Transitioning Brain Research - Neurotechnology in National Security and Defense - page 11

2 Transitioning

Brain Research
From Bench to Battlefield* *

Steve Murray and Matthew A. Yanagi

CONTENTS
Background .............................................................................................................. 11
The Science and Technology Transition Process ..................................................... 12
Brain-Mind Research Transition—General Challenges .......................................... 14
Brain Research Transition—Unique Challenges ..................................................... 16
Summary .................................................................................................................. 21
References ................................................................................................................ 21

BACKGROUND
Contributions of brain research to human knowledge have flourished in recent years,
owing in large measure to the increasing sophistication of direct brain monitoring,
imaging, and interventional technologies and cognitive modeling tools (National
Research Council 2008). Focused research collaborations, such as the Decade of the
Mind (Albus et al. 2007), sought to ensure the rapid emergence of further insights
into human cognition, emotion, and behavior. While neuroscience research (NR) is
yielding important benefits to mental health, education, and computational science
(the motivating aspects for the Decade of the Mind), the rapid pace of such work
can also offer other capabilities to enhance national security, with knowledge and
capability to improve the following:

• Human cognitive performance—Through better understanding of basic pro-

cesses involved with memory, emotion, and reasoning, including the forma-
tion of biases and heuristics (Canton 2004). Such knowledge can provide
improved task design, information structuring and presentation, and decision
support to enhance human analysis, planning, and forecasting capabilities.

• Training efficiency—Enabling rapid mastery of knowledge and skills, with

longer retention times (Giordano 2009), through individualized, real-time

* This chapter is adapted with permission from Murray, S. and M. A. Yanagi. 2011. Transitioning brain
research: From the laboratory to the field. Synesis: A Journal of Science, Technology, Ethics, and
Policy 2(1):T:17-T:25. The author of this manuscript (Steve Murray) was a U.S. Government employee,
and this manuscript was written as part of his official duties as an employee of the U.S. Government.

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