Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Duroquinone Molecule Nano-Brain
A nano-brain consisting of a hexagonal duroquinone molecule can carry out 16 times more operations than a normal computer transistor. All in a package hundreds of times smaller than the wavelength of visible light. This molecule resembles a hexagonal plate with four cones linked to it, "like a small car," explained researcher Anirban Bandyopadhyay, an artificial intelligence and molecular electronics scientist at the National Institute for Materials Science at Tsukuba in Japan.
(Molecular brains arranged to mimic our nervous sytem)
The duroquinone molecule nano-brain might prove to be the controller for all of the tiny gadget parts that nanotech researchers have created - motors, propellers, switches, elevators, sensors and so on.
Scientists operate the device by tweaking the center duroquinone with electrical pulses from an extremely sharp electrically conductive needle. The molecule and its four cones can shift around in a variety of ways depending on different properties of the pulse — say, the pulse's strength.Since weak chemical bonds link the center duroquinone with the surrounding 16 duroquinones, each of those shifts too. Imagine, for instance, a spider in the middle of a web made of 16 strands. If the spider moves in one direction, each thread linked to it experiences a slightly different tug from all the others.
In this way, a pulse to the central duroquinone can simultaneously transmit different instructions to each of the surrounding 16 duroquinones. The researchers say this design was inspired by that of brain cells, which can radiate branches out like a tree, with each branch used to communicate with another brain cell.
Ultimately, the nano-brain idea could be implemented in a three-dimensional sphere of 1,024 duroquinones. This means it could perform 1,024 instructions at once, for 4^1024 different outcomes — a number larger than a 1 with 1,000 zeroes after it.
I think that duroquinone molecule nano-brains would be just the thing we need to make science-fictional inventions like lithocules possible:
...each lithocule knew exactly where it was supposed to go and what it was supposed to do. They were tetrahedral building blocks of calcium and carbon, the size of poppyseeds, each equipped with a power source, a brain and a navigational system.
(Read more about lithocules from Neal Stephenson's The Diamond Age)
You might also be able to get your Philip K. Dick's autofac up and running, as suggested today by the excellent Frolix_8.
Via LiveScience; thanks to Misja van Laatum for the tip on this story.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 3/12/2008)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )
Related News Stories - (" Computer ")
Jetson Orin Nano Super 70 Just $249
'Rayno folded up the microterm and tucked it back inside his jumper.' - Bruce Bethke, 1983.
Automatic Bot Traffic Is 38 Percent Of HTTP Requests
'there were so many worms and counterworms loose in the data-net...' - John Brunner, 1975
Neuroplatform Human Brain Organoid Bioprocessor Uses Less Electricity
'Cultured brains on a slab.'- Peter Watts, 1999
AI Worms That Spread
'...there were so many worms and counterworms loose in the data-net now' - John Brunner, 1975.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Heart Patches Grown In The Lab Repair Hearts
I'm hoping that this procedure becomes a normal part of medical practice!
Humanoid Robots Spotted In Homes Performing Household Chores
'... nothing was perfected until M. Pantalon announced the completion of his automatic valet.'
Musk Proposes Sites For Martian Cities
'...its streets were of remarkable width, with few or no buildings so high as mosques, churches, State-offices, or palaces in Tellurian cities.'
Bambot Open Source Cheap Delivery Robot
'Not since the time he rewired the delivery robot...'
Robot Collective Acts Like A Smart Material
'...it was all composed of tiny, identical cubes, carefully laid to form a tilelike surface.'
Vipera Electric Skis From Frigid Dynamics
'JOAN strapped on her power-skis...'
Pixel Watch 'Loss of Pulse Detection' And Philip K. Dick
'He carried on his person a triggering mechanism sensitive to his heartbeat.'
Nuclear Plant Restarted To Power AI To Feed Us Dreams
'...Anything was possible in my imaginary environment.'
SpaceX's Starman Tesla Roadster In Space
'Somewhere in space, a chrome and blue automobile raced the green light of Earth.'
Pivotal Blackfly Electric Aircraft Lifts And Hovers
'That explains how it was so easy for me to remain motionless in midair...'
CORLEO Robotic Horse Concept Looks Ready To Ride
Imagine digging your heels in to a steam horse!
Who First Thought Of A Tin Foil Hat?
'We had discovered that metal was relatively impervious to the telepathic effect.'
Warp Drive Tech Back On The Menu
'Detailed plans for the construction of the Gundstetter-Halone warp drive were flowing.'
Huawei Pura X Folding Phattie Phone
Why can't we get more innovative phone configurations?
Sleep Pods At Daxing International Airport
'Do not waste your priceless company on the unappreciative folds of a sleep pod...'
Robot Baristas Learn Their Trade Without Paying Royalties
'...so we've promised him a generous pension from the royalties.'
