] The next big thing is going to be very, very small. At
] least, that's what scientists and companies pouring time,
] effort and billions of dollars into nanotechnology are
] hoping. Indeed, the President's 2004 budget allocates
] $849 million to the National Nanotechnology Initiative
] and in May the House passed a nanotech funding bill
] totaling $2.36 billion over the next three years. Private
] corporations have entered the fray, too, prompted in part
] by the National Science Foundation's prediction that
] nanotechnology could potentially grow into a $1-trillion
] industry annually by 2015.