Path: utzoo!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!nanotech From: markb@agora.rain.com (Mark Biggar) Newsgroups: sci.nanotech Subject: Re: Is this stuff for real? Keywords: reality nanotech questions Message-ID: Date: 12 Mar 91 23:20:47 GMT Sender: nanotech@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: Open Communications Forum Lines: 19 Approved: nanotech@aramis.rutgers.edu I'm not very worried about a nano-machine mutating into grey goo. I'm much more worried about a nano-machine designed to destroy dioxins in the water supply mutating into a machine that goes after some very simular chemical in my cells that I need to stay alive. Small organic toxins can be very simular to other necessary chemicals, but just different enough to foul up the works. In fact that is usualy why they are toxic. Note that all you need is a possibly simple mutation in the sensory part of the nano-machine to get this problem. -- Mark Biggar markb@agora.rain.com [I think this is a much more well-founded concern than some others we've heard. It points out the *extreme* dangers in trying to do large-scale environmental engineering with nanotechnology. --JoSH]