Non Human Primates

Words: 1166
Pages: 5
Open Document
In today’s world, we face a global endemic of mental illnesses, ranging from Schizophrenia to Dementia and Alzheimer’s. To combat such detriments, we are forced to enter the brain in order to get a better understanding of its workings. This understanding of mental processes is reached mostly through peering into the nervous system of various creatures, including human beings. Such efforts reside mostly in the field of neuroscience.
The study of the nervous system dates back to Ancient Egypt, in which the surgical procedure of trepanation was prevalent. Some manuscripts indicate that they had some knowledge of the symptoms of brain damage. These studies have now evolved to allow us to study the nervous system in all of its aspects.
As of today, …show more content…
Many of the medical advances we have made were only possible through animal research. Some of these advances would be very controversial had they involved manipulating the nervous system of Homo sapiens. For instance, neuroscientists use non-human primates to discover how diseases and their potential therapies affect the entire body. Procedures such as these, if performed on humans, would be extremely challenging in regards to replicating data. Not only is replication a major drawback in testing humans, reliability suffers as well. In neural research involving humans, the condition being studied must have already been present before the research. Subsequently, the time that the condition has to develop can also allow the brain to reorganize functionally. “Thus, one may be misled about the function of the area in the normal brain” (AnimalResearch.info, n.d.). If humanity decided to deny animal experimentation, we would also deny ourselves understanding of the …show more content…
I asked them, “In testing in neuroscience, do you think it is better to use humans or other animals?” Every single participant claimed that the answer was risk-dependent and would be based on the purpose of the testing itself. This survey may be viewed as incredibly biased due to the fact that every employee understood that non-human testing will never be sufficient in explaining the complexity of the human brain. However, this is a view that some brain research authorities hold.

According to the Dana Foundation, “many animal models of complex human conditions, such as mental illnesses or addictions, are actually quite weak, they only very roughly approximate the human condition” (Leshner, 2004). Essentially, the difference in mental complexity between non-human primates and humans is like that of a petri-dish sample and a whole organism. So, while premature testing in humans can have catastrophic results, if we are going to want the possible benefits, we will have to take the necessary
Show More

Related Documents: Non Human Primates

Essay On Non Human Primates

One key feature that non-human primates depend on is their eyesight. Non-human primates rely on their vision almost as much as humans do but if their vision was taken away they would be able to adapt a lot easier than humans would. We rarely think about our vision, how it works and how It compares to other animals on the planet. Some people may assume that other animals see just the same as us humans but there are some differences between the way humans and nonhuman primates see the world. In…

Words 902 - Pages 4

Non Human Primates Model Essay

surprise, non-human primates display the closest resemblance to humans in the realm of reproductive biology. In terms of parturition, gestational length, litter size, electromyographic activity and uterine anatomy are strongly shared features with humans. Being our closest relative, financial and ethical factors make them harder to use in experimental setting. Non-human primates show…

Words 440 - Pages 2

Primate Research Summary

known as the longest ongoing interspecies communication study ever undertaken. From reading about this, questions were formed about how Non-Human primates can effectively communicate to humans. Initial research into this topic, led to an understanding that Great Apes are not physically capable of communicating verbally due to the lack of vocal cords and other human speech organs. Therefore, a number of experts in the field of primatology were contacted and an interview…

Words 1674 - Pages 7

Anth 101 03 Essay example

biological (or physical) anthropology, exploring the scientific aspects of humans, exposing the student to material about the evolution of humans and other species, providing a basic foundation of the theories in the study of Biological Anthropology. Course will include an overview of primate origins, primate behavior, DNA, human variation, the theories and methods involved in the exploration of the origins of modern humans and more, all through an evolutionary perspective. COURSE OBJECTIVES Upon…

Words 2567 - Pages 11

Animal Rights Research Paper

rights. Some think animals should have the same rights as humans and some do not. Supporters of animal rights believe that animals have an ‘inherent worth”. They believe that every creature with a will to live has a right to live free from pain and suffering. They believe all animals are unique just like humans. Non-supporters believe animals aren’t as important as humans and use animals for things such as entertainment, to eat, and to wear. Most non-supporters are the ones who abuse their animals in their…

Words 1525 - Pages 7

A Causal Analysis of Racial Prejudice Essay

An Analysis on the Biological uses of prejudice Introduction: Prejudice is something that is ingrained into our very DNA as human beings. It has many hefty ramifications that we are aware or willfully ignorant to. From a broader standpoint biologically we were preordained to “pre-judge” in order to survive the evolutionary process. I. a. b. c. ● ● d. ● ● ● Biological Chemotaxis (evolution and attention memory development as the stage for prejudice) ● Pre-historic development of mistrust “antagonistic…

Words 456 - Pages 2

Biological Anthropology

study of human evolution and human variation. Not only do they study human, but also a category called near-humans, which includes: monkeys, apes, fossil ancestors and other primates (Palomar 1.) There are three specific areas that biological anthropologists research, these are: human biology, primatology and paleoanthropology. Human biology is mainly focused on human genetics and how they react to non-cultural adaptions. Primatologists study the non-human relatives. They observe the primates and learn…

Words 770 - Pages 4

Animals Should Not Be Used For Animal Testing

is essential to use animals to research different drugs or chemicals to find the cause or cure to a disease, to make sure that the drug or cure is safe to use before it is tested on humans, and many people do not want to risk their lives testing an unknown drug or cure that they do not know is safe or harmless to humans. Other people, including PETA, believe that using animals for testing subjects goes against our code of ethics and is a morally wrong thing to do to the animals like torture and suffering…

Words 1785 - Pages 8

Essay On Primate Behavior

Human Evolution Evidence Primate Behavior GS104 INTRO to Environmental science Abstract Early human behavior from ancient footprints to stone tools and the earliest symbols and art along with similarities and differences in the behavior of other primate species. Humans are part of the biological group known as primates. Stone tools provide evidence about the technologies, dexterity, particular kinds of mental skills, and innovations that were within the grasp of early human toolmakers. Early…

Words 993 - Pages 4

Essay on Language Evolution

community Language must have evolved before any contemporary human group became geographically separated from the rest of the human race First Human Separation n Earliest separation was settlement of Australia by homo sapiens n At least 40,000 years, to 60,000 years ago n Fully modern language must have developed by this date A Modern Vocal Tract n For a modern spoken language, a modern vocal tract is necessary n Requires human L-shaped vocal tract n n n n Oral cavity at right angles to…

Words 2362 - Pages 10