If MM is so dangerous, why not just completely halt all research and development?
If approached with pessimism, molecular manufacturing appears far too dangerous to be allowed to develop to anywhere near its full potential. However, a naive approach to limiting R&D, such asrelinquishment, is flawed for at least two reasons.
First, it will almost certainly be impossible to prevent the development of MM somewhere in the world. China, Japan, and other Asian nations have thriving nanotechnology programs, and the rapid advance of enabling technologies such as biotechnology, MEMS, and scanning-probe microscopy ensures that R&D efforts will be far easier in the near future than they are today.
Second, MM will providebenefitsthat are simply too good to pass up, including environmental repair; clean, cheap, and efficient manufacturing; medical breakthroughs; immensely powerful computers; and easier access to space.