"Nanotechnology" is the science of very small things and I mean very small. Like every new technology that preceded it, the development of the law surrounding nanotechnology is well behind the advances in the technology. The law is this area is where Internet Law was in 1995. It fills only a pamphlet.
According to the Nanobusiness Alliance, a more precise definition of nanotechnology is "the ability to do things - measure, see, predict and make - on the scale of atoms and molecules. Traditionally, the nanotechnology realm is defined as being between 0.1 and 100 nanometers, a nanometer being one thousandth of a micron (micrometer), which is, in turn, one thousandth of a millimeter." Some speculate that nanotechnology, or simply nanotech, may be the next big thing in the world of technology following a list that includes the industrial revolution, atomic energy, computers, space, the Internet and ... now nanotech.
To help you understand just how small is small, consider this: A nanometer is one-billionth of a meter, which is approximately 1/80,000 the width of a human hair and 10 times the diameter of a hydrogen atom. The size of a nanometer relative to the width of the human hair is comparable to relating 6.5 feet to 100 miles. A nanometer is roughly the width of four atoms.
With nanotech, we're talking about working on the atomic and molecular level to create things that have unique chemical, physical and biological properties because of their nano size. In a sense, nanotechnology mirrors the workings of living cells, which manufacture with atomic precision.
Nanotech cuts across many disciplines including chemistry, physics, biology, computer science, and engineering. It's gone from Star Trek to an industry that receives more than half a billion dollars a year from the U.S. government.
If you think that nanotech is just hype, consider that companies like IBM, HP, TI, GM, GE, Siemens, Intel, Hitachi, and Dow are involved in nanotechnology R&D. Furthermore, the U.S. is getting stiff foreign competition from the usual suspects including Japan, the EU, Russia, Korea, and China. Unfortunately, some believe that they are ahead of the U.S. is some ways.
Also, President Bush's proposed 2004 budget provides $847 million for the multi-agency National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI). This is a 9.5% increase over 2003.
According to the President's Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), this money "will advance fundamental understanding of the nanoscale phenomena - unique properties of matter that occur at the level of clusters of atoms and molecules. This increased understanding promises to underlie revolutionary advances that will contribute to improvements in medicine, manufacturing, high-performance materials, information technology, and environmental technologies."
Interestingly, the most significant increases are for the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Science Foundation (NSF). According to the OSTP, "NSF continues to have the largest share of federal nanotechnology funding, reflecting the broad mission of NSF in supporting fundamental research across all disciplines of science and engineering. The request for DOE's nanotechnology program reflects, in part, the development of five geographically distributed user centers."
The OSTP goes on to say examples of notable achievement over the past year include "the development of single molecule electron devices, molecular motors, nanoscale fabrication using atomic force microprobes, micro-cantilevers to detect proteins, and enhanced medical imaging using nanoparticle-based probes." It's not just Star Trek and science fiction anymore.
On the legislative front, Representative Mike Honda (D-San Jose) introduced the Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Advisory Board Act of 2003. The legislation would establish an independent advisory board, comprised of leaders from industry and academia, advising the President and Congress on research investment strategy, policy and objectives
Further, the legislation would create an advisory board who would determine short-term, medium-range, and longer-range goals and objectives and performance metrics. The bill calls for the board to submit an annual report to the President and Congress describing the progress made with nanotechnology.
The bill is probably a step in the right direction in that its underlying purpose would seem to be to begin to focus policy-making attention in the area of nanotech. That has to be a good idea when there has really been so little focus on the many issues raised by nanotech.
The issues raised start at the ethical and moral, and work their way right into legal issues. For example, if nanotech could allow us to go into genes and fix them to prevent disease, is it okay to go into genes to "improve" genes that have no obvious problems?
You then go from the high-level ethical, moral and legal issues right into practical business issues. As lawyers inevitably get involved in what will undoubtedly be a high-stakes business, all sorts of patent, copyright, health, safety, environmental, and other legal issues arise. Then once you create the nanotech devices, you have business issues involving turning the devices into profitable inventions and businesses.
As this all goes from science fiction to reality, I look forward to negotiating more and more of the licensing and technology transfer deals that will certainly arise.