Imagine a world where no one died from cancer....

        This could be our world. Maybe not within our lifetimes, but maybe our grandchildrens', or great-grandchildrens'. Through nanotechnology, we can find a way to possibly cure patients suffering from terminal illnesses like cancer, Parkinson's disease, and more, without the undesirable side-effects of chemotherapy and other presently standing treatments.

      Nanotechnology is a field of science in which researchers and nanoengineers create and use materials and devices on molecular level, in nano-scale. To get the picture of exactly how big, or small for that matter, a nanometer (nm) is…a head of a pin that is 1 millimeter in diameter is 1,000,000 nanometers. A red blood cell that is 2.5 micrometers is 2,500 nanometers (1). 

     Although the field of nanotechnology holds so many promises, there lies a major problem: engineering at the nanoscale. The fact that these particles are so small makes them so difficult to manipulate and create. 

     Being a relatively new field, nanotechnology is still very much under development. Even though researchers have predictions for the field, like finding cures for cancer and discovering treatments to live longer, it will most likely take another few decades before any drastic breakthrough is made. In the meanwhile, however, small uses of nanotechnology are being made in basic consumer products, like cosmetics, scratch-resistant coatings, and even tennis equipment (1). 

Play a Game!

Click the picture above to play a game and learn about engineering nanoparticles in a lab! (1). 

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