Given a polygon P in the plane, a pop operation is the reflection of a vertex with respect to the line through its adjacent vertices. We define a family of alternating polygons, and show that any polygon from this family cannot be convexified by pop operations. This family contains simple, as well as non-simple (i.e., self-intersecting) polygons, as desired. We thereby answer in the negative an open problem posed by Demaine and O'Rourke [9, Open Problem 5.3].

A length preserving transformation of a polygon is any transformation of its vertices that preserves the lengths of the edges. In the video segment we will demonstrate three types of length preserving transformations: pocket flips, flipturns, and pops. We present sequences of such operations and study their power (or weakness) in the attempt of convexifying simple polygons.

Development of improved communication and education strategies is important to make alternatives to the use of animals, and the broad range of applications of the 3Rs concept better known and understood by different audiences. For this purpose, the Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing in Europe (CAAT-Europe) together with the Transatlantic Think Tank for Toxicology (t 4) hosted a three-day workshop on "Teaching Alternative Methods to Animal Experimentation". A compilation of the recommendations by a group of international specialists in the field is summarized in this report. Initially, the workshop participants identified the different audience groups to be addressed and also the communication media that may be used. The main outcome of the workshop was a framework for a comprehensive educational program. The modular structure of the teaching program presented here allows adaptation to different audiences with their specific needs; different time schedules can be easily accommodated on this basis. The topics cover the 3Rs principle, basic research, toxicological applications, method development and validation, regulatory aspects, case studies and ethical aspects of 3Rs approaches. This expert consortium agreed to generating teaching materials covering all modules and providing them in an open access online repository.