Micromoter scoots through fluid

Biomechanical engineering on the micro- and nanoscale is starting to get pretty cool. Joe Wang, distinguished professor at UC San Diego, has now given nanoparticles locomotion -- in the form of awesome bubble-spewing propulsion. These tiny aluminum-based particles are roughly the size of a human hair, so the device itself is not particularly visible in the video. What you can see is the trail of bubbles the micromoter produces as it zips across the field of view at 3 mm/s, or 150 body lengths per second (a car travelling at 150 body lengths per second would break the sound barrier). The best part? Water provides the fuel.