PHIL 7570
CASE STUDIES IN RESEARCH ETHICS
Spring Schedule
Science is an activity performed in the context of a larger social and political structure. Thus, it is no surprise that social and political pressures influence science: what is researched, what type of questions are asked, how science gets done, how science education is structured and motivated. This session will focus on large and small scale social pressures that are put on science and how this influences the practice of science. The ethical choices faced by scientists are then put into a larger context of social and individual expectations. We will also discuss how scientists and the public might manage this circumstance.
Assigned Readings:
- Articles (2 short editorials):
- (pdf) Alan Leshner, Where Science Meets Society (Science 301: 815; 11 Feruary 2005).
- (pdf) Mark Notturno, Rethinking Science as an Area of Concern (Medical Hypotheses (2006) 66, 217–219). A longer 2008 reworking here.
(Note: Weisskopf's (1974) paper below is highly recommended.)
- Discussion Topics (pdf)
Other Articles and Links
- The Significance of Science. (pdf) By Victor Weisskopf. A 1972 paper that discusses cultural and social aspects of science and its relation to society at large that are still relevant today. 14 April 1972, Science 176: 138-145, 176.
- The Impact of Society on Science. (pdf) By Sydney Brenner. Essays on Science and Society. Science 282, 20 November 1998; 1411 - 1412.
- A More Social Science. By Jeffrey Grainard. Article discusses Daniel Sarewitz, who wants researchers to serve society better by looking for beneficial results. Chronicle of Higher Education. November 18, 2005.
- Is Sex a Forbidden Topic of Research. Should science avoid topics that society deems unsavory and unwilling to fund? After Kinsey Study (pdf)