Colleen's Uber Fantabulous Blog

The Final Post: A True Story of an English Expedition

So, here it is, the final blog of the semester. This can be seen as a bittersweet moment for me. While I’m happy that this post marks the end of my research paper journey, it all marks my final assignment as a freshman here at UD. Now, enough of the sappy talk, let me reflect of the evolution of my blogs, research paper, and development as a writer.

Since my research paper was based off of my blog topic, I decided to incorporate a lot of elements from my blogs into the points I made in my paper. When I first began writing my research paper, I was very narrow-minded about my stance on the issue and wouldn’t accept the fact that there could be a positive side to animal testing. After days worth of research and writing my blog post that included an interview with Dr. Festing, I decided that the purposes for animal testing were reasonable. The interview with Dr. Festing opened my eyes to the other side of the issue and lead me to delve into more research about the positive stance of animal testing before writing my research paper.

This research paper has positively impacted my research methods and writing skills by forcing me to look into my evidence more carefully to check that it is credible and by making me edit and revise papers before their due. I know that sounds like an obvious skill that one should grow up with, but unfortunately, I was that person in high school that would type up my paper the night before it was due and turn in the first copy that came out of the printer. This paper has taught me that that is a big no-no and I should budget my time accordingly and focus on writing in small chunks, while giving myself time to edit and revise my papers. The research I have obtained through writing this paper has also increased my knowledge on animal testing, especially the positive side to it. Ultimately, this has taught me to analyze two sides of an argument with factual evidence before I make a decision based on just morals. This not only applies to papers I may write in the future, but also real life situations when disagreements arise.

Throughout this writing journey, the biggest change that I have noticed in my writing in the ability to execute my points in third person better. It’s really hard to write about your own opinion of something when you’re forced to write in third person, so these formal essays have really helped me to write more effectively.

For future E110 students, I would honestly say that you should use the library and English professor as much as you can. They may seem intimidating at first, but they are your best resources and they will help you. The library has over a 1,000 books and articles, so there is bound to be one on your topic in there somewhere. Your teacher is also the person grading your papers, so go to their office hours and discuss your concerns, it’s worth it, trust me.

The Girl Who Cried, “I Actually Can’t Right Now.”

Just by reading the prompt for this blog post, I truly believe that this may be my shortest (and most entertaining) post to date. While I do find my topic interesting, this post is going to feel like a big change for me since most of my posts are very formally written. So, when I was asked to write about the whole research process and how it was going for me, I immediately knew what I was going to focus on in this post. That being said, let me tell you a little story about the struggles of my research process.. Oh and by the way, since gifs are my favorite internet creation to date, there is going to be a mass amount of them scattered throughout this post, so be prepared.

Since we were asked to find sources from books for our research, it was deduced that the library would be the most obvious place to start.

Duh

Animal testing seemed like an easy topic to find a book on, however, the library is actually more intimidating than you think, and finding the right book appeared to be a bigger problem than I thought.

Houston, we have a problem

Thankfully, I remembered how to use the databases that we were taught to use in class and I typed in multiple phrases that revolved around animal testing. Over 1,000 books came up, so I knew I had to be more specific. I typed in “Animal testing cosmetics” and the results for books shrunk drastically.

Thank God

After scanning through the book choices, I noticed that most of the books that would fit perfectly in my paper were not on the shelf. So, I decided to keep looking, but almost every book I found was not on the shelf. I finally found a few books that appealed to me, so I decided to go on the hunt for them. I’m one of those people that refuse to ask for directions because I’m stubborn and want to do everything on my own, and that was mistake number one. You see, Morris doesn’t look so big from the outside, but in reality, that place goes on for miles inside in each direction. So, being the stubborn person that I am, I attempted to find my books and wound up looking for over two hours since I got lost at least three times. When I finally found the correct section, I noticed that most of the books I wanted were missing, and in that moment I felt defeated.

Crying

So… it was back to the square one. Once again, I used the online database and searched for books that appealed to my interests. Luckily, I was able to find a few since it seemed like most of the books on my topic were already picked through. I decided to sprint for the shelves this time though, just in case the person researching the same topic as me was near.

Run

THANKFULLY all of the books I needed were on the shelves, and I almost cried with joy. Unfortunately, they were all at least 300 pages long and I knew this was going to be rough.

Why you no shh?

Honestly, in that moment, all that really mattered to me was that I found books for my paper. From this experience, I learned that I should have started my paper earlier, considering this time of the semester is the prime time for research papers and animal testing is a popular issue. I also should have asked a librarian for a tour or something, considering I got lost for almost two hours. But in the end, I found the books I needed, and that’s all that truly mattered.

We won

The Good, the Bad, and the Informative

Tonight, I’m going to “live blog” about a source that I am going to use for my research project that focuses on the use of animals for scientific and commercial testing. The source is from an online website called ProCon.org, a website that presents controversial issues in an unbiased pro-con format. Now that that’s been said, let the blogging begin in 3…2…1…

9:55 PM: The article opens with an array of quotes that relate to animal testing and why animals are favored for experimentation. One quote that stands out in particular is, “A 2011 poll of nearly 1,000 biomedical scientists conducted by the science journal Nature found that more than 90% ‘agreed that the use of animals in research is essential.’” I find this quote to be interesting because it’s not surprising that most scientists believe that the use of animals in research is essential, but I’m wondering more about the poll that was taken. While the poll does include an exact number of who was surveyed, I’m wondering where they obtained these results. Did they only ask 1,000 biomedical scientists that worked under one or two corporations that held the same views, or did they ask a variety of scientists from different places? I would like to see how these results were obtained and if these scientists are credible.

10:05 PM: The next section of the article compares the pros and cons of animal testing while staying unbiased and informative. One major pro for animal testing that I would like to use in my research project to show the positive side of this issue is “some cosmetics and health care products must be tested on animals to ensure their safety”. According to the source, “The US Food and Drug Administration endorses the use of animal tests on cosmetics to ‘assure the safety of product or ingredient.’” I do agree with this statement because it is important to assure the safety of a product before it is released on the market so that it does not endanger human health or safety, so I feel that this would provide a good point in my argument that argues for animal testing.

10:17 PM: After reading through more pros, I found that the quote, “animals do not have rights, therefore it is acceptable to experiment on them”, to be extremely unsettling. While it is true that animals do not have rights, it does not mean that they can be inhumanely treated. This will lead me to investigate further in my research by obtaining how animals are mistreated in the labs, which will support my argument against animal testing.

10:28 PM: Moving on to the cons of animal testing, the articles provides many negative points against the use of animals for experimentation. The quotes that I find the most appealing and useful for my research project include:
“Animal testing is cruel and inhumane” and “According to Humane Society International, animals used in experiments are commonly subjected to force feeding, forced inhalation, food and water deprivation, prolonged periods of physical restraint, the infliction of burns and other wounds to study the healing process, the infliction of pain to study its effects and remedies, and “killing by carbon dioxide asphyxiation, neck-breaking, decapitation, or other means.” These quotes will ultimately be used to rebut the previous quote I examined about how animals do not have rights and how it is acceptable to experiment on them. One thing that I would like to question is how often these types of experiments are performed. While some labs are known to mistreat animals, is there a way of knowing how many do this and how often?
“Alternative testing methods now exist that can replace the need for animals.” This segment of the article provides solutions for animal testing including in vitro and microdosing. This information will allow me to provide support for my solution for animal testing.

10:43 PM: In the last few paragraphs, the article addresses the background, history, regulations, public opinion, and the modern debate of animal testing. I decided to focus on the regulations. I wanted to look into the regulations in animal testing because I wanted to see what was currently being done to put an end to animal testing. In 1966, the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) was passed to provide protection to animals. However, “while the AWA regulates the housing and transportation of animals used for research, it does not regulate the experiments themselves”. This quote was surprising to me because I thought an animal protection act would actually provide protection to an animal’s safety. This information would be useful in my research project because I could compare my solution to the current “solution” and prove how it is more beneficial.

This article was very informative and unbiased, which allowed me to view both sides of the argument without having to feel obligated to choose a side. I believe that this article will be a valuable source in my project, not only because it is unbiased, but because it also uses reliable sources in its statements. After reading this article, I am still against the use of testing of animals for scientific research. Previously, I felt that animal testing was morally wrong because it was cruel, but reading this article gave me more insight as to why animal testing is negative. I can now create a stronger argument in my research project because I have more points backed by factual evidence instead of solely relying on my own uneducated opinion. I think that this article also provided new insight on why animal testing is positive. Animal testing can assure the safety of some products, but is it truly reliable 100%? I still do not agree with animal testing, but I can now see both sides of the argument so that I can carefully construct my essay and effectively rebut the main points that support animal testing. I would still like to delve deeper into the research that was conducted for who supports and opposes animal testing, especially in the polls that were conducted. From this, I can find if the results were reliable and not fixed. Overall, this article will be very useful in my research project since it will allow me to construct a stronger argument.

Dr. Festing Versus the Fight for Animal Rights

WARNING: This blog post is extremely long, and I apologize in advance. This topic really means a lot to me and once I start writing I find it hard to stop.

Imagine that a fatal reaction to a new brand of hairspray is sweeping the nation at a rate that is faster than it can be contained. The inhalation of the hairspray produces a cough that is highly contagious and easily spreads the chemicals through the air. Many scientists are frazzled as to what chemicals in the hairspray are causing this reaction and are desperate for answers. As the head of a researching team for the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, you are assigned the task of finding a cure and halting the dissemination of the epidemic. However, with great power comes great responsibility, and you must choose carefully as to how you are going solve the problem.
At first, you think testing on uninfected humans would be the best approach, but then you realize that testing animals would be a better option since they share many similarities with humans and will prevent the need for human experimentation. While many people feel that animal testing is wrong, you believe that it is beneficial for scientific purposes. In “Why do we use animals in research?”, ex-Chief Executive, Dr. Simon Festing, explains the exact same reasoning behind why the benefits of animal testing outweigh the drawbacks. Dr. Festing believes in the usage of animal testing because he feels it is necessary to save human lives and prevent people from suffering and the animals being tested on are minimally harmed.
Dr. Festing believes animal testing is necessary because the research gained from it is used to save human lives and prevent people from suffering. While cell and tissue cultures or computer modeling can be used for scientific research, Dr. Festing explains that in some cases, animals must be used because “you can’t get a beating heart in a test tube or get a computer to cough”. Since many of the biological systems between humans and animals work in the same way, it is easy to draw comparisons between species that can lead to scientific advancements.
Quickly changing the subject, the interviewer decides to inquire Dr. Festing about the cruelty of animal testing. Dr. Festing states that “it would be wrong to gloss over the fact that animals do suffer in research for the benefit of people, but most of this discomfort is mild and it’s similar to when you take your pet to the vet. It may involve sampling of blood or minor operations”. He also believes that researchers are so secretive about animal testing because of animal extremists who tend to exaggerate and distort the evidence.
I must say that Dr. Festing does a good job at explaining the advantages of animal testing through the use of factual evidence and previous experience. As a doctor that has obviously worked in an area that has used animal testing, his knowledge on the subject appears credible. After watching the video multiple times, I was able to see some benefits to animal testing. I do agree that animal testing is necessary at times for scientific and biomedical research because it allows medications to be tested before being sold on the market to humans and some experiments require actual test subjects that can be monitored. Because of animal testing, new medicines and treatments are gained that can improve the well-being of humans (and even animals in some cases). Although Dr. Festing made some very good points in his argument for supporting animal testing, there was a very specific point that he made in his interview that was questionable.
In the video, Dr. Festing made a contentious comment that left me shaking my head in disagreement. At a certain point in the video, Dr. Festing states that “animals do suffer in research for the benefit of people, most of this discomfort is mild and it’s similar to when you take your pet to the vet. It may involve sampling of blood or minor operations”. I do not agree nor do I believe in this statement whatsoever because I would like to know how Dr. Festing “knows” how “mild” the discomfort is for animals and what it could be compared to. He is not an animal and I’m positive that he was never tested on before. Also, many animals are terrified of going to the vet and cannot fully relax until they leave. So, imagine being in a state of constant fear and stress for your whole life. I believe that Dr. Festing is trying to sugar coat the issue by making experimentation on animals seem almost harmless, which ultimately leads me to disagree with his statement.
This video has given me a new outlook on the advantages and disadvantages on animal testing. I have always only seen the negative views of animal testing, but this video opens up another door for me. I was able to see why some people, especially researchers and scientists, need to use animals for experimentation. The negative aspects of animal testing focus on what is morally acceptable while the positive aspects focus on what is needed for scientific purposes. A question that I would like to explore later down the line to assist in my research would be: What kinds of experiments are used and how detrimental are they to animals? I would like to use this question because I want to see if researchers, such as Dr. Festing, are lying to cover up animal testing or if activists are overreacting about the issue.

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