Expert Opinion on Emerging Technologies Oversight: Lessons for Nanotechnology from Biotechnology

摘要

Learning from historical experiences with other, related technologies can inform initial stages of oversight for new technological products. This chapter uses expert elicitation and a set of multi-disciplinary criteria to evaluate the oversight system for genetically engineered organisms (GEOs) in food and agriculture in order to derive lessons for the oversight of related nanotechnology products. Strengths and weaknesses of GEOs oversight and hypotheses about the relationships among various features of oversight are suggested. The general lesson that we derive for nanotechnology oversight is that 'science-based', institutional, and normative elements of oversight are not completely separable, and all types should be strengthened for effective oversight.