Peter has authored the following posts:
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Magic Sand and Moses
My daughter Clem and I spent some time recently playing with “magic sand”: super-hydrophobic powder from Educational Innovations. It is a compelling demonstration, but we hadn’t many good ideas about applications. Just today, though, I saw that Oak Ridge National laboratory in the US have developed a new super-hydrophobic coating, which can be made cheaply [...]
Filed in Learning, Mol. Manufacturing, Nanomaterials | 12 May 2008 | no comments -
The iPod Nano is truly nano after all!
I’m often asked: “Is there nano in the iPod nano, or is it just a marketing ploy?”. I’ve been confident in myself that the circuitry, the memory, and the screen all contained nanostructured materials, but I’d privately wondered if these were important – did they make the device as distinctive and powerful as it [...]
Filed in Consumer Products, Electronics, Marketing, Public Awareness | 10 Oct 2007 | no comments -
Melbourne as a City of Science…leading with Nanotechnology
An article in the Melbourne Age on Saturday September 15 by Peter Yates, Chairman of the Australian Science Media Centre, painted an inspiring vision for Melbourne. The article highlighted the concentration of science and technology-based industry in Melbourne, and speculated that by 2030 the city might be as well known for its science as its [...]
Filed in Learning, Public Awareness, Social Impacts | 24 Sep 2007 | no comments -
A Human Side of Nanotech
Australia’s public TV network, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) ran a story in their Australian Story segment on Monday evening (6th August) called “For the Holy Grail”. This is a remarkable and very personal story about a pair of scientists working on veterinary diseases who were affected by the loss of colleagues to cancer, [...]
Filed in Biotechnology, Health, Public Awareness, Social Impacts | 09 Aug 2007 | no comments -
A New Forum for Nanotech Futures
Over the last three years Bridge8 has become an integral part of NanoVic’s activities, bringing new perspectives on the future of nanotechnology in our society, based on the expertise of Dr Kristin Alford. This has shaped our thinking about fundamental issues such as the role of public debate in directing a technology, the importance of [...]
Filed in Marketing, People Profiles, Public Awareness, Social Impacts | 20 Jun 2007 | one comment -
Spider Silk as Armour
I was forwarded the attached article on the extraordinary strength of spider silk (a nanostructure), and the attempts being made to copy this. Apparently spider silk is ten times stronger than Kevlar! To me the exciting – and humbling – aspect is that these wonderful materials are designed and made by natural processes, incredibly efficiently. Even [...]
Filed in Consumer Products, Marketing, Nanomaterials | 04 Jun 2007 | no comments -
Fear of Falling - Dramatic Nanotechnology!
Over the last week Melbourne papers have carried stories about the new cube called ‘The Edge’ on the 88th Floor of the Eureka Towers. The trick to this is the switchable glass developed by innovative manufacturer iGlass from Ballarat. The switchable glass - lower-cost and wider than others produced internationally - changes from opaque to transparent at [...]
Filed in Consumer Products, Marketing, Nanomaterials, The Arts | 04 May 2007 | no comments -
The Nanotechnology Yacht
We are always looking out for new ways to show the usage and benefits of advanced materials. The PR group for the NanoTX’06 has a new one, unveiled at the event held at the Dallas Convention Center September 26-28. NanoTX’06 is claimed to be the largest nanotechnology conference in the world and the largest [...]
Filed in Consumer Products, Marketing | 02 Oct 2006 | one comment -
National Taskforce Outcomes
The National Nanotechnology Strategy Taskforce has just released its “Report on Options for a National Nanotechnology Strategy” paper. While this has been a long time coming, I think they have delivered a good result. They have identified the critical role of government in addressing immediate issues of OH&S, community awareness, metrology and standards, and international [...]
Filed in Government, Social Impacts | 26 Sep 2006 | one comment -
Mike Treder Visit
We were fortunate to have Mike Treder, co-founder of the New York-based Centre for Responsible Nanotechnology (CRN), visiting Melbourne, Sydney, and Canberra last week. Mike spoke to public audiences and small groups, and presented a challenging view of the disruption potentially caused by a revolutionary manufacturing advance such as Molecular Manufacturing. Whether or not Molecular [...]
Filed in Mol. Manufacturing, People Profiles, Social Impacts | 25 Sep 2006 | no comments