BME1111

Science, culture, and the concept of race, human origins and development

Dr Nancy Nichols and Professor Barbara Caine

6 points · One 2-hour lecture and up to 3 hours workshop or practical per week · First semester · Clayton · No prerequisites

Objectives On completion of this subject, a student should have acquired an understanding of how humans have evolved as primates and how human systems have developed and evolved; an understanding of different approaches to the creation of knowledge including scientific approaches and others more concerned with historical and social contexts; an understanding of the concept of scientific paradigms; the capacity to reflect critically on scientific processes and on academic disciplines; the capacity to develop and understand multidisciplinary approaches to problem-solving using scientific principles and practices and those developed in the humanities and social sciences; skills in presenting ideas both collaboratively in projects and adversarially through debates, in observation and investigation, and in understanding scientific experimentation and the social and practical implications of scientific findings.

Synopsis This subject explores the issues of how the human species has evolved, the concept of 'race' and the impact of science on society. It will offer an interdisciplinary approach to these issues which combines scientific approaches with others coming from the humanities and social sciences. The development of humans will be traced from the origin of life, through vertebrate and primate evolution and the emergence of early humans, and finally to the human species as we know it today. The theory of evolution as applied to humans, to society and to culture will be used as a theme to demonstrate how and why particular scientific approaches emerge, develop and become dominant. The subject will also use this theme to explore the impact of science on society. The connection between nineteenth-century ideas on evolution and the emergence of a particular view of 'race' will be discussed, examined and questioned from a multidisciplinary perspective. The subject will also explore a range of new approaches to understanding human and social systems.

Assessment Group project: 20% · Essay: 30% · Written examination: 40% · Oral presentation: 10%

Recommended texts

There is no prescribed text. Designated reading will be specified in the subject manual or a list of recommended reading can be obtained from convenors.

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