The Neuroethics Program at Emory University

“Two of the main ethical considerations suggest that clinical care and research should be separated and that physicians should prioritize their roles as clinicians over their roles as researchers” | Daily Bruin

UCLA faculty help develop list of ethical principles for intracranial research - Daily Bruin UCLA ethicists and neuroscientists recently collaborated with other researchers across the country to create a list of principles for ethical invasive brain research. Intracranial research uses invasive techniques inside the skull in order to answer fundamental questions about the brain and help pro...

“Two researchers at Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) have come up with a new theory of consciousness…a state that is tied to complex cognitive operations -- and not as a passive basic state that automatically prevails when we are awake.” | ScienceDaily

Consciousness in humans, animals and artificial intelligence A new theory of consciousness provides experimental access to the study of this phenomenon. Not just in humans.

“What if, instead, you could create synthetic neurological data—artificially computer-generated data—that could “stand in” for data obtained from the real world? Enter generative adversarial networks.”

"Deepfaking the Mind" Could Improve Brain-Computer Interfaces for People with Disabilities - USC Viterbi | School of Engineering Synthetic neurological data created using generative adversarial networks could speed up training of brain-computer interfaces, new study finds.

“The point of the bot is to help AI to work better with humans…‘We have to teach AI ethical values because AI interacts with humans. And to do that, it needs to be aware what values human have’” | The Guardian

‘Is it OK to …’: the bot that gives you an instant moral judgment Delphi, an online AI bot, promises to answer any moral question users pose. We put it to the test

"A future where potentially millions of pigs are raised to harvest their organs for humans raises significant ethical questions. “Pigs aren’t spare parts and should never be used as such just because humans are too self-centered to donate their bodies to patients desperate for organ transplants,” the organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, said in a statement.

Advocates for xenotransplantation argue the potential benefits of vastly expanding the organ supply are worth any potential harm done to pigs."

What does the first successful test of a pig-to-human kidney transplant mean? For the first time, a pig organ was successfully attached to a human patient. It’s a step toward vastly increasing the supply of organs.

“Neuroscientists at MIT’s McGovern Institute for Brain Research have homed in on key brain circuits that help guide decision-making under conditions of uncertainty…The findings…could help researchers develop treatments for schizophrenia and related conditions, whose symptoms may be at least partly due to affected individuals’ inability to effectively gauge uncertainty.”

How the brain deals with uncertainty MIT neuroscientists have homed in on key brain circuits that help guide decision-making under conditions of uncertainty. The findings could help researchers develop treatments for schizophrenia, whose symptoms may be at least partly due to affected individuals’ inability to effectively gauge uncer...

“The amendment to the Chilean Constitution ‘is the first law in the world on neuro-rights, and it is the first step in a legislative ecosystem that will regulate artificial intelligence and neuro-technologies.’”

Chile becomes first country to pass neuro-rights law Chile became the first country in the world to protect neuro-rights after the Chamber of Deputies approved Wednesday an amendment to the Chilean Constitution. The bill is expected to be signed into la...

“A team of Korean researchers developed a novel multifunctional brain interface that can simultaneously register neuronal activity and deliver liquid drugs to the implantation site.”

Directly into the brain: A 3D multifunctional and flexible neural interface: Novel design of brain chip implant allows for measuring neuronal activity while simultaneously delivering drugs to the implant site Although measuring the electrical activity of neurons is useful in many disciplines, making durable neural interfacing brain chip implants with negligible adverse effects has proven challenging. Now, scientists have developed a flexible multifunctional neural interface that can not only register loc...

“Taking into account energy-conserving constraints may drive us towards new and creative innovations in AI…by pursuing AI use cases in the environmental space, AI can remain at the cutting edge, becoming a sustainable technology of the future and a major asset in the protection of our global climate.”

What would it take to make AI ‘greener’? With the right approach, AI can become a sustainable technology and a key tool in mitigating the worst impacts of climate change.

“If they are successful, Apple and its partners could improve the detection of the conditions, which affect tens of millions of people world-wide. But the extent of user tracking that may be required could spark privacy concerns.”

WSJ News Exclusive | Apple Is Working on iPhone Features to Help Detect Depression, Cognitive Decline Apple is working on technology to help diagnose depression and cognitive decline, aiming for tools that could expand the scope of its burgeoning health portfolio.

“The guidelines highlight the need for physicians to recognize patient autonomy and the key role played by family caregivers. And they require doctors to acknowledge the need to balance independence and risk as they discuss care choices.”

New Ethics Standards For Docs Who Care for People With Dementia The guidelines highlight the need for physicians to recognize patient autonomy and the key role played by family caregivers. And they require doctors to acknowledge the need to balance independence and risk as they discuss care choices.

Today on The Neuroethics Blog is a post by The Neuroethics Blog team, entitled “From the Blog Team: A Thank You and a Goodbye.” This is one of the final posts the Blog will be publishing before it retires. Special thank you to our readers and contributors for your continued support throughout the years.

"Our writers spanned all levels of training and worked tirelessly to bring to the community the most up-to-date, hot topics in the field. Internally, the shape of the Blog changed constantly as trainees graduated and new ones joined in their places. A Copy Team would read, edit, and revise every piece, and a Layout Team would prepare each one for publication."

http://www.theneuroethicsblog.com/2021/09/from-blog-team-thank-you-and-goodbye.html?m=1

“US federal courts have consistently held that inventors must be natural persons. As AI technology evolves in sophistication, the US lawmakers and the judiciary will be increasingly grappling with the questions of expanding the scope of patent law.”

Federal court rules Artificial Intelligence cannot be an ‘inventor’ under US patent law The US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia on Wednesday ruled that an artificial intelligence (AI) machine cannot be an inventor under the Patent Act. The action was a motion for summa...

“The low cost of portable MRIs also allows the technology to expand beyond clinical settings or to developing countries lacking access to conventional MRIs…while traditional MRIs offer high resolution images, they can cost from $1-3 million per machine.”

Portable MRIs help doctors diagnose stroke faster - Yale Daily News A new Yale study shows that innovative, portable MRIs are making brain imaging, and specifically stroke diagnosis, faster and more accessible.

Today on The Neuroethics Blog is a post by Dr. Karen Rommelfanger, the Neuroethics Program Director at Emory University’s Center for Ethics, entitled “The Neuroethics Blog is Retiring”.

"Our little blog has grown to a readership of over 100 countries, been featured in reports to US Presidents, and included in written roadmaps discussing the future of neuroethics for large-scale national level brain initiatives."

http://www.theneuroethicsblog.com/2021/09/the-neuroethics-blog-is-retiring.html?m=1

“Dysfunctions in interoception may play important roles in many neurological, psychiatric, and behavioral disorders…Gaining a better understanding of how interoception works may help us develop better ways to treat these conditions.”

NIH research projects on interoception to improve understanding of brain-body function The interoception research effort is part of NIH’s Blueprint for Neuroscience Research.

“Our results suggest that the brain's decision-making circuits may be wired to constantly monitor and integrate what is happening inside the body. Because of that, changes in our level of arousal can alter the way that these circuits work.”

How a racing heart may alter decision-making brain circuits: Body-state monitoring neurons can hijack the decision-making process In an effort to understand how the internal state of the body influences the brain's decision-making processes, scientists analyzed the data from a previous study pre-clinical study. They found that two of the brain's decision-making centers contain neurons that may exclusively monitor the body's in...

Today on The Neuroethics Blog is a post by Erin Morrow, a fourth-year undergraduate student at Emory University majoring in Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology and an editorial intern at AJOB Neuroscience, entitled Ethics of Memory Research: Honoring Privacy with Dr. Peggy L. St. Jacques.

"As St. Jacques underscored, [autobiographical memory] researchers deal in precious data — data that represents countless stories, both transformed and preserved over time. When we see these stories as more than data, we get closer to conducting AM research responsibly."

http://www.theneuroethicsblog.com/2021/08/ethics-of-memory-research-honoring.html?m=1
Image by giralt via Pixabay

“We know that brains can produce what we understand to be consciousness. If we can eventually figure out how brains do it, and reproduce that mechanism in an artificial device, then surely a conscious device might be possible?”

What would it be like to be a conscious AI? We might never know. Humans are good at spotting intelligence that looks like our own. But there’s no rule saying machines have to think like us.

“When designing neurotech to assist people with communication disabilities, neuroscientists and engineers must consider both the speaker’s perspective and the listeners’ ability to judge the voluntariness and accuracy of decoded communication.”

Building communication neurotechnology for high stakes communications - Nature Reviews Neuroscience When designing neurotechnologies to assist people with communication disabilities, neuroscientists and engineers must consider both the speaker’s perspective and the listeners’ ability to judge the voluntariness and accuracy of decoded communication. This is particularly important in personally ...

Today on The Neuroethics Blog is a post by Meghan Hurley, a graduate student at Emory University completing a master’s degree in Bioethics, entitled “Should AI Have Moral Status? The Importance of Gauging Public Opinion.”

"Some researchers believe that it is less a question of whether AI can achieve consciousness and more a question of when they will."

http://www.theneuroethicsblog.com/2021/08/should-ai-have-moral-status-importance.html?m=1
Image by Gerd Altmann via PublicDomainPictures.net

“My approach is that we risk not understanding the central mystery of life by lurching to one or other form of magical thinking. While science might be a little bit slower, there is much to be done in a straightforward materialist understanding of how the brain relates to conscious experience.”

Neuroscientist Anil Seth: ‘We risk not understanding the central mystery of life’ The professor of cognitive and computational neuroscience discusses his work to develop a scientific explanation for how the brain conjures consciousness

“An artificial neural network (AI) designed by an international team involving UCL can translate raw data from brain activity, paving the way for new discoveries and a closer integration between technology and the brain.” University College London

AI used to decode brain signals and predict behaviour An artificial neural network (AI) designed by an international team involving UCL can translate raw data from brain activity, paving the way for new discoveries and a closer integration between technology and the brain.

Today on The Neuroethics Blog is a post by Millie Huang, a senior at the University of Pennsylvania studying Neuroscience and Classics, entitled "Environmental Neuroethics: The Crossroads of Environment, Brain, and Mental Health."

"With environmental change being one of most pressing issues of modern day, it is imperative to consider its effects on brain and mental health, and how novel tools provided by brain science can generate strategies that advance adaptation to associated challenges."

http://www.theneuroethicsblog.com/2021/08/environmental-neuroethics-crossroads-of.html
Image via Max Pixel

"Up to now, most BCIs have been monolithic devices -- a bit like little beds of needles. Our team's idea was to break up that monolith into tiny sensors that could be distributed across the cerebral cortex.”

Toward next-generation brain-computer interface systems A new kind of neural interface system that coordinates the activity of hundreds of tiny brain sensors could one day deepen understanding of the brain and lead to new medical therapies.

“The ultimate goal is a wireless memory prosthesis that could be worn like a real-life thinking cap by anyone seeking to learn something new, from veterans recovering from traumatic brain injuries to the elderly suffering from Alzheimer’s.”

How to Get Smarter: Start With the Brain Itself On the frontier of neuroscience, researchers are inventing devices to upgrade memory, enhance learning abilities and communicate using only our minds.

Today on The Neuroethics Blog is a post by Dr. Alissa L. Meister, Presidential Management Fellow at NIH (National Institutes of Health (NIH)), and Dr. Nina Hsu, Health Science Policy Analyst at NIH, entitled “Bringing Together Neuroethicists, Writers, and Scientists for Conversations on Neuroethics Engagement.”

"Successful engagement aims to involve everyone in the conversation, including those historically underrepresented in neuroscience and neuroethics, by forming meaningful connections and ensuring open, bidirectional communication."

http://www.theneuroethicsblog.com/2021/08/bringing-together-neuroethicists.html?m=1
Image via nih.gov

"Today, smart watches read our heart rate and emojis respond to our facial expressions. With the rise of consumer neurotech wearables, our brain metrics are now up for grabs."

Not My Keys, Not My Thoughts The Coming Battle for Privacy in Consumer Neurotechnology

"Clinicians like me need to mount a conscientious and concerted effort to push back against [Alzheimer's disease] misinformation and educate our patients. We must ensure that their desperation is not monetized, and their hopes are not held hostage to profit."

'When Memory Fades': misinformation about Aduhelm for Alzheimer's An ad for Aduhelm, the new Alzheimer's drug, called "When Memory Fades" offers the kind of misinformation the surgeon general warns about.

Today on The Neuroethics Blog is a post by Dr. Karen Herrera-Ferrá, the Founder and President of the Asociación Mexicana de Neuroética, entitled "Neuroethics in Mexico and Latin America: Towards the Inclusion of Diversity of Perspectives."

"Consequently, one must be aware that some emergent medical, ethical, philosophical, legal, social, economic, political, cultural, and human rights concerns related to the brain and mind may not be universal."

http://www.theneuroethicsblog.com/2021/08/neuroethics-in-mexico-and-latin-america.html
Image by geralt via Pixabay