Original NNI advocates issue warning plus 8 recommendations

[Update: Welcome, Instapundit readers. If you would like future nanotech news emails, just type your email address in the “Free Registration” box to the right.–CP] In the Summer 2005 Issues in Science and Technology, two of the primary White House advocates for the original U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative, Neal Lane and Tom Kalil, issue a warning: “We are concerned that lukewarm support for nanoscale science and engineering (S&E) puts U.S. technological leadership at risk and might prevent the country from realizing the full potential of nanotechnology…Although the NNI has made significant progress, we are concerned that federal funding for nanoscale S&E has been flat in recent years. The administration’s FY 2006 budget, for example, actually proposes a decrease in funding as compared to the level of support provided by Congress in FY 2005.” In addition to increased federal funding, Lane and Kalil make specific proposals: Invest in nanotechnology for clean energy. Extend “Moore’s law” with nanoelectronics. Establish a “Pioneer Award” for nanoscale S&E. Create nanotechnology-related education and outreach activities that scale. Understand and mitigate the environmental and human health effects of nanomaterials. Promote nanotechnology applications for developing countries. Promote the interface between bio and nano. Help nanotechnology start-ups cross the “valley of death.” Also in the same issue: “The Economic Promise of Nanotechnology” by Senator George Allen.