Wow! Thatâ¿¿s a big number (or is it?)! In any case, it is one that has been put forward by the Project on Emerging Technologies in its nanotech consumer product inventory.

Now, of course, everybody quotes this number as solemn gospel truth. But, now some folks are beginning to look at the validity of this list. Nanoarchitecture.net and Howard Lovyâ¿¿s Nanobot Blog are beginning to take a long, hard look at the list.

Howard Lovy applies some deductive reasoning on how the list has managed to get so long: ⿿⿦it is important to remember that its Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies exists as a self-appointed watchdog for environmental and health risks. The more nanotech products it can claim, the higher the public alarm. The higher the alarm, the more the media and citizens are going to come to the Wilson Center for "answers."

Considering how long Howard Lovy has been covering nanotech, you can imagine that his skepticism may not be misplaced.

However, there are those who find the number extremely low, noting that a total of 500 consumer products (dubious though some of them may be) hardly seems to constitute an industrial revolution.