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Nano Bite: August 2009

Welcome to the August Nano Bite, the monthly e-newsletter for the Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network (NISE Net).
What's new in the Network?
Sunblock!
Now that the weather has gotten a bit more summer-like on the east coast, I've got sunscreen on my mind once again.  And I'm not the only one.  The Environmental Working Group recently released a report on the safety of micronized and nano-sized zinc oxide and titanium dioxide particles in sunscreens.  Check it out, and check out some of the NISE Net activities related to nano particles in sunscreen, including a Nanomedicine in Healthcare forum and an activity on invisible sunblock recently added to the catalog by Jayatri Das of the Franklin Institute.  There are a few more links to more sunscreen information and activities on the Nano Bite blog.
What else?
Carbon Nanotubes
Brad Herring at the Museum of Life + Science created a short video about North Carolina State University Professor Jamie Bronner's research on the potential toxicity of carbon nanotubes.  Brad suggested the video might be useful as a lead-in to a nano forum or a science cafe.  Watch it yourself here and see if you agree.
 
Larry at Large: Nano in Society
NISE Net PI Larry Bell recently blogged about a collaboration between the NISE Net programs team and faculty at students at the Center for Nanotechnology in Society at Arizona State University.  The two groups are exploring ways to address the societal implications of nanotechnology in informal settings and get undergraduate students involved in that work.  This September, the two groups will be  presenting demos and hands-on activities developed by ASU students and NISE Net Programs Team members at the Pacific Science Center on Labor Day.  Read the full blog post here.
 
 
2009 ASTC Conference deadline approaching
The early bird registration rate to the 2009 ASTC Annual Conference ends August 7th, so if you're planning to go, avoid an angry email from your accounting department and register now.  The NISE Net will be there, and we'll be hosting some social events and organizing a number of sessions, including:
  • Sustainable Diversity Workshop: Conversation and Tools for Inclusivity
  • Interpreting the Nanoworld through Juggling, Drama, Art, and Media
  • Public Impact Results for the NISE Network
  • and more.
I'll post more information (including a full list of NISE Net sessions) in the newsletter and Nano Bite blog as the conference gets closer.
 
Materials Research Society Meeting Nov. 30 - Dec. 4
Also this fall: the Materials Research Society Fall Meeting in Boston on November 30th - December 4th.  I'll be posting with information about NISE Net activities there as we get closer to the dates.
 
Nano Haiku
 Nanoparticles
Surface plasmon resonance
Silver looks yellow
 
by Dr. Katie D. Cadwell of the University of Wisconsin-Madison MRSEC.  This haiku goes well with the nano stained glass activities (click here for the cart version and here for the classroom version).  I got haikus from a bunch of you this month, as well as our FIRST EVER nano limerick.  I'll post some of them on the Nano Bite blog, and special honors will go to the first person who comes up with a nano sestina.