Development Ethical and Societal Issues Satyen Baindur PhD

Stewardship in Nanotechnology Development:
Ethical and Societal Issues
SATYEN BAINDUR, PHD
Ottawa Policy Research Associates, Inc.
OPRA Report 2006-4-1 Issued April 2006
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INTRODUCTION
The science of matter at the nanoscale 1 has been rapidly advancing in the past
decade. So also has the set of methods, techniques and approaches that enable the design,
characterization and assembly of atoms, molecules, structures, devices and systems at the
nanometer scale by controlling their shape, size, physico-chemical composition, surface
characteristics, solubility or agglomeration properties. Collectively, these techniques and
methods constitute nanotechnology; the plural ‘nanotechnologies’ is often cited, to
emphasize that one is dealing here with general-purpose technologies that enhance and
enable yet other technologies, influencing a very diverse set of application areas.
At the most basic level, nanotechnologies result in new materials and device
possibilities that exploit the unique physical and chemical properties of matter occurring
at the nanoscale. These materials, generically called ‘nanomaterials’ 2 , come to have
properties extending beyond those of materials found in nature. For example, some of
these materials can have extreme hardness, or high tensile strength, but simultaneously be
significantly lighter in weight than materials with similar properties found in nature.
Other nanomaterials possess novel magnetic, electrical, optical or therapeutic properties
that hold truly fascinating application potential.
The field of nanotechnologies exhibits interdisciplinary convergence, where
knowledge areas that were previously developing at their own pace, become thematically
cohesive, and advance synergistically. Thus, one expects that the unprecedented pace at
which nanotechnologies have been recently advancing will only increase in the future.
While much that has happened in nanotechnologies is relatively new, it should not
be assumed that all ‘nanotechnology’ is recent - in fact, there has long been an awareness
of some of the special properties that result at the nanoscale, (though without knowledge
of how they come about). For example, since medieval times, pigments used in stained
glass have contained silver or gold particles in the 100 nm size range. More recently, 19 th
1 The nanoscale has come to be defined as 1-100 nanometers, where a nanometer is one-billionth of a
meter.
2 There are many kinds of nanomaterials, and a taxonomy of such materials is now coming into being. A
preliminary taxonomy is presented elsewhere in this document.
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