Philosophy Commons^™

Exploring The Enlightenment Function Of Thought Experiments: Unveiling An Underdeveloped Dimension Absent In Typologies, Dominique Greene-Sanders

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Thought experiments (TEs) are imaginative tools used across various fields to explore theoretical and practical issues. This dissertation focuses on the application of TEs in ethics, specifically emphasizing the underdeveloped enlightenment function. The traditional use of TEs in ethics often aims to clarify, support, or refute specific claims through an argumentative structure. However, this work argues that TEs also play a key role in enhancing ethical competence by acknowledging the complexities of ethical dilemmas and fostering moral skills like critical thinking, moral reasoning, and ethical awareness through non-argumentative and non-theory-centric means.

The dissertation begins by explaining the nature and historical …

Exploring The Genetics Of Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1 And Its Ethical Implications, Caleb Smith

NEXUS: The Liberty Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies

No abstract provided.

The Environmental Craftsfolk: Making Things In A World Full Of Stuff, Zoey Ballard

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This Civic Engagement Project (CEP) proposes a transformative approach to addressing the complex challenges of environmental degradation and disconnection from nature through the establishment of the Eco-Craft Cabal in Missoula, Montana. The project seeks to reframe environmental consciousness through the lens of craft, fostering improved connections with the local environment and promoting community resilience. By repurposing both natural and artificial materials in inclusive, accessible crafting activities, the Eco-Craft Cabal aims to empower participants to confront feelings of despair and hopelessness with tangible, meaningful actions.

The Moral Legitimacy Of Ethics Consultation, Jason Lesandrini

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines the moral legitimacy of ethics consultation in healthcare. It delves into the historical development of ethics committees and the shift towards ethics programs, addressing clinical and organizational ethics challenges. The work explores the field of clinical ethics, its professionalization, and the role of ethics consultation services, highlighting their expanding scope and complexity. The discussion includes the formation of professional standards for ethicists and the development of graduate programs in bioethics. Central to the dissertation is the question of whether ethics consultation is morally legitimate, a query yet to be adequately answered. The text scrutinizes various models and …

A Critique Of The Pivotal Ethical Issues In Organ/Tissue Donation & Transplantation, Francis Sarpong

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Organ or tissue donation has proven to be a lifesaving intervention for patients battling failing or failed organs or tissues. However, scholars have raised concerns about just and rational procurement and transplantation in a global shortage. This dissertation addresses normative approaches for organ/tissue procurement, allocation and transplantation to highlight the related pivotal ethical issues. It defends normative approaches such as queuing and nudging, and upholds their universal obligatoriness. It provides illumination about the demands of an effective solution to who shall receive or give organs when not all can. The introductory chapter employs common morality as a principal source of …

University Sound, Maxwell Teodor Barton

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This civic engagement project (CEP) is varied in its explorations. Philosophically, this paper uses Waltonian aesthetics to critique the concept of "soundscape.". Practically, this paper examines and details my methods for bringing awareness about soundscapes (as both worthy of aesthetic and ethical consideration) to the community of Missoula, Montana. Utilizing a scaffold of Anglo-American analytic aesthetics, philosophy of animals, and environmental aesthetics, I show (1) that the University of Montana soundscape has been neglected in many serious ways (2) why it should be considered as an aesthetic object worthy of aesthetic engagement and (3) how to engage with it in …

Developing More Useful Equity Measurements For Flood-Risk Management, Adam Pollack, Casey Helgeson, Carolyn Kousky, Klaus Keller

Dartmouth Scholarship

Decision-makers increasingly invoke equity to motivate, design, implement and evaluate strategies for managing flood risks. Unfortunately, there is little guidance on how analysts can develop measurements that support these tasks. Here we analyse how equity can be defined and measured by surveying 167 peer-reviewed publications that explicitly state an interest in equity in the context of flood-risk management. Our main result is a taxonomy that systematizes how equity has been, and can be, defined and measured in flood-risk research. The taxonomy embodies how equity is a pluralistic and unavoidably ethical concept. Despite this, we find that most quantitative studies fail …

The Ethical Motive As Counter To Benatar’S Anti-Natalism, Eliot Cox

Global Tides

In multiple works, David Benatar defends the view that it is immoral for parents to have children under any circumstance due to the suffering inherent in human life. This essay argues that Benatar’s anti-natalist argument is not successful because of its misidentification of the proper motive humans should have if they are to exist. Instead, I argue, the benefits of an ethical motive, if such a motive is properly instilled within a child by their parents or guardians, can surmount the suffering caused by existence. An ethical motive is characterized by the goal of alleviating suffering for others before oneself. …

Sauron: Weirdly Sexy, Robert T. Tally Jr.

Journal of Tolkien Research

A popular meme depict Galadriel and Frodo admitting that Sauron is "weirdly sexy," a humorous allusion to The Rings of Power’s Halbrand. The show's controversial revelation of Halbrand as Sauron highlights the differences between Tolkien’s construction of Second and Third Age Sauron as an attractive or admirable leader compared to Peter Jackson’s portrayal of him as a monster or disembodied fiery eyeball. This, in turn, has implications for the geopolitical order of Middle-earth in which many people legitimately might wish to be on Sauron’s side. Acknowledging Sauron's "sexiness" may allow us to see Tolkien's world system in a new …

Is Ignorance Bliss?, Eliana R. Mandelberg

CAFE Symposium 2024

This project explores the ethics of telling someone factual information, even if it could hurt them. Specifically, the main question is: If a person were to learn that our world was just The Matrix, would they be obligated to tell people to be truthful or keep it to themselves to spare the feelings of others?

Logos-Sophia, Elliott Norman, Donald Wayne Viney, Keith Elliott Perkins, Addyson Kay Campbell, Hunter Hinds, Scott Squires

LOGOS-SOPHIA: The Journal of the PSU Philosophical Society

Logos-Sophia, Volume 17, Spring 2024. The Journal of the Pittsburg State University Philosophical Society has largely been a student publication with occasional faculty contribution

Wolves Of Yellowstone (2022) By Catherine Barr, Samantha Piede

Middle Grades Books

When wolves were eliminated from Yellowstone National Park in the early 20th century, the park's ecosystem began to deteriorate, leading to elk overpopulation, overgrazing, and environmental collapse. The degradation of the park spawned a rewilding project, in which wolves from Canadian packs were reintroduced to the park. The process and effects of this rewilding is captured in Catherine Barr's The Wolves of Yellowstone, which takes on the philosophical complexity of not only ecological interconnection, but the ethical complications involved trying to restore a species that is not universally lauded by locals.

Other Perspectives On Animals, Their Sentience And Cognition, Joyce M. D'Silva Mrs

Animal Sentience

For those of us who work to achieve legal recognition that animals are sentient beings, and should in many cases be allotted personhood, Donald Griffin is indeed an inspiration and a true game-changer. He put paid to the narrow behaviourist interpretation of animals’ lives promoted by Skinner et al. He became a real heir to Darwin’s belief in animal emotions. He enabled campaigners for animal welfare and indeed animal rights to quote his work as a distinguished scientist to give gravitas to their calls for legal recognition and protection of animals.

Readings In Western Philosophy For Louisiana Learners, Jeff Mclaughlin, Marco Altamarino (Editor), Ryland Johnson (Editor), Peter Klubek (Editor), Michael Martin (Editor)

Open Educational Resources

It is important for students not only to get an appreciation and understanding of philosophy but also to be exposed to the very words and ideas of those who have shaped our thinking over the centuries. Accordingly, the title of this collection hints at the facts that these readings are from the original sources and that these philosophers were the originators of many of the issues we still discuss today.

Major areas of philosophy covered here are Ethics, Epistemology, Metaphysics, Philosophy of Religion, Ethics, Sociopolitical Philosophy, and finally, Aesthetics.

The Climate Crisis And The Class System: An Ethical Analysis, Alia Baig

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Climate change is a concerning subject that more and more people are beginning to care about. The climate crisis is continuing to affect populations across the globe and shows no signs of slowing. While everyone has been affected by climate change in some capacity, the climate crisis disproportionately affects low-income communities around the world and, specifically, within the United States. I plan to research the ethics of the relationship between climate change and the class system and the goal o f this project is to prove the claim that the class system is the reason for climate change's disproportionate effect …

The Ethics Of Involuntary Intervention, Landyn Tipton

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This is a deep ethical analysis of the act of non-consensual intervention that discusses the distinction between voluntary and involuntary intervention and explains when it would be considered appropriate and inappropriate to intervene in someone else's life. This paper presents an argument for the right to autonomy, including specific scenarios like consensual types of intervention (psychological therapy), religious intervention (specifically involving LGBTQ conversion therapy), and situations where the person is potentially harming themselves or others. There will also be an interpretation of autonomy and the claim to authority through the lens of Utilitarianism and Kantian ethics.

The Ethics Of Brain-Machine Interfaces, Devon J. Lynn

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Brain Machine Interfaces (BMI) are a rapidly developing technology that raise unique ethical issues that demand review. They have demonstrated impressive restorative potential, particularly for individuals living with epilepsy, and those who are locked in. Although BMIs have the potential to provide significant benefit to millions of users, further advancement of the technology should proceed cautiously, according to the guidelines outlined in this paper. Failure to adhere to ethical guidelines could lead to severe privacy concerns, and would violate moral principles of beneficence, virtue ethics, care ethics, and utilitarianism. Despite the moral risks, BMIs hold promise for reshaping future healthcare …

Becoming A Good Creature (2020) By Sy Montgomery, Samantha Piede

Picture Books

Becoming a Good Creature outlines moral lessons Sy Montgomery has learned from interactions with animals, both domestic and wild, such as “Love Little Lives,” “Don’t Be Afraid,” and “Make Your Own Family.” Our willingness to be attentive to other creatures – not just the ones like us with “two legs,” but also “four or even eight” – opens up the possibility of finding something ethically significant in these encounters. She tells us that “all have taught me something important about how to be a good creature in the world.”

A More Modern Prometheus: What Frankenstein Tells Us About Genetic Modification, Allison M. Ambrose

Honors College Theses

Mary Shelley’s famous novel, Frankenstein, is often hailed as the first true science fiction novel. In my thesis, I use the premonitive lens towards creation of life provided in Frankenstein to evaluate the morality of genetic modification of children. CRISPR-Cas9 is quickly emerging as the most important development in reprogenetic technology of our time, and many argue for its merits as a method of designing our children. I argue against this trend of “designer babies,” specifically raising questions about the soundness of modifying non-disease traits in future children and encouraging a more cautious attitude in both the scientific and philosophical …

Green Is The New Black: Exploring How A Philosophical Approach To The Fashion Industry Will Reduce Its Environmental Impact, Darion A. Gibbs

Student Theses and Dissertations

The fashion industry is the third largest contributor to pollution globally, behind only oil and agriculture. It also accounts for one-fifth of the plastic produced annually. Despite its impact, it is hard to trace accountability. For example, mega-retailers often outsource production to developing countries, without strong structures of accountability for their environmental impact. In addition, companies often claim to be environmentally sustainable, but it is easy to inflate the truth, and entities designed to protect consumers have limited enforcement. In this context, who should be held responsible for the fashion industry’s contribution to climate change?

In response, this thesis delves …

Degendering Parents On Birth Certificates, Timothy E. Murphy, Jennifer Parks

Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Birth certificates typically designate parents as ‘mothers’ or ‘fathers’ although some U.S. states offer non-gendered designations. We argue that gendered characterizations offer scant legal or moral value and that states should move to degender parental status on birth certificates but retain that information in registrations of birth. Registrations of birth identify the person giving birth to a child, when and where, and they report demographic and health information useful for civic and public health purposes. Birth certificates typically report a child’s name, sex, date and location of birth, and parentage so far as known. As documents establishing parents’ standing in …

The Barriers To Implementation Of Artificial Intelligence In Human Resource Management, Maddy L. Filetti

Student Publications

The influence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in Human Resource Management (HRM) has rapidly become a point of controversy in academic and applied settings. This review will specifically examine the most recent publications on the challenges of implementing these AI tools in the recruitment and selection functions of HR. I identify various issues brought forth by the literature related the adoption of AI-based hiring technology in organizations, including practical costs, bias, data privacy, adverse employee and manager perceptions, and validity and reliability assessment. Suggestions for addressing the concerns are also discussed – namely, the construction of inclusive algorithms, creation of …

Proposing A Measure Of Ethicality For Humans And Ai, Alejandro Jorge Napolitano Jawerbaum

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Smarter people or intelligent machines are able to make more accurate inferences about their environment and other agents more efficiently than less intelligent agents. Formally: ‘Intelligence measures an agent’s ability to achieve goals in a wide range of environments.’ (Legg, 2008)

In this dissertation we extend this definition to include ethical behaviour and we will offer a mathematical formalism and a way to estimate how ethical an action is or will be, both for a human and for a computer, by calculating the expected values of random variables. Formally, we propose the following measure of ethicality, which is computable, or …

Alienation, Resonance, And Experience In Theories Of Well-Being, Andrew Alwood

Economics Faculty Publications

Each person has a special relation to his or her own well-being. This rough thought, which can be sharpened in different ways, is supposed to substantially count against objectivist theories on which one can intrinsically benefit from, or be harmed by, factors that are independent of one’s desires, beliefs, and other attitudes. It is often claimed, contra objectivism, that one cannot be _alienated_ from one’s own interests, or that improvements in a person’s well-being must _resonate_ with that person. However, I argue that every theory of well-being must allow that we can be alienated from our own well-being, and that …

Ethics In The Age Of Disruptive Technologies: An Operational Roadmap, José Roger Flahaux, Brian Patrick Green, Ann Gregg Skeet

Faculty Book Gallery

The primary goal of this handbook is to help companies developing, procuring, or adopting advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence, understand the ethical risks that these technologies introduce, and implement the infrastructure necessary to mitigate those risks throughout the entire product and service life cycle.

The ITEC Handbook offers a thoughtful and pragmatic roadmap for providing technology ethics governance and implementing it throughout the organization. It guides enterprises on their transformation journey from adoption and implementation of ethical behavior to operationalizing ethical and humane use principles, into a new mindset and culture of technology ownership and accountability, where everyone thinks …

Analyzing Nietzsche And Darwin In Search Of Origin Of Morality: The Evolving Perspective, Anirban Ghosh, Malabika Chakrabarti

Comparative Philosophy

It is generally believed that the greatest asset of human being is the moral values and according to theist such values have been infused in human by the creator. By accepting such view we simply get rid of any effort of searching the origin of morality or ethics and also transfer the responsibility of being ethical on the almighty. But when atheist denied God, the liability of being moral comes to human and also the significant question arose why we should be moral. Probably more important is the hunt for the origin of our morality. In this article we have …

A Theistic Critique Of Secular Moral Nonnaturalism, Dale Eugene Kratt

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This dissertation is an exercise in Theistic moral apologetics. It will be developing both a critique of secular nonnaturalist moral theory (moral Platonism) at the level of metaethics, as well as a positive form of the moral argument for the existence of God that follows from this critique. The critique will focus on the work of five prominent metaethical theorists of secular moral non-naturalism: David Enoch, Eric Wielenberg, Russ Shafer-Landau, Michael Huemer, and Christopher Kulp. Each of these thinkers will be critically examined. Following this critique, the positive moral argument for the existence of God will be developed, combining a …

Church Music Leaders In The Usa: Prioritizing Technical Competence And Inclusion, Heather Maclachlan

Yale Journal of Music & Religion

Church music leaders in the United States pursue two priorities: technical accuracy and fluency in the music-making of their church ensembles, and, including as many volunteers as possible in those same ensembles. At times, the prioritization of technical competence and inclusion conflict, because volunteers whose playing or singing is less than competent seek to be included in church music groups. Facing this ethical dilemma, church music leaders operate ethically; that is, they employ strategies and develop policies based on their understanding of their responsibilities to other people (Warren 2014). During interviews, they verbally espouse an ethic of deontology, but in …

Book Review: Kumar, Ashwani. (Ed.). (2022). Engaging With Meditative Inquiry In Teaching, Learning, And Research: Realizing Transformative Potentials In Diverse Contexts. New York, Ny: Routledge., Giovanni Rossini Phd

Journal of Contemplative and Holistic Education

Book Review of following text:

Kumar, Ashwani. (Ed.). (2022). Engaging with Meditative Inquiry in Teaching, Learning, and Research: Realizing Transformative Potentials in Diverse Contexts. New York, NY: Routledge.

Ai Art: Artists’ Best Friend Or Mortal Enemy?, Ethan Gabrys

Tredway Library Prize for First-Year Research

This paper analyzes the impacts and implications of generative AI software on art and examines the ethics of using such tools. Through the argument that careless use of these tools presents a danger to the art world as they risk devaluing human expression, Gabrys states that “as what it means to be human changes with each generation, new artists express sentiment through their art. Art has the ability to tell us about the human experience.” He concludes that the use of AI tools takes the skill and sentiment of human artists out of the equation, begging the question: if the …