Are There Things Which We Should Not Know? Essay -- Science Argumentat

Are There Things Which We Should Not Know?It has been claimed that decisions concerning scientific research topics and the publication of research results are purely methodological, and that any clean-living considerations refer only to research methods and uses of acquired familiarity. The arguments advanced in favor of this gaze appeal to the moral neutrality of scientific knowledge and the intrinsic quantify of truth. I argue that neither is valid. Moreover, I interpret three cases where a scientists decision to begin research clearly bears moral relevance (1) when starting an inquiry would create circumstances threatening some non-cognitive set (2) when achieving a certain piece of knowledge would threaten the existence of the individual(a)s private sphere and (3) when there are reasons to think that public is not prepared to accumulate some knowledge. These cases do not parent the existence of some intrinsically morally forbidden topics, unless show that the moral per missibility of any given inquiry is not a priori guaranteed but needs to be judged in the same way that its methodological firmness of purpose is judged. Judgments concerning research topics have both methodological and moral aspects and these two cannot be separated under the threat of distorting science. Making such judgments requires knowledge not only of scientific methodology, but also of its social and philosophical implications. school of thought is necessary in order to do good science. My search for an fare to the title question is restricted to science which is the main source of our knowledge about the world and to its moral dimension. In order to know anything in a scientific way one needs to investigate applicable themes with scientific means. Are there then topics whic... ... D.O.Dahlstrom. Nature and Scientific Method. Washington, D.C. The Catholic University of America Press 1991. 95-105.Gaerdenfors P. Is There Anything We Should not Want to Know? in J.E.Fensted (ed.), Logic, Methodology and Philosophy of Science, tender YorkElsevier 1990. 63-78.Glass, B. The ethical basis of science in Bulger, R.E. et al. (eds). The Ethical Dimension of the Biological Sciences. Cambridge University Press 1993. 43-55.Herrnstein R. J. and Wilson J. Q, Crime and Human Nature, New York Simon and Schuster 1985.Rescher, N. Forbidden Knowledge in Forbidden Knowledge and Other Essays on the Philosophy of Cognition, Dordrecht Reidel 1987. 1-16. Verhoog, H. Genetic Modification of Animals. Should Science and Ethics Be combine? in A. Lekka-Kowalik and D. Schulthess (Eds). Forbidden Knowledge. The Monist 79 (2) 1996.