Nanotechnology is different than any subject we have discussed so far as the "art" being created is not visible to the naked eye. Nanotechnology is working with matter at the atomic level, far too small to see without instruments. Because nanotechnology works at such a molecular level, old scientific techniques become out dated and no applicable, but have the ability to be influential in changing the world at a social level. Nanotechnology is a collaborative effort, just like the artists are becoming, as science ideologies must be reinvented and there is a clear paradigm shift. (Vesna intro)
An interesting part of Dr. Gimzewski's lecture was his discussion about the first to conceptual talk about nanotechnology in 1959, Mr. Richard Feynman. He gave a talk called, "There's plenty of room at the bottom," where he suggested how much room there was at the atomic level to create new technology, that could change the world. Feynman was very interested in manipulating things at an atomic scale, and was determined to prove that there was infinite room for growth. One of his challenges was for someone to write 25,000 pages of the Encyclopedia Britannica on a pin head. He would later find that it is possible to write 260,000,000 pages of the Encyclopedia on a pin head. He also realized that on the "nanoscale," the laws of physics change, as thermal jittering and surface tension dominate gravity, and quantum mechanics takes over for Newton's classical mechanics.
Richard Feynman
Self assembly or self organization are key to nanotechnology but are not new in terms of nature, as nature has always self organized. There are examples, such as the snowflake, which assembles into unique and beautiful patterns from frozen water molecules or the fractal nature of trees as each tree has a unique fractal nature. These are all composed of atoms and have some how been directed into complex patterns by simple self organization. The Blue Morpho butterfly is an example of this on the nano scale. The fluorescent blue wings of the Morpho butterfly are not made up of a pigment but instead made up of "christmas tree" like structures that are surrounded by air and protein, which manipulates light on the nanoscale and reflect back the fluorescent blue color.
Sources
"There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 May 2015.
Curtin, John. "Art in the Age of Nanotechnology." Art.base. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2015. <https://art.base.co/event/2104-art-in-the-age-of-nanotechnology>.
"Richard Feynman Introduces the World to Nanotechnology with Two Seminal Lectures (1959 & 1984)." Open Culture. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 May 2015.
"Morpho." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 24 May 2015.
"Research and Innovation Communications." How Butterfly Wings Can Inspire New High-Tech Surfaces. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 May 2015.
Hi Tucker,
ReplyDeleteYou're right when you say that the art being created by nanotechnology is not visible to the naked eye. Do you think at some point in the future a kind of "nano-art exhibit" might exist? Will nanotechnology and art intertwine any further?
I'd like to add that, Nanotechnology in medical developments over the coming years will have a wide variety of uses and could potentially save a great number of lives. Nanotechnology is already moving from being used in passive structures to active structures, through more targeted drug therapies or “smart drugs.” Smart drugs are found in the medical market since early 2001.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of a micro-drug or bacteria that is created that is self-assembling is beyond amazing if scientist can produce it to battle diseases. I like how in nanotechnology there is a defining art element, which is that it is never really about the big picture, but how small details or elements can change the larger perception of visuals in our surroundings.
ReplyDeleteMr. Richard Feynman. He gave a talk called, "There's plenty of room at the bottom,"
ReplyDeleteWhen you mentioned that as well as the pages of the Encyclopedia was written on the head of pin, it is incredible how much can be written in the smallest unseen thing. I haven't found the close relation of the art and nanotech as much.