Looking at science within society today, there are many things that are currently being improved and innovated in order to benefit the public. Researchers are working to find cures for terminal illnesses while Apple is working to create the newest iPhone. However, what if there was a technology that could be applied universally to create solutions to both of the scenarios mentioned earlier? The answer would be that society would be drastically changed from the way that it is now. This has potential because of the front of nanotechnology that is emerging in science. Applications within battery life, solar power, cancer treatment, along with the correct regulation of the new applications, nanotechnology will transform the future. Furthermore, the development of nanotechnology will greatly impact the future of American society by improving the lifestyle of the public as well as helping to protect the environment.

Nanotechnology is the new front of research, but there are many who do not know what this technology is. The prefix nano- indicates the fraction of one billionth of something, for example a nanometer is one billionth of a meter. For reference, a single nanometer is approximately one hundred times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. A nanoparticle is classified as a particle with the dimension of one hundred nanometers or less. It is at this size that the unique properties of physics for these particles develop (Bennett-Woods 9). The study of these materials at the nanoscale is termed nanoscience. Nanoscience can be included when discussing nanotechnology, and can be defined as the understanding and control of matter at the nanoscale. Nanotechnology is largely concerned with creating improved materials, devices, and systems that make use of the distinct nanoscale properties (Bennett-Woods 10). These unique properties that are researched within the realm of nanotechnology can be applied to particles in order to achieve certain goals desired by scientists. Therefore, the properties of nanoscale particles can be researched and applied within nanotechnology to solve problems within society. 

One application of nanotechnology lies within solar energy. The current solar panels that are used have a low efficiency of converting sunlight to electricity because of the amount of light reflected away from the cells. Nanotechnology can solve this problem, specifically with five recent innovations within the field. The first modification is the addition of billions of tiny holes to reduce the amount of sunlight that is reflected away from the cells. Second, the idea of a “nano sandwich”, consisting of a thin strip of plastic topped with a very fine metal mesh and the conventional metal film as the bottom layer, that can triple the efficiency of solar cells. Third, a new cell is created from design elements produced by using an algorithm that mimics evolution of crossover and genetic mutation to improve the cell’s performance. Fourth, the addition of tiny antennae that would take in a larger range of light frequencies, which would collect seventy percent of the available energy in sunlight. And finally, solar-collecting paint, an electricity conducting liquid that is filled with solar-collecting nanocrystals which can be put onto a variety of surfaces such as window glass or roof panels (Kiger). This application of nanotechnology will provide a sustainable source of energy to power our nation. By using the nanotechnology to convert over to solar energy, the amount of fossil fuel and coal that is being consumed will decrease as well as the cost for electricity. The energy that the solar panels supply is abundant, which will meet the need of the present without compromising the future’s ability to meet their energy needs. Therefore, the usage of nanotechnology to solar energy has the potential to change the source of energy for our nation and impact the environment.

Another application of nanotechnology is within batteries. Zinc-air batteries that are found in hearing aids and heart monitoring devices, are cheap, have a high energy density, and last for a very long time. Nanoparticles that possess three different layers of material can help improve the performance of these batteries by serving as a catalyst in the reaction within the battery that usually is very slow. This electrode using the nanotechnology has been tested and researchers found that it outperformed the conventional electrode that relied on a platinum catalyst (“A breath of fresh air…”). Similarly, nanosize batteries have potential to advance the use of electric vehicles and renewable energy using technology called a “nanopore”. A nanopore is a hole in a ceramic sheet that contains all of the components that a battery needs in order to produce electric current. One billion of these holes that are connected in a honeycomb fashion is capable of fully charging in 12 minutes and can be recharged many times (Koch). The application of nanotechnology within batteries can advance them so that they will become smaller and last longer. By improving the performance of batteries, technology such as phones and computers will have longer battery life, as well as other things that use battery power such as cars. Another benefit from smaller batteries would be that things such as phones would have more room for storage space or other things because the battery would take up less space. Moreover, the usage of nanotechnology in batteries will impact society by allowing technology such as electric cars become more widely used.

A third application of nanotechnology is within the healthcare field and treating terminal illnesses such as cancer. The advantage of using nanotechnology to interact with biological systems is that they are about the same size as the building blocks of matter, atoms and molecules, and therefore they can interact with other cells in our bodies easily. Nanoshells are a particle that have an inner core of glass and an outer shell of gold, and are can be classified as nanolenses. Nanolenses are pieces of glass that are within the size of the nanoscale and are capable of concentrating or dispersing light rays. The nanoshells capture light around themselves, which can be applied to cancer treatment because the nanoshells have dramatic heating properties. When the shells absorb a specific wavelength of light, the energy is converted into heat, and if the temperature of one of our human cells increases by twenty degrees, it will die. The nanoshells can therefore be positioned next to a cancerous cell and when light is shown on it, the light will be converted to heat and it will gently destroy the cell (“Is nanotechnology…”). This application of nanotechnology will impact society because it will propose a possible cure for cancer and therefore will become one of the greater and more impactful scientific discoveries. Other applications within the field of human health, such as the correction of genetic defects, will elongate the lifespans of humans as well as provide a different way of looking at terminal illnesses such as cancer. Similarly, the idea that the nanoparticles can behave like biological molecules means that they can reach places within the body that other technology cannot get to. Furthermore, the usage of nanotechnology in order to cure terminal illnesses will be greatly beneficial to society.

Considering these three applications of nanotechnology, there is a wide variety of categories that nanotechnology can fit into. Within itself, nanotechnology can be categorized into three fields, incremental nanotechnology, evolutionary nanotechnology, and radical nanotechnology. Incremental nanotechnology is the assembly of immense numbers of tiny particles in order to produce new substances (Binns 4). Incremental nanotechnology can be seen as the very basics of nanotechnology. But even though this field is essentially the fundamentals of nanotechnology does not mean that it is simple. One of the more challenging technological obstacles is being able to control the nanoparticle’s self-assembly into arrays that can be used effectively. The application within solar power that was talked about earlier would be an example of the type of nanotechnology that fits into this category of nanotechnology. Evolutionary nanotechnology is the attempt at building nanoparticles that can perform a useful function individually (Binns 4). This can be applied so that each nanoparticle in a specific array serves a different purpose making the array more efficient and compatible. This can also be used to maximize data storage, for example, imagine about two million books from a large library encompassed in a chip no larger than a postage stamp. Similar to the application within batteries as well as the application to cancer and other terminal illnesses talked about earlier. Radical nanotechnology involves the construction of machines with mechanical components that are the size of molecules (Binns 6). This type of nanotechnology already exists in all living things because all of the organs within human bodies are made up of molecules, each with different jobs. The development of radical nanotechnology will take much longer than the other two types because of its complexity and is most likely decades away. Furthermore, nanotechnology covers a vast range of topics each having beneficial applications to transform the future.

While these applications of nanotechnology look very good from the outside, there are many people who are skeptical of nanotechnology. Cynthia Selin of Arizona State University says that nanotechnology has been more of a dream than a reality and more fiction than fact. It is true that most possibilities are not yet possible within the realm of reality, but that does not mean that the applications are entirely impossible. Over time, the developments of nanotechnology will allow some of these possibilities to become reality and not just a prospect. Secondly, nanoparticles can possess properties that are different from the common properties of the substances that they are made of. This eliminates the derivation of the safety of the nanoparticles from the properties of the bulk parent materials. The safety of these particles is one of the many things that are unknown about nanoparticles. Other uncertainties include the stability of particles within different environments as well as the durability of the particles themselves. There are also many factors that can dictate the toxicity of the particles such as charge, surface area, and biopersistence, which is the ability of particles to resist chemical dissolution (Tran et al. 104). Another reason that people are skeptical of nanotechnology is because of the fear of technology displacing humans. Similarly, there is concern about nano devices that get out of control. One improbable speculation, pertaining specifically to radical nanotechnology, is that once they enter the environment researchers would lose control of them, they would multiply uncontrollably and turn the world into a “grey goo” (Kennedy). This situation is a very exaggerated worse-case scenario because of the fact that there will be regulations in place before the technology is released into the environment. Also, it is true that nanobots that self-replace exponentially are not required for molecular manufacturing or for the particles to be able to perform useful functions. Furthermore, the risk assessment of nanoparticles cannot be completed without evidence that is currently beyond the information that is available concerning nanoparticles (Tran et al. 102-117). Despite these claims of the uncertainty of nanotechnology, there are many possibilities to look forward to, as long as the research of this technology is conducted correctly with regards to the possible obstacles.

In order for nanotechnology to successfully work within society, it has to successfully govern its risks without constricting the opportunities of the technology. According to Fink, Harms, and Hatak, research on nanotechnology governance that has evolved focuses on the potential societal and ethical implications of the technology. Through this previous literature regarding nanotechnology, there has been a general focus on new product introduction and production safety, and the regulatory impact on the researchers was not addressed. The researchers have a key role in shaping the direction of the field of research. There are many approaches to how nanotechnology should be regulated and some argue that the legal regulations are difficult to design and implement. This is true because future developments are unknown and policy-makers and legislators cannot define what should be done and what is forbidden (Fink 570). In addition, Joseph Kennedy, an economist, states that “government policy should reflect the fact that on the whole nanotechnology is expected to bring large net benefits to society and should be encouraged.” By stating this Kennedy attests to the idea that the benefits of nanotechnology will outweigh the dangers of what could happen. Moreover, the governance of nanotechnology, as long as it is done correctly, will provide for the technology to be more beneficial to society than detrimental.

The role of nanotechnology in the future is very vast. This future includes a way to provide sustainable energy to America, as well as bringing major breakthroughs regarding terminal illnesses. Nanotechnology will also allow technology to become smaller, faster, cheaper, and longer lasting. According to George Tulevski, a nanomaterials researcher for IBM, the development of nanotechnology is like a sculptor making a statue. Nanotechnology is the statue and the sculptors are the researchers. He states that nanotechnology would be like the sculptor building the statue from dust as opposed to a block of material. Tulevski then goes on to say that the key to further development of nanotechnology is to find a way for the statue to build itself. Tulevski goes on to suggest that this key includes the incorporation of chemistry to the nanoparticles. Similar to the analogy that Tulevski makes, an approach to nanotechnology discussed by Chris Binns is the bottom-up/top-down approach. Bottom-up refers to using a building block that is produced naturally and assembled into a material or device. Top-down refers to starting with a solid block of material and using a machine to carve out a device or structure. This approach can be applied to all types of nanotechnology, including the three that were talked about previously. Furthermore, Reagan Stinnett, a nanotechnology researcher at Sandia National Laboratories, also provides information regarding the future of nanotechnology and how it will be developed. He acknowledges the ambiguities that will arise within the field over time and proposes a way in which current students can learn to handle these obstacles. Fink also comments that a breakthrough in nanotechnology research can “promote systemic economic progress” (270). This is because most technology breakthroughs cause competition within the market which further influences growth in the economy. Moreover, the developments within nanotechnology will have positive impacts on society and the economy.

In conclusion, the applications of nanotechnology will be greatly beneficial to society as a whole. This is because the innovations that are currently being investigated suggest the cure for cancer, the correction of genetic defects, and the creation of organisms that are capable of cleaning up toxic chemicals (Kennedy). Along with these possibilities, the applications to solar energy and batteries. Historically, the benefits of technological advances have greatly outweighed its dangers and society has been able to manage the worst of dangers (Kennedy). Furthermore, nanotechnology is still in its very early stages, but the future of this technology holds many of the most valuable devices which could require decades of research. In the long run, the benefits of nanotechnology in society will be vast and with more research, the dangers of the technology can be controlled and reduced.
