[The Second Take] The Legacy Left by Billions of Animals: 'Science Aversion'

Biological Experiments in "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3"
Horrific Animal Abuse Happens in Reality Too
Only 0.01% of Experiments Yield Results with Significant Benefits

In the movie "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3," Drax (Dave Bautista), Nebula (Karen Gillan), and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) rescue children who closely resemble humans. They are victims of biological experiments imprisoned by the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji) for evolutionary research. Among them, Phyla (Kai Zen) has already undergone genetic modification, maximizing energy efficiency. She can run for two hours without sweating a drop and only sleeps for an hour a week. Director James Gunn uses a hamster wheel to showcase her superhuman abilities. Phyla runs day and night, defying gravity inside it.

This scene recalls the memories of animal rights activist Dr. Richard Ryder. While working as a scientist in an animal laboratory, he witnessed a shocking sight in a psychology lab in California, USA, in 1964. A cage shaped like a wheel was slowly rotating by an electric motor, inside which a mutilated white cat was flailing and groaning. Its eyes were blind, and its tail was cut off. When Dr. Ryder asked, "What on earth is going on?" the professor in charge replied, "This wheel keeps rotating day and night for about a week. It's an experiment to eliminate sleep."

Soon, two students entered the lab and stopped the rotation. They tightly held the cat with a blanket and inserted needles under its skull. The cat's groans soon turned into screams. The professor explained with an indifferent expression, "Those students are all sophomores. They have a somewhat reckless idea that disrupting sleep and blinding the eyes might reveal new signs in the central nervous system secretions. They conduct experiments on animals for several hours every day. Well, at least these attempts provide them with experience in handling animals."

In 1975, Dr. Ryder exposed the miserable reality through his book "Victims of Science." He pointed to the immoral attitude of biology as the background for the emergence of cold and dangerous scientists. He argued that familiarity with biological dissection diluted uniquely human emotions such as compassion and sensitivity. In fact, the way animals are treated during adolescence significantly influences personality formation. Just as many serial killers have experienced severe animal abuse, this can extend to sadistic and cruel attitudes toward humans.

Humans are born with both the potential to be aggressive and cruel and the tendency to be compassionate. The latter forms the foundation of morality and civilization but can be easily suppressed by parents or teachers. The fastest and most certain way to do this is dissection. Regardless of whether it is at school or in a laboratory, it generally has a primitive ritualistic character. Under certain authority, peer pressure, or parental precedent, people can commit horrific acts very easily.

Members of the Korea Animal Protection Alliance held a press conference condemning animal testing and performed a demonstration at Gwanghwamun Intersection in Seoul on the 3rd. Photo by Mo Honam munonam@

No one is free from psychological wounds. For example, most Germans under Nazi rule did not reject the leader's evil deeds, even if they internally suffered from terrible guilt. Psychologist Stanley Milgram experimentally explained this phenomenon in the 1960s. Volunteers administered increasingly intense electric shocks to students who made mistakes in learning tasks. Many hesitated at the students' screams or pleas for mercy. However, about 60% continued to deliver shocks up to the highest level under the experimenter's instruction to continue. The volunteers did not know that the people who appeared to be shocked were actually actors.

It is unknown how repeated shocks affect learning. Animal experiments are no different. About one out of 100 experiments is reported in a reputable journal. On average, three people thoroughly read a paper, and only a tiny fraction leads to practical applications. Dr. Ryder stated, "Only about 0.01% of animal experiments produced results that could provide significant benefits to someone, and most of those were conducted in more humane alternative forms."

There have been efforts to find a plausible compromise between the public and scientists. Many European scientists still seek ways to satisfy humane legal regulations and end notorious past abuses. Unfortunately, advanced countries like the WTO and the United States show little interest in adopting such progressive approaches. As a result, all fields of science suffer from a bad image. Perhaps this is why children and young people do not like science.