submitted by Jan Baedke

Individuality is a key concept in human societies. How we define individuals and their boundaries affects our social relations, what kind of rights and duties we have, as well as when we are considered healthy or sick. In all these realms, the biological side of humans’ individuality – the organism – plays a crucial role. Currently, after many decades dominated by the paradigm of the gene, the concept of organism is making a comeback in the biological and medical sciences. The individual organism is again recognized as a causally efficacious, autonomous, and active unit that transcends the properties of genes – especially in fields like epigenetics, niche construction theory, evolutionary developmental biology, and precision and personalized medicine. The aim of this workshop is to address these recent developments from a perspective of integrated history and philosophy of science. It focuses on (i) philosophical, biotheoretical, and conceptual, (ii) historical, as well as (iii) (bio)medical and social dimensions of today’s ‘return of the organism’. In particular, it aims at discussing solutions for theoretical and societal challenges of organism-centered biosciences in the 21st century.

Participants:
Jan Baedke (Ruhr University Bochum), Daniel S. Brooks (Ruhr University Bochum), Tatjana Buklijas (University of Auckland), Alejandro Fábregas-Tejeda (Ruhr University Bochum), Yael Friedman (University of Oslo), Giuseppe Fusco (University of Padova), Saana Jukola (Ruhr University Bochum), Christian Köchy, (University of Kassel), Simon Lohse (Radboud University), Daniel W. McShea (Duke University), Nicolae Morar (University of Oregon), Matteo Mossio (University of Paris), Daniel Nicholson (George Mason University), Guido I. Prieto (Ruhr University Bochum), and Adrian Stencel (Jagiellonian University)

Organization:
Saana Jukola, Guido I. Prieto, Jan Baedke, Daniel S. Brooks, Alejandro Fábregas-Tejeda

Department of Philosophy I
Ruhr University Bochum

Location: Beckmanns Hof, Ruhr University Bochum, and Zoom, 16th–18th November 2022
For more info, the programme, and registration: https://rotoworkshop2022.wixsite.com/place