Ch. 1— Summary, Policy Issues, and Options for Congressional Action • 11 
nary schools. Reduction techniques include the use 
of classroom demonstrations in place of individ- 
ual students’ animal surgery and multiple use of 
each animal, although subjecting an animal to mul- 
tiple recovery procedures may be viewed as in- 
humane and counter to refined use. Refinements 
include the use of analgesics, euthanasia prior to 
recovery from surgery, observation of intact ani- 
mals in the classroom or in their natural habitats, 
and the substitution of cold-blooded for warm- 
blooded vertebrates in laboratory exercises. 
Humane education aspires to instill positive 
attitudes toward life and respect for living ani- 
mals. Instruction in proper care and handling of 
various species may be complemented by exposure 
to the principles of animal use in research and test- 
ing and to alternative methods. This type of edu- 
cation promotes attitudes conducive to the devel- 
opment and adoption of alternatives. 
COMPUTER SIMULATION AND INFORMATION RESOURCES 
Recent advances in computer technology 
hold some potential for replacing and reduc- 
ing the use of animals in research, testing, and 
education (see chs. 6, 8, 9, and 1 0). In most cases, 
however, research with animals will still be 
needed to provide basic data for writing com- 
puter software, as well as to prove the validity 
and reliability of computer alternatives. 
In research, scientists are developing computer 
simulations of cells, tissues, fluids, organs, and or- 
gan systems. Use of such methods enables less use 
of some animals. Limitations on the utility of com- 
puter simulations are due to a lack of knowledge 
of all the parameters involved in the feedback 
mechanisms that constitute a living system, which 
means the information on which the computer 
must depend is incomplete. 
In testing, computers allow toxicologists to de- 
velop mathematical models and algorithms that 
can predict the biological effects of new substances 
based on their chemical structure . If a new chem - 
ical has a structure similar to a known poison in 
certain key aspects, then the new substance also 
may be a poison. Such screening can thus preempt 
some animal use. 
In education, computer programs simulate class- 
room experiments traditionally performed with 
animals. The most advanced systems are video- 
disks that combine visual, auditory, and interac- 
tive properties, much as a real classroom experi- 
ment would. Computer simulations can eliminate 
both the detailed work of conducting an experi- 
ment and the effects of extraneous variables, help- 
ing students concentrate on a lesson’s main point. 
Aside from their direct use in research, testing, 
and education, computers also could reduce ani- 
mal use by facilitating the flow of information 
about the results of research and testing. Scien- 
tists routinely attempt to replicate results of ex- 
periments to ensure their accuracy and validity 
and the generality of the phenomenon. Uninten- 
tional duplication, however, can waste money and 
animal lives. To avoid such situations, the scien- 
tific community has established various modes of 
communication. Research and testing results are 
published in journals, summarized by abstracting 
services, discussed at conferences, and obtained 
through computer databases. 
One way any existing unintentional duplication 
might be ended, and thus animal use reduced, is 
to establish or refine existing computer-based regis- 
tries of research or testing data. The National Can- 
cer Institute and the National Library of Medicine 
(NLM) developed a limited registry in the late 1970s, 
but it failed: The Laboratory Animal Data Bank 
(LADB) had few users, as it did not serve user needs. 
Any new registry should contain descriptions 
of the methods of data collection and the labora- 
tory results for both experimental and control 
groups of animals. Inclusion of negative results 
(which are seldom reported in journals) could also 
reduce animal use. Entries should undergo peer 
review before inclusion in the registry; that is, 
studies should be scrutinized to judge the validity 
