The SIG Beat

News from and About the NIH Scientific Interest Groups

Bioethics Interest Group

BY CAROLYN GRAYBEAL

Each month the Bioethics Interest Group gathers to discuss complex bioethical issues that arise within biomedical research. The group was created in 1995 by Miriam Kelty (then associate director of NIA extramural affairs and now an NIH volunteer and still the group’s coordinator), who conceived of it as “an informal forum for individuals to discuss issues” arising from their research. Today, meeting formats include seminars, focused discussions, and debates.

Members’ interests include issues concerning human subjects, genetic research, consent issues, end-of-life issues, and scientific integrity and misconduct. Speakers come from a variety of backgrounds, and discussions range from debates on informed consent to lectures on accommodating cultural differences when providing medical care abroad.

Barry Schwartz, a professor of social theory and social action at Swarthmore College (Swarthmore, Pa.), kicked off the season this fall with a talk entitled “Practical Wisdom: The Right Way to Do the Right Thing.”

November’s meeting featured NIMH scientist James Blair, who discussed his research on the neurobiology of psychopathy, and philosopher Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, a Duke University (Durham, N.C.) visiting scholar, who talked about the potential for using neural-imaging screening to detect people with a predisposition for violence.

In December Jason Karlawish, a professor of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia), shared excerpts from his recent book Open Wound: The Tragic Obsession of Dr. William Beaumont, giving a historical perspective on the evolution of ethical conduct in medicine.

Meetings are held September through June on the first Monday of the month, 3:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m., in the lower level conference rooms of the Natcher Conference Center (Building 45). Anyone interested may attend. For a list of upcoming talks or to join the LISTSERV visit http://sigs.nih.gov/bioethics/Pages/default.aspx or contact Miriam Kelty at keltym@mail.nih.gov.

NIH Biomedical Computing Interest Group
Book Club

Fourth Thursdays 5:30–7:30 p.m.; NIH Clinical Center Medical Board Room (10/2C116)

• January 26: 301 Ways to Have Fun at Work (by Dave Hemsath)
• February 23: Kant: A Very Short Introduction (Roger Scruton); Hegel: A Very Short Introduction (Peter Singer)
• March 22: Super Immunity: The Essential Nutrition Guide for Boosting Your Body's Defenses to Live Longer, Stronger, and Disease Free (Joel Fuhrman)
• April 26: Social Intelligence: The New Science of Human Relationships (Daniel Goleman)
• May 24: Epigenetics: The Ultimate Mystery of Inheritance (Richard C. Francis)
• June 28: The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism (Howard Bloom)
• September 27: Power, Sex, Suicide: Mitochondria and the Meaning of Life (Nick Lane)
• October 25: What’s Next? Dispatches on the Future of Science: Original Essays from a New Generation of Scientists (Max Brockman)

All books are available at 20% off at the NIH Clinical Center FAES Bookstore.

For more information, please contact Jim DeLeo, 301-496-3848, jdeleo@nih.gov.

For a complete SIG list, go to http://www.nih.gov/sigs