Technological Convergence from the Nanoscale

Abstract

A series of scientific conferences and book-length publications predict that nanoscience will have its greatest impact through the convergence of four fields where research progress and engineering applications are expected to be especially significant. These are the so-called NBIC fields of nanotechnology, biotechnology, information technology, and new technologies based on cognitive science. This chapter is a first sociological reconnaissance of the convergenist movement in science and technology, based on the unity of nature at the nanoscale.