Good Science, Good Sense and Good Sensibilities: The Three Ss of Carol Newton

Simple Summary The use of animals in research is controversial and there are ongoing efforts to refine and limit their use to an absolute minimum. The Three Rs principle developed by William M. S. Russell and Rex L. Burch in the UK in the 1950s is widely used for this purpose: Replacement, Reduction and Refinement. Another useful principle which complements the Three Rs was proposed by Carol Newton in the 1970s. This principle is the Three Ss: Good Science, Good Sense and Good Sensibilities. Unlike the Three Rs, the Three Ss have not been described in detail in the literature. The purpose of this paper is to increase awareness of the Three Ss, which are a useful supplement to the Three Rs, improving animal welfare and leading to better science. Abstract The Three Rs principle of Replacement, Reduction and Refinement developed by William M. S. Russell and Rex L. Burch in the 1950s has achieved worldwide recognition as a means of reducing the impact of science on animals and improving their welfare. However, application of the Three Rs is still far from universal, and evidence-based methods to implement the Three Rs are still lacking in many areas of laboratory animal science. The purpose of this paper is to create interest in a less well-known but equally useful principle that complements the Three Rs, which was proposed by the American biomathematician Carol M. Newton in the 1970s: the Three Ss—Good Science, Good Sense and Good Sensibilities.