Flying cars, space travel for everyone, the elimination of poverty and hunger, and powerful new tools to combat disease, and even ageing. These are some of the amazing predicted developments of nanotechnology, the coming science of designing and building machines at the molecular and atomic levels. Will this new scientific revolution be for better or worse? Some commentators have described utopias; others have prophesied disaster. Dr Hall -- a leading researcher on the frontiers of nanotechnology who has designed for NASA -- describes nanotechnology in a very accessible way, so that anyone can understand what it's about, what it could do, and what it can't do. He puts it into historical context, explaining how previous technological developments have affected us, how nanotechnology fits into the historical trends for technologies ranging from motors to medicine, and how the continuation of these trends, with nanotechnology as a strong determining factor, will have a profound impact on the future. In a straightforward, balanced manner, Dr Hall analyses the benefits as well as the potential risks.