8: CYBORG RIGHTS & THE CITY? A conversation on tech & urbanism with Simon Marvin & Allan McCay

In this month's special feature, Tom and Beth are joined by Simon Marvin and Allan McCay to discuss how advances in neurotechnology - specifically Brain Computer Interfaces (BCIs) - are changing the way we think about urban infrastructures and human-technology relations in the city. 

We discuss:  

• How can we understand the complex and continuously changing relationship between cities and technology over the last few decades?
• What and where are the new frontiers of urban technology in light of neuro-technological advances, such as Brain Computer Interfaces?
• What are the legal and ethical implications for cities and residents of neurotechnological urbanism, and can science fiction prepare us for what’s to come? 

The feature is followed by a short reflection from Tom and Beth which also draws on an interdisciplinary workshop on Neurotechnically-enabled Urbanism which was hosted by the Urban Institute and the ESRC project 'Experimenting with robotics as a new urban infrastructure', led by Aidan While. 

Guests:

Dr Allan McCay is Co Director of The Sydney Institute of Criminology and an Academic Fellow at the University of Sydney Law School. His first coedited book is Free Will and the Law: New Perspectives (Routledge, 2019) and his second is Neurointerventions and the Law: Regulating Human Mental Capacity (Oxford University Press, 2020). 

Professor Simon Marvin is an internationally recognised academic with an excellent publication profile, with expertise in the changing relations between socio-technical networks and urban and regional restructuring.

Read more:

Elon Musk’s brain implant company offers an intriguing glimpse of an internet connecting human minds

Vulcan (page 38)

Hosts:

Tom Goodfellow is Professor of Urban Development in the Global Development Institute, University of Manchester.  His research focuses on the political economy of urban development and change in Africa, particularly the politics of urban land and transportation, conflicts around infrastructure and housing, and urban institutional change. (linkedin.com/in/tom-goodfellow-0b418441) 

Beth Perry is Professor of Urban Epistemics and Director of the Urban Institute at the University of Sheffield. Her research focuses on the relationships between urban expertise, governance and justice, underpinned by a commitment to co-producing collective intelligence across multiple scales to address complex urban challenges. She has worked in cities in Africa, Europe and the UK. (linkedin.com/in/itsbethperry)

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Thanks to the Universities of Sheffield and Manchester for providing time, resources and equipment to support this podcast.