Four animal rights activists have been convicted of orchestrating a blackmail campaign against firms that supplied an animal testing research centre. They used paedophile smears, criminal damage and bomb hoaxes to intimidate companies associated with Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS) in Cambridgeshire. The four, members of Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC) from Hampshire and London, had denied the charges. A fifth defendant was cleared by the Winchester Crown Court jury. During a six-year campaign the group falsely claimed managers of the companies were paedophiles. They also sent hoax bombs parcels and made threatening telephone calls to firms telling them to cut links with HLS. One of the features of intimidation included sending used sanitary items in the post to the firms and daubing roads outside managers' homes with slogans such as "puppy killer". The court heard the defendants were part of SHAC, which was based near Hook, Hampshire, and targeted companies in the UK and Europe between 2001 and 2007. It was told Nicholson, from Eversley in Hampshire, was a founder member of SHAC, who managed the "menacing" campaigns against the firms. Selby, Wadham and Medd-Hall were released on conditional bail, while Nicholson was remanded in custody. A man who worked for a company which transported animals for HLS said he still fears reprisals after being sent obscene packages. We received a lot of phone calls and letters [which] contained things like used condoms, used sanitary towels, razor blades and syringe needles claiming to be from people who are infected with AIDS," he added. (C)BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 12393 - Posted: 12.29.2008

Oxford University has resumed building work on its controversial new laboratory complex on South Parks Road. Construction work on the biomedical facility had been halted in July 2004 after a sustained campaign of protest from animal rights groups. The building contractor, Walter Lilly & Co, said its staff had been subjected to threats and intimidation. The university has now engaged a new company and work on the £20m complex began early on Wednesday. Oxford said it was determined to finish the project, which is now well behind schedule. "The new biomedical research building will provide world-class facilities reflecting the university's commitment to animal welfare and to scientific progress," added David Holmes, the institution's Registrar. "Completing the project will be good for animal welfare, good for medial research and good for the treatment of life-threatening conditions all over the world." Mr Holmes confirmed that the government had been supportive and that assistance had been given by Thames Valley Police. He added that the £20m construction cost did not include security costs for the site. The facility was first conceived a decade ago; it has been in detailed planning for over five years and phase one of the project was originally to have been completed this Autumn. (C)BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 8243 - Posted: 12.01.2005

A major study will examine what limits should be put on the continued use of non-human primates in UK experiments. The review is being undertaken by four of Britain's leading medical and scientific organisations. It follows the fractious arguments between the research community and the animal welfare lobby over the need for new testing centres in the country. Some 3,000 primates - mostly marmoset and macaque monkeys - are used in British labs each year. Three-quarters of them are employed in toxicology tests - checking to see if new drug compounds are likely to be harmful if carried forward into human trials. Mainstream science has taken the view that monkeys' physiological similarities to humans - we are also primates - make them powerful tools to investigate the diseases and fundamental biology of people. But that closeness also raises an acute ethical dilemma - and there is growing pressure for the relatively small numbers of non-human primates used in tests to be reduced still further. Now, the Academy of Medical Sciences, the Royal Society, the Medical Research Council and the Wellcome Trust are setting up a working group to examine the recent, current and future scientific basis for biological and medical research involving non-human primates. (C)BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 7072 - Posted: 03.23.2005

By Julianna Kettlewell, BBC News science reporter Farm animals have feelings which should be respected and catered for, academics at a London, UK, meeting have said. They believe animals should not be dismissed as simple automatons - cows take pleasure in solving problems and sheep can form deep friendships. Delegates from around the globe were speaking at the Compassion in World Farming Trust (CIWF Trust) conference. They shared ways of exploring the minds of animals, as well as monitoring their suffering and alleviating their pain. "The study of animal sentience is one of the most exciting and important in the whole of biology," said Professor Marian Dawkins, of Oxford University. "My plea is that, when we make decisions and regulations about animals and campaign for them, the animals' voices should be heard and heard strongly." For whatever reasons, we humans tend to draw a charmed ring around ourselves - we suppose we are the only ones that think thoughts and feel feelings. We are happy to ascribe emotions to a tiny flailing inarticulate baby, while denying them in a sheep or even a chimpanzee. Talk of animal sentience is often brushed off as fluffy and sentimental - not the stuff of science or the real world. But perhaps we have been too hasty in our dismissal - perhaps consciousness does not peer through our eyes alone. "They are not unfeeling objects," said Professor Marc Bekoff, of the University of Colorado, US. "And what animals feel matters very much as they try to negotiate their lives in a human-dominated and often abusive world, in which they are mere pawns in our incessant and obsessive attempts to control their lives for our and not their benefit. (C)BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 7055 - Posted: 03.20.2005

By Simon Cox and Richard Vadon The tactics of a small hardcore of animal rights activists have brought them in confrontation with major corporations, scientific establishments and the government. Some of their strategies have appalled many people, especially those who have been targeted. Whether people support them or not, it cannot be denied that their tactics have had an impact. So what have been the key elements of their approach? The campaign waged against Huntingdon Life Sciences, Europe's largest vivisection laboratory, has shown the increasingly sophisticated tactics of the animal rights movement. The Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (Shac) campaign has focused on the suppliers. So far this year 80 companies have severed ties with Huntingdon because of pressure from animal rights campaigners and fear of bad publicity. Greg Avery of the Shac campaign has found that many of the biggest companies can be persuaded very quickly and not because they care about animals. (C)BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 6446 - Posted: 11.19.2004

Oxford University has won its bid for the renewal of an injunction against animal rights activists protesting next to its new animal testing centre. It asked the High Court to extend a 45m "no harassment" zone around its research laboratory, claiming work was stopped because of intimidation. The university had also requested an injunction against 10 named defendants. University chiefs had offered to provide a demonstration area opposite the South Parks Road site. Oxford University Vice-Chancellor, Dr John Hood, said on Wednesday: "As an academic institution, freedom of speech within the law is highly valued. By obtaining this injunction, the University of Oxford is not seeking to stifle the views of those groups and individuals with whom we disagree. "Indeed, we are satisfied that this order strikes a fair balance between the legitimate right to protest and the right of individuals to conduct their lawful business without fear of intimidation or violence." Work on the construction of the laboratory was forced to stop on 13 July after contractors complained they had been harassed and intimidated by some animal rights activists. (C)BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 6404 - Posted: 11.11.2004

An analysis suggests science really is trying to reduce animal experiments. A comparison of almost 3,000 research papers published over 30 years in major biomedical journals found a 30% fall in the number of studies using animals. The analysis by Dr Hans-Erik Carlsson and colleagues also showed increasing use of alternative testing methods, such as experiments on cultured cells. The team told the Veterinary Record there was now better reporting of the welfare of the animals kept in labs. The Uppsala University researchers conducted their investigation because they wanted to get a clearer idea of the extent to which the international "scientific culture" was adopting the principles of the so-called "three R's" - the replacement, reduction and refinement of the use of animals in experiments. Dr Carlsson's team says the changes over time are encouraging. (C)BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 5344 - Posted: 04.24.2004

GAINESVILLE, Fla. --- Does your dog know if you've had a bad day? Probably, but don't expect your cat to catch on. Do chimpanzees understand why those who can't see them don't offer them treats? Do vampire bats have the ability to show gratitude by returning a favor? The answers depend on what is meant by "think," according to University of Florida psychology Professor Clive Wynne, who writes about these creature features and others in a new 244-page book, "Do Animals Think?" being published this month by Princeton University Press. While animals can do many clever things and even reason, they don't have the ability to reflect on what they are doing, one important element of thinking, said Wynne, who has studied animal behavior for 20 years in a variety of species ranging from pigeons to marsupials. "Animals can learn, but whether learning always implies thinking is the question," he said. "Perhaps the take-home message is that each species thinks in its own way, a way that is adapted to the world it lives in."

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook; Chapter 6: Evolution of the Brain and Behavior
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 5279 - Posted: 04.14.2004

Surgeons say trainees may have to hone their skills by practising operating on pigs and sheep. The Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) wants laws, which currently limit such operations to rodents, to be relaxed. It says reductions in the time junior doctors spend practising in operating theatres make the changes essential. The British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection (BUAV) attacked the plan, saying it was 'ethically and scientifically' wrong. The RCS said it had changed its view on the use of animals, which would be terminally anaesthetised during the operations, because of concerns that junior doctors no longer spend enough time in theatre operating. Their hours have fallen so no junior doctor is now supposed to work more than 56 hours a week, and by 2009 the limit will be 48 hours, in line with European legislation. Sir Peter Morris, president of the RCS, said the problems this caused were 'enormous'. He wants to see the use of both human simulators and live animals. Using animals would be useful as doctors would find handling and dissecting animal tissue and organs to be similar to doing so with human bodies. A pig's kidney, for example, is a similar size to a human one. (C)BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 5171 - Posted: 03.23.2004

Many animal experiments may be of little benefit to treating human disease, according to experts. Much of the research is poorly conducted and not thoroughly evaluated, say scientists at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. They are now urging a systematic review of all existing animal research before new experiments are carried out. The findings, published in the British Medical Journal, have boosted animal rights groups. However, on the same day that the BMJ paper is published, the Royal Society has produced a guide which says humanity has benefited immensely from scientific research involving animals. The society, which is the UK's national academy of science, says virtually every medical achievement in the past century has been reliant on the use of animals in some way. In contrast, the London School of Hygiene scientists question the point of some animal experiments, citing examples where research has been badly designed or where it has been carried out alongside human trials, rendering it unnecessary. (C) BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 5052 - Posted: 02.27.2004

Plans to build a controversial centre for experiments on monkeys have been shelved by Cambridge University. It has decided the costs, including measures needed to protect the facility from animal rights militants, would make the laboratory uneconomic. The announcement will be a blow to Prime Minister Tony Blair who gave personal support to the project. The centre had become a focus of the growing battle between medical researchers and anti-vivisectionists. The news had been expected next week, but was brought forward. Patients' groups who believe the research is essential to find cures for many brain diseases will be dismayed. (C)BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 4867 - Posted: 01.27.2004

Two animal rights groups have lodged a High Court challenge to a UK Government decision to allow a research centre which will experiment on monkeys. Animal Aid and the National Anti-Vivisection Society (Navs) are furious that Cambridge University has been given permission to build the lab. They are appealing against Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott's decision to permit the centre after a public inquiry. It is due to be built in the spring at Girton on the outskirts of Cambridge. Mr Prescott, who has overall responsibility for planning, approved the medical research project in November after it was rejected by a local planning inspector. The proposal was also refused by planning authority by South Cambridgeshire District Council, because police raised concerns about public safety at the site, which is on a main road and close to a major motorway intersection. (C) BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 4753 - Posted: 01.05.2004

A senior UK Government scientist has said he may resign after reports he was not put forward for an honour because of his support for animal experiments. Colin Blakemore, head of the Medical Research Council (MRC), has called for the government to issue a statement backing experiments on animals. Professor Blakemore said the move undermined the MRC's aim of engaging with the public about research. MPs say they will begin an inquiry into the honours system in the new year. Professor Blakemore said he understood his name was blocked because of his work with animal experimentation, but pointed out other scientists who worked on animals "but don't speak about their work" had been given honours recently. "I take it to mean because I have been willing to engage publicly on that very sensitive but very important issue [my name was blocked]," Professor Blakemore told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. (C) BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 4728 - Posted: 12.22.2003

By Deidre Bello, Iowa City Press-Citizen People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals says its members will use bullhorns and distribute graphic leaflets in a Palmer College of Chiropractic scientist's Iowa City neighborhood Sunday to protest his use of animals in research. PETA spokeswoman Brandi Valladolid said Palmer College in Davenport is torturing animals to validate the chiropractic profession. She and other PETA members claim work on rats and cats by Dr. Joel Pickar, a neuro-physiological Palmer researcher, is "crippling," "invasive" and a form of "counterfeit science." "He's not doing anything science-based, and it's completely unethical," Valladolid said of alleged amputation of animal limbs. "Use of animals in research is on the decline. So many new things are being developed that can be used instead, like tissue cell cultures and mathematical simulated computer models."

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 4655 - Posted: 12.07.2003

A neuroscientist explains why labs such as the proposed Cambridge primate research centre are still needed to study monkey brains Anti-vivisection groups claim that animal research is unscientific. They say animal species, even monkeys, are physiologically so different from us that animal experimentation will lead to misleading results. That many vaccines and treatments against human diseases like polio were successfully developed using primate models can readily be gleaned from scientific literature as well as the internet. But what is the story about the obvious target for anti-vivisectionists: current and future research? Any source of information appears to be contentious in this debate. But one could turn to the Boyd Group, which comprises both scientists involved in animal research and anti-vivisectionists. The Boyd Group seeks points of consensus in their debates and publishes these in reports. (C) BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 4617 - Posted: 11.28.2003

By Jonathan Amos, BBC News Online science staff The number of primates used in medical research in the UK is set to rise significantly in the coming years. The pharmaceutical industry has acknowledged as much - and the animal rights lobby is convinced of it. As science seeks to tackle the neurological diseases afflicting a "greying population", it will need a steady supply of monkeys on which to test the safety and effectiveness of its next-generation pills. Experts say the extremely specific way these novel pharma products will work means primates - because their brain architecture is very similar to our own - will be the only animals suitable for experimentation. This whole area of research is, of course, a very contentious one. We - humans - are also primates. It is fair to argue there are ethical dilemmas related to primate studies that one does not have to grapple with in, say, mice or rats, which far outnumber monkeys in the lab. (C) BBC

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 4055 - Posted: 07.17.2003

By JAMES GORMAN The study of consciousness has always fascinated me. I love all the impossible arguments about the self and the nature of experience. I also love fishing, but I never expected the two interests to coincide or, more precisely, collide. I heard the crash when I read the word "nociception" in the current issue of that esteemed scientific journal Field and Stream, which I often read, but not usually for news of neurobiology. The word was in a news item about the research of Dr. James D. Rose at the University of Wyoming. Dr. Rose published a paper last year in The Review of Fisheries Science. In it, he argued that fish do not have the brains to produce a level of consciousness capable of feeling pain. Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 8: General Principles of Sensory Processing, Touch, and Pain; Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 5: The Sensorimotor System; Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 3805 - Posted: 05.19.2003

By COREY KILGANNON In the working-class neighborhood of Queens Village, Joseph and Silva Swinton stood out. The vibrant young couple, who exchanged vows in an unofficial beach wedding in 1996, were known for their free-thinking outlook and firm beliefs in a natural-foods diet. On July 31, 2000, in the one-family house the couple shared with relatives, Ms. Swinton gave birth to a baby girl with no doctor or midwife present. The couple named her Iice Wings Swinton. Born prematurely, Iice (pronounced ICE) weighed 3 pounds, well below the average birth weight, and had a lung disorder. Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company

Related chapters from BP6e: Chapter 1: Biological Psychology: Scope and Outlook
Related chapters from MM:Chapter 1: An Introduction to Brain and Behavior
Link ID: 3616 - Posted: 03.26.2003