nanoscientists-meet-nanopublics
by Jack Stilgoe
Saturdays at the Natural History Museum are full of children and dinosaurs. But we found a way through to hold the first ever nanoscientists-meet-nanopublics workshop, as part of our work on public engagement with science.
We had 12 members of the Great British Public and 12 extremely engaging nanoscientists - from PhDs to professors - talking about the possibilities and concerns of nano. The GBP had all been through focus groups that our colleagues at Lancaster ran earlier this year. Our scientists knew less about what to expect and were admirably open-minded. We talked about trust, responsibility, regulation, research and "the tyranny of decisionism" (a phrase that Brian Wynne used to describe how the things that matter normally emerge not from decisions, but from assumptions left unquestioned).
Our hope is that, for the people who came, the event marks the start of a conversation about science. As a first step, I've put up a wiki.
There's a couple of photos up on Flickr.
This is the picture that Tim Caswell drew of our discussion.
Thanks to the NHM, to the good folk at Lancaster University, to Rob Doubleday, and to everyone who came along.