KEY ISSUES: NEUROSCIENCE
The field of neuroscience has undergone dramatic growth in recent years, leading many to dub this the "Decade of the Brain." The convergence of interest of many disciplines - such as psychology, computer science, and medicine - has greatly expanded the scope of neuroscience to include all systematic scientific investigations of the nervous systems and cognitive processes of human and other biological organisms.
In conducting these investigations, scientists now employ increasingly advanced technologies in their studies, including neural modeling simulations, biological computers, brain-machine interfaces, mapping technologies, and psychopharmaceuticals. By utilizing multiple methods of analysis, neuroscience seeks to examine, understand, and even control the complex interplay between the brain, behavior, and environment - giving rise to concerns about privacy, autonomy, informed consent, and human cognitive augmentation, among others.
For additional sources on this advancing arena, see:
The Society for Neuroscience
Neuroscience-Net
The Journal of Neuroscience Online
Institute on Biotechnology and the Human Future
Center on Nanotechnology and Society
"Americans have always defined themselves in terms of the future. It is therefore astonishing that there is no policy institute on emerging technologies in the nation's capital, one that cuts across philosophical lines. C-PET addresses that absence in our national conversation."
—JONATHAN MORENO
