NSES Content Standard F  Science in Personal and Social Perspectives: Science and technology in local, national, and global challenges  Grades 9-12, page 199  Individuals and society must decide on proposals involving new research and the introduction of new technologies into society. Decisions involve assessment of alternatives, risks, costs, and benefits and consideration of who benefits and who suffers, who pays and gains, and what are the risks and who bears them? Students should understand the appropriateness and value of basic questions--"What can happen?"--"What are the odds?"--and "How do scientists and engineers know what will happen?"

 
Benchmark 3C The Nature of Technology: Issues in Technology
Grades 9-12, page 57
In deciding on proposals to introduce new technologies or to curtail existing ones, some key questions arise concerning alternatives, risks, costs, and benefits. What alternative ways are there to achieve the same ends, and how do the alternatives compare to the plan being put forward? Who benefits and who suffers? What are the financial and social costs, do they change over time, and who bears them? What are the risks associated with using (or not using) the new technology, how serious are they, and who is in jeopardy? What human, material, and energy resources will be needed to build, install, operate, maintain, and replace the new technology, and where will they come from? How will the new technology and its waste products be disposed of and at what costs?