Beyond Imagination

Nanotechnology is sweeping the world. This
science of very small particles, which includes genetic modification and
the reconfiguring of the arrangement of atoms, presents possibilities
beyond imagination. It also has huge implications for all South
Africans, especially at home.

How exactly is this new technology
playing out in South Africa? In countries like India, nanotechnology is
being supported as a source of income and innovation. It has the
potential to improve both the human condition and a country’s
productivity and competitiveness.

Is South Africa doing what it
should and could to foster nanotechnology and biotechnology, and to
advance bioeconomies within the country? And what does the new
technology mean for us as consumers? How many of us know that this
technology is already being employed in substances like suntan cream and
lipstick, with potential health implications for users?

The
application of nanotechnology poses risks as well as huge benefits, so
we need to be particularly vigilant of the ethics and dangers of it.
This book provokes discussion around these important topics and relays
eyeopening information to those of us who thought all of this was
sci-fi.