Nanotechnology Fundamentals

The Nano Scale

• The prefix "nano-" refers to a very small value.
• The nano scale is an interdisciplinary area generated by and for the advancement of science and technology.

Nanotechnology

• It refers to the development of products or manipulation of matter at the nanoscale.
• Nanoparticles are the building blocks of nanotechnology.
• Nanoparticles are particles that are 1 to 100 nanometers in size.
• A nanometer is a billionth of a meter.

Benefits of Nanotechnology

• Environmental benefits: improved detection and removal of contaminants.
• Health benefits: can improve medicines.
• Economic benefits: can create better products and provide new jobs.

Concerns of Nanotechnology

• Unclear health impact: exposure to nanoparticles may pose potential health impacts through direct contact, inhalation, ingestion, or insertion to the body.
• Many nanoparticles were found to cause pulmonary toxicity when inhaled.
• It may impact the environment: nanotechnology may have an impact on the environment, requiring raw materials from the environment.
• Moral issues: nanotechnology is receiving opposition from some groups, accused of altering or modifying life forms, thus destroying the sanctity of life.
• Equality issues: access to nanotechnology is an issue, with unequal opportunity to access and use of these promising technologies.

Second Information Revolution

• Began in the 1950s and lasted until the 1980s
• Improved communication with the invention of television, early generation computers, and satellites

Television

• Invented in the 1920s
• First communication device to transmit video and image apart from sound

Early Computers

• Developed due to the needs of the military
• Atanasoff-Berry Computer (ABC) developed by John Vincent Atanasoff in 1939
• ABC could solve linear equations of up to 29 variables
• Colossus developed by Alan Turing, used during World War II to decode Nazi war codes
• ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator And Calculator) developed by J. Presper Eckert and John Mauchly in 1946

Transistors

• Developed by William Shockley, Walter Brattain, and John Bardeen
• Replaced vacuum tubes in computers, making them smaller, faster, and more reliable

Satellites

• Developed to transmit telephone and television signals globally
• Enabled global communication
• Sputnik 1 was the first artificial satellite, launched by the Soviet Union in 1957, marking the beginning of the Space Age

Third Information Revolution

• Paved the way for more technologies and innovations
• Fourth-generation computers made possible by the development of computer chips
• Fiber optics enabled information transmission
• Cellular technology enabled data storage and processing
• Advanced networks, including the Internet, enhanced global connectivity and communication

Good Impacts of Information Age

• Enabled connectivity to people around the world
• Made many aspects of daily life more convenient
• Enabled online communities and access to online education and government documents
• Made information more accessible than ever before

Issues in STS (Science, Technology, and Society)

• Importance of critical analysis and validation of online information sources