Send us feedback Print , email , or fax this article for free. This may sound like a grocery list for a crazed sci-fi visionary. But all these projects are in the works today, thanks to an emerging chip technology known as microelectromechanical systems.
Traditional chips are flat, static structures.
If proponents are correct, MEMS will soon be ubiquitous. Forget about the kind of incremental change that fits easily into business plans. MEMS advocates say we need to prepare for a wholesale overhaul. The underlying technology is here, now, seeking funding and ready for deployment. Hundreds of companies and thousands of researchers around the globe are working on MEMS projects.