Nanotechnology: Too Small to See, but All Around You

You might or might not be familiar with the concept of nanotechnology, but you've probably already encountered nano-based products of one form or another.

Nanotechnology is the science of producing materials of ultra-tiny particles about the size of 1/100,000 the diameter of a strand of human hair. At that scale, particles of different materials take on unique and unusual properties. In a nano form, for example, gold is liquid at room temperature.

Nanomaterials of all kinds are being studied for their potential to do everything from improve the treatment of diseases and provide clean drinking water to deliver new means of generating electricity and create stronger materials for construction. However, scientists also continue investigating possible downsides to the technology, which could include toxic effects on humans and nature.

With that brief introduction, here are 10 other things you might not know about nanotechnology:

1. According to the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies, the nanotechnology product market totaled $60 billion in 2007. By 2014, the emerging technology-focused Lux Research predicts nano-based products will account for about 15 percent of all goods sold around the world, with a market value of $2.6 trillion.

2. Go into a store or shop online, and you can already find more than 600 nanotechnology-based consumer products on the market. The Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies' Consumer Product Inventory includes everything from Nanoceuticals(TM) chocolate Slim Shakes and odor removal stickers for children to Acticoat ® Wound Dressings and antibacterial pet products.

3. Nanomaterials didn't first come into being in the laboratory. The gecko, for example, has nano-scale hairs on its feet that let it walk on vertical surfaces or even upside down. Scientists are also studying the behavior of aquatic nanoparticles in natural water systems.

4. Even before people discovered nanotechnology, they were using it in daily life. The processes of making steel or vulcanizing rubber, for example, rely on nano-scale interactions of particles.

5. The late American physicist Richard Feynmann is credited with launching the modern concept of nanotechnology and nano-research. In a 1959 lecture titled, "There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom," Feynmann addressed the possibility of manipulating matter down to the scale of atoms to create advanced computers, microscopes and even nano-sized surgical robots.

6. A recent decision by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) could have major ramifications for future nano-product claims. The decision, issued March 7, fined IOGEAR, a technology company, more than $200,000 for selling wireless mouse and keyboard products that claimed to have antimicrobial properties. The EPA fine accused IOGEAR of marketing unregistered nanopesticides.

7. Nanotechnology could hold the key to boosting our ability to convert sunlight into energy. Late last year, Martin Aagesen, a researcher with the University of Copenhagen, announced his discovery of "nano flakes" with a perfect crystalline structure that could double current solar-to-electricity conversion levels.

8. Physicists at the University of California, Berkeley, last year created the world's smallest radio using a carbon nanotube one-ten-thousandth the width of a human hair. The first songs to be broadcast on the nanoradio were "Layla" from Derek & The Dominos and "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys.

9. One of the concerns raised by nanotechnology is the risk of "gray goo," a nanomaterial that could move, protect itself from chemicals, reproduce itself and metabolize outside materials into food.

10. The Twinkie can help you learn more about nanotechnology. In "The Twinkie Guide to Nanotechnology," scientist Andrew Maynard presents a 25-minute video introduction to the concept of nanotechnology with the help of a Twinkie analogy.