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Animal testing is still widely viewed as the least worst option for biomedical progress, even though researchers know more about animal sentience than ever, and animal rights movements – including vegetarianism and veganism, as well as bans on animal-tested cosmetics – have made significant gains. In Test Subjects, the scientists Frances Cheng, Emily Trunnell and Amy Clippinger each explain how completing their PhDs marked a profound turning point in their approach to animal testing. Now working with the animal rights organisation PETA, which executive-produced this short documentary, they detail their personal journeys from using animals in the lab to researching and promoting alternatives. With sensitivity and emotion, the UK director Alex Lockwood explores their experience of staking out an unpopular position in the scientific community, as well as the anguish that animal experimentation can inflict upon researchers and test subjects alike.
Director: Alex Lockwood
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Wellbeing
Born in China, Zee seeks a gender-affirming life in the American Midwest
11 minutes
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Chemistry
Why do the building blocks of life possess a mysterious symmetry?
12 minutes
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Cosmology
Tiny, entangled universes that form or fizzle out – a theory of the quantum multiverse
11 minutes
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Rituals and celebrations
A beginner’s guide to a joyful Persian tradition of spring renewal and rebirth
3 minutes
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Astronomy
The history of astronomy is a history of conjuring intelligent life where it isn’t
34 minutes
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Love and friendship
Love looks a bit different for a chain-smoking couple in a small apartment
11 minutes
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Metaphysics
Simple entities in universal harmony – Leibniz’s evocative perspective on reality
4 minutes
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Biography and memoir
Passed over as the first Black astronaut, Ed Dwight carved out an impressive second act
13 minutes
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Engineering
A close-up look at electronic paper reveals its exquisite patterns – and limitations
9 minutes