Thomas Hunt Morgan and the invisible gene: the right tool for the job
Copyright policy )Thomas Hunt Morgan and the invisible gene: the right tool for the job
The paper analyzes the early theory building process of Thomas Hunt Morgan (1866-1945) from the 1910s to the 1930s and the introduction of the invisible gene as a main explanatory unit of heredity. Morgan's work marks the transition between two different styles of thought. In the early 1900s, he shifted from an embryological study of the development of the organism to a study of the mechanism of genetic inheritance and gene action. According to his contemporaries as well as to historiography, Morgan separated genetics from embryology, and the gene from the whole organism. Other scholars identified an underlying embryological focus in Morgan's work throughout his career. Our paper aims to clarify the debate by concentrating on Morgan's theory building-characterized by his confidence in the power of experimental methods, and carefully avoiding any ontological commitment towards the gene-and on the continuity of the questions to be addressed by both embryology and genetics.
- University of Pisa Italy
- Sapienza University of Rome Italy
Microsoft Academic Graph classification: Ontological commitment medicine.disease_cause Power (social and political) Heredity medicine Sociology History of science Philosophy of science Historiography Epistemology Philosophy of biology Action (philosophy)
Embryology, History, Heredity, History and Philosophy of Science, Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous), embryology; gene; genetics; T. H. Morgan, Genetics, gene, Models, Genetic, Historiography, History, 20th Century, Genes, T. H. Morgan
Embryology, History, Heredity, History and Philosophy of Science, Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous), embryology; gene; genetics; T. H. Morgan, Genetics, gene, Models, Genetic, Historiography, History, 20th Century, Genes, T. H. Morgan
Microsoft Academic Graph classification: Ontological commitment medicine.disease_cause Power (social and political) Heredity medicine Sociology History of science Philosophy of science Historiography Epistemology Philosophy of biology Action (philosophy)
citations This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).0 popularity This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.Average influence This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).Average impulse This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.Average citations This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).0 popularity This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.Average influence This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).Average impulse This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.Average
Popularity provided by BIP!- University of Pisa Italy
- Sapienza University of Rome Italy
The paper analyzes the early theory building process of Thomas Hunt Morgan (1866-1945) from the 1910s to the 1930s and the introduction of the invisible gene as a main explanatory unit of heredity. Morgan's work marks the transition between two different styles of thought. In the early 1900s, he shifted from an embryological study of the development of the organism to a study of the mechanism of genetic inheritance and gene action. According to his contemporaries as well as to historiography, Morgan separated genetics from embryology, and the gene from the whole organism. Other scholars identified an underlying embryological focus in Morgan's work throughout his career. Our paper aims to clarify the debate by concentrating on Morgan's theory building-characterized by his confidence in the power of experimental methods, and carefully avoiding any ontological commitment towards the gene-and on the continuity of the questions to be addressed by both embryology and genetics.