Prompt # 1: Ethical judgements limit the methods available in the production of knowledge in both the arts and natural sciences. Discuss.
There are many events past and present that are in the gray area ethically when it comes to the arts and natural sciences. These two areas of knowledge often have more controversy than any other area when it comes to the ethical treatment of everyone involved. This controversy leads to the issue of the extent in which being ethically correct holds a higher value in society than the acquisition of knowledge. Some would argue that it is far more important to be ethically correct in every aspect of life while others believe it should be evaluated on a case-by-case scale. I tend to agree with the later of the two. While I typically believe in being ethical in the arts, I full heartedly believe in case- by- case dealings in the natural sciences. Investigating the ethical issues in the natural sciences and arts adds depth to knowledge and understanding of these areas of knowledge.
One of the biggest issues within the natural sciences is the dilemma of stem cell research. There is a large question as to whether taking an unborn child and using their cells to help others is ethical. On one side, it is taking another human life away, but on the other it is helping preserve another life and create a better quality of life. Most often stem cells are used in genetic diseases, helping heal large-scale wounds, or in diseases that harm the body tremendously. There has been lots of controversy created through debate over stem cells about when a life starts. If someone were to take what is typically looked at as the religious lens, then the life would start at the moment of conception, in which case this vi...
... middle of paper ...
...your knowledge.
In the natural sciences undeniably ethics come first when trying to expand on society’s knowledge, but in the arts, generally the knowledge comes first. The risk in learning more in the science field is undoubtedly much larger than the risk of sharing your own knowledge in the world of art. This gap in risk is equivalent to the gap in ethical violations. Often times in science a life is at risk, or even numerous lives are at risk, whereas the well being of a person is at risk in the portrayal of art. In art there is typically an option to not view the art as well. With the difference in ethics, there is a difference in the way the knowledge is handled. In the science field, it makes logical sense why the ethics would come before the knowledge, but in the art, there is less of an expectation of being ethically upstanding prior to gaining knowledge.
One of the most heated political battles in the United States in recent years has been over the morality of embryonic stem cell research. The embryonic stem cell debate has polarized the country into those who argue that such research holds promises of ending a great deal of human suffering and others who condemn such research as involving the abortion of a potential human life. If any answer to the ethical debate surrounding this particular aspect of stem cell research exists, it is a hazy one at best. The question facing many scientists and policymakers involved in embryonic stem cell research is, which is more valuable – the life of a human suffering from a potentially fatal illness or injury, or the life of human at one week of development? While many argue that embryonic stem cell research holds the potential of developing cures for a number of illnesses that affect many individuals, such research is performed at the cost of destroying a life and should therefore not be pursued.
Stem cell research is a heavily debated topic that can stir trouble in even the tightest of Thanksgiving tables. The use cells found in the cells of embryos to replicate dead or dying cells is a truly baffling thought. To many, stem cell research has the potential to be Holy Grail of modern medicine. To many others, it is ultimately an unethical concept regardless of its capabilities. Due to how divided people are on the topic of stem cell research, its legality and acceptance are different everywhere. According to Utilitarianism, stem cell research should be permitted due to the amount of people it can save, however according to the Divine Command of Christianity, the means of collecting said stem cells are immoral and forbidden.
Then, using ART or not is a personal decision, taking into account all aspects that it involves. There are advantages for many people that have more value than the disadvantages. Nowadays, society is most morally permissible, and is concerned over personal needs more than the social consequences. Although there is always the preoccupation of the limits of science, but the most common thought is that "it is not an issue for us,” law, religion, and scientists are those who must solve it.
As technology stem cell research intensifies, so does the controversy about whether such scientific progress is moral. In the past millennium to today the present stem cell research has become a controversial topic across the world. Stem cells are unspecialized cells that have unique regenerative abilities, allowing them to divide into specialized cell types. Understanding why these processes occur is essential to curing disease. Critics of stem cell research argue that the extraction of embryonic stem cells involves destroying an early embryo, equating the act of killing a human. Although stem cell research is a highly controversial topic, it is compulsory to continue stem cell research within ethical boundaries for the benefit of mankind.
“Animals and Research Part 4: Ethics of using animals in research.” Editorial. Seattle Post-Intelligencer 20 Apr. 2000 <http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/anml4.shtml>.
Ethical judgements limit the methods available in the production of knowledge in both the arts and the natural sciences. Discuss.
Monroe, Kristen, et al., eds. Fundamentals of the Stem Cell Debate: The Scientific, Religious, Ethical and Political Issues. Los Angeles/Berkley: University of California Press, 2008. Print
Within the past few years, scientist have made several breakthroughs with human stem cells. These breakthroughs have catapulted the issue of stem cell research into the middle of a national debate. Most people have no problem with the research itself, however the source of the stem cells (adult or human embryos) used in research is the primary cause of the debate. Some people feel that destroying an embryo is comparable to murder, even if the research it promotes may help people with serious illnesses. Other believe that an embryo is not a person and therefore research on an embryo is the same as research on any other group of cells.
Catherine Rainbow. (2002). Descriptions of Ethical Theories and Principles. Available: http://www.bio.davidson.edu/people/kabernd/indep/carainbow/theories.htm. Last accessed 22cnd Mar 2014.
Production of knowledge is generally seen in a positive light. However, when ethics and morality become involved in the process of production, judgements will undoubtedly be made that may seem to limit the availability of that knowledge. Ethical judgements are made by the combination of a knower, his or her standard of value, and the situation itself. In the field of the arts and natural sciences, ethics plays a crucial role in the extent one may possibly be allowed to go to when discovering new knowledge. Reason and emotion are important ways of knowing that help guide knowers in making certain moral decisions. Both ways of knowing can be associated with teleological or deontological arguments; the ethics are based on either an objectives-focused or obligations-focused mindset. In this essay, I will be discussing the limitations set on both the arts and the natural sciences as areas of knowledge. To what extent do ethical implications hinder the way art can be produced or the methods involved in expanding society’s knowledge of science?
3. Allow for the fact that ethical questions do not always have a unique, faultless answer.
“The end justifies the means” is the famous quote of Machiavelli (Viroli, 1998) which puts the emphasis of morality on the finale results rather than the actions undertaken to achieve them. Is this claim true in the field of the natural sciences? Whether atomic bombings, as a mean used to end World War II, justifies the death of civilians in Hiroshima and Nagasaki? What is moral limitation in the acquisition of knowledge in the natural sciences? How is art constrained by moral judgment?
Ethics is the study of moral values and the principles we use to evaluate actions. Ethical concerns can sometimes stand as a barrier to the development of the arts and the natural sciences. They hinder the process of scientific research and the production of art, preventing us from arriving at knowledge. This raises the knowledge issues of: To what extent do moral values confine the production of knowledge in the arts, and to what extent are the ways of achieving scientific development limited due to ethical concerns? The two main ways of knowing used to produce ethical judgements are reason, the power of the mind to form judgements logically , and emotion, our instinctive feelings . I will explore their applications in various ethical controversies in science and arts as well as the implications of morals in these two areas of knowledge.
Art is limited in a very large number of ways by the ethical judgements we make, but it is also often brought into existence as a result of our morals and emotions. These judgements seem to handicap the production of knowledge of and through art, but they are also vital to it. This is a sign that abandoning our morals would be difficult, but impractical for the arts. For science, however, abandoning these morals to avoid the obstacle of ethical judgements would allow us to understand much more than we do today, and even more than we did hundreds of years ago; however, these judgements also keep our developments in check. They may prevent some good, but they definitely prevent irreversible harm as well. It is clear that ethics has many drawbacks, but it is a necessary element of our lives.
Ethics is a system of moral principles and a branch of philosophy which defines what is acceptable for both individuals and society. It is a philosophy that covers a whole range of things that have an importance in everyday situations. Ethics are vital in everyones lives, it includes human values, and how to have a good life, our rights and responsibilities, moral decisions what is right and wrong, good and bad. Moral principles affect how people make decisions and lead their lives (BBC, 2013). There are many different beliefs about were ethics come from. These consist of; God and Religion, human conscience, the example of good human beings and a huge desire for the best for people in each unique situation, and political power (BBC, 2013).