BBC Radio 4 More or Less - Mice in studies

First half of this short podcast is a take on mice in scientific studies:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07kv9ns

 

I think everyone who posts links to studies in mice should listen to this. I keep telling them, but it doesn't seem to sink in.

These studies are meaningless.

Please save your precious energy for potentially useful studies.

 

The problem would seem, to me, to be that the mice are at the wrong paygrade.

The mice should be in charge of the studies.

Still no useful, transferable medical stuff, but at least we'd know what type of cheese is best.

(do mice even like cheese or is that another one of those cartoon truisms like cats liking fish, when most don't, and even if they do it's bad for them. Plenty of research needs to be done on non medical things and I see no reason why it can't be done by mice, with appropriate assistance in writing and publishing the papers.)

 

That gave me a turn - I don't recall my two cats ever reacting adversely to fish, and a quick search suggests that most cats are OK with it: https://www.pets4homes.co.uk/pet-advice/is-feeding-fish-to-your-cat-a-good-idea.html

and actually some cats do catch fish - one of mine did once (from a pond or someone's dinner!). I think that Turkish Van Cats do too.

 

A cat I had 25 years ago used to catch fish. She didn't eat them. She enjoyed catching them and used them as high value presents for me, to show off.

My neighbours were not impressed with this behaviour as coy carp can be expensive.

 

Mice in studies seems to me must be an anagram from a crossword.

Iced men in suits ? Einstein did sum ? not quite, needs some work

 

Sue medics init ?

 

That's it - perfect for 23 across. (Mice in studies shaken by rapper with ME's court case.)

 

This Twitter account is worth browsing occasionally - it covers scientific research which uses mice as the subjects :

https://twitter.com/justsaysinmice

 

The ones that invade my garage in the autumn prefer nut butter!

 

oh that's priceless, very very good
you pair need to be on 'I'm sorry I haven't a clue' or something.

 

I use peanut butter as bait in mouse traps. It allegedly works better than cheese. Another good choice is chocolate.

 

Thank you. I'm hoping that when I'm well enough, @Jonathan Edwards will join me on a tour of northern working mens' clubs to perform our "Snow White" sketch:

https://www.s4me.info/threads/david-bell-about-slow-sepsis-in-me.1900/#post-33289

 

hahaha brilliant

 

I use nuts and seeds. Chopped-up nuts if the mouse/vole is a small/young one. Humane traps, of course.