this post was submitted on 22 Mar 2024
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Futurology
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What if it requires 1/1000th the number of animals … but each one suffers a hundred times more?
Would it be worth it?
From a utilitarian perspective, you're still reducing overall suffering by an order of magnitude, so your scenario is still a greater good.
This assumes a linear value function of course
stem cells can suffer? this isn't cloning an animal, it's cloning certain tissues.
Hence the word “if” here. A hypothetical scenario.
How do you quantify suffering?
If you don’t have a way of quantifying suffering, perhaps all utilitarian calculus is bunk?