Video about molecular motor and video about synthetic biology

 

Comment: A videoregards one of the molecular motors found in nature.  Nature provides proof in principle that molecular machines including complex ones can work in the real world and are allowed by the laws of physics.  In this video they show how it moves. It has very good animation shown throughout the video. This is old news discovery, but it is an interesting one.

It is my belief that eventually the design of artificial systems making use of these, will provide a new level of technology, allowing for cheap manufacturing of complex products, as well as viable renewables that can last indefinitely as molecular machines can be made to self-repair at the atomic level indefinitely.   This will be done through advanced synthetic biology.

Comment: In this video some of the latest advancements in synthetic biology are mentioned, as well as the promise of going beyond evolution into the synthesis of novel useful materials with nanostructured properties.

But even beyond this advanced synthetic biology will eventually lead to the creation of artificial living machines that perform useful functions such as high efficiency conversion of sunlight into chemical fuels or electricity.   Through the combinations of genes from different organisms, traits such as self-regeneration and agelessness or biological immortality can be imbued into living machines in addition to unevolvable traits.

Michio Kaku: Can Nanotechnology Create Utopia?

This is a short video about the smallest of machines, the plenty of room at the bottom that Richard Feynman mentioned.   Such technology once perfected can create an age of untold abundance.

Kaku mentions Star Trek and one of its episodes regarding the future.   While trek predicts the end of money, I doubt that will truly come about even in an utopic world.

Biology ultimate technology? Comment on reddit thread

That is my take, this is potentially the ultimate technology barring something that manipulates physical law, though I wouldn't say biology but advanced synthetic biology to be more precise.

People tend to underestimate the power of what can actually be created when you transcend evolutionary limitations with cells.

Biology uses cells as main workhorses in many cases, but synthetic biology can allow cells to construct precise nano-structures organic and inorganic of arbitrary function. Structures that can be scaled to macroscopic dimensions if need be. Cells are able to drastically alter metabolic rate in nature, reducing it as needed, basically halting metabolism and allowing them to consume practically no energy for decades or little energy for even longer.

People tend to think in terms of just animals or plants in terms of the limits of synthetic biology in fiction. But potentially anything could be built by synthetic biology, a TV, a car, a computer, a plane.

Not only are cells able to produce electricity, but they are also able to consume electricity, not just light or chemical fuels. There have been closed systems with biological organisms only in-taking external energy able to recycle all components and continue functioning for decades or more. Self contained devices using cells can be made to recycle all wastes and not need exchange of atoms with the environment only the exchange of energy. Though such restriction can be lifted if it is more convenient as needed.

The thing is cells replicate, and could potentially be used to mass produce. Right now the efficiency of conversion from solar to chemical is quite low, and most plants have low resilience to hostile conditions, they are also not designed to be coupled with a computer for the production of arbitrary products. But cells could be coupled with the energy produced from fission or in the future from fusion, allowing unlimited replicative ability, the excess energy could be used to purify or scavenge any resources that were needed.

_reddit source thread link

Comment on military take over by corporation or rogue black ops labs given future tech developments.

[First mover advantage]

Regards a military take over from private agencies. It is not just by amassing weaponry, but by researching better weaponry. Once people might have thought a small bomb would not be a significant threat, but the development of nuclear tech, which could have remained secret, changed that. New types of weapons, even in small quantities could change things. 

An example is automated self-modifying self-replicating weapons. Even rogue mirror-molecule unicellular life is feared could destroy the biosphere. An intelligent self-modifying self-replication weapon system could rapidly grow and outcompete basically anything out there, especially if no other similar system is brought online soon after. The benefits of overpowering all other social agents, is control of all the atoms and all the energy.

 As for financing. The concentration of wealth from compound interest, barring inheritance tax, would eventually create quadrillionaires, who could use their personal wealth to finance arbitrary things. 

Actually with adequate hardware, it is conceivable that private corporations, even under the current political systems, could overpower the nation states if they did develop such. Even the state itself, their black ops labs could go rogue if such weaponry was developed. 

I expect the development of such final weapons, which can reshape the world at will, weapons of mass construction, or better said reconstruction, will be the final concentration of power, which will purify the world.

Nanotech medicine ted vid

Interesting video regarding new applications of nanotechnology to medicine.