Reshaping the Human Condition Executive Editor Exploring Leo Zonneveld Co-Editors Huub Dijstelbloem Human Danielle Ringoir Enhancement Reshaping the Human Condition Exploring Human Enhancement © Rathenau Institute, The Hague 2008 Rathenau Institute Anna van Saksenlaan 51 P.O. Box 95366 2509 CJ The Hague The Netherlands Telephone: +31 70 342 15 42 Telefax: +31 70 363 34 88 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.rathenau.nl Publisher: Rathenau Institute Design & Layout: Smidswater The Hague / Breda Print: Veenman Drukkers, Rotterdam ISBN: 978-90-77364-24-6 Preferred citation: Zonneveld, L., H. Dijstelbloem and D. Ringoir (eds.) (2008) Reshaping the Human Condition: Exploring Human Enhancement The Hague: Rathenau Institute, in collaboration with the British Embassy, Science and Innovation Network and the Parliamentary Office of Science & Technology, 2008. 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Reshaping the Human Condition Exploring Human Enhancement Executive Editor Leo Zonneveld Co-editors Huub Dijstelbloem & Danielle Ringoir British Embassy The Hague Science & Innovation Network This is a joint publication by Rathenau Institute (The Hague, The Netherlands) The British Embassy, Science & Innovation Network (The Hague, The Netherlands) Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (London, United Kingdom) Executive Editor: Leo Zonneveld Co-Editors: Huub Dijstelbloem and Danielle Ringoir Project Managers: Leo Zonneveld, British Embassy, Science & Innovation Network Huub Dijstelbloem, Rathenau Institute André Krom, Rathenau Institute Mireille den Otter, British Embassy, Science & Innovation Network Acknowledgements: The following texts in this volume are reproduced by permission of the author, or their publishers: ‘Neuroethics of Cognitive Enhancement’, by Danielle C. Turner and Barbara J. Sahakian. Reprinted with permission from Cambridge University Press. Originally published in BioSocieties, 1(1):113-123. ‘The Cognition-enhanced Class- room’ by Danielle C. Turner and Barbara J. Sahakian. Reprinted with permission from DEMOS. Originally published in Better Humans, DEMOS Collection 21:79-85. ‘Changing Expectations of Life’, by Tom Kirkwood by kind permission of the author. Table of Contents 9 Foreword Lyn Parker, British Ambassador to the Netherlands 11 Introduction Leo Zonneveld, Huub Dijstelbloem and Danielle Ringoir 17 Interview: Lord Winston Cognition and its Environment: The Limitations of Genomic Intervention Part 1 Ethics and Impact 29 Nick Bostrom Smart Policy: Cognitive Enhancement in the Public Interest 37 Danielle Turner and Barbara Sahakian Neuroethics of Cognitive Enhancement 53 John Geake The Potential of Cognitive Neuroscience for Education: Education and the Human Potential 65 Willem A. Wagenaar Enhancing Memory in the Criminal Trial Process 77 Gangani Niyadurupola Better Brains 89 Interview: Peter Hagoort Cognitive Perfection is not the Optimal Condition 5 Part 2 Applications and Expectations 97 Tom Kirkwood Changing Expectations of Life 107 Danielle Turner and Barbara Sahakian The Cognition-enhanced Classroom 115 Wim Riedel Psychopharmaceutical Cognition Enhancement 123 Kevin Warwick Cybernetic Enhancements 133 Catholijn Jonker Extended Mind from an Artificial Intelligence Perspective 141 Wouter Lotens Enhancement of the Soldier 149 Afterword Jan Staman, Huub Dijstelbloem and Martijntje Smits, Rathenau Institute 6 Appendices 159 Appendix 1 Glossary of Terminology 169 Appendix 2 List of Contributors 171 Appendix 3 Programme Human Enhancement Colloquium Contributing organisations 175 Rathenau Institute 175 British Embassy, Science & Innovation Network 176 Parliamentary Office of Science & Technology 7 Foreword by Lyn Parker ▶ Lyn Parker is British Ambassador to The Netherlands. The human drive to better ourselves is nothing new. There is something very seductive about the idea of making ourselves stronger, fitter, more beautiful, more alert or more intelligent. For thousands of years humans have explored ways of doing these things. Physical and mental training, the use of stimulants and other mind-altering substances, even physical modification for cosmetic or religious purposes: all these have very ancient and culturally diverse roots. What is new today is the rapidly expanding range of possibilities for human enhancement that contemporary science now offers, as a direct result of our growing understanding of human physiology, biochemistry and cognition, and our increasing skill in manipulating these and other aspects of human life processes. At the same time, many of these developments potentially affect not just individ- ual human performance but also how our whole society functions, confronting us with difficult and thought-provoking ethical and social choices. This volume, based on a fascinating day of discussion between leading Dutch and British scientists in 2007, has a two-fold objective. The first is to give an over- view of some of the key directions in which modern science is pushing out the boundaries of what is possible in the field of human enhancement. The second is to flag up some of the obvious ethical and societal issues which will need fuller discussion over the next few years. Some of these debates have already begun. Concerns about how far it is per- missible to go in pursuing new scientific possibilities are most prominent in the extensive public and political debates over genomics. In education, debate is still at an early stage over the use of cognitive enhancers, although evidence suggests that the unofficial use of such drugs is rapidly increasing in some Western coun- tries. In sport, where the emphasis is on fair competition, a clear policy against the use of enhancing drugs has emerged, while the prolonged debate over whether 9 Lyn Parker disabled runners using ‘blades’ should be allowed to compete on equal terms with able-bodied athletes illustrates some of the dilemmas when potential enhance- ment is available only to some. Physical and sensory enhancement and the development of more seamless man/machine interfaces have obvious potential too, for example in improving our capacity to manage physical disability or in providing enhanced capabilities to meet specific physical or perceptual needs. While military applications are one obvious driver for research, there is a wide range of possible civilian applications as well. No discussion of human enhancement would be complete without some con- sideration of longevity. The question of the natural limits to human lifespan remains open, and the ethical and social implications of efforts to extend life fur- ther are complex. However it is already clear that, while an increasing number of people are living longer, many of them are spending their final years in poor health. Finding ways to increase the length of time for which we can expect a good quality of life is likely to be at least as important as the search for greater longevity. There is no doubt that the science of human enhancement offers exciting pos- sibilities whose full potential we are only beginning to realise. While the potential opportunities and benefits are obvious, so are the problems and risks. We can expect an increasingly lively public debate over how to ensure that scientific progress works to the overall advantage of both individuals and society at large, while meeting ethical standards. In the process, we will be forced to think harder about what defines us as human beings, and how far we really want to go in reshaping how we are. I hope that the discussions in this volume, bringing together the views of leading Dutch and British scientists in the field, will contribute to a better understanding of where current scientific research is heading, and to a better-informed debate about the ethical and societal implications. 10 Introduction by Leo Zonneveld, Huub Dijstelbloem and Danielle Ringoir ▶ The Editors Philosophically and culturally engaged intellectuals that are concerned by the present state of humankind traditionally form the professional elite who reflect on the human condition. They reconsider the hopes, dreams, weaknesses and sorrows of people that try to make the best of their lives. The scientific and tech- nological developments that can be gathered together under the common denom- inator of ‘human enhancement’ change all that. Not only do they open the door to a new group of experts to think about the human condition, most of all they make clear that this condition is not only a social, cultural or philosophical topic but a scientific topic as well. Who we are, who we can be and how we may reach that are no longer exclusive philosophical and existential questions: they have entered the science domain. Various technologies to improve our bodies and our life emerging from the fields of pharmacology, the neurosciences, biotechnology and man-machine interactions are being developed in laboratories. But they are also reaching differ- ent domains of application already. Contemporary societies adopt and transform technological innovations at an enormous speed. 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