The global vision for nanotechnology to mature into a transformative and beneficial technology depends on an array of interconnected and complex factors situated within a rapidly changing international economic, political, and cultural environment. These include the resolution of scientific and technological questions, the safe creation, development, and commercialization of nano-products, and the acceptance of nanotechnology by diverse publics. The NSF Center for Nanotechnology in Society at University of California at Santa Barbara provides a clear and comprehensive approach to understanding challenges to successful development of nanotechnologies in N. America, Europe, Asia and other regions. Through a mixed, complementary portfolio of interdisciplinary research, education, and engagement activities, CNS-UCSB produces basic knowledge about a linked set of social, economic, and environmental issues at a time of sustained technological innovation. The Center addresses education for a new generation of social science and nanoscience professionals as it fosters research on the origins of the nano-enterprise, the innovation and globalization of nanotechnology, and the social response, media framing, and the publics? risk perception of nanotechnologies. CNS-UCSB will continue to use its evolving international research infrastructure to create a genuine learning community of diverse participants who can pool their knowledge for the simultaneous benefit of society and technology.
Intellectual Merit. CNS-UCSB brings together a diverse and talented interdisciplinary, international group of researchers from around the globe to conduct collaborative research on pathways and impediments to socially and environmentally sustainable futures for nanotechnologies. CNS has a strong commitment to produce work at the cutting edge of disciplinary work as well as contributing high quality publications and products to the to the growing body of literature on nanotechnologies in society. CNS researchers publish their work in leading science and technology studies, history of science, social, economic and behavioral science, nanoscale science and engineering, and science and environmental policy journals. CNS synthesizes results of research and meetings into meta-analysis papers and reports on innovation policy, patents, comparative nation-state industrial policy, the role of collaboration and institutions in NSE in the US and abroad, media frames for nanotechnology, and factors driving formative nanotechnology risk perception among diverse publics and groups.
Broader Impact. The Center provides novel interdisciplinary educational opportunities for a new generation of social science, humanities and nanoscience professionals via graduate fellowships and research assistantships, undergraduate summer research internships for regional community college students and UCSB undergrads, mentored by UCSB graduate students, and several interdisciplinary social science postdocs per year. CNS convenes a year-round graduate seminar for credit and develops new courses for undergraduate and graduate curricula in science and technology studies, and will be preparing educational modules for introduction of research materials into the NSE undergrad science and engineering curriculum, and community college science and social science curricula. CNS disseminates technological and social scientific findings related to responsible development to a broad public and facilitates public participation through public engagement in dialogue with academic researchers from diverse disciplines. CNS-UCSB hosts conferences and workshops for diverse audiences, more specialized meetings for educators and researchers, and speaker series, and plays a founding role in the new society, S.NET. Outreach to still wider publics and interested parties takes place via electronic forms such as the Weekly Clips, our blog, podcasts of interviews with researchers, and media briefings. The CNS also engages and informs policymakers and governmental agencies; a new program of carefully crafted policy briefs will extend this reach. CNS?s distinguished National Advisory Board allows regular consultation with leaders of all stakeholder constituents, at all phases of research and dissemination. In the renewal period, and in collaboration with UCLA's Center for Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology, CNS will work with government and industry to develop risk communication for particular audiences grounded in empirical knowledge of the public, emerging views of nanotech, and past risk controversies.
