Tina Smith: “I rise today with Senator Cantwell to introduce the Nanoscience to Commercialization Institutes Act of 2005. Still in…”

“I rise today with Senator Cantwell to introduce the Nanoscience to Commercialization Institutes Act of 2005. Still in its infancy, nanotechnology is an exciting technology with a bright future and the potential to have a significant impact on the economy, global competitiveness and the quality of life for our citizens. The advent of nanotechnology is creating opportunities in any array of industries with applications ranging from improving the performance of sports equipment used in recreation activities to life-saving medical applications used to combat deadly diseases such as cancer. Many promising technological advances have already begun to take shape in the world of micro- and nanotechnology and countless more potential future applications exist in fields such as medicine, electronics, energy to name a few. However, many times innovative research becomes victim of the ``Valley of Death'' by failing to advance from the research labs to application in commercial products and services. My bill will establish up to eight Nanoscience to Commercialization Institutes across the country, each focusing on a specific field of expertise including areas such as energy, electronics, agriculture, medical, textiles and transportation with the purpose of developing and bridging research to the marketplace. My bill is aimed at narrowing this so-called ``Valley of Death,'' by focusing on bringing research to commercialization.…”