Anti- Matter

As we begin a Chapter 2 titled MATTER, it brings to mind anti-matter. Anti-matter was an important part of the plot in the movie Angels and Demons. According to the movie, a scientist at the CERN research facility in Geneva had found a way to contain a small amount of anti-matter, an extremely dangerous material that contains the amount of energy compared to a small nuclear weapon. Is anti-matter real?

Matter is anything that has mass and takes up space, so any thing made of particles. Particles that are electrons, neutrons and protons. Anti-matter is made of positrons, the anti-matter of electrons, and antiprotons. Anti-matter and matter can not occupy the same space. It would mean annihilation and a release of high energy. So yes the plot of Angels and Demons is plausible. Also, in 1995 CERN was able to created a form of antimatter, antihydrogen.

So if the Universe is made of matter is there another place made of antimatter? There are particles of antimatter released in the Universe. It occurs when atoms collide. Why is antimatter important or is it? It contains a large amount of energy, but at what cost?

Nanoparticles in the Human Body: Hollywood or Reality?

There have been many movies and tv shows made with the science of nanopartiles in the human body as part of the plot. The list of movies include GI Joe, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Prey, The Diamond Age, Spiderman II, and Agent Cody Banks, just to name a few. Tv shows include Eureka, Stargate, Warehouse 13 and Fringe.

But is this just science-fiction or is it possible?

Media has produced much entertainment about flying cars, time travel and shrinking but do we have that today?

Nanotechnology is a broad description that is given to processes and technologies used to produce materials which are purposely engineered through the manipulation of atoms.

There are four categories of nanotechnology used today.

1. used in cosmetics and sunscreen

2. nanoclays placed in products to improve hardness, heat resistance and strength

3. nanotubes to minimize static electricity in fuel lines, flat panels and paint on cars

4. medical field

North Caroline State University is now looking at how nanoparticles affect the human body. How do cells interact with nanoparticles? Will nanoparticles be able to control cells?

Wouldn't it be great if we could tell nanoparticles to control and kill cancer cells?

In this image, targeted nanoparticles--each about 1/100th the size of a human cell and engineered to be stealthy within the body--deliver high doses of chemotherapy to cancer cells.

What about nanoparticles that control behavior? Where do we draw the line?

Lynn Goldman and Christine Coussens, Editors, Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Research and Medicine Implications of Nanotechnology for Environmental Health Research

North Carolina State University. "Probing the Nanoparticle: Predicting How Nanoparticles Will React in the Human Body." ScienceDaily 16 August 2010. 17 August 2010 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100815162136.htm.