Our decision to discuss animal research arose from several questions that we think are important to consider, as scientists who have used, or might use, animal models at some point in our career. First, we wondered who is in charge of the regulation of lab animals. Who is keeping track of the numbers, and who monitors the treatment of these lab animals? Secondly, we wanted to investigate the written legal restrictions on use of animals in scientific research. Where is the line drawn between what is acceptable to do to an animal and what isn’t?

Anesthesia and Consciousness

 

Gender and Sexuality Differences in the Brain:Should we study them?

Kara BrownApril 21, 2008            

Psychosomatic symptoms refer to a mind (psych) and physical body (soma) relationship. Illnesses of psychosomatic nature are caused by mental processes of the sufferer rather than physiological causes. This mind-body dialogue is powerful and is instrumental in both health and diseased states. Perhaps there is a mental aspect to every physical disease, and this possibility has important implications for the way we diagnose, treat and study sickness.

What is consciousness?

Stage directions: I drag my chair to the front of the room, out of the horse-shoe of chairs in which the rest of the class is seated. A few minutes are spent in deciding whether to turn the projector off or if I should drag my chair to the side. Shortly, the projector is turned off. I stand on the chair.