Right now, diode lasers are among the most efficient (if not the most efficient) light emitters available. I'm guessing the winner, if there is one, will involve a laser or three plus diffusers/despeckling to get general lighting.
Of course, getting cost down is another thing entirely.
Just about the only technology currently being developed that might fit the bill anytime soon would be metamaterial lensing.
Photoresist, of course, would be a real problem (assuming, as you say, that masking is involved). Many (most?) photoresists are organic have somewhat complex molecular structure, so trying to use existing materials would be difficult, to say the least.
One of the real flaws in his reasoning is an apparent assumption that there's only one "Great Filter". I would argue that there's no reason to assume this -- in fact, his own discussion points to the fact that there are quite a few improbable events that would have to happen for life to have evolved to the intelligence stage.
A number of these factors are actually common between Earth and Mars, so I certainly wouldn't assume disaster is in our future if real evidence of life (even relatively advanced life) is found on Mars.
Still, a takeaway lesson from his piece is that intelligent life seems, to all observation, to be a pretty rare thing, and there is good reason to think our civilization (even species) could one day destroy itself. Perhaps that self-knowledge could serve us in good stead.
This technology (and other similar developments using graphene/carbon) seems very promising. And I'm glad they could solve one part of the fabrication process using steps that are already in use (etching).
However, there remains another issue when using these devices to construct circuits: patterning. Right now, that's generally done with lithography, and though several ideas are being worked on, we simply cannot yet use lithography to pattern devices anywhere near this small.
Don't get me wrong: it's good that such technology is out there waiting for us once the patterning tech catches up. But until that happens, this stuff will likely remain in the lab.
we are yet to solve the fabrication and addressing problems
So, unfortunately, this breakthrough does not enable them to store 500 terabytes in one square inch.
Making things ridiculously small is a good first step, but without the ability to fabricate huge numbers of them side by side in an organized and connected fashion, it remains just that.
I'm encouraged that lots is being done with carbon; it seems this area is receiving more and more focus, which will hopefully lead to solving some of the fabrication issues.
You only get the super high performance if you use single mode glass fiber. And that stuff is very expensive and complicated to work with. The end equipment is also quite expensive. The single mode glass fiber itself is cheap thou..
And therein lies the rub.
A 25 meter run of single-mode, duplex fiber pre-terminated with LC connectors (some of the more expensive connectors out there) starts at about $1 per meter. Certainly more expensive than a similar length of Cat5e pre-terminated with nice molded connectors, but not outlandish by any means.
The whole problem, as I see it, is the end equipment. I'm not sure how cranking out cheap plastic optical fiber will address that problem.
Hmmm...for in-home runs, the cost of fiber isn't all that outlandish already. 25 meters of singlemode, duplex fiber terminated both ends by LC connectors starts at about $1/meter. True, that's about three times the price of bulk Cat5e, but it's still not exclusively the plaything of millionaires.
The thing about this article that I think misses the point somewhat is that it's the stuff you connect to the ends of fiber that costs so darned much. Case in point: HDMI extenders that use fiber as the medium. You'll spend over $500 for one link, and that cost isn't poured into the fiber itself.
Not to detract from a truly excellent comment, but I did want to remark on one thing...
When people started getting used to the idea of "I have nothing to hide". You do. Everyone does. I have skeletons in my closet, and I want them to stay there.
I'm not sure most people honestly think they have nothing to hide. They've been trained, however, to think that failure to act like one has nothing to hide will reveal what they have to hide.
I think it's likely a result of a culture obsessed with cop fantasy shows in which the cops can do pretty much anything they want to solve the crime, justified by depictions of the people the fantasy cops zero in on as nearly always guilty.
Ya know, it wasn't Ewoks per se for me, but ROTJ was definitely when the goofy, illusion-breaking "humor" started to wreck things. That "Chewbacca does tarzan" moment is still seared in my memory (and it was such a wonderful moment that it had to be reprised in ROTS).
The thing that I've never understood is how ANH and ESB escaped falling victim to the same thing.
To be clear, the fact that the F-15 hasn't faced a foe on equal terms, despite the fact that it's obviously faced many foes, is supportive of the idea that American engineering is top notch (yes, pilot training certainly plays an important role, but it's obviously not the whole story).
In fact, I'm not sure what could be more supportive of that assertion.
Understand that I'm not bad mouthing it, because it's a beautiful and effective aircraft. I just don't think it's very fair to say it's never been shot down and use that as an example of how great American engineering is, when it's never faced a foe on equal terms.
Heh...in a sense, the fact that "it's never faced a foe on equal terms" is itself a testament to American engineering:) So I'm not sure that caveat is actually at odds with the original assertion.
What Mr. Kerr seems to miss is that the reason for government being fundamentally different than private companies is checks and balances.
Private companies answer only to a limited number of customers; government (in theory) answers to all the voting population.
Of course, when oversight (the checks and balances) is removed, government no longer answers to the people, and the potential for harm is exponentially greater, simply because the amount of potential power is greater.
Government CAN be on the side of the angels. But without checks such as anonymity, it can be democracy and freedom's worst enemy.
Indeed, what's the big deal? You might ask Microsoft that, since it's a fairly safe bet they actually bribed Nigerian government officials to take their operating systems.
Sounds to me like Microsoft acknowledged it was a big deal by their actions. Why do you suppose they did that?
Slashdot Mirror
but $20 million is pretty good motivation.
Exactly. That's what I was thinking of when I said "a laser or three". Or perhaps even more.
I would think using a UV laser plus phosphor to get white light, for example, would be less efficient than combining red, green and blue.
Could be based on a calculation of efficiency needed to reduce petroleum consumption a certain amount.
Right now, diode lasers are among the most efficient (if not the most efficient) light emitters available. I'm guessing the winner, if there is one, will involve a laser or three plus diffusers/despeckling to get general lighting.
Of course, getting cost down is another thing entirely.
Just about the only technology currently being developed that might fit the bill anytime soon would be metamaterial lensing.
Photoresist, of course, would be a real problem (assuming, as you say, that masking is involved). Many (most?) photoresists are organic have somewhat complex molecular structure, so trying to use existing materials would be difficult, to say the least.
One of the real flaws in his reasoning is an apparent assumption that there's only one "Great Filter". I would argue that there's no reason to assume this -- in fact, his own discussion points to the fact that there are quite a few improbable events that would have to happen for life to have evolved to the intelligence stage.
A number of these factors are actually common between Earth and Mars, so I certainly wouldn't assume disaster is in our future if real evidence of life (even relatively advanced life) is found on Mars.
Still, a takeaway lesson from his piece is that intelligent life seems, to all observation, to be a pretty rare thing, and there is good reason to think our civilization (even species) could one day destroy itself. Perhaps that self-knowledge could serve us in good stead.
I suppose shielding is always an option.
For that matter: how vulnerable is the graphene crystalline structure to radiation damage? Carbon bonds can be among the strongest in nature.
This technology (and other similar developments using graphene/carbon) seems very promising. And I'm glad they could solve one part of the fabrication process using steps that are already in use (etching).
However, there remains another issue when using these devices to construct circuits: patterning. Right now, that's generally done with lithography, and though several ideas are being worked on, we simply cannot yet use lithography to pattern devices anywhere near this small.
Don't get me wrong: it's good that such technology is out there waiting for us once the patterning tech catches up. But until that happens, this stuff will likely remain in the lab.
So, unfortunately, this breakthrough does not enable them to store 500 terabytes in one square inch.
Making things ridiculously small is a good first step, but without the ability to fabricate huge numbers of them side by side in an organized and connected fashion, it remains just that.
I'm encouraged that lots is being done with carbon; it seems this area is receiving more and more focus, which will hopefully lead to solving some of the fabrication issues.
I'd also like to know if RIAA might face any penalties for lying in their statements to the court. Does this count as perjury?
And therein lies the rub.
A 25 meter run of single-mode, duplex fiber pre-terminated with LC connectors (some of the more expensive connectors out there) starts at about $1 per meter. Certainly more expensive than a similar length of Cat5e pre-terminated with nice molded connectors, but not outlandish by any means.
The whole problem, as I see it, is the end equipment. I'm not sure how cranking out cheap plastic optical fiber will address that problem.
Minor correction: Cat5e can be had for perhaps 1/6 the cost of fiber with LC connectors, not 1/3. Even so.
Hmmm...for in-home runs, the cost of fiber isn't all that outlandish already. 25 meters of singlemode, duplex fiber terminated both ends by LC connectors starts at about $1/meter. True, that's about three times the price of bulk Cat5e, but it's still not exclusively the plaything of millionaires.
The thing about this article that I think misses the point somewhat is that it's the stuff you connect to the ends of fiber that costs so darned much. Case in point: HDMI extenders that use fiber as the medium. You'll spend over $500 for one link, and that cost isn't poured into the fiber itself.
I'm not sure most people honestly think they have nothing to hide. They've been trained, however, to think that failure to act like one has nothing to hide will reveal what they have to hide.
I think it's likely a result of a culture obsessed with cop fantasy shows in which the cops can do pretty much anything they want to solve the crime, justified by depictions of the people the fantasy cops zero in on as nearly always guilty.
Proton Packs are right around the corner.
Just don't cross the streams, of course.
It wasn't the swing on a rope. It was the Tarzan yodel while doing it. I mean, WTF?
One of the most phenomenally stupid moments in moviemaking, IMHO.
Ya know, it wasn't Ewoks per se for me, but ROTJ was definitely when the goofy, illusion-breaking "humor" started to wreck things. That "Chewbacca does tarzan" moment is still seared in my memory (and it was such a wonderful moment that it had to be reprised in ROTS).
The thing that I've never understood is how ANH and ESB escaped falling victim to the same thing.
Call off the dogs, then talk to us about how you shouldn't have gone fox-hunting.
To be clear, the fact that the F-15 hasn't faced a foe on equal terms, despite the fact that it's obviously faced many foes, is supportive of the idea that American engineering is top notch (yes, pilot training certainly plays an important role, but it's obviously not the whole story).
In fact, I'm not sure what could be more supportive of that assertion.
Heh...in a sense, the fact that "it's never faced a foe on equal terms" is itself a testament to American engineering
Wow, that canard's old.
The US is a federal constitutional republic, and as such, the political system meets one of the definitions of "democracy".
"A constitutional republic is a form of liberal democracy..."
Sounds like Hell for you on two levels
A pity we didn't have our current copyright laws back then. I have no doubt the punishment for having been caught would have been even more severe :)
What Mr. Kerr seems to miss is that the reason for government being fundamentally different than private companies is checks and balances.
Private companies answer only to a limited number of customers; government (in theory) answers to all the voting population.
Of course, when oversight (the checks and balances) is removed, government no longer answers to the people, and the potential for harm is exponentially greater, simply because the amount of potential power is greater.
Government CAN be on the side of the angels. But without checks such as anonymity, it can be democracy and freedom's worst enemy.
It does?
I work in government, and I don't see my agency suddenly canceling contracts after a full bidding process, unless fraud is discovered.
Of course, it's also illegal for government workers to take bribes in order to seal a deal. Not to say it doesn't happen, but it's not kosher.
Indeed, what's the big deal? You might ask Microsoft that, since it's a fairly safe bet they actually bribed Nigerian government officials to take their operating systems.
Sounds to me like Microsoft acknowledged it was a big deal by their actions. Why do you suppose they did that?