A partir de El Conocimiento del Amor, Martha Nussbaum emprendió un novedoso proyecto teórico, el de construir una vinculación productiva y no colonizadora entre la literatura y la reflexión moral. Una de las tesis que aúnan sus múltiples textos sobre este proyecto es que la lectura de textos literarios puede ser un componente no solo importante, sino necesario en el desarrollo moral de los sujetos. Por medio de una determinada forma de lectura y de un lector activo y crítico al (...) mismo tiempo, el sujeto podría desarrollar en mayor grado una capacidad empática que le permita reconocer injusticias, afectos y vulnerabilidades en situaciones allende la propia y en otros individuos (Nussbaum, 1997a, p. 111). El objetivo de esta presentación es contrastar esta tesis con un texto central de la literatura argentina moderna, El Juguete Rabioso2 de Roberto Arlt. Escritor, periodista e inventor, Roberto Arlt (1900-1942) es considerado como uno de los primeros escritores modernos de Argentina que incorporó materiales heterogéneos para su obra literaria –textos periodísticos, manuales químicos, etcetera– y que ofreció una interpretación particularísima de la vida urbana cambiante, desigual y políticamente movilizada de las primeras décadas del siglo XX. Construida como una novela de iniciación, el texto arltiano acompaña las desventuras existenciales de Silvio Astier, un joven marginado de los años 30 del siglo pasado que, a pesar de buscar el éxito a cada paso, solo encuentra el fracaso. El punto central de nuestro interés estará colocado en que el acto trascendental de su vida, una acción cruel y vil contra un amigo es llevada a cabo y justificada como producto de leer determinadas novelas literarias. La cuestión problemática de esta contrastación será cómo interpretar esta acción de Astier. ¿Es una refutación parcial de la tesis de Nussbaum, ya que las lecturas de Astier guían esta acción moralmente incorrecta?, ¿o es solo una advertencia contra las esperanzas exageradas de Nussbaum en la capacidad transformadora de la literatura?, ¿o, por el contrario, es una confirmación de la tesis, ya que esa acción no se seguiría del tipo específico de lectura que propone Nussbaum?, ¿o es, en este mismo sentido, una advertencia de que las condiciones capitalistas e individualistas representan obstáculos para el tipo de lectura que promueve Nussbaum?. En este artículo, defenderé que la interpretación más adecuada de la acción trascendental de Astier es que ella no surge de una experiencia lectora demasiado empática, sino de una experiencia lectora que rechaza la empatía, ya que implica la fusión total entre el personaje ficticio arltiano y aquellas novelas que conforman su experiencia literaria. La estructura del trabajo es la siguiente: En la primera sección, reconstruiré lo que Nussbaum denominó la promesa política de la literatura y cómo ella se basa en el mayor desarrollo de las capacidades empática y compasiva que puede ofrecer, en especial cuando se la compara con las teorías éticas generales tradicionales. En la segunda sección, confrontaré dos tipos de respuesta moralizante que la teoría de Nussbaum podría dar frente al “caso Astier” y mostraré que existe una respuesta no-moralizante y que refuerza la teoría de la filósofa. (shrink)

Uno de los problemas omnipresentes en la teoría política es el de qué tipo de relación debe existir entre el régimen democrático en tanto sistema de toma de decisiones colectivas y las vidas de sus ciudadanos, en tanto seres dotados de fines, metas y deseos. Ya sea desde las concepciones que estipulan que las decisiones mayoritarias pueden poner en riesgo ciertos ideales de buena vida o desde aquellas que creen que el tipo de justificación de las decisiones políticas no (...) puede dar cuenta de los procesos hermenéuticos individuales de búsqueda de significado a la propia existencia hasta aquellas concepciones que consideran que las condiciones para la búsqueda de la buena vida no pueden quedar libradas al desigual poder social o las que consideran que el bienestar individual debe quedar restringido a su compatibilidad con una autocomprensión colectiva de una buena sociedad, la cuestión reaparece incluso cuando se pretende hacerla a un lado. Los textos que componen este Dossier ofrecen diferentes aristas de estos problemas, los cuales vienen siendo tratados extensa y prolíficamente en la obra de Graciela Vidiella. En este sentido, el Dossier también representa un homenaje a su trabajo, algo que se ve reflejado no sólo en los temas tratados sino en que ellos se producen como una continuidad formal de largas conversaciones y discusiones informales que Vidiella mantuvo a lo largo de su carrera con sus amigos y amigas, discípulos y discípulas y estudiantes en general. (shrink)

Legitimidad política y neutralidad estatal puede ser considerado como un intento de responder a la pregunta que un defensor de una doctrina comprehensiva religiosa, filosófica o de la buena vida, podría realizarle a un Estado liberal: ¿por qué debo aceptar que las decisiones sobre políticas públicas se justifiquen por valores neutrales y no por los de la doctrina a la cual adhiero, los cuales considero como verdaderos y correctos? La importancia de una respuesta adecuada radica en que, de acuerdo (...) con Garreta Leclercq, uno de los principales objetivos del liberalismo contemporáneo, surgido a partir de la obra de John Rawls, consiste en brindar una conexión coherente entre tres ideas básicas: la de legitimidad política -según la cual los principios que guían el accionar estatal no deberían poder ser rechazados razonablemente por los ciudadanos razonables-, la de neutralidad de justificación -de acuerdo con la cual el Estado no debe apelar a la verdad de doctrinas comprehensivas para fundamentar su ejercicio del poder político - y la de persona razonable, es decir, un individuo que, por un lado, renuncia a usar el poder estatal para imponer su doctrina como verdadera y, por el otro, participa del esfuerzo cooperativo para alcanzar fundamentos políticos que sean independientes de la aceptación de una determinada doctrina comprehensiva. (shrink)

La cárcel es el lugar donde la sociedad descarga su más elevada capacidad de violencia y es un atentado para la dignidad del ser humano. A lo largo de muchos años de trabajo con personas que han sufrido encarcelamiento, he conocido a muchos que han salido adelante a pesar de la cárcel, pero no he conocido a nadie que haya salido adelante gracias a la cárcel; la cárcel encierra no sólo al cuerpo, sino a la mente y la vida, (...) y sus secuelas son, a menudo permanentes y ejercen su efecto nocivo mucho después de que la persona haya recuperado la libertad. (shrink)

Este artigo tenta mostrar que as paixões naturais não dão conta, por si sós, da passagem da natureza ao Estado, por mais que o medo seja importante no começo da sociedade. A soberania da reta-razão em Hobbes parece ser necessária à criação do Estado civil. A razão natural, mediante as leis de natureza, apenas proíbe a um homem destruir sua vida ou privar-se dos meios necessários para preservá-la. Só uma razão geométrica, reta, que calcula segundo regras razoáveis, pode operar (...) a saída do estado de solidão em que os homens naturais se encontram inicialmente. O equacionamento da paz e da segurança para a vida satisfeita de cada homem impõe o cálculo que cria a unidade das vontades individuais, isto é, a forma geométrica do Estado soberano. (shrink)

Pensar é uma espécie de exercício responsável que não pode ser omitido neste momento que vivenciamos e partilhamos. Por isso, cultivar boas reflexões depende, por um lado, da capacidade técnico-acadêmica de pesquisadoras e pesquisadores e, por outro, da maneira como conduzem o seu horizonte filosófico diante de um quadro de perspectivas e desafios. Assim, a produção filosófica não precisa de milagres para compreender a natureza, como afirmará Espinosa, mas de uma aliança entre liberdade e razão.É neste sentido que o presente (...) número da Aurora contempla o dossiê “Atualidade da Filosofia de Espinosa: Matéria e potência”, organizado pelos professores Ricardo Espinosa Lolas e Eladio Craia.O Fluxo Contínuo, por sua vez, dispõe dos artigos “Fantasised alterity, inaudible voices. Notes for a critique of the coloniality of desire”, de Jorge Polo Blanco; “El Estado Intensivo de Gilles Deleuze”, de Julián Ferreyra; “Nietzsche e a mnemotécnica: do sofrimento à afirmação da vida pelo artista da dor”, de Adilson Felicio Feiler; “The role of sense of justice in Rawls’theory”, de Pablo Aguayo Westwood; “Paradigms in Action”, de Paulo Pirozelli e, por último, “É possível filosofar com Heidegger após as confissões nos Cadernos Negros?”, de Luiz Rohden.A Aurora também apresenta, ao final, as resenhas das obras “Aporías de la Democracia”, obra coordenada por Ricardo Espinoza Lolas e Jordi Riba, assinada por Angélica Montes Montoya, e “Hegel and Espinosa: Substance and Negativity”, de Gregor Moder, realizada por Eladio Craia e Arion Keller. (shrink)

Por la educación recibida, por sus convicciones personales y por el “devenir” de su vida José Filgueira Varlverde llegó a ser el paradigma del profesor humanista. Su trayectoria y su praxis docente, encuadrada en el humanismo cristiano, se desarrolló en beneficio del Instituto de la ciudad de Pontevedra (1939-1976), ciudad en la que llegó a ser toda una institución.Por sus influencias familiares, las de sus maestros y amigos, José Filgueira Valverde (1906-1996) fue encaminado a una formación humanística que (...) luego desarrollaría en su dilatada función docente como profesor y catedrático de instituto de Lengua y Literatura Española (1928-1976). (shrink)

The aim of this study was to evaluate agreement between nurses’ and physicians’ opinions regarding aggressiveness of treatment and to investigate and compare the rationales on which their opinions were based. Structured interviews regarding 714 patients were performed on seven general wards of a university hospital. The data gathered were then subjected to qualitative and quantitative analyses. There was 86% agreement between nurses’ and physicians’ opinions regarding full or limited treatment when the answers given as ‘uncertain’ were excluded. Agreement was (...) less (77%) for patients with a life expectancy of less than one year. Disagreements were not associated with professional status because the physicians considered limiting life-sustaining treatment as often as the nurses. A broad spectrum of rationales was given but the results focus mostly on those for full treatment. The nurses and the physicians had similar bases for their opinions. For the majority of the patients, medical rationales were used, but age and quality of life were also expressed as important determinants. When considering full treatment, nurses used quality-of-life rationales for significantly more patients than the physicians. Respect for patients’ wishes had a minor influence. (shrink)

Las exposiciones de Rolando Castellón han tenido espacio en varias partes del mundo. El artista ha ganado premios en su natal Nicaragua y fuera de ella. Reside en Costa Rica actualmente, y no se ha detenido allí. Se le puede encontrar con varios nombres y con cada uno de ellos desarrolla una actividad distinta, es así de multifacético. Él se ha construido a sí mismo desde su propia experiencia, sin la academia de por medio. Este trabajo quiere dar un recorrido (...) sobre el trabajo y obra del artista. (shrink)

Developing countries need to reform legislation to ensure the global supply firms in ready-made garment industry is adequately addressing obligations of social responsibility. Literature typically focuses on strategies for raising responsible standards in global buying firms within the RMG industry, but fails to focus on implementing strategies for suppliers in developing countries. This article addresses this gap by specifically focusing on the RMG industry in Bangladesh, the home of the third largest RMG supplier in the world. It concentrates on analysing (...) how and to what extent the law can assist in developing social responsibility performance of the RMG manufacturing firms in developing countries. It ultimately concludes that a new governance approach in laws can effectively increase the social responsibility practice standards of an industry where global buying firms are profit-driven and governmental agencies are either inadequate or corrupt. (shrink)

Clinical ethics support, in particular Moral Case Deliberation, aims to support health care providers to manage ethically difficult situations. However, there is a lack of evaluation instruments regarding outcomes of clinical ethics support in general and regarding Moral Case Deliberation (MCD) in particular. There also is a lack of clarity and consensuses regarding which MCD outcomes are beneficial. In addition, MCD outcomes might be context-sensitive. Against this background, there is a need for a standardised but flexible outcome evaluation instrument. The (...) aim of this study was to develop a multi-contextual evaluation instrument measuring health care providers’ experiences and perceived importance of outcomes of Moral Case Deliberation. (shrink)

Much work on intellectual humility has focused on its epistemic benefits. We suggest that displaying (or failing to display) intellectual humility also has effects on how others perceive us and that, as a result, intellectual humility can serve reputation management purposes, in at least four ways: (i) Intellectual humility can be used to signal we are a good source of information; (ii) Intellectual humility can be used to signal we are competent through countersignaling; (iii) Intellectual humility can be used to (...) make sure others do not believe we are overclaiming superiority; (iv) lack of intellectual humility (or intellectual arrogance) can be used to signal dominance. The evidence suggests that intellectual humility (or lack thereof) can have each of these effects. Seeing intellectual humility as (inter alia) a reputation management tool predicts that people will be more or less likely to display intellectual humility in some contexts. For instance, people in a position of power might stand to lose less if they fail to be intellectual humble; accordingly, evidence suggests that they tend to display less intellectual humility. In conclusion, we speculate that understanding intellectual humility as reputation management could help construct environments more conducive to displays of intellectual humility. (shrink)

The convergence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and corporate governance (CG) has changed the corporate accountability mechanism. This has developed a socially responsible ‘corporate self-regulation’, a synthesis of governance and responsibility in the companies of strong economies. However, unlike in the strong economies, this convergence has not been visible in the companies of weak economies, where the civil society groups are unorganised, regulatory agencies are either ineffective or corrupt and the media and non-governmental organisations do not mirror the corporate conscience. (...) Using the case of Bangladesh, this article investigates the convergence between CSR and CG in the self-regulation of companies in a less vigilant environment. (shrink)

Esta obra ofrece un panorama completo de los problemas fundamentales de la Metafísica, bien presentado, ordenado y estructurado, concediendo a cada tema su propia categoría dentro de la escala de importancia que hoy día le corresponde. Aborda por ello cuestiones de gran actualidad e interés para el hombre de nuestro tiempo, que invitan a una reflexión serena siguiendo siempre el acertado criterio orientador y cristiano que inspira su excelente desarrollo. La obra, por tanto, quiere prestar un gran servicio tanto en (...) los centros superiores de la Iglesia como en los de la universidad civil. (shrink)

BackgroundThere is a lack of empirical research regarding the outcomes of such clinical ethics support methods as moral case deliberation. Empirical research in how healthcare professionals perceive potential outcomes is needed in order to evaluate the value and effectiveness of ethics support; and help to design future outcomes research. The aim was to use the European Moral Case Deliberation Outcome Instrument instrument to examine the importance of various MCD outcomes, according to healthcare professionals, prior to participation.MethodsA North European field survey (...) among healthcare professionals drawn from 73 workplaces in a variety of healthcare settings in the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. The Euro-MCD instrument was used.ResultsAll outcomes regarding the domains of moral reflexivity, moral attitude, emotional support, collaboration, impact at organisational level and concrete results, were perceived as very or quite important by 76%–97% of the 703 respondents. Outcomes regarding collaboration and concrete results were perceived as most important. Outcomes assessed as least important were mostly about moral attitude. ‘Better interactions with patient/family’ emerged as a new domain from the qualitative analysis. Dutch respondents perceived most of the outcomes as significantly less important than the Scandinavians, especially regarding emotional support. Furthermore, men, those who were younger, and physician-respondents scored most of the outcomes as statistically significantly less important compared with the other respondents.ConclusionsThe findings indicate a need for a broad instrument such as the Euro-MCD. Outcomes related to better interactions between professionals and patients must also be included in the future. The empirical findings raise the normative question of whether outcomes that were perceived as less important, such as moral reflexivity and moral attitude outcomes, should still be included. In the future, a combination of empirical findings and normative reflection will contribute to the revision of the instrument. (shrink)

La antigua creencia de que los humanos son seres compuestos de cuerpo y alma alivia el desconsuelo de que esta vida sea todo lo que tenemos, apaciguando el temor a la muerte al ofrecer la ilusión de una vida sin la carga dolorosa del cuerpo; pero también justifica prejuicios y supersticiones surgidos de fenómenos como el sueño, la alucinación o la mera imaginación. Esas hondas motivaciones recibirían con la filosofía cartesiana una poderosa justificación. Sin embargo, aceptar que cuerpo (...) y mente sean dos sustancias distintas ha planteado importantes problemas para los que pareciera no haber respuestas satisfactorias. [Fragmento]. (shrink)

There has recently been work by multiple groups in extracting the properties associated with cardinal invariants of the continuum and translating these properties into similar analogous combinatorial properties of computational oracles. Each property yields a highness notion in the Turing degrees. In this paper we study the highness notions that result from the translation of the evasion number and its dual, the prediction number, as well as two versions of the rearrangement number. When translated appropriately, these yield four new highness (...) notions. We will define these new notions, show some of their basic properties and place them in the computability-theoretic version of Cichoń's diagram. (shrink)

In the first half of this paper, we study the way that sets of real numbers closed under Turing equivalence sit inside the real line from the perspective of algebra, measure and orders. Afterwards, we combine the results from our study of these sets as orders with a classical construction from Avraham to obtain a restriction about how non trivial automorphism of the Turing degrees (if they exist) interact with 1-generic degrees.

Based on a case study of a large multinational group, this paper addresses the way in which social and environmental reporting systems were changed and the consequences and controversies associated with this change. Drawing on Power’s work on the processes by which things are made auditable via underlying systems, we focus on how and why a specific programme with auditability as its ultimate aim changed the basis on which the external social and environmental report was prepared. Our analysis demonstrates that (...) the perceived alignment with the financial report preparation and the explicit pursuit of auditability legitimized SER and paved the way for data systems to be changed. The programme borrowed authority from financial accounting technologies not only to make a system change but also to push SER internally, as we suggest that an intraorganizational group used the programme to ensure the existence and organizational status of SER. However, we also illustrate some of the practical challenges associated with this change, which include issues related to internal control and the establishment of organizational boundaries. (shrink)

The notion of harm has been a recurring and a significant notion in the characterization of mental disorder. It is present in eminent diagnostic manuals such as DSM and ICD, as well as in the discussion on mental disorders in philosophy of psychiatry. Recent demotion of harm in the definition of mental disorders in DSM-5 shows a general trend towards reducing the significance of harm when thinking about the nature of mental disorders. In this paper, we defend the relevance of (...) the notion of harm in the characterization of mental disorder against some of these attacks. We approach this issue by using the method of conceptual explication pioneered by Rudolf Carnap. Within this framework, we argue that keeping the notion of harm not only helps to discriminate what is pathological from the nonpathological but also prevents potential misuses of psychiatric authority. (shrink)

The semantic of the terms “sustainable development” and “corporate social responsibility” have changed over time to a point where these concepts have become two interrelated processes for ensuring the far‐reaching development of society. Their convergence has given dimension to the environmental and corporate regulation mechanisms in strong economies. This article deals with the question of how the ethos of this convergence could be incorporated into the self‐regulation of businesses in weak economies where nonlegal drivers are either inadequate or inefficient. It (...) proposes that the policies for this incorporation should be based on the precepts of meta‐regulation that have the potential to hold force majeure, economic incentives, and assistance‐related strategies to reach an objective from the perspective of weak economies. (shrink)

This paper provides frameworks for understanding how ethics might be expressed in gameplay situations, and how we can study the ethical frameworks that games offer to players. There are many ways to delve into such topics, and this paper considers only a few approaches. It briefly surveys some of the important ques-tions and critiques arising from audience studies, theories of play and games, and work on cheating, and begins to build a framework for considering ethics in relation to games and (...) players that transcends the “place apart” that games are often constructed as. (shrink)

Despite societal concerns about the welfare of commercial laying hens, little attention has been paid to the welfare implications of the choices made by the genetics companies involved with their breeding. These choices regarding trait selection and other aspects of breeding significantly affect living conditions for the more than 7 billion laying hens in the world. However, these companies must consider a number of different commercial and societal interests, beyond animal welfare concerns. In this article we map some of the (...) relevant dilemmas faced by genetics companies in order to outline the scope of opportunities to improve welfare under current market conditions. This includes identifying cases where different animal welfare concerns conflict. We discuss the moral responsibility of laying hen genetics companies and the welfare implications that derive from the choices they make and the policies they follow. In addition to evaluating a selection of predominant current practices and breeding goals, we outline different angles from where to assess the moral legitimacy of various industry practices and policies. We discuss specific issues such as injurious pecking, bone health, induced moulting, chick culling and the circumstances of breeding stock. (shrink)

Even though Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has become a widely accepted concept promoted by different stakeholders, business corporations' internal strategies, known as corporate self-regulation in most of the weak economies, respond poorly to this responsibility. Major laws relating to corporate regulation and responsibilities of these economies do not possess adequate ongoing influence to insist on corporate self-regulation to create a socially responsible corporate culture. This book describes how the laws relating to CSR could contribute to the inclusion of CSR principles (...) at the core of the corporate self-regulation of these economies in general, without being intrusive in normal business practice. It formulates a meta-regulation approach to law, particularly by converging patterns of private ordering and state control in contemporary corporate law from the perspective of a weak economy. It proposes that this approach is suitable for alleviating regulators' limited access to information and expertise, inherent limitations of prescriptive rules, ensuring corporate commitment, and enhance the self-regulatory capacity of companies. This book describes various meta-regulation strategies for laws to link social values to economic incentives and disincentives, and to indirectly influence companies to incorporate CSR principles at the core of their self-regulation strategies. It investigates this phenomenon using Bangladesh as a case study. (shrink)

El igualitarismo de la suerte es una teoría de justicia distributiva que incluye consideraciones de responsabilidad atributiva individual para definir las obligaciones distributivas. Se presenta como un intento de recomponer cierta consistencia interna a la teoría rawlsiana y evitar algunas de sus consecuencias “inequitativas”. El artículo defiende la consistencia interna del proyecto rawlsiano sin necesidad de incluir un criterio sensible a la responsabilidad atributiva individual, ya que la inclusión de tal criterio resultaría ilegítima desde el punto de vista rawlsiano.

BackgroundBesides balancing burdens and benefits of intensive care, ethical conflicts in the process of decision-making should also be recognised. This calls for an ethical analysis relevant to clinicians. The aim was to analyse ethically difficult situations in the process of deciding whether a patient is admitted to intensive care unit.MethodsAnalysis using the ‘Dilemma method’ and ‘wide reflective equilibrium’, on ethnographic data of 45 patient cases and 96 stakeholder interviews in six UK hospitals.Ethical analysisFour moral questions and associated value conflicts were (...) identified. Who should have the right to decide whether a patient needs to be reviewed? Conflicting perspectives on safety/security. Does the benefit to the patient of getting the decision right justify the cost to the patient of a delay in making the decision? Preventing longer-term suffering and understanding patient’s values conflicted with preventing short-term suffering and provision of security. To what extent should the intensivist gain others’ input? Professional independence versus a holistic approach to decision-making. Should the intensivist have an ongoing duty of care to patients not admitted to ICU? Short-term versus longer-term duty to protect patient safety. Safety and security were key values at stake in the ethical conflicts identified. The life-threatening nature of the situation meant that the principle of autonomy was overshadowed by the duty to protect patients from harm. The need to fairly balance obligations to the referred patient and to other patients was also recognised.ConclusionProactive decision-making including advance care planning and escalation of treatment decisions may support the inclusion of patient autonomy. However, our analysis invites binary choices, which may not sufficiently reflect reality. This calls for a complementary relational ethics analysis. (shrink)

Cognitive models of social anxiety disorder suggest that memory biases for negative social information contribute to symptoms of social anxiety. However, it remains unclear whether memory bias...

Giacomo Zabarella es considerado uno de los aristotélicos más prestigiosos y más influyentes del siglo XVI. Su obra lógica, sus escritos sobre física y sus comentarios, publicados póstumamente, tuvieron un enorme impacto especialmente en las primeras décadas del siglo XVII, y sirvieron como verdaderos manuales con los que se formaron muchos universitarios europeos. Este artículo analiza la figura de Zabarella centrándose en su obra sobre física, el De rebus naturalibus libri XXX, editado en 1590, apenas unos días antes de su (...) muerte. (shrink)

Mandalas in the Making: The Visual Culture of Esoteric Buddhism at Dunhuang, by Michelle C. Wang. Leiden: Brill, 2018. xviii + 318 pages. Hb. $147.00, ISBN-13: 9789004357655; Ebook $25.00, ISBN-13: 9789004360402.

In June 1928, Captain Barnett W. Harris, an amateur naturalist from Indiana, arrived in Zululand to experiment on wild animals with his invention – the mercy bullet. This “bullet”consisted of a hypodermic needle filled with anesthetic drugs that could render an animal unconscious – an early model of what is now known as the tranquilizer gun. The history of this gun typically begins with Colin Murdoch, a New Zealand pharmacist and veterinarian, who patented the invention in 1959. While largely absent (...) in the archives, through tracing popular science publications and press, this article exposes a longer history of animal tranquilizers from an unlikely source. Tracing Harris’s story allows this article to speak to different historical discourses that influenced his rise as a celebrated inventor, and later to his disappearance from the scientific arena. This article argues that debates about pain relief (for both humans and nonhuman animals) and developments in military technology at the turn of the twentieth century resulted in experiments with narcotic bullets, a precursor to this “mercy bullet moment.” While hailed across the press as the man who might transform animal capturing into a humane practice, the workings of Harris’s bullet remained ambiguous. Despite this, he promoted his invention through several lecture series and radio presentations to the American public in the 1930s, where elements of scientific showmanship can be observed. Overall, Harris’s omission from the history of animal tranquilizing demonstrates the multiple contingencies that define a moment of scientific “success” – or, in this case, push some into relative obscurity. (shrink)