Research
Scientific and technological knowledge transforms our lives and our societies in positive and negative ways. Science informs public policies that affect communities, from climate change to health advice to regulatory policies. Furthermore, a scientifically informed public is essential to well-functioning democracies both. Moreover, some of us become research subjects and are yet affected by scientific research in even more intimate ways. My work explores epistemic aspects and ethical challenges confronting the biomedical sciences. I am interested not only in traditional issues related to the responsible conduct of research, but also in questions about the role of values in science and technology, the ethical obligations of scientific communities, and the ways in which research practices and institutions can be more or less conducive to producing socially relevant scientific and technological knowledge.
Current Projects:
- Science and Values
- Research Ethics
- Reprogenetic technologies
Bio
Inmaculada de Melo-Martín did her undergraduate degree in Philosophy at the University of Oviedo, Spain. After completing her degree, she obtained a grant from the Ministry of Science and Education in Spain to pursue doctoral work in the USA. She received her Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of South Florida. Her work in philosophy of science and technology let her them to complete a MS in Molecular Biology at the University of Texas in San Antonio. Her training in these different disciplines reflect both her interests in the ethical and epistemic aspects of scientific and technological developments and her commitment to interdisciplinarity.
Distinctions:
- 2023- Elected to the European Academy of Sciences
- 2021- Elected to the Hastings Center Fellows Council
- 2021-2023 President, Society for Philosophy and Technology
- 2015 Benjamin Rabinowitz Philosophy Chair in Medical Ethics, University of Washington, Seattle
- 2012-2014 Gubernatorial Appointee, Empire State Stem Cell Board-Ethics Committee, New York State
Select Publications:
de Melo-Martín I. Disclosing Conflict of Interest to Potential Subjects: Good for Nothing? Ethics & Human Research, 45(2)(2023):2-13. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36974453/
de Melo-Martín I. Reproductive Embryo Editing: Attending to Justice, Hastings Center Report, 52(4)(2022):26-33. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/hast.1406
de Melo-Martín I. The commercialization of the biomedical sciences: (mis)understanding bias. Hist Philos Life Sci., 41(34) (2019): https://doi.org/10.1007/s40656-019-0274-x. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40656-019-0274-x
de Melo-Martín, I, Intemann K. The Fight Against Doubt: How to Bridge the Gap Between Scientists and the Public (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2018). https://academic.oup.com/book/11412
de Melo-Martín, I. The Ethics of Anonymous Gamete Donation: Is There a Right to Know One’s Genetic Origins? Hastings Center Report, 44 (2) (2014): 28-35. https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.ezproxy.med.cornell.edu/doi/full/10.1002/hast.285