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Practically Prompted #1: Should We Screen the Womb? Ethical Questions Raised by the New Miscarriage-Risk Test

Practically Prompted #1: Should We Screen the Womb? Ethical Questions Raised by the New Miscarriage-Risk Test

This is the first in a trial blog series called “Practically Prompted” – an experiment in using large language models to independently select a recent, ethically rich news story and then write a Practical Ethics blog-style post about it. The text below is the model’s work, followed by some light human commentary. See this post… Read More »Practically Prompted #1: Should We Screen the Womb? Ethical Questions Raised by the New Miscarriage-Risk Test

Practically Prompted: Introducing an experiment in LLM-generated blog posts

This post introduces a trial blog series called “Practically Prompted” – an experiment in using large language models (LLMs) to write a Practical Ethics blog-style post, with some light human commentary about the output. So, why try this? The experiment is driven by several key motivations: A final note on the method for this trial:… Read More »Practically Prompted: Introducing an experiment in LLM-generated blog posts

Orange and white background with half-eaten biscuits and text Bitesize ethics

Ethics in the Age of AI

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A free, online summer programme open to all. This 9-week programme, part of the UOI’s Bitesize Ethics series, provides a short introduction to ethical issues directly related to Artificial Intelligence, beginning with a general introduction to AI ethics led by UOI scholar Hazem Zohny. The series continues each Wednesday, addressing themes of AI and human… Read More »Ethics in the Age of AI

Press Replay on Ethics: How AI Debate Panels Surface Hidden Value-Trade-Offs

TL;DR High-stake policy decisions often involve conflict between values, like fairness versus efficiency, or individual rights versus the common good. The various committees (like hospital ethics boards or policy advisory groups) tasked with resolving these conflicts often work in ways that are hard to scrutinize, their conclusions shaped by the specific people in the room.… Read More »Press Replay on Ethics: How AI Debate Panels Surface Hidden Value-Trade-Offs

A medical professional holding a needle ready to inject. For illustrative purposes only.

On plans to extend use of chemical castration for sex offenders in England

Secretary of State for Justice Shabana Mahmood is reportedly looking into a potential ‘national rollout of voluntary chemical castration for sex offenders’. The proposal is one of the recommendations outlined in the recently published Independent Sentencing Review led by former Lord Chancellor David Gauke, commissioned to investigate ‘the prison overcrowding crisis and to consider alternative… Read More »On plans to extend use of chemical castration for sex offenders in England

Profiting from Misery: Is There Something Different About Healthcare Data?

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By Dr Jeremy Gauntlett-Gilbert – student on the MSt Practical Ethics programme The advent of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence has opened up new possibilities for health research. Specifically, these techniques could be let loose on ‘big data’, such as the collective data of healthcare organisations (including the NHS), and would likely reveal new insights… Read More »Profiting from Misery: Is There Something Different About Healthcare Data?

Dire Wolves and Deep Prompts: Language Models in Applied Ethics

You might have seen the headlines: Colossal Biosciences claims to have brought back the dire wolf. Except, it’s not quite a direct resurrection. What Colossal actually created are genetically engineered proxies: grey wolves modified to have some dire wolf traits. I wondered if the news might renew interest in the ethics of “de-extinction” and perhaps… Read More »Dire Wolves and Deep Prompts: Language Models in Applied Ethics

Uterus Transplants – Ethical and Legal Challenges in the Mexican Context

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Author: Dr César Palacios-Gonzalez Discussions about maternal health and rights in Mexico tend to focus on health outcomes and access to healthcare. Academics and activists have long campaigned for the government to invest more resources in maternal health. Unfortunately, healthcare provision for women who want to have a child and are struggling to conceive hasn’t received enough… Read More »Uterus Transplants – Ethical and Legal Challenges in the Mexican Context