Overview

Provides a nontechnical reference source of the relevant social science and policy literature on nanotechnology. The authors hope to engender not only a greater appreciation of the economic and social benefits of nanotechnology but also to encourage more extensive research and public support of this technology. Section 2 briefly overviews U.S. policy initiatives related to nanotechnology and to the systematic investment in research that the U.S. Congress has approved to advance it over the nearly past two decades. Section 3 summarizes these U.S. research investments into nanotechnology and compares dimensions of nanotechnology activity in the United States to activity in other countries. Section 4 offers a taxonomy and overview of the relevant social science and policy literature related to nanotechnology. The taxonomy is a subjective classifying device for tracking the growth of this literature over time; the overview is a descriptive summary of how researchers in these disciplines have characterized the practice of nanotechnology. The appendix to this monograph presents an annotated bibliography of this literature. The extensive annotated bibliography fills a gap in the literature because the reviews that exist are limited in scope, and the review points out the lack of policy research related to public investments in nanotechnology. Finally, Section 5 suggests specific directions for future policy research with a focus on a methodology for evaluating the social benefits of publicly funded nanotechnology R&D investments.

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