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Genetics: Watching science at work

Nature volume 462, pages 840–842 (2009)Cite this article

A network of social scientists in the United Kingdom is seeking better ways to study the work of biologists. But, asks Colin Macilwain, can it earn its subjects' trust?

There was something of a chill in the air at Cardiff's City Hall in October, and not just because autumn was arriving. Social scientists, and some life scientists, were gathering there for the annual meeting of the Genomics Network, a programme run by Britain's Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) to stimulate dialogue between the disciplines. The plenary talks got under way, led by Christine Hauskeller, a philosopher with the network from the University of Exeter, and Martin Evans, winner of the 2007 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his development of gene knockout technology. But when the initial call for questions sparked little real discussion, it was clear that dialogue was going to take some stimulating. Then Evans was asked what he thought of his hosts. "They like to say, why are we doing things?" he growled. "We should be asking, why are they doing things?"

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References

  1. Bapteste, E. et al. Biol. Direct 4, 34 (2009).

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  2. Tait, J., Wield, D., Chataway, J. & Bruce. A. (eds) Health Biotechnology to 2030 (OECD, 2008); available at http://go.nature.com/YzFDJE

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  1. Colin Macilwain
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See Editorial, page 825 .

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Macilwain, C. Genetics: Watching science at work. Nature 462, 840–842 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/462840a

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