Nanotechnology Ethics on the Table

Scientific experts are undecided on whether nanotechnology is beneficial or potentially dangerous. At the nanoethics discussion in Canberra, Australia at the Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics, this particular issue was discussed by experts in the field, who brought up questions like nanotechnology's implication on privacy problems caused by current technologies. According to Dr. Peter Binks of Nanotechnology Victoria, "Nanotechnology is just part of the general march of technology and we don't want to see it treated as anything different." However, physical chemist Dr. John White of the Australian National University in Canberra saw it differently, citing nanotechnology's supremely small scale as a possible concern. One example of this is tiny radio-frequency tags implanted in Mexican government workers to control access to the attorney general's office. Yet like all controversy, it will stimulate conversation and debate which will lead to understanding and compromise in the future.

I thought that the idea of a privacy invasion to be particularly interesting since I had never thought about the small size in that sense before. It is interesting to think about unwittingly ingesting some sort of unwanted material into your system, and what the implications of an industry unregulated in the area would be. Obviously much more government regulation and simple precautions need to be taken before any kind of nanotechnology becomes commercially used.

Salleh, Anna. "Nanotechnology Ethics on the Table", The Australian Broadcasting Corporation Website. July 2004. http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s1160631.htm. Accessed December 3, 2007.