Better cooling systems means we are much closer to everyday supercomputers.

Friday, NASA teamed up with Nanoconduction Inc. to help climb into the world of carbon nanotubes. They are both looking to improve the way electronics are staving off the heat. Although, NASA has other intentions besides cooling off electronics. They are looking to: 1.cool space stations with new materials, and 2.make the electrical components smaller and lighter, while the private sector is looking for ways to cool the chips, and make them smaller. They both, of course, are looking for faster and more efficient performance.
If you look at the report regarding quantum encryption (I am a bit slow in writing it, look for it in the next few days, sorry) you will see that both sectors are now finding that to control both quantum computers and quantum encryption you need to supercool the material (to at least impart distance, you can't 'boost' the photonic spins as this will change it's positioning). The states of the quantum spins are reliant on minimal 'noise' these new chips, as appose to the Gallium-Arsenide ones, will be able to efficiently control the thermal conductivities.
In other projections, their are various teams in Chicago that are taking a new approach to this same problem. By understanding the mechanism that cause conformational changes in proteins we can, hopefully, couple this to the new Buckey-ball shapes, and carbon nanotubes, and not only create and efficient thermal management system but also allow it to adapt to the rapidly changing environments.
For example if we apply it to the exterior of the MIR. The rotations and constant fluctuations in heat and cold (based on which side of the earth they are on) will be able to not only hold the heat inside, but will also be able to change shape and trap the heat inside Buckey-ball 'canisters", they are extremely efficient in the game of enthalpy, and then release it upon predestined temperature markers. Which will be, of course, nanostructures that have very specific values.
Think of organic element that release color at very precise values. We are finding new ways to understand and control these methods as well. (see the article on BRET Fluorescence). The small company called EnviroSystems based in San Jose uses nanotechnology to allow their cleaners to penetrate the cell walls of bacteria. They have engineered their chemical to clean, kill, and yet remain to be very eco friendly. This application is quite the reverse of what NASA is doing. The new cleaner was engineered backwards by having the chemical and then amplifying it, and although they won’t say, by making it be very cell specific. This allows it to not enter the human cell and explode it. They are calling projections in the eight figures for this year. (With a company of only 12, and $20 a gallon, damn!)
The carbon nanotubes NASA will be trying to engineer are already being used. We saw in mid 2004 that when organophosphates are coupled to nanotunes the nanotubes can be connected to a sensor that is coupled to a laptop. The organophosphates are distributed like a micro assay and can detect materials on the environment. More specifically when they were coupled to neurotransmitter enzymes (the things that initiates propagations and action potentials) the minute particles in nerve agents and chemical warfare can be detected instantly and the appropriate measures can be taken to combat it. The carbon nanotubes are so specific they can detect traces in as few as 5 parts per Billion.