Inspired by Empathy and Creativity, guided by Reason
Paul Kurtz, Founder Jonathan Kurtz, Chairman
Conferences and Symposia
"The Human Prospect and the Fate of Our Planetary Civilization: Science, Humanism, Ethics, and the Task Before Us."
An Institute for Science and Human Values (ISHV) Symposium Dedicated to the Memory of
Paul Kurtz.
April 12-13, 2013
Columbia University, New York City
Featuring:
Philip Kitcher • Rebecca Goldstein • Ronald Aronson • Susan
Jacoby • James Giordano •
Lindsay Beyerstein • John Shook • Toni Van Pelt • Terry
O'Neill • Dr. Ron Miller •
Bob Bindschadler • Stuart Jordan • Nel Noddings • Larry
Hickman • Nathan Bupp •
Jacques Berlinerblau • Barry Kosmin • Anthony Pinn •
Brain Science Experts Examine Issues at the Intersection of Neuroscience and Morality at ISHV Symposium
On March 16, 2012 a special one-day symposium entitled "Neuroscience and Neuroethics: Considering Nature, Nurture and Norms" was convened at the Potomac Institute in Arlington, Virginia. The event was sponsored jointly by Institute for Science and Human Values (ISHV) and the Center for Neurotechnology Studies at the Potomac Institute. Symposium attendees were treated to cutting edge presentations of a uniformly high quality on topics ranging from free will, to natural moral intuition, to the ethical dilemmas raised by the implementations of certain neuro-scientific technologies. Science writer Ronald Bailey wrote a detailed report about the symposium called “How Does the Brain Secrete Morality?” on the Reason Magazine Website. “We are proud to have played a significant role in organizing this important event,” said Paul Kurtz, Chairman and Founder of ISHV. “We believe that the meeting made a valuable contribution to the cultural conversation surrounding neuroscience and human well-being. Our plan is to disseminate the fruits of this gathering to all educated laypersons with an interest in the topic.” With this goal in mind, the meeting was broadcast live the day of the event via Internet streaming and selected material from the symposium will be published in The Human Prospect, the journal of ISHV. The complete presentation (over six hours long) is now available on video. After some brief introductory comments from James Giordano and ISHV leader Stuart Jordan the event begins in earnest.
Featured speakers include:
Gregory Berns PhD
Emory University
"Neural Mechanisms of Values"
William Casebeer PhD
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
"Will, Narrative and Personal Responsibility"
Patricia Churchland PhD
University of California San Diego
"What Neuroscience Tells Us about Morality"
James Giordano PhD
Center for Neurotechnology Studies, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies
University of New Mexico
University of Oxford
Symposium Chair
"Neuroethics as Meta-ethics: Avoiding Icarus' Folly"
Eric Racine PhD
Neuroethics Research Unit , Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal
(IRCM)
"Neuroimaging and the Values of Neuroscience"
John Shook PhD
University of Buffalo
"The New Ethics of Neuroethics"
Raising Ethical, Happy Children in our Society
Hospitals and Hospices ignore the needs of more than 20% of their patients.
Tampa, FL - Oct. 24, 2014 - Even though the Pew Research Center has found that
one-fifth (20%) of the USA public and a third (33 1/3%) of adults under 30 are
religiously unaffiliated, most hospitals and hospices insist on having religious
Chaplains available while ignoring the needs of non-theistic, secular humanist,
atheist and agnostic patients.
While a September 2014 Pew Research report indicated that 72% of the
American public has concluded that religion is losing influence in American life,
the CEO’s of America’s hospitals and hospices continue to ignore this reality.
According to Joe Beck, Florida’s first Humanist Chaplain and Founder of
Florida’s Humanists of the Treasure Coast, "hospital and hospice literature
mention the existence of non-denominational theistic chaplains but fail to
mention the existence of supportive services from an openly secular humanist
perspective.” Mr. Beck believes that medical facilities providing a clearly
identified secular support person helps to validate the secular patient's life stance
and brings comfort to those patients.
The Institute for Science and Human Values (ISHV) has been approached by
nursing home directors explaining that their secular patients are not being
provided for, by either the facility or the patients’ families. They wonder how
they can help. “I have comforted those who are frightened to identify as non-
theist for fear that proper medical care will be denied them when they find
themselves requiring hospital and hospice stays,” states Toni Van Pelt, ISHV
President. “We know many secular humanists’ wishes are denied by their
families concerning burial and funeral services.” she continues.
To date there has been little discussion and less research as to how widespread
these problems are and what can be done to provide support for non-theists in
this, their greatest time of need. To this end ISHV is sponsoring
“Dying Without
Deity” Perspectives on Dying and Death Symposium
, at Columbia University,
April 10 and 11th, 2015. Visit
for further details and to register.
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and a special introduction by Paul Kurtz, PhD Institute for Science and Human Values
Topics to be addressed include: • Free will, narrative and personal responsibility • Brain development and the burdens of modernity • The nature of mind, will and action • Neural substrates and mechanisms of values • Gender, neuroscience and a neuroethics of standpoint • Neuroscience of decision-making • Neuroimaging and the values of neuroscience • The social brain, and brain-science as a social force • The new ethics of neuroethics • Neuroscience and neurotechnology as demiurge, and the meta-ethical nature of neuroethics