X PRIZE Foundation Chairman will lead organization's Steering Committee

Foresight Institute has appointed Dr. Peter Diamandis, Chairman of the X PRIZE Foundation, to lead the think tank's Nanotechnology Prize Steering Committee. The leading think tank and public interest organization focusing on nanotechnology, Foresight Institute established the Feynman Grand Prize in 1996 to motivate scientists and engineers to design and construct a functioning nanoscale robotic arm with specific performance characteristics.

The prize was named after Dr. Richard Feynman, a Nobel Prize winner in Physics, whose original goal for nanotechnology -- systems of molecular machines building with atomic precision, is the guiding vision of long-term nanotechnology.

"The X PRIZE's success in creating a competitive environment for private space development proves that prizes encourage talented individuals to do great things," said Diamandis. "I look forward to accomplishing similar results in nanotechnology development by serving on Foresight Institute's prize committee."

Foresight Institute was founded in 1986 to educate the public about nanotechnology when it was a little-known science. The Institute's 1st Conference on Molecular Nanotechnology held in 1991 preceded the signing of the National Nanotechnology Initiative by nearly a decade. In addition to offering the Feynman Grande Prize, Foresight Institute also awards four prizes annually to leaders in research, communication and study in the field of nanotechnology.

"With Dr. Diamandis chairing our Nanotechnology Prize Steering Committee, we expect to grow the number of prizes and their purses to spur further research and development activity," said Scott Mize, President of Foresight institute. "Now is the time for our society to focus on and pursue the nanotechnologies that will help us meet the major challenges facing humanity."

FMI: www.foresight.org, www.xprize.org, www.foresight.org/FI/fi_spons.html