The research excellence of academics is often measured by the quantity and quality of their scholarly publications. But how do we know that all authors listed on a publication have actually been involved…
Sydneysiders lit candles for Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan last night.
AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts
Last night thousands of Sydneysiders gathered at Martin Place to hold a vigil for convicted drug smugglers Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran. Together we listened as actors, artists and musicians called…
Stéphane Charbonnier’s Charlie Hebdo offended people of all religions, but when does causing offence become unethical?
EPA/Yoan Valat
Causing offence to others often causes hurt. Such actions have been condemned as unethical, even immoral behaviour in a civilised society. There have been many examples. The Bill Henson photographs of…
When violence erupts, we can be tempted to make judgements about collective responsibility based on our own allegiances, rather than consistent moral principles.
EPA/Ian Langsdon
When should we hold a group morally responsible for a member’s evil? In the wake of the Charlie Hedbo attacks, many will demand answers about Islam’s role in promoting violence. As we brace for the inevitable…
Doctors can’t always know best.
Consent by Shutterstock
The law of consent to medical procedures is (to paraphrase legal philosopher HLA Hart) “tantalisingly obscure”. Narrowly interpreted, the law sets out a professional standard regarding the risks a medical…
Giving a gift is a complex transaction. So what makes a gift good?
MattysFlicks/Flickr
The anxiety attached to gift giving is worth considering. The Christian commemoration of Christmas is about celebrating God’s ultimate gift, his only son. Such an exceptional gift reaches its destiny in…
“In a dance as old as time”: Bristol shoppers get ready for some 1950s bargains.
Paul Townsend
Christmas is never plain sailing. It’s tough on consumers trying to work out how much food to buy and how to get their hands on the latest must-have toy for children, and it’s tough for retailers trying…
Trust in doctors to do the right thing.
Organ by Shutterstock
The recent inquest into a case in Wales where two patients died following kidney transplants has focused fresh attention on the risks associated with transplantation. No transplant is risk-free, but the…
In September, Tony Abbott returned two antique statues to India in the presence of his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi.
EPA/ Government of India
Last week, The Australian reported that 49 artworks had been identified by the Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA) with gaps in their ownership history that could signal they were stolen. Asian antiquities…
Politicians would deny that wealthy people buying time with them and donating to parties influences decision making.
EPA/Steffen Schmidt
Below is the text of Michelle Grattan’s Accountability Round Table lecture, November 18, 2014. Most of us who’ve been around politics for a while in one capacity or another can remember the time when misleading…
George Brandis argues that it is the government’s duty to investigate and prevent serious crimes – and that metadata can help.
AAP/Alan Porritt
Metadata, previously a word limited to the tech-savvy, is now not only a hot topic of public discussion but the focus of new national security legislation. The public discussion seems split between two…
Old fashioned scandals meet new-fangled complexity.
Andy Dean Photography
Social scientists have to get better at recognising and responding to ethical problems. Although economists, political scientists and psychologists have not been responsible for the same level of abuses…
Confucius stands guard at Beijing’s Renmin University.
George (Sam) Crane
In today’s China, the philosopher Confucius is back. To mark his 2,565th birthday this September, the nation’s President, Xi Jinping, paid homage to the sage at an international conference convened for…
Should teachers dictate what’s right or wrong?
Blackboard via pupunkkop/Shutterstock
In its ideal form, education should be socially progressive. We teach the next generation of scientists, engineers and medical researchers who will improve our quality of life: they will learn more about…
Legislating for commercial surrogacy would enable Australia to overcome concerns about poorly regulated clinics overseas, such as this one in Thailand.
EPA/Rungroj Yongrit
Often emphasised in discussions about children’s best interests is the idea that certain ways of having and raising children are “natural”. For example, this word appears frequently in reference to how…
He’s having a laugh: Jack Ma with the NYSE traders.
Justin Lane/EPA
Greed is still good. Wall Street has just witnessed its largest ever stock market launch as Chinese internet giant Alibaba raised some $25 billion and watched its share price rise by 35% on its first day’s…
There is a meaningful distinction to be drawn between moral and ethical decisions.
Helga Weber
Certain customs or behaviours are recognised as good and others as bad, and these collectively comprise morality – arguably the summation of our value system as human beings. So a conversation about ethical…
Very little we say in the policy room can contain the enormous complexity of family life.
Kitty DuKane
Whether we’re reading about family studies research in Women’s Day , Scientific American or the Journal of GLBT Family Studies, most of us look for evidence that will help us understand where we sit along…
The word morality makes people uneasy – but not ethics. What is the basis of a moral education?
Flood G/Flickr
The human animal takes a remarkably long time to reach maturity. And we cram a lot of learning into that time, as well we should: the list of things we need to know by the time we hit adulthood in order…
Is morality – and happiness – determined by how you affect the people around you?
Shutterstock
It is a word we hear from time to time, but few of us know what it means. Utilitarianism is the method most people use to decide whether an action is right or wrong. We decide the moral merits of what…
Visiting Professor in Biomedical Ethics, Murdoch Children's Research Institute; Distinguished Visiting Professor in Law, University of Melbourne; Uehiro Chair in Practical Ethics, University of Oxford
Professor of Bioethics & Medicine, Sydney Health Ethics, Haematologist/BMT Physician, Royal North Shore Hospital and Director, Praxis Australia, University of Sydney