science

Oxford Arson Squad

Oxford Arson Squad is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Oxford Arson Squad rather than just read about it. In short: Oxford Arson Squad (or Oxford Arson Group) is a militant animal rights organization, which emerged in the United Kingdom in 2005 after claiming the firebombing of the Corpus Christi College Sports Pavilion at Oxford University. The university denounced these acts of direct action stating that "the intimidating nature of this message is totally unacceptable".

Key takeaways

Oxford Arson Squad belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Oxford Arson Squad to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Oxford Arson Squad from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Oxford Arson Squad (or Oxford Arson Group) is a militant animal rights organization, which emerged in the United Kingdom in 2005 after claiming the firebombing of the Corpus Christi College Sports Pavilion at Oxford University. The university denounced these acts of direct action stating that "the intimidating nature of this message is totally unacceptable".

Mission statement The Oxford Arson Squad first established itself when an anonymous message was sent to Bite Back claiming the failed arson at Corpus Christi College on 23 September 2005, stating:

We have spent 15 months researching you, and we know every weakness you have. You have people within your ranks acting against you. You cannot build the South Parks Lab without incurring massive losses. We are stronger than you, we have more resolve than you and we never give up! If we have to destroy every bit of property you own we will, in order to stop you inflicting your profit driven cruelties on defenceless creatures. You cannot stop us, we are free to attack you at will, whenever and wherever we choose!

Philosophy

The activists use the same leaderless-resistance model as the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), which consists of small, autonomous, covert cells acting independently. A cell may consist of just one person. Their cause seems to be to inflict property damage, presumably arson, but not injure individuals, and is a reason why they have been accused of being members or supporters of the ALF. The targets have been businesses based in Oxford, and the surrounding areas, using incendiary devices to firebomb businesses they assume have financial ties with Oxford University.

Direct action

Longbridges boathouse fire

The group became known after the first arson in Oxford which caused an estimated £500,000 worth of damage on 4 July 2005. In response to this attack, with the insurance premiums set to rise for the business, Longbridge's boathouse were given corporate sponsorship and donations. The fire caused 26 boats in total to become unusable which were part of St Hilda's, St Catherine's, Hertford, Mansfield and St Benet's Hall boats and boat clubs. Upon investigation the cause of the fire was attributed to incendiary devices which had been placed in the Eight's bays. The group stated that they targeted the boathouse because of their apparent ties to Oxford University that use primates in experiments. The group in a posting to Bite Back said,

"From here on nothing you own, rent or have dealings with is off limits until the project is scrapped, To warn builders and suppliers that they are going to get some, even if their involvement comes to light years later we will not let you off the hook!" Ed Mayne, spokesman for Oxford University replied,

"We are appalled by the contents of a statement concerning the fire in an Oxford College boathouse. The intimidating nature of this message is totally unacceptable."

Failed attempts Two arsons were unsuccessful with an incendiary device found deactivated at Christ Church College's Sport Pavilion, despite the group claiming they had targeted Corpus Christi College in July 2005. The second device at Oxford's Templeton College in February 2007 was found also deactivated. Again the group claimed to have carried out an arson attack, saying again in an anonymous communique to Bite Back:

"This latest action is part of an ongoing campaign against the University of Oxford and its continued usage of animal testing."

Other arsons In November 2006, there was an arson at Queen's College, this was again claimed to be because of the financial relationship with Oxford University. The Animal Liberation Front consists of small autonomous groups of people all over the world who carry out direct action according to the ALF guidelines. Any group of people who are vegetarians or vegans and who carry out actions according to ALF guidelines have the right to regard themselves as part of the ALF. A message was sent to the Bite Back website stating,

ALF volunteers gained access to the roof of the building and after removing a section of roof tiling placed an incendiary device containing 12 litres of fuel inside. Attacks will escalate in the face of an institution and government which have sought to destroy legal protest and continue to sanction violence to animals Similar attacks occurred nearly a year later in November 2007, when the ALF alleged vehicles belonging to a researcher of the Department of Experimental Psychology at Oxford University were firebombed as well as a director of Acorn Integrated systems sports car, who the group accused of aiding the construction of the laboratory. The group said in a message to Bite Back: "There will be more. For Barry and Felix.".

See also Leaderless resistance Animal Liberation Front (ALF) SPEAK Western Animal Rights Network (WARN) Animal testing Animal rights

References

External links Oxford Arson Squad: Communique/Manifesto Archived 21 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine Bite Back Magazine Animal Liberation Front (ALF)

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Oxford Arson Squad

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Oxford Arson Squad claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Oxford Arson Squad before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Oxford Arson Squad ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Oxford Arson Squad

In research: Oxford Arson Squad appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Oxford Arson Squad in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Oxford Arson Squad is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Animal Liberation Front, Arson in the United Kingdom, Eco-terrorism, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Oxford Arson Squad outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Oxford Arson Squad in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Oxford Arson Squad means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Oxford Arson Squad out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Oxford Arson Squad in simple terms?

Why does Oxford Arson Squad matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Oxford Arson Squad?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Oxford Arson Squad.