Engines of Creation

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the book on molecular nanotechnology by K. Eric Drexler. For the Joe Satriani album, see
Engines of Creation (Joe Satriani album)
.
Engines of Creation: The Coming Era of Nanotechnology
OCLC
22745218

Engines of Creation: The Coming Era of Nanotechnology is a 1986 molecular nanotechnology book written by K. Eric Drexler with a foreword by Marvin Minsky. An updated version was released in 2007. The book has been translated into Japanese, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, and Chinese.[1]

Synopsis

The book features nanotechnology, which

gray goo
scenario—one prediction of what might happen if molecular nanotechnology were used to build uncontrollable self-replicating machines.

Topics also include

limits to growth. He also promotes space advocacy, arguing that, because the universe is essentially infinite, life can escape the limits to growth defined by Earth. Drexler supports a form of the Fermi paradox
, arguing that as there is no evidence of alien civilizations, "Thus for now, and perhaps forever, we can make plans for our future without concern for limits imposed by other civilizations."

Nanosystems (1992)

Drexler's 1992 book, Nanosystems: molecular machinery, manufacturing, and computation

Nanosystems
addresses chemical, thermodynamic, and other constraints on nanotechnology and manufacturing.

Engines of Creation 2.0 (2007)

An updated version of the book, Engines of Creation 2.0,[3] which includes more recent papers and publications, was published as a free ebook on February 8, 2007.

Reception

The book and the theories it presents have been the subject of some controversy. Scientists such as

Nobel Laureate Richard Smalley and renowned chemist George M. Whitesides have been particularly critical. Smalley has engaged in open debate with Drexler
, attacking the views presented for what he considered both the dubious nature of the science behind them, and the misleading effect on the public's view of nanotechnology.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Engines of Creation - K. Eric Drexler : Cover". www.e-drexler.com. Archived from the original on 2006-06-10.
  2. ISBN 0-471-57518-6
  3. ^ Engines of Creation 2.0

External links

Part of a series of articles on
Molecular
nanotechnology
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