Nano Technology

Nano Technology

Nanotechnology is a field of research and innovation concerned with building 'things' - generally, materials and devices - on the scale of atoms and molecules. A nanometre is one-billionth of a meter: ten times the diameter of a hydrogen atom. The diameter of a human hair is, on average, 80,000 nanometres.

Nanoscience and nanotechnology involve the ability to see and control individual atoms and molecules. Everything on Earth is made up of atoms—the food we eat, the clothes we wear, the buildings and houses we live in, and our own bodies. But something as small as an atom is impossible to see with the naked eye. In fact, it’s impossible to see with the microscopes typically used in high school science classes. The microscopes needed to see things at the nanoscale were invented in the early 1980s. Once scientists had the right tools, such as the scanning tunneling microscope (STM) and the atomic force microscope (AFM), the age of nanotechnology was born.

Scientists currently debate the future implications of nanotechnology. Nanotechnology may be able to create many new materials and devices with a vast range of applications, such as nanomedicine, nanoelectronics, biomaterials energy production, and consumer products. On the other hand, nanotechnology raises many of the same issues as any new technology, including concerns about the toxicity and environmental impact of nanomaterials, and their potential effects on global economics, as well as speculation about various doomsday scenarios. These concerns have led to a debate among advocacy groups and governments on whether special regulation of nanotechnology is warranted.

In 2006, a team of Korean researchers from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and the National Nano Fab Center developed a 3 nm MOSFET, the world's smallest nanoelectronic device. It was based on gate-all-around (GAA) FinFET technology.

The Royal Society report identified a risk of nanoparticles or nanotubes being released during disposal, destruction, and recycling, and recommended that "manufacturers of products that fall under extended producer responsibility regimes such as end-of-life regulations publish procedures outlining how these materials will be managed to minimize possible human and environmental exposure" (p. xiii).

The Center for Nanotechnology in Society has found that people respond to nanotechnologies differently, depending on application – with participants in public deliberations more positive about nanotechnologies for energy than health applications – suggesting that any public calls for nano regulations may differ by the technology sector.

Genome Editing

Genome Editing

Over the last few years, the exuberant development of genome editing has revolutionized research on the human genome, which has enabled investigators to better understand the contribution of a single-gene product to disease in an organism. In the 1970s, the development of genetic engineering (manipulation of DNA or RNA) established a novel frontier in genome editing.

Genome editing (also called gene editing) is a group of technologies that give scientists the ability to change an organism's DNA. These technologies allow genetic material to be added, removed, or altered at particular locations in the genome. Several approaches to genome editing have been developed.

Historically, homologous recombination (HR), in which undamaged homologous DNA fragments are used as templates, has been the approach to realize targeted gene addition, replacement, or inactivation; however, the utility of HR is heavily limited due to its inefficiency in mammalian cells and model organisms.8 After it was discovered that DSBs could raise the incidence of HDR by multiple orders of magnitude, targeted nucleases have been found as an alternative approach to increase the efficiency of HDR-mediated genetic alteration. Once a targeted DSB has been made, HDR may reconstruct the cleaved DNA using an exogenous DNA template analog to the break site sequence.

The development of gene-editing technology for gene therapy, however, proved difficult. Much early progress focused not on correcting genetic mistakes in the DNA but rather on attempting to minimize their consequence by providing a functional copy of the mutated gene, either inserted into the genome or maintained as an extrachromosomal unit (outside the genome). While that approach was effective for some conditions, it was complicated and limited in scope.

In February 2019, medical scientists working with Sangamo Therapeutics, headquartered in Richmond, California, announced the first-ever "in body" human gene editing therapy to permanently alter DNA - in a patient with Hunter Syndrome. Clinical trials by Sangamo involving gene editing using Zinc Finger Nuclease (ZFN) are ongoing.

In order to truly correct genetic mistakes, researchers needed to be able to create a double-stranded break in DNA at precisely the desired location in the more than three billion base pairs that constitute the human genome. Once created, the double-stranded break could be efficiently repaired by the cell using a template that directed the replacement of the “bad” sequence with the “good” sequence. However, making the initial break at precisely the desired location—and nowhere else—within the genome was not easy.

Thanks to the parallel development of single-cell transcriptomics, genome editing, and new stem cell models we are now entering a scientifically exciting period where functional genetics is no longer restricted to animal models but can be performed directly in human samples. Single-cell gene expression analysis has resolved a transcriptional road-map of human development from which key candidate genes are being identified for functional studies. Using global transcriptomics data to guide experimentation, the CRISPR-based genome-editing tool has made it feasible to disrupt or remove key genes in order to elucidate function in a human setting.

Digital Currency Management

Digital Currency Management

Blockchain technology is rooted down to the 1980s and 1990s but got the much significant limelight after 2008 when Bitcoin came into the marketplace. Since then there is no going back and it has always progressed since then and contributed towards the market. Basically, blockchain is a software protocol by which secured transfer of money, assets, and information takes place on the internet without involving any third-parties like banks or financial institutions.

In the timeframe of 2011 to 2013, blockchain technology was widely used for the digital transactions of cryptocurrencies. And in this era, it has proven to be a potential future currency. From the first and advanced application of it as in the form of Bitcoin to the recent form of Ethereum(ETH), Blockchain is always expanding and making itself the pioneer for digital transactions.

So with such impact of the digital and cryptocurrencies on the global economy, it is better if the economists along with the great management team take note of this advanced technology and put forward a well-strategized plan for future generations. With time this technology is going to only evolve and diversify. With every transaction or task done over the internet, there always will be the issue and concern about the security in the form of Adware, Crimeware and even Ransomware. 

So certain organizations need to be made which will offer qualified high-net-worth individuals and institutions exposure to a portfolio of digital assets systematically managed by highly-experienced managers, traders, and analysts in the crypto space. The fund offered by these organizations should provide exposure to digital assets through a single fund investment, eliminating the difficulties of maintaining multiple public and private keys, wallets, exchange accounts, reduced transfer limits, and often complex tax documentation. 

Moreover, a passive hold strategy can pose undue market risk considering the extremely volatile nature of digital assets markets.  Investment of all or a portion of such digital asset holdings in a fund strategy that in turn trades using proprietary algorithms across multiple digital assets need to be actively managed by a dedicated team of experienced professionals, offering a more attractive risk alternative to holding significant ETH or BTC.