Competition & Regulation

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Politics, Institutions & Processes: National

Politics, Institutions & Processes: International

Science and Technology

A.B. Biology, University of Chicago (also fulfilled degree requirements in Public Policy); M.A. Science and Technology Studies, Cornell University; Ph.D. Science and Technology Studies, Cornell University (minor: Government)

"Building Genetic Medicine: Breast Cancer, Technology, and the Comparative Politics of Health Care."
http://mitpress.mit.edu/0262162423

Shobita Parthasarathy. (2005) "Architectures of Genetic Medicine: Comparing Genetic Testing for Breast Cancer in the USA and UK." Social Studies of Science. (Vol. 35, No. 1, pp. 5-40).

Shobita Parthasarathy. (2005) "The Patent is Political: The Consequences of Patenting the BRCA genes in Britain." Community Genetics Supplement. (Vol. 8, pp.235-242).

Shobita Parthasarathy. (2004) "Regulating Risk: Defining Genetic Privacy in the US and Britain." Science, Technology, and Human Values. (Vol. 9, No. 3, pp. 332-352).

Shobita Parthasarathy is an Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Co-Director of the Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program. She does research on the politics of science and technology, both in the United States and abroad. Current areas of interest include: comparative and international politics of genetics and biotechnology; the patentability of human biotechnology such as genes and stem cells; regulation of genetic medicine; the roles of patient advocacy groups; and the relationship between science and democracy. She recently published her first book, entitled Building Genetic Medicine: Breast Cancer, Technology, and the Comparative Politics of Health Care (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2007), which compares the development of genetic testing for breast cancer in the United States and Britain. Her current research focuses on the politics of patenting biotechnology in the US and Europe, exploring, in comparative perspective, how democratic objectives are interpreted by technical institutions. Primary funding for this project comes from a Scholar's Award from the Science, Technology, and Society Program of the National Science Foundation.

At Michigan, Shobita co-directs a university-wide program in science, technology, and public policy, and teaches courses in genetics and biotechnology policy, science and technology policy analysis, and political strategy. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Chicago and Ph.D. from Cornell University and has held postdoctoral fellowships at Northwestern University, University of California, Los Angeles, and the University of Cambridge. During the 2007-2008 academic year, Shobita Parthasarathy was awarded fellowships from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., and the American Council of Learned Societies.

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