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• Nanotech and Synbio: Americans Don’t Know What’s Coming A groundbreaking poll has found that almost half of U.S. adults have heard nothing about nanotechnology, and nearly nine in 10 Americans say they have heard just a little or nothing at all about the emerging field of synthetic biology. This new insight into limited public awareness of emerging technologies comes on the cup of a major leadership change in the nation’s capital. video
• Nanoscale Silver: No Silver Lining? Widespread use of nanoscale silver will challenge regulatory agencies to balance important potential benefits against the possibility of significant environmental risk, highlighting the need to identify research priorities concerning this emerging technology, according to a new report by Dr. Samuel Luoma. Existing information about the impact of silver on the environment offers a starting point for some assessments of nanosilver, the report argues.
• Nanotechnology and the FDA: Size Matters! In July 2007 the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) issued its Nanotechnology Task Force Report. This report acknowledged that nanoscale materials potentially could be used in most product types regulated by the agency and that those materials present challenges complicated by the fact that properties relevant to product safety and effectiveness may change as size varies within the nanoscale.
• Consumer Product Safety Commission Not Ready For Nanotech The inability of the Consumer Product Safety Commission to carry out its mandate with respect to simple, low-tech products such as children’s jewelry and toy trains bodes poorly for its ability to oversee the safety of complex, high-tech products made using nanotechnology, according to a new report written by consumer product expert and Harvard lecturer E. Marla Felcher.
• Local Officials Move Toward Monitoring Nanotechnologies State and local officials have taken steps to begin monitoring the manufacture and storage of nanomaterials, a major step for a cutting-edge technology that has yet to be regulated by the federal government. Today, the Cambridge, MA Public Health Department recommended that the city take several steps to gain a better understanding of the nature and extent of local nanotechnology-related activities.
• Nanotech: A Regulatory Blueprint for the Next Administration Nanotechnology will significantly change virtually every facet of the way we live. The next president has the opportunity to shape these changes and to ensure that nanotechnology’s benefits will be maximized and its risks identified and controlled. A new report by former EPA official J. Clarence (Terry) Davies lays out a clear roadmap for the next presidential administration and describes the immediate and longer term steps necessary to deal with the current shortcomings of nanotechnology oversight. video

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