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NanoEthics
Published in: NanoEthics 1/2014

01-04-2014 | Original Paper

Characteristics, Properties and Ethical Issues of Carbon Nanotubes in Biomedical Applications

Authors: Anna Julie Rasmussen, Mette Ebbesen

Published in: NanoEthics | Issue 1/2014

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Abstract

The field of nanotechnology and nanoscience is growing rapidly in many areas of research, from electronics to biomedicine to material science. Carbon nanotubes are receiving a lot of attention in the research due to their unique properties and many possible applications. This new material is a good example of how nanotechnology provides us with new opportunities, but at the same time leaves us a lot of unknowns to deal with. In order to deal with the unknowns we need to consider both the science and the ethics of the different applications of this novel material. Nanoethics is the study of the ethical issues in nanotechnology. It is a relatively new field of study and a lot of different methods have been suggested in this area. In this article a method is suggested combining an existing ethical theory with a practical approach in order to do a case study of the ethical considerations of using carbon nanotubes in biomedicine. For the case study to be of practical significance the scientific characteristics and properties of carbon nanotubes are reviewed to give the reader an overview of the research field.
previous article The Clinical Research of Nanomedicine: A New Ethical Challenge?
next article Is There a Moral Obligation to Develop Brain Implants Involving NanoBionic Technologies? Ethical Issues for Clinical Trials

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Metadata
Title
Characteristics, Properties and Ethical Issues of Carbon Nanotubes in Biomedical Applications
Authors
Anna Julie Rasmussen
Mette Ebbesen
Publication date
01-04-2014
Publisher
Springer Netherlands
Published in
NanoEthics / Issue 1/2014
Print ISSN: 1871-4757
Electronic ISSN: 1871-4765
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11569-014-0187-9

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