Nanotechnology: Generalizations in an Interdisciplinary Field of Science and Technology

This paper reports on work-in-progress in the area of technology generalization. More specifically, it presents a model that allows integrating various expectations regarding emerging technologies. Nanotechnology is used as an example of a novel field of science and technology. The notion of leitbild ('guiding image') is used as a mediating concept pointing to potentially emerging technologies. Then we discuss to what extent patent and publication data can facilitate identifying scientific and technological trends and how to evaluate the epistemic utility of a leitbild.