The rapid development of contemporary technology has not only brought convenience, but also caused many ethical and moral dilemmas. The recent investigation of Yang Xiaoming, the "father of the new crown vaccine", has once again pushed the ethical issues that may arise in the development of science and technology to the forefront.
The fall of a scientific giant
Yang Xiaoming, a scientific research hero who emerged at the most critical juncture of the new crown epidemic in 2020, is now behind bars. As the core figure of China's vaccine research and development, he led the team to overcome the difficulties in the development of the new crown vaccine in just 98 days, helping China quickly control the spread of the epidemic.
Yang Xiaoming's vaccine was soon approved for marketing in more than 10 countries around the world, and he became an international star for a while. He personally conducted experiments and took more than 60 blood samples, demonstrating his absolute confidence in the research results. In the face of the major test of the shortage of epidemic prevention materials, Yang Xiaoming and his team rose to the challenge, tackling tough problems day and night, and exchanged their lives for scientific research breakthroughs, and were known as the "father of new crown vaccines".
No one could have imagined that this national-level science and technology hero is now being accused of violating discipline and law. As soon as the news came out, it shocked the entire technology community. Some thought he had been "slapped in the face", and the upright were immensely disappointed in his immorality; However, some people also expressed their understanding that, after all, in that special and extraordinary period, everything had to be subordinated to urgent mission goals, and the means might not be rigid.
Is it the temptation of profit or the temptation of power? The ethical issues behind it are questionable. However, regardless of the motive, a violation is a violation, and as one of the country's top scientific and technological leaders, he should be more cautious, after all, scientific research is related to the national economy and people's livelihood, and the blow to public credibility is unbearable.
The ethical dilemma of the road of "speculation".
In fact, as early as the critical period of vaccine research and development, some of the practices of Yang Xiaoming and his team have raised questions about the ethics of science and technology. The reason why they were able to break through many technical difficulties in such a short period of 98 days is mainly due to the large number of experimental animals and clinical trial subjects.
According to official data, the team used more than 100,000 experimental animals in the research and development process, including a large number of rare and endangered species. In addition, tens of thousands of people were recruited in the clinical trial stage, including some elderly people over 65 years old. This pursuit of "speed" and the contempt for life caused a lot of controversy at the time.
However, the motive seems to be simple – to put the vaccine into production as soon as possible to stop the spread of the epidemic further. At that time, it was at the peak of the epidemic, the death toll was rising, epidemic prevention materials and medical resources were scarce, and the whole society was shrouded in panic. Under such pressure, being able to come up with a vaccine is the greatest credit, and other concerns are secondary.
In fact, it is ethically permissible to weigh the pros and cons in a state of emergency and make choices that compromise the interests of a small part in exchange for the best interests of the whole. For example, it is inevitable that a small number of people will have adverse reactions in clinical trials, but if we can finally develop a drug that saves tens of millions of lives, such a "price" is worth it.
The question is, is Yang Xiaoming's team really in a state of emergency and helpless? Once the "opportunistic" opening is opened, will it abuse its power and pursue personal interests by unscrupulous means? Public opinion is divided on this.
Some argue that they have to make trade-offs in exceptional circumstances. After all, if a vaccine is not developed soon, more lives and the economic lifeblood of entire countries will be lost. From the big picture, small sacrifices are acceptable.
But there are also those who believe that this is nothing more than a speculative mentality. They believe that Yang Xiaoming and others are taking advantage of the situation and taking advantage of the epidemic. Everything they do is done to maximize research funding, make windfall profits, and personal honor, not out of "last resort". Previously, there has been a black material of academic misconduct in their team, and they have long been a big hit.
For a time, the field of public opinion was divided into two factions on this issue. But in any case, what Yang Xiaoming's team did was, at least to some extent, unethical. In the pursuit of individual or team interests, they seem to ignore their responsibilities and obligations as scientific researchers.
The game in the dark room of technology
Perhaps, another dimension of thinking about the Yang Xiaoming incident lies in the fact that in the process of technological development, is there some kind of ulterior game and exchange of interests in secret? It is like a dark secret auditorium, where all participants respond and cooperate, and use each other to achieve their goals.
Including regulatory authorities, audit bodies, ethics committees, etc., it seems that it is difficult to escape guilt in this situation. After all, they turned a deaf ear to what Yang Xiaoming's team did and failed to play the regulatory role it deserves. If, as public opinion says, they operate in the dark, cheat on the team, and even get approval for simple procedures, won't this completely shake the public's trust in technology regulation?
Is the examination of some institutions too lax out of helplessness to accommodate the emergency? Or is there a collusion of interests? Or are there some loopholes for scientific researchers to take advantage of the right medicine to achieve their goals? All these truths have yet to be further revealed.
However, it is this kind of operation that is open and covert, half-concealed, and half-concealed, that makes the development of science and technology appear to be a black box operation, and the opacity is extremely high. Many technologies of vital public interest are often abused, leased, monopolized, heavily scrutinized, and so on without the knowledge of the general public.
From this point of view, Yang Xiaoming's case seems to have left us with a window for reflection: should we let the public have more right to know while pursuing scientific and technological development? Are we relying too much on and ignoring the potential risks that may exist in scientific and technological development?
The tension between scientific and technological rationality and human nature
It can also be seen from the Yang Xiaoming case that in the process of scientific and technological development, there is often a contradiction between rational pursuit and human weakness. On the one hand, the development of science and technology requires a rational, objective, and precise attitude, and it needs to be carried out step by step and step by step. But on the other hand, people who are engaged in scientific research are human beings after all, and people have desires and emotions, and they are easily tempted by temporary interests or honors.
As a leader in scientific research, Yang Xiaoming should have lofty ideals and noble spiritual integrity. But apparently, some kind of selfish desire prevailed in him. Some details revealed that in order to catch up with the construction deadline and make profits, he used a lot of gray methods, and even connected some illegal elements to buy experimental materials.
From the point of view of rational technology, this approach is undoubtedly absurd. But from the side of human nature, it is also reasonable. Blindly pursuing rational development ignores the human weaknesses of scientific researchers, and is prone to cause greater harm.
Therefore, for the development of science and technology, it is also necessary to seek a balance between rationality and human nature. Researchers should be urged to maintain noble sentiments, and at the same time, reasonable channels should be given to allow their reasonable demands to be heard and satisfied. At the same time, it is also necessary to establish a scientific research integrity management system to effectively put an end to negative phenomena such as academic misconduct and research fraud.
The collision between traditional ethics and technology
The Yang Xiaoming incident has also triggered a reflection on existing ethical norms for scientific research. Many of the moral codes that were originally trusted and followed by the public seem to be somewhat powerless under the heavy impact of technology.
Animal experiments, for example, have been seen as innocuous in the past. However, in the process of research and development, Yang Xiaoming's team killed a large number of animals, including some rare species, which obviously violated the moral bottom line and caused an uproar in public opinion.
Another example is human experiments, Yang Xiaoming and others did not hesitate to bring even the elderly to make human experiments, and the process was quite sloppy. This is nothing less than a loss of bioethics in which human life is at stake. Excessive pursuit of experimental results and neglect of the basic principles of respect for life.
It is not difficult to find that many ethical values that were originally regarded as classics are facing the fate of reshaping or even reinventing them under the impetus of technology. What was once seen as right and wrong is now being questioned and rejected.
The rapid development of science and technology is a revolutionary impact on tradition, and the challenge to people's concepts is undoubtedly huge. Do we need to redesign a set of scientific research ethics that is in line with the trend of the times, and how to strike a good balance between tradition and modernity? This is a long-term and difficult process.
epilogue
To sum up, the Yang Xiaoming incident has taught us an important and profound life topic, that is, the many ethical and moral dilemmas brought about by scientific and technological progress. Every technological development means breaking through some conventions and paying some costs. How should we weigh the pros and cons, how should we avoid potential risks, and how should we make science and technology prosperous and develop without harming the people?
There is no one-size-fits-all answer, but one thing is certain: technological progress is ultimately about making human life better. If we leave this value pursuit and simply pursue technology itself, it is actually alienating and distorting the vitality of science and technology. We must always be vigilant and use the warmth of human nature to nourish the flower of rational science and technology to avoid hurting the innocent.
Let's work together to pursue a technological future that is both rational and humane.