Joanna Aizenberg and her colleagues produced an elastic thin film material with nano-sized pores.

BBC: New material can halt runny liquids on demand

It damages the nano-sized molecular groups that repel water and dirt, for example.

BBC: Coating heals itself after damage

Furthermore, unlike most examples of nanotechnology, these new materials may be able to make the elusive transition from nano-sized materials (a nanometre is a billionth of a metre) to macro-sized components.

ECONOMIST: MONITOR

While not quite as "nano" as the SIM card-sized satellites that launched with the Shuttle Endeavor, the smaller-than-a-breadbox ExoPlanetSat is still pretty tiny by satellite standards, yet it packs all the necessary optics and technology required for what's known as transit observation -- that is, monitoring a star for decreases in brightness, which could indicate a planet passing in front of it.

ENGADGET: ExoPlanetSat nanosatellite to begin search for alien worlds next year