Biosafety and Bioethics
Code
10653
Academic unit
Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia
Department
Departamento de Ciências Sociais Aplicadas
Credits
3.0
Teacher in charge
Palmira de Jesus Fontes da Costa
Weekly hours
4
Teaching language
Português
Objectives
- To contextualize the ethical dimension of the life sciences and their applications;
- To promote an informed debate on the increasing importance of the life sciences and biotechnology in society;
- To debate to what extent science is neutral and the issue of the social responsibility of scientists;
- To develop the ability of students to contextualize and to debate scientific and ethical problems.
Prerequisites
There are no requirements.
Subject matter
1. The rise of Bioethics: Historical context;
2. The nature and scope of Ethics, Bioethics and Biosafety;
3. The responsability of scientists towards society;
4. Ethics and research in the Life Sciences: plagiarism, fraud, processes of publication, codes of conduct and comitees.
5. Specific ethical Issues raised by Genetics and Biotechnology: Patents; Access to genetic information; Cloning and steam cells; Gene therapy; Organ and tissue transplants in the biotechnological era; Gene editing in human embryos.;
6. Ethics and Synthetic Biology;
7. Ethics and animals: Utilitarism and animal walfare; Should non-human animals have rights?, Experimentation on animals; Alternative methods to animal experimentation; Ethics and Biodiversity.
8. Genetic Modified Organisms and Biotechnological agriculture.
9. Biosafety: Risk assessment, The precautionary principle, Biosafety in laboratories; The Cartagena Biosafety Protocol.
10. Bioethical issues in some cultures and religions.
Bibliography
Ben Mephan, Bioethics: An Introduction to the Biosciences, Oxford University Press, 2008.
Cristina Beckert (ed.), Ética Ambiental, Uma Ética para o Futuro, Centro de Filosofia da Universidade de Lisboa, 2003.
H. Kuhse & P. Singer, (eds.). A Companion to Bioethics. Blackwell, 1998.
Humberto Rosa, Bioética para as Ciências Naturais, FLAD/NSF International Bioethics Institute, 2002.
James Rachels, Elementos de Filosofia Moral, Gradiva, 2003.
Peter Singer, Ética Prática, Gradiva, 2000.
Palmira Fontes da Costa (ed.), Ciência, Ética e Cidadania: Reflexões de Cientistas Nobel, Lisboa, Ed. Autor, 2015.
Teaching method
Theoretical calsses; PowerPoint presentations; debate of case studies; role playing; documentaries; presentation and disucssion of a film and of a documentary related to the discipline; semminars.
Evaluation method
Students need to attend at least two thirds of the theorethica-practical classes in order to be approved in the course.
This course has continuous assesement
Evaluation theoretical classes:
Test (35%): 29th May 2016.
Accomplishment of tasks related to the discipline (15%).
Evaluation of pratical classes:
Oral presentation and promotion of debate of an article on bioethcs (groups of two or three elements) (40%).
Elaboration of small tasks related to the course (10%).
Participation can contribute to adjust the final grade of the student.