Papers by Alberto Carrara
CNS Spectrums, 2021
The overarching aim of this editorial is to present a dream: a World Symposium in the eternal cit... more The overarching aim of this editorial is to present a dream: a World Symposium in the eternal city of Rome in which prominent psychiatric experts, neuroethicists, and lawyers dialogue on severe mentally ill (SMI) patients as our global migrants. The aim is to foster an inclusive and fruitful interdisciplinary conversation and draw up practical proposals in order to protect and promote the dignity of human persons afflicted by severe mental disorders. Clausen and Levy define neuroethics as a real, systematic, and informed reflection on and interpretation of neuroscience and related sciences of the mind (psychology in all its many forms, psychiatry, artificial intelligence, and so on), in order to understand its implications for human self-understanding and the perils and prospects of its applications. Neuroethics has developed as a response to the increasing power and pervasiveness of the sciences of the brain and the mind. 1 According to the World Health Organization (WHO), good mental health is related to mental and psychological well-being. It is amply documented but little is known that mental disorders affect one in four people around the globe. Moreover, we are still facing the complex and social issue of abolishing the stigma of mental illnesses. Mental dysfunctions rooted in the nervous system's disorders are still not considered on the same level as cardiovascular disease, cancer, kidney disease, and other illnesses. Although public knowledge about neurosystemic mental diseases is usually seen as valuable, knowledge about SMI is often disregarded. As a consequence, many persons suffering from severe mental disorders still avoid asking for help, and they may not receive appropriate therapeutic and social support also due to the community's lack of awareness. 2 Out of a world population of 7.7 billion, 2% suffer from an SMI. Depression affects about 264 million people (2.7% males; 4.1% females); anxiety disorders strike around 284 million individuals (2.8% males; 4.7% females); bipolar disorder amounts to 46 million, whereas eating disorders and schizophrenia affect around 16 million and 20 million, respectively (https:// ourworldindata.org/mental-health). To give a sense of the scale of the problem, the contemporary global migration crisis involves roughly the same amount of individuals. The subject of psychiatry is not a brain, a dysfunctional piece of neural tissue, but human patients, whom can be compared to our society's eternal migrants who have never had a home. In addition, there is the correlated tragedy of suicide: one person dies every 40 seconds. Every suicide has long-lasting effects on the people left behind. Inspiring by Pope Francis Message for the 105th World Day of migrants and refugees 2019 (September 29, 2019) in which he repeatedly highlights the fact that the contemporary migration burden is not just about migrants, but instead is about evil, terrorism, violent conflicts, all-out wars that continue to tear humanity apart. Injustices and discrimination follow one upon the other, economic and social imbalances on a local or global scale, individualism, utilitarian mentality, indifference, and so forth. At the end, and above all, it is the poorest of the poor and the most disadvantaged who pay the price. How can we not fail to recognize a very close analogy, or even, an identification between our severe mental illness (SMI) patients and today's migrants? They are all extremely vulnerable people seeking help. In order to promote mental well-being, to prevent severe mental disorders, and to protect human rights and the care of people affected by those painful conditions, herein, we propose a global call for action focused on a gathering in Rome of experts in the field of medicine, psychiatry, pharmacology, and neuroethics, as well as law, and others. The aim is to foster an inclusive and fruitful interdisciplinary dialogue and present proposals able to protect and promote the dignity of the human person afflicted by severe mental disorders. Our speakers could organize their topics around Pope Francis' four key verbs-"welcome, protect, promote, integrate"-concerning the nature, treatment, ethical issues, and policies related to SMI. Our "guiding star" of reflection is the protection and promotion of all SMI patients as human persons. They are also members of our
Childhood epilepsies beginning in the first few years of life are frequently characterized by sei... more Childhood epilepsies beginning in the first few years of life are frequently characterized by seizures that are resistant to available treatments. A high seizure burden in early childhood likely contributes to the severe cognitive, behavioral, and motor delays common in these children. When indicated treatments fail to control their child's seizures, some parents turn to alternative treatments. Perhaps most desperate of all for new therapies have been parents of children with severe early life epilepsy. The data consist of anecdotal cases of children successfully treated with the medical marijuana, often cannabidiol-enriched preparations.
La neuroeconomia e il neuromarketing vengono contestualizzati all'interno della neuroetic... more La neuroeconomia e il neuromarketing vengono contestualizzati all'interno della neuroetica, così come emerge dall'analisi della trattazione dell'Handbook of Neuroethics della Springer (2015). Viene considerato il gioco d'azzardo patologico quale esempio e modello di riflessione neuroetica ed antropologica per un approccio integrale ed integrativo alla persona e al suo benessere.
Evil, Terrorism and Psychiatry, 2019
Interreligious Perspectives on Mind, Genes and the Self, 2018
Oggi e quanto mai necessaria una riflessione profonda, preferibilmente con un approccio interdisc... more Oggi e quanto mai necessaria una riflessione profonda, preferibilmente con un approccio interdisciplinare, orientata al discernimento e all’integrazione dei diversi sensi di “coscienza” e di “liberta” umana. E noto il crescente interesse, in ambito bioetico, relativo alle tematiche sugli stati alterati di coscienza (dal coma, allo stato vegetativo; dallo stato di minima coscienza, alla sindrome “dell'imprigionato o lock-in”), per non parlare dell'acceso dibattito sul cosiddetto “criterio neurologico di morte”. In effetti, l’irriducibilita di questa peculiarita della specie umana, e stata recentemente messa in luce da un libro inedito del famoso filosofo della mente Thomas Nagel che da poco ha esordito con un’opera che ha suscitato plauso, ma anche tanto scalpore, a volte intriso da scientismo e pregiudizio.
Nel panorama contemporaneo, a cavallo tra bioetica, neuroscienze e filosofia della mente (Mind Ph... more Nel panorama contemporaneo, a cavallo tra bioetica, neuroscienze e filosofia della mente (Mind Philosophy), e emerso, sin dagli anni Settanta del secolo scorso, un ambito di riflessione e d'azione proprio, definito: Neuro-Ethics, Neuroetica . In questo contributo, che riassume la mia lezione al Corso di Aggiornamento in Bioetica dell’estate 2013 intitolata: Questioni di Neurobioetica, dopo aver caratterizzato la Neurobioetica quale nuova disciplina di frontiera, considerero un interessante paradigma contemporaneo di interpretazione delle neuroscienze applicate all’essere umano mettendo in luce come la riflessione neurobioetica si profili quale autentico “ponte” tra discipline classiche quali la bioetica, la filosofia e le neuroscienze.
Humana.Mente: Journal of Philosophical Studies, 2018
The contemporary philosophy of mind and neuroethics are two of the liveliest fields of interdisci... more The contemporary philosophy of mind and neuroethics are two of the liveliest fields of interdisciplinary reflection which deal with the everlasting topic: what/who we essentially are. One of the many questions that can be tackled in order to go deep in this knowledge is: why man is naturally inclined towards specific tiers for survival which constitute his/her teleological project of flourishing? Two different, but complementary, answers are brought to light in this work. The author argues for an apparently obvious, but relatively underexplored view of the classical hylomorphic concept of form (morphé), not just as the information that characterizes the organization of human body, but also as the intrinsic final reason why, through a specific type of bodily (brain) structure, the human being develops his/her natural inclinations and behaves according to them. The author advances the argument in terms of an upward comparison between the threefold levels of Thomas Aquinas' natural...
... Como lugar común clásico se cita el “caso Gali-leo”, supuesto ejemplo de hostilidad entre el ... more ... Como lugar común clásico se cita el “caso Gali-leo”, supuesto ejemplo de hostilidad entre el ámbito teológico y los mode-los científicos que trataban ... La neuroteología como nuevo fenómeno cultural (si todavía no la qui-siéramos definir ciencia) constituye una realidad. ...
Una volta lessi una bella riflessione sull’antiriduzionismo, anzi, per dirlo al positivo, un bel ... more Una volta lessi una bella riflessione sull’antiriduzionismo, anzi, per dirlo al positivo, un bel paragrafo su quello che potremmo denominare “pluralismo dimensionale” della persona umana. Su per giu l’autore spiegava come un soggetto come l’uomo possiede caratteristiche come il pensiero, la scelta libera, la capacita d’amare e quant’altro, che i “mattoni” che lo costituiscono (cellule, organi, sistemi biologici) non possiedono minimamente.
Alpha Omegan, 2014
Summary: The human being has always held a central place in reflections on faith and, from the be... more Summary: The human being has always held a central place in reflections on faith and, from the beginning, has been the main centre of concern within the pastoral activity of the Church. This fundamental reality emerges from Benedict XVI’s social encyclical, Caritas in veritate, in the context of a grave economic crisis at the global level, marked at the same time by the fact that it is a true and proper “crisis” of humanity, both cultural and moral. In this work, after outlining the historical context within which Benedict XVI’s social encyclical is situated and after presenting its structure and the main matters which it examines, the author offers a synthesis of the theological anthropology which constitutes its ‘red line’, structuring the en-cyclical around the major theological themes of this discipline: the creation of the human being by God and the constitution of our being and of our faculties; the reality of sin and of our recreation in sanctifying grace, and concluding with...
Questo contributo cerca di affrontare, senza esaurirlo, il problema antropologico di una supposta... more Questo contributo cerca di affrontare, senza esaurirlo, il problema antropologico di una supposta differenza qualitativa tra regno animale e mondo umano. La prospettiva e peculiare: quella della ricerca neuroscientifica applicata alla sfera del mentale, e di quest’ultimo, l’enfasi viene posta su cio che ad ampio raggio, ed a volte in modo equivoco, si intende per “intelliganza”. La soluzione a questo quesito non risulta indifferente all’ora di finanziare e mettere in atto politiche e progetti concreti volti a “ripensare” e a “ridisegnare” un’ecologia ambientale ed umana che possa contribuire efficacemente a mitigare, se non a migliorare, l’attuale crisi economico-socio-morale globale. Per voler visualizzare con un’immagine la nostra quaestio, basti rileggere un bel paragrafo del Marcozzi di oltre trent’anni fa: «Nel cortile del grande Istituto di Medicina Scientifica di Leningrado, Wiem, e innalzato un monumento al cane. Al visitatore stupito di vedere cosi onorato un animale, per q...
In quasi tutti i contesti socio-culturali, il suffisso “neuro” sta trovando largo impiego e succe... more In quasi tutti i contesti socio-culturali, il suffisso “neuro” sta trovando largo impiego e successo per le finalita piu svariate: dal vendere al convincere. Si parla gia di neuro-mania, neuro-fobia e di neuro-filia. Le immagini di risonanza magnetica fanno gia parte della cultura d’ogni giorno: termini come PET (tomografia ad emissione di positroni) o risonanza magnetica funzionale (fRMN) sono parte integrante della nostra memoria, li abbiamo uditi ed ascoltati ripetutamente per radio, in televisione, li abbiamo letti su Internet e in migliaia di reti sociali nelle circostanze piu disparate. In questo contesto di applicazione all’uomo delle tecnologie neuroscientifiche, come gia dal 1970 con l’oncologo Potter si era costituita la “bioetica”, cosi e sorta in questi ultimi anni la pseudo-disciplina denominata Neuroetica o Neurobioetica che ha “festeggiato” lo scorso anno 2012, il suo 10° anniversario dalla “nascita”.
There was a time in which genes played a central role in scientific and popular scenarios. Now it... more There was a time in which genes played a central role in scientific and popular scenarios. Now it is the time of another principal character: the human brain. More than 10 years ago, prominent neuroscientist Steven Rose portrayed with these words the raise of the so call ‘golden neurocentric age’
The contemporary philosophy of mind and neuroethics are two of the liveliest fields of interdisci... more The contemporary philosophy of mind and neuroethics are two of the liveliest fields of interdisciplinary reflection which deal with the everlasting topic: what/who we essentially are. One of the many questions that can be tackled in order to go deep in this knowledge is: why man is naturally inclined towards specific tiers for survival which constitute his/her teleological project of flourishing? Two different, but complementary, answers are brought to light in this work. The author argues for an apparently obvious, but relatively underexplored view of the classical hylomorphic concept of form (morphe), not just as the information that characterizes the organization of human body, but also as the intrinsic final reason why, through a specific type of bodily (brain) structure, the human being develops his/her natural inclinations and behaves according to them. The author advances the argument in terms of an upward comparison between the threefold levels of Thomas Aquinas’ natural hum...
Questo numero della rivista Studia Bioethica della Facolta di Bioetica dell’Ateneo Pontificio Reg... more Questo numero della rivista Studia Bioethica della Facolta di Bioetica dell’Ateneo Pontificio Regina Apostolorum (APRA) di Roma ospita un’ampia sessione monografica dedicata all’emergente settore del cosiddetto ‘neuro-diritto’ o NeuroLaw.
Neuroscience Letters
Religious coping to psychological stress has been linked to positive outcomes on both physical an... more Religious coping to psychological stress has been linked to positive outcomes on both physical and mental health, but no studies have explored its neurophysiological correlates. Ninety-six participants (43 men and 53 women, mean age: 22.30 ± 2.48 years) were enrolled in the present study; they underwent an evaluation of coping with the brief version of the Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced (brief-COPE) scale and performed an eyes-closed resting state electroencephalographic (EEG) recording. EEG analyses were conducted with the exact Low-Resolution Electromagnetic Tomography software (eLORETA). Positive correlations between religious coping and EEG activity were observed in the theta frequency band in the right hemisphere, specifically in the superior temporal, inferior frontal, and middle temporal gyri. Religious coping scores were significantly positively associated with active coping and positive reframing coping strategies, with the latter not being significantly associated with EEG data. Taken together our results contribute to increase the knowledge on the psychobiological concomitants of religious coping to stress.
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Papers by Alberto Carrara