Drexler, K. Eric

Referred to as the Einstein of nanotechnology, nanotechnology's apostle, and the father of nanotechnology, K. Eric Drexler is arguably one of the most influential and controversial figures responsible for launching the nanotechnology movement in the late 20th century. Although Japanese engineer Norio Taniguchi is credited with coining the term nanotechnology in 1974, Drexler is credited with developing and popularizing the term.

Born in 1955 in Alameda, California, Drexler obtained undergraduate and graduate degrees at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, including the first doctoral degree in Molecular Nanotechnology. In 1986, Drexler wrote Engines of Creation: The Coming Era of Nanotechnology in which he explored Richard Feynman's 1959 vision to develop the ability to manipulate matter atom by atom. In the book, Drexler used the term nanotechnology to refer to the ability of molecular-sized machines [Page 169]to create any conceivable product. In a chapter titled “Engines of Destruction,” Drexler introduced another term, Grey Goo, to refer to the potential of some molecular machines to turn the environment into a mass of self-replicating nanobots that consume everything in their path. In 2000, Drexler's ideas about the destructive potential of nanotechnology were cited by Bill Joy in a well-publicized article in Wired magazine, “Why the Future Doesn't Need Us.” Joy's article, which included a call for halting nanotechnology research, prompted a resurgence of interest in Drexler's ideas and coincided with the formation of the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI).

K. Eric Drexler is referred to as the Einstein of nanotechnology or the father of nanotechnology.

Although his 1992 congressional testimony at a congressional hearing on New Technologies for a Sustainable World introduced nanotechnology to the U.S. federal government and it his vision of molecular manufacturing was used to generate excitement and support in U.S. Congress for the NNI, Drexler was conspicuously excluded from the development of the NNI. Science historians have suggested that Drexler has been excluded from the NNI, and the scientific community at large, because his 1986 depiction of out-of-control nanobots is perceived as a threat to public acceptance of, and subsequent U.S. federal funding of, nanotechnology. Drexler himself has noted that Joy's article provoked a backlash in the nanoscale research community who feared loss of funding to the newly formed NNI. Drexler has said that he regrets choosing the term nanotechnology to refer to his vision of molecular manufacturing because of the ease in which the term has since been applied to any nanoscale science or technology. Drexler now uses the term molecular manufacturing to refer to his original vision of nanotechnology. He has also said that he regrets coining the term Grey Goo because the alliterative quality prevents it from being taken seriously.

Critics of Drexler, such as Richard Smalley, charge that Drexler's vision is scientifically impossible and serves only to frighten the public. Drexler has responded to his critics in published debates, including one with Smalley over whether Drexler's molecular manufacturing was possible in a series of letters between the two published in 2003 by Chemical & Engineering News. This debate has been characterized as a disciplinary debate between different perspectives in chemistry and engineering.

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