Introduction :
This workshop will explore the social and ethical issues raised for the future of neuroscience by the Human Brain Project and the analogous projects being carried out in the US and some other countries. These ‘brain projects’ aim to radically transform our our understanding of the functioning of the human brain, and in so doing, to increase our ability to identify the neurobiological processes underpinning both normal and abnormal mental activities, and perhaps to grasp the material bases of higher cognitive functions and human consciousness. The workshop will engage a wide group of informed stakeholders to consider the likely scientific advances that will be achieved over various timescales, the extent to which different anticipations of the future of neuroscience are supported by evidence, and the social, ethical, scientific and regulatory challenges that are likely to ensue. It forms a part of a larger foresight exercise on anticipated outcomes of the European FET Flagship initiative, the Human Brain Project focussed on on Future Neuroscience (https://www.humanbrainproject.eu).