4 ms·

Nothing in there about how they'll do 1.5nm. That's understandable; it's a hard problem, and I imagine any solutions they've come up with will remain trade secr

Nothing in there about how they'll do 1.5nm. That's understandable; it's a hard problem, and I imagine any solutions they've come up with will remain trade secrets for some time. I've heard stories, though. Scanning-tunneling microscopes on fire off the shoulder of Orion. Massively parallel arrays of atomically precise probes, used to build CPUs atom by atom. Things you wouldn't believe. I'm sure it's coming one day, but once you've gotten that far, how far away are you from outright nanofactories? Which are science fiction, and therefore can't happen.

vorbote 12y ago
Love the reference, but I'm sure all young phillistines that hang out in HN have missed it completely. :-( You have my upvote. Time to die.
- yzzxy 12y ago
  This is hardly an obscure reference... I think you underestimate the pop culture literacy of young programmers.
  - noir_lord 12y ago
    Shhh allow them their "programmers these days" elitism. My 25 year old non-techie gf would have gotten that reference. Blade runner is hardly an underground cult classic.
    - nealabq 12y ago
      Eh, what's that, you young whippersnapper? In my day we had to debug our difference engine with a flyswatter.
    - xcntktn 12y ago
      Blade Runner is different because of the attention it received due to the "Final Cut" version that came out in 2007. If it hadn't been for that, references to it would probably be a lot less recognizable with the younger crowd. Case in point: I recently made a "2001: A Space Odyssey" reference in front of a room full of 20-something programmers and not one person picked up on it. It wasn't even that obscure -- it was a picture of the monolith, one of the most recognizable images from the movie (and in science fiction in general). The people in the room generally just hadn't seen or even heard of (really all that is required to get the reference) the movie.
      - nullc 12y ago
        Good luck finding a copy of it with the original film noir-esq voiceover.
        sp332 12y ago
        It's expensive, but not difficult to find. http://www.amazon.com/Runner-Five-Disc-Complete-Collectors-Blu-ray/dp/B000UBMWG4 http://www.amazon.com/Runner-Five-Disc-Complete-Collectors-B... (The version without the voiceover is "the Director's Cut.")
  - nealabq 12y ago
    Your username, which I assume is a re-spelling of xyzzy, is itself a cultural reference. I don't know how obscure.
    - yzzxy 12y ago
      I'm also 17.
  - bsaul 12y ago
    Is it a reference to blade runner ? I've guessed that from the following comments, but otherwise i wouldn't have known ( and i have seen the movie). I don't even know what part of the movie that comment makes reference to... Edit : ok, found it. I remember that scene but nothing from the speech... Glad to know that was a cult moment.
jacquesm 12y ago
Brilliant.
trsohmers 12y ago
But do androids dream of electric sheep?

vorbote 12y ago

Love the reference, but I'm sure all young phillistines that hang out in HN have missed it completely. :-( You have my upvote. Time to die.

yzzxy 12y ago
This is hardly an obscure reference... I think you underestimate the pop culture literacy of young programmers.
- noir_lord 12y ago
  Shhh allow them their "programmers these days" elitism. My 25 year old non-techie gf would have gotten that reference. Blade runner is hardly an underground cult classic.
  - nealabq 12y ago
    Eh, what's that, you young whippersnapper? In my day we had to debug our difference engine with a flyswatter.
  - xcntktn 12y ago
    Blade Runner is different because of the attention it received due to the "Final Cut" version that came out in 2007. If it hadn't been for that, references to it would probably be a lot less recognizable with the younger crowd. Case in point: I recently made a "2001: A Space Odyssey" reference in front of a room full of 20-something programmers and not one person picked up on it. It wasn't even that obscure -- it was a picture of the monolith, one of the most recognizable images from the movie (and in science fiction in general). The people in the room generally just hadn't seen or even heard of (really all that is required to get the reference) the movie.
    - nullc 12y ago
      Good luck finding a copy of it with the original film noir-esq voiceover.
      - sp332 12y ago
        It's expensive, but not difficult to find. http://www.amazon.com/Runner-Five-Disc-Complete-Collectors-Blu-ray/dp/B000UBMWG4 http://www.amazon.com/Runner-Five-Disc-Complete-Collectors-B... (The version without the voiceover is "the Director's Cut.")
- nealabq 12y ago
  Your username, which I assume is a re-spelling of xyzzy, is itself a cultural reference. I don't know how obscure.
  - yzzxy 12y ago
    I'm also 17.
- bsaul 12y ago
  Is it a reference to blade runner ? I've guessed that from the following comments, but otherwise i wouldn't have known ( and i have seen the movie). I don't even know what part of the movie that comment makes reference to... Edit : ok, found it. I remember that scene but nothing from the speech... Glad to know that was a cult moment.

jacquesm 12y ago

Brilliant.

trsohmers 12y ago

But do androids dream of electric sheep?