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Staff Profile

Dr Yin Gao

Lecturer in Philosophy

Faculty:        Education and Arts

School:         Humanities and Social Sciences

Room:          McMullin Building - MC121

Phone:         + 61 2 4921 5191

Facsimile:    + 61 2 4921 6933

Email:          Yin.Gao@newcastle.edu.au

Qualifications

• Ph.D. (Newcastle, Australia)
• M.A. (Heilongjiang Social Science Institute, P. R. China)
• B.Eng. (Hons) (Liaoning Architectural University, P. R. China)

Academic Appointments

• University of Newcastle, Australia
  • Lecturer, 2007-
  • Tutor and casual lecturer, 1995-2006
• Shenyang Agricultural University, P. R. China
  • Tutor, 1989-1993

Professional Activities

Research

Dr Gao has done extensive research on complex system theory and its philosophical implications in terms its impacts on our understanding of:

• The development of science and technology in terms of the dynamics and organization of their practice;
• The dynamics and organization of ecological system and its implication on ecological investigation and environmental policy;
• The interaction between manmade systems and its ecological environment, especially in the case of engineering systems;
• The dynamics of high technology products market and its implication on science, technology, and industry development policies.

She has extended her work to area such as applying complex system theory in conceptualizing and analyzing traditional Chinese medical theory and practice. She is also working on evaluating the application of evidence-base medicine in traditional Chinese medicine. She is currently involved in organizing a major international conference on Evidence-based Practice in China with IASH.

With her work on complex system theory, she has applied complex system framework in analyzing the organizational and dynamic properties of scientific and technological practice. This work involves examining:

1. the epistemological processes in various scientific and technological research and development settings; 
2. the physical infrastructure of science including scientific and technological instrument design and construction, laboratory design, communication network building, etc; 
3. the impacts on such infrastructural systems on scientific practice and organization; 
4. the dynamic properties of such infrastructural systems, as well as interactions among these systems.
   

Her work on applying the complex system framework to traditional Chinese medicine includes constructing a set of conceptual tools to reinterpret the medical theory presented in TCM classics such as the Yellow Emperor Inner Classic in terms of articulating the conception of human body, health, and diseases; explaining and analyzing the diagnostic and therapeutic strategies based on such conceptions; and developing appropriate assessment parameters in testing the efficacy of TCM. These works provide a critical bridging framework that helps Western academics and medical professional to understand the working processes underlying TCM practice as well as a set new research tools for TCM researchers and practitioners. She has been working closely with other researchers interested in TCM and TCM practitioners here in Australia and aboard. She and her collaborators have published several papers in this area in both English and Chinese peer-reviewed journals.

Recently, she has started a new project investigating the ethical, methodological and epistemological aspects of applying evidence-based medicine to traditional Chinese medicine.

Teaching

Dr Gao has taught a range of sucessful courses at the University of Newcastle, including postgraduate as well as undergraduate courses and seminars on analyses of ethical, social and environmental impacts of Engineering practice. She currently teaches or contributes substantially to the following courses at advanced undergraduate and postgraduate levels:

• SOCS2300 Ethical Debates in the Social Sciences
• PHIL3140  Non-European Philosophy (Classical Chinese Philosophy)
• PHIL3910  Technology and Human Value
• PHIL3930  Human Values & Commercial Practice
• PHIL6910  Technology and Human Value
• PHIL6920  Technology, Human Value and the Environment

Her interests in teaching include philosophical and ethical analyses on engineering practice and commercial practice as well as social sciences. She also teaches classic Chinese philosophy.

Research Publications

• Rodrigues, D., Y. Gao, and W.E. Herfel, 2008.  Analysing a Chinese Medical Case Study in terms of Self-Organisation (in Chinese)). Journal of Medicine & Philosophy ( 医学与哲学):  2008, March: 56-7
• Gao, Y. W.E. Herfel and Rodrigues, D. 2008.  Toward a New Research Paradigm: Traditional Chinese Medicine from a Nonlinear Dynamical Perspective (in Chinese),Journal of Medicine & Philosophy ( 医学与哲学): 2008, April: 70-72.
• Herfel, W. E., D. Rodrigues and Y.Gao. 2007. Chinese Medicine and the Dynamic Conceptions of Health and Disease.   Journal of Chinese Philosophy 34 (s1): 57-79.

Forthcoming Publications

• 'Dynamics of technology development: an analysis of the lock-in effect and path-dependence in technology,' (co-authored with W. Herfel). Submitted for publication to the Journal of Natural Dialectics
• 'The ecology of scientific practice: an ecological analysis of the organisation and dynamics of science', to be submitted for publication
• 'Constructing Post-Classical Ecosystems Ecology: The emerging dynamic perspective from self-organising complex adaptive systems,' to be submitted for publication

Papers & Presentations

• Herfel, W. E., D. Rodrigues and Y.Gao. 2007. Chinese Medicine and the Dynamic Conceptions of Health and Disease.  Journal of Chinese Philosophy 34 (s1): 57-79.
• 'Constructing Post-Classical Ecosystems Ecology: The emerging dynamic perspective from self-organising complex adaptive systems,' presented at the ISHPSSB biannual conference in Exeter, UK, July 2007 (co-authored with W. Herfel)
• 'A Chinese medical contribution to the dynamic conception of health and disease. Presented at the 14th International Society for Chinese Philosophy conference, Sydney, July 2005 (co-authored with W. Herfel and D. Rodrigues)
• 'An Application of the Concept of Self-Organising Dissipative Structure to Chinese Medicine,' presented at the First World Congress on Chinese Medicine, Melbourne, Australia, November 2003 (co-authored with W. Herfel and D. Rodrigues)
• 'Traditional Chinese Medicine from a non-linear dynamical perspective,' presented at the Third National Symposium of the Australian Acupuntureand Chinese Medicine Association, Melbourne, May 2001 (co-authored with W. Herfel and D. Rodrigues)
• 'Making Sense in Western Terms,' presented at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA; St. Mary's College of Maryland, USA, November 2000; Annual Conference of the Australasian Association of Philosophy, University of Tasmania, Australia; Annual Conference of the Australasian Association for the History, Philosophy and Social Study of Science, University of Melbourne, Australia, June 2001; Unit for History and Philosophy of Science, Sydney University, Australia, March 2002 (co-authored with W. Herfel and D. Rodrigues)