Nanobots are essentially what they sound like – really small robots. “Nano” refers to the size – between .1 – 10 micrometers. Essentially, really small.

Nanobots have the potential to be useful in many different applications, none more so than nanomedicine: the medical application of nanotechnology, like nanobots.

Although modern medicine is not quite there yet, we are getting closer to putting little robots into patients to do all sorts of great things.

In particular, scientists and doctors are hoping that they can provide “highly-targeted delivery of medical payloads,” essentially meaning that they can put medication precisely where the doctor wants it to go.

This would be terrific for patients who have medical problems that today are treated with medications that have effects on much more of the body. Think of cancer therapy, which often has serious side effects. What if the doctors could send in a nanobot to attach to cancer cells and release their payloads – the medicine – directing onto or into them?

Or perhaps the doctor could send in some nanobots to act as sponges, aiming them towards the site of an infection. This list goes on and on.

One obstacle is getting the nanobots to go where doctors want them to go. So far technology companies are experimenting with magnetic fields, or fitting them with tiny “micro-motors.”

You can read more about these fascinating technological advancements here:

[Nanorobots wade through blood to deliver drugs](http://www.gizmag.com/nanobots-blood-drug-delivery/38064/)