Biological relates to living things and life processes, such as growth, reproduction, and evolution. It can also refer to a person’s genetic or blood relationships, like a biological parent.
From “biology” plus the adjective ending “-ical.” “Biology” comes from Greek “bios” (life) and “-logia” (study of).
Calling something “biological” reminds us that it comes from the messy, living world, not from machines or pure ideas. For example, “biological clock” mixes science with a very human feeling of time passing.
“Biological” has often been invoked to naturalize gender roles and justify inequality, framing certain behaviors or divisions of labor as biologically inevitable. This has obscured the interplay of biology, culture, and social structures.
Use “biological” precisely (e.g., biological sex characteristics, biological processes) and avoid using it to oversimplify or fix social roles or gender identity. Distinguish clearly between biology and social constructs.
["physiological","genetic","bodily","related to living organisms"]
Women scientists and gender scholars have challenged simplistic ‘biological’ explanations for inequality, showing how they often reflect social bias more than evidence.
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