Thinking Small

What this episode covers

There is an overwhelming need on the part of the research community to explain our efforts in nanoscale science and engineering to the general public. To do so effectively there is also a need to catalogue the public's understanding of nanotechnology especially with respect to their ability to comprehend matters of size and scale. As a result of extensive one-on-one surveys a clear picture of the public's understanding has been obtained and it shows little knowledge of the subject especially in the area of comprehending scale over several orders of magnitude. The foundation for moving forward is to take advantage of their recollection of basic chemistry and atomic models which can be used as a reference point for nanotechnology. More complex molecular models confuse the viewer because they lack a simple reference point back to the viewer's previous experience. Four simple concepts about nanotechnology have been developed which provide the general public with a foundation on which to build a more applications oriented knowledge. A large touring museum exhibit (Too Small to See), has been built which has successfully faced the challenges of bringing nanoscale phenomena to the human-scale. This exhibit debuted at Epcot, Walt Disney World Resort in 2006-7 where over 700,000 people interacted with it. In addition a web-based magazine (Nanooze) and more recently a print version of this magazine have all be launched to help inform the general public about nanotechnology.

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