期刊名称：Hyle : International Journal for Philosophy of Chemistry
印刷版ISSN：1433-5158
出版年度：2005
卷号：11
期号：2
页码：147-166
出版社：HYLE Publications, Karlsruhe and University of Karlsruhe
摘要：The synthesis of new chemical substances causes a number of ethical problems frequently overlooked by chemists, such as the risk associated with the creation of a new substance and the question of ultimate responsibility for a new compound. The case of the synthesis and subsequent use of Agent Or-ange can be used to exemplify these issues. Risk as well as responsibility for the agent have shifted significantly since its discovery, from the original inven-tor of a new compound, via the industrial manufacturer of a dioxin-contaminated herbicide, to the user of the impure agent as tactical chemical weapon in Vietnam. Analyzing the chain of historical events in the light of moral responsibility allows us to set everyday chemistry into an ethical con-text and ask a number of important questions, such as who carries responsibil-ity for a new chemical compound, its safety and its proliferation
