‘Necro Advertising’ – the pros and cons [new study]

They are known, in advertising circles as ‘Delebs’ (deceased celebrities) . . . “Unbeknown to them, Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, Steve McQueen and Gene Kelly, among others, recently presented products in ads for high- and low-equity brands.” A new paper in the Journal of Business Ethics describes experiments which have, for the first time, examined […]

‘JoyGuzzling’ – should one refrain? (new study)

“Our thesis is that there is no moral requirement to refrain from emitting reasonable amounts of greenhouse gases (GHGs) solely in order to enjoy oneself. Joyriding in a gas guzzler (joyguzzling) provides our paradigm example” – explain Ewan Kingston and Walter Sinnott-Armstrong of the Philosophy Department, Duke University, Durham, NC, US, in a new paper […]

The Ethical Knob: ethically-customisable automated vehicles and the law (new study)

Vehicles could be fitted with what they call an ‘Ethical Knob’, under a proposal by Giuseppe Contissa, Francesca Lagioia, and Giovanni Sartor of CIRSFID, at the University of Bologna,  Italy. The device might help clarify ethical/legal issues with Autonomous Vehicles (AVs). What for example, should a self-driving car do when it ‘realizes’ (in an impending […]

Dirty Hands Make Dirty Leaders? (study)

Florien Cramwinckel Msc (Utrecht University, The Netherlands) researches how people respond to the moral behavior of others. As part of this remit, an experiment was devised in which 78 participants demonstrated how dirtiness versus cleanliness might influence moral behavior in leader–subordinate relationships :- “They were asked touch, smell, and evaluate a dirty (fake poop) or […]

How to ‘cheat’ at sport without really ‘cheating’ – part 1: Praying

“Ajax, through Athena’s spite, slipped upon some offal that was lying there from the cattle which Achilles had slaughtered in honor of Patroklos, and his mouth and nostrils were all filled with cow dung.” The account above is from The Iliad – in which Homer relates how Odysseus prays to the goddess Athena to request […]

Turgid and Obscure Language, from Roger Bolas

Turgid and obscure language impinges on the realm of medical ethics, apparently: “Turgid and Obscure Language,” Roger Bolas, Journal of Medical Ethics, vol. 2, 1976, p 151. The author writes: SIR, My reactions on reading ‘obverted contrapositive’ and ‘presuppositionless characterization’ (page 103, volume 2, number 2), were to sigh deeply and to reach for the […]