Work

Hypothesis-driven science in large-scale studies: the case of GWAS

Year: 2021

Type: article

Abstract: It is now well-appreciated by philosophers that contemporary large-scale ‘-omics’ studies in biology stand in non-trivial relationships to more orthodox hypothesis-driven approaches. These relationships have been clarified by Ratti (2015); however, there remains much more to be said regarding how an important field of genomics cited in that work—‘genome-wide association studies’ (GWAS)—fits into this framework. In the present article, we propose a revision to Ratti’s framework more suited to studies such as GWAS. In the process of doing so, we introduce to the philosophical literature novel exploratory experiments in (phospho)proteomics, and demonstrate how these experiments interplay with the above considerations.

Source: Biology & Philosophy

DOI: 10.1007/s10539-021-09823-0

Authors: James Read, Sumana Sharma

Institutions: University of Oxford, MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine

Language: English

Topic: Philosophy of Biology and Scientific Explanation

Subfield: History and Philosophy of Science

Field: Arts and Humanities

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $2,780

Funder: University of Oxford