Nanotechnology

What’s the big deal about something very, very small? That was the subject of a presentation on nanotechnology at the University of Massachusetts Lowell last evening. With $1 trillion expected to be spent in this field over the next ten years, universities all over the world are racing to achieve breakthroughs. While everyone else seems focused on experimentation in the laboratory, UML has broken from the pack by focusing on nanomanufacturing which is the act of making nano products of high quality, quickly and on a large scale. A nano product is something very, very small with millions of nanos fitting on the head of a pin, for example. Nano products fall into just about every field imaginable. In the future, cars will be lighter and stronger because they’ll be made of plastic that has been altered through nanotechnology. Hypodermic needles will become obsolete as future medicines made with nanotechnology will be delivered by absorption through the skin. Try as I might, I have not yet imagined an application for nanotechnology here at the registry of deeds. Nevertheless, it’s worth writing about because it is sure to transform much about the way we live our lives in the very near future.