Robert A. Freitas Jr. (born 1952) is an American nanotechnologist.

Career

In 1974, Freitas earned a bachelor's degree in both

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which rel ...

and

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

from

Harvey Mudd College Harvey Mudd College (HMC) is a private college in Claremont, California, focused on science and engineering. It is part of the Claremont Colleges, which share adjoining campus grounds and resources. The college enrolls 902 undergraduate students ...

, and in 1978, he received a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice l ...

(J.D.) degree from

Santa Clara University School of Law The Santa Clara University School of Law (Santa Clara Law) is the law school of Santa Clara University, a Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California, United States, in the Silicon Valley region. The School of Law was founded in 1911. The Jesuit ...

. He has written more than 150 technical papers, book chapters, and popular articles on scientific, engineering, and legal topics. Freitas began writing his ''Nanomedicine'' book series in 1994. Volume I, published in October 1999 by

Landes Bioscience Landes Bioscience is an Austin, Texas-based publisher of bioscience journals. ''Cell Cycle'', one of its first two journals, achieved the highest percent increase in total citations in molecular biology and genetics for the period of July–August ...

while Freitas was a Research Fellow at the Institute for Molecular Manufacturing. Volume IIA was published in October 2003 by Landes Bioscience. In 2004, Freitas and

Ralph Merkle Ralph C. Merkle (born February 2, 1952) is a computer scientist and mathematician. He is one of the inventors of public-key cryptography, the inventor of cryptographic hashing, and more recently a researcher and speaker on cryonics. Contribution ...

coauthored and published ''Kinematic Self-Replicating Machines'', a comprehensive survey of the field of physical and hypothetical

self-replicating machines A self-replicating machine is a type of autonomous robot that is capable of reproducing itself autonomously using raw materials found in the environment, thus exhibiting self-replication in a way analogous to that found in nature. The concept of ...

. In 2009, Freitas was awarded the

Feynman Prize The Feynman Prize in Nanotechnology is an award given by the Foresight Institute for significant advances in nanotechnology. Two prizes are awarded annually, in the categories of experimental and theoretical work. There is also a separate chall ...

in theoretical

nanotechnology Nanotechnology, also shortened to nanotech, is the use of matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale for industrial purposes. The earliest, widespread description of nanotechnology referred to the particular technological goal o ...

Bibliography

* ''Robert A. Freitas Jr.'', Nanomedicine, Volume I: Basic Capabilities (Landes Bioscience, 1999) * ''Robert A. Freitas Jr.'', Nanomedicine, Vol. IIA: Biocompatibility (Landes Bioscience, 2003) * ''Robert A. Freitas Jr.,

Ralph C. Merkle Ralph C. Merkle (born February 2, 1952) is a computer scientist and mathematician. He is one of the inventors of public-key cryptography, the inventor of cryptographic hashing, and more recently a researcher and speaker on cryonics. Contribut ...

'', Kinematic Self-Replicating Machines (Landes Bioscience, 2004) * ''Robert A. Freitas Jr.'', Nanomedicine: Biocompatibility (S Karger Pub, 2004)

References

External links

Robert Freitas' personal website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Freitas, Robert 1952 births Living people American nanotechnologists Harvey Mudd College alumni Santa Clara University alumni American people of Portuguese descent American transhumanists Cryonicists

Career

Bibliography

See also

References

External links