In a bold 21st Century declaration, a group of intelligent, thoughtful and creative neuroethicists have come forward in this week's Nature with a issue defining article calling for the responsible use of cognitive-enhancing drugs by the healthy. Realizing that the age of neurocompetition is arriving, they (Henry Greely, Barbara Sahakian, John Harris, Ronald C. Kessler, Michael Gazzaniga, Philip Campbell & Martha J. Farah) state their case and way forward as follows:

1.Based on our considerations, we call for a presumption that mentally competent adults should be able to engage in cognitive enhancement using drugs.

2. We call for an evidence-based approach to the evaluation of the risks and benefits of cognitive enhancement.

3. We call for enforceable policies concerning the use of cognitive-enhancing drugs to support fairness, protect individuals from coercion and minimize enhancement-related socioeconomic disparities.

4. We call for a programme of research into the use and impacts of cognitive-enhancing drugs by healthy individuals.

5. We call for physicians, educators, regulators and others to collaborate in developing policies that address the use of cognitive-enhancing drugs by healthy individuals.

6. We call for information to be broadly disseminated concerning the risks, benefits and alternatives to pharmaceutical cognitive enhancement.

7. We call for careful and limited legislative action to channel cognitive-enhancement technologies into useful paths.

"Like all new technologies, cognitive enhancement can be used well or poorly. We should welcome new methods of improving our brain function. In a world in which human workspans and lifespans are increasing, cognitive enhancement tools — including the pharmacological — will be increasingly useful for improved quality of life and extended work productivity, as well as to stave off normal and pathological age-related cognitive declines. Safe and effective cognitive enhancers will benefit both the individual and society. But it would also be foolish to ignore problems that such use of drugs could create or exacerbate. With this, as with other technologies, we need to think and work hard to maximize its benefits and minimize its harms."

The complete article offers more comprehensive analysis of the issues, but as we look forward it is clear that the canaries in the coal mine are getting much louder now as we march more fully into our emerging neurosociety. It is critical that we move forward with safety being paramount weighed thoughtfully against the life improving potential of these new tools for individual and societal empowerment.