%0 Journal Article
%T What Counts as a 'Social and Ethical Issue' in Nanotechnology?
%A Bruce V. Lewenstein
%J Hyle : International Journal for Philosophy of Chemistry
%D 2005
%I HYLE Publications, Karlsruhe and University of Karlsruhe
%X As 'social and ethical issues' becomes a recurring phrase in the community paying attention to nanotechnology research, a crucial question becomes: what counts as a social and ethical issue? A typical list includes privacy, environmental health and safety, media hype, and other apparently unrelated issues. This article surveys those issues and suggests that concerns about fundamental concepts of ethics, such as fairness, justice, equity, and especially power, unite the various issues identified as 'social and ethical issues' in nanotechnology.
%K philosophy of chemistry
%K nanotechnology
%K social issues
%K ethical issues
%K equity
%K justice
%K power
%U http://www.hyle.org/journal/issues/11-1/lewenstein.pdf