The people who inspired SpaceShipOne are at it again, and this time they're interested in molecular manufacturing (among other things).
CRN is planning to submit a prize proposal to encourage the development of a primitive molecular manufacturing capability. We believe this is the responsible thing to do. The machine we describe would not be capable of making weapons or other disruptive products. What it would do is serve as a proof of principle and stimulate discussion.
Chris has created a Wise-Nano page containing his proposal. The page also contains another X-prize proposal by Robert Freitas (author of Nanomedicine) that's intended to jump-start diamondoid molecular manufacturing more directly.
Is it wise to try to jump-start diamondoid MM at this point? There's no easy answer to that question; there are strong arguments on both sides. In the "Bootstrap Project" category on Wise-Nano is a page called "Tradeoffs of Pathways" that Chris created to provide a forum for discussion.
Chris and Rob haven't submitted their proposals yet, so there's still time for you to go to Wise-Nano and suggest improvements. Remember, you don't even need an account, but if you get one, you can be emailed whenever a "watched" page is changed.
Please discuss the prize and its implications on Wise-Nano, not here on the blog. If you have trouble using Wise-Nano, report it here.
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