Nanoscape: Exploring the Frontiers Ahead

Can Tiny Sensors Change Water Security? with Sera Young

September 14, 2026·24 min
Episode Description from the Publisher

What can an anthropologist teach us about designing better nanotechnology? Northwestern University Anthropology  professor Sera Young has dedicated her career to understanding how people experience water insecurity, looking beyond whether water is available to questions of access, safety, reliability and trust. In this episode, Young talks about her research that is helping shape rapid, at-home water diagnostics that can detect contaminants like lead, showing why the human experience is essential to designing technology that works in the real world. Guest: Sera Young, PhD,  Professor of Anthropology & Global Health, Northwestern University, Member of IIN Hosts: Seth Zimmerman, associate director of marketing and communications, IIN, and Erin Spain, MS, podcaster and science communicator

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