Nano step for the scientists, giant leap for the economy
As politicians and accountants, toil with debt and deficits, they forget that the future is about innovation that substantially changes status-quo. Economic value is generated by a step change in technology – automobiles, airplanes, computers and the internet are examples. The world is due for another giant leap and this can only happen by investing into the technology themes that hold promise for fundamental shifts.
One such area is nanotechnology – a broad platform that has ground breaking applications in many fields including medicine, computing, energy, transportation and engineering. In this context, discovery and development of nanomaterials is akin to the development of computers, in that the applications are extremely broad – it is a true platform that can substantially change the productivity and economics of many different industries. The investments needed to further accelerate this fast growing area is miniscule compared to the overall budgets and constraints. Such investments have very high leverage as these materials can not only transform existing applications but also spawn a series of hitherto unknown industries. This network effect in production economics provides an extremely attractive investment proposition. If the industry reaches a threshold of applications, it will be self sustaining. The ball is already rolling – forward looking governments around the world can give it a bit of a bump, with miraculous effects on jobs, people and growth.
From better diagnostics and delivery mechanisms in medicine, driving down healthcare costs with early detection, better targeting and continuous measurement, higher efficiency in energy production (fuel cells, solar cells) & storage (battery, capacitor), better food processing and packaging, allowing more healthy alternatives, more efficient and green industrial materials in commodity chemicals, magnets, coatings and lubricants, newer applications in electronics including faster chips, bigger storage, thinner displays and lower power consumption to lighter and safer automobiles and space crafts, nanotechnology will touch on every product and industry in the future. The faster we get there, the better the world will be.
