Introduction

Nanotechnology manufacturing is on a tremendous rise in the modern economy. This is a term used to describe either the production of nanoscale materials that can either be in terms of powder or fluids.  This manufacturing can either be a top down or bottom up process mainly used in several technologies such as the laser ablation, etching, and others. It is, however, important to note that nanomanufacturing should not be confused with molecular manufacturing that are two distinct aspects (Ahmed & Jackson, 2009). Most of the federal governments all over the world have encouraged used of nanotechnology. The reasoning behind this is the risks issues that would otherwise be imminent to the society as a whole.

Nanotechnology is involved with controlling the atomic and molecular structure present in the manufacturing process. It is the obligation of the manufacturers to ensure that the size of the nanometer is below 100.  It is essential for the manufacturers to control the matter on the atomic scale. In most cases, nanotech manufacturing will make some of the existing products more powerful and flexible. It is also likely to bring about the development of new products and even new ways of manufacturing and distributing products. Nevertheless, the technology is also likely to bring about negative implications such as dangerous weapons, drugs, and other undesirable things which could be detrimental to the overall social welfare (Asmatulu, 2013). In this paper, we will discuss at length the political, ethical and legal implications associated with nanotechnology manufacturing.

Impacts of Nanotechnology

As earlier discussed, the use of nanotechnology has been on a tremendous increase in the recent past.  Most of the countries have adopted this technology in different fields such as medicine, agriculture, water treatment, food processing and in construction just to mention a few. These governments ensure that manufactured items rank from 1 to 100 in the nanoscale. Nevertheless, it has been a primary concern in determining and predicting the impacts of this new technology (Boucher, 2008).  Despite the technical and commercial feasibility associated with this technology, there are chances that innovators may overlook other important social aspects and concentrate on economic terms. There is also the possibility of the innovations affecting the society in other ways not intended by those who invented them. The untended consequences can either be beneficial or disastrous to the society.

The unintended consequences bring about phenomenon social-political concerns especially in the modern economy. Though it’s hard to determine the implications and consequences of nanotechnology, the society, and the governance system must strive to understand the underlying concepts and take essential measures for better co-existence. The potentially disruptive nature of nanotechnology is a major issue of concern that has necessitated intense investigating the matter.

International Aspects of Nanotechnology

The use of nanotechnology is at the highest level both in the developed and developing countries.  It is, however, imperative to understand that there is a significant difference in the degree of research between the developed and countries. The level of financing, investment, access to scientific and technical infrastructure as well as the level of cooperation varies among the different states. For instance, the developing countries are a step behind as far as nanotechnology is concerned (Boucher, 2008). This is as a result of the ready access to information for the developed countries due to the bulk number of publications as well as increased Internet access.

Researchers and scientists from the developed countries also travel a lot thus giving them an opportunity to interact thus making nanotechnology an international aspect. On the other hand, developing countries suffer from information deficiency as a result of limited internet access and less interactive sessions with the elites. This makes it necessary for the scientists and the international community to strive in finding ways of mending the information gap both within and outside their countries (Asmatulu, 2013).   They have the responsibility of ensuring that nanotechnology is beneficial to all countries. It is imperative to note that the technology is essential in most operations thus making it critical for the realization of the millennium development goals.  It is for this reason that there must be political and legal influence as far as nanotechnology is concerned.

Political and Legal Influence

Safety and ethical issues are of major concern in nanotechnology. It is for this reason that federal states must provide guidelines through set rules and regulations that will mitigate risks and other security concerns associated with nanotechnology. Over the last decades, there has been substantial investment in the provision of a legal framework to govern nanotechnology research and development (Boucher, 2008). The investments shared among the difference government agencies that are significantly affected by the nanotechnology manufacturing. For instance, the defense sector, energy, justice, environment and health sectors must be accorded the necessary funding to enhance security and avoid other risks associated with the nanotechnology.

To have a positive political and legal influence in nanotechnology, it is important that the federal states to understand the potential risks associated with nanotechnology. It is worth noting that the major risks include but not limited to health, environmental and the adverse effects of nanoparticles overlooked before they are released (Ahmed & Jackson, 2009).

Nanotechnology is known to have considerable toxicity that has a significant impact on human health and the environment. There high chances that nanotechnology will oppose new forms of hazard that expose the human nature to deadly risks. With this in mind, there must be control measures to control the toxicity and the risk hazards in their nanotech work (Boucher, 2008). It is at this juncture that the legal and political influence must get in. All the corporations must have a risk management system with the mandate of solving all potential risks associated with their work. There must be legal provisions on the recommended level of toxins that should be released to the environment. It is also critical for the legal provision of the consequences and who will bear the consequences in case of the violations of these rules.

In this case, there is great concern on the hazardousness of nanoparticles and the exposure risk. It is important for the manufacturers to understand the biological and chemical effects of nanoparticles on human bodies and the natural environment. It is also wise to consider the issue of leakage, circulation, spillage and concentration of nanoparticles that would be hazardous to organisms and ecosystems (Ahmed & Jackson, 2009). The states must be critical in monitoring and evaluation of the effects of the nanoparticles released in the manufacturing process. It is also wise to engage the resources and expertise to encourage, support, and develop approaches that promote pollution prevention and maintain desired levels of health. Political and legal influence should strive to ensure that there are ways to support environmentally beneficial approaches such as green chemistry, green energy, and green manufacturing.

It is important for the players in the nanotechnology and the political actors to ensure that their actions safeguard the interest of the investors and the society as a whole. Decisions taken to prevent environmental and human risks must be cautious to avoid investment risks (Rickerby, 2014). The intense of the political and legal influence must not be too harsh to deter investment necessary for development. Interestingly, both the European Union and the UN have established regulatory systems through which the hazard exposure risks of nanotechnology might be assessed. For instance, United States is known to have the US environmental protection agency (US EPA).

The issue of human health has also been a critical aspect of the political and legal influence of the nanotechnology. It is worth understanding that nanotechnology has been a driving force in the food sector. The food taken by the population means a lot to the health standards of the human population. Nanotechnology is known to be a leading cause of several lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, cancer, asthma and other chronic illnesses (Rickerby, 2014). With this in mind, it is paramount to have a positive legal and political influence in matters of food and drug. The federal government has the obligation of ensuring safety and effectiveness of the food products, human and animal drugs, medical devices, radiation-emitting products, cosmetics, and animal feeds.

There must be legal control of the Nanomedicine to protect the public against the unsafe technologies. There must be a legal framework that controls the framework upon which the biological assembly of nanostructures. Additionally, there must be provisions that regulate the use of DNA molecules in the construction of nanoscale devices. Use of genetically modified organs, modeling, and simulation in the curing process must be controlled through political or legal influence (Boucher, 2008). It is critical to comprehend that there are several issues that underlie the nanomedicine. There are critical matters such as gene therapy and tissue engineering that must be regulated to ensure high ethical and socially acceptable standards.  These practices at times may be against the acceptable social guidelines thus making it imperative for the federal states to provide guidelines on such issues.

Despite the spirited efforts in regulating the nanomedicine, there numerous challenges since it may be difficult to maintain strict regulations in future nanomedicine development. It is in the public domain that some of the foods and drugs on the market are developed through nanotechnology, and the government may lack the necessary expertise required to deal with the problem. Some of the equipment especially used in dialysis and cancer treatment are very sophisticated and may prove difficult to control and regulate (Asmatulu, 2013). Nevertheless, extensive research and development must be carried out to ensure that the public interest is safeguarded.

There is also another legal influence that involves the development of patents and regulation of the nanotechnology. There are provisions of patent rights in the nanotechnology that will protect the innovators of certain technology from unfair competition. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that this is against the general doctrine in the patent law products of that nature cannot be patented due to the atomically engineered elements involved. This should be a major issue of concern since there high possibilities of the practice resulting in abuse of the technology. For instance, most of the drug selling companies has abused the intellectual property rights to infringe the public interest.

Another aspect that the government must be actively involved in nanotechnology is in the matters concerning the security. The defense department in every government must invest heavily in this sector since it is critical for the overall development (Ahmed & Jackson, 2009). Nanotechnology has been significant in security surveillance, construction and also in military devices assembling process at the battlefield. There must be strict regulations in the defense sector since it is a critical department in the national development. It is worth noting that failure to have political influence in the nanotechnology use in the military can at times be detrimental. Misuse of nanotechnology for military aggression poses a significant risk to the society.

It is a matter of public interest that nanotechnology has been an important contribution to the recent development of nuclear weapons and atomic bombs. There must be set rules and regulations that see to it that nuclear weapons and other explosives are controlled if the war on terrorism will be won. Failure to deal with this issue decisively can be detrimental to the society since there is a major risk of expanded terrorism. Nevertheless, it is essential to not that offensive weapons developed through nanotechnology can only be stopped by a defensive systems made using advanced nanotechnology as well (Rickerby, 2014). This is a critical step in disarming the terrorists the weapons of mass destruction. In essence, technological superiority plays a significant role in the disbarment process and curbing terrorism. It is for this reason that there must be legal and political influence that will spearhead further research in developing a superior defensive technology.

It is important that we understand that weapons are a negative contribution of nanotechnology. Weapons must always be used to protect the innocent population from attack. Simply extending today’s weapon capabilities by miniaturizing guns, explosives, and electronic components of missiles would be deadly enough. There must be efforts and rules and regulations that will help the army to use nanotechnology develop disassembles to attack the lethal weapons used by terrorists. Nevertheless, the disassembling process must be carried out efficiently and cautiously to avoid the effect of molecules to the environment. Besides the extreme disaster scenarios of nanotechnology, there also plenty of potentially harmful uses associated with (Asmatulu, 2013). For instance it could be used to compromise our freedom and privacy; since some people could track and monitor others using molecular sized microphones, cameras, and homing beacons.

There must also be legal and political influence that must regulate the ethical issues surrounding the nanotechnology. With such critical information regarding potential risks in nanotechnology, we must seriously examine its possible consequences. It is also worth understanding that nanotechnology is at an escalating speed and may even be very prolific in future. It is, therefore, high time that we initiate positive political and legal influence to deal with the menace. There must be solutions to the potential ethical issues arising from the nanotechnology before they do more harm to the society. It is important for the innovations to be guided by virtues and principles that are not against the ethical standards of the society.

Conclusion

Nanotechnology has been very instrumental t o increasing efficiency and development in the modern economy. There have been several notable benefits associated with the nanotechnology such as availability of clean water, cheap and robust energy, nutritionally enhanced food and much improved information storage and communication strategies (Ahmed & Jackson, 2009). However, there have also been several potential risk consequences that could be detrimental to the society. For instance, the use of the technology in the development of nuclear weapons and atomic bombs is against the will of a majority of the population.

With this in mind, it is important to put in place measures that have a positive influence on the use of nanotechnology. Societal and ethical standards must be maintained at all costs to ensure that nanotechnology has a positive impact on the community. Most people think that nanotechnology gives human race “god-like” powers, and thus it should be allowed to take freely its course (Boucher, 2008). However, this is not the case, and there must be efforts to control the advance of the technology for the overall benefit of the society. It is important that we create and enforce policies regarding its research and development. There should be international laws and regulations that closely monitor the development of the nanotechnology. It is also important to have strict countermeasures to deal with persons who fail to address this issue ethically. It is also important to have a non-government regulatory commission to help deal with the potential risk consequences associated with nanotechnology.

References

Ahmed, W., & Jackson, M. (2009). Emerging nanotechnologies for manufacturing. Norwich,        N.Y.: William Andrew;

Asmatulu, R. (2013). Nanotechnology safety. Burlington, MA: Elsevier Science & Technology.

Boucher, P. (2008). Nanotechnology legal aspects. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.

Rickerby, D. (2014). Nanotechnology for Sustainable Manufacturing. Boca Raton: CRC Press.

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