of University California, Berkeley Engineering 124
Professor Kastenberg Impacts of Technology on Society
Engineering 124 Lecture 6
Feb 6, 2007 Midterm will be pushed to Fed 22nd, 2007 Assign reading assignment (UN report) and show "An Inconvenient Truth" Film to be shown on 2-8 and 2-13 2-20 Discussion on Utilitarianism Will be the basis of the Midterm Exam What are the issues and how do they relate to the things we've learned
Modernity (Analytic Reasoning & Reductionism) o Moral Descartes (1596-1650) Separation of spirit & body and mind & body o Moral Kant Universality Above everything else we should hold onto is our freedom and will We have the right to use our rational mind freely How do we exercise that freedom morally? Rationality is relative What needs to guide us is reason Imperative o The will to act (maxim) Hypothetical Imperative o Something conditioned on a hypothetical If you want to buy a car, then you will... blank Categorical Imperative o Requires an unconditional moral action regardless of the situation, there are no ifs about it o An unconditional imperative o Never treat another person as a means to an end o Deontological The form of ethical theory Concerned with the principal you are applying Not concerned of the consequences, only concerned of the motive o If the motive is not consistent with one of Kant's Categorical Imperative, it is not moral Conversely, Consequentialism - Utilitarianism is concerned of the consequences o Kant really wasn't looking to consequences Kant found Suicide amoral Killing oneself is like a murder of one self Kant relied on a notion of pure reason The only thing that can have morality is something that be cannot contradicted Looking for some kind of solution that can be applied regardless of the situation
Lecture 6 1 of 2 1/6/2007
Written By Raymond Leung
University of California, Berkeley Engineering 124
Professor Kastenberg Impacts of Technology on Society
Kant's philosophy is quite difficult to understand Can justify moral norms in just the way you justify facts A norm is the way we act that grows out of a collective
o Ethics Hegal (1770 1831) Same time as Kant Morals come out of a history of collective energy Geist Human Spirit o It evolves over time o Depends on the community you are in Evolution of perspective Zeitguist Spirit of the Age "The Ethics of Authenticity" Taylor Argues against utilitarianism Ethics Theories Developmental o Kohlberg Listed three important stages of a child's moral development Preconventional (Age < 2 ) o Most concerned with satisfying needs and avoiding punishment Conventional (Age 2 7) Postconventional (Age > 7) Universal Ethical o Highest stage of development o Came to the conclusion that girls don't have morals and only boys can come to this stage Example: Need to steal medicine to save life Boys said that stealing is bad but saving a life is higher Girls couldn't give an answer o Gilligan Called the idea of Girls no having morality absurd Said girls can't answer because they can't just say yes or no Rather than looking at rules or principles, more concerned with relationships Selfishness (Age < 2) o A child can see beyond themselves Back to the example o If steal the pharmacist's medicine, will develop bad relationship and not get medicine again
Lecture 6
2 of 2
1/6/2007
Written By Raymond Leung