Ethics in Science

Communication
Darshana Ashoka Kumara
Morality
⚫ Morality is, at very least, the effort to guide one’s
conduct by reason -- that is, to do what there are
the best reasons for doing-- while giving equal
weight to the interests of each individual who will
be affected by what one does -- James Rachels.
⚫ If we can benefit someone, without harming
someone else, we ought to do so.
⚫ If we can prevent harm to someone, without
harming someone else, we ought to do so.
⚫ • Ethics has to do with social standards; morality is
about personal beliefs.
⚫ • Ethics comes from secular institutions, whereas
morality is a religious phenomenon.
⚫ • Ethical judgments are absolute and objective; moral
judgments are relative and subjective.
⚫ Virtue ethics, advocated by Aristotle and Thomas
Aquinas, focuses on the inherent character of a person
rather than on specific actions. There has been a
significant revival of virtue ethics in the past half-
century, through the work of such philosophers as G.
E. M. Anscombe, Philippa Foot, Alasdair Macintyre,
Mortimer J. Adler, Jacques Maritain, Yves Simon, and
Rosalind Hursthouse.
⚫ Deontology argues that decisions should be made
considering the factors of one's duties and others'
rights.
⚫ Immanuel Kant's theory of ethics is considered
deontological for several different reasons.[9][10] First,
Kant argues that to act in the morally right way, people
must act from duty .
⚫ Deontology is defined as an ethical theory that the
morality of an action should be based on whether that
action itself is right or wrong under a series of rules,
rather than based on the consequences of the action.
An example of deontology is the belief that killing
someone is wrong, even if it was in self-defense.
⚫ In deontology, actions and outcomes are measured
separately.
⚫ Consequentialism argues that the morality of an
action is contingent on the action's outcome or result.
⚫ Consequentialism is the view that morality is all about
producing the right kinds of overall consequences.
Ethics in Journalism
⚫ Truth and Accuracy

Journalists cannot always guarantee ‘truth’, but getting

the facts right is the cardinal principle of journalism.
We should always strive for accuracy, give all the
relevant facts we have and ensure that they have been
checked. When we cannot corroborate information we
should say so.
⚫ Independence
⚫ Journalists must be independent voices; we should not
act, formally or informally, on behalf of special
interests whether political, corporate or cultural. They
should declare to our editors – or the audience – any of
our political affiliations, financial arrangements or
other personal information that might constitute a
conflict of interest.
⚫ Fairness and Impartiality
Most stories have at least two sides. While there is no
obligation to present every side in every piece, stories
should be balanced and add context. Objectivity is not
always possible, and may not always be desirable (in
the face for example of brutality or inhumanity), but
impartial reporting builds trust and confidence.
⚫ Humanity
⚫ Journalists should do no harm. What we publish or
broadcast may be hurtful, but we should be aware of
the impact of our words and images on the lives of
others.
⚫ Accountability
⚫ A sure sign of professionalism and responsible
journalism is the ability to hold ourselves accountable.
When we commit errors we must correct them and our
expressions of regret must be sincere not cynical. We
listen to the concerns of our audience. We may not
change what readers write or say but we will always
provide remedies when we are unfair.
Science and Ethics
1. Interplay of these forces result in hard decisions for scientists
a. How do I treat this anomalous data?
b. How do my values influence my research?
c. Who should share credit for this work?
d. Is that an honest error? Negligence? Misconduct?
2. Epistemology = study of the nature, origin, scope, of knowledge
a. What is knowledge
b. How is knowledge acquired
c. What do people know
3. Society and Science
a. Non-scientists play an increasing role in assessing science
b. More social importance = more accountability to society
III. Experimental Techniques and Data Treatment
A. Generally Accepted Methods
1. Make data independently verifiable
2. Eliminate bias
IV. Values in Science
A. Individual values greatly effect their science
1. Curiosity, intuition, creativity are all key to scientific discovery
2. Judgment in how to use those characteristics influence:
a. Which problem to pursue—Interpretation of data
b. What conclusions to draw
c. Whom to work with and how
d. How and when to discuss or disclose findings
 Should we take value out of Science?
1. Desire to do good is a value and a scientific principle
2. Honesty and objectivity are good (and good for science)
3. Universe is understandable is a value (and good for science)
Conflicts of Interest
A. Multiple values may compromise scientific judgement
1. Financial interest in a company might influence data interpretation
2. Referee a paper that scoops your work
B. Most institutions have “conflict-of-interest” policies to follow
1. Disclosure of the conflict
2. Outside monitoring of research or not doing the research at all
VI. Publication
A. The balancing act
1. Accuracy of the data
2. Priority and credit for the author(s)
B. The Peer-Review System
1. Steps
a. Paper is submitted to an editor
b. Paper is assigned to experts in the field to review for accuracy
c. If “Peers” consent, the paper is published
d. Publication established priority for the discovery
e. Citation of others ideas until they become “common knowledge”
f. Publication priority over discovery--only after published is it useful
C. Prior to publication
1. Research is “intellectual property”—some share, some don’t
2. Patenting must take place prior to publication
3. Should have the right to confirm accuracy and interpritation
E. Non-Peer Reviewed Publication
1. Posters, abstracts, invited talks, meeting presentations, internet
2. Speeds and improves communication
3. Propagates errors, weakens confidence
4. News releases
a. By-passes peer review, directly to the public
b. Errors may not be caught
c. Weakens public confidence if not significant, or in error
F. Patents
1. Government grants temporary exclusivity, if results made public
a. Makes useful technology available to the public
b. Protects industry from others making money from their
investment
2. Industry sponsored research may be held up from publication
3. Universities and other Institutions now have publishing policies
H. Ethical problems related to publication
1. Performing substandard work to rush lots of publication
a. Higher quality publications are more valuable than many
publications
b. “More people can count than can read.” James McCormick
c. Universities beginning to limit number pubs considered for
tenure
2. Publishing the same data in two journals
a. Usually not the exact same data, but should have been one paper
b. Clearly wrong, and done to increase number of publications
3. Always publishing short papers with little detail, not full papers
a. Least publishable unit = minimum data to get published
b. Many more “communications” than full papers is suspect

4. Other considerations
a. Will someone scoop me if I hold on for a full paper?
b. These students and postdocs need publications now
c. My funding agencies want to see publication before they renew
d. I’m giving up on this project, but I’ve got enough to publish
VII. Allocating Credit
A. Citation of other’s work
1. Purposes
a. Acknowledge previous or related work done by others
i. Conflicting data or hypotheses
ii. Supporting data or hypotheses
iii. Additional work in the same area
b. Direct reader to related information
c. Place your paper in context with the current state of the field
2. Failure to cite others (or to cite them correctly)
a. Hard feelings; calls for corrections
b. Hurting others careers: citations = reward for work, grants, promotion
c. May be excluded from interaction with peers—reputation is hurt
B. Authorship and Acknowledgement
1. How may authors?
a. Historically, often just one
b. Current collaborative nature of science means single author rare now
c. Field dependent: Chemistry: 5-10 is common
d. High Energy Physics or Genome Sequencing: hundreds
2. Who’s the most important author?
a. In some fields, the order listed is the order of contribution
b. Some journals only list authors alphabetically

4. Responsibility of authors
c. Each author is accountable for the results
d. Each author should sign off on the results and agree with conclusions
VIII. Error and Negligence

A. Results are always provisional

1. New data or new methods can change your interpretations
2. All physical measurements are subject to error

B. Types of errors
3. Random errors can’t be accounted for or corrected
4. Systematic errors can be discovered and accounted for
a. Instrumental, environmental errors
b. Human errors—honest mistakes
c. If discovered after publication, publish a correction—won’t be
condemned
5. Negligence = haste, carelessness, inattention
a. Doesn’t meet the standards of professional scientists
b. Reputation will suffer; public confidence is lowered
IX. Scientific Misconduct
A. Deception
1. Making up data or results
2. Changing or falsifying data or results
3. Using someone else’s ideas as yours = plagiarism
B. Consequences
1. Minor ethical lapses
a. Handled within the scientific community
b. Peer review, administrative action, tenure review

2. Scientific misconduct
c. Can harm other people (medical research)
d. Wastes tax dollars
e. Damages the reputation and values of science to society; funding
f. Destroys personal reputation, livelihood, research career
g. Can be punished by the legal system (in rare cases)
C. Procedure
2. Preliminary Investigation, usually be responsible institution
3. Adjudication: Due Process to accused
A. Responsibilities to:
1. The Public—serve the public interest
2. The Science of Chemistry—thorough, accurate, advancement
3. The Profession—ethical considerations
4. The Employer—honest effort for employer’s interests
5. Employees—fairness, respect, safety, credit
6. Students—obligation to society, treat with respect
7. Associates—credit, respect, encouragement
8. Clients—faithful, confidentially, honestly, charge fairly
9. The Environment—understand consequences, protect