Future Technology Trends

In the future, complicated nanodevices may blur the line between biological and manufactured hardware. Small machines might borrow many properties from bacteria in order to carry out complex tasks. Softer nanotechnology could be built with hybrid cellular and nanofabricated parts. These designs will ensure that chips can stay within the body. Another potential outcome is genetically engineered artificial life that would mimic what electronic circuitry does. New nanotechnologies should be able to do things that no conventional life form is capable of carrying out. Intelligent synthetic cells or tailored nanosensors could gather data from the surrounding environment and release targeted medications at specific times. These things may appear far different from certain futurist’s speculations of small robots that repair cellular damage at will. Most likely, the parts will have a basic functionality to deliver therapeutics. Facilitating drug delivery is the mundane use for these devices. Many of the outlandish ideas relating to nanomachines may not materialize as some envision. However, there is certainly a push to develop upgraded capabilities. Scientists from the Georgia Institute of Technology and other collaborators are investigating a method to allow nanodevices to communicate.  Read More »

A recent conference covered progress towards greener information technology.  The CHIST-ERA is a European coordinated research program for long-term challenges.  Many of the speakers are part of the European zero power consortium.  A main goal of this venture is to take advantage of gains in nanomaterials.  Several methods can allow electronics to harvest ambient energy from the environment.  Nanotechnology will help researchers design self-sustaining devices that can run without the need for batteries.  One such avenue to accomplish this is with thermoelectric designs.   Read More »

The idea of smart dust has been around for decades, but now researchers are working to make it a reality.  A nanoprocessor coupled with a nanomemory, nanoantenna and an energy source would be the basic building blocks for such a device.  A difficult problem for scientists is figuring out how these sensors can communicate with one another and send their data back to be examined.  The concept of wireless nanosensor networks (WNSN) would be to use electromagnetic radiation in the terahertz spectrum (100 gigahertz to 10 terahertz).  Terahertz (THZ) radiation has been adapted for a number of applications, which include higher resolution medical imaging and surveillance.   Read More »

Georgia tech researchers and other organizations are helping to lay the groundwork for the development of powerful wireless nanosensor networks. This technology has been the cornerstone of many futurist projections for decades and has tantalizing implications for a wide swath of fields. These networked sensors could potentially read biological processes and rapidly send that that data to a central supercomputer for analysis.  This could have a revolutionary impact on how health care is administered.   Environmental surveying, assessing disaster damages and military operations are other potential future uses.   Read More »