Carbon Nanotubes Can Exist Safely Inside the Body, Help Treat Cancer

iandoh writes "A team of scientists at Stanford University has tracked the movement of carbon nanotubes through the digestive systems of mice. They've determined that the nanotubes do not exhibit any toxicity in the mice, and are safely expelled after delivering their payload. As a result, the study paves the way toward future applications of nanotubes in the treatment of illnesses. Previous research by the same team demonstrated that nanotubes can be used to fight cancer. The nanotubes do this in two ways. One method involves shining laser light on the nanotubes, which generates heat to destroy cancer cells. Another method involves attaching medicine to the nanotubes, which are able to accurately 'find' cancerous cells without impacting healthy cells."

Comments

Re:How common do you see this being?

[Bartab]

How many people 100 years ago would have thought it possible that the people of the future would have magic electric devices that allowed them to communicate through the air and all the way across the world?

The educated ones, certainly. Since Marconi made a transatlantic telegraph transmission in 1902. 106 years ago.

Re:How common do you see this being?

[Bartab]

No, more like the people who read a newspaper. In 1903, Pres. Teddy had a telegraphed conversation with the King of England. From Massachusetts. It was a big deal in the papers.

Re:How common do you see this being?

[Free_Meson]

Ah, and so everybody at the time envisioned cell phones, for example? I posit (and use as evidence the "far future tech" of communicators in Star Trek) that they did not. Yet cell phones are the logical evolution of that telegraphed conversation.

The first trans-Atlantic radio transmission was in 1901. The telephone (considered an improved telegraph) was invented in the 1870's. I don't think any literate westerner from 1908 would be surprised by our wireless telephony. They'd be far more surprised by our display devices.

Re:How common do you see this being?

[Free_Meson]

Showing them that it exists, and having them independently decide it would be possible absent any evidence are two completely different things. You've subtly changed the argument to make a point that was never in contention.

What exactly are you arguing then? That the form factor for a prop in a pulp 60's TV show demonstrates that people of the early 20th century had no idea that wireless communications were possible? Or was your comment just a complete non sequitur?

Voice over radio was first practiced in 1900. It actually existed, in practice, then. Wireless telecommunications have changed a great deal in the last 100 years, but those are differences in degree. I communicate voice over radio waves like Fessenden did ~107 years ago.

If you were to draw any conclusions from Star Trek, it's probably be that the show's creators had no insight into the impact of miniaturization or that the prop department preferred doctored household items to custom designed and manufactured props. It certainly doesn't tell you what the people of the 60's were thinking, much less the people of 1908. Much of the "far future" technology of star trek had nothing on the technology of (say) Dick Tracy. Were the relevant aspects of Star Trek technology any more advanced than that depicted on the Batman TV series airing contemporaneously?

Going back to the original question:

How many people 100 years ago would have thought it possible that the people of the future would have magic electric devices that allowed them to communicate through the air and all the way across the world?

Answer: All of them that could read. There's no need for you to apply your assumptions about people living 60 years after the fact based on a TV show to answer this question.