Launch of www.AnimalExperimentFacts.info, www.HumaneLearning.info (fwd)

[Guest guest]

Andrew Knight <ethicalvet

 

 

Media Release 11 Dec. 2006

 

Animal experiments under scrutiny: recent scientific studies

demonstrate poor predictivity for human medical outcomes.

 

Animal experiments have long been the subject of controversy.

Although many claims have been made either way, until recently

large-scale scientific studies of their efficacy in advancing human

health have been rare. Since 2004, however, several such studies have

been published in peer-reviewed scientific journals, and presented at

international scientific conferences, at which some have received

awards. The results have been remarkably consistent: the stress

laboratory animals experience is greater than commonly understood,

and experiments on them contribute far less to the advancement of

human medical progress than advocates often claim. The abstracts and,

usually, complete texts of these published studies, as well as

published reviews of non-animal experimental models, and relevant

governmental reports, are freely downloadable from

www.AnimalExperimentFacts.info, which was launched today.

 

Also launched today is www.HumaneLearning.info. It is an

unfortunate fact that biomedical education has traditionally involved

the harmful use of animals. Many millions of animals have lost their

lives in attempts to teach practical skills and demonstrate

scientific principles which have, in most cases, been established for

decades. However, many thousands of humane educational alternatives

are now catalogued in databases, covering every educational level and

academic discipline. These include computer simulations, videos,

plasticised specimens, ethically-sourced cadavers (obtained from

animals that have been euthanased for medical reasons, or that have

died naturally or in accidents), models, diagrams,

self-experimentation, and supervised clinical experiences.

 

www.HumaneLearning.info provides:

 

over 250 published studies describing humane teaching

methods, sorted by academic discipline, including a review of 28

studies conclusively demonstrating that students using well designed

humane alternatives achieve learning outcomes at least as good as

those achieved via traditional harmful animal use;

detailed submissions describing the alternatives available in

certain academic disciplines, that have successfully resulted in

their introduction at some universities;

a large photo gallery of humane alternatives and harmful

animal use in education;

links to free on-line alternatives,

links to alternatives databases,

links to alternatives libraries,

links to humane education email lists;

links to other humane education web sites; and,

resources to guide and assist students who wish to

conscientiously object to harmful animal use in their education.

 

It is my hope that these resources may assist others to

successfully introduce humane alternatives to harmful animal use in

their own universities and schools, as my colleagues and I have done

at several universities worldwide. It complements my existing site

www.LearningWithoutKilling.info which provides encouragement and

guidance for students unwilling to harm animals during their

education.

 

Further information:

Andrew Knight BSc., BVMS, CertAW, MRCVS

Veterinarian and Animal Advocate

www.AnimalConsultants.org

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