The potential of modern medicine in a pluralistic world leads to the potential for moral conflict. The most prevalent bioethical theories often either overestimate or underestimate the amount of shared moral belief that can be used to address those conflicts. This work presents a means for taking seriously the pluralism in the modern world while recognizing the likelihood of moral “acquaintance” between persons with differing views. It criticizes moral theories that overstate the extent of the problem of pluralism as well as those that imply too much agreement between reasonable moral persons, yet it locates a means for the resolution of many moral conflicts in moral acquaintanceship. Drawing from the work of H. Tristram Engelhardt, Jr., casuists and principle-based theorists, and Erich Loewy and Kevin W. Wildes’s initial development of the concept of moral acquaintanceship, Moral Acquaintances and Moral Decisions is philosophically indepth work with direct applications for decisionmaking in real medical settings. A work in moral theory as well as a source of real world guidance, clinically oriented bioethics professionals as well as students of bioethical theory should find the theory of moral acquaintanceship provided here important to their work.

Sci Phi is an online science fiction and philosophy magazine. In each issue you will find stories that explore questions of life, the universe and everything and articles that delve into the deep philosophical waters of science fiction universes. This month we have, An original Novellete from author John C. Wright, The Ideal Machine, a tale of aliens from a distant star come to visit an old country church and offer our world a chance for the future. Original Science Fiction stories fromJoshua M. Young - Domo - A story of a Robot who wonders if he has a soulDavid Hallquist - Falling To Eternity - Can a Blackhole help you get away with murder?Frederick Best - Cosmic Foam - What is beyond the visible worldJane Lebak - Abandoned River, Dry Water - What do you do when life throws you a curve ball?Original Essays byDavid Kyle Johnson - In Defense of the Matrix Saga: Appreciating the Sequel through PhilosophyJames Druley - Star Trek's Prime Directive : Moral Guidelines, Exceptions and AbsolutesStephen S. Hanson - Personhood in H.Beam Piper's Little FuzzyDaniel Vecchio - "I am Groot": An Aristotelian Reflection on Space Aliens and SubstanceRuth Tallman - Endangered Species: Exploring Transhumanism, Genetic Engineering and Personhood Through the World of Sweet ToothAnd a book review by Peter Sean Bradley, Monster Hunter International by Larry Correia.