A real ding dong occurred on Radio 4s ‘Today’ program between fertility expert and science communicator Lord Robert Winston and Friends of the Earths Jonathon Porritt over Prince Charles recent comments on nanotechnology. These come hot on the heels of a stinging rebuke over his comments on alternative therapies for cancer. Lord Winston demanded that Porritt withdrew the allegation that decisions on nanotechnology were being made by a scientific elite rather than the general public. This came seconds after comments that nanotechnology was too complex for most people to understand, and raises an important point.
With the nanotechnology community being open and responsible about risks, who makes the decisions, people who actually understand the science or the man on the Clapham omnibus? What is the problem with farming out a study on nanotechnology to the scientific elite of the Royal Society, rather than the National Pig Association?
Much of the furore over GMOs was caused by decions being taken by people with little understanding of the issues. Lets hope history does not repeat itself.