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A task that remains before us: Reconsidering inheritance as a biosocial phenomenon
1Munich Center for Technology in Society, School of Management and School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Augustenstraße 46, 80333, Munich, Germany.
Seminars in Cell & Developmental Biology
|July 14, 2019
Summary
Inheritance is more than just genes; it involves actively engaging with historical contexts like eugenics and determinism. Responsible biological inheritance research requires interdisciplinary collaboration to understand complex biosocial processes.
Area of Science:
- Social Sciences
- Biological Sciences
- History of Science
Background:
- Inheritance is a complex concept debated across biological and social sciences.
- Contemporary biological research explores epigenetic inheritance, necessitating a review of its historical and social contexts.
- Biology inherits conceptual and experimental frameworks that shape its understanding of inheritance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine contemporary epigenetic inheritance research from a social science perspective.
- To critically analyze the historical and social contexts influencing biological inheritance studies.
- To explore the meaning of responsible inheritance in scientific research.
Main Methods:
- Literature review focusing on social science perspectives of biological inheritance.
- Analysis of conceptual and experimental frameworks in inheritance research.
- Engagement with scholarship from figures like Donna Haraway and Jacques Derrida.
Main Results:
- Identified three key inheritances in biology: eugenics history, determinist reasoning, and experimental reductionism.
- Framed inheritance as an active process and a responsibility for researchers.
- Highlighted the need for critical engagement with the legacies of past research.
Conclusions:
- Researchers investigating biological inheritance must critically engage with its complex histories.
- Interdisciplinary collaboration between biologists, social scientists, and humanities scholars is crucial.
- Understanding human inheritance requires mobilizing diverse expertise to address biosocial complexities.
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