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The societal impact of nanotechnology are the potential benefits and challenges that the introduction of novel nanotechnological devices and materials may hold for society and human interaction. The term is sometimes expanded to also include nanotechnology's health and environmental impact, but this article will only consider the social and political impact of nanotechnology. As nanotechnology is an emerging field and most of its applications are still speculative, there is much debate about what positive and negative effects that nanotechnology might have. ==Overview== Beyond the toxicity risks to human health and the environment which are associated with first-generation nanomaterials, nanotechnology has broader societal implications and poses broader social challenges. Social scientists have suggested that nanotechnology's social issues should be understood and assessed not simply as "downstream" risks or impacts. Rather, the challenges should be factored into "upstream" research and decision making in order to ensure technology development that meets social objectives Many social scientists and organizations in civil society suggest that technology assessment and governance should also involve public participation〔() Nanotechnology, Governance, and Public Deliberation: What Role for the Social Sciences? - (Science Communication Volume 27 Number 2 December 2005 1-24 © 2005 Sage Publications 10.1177/1075547005281531)〕〔(Nanotechnology Law & Business )〕〔() - The Royal Society Report on Nanotechnology and Related Debates in the UK: a Participatory Governance Perspective Alison Mohr - Research Fellow )Centre for the Study of Democracy〕〔(Demos | Publications | Governing at the Nanoscale )〕 Some observers suggest that nanotechnology will build incrementally, as did the 18-19th century industrial revolution, until it gathers pace to drive a nanotechnological revolution that will radically reshape our economies, our labor markets, international trade, international relations, social structures, civil liberties, our relationship with the natural world and even what we understand to be human. Others suggest that it may be more accurate to describe change driven by nanotechnology as a “technological tsunami”. Just like a tsunami, analysts warn that rapid nanotechnology-driven change will necessarily have profound disruptive impacts. As the APEC Center for Technology Foresight observes:
Those concerned with the negative impact of nanotechnology suggest that it will simply exacerbate problems stemming from existing socio-economic inequity and unequal distributions of power, creating greater inequities between rich and poor through an inevitable nano-divide (the gap between those who control the new nanotechnologies and those whose products, services or labour are displaced by them). Analysts suggest the possibility that nanotechnology has the potential to destabilize international relations through a nano arms race and the increased potential for bioweaponry; thus, providing the tools for ubiquitous surveillance with significant implications for civil liberties. Also, many critics believe it might break down the barriers between life and non-life through nanobiotechnology, redefining even what it means to be human.〔(ETC Group - Publications - The Little Big Down: A Small Introduction to Nano-scale Technologies )〕〔http://nano.foe.org.au/node/168〕 Nanoethicists posit that such a transformative technology could exacerbate the divisions of rich and poor – the so-called “nano divide.” However nanotechnology makes the production of technology, e.g. computers, cellular phones, health technology etcetera, cheaper and therefore accessible to the poor. In fact, many of the most enthusiastic proponents of nanotechnology, such as transhumanists, see the nascent science as a mechanism to changing human nature itself – going beyond curing disease and enhancing human characteristics. Discussions on nanoethics have been hosted by the federal government, especially in the context of “converging technologies” – a catch-phrase used to refer to nano, biotech, information technology, and cognitive science. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Societal impact of nanotechnology」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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