This nano machine idea sounds familiar to something put forward by that
wonderful mathematician von Neumann I believe. As a friend of mine once
pointed out though, if these things started replicating in an area with
intelligent life that intelligent life may deem it a biological threat or a
first strike. Star Wars begins ...
F. Frank LeFever wrote in message <7n5tmj$8o3 at dfw-ixnews11.ix.netcom.com>...
>Hmmm..provocative idea...but the devil is in the details.
>>"Suitable matter"? Is this a mono-element nanomachine? i.e. a novel
>molecular-level restructuring of (e.g.) sodium? Or must the
>nano-self-replicator find a specific compound? e.g. sodium chloride?
>or some aggregate of (e.g.) sodium chloride and iron oxide? or--?
>>No special requirements for the "construction site"? (temperature,
>etc.?)
>>When you say "programmed to repeat the process", which process do you
>mean--just the self-replication, or also "boosting (their replicants)
>to near light speed"?
>>F. LeFever
>>>>In <379874e8.3481585 at news.demon.co.uk> ohgs at chatham.demon.co.uk (Oliver
>Sparrow) writes:
>>>>"Steven Mix" <stevenmix at prodigy.net> wrote:
>>>>> Life is out there. Somewhere.
>>>>Off-topic, but what the hell? No doubt it is out there. I noted
>Vinge's
>>hierarchy of explanations as to 'where are they'? Someone replied that
>>getting about would be difficult. Doubtless, unless we understand what
>>constitutes separation better than we do at present. Assuming the
>problem
>>is intractable, and that there are reasons to explore (itself an
>>assumption) then how would one go about it?
>>>>The answer has to be very small objects, hugely replicated, that can
>(a)
>>unwrap themselves when they find a chunk of suitable matter and (b)
>produce
>>more of themselves. A bacterium-sized nanomachine could be boosted to
>near
>>light speed with relative ease - light or microwave pressure, for
>example -
>>and teratonnes of these could be made and sprayed about at random (in
>the
>>galactic plane) in decades by anyone with the technology. If these are
>>programmed to repeat the process, the galaxy would be fully populated
>by a
>>generation of such machinery in a time not much longer than its
>diameter
>>measured in light years. This offers a fairly tight test: either (a)
>this
>>cannot be done or (b) there is nobody to do it or (c) it has been
>done,
>>because it only has to be done once.
>>>>If it has been done, then the logical extension is to spray the local
>>system with recording-transmitting nanomachines. Who knows, you may
>have
>>just such a thing nesting in your cortex, transmitting your thoughts
>in
>>polarized sneutrinoes, or whatever, to a database in the Oort cloud
>and
>>thence to day time TV, somewhere far, far away. Paranoia starts here.
>>_______________________________
>>>>Oliver Sparrow
>
