nano money

Gucci pocketbooks, Rolex watches and banknotes. What do they all have in common? They have value and there are a lot of fake ones around. In the US over the past couple of years, there are new banknotes that have things in them to reduce the problems of counterfeiting. Now some scientists at Simon Fraser University in Canada are trying to use nanotechnology to prevent bad guys from counterfeiting money. Their inspiration is the blue morpho butterfly which has a cool iridescent blue color. The color is produced when light reflects off the surface---a surface that has nanoscale features which diffract only a narrow spectrum of light. No color pigment that can be copied but only features that can be fabricated into the banknote. Some day these things to prevent counterfeiters could be used in a lot of different kinds of objects.

Start your engines

The impact of nanotechnology on all parts of our lives is growing. And people are worried about how things might change. There are all sorts of rules for things like professional cycling and automobile racing. Mostly stuff like what you can make bicycles and race cares out of. Weight is really important because the less something weighs the easier it is to move around. So it isn't surprising that lots of meetings will be held to talk about this. One at Cranfield University will focus on what race cars are made of and how that might important for the rules about racing. Carbon nanotubes are strong and lightweight. So putting them into all sorts of stuff like the chasis of a car can help make race cars faster.  But along the way many are interested in making sure there are rules to keep them safe.

Just like Mother Nature

Sea urchins that could be a new kind of solar cell

Sometimes the answer lies with a very simple observation. In this case scientists in Switzerland have looked for solar cell designs by peering into the oceans. Sea urchins have a a very high surface area because they are rough. If you look closely the roughness is a very regular structure that is repeating. Using sea urchins as a design these scientists made similar structures from polystyrene and used them to mold nanowires. The array of wires are able to efficiently absorb sunlight more efficiently.
http://www.empa.ch/

Forget about the TV, remote control the worm

Every want to have a little critter that you could direct like a remote control car?  Scientists at the University of Buffalo have put tiny nanoparticles into the worm Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans because nobody wants to pronounce "Caenorhabditis").  These particles can heat up different parts of the worm and cause them to recoil.  The localized heating opens channels that permit calcium to flow into the cells and that causes the worms to react.

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Don't blow your gasket

But if you do, there is a product to fix that. The people at CRC who make a lot of different products to fix your car have a new product to fix gaskets. Normally if you blow a gasket in a car engine you have to take everything apart and replace the gasket. This stuff apparently eliminates that problem "Using Nanotechnology, this product fills in cracks and crevices other products can't, making a stronger, more solid bond that's permanently hardened to the surface area." Nanooze hasn't tried this but hey nanotechnology saves the day (again).http://tinyurl.com/nanogasket

How smart are your drawers?

Smart phones, smart refrigerators, how about smart underwear? Researchers at University of California-San Diego have been making boxer shorts with tiny sensors that can measure biomarkers that are found in sweat. Biomarkers like glucose, lactic acid are all important things to measure. The sensors are made of tiny flexible electrodes that are tucked under the waist band and they can measure stress or performance levels. This is important for athletes or soldiers or perhaps even you?.  The researchers are working with their colleagues at Clarkson University, no word if they are available in colors or just plain white.

for more info http://tinyurl.com/smartshorts

Nano tattoo

Scientists at MIT have developed a tattoo that can measure the amount of sugar in your blood.  Read more about it in the upcoming issue of Nanooze due out in July 2010.

calling Nemo

Communicating underwater is tough since sound waves travel differently in water than in air. Researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas have discovered that sheets of carbon nanotubes can act as speakers 100x more effectively than they predicted. The carbon nanotubes are very hydrophobic (meaning they don't like water) so there is a very thin layer of air which helps transmit sound. Maybe in the future you can call up a fish for dinner.
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