The Genopole®/IFRIS "Life Science in Society" Colloquium: The Industrialization of Biology and its Impact on Research

EVRY, France, November 30, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

The Genopole^® biopark's mission is to promote the emergence of hi-tech companies and cutting-edge labs in the field of genomics; this also means tackling the societal questions raised by scientific progress. Genopole^® has joined with IFRIS (the Ile-de-France Institute for Research, Innovation and Society, encompassing 120 researchers in the human and social sciences) to organize an annual "Life Science in Society" colloquium. The 2011 edition (to be held on December 8 in Paris) will address the scale-up in biology observed over the last forty years and the consequences of this revolution.

The revolution in biology over the last forty years has prompted major changes in how scientific research is organized and performed. Knowledge production methods in biology have been intensified and scaled up to almost industrial levels of throughput. Life science research now includes the use of ever more advanced robotic handling equipment and sequencers and ever greater amounts of computing resources. What impacts are these sophisticated instruments having on experimental practice and workflow in the lab? Academic research and commercial applications are increasingly intermeshed. Does this mean that research programs follow the laws of supply and demand? It is justifiable to consider knowledge as a product that can be bought and sold? Researchers in the social sciences are observing the biotech sector as a model and are studying how science can transform society. The second edition of the "Life Science in Society" colloquium will provide an overview of this topic by both social scientists and biologists.

Journalists will have free access but prior registration is mandatory via communication@genopole.fr

All presentations will be in French.

Visit us: http://www.genopole.fr/Life-Sciences-in-Society-2011.html

• Thursday, December 8, 2011, from 8.30 am to 6pm at the MGEN building (3 square Max Hymans, 75015 Paris, France)

Genopole^® is the leading French science park dedicated to life sciences. Its campus - near Paris - combines academic (CEA, CNRS, INRA, INSERM and the University of Evry-Val-d'Essonne) and private research laboratories, university/higher education facilities, biotechnology companies and an incubator for biotech start-ups. Genopole's^® priority is to promote therapy- and environment-focused biotech by providing optimal conditions for company growth and progress in research, the development of large-scale biological activities and to make France a major competitor in the world of science and industry.

Press contact: Anne Rohou, anne.rohou@genopole.fr - Phone +33-160878310