Constructing Research Communities: Regenerative Medicine in the UK and Japan

Constructing Research Communities: Regenerative Medicine in the UK and Japan

03feb3:30 pm5:30 pmConstructing Research Communities: Regenerative Medicine in the UK and Japan

Event Details

Thursday, February 3rd

Koichi Mikami, The Center for the Promotion of Integrated Sciences, The Graduate University of Advanced Studies, Kanagawa Japan

“Constructing Research Communities: Regenerative Medicine in the UK and Japan”

4302 Rolfe Hall, 3:30pm – 5:30pm

In the UK and Japan, regenerative medicine is recognized as one of the most important fields of scientific research in the 21st century. Apart from its therapeutic implications, its scientific significance and economic potential are the primary motivations for these two countries to advance this field in the competitive world. However, the nature of regenerative medicine is still unsettled (‘flexible’ or ‘plastic’), and there exist different framings of this technology. Reflecting its socio-political environment, regenerative medicine in the two countries exhibits distinctive trajectories, and its research communities are constructed so as to legitimize such trajectories. Although the legitimization may make the technology less ambiguous (i.e. less plastic), it becomes more difficult for individuals to join (and leave) the community as the boundary of the research community gets firmly drawn. Based on the interviews with scientists, business people, and the public officers, first, this talk examines how the research communities of regenerative medicine are constructed in the two countries. Second, focusing on the Japanese case, the role of standardization in re-drawing of the communal boundary is discussed.

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Time

(Thursday) 3:30 pm - 5:30 pm(GMT+00:00)

Location

4302 Rolfe Hall

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