31 replies to this topic

[Logically Irrational]

Atto- is the metric prefix three orders of magnitude smaller than femto-. The timeline delves into nanotechnology heavily, and eventually goes into picotechnology and even femtotechnology. I was wondering if humanity will eventually advance into technology on the scale of one quintillionth of a meter (10^-18). If it does become possible, when will it happen, and will we be able to advance farther into even smaller scales? Zepto- and Yocto- are quite small.

According to this graph, attotechnology will be possible probably around 2150 or so.



I'm not too sure on how realistic that date is however, since on that scale you would be dealing with things the size of quarks. What does everyone else think?

[tornado64]

I'm not sure it's possible. You can hardly build things smaller than atoms, so you get the 'fat finger' problem. I think we will probably reach a boarder we can't overcome. The green line seems realistic, but the red line seems very unlikely to me.

[CyberMisterBeauty]

Attotechnology will be a reality around 2140,according to the graphic...

[tornado64]

Attotechnology will be a reality around 2140,according to the graphic...

I'm able to see and read a graphic...that changes nothing on the fact, that not every graphic is true;)

[eacao]

I suppose theoretically, in a long, long time then planc manipulation may be possible. A planc meter is about 10^(-31) meters. That is the scale where space foam, or quantum foam becomes discernible. That, by the way is the fabric of the universe. This is also the scale of strings.

I don't see atto-engineering being developed in the 2150 timeframe. To be perfectly honest, probably not before mid millennia. Maybe not until the next millennia, as it seems like the realm of a type-2 civilisation. Like tornado64 said, you get the fat finger problem with atoms and so intangible tools will be required. Right now, that graph is good and exponential because we have been building with tools that we can create by hand to produce materials which we can hold in our hand (a chunk of steel rebar). But after you perfect nanotechnology, it will likely slow since the tools become infinitely more difficult to manufacture.
My guess, for atto-engineering. 2500 give or taks a few days.

[Craven]

I don't see this coming true. Atomic level will probably sensible limit. Manipulation on smaller scale will surley be possible, but there will be no real reason to go there with technology.

[Logically Irrational]

Yeah, pretty much the only thing I would have to say on this coming true is "blah, blah, insane future technology, blah, blah." I suppose this is another thing that we can't really discount either way, just since it would be so far off.

[wjfox]

With quantum computers, and sufficient AI, we could achieve it.

[eacao]

I don't see this coming true. Atomic level will probably sensible limit. Manipulation on smaller scale will surley be possible, but there will be no real reason to go there with technology.

What if the manipulation atto and femto scales allows for faster-than-light travel in the distant future?

[Craven]

What if it enables creation of unicorns and invisible dragons

[Shimmy]

Yea, this is all seems pretty insane to me. The smallest scale I can ever see us making useful structures is on the scale of a nucleus. Not only do we have nothing to make things of at a smaller level, we also wouldn't have any tools that precise either. The best we can hope for is artificially designed nuclear structures of about an angstrom or so in size that perform functions normal nuclei cannot. The idea of pico seems unbeleviably unlikely and femto to me just seems unthinkable without completely changing the laws of physics.

[MarcusAurelius]

Imagine if we did discover that attotechnology and beyond is where alien AI is now residing. Having reached this technology millions of years ago. Food for thought?

[Kynareth]

Attotechnology may someday come true, this could become possible using sophisticated computers and femtotechnology. Same thing with femto and pico technology.
I can't imagine exactly how we could do this but I wouldn't rule it out from possibilities since with AI there can be a way to affect such small parts of matter and do something useful with it .

Imagine if we did discover that attotechnology and beyond is where alien AI is now residing. Having reached this technology millions of years ago. Food for thought?

That's truly interesting. Imagine, we can only be a computer of very old civilization and that would include everyone and everything so our world with birds singing, water flowing, supernovas exploding, people eating, thinking, walking, fucking and talking could be anything more than a long computation they're carrying out.
What if in the year 2212 we discover that in the fabric of our universe is incorporated alien computer that doesn't care about we are we doing in a macro scale, us being merely like cores in i7 processor.

[Raklian]

Attotechnology may someday come true, this could become possible using sophisticated computers and femtotechnology. Same thing with femto and pico technology.
I can't imagine exactly how we could do this but I wouldn't rule it out from possibilities since with AI there can be a way to affect such small parts of matter and do something useful with it .

Imagine if we did discover that attotechnology and beyond is where alien AI is now residing. Having reached this technology millions of years ago. Food for thought?

That's truly interesting. Imagine, we can only be a computer of very old civilization and that would include everyone and everything so our world with birds singing, water flowing, supernovas exploding, people eating, thinking, walking, fucking and talking could be anything more than a long computation they're carrying out.
What if in the year 2212 we discover that in the fabric of our universe is incorporated alien computer that doesn't care about we are we doing in a macro scale, us being merely like cores in i7 processor.

Let's find out, won't we? Unfortunately we'll have to wait for a few centuries.

[CyberMisterBeauty]

Few centuries??Of course not,we will have to wait till 2140-2160.By the way,when Wjfox will add it to the timeline?I can't even imagine what will be possible with attotechnology...

Edited by CyberMisterBeauty, 24 May 2012 - 10:25 PM.

[Shimmy]

Few centuries??Of course not,we will have to wait till 2140-2160.By the way,when Wjfox will add it to the timeline?I can't even imagine what will be possible with attotechnology...

You do realise the future timeline is a very speculative guess at various aspects of the future and that it's not a real 100% accurate timeline that is acutlaly going to happen? You seem to have made a lot of comments which are based on the whole thing being 100% factually accurate and tehn act as if questioning or doubting anything is silly or ridiculous.

[Tumaini12]

Obviously, no present-day physics or engineering theory can give even the vaguest notion of how to manipulate reality on a scale orders of magnitude smaller than the nucleus of an atom. Or, indeed, what practicable use such a technology could be. At such scales, after all, getting smaller than quarks or leptons, there are no definite, dependable entities to work with - only a seething, ephemeral multitude of virtual particles appearing and vanishing endlessly.

With one possible exception: the idea of a quantum ramjet space drive. Unleashing the energy of the quantum fluctuations (which operate only at plank scale , 10^-33 metres or thereabouts) on a macroscopic scale would be a source of energy unimaginably greater than fusion or even antimatter...

Edited by Tumaini12, 28 May 2012 - 09:30 PM.

[Italian Ufo]

Few centuries??Of course not,we will have to wait till 2140-2160.By the way,when Wjfox will add it to the timeline?I can't even imagine what will be possible with attotechnology...

You do realise the future timeline is a very speculative guess at various aspects of the future and that it's not a real 100% accurate timeline that is acutlaly going to happen? You seem to have made a lot of comments which are based on the whole thing being 100% factually accurate and tehn act as if questioning or doubting anything is silly or ridiculous.

I agree with you Shimmy

[eacao]

What if it enables creation of unicorns and invisible dragons

You don't need femto technology for a unicorn. Just genetic engineering.

I don't think faster than light travel is impossible. It seems very fanciful science fiction, but it is well theorised and observed that space can be bent and stretched. Gravity does it all the time. In fact, you are doing it yourself. Likewise, wormholes are theoretically possible and Alcubierre has mathematically proven that a warp bubble can exist. Of course there are a lot of problems with the pro-argument, it is a very distant future type of technology and with today's technology the ball seems in your court, but it is not something to be dismissed as impossible. You of all people should know just how much of a fallacy that word is.

Edited by eacao, 06 June 2012 - 11:47 AM.

[Logically Irrational]

Found this interesting essay on kurzweilai.net:

http://www.kurzweila...arks-and-gluons