I'm sorry. I'm going through something mental I don't understand and won't try to explain. ^_^
But nanites, I can describe.
Nanites are small robots (think microscopic to something microscopic small, that small) that can tear apart material at/near the molecular level, which can be constructed into new nanites
so 'grey goo' is a doomsday scenario where nanites are programmed wrong and turn everything (or at least Earth) into nanites
@sydneyfalk @squirrel @quincunx tl;dr nanites are tiny robots that can turn things into nanites, grey goo is nanites that turn *everything* into nanites
is this right
the hope with nanites is application such as, say, rebuilding nerve connections mechanically, fabrication of highly sensitive components to within extremely accurate tolerances, etc.
in theory, they could turn a lot of dangerous stuff into inert stuff, and a lot of inert stuff into useful stuff
think 3d printer but almost molecular and WAY higher resolution
the major issue with nanites as concept is how to 'write for a swarm', but the research on emergent behavior has developed over the past decade, and I think that hurdle's going to get jumped sooner than people realize
then it's just a question of materials and time. and there's already research with lab-only working models of molecular-constructed 'machines' that move molecules around
mechanicals are the limit now.
@boots @squirrel @quincunx
roughly, yes.