In nearly any medical research, there’s a buck to be made somewhere. This is also true of the promising field of neuroscience. As John Horgan points out in a guest blog in Scientific American, “Of all scientific fields, neuroscience has the greatest potential for revolutionary advances, philosophical and practical.”

However, Horgan, a well-known science writer, is dismayed by the growing commercialization of neuroscience. In the first place, leading neuroscientists are trying to interest the military in their work. Last year, he says, the National Academy of Sciences published a 136-page report, Opportunities in Neuroscience for Future Army Applications, that makes “an unabashed pitch for militarizing brain research”. And then there are the snake oil salesmen who are marketing programs which are “clinically proven” to help customers think more clearly, think faster and remember more.

Horgan says, with some distaste, “Neuroscientists are attempting to solve the most profound secrets of human existence. They should adhere to higher ethical standards than defense contractors and infomercial pitchmen.” ~ Scientific American, Mar 24