Nanobots Begin Training To Accidentally Wipe Out Civilization

We all know how this story goes. First, we have a problem, like some sort of airborne disease or environmental issue that exists on a molecular level. Then, our brilliant scientists use their unflappable hubris to deal with the problem using nanobots, tiny robots that operate on a scale so small they can actually alter or repair individual cells and molecules. The whole process works smashingly at first, and it seems our problems are solved. Unfortunately, the use of these nanobots inevitably has some kind of unintended consequence. For instance, once they've finished eliminating some harmful chemical from the atmosphere, they mutate on their own and start eliminating all of the oxygen too. Before we can contain them, they begin reproducing at an unpredictable rate, and whatever survivors remain must board a ship and abandon our contaminated planet. This seems ok until just before the credits roll, when, unbeknownst to our heroes, it becomes apparent that the nanobots have followed them onto the ship.

The very preliminary stages of this story started unfolding a few weeks ago as a nanobot competition kicked off at the 2007 Robocup in Atlanta, Georgia. Scientists from around the world entered their microscopic harbingers of the apocalypse into competitions of speed, accuracy, and agility based around the idea of a tiny soccer match. We will, of course, monitor the progress of these tiny armies as they train to accidentally destroy us in the future.