UT NanoTechnology Conference
Created by Craig Blaha (University of Texas at Austin) on October 01, 2005
October 1, Nano-tech civic forum on the societal implications of nanotechnology
Summary - nanotechnology is broad based, it includes a number of different industries, and has an impact on a scale between existing physical building processes and molecular biology. Concern was raised about the accuracy of the protrayal and risks of nano-technology in the media. There was a lack of willingness to directly address possible negative consequences, and a submission that the government will protect us from negative impacts, and at the same time, existing infrastructure is inadequate to deal with new technology.
The potential benefits of nano-technology are huge, but there is no infrastructure in place to asses the moral impact or the long term environmental and societal impact of these technologies.
STS = science technology and society
The idea behind the forum is to discuss the implications of a new technology while it is being developed, instead of developing and deploying tech and figuring out how to deal with the consequences. Responsible development of technology!
Attendees:
Panel members:
Les Mcgehee - comedian. Improvisation takes advantage of the group mind to build on experience.
Richard Lariviere
Mayor Will Wynn
President Larry Faulkner
Panel Discussion
Summary - nanotechnology is broad based, it includes a number of different industries, and has an impact on a scale between existing physical building processes and molecular biology. Concern was raised about the accuracy of the protrayal and risks of nano-technology in the media. There was a lack of willingness to directly address possible negative consequences, and a submission that the government will protect us from negative impacts, and at the same time, existing infrastructure is inadequate to deal with new technology.
The potential benefits of nano-technology are huge, but there is no infrastructure in place to asses the moral impact or the long term environmental and societal impact of these technologies.
STS = science technology and society
The idea behind the forum is to discuss the implications of a new technology while it is being developed, instead of developing and deploying tech and figuring out how to deal with the consequences. Responsible development of technology!
Attendees:
Elizabeth Keating, Director STS Program
Dr. Leslie Jarmon, Outreach Officer
Les McGehee
Dr. Richard Lariviere, Dean, College of Liberal Arts
Dr. Larry Faulkner, President, University of Texas at Austin
Brenda Hall, STS Advisory Board, CEO/Austin Test
Mayor Will Wynn, City of Austin
Dr. Leslie Jarmon, Outreach Officer
Les McGehee
Dr. Richard Lariviere, Dean, College of Liberal Arts
Dr. Larry Faulkner, President, University of Texas at Austin
Brenda Hall, STS Advisory Board, CEO/Austin Test
Mayor Will Wynn, City of Austin
Panel members:
Randy Goldsmith - asst. vp, tech transfer, UT Health science center san antonio
Mary Jane Cunningham, Houston advanced research center
Sanjay Banerjee, director, microelectronics research center, UT Austin
naomi halas, halas nanophotonics group, rice university
grant wilson, co-founder, molecular implants
keith stevenson, stevenson research group, chemistry, ut Austin
Gary Chapman - moderator
Mary Jane Cunningham, Houston advanced research center
Sanjay Banerjee, director, microelectronics research center, UT Austin
naomi halas, halas nanophotonics group, rice university
grant wilson, co-founder, molecular implants
keith stevenson, stevenson research group, chemistry, ut Austin
Gary Chapman - moderator
Les Mcgehee - comedian. Improvisation takes advantage of the group mind to build on experience.
Richard Lariviere
old model - scientists create the technologies and society figures out how to deal with them, this type of event aspires to change that model.
Mayor Will Wynn
Will Austin become a second generatioin technology center - nanotechnology as the second generation of technology.
President Larry Faulkner
First event to focus on societal impact of technology. Discussion will focus on what nano-tech will mean, no one knows, yet. This field is not an isolated area of investigation, may subfields of knowledge that you can do this with, but not nanotech. Can't decide whether we want to investigate the nano frontier b/c it IS the next frontier of where all disciplines relating to material world will have to go. Over recent history we have learned how to build atoms into molecules, and how to build physical structures from big buildings to micro devices. There is a lower limit to our ability to fabricate structures, in between molecules and physical building is the nano-world.
There is no way to keep departments from addressing this area, b/c it is where knowledge needs to be developed. Powerful benefits and some substantial problems will come from nano-technology. We can expect devices, machines, materials, innovative structures that marry physical and biological world.
There is no way to keep departments from addressing this area, b/c it is where knowledge needs to be developed. Powerful benefits and some substantial problems will come from nano-technology. We can expect devices, machines, materials, innovative structures that marry physical and biological world.
Panel Discussion
Gary Chapman - historical context for civic forum - science and national security worked hand in hand, making scientific secrecy a national security issue. Early 90's there was a national dialogue over how to create a new organizing principle for science. 3 historical trends - globalization, info revolution and challenges to the natural environment. Gary organized the 21st century project around the idea of engaging the public around the trajectory of science. Equal partners in dialogue instead of audience in monologue.
Sanjay - at some point, small becomes different - chemical and biological, not just smaller.
Q - give an example of one of the great social benefits of nano
Keith - to transition to a different energy based economy, limit pollutants improves quality of life
Randy - nano- medicine -
Mary-Jane - nano-medicine, using nano materials to put imaging into cells to see what is going on, potential to re-use rejected drug candidates.
Sanjay - short time frame - nanomedicine target cell level, energy - finite fossil fuels need to be counteracted by solar or other opportunities.
Naomi - two thrust areas - public health, addressing the threat of pandemics, rapid screening of populations - viral checks in the airport... Other area - research tools.
Grant Wilson - bio asset development, screening technology, lick a piece of paper to tell what drug is proper treatment for your particular problem, 5 minute genome assesment to determine what is the most appropriate way to treat you. Other area - communication - cell phone and ipods stuck in their ears, not talking to anyone. Communication revolution.
Q - Pattern where some advanced technologies engender hostility with some portion of society - fear of moral or environemental impact. What can nano-science do to prepare or emeliorate anticipated problems.
Randy - industrial revolution had great fear of sewing machine b/c it would put 90k women on the street. Forums of communication, sharing advancements and evolution of technologies, with assurance that nano evolves in regulated business.
Grant - Dupont - better living through chemistry. Chemistry is now a 4 letter word - negative connotations. scientists need a public relations effort to make sure info is correctly portrayed.
Sanjay - focus on certain words can be misleading - GMO - farmers have done this for millenia through crop selection. Nuclear is another one. Proper safeguards can reap benefits for society.
Keith - fear what they don't understand, hard to keep peoples attention. Not a good policing of what the terms are and accuracy. Entertainment vs. scientific fact.
Naomi - horrified with idea that nano is evil. Many aspects are not new at all, aspects have been around since 20's and 30's? We have a lot of infrastructure in place to protect the consumer...! FDA procedure is extraordinarily severe and rigorous.
Q - what is the difference between a drug and a device?
Naomi - nano-particles that capture light, convert to heat, kills whatever cell is next to it. Not a drug - light and heat are mechanisms to destroy tumor. Drugs interact differently with different organisms.
Q - What is likely to be the economic impact of nano - is there going to be a nano industry, or will it be distributed throughout all industry. Will there be a nano cluster, regionally. Will this lead to jobs.
Grant - there is a nano industry - electronics. It will evolve, represents a large portion of GNP etc. Won't suddenly be a nano industry.
Sanjay - people have used "nano" as marketing device. At internet boom, how do we measure things like internet commerce. Depending on how you draw the boundaries determines the size of the industry. Personal def - very small, includes phenomenon that doesn't show up in the noticeable scale.
Randy - macro list of industries do not include nano or bio tech. There are only 30 companies in nano - definition - materials, process and tech on a similar scale. Disruptive technology that changes the way we do things within an area. Can lead to new products and new job descriptions...
Mary Jane - safety aspects, after reports that there are negative health consequences the dialog has ramped up. How to name materials accurately, how to analyze materials. Safety testing - different than what we've seen before. Are existing tests adequate.
Grant - nano should not be applied generally - need to work hard to prevent the perception that all nano is bad.
Audience questionsSanjay - at some point, small becomes different - chemical and biological, not just smaller.
Q - give an example of one of the great social benefits of nano
Keith - to transition to a different energy based economy, limit pollutants improves quality of life
Randy - nano- medicine -
Mary-Jane - nano-medicine, using nano materials to put imaging into cells to see what is going on, potential to re-use rejected drug candidates.
Sanjay - short time frame - nanomedicine target cell level, energy - finite fossil fuels need to be counteracted by solar or other opportunities.
Naomi - two thrust areas - public health, addressing the threat of pandemics, rapid screening of populations - viral checks in the airport... Other area - research tools.
Grant Wilson - bio asset development, screening technology, lick a piece of paper to tell what drug is proper treatment for your particular problem, 5 minute genome assesment to determine what is the most appropriate way to treat you. Other area - communication - cell phone and ipods stuck in their ears, not talking to anyone. Communication revolution.
Q - Pattern where some advanced technologies engender hostility with some portion of society - fear of moral or environemental impact. What can nano-science do to prepare or emeliorate anticipated problems.
Randy - industrial revolution had great fear of sewing machine b/c it would put 90k women on the street. Forums of communication, sharing advancements and evolution of technologies, with assurance that nano evolves in regulated business.
Grant - Dupont - better living through chemistry. Chemistry is now a 4 letter word - negative connotations. scientists need a public relations effort to make sure info is correctly portrayed.
Sanjay - focus on certain words can be misleading - GMO - farmers have done this for millenia through crop selection. Nuclear is another one. Proper safeguards can reap benefits for society.
Keith - fear what they don't understand, hard to keep peoples attention. Not a good policing of what the terms are and accuracy. Entertainment vs. scientific fact.
Naomi - horrified with idea that nano is evil. Many aspects are not new at all, aspects have been around since 20's and 30's? We have a lot of infrastructure in place to protect the consumer...! FDA procedure is extraordinarily severe and rigorous.
Q - what is the difference between a drug and a device?
Naomi - nano-particles that capture light, convert to heat, kills whatever cell is next to it. Not a drug - light and heat are mechanisms to destroy tumor. Drugs interact differently with different organisms.
Q - What is likely to be the economic impact of nano - is there going to be a nano industry, or will it be distributed throughout all industry. Will there be a nano cluster, regionally. Will this lead to jobs.
Grant - there is a nano industry - electronics. It will evolve, represents a large portion of GNP etc. Won't suddenly be a nano industry.
Sanjay - people have used "nano" as marketing device. At internet boom, how do we measure things like internet commerce. Depending on how you draw the boundaries determines the size of the industry. Personal def - very small, includes phenomenon that doesn't show up in the noticeable scale.
Randy - macro list of industries do not include nano or bio tech. There are only 30 companies in nano - definition - materials, process and tech on a similar scale. Disruptive technology that changes the way we do things within an area. Can lead to new products and new job descriptions...
Mary Jane - safety aspects, after reports that there are negative health consequences the dialog has ramped up. How to name materials accurately, how to analyze materials. Safety testing - different than what we've seen before. Are existing tests adequate.
Grant - nano should not be applied generally - need to work hard to prevent the perception that all nano is bad.
Q - How do we most effectively get an accurate perception of nano - out to the public.
Keith - no standrad nomenclature for nano. Label things as nano to sell, now we need a standard to limit confusion.
Q - can't say that nano has been going on for millenia and say it is fundamentally new and disruptive. Can't have it both ways. DO technologists need to look into the social aspects, or is that just for social scientists.
Naomi - we have been talking about nano too broadly, so I agree that this makes it confusing but they are not contradictory if you look at the individual fields.
Grant - Looking back at the automobile - 50k people a year die, should we have created it? How could it have been done differently? More people killed in a week than have been killed in all of Irag, so auto is a terrible invention.
Randy - need to understand medicine at the nano level to make progress in health science. COnvergence of scientific disciplines is all defined broadly as nanotechnology. Societal responsibility to ensure that what we are doing is responsible.
Q - Issue of environment - what positive impact will nano have on the environment. Nano is cleaner form of production?
Keith - one promise of nano is can make them more uniformly, ability to add nano products into existing things to make them better. Any catalysed process - plastics etc, nano can help to make those processes have less by-products.
Randy - 50% of planet will have water problem by 2050 - think global and act local. address today the problems that will face us tomorrow - nano may have role in solution to this problem.
Q - speculate as to what the adverse societal and scientific impacts.
Sanjay - nano such a broad catch all term, no single answer. It depends on the way you use it, not the tech per se. certain aspects have negative impacts, need to have regulations.
Grant - people working with these materials need to be cognizant of the dangers and publicize these, and this is happening more than in the past.
Q - how is the patent system failing and benefiting.
Grant - creates enormous complexity, self perpetuating source of dollar drain, attorney income creation. 50 patents, 2 have earned, all have cost money. Cross licensing has helped tech industry. Biotech doesn't do this. Screws up universities especially, Wishes it would go away.
Sanjay - it has gotten out of hand.
Randy - patent process from VC perspective enables the launch of small company, without it, small companies would never make it.
Q - role of media in nano-tech
Keith - writers have responsibility to find the right source for accurate technical information.
Keith - no standrad nomenclature for nano. Label things as nano to sell, now we need a standard to limit confusion.
Q - can't say that nano has been going on for millenia and say it is fundamentally new and disruptive. Can't have it both ways. DO technologists need to look into the social aspects, or is that just for social scientists.
Naomi - we have been talking about nano too broadly, so I agree that this makes it confusing but they are not contradictory if you look at the individual fields.
Grant - Looking back at the automobile - 50k people a year die, should we have created it? How could it have been done differently? More people killed in a week than have been killed in all of Irag, so auto is a terrible invention.
Randy - need to understand medicine at the nano level to make progress in health science. COnvergence of scientific disciplines is all defined broadly as nanotechnology. Societal responsibility to ensure that what we are doing is responsible.
Q - Issue of environment - what positive impact will nano have on the environment. Nano is cleaner form of production?
Keith - one promise of nano is can make them more uniformly, ability to add nano products into existing things to make them better. Any catalysed process - plastics etc, nano can help to make those processes have less by-products.
Randy - 50% of planet will have water problem by 2050 - think global and act local. address today the problems that will face us tomorrow - nano may have role in solution to this problem.
Q - speculate as to what the adverse societal and scientific impacts.
Sanjay - nano such a broad catch all term, no single answer. It depends on the way you use it, not the tech per se. certain aspects have negative impacts, need to have regulations.
Grant - people working with these materials need to be cognizant of the dangers and publicize these, and this is happening more than in the past.
Q - how is the patent system failing and benefiting.
Grant - creates enormous complexity, self perpetuating source of dollar drain, attorney income creation. 50 patents, 2 have earned, all have cost money. Cross licensing has helped tech industry. Biotech doesn't do this. Screws up universities especially, Wishes it would go away.
Sanjay - it has gotten out of hand.
Randy - patent process from VC perspective enables the launch of small company, without it, small companies would never make it.
Q - role of media in nano-tech
Keith - writers have responsibility to find the right source for accurate technical information.
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