Nanotechnology

Imagine a low-fat ice-cream that tastes just as creamy as an unhealthier, full-fat version. Or a colourless drink that bursts into the flavour of your choosing at the flick of a microwave switch. Or intelligent food packaging that detects if the contents are beginning to spoil, changes colour to alert you, and then releases a preservative.

These are some of the promises of nanotechnology, a revolutionary area of research at the atomic or molecular scale of matter. Nanotechnology is expected to have a huge impact on many aspects of our lives, including medicine and the environment, with the development of materials and devices that can monitor blood, detect environmental pollutants and store energy better.

But one of its most immediate effects will be on our food. An estimated 200 companies worldwide are conducting research using nanotechnology to develop foods with new tastes and textures, as well as to improve packaging and enhance nutrient absorption.
Read Further

Reading this story this morning I wanted to know a bit more about what nanotechnology is so I looked it up: Nanotechnology is the science of manipulating matter on an atomic or molecular scale. So what, you might say. Well, it's going to change the world. Stephen Cauchi reports.