# Key Points from #hplusroadmap IRC Discussions

• Participants discussed microfluidic circuits for algae separation, highlighting DIY-feasible approaches using laser cutters, with one member proposing an integrated algal bioreactor/centrifuge that would function as both a kinetic desk sculpture and a "safe microindustrial benchtop centrifuge."

• The group debated molecular design tools, criticizing Nanoengineer-1's molecular mechanics backend and the PDB file format as inadequate for nanomachines, while discussing the potential breakthrough of DFT (Density Functional Theory) variants that could scale linearly with system size.

• Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM) was identified as having sufficient positional accuracy (below an angstrom) for molecular nanotechnology applications, though challenges remain in attaching specialized molecules to SPM tips and maintaining positioning repeatability.

• The conversation highlighted practical approaches to nanotechnology, including DNA origami (work by Rothemund, Winfree, and Seeman) and "direct-to-diamondoid" methods, with pmetzger noting "Theory without practice is barren masturbation. Lab work without theory is often fruitless."

• Participants discussed "skdb" (described as "apt-get for hardware"), a project to create a repository of designs with dependencies and required tools, as part of efforts to develop unified CAD systems capable of handling both nanoscale and macroscale engineering.

• The group organized a DIY H+/DIYbio teleconference with approximately 20 expected participants, while sharing resources including Drexler's MIT dissertation and discussing DIY scientific equipment like homemade atomic force microscopes and book scanners.