Policy, Identity, and Neurotechnology

In this volume the authors explore the landscape of thought on the ethical and policy implications of Brain Computer Interface (BCI) technology. BCI technology is a promising and rapidly advancing research area. Recent developments in the technology, based on animal and human studies, allow for the restoration and potential augmentation of faculties of perception and physical movement, and even the transfer of information between brains. Brain activity can be interpreted through both invasive and non-invasive monitoring devices, allowing for novel, therapeutic solutions for individuals with disabilities and for other non-medical applications. However, a number of ethical and policy issues have been identified from the use of BCI technology, with the potential for near-future advancements in the technology to raise unique new ethical and policy questions that society has never grappled with before.