What’s New: In Brief (April 08, 2008)

Paul Taylor, the CEO of the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC), is moving to a new position in the private sector.
Details of his new position were not included in an ICBC release.
“Mr. Taylor’s move to the private sector was his decision and the board is deeply disappointed that he is leaving,” T. Richard Turner, ICBC board chair, said.
Taylor is resigning voluntarily, and so there are no severance provisions associated with his decision to depart the company.

A mobile phone designed using nanotechnology will be available on the market in seven years, but Lloyd’s is warning of the potential risks associated with the use of nanotechnology.
The ‘Morph’ phone, a joint nanotechnology concept developed by Nokia Research Centre and Cambridge University, will be able to recharge itself using solar energy, clean itself via micro machines that live on the surface and can be twisted like a bracelet taking on the same colour as the clothes a user is wearing, Lloyd’s reports.
Lead researcher David Baxter of Lloyd’s emerging risk team notes that most forms of nanotechnology used in electronics are embedded within the material; they are therefore considered to pose minimal risk to human health.
But nanoparticles used in clothing, cosmetics and creams are free particles and some research suggests these can enter the blood stream, potentially crossing the blood-brain barrier, a Lloyd’s report says.
With regard to the phone, Baxter suggests that it appears to be safe, as it is likely using embedded nanoparticles. But, some aspects of the phone, such as the self-powering and self-cleaning aspects, could pose potential risks through the use of ‘nanograss.’
“If this was magnified millions of times it would look like a number of needles sticking up from the device,” Baxter told Lloyd’s. “It will be important to confirm that these cannot break off and become dangerous particles; following an appropriate risk-based framework will naturally consider such issues.”
At the moment, scientific knowledge is not fully developed, but in seven years “there will be a lot more in-depth knowledge around this technology,” Lloyd’s added.