Neuroethics for the New Millenium

Abstract

Adina Roskies course. Department of Linguistics and Philosophy As I see it, there are two main divisions of neuroethics: Massachusetts Institute of Technology the ethics of neuroscience and the neuroscience of eth-Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 ics. Each of these can be pursued independently to a large extent, but perhaps most intriguing is to contemplate how progress in each will affect the other. The past several months have seen heightened interest The Ethics of Neuroscience in the intersection of ethics and neuroscience. In the The ethics of neuroscience can be roughly subdivided popular press, the topic grabbed headlines in a May into two groups of issues: (1) the ethical issues and issue of The Economist (2002) and was featured in a considerations that should be raised in the course of New York Times editorial (Safire, 2002). Professional designing and executing neuroscientific studies and (2) societies were a step ahead, staging several meetings evaluation of the ethical and social impact that the redevoted to ethics and neuroscience since the beginning sults of those studies might have, or ought to have, on of this year. In January 2002, Neuron and the AAAS existing social, ethical, and legal structures. Let me call, sponsored a symposium entitled "Understanding the for convenience, the first the "ethics of practice," and Neural Basis of Complex Behaviors: The Implications the second the "ethical implications of neuroscience." for Science and Society," which brought together a For the most part, the ethics of practice is where tradipanel with expertise in the neurosciences, policy, ethics, tional bioethics, as applied to neuroscience, resides. It and the law to discuss the recent advances in the neuroincludes familiar issues like optimal clinical trial design, sciences and their potential implications for science and guidelines for use of fetal tissues or stem cells or cloning, society. The Royal Institution in London sponsored privacy rights to results of testing for neurological dis-"Neuroscience Future" in March (see conference sumease, and so on. However, the ethics of practice includes mary by J. Waldbauer on NMTF conference website some questions peculiar to neuroethics. For instance, [URL below]), and in May the Dana Foundation, in collabin a liberal democratic society such as ours self-determioration with Stanford University and UCSF, sponsored nation is highly prized, and hence the importance of a conference boldly entitled "Neuroethics: Mapping the informed consent is central to medical practice and Field" (NMTF). The name "neuroethics" implies such a medical ethics. But neurodegenerative diseases and field exists, an "unexplored continent lying between the psychiatric disorders may impair cognition so that intwo populated shores of ethics and of neuroscience," formed consent, as generally conceived, may be imposin the words of Al Jonsen, an organizer of the NMTF sible. What guidelines should be in place for treatment conference.or experimental participation in these cases? We also My aim here i...

Business Ethics: The Promise of Neuroscience

“…Earlier, made an equally bold statement, contending that findings from neuroscience will change the way we think about free will, responsibility, and intentionality. Similarly, Roskies (2002) believes that as we acquire more sophisticated knowledge about the neural structure of the moral brain, we may well need to revise our concepts of moral and ethical, even to the extent of modifying our existing philosophical theories.…”

Transhumanismo, neuroética y persona humana

“…; and 2) the ethical implications of neuroscience, which involves evaluation of the social and ethical impacts that the results of these studies may entail 16 . 17 , for his part, believes that Neuroethics, when covering the multiple ways in which developments in clinical and basic neuroscience intersect with ethical and social issues, could also be divided into two categories: "what we know" and "what we can do".…”

La neuroética y la naturalización de la filosofía moral

“…En este primer sentido, la neuroética sería una subdisciplina de la bioética que estudia las implicancias éticas en la investigación y aplicación del cerebro. Este sentido resalta dos aspectos señalados por Roskies (2002): la ética en la práctica y las implicaciones éticas de la neurociencia. La ética, en la práctica, trata de elucidar los principios éticos que debieran guiar la práctica en la investigación neurológi-ca y el tratamiento de las enfermedades neurológicas.…”

“…El segundo sentido del concepto es el que Roskies (2002Roskies ( , 2006) denomina la neurociencia de la ética, que se entiende como la comprensión del comportamiento moral desde un enfoque científico empírico. Los estudios neurológicos que se emprenden están dedicados a la exploración de los sistemas cerebrales involucrados en las complejas conductas manifestadas en la vida moral.…”