Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is an experimental process that manipulates matter at the "nanoscale" (down to 1/100,000 the width of human hair) to create new products and materials. The nanoparticles in these products are so small, they can leach through our skin and cell and tissue membranes and spread through the environment in unpredictable ways.
Synthetic Biology is the design and construction of new biological parts, devices and systems that do not exist in the natural world and the redesign of existing biological systems to perform specific tasks.
Carbon nanotubes are rolled-up sheets of graphite thousands of times thinner than a human hair. Because they are immensely strong and are good electric conductors, they are poised for use in a wide range of fields from engineering to medicine. However, there are concerns over the similar shape of nanotubes and asbestos fibres, which are known to cause damage to the lungs in conditions such as Read more
CONTACT:
Nick Berning, 202-222-0748, nberning@foe.org
Ian Illuminato, 202-222-0735 (250-478-7135 after June 12), iilluminato@foe.org
WASHINGTON, D.C.-Friends of the Earth and Health Care Without Harm Europe released a report http://www.foe.org/sites/default/files/Nano-silverReport_US.pdf today detailing the growing public health threat posed by nano-silver particles Read more
Nanoparticles might sound like the smaller (even tiny!) issue here, compared with the serious matter of protecting yourself from possible skin cancer with adequate sunscreen.
Here's why some people believe you need to worry about both the sun and the nanos. Some research shows that nanos release free radicals that are activated by UV exposure.
Here's what a March 2009 advisory from Friends of the Earth Read more
Two separate studies, by researchers at the University of Toledo and at Utah State University and the University of Utah, found that the nanoparticles had powerful harmful effects on bacteria and a certain type of beneficial soil microbes.
The findings, released this week, were reported at the national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Salt Lake City. They are likely to fuel debate over Read more
In a sweeping critique made public Wednesday, an expert panel of the National Research Council said the federal government was not doing enough to identify potential health and environmental risks from engineered nanomaterials. It called for a sweeping new effort, involving key players in and out of government, to assess them. Nanomaterials are engineered on the scale of a billionth of a meter, perhaps 1/10,000 the width of a human hair. They are turning up in a range of items including consumer products like toothpaste and tennis rackets and industrial products like degreasers or
Read moreAttitudes to nanotechnology may be determined by religious and cultural beliefs, suggest researchers writing in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.
They say religious people tend to view nanotechnology in a negative light.
The researchers compared attitudes in Europe and the US and looked at religious and cultural backgrounds.
They say the findings have implications for scientists and politicians making policy decisions to regulate the use of nanotechnology.
'Religiosity'
The researchers
Read moreProliferation of nano materials could pose risk
The government must begin a "major and urgent" effort to assess the safety of nanomaterials, the tiny particles commonly used in products as varied as sun creams, sports clothing and medicine, leading experts warn today.
Hundreds of consumer products made with nanoparticles, which can be 100 times smaller than a virus, are already on the market, despite an almost complete lack of knowledge of the dangers they may pose to human health and the environment, according to a report by the royal commission on
Read moreTiny particles that may be toxic are being used in beauty creams without proper safety testing, a consumer group has warned.
Nanoparticles, which are 80 times thinner than a human hair, are used by firms including Boots, The Body Shop, Avon, Nivea and Unilever.
Some manufacturers believe the technology can deliver the benefits of products in a more effective way.
But critics say the size of the particles may allow them to permeate protective barriers in the body, such as those surrounding the brain or a developing baby in the womb.
Their scale also
Read moreEXTRACT: Recent experience with industrial agrofuels offers a modern day parable about the dangers of techno-fixes that are promoted as green and sustainable solutions to peak oil and climate change. By mid-2008, even some countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) were admitting that industrial agrofuels have been a tragic boondoggle that can't be remotely described as a socially or ecologically sustainable response to climate change...
But techno-optimists aren't worried because there are plenty more fixes on the launching pad
Read moreSynthetic biologists, a brave new breed of science entrepreneurs who engineer life-forms from scratch, will hold their largest-ever global gathering in Hong Kong, October 10-12, known as "Synthetic Biology 4.0." Although most people have never heard of synthetic biology, it's moving full speed ahead fueled by giant agribusiness, energy and chemical corporations with little debate about who will control the technology, how it will be regulated (or not) and despite grave concerns surrounding the safety and security risks of designer organisms. Corporate investors/partners include BP, Chevron
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