Survey shows nearly half still haven't heard of nanotech

Filed in archive Society & Ethics on September 21, 2006

A new survey of US residents reveals that almost half still haven't heard of nanotechnology. On the other hand, the number who have heard of nanotech has nearly doubled in the last two years.

The survey of 1,014 US adults was commissioned by the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and conducted by independent research firm Peter D. Hart Research Associates in August 2006.

On the question of who should regulate nanotech safety:

55% feel that the federal government should have a role in overseeing scientific and technological advancements such as nanotechnology.

54% think universities and independent researchers should have the same role.

12% believe the companies that manufacture nano-products should be exclusively responsible for regulating their safety.

I find it interesting that people are just as comfortable with universities and independent researchers overseeing nanotech advancements as with the federal government. I suspect that suggests an erosion of the public's confidence in the feds to effectively regulate nanotech (and probably other consumer affairs as well).