US moves to lift visibility of nanotech

The emerging technology that works with the world's tiniest materials is about to get some large-scale attention from the Museum of Science in Boston and other science museums across the country.

In its largest research grant ever awarded to a museum, the National Science Foundation today is set to unveil a $20 million effort, to be led by Boston's science museum, to create public nanotechnology exhibits and educational programs for the public at US science museums.

The Museum of Science, which has pioneered some nanotech exhibits and hosted research presentations in the field, will manage the grant and lead a national Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network, working with the Science Museum of Minnesota, the Exploratorium in San Francisco, and a dozen other partners.

''This is a new technology industry that is seen as having a lot of potential, and the federal government is investing a lot of money in nanotechnology," said Larry Bell, senior vice president for research, development, and production at the Museum of Science. ''They really want something that's national but that can get going rather quickly."

Under the White House's inter-agency National Nanotechnology Initiative, the government is spending about $1 billion a year to promote nanotechnology, the branch of engineering that deals with properties on the atomic and molecular levels. By manipulating and combining structures much smaller than a human hair, researchers are creating stronger, lighter, and more durable materials with uses as diverse as clothing and sporting goods, oil refining, and drug delivery.

''Nanotechnology is entering all aspects of the economy," said Mihail C. ''Mike" Roco, chairman of the National Nanotechnology Initiative and a senior nanotech adviser to the NSF. ''By 2015, more than half of the materials designed for new products will use nanotechnology. But the public generally is still not informed about nanotechnology."

The new research contract, which the Museum of Science won in a competitive bid, is an effort to boost public understanding. Boston already is home to a pair of nanotech-research centers led by Harvard University and Northeastern University, and the science museum has piggybacked on those efforts to raise the field's profile.

Bell said creating compelling exhibits will be challenging because nanoscale materials are invisible to the human eye. Exhibits will likely focus on the products using such materials, or use atomic force microscopes with joysticks to enable museum-goers to view and manipulate nanoparticles. ''We want people to get a firsthand experience of what the nano-world is like," he said. Museum officials also will create research stories and videos that can be viewed in kiosks.

In addition, the museum plans to sponsor forums that address social issues raised by the advance of nanotechnology, from its environmental impact -- there are some concerns about toxicity -- to the granting of patents for nanotech materials with medical applications that could limit use of nano-medicines in developing countries.

''Any new technology, especially one as sweeping as this, inevitably raises questions," Bell said. ''We want to engage the public in a conversation about these issues."

Robert Weisman can be reached at weisman@globe.com.