Whether or not research on non-human primates is ethically permissible is a difficult question to answer. This stems from the inherent human like qualities that can be inferred by simply looking at a non-human primate. Their physical features, social structure and even their mannerisms are easily translated as being human-like. Seeing non-human primates being used for research purposes is certainly difficult to think about but we must realize that without them the many advances in human health would not be possible.
First and foremost, the use of non-human primates does not span all areas of research. The primary use of non-human primates is for complex diseases and testing of pharmaceutical drugs. Non-human primates comprise only 0.30% of all animals being used in research and all institutions using non-human primates have at least one committee if not more than one overseeing the use of these animals. The Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) is the most prominent and is present at every institution that conducts non-human primate research. The IACUC accepts proposals for research that is to take place at an institution and ensures a rigorous review process for the proposal prior to approval. If the proposal seeks to perform
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While there might be a few instances when non-human primates are subjected to some cruel treatment this is the exception, not the rule. Just like with anything there is bound to be some misuse of power but that does not mean that all non-human primate research should be stopped just because a few individuals made poor decisions. Anti-animal research organizations sometimes even use these rare occasions to promote their agenda for a total ban on non-human primate research and can exaggerate the events for their own
A Primate’s Memoir, written by Robert Sapolsky, documents the author’s time in Kenya while he studied the various behaviors of a troop of baboons. One of the key aspects of the book was the social rank that developed within the troop. Female baboons have a social hierarchy that is fairly cut and dry. The eldest baboons in the troop are considered the higher-ranking females, and as the baboons get younger, so to follows the string of dominance. The ranking for males was essentially from the strongest baboons to the weakest baboons. The baboon at the top of the social hierarchy was considered the alpha male. This social rank has huge implications for the troop in regards to which baboons mated with each other. If another baboon wanted to become the alpha male, then he would have to challenge the current alpha male to a fight, and win. The baboon’s distinct personality mixed with their instincts are the primary factors for where one lands on the social hierarchy. Another key aspect of the book was the strategies that took place when the baboons wanted to mate with another baboon. Similar to humans, the baboon males tried to impress the female baboons in a way that would make them want to mate. The rank of the male is considered to be one of the greatest factors contributing to what mate they end up with, because there is nothing more impressive than becoming a high-ranking baboon. Also, there were instances of lower-ranking baboons strategizing and forming teams with other baboons to become a higher ranking baboon for the mating possibilities. The baboons in the group are considered a patch-work of different troops, as it is common for one baboon to move to different groups frequently.
It is said that the humanoid existence begins in Africa. It is no coincidence that Africa is also the home to Chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes, and Bonobos, Pan paniscus. These are humans’ two closest living relatives, both sharing almost 99% of the human genome through common descent. While humans were said to have separated from Chimpanzees around 5-7 million years ago , Bonobos separated from its Chimp cousins around 2 million years ago . Bonobos inhabit a single part of Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo South of the Congo River, unlike the Chimpanzee, which inhabits Across West- and Central Africa, with remaining populations distributed over several countries. While these two apes where once thought to be the same species, up until the beginning of the 20th century , there are many differences socially, as well as physically, that make Bonobos more than a Pygmy Chimp. With disparities in morphology, behavior, perhaps even emotions and cognition, and known as the “make love, not war chimp” , how can this ape be so vastly different from its notoriously violent Pan cousin, but yet share the same amount of similar DNA to Homo sapiens? And what does this mean for the studies of human and past humanoid behavior?
Thesis Statement: Despite the rampant protests of animal welfare organizations on encaging primates in zoos since primates typically show abnormal behavior, zoos in the National Capital Region claim that human interaction and enrichment programs help alleviate the stress and trauma primates experience.
An article written by an animal researcher and psychology professor discusses the lack of ethical treatment towards primates in research labs. The author of Second Thoughts of an Animal Researcher, John P. Gluck, justified the unethical treatment of primates by believing that scientific advancements are superior to the harm the primates experienced. One day a student of his presented a dissertation about a female rhesus monkey who unexpectedly passed away. The dissertation caused Gluck to feel that the animals he caused much harm to were more than objects used to create data. Although he tried to continually justify his actions, he eventually felt guilty and decided that the primates deserve to be handled ethically. Throughout the article,
Do non-human primates have communication, language, both, or neither? By definition, communication is the imparting or interchange of thoughts, opinions, or information (Snowdon). Communication is very closely related to social behavior since they are both referring to the ways animals interact with each other (Quiatt and Reynolds 1993). Conversely, language is defined as a system of communication using sounds or gestures that are put together in meaningful ways according to a set of rules (Haviland et al. 2010). Non-human primates and human primates are similar in many ways, and communication is no exception. They both have various types of communication senses and styles. Human primate communication senses consist of sight, smell, taste, hearing, and touch. Non-human primates mainly understand the world through sight, but smell, taste, and hearing are important as well (Quiatt and Reynolds 1993). Human primates are capable of speaking a language, while non-human primates use different vocal calls to communicate. In essence, the difference is simple, human primates have language while non-human primates do not. Even though non-human primates do not have language, they do have communication.
Throughout situations and research conducted by not only Robert Sapolsky or Jane Goodman, but from many other credited sources, we can blatantly see the, if not identical, similarities between the two species of humans and baboons. The most apparent likewise characteristics of this can be read and documented in Professor Sapolsky’s book, A Primate’s Memoirs. Sapolsky, who spent hundreds if not thousands, of hours studying these Savanna Baboons, sheds a vast insight into ideas of social dominance, mating strategies, instinctual prowess, community settings, hygiene, and reform of an entire generation; many of which can be unknowingly seen directly in the common occurrence of a humans daily life.
The United States government should prohibit biomedical testing on chimpanzees and relocate the animals to sanctuaries such as Chimp Haven, where they will live a relatively normal life and will no longer be experimented on. Chimpanzees have greatly contributed to our understanding of diseases and have helped medical doctors find cures in the past. However, with the advancement of technology the need to experiment on chimpanzees is no longer needed. Chimpanzees have been forced into dangerous, uncomfortable and invasive procedures for many years and have had to deal with the fear and loneliness that the research laboratories provided. These chimpanzees were not meant to be treated and experimented on. The United States has to declare testing on chimps as unconstitutional before it’s too late.
... the gorillas are taken away from their family and are living in captivity. It is still important to study primates in-depth, and a solution to the ethical issues may be to breed primates within the conservatory.
Viewing and observing primates at the zoo and using them as a research subject is crucial to help with the understanding of how humans came to be. Since humans and primates are onwards of 95% genetically similar (Why are Humans Primates), observing them is a great tool to better understand humans and the relationship we share with primates. Though some research done on primates has questioned the morality of such a thing, by not observing our closest ancestors, we would not have many of the answers about humans that we have today. Non-human primates can teach us many things about ourselves, from evolution,to behavioral and social characteristics.
...uld not be morally correct. Also, not just we humans benefit from animal testing, but the animals benefit from it too. Millions of animals would have died if it were not for vaccines for diseases like rabies and the hepatitis virus. Animals at times, make better research subjects than humans. An example is that mice only live two or three years so researchers can observe effects of genetic manipulation over the whole life of the mouse while they would not be able to do that with a human. If you are scared that an animal might get hurt while being used in animal research, do not be. There are two reasons why they will not be hurt. The first reason is that there are laws in place to protect animals from mistreatment. The second reason is that researchers do not want the animal hurt so they will end up with accurate test results when doing their research on the animal.
Our earliest ancestors are primates. They are our closest relatives which is why we can see our behavior’s and practices in them. If we observe them we can get a better understanding of them and us, human beings. But unfortunately we all don’t get the chance to see a Primate right in our backdoor. So the best thing I could do for my observation was to visit them at the zoo.
What makes a human a primate? A primate is defined by its many incredible features. A primate is a mammal that has certain characteristics such as: flexible fingers and toes, opposable thumbs, flatter face than other mammals, eyes that face forward and spaced close together, large and complex cerebrum, and social animals. What makes a primate a primate is its characteristics. Some of the physical features that primates can be identified by is by their teeth, snouts, eyes, ears, arms, legs, fingers, and their toes. One of the main things that categorizes a human has a primate is selective pressure, the second main thing is having similar features and characteristics. But both humans and non-humans have differences even though they are both primates.
I am an art history major so I decided to ask my fellow art historians to answer some of the questions I had for them about primate conservation. This is the questions I asked: What is your definition of a primate? Do you think it is important to conserve primates? Do you consider humans primates? If so why should we care about “conserving” humans and not non-human primates? Finally, do you know the effect of palm oil production in countries like Indonesia?
Non human primates’ social organization can provide useful information how human social evolution occurs. We will go over main points of how similar and different non human primates such as chimpanzees, orangutans, and gorillas’ society are compared to ours, humans.
...arm animals. The simple answer to the use of animals for research is that humans strive to improve. Using animals for research has its perks but as shown in the past there have been many discoveries and contributions to medicine.