Uploaded September 2019 | Updated September 2026, 3 hours ago

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Carson Bruns (@BrunsenBurner) is an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he directs the Emergent Nanomaterials Lab, inventing nanomaterials, tech-enabled tattoos and more that Sci-Fi authors have forever dreamed of. Carson's has co-authored more than 30 peer-reviewed scientific publications, including the celebrated book The Nature of the Mechanical Bond: From Molecules to Machines and his work has been featured in Inked Magazine, Chemical and Engineering News, Colorado Public Radio and TEDx.

Full episode ---- https://disruptors.fm/139-how-nanotech-tattoos-will-give-us-superhuman-strength-senses-and-merge-with-biotech-carson-bruns

In today's episode we discuss:

- The future of implantable computing
- How molecular machinery works and what it means for our future
- Why Carson's so bullish on tech-enabled tattoos
- The pros and cons of embeddable vs wearable tech
- Augmented reality and wearables
- How far off are we from a Star Trek replicator
- The key difference between nanotech and synthetic biology
- Why Carson went on a 3-day silent Buddhism retreat and studied philosophy
- What Japan taught Carson about life
- The value of being well-rounded in today's world
- Why diverse teams actually leads to better outcomes
- How Carson thinks about the research funding landscape today
- What technologies most worry and excite Carson most, and why

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