Nanotechnology: Global Prospects and Possible Introduction in Nigeria’s

Nanotechnology can be defined as the study of the manipulation and application of matter on a molecular scale. According to Wikipedia, it generally deals with developing materials or other structures possessing a size of at least one hundred nanometers. The concepts of nanotechnology were considered fiction until December 29, 1959 during a talk entitled â€Å"There’s plenty of Room at the Bottom† by physicist Richard Feynman at an American Physical Society meeting at the California Institute of Technology. In this talk, Feynman described a process by which individual atoms and molecules can be controlled and manipulated. The term, â€Å"Nanotechnology† was coined over a decade later by Professor Norio Taniguchi. It wasn’t until 1981, with the invention of the scanning tunneling microscope and the atomic force microscope that could â€Å"see† individual atoms, that contemporary nanotechnology began (National Nanotechnology Initiative n.d). It is difficult to envision how small nanotechnology is. An illustrative example given by the National Nanotechnology Initiative is; a sheet of newspaper is one hundred thousand nanometers thick. This kind of size is extremely small and cannot even be seen by the typical microscopes used in high school science classes. Although the study is a new one, nanoscale materials have been in use for centuries. The colors of the stained glasses of medieval churches built hundreds of years ago were created by alternate sized gold and silver particles. The artists then did not know the process they employed to create those works of art. Today’s scientists on the other hand are discovering a variety of ways to exploit the science and its enhanced properties like higher strength, lighter weight and so on. The impending ... ...ll also be in the application stages of the study. â€Æ' Works Cited â€Å"Nanotechnology 101†. National Nanotechnology Initiative. n.d Web. 29 May 2012. http://www.nano.gov/nanotech-101 â€Å"Nanotechnology† Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d Web. 29 May 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanotechnology Dr. Ayman El-Fatatry. â€Å"Defense Applications† Systems Engineering Innovation Centre n.d PDF file. 29 May 2012 Admin. â€Å"Nanotechnology in Medicine - Nanomedicine† UnderstandingNano. n.d. Web. 29 May 2012. http://www.understandingnano.com/medicine.html Joseph, Tiju and Mark Morrison. â€Å"Nanotechnology in Agriculture and Food†. European Nanotechnology Gateway. May 2006. Print. 29 May 2012. News Agency of Nigeria. â€Å"Government of Nigeria approves nanotechnology plan† August 13, 2007. Web. 29 May 2012. http://www.nanowerk.com/news/newsid=2364.php