Futurist Colin McInnes joins hosts Phil Bowermaster and Stephen Gordon to discuss his controversial essay: Bringing Dead Matter to Life.   They discuss how dead matter comes to life -- first at the molecular level and then at the planetary level, why no one should be freaking out about gray goo and other shock scenarios, and why the fate of humanity and the planet depends on our elarning to overcome our lack of confidence.    About Our Guest:   Colin McInnes is Director of the Advanced Space Concepts Laboratory at the University of Strathclyde. His work includes the investigation of families of novel spacecraft orbits and their mission applications, autonomous control of multiple spacecraft systems and advanced space concepts. His recent work involves exploring new approaches to spacecraft orbital dynamics at extremes of spacecraft length-scale as a means of supporting future space-derived products and services. He has been the recipient of national and international awards including  the Royal Aeronautical Society Pardoe Space Award (2000) and the Ackroyd Stuart Propulsion Prize (2003). More recently he was awarded a Leonov medal by the International Association of Space Explorers in September 2007. Over the last ten years McInnes’ work has been funded by a diverse range of international partners including research councils, agencies, and leading players in the aerospace industry. He currently holds an Advanced Investigator Grant from the European Research Council.