-
150Astrobiology as Science (edited book, 3rd ed.)Springer. 2023.“Astrobiology as science” refers to how astrobiology is characterized and discussed in the philosophy of science.
-
146Vad gör en växt främmande? – Några olika perspektivIn Johanna Alkan Olsson, Helena Hanson, Erik Persson, Carina Sjöholm & Niklas Vareman (eds.), Växtvärk - Perspektiv på invasiva främmande växter i svensk natur. pp. 31-42. 2021.
-
143AfterwordIn Klara Anna Capova, Erik Persson, Tony Milligan & David Duner (eds.), Astrobiology and Society in Europe Today, Springer. pp. 55-60. 2018.
-
128The Moral Status of Extraterrestrial LifeAstrobiology 12 976-984. 2012.If we eventually discover extraterrestrial life, do we have any moral obligations for how to treat the life-forms we find; does it matter whether they are intelligent, sentient, or just microbial—and does it matter that they are extraterrestrial? In this paper, I examine these questions by looking at two of the basic questions in moral philosophy: What does it take to be a moral object? and What has value of what kind? I will start with the first of these questions by looking at the most importa…Read more
-
124Emerging plurality of life: Assessing the questions, challenges and opportunitiesFrontiers Human Dynamics 5 1153668. 2023.Research groups around the world are currently busy trying to invent new life in the laboratory, looking for extraterrestrial life, or making machines increasingly more life-like. In the case of astrobiology, any newly discovered life would likely be very old, but when discovered it would be new to us. In the case of synthetic organic life or life-like machines, humans will have invented life that did not exist before. Together, these endeavors amount to what we call the emerging plurality of li…Read more
-
112Philosophical aspects of astrobiologyIn David Dunér, Joel Pathermore, Erik Persson & Gustav Holmberg (eds.), The History and Philosophy of Astrobiology, Cambridge Scholars Press. pp. 29-48. 2013.During antiquity, the astronomical questions of the day and the methods used to formulate and answer them were clearly within the realm of philosophy. That changed most notably in the sixteenth century when Tycho Brahe turned astronomy into a modern empirical science by formulating (in principle) testable hypotheses, figuring out how to test them, building the proper instruments, and making – for that time – very accurate and systematic observations of the sky. These observations eventually led …Read more
-
63Citizens of Mars LtdIn Charles S. Cockell (ed.), Human Governance Beyond Earth – Implications for Freedom, Springer. pp. 121-137. 2015.When the time comes to decide how to govern an extraterrestrial settlement there will be many alternatives to chose from. We will have the opportunity to try new and so far untested theories, but there are also some old forms of government that might be tempting to try again. We might for instance let the company whose activities on the world are the reason for the establishment govern the settlement. This has been tried before on our own planet both because it was seen as convenient and as an i…Read more
-
58Life, Definition of (edited book, 2nd ed.)There have through history been many attempts to define 'life' but there is no generally accepted definition of 'life' at this date. As a result, some have come to believe that defining 'life' is not a fruitful endeavour. This seems to be a minority view, however, since the quest to find or create a definition of 'life' is as active as ever.
-
50The History and Philosophy of Astrobiology (edited book)Cambridge Scholars Press. 2013.Human beings have wondered about the stars since the dawn of the species. Does life exist out there – intelligent life, even – or are we alone? The quest for life in the universe touches on fundamental hopes and fears. It touches on the essence of what it means to formulate a theory, grasp a concept, and have an imagination. This book traces the history of the science of this area and the development of new schools in philosophy. Its essays seek to establish the history and philosophy of astrobi…Read more
-
37LIV – Utomjordiskt, Syntetiskt, ArtificielltPufendorfinstitutet. 2017.Liv är ett centralt begrepp inom många forskningsområden, exempelvis inom biologi, astrobiologi, kemi och medicin, såväl som inom juridik, teologi och filosofi. Liv är också ett centralt tema i konsten. Det behandlas och begrundas i åtskilliga konstverk, i dikt, roman och film. Hur vi skall förstå, värdera och skydda livet, är oerhört fundamentala frågor. I framtiden kommer dessa frågor att bli än svårare och om möjligt ännu viktigare. Forskargrupper från hela världen arbetar idag med att skapa …Read more
-
32Interplanetär etikIn David Dunér (ed.), Extrema världar – Extremt liv, . pp. 123-132. 2013.Hur bör vi bete oss mot livsformer som är väldigt annorlunda än vi? Spelar det någon roll att de är annorlunda? Spelar det någon roll hur annorlunda? Etiken sysslar med många olika frågor som alla har att göra med hur vi bör hantera det faktum att det vi gör (eller inte gör) påverkar andra än oss själv. En fråga för etiken gäller vad som gör en handling rätt. Är det till exempel effekterna av handlingen, avsikten med handlingen, eller ligger det i själva handlingen som sådan? En annan fråga för …Read more
-
31Expert responsibility in AI developmentAI and Society 1-12. 2022.The purpose of this paper is to discuss the responsibility of AI experts for guiding the development of AI in a desirable direction. More specifically, the aim is to answer the following research question: To what extent are AI experts responsible in a forward-looking way for effects of AI technology that go beyond the immediate concerns of the programmer or designer? AI experts, in this paper conceptualised as experts regarding the technological aspects of AI, have knowledge and control of AI t…Read more
-
30Vad är Liv?In David Dunér (ed.), Extrema världar – Extremt liv, . pp. 73-83. 2013.För att kunna känna igen liv när vi hittar det och för att veta hur vi skall leta behöver vi ha en uppfattning om vad liv är. Att försöka konstruera en definition av liv hjälper oss också att formulera våra tankar kring vad liv är. De flesta av oss har nog en intuitiv uppfattning av vad liv är, och kan i de flesta situationer utan problem skilja ut vad som är levande från vad som inte är det. Det finns dock situationer när det inte är fullt så enkelt. Man är till exempel inte överens om huruvid…Read more
-
24Environment and SustainabilityIn Klara Anna Capova, Erik Persson, Tony Milligan & David Dunér (eds.), Astrobiology and Society in Europe Today. pp. 25-30. 2018.There are strong links between astrobiology and environmental concern. Astrobiology is the study of the origin, evolution and distribution of life in the universe—including Earth. Understanding life, and in particular the basic conditions for life, is important for our ability to create a sustainable future on Earth. The connection goes both ways, however. The preservation of biodiversity and of pristine environments on Earth is of the greatest importance for our ability to study life, its origi…Read more
-
23Review of "Precautionary politics – principle and practice in confronting environmental risk" by Kerry H Whiteside (review)Philosophy of Risk Newsletter 8 (1). 2007.
-
23Ethics for an Uninhabited PlanetIn Konrad Szocik (ed.), The Human Factor in a Mission to Mars: An Interdisciplinary Approach, Springer. pp. 201-216. 2019.Some authors argue that we have a moral obligation to leave Mars the way it is, even if it does not harbour any life. This claim is usually based on an assumption that Mars has intrinsic value. The problem with this concept is that different authors use it differently. In this chapter, I investigate different ways in which an uninhabited Mars is said to have intrinsic value. First, I investigate whether the planet can have moral standing. I find that this is not a plausible assumption. I then in…Read more
Lund, Skane Lan, Sweden
Areas of Specialization
10 more
Areas of Interest
11 more