Woolly Mice and the Ethics of Cutewashing - The Prindle Institute for Ethics
Bioscientists have created a new species of adorable mouse. But is its cuteness a distraction from more significant moral problems?
Latest
Do you want to be kept up to date about the new things I'm writing?
Featured
Do You Need Empirical Support to Be Happy?
There is no shortage of advice online about how to be happier. But recent research suggests that the most common happiness-increasing strategies may not be backed by robust empirical support. What should happiness researchers and happiness-seekers do?
Sometimes other people know your pain better than you | Ideas
We all experience physical pain. While some causes of, and remedies for, pain are obvious – eg, I wasn’t careful chopping onions and now I need a bandage, or I celebrated a bit too much last night and now I need water and a nap – the types of pain that can be experienced are diverse and, in some cases, poorly understood. Can we look to others to better understand our own experiences of pain?
The antidote to fake news is to nourish our epistemic wellbeing | Ideas
We typically think about ‘wellbeing’ in terms of physical and mental health. To improve your physical wellbeing, it might be best to exercise; to increase your mental wellbeing, consider putting your phone down once in a while. There is another, less noted way in which we should think about our wellbeing: in terms of knowledge. Knowledge is good for us not only because we generally want to know the truth, but because knowledge dramatically affects our ability to navigate the world and accomplish
Dangerous beliefs | Kenneth Boyd
Our beliefs about the world guide our actions in it. Likewise, our actions reveal our beliefs. But are there beliefs we hold in theory, but would never act on? Such a distinction can be dangerous and irresponsible, writes Kenneth Boyd.
The COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be ripe source material for those looking to spread misinformation and conspiracy theories throughout social media and elsewhere online. One does not have to look far before finding people defending beliefs that the virus was m
The COVID-19 pandemic has proven to be ripe source material for those looking to spread misinformation and conspiracy theories throughout social media and elsewhere online. One does not have to look far before finding people defending beliefs that the virus was m
Ethics of AI
When Is Fair Use “Fair” for AI (and When Is It "Use")?
Does AI "learn" like people do? And what does the answer mean for fair use of copyrighted works?
Can We Trust AI Chatbots?
More and more people are using AI chatbots, but that's not to say that they trust their outputs. If chatbots are going to play a significant role in our lives then we'll have to start trusting them. But is such a thing even possible?
Black-Box Expertise and AI Discourse
We rely on expertise, but not all experts are forthcoming for the reasons behind their opinions. A kind of black-box expertise is prevalent in AI discourse, but that can create big problems for those who are looking to cut through the hype.
What’s Wrong with AI Therapy Bots?
Powered by new artificial intelligence technology, therapy bots promise to offer affordable and accessible mental health therapy to the masses. But what are the ethical implications?
Trust and Expertise
Twitter Bots and Trust
Twitter has once again been in the news lately, which you know can’t be a good thing. The platform recently made two sets of headlines: in the first, news broke that a number of Twitter accounts were making identical tweets in support of Mike Bloomberg and his presidential campaign, and in the second, reports came out of a significant number of bots making tweets denying the reality of human-made climate change.
While these incidents are different in a number of ways, they both illustrate one o
While these incidents are different in a number of ways, they both illustrate one o
Specious Content and the Need for Experts
Specious content seems plausible on first glance, but is full of flaws upon closer inspection. While it's always existed online, AI has started to produce it in mass quantities. Instead of trying to identify it ourselves, we need to rely on experts now more than ever to help us figure out which information is trustworthy.
Calibrating Trust Amidst Information Chaos
With so many changes happening on social media platforms it can be hard to keep up. But beyond the introduction of sometimes confusing news features, the rapidly changing social media landscape has the potential to make the problems of finding trustworthy information online even more difficult.
Expertise and the “Building Distrust” of Public Health Agencies
If you want to know something about science, and you don’t know much about science, it seems that the best course of action would be to ask the experts. It’s not always obvious who these experts are, but there are often some pretty easy ways to identify them: if they have a lot of experience, are recognized in their field, do things like publish important papers and win grant money, etc., then there’s a good chance they know what they’re talking about. Listening to the experts requires a certain
Health and Wellbeing
Why Be Productive?
Whenever I go online, I am inundated with productivity advice. It may be because it’s still the early days of a new year, and with a new year comes a fresh market for those who made resolutions to get more done. Or it may be that the algorithms serving me content have learned that I can’t help but hate-read articles with titles like “Nine CEOs reveal their favorite productivity hacks” and thus shovel more and more productivity articles onto my various feeds, greedy for my clicks and indifferent
Do You Need Empirical Support to Be Happy?
There is no shortage of advice online about how to be happier. But recent research suggests that the most common happiness-increasing strategies may not be backed by robust empirical support. What should happiness researchers and happiness-seekers do?
Sometimes other people know your pain better than you | Ideas
We all experience physical pain. While some causes of, and remedies for, pain are obvious – eg, I wasn’t careful chopping onions and now I need a bandage, or I celebrated a bit too much last night and now I need water and a nap – the types of pain that can be experienced are diverse and, in some cases, poorly understood. Can we look to others to better understand our own experiences of pain?
Workers' Well-Being and Employers' Duties of Care
If you’ve been working from home during the pandemic then there’s a good chance your employer has sent you an email expressing their concern about your well-being and general level of happiness. Perhaps they’ve suggested some activities you could perform from the comfort of your own home working space, or offered Zoom classes or workshops on things like meditation, exercise, and mindfulness. While most likely well-intentioned, these kinds of emails have become notorious for being out of touch wi
Arts and Culture
On Ye and Edgelords
Vultures 1, released by ¥$ (a collaboration between Ye – née Kanye West – and Ty Dollar $ign), has been widely criticized, with many calling Ye an "edgelord". But what is an edgelord, anyway? And is Ye something worse?
Informed Consent and the Joe Rogan Experience
The Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) podcast was again the subject of controversy when a recent episode was criticized by scientific experts for spreading misinformation about COVID-19 vaccinations. It was not the first time this has happened: Rogan has frequently been on the hot seat for espousing views on COVID-19 that contradict the advice of scientific experts, and for entertaining guests who provided similar views.
The Higher and Lower Pleasures of the French Culture Pass
French president Emmanuel Macron recently introduced a “culture pass,” what amounts to €300 for each 18-year-old in France to spend on cultural activities – like going to the movies, seeing a play, or going to a museum – or for buying items that are of cultural or artistic value – such as books, art materials, membership in classes, etc. The French youth need only download an app, and then they have 2 years to spend the funds on whichever of the above they see fit. Some have praised the initiati
It’s Just a Game: The Ethics of Tom Clancy’s Not-So-Elite Squad
Video game company Ubisoft has recently received a fresh wave of backlash, this time for its latest mobile game app: Tom Clancy’s Elite Squad. The mechanics of the game are nothing revolutionary – tap here to make person X shoot person Y – and has received a number of poor reviews for its heavy-handed monetization and boring gameplay. The problem is not so much the style of game, as it is the backstory. Here is how the plot is described in the game’s introduction:
“The world is in an alarming s
“The world is in an alarming s
Everything
Is Speech Freer Without Fact-Checks? - The Prindle Institute for Ethics
Meta has recently decided to stop using third-party fact-checkers, giving moderation responsibilities to its users instead. The platform claims they're motivated by preserving free speech, but does removing fact-checkers actually make speech freer?
Should You Keep Using Twitter?
Twitter (or "X", as no one calls it) is rapidly losing users to Bluesky. Some worry that this will result in echo chambers across platforms, with Bluesky on the political left, and Twitter on the right. If you're thinking of leaving, should you? Or should you stay and try to keep the dream of the public square alive?
Has AI Made Photos Untrustworthy?
We often treat photos as providing definitive evidence: if there's a picture of it, it happened. But new AI tools give anyone the power to manipulate photos in any way they see fit. Does this mean that we've undermined a fundamental pillar of our inquiries?
What's Wrong with Hypocrisy?
One of the biggest stories in the run-up to the U.S. election in November has been Trump’s choice of running-mate, JD Vance. While some Trump supporters have held up Vance as an exemplar of a reasonable person who can change their minds, others have called him a hypocrite. But what's so bad about being a hypocrite?
Is College Worth It?
The calculation is a simple one: a college degree is an investment, as it costs money and time, and some have argued that the return on investment (ROI) is no longer worth it, at least when it comes to certain degrees.
But we should ignore them. When thinking about whether college is "worth it", ROI is unhelpful - and, if used to inform policy, potentially harmful.
But we should ignore them. When thinking about whether college is "worth it", ROI is unhelpful - and, if used to inform policy, potentially harmful.
Can We Trust AI Chatbots?
More and more people are using AI chatbots, but that's not to say that they trust their outputs. If chatbots are going to play a significant role in our lives then we'll have to start trusting them. But is such a thing even possible?
On Ye and Edgelords
Vultures 1, released by ¥$ (a collaboration between Ye – née Kanye West – and Ty Dollar $ign), has been widely criticized, with many calling Ye an "edgelord". But what is an edgelord, anyway? And is Ye something worse?
Why Be Productive?
Whenever I go online, I am inundated with productivity advice. It may be because it’s still the early days of a new year, and with a new year comes a fresh market for those who made resolutions to get more done. Or it may be that the algorithms serving me content have learned that I can’t help but hate-read articles with titles like “Nine CEOs reveal their favorite productivity hacks” and thus shovel more and more productivity articles onto my various feeds, greedy for my clicks and indifferent
Is Shoplifting from Grocery Stores Morally Permissible?
No. Right? The increasing cost of living and bad corporate behavior might have us thinking otherwise.
Do You Need Empirical Support to Be Happy?
There is no shortage of advice online about how to be happier. But recent research suggests that the most common happiness-increasing strategies may not be backed by robust empirical support. What should happiness researchers and happiness-seekers do?
Black-Box Expertise and AI Discourse
We rely on expertise, but not all experts are forthcoming for the reasons behind their opinions. A kind of black-box expertise is prevalent in AI discourse, but that can create big problems for those who are looking to cut through the hype.
Specious Content and the Need for Experts
Specious content seems plausible on first glance, but is full of flaws upon closer inspection. While it's always existed online, AI has started to produce it in mass quantities. Instead of trying to identify it ourselves, we need to rely on experts now more than ever to help us figure out which information is trustworthy.
What’s Wrong with AI Therapy Bots?
Powered by new artificial intelligence technology, therapy bots promise to offer affordable and accessible mental health therapy to the masses. But what are the ethical implications?
Calibrating Trust Amidst Information Chaos
With so many changes happening on social media platforms it can be hard to keep up. But beyond the introduction of sometimes confusing news features, the rapidly changing social media landscape has the potential to make the problems of finding trustworthy information online even more difficult.
AI Writing and Epistemic Dilution
AI is getting better at writing, but what are the epistemic consequences? The ability to produce coherent writing instantly and in mass quantities could make an inhospitable information environment even worse.
Should You Outsource Important Life Decisions to Algorithms?
When you make an important decision, where do you turn for advice? Friends, family, or maybe your own gut instinct? Or would you put your happiness in the hands of a machine?
Corporate Responsibilities after Roe v. Wade
The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has raised numerous legal and moral questions. Making access to abortion an issue to be decided by individual states has already become a complicated legal matter, as some state courts have challenged so-called “trigger laws” – laws meant to make abortion illegal the second the Supreme Court decision came into effect. Many states had already made their intentions clear with regard to access to abortions when the draft Supreme Court memo was in
What Is Unwoke Capitalism?
What is "woke capitalism", and what are the alternatives? Critics of woke capitalism preach economic doom and gloom, but is "unwoke capitalism" merely a rejection of "woke" values, or is it something else entirely?
Are Politicians Obligated to Debate?
In the leadup to the provincial election in Ontario, many members of Ontario’s Progressive Conservative party have been avoiding the debates taking place in their respective ridings. In fact, 22 out of 34 Conservatives have recently failed to show up to debates in which members of their rival parties were participating, a number that greatly exceeds the absences from all other parties combined. Do these absences represent a failure of politicians to fulfil a democratic duty?
Virtual Work and the Ethics of Outsourcing
A recent event involving Canadian outlets of restraint chain Freshii has raised some ethical concerns about the nature of virtual work. Are these new problems, or are we just uncomfortable looking a controversial business practice in the face?
Information Deficits and Not Enough Civics Majors
It feels like it’s been a pretty bad year when it comes to people having a basic understanding of civics. Over the past few months, my home country of Canada has seen numerous reactions based on misunderstandings of how the government and legislative processes work.
Russia, Ukraine, and Digital Sanctions
Russian aggression towards Ukraine has prompted many responses across the world, with a number of countries imposing (or at least considering imposing) sanctions against Russia. In the U.S., Joe Biden recently announced a set of financial sanctions that would cut off Russian transactions with U.S. banks, and restrict Russian access to components used in high tech devices and weapons.
Informed Consent and the Joe Rogan Experience
The Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) podcast was again the subject of controversy when a recent episode was criticized by scientific experts for spreading misinformation about COVID-19 vaccinations. It was not the first time this has happened: Rogan has frequently been on the hot seat for espousing views on COVID-19 that contradict the advice of scientific experts, and for entertaining guests who provided similar views.
The Ethical and Epistemic Consequences of Hiding YouTube Dislikes
YouTube recently announced a major change on their platform: while the “like” and “dislike” buttons would remain, viewers would only be able to see how many likes a video had, with the total number of dislikes being viewable only by the creator.
Load More