Agriculture's Ethical Horizon (eBook)

Robert L Zimdahl (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2010 | 1. Auflage
272 Seiten
Elsevier Science (Verlag)
978-0-08-046112-0 (ISBN)

Infos

What are the goals of agricultural science? What should the goals of agricultural science be? How do and how should the practitioners of agriculture address complex ethical questions? These questions are explored in this monumental book so that those in agriculture will begin an open dialoge on the ethics of agriculture.
Discussion of foundational values, of why we practice agriculture as we do, should become a central, rather than peripheral, part of agricultural practice and education. If agricultural scientists do not venture forth to understand and shape the ethical base of the future, it will be imposed by others. Largely autobiographical, this book covers topics such as scientific truth and myth, what agricultural research should be done, an introduction to ethics, moral confidence in agriculture, the relevance of ethics to agriculture, sustainability, and biotechnology.
* Written by an expert who has been engaged in agricultural education and research for over 35 years
* Content is easily understandable by non-philosophers
* The concepts of scientific truth and myth are contrasted and compared
* Chapter sidebars highlight important concepts and can be used to engage students in further discussion
* Companion website will accompany the book with further teaching aids and a discussion board

Robert L. Zimdahl is a Professor of Weed Science at Colorado State University. He received his Ph.D. in Agronomy from Oregon State University. Among his many honors and awards, Dr. Zimdahl was elected a Fellow of the Weed Science Society of America in 1986 and currently serves as editor of that society's journal, Weed Science. He has been a member of several international task forces and has authored a number of books and articles on the subject of weed science.

Inhalt

Front cover 1
Title page 4
Copyright page 5
Table of contents 8
Foreword 12
Preface 20
Acknowledgments 30
1: The Horizon of Agricultural Ethics 32
SCIENTIFIC TRUTH AND MYTH 35
LITERATURE CITED 43
2: The Conduct of Agricultural Science 46
WHAT RESEARCH OUGHT TO BE DONE? 53
LITERATURE CITED 57
3: When Things Go Wrong—Balancing Technology’s Safety and Risk 58
THE DEVELOPMENT OF HERBICIDES 59
PROGRESS OF WEED SCIENCE 62
CHALLENGES 66
THE CONTINUING DEBATE 71
LITERATURE CITED 75
4: An Introduction to Ethics 78
SCIENCE AND EMOTION 80
UNIVERSAL VALUES 81
ETHICS IN AGRICULTURE 84
CONTEMPORARY NORMATIVE ETHICS 85
ETHICAL THEORIES RELEVANT TO AGRICULTURE 88
Ethical Egoism 88
Social Contract Theory 90
Virtue Ethics 91
Deontological or Kantian Ethics 93
Utilitarianism 94
APPLYING ETHICS IN AGRICULTURE AND AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE 97
LITERATURE CITED 100
5: Moral Confidence in Agriculture 104
THE BENEFITS AND COSTS OF MODERN AGRICULTURE 105
GOALS FOR AGRICULTURE 112
Social Goals for Agriculture 112
Environmental Goals for Agriculture 114
EXPANDING AGRICULTURE’S MORAL SCOPE 117
The Utilitarian Standard 117
The Relevance of the Western Agricultural Model 118
Bottom Line Thinking 119
Sustainability 120
CONCLUSION 121
LITERATURE CITED 124
6: The Relevance of Ethics to Agriculture and Weed Science 128
LITERATURE CITED 137
7: Agricultural Sustainability 140
THE PRESENT AGRICULTURAL SITUATION: THE EXAMPLE OF WEED MANAGEMENT 142
THE MORAL CASE FOR SUSTAINABILITY 150
WHAT IS SUSTAINABILITY? 154
WHY MUST SUSTAINABILITY BE ACHIEVED? 157
A CONCLUDING COMMENT ON SUSTAINABLE WEED SCIENCE 162
LITERATURE CITED 164
8: Biotechnology 168
THE DEBATE 169
TECHNOLOGICAL PROBLEMS 171
REGULATION 172
ARGUMENTS IN FAVOR OF AGRICULTURAL BIOTECHNOLOGY 175
ARGUMENTS OPPOSED TO AGRICULTURAL BIOTECHNOLOGY 181
Feeding the World 182
Harm to Human Health 185
Harm to the Environment 188
Transgenic Technology and Sustainable Agricultural Systems 191
THE MORAL ARGUMENTS 194
Labeling and Biotechnology in the U.S. and the EU 195
Affects on Family Farms 197
Academic-Industry Relationships 199
Transgenic Pharming 201
The Precautionary Principle 201
LITERATURE CITED 202
9: How to Proceed 210
WATER LOGGING AND SALINIZATION 214
DESERTIFICATION 217
DEPLETION OF WATER RESOURCES 217
SOIL EROSION 217
POLLUTION 218
LOSS OF FARMERS 218
POPULATION GROWTH 221
DOMINANT SCIENTIFIC MYTHS 224
PRODUCTION AND ETHICS 227
THE IMPERATIVE OF RESPONSIBILITY 228
FINDING PARTNERS 232
MISSION STATEMENTS 233
THE ROLE OF THE UNIVERSITY 238
SUSTAINABILITY AS A GOAL 241
CONCLUSION 248
LITERATURE CITED 257
Index 262

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 26.7.2010
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Sachbuch/Ratgeber
• Themenwelt: Geisteswissenschaften ► Philosophie ► Allgemeines / Lexika
• Themenwelt: Geisteswissenschaften ► Philosophie ► Ethik
• Themenwelt: Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Ökologie / Naturschutz
• Themenwelt: Sozialwissenschaften ► Pädagogik
• Themenwelt: Sozialwissenschaften ► Politik / Verwaltung
• Themenwelt: Technik
• Themenwelt: Weitere Fachgebiete ► Land- / Forstwirtschaft / Fischerei
• ISBN-10: 0-08-046112-3 / 0080461123
• ISBN-13: 978-0-08-046112-0 / 9780080461120