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979Managing intentions: The end-of-life administration of analgesics and sedatives, and the possibility of slow euthanasiaBioethics 22 (7): 388-396. 2008.There has been much debate regarding the 'double-effect' of sedatives and analgesics administered at the end-of-life, and the possibility that health professionals using these drugs are performing 'slow euthanasia.' On the one hand analgesics and sedatives can do much to relieve suffering in the terminally ill. On the other hand, they can hasten death. According to a standard view, the administration of analgesics and sedatives amounts to euthanasia when the drugs are given with an intention to …Read more
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541What’s so special about model organisms?Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part A 42 (2): 313-323. 2011.This paper aims to identify the key characteristics of model organisms that make them a specific type of model within the contemporary life sciences: in particular, we argue that the term “model organism” does not apply to all organisms used for the purposes of experimental research. We explore the differences between experimental and model organisms in terms of their material and epistemic features, and argue that it is essential to distinguish between their representational scope and represent…Read more
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228Introduction: philosophy of science in practice (review)European Journal for Philosophy of Science 1 (3): 303-307. 2011.Introduction: philosophy of science in practice Content Type Journal Article Category Editorial Article Pages 303-307 DOI 10.1007/s13194-011-0036-4 Authors Rachel Ankeny, School of History & Politics, University of Adelaide, Napier Building, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia Hasok Chang, Department of History and Philosophy of Science, University of Cambridge, Free School Lane, Cambridge, CB2 3RH UK Marcel Boumans, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Amsterdam…Read more
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223Model organisms as models: Understanding the 'lingua Franca' of the human genome projectProceedings of the Philosophy of Science Association 2001 (3). 2001.Through an examination of the actual research strategies and assumptions underlying the Human Genome Project (HGP), it is argued that the epistemic basis of the initial model organism programs is not best understood as reasoning via causal analog models (CAMs). In order to answer a series of questions about what is being modeled and what claims about the models are warranted, a descriptive epistemological method is employed that uses historical techniques to develop detailed accounts which, in t…Read more
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141Repertoires: A post-Kuhnian perspective on scientific change and collaborative researchStudies in History and Philosophy of Science Part A 60 18-28. 2016.not available.
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104Narratives of 'terminal sedation', and the importance of the intention-foresight distinction in palliative care practiceBioethics 27 (1): 1-11. 2011.The moral importance of the ‘intention–foresight’ distinction has long been a matter of philosophical controversy, particularly in the context of end-of-life care. Previous empirical research in Australia has suggested that general physicians and surgeons may use analgesic or sedative infusions with ambiguous intentions, their actions sometimes approximating ‘slow euthanasia’. In this paper, we report findings from a qualitative study of 18 Australian palliative care medical specialists, using i…Read more
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104Regulation of hESC research in australia: Promises and pitfalls for deliberative democratic approachesJournal of Bioethical Inquiry 3 (1-2): 95-107. 2006.This paper considers the legislative debates in Australia that led to the passage of the Research Involving Human Embryos Act (Cth 2002) and the Prohibition of Human Cloning Act (Cth 2002). In the first part of the paper, we discuss the debate surrounding the legislation with particular emphasis on the ways in which demands for public consultation, public debate and the education of Australians about the potential ethical and scientific impact of human embryonic stem cells (hESC) research were d…Read more
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103Fashioning descriptive models in biology: Of Worms and wiring diagramsPhilosophy of Science 67 (3): 272. 2000.The biological sciences have become increasingly reliant on so-called 'model organisms'. I argue that in this domain, the concept of a descriptive model is essential for understanding scientific practice. Using a case study, I show how such a model was formulated in a preexplanatory context for subsequent use as a prototype from which explanations ultimately may be generated both within the immediate domain of the original model and in additional, related domains. To develop this concept of a de…Read more
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102The Moral Status of Preferences for Directed Donation: Who Should Decide Who Gets Transplantable Organs?Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics 10 (4): 387-398. 2001.Bioethics has entered a new era: as many commentators have noted, the familiar mantra of autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice has proven to be an overly simplistic framework for understanding problems that arise in modern medicine, particularly at the intersection of public policy and individual preferences. A tradition of liberal pluralism grounds respect for individual preferences and affirmation of competing conceptions of the good. But we struggle to maintain (or at times expli…Read more
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93How history and philosophy of science and medicine could save the life of bioethicsJournal of Medicine and Philosophy 28 (1). 2003.This Article does not have an abstract
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90Re-thinking organisms: The impact of databases on model organism biologyStudies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences 43 (1): 29-36. 2012.Community databases have become crucial to the collection, ordering and retrieval of data gathered on model organisms, as well as to the ways in which these data are interpreted and used across a range of research contexts. This paper analyses the impact of community databases on research practices in model organism biology by focusing on the history and current use of four community databases: FlyBase, Mouse Genome Informatics, WormBase and The Arabidopsis Information Resource. We discuss the s…Read more
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90The Overlooked Role of Cases in Casual Attribution in MedicinePhilosophy of Science 81 (5): 999-1011. 2014.Although cases are central to the epistemic practices utilized within clinical medicine, they appear to be limited in their ability to provide evidence about causal relations because they provide detailed accounts of particular patients without explicit filtering of those attributes most likely to be relevant for explaining the phenomena observed. This paper uses a series of recent case reports to explore the role of cases in casual attribution in medical diagnosis. It is argued that cases are b…Read more
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88Religious perspectives on embryo donation and researchClinical Ethics 5 (1): 35-45. 2010.The success of assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) worldwide has led to an accumulation of frozen embryos that are surplus to the reproductive needs of those for whom they were created. In these situations, couples must decide whether to discard them or donate them for scientific research or for use by other infertile couples. While legislation and regulation may limit the decisions that couples make, their decisions are often shaped by their religious beliefs. Unfortunately, health profes…Read more
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75The ethics of inheritable genetic modification: a dividing line? (edited book)Cambridge University Press. 2006.Is inheritable genetic modification the new dividing line in gene therapy? The editors of this searching investigation, representing clinical medicine, public health and biomedical ethics, have established a distinguished team of scientists and scholars to address the issues from the perspectives of biological and social science, law and ethics, including an intriguing Foreword from Peter Singer. Their purpose is to consider how society might deal with the ethical concerns raised by inheritable …Read more
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70The scope of public discourse surrounding proposition 71: Looking beyond the moral status of the embryoJournal of Bioethical Inquiry 3 (1-2): 109-119. 2006.Human embryonic stem cell research has generated considerable discussion and debate in bioethics. Bioethical discourse tends to focus on the moral status of the embryo as the central issue, however, and it is unclear how much this reflects broader community values and beliefs related to stem cell research. This paper presents the results of a study which aims to identify and classify the issues and arguments that have arisen in public discourse associated with one prominent policy episode in the…Read more
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64A View of Bioethics from Down UnderCambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics 12 (3): 242-246. 2003.When I immigrated to Australia from the United States a few years ago, at first I found many similarities between the countries. But underneath the apparent similarities, notably a shared language, lay much deeper differences in history, politics, and culture that have considerable impacts on attitudes and approaches to issues in bioethics and medicine. For instance, debates continue regarding cloning and embryonic stem cell research, particularly given the long history of research in reproducti…Read more
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57The Bermuda Triangle: The Pragmatics, Policies, and Principles for Data Sharing in the History of the Human Genome ProjectJournal of the History of Biology 51 (4): 693-805. 2018.The Bermuda Principles for DNA sequence data sharing are an enduring legacy of the Human Genome Project. They were adopted by the HGP at a strategy meeting in Bermuda in February of 1996 and implemented in formal policies by early 1998, mandating daily release of HGP-funded DNA sequences into the public domain. The idea of daily sharing, we argue, emanated directly from strategies for large, goal-directed molecular biology projects first tested within the “community” of C. elegans researchers, a…Read more
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47Model Organisms as Models: Understanding the 'Lingua Franca' of the Human Genome ProjectPhilosophy of Science 68 (S3). 2001.Through an examination of the actual research strategies and assumptions underlying the Human Genome Project, it is argued that the epistemic basis of the initial model organism programs is not best understood as reasoning via causal analog models. In order to answer a series of questions about what is being modeled and what claims about the models are warranted, a descriptive epistemological method is employed that uses historical techniques to develop detailed accounts which, in turn, help to …Read more
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45Making Organisms Model Human Behavior: Situated Models in North-American Alcohol Research, since 1950Science in Context 27 (3): 485-509. 2014.ArgumentWe examine the criteria used to validate the use of nonhuman organisms in North-American alcohol addiction research from the 1950s to the present day. We argue that this field, where the similarities between behaviors in humans and non-humans are particularly difficult to assess, has addressed questions of model validity by transforming the situatedness of non-human organisms into an experimental tool. We demonstrate that model validity does not hinge on the standardization of one type o…Read more
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45Marvelling at the Marvel: The Supposed Conversion of A. D. Darbishire to MendelismJournal of the History of Biology 33 (2). 2000.The so-called "biometric-Mendelian controversy" has received much attention from science studies scholars. This paper focuses on one scientist involved in this debate, Arthur Dukinfield Darbishire, who performed a series of hybridization experiments with mice beginning in 1901. Previous historical work on Darbishire's experiments and his later attempt to reconcile Mendelian and biometric views describe Darbishire as eventually being "converted" to Mendelism. I provide a new analysis of this epis…Read more
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44The ethos and ethics of translational researchAmerican Journal of Bioethics 8 (3). 2008.Calls for the “translation” of research from bench to bedside are increasingly demanding. What is translation, and why does it matter? We sketch the recent history of outcome-oriented translational research in the United States, with a particular focus on the Roadmap Initiative of the National Institutes of Health (Bethesda, MD). Our main example of contemporary translational research is stem cell research, which has superseded genomics as the translational object of choice. We explore the natur…Read more
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44Dealing Drugs with the BushCambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics 13 (3): 241-244. 2004.The past year in bioethics in Australia has been relatively predictable. We continue to struggle with rising healthcare costs, though thankfully not on par with numerous other countries due to a relatively positive economic outlook. We are still fighting difficulties associated with higher medical indemnity costs, which have again caused many physicians to leave private practice, particularly in high-risk and specialty practice areas. In response, the federal government delayed the imposition of…Read more
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40Testing the Correlates of Consciousness in Brain Organoids: How Do We Know and What Do We Do?American Journal of Bioethics 21 (1): 51-53. 2021.What consciousness exactly is remains an unsettled issue among both philosophers and biologists. Three aspects of consciousness are generally recognized: awareness consciousness (through connection...
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40‘Extreme’ organisms and the problem of generalization: interpreting the Krogh principleHistory and Philosophy of the Life Sciences 40 (4): 65. 2018.Many biologists appeal to the so-called Krogh principle when justifying their choice of experimental organisms. The principle states that “for a large number of problems there will be some animal of choice, or a few such animals, on which it can be most conveniently studied”. Despite its popularity, the principle is often critiqued for implying unwarranted generalizations from optimal models. We argue that the Krogh principle should be interpreted in relation to the historical and scientific con…Read more
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37Double Meanings Will Not Save the Principle of Double EffectJournal of Medicine and Philosophy 39 (3): 304-316. 2014.In an article somewhat ironically entitled “Disambiguating Clinical Intentions,” Lynn Jansen promotes an idea that should be bewildering to anyone familiar with the literature on the intention/foresight distinction. According to Jansen, “intention” has two commonsense meanings, one of which is equivalent to “foresight.” Consequently, questions about intention are “infected” with ambiguity—people cannot tell what they mean and do not know how to answer them. This hypothesis is unsupported by evid…Read more
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35Model OrganismsCambridge University Press. 2020.This Element presents a philosophical exploration of the concept of the 'model organism' in contemporary biology. Thinking about model organisms enables us to examine how living organisms have been brought into the laboratory and used to gain a better understanding of biology, and to explore the research practices, commitments, and norms underlying this understanding. We contend that model organisms are key components of a distinctive way of doing research. We focus on what makes model organisms…Read more
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34How to choose your research organismStudies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences 80 101227. 2020.
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34Bioethics Authorship in Context: How Trends in Biomedicine Challenge BioethicsAmerican Journal of Bioethics 11 (10). 2011.The American Journal of Bioethics, Volume 11, Issue 10, Page 22-24, October 2011
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34Values of Australian Meat Consumers Related to Sheep and Beef Cattle Welfare: What Makes a Good Life and a Good Death?Food Ethics 8 (1): 1-17. 2022.There has been growing global interest in livestock animal welfare. Previous research into attitudes towards animal welfare has focused on Europe and the United States, with comparatively little focus on Australia, which is an important location due to the prominent position of agriculture economically and culturally. In this article, we present results from qualitative research on how Australian meat consumers conceptualise sheep and beef cattle welfare. The study was conducted in two capital c…Read more
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University of AdelaideDepartment of Historical and Classical Studies
Department of PhilosophyProfessor
Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Areas of Interest
Applied Ethics |
Philosophy of Biology |