Week 8: Nanotech + Art

    The word "nanotech" , much like the words "nuclear", "positron", and "quantum", has long been the favorite of the writer wishing to apply a scientific veneer to their completely nonsensical plot devices. As a result, when we hear the word "nano," we think of world-consuming swarms of tiny, uncontrollably replicating machines, or more benign swarms capable of repairing and building anything in the universe. Either way, nanotechnology feels like something from far in the future, and so it's surprising when we learn that nanotechnology is already shaping our lives and the products around us, albeit in less immediately potentially catastrophic ways-- antibacterial particles in sports wear, quantum dots that produce colors, self-cleaning materials...

                                            A typical media portrayal of nanotechnology Taken from Youtube

    Not to say that current nanotechnology isn't a cause for concern. As we learned from Dr. Gimzewski's lecture, nanotech is beginning to be incorporated into foods, currently in the form of nanoparticles that improve preservation, aesthetics, nutrition, and taste, but eventually perhaps in the form of customizable food that can adapt to the consumers' palate and needs. Exciting as these applications are, it's hard not to remember the grand developments in food technology achieved using plain old chemistry-- and how many of them turned out to be quite deleterious to human health. Nanoparticles may very well be able to react with our bodies in unpredictable and dangerous ways, not to mention the potential environmental consequences of inundating our water with insoluble and unnatural nanoparticles. As with any new technology, the appropriate balance between the enthusiasm to exploit this exciting new field for all its potential benefits and the caution required to protect people's lives and health from unknown risks will probably be a contentious issue in years to come.

Artist's depiction of a space elevator, which nanotechnology may make possible Taken from NBC

    Despite the potential risks, the potential of nanotechnology-- in medicine, with nanoshells and nanodevices that enter and manipulate the smallest parts of our bodies, in space travel with the possibility of nanotube-made space elevators, and in so much more-- necessitates that we at least try to walk that balance. Unfortunately, due to the widespread use of "nano" and "quantum" as magic words capable of justifying any sort of madness, most people have a rather warped perception of nanotechnology. Hopefully, through art projects like Nanoscape or Nanomandala, which try to help people understand the nano world by letting them touch and feel these unbelievably tiny things, we can all be sufficiently informed to have a substantive discussion on the promise and perils of nanotechnology.

The Nanomandala Taken From UCLA

 Works Cited:

Berger, Michael. “Carbon Nanotubes – What They Are, How They Are Made, What They Are Used For.” Nanowerk, 13 Apr. 2014, www.nanowerk.com/nanotechnology/introduction/introduction_to_nanotechnology_22.php.

Gimzewski, Jim, and Victoria Vesna. “The Nanoneme Syndrome: Blurring of Fact and Fiction in the Construction of a New Science.” Technoetic Arts, vol. 1, no. 1, 2003, pp. 7–24., doi:10.1386/tear.1.1.7/0.

“John Curtin Gallery.” Art.Base, 11 Mar. 2010, art.base.co/event/2104-art-in-the-age-of-nanotechnology#4.

Ortiz, Christina. “Wait, There's Nanotech in My Food?” Popular Mechanics, Popular Mechanics, 14 Nov. 2017, www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a12790/wait-theres-nanotechnology-in-my-food-16510737/.

Paddock, Catharine. “Nanotechnology In Medicine: Huge Potential, But What Are The Risks?” Medical News Today, MediLexicon International, 4 May 2012, www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/244972#What-of-the-Future-and-Concerns-Surrounding-Nanomaterials? 

Image/Video Credits:

“Nanomachines, Son!” YouTube, YouTube, 3 Mar. 2013, www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhMsboqMMzs.

“Nanomandala.” NANO, UCLA, nano.arts.ucla.edu/mandala/mandala.php.

Snowden, Scott. “A Colossal Elevator to Space Could Be Going up Sooner than You Ever Imagined.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 29 Nov. 2018, www.ncnews.com/mach/science/colossal-elevator-space-could-be-going-sooner-you-ever-imagined-ncna915421.