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The production of knowledge

Nature Nanotechnology volume 3, pages 448–449 (2008)Cite this article

Is nanotechnology an example of a new approach to science and technology, or have commercial considerations always played a major role in decisions about funding research? Richard Jones looks at both sides of the argument.

In mode 2 knowledge production, according to Gibbons and his co-authors, problems are defined from the outset in the context of potential application; they are solved by the bringing together of transient, transdisciplinary networks; and their outcomes are judged by different criteria of quality than pure disciplinary research, including judgements of their likely economical viability or social acceptability. It is easy to argue that the difference between nanotechnology as it has developed in countries across the world, and the traditional disciplines from which it has emerged, such as solid-state physics and physical chemistry, very much fits this pattern.

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References

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  1. Richard Jones is in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Sheffield. r.a.l.jones@sheffield.ac.uk,

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Jones, R. The production of knowledge. Nature Nanotech 3, 448–449 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2008.226

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2008.226

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