21A.355J / STS.060J The Anthropology of Biology, Spring 2009
If the twentieth century was the century of physics, the twenty-first promises to be the century of biology. This subject examines the cultural, political, and economic dimensions of biology in the age of genomics, biotechnological enterprise, biodiversity conservation, pharmaceutical bioprospecting...
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| Format: | Learning Object |
| Language: | en-US |
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2009
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/90867 |
| _version_ | 1824458255462563840 |
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| author | Helmreich, Stefan |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Anthropology Program |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Anthropology Program Helmreich, Stefan |
| author_sort | Helmreich, Stefan |
| collection | MIT |
| description | If the twentieth century was the century of physics, the twenty-first promises to be the century of biology. This subject examines the cultural, political, and economic dimensions of biology in the age of genomics, biotechnological enterprise, biodiversity conservation, pharmaceutical bioprospecting, and synthetic biology. Although we examine such social concerns as bioterrorism, genetic modification, and cloning, this is not a class in bioethics, but rather an anthropological inquiry into how the substances and explanations of biology — increasingly cellular, molecular, genetic, and informatic — are changing, and with them broader ideas about the relationship between "nature" and "culture." Looking at such cultural artifacts as cell lines, biodiversity databases, and artificial life models, and using primary sources in biology, social studies of the life sciences, and literary and cinematic materials, we rephrase Erwin Schrödinger's famous 1944 question, "What Is Life?" to ask, in the early 2000s, "What Is Life Becoming?" |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T13:36:17Z |
| format | Learning Object |
| id | mit-1721.1/90867 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en-US |
| last_indexed | 2025-02-19T04:22:59Z |
| publishDate | 2009 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/908672025-02-13T21:11:11Z 21A.355J / STS.060J The Anthropology of Biology, Spring 2009 The Anthropology of Biology Helmreich, Stefan Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Anthropology Program Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Program in Science, Technology and Society synthetic biology genetics Charles Darwin evolution eugenics bioprospecting ethics biodiversity race molecular biology sociology of science construction of identity intersex biotechnology narratives and metaphors If the twentieth century was the century of physics, the twenty-first promises to be the century of biology. This subject examines the cultural, political, and economic dimensions of biology in the age of genomics, biotechnological enterprise, biodiversity conservation, pharmaceutical bioprospecting, and synthetic biology. Although we examine such social concerns as bioterrorism, genetic modification, and cloning, this is not a class in bioethics, but rather an anthropological inquiry into how the substances and explanations of biology — increasingly cellular, molecular, genetic, and informatic — are changing, and with them broader ideas about the relationship between "nature" and "culture." Looking at such cultural artifacts as cell lines, biodiversity databases, and artificial life models, and using primary sources in biology, social studies of the life sciences, and literary and cinematic materials, we rephrase Erwin Schrödinger's famous 1944 question, "What Is Life?" to ask, in the early 2000s, "What Is Life Becoming?" 2009-06 Learning Object 21A.355J-Spring2009 local: 21A.355J local: STS.060J local: IMSCP-MD5-6010d2c3a8275136574ee126d9b75c9a http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/90867 en-US Usage Restrictions: This site (c) Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2014. Content within individual courses is (c) by the individual authors unless otherwise noted. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is providing this Work (as defined below) under the terms of this Creative Commons public license ("CCPL" or "license") unless otherwise noted. The Work is protected by copyright and/or other applicable law. Any use of the work other than as authorized under this license is prohibited. By exercising any of the rights to the Work provided here, You (as defined below) accept and agree to be bound by the terms of this license. The Licensor, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, grants You the rights contained here in consideration of Your acceptance of such terms and conditions. Usage Restrictions: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ text/html Spring 2009 |
| spellingShingle | synthetic biology genetics Charles Darwin evolution eugenics bioprospecting ethics biodiversity race molecular biology sociology of science construction of identity intersex biotechnology narratives and metaphors Helmreich, Stefan 21A.355J / STS.060J The Anthropology of Biology, Spring 2009 |
| title | 21A.355J / STS.060J The Anthropology of Biology, Spring 2009 |
| title_full | 21A.355J / STS.060J The Anthropology of Biology, Spring 2009 |
| title_fullStr | 21A.355J / STS.060J The Anthropology of Biology, Spring 2009 |
| title_full_unstemmed | 21A.355J / STS.060J The Anthropology of Biology, Spring 2009 |
| title_short | 21A.355J / STS.060J The Anthropology of Biology, Spring 2009 |
| title_sort | 21a 355j sts 060j the anthropology of biology spring 2009 |
| topic | synthetic biology genetics Charles Darwin evolution eugenics bioprospecting ethics biodiversity race molecular biology sociology of science construction of identity intersex biotechnology narratives and metaphors |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/90867 |
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