Utility and Science

Abstract

Utilitarian philosophy, from its very beginning, has been inspired by the success of scientific practice, as can be seen in J. Bentham’s attempt to model law or ethics more generally on the methodology of the physical sciences, and in J.S. Mill’s account of mathematical objects and reasoning. Similarly, in some cases scientific research has been guided by the utilitarian approach, for example in restricting animal experimentation on the basis of the principle of equity, emphasised by P. Singe...