Post-genomics, between reduction and emergence

Michel Morange

pp. 355-360

in: Max Kistler (ed), New perspective on reduction and emergence in physics, biology and psychology, Synthese 151 (3), 2006.

Abstract

It is frequently said that biology is emerging from a long phase of reductionism. It would be certainly more correct to say that biologists are abandoning a certain form of reductionism. We describe this past form, and the experiments which challenged the previous vision. To face the difficulties which were met, biologists use a series of concepts and metaphors - pleiotropy, tinkering, epigenetics - the ambiguity of which masks the difficulties, instead of solving them. In a similar way, the word “post-genomics” has different meanings, depending upon who uses it. Which of these meanings will become dominant in the future is an open question.