Questions tagged [ethics]
For questions that deal with whether something is right or wrong regarding certain norms.
58 questions
5
votes
7
answers
4k
views
Dealing ethically with future human monsters
My world is similar to modern-day Earth, though with additional magical realms not readily accessible from the Rational Realms that are familiar to us. In this world, as many as ten people in every ...
- 67k
3
votes
9
answers
4k
views
Would the use of sulfuric acid "piranha" weapons be considered chemical weapons, and thus, War Crimes?
In an alternative reality, people where capable of taking information from the future, and thus, they decided to not only to replicate future technology for the betterment of manking, but also future ...
- 421
25
votes
17
answers
6k
views
How does a government that uses undead labor avoid perverse incentives?
The setting I'm working on is in terms of tech levels and society best comparable to early 20th century Earth. But with several big differences. One being the existence necromancy and mad science that ...
- 599
16
votes
12
answers
6k
views
How could a modern democratic state justify the practice of necromancy?
So, we are on a fictional planet where the most powerful human faction (the Union) relies heavily on necrotechny (high-tech necromancy) for historical reasons. Necrotechny brings prosperity and ...
- 681
4
votes
4
answers
354
views
Potential, ethically-questionable advancements in science [closed]
I'm creating a futuristic dystopia in which a religious sect decides to shun advancements in technology and science.
The reason for this is that science has evolved in ethically questionable ways. ...
- 2,177
3
votes
6
answers
587
views
Would it be morally right to kill fiends by modern world standards? [closed]
Fiends in my story were usually were once human teenagers, but since then (usually voluntary) have gained power, immortality, and supernatural abilities by submitting themselves to The OtherWorld King....
- 1,111
23
votes
7
answers
3k
views
First Contact @ Home: How to ethically raise aliens when very little is known about their species and contact is impossible?
We failed to establish communication with the aliens. Our scientists have lost hope in reverse-engineering their technology - what little we can even recognize as technology. The only commonality, it ...
- 760
0
votes
1
answer
171
views
Should a space faring species interfere in a Mass-extinction event, which is necessary for the evolution of a future civilization? [closed]
I recently came across an audiobook called Permian by Devyn Regueira. The synopsis was about a recent discovery of fossilized eggs and two strange cave carvings in Siberia, one that describes the ...
- 2,333
15
votes
7
answers
1k
views
How to determine the person-hood of starfish aliens?
Our space explorers got some friends together to try to form a galactic union. Most inter-species unions would be an empire where a few species are controlling lots of others, or a partnership between ...
- 1,012
5
votes
1
answer
116
views
Autonomous homonculi vs mass-produced homonculi, which one would be more restricted by the Geneva Convention?
I needed monsters for my story, but with each added "quirk", dragons became more and more like overgrown, but well-behaved, flying housecats with scales. And I also didn't want them to be &...
- 19.5k
6
votes
3
answers
1k
views
What would be the consequences of a society literally run by sociopaths?
I was listening to a worldbuilding discussion on another site and somebody came up with an idea for a dystopian setting that they called "the worst of all possible worlds". Basically, the ...
- 14.2k
18
votes
14
answers
2k
views
What would lead an entire country to systematically ignore home invasion, theft and vandalism from 1 particular person? [closed]
Evie is reading a book, when L. runs into her house, smashes all the pots, rifles through her wardrobe and runs off with her life savings and a bottle of red liquid. She doesn't even look up.
Carl is ...
- 8,439
1
vote
0
answers
201
views
A fictional world where morals and ethics are completely reversed? [closed]
I want to create a world that exist in an alternate universe where all ethics and moral behaviors on earth are completely reversed/backwards.
What would society in this alternate world look like?, to ...
user72048
18
votes
3
answers
2k
views
The cruel life-cycle of biscuits (cookies)
Captain's Log
For some time we have been monitoring broadcasts from a planet that calls itself "Earth". We have noticed that it is fond of placing short documentaries in slots between the ...
- 49.5k
3
votes
3
answers
365
views
How can digital uploaded beings reform a religion that thinks they are gods? (Part I)
All right I’ve been trying to find an answer to this question for a while, even fell down quite the rabbit hole without much success and I decided to post it on here. This is for a sci-fi novel series ...
- 2,333
1
vote
7
answers
560
views
Why would a government release a virus that preferentially kills old people; would a country struggling with an aging population secretly do this? [closed]
Inspired by current events, and the ongoing problem of too many old people and not enough young people creating a burden on pension/healthcare systems in Asia and around the world.
For starters, I ...
- 342
23
votes
10
answers
6k
views
How to avoid offending original culture when making conculture inspired from original
My conculture, Sakha, is based on Puebloan culture. They live in a mudhouse, practice dry agriculture, don't wear feathers (do they? I thought they're more of Plains culture) and are matrilineal. ...
- 402
3
votes
8
answers
1k
views
How to ethically utilize ability to transfer life from one human to another? [closed]
Lets say that a method has been discovered to transfer the 'life-force' from one individual to another, killing the donor but providing the recipient with healing and an extended life. The healthier ...
- 33.9k
4
votes
6
answers
734
views
How can a race remain "good"?
There is a world where gods exist—but they are just mighty beings. Not almighty and surely not omnipotent. However, far beyond any capabilities of any mortal beings (they're gods after all). Gods, ...
- 1,157
6
votes
0
answers
294
views
The great battery swap [closed]
An alien contra-organization wants to spur the development of Earth to help humans in the near-future in presence of a prime-directive like law. They cannot establish actual contact, so they do the ...
- 924
2
votes
4
answers
346
views
What laws would need to be created to support/protect Transhumanity?
References
First a definition, we'll be using the wikipedia version of the philosophical movement of transhumanism. This is the idea that humans will reach technologies that allow them to alter the ...
- 1,074
23
votes
23
answers
1k
views
How to make an alien game show be fair when hosting many different species?
Far, far away from Earth, near the center of the galaxy, is the planet Nebulous VII. It is the hosting planet of the universe's favorite gameshow, “Victory Nebula”. On the show, pre-type 1 species ...
- 231
9
votes
10
answers
5k
views
Why shouldn't we turn every star system into a Matrioshka brain?
Given the amazing computational power of Matrioshka Brains (M-brains), all the amazing things it can do, including but not limited to the following.
Allotting space for an almost perfect simulation ...
- 1,021
2
votes
0
answers
154
views
Superpowers/Magic and public safety [closed]
So a common theme in superhero or fantasy stories is one where society decides people with powerful abilities are a threat and need to be regulated or "controlled" in some way. This is generally ...
- 758
1
vote
2
answers
347
views
It would be considered cannibalism if a humanoid-lizard eats other humanoids? [duplicate]
Even when they would be considered different species, a humanoid lizard from others humanoids, all the humanoid intelligent species are considered people with the same dignity and rights. So ...
- 405
11
votes
5
answers
614
views
How bad would life have to be to resettle, even if safety is based on hearsay
In the world that I'm building, life on Earth has gotten pretty unbearable for some. My first thoughts are over-population, pollution, war, etc. A company/government comes along and tells you and your ...
- 315
24
votes
14
answers
6k
views
In a world where death isn't permanent, can being burned alive be made a less excruciating experience?
In the not too distant future, technology is developed that allows human minds to be scanned by nanobots, uploaded to a server, and then downloaded into artificially produced organic bodies, ...
- 4,797
13
votes
10
answers
4k
views
How would literally evil societies function?
(This question moved originally from RPGs and pertains to the D&D game where individuals and societies may have explicit allegiances to good or evil.)
A typical convention in fantasy settings are ...
- 7,370
34
votes
22
answers
4k
views
Would cultured meat (artificial) render animal slaughter illegal? [closed]
Cultured meat, also called synthetic meat, cell-cultured meat, clean meat, etc. is a reality. It seems that the only limitation so far is the mass production of it. This might be accomplished in the ...
user31264
9
votes
6
answers
1k
views
What morals and possibly religious beliefs would an intelligent species evolved from pack-living carnivores have?
This is a world with an intelligent species of animal with a quadruped (somewhat like that of a large feline) body plan, which have evolved from pack-living apex-predator carnivores. (If you need a ...
- 29k
2
votes
6
answers
465
views
Moral implications or ethics violated of eating other Sentient races in a fantasy world [closed]
A follow up of my question
Cannibalism - Does Eating other sentient creatures makes you a cannibal
What would be the moral implications and Ethics violated when you eat other sentient races.
Given ...
- 2,498
15
votes
8
answers
4k
views
Cannibalism - does eating other sentient creatures make you a cannibal?
So I am now writing my novel regarding a man sent on a long term mission in a backward world by his employer. In the middle of war he ran out of provisions behind enemy lines with no edible flora or ...
- 2,498
13
votes
13
answers
3k
views
Telepath wants to steal money morally [closed]
Let's say we have a simple Telepath (mind control and reading). This Telepath is not interested in being a superhero. He doesn't want to mess around with stopping criminals and stuff because he has a ...
- 1,269
14
votes
10
answers
2k
views
How should implanted technology be handled in prison?
In the near future, screens and technology will be implanted in us so we do not need to have another physical device. When a person is in prison, they are not allowed to have access to technology and ...
- 1,528
3
votes
1
answer
241
views
If wrong deeds were visible on a person's skin, how would the world change? [closed]
In this world (otherwise the same as Earth), people would have an appearance based on their characters. If someone does something bad, his skin gets a red stain and if he does something good then his ...
- 1,388
9
votes
5
answers
377
views
What would be the ethics of using test animals in a world where there are spells to speak to animals?
If in a fantasy world there was a think tank for research of all kinds, but there were rules like you can't test something like a mind wipe on an unwilling person, how would test animals be handled? ...
- 93
-1
votes
2
answers
157
views
Simulated beings / VR world ethics. Is living in suffering worth living? [closed]
Say, I am a ludicrously advanced AI with near unlimited computational / storage capacity.
I can simulate puny humans on scale of billions without breaking mental sweat - guts to brains to weird back ...
- 127
11
votes
9
answers
1k
views
What would the ethical and legal concerns of Suicide Booths be? [closed]
In a fictional, alternate-reality Earth world, where euthanasia is a human right, as well as the choice to abort your own life (suicide), there are cheap, painless, widely accessible, publicly ...
- 211
10
votes
7
answers
841
views
Why do governments not permanently restrain super villains?
The argument for superheroes to capture villains alive is that superheroes are already illegally operating as vigilantes and compensating for muggle law enforcement is all they are morally obligated. ...
- 7,370
42
votes
13
answers
15k
views
Why do governments not execute or otherwise permanently contain super villains?
The argument for superheroes to capture villains alive is that superheroes are already illegally operating as vigilantes and compensating for muggle law enforcement is all they are morally obligated. ...
- 7,370
4
votes
1
answer
154
views
Building an Ethics Framework for use of Uploaded Personalities
Five years ago, our company reached the stage where we were able to create, maintain, and communicate with digitized brain transfer images.
These trials were conducted on patients with life-limiting ...
user10945
63
votes
33
answers
12k
views
How to Kill the Thought-Crime Killer
Joe Schmoe was six years old when he killed his best friend; it wasn't his fault, it was just the way that he was made...
Joe was born with an auto-telepathic telekinetic feedback ability - he has ...
user10945
-1
votes
3
answers
284
views
One side can make reality warping super-soldiers by sacrificing a few special types of individuals, will the other side be forced to follow suit? [closed]
In this world, there are two opposing allegiances in a state of political and military tension with one another. One side discovers a way to create a device that allows soldiers to have meta-human ...
4
votes
5
answers
517
views
Rules to avoid rich buying votes in goverment that allows earning of extra votes by performing "civic duties"
I'm wanting to develop a world with direct or delagative democracy in which people can earn extra voting power, but which does not unfavorably benefit the rich exclusively. The basic idea is that ...
- 33.9k
2
votes
4
answers
686
views
Lab Bred Human Soldiers vs robot
This scenario assumes that we have the technology and are living in a society similar to Star Wars where it's possible to buy into the production of fully working droids and clone soldiers.
A newly ...
- 433
4
votes
5
answers
336
views
Ethics and malevolent, omniscient AI
A concept in ethics (specifically, Kantian ethics) is that a perfectly rational being, without dependencies, will not act immorally, because immorality itself is an irrational concept, only effected ...
- 633
9
votes
8
answers
2k
views
A teacher can be a cheater, but why? [closed]
Quite along the lines of @Tim B. 's very popular question, but generalizing stuff a bit here.
A teacher can be a cheater, after all, it's there in the name.
Why would a teacher, a fountain of ...
45
votes
33
answers
16k
views
Could I have a culture where stealing is not wrong?
I'm working on differentiating primarily nonhuman cultures from human cultures in a fantasy world by adding a bit of Blue and Orange Morality. One way I'm considering adding a unique element to one ...
- 2,568
13
votes
9
answers
3k
views
How would society react if someone finds out that plants have feelings like humans?
Some scientists discover that plants have humanlike feelings. Now it becomes unethical and immoral to have mass production farms for plants as it is yet for animals. As there are animal-right activist,...
- 491
157
votes
34
answers
20k
views
The AI that fails to be evil
A recurring theme is how an artificial intelligence built with completely reasonable and positive goals instead does great harm to the world.
However, I'm now thinking about the reverse: A ...
- 31.6k