Technobabble Becoming Reality?

The University of Washington has put out a press release regarding new polymers developed by chemists and engineers at the University of Washington and the University of Southern California, which can be used to create special 'opto-chips' allowing data transfer rates of up to 100 gigabits per second. According to Larry Dalton, the applications are very far-ranging, allowing for true real-time communication, and even new technologies that might seem familiar to Trek fans:

Other applications are so far ranging, Dalton said, that they even create the capability of full three-dimensional holographic projection with little or no image flicker. That makes possible a device such as the science-fictional holodeck, where characters in the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" television series and movies create elaborate holographic worlds in which they live their fantasies.

Somewhat similar is an article by MSNBC's Alan Boyle, talking about the way in which NASA and the National Cancer Institute are developing nanotechnology to combat diseases like cancer on a cell-to-cell basis. In the article, Boyle draws a comparison to the pill Dr. McCoy used in 'Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home' to cure a kidney patient.

And finally, a news article on BBC News mentions that new calculations suggest that wormholes large and stable enough to allow intergalactic travel really can exist. It appears there is hope for Voyager to get home after all.

Thanks go out to Leonard for the first two items, and TrekZone.de for the final one.

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