2020 Science

Brain candy for the intellectually incapacitated – the sequel

Two years ago I posted links to ten (relatively) mindless online “games” as a bit of fun, and as something not too taxing to indulge in over the holiday break. Having reached that point again where anything more intellectually challenging than tic tac toe makes my head hurt, I thought I would revisit and update [...]

Chris Mocella and The Chemistry of Fireworks

A couple of weeks back I had the pleasure of moderating an American Chemistry Society webinar on the Chemistry of Fireworks with pyrotechnics guru Chris Mocella. It’s not quite emerging technologies, but Chris gave such an engaging talk that I thought I would post it here. It’s a great intro to some chemistry basics, and [...]

Metaphorically speaking, it’s photo caption time

A question for you: How many science literacy/communication/engagement metaphors can you see in the photo below? Answers on a metaphorical post card in the comments area below please – I’m really interested to see what you come up with! The photo by the way is the header image for a student science blog that will [...]

Pencasts – a useful educational tool?

I picked up a new toy this weekend. (If you want to cut to the chase and see what I’ve been doing with it, please head straight to the end of the post). I’m fascinated by the combination of old tech (essentially “chalk and talk”) and new media that Sal Kahn has been successfully using [...]

A few Small Issues about Public Engagement on Nanotechnology

A guest blog by Craig Cormick. Over the past decade there has been a significant growth in public engagement activities relating to nanotechnology and when you look across all the data being generated you can learn a lot about how the public view the risks and benefits of the technology. That’s probably not news for [...]

Didn’t get a reply to your email? This might be why:

You sent me an email and didn’t hear back? This might explain it: OK so it’s not a serious decision chart. But it’s beginning to look increasingly attractive! I always have the best of intentions when it comes to keeping up with my email correspondence. But increasingly I find myself struggling to keep up. The [...]

Exposure to silver nanoparticles may be more common than we thought

The past few years has seen an explosion of interest in silver nanoparticles. Along with a plethora of products using the particles to imbue antimicrobial properties on everything from socks to toothpaste, nanometer scale silver particles have been under intense scrutiny from researchers and policy makers concerned that they present an emerging health and environmental [...]

Techno Hype or Techno Hope? Two panel discussions on technology innovation

I’ve been up to my eyeballs this past few weeks in stuff, and haven’t had as much time as usual to post here. So this weekend I thought I would take the easy route and post a couple of videos from the recent Symposium on Risk, Uncertainty and Sustainable Innovation. These were back to back [...]

New US federal strategy for nanotechnology safety research released

The latest iteration of the US National Nanotechnology Initiative’s Environmental, Health and Safety Research Strategy was released today – downloadable from nano.gov. A draft of the document has been on the streets since last December – this version was compiled after a public comment period on that draft that closed earlier this year (the key [...]

Risk = OMG x WTF!

My apologies for the rather crude title, but I couldn’t resist. Australian science communicator Craig Cormick is speaking at a University of Michigan Risk Science Unplugged event on November 1, and when asked for a short and pithy title, this is what he suggested. It was too controversial for the Risk Science Center website (and [...]

EC adopts cross-cutting definition of nanomaterials to be used for all regulatory purposes

The European Commission had just adopted a “cross-cutting designation of nanomaterials to be used for all regulatory purposes” (link). The definition builds on a draft definition released last year, but includes a number of substantial changes to this. Here’s the full text of the definition: 1. Member States, the Union agencies and economic operators are [...]

US National Nanotechnology Initiative to release latest Environmental, Health and Safety research strategy, Oct 20

This coming Thursday (Oct 20 2011), the US National Nanotechnology Initiative is releasing the latest version of the Initiative’s federal nanotechnology environmental, health and safety research strategy. The strategy will be available for download from 10:00 AM Eastern time, with a webinar on the release being held between 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM Eastern (registration [...]

New models needed to master technology trends – World Economic Forum

In his opening remarks at this year’s Summit on the Global Agenda, World Economic Forum founder and Executive Chairman Klaus Schwab placed the need for new models to support effective use of technology innovation firmly on the table. This is the fourth year I have participated in the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Summit – [...]

Inspiring teachers – a blast from the past

Two years ago, I wrote a piece about ten things that inspired me to become a scientist. One of those was my high school teacher. We never kept in touch, but through the miracle of the web, that post eventually came to his attention, and we connected again. The other day he unearthed a photo [...]

Emerging technologies and sustainability: What’s risk got to do with it?

Question: What do you get if you place some of the leading thinkers and practitioners in the fields of technology innovation, risk and sustainability in the same room for two days? Answer: one whopping headache! Not because of the confusion and cacophony, but because of the overwhelming volume of information, ideas and insights that emerge. [...]

Contagion, plausible reality and public health: In conversation with Larry Brilliant

Blockbuster movies aren’t usually noted for their scientific accuracy and education potential. But since its release last week, Steven Soderburgh’s Contagion seems to be challenging the assumption that Hollywood can’t do science. The other day I posted a piece about how director Steven Soderburgh and screenwriter Scott Z Burns’ attention to detail and plausibility left [...]

Cool science: The Charlie McDonnell Effect

There’s been quite a bit of chatter about the “Brian Cox Effect” in the UK recently, as interest in science seems to be on the rise. But I haven’t heard anyone talking about the “Charlie McDonnell Effect”. Maybe it’s because Charlie appeals more to a growing movement of teens who just want to immerse themselves [...]

Define nanomaterials for regulatory purposes? EU JRC says yes.

Cross-posted from The Risk Science Blog: In a recent letter to the journal Nature (Nature 476; 399), Hermann Stamm of the European Commission Joint Research Centre Institute for Health and Consumer Protection (JRC-IHCP) defended the need to define engineered nanomaterials for regulatory purposes. The letter, titled “Nanomaterials should be defined”, was a direct response to [...]

The public and peer review literature: Pearls before swine?

This morning I sat down with my 14 year old son and asked him what area of science caught his interest especially. He answered “the future of space exploration”. We carried out a search on the Web of Science for “future + space + exploration”, and the fifth article returned was “Comparing future options for [...]

Brushing off the academic time planner

With the new university year just about to kick off, I thought I would brush off that most essential of items that no faculty member is ever without: the Academic Time Planner. Here’s what it looks like: Things to do this year: Prepare and deliver a great number of mind-blowing lecture courses that make even [...]

“Social Media makes us more”

Following on from my post a couple of days ago on teens and social media, I wanted to post this highly eloquent response to some of Susan Greenfield’s remarks about social media and society. It’s from Francisco of the YouTube collab channel Fellowship of the Ning, and directly addresses the 2009 Guardian article “Facebook and [...]

The Human Project needs your help!

Here’s an interesting idea – build a free iPad app that kicks off a global conversation about the future of the human species. The Human Project is the brain child of Erika Ilves & Anna Stillwell. At its core is a yet-to-be-built iPad app that captures the essence of humanity past and future – who [...]

Social Media messed-up teens reveal all

Is social media messing up today’s teens? Adults, it seems, love to pontificate on the benefits and ills of emerging internet-based communication platforms on young people. But how often do they bother to listen to the teenagers they claim to be concerned about? Well, this is their chance. Over this past week, the members of [...]

Is the UK facing a second generation brain drain?

In 2000, I moved to the US with my wife and two children to take up a research job here – becoming part of the migration of science, technology and engineering expertise out of the UK. Eleven years on, my kids want to go back to the UK to university. But the costs of re-entry [...]

Final program posted for the Risk, Uncertainty and Sustainable Innovation symposium

It’s been a while in the making, but with a little under five weeks to go, we have just posted the final program for the 2011 Risk Science Symposium (20-21 Sept). And even though I say so myself, it’s a doozy! Somehow, we are squeezing 45 invited speakers into the two days, and not any [...]

Want to know about teens and social media from the horses mouth? Watch this space

If you are a teen who uses YouTube (or know of one – maybe even your own teenager), please think seriously about posting a response to this video: (You can also watch it directly on YouTube here). Over on the Risk Science Blog, I’ve just posted a piece about Baroness Susan Greenfield’s views on the [...]

What was worrying us about nanotechnology safety seven years ago?

In 2004, the first International Symposium on Occupational Health Implications of Nanomaterials was held in Buxton in the UK. Seven years later, I’m preparing for a discussion panel at the fifth meeting in this very successful community-led series (being held this week in Boston MA), and looking through the research recommendations we made at the [...]

Would You Lick Jam Off An Old Man’s Foot? and other important science questions

Would You Lick Jam Off An Old Man’s Foot Or Drink Toilet Water For An Hour? Can you explain how gravitons can escape a black hole? Or do you have a good answer to the question “why are people annoying?” This is just a sampling of some of the more entertaining and challenging questions from [...]

Frying your brains on information overload: Old perspectives on a new issue

Living online is changing our brains – at least according to Baroness Greenfield in an interview posted today by New Scientist. Leaving aside questions over the extent to which Greenfield’s concerns are driven by misapprehension or plausibility, the interview put me in mind of a rather wicked quote that appeared in a presentation I saw [...]

The science of VidCon – Connecting with Science & Engineering through YouTube

Where I cover science at this year’s VidCon YouTube convention, take a look at science and engineering more broadly on YouTube, and suggest that for next year’s VidCon the organizers should bring together some of the leading science projects on YouTube with grass-roots science-advocates like Charlie McDonnell and Hank Green. It’s a long post, but [...]

I’m a scientist… what the heck am I doing at VidCon?!

This week my teenage kids are dragging me of to the premier YouTube event of the year – VidCon. I was foolish enough to agree to chaperone them, and now I have two days in LA immersed in a sea of one thousand YouTube celebs, fans and wannabe’s. But not one to miss an opportunity, [...]

Seven challenges to regulating “sophisticated materials”

The materials that most current regulations were designed to handle are pretty simple by today’s standards. Sure they can do some nasty things to the environment or your body if handled inappropriately. And without a doubt some of the risks associated with these “simple” materials are not yet well understood – especially when it comes [...]

Radiation-Crazed Zombies in Anti-Vaccine Hand-Washing Health Scare – Possibly

OK so it’s a slightly misleading title, but I did want to draw your attention to the rather splendiferous Risk Science Blog. When I took over as Director of the University of Michigan Risk Science last year, I wanted to find ways of connecting researchers and students here with a broader audience. And what better [...]

Nanotechnology – has the UK dropped the nano-ball?

I must confess to being rather saddened this morning to read Roger Highfield’s New Scientist blog on the state of nanotechnology in the UK. Hot on the heels of reports that the company Nanoco is threatening to leave Britain for more fertile grounds, it left me wondering what has happened to the promise of ten [...]

Don’t define nanomaterials – new commentary in Nature and an early draft

One of the problems with publishing in journals like Nature is that it can get a little pricey for people to read your work if they (or their organization) don’t subscribe. For instance, if you want to read the commentary I’ve just had published on defining engineered nanomaterials for regulatory purposes, you are facing a [...]

A nanotechnology regulation hat trick from the US federal government

It must be Nanotechnology Regulation week in Washington DC. Yesterday, two federal agencies and the White House released documents that grapple with the effective regulation of products that depend on engineered nanomaterials. In a joint memorandum, the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of the United [...]

Responsible development of… Unobtanium?

I thought I’d post this spoof presentation for the fun of it on the responsible development of “unobtainium”, which seems to have some remarkable similarities with some other emerging technologies: If you’re a little mystified, blame David Berube – who encouraged the initial idea, and embellished it in his own presentation at a recent conference [...]

The ultimate rules list for accepting speaking engagements

I think I might have just accepted one speaking engagement too many! After years of patiently bearing the brunt of my grueling travel schedule, my wife Clare has finally put her foot down. Sorry folks – if you want me to speak at your meeting, these are the new rules! After nearly 24 years of [...]

International Standards Organization guidelines for evaluating nanomaterial risks – are they any good?

In June 2005, the chairman and CEO of DuPont, together with the President of the Environmental Defense Fund, co-authored an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal titled “Let’s Get nanotech Right”. The piece called for broad multi-stakeholder collaborations to help identify and address potential health, safety and environmental issues arising from the development and commercialization [...]

Australian Education Union advises against using nanoparticle-based sunscreens in schools

Last week, the Victoria branch of the Australian Education Union (AEU) passed a resolution recommending that “workplaces use only nanoparticle-free sunscreen” and that sunscreens used by members on children are selected from those “highlighted in the Safe Sunshine Guide produced by Friends of the Earth” as being nano-free. The AEU also resolved to provide the [...]

A new look for the US National Nanotechnology Initiative

A few weeks ago, the US National Nanotechnology Initiative website – www.nano.gov – underwent a much-needed facelift. The NNI’s web portal was creaky when I was part of the Initiative several years ago now. And it’s somewhat ironic that the world’s leading interagency initiative on one of the most prominent cutting edge technology platforms has [...]

A plug for the 2011 Risk Science Symposium: Risk, Uncertainty and Sutainable Innovation

Registration is now open for the 2011 Risk Science Symposium, and as I’m chairing it, I thought it worth giving a bit of a plug here. The symposium brings together a fantastic cast of experts from very different backgrounds to explore the intersection of technology innovation and human health risk – with the aim of [...]

Optogenetics and mind control – on the borders of the plausible?

Tomorrow, I will be speaking at the Marshal M. Weinberg Seminar on Optogenetic Manipulation of the Brain at the University of Michigan – not a subject I must admit that I am that familiar with. Fortunately, there are other speakers who will be doing much of the heavy-lifting, including Karl Deisseroth – a leading optogenetics [...]

Peer review in a pool of one

Exploring new ideas, messing around with disciplinary boundaries, making unusual and innovative connections – surely that’s what cutting edge research is supposed to be about these days? Certainly it’s something many researchers aspire to – at least on those grant proposals where “interdisciplinary”, “Multidisciplinary” and even “transdisciplinary” are essential buzz-words. But let me tell you, [...]

Social media and science communication – the backup video!

Yesterday I have the rather odd experience of opening the media140 meeting on the impact of social technologies on science communication in Brisbane Australia – from my basement in Michigan, USA. Skyping into the meeting, it was hard to tell whether I was making sense, or just taking the title of the keynote too literally [...]

Social media and science communication – the New Renaissance, or A Load of Jackson Pollocks?

Next Wednesday (April 27th) I’m kicking off a media140 gig in Brisbane (by Skype rather than in person sadly), exploring the impact of social technologies on science communication). When I was originally asked, it seemed a great idea – a chance to pontificate on my vast knowledge of social media and science communication to vast [...]

Regulating emerging technologies – Science & Public Participation top a new White House set of principles

Cross-posted from The Risk Science Blog: Back in 2007 the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) issued a set of “Principles for Nanotechnology Environmental, Health and Safety Oversight” (no longer available on the OSTP website it seems, but you can read them in this Nanowerk article). At the time, I was less [...]

Why we don’t need a regulatory definition for nanomaterials

I‘ve just posted a piece over on the Risk Science Blog on regulatory definitions of engineered nanomaterials. What may come as a surprise to many readers given my comments over the years is the title – “Why we don’t need a regulatory definition for nanomaterials”! Have I flipped, lost my senses, or what? As you [...]

James Gleick’s Chaos – the enhanced edition

In 1987 I got my Bachelors of Science in physics, Prozac was launched in the US, and James Gleick published Chaos. I don’t think the middle one has any bearing on the other two. But the first and last are tentatively linked because, despite being completely jazzed on physics, I didn’t read it. Being a [...]

A plug for Risk Science Unplugged. Next up – Gulf Oil

OK so this is a shameless plug for the University of Michigan Risk Science Center Unplugged series of discussions (if you’ll forgive the pun) – and specifically the live/webcast event we’re having on the health impacts of the Gulf Oil Spill on April 14. But I actually think the series is good enough for a [...]

Larry Brilliant: Enabling sustainable humanity through getting serious about risk

Cross-posted from the Risk Science Blog [Transcript] I’ve occasionally been accused of thinking big when it comes to Risk Science. So I was rather chuffed to hear former Executive Director of Google.org Larry Brilliant out-big me on every point as he delivered the 10th Peter M. Wege lecture here at the University of Michigan a [...]

Questions teens ask about risk – I’m A Scientist 2011

I’ve just posted this over on the Risk Science Blog, but deviously thought I would also disrupt 2020 Science readers’ day with it as well! For the past couple of years, a highly addictive and innovative on-line teen science engagement event has been run in the UK. I’m A Scientist, Get Me Out Of Here [...]

Should experts engage directly with people on current issues like the disaster in Japan?

A couple of days ago I posted a blog that noted the absence of direct information on the Fukushima nuclear crisis coming out of US Schools of Public Health. In it, I wrote As events at the Fukushima power plant unfolded, I assumed – rather naively as it turns out – that Schools of Public [...]

Tracking information on radiation health risks in Japan

This past few days I’ve been up to my eyeballs in tracking and responding to the developing crisis in Japan, and have not had much time to think about emerging technologies or this blog. Much of my time has been spent on brushing up on my health physics (from 25 years ago!), and providing information [...]

Technology innovation and human health risk – rethinking the intersection

As anyone who has followed my work over the past few years will know, I have a deep interest in the potential benefits and risks associated with emerging technologies, and in particular whether we can swing the balance towards benefits by thinking more innovatively about risk and how we address it. So it’s not surprising [...]

Nanotechnology safety – a new video blog from the ASME Nanotechnology Institute

Back in December 2009, I rode the Acela Express up to New York from Washington DC for the day to record one of a series of nanotechnology podcasts for the ASME – the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The podcast was to be part of a new educational outreach initiative on all aspects of nanotechnology [...]

The Seven Deadly Sins of Techno-Complacency – March 8

I don’t believe it – once again I’ve let myself be talked into doing an event in Second Life. But this time it’s even worse – I’ll be hosting a combined second life and real-life event, and in effect acting as the medium between physical and virtual realities. The only compensation is that the subject [...]

The art of regulating nanotechnologies

The recently published International Handbook on Regulating Nanotechnologies has a rather unconventional cover image. But it’s one that I must confess I am rather pleased with. The image is a photo of a piece of Murano glass that I picked up several years ago while visiting Venice. At the time I was participating in a [...]

Crowdsourcing “sinful” images for a tech talk – can you help?

How would you illustrate the “Seven Deadly Sins of Techno-Complacency” (see below)? On March 8, I’m giving a combined Second Live/Real Life talk on emerging technologies, inspired by the Seven Deadly Sins. This will be a rather tongue in cheek affair as you might imagine, but with some serious points embedded in it somewhere. My [...]

Obama’s 2012 budget does not bode well for safe & productive workplaces

In one of the more bizarre yet less publicized proposed cuts in the 2012 Obama budget, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Education and Research Centers are on the chopping block. Bizarre, because the move is directly counter to Obama’s push on innovation and education as drivers of economic growth. The Education and [...]

International Handbook on Regulating Nanotechnologies – free access to first and last chapters

Here’s an offer I’m sure you won’t be able to resist: The opportunity to read the first and last chapters of the just-published International Handbook on Regulating Nanotechnologies – for free! Due to the farsightedness of my co-editors, the publishers have agreed to let authors post their chapters on their institutional web pages. So if [...]

The New Toxicology of Sophisticated Materials: Nanotoxicology and Beyond

Cross-posted from The Risk Science Blog Several months ago, I was asked by a colleague if I fancied co-authoring a review on nanotoxicology for a copy of Toxicological Sciences celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Society of Toxicology (coming out later this year). Fool that I am, I agreed. Interestingly though, as I and my [...]

Nanotechnology – Unplugged

Next Tuesday, we’ll be launching a new series of occasional discussions on contemporary public health risk issues at the University of Michigan Risk Science Center. And the first topic is – no surprises – nanotechnology. Under the tagline “No PowerPoint, no script; just stimulating conversation”, the Unplugged series will be engaging experts in lively conversation [...]

Davos 2011 – Committed to changing the state of the world

Cross-posted from the Risk Science Blog. As it did last year, the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos has left me with a daunting task – how do I summarize the highlights of the meeting in a single, short post? The answer of course is that I can’t – Davos is so complex, diverse [...]

Davos 2011 – Partnering with teens to build a better world

This is not a science and technology post – which is a bit odd for a science and technology blog. But I wanted to introduce five people who together shake up the whole idea of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos as being an elitist and increasingly irrelevant gathering of middle aged balding guys [...]

Davos 2011: Global Risks permeate conversations this year, but where’s the science?

Cross-posted from the Risk Science Blog. Take a metaphorical slice through this year’s annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, and Global Risk would be writ large through every part of it. Hot on the heels of the sixth Global Risk report, this year’s meeting saw the launch of the Risk Response Network – a [...]

Davos 2011 – physics superstar meets music superstar; talks cosmology

I don’t usually write about personal interactions here, but this is one I couldn’t resist – physics superstar Lawrence Krauss talking cosmology with music superstar Peter Gabriel. I was with Lawrence at a World Economic Forum dinner when he bumped into Peter – as one does! He immediately launched into an animated discussion on the [...]

Asking smart people dumb questions – the new role of challengers at Davos

Cross-posted at ForumBlog.org – the World Economic Forum blog My high school physics teacher used to tell me there’s no such think as a dumb question. It’s a lesson I’ve carried with me through my professional career as a scientist. But it’s a philosophy that might be just about to come back and bite me. [...]

Obama spotlights innovation, but how do we get it right?

Technology innovation was front and center of Obama’s State of the Union speech tonight. This is extremely good news for those of us who believe more needs to be done, and done better, to ensure science and technology translate into effective solutions that enable economic and social growth. But recognizing the importance of technology innovation [...]

Davos 2011: Desperately seeking Google

It’s that time of year again – 2000+ of the worlds top movers and shakers are beginning to descend on the Swiss ski town of Davos for this year’s Annual World Economic Forum meeting. Political heavyweights like Clinton, Annan, Sarkozy and Cameron will be intermingling with the likes of Gates, Bono, deNiro, Carreras and a [...]

Nanotechnology – what web resources do you find most helpful?

Over at the Risk Science Center blog, I have posted a request for help on web-based nanotechnology resources. Given that 2020 Science has such a nano-savvy readership, I thought I would cross-post the request here. If you have any suggestions on useful websites dealing with nanotechnology – especially those describing potential and actual applications – [...]

Building a sustainable future: World Economic Forum tackles the opportunities and challenges presented by technology innovation

“Technology doesn’t just happen” – people must be sick of hearing me say this. Yet as chair of the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council on Emerging Technologies, it’s something I seem to end up saying rather a lot as we strive to help decision-leaders maximize the benefits of technology innovation, while avoiding untoward consequences. [...]

Obama’s 21st century regulatory system will demand more innovative thinking on risk

Cross posted from the Risk Science Center Blog: There’s a lot to like in President Obama’s perspective on 21st century regulation. Writing in today’s Wall Street Journal, Obama outlines his thinking behind his new executive order to review and revise a convoluted and potentially disruptive federal regulatory system. But if regulation in the 21st century [...]

NOVA Making Stuff, nanomaterials and a web-lactating goat

Next week sees the debut of the PBS science program NOVA’s new series Making Stuff – a four part special “exploring the materials that will shape our future”, hosted by NY Times technology columnist David Pogue. You may recall that I expressed some reservations over the program’s approach to bioengineered materials a few weeks back [...]

Lost in the Maize

Last September, I started posting my reflections on the weirdness of academia – amongst other things – every Friday, under the title Lost in the Maize. In part this was to document the shift from being a pseudo-academic to a real one. But it was also to provide some motivation to keep on blogging when [...]

Nanoparticle Toxicity dropped from the World Economic Forum Global Risks Report

As I report on the Risk Science Blog, the latest iteration of the World Economic Forum Global Risks Report has dropped “Nanoparticle Toxicity” as an emerging and significant risk. Instead, the far more generic “Threats from New Technologies” takes its place. This is a welcome move – but I do have some reservations. Certainly, identifying [...]

Lost in the Maize

It’s the beginning of a new year, and I’m going through the usual soul-searching exercise of thinking about what is working and what isn’t with the blog. Over on the 2020 Science Facebook page (remember that?) I’ve asked for readers’ thoughts on what they’ve enjoyed, on 2020 Science, what could be better, what else I [...]

US National Nanotechnology Initiative draft EHS Strategy – good in part

Update 1/6/11: The comment period has been extended to January 21 There are only two days left to comment on the current draft US National Nanotechnology Initiative Environmental, Health and Safety strategy (the comment period closes January 6) – so time to read the draft, log in to the portal and add your comments. This [...]

A bluffer’s guide to Risk Science in the 21st century

A few weeks ago, I gave a talk at the Contemporary Arts Center in Cincinnati under the slightly provocative title “Small Gods and the Art of Technology Innovation”. The talk is now available on-line (slides and audio at least) – and viewable below – through the excellent work of the folk at CAC. Rather sneakily, [...]

Most-read 2020 Science blogs of 2010

Which were the most popular 2020 Science blogs of 2010? In reverse order, based on page views, here are the ten most-read posts: 10. Just how risky can nanoparticles in sunscreens be? Friends of the Earth respond A guest blog from Georgia Miller and Ian Illuminato at Friends of the Earth, responding to a challenge [...]

Lost in the Maize

A weekly reflection on life in academia I wasn’t intending to post a Lost in the Maize blog today, having been struggling to get back from a fog-bound UK to the US for the past 48 hours. But reading Iain M. Banks’ Surface Detail on the flight back, I came across this rather delicious critique [...]

Lost in the Maize

Hegswarm – what a great word! Far more elegant and versatile than the “Gray Goo” that has nibbled at the heels of nanotechnology for the past decade. Over the holiday break, I’ve escaped academia for the relative sanity of family reunions and mince pies, and have been catching up on some reading. Currently I’m in [...]

The geopolitics of nanotechnology – an ideaological counterweight from ETC?

Getting an unbiased perspective on nanotechnology is probably as close to impossible as you can get. Governments invest in nanotech because they believe in its ability to inspire new research and stimulate economies and social change. Corporations invest in nanotech because they think it will give them an edge in a hyper-competitive world. Neither is [...]

Lost in the Maize

My son Alex’s school puts on a highly prestigious musical each year. Competition for the lead roles is tough. Closed-door auditions are held to ensure the most talented kids get the leading roles – reward-through-merit in action you might say. Apart from the fact that some parents involved in the production appeared to be giving [...]

The art of risk science

I’m feeling a little lazy today, so this is a cross-posting from the University of Michigan Risk Science Center newsletter. It draws in part on the talk I gave at the Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center this past weekend as part of their “where do we go from here?” series. The whole setup at CAC by [...]

Lost in the Maize

My son Alex (13) and I have had a long-standing head-to-head on video games – should he be allowed to play first-person shooter games? For those of you not plugged into the the gaming community, these are the games where you play out scenes and scenarios from the first person perspective of someone wielding a [...]

The NNI at 10 – did I really say that?

I must have been just a little worked up when I spoke with Gwyneth Shaw at the New Haven Independent a couple of weeks ago on nanotechnology. I’m usually fairly circumspect with my comments to reporters (OK, so I know some readers have just spattered their coffee across the computer screen, but do try to [...]

US Nanotechnology Environmental, Health & Safety Research Strategy open for comment

The US National Nanotechnology Initiative’s latest iteration of its Environmental, Health and Safety Research Strategy has just been posted on-line for public comment. Between now and January 6, anyone who is interested is encouraged to read the draft and comment on the on-line portal – hopefully sparking a dialogue which will strengthen the final document. [...]

Small gods and the art of technology innovation

There’s something rather liberating about being asked to give a no-holds talk on your perspective on life, the universe and everything. So when the Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center asked if I would speak as part of their “Where do we go from here?” series, I jumped at it. No holds barred is probably an exaggeration [...]

Lost in the Maize

As you’ll have gathered from last week’s Lost in the Maize, I’ve been on the road this week. In fact, I am writing this on the plane back to Detroit, looking forward to a quick wash, shave, sleep, and catch-up with family, before heading off to the Society for Risk Analysis annual meeting in Salt [...]

Emerging technologies at the World Economic Forum – rethinking integrative approaches to global risks

In an interconnected world, global issues demand integrative solutions. It’s a statement that many people would agree with – in systems where associations between cause and effect are complex, you ignore synergistic inter-relationships between factors at your peril. But when it comes to technology innovation, it seems that the rules don’t apply. This week I [...]

Risk Science – A personal perspective

As Director of the University of Michigan Risk Science Center, it’s probably not surprising that I’m constantly being asked “what on earth is risk science?” What is surprising is how hard it is to come up with a clear and concise answer. Which is why I decided to spend a good portion of my “installation” [...]

Reviewing the National Nanotechnology Initiative Strategic Plan – Twitter on steroids?

Here’s a bit of trivia: with the 4000 character limit on comments on the National Nanotechnology Initiative Draft Strategic Plan, you might as well ditch the official portal, and tweet your comments to the Office of Science and Technology Policy – 28 tweets would do it! As you can probably guess, I’ve just been compiling [...]

Lost in the Maize

I’m writing this at Detroit airport, en route to Dubai via Heathrow. By rights, I should be writing the usual stuff about how traveling to exotic places isn’t all it’s cracked up to be – the mantra of the seasoned traveler. But as it’s the day after Thanksgiving, I thought I would suck it up [...]

Risk, uncertainty and sustainable innovation: Feedback sought on symposium blurb

Despite the risk of receiving absolutely no comments (please don’t let me down!), I thought I’d try something new and ask for some feedback on the background blurb for a meeting I’ve been working on. The meeting is a symposium on Risk, Uncertainty and Sustainable Innovation being organized by the Risk Science center next September. [...]

Lost in the Maize

Here’s something that keeps me awake at night (seriously): why, in this age of super-slick graphics and innovative multimedia resources, is it nearly impossible to give presentation that looks as good as they should? How come I can guarantee that when I give a presentation, the slides will be cropped, the color balance will be [...]

Nanotechnology, climate and energy: over-heated promises and hot air?

Friends of the Earth have just released a new report challenging claims that nanotechnology will lead to greener, more energy-efficient technologies, lower-impact technologies. I’ve only had the chance to skim through the report so far, and so don’t have detailed comments on it. But on my initial skim a number of things struck me: The [...]

Lost in the Maize

Next week I am being “installed” here at the University of Michigan. Not in the sense of installing a carpet – as one friend suggested – but in the sense of being installed as an endowed professor. The Charles and Rita Gelman Risk Science Professor to be precise. To mark the occasion, I’m expected to [...]

Basic research and personal responsibility

Dan Sarewitz has a rather provocative commentary in Nature this morning, where he suggests that proposals to increase basic research may be good politics, but questionable policy. The headline alone is probably enough to get some science-advocates’ blood boiling, whether they go on to read the piece or not: “Double trouble? To throw cash at [...]

Tenure track faculty positions in risk science at the University of Michigan

Just thought I’d circulate this on the 2020 Science network – please feel free to pass on the information to anyone who might be interested. We have finally started the process of looking for two junior faculty to join the Risk Science Center at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. This is an [...]