Ethics and the Science of Animal Minds

Ethicists have commonly appealed to science to bolster their arguments for elevating the moral status of nonhuman animals. I describe a framework within which I take many ethicists to be making such appeals. I focus on an apparent gap in this framework between those properties of animals that are part of the scientific consensus, and those to which ethicists typically appeal in their arguments. I will describe two different ways of diminishing the appearance of the gap, and argue that both of them present challenges to ethicists seeking a firm scientific basis for their claims about the moral status of animals. I argue that more clarity about the role of appeals to science by applied ethicists leads to questions about the effectiveness of such appeals, and that these questions might best be pursued empirically.     

Thorndike's Puzzle Boxes And The Origins Of The Experimental Analysis Of Behavior

The year of Thorndike's dissertation on animal intelligence, 1898, may mark the beginning of the field that eventually became known as the experimental analysis of behavior. The dissertation began a major shift in thinking about animal and human learning, provided important methodological innovations, and carried the seeds of later research and theory, particularly by B. F. Skinner. Although Thorndike was an associationist in 1898, the dissertation began the systematic search for fundamental behavioral processes, and laid the foundation for an empirical science of behavior.     

The man who listens to behavior: folk wisdom and behavior analysis from a real horse whisperer

The popular novel and movie The Horse Whisperer are based on the work of several real-life horse whisperers, the most famous of whom is Monty Roberts. Over the last 50 years, Roberts has developed a technique for training horses that is both more effective and less aversive than traditional training techniques. An analysis of Roberts' methods (as described in his book, The Man Who Listens to Horses) indicates a deep understanding of behavioral principles including positive reinforcement, timeout, species-specific defense reactions, “learned helplessness,” and the behavioral analysis of language. Roberts developed his theory and techniques on the basis of personal experience and folk wisdom, and not as the result of formal training in behavior analysis. Behavior analysts can clearly learn from such insightful yet “behaviorally incorrect” practitioners, just as such practitioners can benefit from the objective science of behavior analysts.     

Comparison of yes-no and latency measures of auditory intensity discrimination.

Rats discriminated auditory intensity differences of sinusoids at 3.0 kilohertz in a go/no-go signal detection procedure. Responses to the signal (hits) were reinforced with electrical brain stimulation, and misses produced a brief timeout. On intermixed noise trials, withholding of responses (correct rejections) was reinforced, and false alarms produced the time-out. In two test conditions, the signal was either the louder (100 decibels) or softer (90, 93, 96, or 99 decibels) of the pair of intensities presented within a set of trials. Each animal was first trained with signal value louder or softer, and reversed for the second condition so that the former noise value served as signal. Hits showed shorter latencies than false alarms, regardless of the relative intensity of signal and noise, and the magnitude of differentiation was proportional to signal-noise separation. Both hits and false alarms showed longer latencies as the discrimination became more difficult. Isosensitivity contours derived from the latencies showed close similarity across conditions; in comparison, the yes-no measure of detectability, d', showed greater variability. The similarity of latency differentiation across louder and softer signal conditions supports a detection model in which the observer's judgment is controlled by the distance of sensory effect from criterion on each trial, as opposed to the loudness of the tones per se.     

时距知觉的动物研究范式及相关神经机制

在探索时距知觉的脑机制的过程中, 相对于人类被试相关研究, 动物研究可以提供较多的药理学、分子生物学、单个神经元电生理学以及光遗传等方面的研究证据。目前较为常用的时距知觉动物研究范式包括时间二分法、峰值间隔法以及低比率差别强化法等。根据不同的研究需求, 动物研究的范式常会进行调整。对时距知觉的动物研究的探讨将基于两方面展开：(1) 常用的时距知觉动物研究范式的介绍及比较; (2) 基于动物研究范式的时距知觉神经机制研究进展, 旨在为深入探索时间知觉的心理学相关研究提供参考。     

Development of animal recognition: a difference between Parts and Wholes

A series of experiments examined children's recognition of animals by their features (Parts) and by the relative scale of the parts (Wholes). They were asked to identify the correct picture of an animal they could name from the original plus two computer-generated alternatives. We examined the developmental trends associated with upright (Studies 1 and 3) and inverted presentations (Study 3). Both experiments confirmed children's superior ability in dealing with the recognition of animal Parts over animal Wholes, especially for the younger ages tested (6- and 10-year-olds). It was not until the ages of 15-16 that children demonstrated equal performance on Whole and Part items. The late acquisition of animal Whole recognition is compared to the late acquired configural skills proposed for face recognition.     

Transforming animal species: the case of ‘oncomouse’

In this paper I deal with ethical implications arising from animal biotechnology. I analyse some general questions surrounding the production of transgenic animals through a specific case study: the oncomouse. In particular, I explore ethical factors involved in the production of oncomice. This is because biologists genetically modify animals’ germ cells and refuse to modify human germ cells. I will underline how the international community has thus far justified this ‘ethical difference’. The opinions here expressed are personal and do not commit the European Commission. Maurizio Salvi is member of the Scientific Staff of the Higher Institute of Philosophy, University of Leuven. Currently he is a Scientific Officer (National Expert Detached) of the European Commission, (Directorate-General XII, Science Research and Development, Directorate B.II.3) dealing with Bioethics research.     

The Evolution of Animal Play, Emotions, and Social Morality: On Science, Theology, Spirituality, Personhood, and Love

My essay first takes me into the arena in which science, spirituality, and theology meet. I comment on the enterprise of science and how scientists could well benefit from reciprocal interactions with theologians and religious leaders. Next, I discuss the evolution of social morality and the ways in which various aspects of social play behavior relate to the notion of “behaving fairly.” The contributions of spiritual and religious perspectives are important in our coming to a fuller understanding of the evolution of morality. I go on to discuss animal emotions, the concept of personhood, and how our special relationships with other animals, especially the companions with whom we share our homes, help us to define our place in nature, our humanness. It is when we take the life of another being in the ritual of compassionately euthanizing them (“putting them to sleep”) that who we are in the grand scheme of things comes to the fore. I end with a discussion of the importance of ethological studies, behavioral research in which a serious attempt is made to understand animals in their own worlds, inquiries in which it is asked, “What is it like to be another species?” Species other than nonhuman primates need to be studied. I plead for developing compassionate, heartfelt, and holistic science that allows for interdisciplinary talk about respect, grace, spirituality, religion, love, Earth, and God.