Researchers who study the impact of nanotechnology on people, animals and the environment struggle with many issues, as outlined in this article.\u00a0\u00a0One new debate is: How much of a particular nanoscale material should they use to test for safety?\u00a0 In many laboratory studies, the test medium is hit with large amounts of the nanomaterial being tested \u2013 at times because nanoparticles are so tough to measure that testing with small amounts is difficult \u2013 at others, because using large amounts might help a researcher have an inkling about what would happen over the course of many years.\u00a0 The question is how much is too much, and whether such studies can be translated into the real world.\u00a0 Mark Wiesner, a professor at Duke University and the director of the Center for Environmental Impact of NanoTechnology, United States, says, \u201cSometimes, you have to do that [use large amounts], because there\u2019s nothing else that you can do,\u201d but, he adds, \u201cyou can go to extremes, where you\u2019re working with very high concentrations.\u00a0 I\u2019m just not sure what we necessarily learn from that.\u201d\u00a0 Wiesner said an even tougher problem is finding the best way to measure nanoparticles \u2013 should it be by mass, surface area, or by the number of particles?\u00a0 \u201cEach one could be relevant,\u201d he said.\u00a0 Another, broader, question, adds Wiesner, is where are the silver nanoparticles in sewage sludge coming from, exactly?\u00a0 Are they released from your neighbor\u2019s anti-stink socks, or from some other source?\u00a0 And the carbon nanotubes in the air, were they released from a manufacturer, or gasoline exhaust?\u00a0 Wiesner asks: \u201cHave we been\u2014and I think the answer is yes\u2014submerged in nanoparticles from time immemorial?\u00a0 It might be irrelevant. We don\u2019t know. It might also be very important.\u201d<\/p>\n
http:\/\/www.newhavenindependent.org\/index.php\/archives\/entry\/nano_testing\/id_36688<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Researchers who study the impact of nanotechnology on people, animals and the environment struggle with many issues, as outlined in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2504","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology-update"],"yoast_head":"\n