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Synthesis of Anthropomorphic Molecules

Posted by timothy on from the plausible-deniability dept.

An anonymous reader submits "Chemists at Rice have synthesized a set of 2nm tall molecules resembling humans. They make impressive use of a modular and composable assembly process involving torsos, lower bodies, and heads. Full article can (w/ protocols) be had here. Make your own NanoKid today!" The article itself is payware, but the pictures are not, and worth visiting.

1 of 23 comments (clear)

  1. Re:More info? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    OK... skimming the article, I had to grumble. It's really pretty gimmicky. It's a class of phenyl-pentyne derivatives.

    Once you make "NanoKid", you can "decapitate" the acetal that forms the "head" by microwave irradiation and pop on something else. So they made a "NanoAthlete", "NanoMonarch", "NanoPilgrim", "NanoGreenBeret", "NanoJester", "NanoTexan", ... Scholar, Baker, and Chef.

    They make a monolayer with "feet" from thiols and put them on a gold surface. Then they cook up some "hands" that can crosslink so they can make a monolayer that "holds hands."

    As I said, sorta a gimmick. Tour, et al. don't claim any sort of more interesting purpose than pushing the "erector set" sort of chemistry.