NYU Center for Bioethics

As science, technology, and medicine advance, society will confront new ethical dilemmas at the nexus of public health policy and individual choice. The Master of Arts in Bioethics at the College of Global Public Health provides a strong philosophical foundation for navigating these urgent questions.

Past Events

Guest Speaker Professor Blumenthal-Barby: The Importance of a More Nuanced Understanding of Hope, Unrealistic Optimism, and Denial

Bioethicists tend to draw sharp normative distinctions between hope on the one hand, and unrealistic optimism, denial, and self-deception on the other. But what, exactly, is the difference between hope and its more suspect cousins? A clear conceptual understanding is critical, given the supposed sharp normative divide.
 
This paper begins with an overview of the basic definitions, pointing out that the main conceptual difference between hope and unrealistic optimism/denial/self-deception has do with accuracy of belief about the desired outcome. We argue that there are several problems with this way of differentiating between the two categories—some philosophical and some practical. We offer potential solutions to the problems presented. In the second half of the paper we turn our attention to normative matters. Many presume a sharp normative divide: hope is desirable or at least tolerated, whereas unrealistic optimism, denial, and self-deception are to be prevented, avoided, fixed, or interfered with. At its most extreme, such cases might even warrant paternalism (e.g., we might prevent a patient from enrolling in a clinical trial if we believe she is unrealistically optimistic about the outcome). Yet, as we argue, many of the arguments in favor of hope can also be made in favor of unrealistic optimism/denial/self-deception. And, some of the arguments made against unrealistic optimism/denial/self-deception can also be made against hope. Thus, rather than relying on the categories themselves to do normative work, we should approach each case on its own. The result is that it may, all things considered, be ethically justified to let someone “in denial” be in denial, and to let that person make certain decisions despite their being unrealistically optimistic about the outcome.

1384204405107Professor Blumenthal-Barby will present in a public lecture at the NYU Center for Bioethics. She is the Cullen Associate Professor and Associate Director for Medical Ethics in the Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy at Baylor College of Medicine, and has an adjunct appointment in Philosophy at Rice University.  More information on Professor Blumenthal-Barby can be found here.

Friday, January 20th 2017
1:30 PM-3:30 PM
5 Washington Pl, 3 Fl Seminar Rm
New York, NY 10003
Lunch will be served

Guest Speaker Udo Schuklenk: The Moral Case for Granting Catastrophically Ill Patients the Right to Access Unregistered Medical Interventions

Using the case of Ebola Virus Disease as an example, Professor Udo Schüklenk from Queen’s University provides moral reasons for why patients at high risk for death are entitled to access unregistered medical interventions (UMI) without having to enroll in randomized placebo controlled trials. He will discuss, and reject, counter arguments both of a paternalistic nature as well as of a harm-to-others nature. A number of jurisdictions permit and facilitate such access under emergency circumstances. Should patients only be permitted access to UMI after trials investigating the interventions are fully recruited? It is argued that regulatory regimes must not prioritise trial recruitment over patient access, even if this results in foreseeable drug research and development delays. Prof. Schüklenk concludes with an argument on how the moral duty to rescue would impact on others’ obligations to oblige patients seeking emergency access to unregistered medical interventions.

Professor Schüklenk will present in a public lecture at the NYU Center for Bioethics. He is a Professor of Philosophy and Ontario Research Chair in Bioethics at Queen’s University. He is also the Joint Editor-in-Chief of “Bioethics & Developing World Bioethics” and several books. More information on Professor Schüklenk can be found here and here.

4:00 PM-6:00 PM
5 Washington Pl, Room 202 
New York, NY 10003
Reception to follow

Conference: The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence

On October 14-15, 2016, the NYU Center for Bioethics in conjunction with NYU Center for Mind, Brain and Consciousness will host a conference on “The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence”.

Recent progress in artificial intelligence (AI) makes questions about the ethics of AI more pressing than ever. Existing AI systems already raise numerous ethical issues: for example, machine classification systems raise questions about privacy and bias. AI systems in the near-term future raise many more issues: for example, autonomous vehicles and autonomous weapons raise questions about safety and moral responsibility. AI systems in the long-term future raise more issues in turn: for example, human-level artificial general intelligence systems raise questions about the moral status of the systems themselves.

This conference will explore these questions about the ethics of artificial intelligence and a number of other questions, including:

What ethical principles should AI researchers follow? Are there restrictions on the ethical use of AI? What is the best way to design morally beneficial AI? Is it possible or desirable to build moral principles into AI systems? When AI systems cause benefits or harm, who is morally responsible? Are AI systems themselves potential objects of moral concern? What moral framework is best used to assess questions about the ethics of AI?

Speakers and panelists will include:

Peter Asaro (The New School, Media Studies), John Basl (Northeastern University, Philosophy), Nick Bostrom (Future of Humanity Institute), Meia Chita-Tegmark (Future of Life Institute), Kate Devlin(Goldsmiths College, University of London, Computer Science), Vasant Dhar (NYU Data Science, Stern), Virginia Dignum (Delft University of Technology, Technology, Policy and Management), Mara Garza(UC Riverside, Philosophy), Daniel Kahneman (Princeton, Psychology), Adam Kolber (Brooklyn Law), Yann LeCun (Facebook, NYU Data Science), S. Matthew Liao (NYU, Bioethics), Gary Marcus (NYU, Psychology), Steve Petersen (Niagara University, Philosophy), Peter Railton (University of Michigan, Philosophy), Francesca Rossi (University of Padova, Computer Science), Stuart Russell (UC Berkeley, Computer Science), Ronald Sandler (Northeastern University, Philosophy), Susan Schneider(University of Connecticut, Philosophy), Eric Schwitzgebel (UC Riverside, Philosophy), Jaan Tallinn(CSER), Max Tegmark (Future of Humanity Institute), Wendell Wallach (Yale, Bioethics), Stephen Wolfram (Wolfram Research), Eliezer Yudkowsky (Machine Intelligence Research Institute), and others.

Organizers: Ned Block (NYU, Philosophy), David Chalmers (NYU, Philosophy), S. Matthew Liao (NYU, Bioethics)

Registration is free but required. REGISTER HERE. Please note that seating is limited, and is first come first served: it is not guaranteed by registration.

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Guest Speaker Stephen Macedo: “No Slippery Slopes: Same-Sex Couples, Monogamy, and the Future of Marriage”

Will same-sex marriage lead to more radical marriage reform? Should it? Conservatives warn of a slippery slope from same-sex marriage toward polygamy, adult incest, and the dissolution of marriage as we know it; many progressives embrace these changes. Professor Stephen Macedo argues that both sides are wrong: the same principles of democratic justice that demand marriage equality for same sex couples also lend support to monogamous marriage.

Professor Macedo will explore the meaning of contemporary marriage and the reasons for both its fragility and its enduring significance in a public lecture at the NYU Center for Bioethics. Professor Macedo is Laurence S. Rockefeller Professor of Politics and the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University and the author of, Just Married: Same-Sex Couples, Monogamy, and the Future of Marriage (Princeton University Press, 2015).

September 30th, 2016
4:00 PM-6:00 PM
5 Washington Pl, Room 202
New York, NY 10003
Reception to follow

Salon: Life in Our Image – The Ethics of Altering the Human Genome

“Powerful new genetic tools allow scientists to alter the DNA of any organism—with tests on human embryos already underway. Even more ambitious, synthetic biologists on the verge of creating the genetic material for a living organism from scratch are setting their long-term sites on fashioning a fully synthetic human genome. With bold promises of disease resistance and controlling human evolution, this explosive progress has ignited ethical debate. As we rewrite our code of life, how will we revise the code we live by?”

On Saturday June 4th, NYU Center for Bioethics Director S. Matthew Liao will be joining a panel of distinguished scientists and bioethicists at the NYU Global Center’s Grand Hall for Salon: Life in Our Image – the Ethics of Altering the Human Genome.

Meet the Panelists:

To learn more and to purchase tickets, follow the link here!