3TU.Centre for ethics and technology
http://www.ethicsandtechnology.eu/index.php
This is the homepage of 3TU.Centre for Ethics and Technology. Also known as 3TU.Ethics, the centre focuses on the philosophy of science, technology and engineering. It is a collaboration of the philosophy departments of the following three universities in the Netherlands: Eindhoven University of Technology; Delft University of Technology; and the University of Twente. This website informs visitors of news and events; and about the research programmes and projects undertaken by the centre. They may access a selection of recent publications by staff members. A publication database is provided. There is also information about recent publications in the field. Links are provided to relevant websites. A search engine is available.
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Abortion and ethics
http://ethics.sandiego.edu/Applied/Abortion/
'Abortion and ethics' is a website that provides a range of materials on the topic of abortion. It displays, among other things, a number of video presentations which discuss the moral issues raised by abortion. It also makes available court decisions; powerpoint presentations; legislative and religious documents; online surveys; news updates; suggested topics for classroom discussions; and links to relevant websites. There are also online full-text articles, and a bibliography of print-based articles, books and essays. The site is maintained by Lawrence M. Hinman of the University of San Diego.
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Advisory committee on human radiation experiments
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/radiation/
'Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments' is a website which provides detailed information about the activities of the 14-member committee which was set up in 1994 to investigate claims of unethical practices in human radiation experiments by the U.S. government between the 1940s and the 1970s. It was chaired by Ruth M. Faden, the Philip Franklin Wagley Professor of Biomedical Ethics at Johns Hopkins University. The site is maintained by the National Security Archive at The George Washington University and contains, among other things: background information about the experiments; information on the aims and composition of the committee; and transcripts of their reports. A useful resource for those interested in medical and research ethics.
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AMA medical ethics
http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/2416.html
This is the American Medical Association (AMA)'s webpage on medical ethics. It contains: information about the mission and organization of its Ethics Group; the Association's Code of Medical Ethics; a bulletin of upcoming ethics events; and a downloadable copy of the professional oath it drafted for the 21st century entitled 'Declaration of Professional Responsibility: Medicine's Social Contract with Humanity' (also available in French; German; Japanese, Mandarin and Spanish). Access is given to the full-text of all articles featured since 1999 in Virtual Mentor, the AMA's Ethics Journal. Viewers are further apprised of the Association's plans to: enhance professionalism, encourage physician volunteerism, and improve public health.
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Ambivalent GM nation? Public attitudes to biotechnology in the UK, 1991-2002
http://ec.europa.eu/research/biosociety/pdf/ambivalent_gm_nation_uk.pdf
This is the online version of a research report entitled 'Ambivalent GM nation? Public attitudes to biotechnology in the UK, 1991-2002' published in July 2003. A constituent of the Life Sciences in European Society project, the research addresses issues like the media's portrayal of genetically modified food, the factors behind opposition to genetic modification, and the development of attitudes to applications of biotechnology in the last decade of the twentieth century. The report, which is in PDF format, starts with a short summary of the history of biotechnology and GM foods, and of the research itself. The main content is delivered in five parts: an introduction; media coverage of biotechnology; public perceptions; implications for GM nation; and sources and further information. The research was led by Professor George Gaskell of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).
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American scientific affiliation : a fellowship of Christians in science
http://www.asa3.org/
This is the homepage of the American Scientific Affiliation (ASA). The organization was established in 1941 to study matters relating to the intersection between science and the Christian Faith, and to disseminate the results resulting from those investigations. This website contains information about their history, mission and membership. Visitors are allowed access to numerous resources. These include: the full-contents of their official journal 'Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith' (PSCF) and their bimonthly newsletter which is published jointly with the Canadian Scientific and Christian Affiliation (CSCA). There are pages dedicated to discussion of the following topics: Bible and Science; Creation/Evolution; and Whole Person Education Embracing Science and Faith. Visitors may here access resources like articles and audio/video recordings of lectures. The website also links them to the homepages of relevant organizations. A search engine is available.
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American society for bioethics and humanities
http://www.asbh.org
This is the homepage of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities (ASBH). The organization was established in 1998 to encourage interdisciplinary and interprofessional collaboration amongst those working in the fields of medical ethics and the health-related humanities. The site provides general information about the organization and its membership, and gives access to a small number of handbooks. Of particular use to students of medical ethics are lists of annotated links to relevant websites arranged under the following themes: Academic Centres and Programs; Government and Public Policy; History of Medicine; Law; Medicine and the Humanities; Online Texts and Resources; Organizations and Networks; and Science and Technology.
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Animal ethics infolink
http://www.animalethics.org.au/
'Animal Ethics Infolink' is a website maintained by the New South Wales' Department of Primary Industries and Animal Research Review Panel. Its primary objective is to assist those working in animal ethics committees in New South Wales by providing them with helpful information about the latest legislation and policies which govern their work. The site would nevertheless be of use to anyone researching on or interested in the ethical issues involved in the use of animals in scientific research. It allows access to a number of useful resources including: the Australian Code of Practice for the Care and Use of Animals for Scientific Purposes and other codes of practice; information on the role and types of Animal Ethics Committees; newsletters and annual reports; and annotated links to online courses and educational materials and other websites of interest. The site provides a search engine.
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Animal welfare and ethics resources for youth and college agricultural educators
http://www.nal.usda.gov/awic/pubs/ethics.htm
'Animal Welfare and Ethics Resources for Youth and College Agricultural Educators' is an online document which offers useful information about the range of teaching and learning resources available on animal welfare and ethics.
It provides a list of audiovisuals relating to the care and welfare of animals in general, and of livestock like cattle, horses, sheeps and goats. Details are also given of books, proceedings, bibliographies and articles that cover issues like livestock ethics, and the transportation and handling of farm animals. There are annotated links to other websites and the homepages of relevant organizations. The document is part of a series of resources published by the US Department of Agriculture's Animal Welfare Information Centre (AWIC).
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Animals and alternatives in testing : history, science, and ethics
http://caat.jhsph.edu/publications/animal_alternatives/index.htm
This website allows full access to 'Animals and Alternatives in Testing: History, Science, and Ethics', a book written by Joanne Zurlo, Deborah Rudacille and Alan Goldberg. Published by Mary Ann Liebert Inc. in 1994, the work is organised under the following chapter headings: Science and Society; The Eye of Science; Toxicology and Toxicity Testing; Science In Vitro; and Animal Experimentation: Ethics and Law. Also available are the bibliography; glossary of terms and appendices. The site is maintained by the Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT) at the Johns Hopkins University, USA. A useful resource for those interested in research ethics.
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Assisted dying for the terminally ill bill
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200506/ldbills/036/06036.i.html
This website makes available the full-text of the Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill. It was introduced as a private members bill by Lord Joel Joffe, a retired human rights lawyer, in the wake of heart-rending cases like those of Diane Pretty's and Reginald Crew's. The bill seeks to make it lawful for doctors to assist terminally ill patients to end their lives. The contents, divided into 16 sections, could be downloaded from the site without charge. The resource would be of interest to those studying ethics at the end of life.
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Atlas Shrugged
http://www.atlasshrugged.com/
'Atlas Shrugged' is a free website providing materials for the study of Ayn Rand's 1957 novel of the same name. Published by the Ayn Rand Institute, this website provides an accessible study-guide to an influential novel that has sold six million copies and continues to sell 185,000 copies each year. The website is best used after a full reading of the novel, since it contains numerous 'plot spoilers'. The website contains a 'History of Atlas Shrugged', audio commentaries and recordings, a chapter-by-chapter video examination of the themes and ideas to be found in the novel, a full profile of Rand and her works, and links to a handful of selected external websites.
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Austin Community College library research guides : medical ethics
http://researchguides.austincc.edu/medicalethics
This Austin Community College Library Research Guide offers an interesting selection of annotated links to medical ethics resources on the Internet. These are organised into the following subject headings: general medical ethics; abortion; animal testing; death, dying, and hospice; human cloning; euthanasia/assisted suicide; medical records; palliative care and pain; and religious bioethics. The site also offers RSS feeds detailing recent articles, although some of the material linked to is only accessible to Austin students, and some only to members of institutions subscribing to the relevant journals.
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Bad blood : the Tuskegee syphilis study
http://www.healthsystem.virginia.edu/internet/library/historical/medical_hi
This is an online exhibition on the Tuskegee Syphilis Study which was carried out by the US Public Health Service between 1932 and 1972. In its aim to document how syphilis spreads and kills, the work enlisted the participation of 399 African Americans in Alabama who were suffering from the disease. Told only that they were being treated for 'bad blood', all forms of known therapy were deliberately withheld from them. The deception, described as 'deeply, profoundly, morally wrong' by Bill Clinton in the official apology issued to the victims and their family members on behalf of the US Government in 1997, remains one of the most disturbing episodes in the history of medical research and experimentation. This website makes available the Final Report of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study Legacy Committee produced on the 20th of May 1996 and provides links to the full transcript of the Presidential Apology and other relevant sites.
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BBC News : aids in Africa : the orphaned continent
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/in_depth/africa/2000/aids_in_africa
This BBC News website depicts Africa's ongoing and serious struggle with the AIDS epidemic. Through resources like correspondents' despatches, audio-video recordings and interviews, it firstly gives an overview of how widespread the problem is in the continent. It then takes a close look at the situation in South Africa, Uganda and Senegal. From there it draws attention to the issue of how and why important drugs are not reaching those who need them most. A factfile on AIDS, a discussion forum and links to the home pages of relevant organisations are also provided. The site is well-presented and easy to navigate. It is an interesting resource for health care ethics' students.
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BBC news : euthanasia special report
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/health/euthanasia/basics.stm
This interesting website on Euthanasia is presented by the BBC using reports from its news archive. The materials are organised into five fact files. The first gives an overview of euthanasia, a glossary of terms, and discusses the legal positions in the UK and Europe. The second puts across the views of those on opposing sides of the debate and of the medical profession. The third file studies a number of high profile cases including that of Dr David Moor, Annie Lindsell and Mary Ormerod. The fourth reports on what happens elsewhere particularly in jurisdictions that have legalised euthanasia. Attention is also drawn to the case of Dr Jack Kevorkian who was a strong proponent of physician-assisted suicide. The final file looks at the future and considers the position in law and practice, and issues like terminal care and the ageing population. The website also contains some reports that are available in audio and video forms, and offers links to the home pages of pro-life and pro-choice organisations and to websites dealing with the issue from the religious and medical perspectives.
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Belgian act on euthanasia of May, 28th 2002
http://www.kuleuven.ac.be/cbmer/viewpic.php?LAN=E&TABLE=DOCS&ID=23
This website provides the (unofficial) English translation of the Belgian Act on Euthanasia originally issued at Brussels on the 28th of May 2002. The Act contains 16 sections in all and euthanasia is there defined as "intentionally terminating life by someone other than the person concerned, at the latter's request". Other provisions include those on: the conditions for performing euthanasia and the procedures to be followed; advance directives; the need to notify the Federal Control and Evaluation Commission within 4 working days of performing the act; and the composition and responsibilities of the Commission. The resource, which is maintained by the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, would be useful for those seeking to learn how the subject of euthanasia is treated in other countries.
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Belmont report : ethical principles and guidelines for the protection of human subjects of research
http://ohsr.od.nih.gov/guidelines/belmont.html
The Belmont Report is a set of ethical guidelines intended to protect human research subjects. The full text of the report is available from the website of the US-based National Institutes of Health's Office of Human Subjects Research. The report is the work of the US National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, which was created in 1974 to help identify the basic ethical principles that should underlie such research, and from there, to formulate guidelines that should be adhered to when these activities are undertaken. It was chaired by Dr Kenneth John Ryan of the Boston Hospital for Women. The report, released on the 18th of April 1979, contains background information about the commission and provides a summary of the basic ethical principles identified.
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BioCentre
http://www.bioethics.ac.uk/
'BioCentre' is the homepage of the British think-tank set up in 1984 to promote ethical discussions related to developments in medicine, science and technology. Resources provided on this website include briefing papers; consultations; and articles on a diverse range of bioethics dilemmas (e.g infertility treatments; surrogacy; assisted suicide; prolonging the life of seriously ill newborns; advance directives; the status of the human embryo; euthanasia; stem cells; genetic testing; prenatal diagnosis; and xenotransplantation). Also accessible are the centre's newsletters; its monthly commentaries on current issues in bioethics; press releases; and details of past and forthcoming events. A search engine is available. This should be an interesting resource for students of medical ethics.
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BioEdge : bioethics news from around the world
http://www.bioedge.org/
This is the homepage of BioEdge, an independent weekly newsletter which focuses on bioethical issues from around the world. It is published by New Media Foundation and edited by Michael Cook, a Melbourne-based journalist. This website allows access to materials published from December 2003 to the latest issue. It covers a wide range of topics which include: stem cell research; organ donation; therapeutic cloning; reproductive technologies; animal research; euthanasia; hybrid embryos; gene therapy; infanticide; sex selection; obesity; cosmetic surgery; surrogacy; and abortion. This should be an interesting resource for students of medical ethics as it provides them with up-to-date information about such developments from different parts of the world. The site provides a search engine and navigation is straightforward.
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Bioethics (UNESCO)
http://portal.unesco.org/shs/en/ev.php-URL_ID=1372&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECT
This is the website of the UNESCO Bioethics Programme which was launched in 1993. It informs readers about the initiatives and works undertaken by the International Bioethics Committee (IBC) and the Intergovernmental Bioethics Committee (IGBC). Further available are declarations (including the Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights, and the International Declaration on Human Genetic Data); discussion papers; official statements and information about books issued by UNESCO on topics related to bioethics. There is also a searchable database which contains information about bioethics institutions around the world (including details of their activities and publications). An interesting resource for students of medical ethics.
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Bioethics advisory committee, Singapore
http://www.bioethics-singapore.org/
This is the official website of Singapore's Bioethics Advisory Committee (BAC). The body was created in December 2000 to investigate and report on the ethical, legal and social issues surrounding biomedical research in Singapore. This website enables access to all the reports; consultation papers; press releases and speeches issued by the committee. Other resources made available are articles (which can be viewed in PDF format); brief notes on stem cell, cloning, human tissue research, genetics, biomedical sciences and bioethics; a list of FAQs; information on past and upcoming events; and partially annotated links to relevant Singaporean and international websites. This resource would be of interest to medical ethics students and researchers, especially those carrying out comparative work.
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Bioethics discussion pages
http://www-hsc.usc.edu/~mbernste/
'Bioethics Discussion Pages' is a website hosted by Maurice Bernstein, M.D. Members of the public are here invited to pose questions and air their views regarding ethical misgivings arising from advances in biology and medicine. Responses are posted on these pages to encourage further discussion. Issues dealt with to date include: the transfer of patient information from one physician to another; participation in randomised clinical drug trial; refusal of unwanted treatment by pregnant women; commercialisation of eggs and sperms for reproduction; rights of insurance companies to genetic test results; and physician-assisted suicide. Polls are also taken on controversial issues, and their results and interpretations displayed on these pages. This would be an interesting resource for medical ethics students. Note, however, that the site does not seem to be updated regularly.
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Bioethics education project
http://rcpsc.medical.org/bioethics/intro_e.php
'Bioethics Education Project (BEProject)' is a website maintained by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC). The project, which aims to assist residents and their instructors in the teaching and learning of bioethics, is chaired by Drs Charles Weijer and David McKnight. The site contains background information about the project and information about the college's Web-based bioethics curriculum. It also offers a selection of case studies (with questions and discussion), along with a collection of primers on key topics like conflict resolution; moral theory and research ethics. A search engine is available. This should be an interesting resource for teachers and students of medical ethics.
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Bioethics forum
http://www.bioethicsforum.org
Bioethics Forum aims to take advantage of the timeliness and liveliness of the internet to broaden and deepen discussion about bioethical issues. Maintained by The Hastings Center, this website contains diverse commentaries on a wide range of topical dilemmas in this area. These can be browsed according to Author's Name; Date (which goes back to 2006); and Subject. The Subject list includes the following topics: Bioethics; Bioethics and the Law; Caregiving; Human Bodies; Human Reproduction; Medical Research; Medicine and Business; Pharmaceutics; Research; Science and Society; and Science and Technology. The site also provides links to recent bioethics issues that make newspaper headlines. It holds a search engine. This should be an interesting resource for students of medical ethics.
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