3 ms·

> > The researchers claim the animals ran on the wheels because they enjoyed > > it, which could be a little bit of anthropomorphizing, as no one has been >

> > The researchers claim the animals ran on the wheels because they enjoyed > > it, which could be a little bit of anthropomorphizing, as no one has been > > able to prove that animals other than humans experience emotions. > Is this really the state of the art? I thought the entire animal rights > movement is rooted in the idea that animals can experience emotion Indeed. That statement surprised me too, since I remember reading a number of sources stating that research pretty much confirms that some animals do experience emotions. So I headed over to wikipedia[1] and saw that although some (most?) research does lean towards confirming this, the scientific community is not convinced, yet. Interesting stuff. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotion_in_animals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotion_in_animals

dueprocess 12y ago
The "scientific community" doesn't have a unified view on animal emotion, or on any matter. However, it is widely understood that animals are non-human persons who are aware of their own existence and who feel a wide range of emotions, just like we do. Mice feel empathy[1], elephants grieve[2], birds hold funerals for their dead[3] and so on[4]. But yes, for many scientists the overwhelming evidence that animals are sentient beings[5] with feelings akin to ours is an inconvenient truth, since nearly 20 million animals are killed each year during experimentation in the U.S. alone[6]. [1]http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/news/researchers-say-mice-feel-empathy-with-peers/ http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/news/researchers-say-mice-feel... [2] http://www.tor.com/blogs/2013/06/when-doves-cry-scientific-american-explores-grief-in-animals http://www.tor.com/blogs/2013/06/when-doves-cry-scientific-a... [3] http://news.discovery.com/animals/birds-hold-avian-funerals-for-their-dead-120905.htm http://news.discovery.com/animals/birds-hold-avian-funerals-... [4] http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201112/empathic-rats-and-ravishing-ravens http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201112/e... [5] http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201306/universal-declaration-animal-sentience-no-pretending http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201306/u... [6] http://www.statisticbrain.com/animal-testing-statistics/ http://www.statisticbrain.com/animal-testing-statistics/
- lilsunnybee 12y ago
  Some of the experiments historically done (and that continue to be done) on animals are horrific. If animals do indeed suffer as humans do, just think of the massive suffering that must have been caused in the learned helplessness experiments[1], or countless unanesthetized vivisections[2], and the likely millions of animals at this point that have been purposefully infected with terrible diseases to gain insight into treating humans. Strong evidence does not even matter, when acknowledging the facts and their implications means we have to accept our responsibility and culpability for the terrible crimes we have committed against fellow sentient beings. [1]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learned_helplessness http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learned_helplessness [2]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vivisection http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vivisection

dueprocess 12y ago

The "scientific community" doesn't have a unified view on animal emotion, or on any matter. However, it is widely understood that animals are non-human persons who are aware of their own existence and who feel a wide range of emotions, just like we do. Mice feel empathy[1], elephants grieve[2], birds hold funerals for their dead[3] and so on[4]. But yes, for many scientists the overwhelming evidence that animals are sentient beings[5] with feelings akin to ours is an inconvenient truth, since nearly 20 million animals are killed each year during experimentation in the U.S. alone[6]. [1]http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/news/researchers-say-mice-feel-empathy-with-peers/ http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/news/researchers-say-mice-feel... [2] http://www.tor.com/blogs/2013/06/when-doves-cry-scientific-american-explores-grief-in-animals http://www.tor.com/blogs/2013/06/when-doves-cry-scientific-a... [3] http://news.discovery.com/animals/birds-hold-avian-funerals-for-their-dead-120905.htm http://news.discovery.com/animals/birds-hold-avian-funerals-... [4] http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201112/empathic-rats-and-ravishing-ravens http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201112/e... [5] http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201306/universal-declaration-animal-sentience-no-pretending http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animal-emotions/201306/u... [6] http://www.statisticbrain.com/animal-testing-statistics/ http://www.statisticbrain.com/animal-testing-statistics/

lilsunnybee 12y ago
Some of the experiments historically done (and that continue to be done) on animals are horrific. If animals do indeed suffer as humans do, just think of the massive suffering that must have been caused in the learned helplessness experiments[1], or countless unanesthetized vivisections[2], and the likely millions of animals at this point that have been purposefully infected with terrible diseases to gain insight into treating humans. Strong evidence does not even matter, when acknowledging the facts and their implications means we have to accept our responsibility and culpability for the terrible crimes we have committed against fellow sentient beings. [1]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learned_helplessness http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learned_helplessness [2]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vivisection http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vivisection