The Brave New World of Nanotechnology

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DATE : Wed, 18 Jan 2006 16:00:00 GMT
Entered in Database : 2006-01-18 16:00:00
length : 18506598
Link to the Show / Show Notes

Nanotechnology means manipulating atoms to make things that are a thousand times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. Most Americans may never have heard of it, but it's already an important part of many consumer products. Cosmetics, stain-resistant fabrics, golf balls and computers all contain these manufactured components that are invisible to the human eye. Medical cures and pollution controls could be next, producing a one trillion-dollar industry by 2015--unless some unexpected crisis erodes public confidence. What are the benefits and possible risks of Nanotechnology? What about oversight and accountability?Making News: Supreme Court Upholds Oregon Assisted Suicide Law
In a 6-to-3 vote, with Chief Justice John Roberts dissenting, the US Supreme Court today upheld Oregon's Death with Dignity Law. Stephen Henderson, who reports on the court for Knight-Ridder newspapers, says the decision prohibiting the use of the Controlled Substances Act to impede assisted suicide is, in essence, a slap at executive assertions of power.Reporter's Notebook: Domestic Spying Increasingly Criticized
Yesterday, in a speech sponsored by liberal and conservative groups, Al Gore said that President Bush"has been breaking the law, repeatedly and insistently." The former Vice President called for a special counsel to investigate domestic surveillance by the National Security Agency without a judicial warrant. Meantime, two civil rights groups have filed suit against the practice, and FBI agents say it may be a waste of time. That's according to today's New York Times in an article co-authored by Eric Lichtblau.

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