Recognizing the importance of science and technology as the driving force behind the nation's progress, the Japanese government adopted the "2nd Basic Plan for Science and Technology" last year, in which life science, information and communication, environment and energy, and nanotechnology and materials are recognized as four important focus areas.

Already, much pioneering work in nanotechnologies has been done at Japanese universities. We recognize that "nanotechnology research" does not mean only pure fundamental research, which will bear fruit in another two or three years. It also includes activities to create technical innovations in existing industries, such as IT, biotechnology, and energy/environment, within five to ten years. We proposed three types of projects, "Flagship," "Challenge to the Future," and pure "Exploratory Research," for pursuing nanotechnology research in Japan. Discussions are now under way to establish meaningful government-university-industry collaborative projects.