Science

Industrial agriculture has pacified some critics by using Novocaine to ease animal suffering. But what happens when there isn't enough anesthetic to go around? And what's the value of using pain relief for animals set for slaughter?

Informed consent might look like an innocuous legal standard, but it masks a divisive political arena. And the struggle between autonomy and paternalism is not without casualties.

Climate change is caused by the individual actions of a number of different actors, but will require the collective action to mitigate. Unfortunately, motivating people to make changes to avoid a future problem is difficult when there are pressing troubles already staring us in the face.

Algorithms are capable of causing harm, but it isn't easy to identify who should be held accountable when they do.

Should we be pairing our moral arguments with a change in financial incentive to effectively alter human behavior? Is this the way to combat problems like climate change and factory farming?

Our understanding of neurological causation and personal responsibility is evolving. What is the impact of these findings for our criminal justice system?

New research involving brain resuscitation holds great promise and presents even greater challenges.

Corporations' push to attract a marketing-resistant demographic is producing some troubling effects.

How can we properly attend to the health of both patient and physician when unintended harm occurs?

When we buy fruit at the grocery store, we often fail to realize the intensive and undervalued human labor that goes into growing and harvesting that fruit.