Neurorights as Fundamental Rights in the 1988 Federal Constitution

Abstract

Advances in neurotechnology have enabled a better understanding of how the human mind and central nervous system work, providing new tools capable of revolutionizing people's lives, especially in the areas of health, education, entertainment and well-being. On the other hand, neurotechnological devices have the potential to read, interpret and alter human thoughts, perceptions and emotions generated by the brain, raising ethical and legal issues that concern the international community, especially with regard to their implications for human dignity and, notably, the fundamental rights to freedom, privacy, personal integrity and physical and mental health. The 1988 Federal Constitution and the international human rights treaties internalized in the national legal system were not designed to protect human beings from the neurotechnological threat, which is why it is essential to recognize and enforce a new set of rights to protect the human brain. In this context, the purpose of this scientific article is to propose, based on deductive, bibliographical and documentary research, that neurorights are enshrined in the Brazilian legal system as implicit fundamental rights, including cognitive freedom, mental integrity, mental privacy and psychological continuity as constitutionally protected assets.