GrowingStructuresGroup:Questions

(back to the Growing Structures Group)

Biological

 * Examples:
 * Environmental Operating Conditions:
 * Energy Requirements:
 * Capabilities
 * Other Features or Problems:

Chemical

 * Examples:
 * Environmental Operating Conditions: (fluid, air, other?)
 * Energy Requirements:
 * Capabilities
 * Other Features or Problems:

Mechanical

 * Examples:
 * Environmental Operating Conditions:
 * Energy Requirements:
 * Capabilities
 * Other Features or Problems:

Other?

 * Multisubstrate "cells"?

Extrinsic

 * Light (visible, 500nm; x-ray, 0.5nm)
 * Sound
 * Sensors?
 * Other

Intrinsic

 * DNA
 * Digital Memory
 * Machine-machine communication
 * Amorphous Computing

Exogenous Supply

 * Liquid fuel (e.g., diesel)
 * Sugar
 * Other

Self-Acquiring

 * Carbon fixation
 * CO2 quantity in air: 0,00076626 kg/m3 or approx. 1g/m3
 * C quantity air: 0,0002088 kg/m3 or approx. 0.2 g/m3
 * Carbon material density: 1400 kg/m3 => for 1m3 material 6.7*106m3 of air are needed.
 * With air speed or 1m/s → 78 days needed for 1m of CNM
 * What about diffusion due to local reduction in partial pressure of CO2?
 * Shouldn't be a problem as CO2 is heavier so the molecules will always flow towards the ground
 * Photosynthesis
 * Other

When would it make sense to do this? E.g., what are the costs of building a house for a family of four?
The question can be easily answered with a building cost estimator, like this one. In summary a 1000 SF brick wall house in San Francisco would cost (the tool generates a much more detailed calculation)
 * $100,103.00 Material
 * $97,566.00 Labor
 * $3,613.00 Equipment
 * $201,282.00 Total

Material costs (should we include environmental costs?)

 * Wood
 * Concrete
 * Brick
 * Mud
 * Adobe
 * Other?

Time costs (e.g., how long does it take?)
Depends very much on material and technology. A wooden house can be fabricated and set on site in 5 days, a house made of concrete or bricks in a few months.

How would all of the above work together as an integrated process / system?
One possible way is the top-down concept, which initiated the first generation of questions. But there are definitely other, maybe better ways.

Top-down AEC (Architecture/Engineering/Construction) related questions:

 * 1) Modeling
 * 2) what are the requirements for the digital model?
 * 3) * how to integrate utility systems with the geometry?
 * 4) * water supply (could it be conducted through nano tubes?)
 * 5) * sewage
 * 6) * power system
 * 7) * communication system
 * 8) * HVAC
 * 9) how to define volumetric zones with required material properties
 * 10) how to define material properties (bearing strength, onductivity, transparency)
 * 11) CNM (carbon Nano Mesh - the material)
 * 12) Any attempts to make it?
 * 13) What should/could be the physical and chemical characteristics of CNM?
 * 14) Analysis
 * 15) How to derive statical model?
 * 16) What would the structural model look like?
 * 17) Thermal model?
 * 18) Since the material zones are homogenious, could we simply use FEM model for all?
 * 19) Production
 * 20) How does information flow look like?
 * 21) What are the requirements for the nano-production (temperature, air flow, humidity)?
 * 22) What production equipment is required?
 * 23) How to setup the building site?

What is the minimum frequency of self-replication to be effective?

 * 1 nanorobot size ≈ 100 nm → area = 104 nm2
 * 1m2 = 1014 nanorobots → 45 replication cycles
 * 20' per cycle = 15 hours to cover 1m2 starting with 1 nanorobot

Bacteria can make reproduction look easy; can they also be instructed via specific light wavelengths?

 * Yes.