A renowned expert on the ethics of neuroscience, Farahany advocates for the need to include cognitive liberty as a universal human right. The term was coined by neuroethicist Wrye Sententia and legal theorist and lawyer Richard Glen Boire in response to the increasing ability of technology to monitor and manipulate cognitive function.

Cognitive liberty should be recognized as both a legal and a societal norm and should be reflected in international human rights law, Farahany said. She added that the mechanism to do it is by updating the definition of privacy to include mental privacy, and updating freedom of thought to include freedom from interception, manipulation, and punishment of our thoughts, as well as self-determination.

“Cognitive liberty is the right to self-determination over our brains and mental experiences, as a right to both access and use technologies, but also a right to be free from interference with our mental privacy and freedom of thought,” said Farahany.

Read more:
Mineo, L. (2023, April 26). Fighting for our cognitive liberty. The Harvard Gazette. https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2023/04/we-should-be-fighting-for-our-cognitive-liberty-says-ethics-expert/