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Nanoglue Could Be Used To Make Spiderman Web-Shooters
Stony Stevenson writes "A team of US researchers is using the super-adhesive properties of nanoglue to create a super-sticky web-shooting device much like the comic-book hero Spiderman's. The nanoglue is also being trialed in the production of computer chip circuitry and is expected to miniaturize the process, meaning faster and more powerful chips. From the article: '"If we can find a way to create threads and/or intertwined bundles using the molecules in a scalable fashion, while retaining the adhesive properties, then creating web-shooters similar to Spiderman's is a real possibility," Ramanath said. "There are ways in which molecular threads/bundles can be created in large quantities. The challenge will be, however, to simultaneously engineer adhesion on certain surfaces (and not others, since we want the suit only to form on the desired surface) and also with each other during the thread formation."'"
well actually now that we have this super nano glue we can make better computer chips which make faster computers which biochemists can use to simulate proteins/enzymes involved in cancer so that is the idea... but really the spiderman thing does seem kind of silly now until you realize the awesomeness of swinging around places:)
Sigs are too short to say anything truly profound so read the above post instead.
The most unrealistic thing for me about Spider-Man's web shooters for me was always the amount of compression that would have had to occur. I don't think there is any way to get hundreds of feet of rope inside of a container a few inches around.
Although since there was so much other knowledge of physics that had to be suspended, I managed to let it ride.
Hopefully I didn't put any [] around my words.
When you really boil down what's going on here, this article is fundamentally absurd. Imagine if all types of research, even those that weren't in the spotlight at the moment, could generate news articles merely by providing a reasonably credible but statistically improbable extended speculation onto their future development?
"We're convinced that, if this algorithm were part of the software powering a future cellular phone that could call a radio telescope to send a signal to a giant mass compressor orbiting close to the sun that it should begin the black hole creation sequence, the product of our research could conceivably be used to destroy the solar system."
While I do somewhat agree with the sentiment of the above poster that 'there are more important things that we could be working on', I think that it would be fair to remember that not ever scientist is suited to work on every project - to work on "cancer" (as it is so broadly put) you need certain kinds of scientists - i.e. biochemists, molecular & cellular biologists, organic & medicinal chemists, and pharmacists in order to do direct research on cancer. This fellow (G. Ramanath) is a materials engineer, and thus would be ill equipped to doing cancer-curing research.
However, it should be noted that the ability to DO cancer research is only made possible by discoveries in other areas of science - physics (radiation therapy, imaging methods), engineering (devising machines to test for and to visualize cancerous growths), chemistry (new ways to make and deliver drugs), materials science (better materials to do all of the above!) , computing science (imaging, modelling), and biochemistry & biology (understanding cellular processes) by those who are not aiming to cure diseases, but whom seek to advance the limits of human knowledge and understanding. Creating a better glue just happens to be one such advance that may help indirectly.
And secondly, are you seriously suggesting that humanity should give up all other pursuits in order to work on this problem? There are other diseases you know. And other problems that face humanity. Besides that, how do you know that this project, as frivolous as it may sound, may not produce some knowledge that will contribute to the treatment of disease?
Yes, because we all know advances in materials science have never benefited anyone.
Well, there's a lot more money to be made in 'treatment programs' than 'cures' anyway. Not that I'm saying all doctors are bad people or anything. However, look at the cost of one AIDS patient's 'treatment plan' for one year. Over $180k. They could NEVER get away with charging $180k for a cure...and you don't have to take a cure for 4-5 years, the average amount of time someone is on an AIDS treatment plan. I can't say for sure that pharmacos don't really WANT a cure....but the lack of one and the presence of a 'treatment' DOES happen to make them a HUGE amount of cash. Then again, so does aspirin, which is made from materials costing about $.50/1000 finished tablets. Then, we pay $7 for 80 of those tablets. Any way you slice it, pharmaceuticals is the business to be in.
http://xkcd.com/386/