ethics
TagAPA Publishes “Good Practices Guide”
The American Philosophical Association (APA) has published its Good Practices Guide, “a set of recommendations to help philosophers create and maintain an academic community based on mutual respect, fairness, inclusivity, and a commitment to scholarship and learning.”
Philosophers Win €17.9 Million Grant for Study of the Ethics of Disruptive Technologies
A project on the ethics of socially disruptive technologies, led by Philip Brey, professor of philosophy of technology at the Department of Philosophy at the University of Twente and scientific director of the 4TU.Centre for Ethics and Technology, has received a €17.9 million (approximately $19.6 million) grant from the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Scien..
Moral Philosophy Courses Can Change Students’ Behavior
The share of meal plan expenditures on meat by students who took part in a philosophy class on the ethics of eating animals declined from 52% to 45%, with “no evidence that meat-eating rates went back up during the two months data was monitored,” according to a recent study whose authors believe it provides evidence for the claim that “ethics classes can influence s..
Oxford Receives $189 Million Gift to Support the Humanities
Oxford University announced it has received a £150 million (approximately $189 million) “transformational investment in the way Oxford teaches, researches, and shares the Humanities.” (more…)
Philosophers On the Ethics and Politics of Abortion
This year, nine U.S. states have passed legislation that bans early abortions in an attempt to provoke a challenge to the abortion rights protected by the 1973 Supreme Court Roe v. Wade decision. (more…)
San Francisco State U. to Launch Grad Certificate in AI Ethics
San Francisco State University has developed a graduate program in artificial intelligence (AI) ethics. (more…)
The Philosophy and Politics of Early Abortion in the U.S.
The past months have seen successful legislative efforts in several states to criminalize early abortion. Emboldened by Brett Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Supreme Court, abortion opponents are hoping that the new legislation, once challenged in court, will force a reconsideration of Roe v. Wade, in which the Court ruled that “during the first trimester, government..
Crash Course: Consequentialism & Deontology in Contemporary Normative Ethics
We’re going to try to solicit recommendations for a “crash course” on an aspect of contemporary ethics. (more…)
A White Paper on Publication Ethics in Philosophy
A project that “seeks to foster greater awareness among humanities scholars and editors about ethical issues in publishing, with a focus on the discipline of philosophy” (previously) last week published a white paper with its initial findings and recommendations. (more…)
Keller Wins Journal of Applied Philosophy Prize
The Journal of Applied Philosophy has announced the winner of its 2018 essay prize.
New Ethics Research Center Opening in Cameroon
The Ethics and Public Policy Laboratory (EthicsLab) is a new research center at the Catholic University of Central Africa that is officially launching this week. (more…)
Who’s Down With QPPs? (Questionable Publication Practices) (guest post by Mark Alfano)
The following is a guest post* by Mark Alfano (Australian Catholic University & Delft University of Technology).
Bringing Ethics Into Computer Science at Harvard
Computer scientists and philosophers are working together at Harvard to bring ethics into computer science courses. (more…)
An Online Trove of Ethics Case Studies
The Media Ethics Initiative at the University of Texas, Austin “exists to promote and publicize research on the ethical choices involved in media use.” One of the ways it has done this is by creating a large, varied and free online collection of ethics case studies. (more…)
It’s Complicated
I’ve been criticized for saying that the issue behind the attempt of some students at Oxford to stop having John Finnis teach required courses* is “morally and practically complicated.” How strong a criticism is this? (more…)
Philosopher Involved in Hoax Investigated by University
An institutional review board (IRB) at Portland State University has found that Peter Boghossian, an assistant professor of philosophy at the school, ought to have obtained IRB approval before conducting a project of submitting hoax articles to academic journals. (more…)
Multi-Million Dollar Funding for Philosopher-Led Project on Machine Intelligence
Seth Lazar, associate professor of philosophy at Australian National University (ANU), is leading an interdisciplinary project on machine intelligence that just received a funding commitment from its university of AUD$1.65 million (US$1.17 million) per year for up to five years. (more…)
$1.5 Million Grant for Ethics of Neurotechnology Project
Philosophers at the Univeristy of Washington have won a $1.5 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for a project on neurotechnology, human agency, and ethics. (more…)
MIT Launches Billion Dollar Ethics-Oriented AI Initiative
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is establishing a new college focused on the development and “ethical application” artificial intelligence. (more…)
High School Teacher Placed on Leave for Moral Problems Quiz (Update: Teacher Resigns)
A high school teacher has been placed on administrative leave (with pay) after a parent complained about a lesson in which students were asked to morally reason about some provocative situations, according to The Columbus Dispatch last week. (more…)
Digital Maps of Spinoza’s Ethics
John Bagby, a PhD student in philosophy at Boston College, has created multiple visualizations of the argumentative structure of Spinoza’s Ethics and put them online for the philosophical community. (more…)
$860,000 Grant to Study Kantian Ethics
What is the “political-theoretical background” of the central concepts of Kantian ethics? Pauline Kleingeld, professor of philosophy at the University of Groningen, was just awarded a €745,000 (approximately $860,000) grant to find out. (more…)
An Ethics Bowl Inside San Quentin State Prison
In February, in the chapel of San Quentin State Prison, seven philosophy undergraduates from the University of California, Santa Cruz faced off against a group of prison inmates—in an ethics discussion. (more…)
Philosophers Appointed To High-Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence
The European Commission (EC), which proposes and administers European Union (EU) law and policy, has created a new High-Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence, the aim of which is to advise on the crafting and implementation of the EU’s strategy on artificial intelligence. (more…)
Medical Ethics Journal Infected by Anti-Vaxx Fraud (guest post by Christian Munthe)
Resurrecting Brains: Philosophical Questions and New Ethical Territory (guest post)
A team of scientists led by Nenad Sestan (Yale) have “restored circulation to the brains of decapitated pigs and kept the reanimated organs alive for as long as 36 hours,” reports MIT Technology Review. The method used to keep pigs’ brains alive outside the body will work on other animals, including primates, Sestan said. The following is a guest post* by Carolyn Di..
Philosopher to Chair Board Advising UK Parliament Commission on Technology Ethics
Member of Parliament Darren Jones has announced the creation of a Parliamentary Commission on Technology Ethics run by him and fellow MP Lee Rowley. The Commission will work with an advisory board chaired by Luciano Floridi, Oll’s Professor of Philosophy and Ethics of Information at Oxford University. (more…)
Ubermess: Philosophers Discuss the Self-Driving Car Crash
On March 19, 2018 a self-driving Uber car-for-hire struck and killed a pedestrian, Elaine Herzberg, in Tempe, Arizona. This was not the first trouble Uber has had with its self-driving cars, nor was it the first fatal crash involving a self-driving car (for example). (more…)