Humanoids and the Implementation of Morality

摘要

Can a humanoid, i.e., the robot with a human face, be ethical? This question presupposed a couple of things about the study on ethics. It seems to presuppose that (1) our understanding of the right/the good thing to do in a given situation is firm and well-grounded, and (2) those robotsare essentially different from human being as we know them, i.e., homo sapiens sapiens. These are difficult not only to substantiate, but also to appreciate. What does it mean to say indeed that we understand our ethics well? What does it mean to be a member of human species? Again, what doesit mean to be a human person? This presentation attempts to make it clear the sense in which a humanoid could be considered as morally significant. The purpose of this presentation, in short, is to illustrate the following claim: a humanoid is morally significant when it or its interests morallymatter to some degree for the entity’s own sake, such that it can be wronged.