Abstract

The academic community believes that the ulterior end of science is accumulation of knowledge. Other ethical constraints that pertain to the scientist are not different from those which oblige every other man in society to act decently, except for specifically professional norms which bind academics, but these, in point of fact, have their counterparts in any other profession, too. Thus the specific moral commitment of the academic profession worthy of a careful study and discussion is the claim that knowledge should be accumulated as an ulterior end. Moral underpinnings of this position have to be laid bare together with social and moral consequences of the growth of knowledge.