Citizen panel to release report April 28 on nanotechnology

University of Wisconsin officials will join state legislators in the Assembly Parlor of the State Capitol building on Thursday, April 28, at 11:30 a.m. to accept a report on the promise and perils of nanotechnology produced by a panel of Madison-area citizens.

Nanotechnology involves the development of products based on extremely small components and is expected to have a substantial impact on the economy over the next twenty years.

The demographically diverse group of citizens conferred with experts, read background documents and met on three Sundays in April to discuss the future of nanotechnology. Organizers of the initiative expect the report to consider issues of research funding, government regulation and ethical considerations.

According to co-organizer Daniel Kleinman, professor in UW–Madison’s Department of Rural Sociology, “This citizen panel is at the cutting edge in contemplating this new technology, considering the opportunities it offers and the concerns it raises well before nanotechnology has a transformative impact on the U.S. and world economies.”

The citizen group, says Kleinman, is a real innovation in promoting democratic, citizen involvement in publicly important decisions about technical matters. For more information, contact Kleinman at (608) 265-3289 or dlkleinman@wisc.edu.