Current Controversies in the Biological Sciences

Current Controversies in the Biological Sciences PDF Author: Karen F. Greif
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262262940
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 401

Book Description
In recent years, advances in biological science and technology have outpaced policymakers' attempts to deal with them. Current Controversies in the Biological Sciences examines the ways in which the federal government uses scientific information in reaching policy decisions, providing case studies of the interactions between science and government on different biomedical, biological, and environmental issues. These case studies document a broad range of complex issues in science policy—from the Human Genome Project to tobacco regulation—and provide an accessible overview of both the science behind the issues and the policy-making process. The cases illustrate the different ways in which science and politics intersect in policy decisions, as well as the different forms policy itself may take—including not only regulatory action but the lack of regulation. Among the topics examined are public and private research funding, as seen in gene patenting; reluctance to regulate even when a product has been proven unhealthy, as in the case of tobacco; a comparison of U.S. and international policy responses to genetically modified organisms; and the competing interests at play in air pollution policy. Each chapter includes shorter side essays on related topics (for example, essays on issues raised by the SARS epidemic accompany the detailed case study of the public health response to the anthrax-laced mail received in the weeks after 9/11). This clear and readable introduction to controversial issues in the biological sciences will be a valuable resource for students of science policy and bioethics and for professionals in industry, government, and nongovernmental organizations who need background on emerging issues in the biological sciences.

Dual Use Research of Concern in the Life Sciences

Dual Use Research of Concern in the Life Sciences PDF Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309458889
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 115

Book Description
The potential misuse of advances in life sciences research is raising concerns about national security threats. Dual Use Research of Concern in the Life Sciences: Current Issues and Controversies examines the U.S. strategy for reducing biosecurity risks in life sciences research and considers mechanisms that would allow researchers to manage the dissemination of the results of research while mitigating the potential for harm to national security.

Current Controversies in Philosophy of Science

Current Controversies in Philosophy of Science PDF Author: Shamik Dasgupta
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317497147
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 314

Book Description
Current Controversies in Philosophy of Science asks twelve philosophers to debate six questions that are driving contemporary work in this area of philosophy. The questions are: I. Are Boltzmann Brains Bad? II. Does Mathematical Explanation Require Mathematical Truth? III. Does Quantum Mechanics Suggest Spacetime is Nonfundamental? IV. Is Evolution Fundamental When It Comes to Defining Biological Ontology? V. Is Chance Ontologically Fundamental? VI. Are Sexes Natural Kinds? These debates explore the philosophical foundations of particular scientific disciplines, while also examining more general issues in the philosophy of science. The result is a book that’s perfect for the advanced philosophy student, building up their knowledge of the foundations of the field and engaging with its cutting-edge questions. Preliminary descriptions of each chapter, annotated lists of further readings for each controversy, and study questions for each chapter help provide clearer and richer snapshots of active controversies for all readers.

Contemporary Debates in Philosophy of Biology

Contemporary Debates in Philosophy of Biology PDF Author: Francisco J. Ayala
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 9781444314939
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 440

Book Description
This collection of specially commissioned essays puts top scholarshead to head to debate the central issues in the lively and fastgrowing field of philosophy of biology Brings together original essays on ten of the most hotlydebated questions in philosophy of biology Lively head-to-head debate format sharply defines the issuesand paves the way for further discussion Includes coverage of the new and vital area of evolutionarydevelopmental biology, as well as the concept of a unified species,the role of genes in selection, the differences between micro- andmacro-evolution, and much more Each section features an introduction to the topic as well assuggestions for further reading Offers an accessible overview of this fast-growing and dynamicfield, whilst also capturing the imagination of professionalphilosophers and biologists

Misbehaving Science

Misbehaving Science PDF Author: Aaron Panofsky
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022605859X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 334

Book Description
Behavior genetics has always been a breeding ground for controversies. From the “criminal chromosome” to the “gay gene,” claims about the influence of genes like these have led to often vitriolic national debates about race, class, and inequality. Many behavior geneticists have encountered accusations of racism and have had their scientific authority and credibility questioned, ruining reputations, and threatening their access to coveted resources. In Misbehaving Science, Aaron Panofsky traces the field of behavior genetics back to its origins in the 1950s, telling the story through close looks at five major controversies. In the process, Panofsky argues that persistent, ungovernable controversy in behavior genetics is due to the broken hierarchies within the field. All authority and scientific norms are questioned, while the absence of unanimously accepted methods and theories leaves a foundationless field, where disorder is ongoing. Critics charge behavior geneticists with political motivations; champions say they merely follow the data where they lead. But Panofsky shows how pragmatic coping with repeated controversies drives their scientific actions. Ironically, behavior geneticists’ struggles for scientific authority and efforts to deal with the threats to their legitimacy and autonomy have made controversy inevitable—and in some ways essential—to the study of behavior genetics.

Issues in Biological and Life Sciences Research: 2011 Edition

Issues in Biological and Life Sciences Research: 2011 Edition PDF Author:
Publisher: ScholarlyEditions
ISBN: 1464963339
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 5108

Book Description
Issues in Biological and Life Sciences Research: 2011 Edition is a ScholarlyEditions™ eBook that delivers timely, authoritative, and comprehensive information about Biological and Life Sciences Research. The editors have built Issues in Biological and Life Sciences Research: 2011 Edition on the vast information databases of ScholarlyNews.™ You can expect the information about Biological and Life Sciences Research in this eBook to be deeper than what you can access anywhere else, as well as consistently reliable, authoritative, informed, and relevant. The content of Issues in Biological and Life Sciences Research: 2011 Edition has been produced by the world’s leading scientists, engineers, analysts, research institutions, and companies. All of the content is from peer-reviewed sources, and all of it is written, assembled, and edited by the editors at ScholarlyEditions™ and available exclusively from us. You now have a source you can cite with authority, confidence, and credibility. More information is available at http://www.ScholarlyEditions.com/.

Current Issues in Biology

Current Issues in Biology PDF Author: Scientific American
Publisher: Benjamin Cummings
ISBN: 9780805335668
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 76

Book Description
Give your students the best of both worlds-accessible, dynamic, relevant articles from Scientific American magazine that present key issues in biology, paired with the authority, reliability, and clarity of Benjamin Cummings' non-majors biology texts. Articles cover current topics in biology like Preparing for a Pandemic, CSI: Reality, Founder Mutations, His Brain, Her Brain, Protecting more than Animals, Buying Time in Suspended Animation, and more. A host of questions at the end of each article help students check their comprehension and see the connections between science and society. Each volume is available at no additional charge when packaged with a new text.

Scientific Process and Social Issues in Biology Education

Scientific Process and Social Issues in Biology Education PDF Author: Garland E. Allen
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 3319443801
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 240

Book Description
This book complements fact-drive textbooks in introductory biology courses, or courses in biology and society, by focusing on several important points: (1) Biology as a process of doing science, emphasizing how we know what we know. (2) It stresses the role of science as a social as well as intellectual process, one that is always embedded in its time and place in history. In dealing with the issue of science as a process, the book introduces students to the elements of inductive and deductive logic, hypothesis formulation and testing, the design of experiments and the interpretation of data. An appendix presents the basics of statistical analysis for students with no background in statistical reasoning and manipulation. Reasoning processes are always illustrated with specific examples from both the past (eighteenth and nineteenth century) as well as the present. In dealing with science and social issues, this book introduces students to historical, sociological and philosophical issues such as Thomas Kuhn’s concept of paradigms and paradigm shifts, the social-constructions view of the history of science, as well as political and ethical issues such human experimentation, the eugenics movement and compulsory sterilization, and religious arguments against stem cell research and the teaching of evolution in schools. In addition to specific examples illustrating one point or another about the process of biology or social-political context, a number of in-depth case studies are used to show how scientific investigations are originated, designed, carried out in particular social/cultural contexts. Among those included are: Migration of monarch butterflies, John Snow’s investigations on the cause of cholera, Louis Pasteur’s controversy over spontaneous generation, the mass extinction of the dinosaurs, and the Tuskegee syphilis experiment.

Communicating Biological Sciences

Communicating Biological Sciences PDF Author: Dr Richard Elliott
Publisher: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
ISBN: 1409491854
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 438

Book Description
Recent scandals in the biosciences have highlighted the perils of communicating science leading many observers to ask questions about the pressures on scientists and the media to hype-up claims of scientific breakthroughs. Journalists, science writers and scientists themselves have to report complex and rapidly-developing scientific issues to society, yet work within conceptual and temporal constraints that shape their communication. To date, there has been little reflection on the ethical implications of science writing and science communication in an era of rapid change. Communicating Biological Sciences discusses the 'ethics' of science communication in light of recent developments in biotechnology and biomedicine. It focuses on the role of metaphors in the creation of visions and the framing of scientific advances, as well as their impact on patterns of public acceptance and rejection, trust and scepticism. Its rigorous investigation will appeal not only to science writers and scientists, but also to scholars of sociology, science and technology studies, media and journalism.

Scientific American Current Issues in Cell and Molecular Biology and Genetics

Scientific American Current Issues in Cell and Molecular Biology and Genetics PDF Author: Scientific American, inc
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780805305685
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 71

Book Description
Give your students the best of both worlds-the most current, interesting applications in cell biology, genetics, and molecular biology paired with the authority, reliability, and clarity of Benjamin Cummings' texts. This exclusive special supplement from Scientific American is available at no additional cost when packaged with select Benjamin Cummings titles. Each article was carefully chosen to match the level of your course, and to capture some of the most exciting developments in biology today-from gene therapy to a potentially looming influenza pandemic and more. Also included are end of chapter comprehension and discussion questions for both cell biology and genetics.