Despite what you might have read elsewhere about the government/corporate machine damning the ethical torpedoes and going full speed ahead with nano, here's some breaking news from the center of the conspiracy. Declaring that "nanotech also has the potential for unintended consequences, which is precisely why we can't allow the societal implications to be an afterthought," National Science Foundation Director Rita Colwell announced two new grants of more than a million each have been awarded for new studies on nanotech's impact on society.

Recipients include Davis Baird of the University of South Carolina and Lynne Zucker of the University of California, Los Angeles.

These grant recipients will join other government and private initiatives in the United States, United Kingdom and elsewhere to make sure environmental and ethical concerns are thought through every step of the way as nanotech moves from a big idea to a big business. For an update on the ongoing environmental/ethical/policy debate, please visit Howard Lovy's NanoBot.