Kate MacCord
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Phone: 480-965-8927
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Mail code: 4501Campus: Tempe
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I received my PhD in History and Philosophy of Science in 2017 from ASU, in which I investigated the history of the intersection of development and evolution within research on mammalian teeth. I spent a Fulbright year with the evolutionary phenomics laboratory of Jukka Jernvall at the University of Helsinki. During my PhD studies, I managed the MBL History Project, wrote and edited for the Embryo Project Encyclopedia, worked as a Project Coordinator for the Center for Biology and Society at ASU for four years, and was the developing editor for Harvard University Press for Lucie Laplane’s book, Cancer Stem Cells: Philosophy and Therapies. Prior to pursuing my doctorate, I earned an MPhil in Human Evolutionary Studies from the University of Cambridge in 2010, where I attended as a Gates Scholar, and a BPhil in Anthropology from the University of Pittsburgh in 2009, where I also earned a minor in German Studies and a certificate in the Conceptual Foundations of Medicine (HPS).
After graduating from ASU, I began work as the McDonnell Foundation Fellow and Program Administrator of the McDonnell Initiative at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, MA. The McDonnell Initiative, which I co-lead with Jane Maienschein, brings together historians, philosophers, and scientists from institutions around the world to understand how regeneration works across the scales of complex living systems.
I returned to ASU in Fall 2020 as Instructional faculty, teaching History of Medicine, History of Biology, Biology and Society, and a variety of graduate courses, but maintain my research program through my work with the McDonnell Initiative.
2017 PhD (History and Philosophy of Science) from Arizona State University, School of Life Sciences, Center for Biology and Society
2010 MPhil (Human Evolutionary Studies) from University of Cambridge, Churchill College
2009 BPhil (Anthropology) from University of Pittsburgh, University Honors College
My research in HPS is focused primarily on germline, cell lineages, regeneration, and human genome editing. My broader interests include embryology and developmental biology from the 19th century through the present, cell biology, stem cell biology, evolutionary theory, and EvoDevo/DevoEvo.
MacCord, Kate. How does Germline Regenerate?. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2024.
MacCord, Kate, and Jane Maienschein. “Studying Regeneration as a Way of Looking Forward.” Journal of the History of Biology (2024) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10739-024-09769-5
Maienschein, Jane, and Kate MacCord. “What is Regeneration? By Jane Maienschein and Kate MacCord: Reply by the Authors.” Studies in the History and Philosophy of Science 104 (2024): 12-13
MacCord, Kate. “Sex Cells: The History and Assumptions of Germ Cell Science.” Natural History 132 no. 2 (2024): 30-35.
Maienschein, Jane, and Kate MacCord. What is Regeneration? Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2022.
Elliott, Steve, Kate MacCord, and Jane Maienschein. “Help with Data Management for the Novice and Well-Seasoned Alike.” In The Dynamics of Science: Computational Frontiers in History and Philosophy of Science, edited by Grant Ramsey and Andreas De Block. 2022. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press.
MacCord, Kate, Jane Maienschein. “Explaining Regeneration: Cells and Limbs as Complex Living Systems, Learning from History.” Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology (2021) DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2021.734315
MacCord, Kate. “The Third Lens: Metaphor and the Creation of Modern Cell Biology by Andrew S. Reynolds.” The Quarterly Review of Biology 95, no. 2 (2020): 163.
MacCord, Kate. “A Dual Mission: Research and Education as Critical to the Scientific Integrity of the Marine Biological Laboratory,” in Why Study Biology by the Sea? Eds. Jane Maienschein, Karl Matlin, Rachel Ankeny. 2020. University of Chicago Press.
MacCord, Kate. “The impacts of assumptions on theories of tooth development and evolution at the turn of the nineteenth century.” History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences 41, no. 1 (2019): 12. DOI:10.1007/s40656-019-0245-2
MacCord, Kate, Jane Maienschein. “Understanding regeneration at different scales.” eLife 8 (2019): e46569. DOI: 10.7554/eLife.46569
MacCord, Kate, Jane Maienschein. “The Historiography of Embryology and Developmental Biology,” In The Historiography of Biology Eds. Michael Dietrich, Mark Borrello, Oren Harman. 2020. Springer Press. Online first: DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-74456-8_7-1
MacCord, Kate, Jane Maienschein (April 2018) “Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory,” In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd: Chichester. DOI: 10.1002/9780470015902.a0027989
Steinert, Beatrice, Kate MacCord. “Visualizing the Cell: Pictorial Styles and their Epistemic Goals in General Cytology,” In Visions of Cell Biology: Reflections on Cowdry’s Cytology Eds. Karl Matlin, Jane Maienschein, Manfred Laubichler. 2018. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
MacCord, Kate, Jane Maienschein. “Cells, Development, and Evolution: Teeth at the Intersection of Fields,” in The Darwinian Tradition in Context: Research Programs in Twentieth-Century Evolutionary Biology Ed. Richard Delisle. 2017. Springer Press.
Maienschein, Jane, Kate MacCord. “Changing Conceptions of Human Nature,” In Frankenstein Eds. Jason Robert, Ed Finn, David Guston. 2017. Boston, MA: MIT Press.
MacCord, Kate, Guido Caniglia, Jacqueline E. Moustakas‐Verho, and Ann C. Burke. "The Dawn of Chelonian Research: Turtles between Comparative Anatomy and Embryology in the 19th Century." Journal of Experimental Zoology Part B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution 324, no. 3 (2015): 169-180. DOI: 10.1002/jez.b.22587
MacCord, Kate. "Whose view of embryos?." Studies in History and Philosophy of Biology & Biomedical Sciences C 53 (2015): 103-106.
MacCord, Kate, Jane Maienschein, Wes Anderson, Marci Baranski, Florian Huber, Valerie Racine, Jonathan LaTourelle. “The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) History Project.” News from the Profession newsletter of the History of Science Society (2014) October.
MacCord, Kate, Jessica Ranney, Erica O’Neil. “3rd USA Science and Engineering Festival.” News from the Profession newsletter of the History of Science Society (2014) July.
MacCord, Kate. “The Unpredictable Species: What Makes Humans Unique by Philip Lieberman.” The Quarterly Review of Biology 89 no. 1 (2014): 58–59. doi:10.1086/675021
MacCord, Kate, "Johann Friedrich Blumenbach (1752-1840)". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2014-01-22). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/7512.
MacCord, Kate, "Endothelium". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2014-01-28). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/7517.
MacCord, Kate, "Ectoderm". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2013-12-02). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/6642.
MacCord, Kate, "Mesoderm". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2013-11-26). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/6603.
MacCord, Kate, "Endoderm". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2013-11-17). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/6584.
MacCord, Kate, "Germ Layers". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2013-09-17). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/6273.
MacCord, Kate, "Human Evolution Inferred from Tooth Growth and Development". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2013-03-28). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/4936.
MacCord, Kate, "The inductive capacity of oral mesenchyme and its role in tooth development (1969-1970), by Edward J. Kollar and Grace R. Baird". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2013-03-15). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/4218.
MacCord, Kate, "Biological Clocks and the Formation of Human Tooth Enamel". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2013-01-31). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/4213.
Kearl, Megan, Kate MacCord. "On the Induction of Embryonic Primordia by Implantation of Organizers from Different Species" (1924), Hilde Mangold's Dissertation". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2012-12-19). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/4208.
MacCord, Kate, "Epithelium". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2012-10-17). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/3946.
MacCord, Kate, "Mesenchyme". Embryo Project Encyclopedia (2012-09-14). ISSN: 1940-5030 http://embryo.asu.edu/handle/10776/3941.
My research in history and philosophy of science aims to uncover historically entrenched assumptions in current science and explore the repercussions of these assumptions. My goal is to use history and philosophy of science to transform and accelerate scientific research.
My research spans a variety of questions and areas within biology, history, and philosophy:
Germline: How has germline been conceived and investigated? How has our perception of germline influenced discussions about and policies for human genome editing? What is a germ cell, and how has that changed over time?
Regeneration: How have scientists defined and approached the study of regeneration–a phenomenon that can be found playing out throughout the entire span of complex living systems, from microbial communities, to organisms, to ecosystems? And, how can we leverage a complex adaptive systems perspective of regeneration to advance scientific and biomedical knowledge?
Cell Type and Lineages: What is the relationship between cell type and cell lineage? How have scientific conceptions of cell lineages changed over time?
Courses
2025 Spring
Course Number | Course Title |
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BIO 493 | Honors Thesis |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
2024 Fall
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 492 | Honors Directed Study |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
2024 Spring
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
2023 Fall
Course Number | Course Title |
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BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HON 394 | Special Topics |
2023 Spring
Course Number | Course Title |
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BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
2022 Fall
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
BIO 590 | Reading and Conference |
2022 Summer
Course Number | Course Title |
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BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
2022 Spring
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
2021 Fall
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 340 | Biology and Society |
2021 Summer
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
2021 Spring
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 311 | Biology and Society |
2020 Fall
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 316 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
HPS 330 | Hist Bio:Conflicts&Controversy |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
2020 Summer
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
2020 Spring
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
2019 Fall
Course Number | Course Title |
---|---|
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
BIO 318 | History of Medicine |
HPS 331 | History of Medicine |
2024 History of Science Society Joseph H. Hazen Education Prize (nominated)
2024 Provost Teaching Award (ASU-nominated)
2022, 2023 CLAS Outstanding Teaching Professor Award (ASU-nominated)
2021 School of Life Sciences Faculty Teaching Award
2012-2013 Fulbright Grantee (Finland)
2009-2010 Gates Cambridge Scholar (University of Cambridge)
Developing Editor, Harvard University Press. Developing Editor on Lucie Laplane’s book: Cancer Stem Cells
2018-present Member, Philosophy in Biology and Medicine (PhilInBioMed)
2016-present Member, Philosophy of Science Association (PSA)
2011-present Member, International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (ISHPPSB)
2010-present Member, History of Science Society (HSS)
2019-2022 Member, American Society for Cell Biology
2015-2020 Member, Pan American Society for Evolutionary Developmental Biology
2007-2011 Member, American Association of Physical Anthropologists (AAPA)
2022-present Teaching Assistant Professor, School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University
2017-present McDonell Foundation Fellow, Marine Biological Laboratory
2020-2022 Instructor, School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University
2017-2019 Adjunct Faculty, School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University
2014-2015 Developing Editor, Harvard University Press
2013-2017 Project Coordinator, Center for Biology & Society, School of Life Sciences
Reviewer for: Journal of the History of Biology, Biological Theory, History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences, University of Chicago Press (Biological Sciences section)
At ASU
2023-present Consultant, Life Science Ethics Program (SOLS)
2023-present Member, Career Track Faculty Advisory Council
2024 Co-Chair, HPS Teaching Assistant Professor Hiring Committee
2024 Co-Chair, Reimagining/Restructuring SOLS Committee
2022-2023 Co-Chair, Career Track Faculty Advisory Council
2022-2023 SOLS Executive Committee (non-voting member)
2023 Member, Associate Director for Instructional Faculty Search Committee
2021-2022 Member of the SOLS Director Search Committee
2020-2022 Member/Chair of the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) Committee for SOLS
Professional Societies Service
2023-present Program Co-Chair, International Society for History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (ISHPSSB)
2019-Present Scientific Committee and Program Committee, Philosophy in Biology and Medicine (PhilInBioMed)
2023 Prize Committee Member, International Society for History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology (ISHPSSB)
2022-2023 Program Co-Chair, Philosophy in Biology and Medicine (PhilInBioMed)
2015-2017 Coordinator, Digital History and Philosophy of Science Consortium
2014-2017 Student representative, Joint Caucus for Socially Engaged Philosophers and Historians of Science (JCSEPHS) for HSS and PSA