Digital epidemiology: what is it, and where is it going?
AbstractDigital Epidemiology is a new field that has been growing rapidly in the past few years, fueled by the increasing availability of data and computing power, as well as by breakthroughs in data analytics methods. In this short piece, I provide an outlook of where I see the field heading, and offer a broad and a narrow definition of the term. (Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy)
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - January 4, 2018 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
Teilhard de Chardin ’s oeuvre within an ongoing discussion of a gene drive release for public health reasons
AbstractWithin the domain of public health, vector-borne diseases are among the most vehemently discussed issues. Recent scientific breakthroughs in genome editing technology provided a solution to this issue in the form of a gene drive that might decrease and even eradicate vector-borne diseases. Gene drives are engineered, and designed genes that can break typical inheritance rules and be passed to almost all of the carrier ’s offspring. This genome editing and gene drive technology has become a powerful tool for ecological and environmental engineering, through which man can manipulate his surroundings, adjusting it t...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - December 20, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
A statistician ’s perspective on digital epidemiology
AbstractWe address the question “does digital epidemiology represent an epistemic shift in infectious disease epidemiology” from a statistician’s viewpoint. Our main argument is that infectious disease epidemiology has not changed fundamentally as it always has been data-driven. However, as the data aspect has become more pr ominent, we discuss the statistical toolbox of the modern epidemiologist and argue that problem solving in the digital age, more than ever requires an interdisciplinary quantitative approach. (Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy)
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - November 24, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
An ethical assessment model for digital disease detection technologies
AbstractDigital epidemiology, also referred to as digital disease detection (DDD), successfully provided methods and strategies for using information technology to support infectious disease monitoring and surveillance or understand attitudes and concerns about infectious diseases. However, Internet-based research and social media usage in epidemiology and healthcare pose new technical, functional and formal challenges. The focus of this paper is on the ethical issues to be considered when integrating digital epidemiology with existing practices. Taking existing ethical guidelines and the results from the EU project M-Eco ...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - September 20, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
The social dimension of biobanking: objectives and challenges
AbstractThe present article allows to explore, analyze and reflect on the consequences and problems posed by biobanks and attempts to prove the need of social and humanitarian support in establishing and functioning of biobanks as a new type of scientific institutions. The basis of the article is the latest publications devoted to social and humanitarian aspects of biobanking and Russian experience of the initial formation of this subject domain (before the first professional biobanks were established in Russia in the 2010-s, the only highly specialized collections of bio-samples had been registered). The article marks and...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - September 13, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
Creative tensions: mutual responsiveness adapted to private sector research and development
AbstractThe concept of mutual responsiveness is currently based on little empirical data in the literature of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI). This paper explores RRI ’s idea of mutual responsiveness in the light of recent RRI case studies on private sector research and development (R&D). In RRI, responsible innovation is understood as a joint endeavour of innovators and societal stakeholders, who become mutually responsive to each other in defining the ‘right impacts’ of the innovation in society, and in steering the innovation towards realising those impacts. Yet, the case studies identified several r...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - September 7, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
Synthetic biology, metaphors and responsibility
AbstractMetaphors are not just decorative rhetorical devices that make speech pretty. They are fundamental tools for thinking about the world and acting on the world. The language we use to make a better world matters; words matter; metaphors matter. Words have consequences - ethical, social and legal ones, as well as political and economic ones. They need to be used ‘responsibly’. They also need to be studied carefully – this is what we want to do through this editorial and the related thematic collection. In the context of synthetic biology, natural and social scientists have become increasingly interested in metap...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - August 29, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
Ethical sharing of health data in online platforms – which values should be considered?
AbstractIntensified and extensive data production and data storage are characteristics of contemporary western societies. Health data sharing is increasing with the growth of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) platforms devoted to the collection of personal health and genomic data. However, the sensitive and personal nature of health data poses ethical challenges when data is disclosed and shared even if for scientific research purposes.With this in mind, the Science and Values Working Group of the COST Action CHIP ME ‘Citizen's Health through public-private Initiatives: Public health, Market and Ethical pers...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - August 21, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
How biological background assumptions influence scientific risk evaluation of stacked genetically modified plants: an analysis of research hypotheses and argumentations
AbstractScientific risk evaluations are constructed by specific evidence, value judgements and biological background assumptions. The latter are the framework-setting suppositions we apply in order to understand some new phenomenon. That background assumptions co-determine choice of methodology, data interpretation, and choice of relevant evidence is an uncontroversial claim in modern basic science. Furthermore, it is commonly accepted that, unless explicated, disagreements in background assumptions can lead to misunderstanding as well as miscommunication. Here, we extend the discussion on background assumptions from basic...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - August 14, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
Transformation of intimacy and its impact in developing countries
This article has been prepared on the basis of secondary sources and it tries to explore how this intimacy or intimate relationship has been gradually transforming from pre-modern society to modern society and from modern society to post-modern society for over the eras. This article also tries to e xplore the impact of transformed intimacy or intimate relationship, especially in the developing countries, like Bangladesh. Intimate relationship plays very significant role in the overall life style of any human being. This relationship includes feelings of liking, romance, sexuality or sexual rel ationship, emotional or pers...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - August 1, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
Young people ’s awareness on biobanking and DNA profiling: results of a questionnaire administered to Italian university students
This study shows that Italian people with a higher education take a generally positive attitude to the idea of donating biological samples. It contributes to empirical evidence of what Italy ’s citizens understand about biobanking, and of their willingness to donate samples for research purposes, and also to have their genetic profiles included in a national forensic DNA database. Our findings may have clear implications for the policy discussion on biobanks in Italy, in particular it is important to take into account the Italian population’s poor consciousness of forensic DNA database, in order to ensure a better inte...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - June 10, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
Farmer-suicide in India: debating the role of biotechnology
AbstractIndian Biotech opponents have attributed the increase of suicides to the monopolization of GM seeds, centering on patent control, application of terminator technology, marketing strategy, and increased production costs. The contentions of the biotech opponents, however, have been criticized for a lack of transparency in their modus operandi i.e. the use of methodology in their argumentation. The fact is, however, that with the intention of getting the attention of those capable of determining the future of GM cotton in India, opponents resorted to generating controversies. Therefore, this article will review and ev...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - May 11, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
“A good collaboration is based on unique contributions from each side”: assessing the dynamics of collaboration in stem cell science
AbstractThe rise of ‘big biology’ is bringing academic and industrial scientists together in large consortia to address translational challenges in the life sciences. In order to assess the impact of this change, this paper examines the existing norms and styles of collaboration in one high profile translational do main; stem cell research. Data is drawn from qualitative interviews with academic and industry scientists working in a large European stem cell research project. Respondents discussed what they perceived as the main benefits and risks of collaborative research, what styles of collaboration they were familiar...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - May 4, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
The body as constitutive element phenomenology and psychoanalysis on our view of ourselves and others
AbstractThe aim of this manuscript is to highlight that from the phenomenology and psychoanalysis point of view, the meaning of the notion of the body is different from the medicalbiologicist discourse. In psychoanalysis, the body is an erogenized body. It is constituted as an object for another self. Similarly, in phenomenology, the body is an own body in first instance. It is the body of a self, rather than a living body and a material body. Both positions enable us to understand how this conceptualization of the body is essential in any human field. Especially in the clinic, the position of the subject before the other ...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - April 26, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
Towards new human rights in the age of neuroscience and neurotechnology
AbstractRapid advancements in human neuroscience and neurotechnology open unprecedented possibilities for accessing, collecting, sharing and manipulating information from the human brain. Such applications raise important challenges to human rights principles that need to be addressed to prevent unintended consequences. This paper assesses the implications of emerging neurotechnology applications in the context of the human rights framework and suggests that existing human rights may not be sufficient to respond to these emerging issues. After analysing the relationship between neuroscience and human rights, we identify fo...
Source: Life Sciences, Society and Policy - April 26, 2017 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research
