National Nanotechnology Day 2017: Events and Activities

National Nanotechnology Day is an annual event featuring a series of community-led events and activities on or around October 9th to help raise awareness of nanotechnology, how it is currently used in products that enrich our daily lives, and the challenges and opportunities it holds for the future. This date, 10/9, pays homage to the nanometer scale, 10-9 meters.

NNCO is supporting the following events:

  • 100 Billion Nanometer Dash: a challenge to run #100BillionNanometers  (equal to 100 meters), share your pictures and videos, and get added to our online map! Print a Certificate of Achievement and a gold medal for your runners.   

  • Nanotechnology Podcasts: NNCO is producing a series of 5-10 minute podcasts that share stories from the NNI to be launched on National Nano Day.

  • Generation Nano: NSF in collaboration with NNCO is launching the next round of the Gen Nano superhero contest for high school student for National Nano Day.

The following school mascots pledged to run #100BillionNanometers for NND2017:
 

*Click here to see the 2017 activities map*

Here's a list of events and activities both online and around the country:

Alamo Colleges/Northwest Vista College --  STEM Family Nights held at local middle/high schools, demonstration booths on the college campus, and CORE4 STEM day.

AIChE, the Global Home of Chemical Engineers -- Dedicated National Nanotechnology Day and access to a range of products.
 
American Chemical Society -- A dedicated National Nanotechnology Day page; a special live ACS Webinar at 2 PM ET on 10/9 with Dr. Teri Odom from Northwestern University; a nano-themed image contest; a special Virtual Issue devoted to nano across the range of ACS journals; Reddit AMA series on 10/10 with Dr. Warren Chan; “What Nano Are You?” Buzzfeed quiz; as well as social media promotions across various channels.
 
American Chemistry Council -- Blog on National Nanotechnology Day, posts on social media, and outreach through ACC SmartBrief newsletters.
 
 
American Society of Mechanical Engineering -- Dedicated National Nanotechnology Day page with links to articles, webinars, podcasts, books, and courses related to nanotechnology. Event promotion through ASME's social media pages and an announcement in the member newsletter.
 
 
George Mason University's Nano and Emerging Technologies Club -- Running the 100 Billion Nanometer Dash.
 
Georgetown University’s Georgetown Nanoscience and Microtechnology Laboratory (GNuLab) -- Lab tours for members of the public.
 
Georgia Tech Middle Grades Discovery Day -- Local students learn about STEM education on Georgia Tech campus.
 
Levey Day School (Portland, Maine) -- Students ran the 100 Billion Nanometer Dash. The school also partnered with the University of New Hampshire and the SEEDS lab for nanotechnology demos.
 
The Marble Center for Cancer Nanomedicine at MIT --  Launching the Convergence Scholars Program on National Nanotechnology Day to provide postdoctoral trainees with opportunities to further their experiences and skills beyond the research laboratory space.
 
 
NanoComposix -- Dedicated content on commercial applications using nanomaterial including articles, content, and webinars.
 
National Academies of Science -- Publication of commentary by MIT's Dr. Sangeeta Bhatia on National Nanotechnology Day.
 
National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure -- National Nanotechnology Day landing page.
 
NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety, part of CDC) -- Wikipedia edit-a-thon for National Nanotechnology Day at NIOSH's main laboratory in Cincinnati, focusing on occupational safety and health issues of the emerging technologies of nanotechnology, advanced materials, and additive manufacturing.
 
NNCI Cornell Nanoscale Science and Technology Facility --100 Billion Nanometer Dash with participants wearing cleanroom (bunny) suits, plus the Cornell mascot will run the Dash in costume at a football game.
 
NNCI Kentucky Multi-Scale Manufacturing and Nano Integration Node Site -- Partnering with the Kentucky Science Center for a series of educational demos about the science of micro and nanotechnology, including posters, an assortment of samples that children will observe under a professional high-power microscope, and a variety of commercial toys that demonstrate exciting nano principles, such as photovoltaics and nano surface effects.
 
NNCI Mid-Atlantic Nanotechnology Hub -- Event for 8 local schools.
 
NNCI nano@stanford --Nanoscience activities for middle school students on campus. Nanotechnology demos for the public performed by graduate students.
 
NNCI NanoEarth at VA Tech -- Event at the local library (Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library: Blacksburg Branch) where NanoEarth faculty and students interact with about 50-60 elementary school students to introduce them to nanoscience and nanotechnology, as well as how they interface with the earth and the environment.  
 
NNCI Nebraska Nanoscale Facility -- A new exhibit, Zoom Into Nano, at the Durham Museum, and the "One Billion Nanometer Challenge:" creative ways for teachers and students to represent one billion nanometers such as running a one billion nanometer dash, or creating a human chain one billion nanometers long.
 
NNCI Northwest Nanotechnology Infrastructure -- Regional event at the Pacific Science Center.
 
NNCI Research Triangle Nanotechnology Network -- Live Q&A on nanofabrication and characterization.


NUANCE at Northwestern University -- Festival with lab tours, nano-inspired games for kids, and announcing the winner of their image contest.

Oak Grove Elementary School (Atlanta) --"Powers of Ten" event for students to learn about the nanoscale.

Project Lead the Way -- Event promotion through their social media channels and sharing it with their network.
 
RAIN (Remote Access Instruments for Nanotechnology) Network -- Seven open houses across the country as part of "America Looks into the Nanoworld", as well as a write-up in the newsletter.
 
Research Triangle Nanotechnology Network (RTTN) -- Dedicated National Nano Day page and a lecture, "Small Talk: A NanoMaker Live Event."
 
Royal Society of Chemistry -- A collection of recent articles from the high impact journals Nanoscale and Nanoscale Horizons, on a web page entitled "Celebrating National Nanotechnology Day."
 
Rutgers Preparatory School -- Running the 100 Billion Nanometer Dash
 

Society for Chemical Hazard Communication -- Dedicated National Nano Day page.

Society of Women Engineers -- Outreach event for the public at Lorrain County Community College in Ohio on October 10
 
Springer Publications -- A National Nano Day blog and a dedicated site for National Nanotechnology Day with free access to book and journal highlights.
 
University of Central Florida’s Society for Emerging NanoTechnologies (SENT) -- Presenting their research at NanoFlorida 2017.
 
USA Science and Engineering Festival -- Event promotion through their social media channels and sharing it with their network.
 

UVA's Nano and Emerging Technology Club (NExt) -- Lecture on nanotechnology and energy.

Virginia Commonwealth University's Nanoinformatics Group -- Nanotechnology demonstrations and videos for the public at the Science Museum of Virginia on Sunday, October 8 from 11:30am to 3pm.
 
Virginia Tech -- Nano World Challenge and the 100 Billion Nanometer Dash.
 
Washington D.C. Hash House Harriers (running club) -- 100 Billion Nanometer Dash in costume.
 
Women in Chemical Engineering and the Clean Energy Institute -- Introduce a Girl to Nano at the University of Washington.