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 explore topics and the progeny of research results are purely methodological, and that any moral considerations refer only to research methods and uses of acquired knowledge. The arguments advanced in favor of this view appeal to the moral neutrality of scientific knowledge and the intrinsic value of truth. I argue that neither is valid. Moreover, I show three cases where a scientists decision to begin research clearly bears moral relevance (1) when starting an inquiry would create circumstances jeopardiseing some non-cognitive values (2) when achieving a certain piece of knowledge would threaten the existence of the individuals private sphere and (3) when there are reasons to think that humankind is non prepared to accumulate some knowledge. These cases do not prove the existence of some intrinsically morally forbidden topics, however show that the moral permissibility of any giv en inquiry is not a priori guaranteed but needs to be judged in the same way that its methodological soundness is judged. Judgments concerning research topics have both methodological and moral aspects and these two cannot be degage under the threat of distorting science. Making such judgments requires knowledge not only of scientific methodology, but also of its social and philosophical implications. Philosophy is necessary in order to do good science. My search for an answer 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 relevant themes with scientific means. Are there and so 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 o f Science, New YorkElsevier 1990. 63-78.Glass, B. The ethical understructure 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 early(a) Essays on the Philosophy of Cognition, Dordrecht Reidel 1987. 1-16. Verhoog, H. Genetic Modification of Animals. Should Science and Ethics Be Integrated? in A. Lekka-Kowalik and D. Schulthess (Eds). Forbidden Knowledge. The Monist 79 (2) 1996.