

The Coming Era of Self-Assembly Using Microfluidic Devices - feuerbach40
http://www.technologyreview.com/view/531121/the-coming-era-of-self-assembly-using-microfluidic-devices/

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Terr_
Reminds me of a Deus Ex datacube entry:

> Universal Constructor: Theory, Principles, and Practice by Wayne Yin

> ...and thus arose the need for a more generalized theory encompassing a
> "Universal Constructor" (UC) that would be able to handle such arbitrarily
> complex nanoscale design problems. Unlike the simple atom by atom nanotech
> constructors common today, a UC would combine millions upon millions of
> atoms in a parallel process that could produce materials or mechanisms of
> unmatched intricacy on a scale currently not possible even with the best
> nanoscale foundry.

> One of the most obvious applications of a UC -- if its construction were
> ever practical -- would be the genetic manipulation of lifeforms at the
> atomic level to cure disease, correct congenial defects, or expand their
> capabilities in beneficial ways. Theoretically, if an "intelligent," real-
> time control program were developed for the UC, then autonomous, artificial
> nanoscale organisms could be assembled. Careful design could create
> organisms that might actually exist in "symbiosis" with other life.

> However, a UC also creates the tangible threat of a "gray goo" scenario: the
> design of an organism that is so evolutionarily advanced as to overwhelm the
> current ecosystem...

~~~
caycep
I have to say...these text snippets (and also the Mass Effect codex entries)
show a lot of effort into the thinking behind the back stories of these games.
I would say I enjoyed reading those as much as the damn game itself.

