Well....maybe it holds some promise. But I would hope that all persons refrain from such over inflationary words as "tremendous," especially when the entire field is a complete unknown, including all or any of the consequences of its application.
But you're right. A bit like GE. It may hold some promise. Yet the detracting factors of GE are only being clued in on now in the public sector, with the complete consequences indeterminate and in many respects still far off in the future. (Some great degree of debate as to whether or not the consequences now emerging were not perceived well in advance by the manipulators of GE.) Nothing at all wrong with being concerned with corporately managed superhighways into the unknown. And fine animals those Luddites... :-) Todd Swearingen ----- Original Message ----- From: Keith Addison <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <biofuel@yahoogroups.com> Sent: Tuesday, July 23, 2002 12:53 PM Subject: [biofuel] Fwd: ETC: The Dangers of Nanotech Particles > Now I'll be dubbed "anti-nanotech" by some, and probably > anti-"progress" too, a Luddite. I'm none of those things. I don't > think the ETC Group is against nanotech either. I'm also not anti > genetic engineering. But the likes of Monsanto + GMOs = criminal > irresponsibility. That's my concern with nanotech too. Like GE, it > holds tremendous promise, but not in the hands of these people. > > Keith > > > >Date: Tue, 23 Jul 2002 10:56:51 -0500 > >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Sender: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Reply-to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > >Subject: ETC: The Dangers of Nanotech Particles > >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > >The ETC Group announces the release of a new, 8-page Communique > >entitled, "No Small Matter: Nanotech Particles Penetrate Living > >Cells and Accumulate in Animal Organs." > > > >Discussions of the potential dangers of nanotechnology (that is, > >manipulating matter on the scale of the nanometer, one billionth of > >a meter) have been carried out in the realm of theory or in the > >safe, fictional realm of Hollywood movies: will scientists someday > >be able to create self-assembling nanobots programmed to produce > >commercial goods and food and new forms of life? What might happen > >if they do? There has been virtually no discussion, however, of the > >potential danger of today's applied nanotechnology (that is, > >manipulating matter on the scale of the nanometer to produce useful > >materials)--until now. Researchers have just begun to ask the most > >basic questions about the impact of new nano-materials on human > >health and the environment. Evidence of nanoparticle contamination > >in living organisms and unanswered questions about potential dangers > >of new forms of carbon require urgent societal review. > > > >The full text of "No Small Matter" is available on the ETC website: > >http://www.etcgroup.org > > > >Summary: > > > >Issue: At a mid-March fact-finding meeting at the US > >EnvironmentalProtection Agency (EPA), researchers reported that > >nanoparticles are showing up in the livers of research animals, can > >seep into living cells, and perhaps piggyback on bacteria to enter > >the food chain. The commercial use of nanoscale carbon was likened > >to either "the next best thing to sliced bread or the next > >asbestos." Despite these revelations, there is no regulatory body > >(and no plans for one) > >dedicated to overseeing this potent and powerfully invasive new technology. > > > >Context: Touted as the greenest and greatest techno-fix ever, > >proponents claim that these atomic-scale manipulations will solve our > >environmental woes and guarantee - not only sustainable, but > >perpetual - development. Nanotechnology is the manipulation of > >matter, working with elements in the Periodic Table (atoms and atom > >clusters [molecules] in the range of a nanometer [nm], one billionth > >of a meter). At the nanoscale, atoms function in the fabled realm > >of quantum physics, where ordinary elements can exhibit extraordinary > >strength, temperature tolerance, colors, chemical reactivity, and > >electrical conductivity - characteristics inconceivable at micro or > >macro scales. Companies are already cranking out tons of commercial > >nanomaterials for use as catalysts, in cosmetics, paints, coatings, > >fabrics, and to provide added strength. Some of the materials are > >familiar compounds that have never before been marketed on the > >nanoscale; other materials are atomically-modified elements that do > >not exist in nature. Some new forms of carbon (a component of all > >living things) - called nanotubes and fullerenes - are being > >manufactured for the first time and their impact on the environment > >is unknown. > > > >Implications: Nanotechnology - including nanobiotechnology - has > >been pegged by industry and governments to become the world's largest > >and fastest industrial revolution - dwarfing history's past > >technological upheavals. More than 450 dedicated nanotech > >enterprises are already in the marketplace manufacturing a host of > >"old-nano" products (e.g., particles used in cosmetics and sprays) > >and "new-nano" products (e.g., chips, sensors and new forms of > >carbon). Global R & D spending is at US$4 billion. The US National > >Science Foundation predicts that within ten years the entire > >semiconductor industry and half of the pharmaceutical industry will > >rely on nanotechnology and that, by 2015, the global market will be > >US$1 trillion. Industry will fight hard to make sure that health > >and environmental concerns do not derail the progress of nanotech, > >as has happened with biotech. > > > >Policy: Because nanotech generally works with the elemental > >building blocks of life - rather than with life directly - it has > >largely evaded social, political and regulatory scrutiny. The US > >Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has thus far established no > >policies or protocols for considering the safety of nano-particles > >in products already on the market. Given the concerns raised over > >nanoparticle contamination in living organisms, Heads of State > >attending the World Summit on Sustainable Development in > >Johannesburg (Aug. 26-Sept. 4, 2002) should declare an immediate > >moratorium on commercial production of new nanomaterials and launch > >a transparent global process for evaluating the socio-economic, > >health and environmental implications of the technology. > > > Yahoo! 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