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The Dream of a Scientific Ethics

Mendonca Junior, Jorge Piaia
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1525440725247599

Abstract Details

2018, Master of Arts, University of Toledo, Philosophy.
In the present thesis, I analyze the idea of using descriptive/indicative statements, rooted in natural sciences, as a mean to derive prescriptive/normative moral statements. In the first chapter, I examine different attempts to develop an account of ethics based on scientific knowledge. I try to explain how some philosophers and scientists, namely, August Comte, Moritz Schlick, and Sam Harris, argued for a science-based ethics, why they were inclined to do it, and which problems their projects came across. I argue that each of these attempts fails to reach its goal. In the second chapter, I look at the work of the biologist/political philosopher Peter Kropotkin, as a case study. I also explain the development of the concept of altruism in science, addressing the limitations of different concepts of altruism. In this second chapter, I try to demonstrate how scientists can be misled by scientific results in the pursuit of the dream of a scientific ethics.
John Sarnecki (Committee Chair)
Madeline Muntersbjorn (Committee Member)
James Campbell (Committee Member)
Philosophy; Philosophy of Science

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Mendonca Junior, J. P. (2018). The Dream of a Scientific Ethics [Master's thesis, University of Toledo]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1525440725247599

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Mendonca Junior, Jorge. The Dream of a Scientific Ethics. 2018. University of Toledo, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1525440725247599.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Mendonca Junior, Jorge. "The Dream of a Scientific Ethics." Master's thesis, University of Toledo, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1525440725247599

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

toledo1525440725247599
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© 2018, some rights reserved.Creative Commons License The Dream of a Scientific Ethics by Jorge Piaia Mendonca Junior is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at etd.ohiolink.edu.
This open access ETD is published by University of Toledo and OhioLINK.