Neuroethics: Navigating Issues of

Neuroscience from Bench to Bedside

The Three Pound Enigma

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 Tools, Theory, Progress

“Tools to theory” and “Theory to tools” heuristics

Basis for both Neuroscience and Neurotechnology

• Capabilities to Access, Assess and Manipulate

Neural Function
– Define, Evaluate, Treat, Prevent Pathology
– Alter Sensation, Cognition, Emotion, Behavior

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 Neuroscience and Neurotechnology
Translational applications in:
Neurology and Neurosurgery
Psychiatry
Anesthesiology
Pain Medicine
Physical Medicine and Rehab
Rheumatology
Endocrinology
Emergency Medicine
Public Health...
Law...
Daily Life...
Military....

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April 2, 2013: Brain Research through Advancing Innovative
Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative
 The “Hard Problems”
Addressing the “hard problems” of neuroscience:
– What is consciousness?
– What is the mind?
– What is/ is there a “self”?
– Use of neurocentric criteria (for consciousness, “self”, life,
death)

Give rise to moral, ethical, legal and social issues,

questions and problems…

The Challenge of Neuroethics

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 Neuroethics
• Neuroethics: 2 “Traditions”
1. “The ethics of neuroscience”
The ethical issues, questions and problems that arise in
and from neuroscientific research and its applications (in
medicine, public use, national security, etc.)

2.“The neuroscience of ethics” (sic.)

Or the study of the neural basis of human ecology,
morality and ethics
(“neuro-ecology as neuromorality”)
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 Reciprocity of Traditions
“Two traditions”:
Self-contained, self-referential model
Both (a) lens and (b) mirror

Tasks:
a) Examining if, how and why neuroscience can and/or
should be employed in various endeavors and
circumstances
b) The neural bases of our social ecology & morality

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 Neuroimaging
– PET
– CT
– MR
– fMR
– DTI
– MEG/qEEG

Can we Scan the Brain to Depict

Consciousness and/or “Read” Minds?
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 Neurogenetics

– Genotyping
– Phenotyping
– Proteomics
– Genetic
Intervention(s)

Can we “Predict” or “Create” Present and Future

“Selves”?
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 New Drugs

• Pain
• Cognition
• Emotion
• Morality
 Interventional Neurotechnologies
– Indwelling devices
• Brain implants
• Micropumps
– Transcranial magnetic
and electrical
stimulation
– Tissue transplants
– Genografts
– Brain-machine
interfacing
• Neurofeedback

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 Neuroethico-Social Issues
• Uncertainties of Frontier Science
– Runaway effects, Wexelblatt effects

• Treatment-Enablement-Enhancement Issues
– What should be treated; enabled, enhanced?
– In whom?
– Are there/what are the limits?

• Existential Gain vs Loss

– Implications of changing the human predicament
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Neuroethical, Legal and Social Issues (NELSI)

• Justice
– “Who gets the “goodies?”
• The Question of “Culture”
– What “good”? Whose rationale?

• Informed Consent
– How informed?
• Neuro-ontologies
– Neural norming; “Euneuromics”
• Legal Value/Validity
– Neurocentric international standards?
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 Janusian Visage
Utopian Aspirations Dystopian Anxieties

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Neuroscience, Neurotechnology and Neuroethics

With increasing
knowledge comes
great power…
…With great power
comes great
responsibility

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The Ongoing Work of Neuroethics…

Reflection, insight and moral engagement must

be the stepping stone for all future acts of
inquiry, invention and intervention…

“Measure twice, cut once”

…for all too often,

there is no turning back.
text copyright, J. Giordano, 2014
Open-Access Bibliography of the Discipline
 Further Reading
• Stein DJ, Giordano J. Global mental health and neuroethics. BMC Medicine 13(1); (2015)

• Giordano J. The human prospect(s) of neuroscience and neurotechnology: Domains of influence and the
necessity – and questions – of neuroethics. Human Prospect 4(1): 1-18 (2014).

• Shook JR, Giordano J. A principled, cosmopolitan neuroethics: Considerations for international

relevance. Phil Ethics Humanities in Med 9 (1); (2014).
 
• Giordano J, Kulkarni A, Farwell J. Deliver us from evil? The temptation, realities and neuroethico-legal
issues of employing assessment neurotechnologies in public safety. Theoret Med Bioethics 15(3); (2014).

• Lanzilao E, Shook, J, Benedikter R, Giordano J. Advancing neuroscience on the 21st century world stage:
The need for – and proposed structure of – an internationally relevant neuroethics. Ethics Biol Engineer
Med 4(3): 211-229 (2013).

• Giordano J, Benedikter R. An early – and necessary – flight of the Owl of Minerva: Neuroscience,
neurotechnology, human socio-cultural boundaries, and the importance of neuroethics. J Evolution and
Technol 22(1): 14-25 (2012).

• Giordano J. Neuroethical issues in neurogenetics and neurotransplantation technology – the need for
pragmatism and preparedness in practice and policy. Studies Ethics, Law Technol 5(1); (2011).

• Giordano J, DuRousseau D. Toward right and good use of brain-machine interfacing neurotechnologies:
Ethical issues and implications for guidelines and policy. Cog Technol 15(2): 5-10 (2011).
 Contact
James Giordano PhD
james.giordano@georgetown.edu

To learn more, see:

www.neurobioethics.org