Responsible Nanotechnology

China's Prolific Nano Researchers

Over at Metamodern, Eric Drexler just posted a rather impressive table of the top nanotech researchers of 2005, in terms of numbers of papers published.

The top four nanotech publishers are Chinese. China also grabbed slots 6-9, 11-13, and 15.

Slots 5, 10, 14, 16, and 17 are filled by researchers from Italy, England, Germany, Taiwan, and Germany, in that order.

Slots 18-23 are tied between Japan, the U.S., China (twice), and the Netherlands (twice).

Drexler comments that this table "has a degree of relevance" to an essay of his, “Asia and the elements of innovation”"

Of course, the number of papers published may always be correlated with the quality of the work. And nanotechnology is a broad collection of barely-connected fields, with no indication of which fields these authors are publishing in. But still... it surprised me to see the US so far down on a tech-related list.

(I'd include the table in this post, but Typepad seems not to allow linking to external images. My only way to show the image would be to copy the image to Typepad, which would be a copyright violation - an actual crime - instead of mere linking, which may be rude depending on how it's done, but as far as I know isn't illegal yet. Anyway, click on the link above to see the table.)

Chris Phoenix

CRN Goes to Indianapolis

Next week, I'll be speaking on a panel at the 2009 Midwestern States Risk Assessment Symposium. Their agenda for this year includes nanoparticles and risk communication.

I'll be warning the audience how difficult it may be communicate about nanoparticle risks with people who may not know the difference between a nanoparticle and a nanobot. To help them formulate their communications, I'll give them some basic background  about where molecular manufacturing came from, and the various ways that its ideas have reached the public. Along the way, if I have time, I intend to expand my discussion of molecular manufacturing to talk a bit about where molecular manufacturing will be going in the next several years.

The MSRAS is Tuesday and Wednesday, Nov. 3 and 4, in Indianapolis.

Chris Phoenix

Where are the medical diagnostics?

I was more than a little surprised to read that there's an X Prize in the works for a fast inexpensive tuberculosis test. Years ago, we heard of tests that could detect ridiculously attenuated molecular concentrations. DNA detection arrays have also been around for years. Many other approaches have been developed to detect a wide variety of molecules, including sensors that can detect single molecules.

The world badly needs a TB test that is quick, inexpensive, and can be used in low-tech environments. But apparently, such a test is still so far away that no one even knows how to design it: instead of simply funding the development of a suitable test, the Gates Foundation is planning to fund a $10 million prize for whoever can develop a suitable test.

So why, with all the techniques of modern nanotechnology, is it so hard to identify a few relevant molecules and develop a quick inexpensive test for them? I'm honestly puzzled by this.

Chris Phoenix