Power of Small
Nanotechnology is a subject many of us have heard of but perhaps few of us truly understand. While the market for nanotechnolgy is large (more than $60 bn in products using nanotechnology sold globally in 2007, according to Lux Research), public awareness is low. To help educate the American public, the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies (PEN) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) are promoting a television series “Nanotechnology: The Power of Small”. The three-part series address nanotechnology as it relates to three areas: privacy, health, and environment. The series attempts to address the potential benefits of nanotechnology for humanity as well as the possible problems and challenges.
For many years, scholars have believed that nanotechnology holds promise in addressing the key issues facing the world, including fighting disease, improving agriculture, and developing clean technology. However, most nanotechnology research today is driven by market forces and therefore skews incentives towards applications that benefit the developed world. This is one reason why South Africa developed a National Nanotechnology Strategy in 2006. (hat tip The Choice is Yours). In November of 2007 South Africa’s first two Nanotechnology Innovation Centres opened.
At the opening, Minister Mosibudi Mangena discussed the social benefit of the government’s investment in the nanotechnology centers:
…[the centers] practically take us closer to using nanotechnology for addressing some of our social and economic challenges…In particular, the outcome of the research conducted at these Centres should help develop, for example, low-cost filters to provide clean drinking water, primary health care through the development of medical devices, drugs to detect and treat diseases more effectively, and ensure the provision of clean, secure and affordable energy.
He also discussed the focus on human capital development:
Human capital development is, to borrow from Benjamin Franklin’s words, “an investment that always pays the best interest”.
In our view, this is where we need to focus now if we are to realise the returns on our investment in the future.
A knowledge-based economy rests on a foundation of knowledge workers in all scientific endeavours.
Institutes and schools like AIMS serve to develop the future knowledge workers of not only South Africa but all of Africa. If you want to support their work, click here.
Tags: human capital, nanotechnology, south africa
