Thursday, June 23, 2005
When Is A Molecule A Particle
I know, you probably don't care, but this is kind of interesting to a chemistry nerd like me. From LiveScience
The reason I am fascinated by this is that both the LiveScience and the journal articles use engineering terms to describe how this is done, but it is essentially very sophisticated chemical synthesis. There are "molecules" larger than these "structures."
I'm wondering where the line between science and engineering is being drawn these days. And I wondering if there is anybody that will read this to it's conclusion.
Scientists who have created the smallest precisely crafted organic particles are billing their breakthrough as a potential boon to medicine and technology.I went and checked the article from the Journal of the American Chemical Society. (here's the abstract) They're using techniques that are similar to semi-conductor manufacture.
The tiny structures could one day be used as vehicles for delivering drugs or genes into the human body or perhaps imaging you from the inside-out, the researchers said today. They might also find uses in electronics.
The reason I am fascinated by this is that both the LiveScience and the journal articles use engineering terms to describe how this is done, but it is essentially very sophisticated chemical synthesis. There are "molecules" larger than these "structures."
I'm wondering where the line between science and engineering is being drawn these days. And I wondering if there is anybody that will read this to it's conclusion.
