Engines of CreationIn this original book about the consequences of new technologies, Drexler takes the reader through exhilarating new discoveries and the promise of those around the corner. Beginning with the insight that what we can do depends on what we can build, Drexler analyzes nanotechnology, which involves the manipulation of individual atoms and molecules. He makes a plausible case for expecting technological developments in artificial intelligence and molecular engineering that will result in tiny mechanisms being controlled by microscopic powerful thinking computers. He also explains how the new alternatives could be directed toward vital human concerns -- wealth or poverty, health or sickness, peace or war. ISBN 0-385-19972-4: $17.95. |
From inside the book
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Page 18
The idea of a purely mechanical computer is scarcely new . In England during the mid - 1800s , Charles Babbage invented a mechanical computer built of brass gears ; his co - worker Augusta Ada , the Countess of Lovelace , invented ...
The idea of a purely mechanical computer is scarcely new . In England during the mid - 1800s , Charles Babbage invented a mechanical computer built of brass gears ; his co - worker Augusta Ada , the Countess of Lovelace , invented ...
Page 19
components a few atoms wide , though , a simple mechanical computer would fit within 1/100 of a cubic micron , many billions of times more compact than today's so - called microelectronics . Even with a billion bytes of storage ...
components a few atoms wide , though , a simple mechanical computer would fit within 1/100 of a cubic micron , many billions of times more compact than today's so - called microelectronics . Even with a billion bytes of storage ...
Page 275
In this case , the measurement of a few selected atomic positions ( performed by direct mechanical probing of the workpiece's surface ) should suffice to distinguish among the possibilities , thus correcting the calculations .
In this case , the measurement of a few selected atomic positions ( performed by direct mechanical probing of the workpiece's surface ) should suffice to distinguish among the possibilities , thus correcting the calculations .
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Great Book
User Review - nubianangel - Overstock.comEngines of Creation is a very good book to help the nonscientist get a grasp on the complexities of nano technology where we are and where we could go with it. While it breaks the information down to ... Read full review
LibraryThing Review
User Review - mentatjack - LibraryThingThis is one of my favorite science non-fiction books ever. If you've enjoyed any of the nanotechnology in science fiction in the last few decades, it was probably informed in some way by Drexler's ... Read full review
Contents
Engines of Construction | 3 |
The Principles of Change | 21 |
Predicting and Projecting | 39 |
Copyright | |
15 other sections not shown
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