I watched a video yesterday at discovermagazine.com (they have some really great interviews/panels). Anyway all of it was interesting, but one particular topic (or question) stayed with me all through the afternoon. The speaker gave two scenario's and asked the audiences opinion. See what you think.
Story 1:A conductor is driving a train. Ahead on the tracks he see's five men tied up and unable to move out of the way. There is a side track he could divert the train onto by pulling a lever, but there is one man tied on that side. Do you think he should sacrifice the one to save the five? Or, I guess the question is would you think he was a moral person in doing so?
Story 2: A doctor has five patients who all need organ transplants (different organs) or they will die, and a healthy person walks in the hospital that could supply all the organs for the doctor's patients. Do you think it is moral for the doctor to kill the one to save the five now?
I can guess what our response would be to each of these stories. The answer is different depending on the situation. Yes for story 1 and no for story 2. The first is a hero, the second is a murderer. The interesting question is why we would answer the questions differently when essentially the same decision is being made. I can't figure it out.
Any thoughts???Come on! I know you have a theory!
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