I was thinking about something before writing this. I know people who actually died after taking the covid 19 vaccine. The same vaccine that was meant for good. So do we blame the vaccine manufacturers for the death of these people? I know I started on a hot note so let me drop the ball a little lower.
So let’s say Honda creates a super-fast car, and then it kind of increases the rate of armed robbers getting away after their operations. Does it mean Honda gets into trouble for manufacturing fast cars?
If yes, does it mean Honda will get acknowledged for being able to send a pregnant woman about to deliver to the hospital on time? Or for all the amazing stuff the car does? (I’m obviously a Honda fan).
I’m sure they weighed the pros and cons of the car before making it.
The same applies to scientists. I know every research has a reason behind it, and aside from that, there are also the pros and cons. This reminds me of the movie, Megan. I mean, the robot was built to keep kids company, and it was doing just that until it went rogue. And the interesting part is the person who programmed the robot never even saw it coming and would have never thought something like that was going to happen one day.
For me, it is the same. The very minute a scientist creates something for good use, then fine, we know the main purpose of this particular thing is for good and good only. And so if in the near future, someone somewhere finds another use for the research (oh! I mean a bad use for the research), then it’s totally not the scientist’s fault. There have been times scientists created things and did not even find out they had other potential until they got into the hands of other people.
But on the other hand, it becomes so different if the main purpose of the research is to cause harm. For example, you create a bomb that could actually destroy the world in minutes? First of all, it’s not cool because why do you have such an aim in the first place? And with all the things you could make, you still choose something so harmful. So then you might as well guard it with your life just so it doesn’t get into the wrong hands for it to be misused.
I’ve watched enough movies to know that the guilt behind seeing your research being used for the wrong reasons is enough punishment, especially if you knew that the research had such potential. And you know what it tells me? If that particular person knew the harm it could cause but still couldn’t destroy the research or keep it safe, then he/she might as well just take accountability.
Images are mine