ANIMAL TESTING OVERVIEW

Animal testing is defined as the use of non-human animals in experiments that seek to control the the variables that affect behaviour or biological system under study. Unlike field studies where animals are simply observed in their natural environments, animal testing is done in establishments such as universities, medical schools, pharmaceutical companies and commercial facilities which provide this service to industry.Animal testing can range from pure research , which investigates with no means of an end, to applied research which aims to solve a problem such as disease, drugs and in the
cosmetic industry.  It is estimated that worldwide, the number of vertebrate animals used ranged from tens of millions to more than 100 million annually.The US official statistics show , in 2014,  834,453 vertebrates were used in research. However, it should be noted that mice, rats, birds, fish, frogs , invertebrates and animals not yet weaned are not included in official statistics as they are not protected by US legislation. These species represent 93% of animals used in research in the EU so if this was applied to the US the total would be between 12 and 25 million.  Most animals are purpose bred for these experiments with a minority that are actually caught the wild of supplied by dealers whom get them from auctions and pounds. Most animals are euthanised after being used.

Supporters of this say that the majority of medical achievements in the 20th centre relied on the use of animals in some form. The Institute for Laboratory Animal Research of the US National Academy of Sciences argues that not even sophisticated computer models can replace animal testing as they are unable to keep up with the complex interactions between molecules, cells, tissues, organs, organisms and the environment. On the other hand, animal rights organisations argue that it is cruel and poorly regulated, they question the need for and legitimacy of animal testing.  It is also mention that animal models cannot reliably predict effects in humans therefore medical progress is being held back.The fact that some tests are outdated, the costs outright the benefits and that animals have the right not to be used or harm are also points made by the against side.

Animals testing can be dated back to 2nd and 4th centuries BCE where there are references to it in the writings of the Greeks.Aristotle, a Greek philosopher and scientist and Erasistratus, a Greek anatomist and royal physician were some of the first to preform experiments on living animals. An Arabic physician named Avenzoar in the 12 century introduced animals testing as a means to test surgical procedures before using them on human patients. Animals were then used repeatedly for the use of biomedical research. In the 1880's Louis Pasteur used sheep to demonstrate the germ theory of medicine ( That diseases are caused by microorganism called pathogens) by inducing them with anthrax . Ivan Pavlov, in the 1890's, used dogs to describe classical conditioning, basically a learning process in which a response is given to a particular stimulus ( In Pavlov's case his dogs would salivate in response to a buzzer in which they knew they would get food, as opposed to simply salivating to the sight of the food). What isn't popular knowledge about this experiment however is that the dogs used in this experiment were surgically implanted with saliva-catching apparatus onto their muzzles ( basically a tube), the dogs didn't live long after there surgery as a result of starvation, Pavlov developed a 'sham' feeding system where the dogs's oesophagus was removed and an opening, a fistula, was created so that no matter how much the dog ate no food would make it to the stomach.

The first animal protection law was introduced in 1822 in the British parliament which was titled "an Act to protect the cruel and improper Treatment of Cattle' also known as Martin's Act thanks to MP and animal rights campaigner Richard Martin. It included ox, cow, heifer, steer, sheep or other cattle.
Following this was the 1876 Cruelty to Animals Act which set limits on the practice of and instituted a licensing system for animal experimentation. In a nutshell researchers would be prosecuted for cruelty unless the experiment, which did involve inflicting pain upon animals, should only be conducted when " the proposed experiments are absolutely necessary for the due instruction of the persons to save or prolong human life". More so the act also states that the animals used must be anaesthetised, used only once and killed as soon as the study was over.

In 1959 the Three Rs were introduced by W.M.S Rusell and R.L Burch. They are the following:

Replacement, which refers to the preferred use of non-animal methods over animal methods whenever it is possible to achieve the same scientific aims. These methods include computer modelling.

Reduction, which refers to methods that enable researchers to obtain comparable levels of information from fewer animals, or to obtain more information from the same number of animals.

Refinement, which refers to methods that alleviate or minimised potential pain, suffering or distress, and enhance animal welfare for the animals used. These methods include non-invasive techniques.

The most common vertebrate species used are mice, due to their size, ease of handling, low cost and fast reproduction rate,  they also share 99% of their genes with humans therefore are considered the best model of inherited human diseases.  Albino rabbits are used in most eye irritancy tests as rabbits have less tear flow than other animals paired with the lack of eye pigment means the effects are easier to see. Cats are widely used in neurological research, such as studies of vision and hearing. In biomedical research and testing dogs are mostly used. In particular beagles are used as they are gentle and easy to handle.Non-human primates, such as macaques, marmosets, spider monkeys and squirrel monkeys are used in experiments with baboons and chimpanzees are used in the U.S as well. It is estimated that there are around 730 chimpanzees used in US labs and 6,012 were non-human primates were used in European labs. It was found however, in one survey that 89% of singly housed primates exhibited self i juries or abnormal stereotypical behaviours such as rocking, pacing,hair pulling and biting. These primates are used in tests and studies of AIDS, hepatitis, toxicology tests, studies of neurology, behaviour and cognition, reproduction,genetics and xenotransplantation ( the transplantation of living cells, tissues or organs from one species to another). They are often caught from the wild or purpose bred.

WALK UP TO OUR BUILDING.

THISIS THE WALK UP CARLTON ROAD BEFORE THE TURN INTO OUR DRIVE.
As it stands all you can see is the Mount (Music/storage building) though I only know this from being part of the art course. There are no signs at all leading up to this giving any indication of what it is.

 Here you can see, though it is not clear, that there is a path going up and the red of the sign we do have starts to show.

At last, the sign for the Oscroft centre is visible as are the road signs showing that you can actually drive up.

The sign is fully visible now (though currently covered by advertisement for the show) but otherwise show that there is buildings up there that are an extension from the main site.

Luckily, there is a map at the top of the drive showing whats behind the fence with coloured boxes and an arrow telling you 'YOU ARE HERE' .  Though it still isn't very clear where you actually go. 

The coach house can now been seen as is the disabled parking sign.Though it not clear what the actual building is nor where you go form this point.

These stairs, though have that cool urban aesthetic, are basically out of bounds though there is no indication of this. Also there are no arrows or anything letting you no which you to go for the Oscroft centre so unless you know it can be very confusing.

Here is the stairway to the carpark where the centre is.

Finally! You have arrived at you destination.
At the top of the sketchy steps the Oscroft centre is at last visible.

posters for art

The Abstract Expressionist.

Abstract expressionism is the term applied to new forms of abstract art developed by American painters such as Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Willem de Kooning in the 1940's and 1950's often characterised by gestural brush-strokes or mark marking, and the impression of spontaneity.


Jackson Pollock, was known as the leading force behind the abstract expressionist movement in the art world his radical style of detaching line from colour, redefining the categories of drawing and painting and finding new means to describe pictorial space makes him one of the top influential American painters in the modern art world. From an early age, Pollock was exposed to the Native American culture whilst on surveying trips with his father ( who was a land surveyor for the government). Though he never admitted an intentional imitation or follow of Native American art he did concede that similarities were probably a results of his "early memories and enthusiasms.

Pre Raphaelite.

http://www.victorianweb.org/painting/prb/1.html
very British, nice and pretty
traditional and non-offensive.
came after Raphael and Michelangelo.
Perspective paintings.- aesthically pleasing
High renaissance
Composition.

why are they called the pre raphlaelites and who are they and what are they?
who is Raphael.
medevil times and are

The Pre-Raphaelites were a secret society of young artists (and one writer), founded in London in 1848. They were opposed to the Royal Academy’s promotion of the ideal as exemplified in the work of Raphael

The name Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood referred to the groups’ opposition to the Royal Academy’s promotion of the Renaissance master Raphael. They were also in revolt also against the triviality of the immensely popular genre painting of time.

Inspired by the theories of John Ruskin, who urged artists to ‘go to nature’, they believed in an art of serious subjects treated with maximum realism. Their principal themes were initially religious, but they also used subjects from literature and poetry, particularly those dealing with love and death. They also explored modern social problems.

Its principal members were  William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, and Dante Gabriel Rossetti. After initial heavy opposition the Pre-Raphaelites became highly influential, with a second phase of the movement from about 1860, inspired particularly by the work of Rossetti, making major contribution to symbolism.

Raphael.

For centuries Raphael has been recognised as the supreme High Renaissance painter, more versatile than Michelangelo and more prolific than their older contemporary Leonardo

Raphael's example as a paragon of classicism dominated the academic tradition of European painting until the mid-19th century.

Raphael was an Italian Renaissance painter and architect. He was born in Urbino, which at the time was a cultural centre that encourage the Arts. His father, Giovanni Santi, was a painter for the Duke of Urbino, Federico da Montefeltro. Raphael's father taught him basic painting techniques and exposed him to the principles of humanistic philosophy at the Duke of Urbino's court before his death in 1494, Raphael was just 11 years old. He then took over the job of managing his fathers workshop,Raphael was soon considered one of the finest painters in town as a teen was commissioned to paint for the Church of San Nicola in the neighbouring town of Castello.

1950's Design.

Atomic Age- space age.

Festival Of Britain- a national exhibition held in the summer of 1951. Organised by the government to give the British a feeling of recovery in the aftermath of war and to promote British contribution to science, technology, industrial design,  architecture and the arts.  

Bakerlite- a synthetic plastic

FMP- Artist

Louise McNaught is a fine art artist who focuses on animals and nature within her work. Bright neon colours , similar to those used for highlighters, are used to bring the viewers attention towards the animal and its presence.Her mixed-media approach is motivated by emotive and spiritual experiences, the animals present in her work are often displayed in a lifted state, without context or background space, where she means to show man's destruction of nature, what is happening to the animal and also how we feel psychologically about the effects humans have on animals.