Philosophy « In » Science: How Philosophers Can Infiltrate Science, With An Example From Immunology

By Thomas Pradeu

Abstract

How can philosophy help science? In the introduction to his lecture, Pradeu insists on the relevance of associating philosophy and science, especially philosophy and immunology. He then explains his personal approach to philosophy in science by showing a study on bibliometrics and reporting on an analysis of pins. Following a presentation of the ImmunoConcEpT laboratory and its team, Pradeu summarizes his thinking about immunology and individuality. According to Pradeu’s discontinuity theory, organisms are microbial communities, which means that individuals are not homogeneous, but heterogeneous. Pradeu concludes his lecture by presenting two therapeutic consequences of his theory: the shifting view on immune response in cancer and the development of an “ecosystemic” medicine.

Summary

00:00:10 – Introduction
00:00:45 – A. Pradeu’s personal experience of philosophy and science
00:01:30 – B. Main points of Pradeu’s talk
00:04:35 – C. Relevance of a philosophy of immunology
00:08:00 – D. Theories and principles
00:10:00 – E. Overview of Pradeu’s talk
00:10:42 – 1. Pradeu’s approach of philosophy in science
00:10:53 – 1.1. What is philosophy in science?
00:12:30 – 1.2. A study on bibliometrics
00:16:25 – 1.3. An analysis of pins: a mix of philosophy and science
00:22:49 – 1.4. Pradeu’s work within the ImmunoConcEpT laboratory
00:30:10 – 2. Immunology and individuality
00:30:15 – 2.1. Biological individuality: Unity and persistence
00:35:37 – 2.2. The birth of immunology
00:38:00 – 2.3. The self-nonself dichotomy
00:45:40 – 2.4. Organisms as microbial communities
00:51:25 – 2.5. Heterogeneous individuality
00:51:38 – 2.6. Immunology: The double extension of immunity
00:54:56 – 3. Triggering an immune response
00:55:05 – 3.1. Pradeu’s discontinuity theory
00:57:05 – 3.2. A mathematical model and a unifying framework
00:59:12 – 4. Therapeutic consequences of Pradeu’s theory
00:59:17 – 4.1. Consequence 1: Immune response in cancer
01:00:20 – 4.2. Consequence 2: Toward an “ecosystemic” medicine?
01:02:32 – Conclusion
01:02:35 – A. Summary of Pradeu’s argumentation