Biology and English Professors Attend Summer Institute on DNA
Posted on Monday, August 30, 2004
Dr. Joshua Corrette-Bennett, assistant professor of biology, and Dr. Bethany Hicok, assistant professor of English, were recently selected to participate in the Summer Faculty Institute that explored the ethical, legal, and social issues pertaining to the Human Genome Project. The event was held at Dartmouth College Ethics Institute.
"The Human Genome Project was a multinational, 13-year effort to identify all three billion letters of the genetic blueprint of life called deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA contained within a human cell," Corrette-Bennett said. "With the completion of the Human Genome Project, the scientific community has refocused its efforts on trying to determine what the letters code for and how they direct the development and function of the human body This project will have a profound affect on how we, as human beings, perceive ourselves, and how we interact with each other."
Corrette-Bennett and Hicok attended this institute as a multidisciplinary team and will use the information to form a cluster course offered next spring that will combine literature and molecular biology.
"The cluster course will explore the ethical, legal and social dimensions of the human genome project," Corrette-Bennett said. "Dr. Hicok and I believe that Westminster College's commitment to interdisciplinary pedagogy and the liberal arts experience contributed to the ELSI's selection of us for this competitive and prestigious program."
Corrette Bennett, who has been with Westminster since 2001, earned his undergraduate degree from Bates College, and his Ph.D. from Brandeis University.
Hicok, who has been with Westminster since 2001, earned her undergraduate degree from Russell State College, masters' and Ph.D. from the University of Rochester.
For more information, contact Corrette-Bennett at (724) 946-7208 or e-mail bennetjc@westminster.edu, or Hicok at (724) 946-6349 or e-mail hicokbf@westminster.edu.
More Stories
