Drexlerian

To the nonscientist, Drexler s vision of replicators, assemblers, and nanocomputers has considerable appeal. It has inspired, for example, a number of science fiction books based on the premise that nanodevices will eventually be constructed and will have a significant impact on the world of tomorrow. Many scientists reject this vision, however, arguing that technical constraints make the construction of Drexlerian devices highly improbable, if not impossible. 

Drexler finally answered Smalley s arguments two years later in an exchange with the Nobel laureate in the "Point-Counterpoint column of Chemical and Engineering News. The four letters that made up that column, two by Drexler to Smalley and two by Smalley to Drexler, provide a succinct, if highly technical, summary of the arguments as to why Drexlerian nanodevices are or... 

As sometimes happens, those most interested in this question have been science fiction writers. In 1995, for example, Neil Stephenson wrote a novel called The Diamond Age describing a world in which Drexlerian nanodevices were part of one s daily existence. One function for which they were used by the government was as invisible spies that followed citizens wherever they went, going so far in some cases as to enter their bodies to conduct their spying functions. 

While some scientists continue to debate how realistic Drexlerian nanotechnology is, a far greater number are moving ahead with research on techniques and devices at the nanometer level. Over the past two decades, it has become abundantly clear that whether or not the world ever sees an assembler or a replicator, it will certainly see a host of machines the size of atomic and molecular clusters. 

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