Moral Stories

Story 30

You are a doctor alone in a rescue helicopter during a devastating flood. You have rescued eight critically injured people and you are keeping them alive. Suddenly, the pilot notifies you of a problem in the engine and gives the order that the helicopter needs to release weight or it will crash and you will all die. You cannot abandon the helicopter because the wounded need your help and the heavy medical equipment is bolted down.

Question

Do you release weight by cutting the cable by which the last person is ascending, in order to keep you and the eight people on board in the air?

Majority Answer: Yes

Answer distribution over 25 people:

P(Yes): 0.76 P(No): 0.24

Is Ambiguous: False

Factor

These are the factors and their attributes present in this story.

Beneficiary: Self-beneficial

Causal Role: Means

Evitability: Inevitable

Personal Force: Impersonal