most basic social level, MNT is going to be responsible for massive changes in the way we live, the way we interact with one another and our environment, and the things we are capable of doing.For more information, read What is Nanotechnology? by the Center for Responsible Nanotechnology, this explanationfrom CORDIS for a "child's eye view" of nanotechnology, and What is Nanotechnology? by Tim Harper. See alsoIntroduction to Nanoscience by Prof. Vicki Colvin, Rice University Department of Chemistry and Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology. See also What is Nanotechnology? from LANL, and Dr. Mihail Roco's presentation titled National Nanotechnology Initiative Overview from the 3rd Integrated Nanosystems Conference in Pasadena, California, held on September 22nd, 2004. (PDF)For more information on the potential (both good and bad), see War, Interdependence, and NanotechnologyFor more information on a recent study devoted to the beneficial potential of nanotechnology Nanotechnology in Construction - one of the top ten answers to world's biggest problemsAt the end of the day, it is not the meaning behind the terms that is important, it is the fact that all the many definitions suggest that we have been and are on a rapidly accelerating technological rollercoaster, and rapid changeis the track it rides.Once MNT develops to the stage where we've built the two most essential machines - called the Universal Assemblerand the Nanocomputer - everything has a near-term possibility of significant change."A key ingredient in understanding nanotechnology is realizing precisely what it is and what it isn't. ... we are talking about research and development in the length scale of .1 nanometers to 100 nanometers to create unique structures, devices, and systems. In many instances the actual structures, devices, and systems will be much larger, but they will be classified as nanotechnology due to the fact that they will either be created at the nanoscale or nanotechnology will enable them to perform new and/or improved functions.Many materials, once they are individually reduced below 100 nanometers, begin displaying a set of unique characteristics based on quantum mechanical forces that are exhibited at the level. Due to these quantum mechanical effects, materials may become more conducting, be able to transfer heat better, or have modified mechanical properties." From "The Next Big Thing Is Really Small: How Nanotechnology Will Change the Future of Your Business." By Jack Uldrich & Deb Newberry. March 2003 Read our reviewTo get a better idea of why the nanometer scale is so important, see the explanation at the LANL site: Why is this length scale so important?"Imagine a world in which microscopic procreating robots are sent into the human body with the mission of detecting cancer cells, disassembling them, and sending them out into the bloodstream as waste products. Then imagine similar robots in the hands of a sinister force that decides to turn an entire continent into gray dust. Science fiction or reality?" From Souls, Slavery, and Survival in the Molenotech Age: An Alien's Version by Lin Sten.Comprised of three independent and interdependent movements: Dry, Wet, and Computational Nanotechnology; MNT represents the state of the art in advances in