The paper “From bio to NBIC – From medical practice to daily life” identifies three technical trends that point to major developments in nano-tech. First of all, breakthroughs in the medical field have been seen, ranging from neuromodulation techniques to molecular medicine. It is expected that machine intelligence (e.g., brain implants) or human body modification will make it theoretically viable to improve human performance (van Est, 2014). These technological advancements would give acceptable solutions to current social, political, and economic issues. The research also reveals that NBIC convergence allows biomedical technologies to be used outside of the professional medical realm, such as the development of service robots and artificial intelligence (van Est, 2014). Finally, an increase in the use of biomedical instruments and bio-data for non-medical objectives, such as gaming, entertainment, marketing, coaching, and human or social enhancement, could be expected from these developments.
This means that biological and biomedical technology is increasingly used in non-professional health research and healthcare settings. The researchers conclude that as NBIC convergence increases, humanity moves from the well-covered bioethical discussion terrains to possibly new terrains, posing new ethical and regulatory issues. The primary concern is whether the fora for ethical reflection and debate are institutionally related to professional health research. In addition, it remains a question whether the health treatment will be able to explore the ethical issues posed by developments outside the medical realm (van Est, 2014). Furthermore, the ethical field of professional research would need to be expanded as the implications of future biotechnological interventions are not fully covered.
Reference
van Est, Q. C., Stemerdink, D., Rerimassie, V., Schuijff, M., Timmer, J., & Brom, F. (2014). From bio to NBIC: from medical practice to daily life: report written for the Council of Europe Committee on Bioethics.