Nanotechnology and Society: A discussion-based undergraduate course

Abstract

Nanotechnology has emerged as a broad, exciting, yet ill-defined field of scientific research and technological innovation. There are important questions about the technology's potential economic, social, and environmental implications. We discuss an undergraduate course on nanoscience and nanotechnology for students from a wide range of disciplines, including the natural and social sciences, the humanities, and engineering. The course explores these questions and the broader place of technology in contemporary societies. The course is built around active learning methods and seeks to develop the students' critical thinking skills, written and verbal communication abilities, and general knowledge of nanoscience and nanoengineering concepts. Continuous assessment was used to gain information about the effectiveness of class discussions and enhancement of student understanding of the interaction between nanotechnology and society.Comment: 7 pages, 1 figure. Edited and shortened for readability. Visit http://www.tahan.com/charlie/nanosociety/course201/ for more informatio

Nanosciences and nanotechnologies learning and teaching in secondary education: a review of literature

“…In addition, experiences taking into account ethical and societal aspects of nanosciences and nanotechnologies are proposed at university level (Hoover, Brown, Averick, Kane, & Hurt, 2009;Jaszczak & Seely, 2008;Miller & Pfatteicher, 2008;Sweeney, 2006;Tahan et al, 2006;Toumey & Baird, 2008;Zenner & Crone, 2008). Nonetheless, many of these references only give narrative accounts of different innovative courses, listing goals assigned to these initiatives, difficulties encountered, decisions made about contents and persons involved in developing and teaching the courses.…”

“…Sweeney (2006), in an article aiming to identify and analyse how researchers working in the fields of nanosciences and nanotechnologies at the University of Central Florida as well as science and engineering undergraduates participating in an NSF-funded program conceptualise the social and ethical dimensions of their work, also relates how he designed a seminar on social and ethical issues that took place during a summer programme. Tahan et al (2006), for their part, from the University of Wisconsin, outline a discussion-based undergraduate course open to students from different disciplines, from the humanities to engineering as well as from the social or natural sciences. The course entitled 'Nanotechnology and Society' was designed and led for a semester by graduate students who had followed specific 'nanoscale science and engineering and STS courses' during the previous half-year.…”

“…-Develop questioning, thinking, idea producing, and communication skills, both written and verbal. (Tahan et al, 2006) This course is part of the programme of initiatives implemented at Wisconsin Madison University to teach 'nanotechnology in society'. The structures and purposes of these programmes are also detailed by Zenner and Crone (2008) and Miller and Pfatteicher (2008).…”

Introducing Nanoengineering and Nanotechnology to the First Year Students Through an Interactive Seminar Course

“…There have been numerous efforts to introduce nanotechnology in the engineering and science curriculum [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]. In this paper, we report a first-year seminar course focused on introduction to nanoengineering and its ethical and societal impact.…”

A New Approach To Microelectronics And Nanotechnology Education For Undergraduates Of All Disciplines

“…College undergraduate students are generally exposed to the disciplines of microelectronics and nanotechnology [1][2][3] only if they major in electrical and computer engineering (ECE) or associated majors, often only in advanced ECE classes (typically senior year), and in many cases perhaps not until graduate school. Counter examples to this classical model do exist [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11] , but they are recent and clearly in the overwhelming minority. In addition, such micro/nanotechnology courses remain largely for specialists with a well-defined skill set coming into the class (e.g., advanced undergraduate engineering or science students).…”