In this issue NanoNews-Now Editor Rocky Rawstern and contributing writers Galen Fous and Chris Phoenix cover nanotechnology and the military. Join us as we review nanotech at war.

Here are a few selected quotes:

Nanotech-enabled military hardware - from the combat soldier to ultra complex space-based nanobot arsenals - will make any current Weapons of Mass Destruction seem as primitive as the sticks and stones used by low-tech Neanderthal warriors.

"Intensely pursuing the emerging field of Nanotechnology is, quite simply, a national [military | economic | medical | and more] 'life or death' imperative." Jeff Harrow, Principal The Harrow Group

"Imagine the psychological impact upon a foe when encountering squads of seemingly invincible warriors protected by armor and endowed with superhuman capabilities, such as the ability to leap over 20-foot walls," ISN director Ned Thomas

"Molecular nanotechnology (MNT) will be an extremely flexible manufacturing technology, able to produce a broad array of weapons. It will be fast, cheap, self-contained, and automated. This means that it will allow very rapid design of new weapons, and even more rapid deployment. Our technical research has shown that once a basic limited MNT capability is developed, advanced manufacturing may be only a few months away. It will be a huge force multiplier - enough to make whoever controls it a world superpower." Chris Phoenix, Director of Research - Center for Responsible Nanotechnology

Our Exclusive Interview with Professor Ned Thomas, Director of the Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies (ISN).

Here is one of the questions and answers:

NN: What are the greatest challenges facing the creation of the products necessary for the "soldier system of the future?"

The customer is the Army - really the individual soldier. So how do you get this guy something that he can wear and break, and come back and tell you "I like it, but make it do this, and make it less that." So you need to be able to make some prototypes and so forth. Universities don't build prototypes and we don't manufacture anything - that's industry stuff. So we have a number of industrial partners - Raytheon and DuPont are two of the big ones who know how to make stuff.

Our Exclusive Interview with S. Brad Squires, Chief Technology Officer, US Global Nanospace, Inc.

Here is one of the questions and answers:

NN: What is the primary mission at USGN?

Our mission is to develop the materials and products needed to protect people and vital systems while also being useful for emergency response and incident management. We focus explicitly on nano- and bio-technologies that have broader commercial applications in addition to their value for countering terrorism.