3 ms·

I have read hundreds of research papers, and I don't think I've ever seen one that described the temperature that the rat housing is kept at. It's definitely no

• Wowfunhappy 6y ago
  Oh, totally understood, that clearly ought to change! My only point was, the article was framing this as an issue of scientist comfort, ie human researchers don't want to work in hot labs. I don't see why they should have to, at least in most cases.
  • deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
  • jmcgough 6y ago
    We study rats because they're an inexpensive and ethical replacement for humans, with the assumption that some of the research will carry over to other mammals. It's harder for that work to translate over if we keep them in abnormal environments that affect their behavior or physiology.
    • methodin 6y ago
      Is it even possible not to "keep them in abnormal environments that affect their behavior or physiology"? Putting a rate in a cage alone is an abnormal environment for a rat.
      • nwienert 6y ago
        The point is to reduce confounders as much as possible.