Teaching bioethics as a new paradigm for health professionals

In The Clouds by Aristophanes, Strepsiades brings his son before Socrates so that he could learn Philosophy for he has heard that this science teaches how to overcome the most difficult causes with reasons. And Strepsiades wants his son to learn the art of failing to pay debts. Regarding medical education in our time, Edmund Pellegrino has noted that the educational philosophy of medical schools determines what a "good" physician is. Thus, teaching bioethics to future health professionals makes us face old problems now: What teaching method to choose among all the possible various ones? What should teaching aim at? Which will be our educational philosophy? Therefore I shall introduce here the epistemological basis of our Bioethics teaching program in Argentina and its implementing strategies in the undergraduate curriculum and the post-graduate level.     

EvoS: A Prescription for What Ails Pre-Medical Education?

Pre-medical students are certainly a widely varied group, with different motivations and experiences, different skills sets and interests. However, they often tend to approach their undergraduate education as a necessary evil that they must endure in order to achieve their ultimate goals. This article summarizes recent literature addressing some of the questions that have been raised regarding pre-medical education programs. Are students prepared for the intellectual, emotional, and even physical challenges of medical training? What deficiencies are commonly seen in entering medical students? What are students’ perceptions of how well their pre-medical studies helped them? Many of these studies have resulted in a call for more science training, while some have advocated for less, but with an enhanced focus on humanistic studies. We supply a brief outline of our Evolutionary Studies (EvoS) program and reflect upon how participation in this program can enhance pre-medical students’ education. Importantly, we argue that EvoS can expand students’ depth of understanding of science, as well as nurture their ability to think about the needs of their patients and the context of their medical practice.     

A Love Affair with Bacillus subtilis

My career in science was launched when I was an undergraduate at Princeton University and reinforced by graduate training at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. However, it was only after I moved to Harvard University as a junior fellow that my affections were captured by a seemingly mundane soil bacterium. What Bacillus subtilis offered was endless fascinating biological problems (alternative sigma factors, sporulation, swarming, biofilm formation, stochastic cell fate switching) embedded in a uniquely powerful genetic system. Along the way, my career in science became inseparably interwoven with teaching and mentoring, which proved to be as rewarding as the thrill of discovery.     

The culture of marine ecology

Marine algal ecology today faces many of the same problems as ecology in general, e.g. lack of generality of experimental results, the difficulty of making long-term predictions, and an apparent lack of agreement as to what constitutes the proper or `acceptable' way of doing this particular component of science. These problems, if real, affect marine algal ecology everywhere but, in different geographical areas, specific problems also occur; science in parts of Asia has some problems different from those in other parts of the world. Since its inception, research in marine algal ecology has been motivated by many factors, ranging from traditional needs, to curiosity, to survival, to new technology, and economic needs. Each of these has shaped the questions that have been asked by, and the level of support society has been willing to supply to, ecology. For example the requisites of tradition pushed marine ecology to ask questions about food and ceremonial biota, and our fears today about loss of biota are pushing for answers to questions about the means of preserving biodiversity. The limitations of many marine ecological studies have been pointed out by different individuals. Their comments have been valuable in forcing us to examine what we are doing as marine ecologists, and how we are doing it. Ecology, and marine algal ecology with it, has been accused of carrying out small-scale studies that have no greater generality than the sites at which the studies were done, and of using statistical procedures that are wrong or inappropriate; also, there is disagreement within the ecological community of how to correct for these `faults'. Some of the problems arise due to the nature of our particular science, e.g. working with organisms with differing genetic makeup and sensitivity of experimental results to small changes in initial conditions. Other problems are more likely due to the individuals doing the science, e.g. an inability to be an `expert' on all areas of knowledge required for a modern ecologist (taxonomy, experimental design, data analysis, etc.), and perhaps an unwillingness to recognize that in some instances different methods of data analysis are applicable and valid. As ecologists, we must come to grip with these problems, both for the sake of our science, and for our own sake as practicing ecologists.     

Safe and Sound? Scientists’ Understandings of Public Engagement in Emerging Biotechnologies

Science communication is a widely debated issue, particularly in the field of biotechnology. However, the views on the interface between science and society held by scientists who work in the field of emerging biotechnologies are currently insufficiently explored. Therefore filling this gap is one of the urgent desiderata in the further development of a dialogue-oriented model of science-public interaction. Against this background, this article addresses two main questions: (1) How do the persons who work in the field of science perceive the public and its involvement in science? (2) What preferred modes of communication are stressed by those scientists? This research is based on a set of interviews with full professors from the field of biotechnology with a special focus on synthetic biology. The results show that scientists perceive the public as holding a primarily risk-focused view of science. On the one hand, different forms of science communication are thereby either seen as a chance to improve the public acceptance of science in general and one field of research in particular. On the other hand, the exchange with the public is seen as a duty because the whole of society is affected by scientific innovation. Yet, some of the stakeholders’ views discussed here conflict with debates on public engagement in technological innovation.     

Introduction: Who's at the bottom? Examining claims about racial hierarchy

Why do claims about racial hierarchy matter? The question whether some groups are worse off than others is highly pertinent at a time when there is growing recognition of multiple forms of racisms and racial oppression. It is widely accepted that racial hierarchies are still with us today, and this concept is peppered throughout writings on “race” and racisms, but, what, exactly, are racial hierarchies, how do racial hierarchies continue to matter, and in what ways do they operate? This special issue, which focuses on the USA and Britain, also addresses the following questions: Does the concept of racial hierarchy aid us in illuminating racial inequalities and the differential experiences of groups in Western multi-ethnic societies such as the USA and Britain? What sorts of criteria are used in arguments about the place of groups along racial hierarchies? What are the political implications of claims made about racial hierarchies?     

On Designing Courses in Evolutionary Medicine

Can one develop a syllabus for a course in evolutionary medicine that covers both its diversity and its depth? What topics generate the most interest and the best discussions? How can such a course be structured to help transform students into colleagues as fast as possible? Here, I draw on my experience teaching three courses in evolutionary medicine??one a traditional lecture course, one an advanced seminar with several unusual features, and one a week-long course for professors and doctors??to answer those questions.     

“国际生物多样性观察年（IBOY）”核心项目——内容介绍及建议

生物多样性观察年（IBOY）的核心项目包括4个大的主题：1）全球生物多样性现状;2）生物多样性的变化方式;3）生物多样性对人类生活的价值;4）人类如何保护生物多样性。本文对这些主题内的不同课题进行了介绍,同时对我国生物多样性科学的发展提出了相应的建议。     

Teaching bioinformatics

Bioinformatics is the name that has become associated with the theoretical and applied field of study that links computer science with modern biology. Within molecular biology specifically, bioinformatics is a generic term used to describe many of the analytical manipulations that can be carried out on sequences. Familiarity with the resources available and fundamental methods used for such analyses should be an essential part of a modern biology course, especially given the availability of WWW resources. In this article, some of these resources are summarised and their possible integration into a short practical undergraduate teaching unit is described.     

Home-town Anthropology

As I undertake fieldwork in my home-town area, I experience the familiar and the unfamiliar colliding, overlapping and interrelating in a critically productive, yet tense, dialectic. Questions arise for me such as: What is the field? What is home? When am I an anthropologist? When am I a local? By looking at the relationship between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in my home-town area, I am able to briefly explore these questions and come to a position where 1 sense the need for anthropology to look to comparative strategies (whereby difference and similarity are seen in relation to each other). This I see as a corrective to an overly contrastive approach which prioritises the representation of difference between cultural groups.     

Is multiculturalism the solution?

As far as multiculturalism is at stake, three kinds of question arise at the more or less confusing meeting point of sociology, political science and political philosophy: What are the sources and meanings of cultural difference in our societies? In what way do institutions and policy-makers in some countries deal with multiculturalism? Why should we favour or not favour multiculturalism? This article tackles these questions in turn and seeks to answer them. Cultural differences are not only reproduced, they are in the constant process of being produced which means that fragmentation and recomposition are a permanent probability. In such a situation, the problem is how to broaden democracy in order to avoid at one and the same time the tyranny of the majority and the tyranny of the minorities.     

Thirty years after Brambell: whither animal welfare science?

It has been just over 30 years since the Brambell Committee issued its clarion call for research on the welfare of animals used in agriculture. What progress has farm animal welfare science made in those 30 years, and what challenges will it face in the next 30? In this article, I discuss the ways in which the Brambell report, with its emphasis on behavioral needs and suffering, both propelled and constrained the development of animal welfare science. The role that economic factors play and the ways in which they have imposed other kinds of constraints on scientists working with farm animals are also mentioned. Despite these constraints, animal welfare science has contributed to a number of significant improvements in the welfare of farm animals. There is, however, a growing sense that animal welfare science has reached an impasse and that ethical and scientific questions about animal welfare have become hopelessly entangled. In this context, I address what I view to be the principal challenge facing farm animal welfare science, namely to move the issue of beyond suffering to an evaluation of broader quality-of-life questions and their application to improvements in welfare.     

Ecomigration and Violent Conflict: Case Studies and Public Policy Implications

In 2005, a hurricane named Katrina hit the states of Louisiana and Mississippi in the US, destroying properties and flooding areas. Many people left the region and still have not returned. While some of these people may eventually return, some may not, becoming “migrants.” Assuming this phenomenon will occur, is it unique? What is the role of the environment in migration? Can there be violent conflict between such migrants and residents in areas absorbing migrants? We evaluate these questions in the cases of Hurricane Katrina, the US Dust Bowl in the 1930s, and Bangladesh since the 1950s, demonstrating that environmental change can trigger large out-migration, which can cause violent conflict in areas receiving migrants. These findings have important policy implications. Climate change is expected to degrade the environment considerably in this century. Minimizing climate change-induced migration and violent conflict in receiving areas requires an engineered economic slowdown in the developed countries, and population stabilization and economic growth in the developing countries financed by the developed countries.     

Are chicken embryos endotherms or ectotherms? A laboratory exercise integrating concepts in thermoregulation and metabolism

This investigative laboratory exercise uses the different relations between ambient temperature and metabolic rate in endotherms and ectotherms as a core concept to answer the following question: What thermoregulatory mode is employed by chicken embryos? Emphasis is placed on the physiological concepts that can be taught with this exercise, including methods for measuring rates of oxygen consumption, the relation between oxygen consumption and metabolic rate, the influence of temperature on metabolic rate, and the differences between endotherms and ectotherms both in the overall magnitude of metabolic rate and in the shape of the relation between metabolic rate and ambient temperature. Included in this article are respirometer designs suitable for teachers working with a wide variety of budgets and available equipment, specific laboratory protocols for collecting data, sample data, thought questions with sample answers, and suggestions for classroom implementation as a 1-, 2- or 3-wk laboratory exercise that can be taught at a variety of undergraduate levels.     

Implementing environmental labelling of food products in France

Consumers increasingly demand information about the environmental impacts of their food. The French government is in the process of introducing environmental labelling for all food products. A scientific council was set up, and its main conclusions are presented in this article, through six questions: What environmental issues should be considered? What objective should be targeted? What data are needed, and for whom? What methods for assessing environmental impacts? Which environmental scores should be chosen? What label format should be proposed? By answering these questions and considering the context, the available data, the proposed methods and adjustments, and the knowledge of consumer perception of formats, the scientific council considers that a labelling scheme is feasible and relevant.

     

Cell wall proteins: a new insight through proteomics

Cell wall proteins are essential constituents of plant cell walls; they are involved in modifications of cell wall components, wall structure, signaling and interactions with plasma membrane proteins at the cell surface. The application of proteomic approaches to the cell wall compartment raises important questions: are there technical problems specific to cell wall proteomics? What kinds of proteins can be found in Arabidopsis walls? Are some of them unexpected? What sort of post-translational modifications have been characterized in cell wall proteins to date? The purpose of this review is to discuss the experimental results obtained to date using proteomics, as well as some of the new questions challenging future research.     

HSP70 heat shock proteins and environmental stress in Antarctic marine organisms: A mini-review

The ability to understand and predict the effects of environmental stress on biodiversity is becoming increasingly important in our changing environment. Antarctic marine species are some of the most stenothermal on the planet and many inhabit the waters off the Antarctic Peninsula which is one of the areas where there is rapid regional climate change. Therefore these animals are highly vulnerable to changing environmental temperatures and clearly we need to understand the complexities of their response, not just at the individual species level, but also the implications for the ecosystem as a whole. Heat shock proteins have a long history of use in studies of organism stress responses and have frequently been proposed as potential universal molecular biomarkers, especially for non-model species. In this mini-review, the heat shock response and heat shock proteins (specifically the HSP70 family) are examined in Antarctic marine species alongside their physiological capabilities and limits to answer a series of questions: do these animals have a heat shock response which includes the expression of HSP70 genes? What is the relationship between their heat shock response and physiological capabilities? Can HSP70 genes be used as molecular biomarkers for these species?