Ethical Responsibility of Research

Should researchers ethically responsible for the misinterpretation or misuse of their research by others?

Absolutely not. If you charge ethical responsibility for the misinterpretation or misuse of their research by others, then you face the possible regression backward in time of similar charges.

For example, consider the computer chip. It has been misused by Huawei for spying, by the military for ordnance guidance systems, for AI, and other nefarious purposes. This in turn forces charges against inventors of Internet type transmissions (Vinton Cerf and Bob Kahn), the integrated circuit (Jack Kilby), the transistor (John Bardeen), the electron tube (John Ambrose Flemming), to the discovery of electrons (J.J. Thompson), and ultimately to the discoverer of electricity (Benjamin Franklin). You could even go back to the notion of the atom (Democritus in 400 BC). Where should we stop? Who should decide?

The only possible case possible is research that may only be used for destruction. Then you come to the atomic theory that produced the bomb, from which horrific destruction resulted. However, there are also atomic applications in medicine, energy, propulsion, and others. One bad and many good.

The ethical problem becomes a stopping criterion. Who gets the “bad guy” tag? There is no answer and that’s why this is not a big problem in either ethics or philosophy in general.

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