There is Plenty of Room at the Bottom
August 17, 2010
Richard Feynman’s groundbreaking lecture at Caltech in 1959, There is Plenty of Room at the Bottom, introduced the idea of nanotechnology. Since then we are as obsessed with miniaturizing our tools, as we are with growing tall. It seems strange that our tools keep getting smaller as we get bigger. Or do they ‘know’ something we cannot envision (yet)?
[…] possibilities that would be available if man was a lot smaller. The act of shrinking promotes the Feymanian awareness that our large size is keeping us from a much richer experience of reality, as well as […]
[…] The royal antelope is the smallest member of the deer family. It stands only 25cm tall and weighs a mere 3kg. It is closer in size to a pet rabbit than other antelopes. It may have evolved its small size as a result of dietary strategy. Antelopes are herbivores, and each species tends to eat specific types of foliage. A single tree can feed any number of antelope, as each different height lets each species eat leaves in its own range. The ancestors of royal antelopes ate lower leaves, and due to competition from other small antelopes eating leaves at the same level, it gradually evolved to become the incredibly tiny animal it is today. The royal antelope echoes Richard Feynman’s words: “There is plenty of room at the bottom.” […]