Who Determine Ethical Standards

Honors 232, Biology in Society, Lecture #4 Questions

-Who determines the ethical guidelines and standards for scientists and how are they enforced?

The scientific community, in a sense, is a self-regulating group for scientists. All scientists are a part of the scientific community and hold each other to a strict set of ethical guidelines and standards. They expect each other to rigorously scrutinize scientific ideas for flawed logic, act honestly and with integrity, give credit to others when it is due, and adhere to ethical guidelines. Scientists trust each other to adhere to the strict standards and ethical guidelines they created; if not, there is a case of scientific misconduct. Scientific misconduct happens when scientists fail to fairly scrutinize others’ work, report cases honestly, assign credit, and follow ethical guidelines. However, these cases of scientific misconduct often do not go unnoticed and unpunished for long, as peer review will expose fraudulence. Thus, while the scientific community relies on the honor code to

follow ethical guidelines and standards, those who do break the honor code will be exposed and punished.

-How does the general public influence scientific research?
Even if it does not seem like it, the general public has great influence over scientific research.

Scientific research requires money, and research topics that are deemed more valuable or acceptable by society are more likely to receive funding. The general public can sway where funding is directed to, either indirectly through politics or directly by donating to certain causes. Society also influences scientific research through its needs; many scientists conduct research looking for solutions with potential applications. The needs and problems of the general public, therefore, are an important driving force for scientific research. Additionally, scientists have values and beliefs that developed as a result of the larger culture of the general public. Because scientists are inherently influenced by their own personal views, the questions they pursue and the methods they use to research are indirectly influenced by the general

public.

-If you were a member of Congress asked to vote on the Research Works Act (which favors a traditional publishing model), how would you vote and why?
If I were a member of Congress voting on the Research Works Act, I’d vote against the bill in the support of open access. I believe that information, especially scientific knowledge, deserves to be readily accessible to the public. Before the age of the Internet, scientists really did need journal publications to spread their work to a wider audience. Today, people carry smartphones in their pockets that readily access the Internet and its huge database of information. Having knowledge is power, and scientific information can be used to progress society immensely. A lack of open access to scientific knowledge will only limit our potential for advancing humankind.

-Describe what you think the pros and cons of a “citizen science” project such as this are.
“Citizen science” projects have both positive and negative aspects. One benefit of these kinds of projects is having more manpower to help with research. “Citizen science” projects can be accessed by the billions of people who use the Internet, allowing that many more people to assist with collecting data and furthering research. Additionally, “citizen science” projects serve as great education tools to expose the public to science. These projects allow people to be actively involved with research, making science less remote. However, it is impossible to guarantee high quality data reporting with “citizen science” projects, as anyone can provide input regardless of educational background or experience with science. Peer review is also hugely impractical and unfeasible with so many contributors. However, I think the pros of “citizen science” projects outweigh the cons; perhaps involving people of various backgrounds, particularly children, and exposing them to science will encourage them to develop a greater love for the subject.