New essay series discusses nanotech impacts

Filed in archive Institutions on April 3, 2006

The Center for Responsible Nanotechnology (CRN) has just released a series of new research papers in which industry experts predict profound impacts of nanotechnology on society. Eleven original essays by members of CRN's Global Task Force appear in the latest issue of the journal Nanotechnology Perceptions. Nanotechnology Perceptions is a peer-reviewed academic journal of the Collegium Basilea in Basel, Switzerland. The CRN Task Force essays also will be posted online at KurzweilAI.net and Wise-Nano.org.

Essayist Ray Kurzweil, renowned inventor, entrepreneur, and best-selling author, explained, "As the pace of technological advancement rapidly accelerates, it becomes increasingly important to promote knowledgeable and insightful discussion of both promise and peril."

The essays are:
1. "Nanotechnology Dangers and Defenses" - Ray Kurzweil
2. "Molecular Manufacturing: Too Dangerous to Allow?" - Robert A. Freitas Jr.
3. "Nano-Guns, Nano-Germs, and Nano-Steel" - Mike Treder
4. "Molecular Manufacturing and 21st Century Policing" - Tom Cowper
5. "The Need For Limits" - Chris Phoenix
6. "Globalization and Open Source Nano Economy" - Giulio Prisco
7. "Cultural Dominants and Differential MNT Uptake" - Damien Broderick
8. "Nanoethics and Human Enhancement" - Patrick Lin & Fritz Allhoff
9. "Strategic Sustainable Brain" - Natasha Vita-More
10. "Is AI Near a Takeoff Point?" - J. Storrs Hall
11. "Singularities and Nightmares: The Range of Our Futures" - David Brin