Ambient assisted living (AAL) technologies can provide assistance and support to persons with dementia. They might allow them the possibility of living at home for longer whilst maintaining their comfort and security as well as offering a way towards reducing the huge economic and personal costs forecast as the incidence of dementia increases worldwide over coming decades. However, the development, introduction and use of AAL technologies also trigger serious ethical issues. This paper is a systematic literature review of the on-going scholarly debate about these issues. More specifically, we look at the ethical issues involved in research and development (R&D), clinical experimentation, and clinical application of AAL technologies for people with dementia and related stakeholders. In the discussion we focus on: 1) the value of the goals of AAL technologies, 2) the special vulnerability of persons with dementia in their private homes, 3) the complex question of informed consent for the usage of AAL technologies.

In a lifelog, data from various sources are combined to form a record from which one can retrieve information about oneself and the environment in which one is situated. It could be considered similar to an automated biography. Lifelog technology is still at an early stage of development. However, the history of lifelogs so far shows a clear academic, corporate and governmental interest. Therefore, a thorough inquiry into the ethical aspects of lifelogs could prove beneficial to the responsible development of this field. This article maps the main ethically relevant challenges and opportunities associated with the further development of lifelog technologies as discussed in the scholarly literature. By identifying challenges and opportunities in the current debate, we were able to identify other challenges and opportunities left unmentioned. Some of these challenges are partly explained by a blind spot in the current debate. Whilst the current debate focuses mainly on lifelogs held by individuals, lifelogs held by governmental institutions and corporations pose idiosyncratic ethical concerns as well. We have provided a brief taxonomy of lifelog technology to show the variety in uses for lifelogs. In addition, we provided a general approach to alleviate the ethical challenges identified in the critical analysis.

The EU promotes Responsible Research and Innovation in principle, but implementation leaves much to be desired

The rapid evolution of information, communication and entertainment technologies will transform the lives of citizens and ultimately transform society. This paper focuses on ethical issues associated with the likely convergence of virtual realities (VR) and social networks (SNs), hereafter VRSNs. We examine a scenario in which a significant segment of the world's population has a presence in a VRSN. Given the pace of technological development and the popularity of these new forms of social interaction, this scenario is plausible. However, it brings with it ethical problems. Two central ethical issues are addressed: those of privacy and those of autonomy. VRSNs pose threats to both privacy and autonomy. The threats to privacy can be broadly categorized as threats to informational privacy, threats to physical privacy, and threats to associational privacy. Each of these threats is further subdivided. The threats to autonomy can be broadly categorized as threats to freedom, to knowledge and to authenticity. Again, these three threats are divided into subcategories. Having categorized the main threats posed by VRSNs, a number of recommendations are provided so that policy-makers, developers, and users can make the best possible use of VRSNs.

Drones and drone-related technologies were initially developed for military purposes. Their adaptability as universal platforms for sensing and payload transportation has driven their increasing proliferation in the civilian domain. This paper investigates the ethical aspects of dual-use of drones and drone-related technologies. These aspects encompass issues generated by the transfer of drones and drone-related technologies from the military domain into the civil domain, and issues stemming from the inherent nature of drones and drone-related technologies. Key themes, such as safety, security, and privacy will be explored, along with existing and potential solutions proposed for addressing ethical issues related to the dual-use of drones and drone-related technologies within the civil domain. This paper forms part of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) project 'Responsible Design of Drones and Drone Services: Towards an Ethical and Juridical Tool For Drone Design and Risk Assessment' (Project no. 313-99-318), which aims to develop a tool for use in Responsible Research & Innovation (RRI) for the Value Sensitive Design and implementation of drones and drone technologies. Understanding the ethical challenges and proposed solutions regarding dual-use should better inform the RRI, VSD and implementation of drones and drone technologies. * De eerste auteur van dit artikel is Engelstalig. De redactie heeft gemeend dat het onderwerp goed past in het aangeboden palet van dit themanummer en om die reden geaccepteerd dat het in het Engels is aangeboden. Een Nederlandstalige samenvatting vindt u op pagina 96.

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In this paper, we introduce the Societal Readiness (SR) Thinking Tool to aid researchers and innovators in developing research projects with greater responsiveness to societal values, needs, and expectations. The need for societally-focused approaches to research and innovation—complementary to Technology Readiness (TR) frameworks—is presented. Insights from responsible research and innovation (RRI) concepts and practice, organized across critical stages of project-life cycles are discussed with reference to the development of the SR Thinking Tool. The tool is designed to complement not only shortfalls in TR approaches, but also improve upon other efforts to integrate RRI, sustainability, and design thinking in research and innovation cycles. Operationalization and early-stage user tests of the Tool are reported, along with discussion of potential future iterations and applications.

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