Mikami, Koichi

写真a

Affiliation

Faculty of Science and Technology, Department of Foreign Languages and Liberal Arts ( Hiyoshi )

Position

Associate Professor

E-mail Address

E-mail address

External Links
Scopus Paper Info  
Paper Count: 17 Citation Count: 146 h-index: 7

Click to view the Scopus page. The data was downloaded from Scopus API in May 24, 2026, via http://api.elsevier.com and http://www.scopus.com .

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Career 【 Display / hide 】

  • 2010.04
    -
    2013.12

    Graduate University for Advanced Studies, Center for the Promotion of Integrated Sciences, Assistant Professor

  • 2014.01
    -
    2017.03

    University of Edinburgh, Science, Technology and Innovation Studies (STIS), Research Fellow

  • 2017.04
    -
    2019.03

    University of Tokyo, Komaba Oraganization for Educational Excellence, Science Interpreter Training Program, Project Assistant Professor

  • 2019.04
    -
    2022.03

    Keio University, Faculty of Science and Technology, Department of Foreign Languages and Liberal Arts, Assistant Professor

  • 2022.04
    -
    Present

    Keio University, Faculty of Science and Technology, Department of Foreign Languages and Liberal Arts, Associate Professor

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Academic Background 【 Display / hide 】

  • 2000.04
    -
    2004.03

    Waseda University, School of Political Sciences and Economics, Department of Economics

    University, Graduated

  • 2004.10
    -
    2005.09

    University of Oxford, Said Business School

    United Kingdom, Graduate School, Completed, Master's course

  • 2005.10
    -
    2006.09

    London School of Economics and Political Sciences, Department of Sociology

    United Kingdom, Graduate School, Completed, Master's course

  • 2006.10
    -
    2010.03

    University of Oxford, Said Business School

    United Kingdom, Graduate School, Completed, Doctoral course

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Academic Degrees 【 Display / hide 】

  • MSc in Sociology, London School of Economics and Political Sciences, Coursework, 2006.11

  • MSc in Management Research, University of Oxford, Coursework, 2007.05

  • D.Phil. (Oxon) in Management Studies, University of Oxford, Coursework, 2011.07

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Research Areas 【 Display / hide 】

  • Humanities & Social Sciences / Sociology of science, history of science and technology (Science and Technology Studies)

  • Humanities & Social Sciences / Sociology (Medical Sociology)

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Research Keywords 【 Display / hide 】

  • ELSI/RRI

  • Regenerative Medicine

  • Synthetic Biology

  • Cross-national Comparison

  • Rare Diseases

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Books 【 Display / hide 】

  • ゲノムと社会

    JST RISTEX「ゲノム倫理」研究会, 共同文化社, 2026.01

  • 「研究者の自治」のためのレファレンスブック

    西　千尋, 桜木　真理子, 見上　公一, CBI学会, 2024.09

  • 入門 科学技術と社会

    Ryuma Shineha, Koichi Mikami, Nakanishiya Shuppan, 2024.04

  • よくわかる現代科学技術史・STS

    見上　公一, ミネルヴァ書房, 2022.02

    Scope: ゲノム編集,  Contact page： 124-125

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Papers 【 Display / hide 】

  • The Illusion of 'Artificiality': On the containment of the nature

    Koichi Mikami

    Articulations 4   83 - 99 2026

    Research paper (bulletin of university, research institution), Single Work

  • The Rise of Public Engagement in Japan and the UK: Reconsidering Conventional Narratives through a Cross-country Dialogue

    Koichi Mikami, Erika Szymanski, Jusaku Minari, Robert Smith, Niki Vermeulen

    East Asian Science, Technology and Society: An International Journal  2026

    Research paper (scientific journal), Joint Work, Accepted

  • The potential of Anthropocene: Taming 'dirty' chimera and its power

    Koichi Mikami

    Articulations 3   35 - 47 2025

    Research paper (bulletin of university, research institution), Single Work

  • From reading to writing genomes: a new direction in ELSI

    Koichi Mikami

    Frontiers in Genetics 16 2025

    Research paper (scientific journal), Single Work, Accepted

    　View Summary

    In this commentary piece, I discuss what the growing interest in synthesizing DNA at large scale means to the effort to address the Ethical, Legal and Social implications (ELSI) of genetic/genomic research. The idea that the latest scientific research should be accompanied by efforts to explore and then address its ELSI first materialized in the context of the Human Genome Project (HGP). This project to read a human genome was completed in 2003, but the science of genomics has advanced since. Particularly important was successful synthesis of phiX174 bacteriophage genome in the very year that the HGP was concluded. This work opened up a new direction in genomics research centering on genome-scale synthesis and re-designing of genomes, characterized as a ‘writing’ approach. While early targets in this line of research were microorganisms like Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, technological advancements in the synthesis of large-scale DNA sequences as well as methods to assemble them into a single genome or a chromosome are being made, and in 2016 a team of scientists proposed to ‘write’ an entire human genome. This line of scientific research, I argue, has two major characteristics, its scale and emphasis on design, and demands discussions around ‘ELSI of re-designing,’ in contrast to ELSI discussions that predominated in the earlier ‘reading’ paradigm of genomics. Because of these differences, efforts to address this ELSI of re-design should entail re-thinking what we do as ELSI as well as how we do it.

  • Traces of Human Activities in Anthropocene

    Koichi Mikami

    Articulations 2   7 - 19 2024

    Research paper (bulletin of university, research institution), Single Work

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Papers, etc., Registered in KOARA 【 Display / hide 】

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Reviews, Commentaries, etc. 【 Display / hide 】

  • Mirror life at the crossroads: Report on the symposia in Japan for discussion toward mirror life synthesis

    Fujiwara K., Aoki W., Furusawa C., Hasegawa A., Hayashi G., Kiga D., Mikami K., Takada S., Shimizu Y.

    Biophysics and Physicobiology 23 ( 1 )  2026.02

    Article, review, commentary, editorial, etc. (scientific journal), Joint Work

    　View Summary

    The synthesis of mirror life, an organism composed entirely of the mirror-image counterparts of naturally occurring biomolecules, may be a topic for science fiction today but is suggested to be a reality in the future. Scientists called for strict preemptive regulation for the synthesis of mirror life due to concerns regarding biosecurity risks, such as the potential threat of mirror life to humans and non-human ecosystems. This perspective reports on the discussions held at two recent symposia in Japan, at the Japanese Society for Cell Synthesis Research (JSCSR) meeting and at the Biophysical Society of Japan (BSJ) annual meeting. Participants, including synthetic biologists, social scientists and artists, discussed the feasibility of the synthesis of mirror-image artificial self-replicating cells and the balance between the risks and benefits of this emerging technology. The discussions indicate that, while safety management is essential, a rational, evidence-based framework developed through open dialogue with society is crucial for the responsible advancement of mirror life research.

  • Promoting Collaboration in Molecular robotics

    Nishi, C., M. Sakuragi & K. Mikami

    Journal of Science and Technology Studies 24   67 - 75 2026.01

    Rapid communication, short report, research note, etc. (scientific journal), Joint Work

  • Event Report: the Roundtable Discussion "Future of the Molecular Robotics 2"

    Mikami K, Kawamura, K, Izumi K, Iwabuchi S, Kojima T, Kotsuka T, Sato G, Maruyama T

    Osaka University Research Center on Ethical, Legal and Social Issues ELSI NOTE  ( 42 ) 1 - 36 2024.06

    Meeting report, Joint Work

  • [Event Report] Interactive Event 'Let's visualize and talk the future of artificial cells!'

    Mikami K

    The Keio Hiyoshi review of social science 34   75 - 84 2024.03

    Article, review, commentary, editorial, etc. (bulletin of university, research institution), Single Work

  • The Online Forum "The Future of Molecular Robotics": How Scientists Narrate the Future

    Mikami K, Kawamura K

    Japanese Journal of Science Communication 33   15 - 27 2024.03

    Rapid communication, short report, research note, etc. (scientific journal), Joint Work

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Research Projects of Competitive Funds, etc. 【 Display / hide 】

  • Social Responsibility of SSH Scholars in/for Co-creation of Science & Technology

    2025.04
    -
    2029.03

    MEXT, JSPS, Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research, Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C), Principal investigator

  • Collaboration and (in)flexible environment: the history of Guthrie Test in Japan

    2018.04
    -
    2022.03

    MEXT, JSPS, Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research, Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C), Principal investigator

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Courses Taught 【 Display / hide 】

  • JAPANESE CULTURE AND SCIENCE/TECHNOLOGY

    2026

  • OPEN EDUCATION B

    2026

  • FUNDAMENTALS FOR JITSUGAKU A

    2026

  • LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES SEMINAR(GIC)2

    2026

  • SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY 2

    2026

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Memberships in Academic Societies 【 Display / hide 】

  • European Association for Studies of Science and Technology, 

    2014
    -
    Present

  • The Sociology of Science Society of Japan, 

    2012
    -
    Present

  • The Japan Sociological Society, 

    2010
    -
    Present

  • Japanese Society for Science and Technology Studies, 

    2009
    -
    Present

  • Society for Social Studies of Science, 

    2008
    -
    Present
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Committee Experiences 【 Display / hide 】

  • 2019.04
    -
    Present

    理事, 科学技術社会論学会

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