How to Accommodate to the Invisible? The ‘halo’ of ‘nano’

Abstract

Nanotechnologies produce many different types of images but are characterized by the ones that allow us to 'see the atoms' despite the fact that objects at the nanoscale are smaller than the wavelength of light and hence are 'invisible'. Images from scanning probe microscopy (SPM), like 'The Beginning', have played an emblematic role in the constitution of the field and are also more likely to be used in communication outside the scientific field. These images are made, selected, modified and evaluated with respect to the information that they communicate. The 'life cycle' of these images implies the transduction of this information. Outside of the scientific field, however, they are no longer defined by this information, nor according to technical and scientific criteria, but by their aesthetic power, and they become associated with other images from other fields (art, advertisement, entertainment). This process creates a psycho-social 'halo' about 'nano' in the public perception, and raises ethical issues about nanotechnological communication via images. We will analyze the halo of the nano in this respect and propose a strategy for a reflexive 'accommodation' to the images at the nanoscale.

Advertising Nanotechnology

“…Thus, poised as it is “between reality and dream, present and future, fact and fiction,” nanotechology has become “a potent cultural signifier” (Hayles 2004, 11; see Selin 2007). This ancillary effect of nanotechnology as it permeates the social world, in turn drawing its energy and inspiration from the social world, has been variously described as nanoculture (Hayles 2004), nanologic (Milburn 2002), nanofication (Marcovich and Shinn 2011), and the nano-halo (Bontems 2011). 1 It is not our purpose to assess the capacity of NEC or any other firm to manipulate the nanoscale; nor are we concerned here with the policy discourses of anticipatory governance (Guston and Sarewitz 2002) and public engagement with nanoscience, although this article will inform this work; these elements of strategic nanotechnology do not devolve as much public control as is often claimed.…”

“…1 It is not our purpose to assess the capacity of NEC or any other firm to manipulate the nanoscale; nor are we concerned here with the policy discourses of anticipatory governance (Guston and Sarewitz 2002) and public engagement with nanoscience, although this article will inform this work; these elements of strategic nanotechnology do not devolve as much public control as is often claimed. Here we assess the collective imaginary capacity of nanotechnology per se , and the corresponding qualities that are ascribed to the unimaginably small that seem to make nanotechnology not only necessary but desirable, or in Bontems’ (2011) words, how nanotechnology acquires a “psycho-social halo” in the social imaginary.…”

A 30-Year Review on Nanocomposites: Comprehensive Bibliometric Insights into Microstructural, Electrical, and Mechanical Properties Assisted by Artificial Intelligence

“…This is coupled with issues like reproducibility, cost, and complexity in preparation, adding to the intricacies of nanomaterial research [ 231 , 232 , 233 , 234 , 235 , 236 , 237 , 238 , 239 , 240 , 241 , 242 , 243 , 244 , 245 , 246 , 247 , 248 , 249 , 250 ]. As nanotechnology evolves, addressing these technical and ethical issues [ 251 , 252 , 253 , 254 , 255 , 256 , 257 , 258 , 259 , 260 , 261 , 262 , 263 , 264 , 265 , 266 , 267 , 268 , 269 , 270 , 271 , 272 , 273 , 274 , 275 , 276 ] is crucial for maximizing the potential of nanomaterials and ensuring their responsible application in various fields [ 277 , 278 , 279 , 280 ].…”