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Summary - Ethics in Life Sciences (AM_470707) (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)
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Summary - Ethics in Life Sciences (AM_470707) (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)
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Ethics in life scienceIntroduction about the course
Practice exam at home or at the vu at testvision
Group project
Design or think through technology that manifests an acute awareness of the value-ladennesss of
technology and embodies multiple moral values among which safety
Different values included
Present a design on the final Friday displaying an acute moral value
Topics where different spheres meet up
Build on work that has already been done
Ethics as design discipline
Thomas Midgley jr.
Inventor of leaded fuel and CFCs
Used in refrigerants and leaded fuel
o Leaded fuel: negative impact on human health and environment
o Toxicity was already known and an alternative was readily available but could not be
patented so less profit
o Short term benefits to some over long term costs for many
o Safety was not a core value
o They did not take responsibility
Harm ozon layer banned
Introduction
Science can help solve problems but can also cause problems
Ethics can be a facilitator or even a driver of research, technology and innovation for good
This minimally requires prevention of future harm
The direct and indirect, intended and unintended influences of scientists on the moral states of
others is large.
Science shapes society and society shapes scientific innovation
How do you justify weighing one value over another
Societal needs
Moral values
Ethics is all about translating values to actions, weighing values against each other and morally
justifying ones judgements and actions
The same functionality can be realized in many different forms and shapes: design
Yet: one can often distinguish better from worse solutions
Ethics: how do you justify your choices
What is ethics?
Ethics is the practical study of deciding how we ought to act
Deals with morality and values
We have to engage in ethical reflection when the values, rights, interests, desires of “an
other” are at stake or harmed
, This course: The purpose of education is to learn how to think for yourself
Moral problems arise when the values, rights, interests, desires of an other are at stake or harmed
How do we recognize these in certain situations? Others might have different values. Be open
minded
How do we define the other? People, animals, rivers, children
Ethical reasoning is needed whenever we are confronted with a moral problem
Values can be translated into norms: values of chickens norm: how many square meters
does it need
o Values are concepts or beliefs, about desirable end states or behaviors, that
transcend specific situations, guide selection or evaluation of behavior and events,
and are ordered by relative importance
o Specify the values and tie in with context
What do you mean with value such-and-such?
Why is it valuable?
How does it relate to other values?
When or where is it relevant?
Moral spheres
Morally problematic issues can be found more or less anywhere
In different contexts, different values are more pertinent
And hence different norms guide our actions in different situations
o Personal sphere: Rules for your relations in your personal sphere, with family and
friends
Values: loyalty
norm: one always helps ones friends
o Business sphere: Rules for business identity
Value: sustainability
Norm: one has to reduce waste and minimize energy usage
Value: human dignity & autonomy
Norm: Don’t use slave labor
o Professional sphere: Rules for, e.g., the scientific community
Values: integrity of animals, objectivity, disinterestedness
Norm: one always as to prevent conflicts of interests
o Public sphere: Rules for a just society
Values: justice, equality
Norm: thou shalt not kill
Issues cross boundaries of two or more spheres
In these spheres you find others: plants, humans, animals, ecosystems
Morally problematic does not mean morally rejectable
Morally problematic issues are everywhere where the values, rights, interests, desires of “an
other” are at stake or harmed
Different people take different routes to justify something
People have different intuitions
Ethical thinking: thinking beyond ones inclinations and prejudice
You need an open mind and critical reasoning skills
, Define problem > apply reason > formulate judgement
Localize the problems sphere
o personal, business, professional, public
Consider everything that is relevant
o Values, rights, interests, desires, relevant actors, actions, moral disciplines
Ethical thinking
o Critically reasoning, balancing arguments
Families of ethical reasoning
Empiricism: knowledge comes primarily from sensory experience and observation. Empiricists argue
that all human knowledge is derived from the direct or indirect perception of the external world
through the five senses. In other words, empirical knowledge is based on evidence gained through
sensory experiences, experimentation, and observation.
Rationalism: reason and innate ideas are the primary sources of knowledge. Rationalists argue that
certain truths and knowledge are independent of sensory experience and can be known through
reason alone. Unlike empiricists, rationalists assert that some knowledge is not derived from
observation but is innate or self-evident.
Deontology and Utilitarianism lecture
Do you think that, for the moral quality of the act, it matters what motivation is behind it?
These motives correspond to different ethical theories, which (also) entail different answers
to the above question.
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