Brian K. Gran, associate professor of sociology and law, was invited to serve on the National Conference of Lawyers and Scientists (NCLS), a 14-member joint committee of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Bar Association.
The NCLS is a joint effort on the part of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Bar Association Science and Technology Law Section to explore policy issues of interest to scientists, lawyers and judges, and to improve communication among them.
Some recent work by the committee includes:
- an examination of the legal issues associated with mobile health technologies;
- a series of seminars for judges on the legal implications of advances in neuroscience;
- an assessment of the scientific reliability of several forensic science fields; and
- a range of activities related to research integrity and the social responsibility of scientists and engineers.
The committee recently has become more engaged in considering human rights implications of science and its applications, an area that Gran researches.