|
The National Nanotechnology Initiative at Five Years:
Assessment and Recommendations of the National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel
Submitted by the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology
May 2005
Executive Summary
The President's Fiscal Year (FY) 2004 Budget, released in February 2003, tasked the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) with reviewing the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) and making recommendations for strengthening the program. Congress ratified the need for an outside advisory body with its passage of the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003 (the Act), which called for the President to establish or designate a National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (NNAP). By Executive Order, the President designated PCAST as the NNAP in July 2004. To augment its own expertise in managing large research and development (R&D) programs, PCAST identified a Technical Advisory Group (TAG) comprising about 45 nanotechnology experts representing diverse disciplines and sectors across academia and industry. The TAG is a knowledgeable resource, providing input and feedback with a more technical perspective.
The Act calls upon the NNAP to assess the NNI and to report on its assessments and make recommendations for ways to improve the program at least every two years. This is the first such periodic report provided by PCAST in its role as the NNAP.
The Administration has identified nanotechnology as one of its top R&D priorities. When FY 2005 concludes later this year, over 4 billion taxpayer dollars will have been spent since FY 2001 on nanotechnology R&D. In addition, the President's FY 2006 Budget includes over $1 billion for nanotechnology research across 11 Federal agencies. Such a substantial and sustained investment has been largely based on the expectation that advances in understanding and harnessing novel nanoscale properties will generate broad-ranging economic benefits for our Nation. As such, the NNAP members believe the President, the Congress, and the American people are seeking answers to four basic questions relative to the Federal investment in nanotechnology R&D:
1. Where Do We Stand?
2. Is This Money Well Spent and the Program Well Managed?
3. Are We Addressing Societal Concerns and Potential Risks?
4. How Can We Do Better?
Answers to these questions provide the assessments and recommendations called for by the Act. Our conclusions can be summarized as follows:
1. Where Do We Stand? Today, the United States is the acknowledged leader in nanotechnology R&D. The approximately $1 billion annual Federal Government funding for nanotechnology R&D is roughly one-quarter of the current global investment by all nations. Total annual U.S. R&D spending (Federal, State, and private) now stands at approximately $3 billion, one-third of the approximately $9 billion in total worldwide spending by the public and private sectors. In addition, the United States leads in the number of start-up companies based on nanotechnology, and in research output as measured by patents and publications. Our leadership position, however, is under increasing competitive pressure from other nations as they ramp up their own programs.
2. Is This Money Well Spent and the Program Well Managed? The NNAP members believe strongly that the money the United States is investing in nanotechnology is money very well spent, and that continued robust funding is important for the Nation's Long-term economic well-being and national security. Nanotechnology holds tremendous potential for stimulating innovation and thereby enabling or maintaining U.S. leadership in industries that span all sectors. The focus of the NNI on expanding knowledge of nanoscale phenomena and on discovery of nanoscale and nanostructured materials, devices, and systems, along with building an infrastructure to support such studies, has been both appropriate and wise. The NNI has accomplished much already―advancing foundational knowledge, promoting technology transfer for commercial and public benefit, developing an infrastructure of user facilities and instrumentation, and taking steps to address societal concerns―and the economic payoffs over the long term are likely to be substantial.
The NNI appears well positioned to maintain United States leadership going forward, through both its coordinated interagency approach to planning and implementing the Federal R&D program and its efforts to interact with industry and the public. This approach is outlined clearly in the recently released NNI Strategic Plan, which spells out the goats and priorities for the initiative for the next 5 to 10 years. The NNAP members believe that this Plan provides an appropriate way to organize and manage the program.
3. Are We Addressing Societal Concerns and Potential Risks? The societal implications of nanotechnology―including environmental and health effects―must be taken into account simultaneously with the scientific advances being underwritten by the Federal Government. The NNI generally recognizes this, and is moving deliberately to identify, prioritize, and address such concerns.
Environmental, Health, and Safety. The NNAP convened a panel of experts from Government regulatory agencies, academia, and the private sector to discuss the environmental and health effects of nanotechnology. Based on these panel discussions, as well as on information received from the NSET Subcommittee and the TAG, the NNAP members believe that potential risks do exist and that the Government is directing appropriate attention and adequate resources to the research that will ensure the protection of the public and the environment. The NNAP members are particularly pleased that strong communication exists among the agencies that fund nanotechnology research and those responsible for regulatory decision-making.
Education. The future economic prosperity of the United States will depend on a workforce that both is large enough and has the necessary skills to meet the challenges posed by global competition. This will be especially important in enabling the United States to maintain its leadership role in nanotechnology and in the industries that will use it. The NNI has launched a range of education-related programs appropriate for classrooms at all levels and across the country, along with other programs that are aimed at the broader public. While the NNI cannot be expected to solve the Nation's science education problems single-handedly, the NNAP members believe that these NNI activities can help improve science education and attract more bright young minds into careers in science and engineering.
Other Societal Dimensions. Understanding the impact of a new technology on society is vital to ensuring that development takes place in a responsible manner. In addition to research into societal issues such as the environmental, health, and safety effects of nanotechnology, the NNI's diverse and growing R&D program is exploring other issues such as economic, workforce, and ethical impacts. In addition, communication among the various stakeholders and with the public on these topics is an important element of the program, as indicated by the establishment of an interagency subgroup to address this topic.
4. How Can We Do Better? The NNAP will monitor progress on the program elements discussed above; in the meantime, the NNAP offers the following recommendations aimed at further strengthening the NNI.
Technology Transfer. The level of interest and investment across many industrial sectors is growing and will likely outpace Government investment in the United States soon, if it hasn't already. The NNI needs to take further steps to communicate and establish links to U.S. industry to further facilitate technology transfer from the lab to the marketplace. The NNAP calls attention to two areas that would augment the existing suite of activities and enhance commercialization of research results.
・The NNI's outreach to, and coordination with, the States should be increased. Such efforts would complement those NNI activities already underway with various industrial sectors. The States perform a vital role in fostering economic development through business assistance programs, tax incentives, and other means. In addition, collectively the States are spending substantial amounts in support of nanotechnology R&D and commercialization. The NNAP members believe that practical application of NNI-funded research results, workforce development, and other national benefits will increase with improved Federal-State coordination.
・The NNI should examine how to improve knowledge management of NNI assets. This would include assets such as user facilities and instrumentation available to outside researchers, research results, and derivative intellectual property. Through mechanisms such as publicly available and searchable databases, the NNI can―and should―improve infrastructure utilization and the transfer of technology to the private sector.
The NNAP notes that, although ultimate commercialization of nanotechnology is desirable and to be supported, the NNI must remain mindful that its primary focus is on developing an understanding of the novel properties that occur at the nanoscale and the ability to control matter at the atomic and molecular level. While we all want the United States to benefit economically from nanotechnology as quickly as possible, it is critically important that the basic intellectual property surrounding nanotechnology be generated and reside within this country. Those who hold this knowledge will "own" commercialization in the future.
Environmental and Health Implications. The NNI should continue its efforts to understand the possible toxicological effects of nanotechnology and, where harmful human or environmental effects are proven, appropriate regulatory mechanisms should be utilized by the pertinent Federal agencies. Nanotechnology products should not be immune from regulation, but such regulation must be rational and based on science, not perceived fears. Although it appears that the public and the environment are adequately protected through existing regulatory authorities, the NNAP encourages the Government regulatory agencies to work together to ensure that any regulatory policies that are developed are based on the best available science and are consistent among the agencies.
The NNAP notes that research on the environmental and health implications of nanomaterials and associated products should be coordinated not only within the Federal Government, but with other nations and groups around the world to ensure that efforts are not duplicated unnecessarily and information is shared widely.
Education/Workforce Preparation. A key to realizing the economic benefits of nanotechnology will be the establishment of an infrastructure capable of educating and training an adequate number of researchers, teachers, and technical workers. To maximize the value of its investment in developing materials and programs for education and worker training, the NNI should establish relationships with the Departments of Education and Labor. While the science agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF) can conduct education research and design excellent programs and materials, ultimately the mission agencies, Education and Labor, must be engaged to disseminate these programs and materials as widely as possible throughout the Nation's education and training systems.
The NNI's education focus should be on promoting science fundamentals at K-16 levels, while encouraging the development and incorporation of nanotechnology-related material into science and engineering education. To promote mid-career training for professionals, the NNI should partner with and support professional societies and trade associations that have continuing education as a mission.
Societal Implications. The NNI must support research aimed at understanding the societal (including ethical, economic, and legal) implications and must actively work to inform the public about nanotechnology. Now more than ever, those who are developing new scientific knowledge and technologies must be aware of the impact their efforts may have on society.
In summary, the NNAP supports the NNI's high-level vision and goals, and the investment strategy by which those are to be achieved. Panel members feel that the program can be strengthened by extending its interaction with industry, State and regional economic developers, the Departments of Education and Labor, and internationally, where appropriate. The NNI should also continue to confront the various societal issues in an open, straightforward, and science-based manner.
|
