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Designer Humans - Prospects & Perils (UNIB20024)
Undergraduate level 2Points: 12.5Dual-Delivery (Parkville)
From 2023 most subjects will be taught on campus only with flexible options limited to a select number of postgraduate programs and individual subjects.
To learn more, visit COVID-19 course and subject delivery.
About this subject
- Overview
- Eligibility and requirements
- Assessment
- Dates and times
- Further information
- Timetable(opens in new window)
Contact information
Semester 1
Subject Co-ordinator
Dr Saw Hoon Lim
Administrative Coordination
Overview
| Availability | Semester 1 - Dual-Delivery |
|---|---|
| Fees | Look up fees |
Humans have always exploited their surroundings and engineered changes for survival and advancement. In recent years, advances have given rise to radically new biomedical technologies. This subject explores the biomedical advancements that have and will continue to shape the human species and the associated moral and political implications. The subject focuses on biomedical technologies/interventions by examining them through ethical, historical, philosophical and social science lenses. We will discuss and critically consider the potential impact and ramifications of such technologies on human life, culture and society. Examples of concepts and questions that could be explored are:
- What social inequities could arise from biomedical interventions?
- What might be the intended and unintended outcomes of our ability to engineer the human genome? For example, what are the implications of removing ‘defective’ genes?
- What are the ethical implications of taking the evolution of Homo sapiens into our own hands?
- Who should decide on the trajectory of human evolution, and on what basis?
- How can misuse of biomedical technologies be prevented?
- Should there be obstacles to the development of biomedical technologies that might improve human life?
Intended learning outcomes
On completion of this subject students should be able to:
Knowledge
- Identify concepts as they relate to biomedical advancements
- Describe disciplinary perspectives on the impacts of biomedical advancement on individuals and societies
Skills
- Communicate cogently, in a multimedia format, ideas, opinions and arguments on biomedical advancement on human life, culture and society
- Clearly communicate multi-disciplinary perspectives on biomedical advancements to audience of various disciplines.
Application of Knowledge and Skills
- Apply interdisciplinary knowledge to evaluate differing perspectives on biomedical advancements
- Critically evaluate complex issues relevant to the development of biomedical advancements explored in this subject
- Analyse an issue in biomedical advancement through at least two disciplinary lenses (ethical, historical, philosophical, social scientific, scientific) using methods from interdisciplinary research
- Examine the potential impacts of medical interventions on individuals and society
Generic skills
- Demonstrate skills to self-reflect and review understanding of key concepts.
- Recognise and evaluate value judgements on complex issues through an interdisciplinary perspective.
- Effectively communicate various aspects of a topic to a broad audience.
- Demonstrate skills to critically analyse personal view points, alternative ideas and views of peers
- Participate effectively as a member of a multidisciplinary team
- Provide constructive feedback on the work of peers.
Last updated: 8 November 2023
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
None
Corequisites
None
Non-allowed subjects
None
Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)
The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.
Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home
Last updated: 8 November 2023
Assessment
| Description | Timing | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
Personal reflective essay from discipline perspective
| Week 3 | 15% |
Group multimedia presentation (may include oral, video, poster etc) on a biomedical advancement
| From Week 3 to Week 11 | 20% |
Peer assessment of group presentation (individual, written)
| From Week 3 to Week 11 | 15% |
Individual written assignment
| By end of Week 10 | 35% |
Personal reflective essay from interdisciplinary perspective
| By end of Week 12 | 15% |
| Hurdle requirement: Minimum attendance of 75% at scheduled tutorials, ie: at least 9 out of 12 scheduled tutorials. | N/A | |
All assessment items need to be submitted and represent a reasonable attempt at completion of the task to pass this subject. Hurdle requirement: All assessment items need to be submitted and represent a reasonable attempt at completion of the task to pass this subject | N/A |
Additional details
Last updated: 8 November 2023
Dates & times
- Semester 1
Coordinator Saw Hoon Lim Mode of delivery Dual-Delivery (Parkville) Contact hours 2 hour lecture and 1 hour tutorial per week Total time commitment 170 hours Teaching period 28 February 2022 to 29 May 2022 Last self-enrol date 11 March 2022 Census date 31 March 2022 Last date to withdraw without fail 6 May 2022 Assessment period ends 24 June 2022 Semester 1 contact information
Subject Co-ordinator
Dr Saw Hoon Lim
Administrative Coordination
Last updated: 8 November 2023
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
There are no specifically prescribed or recommended texts for this subject.
- Breadth options
This subject is available as breadth in the following courses:
- Bachelor of Arts
- Bachelor of Biomedicine
- Bachelor of Commerce
- Bachelor of Design
- Bachelor of Environments
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Acting)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Animation)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Dance)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Film and Television)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Music Theatre)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Production)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Screenwriting)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Theatre)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (Visual Art)
- Bachelor of Music
- Bachelor of Science
- Available through the Community Access Program
About the Community Access Program (CAP)
This subject is available through the Community Access Program (also called Single Subject Studies) which allows you to enrol in single subjects offered by the University of Melbourne, without the commitment required to complete a whole degree.
Entry requirements including prerequisites may apply. Please refer to the CAP applications page for further information.
- Available to Study Abroad and/or Study Exchange Students
This subject is available to students studying at the University from eligible overseas institutions on exchange and study abroad. Students are required to satisfy any listed requirements, such as pre- and co-requisites, for enrolment in the subject.
Last updated: 8 November 2023