If nanotechnology is left open for competition, we will get far more innovation than we do now. Three steps are needed. First, the U.S. government has recently announced that LY 367385 all federally funded research should be open-access [32]. This line of reasoning, summarized as the “public pays once”, should be extended to all publicly funded innovations in the nanotechnology sector. Instead of being patented, innovations should be placed in the public domain. Second, Congress should alter Bayh–Dole to exclude private intellectual lockdown of publicly funded innovations. Third, the USPTO should issue a moratorium on patenting nanotechnology-related fundamental science, processes, materials, and concepts. Simply identifying a new behavior of a material at the nanoscale should not be enough to claim a patent, and in doing so, prevent others from working with that material.
Conclusions
In conclusion, if nanotechnology is to meet its full potential as rapidly as possible in driving the next industrial revolution, secretion must be set free and open sourced. There is an urgent need for opening up nanotechnology before too much of the basic scientific knowledge gets locked into proprietary systems retarding technological development for decades. Nanotechnology researchers should encourage open-source nanotechnology to maximize the social return from investment in nanotechnology research.
Conclusions
In conclusion, if nanotechnology is to meet its full potential as rapidly as possible in driving the next industrial revolution, secretion must be set free and open sourced. There is an urgent need for opening up nanotechnology before too much of the basic scientific knowledge gets locked into proprietary systems retarding technological development for decades. Nanotechnology researchers should encourage open-source nanotechnology to maximize the social return from investment in nanotechnology research.