Friday, January 31, 2014
Blog Tour - Day 3
What goes on inside the head of an author? Find out a little in my most recent interview at the Michael SciFan Blog.
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Guest Blogging - Please see my latest Blog at Link Below
Moving from Nanotechnology to a book about nanotechnology (or about my book Leviticus, in general), please note that I will be posting links to other Blogs on occasion.
Here is my latest post as a guest-blogger on TheReviewSister Click here to see
Here is my latest post as a guest-blogger on TheReviewSister Click here to see
Thursday, November 14, 2013
How Cool Is This???
They alway say - it's not what you know, it's who you know.
Thankfully, I know enough people to put me in this position . . .
BOOK SIGNING
Thankfully, I know enough people to put me in this position . . .
BOOK SIGNING
Friday, November 1, 2013
Should We Be More Than a Little Scared?
I know that I often write to promote the happenings in the Nanotech world - and it's usually positive. But today I wonder whether we shouldn't be a little more cautious with what we do.
The Wilson Center has published an updated survey of products which (may) contain nano materials (list available here). They have varying levels of confirmation, from Category 1 (Extensively verified claim) to Category 5 (not advertised by manufacturer). In reviewing some of the products, I came across Benny the Bear, a Category 2 (Verified Claim) which is a stuffed bear which claims:
“With the additive of Silver Nanoparticles, our product has been clinically proven to fight against harmful bacteria, molds and mites.” “This technology is widely seen in the medical industry. Silver Nanotechnology is being used to coat surgical tables and equipment to thwart micro organisms.”
Scientists reviewed various products and as relates to the stuffed bear found:
Fabrics, a plush toy, and cleaning products were most likely to release silver. Silver leached mainly via dissolution and was facilitated in media with high salt concentrations. Levels of silver to which children may potentially be exposed during the normal use of these consumer products is predicted to be low, and bioavailable silver is expected to be in ionic rather than particulate form.
The question, of course, is whether the fact that the low potential exposure levels is a good thing or a bad thing. The company, of course, would like to claim that exposure is high - as they advertise the bear as exposing children to the benefits of nano silver, which is "clinically proven to fight against harmful bacteria, molds and mites." Perhaps scientists would prefer otherwise.
The unspoken danger, of course, is that in addition to fighting against harmful bacteria, nano silver also kills beneficial bacteria - many of which live on and inside the human body and which are necessary for humans to maintain health.
I recently read an article discussing issues with over exposure to antibiotics and the negative consequences. One example, was a gentleman who had an ear infection (one ear only) that simply could not be treated by medical doctors. It turns out, the gentleman cured himself. He (and don't ask why) pulled some ear wax out of his healthy ear and placed it in his infected ear. Sure enough, the infection (that had been impervious to antibiotics) was cured. What was the secret? You guessed it - bacteria. The bacteria that lived in his healthy ear (and presumably in his infected ear prior to the infection) warded off the dangerous bacteria/microorganisms and kept his ear environment in good health.
Another example in the article revolved around an individual with severe diarrhea. Nothing the physicians did cured it - until the patient underwent a "stool transplant". Yes, you read it correctly. The surgeons removed stool from a healthy colon and transferred it into the patient - who's body, once populated with good bacteria, was able to return to a normal, healthy state.
Science's sometimes myopic view of the world can lead to unintended consequences. By developing a teddy bear which releases nano silver meant to ward off bad bacteria, this company may promote a generation of children who lack proper good bacterial populations and cause untold ailments to be visited upon these innocent children.
Science certainly has been a benefit for society. Yet is has also been a bane - let's hope these folks spend more time considering the consequences and less time thinking about money.
The Wilson Center has published an updated survey of products which (may) contain nano materials (list available here). They have varying levels of confirmation, from Category 1 (Extensively verified claim) to Category 5 (not advertised by manufacturer). In reviewing some of the products, I came across Benny the Bear, a Category 2 (Verified Claim) which is a stuffed bear which claims:
“With the additive of Silver Nanoparticles, our product has been clinically proven to fight against harmful bacteria, molds and mites.” “This technology is widely seen in the medical industry. Silver Nanotechnology is being used to coat surgical tables and equipment to thwart micro organisms.”
Scientists reviewed various products and as relates to the stuffed bear found:
Fabrics, a plush toy, and cleaning products were most likely to release silver. Silver leached mainly via dissolution and was facilitated in media with high salt concentrations. Levels of silver to which children may potentially be exposed during the normal use of these consumer products is predicted to be low, and bioavailable silver is expected to be in ionic rather than particulate form.
The question, of course, is whether the fact that the low potential exposure levels is a good thing or a bad thing. The company, of course, would like to claim that exposure is high - as they advertise the bear as exposing children to the benefits of nano silver, which is "clinically proven to fight against harmful bacteria, molds and mites." Perhaps scientists would prefer otherwise.
The unspoken danger, of course, is that in addition to fighting against harmful bacteria, nano silver also kills beneficial bacteria - many of which live on and inside the human body and which are necessary for humans to maintain health.
I recently read an article discussing issues with over exposure to antibiotics and the negative consequences. One example, was a gentleman who had an ear infection (one ear only) that simply could not be treated by medical doctors. It turns out, the gentleman cured himself. He (and don't ask why) pulled some ear wax out of his healthy ear and placed it in his infected ear. Sure enough, the infection (that had been impervious to antibiotics) was cured. What was the secret? You guessed it - bacteria. The bacteria that lived in his healthy ear (and presumably in his infected ear prior to the infection) warded off the dangerous bacteria/microorganisms and kept his ear environment in good health.
Another example in the article revolved around an individual with severe diarrhea. Nothing the physicians did cured it - until the patient underwent a "stool transplant". Yes, you read it correctly. The surgeons removed stool from a healthy colon and transferred it into the patient - who's body, once populated with good bacteria, was able to return to a normal, healthy state.
Science's sometimes myopic view of the world can lead to unintended consequences. By developing a teddy bear which releases nano silver meant to ward off bad bacteria, this company may promote a generation of children who lack proper good bacterial populations and cause untold ailments to be visited upon these innocent children.
Science certainly has been a benefit for society. Yet is has also been a bane - let's hope these folks spend more time considering the consequences and less time thinking about money.
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Efficiency Down, Energy Up
Science has spent the past several decades attempting to
increase the efficiency of solar cells in order to make solar energy a viable
alternative to fossil fuels. The
average solar cell has a 15-20% efficiency (i.e. converting 15-20% of solar
energy into usable electricity).
Sharp Electronics has managed to develop a solar cell boasting 44.4%
efficiency, however this is a concentrator system which requires lenses to
concentrate sunlight onto the solar cells. But the scientists at MIT are working on a solution that
actually reduces the efficiency.
Huh?
Jeffrey Grossman, senior author of a new paper published in Nano Letters, is using nanotechnology in
an effort to improve the functionality of solar cells. Using graphene (a one-atom thick sheet
of carbon atoms) and molybdenum disulfide (a one atom thick sheet of molybdenum
and sulfur) together to form a 2 atom thick sheet produces a solar cell capable
of converting sunlight to electricity at an efficiency of 1-2%. While hardly efficient, because it is
only 1 nanometer thick (1 billionth of a meter), they can be stacked to boost
the overall efficiency of the system.
Pound for pound, this new material generates a 1,000 times more energy
than conventional photovoltaics.
This can open the door for weight-sensitive applications such as
aircraft or hard to access locations where transportation costs factor in.
While it is not yet manufactured in bulk, molybdenum
disulfide is cheaper than silicon and opens the door to the potential for
cheaper energy from the sun.
Friday, May 10, 2013
What Will You Do With Your Invisibility Cloak?
"Your father left this in my possession before he died. It is time
it was returned to you. Use it well."
- note from Albus
Dumbledore to Harry Potter
While many people, both young and old alike, probably imagined a number
of things they could do with a cloak of invisibility, they knew that, like
Harry Potter himself, it was merely an object of fantasy. At least back in 1997. In 2013, fantasy has nearly met
reality.
Back in 2006, researchers were able to develop a laboratory experiment
whereby objects were made invisible in the microwave light range (just below
the visible spectrum). Scientists
were able to bend light waves around the object, removing its shadow and making
it appear invisible.
In 2011, scientist Xiang Zhang was able to develop a cloak
that bends visible light around objects so that it appears flat and the image
projected is that of the objects lying behind the cloaked object. You can think of it as gravitational lensing
(where a massive object (galaxy for example) (“Massive Object 1”) lies between
our sight lines and that of another bright object (“Bright Object 2”). In these instances, the gravity from
the Massive Object 1 bends the light emitting from the Bright Object 2 around
its edges so that the image of the Bright Object 2 actually appears as two
objects on either side of the Massive Object 1.) except rather than merely
projecting the light from the hidden object along side the object doing the
hiding, it bends the light enough that light from the hidden object wraps
around to the front of the object doing the hiding, resulting in the light
waves from behind the object being projected to the viewer. The 2011 experiment, however, dealt with
the cloaking of microscopic object (about the size of a human red blood cell).
Recently, Yaroslav Urzhumov, of Duke University has
developed a cloak made from a 3-D printer using plastic to make objects
invisible in microwave range. This
cloak is specially designed with an algorithem used to calculate the location,
size and shape of holes in the cloak to deflect light properly to make
materials invisible in the microwave range. He has run tests and believes that this process can be
transferred to the visible light range in the not-too-distant future. His simulations show that not only will
a cloak as thin as one inch in diameter be able to make objects several meters
in diameter invisible, but the cloaks will be able to be produced from
transparent polymers and glass on (relatively) inexpensive home 3-D printers –
which are currently available in several price ranges at or below $3000.
It’s possible that by the end of the decade, we can all be giving our
children their very own invisibility cloaks. The only question is what they will do with it and, perhaps
more importantly, whether they will use it well.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)