Category Archives: 409A T 12:30-3:15

Rats and the City: The Battle That Never Ends.

 

 

“Pizza Rat”, “Rat vs Pigeon”, “Escalator Rat”; to the untrained ear these might not ring a bell, but to a true New Yorker these heroes of modern social media are the new denominators in a stronger than ever exposure of the co existence with our little sewer friends, or in other words what’s turned into the new normal in New York City nowadays. But even to the outsider, the unsuspecting tourist who has not been familiarized to such extent, all three titles have an obvious connection, as rats are the main characters of these viral videos visited by millions. People tend to close their eyes if the ongoing problem isn’t directly relatable, and if so, you might be one of the lucky ones, living in an area that for one reason or another hasn’t experienced an uprise in rat populations. Or, you can be one of the affected parties that at this point has become desensitized by the daily rat exposure to such extent that you no longer see the vermin infestation taking over our habitats and therefor simply choose not to acknowledge it. But either way, one should know, based on common knowledge and historical facts of rats and megalopolises, that nothing good has ever followed after soaring rates in rat populations, and we can no longer sit and wait to see what the endgame holds for us. Although the city has been fighting the war on rats for centuries, rat populations have been rising drastically. That can be explained to some extent by research findings that show rats are extremely intelligent creatures, able to adapt to urban environments and flourish while doing so. Public health and safety must remain a priority of New York City’s institutions, and new methods and approaches ought to be tested and implemented so we the residents can be protected from this vermin outbreak before the next epidemic explodes and people’s lives are at stake.

“New York has attempted to eradicate its teeming rat population for 355 years and counting” (Freytas-Tamura). These words happen to be a true summary of the never ending battle that has been taking place in the city that never sleeps. In her article posted in the New York Times this year (2019),  Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura pins our attention with the years that went by in the war on rats in the city of New York. She then shocks the public by pointing out all major means taken to win the fight and declare victory, that unfortunately have proven inefficient through time, “Traps. Poison. Birth control. Dry ice.”  By simply conducting a Google search with  the words “rats” and “New York” one pulls up numerous articles by media moguls such as The New York Times and Forbes with recent takes on the problems the city has faced in its effort to minimize the rat invasion. By shedding light on the never ending war on rats and presenting us with some disturbing statistics and trends, one won’t be wondering why mayor Bill De Blasio launched a 32 million dollar war on the fluffy rodents. Adam Andrzejewski, a reporter for Forbes, teaches us a simple lesson with his extensive numeric data sum up of the current rat population trends around the city and that is – rats do not discriminate. They don’t choose their living quarters depending on racial biases or financial capabilities and even the rich neighborhoods fall under enemy fire: “The rats are running wild in this fancy area on the Upper West side of Manhattan. With the Hudson River and Central Park as borders, the area is home to the fraternities at Columbia University and many millionaires. In fact, the median home value is $934,000.”  Winnie Hu, a reporter for The New York Times digs deeper beyond the empirical presentation of the issue and presents us with more insights on why things appear as they do: “A major contributing factor is how the city collects trash: bags are left outside on the curb for hours before pick up the next morning. It’s just an all-night buffet for the rats.”  Of course trash can’t be the only culprit and as it does feed the issue, it can’t explain the reason why rats have become so outgoing and are so much more visible nowadays. She finds answers by looking into the work of a researcher from Columbia University where Simon H. Williams links overdevelopment and compares it to “stepping on an ants’ nest,” meaning that by bulldozing the city’s scarce landscape, we are literally forcing the rats out on the surface.

But maybe there is a reason the extermination techniques weren’t as efficient as expected. Maybe there is a missing link in the broad picture of rat eradication. The so called villain of this story is not just a rat. He is smart and he possesses true intelligence according to a study interview published in the Harvard Business Review. The article from 2015 written by Alison Beard grabs one’s attention via its bold statement leaving almost no room for plausible debate with the words: “Rats can be smarter than people.” By the title we already know who did better in the learning tasks tested in the aforementioned study and what the findings concluded. What’s surprising here is that these results were not expected, and the study’s initial participants were not of human kind but rats exclusively: “However, when we saw that the pattern of results did not match those found in similar human studies, we decided to add people to our study and create as direct a comparison as possible. We were really surprised by the results” (Beard). Without going into huge detail of the experimental process, the author shares how the work undertaken changed course, shifting the study on both rats and humans and their cognitive abilities as “the subjects were trained to distinguish between “good” and “bad” patterns and then tested on their ability to apply that know-how to new types of patterns.” In their website PETA points out more interesting findings about rodents in general and rats. As most humans genuinely experience feelings of dislike and even disgust towards these creatures, the organization fighting for animal rights gives us a few brief but educational bullets on what rats are capable of and what we might not be aware of. One of these mini shockers tries to, in a way, clear their names of the filth we associate rats with by shining light on their grooming habits and states that these fur balls are actually “fastidiously clean animals” and  that “if not forced to live in a dirty cage, a rat’s skin has a very pleasant perfume-like scent.” Other mesmerizing aspects unknown to the masses are the ability to demonstrate empathy, and also that rats posses complex communicational skills and are highly social animals, being compared to man’s best friend – the canine. 

Nevertheless rats are a known health hazard and need to be dealt with. By looking back at the article we have started this journey with, we can find hope that there is still some light at the end of the tunnel as the city is not just giving up, instead it is actively deploying new ways of combating the vermin apocalypse. A new strategy is being developed as we speak, and the city is preparing for live tests of the so called “mystery bucket”: “in effect, a bucket that would lure the rodents and send them plunging to their deaths in a mysterious vinegary concoction. The toxic potion, according to its maker, Rat Trap Inc., prevents them from rotting too quickly and emitting a stink” (Freytas-Tamura). And the reasons we must keep on fighting this never ending battle can be found on CDC’s (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) website. It has a dedicated page on not only direct but also indirect ways of contracting serious diseases from rats and on numerous protocols for exposure prevention and clean up measures. The list is staggering and might even seem fear mongering, but it sure is no joke. Here are some of these exotic sounding diseases that can ruin one’s life: “Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome; Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome; Lassa Fever; Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis; Plague.” These are only a few of the direct illnesses that a rat can “gift” a person; but let’s not stop here and continue the scare with the indirect ones transmitted by our undesired neighbors: “Colorado Tick Fever; La Crosse Encephalitis; Lyme Disease; Murine Typhus; Rickettsial pox; West Nile Virus.” All of these are, if not lethal, extremely life impairing conditions, and if that doesn’t motivate one to diminish the population of rats in this city, nothing else will.

But wait a sec, didn’t we just emphasize how intelligent and empathic rats are? Can’t we find another solution? The issue is, although these statements are correct in their core, we can not just simply stop the efforts in limiting or trying to eradicate a sort of epidemic that has been escalating over and over through the years. There is a reason behind this desire for rat extermination and that is public safety. All these diseases are not just hypothetical, they are real and they are just one rat bite away, one contact with vermin feces or urine away, and the more their population rises the higher the chances of an actual epidemic outbreak there are. Living in a megapolis sounds like a fairytale to many, yet it comes at a price that most don’t include in their math equation – sharing your living space with rats on a daily basis. It doesn’t matter if you are rich or poor, or if you live in a high-rise or a rent stabilized dwelling, you see them in your alley, running back and forth, engorging on the trash bags full of treats piled up on the sidewalk as if it’s a five course chef-inspired menu tasting, awaiting the garbage truck to whisk them away as if being picked up in their personal Uber car.  You encounter them in the subway as you wait for your train, as they are frivolously playing on the tracks, as if having their own underground playground. They are everywhere you turn your head. They aren’t hiding any longer, they are out and they are proud, as they are the rats of New York. Remember to stay vigilant, and by all means stay safe and avoid contact at all cost.

 

Works Cited 

 

 

Final essay

Fatumata Baro

Eng110- 409A

Nov 19 2019 

Those are the states that passed the law of abortion, some of them is legal and illegal. Abortion is still going on this country so this map help the people to understand how many states passed the law.

 

The topic of my map is about should abortion be legal, I will research the reasons and consequences of having an abortion. Many people assume that abortion can not cause a mental health because it helps the women to reduce a health issues such as infertility. If They are right about abortion should not be legal, then major consequences follow for the women’s who having an abortion instead of thinking the consequences. Although abortion may lead a serious problem, causes psychological damage. Beside abortion is not a solution for the women’s who is having it without thinking about the consequences. The Abortion also have two different method: abortion pills and surgical abortion.

Abortion can cause a serious problem because it increases the chance of getting a breast cancer by ProCon.org. (n.d.). Abortion. Retrieved, this article it explains how the abortion lead to a risk problem such as a cancer or health problem. According to this article it states”is significantly associated with an increased risk of breast cancer” and that “the risk of breast cancer increases as the number of [abortions] increases.” (con 16). This explains how the health problem impact the women because the increase of getting an abortion that is the cause of getting a problem the rest of their life. I agree with this article is the best to know the causes and effects about abortion before making a decision. So they need to know what is abortion and consequences, the women who having the abortion might not know the effects they just taking their action. Another textual source by Harriet Pilpel (The Right of Abortion), she explained why the abortion made illegal because the hospital was not taking their responsibility to save the mother life. According to Pilpel where she states”Abortions were made illegal for this reason except where they were necessary to save the life of the mother; that is, where the great risk of infection which every operation involved was outweighed by the risk of carrying that particular pregnancy to term”. This means that the hospitals was increasing the risk for the mother lives because they were not using their power or responsibility to save lives during abortion. I agree with her because losing the women’s lives during abortion can impact the society and the mother will take action for it.

Abortion can also increase the risk of depression by ProCon.org. (n.d.). Abortion. Retrieved said in the article how they got the risk of depression because they do not want to go through the pain of abortion or lose their live. According to the article it states “American women found that women who aborted were 154% more likely to commit suicide than women who carried to term” (con 6). This shows how the women who committed suicide because of the consequences of getting an abortion they are many risk of getting it. In addition the abortion should not be legal because some women may lose their lives and increase the risk of depression.

This picture connect to my claim because a lot of women can have a depression after abortion because they might lose their lives or increase the risk of depression. Abortion impact the women live in society.

Some people argue that abortion should be legal because it will not increase a health problem when the hospitals are using the safety method by Harriet Pilpel (The Right of Abortion) on her article she explained why the abortion should be legal because it will protect the women health especially when they got rape or using the birth control. The states using their power to make abortion safe from not losing the lives of the women who is getting the abortion. According to Pilpel she states”Seven states—Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Maryland, New Mexico, and North Carolina—have amended their laws to permit abortion not only to save life but also to protect the health, mental and physical, of the mother, in cases of rape and incest, and to avert the birth of defective offspring (Governor Reagan forced the omission of this ground in the California law)”. This is important when the lawn permit the abortion because it will help the women or the teenage from not losing their life. Sometimes when they got pregnant the hospitals can recommended them to get an abortion because it’s not safe for them to continue the pregnant and it also help them from not getting the risk.

This picture can also connect to my claim because they are a method that that will not impact the women future pregnancies. Abortion pill safe and effective for getting the abortion and can also save their lives or getting a risk when the states pass their law to get an abortion safety.

In conclusion, abortion has been labeled as a social problem in the United States and all over the world. This only puts the mother’s life at risk and danger. Many factors such as weakening of the world economy and the consequences of the hard life as caused women to make such a critical decision. Ive witnessed my cousin who went through to the process of having abortion she almost lose her life, she had many regrets and was going through a phase of depression. Since then she decided of not having an abortion in her life, the consequences of abortion impacts the mother’s lives also the society.

 Abortion. (2019). Abortion – Pros & Cons – ProCon.org.https://abortion.procon.org

 Pilpel Harriet. U.S The Right of Abortion.16 August 2018.https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theatlantic.com/amp/article/303366

 

Mental health crisis

My research and what I going to map is about mental health crisis. The part that I going to indicate on the map will be the Bronx NY. The reason I chose this issue is because in New York there are many people who are dealing with mental health crisis and they do not have the adequate help to deal with this situation. I will focus on the Bronx area because it is the place where I live and every day, I see people destroyed because of mental problems and ended up in drugs. In this street I see different types of people with this problem women, men, youth boys and girls looking for solution of their problems in wrong places. This shows me that the health department no matter how much they say they are not doing is not enough for this people. Unfortunately, many of these people are going to other types of help. Drugs and alcohol make this problem worse. These people need more medical attention, places where they can be to treat their problems, supporting not only from their family also helps from professionals who are treating their situation. NY needs more professionals staff to identify the people who need help with crisis Mental health on time. There are many people who have mental problems but because they do not have the right medical attention these types of problems are some of the reasons why this country pass through for serious situations.

Research proposal: After School Programs

After school programs located in the Bronx during the past 10 years. after school programs are beneficial for educational development. Most of the time after the school bell rings at the end of the day, you don’t know what your kids are doing. After school program keep the child entertained as well as busy. It prevents the children from becoming addicted to Tv, or phones, or even preventing the child to get in trouble. It also help the kids to control theirs behaviors. And if we go deep in the topic  we have more 14 million students leave school every afternoon and have nowhere to go, since they do not have access to affordable, after school opportunities. One of the things that I would like to know during the process of doing the paper is to find out where founding are coming from, and why some of the school don’t offer free after school programs.

Research Paper

*Impact of public school meals on teenage at a middle school in the Bronx.

The impact of public school meal has a positive and negative effect on the kids which could become a problem in the society. The positive aspect can be the fact that they provide food for the kids at school which helps improve their learning and also helps them focus more on their studies and not have to worry about food while they are in school. While the negative effects is that it affects the development of their brain, their behavior and their learning because the schools meals is inorganic and lack of substance such as fiber, minerals, calcium and carbohydrates. Also, it leads to obesity because many kids in the US but specifically in the Bronx tend to have a high rate of obesity due to unhealthy food the Food and Nutrition Services provides to the schools. Additionally, school meals contain a high calories of cholesterol, sodium and fats. When kids intake that into their body, it affects their ability of understanding and their eating habits. In “1977,school lunch lead to obesity” (food timeline. org). Children uneaten their lunch due to the harm it causes and therefore over millions dollar is waste. In order to eradicate kids from getting sick or catch disease, every public school should initiated a center education to empower youth on the importance of how to read nutrition labels and identify healthy foods. On the other hand, governments should play a major role by putting more regulation on the food their provide kids. This topic is to raise awareness on the negative long term of obesity because the youth are the next generation of Americans but through what is happened youth may be the first generation to live shorter lives than their parents. To avoid this from happening  we should not let this be our legacy.

Research Proposal

My research proposal will be about art and public opinion of it. The map will be of all the physical locations of different art museums between the Bronx and Manhattan. They will be categorized due to rating and/or popularity. The point of this is to show that there is more to appreciate art than just physical paintings. This is to transition that there are artists online who would do just as good if not better pieces than in museums (beauty is in the eyes of the beholder after all). Some people may dismiss art as just being physical painted pieces on display on museums and leave it at that. Even if it’s part of it, it isn’t all of it. Some schools don’t even offer art classes for one reason or another and it’s a bit saddening. As someone who’s super passionate about art, I am personally curious about how the results will come out to be. This is also to gauge how older people view museum art versus digital art/art from the internet and how younger people view museum art versus digital art/art from the internet. This will account for different age groups and different styles of art to cover different bases and to see how diverse the results will be.

Research Proposal

Estheisi Taveras
Professor Michael
Eng 110

                          Poverty In NYC

The topic I will be researching for my English project is “Poverty”. A large amount of people do not know how it is to have a poor lifestyle. How it affects their kids and their personal life as they grow. I want to research poverty in Manhattan, looking at the last 10 years. I want to concentrate how how do they live their life specially having kids, how do they push forward. I want to know how their mindset, and how they became this way, if they were not poor before. I want to research this because a lot of people don’t appreciate what they have and are always looking at someone else’s accomplishment and feel guilty because theirs were not as high. But there is always another side, another side we do not feel like observing, a side that needs to be exposed. For many to feel grateful. I’ll be looking at how poverty has changed many lives, and mostly focusing on the ones that have children and are trying to escape this poor lifestyle. I want to keep researching, how does it affect their kids life? And what type of organization are helping to fight this battle. According to “Is It Possible To Live In Manhattan And Be In Poverty ?” It illustrates how poor people are also in the big apple of New York City something a lot of people would not believe because of what the city is known for or even because people or tourists do not take the time to really analyze NEw York City and its most unexpected things. New York City has a population of 1.6 million people and 17 percent is poverty. Seventeen percent are struggling to survive to have a normal like for themselves and their kids.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.manhattancontrarian.com/blog/2013/9/19/is-it-possible-to-live-in-manhattan-and-be-in-poverty%3fformat=amp

 

Research Proposal – Jhanilda C.

I will research the many benefits New York public libraries have for families and children and how this ties into the different approaches to contacting problematic children, and how this has had changed over the years. Many people and families have trouble when it comes to childcare and child entertainment, even getting their children to focus in school or in their day to day lives, many parents find an easy solution by setting them up for afterschool library programs which benefit them in many ways. The NYPL has a variety of programs for kids of all ages, from homework help to arts and crafts, hands-on science workshops, and more. All this kind of help helps children develop a better understanding of what they may be struggling with or with that they may need to learn in the future. My research proposal topic is on how the NYPL has helped and benefit children’s education over the past 10 years and how these programs will improve for the community’s children better future.

RESEARCH PROPOSAL: GENTRIFICATION BITES THE BIG APPLE.

It has become common today to dismiss low income residents of New York city in each of the five boroughs by affluent and often times new out of state dwellers and businesses. This phenomenon is termed as gentrification; a process of changing the character of a neighborhood by the influx of affluent residents. Greenpoint in Brooklyn specifically is an interesting neighborhood  to delve into. Young millennials especially from different parts of the world like Australia, France even Connecticut and Maine have displaced majority of the locals in what was a predominantly Polish immigrant neighborhood. This demographic wave has been referred to as ‘hipsters’ because of the unconventional and fancy lifestyles they tend to live; folk and indie music tastes, vegetarian diets, brunching at expensive cafes and thrift shopping and artistic jobs.

Many people assume that it began between 1990 to 2014. Greenpoint was once an industrial  area with warehouses and dumpsites oozing of sewage but that changed when the state demanded the British petroleum and Amoco natural oil and gas companies to clean up the neighborhood . Today you will find expensive high rise complexes and a new business as far as long island city sprawling from corners replacing those who are not able to keep up with the high rent rates. It is often said that after the long term leases expire, landlords continue to raise the rents because they know millennials are willing to pay to live in the hub. Polish family owned stores like bakeries have been misplaced and the older generation blame it on the vicious rent rates.

The map will show the new East river ferry that those going into Manhattan prefer as a quicker form of transport together with the G train that links to Williamsburg and Citi bike docks that have infiltrated the quint polish streets of Greenpoint.