The Sociology of iGEM

Modern science communication is about more than telling non-scientists what to think. Establishing a two-way conversation with those outside the profession allows a wider variety of socially relevant issues to emerge naturally. Our ‘human practices’ effort therefore, has not used our wetlab project as a starting point. Instead, we have conducted a sociological investigation into iGEM.

We found out why students participate in iGEM, how they devised their projects and how they react to the philosophical questions raised by synthetic biology. We asked journalists what makes synthetic biology interesting, and how news media might shape perceptions. We spoke to social scientists sceptical of the value of iGEM, both for society and scientific research. We questioned private institutions that fund iGEM teams about what makes the competition a worthwhile investment. We quizzed a previous iGEM judge on the value of ‘human practices’ within the competition. And spoke to artists about the language of MIT’s synthetic biology.

Our research culminates in an event jointly held with the Science Museum, London, where we’ll bring together ideas around the ability of iGEM to influence the culture of scientific research, and the implications this has for the external image of synthetic biology.