Applied Nanotechnology

CHAPTER 14 Ethics and Nanotechnology

Buckle has pointed out that the foundations of ethics have essentially not advanced for at least the last two millennia. At the same time, there have been enormous advances in what we now call human rights. Since the philosophical foundations of ethics have not changed, we must look elsewhere for the cause. What has grown spectacularly is knowledge. Therefore, it can be concluded that the reason why we treat each other on the whole much better than formerly is because we know more about the universe:¹ one should recall that one of the functions of science is to enable man to better understand his place within the universe. This advance might actually be considered the most significant contribution of science ...