I am Associate Professor and Senior Research Fellow in the Institute for Ethics and Society at the University of Notre Dame Australia (Fremantle, Western Australia). My research explores the many ways in which people construct understandings of self in relation to the world, and how this takes place against a complex backdrop of religion, spirituality and politics. I am particularly interested in biohacking as a contemporary phenomenon of self-creation, the interplay between technology and spirituality, and the growing impact of algorithms and digital culture in self-determination and visions of human being. I also work on the social and ethical implications of AI and emerging technologies for augmenting human biology and capacities.
I mainly work at the intersection of science, technology and religion. My first book, Human Technological Enhancement and Theological Anthropology, brought together cognitive and evolutionary perspectives on human creativity with theological and literary perspectives to present technological augmentation as a legitimate activity of human co-creation from a religious perspective. My second book, Science Fiction and Christian Theology, explored contemporary works of science fiction to think through the implications of artificial intelligence, mind uploading and virtual reality for theological reflection. My current research projects are concerned with manifestations of spiritual yearning outside of traditional religious contexts (e.g. in people’s usage of generative AI and various biohacking activities) and incorporate mixed methods from sociology and psychology of religion.
I am a Founding Member of the Human Augmentation Research Network and Series Editor for the newly established Cambridge Elements in Religion and Technology.