Thursday, September 15, 2005

NanoHype!

Fantastic – I dropped David Berube a line and found out he’s writing a blog about nanotechnologies and the often over-hyped literature around it. It’s really quite good if you are interested in the subject.

The man has a way with a phrase: “However, we once again have selective reporting, broad overclaims, and the inevitable straw person to validate their moratorium. This is expected from undergraduates and bad intercollegiate debaters.”

Since there is so little actual work done in nanotechnologies and the field is so primitive, it inevitably becomes the technical fairy dust that anyone can sprinkle over their scenario building. With regards to nanotechnology we are really pre-singularity trying to predict what will happen post-singularity. You can really project whatever your dreams or fears may be onto this unsettled technology. Dave is doing a great job here of popping some of these bubbles with a clear mind – and he’s well suited to it. He’s read pretty much everything that has been written on the subject.

Of course, I’ve added this to my blogroll and am looking forward to more – thanks Dave!