Practical Ethics

Should we be afraid of virtual reality?

Prominent authors like Susan Greenfield and Roger Scruton have raised worries about the rise of virtual worlds such as Second Life, which they fear might have a negative impact on human relationships, as people increasingly spend their lives hidden behind an “avatar”. The movie Surrogates, recently released, precisely pictures a future humanity that lives as it were by proxy: the story takes place in a world where people stay at home and send remote-controlled “surrogates” – androids that are typically younger and better-looking versions of themselves – out in the world to do things for them. In the same vein, American futurologist Ray Kurzweil predicts that within a quarter of a century, virtual reality (VR) will rival the real world: “If we want to go into virtual-reality mode”, he says, “nanobots will shut down brain signals and take us wherever we want to go. Virtual sex will become commonplace”. However, far from sharing the worries of people like Greenfield and Scruton, Kurzweil believes this is a prospect we should look forward to.*

 

Pandemic ethics: Mild flu and Tamiflu - the patient’s dilemma

In recent days there have been reports of a jump in the number of cases of H1N1 influenza (swine flu) in the UK. There have been 29 deaths associated with pandemic influenza in the UK, and there are 652 people in hospital in England with the flu. Faced with the prospect of primary health care services becoming overwhelmed, the government has set up a telephone hotline to allow those affected by the flu to access antiviral drugs (for example oseltamivir or Tamiflu) without needing to see a doctor. But there are also suggestions that not all patients with flu-like symptoms should be treated. Patients with mild or vague symptoms of the flu, without other medical conditions that put them at particular risk, may not be given medication.

This sets up a problem for patients who develop mild flu-like symptoms. Although there is only a small chance of them becoming seriously ill or dying from the flu it is possible that early treatment with anti-virals would reduce that risk. (Antivirals were only effective in trials if given in the first 48 hours of illness) Should they demand treatment from their doctor in the hope of avoiding a serious complication of influenza? Should they exaggerate their symptoms? If the doctor refuses, should the patient self-treat with medications that they have obtained privately (for example over the internet)? There is a form of the classic prisoner’s dilemma involved in such questions.

Tennis and Sex

Once a week I thrash around haplessly on the tennis court.   This week, I’m also a tennis spectator.  While the global economy implodes, at least one event appears to be untouched – the 2009 Australian Tennis Open.    Andrew Murray’s defeat yesterday means he can’t now net the eye-watering AUD$2 million first prize for the men’s single title.   The women’s champion will earn....well, exactly the same, AUD $2million.

After a long running campaign by various groups, all the Grand Slams tennis tournaments now offer   equal prize money to both sexes:  Wimbledon fell into line in 2007.  The argument was that just as no distinction should be made between women and men in the office, so there should be no distinction drawn on the court.