Nanotechnology paves way for new weapons

Nanotechnology has great potential in the fields of biotechnology and medicine. Bio-nanotechnology is concerned with molecular-scale properties and production of materials and devices including tissue and cellular engineering scaffolds, molecular motors and biomolecules for sensors and drug delivery. While bio-nanotechnological products are seen as around 10 years off, medical application is promising, with intense research being conducted in disease diagnosis, drug delivery and molecular imaging.

As with many technologies, the medical applications may be adapted for offensive purposes. Manipulation of biological and chemical agents using nanotechnologies could result in entirely new threats that might be harder to detect and counter than existing CBW.

Chemicals in nanoparticulate form currently account for only a tiny fraction of the world total (around 0.01 per cent) currently produced, although the market for nanoparticles is expected to increase during the next decade.

While the production of new chemical weapons is banned by the majority of nations, future techniques, depending on cost and ease of production, may be adopted by remaining countries with chemical weapons programmes and terrorist groups. A nano-enhanced chemical such as cyanide could be synthesised in far smaller amounts. The design of new agents that attack specific body organs such as the central nervous system would enable far smaller amounts of the chemical to be made without detection and would require only small, low-level facilities.

Other nanotechnology-based weapons might emerge from otherwise benign fields such as law enforcement in the creation of 'non-lethal weapons' for riot control and other policing operations. Some of these are currently permitted under the Chemical Weapons Convention. New delivery mechanisms to make incapacitating substances target more selectively could be adapted to more lethal uses.

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Hmmm...chemical weapons dont sound good.

Of this thread other than stating the obvious. But, yes of course there are military applications, and not all offensive.

I am also always shocked when "good" scientists turn "bad." I was at a talk given by the Chief Scientist at NASA Langley. He was telling us about all of the amazing and wonderful space science and missions that were being planned.

Then, suddenly, he switched tones, and told us about a microwave gun that he designed for the army. It was shocking to me, and I think to the students as well who were in the course. Everyone was looking around the room like we were being attacked.

But, the problem is that as long as we have a perceived "enemy" there will always be a need to defend against them. Having a good defense means having a good offense.

It would be irresponsible for us to not develop advanced weapons. Since we produce technology so readily, and teach scientists from other counties about our advanced technology, inevitably someone will come up with these things.

I agree that having chemical weapons seems sketchy, since it has been addressed in the Geneva accords. However, most of these nanotechnologies seem to me more oriented towards James Bond like gadgets that might poison a single attacker or a small group in defense, allowing for the agent to escape, rather than wiping out an entire population.

The thing is that people will always be developing these things, so we should just get used to this. Some of them are pretty cool, like having fabric than can stop bullets by weaving in carbon nanotubules.

"However, most of these nanotechnologies seem to me more oriented towards James Bond like gadgets that might poison a single attacker or a small group in defense"

I think that point of the article is that nanoparticulates (ie using smaller particle size) can make weapons like CS (actually a powder not a gas as any fule kno) far more effective. And you can make a little go a very very long way, especially with nerve agents etc

Dude tons of threads have been done on this, just not the same article.thread 1

thread 2

thread 3

thread 4

thread 5


Yeah, believe me dude this topic has been covered almost as much as antimatter, and EMP weapons.