[2] He is the author of Citizen Cyborg: Why Democratic Societies Must Respond to the Redesigned Human of the Future[3] and is currently writing a book on secular Buddhism and moral bioenhancement tentatively titled Cyborg Buddha: Using Neurotechnology to Become Better People.

[4] Hughes holds a doctorate in sociology from the University of Chicago, where he served as the assistant director of research for the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics.

[5] Before graduate school he was temporarily ordained as a Buddhist monk in 1984 while working as a volunteer in Sri Lanka for the development organization Sarvodaya from 1983 to 1985.

[7][8] Hughes' book Citizen Cyborg: Why Democratic Societies Must Respond to the Redesigned Human of the Future was published by Westview Press in November 2004.

[2] Rejecting bioconservatism and libertarian transhumanism, Hughes argues for democratic transhumanism, a radical form of techno-progressivism[9] that asserts that the best possible "posthuman future" is achievable only by ensuring that human enhancement technologies[10] are safe, made available to everyone, and respect the right of individuals to control their own bodies.