THEBUILDINGBLOCKSOFBIONICS

Nanobots:TheBuildingBlocksofBionics
AmandaCordero,HunterGalindo,andIsabellaTang
WestCareerandTechnicalAcademy

AuthorNote
AmandaM.Cordero,HunterR.Galindo,IsabellaG.Tang,BiomedicalSciences
Program,WestCareerandTechnicalAcademy.
CorrespondenceconcerningthisarticleshouldbeaddressedtoAmandaM.Cordero,
BiomedicalSciencesProgram,WestCareerandTechnicalAcademy,LasVegas,NV89135.
Contact:amandac780@westcta.ccsd.net


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Nanobots:TheBuildingBlocksofBionics
Thepurposeofthisprojectistorefineanalreadyexistingmedicalprocedureor
instrumentandfocusonimprovingitformoreadvanced,futurepurposes.Potentialapplications
ofnanobotsandnanotechnologyincludethedeliveryofmaterials,harnesschemicalenergies
aroundtheenvironment,selfassemblingintomoreadvancedstructures(Alexander&Gerhard,
2013).Thesizeandphysicalbehaviorofnanobotsaresimilartothatoflessadvancedcreatures
suchasbacteria.Advancesinthisfieldhaveyieldedresultsinmethodsofnanobotsbeingableto
identifyandlocatespecifiedtargetcells(Benaron&Parachikov,2008).AccordingtoBenaron
andParachikov,thecirculatedcellcountisperformedtodeterminethepresence,absence,
concentrationorcountofthetargetcell.Usingtheideaofdetectionssystemsandmethodsfor
detectingtargetcellsinvivo(Benaron&Parachikov,2008),developingatechnologyof
nanobotsthatcandetectcertainailments,suchasbloodclots,willdefineanewtechnologicalera
andfurthertheadvancementoftechnologyinthefieldofmedicine.


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Description
PresentTechnology
Today,nanotechnologyisbeingusedasnanocomposites,nanocrystals,nanoparticlesand
othertypesoftechnology.Nanocompositesareamultiphase,solidmaterialwhere,inacertain
phases,structuresareinthenanoscalemeasure.ScientistsatPacificNorthwestNational
Laboratoryhavenowdevelopedacoatingprocessthatactuallylatchesontotoxicchemicalsin
water.Thesenanocompositeshavespongelikesilicathatallowsittoattachtotheharmful
chemicalsinthewater.Theimpactthispresenttechnologyhasontheenvironmentis
immeasurableoilspillsandotherharmfulchemicaldisasterscanbecleanedupinamore
efficientandlessharmfulmanner.Thesenanocompositesarealsoabletoattachtometalslike
mercuryandlead(NanotechnologyNow,2012).
Ananocrystalisacrystallineparticlewithatleastonedimensionmeasuringlessthan
1000nanometers(Whatisnanocrystal?n.d.).Nanocrystalshavebeenusedinthe
manufacturingareaofbusinessandcanactasfiltersthatconvertcrudeoiltodieselfuel.Certain
typesofnanocrystals,suchasTitaniananocrystals,canactuallybesuspendedinliquidformand
appliedtosurfacesthismakesitpossibletopaintasolarpanelorotherstructuresontoa
surface(Whatisnanocrystal?n.d.).Futureusesforthenanocrystalincludetheproductionof
hydrogen,medicalimaging,drugmanufacturing,proteinanalysis,andillumination.
NanoparticlessuchasthestainrepellantsthatusesaprocessdevelopedbyNanoTex,
thatcoatseachsmallfiberofthearticleofclothingwithsomethingcallednanowhiskers.
Nanowhiskersaremadeofcrystallinematerialswithdistinctcrystalproperties.Today,this
technologyisusedineverydayhouseholditemssuchasdrycleaners,detergents,cleaning


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products,andevenwindowcoveringmarkers(NanotechnologyNow,2012).Thesearejustsome
typesofthetechnologydevelopedbysomeleadingnanotechnologyspecializedcompanies.
History
Thehistoryofnanotechnologyandhowitemergedisconvolutedandunclear.
Thetimespanofthedevelopmentofnanotechnologyisalsoconfusing,andtherearemany
theoriesoftheoriginofnanotechnology(Tolochko,n.d.).However,onethingremainsclear:the
definitionofnanotechnology,whichisacontrollablewaynotonlytocreatenanomaterialsbut
alsotooperatethem(Tolochko,n.d.).
TheconceptofnanotechnologywasoriginallymentionedinTheresPlentyof
RoomattheBottom.ThiswasatalkgivenbyaphysicistnamedRichardFeynmanon
December29,1959.Feynmanoriginallyproposedanideawhereindividualatomscouldbe
manipulatedalongwithmolecules.ATokyoScienceUniversityprofessornamedNorio
Taniguchidefinedthetermnanotechnology.Dr.K.EricDrexlerproposedthebasicideafor
thedefinitionofnanotechnology(WordPress,n.d.).Formsofnanotechnologyenabledmaterial
includeproductsthatare:carbonnanotubes,nanocompositestructuresornanoparticles
(WordPress,n.d.).
Thisfieldoftechnologyhascontinuedtoexpandandimprovetremendously.Scientists
trainedinthisfieldarenowabletomanipulateindividualatomsandmoleculesthroughtheuse
ofnanotechnology.Beingabletomanipulateindividualmolecules,atoms,andothermaterials
nowgivescientistsaprecisiontheydidnthavewhennanotechnologywasstillanewfield.
FutureTechnology


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Intwentyyears,thedevelopmentofthelimitedknowledgeofcurrentnanotechnology
willbepossible.Nanotechnologytodayfocusesoncreatingnanoparticles,whicharesimpler
structuresmadetodeliverdrugsand/oradvantageouspropertiestospecificcellshowever,to
builduponthis,producingnanobotsornanoparticlesthatareabletonotonlydetectbutalso
begintreatmentonseriousmedicalailments,suchasagrowingtumororalargebloodclotthat's
causingproblems,isthegoal.Inordertoaccomplishsuchafeat,takingtheideaofnanoparticles
toawholenewlevelandcreatingsomethinggreaterbuiltontheprinciplesofnanoparticleswill
beessentialinsteadofstickingwithtodaysnanotechnologythatonlyallowsforsimpletasksto
becarriedout.Thetechnologyforeseenwillbeadevicecapableoftakingtheordersofseparate
programmedprocedures.Essentially,thesetechnologiescombinetheabilitiesofhundredsof
nanoparticlesandformthosecapabilitiesintoonesinglenanobot.
ThefuturetechnologyisapodNANOSisintendedtobespherical,butalsocarryan
ovalinedynamic,thusmakingitmoreefficienttotravelthroughoutthebody.NANOSwillhave
somewidthtoit,butwillremainslimenoughtopreventgettingcaughtupinanybodystructure
(i.e.narrow/convolutedopeningsandclosings).Thenanobotwillbelightinweightandwillstill
needtobeviewedunderamicroscopetobeseeninfull.However,becauseofitscomplexity,it
willbelargercomparedtoasinglenanoparticle.NANOSwillhaveotherphysicalattributesto
maketaskssimplersuchastheadditionofataillikepropellertoassistintheprospectofquick
transport,alongwithpincherarmstohelpinanchoringitselfwithintheareainneedstobein
foritsprogrammedtask.Alongwithitsphysicalabilities,NANOSwillalsohaveaninternal
chipspeciallyprogrammedforacertaintask,whetherthatdbefindingatumor,ordislodginga


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bloodclotthischipwillbeinsertableandremovableforthesakeofkeepingNANOS'scentral
deviceuniversal.
Asfarasabidingbycurrentscientificprinciplesgo,payingextraattentiontothe
PrecautionaryPrincipleisextremelyimportant.Theprinciplestates:Whenanactivityraises
threatsofharmtohumanhealthortheenvironment,precautionarymeasuresshouldbetaken
evenifsomecauseandeffectrelationshipsarenotfullyestablishedscientifically(Down,2012).
Thisprinciplemustbedirectlyappliedtotheresearchasthefullcapabilitiesofnanotechnology
arenotfullyunderstoodandcanbesafelythoughtofaslikelytobeharmfultohumanhealthand
potentiallytheenvironmentduringitsbeginningstages.Currentresearchsuggeststhatthe
varyingscalesofnanomaterialtoxicitycannotbereliablypredicted,buthaveraisedenough
concerntojustifyfurthertestingandpreventativecare.Sincesuchprecautionarystepsmustbe
takenunderthisprinciple,theprinciplesuggeststhatregulationsofharsh,andcomprehensive
premarketingsafetyassessmentsmustensuebeforeembarkingontheuniquepropertiesthat
nanomaterialpossess.
Breakthroughs
Inorderforadvancednanomaterialtechnology(i.e.nanobots)tobecomeareality,there
ismuchtobestudiedandtestedonthesubject.Truthbeingthatcurrentdayscientistshaveonly
beguntoscratchthesurfaceofunderstandingexactlywhatitisandhowitcouldbepotentially
usedfor,asfarasfuturemedicaltechnologygoes.Futuretechnologydoesntexisttodaybecause
simplynotenoughisknownaboutthecurrenttechnologyresearchersarestillnotcompletely
certainhownanoparticlesarestructuredandexactlyhowtheyfunction.Ifnanobotswereto
advancemoreinthefuture,scientistswouldhavetobecertainonmanyaspectsofthe


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technologypresenttodaysuchasenvironmentalfateandbehaviors.Environmentalfateand
behaviourincludehowthetechnologyactsnaturallywithintheenvironment,andifthat
existencedamagestheenvironmentseverely.Humanandenvironmentaltoxicity:harmcausedto
thehumanbodyandenvironmentviaunpredictabletoxicityandreactivitylevels,methodsfor
generalassessment,andlastly,commercialandindustrialrelatedaspects:runningthroughthe
regulationsdemandedbytheprecautionaryprinciple,premarketingtestingandassessments.Not
onlyarethespecificsofthetechnologyunknownyettoscientists,butalsothemethodsinwhich
theywouldobtainthatinformationremainsmuddledaswell.
Iftheteamwasgoingtotakeonthebreakthroughofdeterminingthetoxicitylevelsand
effectsonthehumanbodyandenvironment,wewouldneedaspacious,andsecludedtesting
environmenttominimizethepotentialdamagethatmaybecaused.Plotsoflandtospecifically
teston,alongwithhumansubjectswillingtobeexposednanomaterialswiththenotionthatthey
maybeseverelyharmedduringtrialsthroughoutthisprocess(maybepaidvaryingsums
dependingonthetypeoftestingtheychoosetobeapartof)willbeneeded.Sincetheteamwould
beawarethatthemaineffectofnanomaterialsisthevaryinglevelsoftoxicitytoxicity
measurementswilloccurswithinregularintervalsusingthedoseresponserelationship
assessment.Thismethoddescribesthechangesineffectonanorganismcausedbydiffering
levelsofexposuretoastressor(usuallyachemical)afteracertainexposuretime.Datacollection
oftoxicityonboththehumanandenvironmentwillcontinueuntilacertaintrendcanbefound
withintheresearch.
DesignProcess


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DuringtheprocessofdevelopingNANOS,threedifferentfeatureswereevaluated:the
size,theshape,andtheefficiency.Theshapeofthistechnologyiscriticalforasmooth,easy
accessintothehumanbody.Thetypicalnanobotcurrentlyrangesfrom0.1to10micrometers.
9
Someprototypesareaimingfor10
micrometers,andtoputthisintocomparison,astrandof
5
4
hairhasanaveragewidthof10
mand10
m(10mand100m).
TheNANOSwillaimtobe
6
10
within
10
to10
tohelpeasetheinsertionofthenanobotforpatients.Thesmallerthesize,the

smallerthechancesoftheNANOS

togetcaughtinanyotherbodystructureotherthanits
assigned

isultimatelyslim.ThesizehastobesmallenoughfortheNANOS

totravelinsideour
circulatorysystem,yetithastobebigenoughthatwillpreventthelosingofthenanobot.Putting
thisintoconsideration,theNANOS

alsohastobelargeenoughandheavyenoughtowhereit
willnotbeeasilyswayedbythecirculationofhumanblood.Theaveragebloodcelltravelsin
ourbodiesataspeedof10mph,makingaroundtripevery60seconds,thereforeNANOSwill
receiveahighdensityinasmallpodtogoagainstthenaturalcurrentofthebloodflow.
Theoriginalshapethatwasthoughtofbutthenrejectedwasasphere.Itwasrejected
becauseasphereisaroundobjectthatmayresultinalesserspeedofenteringthehumanbody
andshiftingaroundinthecirculatorysystem.Thesphericalshapewasthenadvancedtoapod
shapethathasanarrowandvlikeshapeatthefronttopmimickingthevformationofbirdsfor
thebestconservationofenergybytakingadvantageoftheupwashvortexfields.The
vformationwillalsoallowaneasierinsertiontothehumanbody.Consequencesofthesphere
includethebindingofnanobottoothersiteslikeneurotransmitters.
ThepurposeofthetheNANOS

istodiminishanyunwantedorharmfulobjectsinthe
humanbodylikeagrowingtumororabloodclot,therefore,therehastohavesomethingthat


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attacksorhangsontothesaidtarget.Theadditionofhooks,legs,orpincherswasrejected
duetotheconsequencesofthehookspossiblygettingcaughtinotherbodilystructuresand
slicingorcuttingapartmembranesoftheveins,arteries,brainmatter,etc.Inorderforthe
NANOS

tobeabletofindthecorrectobjecttoattack,specificmemoryandidentificationchips
willbeinstalledwithinthepod.Thepodwillhaveaswitchthatallowsitselftounwindtoplace
chipsinside.Thechipswillhelpreadwhatobjectsitneedstofindanddiminish.Thepodwill
haveacompartmentthatactivesonlywhenthechipshaveidentifiedwhichobjecttodiminish
thepodwillreleasehooksthathelpbindtotheunwantedobject,andthechipswillprovidethe
properinstructionstodiminishthesaidobject.
Consequences
ConsequencesofNANOS

willhonestlybehigh.Thenanobotiscontrolledfromthe
outsideofthehumanbodythroughcomputersbyananimatedrepresentationthatmapsthe
humanbodyfromtheinside.TheinsertionoftheNANOS

isminimallyinvasive,butatthis
moment,thetraditionalneedleinsertsit.Intwentyyears,thegoalistoallowthepatientsto
swallowtheNANOSlikeanyothervitaminsupplementtoexcludethepainaltogether.
Dependingonthepatient,theirbloodmaybethickerormaygofasterthananticipated,
thereforecausingconsequencesthatmaybackfirethepurposeoftheNANOS.Ifthespeedisnot
uptoprocess,thentheNANOSmaybecomebackedupinourcirculatorysystemcausingmore
clotsthanbefore.Theunwindingofthepoditselfandreleasingthehookstoattackthetargetsite
mayhavecomplicationsintheunwindingprocess.Thehooksusedtodiminishtheunwanted
objectinthehumanbodymaystabdirectlythroughtheobjectandcausethecellstodisperse
throughouttheentirebodyinsteadofjustexistingatthatspecificareaofthebody.TheNANOS


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10

isbuiltforittoselfdestructalongwiththeunwantedobject,buttheprocessofselfdestructmay
haywireandcausemisfireswithinthebody.UntiltheNANOSisactuallyinsideahumanbody,
theconsequencesremainunclearandinfinite.


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11

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