title: Evolutionary Science as a Method to Facilitate Higher Level Thinking and Reasoning in Medical Training.
abstract: Evolutionary science is indispensable for understanding biological processes. Effective medical treatment must be anchored in sound biology. However, currently the insights available from evolutionary science are not adequately incorporated in either pre-medical or medical school curricula. To illuminate how evolution may be helpful in these areas, examples in which the insights of evolutionary science are already improving medical treatment and ways in which evolutionary reasoning can be practiced in the context of medicine are provided. In order to facilitate the learning of evolutionary principles, concepts derived from evolutionary science that medical students and professionals should understand are outlined. These concepts are designed to be authoritative and at the same time easily accessible for anyone with the general biological knowledge of a first-year medical student. Thus we conclude that medical practice informed by evolutionary principles will be more effective and lead to better patient outcomes.Furthermore, it is argued that evolutionary medicine complements general medical training because it provides an additional means by which medical students can practice the critical thinking skills that will be important in their future practice. We argue that core concepts from evolutionary science have the potential to improve critical thinking and facilitate more effective learning in medical training.
authors.affiliation: Joint School for Nanoscience & Nanoengineering, North Carolina A&T State University & UNC Greensboro, 2907 E. Gate City Blvd, Greensboro, NC gravesjl@ncat.edu.
authors.forename: Joseph L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Graves
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, Binghamton University, PO Box 6000, Binghamton, NY 13902-6000.
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Reiber
authors.affiliation: University of California Museum of Paleontology, 1101 Valley Sciences Building, Berkeley, CA 94720-4780.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Thanukos
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281.
authors.forename: Magdalena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hurtado
authors.affiliation: Penn State Health, Pennsylvania State University, 500 University Drive, Hershey, PA 17033.
authors.forename: Terry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wolpaw