Bioethics, or ethics of life, is the study of the human moral behavior in the fields of life sciences and healthcare. As a branch of applied ethics, bioethics integrates studies in the areas of biology, medicine, ecology, and social, human, and legal issues. In this chapter, the evolution of morality along history is briefly described. The different disciplines of ethics, with emphasis on the accepted principles of biomedical ethics in modern times, are presented. Additionally, the merging of moral dilemmas to current multidisciplinary teams of biologists and engineers performing in health care settings is analyzed. Moreover, the contents of a simple program of bioethics education are outlined, calling attention to the evaluation of the moral development of biomedical engineers. At the end of the chapter, a list of societies and organizations of bioethics around the world is intended to guide the interested reader further into the field of Bioethics.
The Evolution of Morality
