UNAM, Mexico (hybrid), Oct. 3-7, 2022
Contact information: David Suárez Pascal (david.suarez@ciencias.unam.mx)
Website: https://lewontin.fciencias.
This workshop will broadly focus on three themes which traverse Richard Lewontin's work: evolutionary biology as a science, metaphors in biology, and biology in society. While Lewontin's work is copious and his interests were certainly broad, we think that rather than centering on just one of the topics that he researched, the best way to pay homage to him is to continue the conversations that he started through discussing related topics in a way that he would have enjoyed.
To reach this goal, the workshop will invite both early-, mid- and late-stage career researchers in history, philosophy, and social studies of biology, as well as in evolutionary biology, ecology, genetics, and related areas, to engage in the conversation about some of the topics that occupied Lewontin and we consider relevant to contemporary biological science. Some of the questions that this workshop will deal with are the following:
- What is the role of metaphors in biological science?
- What new metaphors is contemporary biology grounded on?
- What kind of science is evolutionary biology?
- What is the role of history in evolutionary theorizing?
- How biological thinking can contribute to, or prevent, social justice?
The workshop will provide an excellent opportunity to discuss in a hybrid and multidisciplinary setting about topics that are relevant to contemporary biological sciences, to science studies, and to the public in general.