Nanotechnology Now - Press Release: Nanoethics Advisory Board Formed to Tackle Difficult Issues

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Abstract:
Leading experts worldwide to help guide research on nanotechnology's social impact

Nanoethics Advisory Board Formed to Tackle Difficult Issues

Posted on January 23, 2006

The Nanoethics Group today announced appointing a distinguished list of members to its Advisory Board, as public interest grows concerning nanotechnology's impact on ethics and society. These new members represent many diverse fields - such as business, education, science, economics, law, medicine, ethics, and more - to provide guidance on an equally-broad range of important issues. The Nanoethics Group's Advisory Board is comprised of approximately 30 leading thinkers from around the world, including:

Rosalyn Berne, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Science, Technology and Society , University of Virginia
Nick Bostrom, Ph.D., Director, Future of Humanity Institute, Oxford University (UK)
Rafael Capurro, Ph.D., Professor of Information Science and Information Ethics, Stuttgart Media University (HdM) (Germany); Member of the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies to the European Commission
Robert A. Freitas Jr., J.D., Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Molecular Manufacturing
Robin Hanson, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Economics, George Mason University
C. Christopher Hook, M.D., Assistant Professor of Medicine and Consultant in Hematology and Medical Ethics, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine
Timothy Hsieh, J.D., Ph.D., Chairman, Nanotechnology Committee, Section of Science & Technology, American Bar Association; Partner at Min, Hsieh & Hack LLP
James Hughes, Ph.D., Bioethicist and Sociologist, Trinity College; Executive Director, Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies
Richard A.L. Jones, Ph.D., Professor, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield (UK)
Fabrice Jotterand, Ph.D., Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of Medical Humanities, The Brody School of Medicine
Ray Kurzweil, Founder and CEO, Kurzweil Technologies, Inc.
Glenn McGee, Ph.D., John A. Balint Endowed Chair of Medical Ethics and Director, Alden March Bioethics Institute; Editor-in-Chief, The American Journal of Bioethics
F. Mark Modzelewski, Co-Founder of NanoBusiness Alliance and Vice President of NanoDynamics Inc.
James Moor, Ph.D., Professor and Philosophy Dept. Chair, Dartmouth College
Daniel Moore, C.Phil., Georgia Institute of Technology
Chris Phoenix, M.S., Director of Research, Center for Responsible Nanotechnology
Fabio Salamanca-Buentello, M.D., Researcher, Canadian Program on Genomics and Global Health, University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics
Wrye Sententia, Ph.D., Director, Center for Cognitive Liberty & Ethics
Sebastian Sethe, Sheffield Institute of Biotechnological Law and Ethics, University of Sheffield (UK)
Aldrin Sweeney, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Science Education, University of Central Florida
Charles Tahan, Ph.D., National Science Foundation Distinguished Research Fellow, University of Cambridge (UK)
Tihamer Toth-Fejel, M.S.E.E., Research Engineer, General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems
Mike Treder, Executive Director, Center for Responsible Nanotechnology
Jeroen van den Hoven, Ph.D., Professor of Ethics and Technology, Delft University of Technology (Netherlands)
Brian Wang, M.B.A., Technology Consultant and Futurist
John Weckert, Ph.D., Professor, Information Technology, Charles Sturt University (Australia); Professorial Fellow, Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics (CAPPE)
Vivian Weil, Ph.D., Director, Center for the Study of Ethics in the Professions; Professor of Ethics, Illinois Institute of Technology
Mark Wiesner, Ph.D., P.E., Professor, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Dept. of Chemical Engineering, Rice University
James Wilsdon, Ph.D., Head of Science and Innovation, DEMOS (UK)

"Nanotechnology is predicted to touch nearly every industry and every part of our lives, so studying its ethical and social implications must be a collaborative effort," explained Patrick Lin, Ph.D., research director for The Nanoethics Group. "By building a community of notable experts, we can leverage their different experiences and years of thinking - ensuring that our work considers other viewpoints and is not conducted in a vacuum."

Nanoethics is the study of moral and societal issues arising from nanotechnology, such as those related to environmental safety, privacy, human enhancement, longevity, terrorism, and more. Hailed as "The Next Industrial Revolution" that will bring profound benefits to humanity, nanotechnology may be reasonably expected to cause massive social, economic and political disruption, given the nature of such revolutions. The hope with nanoethics, however, is that we can learn from history and address these critical issues now while nanotechnology is still emerging, thereby heading off possible problems before they occur.

"As interest in nanotechnology grows, we hope to continue to attract a high caliber of individuals concerned about nanoethics, particularly in other relevant areas such as theology and public policy, and even if they disagree with us," continued Dr. Lin. "In fact, we have intentionally included opposing viewpoints on our current Advisory Board, since we believe that a free market of competing ideas will give us the best chance of arriving at the right conclusions."

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About The Nanoethics Group:
The Nanoethics Group is a non-partisan and independent research organization formed to study nanotechnology's impact on society and related ethical issues. As professional ethicists, we help to identify and evaluate possible harms and conflicts as well as to bring balance and common sense to the debate. Our mission is to educate and advise both organizations and the broader public on these issues as a foundation to guide policy and responsible research.

For more information, please click here.

Media Contact:
Patrick Lin, Ph.D.
Research Director
The Nanoethics Group
patrick@nanoethics.org +1.805.570.5651

Copyright © The Nanoethics Group

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