Department of
History and Philosophy of Science
Jason Byron
Contact Information
Department of History and Philosophy of Science
University of Pittsburgh
1017 Cathedral of Learning
4200 Fifth Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 15260
Department of Medical Ethics and Supportive Care
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center - Shadyside Hospital
223 North Tower
5230 Center Ave
Pittsburgh, PA 15232
Primary Research Interests
- Philosophy of biology
- General philosophy of science
- Medical ethics
Secondary Research Interests
- History of philosophy of science
- History of biology & medicine
Education
University of Pittsburgh:
- Ph.D. student, History and Philosophy of Science, expected 2014.
- Dissertation: Making Sense of Microbial Evolution (in progress)
- Advisors: Kenneth Schaffner and James Lennox
- M.A., Bioethics, expected 2012.
- Thesis: Deciding for Infants: Parental Authority, Children's Interests, and Health Need for Disorders of Sexual Development
- Advisor: Lisa Parker
- M.A., History and Philosophy of Science, 2010.
Non-Degree Graduate Study:
- Harvard University, Program in Ethics and Health, 2008-2009.
- Indiana University, Department of History and Philosophy of Science, 2004-2006.
University of Maryland:
- B.A. (Honors), Philosophy, 2004.
- Thesis: Speciation and Natural Selection: Does Darwin's Theory Explain the Origin of Species?
- Advisor: Lindley Darden.
Honors & Awards
Fellowships
- Departmental Fellowship, University of Pittsburgh, 2009-2012.
- National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, 2006-2009.
Peer-Reviewed Publications
- (2007): Whence Philosophy of Biology? British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, 58, pp. 409-22. [pdf reprint] [supplemental material]
- (2006): Genetic Signatures of Intermediate Divergence: Population History of Old and New World Holarctic Ravens (Corvus corax) (with Kevin Omland and Jeff Peters), Molecular Ecology, 15, pp. 795-808. [pdf reprint]
- (2006): Canary Island Ravens (Corvus corax tingitanus) have Distinct mtDNA (with Kevin Omland), Ibis, 148, pp. 174-8. [pdf reprint]
- (2005): Sociobiology (with Harmon Holcomb), Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, ed. Edward Zalta. [revisions currently in prep.]
- (2005): Adaptive Speciation: The Role of Natural Selection in Mechanisms of Geographic and Non-Geographic Speciation, Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, 36, pp. 303-26. [pdf reprint]
- (2004): Recent Speciation between the Baltimore Oriole and the Black-Backed Oriole (with Kevin Omland and Beatrice Kondo), Condor, 106, pp. 674-80. [pdf reprint]
- (2003): Recent Speciation in the Orchard Oriole Group: Divergence of Icterus spurius spurius and Icterus spurius fuertesi (with Kevin Omland and others), Auk, 120, pp. 848-59. [pdf reprint] [“press” coverage: Birding]
Please Note: My surname changed from Baker to Byron in August 2006; publications prior to that date appear with my old name.
Other Publications
- (2002): Letter to the Editor, The Nation, 14 October. [pdf reprint]
- (2006): Review of The Case of the Female Orgasm, History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences, 28, pp. 487-8. [pdf reprint]
- (In prep.): Adaptation and Species Selection. [draft available, comments welcome]
- (In prep.): Modeling Bacterial Evolution. [draft available, comments welcome]
- (In prep.): Defining Health. [draft available, comments welcome]
- (In prep.): Disorders of Sexual Development. [draft available, comments welcome]
Professional Presentations
- (2012): "Ethics and Patient Care," Ethics in Nursing (UPMC St. Margaret), 4 June.
- (2012): Panel Discussion, "To Code or Not to Code" (Nurses' Week Panel on Ethics and Law), UPMC Shadyside, 7 May.
- (2012): "Discussing Goals at the End of Life," UPMC Shadyside Geriatric Fellowship Lunch and Learn, 22 March.
- (2012): "Mediating Family Conflict in End of Life Care," UMPC Shadyside Family Medicine Residency Education Seminar, 21 March.
- (2011): "Should Parents Lose Custody of Their Obese Children?" Center for Bioethics and Health Law Colloquium (University of Pittsburgh), 18 November.
- (2011): "Modeling Bacterial Evolution," International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (University of Utah), 12 July.
- (2010): "Determining Health Needs for Children with Disorders of Sexual Development," Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, 10 May.
- (2009): "Phalloplastic Surgery and Health Need," Association for Practical and Professional Ethics (Cincinnati), 6 March.
- (2009): "Sciences of Sex in Interwar Europe: Contesting Nature-State Relations and Boundaries," International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (Brisbane, Australia), 15 July 2009.
- (2008): "Holism in Early Sexology: Biological and Philosophical Contexts," History of Science Society (Pittsburgh), 6-9 November.
- (2008): "Adaptation and Species Selection," Adaptations in Psychology and in Biology (Institut d'Histoire et de Philosophie des Sciences et Techniques, Paris), 4-5 June.
- (2007): "Holistic Medicine and the Rise of Sexology in the Weimar Republic," International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (University of Exeter, UK), 25-29 July.
- (2006): "The Place of Biology in Early Philosophy of Science: Pluralism, Unity, and Disciplinary Fragmentation," International Society for the History of Philosophy of Science (Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris), 14-18 June.
- (2005): "Historical and Mechanistic Species Concepts and the Goals of Biological Classification," International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (Guelph University, Guelph, ON), 13-17 July
- (2004): Poster Presentation, North American Ornithological Conference (Universite Laval, Quebec, PQ), 16-21 August.
- (2003): Poster Presentation, North American Ornithological Conference (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign), 6-9 August.
- (2003): Poster Presentation, Maryland Ornithological Society (William F. Bolger Center, Potomac, MD), 24-26 May.
- (2002): Poster Presentation, North American Ornithological Conference (Tulane University, New Orleans), 24-28 September.
- (2002): "Recent Speciation and Reciprocal Monophyly: Lessons from New World Orioles," Society for the Study of Evolution (University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign), 29 June-2 July.
- (2002): Poster Presentation, Evolution: Understanding Life on Earth (American Institute of Biological Sciences, Arlington, VA), 22-24 March.
- (2002): Poster Presentation, Birds of Two Worlds (National Conservation Training Center, Shepherdstown, WV), 6-9 March.
- (2001): Poster Presentation, North American Ornithological Conference (University of Washington, Seattle), 15-18 August.
Professional Service
- Vice-Chair, Ethics Committee, UPMC Shadyside, 2012-present.
- Member, 2010-present.
- Member, Center for Fertility and Reproductive Endocrinology Ethics Committee, Magee-Women's Hospital of UPMC, 2012-present.
- Member, ICU Data Outcome Group, UPMC Shadyside, 2012-present.
- Member, Operations Council, UPMC Shadyside, 2012-present.
- Member, Disorders of Sexual Development Committee, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, 2010-present.
- Member, Student Advisory Committee, International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (ISHPSSB), 2007-2009.
- Session Organizer (with Thomas Cunningham), "Intellectual Histories of 20th-Century Biology: Discipline Building, Politics, and Philosophy," Annual Meeting of the History of Science Society, 2009.
- Session Organizer (with Thomas Cunningham), "Mechanism and its Discontents in 20th-century Biology I-II," ISHPSSB Biennial Meeting, 2007.
- Workshop Organizer, Future Directions in Biology Studies Workshop, 26-30 July 2006. [program] [“press” coverage: Biology & Philosophy]
- New Perspectives in the Arts and Humanities Grant (with Colin Allen), $20,000.
- NSF Grant No. SES-0620799 (with Lisa Lloyd), $10,000.
- Member of the Board of Directors (elected), ISHPSSB, 2005-2007.
- Chair, Student Advisory Committee.
- Member, Ad-Hoc Publication Committee.
- Member, Travel Award Committee.
- Member, Site Selection Committee.
- Referee, Synthese, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012.
- Referee, Philosophy of Science, 2010, 2011.
- Referee, Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, 2005, 2010.
- Referee, Biological Theory, 2007.
- Referee, The Auk, 2006, 2007.
Teaching Experience
- Instructor, Ethical Issues in Palliative Care, University of Pittsburgh Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship, May-June 2013 [self-designed course].
- Instructor, Ethics in Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, August 2012 [discussion leader].
- Clinical Instructor, Ethics Elective Rotation, University of Pittsburgh Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship, April 2012 [clinical rotation supervision].
- Instructor, Principles of Scientific Reasoning, University of Pittsburgh, Fall 2011. [self-designed course]
- Teaching Assistant (for Paolo Palmieri), Magic, Medicine, and Science, University of Pittsburgh, Spring 2010. [four discussion sections]
- Teaching Assistant (for Sandra Mitchell), Morality and Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Fall 2009. [four discussion sections]
- Instructor, Introduction to Scientific Reasoning, Indiana University, Spring 2006. [self-designed course]
- Teaching Assistant (for Sander Gliboff), Evolution, Religion, and Society, Indiana University, Fall 2005. [two discussion sections]
Clinical Experience
Manager / Head of Department, Department of Medical Ethics and Supportive Care, UPMC Shadyside, 2012-present.
Clinical Crisis Coordinator / Medical Ethics Intern, UPMC Shadyside, 2010-2012.
- Supervisor: Elizabeth Chaitin.
Professional Associations
- American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, 2012-present.
- American Society of Bioethics and Humanities, 2010-present.
- American Philosophical Association, 2002-present.
- International Society for History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology, 2001-present. [Member of the Board, 2005-2007]
- Philosophy of Science Association, 2000-present.