Is it actually ethical for medical science to try to develop cures for all diseases? Isn't disease helping to keep our population in check? If our population grows too much and depletes our resources, wouldn't wars over resources be the greater harm incurred?

I often find myself in a position where I realize that taking my own life would be very easy. Suppose I am about to cross the street, or am rock climbing; how simple and quick it would be to take one step, just one step, in front of a car or off a cliff. In all likelihood I wouldn't even feel any pain. In this way there seem many scenarios wherein the effective "barrier" to suicide seems practically nonexistent. I must stress: my contemplation of suicide in such instances has nothing to do with depression or even emotion, nor do I mean to make light of those who suffer from such grief; rather, I find the extreme ease with which I may conceptually commit catastrophic acts somewhat counter-intuitive. After all, what is there, really, to dissuade me? Suppose that I am an atheist. what rationale exists that might prevent me from killing myself? For one who is certain (1) that there exists no afterlife, and, further, (2) that there is no consciousness after death (i.e., I won't "miss" anything of life or...

I am a police officer and I have a dilemma. Everyday I see people destroyed from the effects of alcohol abuse. I have seen innocent people killed by people under the influence of alcohol. In some instances it was two drunks arguing and one killed another or once a drunk husband shot and killed his wife in front of their children. Then there are the drunk drivers who indiscriminately kill I’ve seen several of those. Now I can say that I have definitely never seen someone killed by another person under the influence of marihuana. I have never seen anyone killed by a driver under the influence of marihuana. I have never seen a person die because they smoked themselves to death, but I have seen quite a few people drink themselves to death. Then I look at the potential medical value of marihuana and when I combine all these things I am beginning to feel that morally I am falling off of a cliff. One-day history may judge me to be a 21st century Nazi. If I deliberately do not make arrests for violations of...

What if a person could indefinitely predict the outcome of a coin flip? I understand that's not much of a question; but I want to know what that would mean in terms of either that single person, or the universe in general. If it happened tomorrow, what happens next?

Hi, First, thanks for creation of this site. Second, I need some information about a greek philosopher with the name of "HEGESIAS" and also his philosophy called "philosophy of death/suicide". I searched in my country (Iran): books,magazines and also asking some professors but I don`t find my wanted, yet. Please if possible mention to some sites (links), books and so on.

I am a physician, and cannot find literature references to recent cognitive neurophysiological research which should theoretically radically impinge on modern philosophical understanding of reasoning. I have read that we should be starting to call the love of wisdom 'neurophilosophy', but I haven't seen much collabaration in print. Is it happening, or are the two disciplines sitting snugly in their separate ivory towers? If it is happening, could you direct me to books/publications, etc. which are not too dense. With thanks, Paul Maher

It is often said that if we ever make contact with extra-terrestrials the only language we might share would be mathematics. Whilst prime numbers or pi might communicate “we are intelligent life forms”, can mathematics really say anything more than this?

If archaelogy or some other science were to prove in some manner or another that God really existed, would faith still be necessary? Would faith still exist? I'm not sure if this is a proper philosophical question, but could you guys/gals find it in your hearts to respond? Bernie Hebert Lafayette, LA

In Question 325 (is there a difference between justice and law), Peter Lipton said that a law can be unjust. Reading it, I couldn't move past that question, because if a law is unjust, shouldn't it arguably lose its status as law? I mean it might be a law technically, written down on paper as law, but surely it can only have bad consequences if people follow it and understand it to be law - like the laws regarding Jews and other minorities in Nazi Germany. Is this a valid point at all?

Could math have possibly developed without the cartesian coordinate system? Or is this a necessary and therefore inevitable construct that would must be discovered "sooner or later"? - andy c. nguyen