Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!nanotech From: arc!steve@apple.com (Steve Savitzky) Newsgroups: sci.nanotech Subject: Re: First Steps to Self Sufficiency Message-ID: Date: 7 Dec 90 08:46:27 GMT Sender: nanotech@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: Advansoft Research Corp, Santa Clara, CA Lines: 51 Approved: nanotech@aramis.rutgers.edu In article autodesk!peb@uunet.uu.net (Paul Baclaski) writes: In article , ems%nanotech@princeton.edu writes: > CLOTHING > >Wasn't there once a clothing industry? The clothing industry would evolve into a software industry. Most clothing making is computer controlled now and having a clothing maker in your home means you could simple download the software instead of going to the store (although you will want to preview the stuff before buying it). Note that this assumes that having a clothing maker in your home is economically viable. The main advantage of having it in your home would be that transportation/distribution costs would be saved. You must assume that the raw materials are available to make this work. The clothing industry goes away completely. Clothing would be made of intelligent fibers that can change their color, weave, and general configuration on command. You might put on or take off more fibers for different effects, but a rather small supply would be enough for anyone. You'd have to feed them, of course. > SHELTER > "Housing starts" drop to nearly zero, of course. [zoning: omitted] Of course, one could take matters into one's own hands with a cyberspace home--it might look simple in reality, but with cyberspace clothing, it is anything you want. (E.g., The Futurlogical Congress, by Stanslaw Lem). Brilliant bricks. -- \ --Steve Savitzky-- \ ADVANsoft Research Corp \ REAL hackers use an AXE! \ \ steve@advansoft.COM \ 4301 Great America Pkwy \ #include \ \ arc!steve@apple.COM \ Santa Clara, CA 95954 \ 408-727-3357 \ \__ steve@arc.UUCP _________________________________________________________ [This set of exchanges points out that we need to start being more precise about what stage of development of the technology we are talking about. Technologically, we could build a clothes-making machine right now; nanotech makes it economical. We could not build intelligent fibers now, at any price; there is a significant difference in kind between the two capabilities. Nanotechnology is not going to be a technological plateau--it's going to be steeper than where we're standing now! --JoSH]