The ambitions of neuroethics: to find the scientific fundament of morals

Authors

  • Gustavo Figueroa Universidad de Valparaíso

Abstract

The recent progress in neuroscience has led to ethical questions. The neuroscience of ethics investigates the neural mechanisms that may possibly underlie ethical concepts and practices. The modern scientific method rules out in advance as possible objects of scientific investigation all phenomena that cannot be reduced to observable and measurable sensory phenomena. But the essence of man is not "entity" as such (present) but "existence". Like no other creature awareness of being characterizes him most profoundly. As being-in-the-World humans are lost in their everyday life in ontic dissipation. He listens to the voice of conscience when this call to authenticity, that is, unto its own proper potentiality, and unto accepting his constitutive finitude. 

Keywords:

neuroethics, neurobiology of ethics, voice of conscience, authenticity, targeting