structures could be built
atom by atom or molecule by molecule using nanorobots
(nanobots) as assemblers and replicators. In 2000,
nanotechnology entered into U.S. public policy through
the National Nanotechnology Initiative (Klusek, 2007;
Lindquist, Mosher-Howe, & Liu, 2010), demonstrating
it was a research priority for the United States. In 2005,
there was a request for roughly $1 billion dollars for federal
research across a wide range of federal agencies (Porod,
2004). Today nanotechnology is an emerging technology
globally in which the United States currently demonstrates
a healthy investment. According to Ernst (2009, p. 1), “the
National Academies (2006) indicated that 33 percent of
all nanotechnology patents awarded from 1990 to 2004
were granted to researchers in the United States.” In a
distant second, “Japan held 19 percent of the worldwide
patents during the same period of time” (Ernst, 2009, p. 1).
Ernst explains that nanotechnology is “the fastest growing
industry in history” (Ernst, 2009, p. 2) and cites Wilson,
Kannagara, Smith, Simmons, and Raguse (2002) to predict
it will have a “significant impact on war, crime, terrorism,
law enforcement, and commercial goods” (Ernst, 2009, p. 2).
Resources in Technology and Engineering will review
several major applications of nanotechnology as well as
describe possible future applications of nanotechnology.
The range of fields to which nanotechnology may be
applied today includes “electronics, communications,
automotive, aerospace, materials, chemicals,
pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, energy technology, space
exploration, the environment, national security, health
care, and other life sciences” (Porod, 2004, p. 2). Holley
(2009, p. 11) reinforces this by reminding us of Uldrich
and Newberry’s 2003 prediction that, “it is difficult to
think of an industry that isn’t going to be disrupted by
nanotechnology.” With emphasis on environmental issues,
health care, and business/industry accomplishments, this
article will provide insight into some of the potential of the
field of nanotechnology.
What is Nanotechnology?
Definitions for nanotechnology are as numerous as its
functions. Some of the confusion lies in the fact that there
are “naturally occurring nanosize materials residual in
individual processes” (Holley, 2009, p. 11). The National
Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) advocates a strict
definition of nanotechnology by “including only activities
at the atomic, molecular, and supermolecular levels, in the
length scale of approximately 1 – 100 nm range that create
materials, devices, and systems with fundamentally new
properties and function because of their small structure”
(Holley, 2009, p. 11). Nanotechnology, as defined by the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (as cited
in Mnyusiwalla, Daar, & Singer, 2003), is managing matter
on the nanometer scale to form purposeful materials,
devices, and systems (Ernst, 2009). In essence, it is a branch
of science and engineering that deals with creating objects
smaller than 100nm in size (Bottero, Rose, & Wiesner,
2006). Just how big is a nanometer? Wolfgang Porod,
Director of the Center for Nano Sciences and Technology
explains, “Nano is a prefix derived from the Greek word for
dwarf, and it means one-billionth of something” (2004, p. 1).
Therefore, to refer to a nanosecond is to mean one billionth
of a second, and a nanometer is one billionth of a meter
(Porod, 2004). Today, we have the technology available to
see with electron microscopes, manipulate, and work with
this length of scale (Porod, 2004).
The National Science Foundation has declared that a major
outcome goal is to maintain a competitive workforce of
scientists, engineers, and technologists who are diverse
and globally engaged in the U.S. workforce (Ernst, 2009).
Because nanotechnology is developing into the science
of the future, this can only be accomplished through
the studies in the applications and developments of
nanotechnology. Therefore, it is imperative for nations to
become aware of the work being accomplished through the
use of nanotechnology and be encouraged to continue the
efforts as students complete their degrees.
Applications of Nanotechnology
The summer of 2010 left Pakistan devastated by flooding.
Roads, bridges, and villages were destroyed, ruining years
of progress made in the building of their infrastructure
(Gillani, 2010). People were displaced from their homes,
with little access to basic necessities, including fresh
11 • Technology and Engineering Teacher • February 2011