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Common origins and the ethics of planetary seeding

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 September 2016

Tony Milligan
Tony Milligan*
Affiliation:
Department of Theology and Religious Studies, King's College London, 22 Kingsway, London WC2R 2LS, UK
*
e-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Faced with a choice between attempting to seed another world with terrestrially-sourced microbes (with which we would have a shared origin) and microbes sourced from elsewhere within the solar system (whose origins might therefore differ), would we have any non-instrumental ethical reason to favour the terrestrial microbes? What follows will argue that in relation to the goals of promoting life similar to our own, or even simply microbial life, we might conceivably make such an appeal and do so in a defensible manner. However, in no case would such a consideration operate as a silencer for rival considerations (such as likelihood of success, enhancing diversity or historical justice). The thought experiment serves to highlight the diversity of considerations which are in play in ethical deliberation about matters of astrobiology and the role of practical wisdom rather than trumping considerations.

Keywords

dutyethicsoriginspanspermiavalue
Type
Research Article
Information
International Journal of Astrobiology , Volume 15 , Special Issue 4: The history and philosophy of the Origin of Life , October 2016 , pp. 301 - 306
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016 

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