In Star Trek TNG, TOS and Voyager they at some point debate what sentience is and what makes a person a person.
Picard with Data/Moriarty, Janeway with The Doctor/holos, Kirk and Spock with the Horta and Sisko with the equality of people and the Bell Riots. I am honestly unsure if Archer or Lorca has yet canonically covered this topic.
My question is it ethical to build androids/holograms or genetically created beings with programming that prevents sentience from emerging. Like a sort of contraceptive/lobotomy?
Also, does Self-aware necessarily mean intelligent as well? do you need one to have the other?
yes, I know mentally disabled individuals or handicapped people may not be as intelligent but it still fits a level of intelligence as far as I understand it. In other words, I'm not asking if a mentally disabled person is intelligent or self-aware. I suspect I'm over explaining so I will stop right here lol.
If you know something has the potential to be sentient is it unethical to intentionally prevent that from happening?
Also to be clear I did ask this in the SiFi stack but they told me that it wasn't a sifi question and directed me to here.