Rachel Ankeny

Professor Rachel Ankeny

Professor

School of Humanities

Faculty of Arts

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.

Professor Rachel A. Ankeny is an interdisciplinary teacher and scholar whose areas of expertise cross three fields: history/philosophy of science, bioethics and science policy, and food studies. She is an Honorary Visiting Professor in the College of Social Science and International Studies (Philosophy) at the University of Exeter (UK). Her research is considered highly interdisciplinary, scholarly, and generally accessible, evidenced by the fact that her talks are typically attended not only by academics but also members of the general public. She also is well-recognized as a scholar who can translate academic findings in ways that are relevant for stakeholders in a range of sectors and the broader community.

Rachel has a BA in Liberal Arts (Philosophy/Maths, St John's College, Santa Fe, NM), and MA degrees in Philosophy and in Bioethics, and a PhD in the History and Philosophy of Science (all from the University of Pittsburgh, PA). In 2006 she graduated with the degree of Master of Arts in Gastronomy (University of Adelaide) after completing a dissertation on celebratory food habits among Italo-Australian and Italian-American immigrants. She also holds a Graduate Certificate in Online Learning (Higher Education) from the University of Adelaide. Prior to joining the University of Adelaide in 2006, she was director and lecturer/senior lecturer in the Unit for History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Sydney from 2000.

Rachel currently serves as Deputy Dean Research (former Associate Dean Research, 2011-19 and Deputy Executive Dean, 2015-present) for the Faculty of Arts, and coordinates the Faculty's ARC ERA and Engagement and Impact submissions. She formerly served as the Faculty's Associate Dean (International) (2009-10).

Research Interests

Rachel's research interests cross several areas and fields: the history and philosophy of science particularly biomedical/ biological sciences, bioethics and science policy, food studies, and migration history. 

In the history and philosophy of science, her research focuses on the roles of models and case-based reasoning in science, model organisms, the philosophy of medicine, and the history of contemporary life sciences. Her major ongoing projects include Organisms and Us: How Living Things Help Us to Understand Our World which is a comprehensive historical and philosophical exploration of the changing roles and understandings of research with organisms in 20th and early 21st century science. She also has long-standing research on norms and practices in contemporary molecular biology, especially the Bermuda Principles for data sharing (see the archive created for this project).

Her research in bioethics examines ethical and policy issues in genetics, reproduction, women's health, transplantation, and embryo and stem cell research, among other topics.  She also has expertise and ongoing research on health and science policy, particularly regarding public engagement.

In food studies, Rachel's research interests include food ethics, food habits of women and children, food habits in the Italian diaspora, and the relationship of science to food habits. For more details on these projects and to volunteer to participating in our research please see the Food Values Research Group page.

Rachel also is the team leader of the Hostel Stories project in collaboration with the Migration Museum and in partnership with the cities of Charles Sturt and Port Adelaide Enfield, State Records, and the Vietnamese Community in Australia (SA). For more information and to register as a participant, see the Hostel Stories project page.

Research Funding

Date Project Chief Investigators Funding Body Amount
2016-19 Organisms and Us: How Living Things Help Us to Understand Our World - ARC Discovery Project Ankeny R, Dietrich M, Leonelli S Australian Research Council

AUD 313,686
2014-16

Making Plants Better, Making Australia Better? A History of Genetic Modification Science, Policy, and Community Attitudes in Australia - ARC Discovery Project

 Ankeny R

Australian Research Council

 AUD
291,669
2013-16

Getting to the meat of the matter: Social and economic issues in animal welfare in Australia's livestock industries - ARC Linkage Project

Ankeny R, Umberger W

 Australian Research Council

AUD
287,607
2012-15

Hostel Stories: Toward a Richer Narrative of the Lived Experiences of Migrants - ARC Linkage Project

Ankeny R

Australian Research Council

 AUD
90,000
2011

The Ethos and Effects of Data Sharing Rules: Examining the History of the 'Bermuda Principles' and Their Impact on US 21st Century Science - US Studies Centre Grant

 Ankeny R

University of Sydney

 AUD
10,000
2011-14

What Shall We Have for Tea? Toward a New Discourse of Food Ethics in Contemporary Australia - ARC Discovery Project

 Ankeny R Australian Research Council AUD
155,000

Rachel teaches in the undergraduate program in history and provides a 2nd year course on the History of Science, Medicine, and Technology. She also supervises Faculty internships, summer scholarships, and honours theses. She is a member of the Commonwealth's Tertiary Education Quality and and Standards Agency (TEQSA) Register of Experts, and has assessed curriculum proposals in Australia and New Zealand.

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  • Current Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
    Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
    2018 Principal Supervisor Building the Innovation Economy: the Development of Science and Technology Policy in South Australia, 1980 - 2020 Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Rebekah Joyce Harms
    2017 Co-Supervisor Food Habits and Social Change in Modern Nepal Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Paola Tine
    2016 Principal Supervisor The Bounty of The Suburbs- Backyard Food Production and Use in Adelaide, Post World War Two to the Present Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Linda Alison Haines
    2016 Principal Supervisor 'Blackboxing' Australian Science? Understanding Popular Perceptions of Science in Australia, 1939- 1963 Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Mrs Lisa Hunt
    2016 Principal Supervisor Animal Ethics in Psychological Research in Australia from 1900 to Present Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Karina Monique Burns
    2016 Principal Supervisor Philosophical Theories of Mind, Cognition, and The Status of Representation: Veridicality and Combination in Biological Sciences Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Dook Shepherd
    2015 Principal Supervisor History of Community Attitudes and Activism in Australia Around The Emergence and Development of GM for Food and Agricultural Purposes, 1970s- Present Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Ms Kelly Anne McKinley
    2015 Principal Supervisor Neither Bread Nor Cake: Ersatz Foods and The Spirit of Full Disclosure Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Ms See Kay Selina Kuo
    2015 Principal Supervisor Science at the Interface: Community Engagement and The Promise and Transdisciplinarity Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Ms Virginia Elizabeth Baker
    2015 Principal Supervisor Rethink Difference with The Non-Human Animal: Eating Animals As a Site to Criticize Cultural Difference Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Ms Yvette Kim Clarissa Wijnandts
    2012 Principal Supervisor Migrant Hostels Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Daniella Michelina Pilla

  • Past Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
    Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
    2016 - 2019 Co-Supervisor Epilepsy in the Lunatic Asylums of South Australia (1852 – 1913) Master of Philosophy Master Full Time Mrs Margaret Boult
    2015 - 2019 Principal Supervisor Australian Meat Consumers' Understandings of Farm Animal Welfare Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Emily Anne Buddle
    2013 - 2015 Principal Supervisor British Migrants in Post-War South Australia: Expectations and Lived Experiences Master of Philosophy Master Full Time Justin Anthony Madden
    2012 - 2018 Principal Supervisor More than Just a Roof over Their Heads: Migrant Accommodation Centres and the Assimilation of "New Australians" 1947-1960 Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Dr Karen Agutter
    2012 - 2016 Principal Supervisor The Social Lives of Superfoods Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Jessica Loyer
    2012 - 2016 Principal Supervisor A History of Local Food in Australia 1788 - 2015 Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Susan Chant
    2012 - 2016 Principal Supervisor Dining in Style: Uncovering the Gastronomic History of Beleura Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Iain Robert Buckland
    2011 - 2018 Principal Supervisor Ideas of Italy and the Nature of Ethnicity: A History of Italian Food in Australia with Case Studies Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Tania Cammarano
    2008 - 2010 Principal Supervisor A Culinary History of the Portuguese Eurasians: The Origins of Luso-Asian Cuisine in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Janet Patricia Boileau
    2007 - 2010 Co-Supervisor Incorrigible Colonist: Ginger in Australia, 1788-1950 Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Leonie Anne Ryder
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  • Committee Memberships
    Date Role Committee Institution Country
    2021 - 2023 President Governing Board International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology United States
    2019 - 2021 Vice-President Governing Board International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology United States
    2018 - ongoing Board Member Advisory Board Society for Philosophy of Science in Practice United Kingdom
    2017 - 2021 Secretary Governing Board International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology United States
    2016 - 2019 Member Division of Logic, Methodology, and Philosophy of Science International Union of History and Philosophy of Science and Technology —
    2016 - ongoing Member Committee for Integrated History and Philosophy of Science — —
    2014 - ongoing Assistant Treasurer Advisory Board International Network on Feminist Approaches to Bioethics —
    2014 - 2016 Co-Chair Joint Caucus of Socially Engaged Philosophers and Historians of Science Philosophy of Science Association and History of Science Society —
    2013 - 2017 Board Member International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology — —
    2013 - 2016 Member Governing Board Philosophy of Science Association —
    2013 - 2016 Chair Committee on Meetings and Programs History of Science Society United States
    2009 - ongoing Vice-President Australasian Association of Bioethics and Health Law — Australia
    2009 - ongoing Co-Founder International Philosophy of Medicine Roundtable — —
    2007 - 2014 Chair National Committee for History and Philosophy of Science Australian Academy of Science —
    2005 - ongoing Co-Founder Society for Philosophy of Science in Practice — —

  • Editorial Boards
    Date Role Editorial Board Name Institution Country
    2017 - ongoing Editor-In-chief Studies in History and Philosophy of Science Part C: Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences Elsevier United Kingdom
    2015 - ongoing Board Member History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences — —
  • Position: Professor
  • Phone: 83135570
  • Email: rachel.ankeny@adelaide.edu.au
  • Fax: 8313 5241
  • Campus: North Terrace
  • Building: Napier, floor 3
  • Room: 3 11
  • Org Unit: History
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