By and for the people. In the eighteenth century, David Hume posited, "And though the philosopher may live remote from business [,] . . . philosophy, if carefully cultivated by several, must gradually diffuse itself throughout the whole society, and bestow a similar correctness on every art and calling." While asking a lot, Hume nonetheless articulates some of the hopes I brought to The Hastings Center two years ago. In my work here, I often consider how to best allocate time to ask both, what is the moral message? and, how can we use that moral message to better the world? For example, in the Center's project on the risk of multiple births when using fertility treatment, which led to a publication recommending single embryo transfer during in vitro fertilization, those of us involved in the project pondered how to communicate its substantive recommendation to best help families and the resulting children of IVF. Indeed, these two tasks are necessary companions: if bioethical inquiry is about effecting moral change, then effectively conveying one's work so that change is actually possible is itself a form of bioethical inquiry.
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