Utility Function

Full Title or Meme

A current measure of the future good of one or more current actions.

Context

• The Ethics of any function can measured by the scope of the population that are expected to benefit by the action.
• The future good measure should be a net value of the good minus the harm.

Problem

Maximizing the Utility Function is likely to leave out the poor and disabled since any increase in their function might not be offset by function from many more people. That would mean that not all people need to succeed in the maximum good for the maximum number.

References

• Also see the wiki page on Expected Value.