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Faster, Higher, Stronger…Happier? Olympic Athletes and the Philosophy of Well-Being
Written by Mackenzie Graham Last Sunday marked the end of the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Olympic athletes train intensely for years in preparation for a single opportunity at winning gold. Unfortunately, most of them will not be successful. Many will have missed out on a medal by fractions of a second or…
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Oxford Uehiro Prize in Practical Ethics: On Relational Injustice: Could Colonialism Have Been Wrong Even if it Had Introduced More Benefits Than Harms?
This essay was awarded second place in the Oxford Uehiro Prize in Practical Ethics Undergraduate Category. Written by University of Oxford student, Brian Wong Recent debates over the legacy of colonialism – such that that of the British Empire – have often been centred around whether members of colonies have, on balance, benefited from being subject…
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Announcement: Winners of the 4th Annual Oxford Uehiro Prize in Practical Ethics
It is with great pleasure that we can announce the winners of the Annual Oxford Uehiro Prize in Practical Ethics 2018. Undergraduate Category: Winner: Jonathan Latimer with his essay ‘Why we Should Genetically ‘Disenhance’ Animals Used in Factory Farms’ Runner Up: Brian Wong with his essay ‘ On Relational Injustice: Could Colonialism Have Been Wrong…
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Harmless Kidney Markets
Written by Adam Shriver @adamjshriver Kidney transplants result in improved quality of life and increased longevity compared to dialysis for patients with end-stage renal disease (Evans et al. 1985, Schnuelle et al. 1998, Wolfe et al 1999). In 2014, the national transplant list in the United States passed a milestone of 100,000 people waiting for…
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The Psychology of Speciesism: How We Privilege Certain Animals Over Others
Written by Lucius Caviola Our relationship with animals is complex. There are some animals we treat very kindly; we keep them as pets, give them names, and take them to the doctor when they are sick. Other animals, in contrast, seem not to deserve this privileged status; we use them as objects for human consumption,…
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Where There is Life, There is Not Always Hope. Ethics, Futility and the Alfie Evans Case
by Dominic Wilkinson @Neonatalethics [Updated 22/02/18] This afternoon, in another case of disputed medical treatment for a seriously ill child, Justice Hayden in the High Court concluded that treatment should be withdrawn from toddler Alfie Evans against the wishes of his parents. See below for a press release on the Alfie Evans decision. I will…
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Announcement: The 4th Annual Oxford Uehiro Prize in Practical Ethics Final Presentation and Reception
We are pleased to announce the five finalists for the Oxford Uehiro Prize in Practical Ethics and to invite you to attend the final where they will present their entries. Two finalists have been selected from the undergraduate category and three from the graduate, to present their ideas to an audience and respond to a…
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Neuroblame?
Written by Stephen Rainey Brain-machine interfaces (BMIs), or brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), are technologies controlled directly by the brain. They are increasingly well known in terms of therapeutic contexts. We have probably all seen the remarkable advances in prosthetic limbs that can be controlled directly by the brain. Brain-controlled legs, arms, and hands allow natural-like mobility…
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Cross Post: In Defense of Offense
Written by Michael Robillard In Defense of Offense “The urge to censor is greatest where debate is most disquieting and orthodoxy most entrenched…” –Chief Judge Alex Kozinski In September of last year, conservative speaker, Ben Shapiro, spoke at the UC Berkeley campus for approximately 90 minutes. The cost of security for the physical protection…
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Cross Post: The Discomforts of Being a Utilitarian
Written by Hazen Zohny * Please note that this essay was originally published in Quillette Magazine. The Discomforts of Being a Utilitarian I recently answered the nine questions that make up The Oxford Utilitarianism Scale. My result: “You are very utilitarian! You might be Peter Singer.” This provoked a complacent smile followed by a quick…