Dusting the Smart Way

You can now add the “toner wars” to the list of concepts from Neal Stephenson’s The Diamond Age made reality.  At least in part - while not the intelligent nanobots he envisioned, the “smart dust” planned for deployment by HP sure does seem similar.  Aimed at becoming a neural network for the entire planet, the tiny sensors do hold the promise of keeping us more informed about the state of our infrastructure, waterways, forests and more.  However, what sorts of additional environmental calamity might trillions of tiny machines cause as they fail and break down?

I think I liked the Young Lady’s Illustrated Primer itself being realized just a little bit more.

(Hat tip to CNN)