Abstract
The discoveries of Gregor Mendel, as described by Mendel in his 1866 paper Versuche uber Pflanzen-Hybriden (Experiments on plant hybrids), can be used in undergraduate genetics and biology courses to engage students about specific nature of science characteristics and their relationship to four of his major contributions to genetics. The use of primary source literature as an instructional tool to enhance genetics students' understanding of the nature of science helps students more clearly understand how scientists work and how the science of genetics has evolved as a discipline. We offer a historical background of how the nature of science developed as a concept and show how Mendel's investigations of heredity can enrich biology and genetics courses by exemplifying the nature of science.
Highlights
We have used a nature of science perspective in our analysis of Mendel’s experiments to explore his contributions to genetics
We have discussed the nature of science in relation to Mendel’s discoveries
We present it here as a way for genetics instructors to enrich and expand their traditional presentation on Mendel by including characteristics of the nature of science, with references to original source material and accurate historical context
Summary
Characteristics of NOS were originally described in the 1950s by philosophers of science James Conant and J. The six NOS characteristics are that scientific knowledge: (1) may be considered as scientific laws or theories according to the type of knowledge (i.e. mathematical and/or explanatory), (2) is based upon evidence from observations of the natural world, (3) is embedded in the culture in which science is conducted, 4) is developed within prevailing scientific concepts (theory-laden observations and interpretations) and within scientists’ values, knowledge, and prior experiences, (5) originates from imaginative and creative processes, and lastly, (6) is not dogmatic but considered durable and is to be modified or replaced as further evidence requires, (inherently tentative) (Lederman et al 2002; Abd-El-Khalick et al 1998; AAAS 1989; NRC 1996, 2000). We will refer to these six characteristics as NOS-1 through NOS-6
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