Summary and Reaction to Shreeve

Summary

There are two main issues that Shreeve wanted to discuss.

One issue is if the term race should be used by scientists and it is biological reality. Shreeve seems to agree that the term race should be used by scientists and it is biological reality. This is because he holds a positive attitude toward the techniques used in genetic analysis. For example, he recognizes the advantage of the examination using at a sample of DNA to tell one population form another in terms of race. Thus, it is assumed that he agrees scientists use the term race.

Another issue is in what case the term race should be used. Shreeve seems to claim that it should be used in police work while it should not be used in medical research. First, he states that the term race needs on the police investigation. For instance, he cites the Brues’s comment that when police wants to know person’s racial identity a forensic anthropologist should use the term race. On the other hand, he has a negative view on the using the term race in case of medical research. For example, though Tackett says Tackett and his associates demonstrated the speed at blood vessel from blacks returns to normal size is slower than that at one from whites do, Shreeve pointed out the defect of their experiment’s method. The defect is that the sample Tackett used was strongly biased. As presented above, Shreeve thinks if the term race should be used is depend on cases.

Reaction

Regarding the first issue, the term race has not reached the revel that scientists could or should use it as a scientific term and the concept of race has not possessed a biological reality. This is because race is related to only 6 % of genetic difference and limits still exist using it to distinguish one population from another population. Accordingly, scientists should keep on researching race until wrong interpretation formed by the former social stereotype becomes disappear.

              Regarding the second issue, I understand Shreeve’s opinion. I want to add the idea that people should take care of the influence and power of the term race in whatever case they use it.