Nanotech: The Rebranding Of Chemistry And Other Boring Sciences

Overhype

from the it's-all-in-the-sizzle dept

There’s been a lot of talk about “nanotechnology” lately, and we’ve noted in the past that an awful lot of these companies seem to simply be about taking anything “small” that sounds science fiction-like and building up some buzz around it. Business Week is running an interview with a nanotechnology “world leader,” talking up the space — but you have to question what exactly the space really is. When asked about the “hype,” this expert claims that all the hype is around nanobots — which no one is seriously working on. Of course, nanobots seem to be the closest thing to actually being new and innovative compared to the rest of the space. In fact, it’s hard to tell from the article how everything else he’s talking about is anything other than chemistry, with a shiny coat of marketing hype and dreams of big payouts from investors. Of course, chemistry is considered boring to many, so perhaps nanotechnology is simply how a bunch of chemists and PR people have figured out how to dupe investors out of lots of money that they wouldn’t normally invest. At least that would fit with the definition one scientist has given to the field of nanotechnology: “the ability to continue to obtain funding for what you claim is of nano importance.”