Challenges to moral responsibility. Agents deserve various kinds of benefits and burdens (such as punishment) only if they are morally responsible for their actions. This project aims to assess several sorts of alleged threats to our moral responsibility, and thereby to better the social allocation of goods to individuals.
Role Of IGF Binding Protein-3 (IGFBP-3) And IGFBP-5 As Modulators Of Nuclear Hormone Signalling
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$465,750.00
Summary
The insulin-like growth factors are small proteins involved in the growth of most tissues. Their actions are regulated by binding to larger proteins (known as IGFBPs) in the bloodstream and outside the cell. However, some IGFBPs are also found inside cells, where they seem to carry out other functions. We believe that two of these binding proteins, IGFBP-3 and IGFBP-5, change the way cells respond to vitamin A and vitamin D. These two vitamins are important in cell growth and in the way certain ....The insulin-like growth factors are small proteins involved in the growth of most tissues. Their actions are regulated by binding to larger proteins (known as IGFBPs) in the bloodstream and outside the cell. However, some IGFBPs are also found inside cells, where they seem to carry out other functions. We believe that two of these binding proteins, IGFBP-3 and IGFBP-5, change the way cells respond to vitamin A and vitamin D. These two vitamins are important in cell growth and in the way certain cells perform specialised functions. In test-tube experiments, IGFBP-3 and IGFBP-5 interact directly with the receptors that regulate the effects of these hormones. If the same thing happens inside the cell, IGFBP-3 and IGFBP-5 could change the way these receptors respond to signals from outside the cell. We will investigate what effect these IGFBPs have in living cells and in whole animals and how this may relate to human disease. If we are able to understand how IGFBP-3 and IGFBP-5 affect the way cells respond to vitamin A and D, then we may be able to develop new ways to treat certain human diseases.Read moreRead less
Conscience and conscientious objection in health care. Medical professionals sometimes decline to provide particular forms of safe, beneficial and legal health care, on the grounds that provision would go against their consciences. Bioethicists and policy makers have failed to identify legitimate limits to the scope of appeals to conscientious objection in health care. This is in large part because the underlying concept ''conscience" is unclear. This project aims to advance bioethical debate by ....Conscience and conscientious objection in health care. Medical professionals sometimes decline to provide particular forms of safe, beneficial and legal health care, on the grounds that provision would go against their consciences. Bioethicists and policy makers have failed to identify legitimate limits to the scope of appeals to conscientious objection in health care. This is in large part because the underlying concept ''conscience" is unclear. This project aims to advance bioethical debate by producing a philosophically and psychologically informed analysis of conscience, and by applying this to discussions about the legitimate limits to conscientious objection in health care. It is expected to result in academic and non-academic publications and enable improvements to Australian health care policy.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200100511
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$398,521.00
Summary
Human and Artificial Agents: A Unified Account of Agency. This project aims to develop philosophical and scientifically informed criteria for deciding whether artificial agents can be responsible for their behaviour. The project’s significance lies in the fact that artificial agents are becoming increasingly prevalent in contemporary society but raise moral problems, which the project aims to address. Expected outcomes include influencing how artificially intelligent agents (especially moral one ....Human and Artificial Agents: A Unified Account of Agency. This project aims to develop philosophical and scientifically informed criteria for deciding whether artificial agents can be responsible for their behaviour. The project’s significance lies in the fact that artificial agents are becoming increasingly prevalent in contemporary society but raise moral problems, which the project aims to address. Expected outcomes include influencing how artificially intelligent agents (especially moral ones) are built, and addressing questions about who is legally liable or responsible for the harms that may be caused by such systems. The anticipated benefit is a comprehensive account of agency that can guide development of artificial agents and inform our dealings with such agents in society and in the law.Read moreRead less
Moral conservatism, human enhancement and the 'Affective Revolution' in moral psychology. Debates between moral conservatives and liberals, about whether enhancing human mental and physical abilities above normal limits is ethically acceptable, have been intractable. Recent developments in moral psychology can be used to transform understandings of these debates and enable us to develop just policies to regulate enhancement technologies.