Nanoworld or Abyss

Are human beings becoming obsolete? Do we have legitimate reasons to be scared of cyborgs? The merging of man and machine is approaching, thanks to the development of nanotechnology. Here, a curious director enters the amazing world of nanotechnology and tries to unravel the nano mysteries for her fellow lay people. As the accompanying opportunities and dangers are clarified, one thing is certain; after watching this film, it is impossible to look at your own mobile phone the same way.

Scientific Interest

Nanotechnology consists of manipulating matter on a extremely small (atomic and molecular) scale; one nanometre is equal to a billionth of a metre. The strategy used is the bottom- up approach, developers start building up nano objects and adding functionalities afterwards. Nanotechnology is about miniaturizing; the result is manipulation on nanoscopic scale. It allows developers to make smaller, more effective and less energy consuming machines. An important element is the allotrope carbon nanotube. In this film, the director pays a visit to the Institute for Nanotechnology Lyon, Minatec and nobel prize winner Albert Fert.

Scenes

Richard Feynman and nanoscience
Science on the scale of a nanometre started with physicist and nobel prize winner Richard Feynman. He was the first person to develop a theory about nanoscience.
Microscopy at Insitute of Nanotechnologies, Lyon
Souifi, a professor working a t the Institut des nanotechnologies Lyon explains the scale of the nanoworld while showing the microscopes he works with, like the atomic force microscope. He states even manipulation on nanometric scale is possible.
Nano-electronics and miniaturization
Souifi of the Institut des nanotechnologies Lyon is specialized in nanoelectronics and is working on miniaturization. According to Souifi, the growing amount of data needed for elecronic appliances results in the miniaturization of electrical components.
Science: top-down vs. bottom-up approach
Science on a nanoscopic scale has led to a new approach; instead of the top-down approach researchers use the bottom-up approach. This is explained by research director Eliane Souteyrand in the Institut des nanotechnologies Lyon.
Nanotechnology and microsensors
Thanks to nanotechnology, microsensors can be developed and miniaturized in order to be used for medical purpose.
Kevin Warwick: electronic implants for human beings
This clip contains a fragment of the speech of Daniela Cerqui, a researcher of the Lausanne institute of anthropology. She talks about the experiments of scientist Kevin Warwick, the use of electronic implants on humans, the implementations and the possible effect on society.
Nanoscience & fiction: Murail and Drexler
Engineer and author Eric Drexler is known for his vision on nanoscience and future with nanorobots. Lorice Murail is an author and SF critic. Here, he gives his opinion on nanotechnology, the future and the ideas of engineer and author Eric Drexler
Albert Fert about nanotechnology
Albert Fert is the winner of the 2007 Nobel prize of Physics. He’s working on spintronics, combined with nanotechnology. In this clip he gives a definition of nanotechnology.
Carbon nanotubes and graphene
Lecturer Catherine Journet-Gautier of the Claude Bernard University explains what carbon nanotubes are. The clip also contains information about graphene and the danger of nanoparticles.
Research centre Minatec
This clip contains a visit to Minatec, a French research centre specialized in research on nanotechnologies applied to industry. Furthermore, Minatec direcor Jean-Charles Guibert is being interviewed about research, development and economics .
Diminishing the risk of nanotechnology
During a visit to the Rhone-Alpes Regional Council, Roger Fougeres is being interviewed about the dangers and risks of nanotechnology and nanoparticles.
Nanotechnology: responsibility of researchers
Are researchers responsible for the use of nanotechnology? The responsibility is not about the scientific discovery but about the way the discovery is used, according to professor Souifi of Institut des nanotechnologies Lyon. This clip consists of an interview with Souifi and a presentation by students on research ethics.