Since 2008, body parts from American donors have been exported to at least 45 nations. Demand is highest where customs limit selling or dissecting the dead. By John Shiffman, Reade Levinson.

We really are going to have to start a conversation about ethics, aren’t we? By John Michael Greer.

"Like many who have been influenced by the political philosopher Leo Strauss, Kass sees the decline of custom and tradition and the march of individualism and egalitarianism across all realms of life as the logical outcomes of modern liberal democracy." By Scott Spillman.

A review of Michael Ruse’s book on the religion of scientism. By Charles LaPorte, Joseph LaPorte.

When pediatric surgeon Allan Goldstein entered the operating room to separate conjoined twins, he did so with the knowledge that one would have to die in order to save the other. He recalls the enormous surgical and ethical challenges.

Pop culture today is obsessed with the battle between good and evil. Traditional folktales never were. What changed? By Catherine Nichols.

Saddam Hussein and his senior lieutenants were rightly executed for their crimes, but the foreign politicians and officials who were responsible for the sanctions regime that killed so many deserved to stand beside them in the dock. By Patrick Cockburn.

Three years ago, we said the Echo was “the most innovative device Amazon’s made in years.” That’s still true. But you shouldn’t buy one. You shouldn’t buy one for your family. You definitely should not buy one for your friends. In fact, ignore any praise we’ve ever heaped onto smart speakers and voice-controlled assistants. They’re bad! By Adam Clark Estes.

One of the most fundamental American tenets—that all human beings are created equal—is nowhere near universally accepted. By Samuel Moyn.

An ongoing case in Israel touches on a decades-old global debate. By Joseph Frankel.

“’The interesting thing is, if it works, will it last?’ Zayner told me, a GoPro strapped to his head and a Hell or High Watermelon beer on the table as he filled a pipette with the DNA mixture to spread over his skin…” By Kristen V. Brown.

Camp DASH was supposed to be a gold-standard study of diet-mitigated hypertension in adolescents. Instead, it became a venue for chaos. What happened? By Amy Gastelum.

On 140 occasions, electrician logged that he was working while concealing his location. A 60-year-old electrician in Perth, Western Australia had his termination upheld by a labor grievance commission when it was determined he had been abusing his position and technical knowledge to squeeze in some recreation during working hours. Tom Colella used mylar snack bags to block GPS tracking via his employer-assigned personal digital assistant to go out to play a round of golf—more than 140 times—while he reported he was offsite performing repairs.

To fight for my son, I have to argue that he should never have been born. By Jen Gann.

Young people are taking to bins to protest food waste.

They did or said something awful, and made something great. They are monster geniuses, and I don’t know what to do about them. By Claire Dederer.

Jim Kozubek on the potential problems of profiteering in biotech.

How the attention economy is subverting our decision-making and our democracy. By Brian Gallagher, with James Williams. (Sept. 21, 2017)

Future of Life Institute

He is the dramatic thunderstorm at the heart of philosophy and his provocation is more valuable than ever. By Julian Baggini.