As the energy and transportation sectors of the United States economy begin to show signs of renewal and transformation, how to store energy better remains an important national issue. U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu, testifying before the Senate in early 2010, focused on the need to create the storage that can support an advanced energy grid, renewable power, and electric vehicles.

Point the camera of a tablet computer or phone at a landmark, and watch as information about the building appears on the screen. Bat at bugs on a table to rehabilitate arm and shoulder movement: the bugs actually appear only on a head-mounted display.

In just the last few years, the number of products on the market that incorporate nanoparticles has exploded. According to the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies, more than a thousand nano-based consumer products are now available, compared to only 212 in March, 2006. Lux Research predicts that nanotechnology will generate $2.5 trillion in 2015.

A surgeon scrutinizes a three-dimensional real-time representation of her patient’s knee on a video screen. She decides which diseased areas need to be excised, and exactly where the robotic arm should be positioned to remove tissue and resurface the knee. Then she manipulates the arm to carry out the surgery, with significantly greater precision than any surgeon would be able to accomplish on her own.