What is the cultural approach to sociology? Although there are many paths to understanding society, all branches of sociology integrate meaning. A cultural approach requires an intellectual sensitivity toward meaning, a way of putting emphasis on the human experience. Whether studying race and ethnicity or the sociology of economics, each realm of human activities studied by social scientists is cultural. Taking this meaning-centered approach, the editors of this special volume of "The Annals" have gathered a diverse group of culture-minded sociologists, whose work encompasses a wide spectrum...
What is the cultural approach to sociology? Although there are many paths to understanding society, all branches of sociology integrate meaning. A cul...
Scientific breakthroughs have led us to a point where soon we will be able to make specific choices about the genetic makeup of our offspring. In fact, this reality has arrived and it is only a matter of time before the technology becomes widespread. Much like past arguments about stem-cell research, the coming debate over these reproductive genetic technologies (RGTs) will be both political and, for many people, religious. In order to understand how the debate will play out in the United States, John H. Evans conducted the first in-depth study of the claims made about RGTs by...
Scientific breakthroughs have led us to a point where soon we will be able to make specific choices about the genetic makeup of our offspring. In f...
It seems like every day society faces a new ethical challenge raised by a scientific innovation. Human genetic engineering, stem cell research, face transplantation, synthetic biology - all were science fiction only a few decades ago, but now are all reality. How do we as a society decide whether these technologies are ethical? For decades professional bioethicists have served as mediators between a busy public and its decision-makers, helping people understand their own ethical concerns, framing arguments, discrediting illogical claims, and supporting promising ones. These bioethicists play...
It seems like every day society faces a new ethical challenge raised by a scientific innovation. Human genetic engineering, stem cell research, face t...
What is a human? Are humans those with human DNA, those in possession of traits like rationality, or those made in the image of God? The debate over what makes human beings unique has raged for centuries. Many think that if society accepts the wrong definition of what it is to be human, people will look at their neighbor as more of an animal, object, or machine-making maltreatment more likely. In the longest running claim, for over 150 years critics have claimed that taking a Darwinist definition results in people treating each other more like animals. Despite their seriousness, these...
What is a human? Are humans those with human DNA, those in possession of traits like rationality, or those made in the image of God? The debate over w...
