February 17, 2011
by peter.taylor
2 Comments
Discussion on WUMB Commonwealth Journal based on new exhibit at the Boston Museum of Science exhibit, Race: Are we so different? Broadcast on Sunday February 13, 2011. Speakers: Peter Taylor, Nina Nolan, Chair, RACE Education Team, Boston Museum of Science, … Continue reading
January 27, 2011
by peter.taylor
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Idea: Genetic analysis has begun to identify genetic risk factors. We need to consider the social infrastructure needed to keep track of the genetic and environmental exposures with a view to useful epidemiological analysis and subsequent healthcare measures. Even in … Continue reading
November 13, 2010
by peter.taylor
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Heterogeneous construction is a variant of the idea of intersecting processes, which, in turn, is an attempt to discipline without suppressing the unruliness of complexity. The concept of heterogeneous construction can be illustrated by reference to the previous post on … Continue reading
October 17, 2010
by peter.taylor
3 Comments
For the purposes of looking at the second question (from the first post), “Does this make you think that differences among IQ scores between races are genetic?,” let’s accept that the answer to the first question, “What does it mean … Continue reading
October 15, 2010
by peter.taylor
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Sesardic (2010) makes the point that the fact that genetic variation within a group is of larger than variation between (the average of) the groups does not mean that the groups cannot be distinguished. This point is not, however, sufficient … Continue reading
October 14, 2010
by peter.taylor
2 Comments
Neven Sesardic, a philosopher of science, is critical of positions accepted by liberal-left philosophers about heritability, genes, IQ test scores, and racial differences. His guiding theme is that philosphers need to delve more deeply into the science as they consider … Continue reading
September 21, 2010
by peter.taylor
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For a gene in which the effect depends on the environmental condition, what kinds of medical conditions would receive the necessary investment in pharmaceutical and sociological research, screening, and preventative treatment/monitoring to address the conjunction of genetic and environmental factors … Continue reading
September 19, 2010
by peter.taylor
1 Comment
By the 1950s the “neo-Darwinian” or “modern synthesis” in evolutionary theory had discounted or even rejected the significance to evolution of characters acquired in an organism’s lifetime. It became taboo to express sympathy with Lamarck. The irony is that the … Continue reading
September 17, 2010
by peter.taylor
1 Comment
The first installment ended on the following note: Suppose you have many sets of same-sex non-identical twins raised together and many sets of same-sex identical twins raised together and find that the identical twins are on average more similar. It … Continue reading
September 16, 2010
by peter.taylor
1 Comment
Many people say Nature vs. Nurture is an ill-framed formulation, but the challenge is to explain why in a way that accounts for the persistent popularity of that formulation. We know, for example, that both genes and environment are involved … Continue reading