Going Ape
One of the main ethical conundrums surrounding experimenting on chimpanzees has always been that if you justify doing these experiments on the basis that chimps are very similar to humans, you have a harder time justifying it morally.
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Westminster Porn Show
One of the world's few remaining pageants of objectification and commoditization.
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The ‘Animal Rights’ Paradox
How's the animal rights movement doing? If you rate it by the simple question "How many animals have rights?" you'd have to say "Not very well." Call it the animal rights paradox.
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At Sundance, a Triumph for "Unlocking the Cage"
Premiered at Sundance, the movie follows attorney Steven M. Wise as he argues to a high court judges that chimpanzee Tommy has the capacity for legal rights and should be set free…
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Pigs: Smart & Machiavellian
Winston Churchill famously said: “A dog looks up to you; a cat looks down on you; only a pig treats you as an equal.” But that, of course, is hardly how we treat them…
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Half the World’s Wildlife Destroyed in the Last 40 Years
In a sane world, it would be headline news. Everything else would immediately come to a screeching halt to make way for a massive, worldwide attempt to turn things around. (Of…
The Whale Who Took Down SeaWorld
Egg Industry Concession Is No ‘Victory’
For Chimps, the End of Vivisection, Almost
Cecil Is the Least of It
Killing Shelter Pets Is Never the Answer
How do we bring an end to the killing of homeless pets in shelters? It’s simple: We stop killing them. Only when you take killing off the table do you start looking for real alternatives. First comes the commitment, then come the solutions, and that’s how we get to be a no-kill nation.
Dutch Court Sides with Morgan the Orca
Animal protection groups are celebrating a Dutch court decision, which ruled that Morgan the orca should not be sent to a marine circus.
Is It Real? Or Is It a Summer Movie?
The fact that a sci-fi movie may well become a case of truth being stranger than fiction is just one of the paradoxes in this year’s crop of animal-themed summer movies.
A Virtual Whale Song Concert
Inspired by reading a study about the evolution of whale song, a musician has created a computerized concert of intelligent surround-sound “virtual” whales, who perform live with a saxophonist.
Young Qatari Has a Passion for Animals
Animal welfare has often been criticized in Qatar, but one young Qatari is passionate about improving the situation for many animals.
‘I Am Not an Animal!’
While it doesn’t bother ethics experts much when genes are mixed from two non-human animals, it’s much more alarming when they create human-other chimeras.
Beta Is Better
Alpha males are rich and powerful, and they get the girls. That’s the mythology, and it’s true, except it doesn’t tell the whole story.
Hugs and Goodbyes
See you in Alaska! Visiting the Orcas Tuesday: Grandma J2’s Birthday Wednesday: Off to the Island First Sighting Thursday: T is for Transient Luna the Orca…
SeaWorld Shenanigans
This is from our special feature: “My Visit to the Orcas.”
Behind the Scenes at the Orca Meet-Up
This is from our special feature: “My Visit to the Orcas.”
Orca Dinner Party
Chinook salmon is on the menu
Super-Intelligence
Scientists have several ways of measuring the size and complexity of the brains of different animals. However you look at orca brains, you have to conclude that these guys are super-intelligent.
Superpod!
“The “J” pod is south of us near the point over there and heading up toward where the other pods are coming down. They may all be joining up for a superpod.”
Orcas on Vacation
Hunting in the Antarctic, taking a break in the tropics Visiting the Orcas Tuesday: Grandma J2’s Birthday Wednesday: Off to the Island First Sighting Thursday: T…
Luna the Orca Who Wanted to Be Friends
The story of Luna leading up to that fateful day is told poignantly, but with no editorializing, by Mike Parfit and Suzanne Chisolm, in their movie, The Whale.
T is for Transient
This is from our special feature: “My Visit to the Orcas.”
First Sighting
This is from our feature: “My Visit to the Orcas.”
Off to the Island
From the special feature: “My Visit to the Orcas”
Visiting the Orcas
On July 2, Granny J2 celebrated her 100th birthday. They held a party in her honor on San Juan Island, off the coast of Seattle. How do they know she just turned 100?