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Insurance Industry Warned of Nanotechnology Risks

SilentScream writes "Cordis reports that major reinsurance company Swiss Re has advised insurance companies that they may need to reconsider covering products manufactured using nanotechnology until more is known about any possible side effects of the technology. The recommendation is detailed in a 57-page report titled 'Nanotechnology - Small matter, many unknowns', which is available on the Swiss Re web site. The report acknowledges that further research is needed but outlines the possible effects of nanotechnology on the human brain and the potential for an asbestos-like threat."

3 of 165 comments (clear)

  1. haven't noticed anything weird yet... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    last time i checked there was nothing wrong with my pet nano#*!* krgg, ackkkkk

    what was i saying?

  2. Rob Malda cannot stop us by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    SCO: The GNAA-Nigerian connection

    Dear Sir/Madam:

    I am Mr. Darl McBride currently serving as the president and chief executive
    officer of the SCO Group, formerly known as Caldera Systems International, in
    Lindon, Utah, United States of America. I know this letter might surprise you
    because we have had no previous communications or business dealings before now.

    My associates have recently made claim to computer softwares worth an estimated
    $1 billion U.S. dollars. I am writing to you in confidence because we urgently
    require your assistance to obtain these funds.

    In the early 1970s the American Telephone and Telegraph corporation developed
    at great expense the computer operating system software known as UNIX.
    Unfortunately the laws of my country prohibited them from selling these
    softwares and so their valuable source codes remained privately held. Under a
    special arrangement some programmers from the California University of Berkeley
    did add more codes to this operating system, increasing its value, but not in
    any way to dilute or disparage our full and rightful ownership of these codes,
    despite any agreement between American Telephone and Telegraph and the
    California University of Berkeley, which agreement we deny and disavow.

    In the year 1984 a change of regime in my country allowed the American
    Telephone and Telegraph corporation to make profits from these softwares. In
    the year 1990 ownership of these softwares was transferred to the corporation
    UNIX System Laboratories. In the year 1993 this corporation was sold to the
    corporation Novell. In the year 1994 some employees of Novell formed the
    corporation Caldera Systems International, which began to distribute an upstart
    operating system known as Linux. In the year 1995 Novell sold the UNIX software
    codes to SCO. In the year 2001 occurred a separation of SCO, and the SCO brand
    name and UNIX codes were acquired by the Caldera Systems International, and in
    the following year the Caldera Systems International was renamed SCO Group, of
    which i currently serve as chief executive officer.

    My associates and I of the SCO Group are therefore the full and rightful owners
    of the operating system softwares known as UNIX. Our engineers have discovered
    that no fewer than seventy (70) lines of our valuable and proprietary source
    codes have appeared in the upstart operating system Linux. As you can plainly
    see, this gives us a claim on the millions of lines of valuable software codes
    which comprise this Linux and which has been sold at great profit to very many
    business enterprises. Our legal experts have advised us that our contribution
    to these codes is worth an estimated one (1) billion U.S. dollars.

    Unfortunately we are having difficulty extracting our funds from these computer
    softwares. To this effect i have been given the mandate by my colleagues to
    contact you and ask for your assistance. We are prepared to sell you a share in
    this enterprise, which will soon be very profitable, that will grant you the
    rights to use these valuable softwares in your business enterprise.
    Unfortunately we are not able at this time to set a price on these rights.
    Therefore it is our respectful suggestion, that you may be immediately a party
    to this enterprise, before others accept these lucrative terms, that you send
    us the number of a banking account where we can withdraw funds of a suitable
    amount to guarantee your participation in this enterprise. As an alternative
    you may send us the number and expiration date of your major credit card, or
    you may send to us a signed check from your banking account payable to "SCO
    Group" and with the amount left blank for us to conveniently supply.

    Kindly treat this request as very important and strictly confidential. I
    honestly assure you that this transaction is 100% legal and risk-free.

    Signed, GNAA president

    PS. If you have mod points and would like to support GNAA, please moderate this post up.

  3. Curious by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    What does Nanotechnology have to do with Stock Photography?