Re: MEDIA: Nanotechnology comment from Netscape's Andreessen
Chris Hind (chind@juno.com)
Tue, 26 Nov 1996 11:40:10 -0800
>As for the way far out, he has plenty to say about it. One of his favorite
>novels is The Diamond Age, by Neal Stephenson. Its plot is built around
>nanotechnology, the science of manipulating individual atoms to build
>devices and circuits. Although nanotechnology is being taken more and more
>seriously, its possibilities seem positively chimerical. At its extreme,
>nanotechnology would allow us to create stuff--anything from a chair to a
>blimp--out of practically nothing. "So many of the things people do are
>going to be unnecessary when matter can be rearranged arbitrarily," says
>Andreessen. "I mean, this gets into all kinds of bizarre stuff.
>Immortality. There's no fundamental reason why the breakdown of cell
>structures is inevitable."
>
>"There's no reason death should happen," he rushes on. "There's no reason
>decay shouldn't be totally repairable. There's no reason you shouldn't be
>able to design exactly the body you want."
Maybe we should contact Marc somehow and introduce him to the extropians?
This would increase the familiarity and public awareness of the group. He'd
be a valuable asset as well as a superior forward thinker. Also it makes me
wonder if Ross Perot invested in that nano company due to the possibility
for immortality. Many wealthy successful people will do that if the're smart.