I found Ricki Lewis's article in the Nov. 10, 1997, issue of The Scientist ("Instructors Reconsider Dissection's Role in Biology Classes," page 13) of great interest. Having attained a baccalaureate in biology in the 1970s and graduate degrees in biomedical sciences during the '80s and '90s, and taught college-level biology courses (all of which required extensive use of laboratory animal models), I have been an interested observer of the transformation that has occurred in the philosophy of the use of laboratory animal models in the classroom. The imaginative alternatives to dissection now available to life science teachers may satisfy academic requirements at the secondary school level and for certain college-level curricula. However, how far will the efforts of animal rights "activists" pervade life science education?
This became a favorite topic of discussion in our office when a temporary secretary, who had recently completed a preveterinary curriculum and received a baccalaureate ...
