Contact
Research Center for Neurophilosophy and Ethics of Neuroscience
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität
Schellingstr. 10/III
80799 München
E-Mail: sebastian [ dot ] drosselmeier [ at ] gmail [ dot ] com
Connect via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sdrosselmeier (external link)
Connect via Twitter: https://twitter.com/s_drosselmeier (external link)
Information
Sebastian Drosselmeier was a research assistant and doctoral student at the Munich Graduate School for Ethics in Practice and the Research Center for Neurophilosophy and Ethics of Neuroscience from 2018 to 2022. During the summer term 2021 he was a Recognised Student at the Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics at the University of Oxford. Previously, he studied Political, Legal, and Economic Philosophy (MA) at the University of Bern as well as Philosophy and Economics (BA) at the University of Osnabrueck.
Sebastian submitted his thesis in June 2022 and successfully defended it in November 2022. In October 2022, he started a Traineeship with the European Commission at the Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (DG CNECT).
Research Interests
Philosophy of Mind and Action
Dissertation Project
In his PhD project, Sebastian Drosselmeier investigated the action theoretical implications of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). What does it mean to perform an action with the help of a BCI? Are BCI-mediated actions different from ordinary, bodily actions? Do BCIs have implications for the philosophy of mind, for example concerning the relationship between intentional mental states (intentions, desires, beliefs) and brain states? Are actions performed with BCIs, as some authors have suggested, perhaps even “as clear a case of mental causation as one could imagine”? If so, in which sense?
Publications
Drosselmeier, S. & Sellmaier, S. (2021): ‘Skilled Action and the Ethics of Neuroprosthetics’. In: Friedrich, O.; Wolkenstein, A.; Bublitz, C.; Jox, RJ. und Racine, E. (eds.): Clinical Neuroethics Meets Artificial Intelligence - Philosophical, Ethical, Legal and Social Implications. Heidelberg: Springer.
Drosselmeier, S. (2019): ‘BCI-Actions: Mental or Bodily?’. Viewpoint Paper. Bioethica Forum 12/2, pp.51-53.
Some Recent Talks
"Neuroprostehtic speech and the skilled intentionality framework", Situated Cognition Spring School (SCSS) 2022, Situated Cognition: Applications, Prospects and Limits, Ruhr University Bochum, March 2022
“Can the intentional stance theory help us make sense of mental causation via neural interfaces?”, SOPhiA 2021 - Salzburg Conference for Young Analytic Philosophy, Austria, September 2021 (via Zoom)
“Neuroprosthetics, Mental Causation, and Responsibility”, Summer School Causation and Responsibility, University of Bern, Switzerland, July 2021 (via Zoom)
“Conspiracy Theories, Skepticism, and Certainty”, University College Dublin Online Conference on the Philosophy of Conspiracy Theories, Ireland, July 2021 (via Zoom)
“Brain Computer Interfaces and Action Theory”, Neuroethics Meeting, University of Washington, Seattle, USA, January 2021 (via Zoom)
Teaching
As Lecturer:
"How is content possible in a natural world?", LMU Munich, Winter 2021/22, Advanced course for BA/MA students, in English (co-taught with Stephan Sellmaier)
"Basic Issues in Bioethics", LMU Munich, Summer 2020, Introductory course for BA students, in German (co-taught with Stephan Sellmaier)
As Tutor (all in German):
"Philosophy of Law", University of Bern, Introductory Course, Winter 2017/18
"Theoretical Philosophy", University of Bern, Introductory Course, Summer 2017
"Philosophy of Science", University of Bern, Introductory Course, Winter 2016/17
"Epistemology", University of Bern, Introductory Course, Winter 2015/16
"Logic and Argumentation Theory", University of Osnabrueck Introductory Course, Summer 2015
"Rene Descartes - Meditationes", University of Osnabrueck, Advanced Course, Winter 2014/15
"Logic and Argumentation Theory", University of Osnabrueck, Introductory Course, Summer 2014
"Modal Logic", University of Osnabrueck, Advanced Course, Winter 2013/14
Ethics in Practice
From March to April and from September to October 2020, Sebastian Drosselmeier worked as an Innovation Ethicist for ethix - Lab for Innovation Ethics (external link) in Zurich as part of his practical project at the Graduate School for Ethics in Practice. There, he was involved in developing a consulting service for hospitals to help hospitals deal with ethical challenges due to digitisation and technological changes in the healthcare system.