The Quantum Revolution - [Physicist and Futurist Michio] Kaku investigates the advances of quantum physics and the effects it could have on the average human life. Kaku looks at the work of science fiction writers and the way that many concepts conceived for entertainment could in fact become reality. Kaku also speculates about the effects that such technology may have on the future of the human species.
List of technologies:
High-temperature superconductivityReference: Visions of the Future.
Metamaterial
Carbon nanotube
Space elevator
Nuclear fusion
Nanotechnology
Nanorobotics
Molecular assembler
Quantum teleportation
My notes
That elusive, remarkable object was the atom. If you understand the atom, you understand the universe. We begin to control atoms. Control the very stuff of the universe: matter itself.
How are we going to use this power?
Quantum Theory. It underlies the architecture of the 20th century (i.e., technology inventions). Einstein had difficulty wrapping his head around Quantum Theory.
Superconductivity. Meissner Effect, applied for transportation and used for flying, perhaps. Anti-gravity may rely on magnetism.
Scientists can create a material that shouldn't exist in nature. It all depends with how light interacts with the atoms. David Smith and his team are creating meta-materials, such as an invisibility cloak. It functions in like a science fiction way, except of course this is as real as real can be. We're looking into the future.
The first applications will be for military stealth.
Concrete and steel reshaped our city (rf. Brooklyn Bridge). Carbon nanotubes promise to replace steel, and simply be the size of a strand of hair. Their atoms have the strength of diamonds, but have the flexibility of fiber. Carbon comes from gas.
Nanotubes, for unsmashable cars, uncollapsable buildings, ultralight jet planes, perhaps even a highway into space.
Anything that can be done, which doesn't violate the laws of physics, is eventually doable via engineering.
Space elevator allows us to overcome the first few hundred miles of gravity, without rocket fuel (used for 50 years). Cheap and easy access to space.
Planets, stars, and the galaxy itself are sources of energy. Earth is a type-zero civilization, that is, none of the above, because we're dependent on these sources of energy.
Everything we do requires energy, so conservation of energy is crucial. Fossil fuels are so scarce, nations fight for these.
Nuclear Fusion, find the point where it becomes self-sustaining. Marie-Line Mayoral works to replace nuclear plants, in order to avoid their safety risks.
Fusion energy may finally become a reality, perhaps by 2030. Fusion is a way of producing electricity in a safer, cheaper way.
Energy that is safer, cleaner, cheaper, and more abundant: Replace fossil fuels, control global warming, feed an expanding population, meet the needs of a growing world.
Nanotechnology can re-create reality and nature. Mother Nature creates life out of raw materials.
Plant proteins, for solar power. Plants have this amazing ability to collect sunlight via photosynthesis. Hijack it, use it for our purpose, and thereby harness sunlight.
Develop new medical tools, for example, for targeting tumors and delivering drugs there via computer control. Microchip to store intelligence. Bacteria propel the microchip.
Joel Garreau, Radical Evolution. Destroy cancer, increase longevity.
The concern is building weapons from nanotechnology, for which defense is difficult. You can guarantee that it will fall into the wrong hands. So our best bet is to create safeguards.
The possibility of nanotechnology outweighs the perceived risks.
Build objects from the atom up à la nanotechnology. Personal fabricator, like a desktop PC. Ray Kurzweil: We can create physical products from information and perhaps simply from request. Socially, we can eliminate status or authority or wealth.
Teleportation, the ultimate mastery over matter. It exists. Anton Zeilinger: transporting photons from one prism to another, and it can happen over any distance. Quantum entanglement, mysterious bond between photons. Change one, and you change the other automatically.
Teleportation of humans will prompt questions, such as Who is me? What am I made of? What does it mean to be human?
Remarkable things are happening.
The Human Genome Project. It was made possible, in large measure because the price of computing kept dropping.
Exponential growth is quite phenomenal.
The current generation holds the future of the Earth in their hands.
Thank you for reading, and let me know what you think!
Ron Villejo, PhD
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