In their presentation, Nanotechnology: Will It Drive a New Innovation Economy for the US?, Shapira and Porter discussed Georgia Tech's involvement in the National Science Foundation funded Center for Nanotechnology in Society, trends in nanotechnology discovery, early nanotechnology innovation, and issues and implications.

The briefing was part of the Wilson Center's Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies. Shapira and Porter focused on what is actually happening "on the ground" in terms of nanotechnology research and commercialization. Their presentation illuminated which regions and countries are focusing on nanotechnology research and the US position relative to other international competitors. They examined what has been achieved by the $10 billion US federal nanotechnology R&D investment since 2001 and the scope of long-term investments in nanotechnology by the private sector.