Blog: Dan E. Linstedt

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Step closer to nanotech hardware

I've written several articles here in the past about Nanotech, the time-lines, and nanohousing(tm). About a year or two ago I wrote about the fact that IC chip manufacturers needed to get on board. We'll, looks like they've done so. In this brief entry I'll discuss their foray into nano scaled transistors and logic gates on computer chips. It is all very interesting, and I'll speculate on what it might mean going forward.

Here's the news story: Computer World

They have produced a "fingernail sized memory chip, about 45 nanometers wide -- about 1,000 times smaller than a red blood cell." What makes this interesting is how much memory they can put inside a memory stick. I've read other nanotech based articles recently which discuss advances to memory that (theoretically) will make "disk drives" obsolete. The nanomemory being experimented with can actually hold-state, and be supplied by an internal power source. This particular memory that Intel has produced doesn't discuss the specifications, but they do say that power consumption is greatly reduced, that means computers running cooler. The first question that comes to mind is:

What happens to my computer?
1. it runs much much cooler
2. Everything becomes RAM based.
3. No more personal lap heaters
4. Smaller batteries can be used - by the way, there's another article in the recent Scientific American about nanobatteries... this is a HUGE advancement; particularly if the two are coupled together... Imagine the power.
5... the list goes on.

What happens to my RDBMS? (these are my predictions - opinion only)
1. One step closer to a nanohouse, while nanohousing may not be "true to life" (in other words, a nano-scaled data warehouse complete with software/hardware mixed together), the RDBMS will begin using nanomemory.
2. DATA PARTITIONING WILL GO BY THE WAY-SIDE
3. Arguments over VLDW/VLDB and MPP vs SMP will dissipate.
4. Performance and tuning will become highly specialized, and finally "disappear"
5. Data Layout and data modeling will become more abstracted, as freedom to experiment will take place because of the faster RAM storage.

Remember the article on the DoD (department of defense) and DNA computing? Nanotech based computing with carbon nanotubes and other such devices is catching up, they'll be able to store hundreds of terabytes on what is equivalent to a memory stick today.

In fact, I predict that manufacturers will completely remove "storage" from their internal offerings, and produce a "plug an play" storage device interface that is highly parallel, and will scale to access the terabytes of nanomemory. You'll be able to "take your information with you" in your shirt pocket. "Laptops" will become stationary, and these memory devices will plug and play with the next generation "Ipod" or "Windows CE devices".

In fact audio, and video equipment will be adapted - just plug in the memory (all your "hard-drive information") and select your functionality, away you go. Of course this gives a whole new meaning to the term: SCOPE CREEP, and Spread-Marts - every "storage device" will essentially be a spread mart of corporate information. Which in turn states that corporations must begin NOW thinking about how to manage, and regulate these storage components. Security will get harder, not easier.

I'd love to hear your whimsicle thoughts about where this could take us. Please post your comments.

See you next time,
Dan L

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