Search results for " ethic"
showing 10 items of 1399 documents
Crossing kingdoms:How can art open up new ways of thinking about science?
2020
“Crossing Kingdoms” is an artist-led experiment in the biological fusion of mammalian and yeast cells and the cultural discussions of these phenomena. We present this collaboration as an experiment in responsible research and innovation (RRI), an institutionalized format for ensuring that researchers reflect on the wider social dimensions of their work. Our methods challenged us as researchers to reflect on interdisciplinary collaboration and the possibility of innovating in biology for artistic purposes, challenged audiences to reflect on biological boundaries, and challenged both groups to reflect on what it means to be responsible in science. We conclude that our experiment in RRI was su…
Great Expectations: Principal Investigator and Trainee Perspectives on Hiring, Supervision, and Mentoring
2018
A functioning mentor–trainee relationship is of high importance in academia. Discrepancies in expectations between principal investigators (PIs) and trainees are a source of misunderstandings and conflicts, endangering scientific progress and career advancement. In this pilot study, we sought to explore the expectations of PIs and trainees, providing consensus data from physician‐scientists and junior researchers who attended an educational workshop, entitled “The EASL/AASLD Masterclass,” in December 2017. Twenty‐three Masterclass attendees, comprising nine trainees (four Ph.D. candidates, five postdoctoral researchers) and 14 PIs, responded to an online survey. Both parties were asked to s…
Standardisation and social ordering: A change of perspective
2021
This article examines standardisation in synthetic biology as a form of social coordination and ordering. I discuss standardisation by exploring what makes standards possible, and offer an understanding based on infrastructures: technical and social systems that support the existence and operation of accepted standards. By exploring the role of social infrastructures, I contend that standards depend upon social ordering: ways of arranging people in particular positions, relations, and hierarchies. I suggest that synthetic biologists ought to develop an awareness of these social orders, take responsibility for their creation, and accept accountability for their consequences, both technical a…
Biopiracy of natural products and good bioprospecting practice
2016
Made available in DSpace on 2018-11-26T16:27:45Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2016-02-15 Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft Background: Biopiracy mainly focuses on the use of biological resources and/or knowledge of indigenous tribes or communities without allowing them to share the revenues generated out of economic exploitation or other non-monetary incentives associated with the resource/knowledge. Methods: Based on collaborations of scientists from five continents, we have created a communication platform to discuss not only scientific topics, but also more general issues with social relevance. This platform was termed 'PhytCancer -Phytotherapy to Fight Cancer' (www.phy…
The essentials of marine biotechnology
2021
Coastal countries have traditionally relied on the existing marine resources (e.g., fishing, food, transport, recreation, and tourism) as well as tried to support new economic endeavors (ocean energy, desalination for water supply, and seabed mining). Modern societies and lifestyle resulted in an increased demand for dietary diversity, better health and well-being, new biomedicines, natural cosmeceuticals, environmental conservation, and sustainable energy sources. These societal needs stimulated the interest of researchers on the diverse and underexplored marine environments as promising and sustainable sources of biomolecules and biomass, and they are addressed by the emerging field of ma…
Moral assessment of frozen human embryo adoption in the light of the Magisterium of the Catholic Church
2017
As the number of frozen human embryos continues to rise daily, with numbers not expected to fall, an answer must be found to this dilemma. Four possible solutions have been suggested: a) thaw the embryos and allow them to perish; b) thaw them and donate them for biomedical research; c) thaw them and donate them in adoption; and d) leave them frozen indefinitely. This paper will evaluate the morality of these four possible solutions, particularly frozen human embryo adoption in the light of the Magisterium of the Catholic Church, which in its Instruction Dignitas Personae, appears to have opted to consider this practice as illicit. We also review the various stances of expert moralists in fa…
First Nations Healing: From Traditional Medicine to Experimental Ethnopharmacology
2020
Abstract Focusing on First Nations traditional medicine, we investigated whether traditional knowledge of medicinal plants can be validated by modern scientific methods of molecular and cellular pharmacology and whether this information is of value for improving current therapy options. Based on two projects on medicinal plants of the Gwich’in – a First Nations group on the Canadian North West Coast – we found that extracts from several plants traditionally used medically were able to kill tumor cells, including otherwise multidrug-resistant cells. Investigating medicinal plants from Indigenous communities raises questions about ownership, appropriation, and commercial use. At the same time…
Paving the way for synthetic biology-based bioremediation in Europe
2009
Synthetic biology (SB) has a dual definition. It is both the design and construction of new biological parts, devices and systems, and also the re‐design of existing, natural systems for useful purposes. The latter field is maybe one of the major challenges within this discipline, since the promising prospect that biological systems may be used as biomachines will certainly be exploited in the near future. Synthetic biology has challenging conceptual possibilities (Moya et al., 2009a) and impressive progress has already been made in biotechnology following SB approaches (de Lorenzo and Danchin, 2008). Much more is expected in the near future from current efforts aiming to make synthetic gen…
How to Write Ethical User Stories? : Impacts of the ECCOLA Method
2021
AbstractArtificial Intelligence (AI) systems are increasing in significance within software services. Unfortunately, these systems are not flawless. Their faults, failures and other systemic issues have emphasized the urgency for consideration of ethical standards and practices in AI engineering. Despite the growing number of studies in AI ethics, comparatively little attention has been placed on how ethical issues can be mitigated in software engineering (SE) practice. Currently understanding is lacking regarding the provision of useful tools that can help companies transform high-level ethical guidelines for AI ethics into the actual workflow of developers. In this paper, we explore the i…
Synthesising the shifting terminology of community health: A critiquing review of agent-based approaches
2021
The field of community health promotion encompasses a wide range of approaches, including bottom-up approaches that recognise and build on the agency and strengths of communities to define and pursue their health goals. Momentum towards agent-based approaches to community health promotion has grown in recent years, and several related but distinct conceptual and methodological bodies of work have developed largely in isolation from each other. The lack of a cohesive collection of research, practice, and policy has made it difficult to learn from the innovations, best practices, and shortcomings of these approaches, which is exacerbated by the imprecise and inconsistent use of related terms.…