You can find academic and industrial groups doing some relevant work, but there isn't a focus on building complex molecular systems. In that respect, Japan is first, Europe is second, and we're third. K. Eric Drexler academicbuildcomplex Change image and share on social
After realizing that we would eventually be able to build molecular machines that could arrange atoms to form virtually any pattern that we wanted, I saw that an awful lot of consequences followed from that. K. Eric Drexler arrangeatomawful share on social
I had been impressed by the fact that biological systems were based on molecular machines and that we were learning to design and build these sorts of things. K. Eric Drexler basebiologicalbuild Change image and share on social
Any powerful technology can be abused. K. Eric Drexler abusepowerfultechnology Change image and share on social
My work at MIT had focused on what we could build in space once we had inexpensive space transportation and industrial facilities in orbit. And this led to various sorts of work in space development. K. Eric Drexler builddevelopmentfacility Change image and share on social
Protein engineering is a technology of molecular machines - of molecular machines that are part of replicators - and so it comes from an area that already raises some of the issues that nanotechnology will raise. K. Eric Drexler areaengineerissue share on social
Likewise nanotechnology will, once it gets under way, depend on the tools we have then and our ability to use them, and not on the steps that got us there. K. Eric Drexler abilitydependlikewise Change image and share on social
The other advantage is that in conventional manufacturing processes, it takes a long time for a factory to produce an amount of product equal to its own weight. With molecular machines, the time required would be something more like a minute. K. Eric Drexler advantageamountconventional share on social
And that because the moving parts are a million times smaller than the ones we're familiar with, they move a million times faster, just as a smaller tuning fork produces a higher pitch than a large one. K. Eric Drexler familiarfastfork share on social
I've encountered a lot of people who sound like critics but very few who have substantive criticisms. There is a lot of skepticism, but it seems to be more a matter of inertia than it is of people having some real reason for thinking something else. K. Eric Drexler criticcriticismencounter share on social
