The word Nanoscience is a combination of nano, from the Greek "nanos" (or Latin "nanus"), meaning "Dwarf", and the word "Science". It is the study of atoms, molecules, and objects whose size is on the nanometer scale (1-100 nanometers). Nano refers to the 10-9 power, or one billionth. In these terms it refers to a meter, or a nanometer, which is on the scale of atomic diameters. For comparison, a human hair is about 100,000 nano meters thick! By learning about an individual molecule's properties, we can put them together in very well-defined ways to produce new materials with new and amazing characteristics.