Social, ethical & reflective work in the Human Brain Project
The HBP is characterised by a profound and broad interdisciplinarity, and it is unique among the large international Brain Initiatives in having included social sciences and humanities in the core research from its very beginning devoting approximately 5% of the budget to this end. The Ethics & Society research in the HBP has likewise been…
Inconsistencies in the treatment of disorders of consciousness: 200+ professionals surveyed
Research on patients who have impaired consciousness, especially those who acquired severe brain injury or who have suffered from prolonged disorders of consciousness, has exploded in the last decade, not least within the Human Brain Project. With two international guidelines (one from Europe and one from the United States) available to facilitate care for these…
A neuroscience perspective on ethics dumping & animal data governance
Animal welfare regulation varies across the globe. While non-human primates (NHPs) are crucial in neuroscience research, their use is increasingly restricted in many countries. A recent paper in Frontiers in Neuroinformatics explores how to put an end to “ethics dumping” – where researchers move experiments to locations to circumvent animal welfare regulation – and argues…
Politics of bias in Artificial Intelligence
Bias has become one of the key issues in the debates about Artificial Intelligence (AI). Several well-publicized cases demonstrate problematic impacts of gender and racial biases embedded in sentencing algorithms, facial recognition systems and search engines. In our recent article, we analyse power and politics of framing bias in AI policy (Ulnicane and Aden 2023).…
EHDS: Meeting the Challenges of Responsible Data Governance
Data is a cornerstone for innovation and better health care. Responsible data governance is key to the public’s trust in science and the sustainability of research. The European Health Data Space (EHDS) is the European Commission’s response to the pressing need for a trustworthy health data infrastructure that reaches across member states. Needless to say,…
Neuroethics & philosophical reflection in the Human Brain Project
In the Human Brain Project, neuroethics and philosophical reflection have provided an interface between empirical brain sciences, philosophy of mind, moral philosophy, ethics, psychology, and social sciences. The efforts made to include conceptual and normative reflection on the ethical, social, cultural, and philosophical issues that drive and arise from brain research are unique. Over the…
The ethics of ChatGPT – Exploring the ethical issues of an emerging technology
Today, anyone can access and produce AI-generated text through generative conversational AI systems like ChatGPT. The discussion around ChatGPT is often focused on specific issues such as authorship. A recent paper in International Journal of Information Management explores the ethical issues of ChatGPT and presents a systematic review of the benefits and concerns, including responsibility,…
Developing capability for responsible research and innovation across the Human Brain Project
How can we build and promote scientists’ capability to respond and act in a responsible way? A recent paper from the Human Brain Project looks at how responsible research and innovation practices can be promoted and developed through capacity-building activities and what can be learned from our work over the past decade. The Human Brain…
Public engagement, foresight and inclusive community building for responsible research
How can we design and embed responsible research practices? Foresight, or the practice of looking ahead, is one way to envision potential future developments and changes. Together with public and stakeholder engagement, foresight can support work on potentially controversial issues. We have developed training resources that explain how foresight and engagement can help influence how…
Consciousness, cognition and neuroethics in the clinical context
Neuroscience is making tremendous progress in the field of consciousness. With new knowledge on Disorders of Consciousness (i.e., Vegetative State/Unaware Wakefulness Syndrome, Minimally Conscious State, Cognitive-Motor Dissociation) coming out of the Human Brain Project, neuroethical reflection on both foundational and practical issues becomes imperative. Foundational issues include the definition of consciousness and its possible use…