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Scientific Report

Sector for Humanitarian Examinations and Bioethics

Scientific Report for 2024

RESEARCH TOPIC: "SCIENCE, HUMANS, AND THE PROSPECTS OF THE TECHNOGENIC CIVILIZATION" (2022-2024)

INTRODUCTION

  • Object of Research
    The central object of research conducted by the sector in 2024 was the study of both specific biomedical dilemmas and the philosophical foundations upon which ethical judgments arising in the context of biomedicine's development are built. The philosophical content of the challenges faced by humans as a result of the introduction of new technologies into biomedical practice was examined through a critical analysis of human embryo editing technology, the specifics of applying artificial intelligence technologies in medical practice, and the emergence of bioethical problems stemming from the interaction between humans and artificial agents (such as AI), the expansion of the scope of moral responsibility caused by the use of new assisted reproductive technologies (ART).

    A substantive analysis of the philosophical origins of bioethical principles influencing the humanization of processes in science and technology was conducted. Particular attention was paid to the study of the works of Academician I.T. Frolov on the occasion of the 95th anniversary of the outstanding Russian philosopher, who was a pioneer in developing principles and approaches to the humanization of science. In this regard, an attempt was made to provide a general assessment of his work in the context of the humanistic ideals of modern science. Interviews and speeches by the scholar were published for the first time.

    Other distinct research directions included: the problem of paternalism of artificial intelligence technologies in medicine; the case of He Jiankui and Chinese eugenics; concepts of the communicative nature of sport as a crucial civilizational institution and the transformation of biopolitics in the field of physical culture and sports under the active influence of scientific and biotechnological intervention in human nature; the formation and development of scientific suicidology as a basis for understanding modern forms of suicide theory, including those related to the development of modern biomedicine, etc. The development of methodology and methods for philosophical and humanitarian examination as an interdisciplinary toolkit for assessing scientific and technological innovations, including virtual reality and artificial intelligence technologies, was continued.

  • Relevance of the Research
    The relevance of the research within the mega-theme is determined by the fact that the latest achievements in biomedical technologies bring not only benefits, for example, for patients suffering from various forms of pathology, but also a threat to human self-identity as a whole. Based on domestic humanistic traditions (V.V. Veresaev, I.T. Frolov) and international experience in reflecting on the moral problems of biomedicine, the research programs of the sector and its staff were aimed at further improving the methods of humanitarian examination and bioethics in their application to current problems generated by the progress of biomedical technologies.

    The demand for philosophical reflection on the challenges of biomedical innovations is driven by the growing importance of artificial intelligence and the biotechnologization of the lifeworld, and the need for a current philosophical (re)conceptualization of the human, taking into account the increasing influence of technogenic factors on humans and society, and the task of preserving and strengthening the humanistic vector in science, including by drawing on the philosophical heritage of Russian thought.

    The relevance of the research is associated with the increasing interaction of social and biological factors in biomedical practice, primarily the expansion of the range of medical applied tasks solved with the help of artificial intelligence, the digitalization of healthcare, and the introduction of genetic technologies. In light of this, it is necessary to reflect on the implementation of humanistic principles regulating the development of biomedicine (respect for autonomy, justice, human dignity, etc.). Bioethics and humanitarian examination, in the context of the innovative development of Russian biomedicine, are focused on solving the dual task: ensuring socio-humanitarian support for scientific and technological progress and protecting fundamental humanistic values. This is achieved through a comprehensive analysis of the potential risks and beneficial consequences of biotechnological innovations for the harmonious development of the individual and society.

    A separate biomedical problem is the understanding of the development problems of virtual reality technologies, artificial intelligence, as groups of human editing technologies, and their impending convergence.

  • Goals and Objectives

    1. Biology, Culture, and Technology:

      • To investigate the interrelationship between the biological and the cultural in the context of projecting the image of biological identity onto socio-humanitarian identity.

      • To analyze the influence of modern technologies on contemporary biopolitics in the sphere of physical culture and sports.

    2. Philosophy of Technology and Problems of Bioethics:

      • To investigate strategies for the ethical regulation of new technologies, including those affecting human health and well-being.

      • To analyze the value-based, moral-ethical, and bioethical foundations of the application of new technologies.

      • To conduct philosophical-anthropological research on the prenatal world of human existence; as well as problems of death based on the material of fiction (in particular, L.N. Tolstoy).

      • To investigate the influence of assisted reproductive technologies, in particular surrogacy, on the formation of the biotechnological image of childhood and the medicalization of social institutions.

    3. Philosophy of Virtual Reality, Digitalization, and Artificial Intelligence:

      • To analyze the influence of artificial intelligence technologies on the concept of respect for autonomy. To perform an analysis of the genesis of the foundations of the concept of respect for autonomy.

      • To investigate the impact of AI on humans, with special attention to AI's ability to recognize and imitate emotions.

      • To study new forms of vulnerability arising in connection with changing norms of intimacy and openness under the influence of the internet and social media.

      • To develop the problematics of worldview pathology (anomies, errors/pathologies of episteme) among representatives of the mainstream in philosophy, science, and engineering in the field of virtual (VR), augmented (AR), and substituted (SR) reality technologies (TVR), as well as artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Including the problematics of the predicted convergence of these areas.

  • Methodology

    • The research is based on a comprehensive, interdisciplinary approach aimed at revealing the interrelationship between the development of biotechnologies and the transformation of value-meaning orientations arising from the interaction between humans and biotechnologies, and the study of humans as an integrity (I.T. Frolov). Philosophical analysis of the research subjects is aimed at creating theoretical models that allow for subsequent empirical verification.

    Specific methodological approaches:

    • Comparative Analysis: applied to the explication of basic ethical principles and the comparison of different concepts and theoretical frameworks describing the socio-humanitarian issues of technoscience development.

    • Historical-Philosophical Analysis: applied to the study of the genesis of key ideas.

    • Axiological Approach: in the analysis of value-based and socio-cultural imperatives that fix the parameters of social acceptability of innovations in the field of biotechnology.

    • Philosophical Interpretation of Literary Text: applied to the study of the origin of bioethics in Russian science and literature (L.N. Tolstoy).

    • Analytical Review: applied to identifying key problems in the theoretical and practical study of sport (V Symposium on the Philosophy of Sport).

    • Metaphor Analysis: as a method for overcoming understanding difficulties between specialists in different fields.

    • Historical-Philosophical Analysis of the Genesis of the Concept: of respect for autonomy and identification of key elements that could be replaced by AI.

    • Comparative Analysis of the Biological and Cultural: as a projection of the image of biological identity onto socio-humanitarian identity.

    • Investigation of the Components of Autonomy: based on H. Frankfurt's concept of "necessary properties" and a phenomenological approach.

    • Analytical Method and Humanitarian Examination Methodology: for identifying potential risks and threats associated with the development of artificial intelligence technologies.

    • Virtuality Studies (Virtual Paradigm Approach) (N.A. Nosov).

    • Systemic Methods: invariant modeling based on the theory of hypercomplex dynamic systems, etc.

    • Philosophical Examination/Philosophy as Examination (B.G. Yudin).

    • Historical-Archival and Bio-Bibliographical Methods: comparative studies (history of world virtuality studies and virtuality studies at the Institute of Philosophy, RAS).

  • Potential Practical Applicability of Research Results

    • In the context of developing innovative technologies, philosophical reflection in the field of bioethics and humanitarian examination is of particular importance. They are necessary practical tools for ensuring a balance between the pursuit of progress in biomedical technologies and the protection of traditional humanistic principles.

    • In 2024, the following research areas had the greatest practical applicability:

    1. Ethics and Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART):

      • The problem of surrogacy was comprehensively investigated, international trends and Russian specifics of the development of this practice were considered. The research results can be used for developing ethical recommendations in the field of reproductive policy.

      • Popova O.V. Surrogacy as an Anthropological and Technoscientific Phenomenon // Chelovek. 2024. No. 6. P. 48-69. DOI: 10.31857/S0236200724060048. ISSN 0236-2007. (Scopus, VAК).

    2. Ethical Analysis of Artificial Intelligence Systems in Medicine:

      • The results of the examination, conducted at the request of the Director of the Institute of Philosophy RAS, Acad. A.A. Gusejnov, of the scientific article: Ugleva A.V., Shilova V.A., Karpova E.A. Index of "Ethicality" of Artificial Intelligence Systems in Medicine: From Theory to Practice // Ethical Thought. – 2024. – Vol. 24. – No. 1. – P. 144-159, allow for assessing the practical application of the AI ethicality index proposed by the authors (examination authors: Popova O.V., Belyaletdinov R.R., Antipov A.V., Pronin M.A., etc.)

    3. Combating Errors in TVR and AI:

      • Based on systemic and virtual approaches, possible directions for combating errors in the TVR and AI environment were proposed, which are significant for applied philosophy, in particular, for constructing operators of "a-operationalization" (Pronin M.A. Pedagogical Innovations of P.M. Erdniev in Mathematics: Towards a Philosophical-Anthropological Understanding // Round Table "Mathematics in Education: Philosophical, Didactic, Interdisciplinary and Practical Aspects": May 14, 2024 / Organizer: Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences of the A.A. Leonov Technological University. M.: KUNA, 2024. P. 158-175).

    4. Forecasting Radiation Injuries (Concept of "Standard/Conditional Liquidator"):

      • The introduction into scientific and practical use of a theoretical concept of fundamental scientific novelty and broad generality – the "standard/conditional liquidator" – is justified, allowing for the solution of practical tasks in forecasting the severity of radiation injuries. (Pronin M.A., Soldatov S.K., Matasova O.Y., Shishov A.A. On the Introduction of the Concept "Standard/Conditional Liquidator" into Scientific and Practical Use // Acute Radiation Injuries: Prevention, Diagnosis and Treatment, Modern Challenges and Solutions: Materials of the All-Russian Interdepartmental Scientific-Practical Conference / GNIII VM MO RF; ed. by Prof. S.V. Chepura. - St. Petersburg: RITM Publishing House, 2024. - P.90-96.)

  • Key Research Findings

    • Interviews and speeches by the philosopher, Academician I.T. Frolov, addressing problems of humanity and its future, the influence of biotechnologies on society and humans, were published. (Frolov I.T. Zhizn': poznanie i zabluzhdeniya. Interv'yu i vystupleniya. Ch. 1 / I.T. Frolov; ed. by G.L. Belkina; comp. by M.I. Frolova. M.: Kanon+, Reabilitaciya, 2024).

    • The features of the Chinese eugenic program were considered, and the systemic response of Chinese law and bioethical regulations to the case of He Jiankui was noted. (Tishchenko P.D. The Case of He Jiankui and Chinese Eugenics // Biojetika i genetika: vyzovy XXI veka: kollektivnaya monografiya / INION RAN; resp. ed. E.G. Grebenshchikova. M.: Sam Poligrafist, 2024. P. 105-117).

    • The trend of tightening the regulation of surrogacy was examined, and an assessment was given of the prospects for the liberalization of surrogacy practice in connection with the possibility of legitimizing new medical technologies in biomedicine (Popova O.V. Surrogacy as an Anthropological and Technoscientific Phenomenon // Chelovek. 2024. No. 6. P. 48-69).

    • The perspective of AI research in application to the problem of autonomy was outlined; it was indicated that the strengthening of objective argumentation by AI requires a more clearly expressed system of views from an autonomous decision (Belyaletdinov R.R. Can the Bioethical Concept of Respect for Autonomy Change Under the Influence of Artificial Intelligence? // Znanie. Ponimanie. Umenie. 2024. No. 6.).

    • The role of Russian literature in the origin of bioethical issues was discussed (Voronin A.A. The Image of Death. For a Seminar on L.N. Tolstoy's Novella "The Death of Ivan Ilyich" // Vox. 2024. No. 46).

    • The phenomenon of cyberbullying, a modern form of harassment and bullying on the Internet, especially among adolescents, was investigated (Majlenova F.G. New Vulnerability in the Digital Reality // Khrupkost' zhizni v usloviyakh novoj real'nosti / Resp. ed. G.L. Belkina, M.I. Frolova. M.: KANON+, 2024. P. 306-316).

    • Reflexive and pre-reflexive components of autonomy were identified. (Lavrent'eva S.V. Reflexive and Pre-reflexive Aspects of Realizing Autonomy: (On J. Childress's Argumentation about the Principle of Respect for Autonomy) // Problemy jetiki: Filosofsko-eticheskij al'manah. 2023. No. 12. P. 17-26.).

    • Potential risks of the emergence of artificial intellectual systems were identified, and the possibility of applying the tools of ethical theories to them was discussed (Antipov A.V. On the Role of Ethical Theory in the Structure of Artificial Moral Agents in the Cultural Field of the Information Society // Koncept: filosofiya, religiya, kul'tura. 2024. No. 2. P. 8-21).

    • The demarcation of divergent and convergent aspects of the interaction between virtual reality technologies and AI was conducted (Pronin M.A. Virtual Reality Technologies and/or Artificial Intelligence: Are There Invariants of Interaction Mechanisms? // Zapis' i vosproizvedenie ob"emnykh izobrazhenij v kinematografe, nauke, obrazovanii, media i v drugikh oblastyakh / Ed. by O.N. Raev. M.: KUNA, 2024. P. 183-189).

 
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Russian Academy of Sciences
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