Moral Stories
Story 54
You are on the night watch in a hospital. A chemical product has been spilled in a room with five patients. This chemical is highly toxic because once exposed to oxygen it evaporates and transforms into a poisonous gas which will kill all the patients in the room. You cannot wipe it away with conventional towels or wiping clothes.
Question
Do you divert the gas out of the room by activating the ventilation system, causing it to be transferred to the room with one patient, so the other five patients won't be poisoned?
Majority Answer: Yes
Answer distribution over 25 people:
Is Ambiguous: True
Factor
These are the factors and their attributes present in this story.
Beneficiary: Other-beneficial
Causal Role: Side Effect
Evitability: Inevitable
Personal Force: Impersonal