PHI Test 1 Review
Recall Roe v. Wade, which remains of great historical interest despire being overturned by Dobbs v. Jackson's Women's Health Organization. Match the term to the correct phrase. 1. Viability 2. 14th Amendment 3. 1st trimester 4. 2nd trimester 5. 3rd trimester
1. Means that the fetus can live outside the mother's womb 2. Primary justification for SCOTUS ruling 3. Woman has full abortion rights 4. Government can regulate to protect the mother's health 5. Government is required only to make exceptions for the life or health of the mother
Match the term to the definition 1. what is supported by the premises 2. error in reasoning 3. a valid form of argument 4. what supports the conclusion 5. premises, if true, guarantee the conclusion 6. valid plus true premises
1. conclusion 2. fallacy 3. modus ponens 4. premise 5. valid 6. sound
Singer compares slapping which two sentient entities?
A horse and an infant
Match the facts of the case with the person. 1. Became an attorney 2. Requested removal of feeding tube 3. Great pain from cerebral palsy 4. Severely burned 5. Dunked in chlorinated baths
1. Dax Cowart 2. Elizabeth Bouvia 3. Elizabeth Bouvia 4. Dax Cowart 5. Dax Cowart
According to Utilitarianism, whether an action is right or wrong depends entirely on how much happiness it produces for those people that believe Utilitarianism is correct.
False
Almost all physicians (medical doctors) are required to swear to the classical version of the Hippocratic oath.
False
Both the moral theories of cultural relativism and utilitarianism postulate that the same moral rules hold true for all cultures.
False
Given that Darwinian evolutionary theory emphasizes the similarities and differences between individual animals instead of emphasizing species, Rachels' theory of moral individualism takes it as unimportant that we should be sensitive to these similarities and differences in determining what is morally right or wrong.
False
In Japan's healthcare system, the government does not set the prices for medical services.
False
In the United Kingdom, hospitals do not compete for government funding.
False
Marquis' strategy in arguing that abortion is immoral is to identify the particular feature of fetuses that makes it wrong to kill them, whether or not this particular feature is what makes killing adults and children wrong.
False
Mill's proof of the principle of utility relies on the observation that people desire love.
False
Rachels contends that although what he calls mathobiology (the study of our mathematical capacities through biology) should not replace mathematics, sociobiology (as Wilson conceives it) is a legitimate replacement for ethics and moral philosophy.
False
Scientific evidence shows that several epidemics and pandemics in recent human history were not likely caused by contact with some type of animal.
False
Suppose that non-human animals have the capacity to experience pain and pleasure, and thus to suffer or be happy. True or False: Utilitarianism implies that we should take the above-mentioned capacities into account in assessing our dietary and scientific practices that involve animals, but only if the pain and suffering the animal experiences as a result of our practices also causes us (the humans) to have sympathy for the animals.
False
Suppose the following: You are applying the Open Question Argument (OQA) to the theory that the term "good" is equivalent in meaning to the term "maximum pleasure". Also, let X = the result of an action. Now...True or False: The two questions one should form in applying the OQA are as follows.Q1: X has maximum pleasure, but is X wrong?Q2: X has maximum pleasure, but is X maximum pleasure?
False
The Cartesian theory of mind maintains that the mind is extended in both space and time.
False
The SCOTUS ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson's Women's Health Organization affirmed the core findings of Casey v. Planned Parenthood while overruling Roe v. Wade.
False
The entitlement theory of justice promoted by Nozick would be more likely to justify installing a universal health care system in a given nation than would the theory of justice advanced by Rawls.
False
The following form of argument is valid. Not Q. If P, then Q. Therefore, P.
False
The three principles of justice in the Entitlement Theory are the following: justice in acquisition, justice in transfer, and justice as fairness.
False
Whereas utilitarianism (e.g., Mill's moral theory) contends only that the intentions behind actions matter in ethical assessment, deontology (e.g., Kant's moral theory) contends that only the consequences matter in ethical assessment.
False
In which case did the U.S. Supreme Court rule in favor of a constitutional right to privacy?
Griswold v. Connecticut
Tooley argues that the debate over the morality of abortion comes down to what he calls the Potentiality Principle. How does Tooley argue against the Potentiality Principle?
He argues that considerations of "moral symmetry" falsify the Potentiality Principle.
Which of the following arguments is an example of begging the question?
Healthcare is essential to the security of our nation's people, so we must establish universal healthcare to secure the nation.
Which of the following is a moral duty, according to Kant's moral theory?
Help others sometimes.
According to the Land Ethic, which statement best characterizes human beings?
Humans are citizens of the land.
Tooley suggests that infanticide is important to discuss when thinking about the morality of abortion. Why?
It forces one to specify, even more so than when considering abortion, the exact nature of persons.
Which statement best characterizes English's graded view of the moral justification of abortion?
Sometimes late-term abortions are justifiable, and sometimes early-term abortions are justifiable.
The states in the United States that have laws allowing physician-assisted suicide arrived at these laws in different ways: some by referendum, some by legislation, some by court ruling, and so on.
True.
Which of the following most accurately characterizes Darwin's theory of evolution?
Variable traits of organisms are selected by nature and passed on to future generations.
Suppose that Rachels' cases of Smith and Jones show that there is no moral distinction between 'X killing Y' and 'X letting Y die' (where X and Y are persons). Which of the following implications is most accurate?
There is no moral distinction between active and passive euthanasia regardless of whether it is voluntary or non-voluntary.
According to Nozick, a significant problem with theories of justice that aim for a patterned or structured distribution of goods is that personal liberty continually disrupts the distribution.
True
According to Singer's utilitarian analysis of animal experimentation, there are specific conditions under which an animal researcher should also be willing to perform the same experiment on a human as they would on an animal.
True
Which two actions listed below do the values of Self-Determination and Individual Well-Being support as morally permissible, as argued by Dan Brock?
Voluntary active euthanasia and voluntary ending of life-sustaining treatment.
Given that Darwinian evolutionary theory emphasizes the similarities and differences between individual animals instead of emphasizing species, Rachels' theory of moral individualism takes it as important that we should be sensitive to these similarities and differences in determining what is morally right or wrong.
True
It is important to be familiar with the time line of fetal development in order to discuss possible points at which the fetus becomes a person (e.g., first movement, nervous system development, viability).
True
It is important to keep studying philosophy in pandemics and other crises, because ethics, logic, and other subfields of philosophy improve our critical thinking and ability to make good moral decisions.
True
James Rachels argues that Darwinian evolutionary theory undermines support for the Doctrine of Human Dignity (that humans alone are sacred).
True
If Mill's Harm Principle is true, then what does it necessarily imply about the morality of abortion?
Whether abortion is permissible or impermissible depends on whether it causes harm to others.
Assume the Harm Principle is true. What does the Harm Principle imply about your actions?
Your self-regarding actions are protected from interference by society. Your other-regarding actions may be regulated by society to protect others from harm.
Kant argues, in the assigned selection, that if a person "destroys himself in order to escape from painful circumstances, he uses a person merely as a means to maintain a tolerable condition up to the end of life. But a man is not a thing, that is to say, something which can be used merely as a means, but must in all his actions be always considered an end in himself." True or False: In the above passage, Kant is arguing that it is morally wrong to commit suicide.
True
Mill's proof of the principle of utility relies on the observation that people desire happiness.
True
Searle's criticism of the Cartesian view of animal minds claims that, roughly, speech is a poor indicator of whether an entity (animal or human) has a mind.
True
Suppose that one objects to the Moral Symmetry Principle by saying that positive duties are more important than negative duties. True or false: Tooley responds to this objection by emphasizing that when motives/intentions are the same in two actions, then there is no difference between them even though in one you do something positive while in the other you refrain from doing something. [You can assume the results of the two actions are the same too.]
True
Supposing that Cultural Relativism is true, if the people of a specific culture, C, believe that euthanasia is morally permissible, then that is a moral truth for people in C regardless of what other cultures believe about the morality of euthanasia.
True
The Valuable Future Theory, as discussed by Marquis, does not exclude the possibility that some non-human animals may also have valuable futures that give them rights.
True
The available scientific evidence suggests that races (i.e., racial kinds) are social kinds, not biological kinds. That is, 'race' is determined significantly by social factors, such as culture and social hierarchy, not so much by biological factors such as strict genetic differences between groups of people.
True
The point of Thomson's hypothetical story of a child growing without limit in your house, in which you have no escape so that the child will eventually crush you to death, is to demonstrate that you have a right to defend your life (i.e., kill the child) even if others (third parties) aren't allowed to help you.
True
True or False: The anthropocentric view implies that humans could give some consideration in regards to how non-human animals are treated. In other words, the anthropocentric view is compatible with humans giving consideration to animal welfare.
True
True or False: The following argument is valid. "If the earth is flat, then it's very unusual that all other planetary bodies (Mars, Venus, etc.) we observe are spherical. But it's not unusal that all other planetary bodies we observe are spherical. For this reason, the earth is not flat."
True
In her article "What role should race play in medicine?" Dr. Tsai's main thesis about race is that
race should be treated as a marker of potential risk based on socioeconomic and environmental factors.
Suppose that a murderer, M, comes to the door of Jack's house. M asks Jack if Sasha (who fears M wants to kill her) is hiding in Jack's house. Suppose Sasha is, in fact, hiding in Jack's house.According to Kant's Categorical Imperative (Universal Law formulation), Jack should
tell the truth about Sasha's whereabouts.
Identify the claim that most clearly represents a fundamental difference in the theories of Mill and Kant:
whether consequences or intentions are most important in determining right actions.
A 'sphere of moral concern' includes those entities that have moral interests or moral value. Which of these lists of 'spheres of moral concern' increases from narrower to broader (or smallest to largest)?
you --> your nation --> humanity --> the biosphere
Which statement best characterizes the nature of a valid argument?
A valid argument guarantees the truth of its conclusion (if the premises are true). A valid argument has at least two statements (one premise, one conclusion).
Which of the following statements about chimpanzee morality are supported by scientific evidence?
A. Chimpanzees tend to prefer pro-social tokens (which give group rewards from scientists). B. Chimpanzees display empathy with each other through bodily connections such as yawning.
Which view of animal rights could someone possibly accept, while at the same time accepting the "three R's" (replace, reduce, refine) in reforming medical research using animals?
A. The Anthropocentric view B. The Utilitarian view Answer: C. A and B.
Which view(s) of animal rights will, in principle, allow some medical experimentation using animals?
A.Anthropocentrism. B.Utilitarian view.
Let's suppose that action A1 produces 100 units of happiness and action A2 produces 50 units of happiness. Also, suppose that A1 has .5 probability (i.e., 50% probability) of occurring and A2 has 1.0 probability (i.e., 100% probability) of occurring. If we calculate the expected utility of these actions, which action would be recommended (assume all other factors are equal)?
A1 and A2 are equally recommended.
Which of the following is the most logical, or rationally convincing, method of arguing that abortion is morally permissible? (The term 'most logical, or rationally convincing' does not mean that the argument does in fact, or should, convince the audience; it just means that it is better, from a rational point of view, than the other arguments.)
Abortion is morally permissible because pregnant women, who are the ones directly physically affected when they are in fact pregnant, are autonomous beings capable of doing their own risk-benefit analysis of pregnancy.
Which of the following actions would a utilitarian recommend as morally right? (Choose the answer that best represents utilitarian thinking.)
Action 3, which creates 1 million units of pleasure and 900,000 units of pain.
According to Singer's theory of animal rights, in what way are all animals equal? (Which answer best represents Singer's view?)
All animals deserve equal consideration.
According to Leopold's Land Ethic, humans should adopt which of the following views of the 'land' in order to live ethically? (Select the most precise answer.)
An ecological view of the land.
According to Leopold's Land Ethic, which type of view is it an ecological necessity and an evolutionary possibility for humans to adopt?
An ecological view of the land.
Which statement best captures the core normative or moral concept of Regan's Intrinsic Rights View regarding animals' moral standing?
Animals are biographical individuals.
Which of the following best describes Descartes' general reason for denying that animals can feel pain?
Animals do not have mental states.
Which of the following is the most logical, or rationally convincing, method of arguing that (non-human) animals have intrinsic rights?
Animals have rights because they have some of the same mental capacities that humans have.
According to Carl Cohen's view of rights in general, if chimpanzees have rights, then they must not be part of a community of agents in which moral claims are made against other agents.
False
According to Rawls' theory of justice, it is acceptable if the least well off in society do not have their basic needs met.
False
According to Tooley's view, in order for an entity to have a right to not be tortured, the entity needs to have a self-concept.
False
Why is it the case that the moral theories of Utilitarianism, and Cultural Relativism, cannot simultaneously be true? (Choose the best answer, the one that logically shows why the two theories are not consistent with each other.)
Because Utilitarianism is a universal theory, whereas Cultural Relativism is a relativist theory.
How does the Valuable Future Theory not rely on the concept of a person?
Because it holds that some entity could, in principle, have a valuable future even though it is not a person.
In response to Singer's Utilitarian view of animal rights, Carl Cohen offers this dilemma: Either rodents and humans have equal rights, or neither rodents nor humans have rights. Both options are unacceptable, says Cohen; therefore, Singer's anti-speciesist view is false. If you support Singer's Utilitarian view, what would be the best response to Cohen, that is, the one that most accurately reflects the Utilitarian view?
Both rodents and humans deserve equal consideration, but equal consideration does not imply equal treatment.
Suppose every competent, conscious patient with a fatal disease has the moral right to end their life-sustaining treatment (that is, they have the right to refuse further medicines or technologies that keep them alive). Suppose further that there is no moral distinction between killing and letting die (that is, suppose that Rachels is right). Given these suppositions, which of the following statements is most accurate? (Ignore the role of the physician in this question: just focus on the rights of the patient.)
Every competent, conscious patient, besides the moral right to end life-sustaining treatment, also has a moral right to active euthanasia.
According to Rachels' assessment, which of the following statements best characterizes the relationship between Darwinism (i.e., Darwinian evolutionary theory) and the Doctrine of Human Dignity?
Darwinism undermines both the Image of God thesis and the Rationality thesis which are used to support the Doctrine of Human Dignity.
Is the following question primarily a question regarding metaphysics, epistemology, or ethics? "How can we be justified that our beliefs match or correspond to real events and objects?"
Epistemology
Which premise should be filled in for (C1) in the argument below to make the argument valid?(P1) Assuming that non-human animals have intrinsic rights, then they are biographical creatures and should not be used for food or experiments.(P2) Non-human animals are not biographical creatures and they should be used for food and experiments.(C1)
Non-human animals do not have intrinsic rights.
The Valuable Future Theory, as discussed by Don Marquis, requires that which of the following claims is true?
None of these choices accurately identify requirements of VFT.
According to the Moral Symmetry Principle (as advanced by Tooley) which of the following is most accurate? (Let A be an action that can start C, where C is a causal process that will lead to an entity, E, with a serious right to life; B is an action that can stop C, once C has started, thus preventing E from coming into existence.)
Not doing A and doing B are morally equivalent provided that the intentions are the same for both actions.
Which statement below best describes the two questions formed in any application of the Open Question Argument?
One question is trivial; one question is open for discussion.
The Universal Law formulation of the Categorical Imperative states that:
One should act only on those maxims that one can will to become universal laws.
Which of the following statements accurately describe a consequence or implication of cultural relativism?
Over time, contradictions can arise in the beliefs of a single culture. Any contradictory beliefs between different cultures are equally true.
What state of affairs is described below? (Choose the most precise and accurate answer.) "By going back and forth, sometimes altering the conditions of the contractual circumstances, at others withdrawing our judgments and conforming them to principle, I assume that eventually we shall find a description of the initial situation that both expresses reasonable conditions and yields principles which match our considered judgments duly pruned and adjusted."
Reflective equilibrium.
Kant argues that a person, "who is in prosperity, while he sees that others have to contend with great wretchedness and that he could help them, thinks: What concern is it of mine? Let everyone be as happy as Heaven pleases, or as he can make himself; I will take nothing from him nor even envy him, only I do not wish to contribute anything to his welfare or to his assistance in distress. Now no doubt if such a mode of thinking were a universal law, the human race might very well subsist, and doubtless even better than in a state in which everyone talks of sympathy and good-will, or even takes care occasionally to put it into practice, but, on the other side, also cheats when he can, betrays the rights of men, or otherwise violates them. But although it is possible that a universal law of nature might exist in accordance with that maxim, it is impossible to will that such a principle should have the universal validity of a law of nature. For a will which resolved this would contradict itself, inasmuch as many cases might occur in which one would have need of the love and sympathy of others, and in which, by such a law of nature, sprung from his own will, he would deprive himself of all hope of the aid he desires." Which of the following statements most accurately summarizes Kant's argument above?
That charity is justified by the Categorical Imperative.
Warren argues that since the fetus meets none of the criteria for being a person, abortion is therefore always morally permissible. What is Warren assuming in making this argument?
That the fetus' personhood status is relevant to the question of the morality of abortion.
One philosopher we studied argued that "If some persons are in prisons for murder or war crimes, we do not say that to assess the justice of the distribution in the society we must look only at what this person has, and that person has, and that person has, . . . at the current time. We think it relevant to ask whether someone did something so that he deserved to be punished, deserved to have a lower share. Most will agree to the relevance of further information with regard to punishments and penalties." Which theory or principle is mostly likely supported by the above reasoning?
The Entitlement Theory.
Which of these is a thought experiment or analogy discussed by Thomson in her famous essay "A Defense of Abortion"?
The Good Samaritan analogy. The Famous Violinist
The implications of the intrinsic rights view of animals is most similar to the implications of which of the following principles (in terms of how the principle applies to humans)?
The Humanity formulation of the Categorical Imperative.
In the following analysis, Marquis is contrasting two accounts of the wrongness of killing. Which two are these? "The symmetry fades, however, when we focus on the time period of the value of the experiences, etc., which has moral consequences. Although both accounts leave open the possibility that the patient in our example may be killed, this possibility is left open only in virtue of the utterly bleak future for the patient. It makes no difference whether the patient's immediate past contains intolerable pain, or consists in being in a coma (which we can imagine is a situation of indifference), or consists in a life of value. If the patient's future is a future of value, we want our account to make it wrong to kill the patient. If the patient's future is intolerable, whatever his or her immediate past, we want our account to allow killing the patient. Obviously, then, it is the value of that patient's future which is doing the work in rendering the morality of killing the patient intelligible."
The discontinuation account and the future-like-ours account.
In the documentary, "Living Old," it is suggested by some individuals that they wish to have the right to end their life by voluntary active euthanasia. One physician states he does not know if he would ever exercise this right, but that he definitely wants it available. Which moral principle below most directly and explicitly supports the idea that people have a moral right to voluntary active euthanasia (or, for that matter, physician-assisted suicide)?
The harm principle.
In discussing the ethics of suicide, Kant states that "we see at once that a system of nature of which it should be a law to destroy life by means of the very feeling whose special nature it is to impel to the improvement of life would contradict itself, and therefore could not exist as a system of nature..." What is the most accurate way to characterize the conclusion in the argument above?
The intention to commit suicide creates a contradiction in conception.
Why does Warren think actual personhood is more important than potential personhood?
The space explorer example.
According to the "Allocation of Scarce Critical Care Resources During a Public Health Emergency" (University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine) document, which of the following is a triage requirement?
The triage team should conduct periodic reassessments of all patients receiving acute care in a crisis.
