n Module 2, Lecture 1, we learned about the different fields of philosophy and how they can intersect with biology. We paid particular attention to epistemology, which focuses on the question: how do we know what we know about the world?
For this assignment, consider what you read in Perusall activity by Laplane et al. (2019). In this article, Laplane and colleagues go through a series of three examples of how philosophy has benefited biology: stem cells, immunogenicity and the microbiome, and cognitive science. They explain these benefits of these examples in terms of (1) conceptual clarification, (2) critique of scientific assumptions, (3) the formulation of new concepts and theories, and (4) the fostering of dialogue between different sciences as well as between science and society.
Now, imagine you are a philosopher who works within biology. Like Laplane et al., you want your work to have an impact within biology. With this in mind, do the following:
Instructions
In at least 250 words (total):
(1) Imagine you are a philosopher who works within biology. Like Laplane et al., you want your work to have an impact within biology. With this in mind, do the following:
(a) Select one of the fields following fields of philosophy: aesthetics, metaphysics, or epistemology. Tell us your choice, and explain why you believe this field has an impact on biology.
(b) Now, imagine that you are interested in applying your philosophical field of interest to genome editing. Identify ONE example of how your philosophical field of interest could be applied to genome editing. Briefly explain how this example relates to your philosophical field of interest.
For this example, you cannot copy what was mentioned in the lectures. Use your imagination and think about genome editing using the questions of these philosophical fields that we outlined in Module 2, Lecture 1.
(2) Now, imagine that you are an epistemologist who is interested in genome editing. Do the following:
(a) Identify whether you are an Empiricist or a Rationalist. Explain why you have chosen this epistemological framework. Your explanation should include some of the basic details of your chosen framework that we outlined in Module 2, Lecture 1.
