Reality vs. Virtual Throughout the process of dissecting an actual cadaver, there are experiences that can’t be described or expressed in any other fashion. The human brain -solely out of the fact that this is a former living animal- experiences things that obviously neither a computer nor any other kind of technology could ever replicate. On the other hand virtual labs can save the school overall money and allow students to learn about animals without harming any actual animals. There are both positives and negatives to both dissection options, and considering one better than the other can be questionable. First, programs of virtual dissection vary greatly. There are dissections such as step-by-step pictures and descriptions of an actual dissection or digitally created dissection programs that give you three-dimensional views of the animal and show clearly ad in great detail, exactly what that part of the body is, and what it does. An upper hand that virtual dissection does have is that the virtual version can actually display how the animal’s body works while the animal is still alive. In an actual dissection you will not be able to see the animal’s body while it is functioning. Another upper hand is that virtual programs can be easily repeated and explained by instructor if needed. Yet, compared to seeing the actual cat and performing on the actual body will give the student a familiarity that you would not get unless you actually dissected an animal. Second, it is obvious that the cost of virtual dissection will be much less than a cadaver dissection. With the price range of a cat being between fifty and one-hundred dollars, cadaver dissection can cost the school twenty-five hundred to five thousand dollars each year with a class of fifty students alone. That is not even including the cost of lab wear, pans, cleaning products, and utensils necessary. While the one-time payment of the virtual dissection for an unlimited amount of students and an unlimited amount of time will cost the school less than two thousand dollars. Considering the costs of cadaver dissections, it is safe to assume that a school is financially able to purchase not only the money to pay for the virtual program, but also the technology needed to display it. Investing in a virtual dissection can be a good investment for two reasons. The first reason being that even if it may not work as well as a cadaver; it did not lose the school too much money. The second reason is that even if it fails, it is always available as an alternative to students who may not want to dissect actual animals. Cadaver Dissection Virtual Dissection SUPPLIES: | $1,832 | $570 | CAT: | $6,658 | $1,070 | TOTAL: | $8,490 | $1,640 | ~The chart above displays the cost of dissecting a cat for ninety students, using national averages for both cadaver and virtual dissections.
Third, when asked the question “Would I trust a doctor who never actually dissected a human, but have virtually dissected a human, to perform a life-saving surgery on me,” I would obviously think no. The reason I would say no is because that is their profession, and they should have done that in order to be a sufficient part of that profession. The person obviously does not know how they would respond while dissecting an actual human, and I do not believe diving into an emergency situation where they need to save someone’s life would be the best solution. But like stated before, a person who has actually dissected a cadaver does not know how they will respond either considering they’ve never had experience with a living human being. Because of that, I wouldn’t really prefer a doctor who has dissected one-hundred human cadavers, and have never actually performed a simple surgery yet, to be the performer of that surgery either. Finally even after doing research on the subject, I still remain firm in my position to not dissect a cat. If anything this research has made me more passionate about my decision on not dissecting a cat, and maybe even any other animal. I learned about the actual business of those who provide animal cadavers for students, and it actually repulses me. With no disrespect to any class that involves the dissection of animals, I don’t like the idea that it is necessary to kill life in order for you to learn about it.