Rasheed Salmon
Professor F
December 13th, 2019
Portfolio
Theory of Writing
My theory of writing insists of clear thoughts, ideas and proper grammar so that I can easily communicate with my audience. I think it important to change my diction up a few times depending on who my audience is. My writing strategy insists of clear list of ideas and thoughts; I tend to organize similar thoughts into the same paragraph or several paragraphs. What I think I should know about writing is why do people write in the first place. Most people write to inform, entertain, persuade and to explain. Over the course of the semester, I’ve developed a practical strategy in writing my essays. This includes a concise thesis, well structured body paragraphs with enough information that supports my thesis, good body sentence opener, a counter argument or claim and well summarized conclusion. What I believe about wring has allowed me to write a well-organized essay which has a lot of thought. I’ve acquired valuable information from my peers on my writing. One of which is to be careful of the pronouns I use as readers may have problems understanding my work, try to give facts that supports your argument and don’t give a counterclaim without any rebuttals. My writing has seen enormous growth throughout the semester; I can now write effectively and confidently in my classes especially History, but I believe I could improve on my in-text citations, references and works cited page. Besides that, I’ve seen improvements in my ability create a good thesis statement with well-organized body paragraphs that support the thesis statement.
Source Based Essay
Vaping
Vaping has been a substitute for smoking since it was first created back in the early 2000s. Vaping has been on the rise ever since its creation and it seems that teens are the main target market for e-cigarettes companies. As of lately teens have been dying from e-cigarettes related illnesses. There has been a growing debate on whether the government should outlaw the use of e-cigarettes or create policies that restrict the number of e-cigarettes that are being produced. Researchers today debate constantly, about the long-term effects of vaping use. Here I’ve analyzed four documents on vaping.
E-cigs can trigger same lung changes seen in Smokers, Emphysema, is a news article written by News RX LLC published on September 7, 2019. It is about scientists’ researches that proves that e-cigarettes are not safer than smoking. The authors talk about how studies from the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine reveals that e-cigarettes users have elevated levels of protease enzymes, a condition known to cause emphysema in smokers. The authors mention statistical evidence from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that highlights that in 2014 about 9 million adults in the country were regular vapers and close to 30 million had tried vaping at least once. The author discussed the work of Robert Tarran, PhD, a professor in the department of cell biology and physiology and member of the Marsico Lung Institute at the UNC school of medicine, his findings reveals that vaping like smoking, may promote emphysema. The author mentions more studies that are being done right now. The author aimed his work at vapers and/or e-cigarettes users and potential e-cigarettes users to let them know that vaping causes numerous health problems like Emphysema and COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary disease), two of the main disease smokers battle. The author used an objective tone allowing him. to written without about being discriminate and prejudice; it allowed her to be fair meaning her claims were backed by evidence from a reliable source, for example , The truth about Vaping, states, “from a team led by UNC Marsico Lung Institute researcher Mehmet kesimer, PhD, found that sputum from vapers and smokers contained elevated levels of emphysema-promoting proteases and other immune defense proteins.” From this the author was able to assert her claim, that both vaping and smoking causes emphysema, without prejudice or being bias. The writer stance was that vaping is NOT less harmful than smoking.
The truth about Vaping, is a magazine article written by Larisa Brass, published on September 1, 2019. Larisa Brass is a homemaker and writer from Tennessee. Her work was about what vaping truly entails, Brass knew that vaping was bad news, from her very first encounter with vaping, over a decade ago. She was quoted saying “but I knew from the way that quick puff caught in my chest that it was a bad idea.” Brass talks about the how at end of the last century, smoking at the last century has fell steadily due to the introduction of e-cigarettes, ‘the new generation of smoking’. Brass mentions statistical data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that illustrates that in 2018 more than 3.6 million middle and high school students reported using e-cigarettes. Brass briefly describes the different names, different brands and different looks of e-cigarettes but she came up the underlying fact that are all the same thing. Brass mentions the latest of researchers on e-cigarettes, findings state that “Multiple studies have found that e-cigarettes expose users to formaldehyde, a carcinogen and diacetyl.” All these are used for e-cigarettes flavoring and they are known to produce the lung disease obliterative bronchiolitis. Brass also brings the fact that teens who are e-cigarettes use are three times more likely to begin smoking cigarettes. Larisa Brass is now busy in Knoxville, Tennessee with her husband, kids and her dog. The author, Larisa Brass, aimed her magazine article, at teens in an effort the to inform them about the danger of vaping. Shen wanted teens to know that vaping causes several illnesses so they must detain from vaping or if they are e-cigarettes users, they should stop. Brass used an informative tone which allowed her to better interact with teens (her audience), her use of informative tone made her magazine article a more educational and factual piece. At the end of her article Brass to stance on vaping, she believes that US should ban or restrict e-cigarettes distribution like in Canada, Australia, Jordan and Hong Kong.
Teen vaping is a Scholarly article written by Brenda L. Douglass and Susan Solecki. Published on August 1, 2019. Brenda Douglass is the DNP program director and assistant clinical professor at the Drexel University College of Nursing and Health Programs in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Susan Solecki are an assistant clinical professor of nursing, at the Drexel University College of Nursing and Health Programs in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This scholarly article is about the effects of teenage vaping. Firstly, Solecki and Douglass described what vaping is, they said “vaping is the use of high-tech, advanced electronic devices such as electronic devices such as electronic cigarettes(e-cigarettes), refillable atomizers, and other tobacco products as an alternative or in addition to regular cigarettes.” The authors then give a briefly mention how e-cigarettes were developed, e-cigarettes were conceptualized by Herbert Gilbert in 1965 but an electronic atomizer version was patented by Ruyan Technology in China. The authors state that vaping is public health concern that has escalated over recent years, the authors cite data from the National Youth Tobacco Survey which reveals that in 2015, over 3 million middle school and high school students reported e-cigarettes use, equating to 1 in every 6 school students and over 25% reported trying e-cigarettes. The authors go on to mention that e-cigarettes contain nicotine which can hugely affect the developing brains of adolescents, these effects can be increased heart rate and blood pressure, atherosclerosis and addiction. They then the vaping ‘techniques’ like “Dripping” a technique e-cigarette use to a better-tasting flavor and/or to get a stronger hit produced in their throats. The authors go on to talk about the roles of parents and healthcare providers when dealing with adolescents who uses e-cigarettes. The authors aimed their article at adolescents in an effort to deeply explore the risk-taking behavior of adolescents engaging in vaping and the effects of vaping and to discuss the discriminate use of nicotine products on the young. The authors had a candid tone meaning they truthful about the situation, all their claims were straightforward; for example, “Adolescents encompasses over 20% of the population in the United States. Harm reduction prevention and early interventions of risky behavioral patterns established developmental periods of youth are not only significant for the influencing adolescents’ current health status, but also their future health status into adulthood.” The authors believed that e-cigarettes products in any form presents dangers and is unsafe for teens.
The Benefits of Vaping Go Up in Smoke is a website article written by Kevin Moye. Kevin Moye is a 26-year-old African- American writer and poet from Chicago. His article is about the sudden increase in nicotine addiction in America. Nicotine consumption has been something the US has battled, ever since congress passed a law in 1970s banning cigarette advertisement on radios and TVs, nicotine consumption has been at all time low but now the numbers are on arise and it’s not due to smoking but vaping. E-cigarettes use went from 1.5% in 2011 to 11.3% In 2016 among teens. Moye mentioned that vaping is popular due to the flavors but also the rush that is felt and the fact that e-cigarettes companies targets the youth. Moyes discussed how vaping may also produce carcinogens which leads to lung disease. Moye goes on to mention vapor is reported increase the concentration of aluminum, nicotine and particulate matter in the air. The author uses a cautionary tone to help him raise awareness about the dangers of vaping for example he said, “vapers should be made aware of the risk they are taking every time they hit their vape pen or e-cig. The act may indeed be better than smoking cigarettes, but negative long-term effects are a very real possibility as well as developing an addiction to nicotine in short-term.” Moye aimed his website article at Vapers in an effort to let vaper know the risk they are taking by vaping. Moye’s stance was that vaping has long-term effect that is greater than that of smoking a cigarette.
Throughout the four texts the writers of each source used different to tones to clearly carryout their goals. For example, Brass used an informative tone because she is trying to give factual evidence of how vaping effects lives and another example is Moyes’ use of the cautionary tone because he is trying to warn vapers of the danger of vaping. Although these writers have similar topics, they illustrated different claims or stance, for example the news articles’ author believed that vaping is not less harmful than smoking despite beliefs while Brass believes that the US should want other countries do and outlaw vaping. These documents may have a similar topic or even structure, but each writer express ideas and their differently.
Research-Based Essay
Should the US government ban the sales and distribution of E-cigarettes?
There is a new trend hitting the market known as e-cigarettes, or “vaping.” Electronic cigarettes or e-cigarettes for short, are battery powered devices filled with liquid nicotine that is dissolved in a solution of water and propylene glycol. Many of them look like real cigarettes with a white cylindrical tube, brown filter, and red-glowing tip. Many people believe that e-cigarettes are better than traditional cigarettes, but research shows just how unhealthy and harmful e-cigarettes are for everyone. E-cigarettes are marketed to help people quit smoking and live a healthier nonsmoking life. E-cigarettes are meant to help break the habit of smoking, but why are there so many “toxic chemicals” in the vapor? Is this invention to help people quit smoking or just another way for tobacco companies to get richer? With growing popularity among American teens and recent headlines of e-cigarettes related deaths should the US, finally do what other countries like Canada, Japan and some European countries have done and that is ban e-cigarettes sales and distribution or create restrictions of e-cigarettes distribution within their borders.
Vaping may not be healthier than smoking. In a recent study, from the American Journal Respiratory and critical care medicine reveals that e-cigarettes users have elevated levels of protease enzymes, a condition known to cause emphysema in smokers. Vaping may believe to be an alternative to smoking, maybe it was once when it was first created but vaping has an entire new life of its own, with growing popularity among our youths. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that highlights that in 2014 about 9 million adults in the country were regular vapers and close to 30 million had tried vaping at least once. Most e-cigarettes deliver nicotine, which is highly addictive and can harm the developing brains of teens, kids and fetuses in women who vape while pregnant. Some types expose users to even more nicotine than traditional cigarettes. In addition to nicotine, e-cigarette vapor includes potentially harmful substances such as diacetyl (a chemical linked to a serious lung disease), cancer-causing chemicals, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and heavy metals such as nickel, tin, and lead. Users breathe in these toxic contaminants, and non-users’ nearby risk secondhand exposure. The liquid used in e-cigarettes can be dangerous, even apart from its intended use. Children and adults have been poisoned by swallowing, breathing or absorbing the liquid through their skin or eyes’, e-cigarettes have been linked to thousands of cases of serious lung injury some resulting in death. While the exact cause is still not confirmed, the CDC recommends that people not use e-cigarettes.
The e-cigarette market spent more than $8.6 billion on aggressive marketing in 2017 alone. That’s more than $23 million each day and almost $1 million every hour! Nearly 80% of middle and high school students — that’s 4 out of 5 kids — were exposed to e-cigarette advertising in 2016. E-cigarettes are now the most common form of tobacco use by kids and teens. In 2018, the use by high school students in the U.S. doubled from the previous year. Many young people say they’ve tried e-cigarettes in part because of the appealing flavors. More than 80% of teen users say their first e-cigarette product was flavored. The Surgeon General called e-cigarette use among young people a “public health concern.” Regulate and tax e-cigarettes in the same way as all other tobacco products. Remove all flavors, including menthol, which make these products more appealing to kids and young people. Include e-cigarettes in smoke-free laws and raise the legal sales age for all tobacco products to 21. E-cigarettes heat nicotine (extracted from tobacco), flavorings and other chemicals to create a water vapor that you inhale. Regular tobacco cigarettes contain 7,000 chemicals, many of which are toxic. While we don’t know exactly what chemicals are in e-cigarettes, Michael Joseph Blaha M.D., MPH, Johns Hopkins Medicine says, “there’s almost no doubt that they expose you to fewer toxic chemicals than traditional cigarettes.” Nicotine is the primary agent in both regular cigarettes and e-cigarettes, and it is highly addictive. It causes you to crave a smoke and suffer withdrawal symptoms if you ignore the craving. Nicotine is also a toxic substance. It raises your blood pressure and spikes your adrenaline, which increases your heart rate and the likelihood of having a heart attack. Is vaping bad for you? There are many unknowns about vaping, including what chemicals make up the vapor and how they affect physical health over the long term. “People need to understand that e-cigarettes are potentially dangerous to your health,” says Blaha. “You’re exposing yourself to all kinds of chemicals that we don’t yet understand and that are probably not safe.” Among youth, e-cigarettes are more popular than any traditional tobacco product. In 2015, the U.S. surgeon general reported that e-cigarette use among high school students had increased by 900 percent, and 40 percent of young e-cigarette users had never smoked regular tobacco. According to Blaha, there are three reasons e-cigarettes may be particularly enticing to young people. First, many teens believe that vaping is less harmful than smoking. Second, e-cigarettes have a lower per-use cost than traditional cigarettes. Finally, vape cartridges are often formulated with flavorings such as apple pie and watermelon that appeal to younger users. Both youths and adults find the lack of smoke appealing. With no smell, e-cigarettes reduce the stigma of smoking. “What I find most concerning about the rise of vaping is that people who would’ve never smoked otherwise, especially youth, are taking up the habit,” says Blaha. “It’s one thing if you convert from cigarette smoking to vaping. It’s quite another thing to start up nicotine use with vaping. And, it often leads to using traditional tobacco products down the road.”
The growing numbers of vaping teens is scary. A rapid increase in the prevalence of vaping among adolescents has aroused public health concern. In 2017, vaping was the most common use of any tobacco-like product among adolescents. This is a rapid rise from a near-zero prevalence of vaping in 2011. We assessed whether the prevalence of nicotine vaping increased among adolescents from 2017 to 2018. Data for our study came from Monitoring the Future, which annually surveys nationally representative, independent samples of students in the 12th, 10th, and 8th grades. Analyses were based on a total of 13,850 respondents. A randomly selected half of the 12th-grade respondents in this study answered a group of questions on vaping as well as on six common forms of tobacco use, which allowed for the assessment of overall nicotine use with any nicotine product. There was a sharp increase in the prevalence of nicotine vaping — 10.0 percentage points among 12th-graders, 7.9 percentage points among 10th-graders, and 2.6 percentage points among 8th-graders. The increases were similar in the combination measure of adolescents who reported vaping nicotine or “just flavoring” (or both) — a measure that captures data regarding youths who may unknowingly vape nicotine. The overall use of nicotine with any product increased significantly, by 5.2 percentage points from 23.7% to 28.9%, in the sample of 12th-graders who answered questions on both vaping and use of tobacco products. This increase was driven solely by nicotine vaping, given that the use of each of the other six nicotine products declined (although not significantly).
The 1-year increases in the prevalence of nicotine vaping translate into approximately 1.3 million additional adolescents who vaped in 2018, as compared with 2017. This estimate was calculated on the basis of approximately 16 million youths in grades 9 through 12, with interpolation of the increases in grades 9 and 11 as the mean of the increases in the adjacent grades. Put in historical context, the absolute increases in the prevalence of nicotine vaping among 12th-graders and 10th-graders are the largest ever recorded by Monitoring the Future in the 44 years that it has continuously tracked dozens of substances. The rapid entry of new vaping devices on the market, the latest example of which is the Juul, will require continual updates and modification of strategies to keep adolescents from vaping and its associated negative health effects.
Why is vaping so popular? It the various flavors! The many flavors and high percentage of nicotine in E-cigarettes makes E-cigarettes highly addictive and convenient. Flavoring may increase the abuse liability of e-cigarettes with nicotine in smokers. The absence of flavoring in e-cigarettes with nicotine may result in decreased use. Flavoring enhance the rewarding and reinforcing value of e-cigarettes with nicotine such that young adult smokers continue to use both e-cigarettes and combustible cigarettes? Cross-sectional surveys indicate that up to half of smokers who use e-cigarettes do not smoke fewer combustible cigarettes. Flavoring may foster the use of e-cigarettes among young adult smokers, increase nicotine exposure, and result in higher levels of nicotine dependence. Young adults also may learn that e-cigarettes can be used in place of combustible cigarettes in nonsmoking situations
Many regard E-cigarettes as an alternative to smoking. Nicotine addiction in any of its forms, regardless of whether it is smoking or vaping, is a huge problem for addicts. It leads to several severe, chronic diseases and even to death. At the same time, there might be a healthier alternative for those smokers who realize the harm they cause to themselves, but who cannot yet give up their addiction. Electronic cigarettes are nowadays considered to be safer than regular cigarettes, but are there? Liquids used in these e-cigarettes may contain fewer toxic elements, and do not include the products that are commonly burned in cigarettes, but many chemicals used in E-cigarettes has unknown effects and there isn’t many information about the long-term effects of vaping, since vaping is relatively new. Vaping from e-cigarettes is mostly harmless to non-smokers; it tastes and smells better, which makes smoking e-cigarettes a less reproached habit. Finally, many smokers might discover that e-cigarettes do not obstruct their reasons to continue smoking, while making it impossible to decrease the amounts of consumed nicotine and to eventually break the habit. Therefore, without praising or advertising e-cigarettes, it can still be stated that they are preferable alternative for smokers.
In conclusion, America the grip of a health scare over e-cigarettes with seven people have died and around 380 are suffering from a mysterious lung disease linked to vaping. The Us government should ban or restrict e-cigarettes because the chemicals in vapes are not proven safe, nicotine levels in teens are on a rise and these are now predicted to go down without any response by the US government. Although several local lawmakers are restricting e-cigarettes, there hasn’t been a spiking decline in e-cigarettes sales or use. On September 11th the Trump administration said it would ban the sale of most flavored e-cigarettes, but legislative action hasn’t taken place yet. Michigan and New York have announced similar bans. On September 16th California’s governor signed an executive order regulating e-cigarette sales. Concern over vaping has been growing for years. Much of it has focused on teenagers, more and more of whom are warming to the habit. In 2018, according to an annual survey by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, more than one in ten eighth graders (mainly 12- to 14-year-olds) said they vaped nicotine in the past year. Among high-school seniors (aged 17 to 18) the figure was 37%. Nearly 21% reported vaping in the past 30 days, up from 11% the previous year. This was the largest single-year increase in the use of any substance in the survey’s 44-year history. Hence actions are needed right away.
Works Cited
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Composition in Two Genres
Medical Report
News from the Salmon Regional Facility reports evidence of vaping related illnesses. The Salmon Regional Facility has identified high nicotine level among people with e-cigarettes, or vaping use associated with Lung injury. Recent laboratory testing of the lungs of 10 patients with e-cigarettes related illness, has high levels of nicotine. Nicotine is addictive and agent of many e-cigarettes, or vaping products. Rasheed Salmon PhD. And his team analyses of the Bronchi of the 10 patients, with e-cigarettes related illnesses reveals that other toxic elements are present, over 100 different types but it hard to tell which chemical has the most significant effect. Rasheed Salmon PhD says, “It’s hard to tell which chemical is doing what… or which have this most significant effect but what we do know is that there not good”. Recent tests from laboratory test of e-cigarettes related illness samples from 13 patients submitted to the Salmon Regional Facility from 7 sates show the same active chemicals in the lungs. Nicotine was identified in 60% of the samples and 82 % of the samples had the harmful chemicals or toxins. Rasheed Salmon PhD says, “This finding proves that vaping and or e-cigarettes may not be as safe as they were led to be believed but more investigation needs to be done”. Rasheed Salmon PhD. recommends that people should not use e-cigarette, or vaping, products, particularly from informal sources like friends, or family, or in-person or online dealers. While this investigation is ongoing, there no telling how bad this could get.
Interview
Rodney Smith is 19-year Ex- Vaper Activists. Rodney was heavy vaper till one day his lungs collapsed and his life was forever changed. Rodney was in the hospital for several weeks and is currently on various medication. Rodney now travels to various high schools across to campaign against the use of vaping. Rodney is the founder of movement called LET’s Fight Against Vaping. He recently had a chance to sit down with a local news reporter, Rasheed Salmon. A full transcript of their conversation is written below.
Rasheed Salmon: Good Morning Rodney, how are you doing?
Rodney: I fine, thank you for asking
Rasheed: How did we get here?
Rodney: (confusingly) what You mean?
Rasheed: How did this movement started? But firstly, What Happened a year ago?
Rodney: So last summer I was vaping and then suddenly It felt like…. Like there was a hole in my chest. I couldn’t breathe, it was like I was …. I was suffocating
Rasheed: Was this your First-time vaping?
Rodney: No; I’d vaped several times before
Rasheed: So, after you felt that pain in your chest … What exactly Happened?
Rodney: I was rushed to the Hospital, I think I passed out a bit because I can’t remember anything after my mom drove me to the Hospital, that happened on August 23rd and I woke up to find myself in the Hospital on the 27th
Rasheed: How has this event changed your life?
Rodney: I don’t (sobbingly) … I don’t live like how I used. My chest is Numb (continues to cry) … I literally cannot feel anything on the Left side of my chest
Rasheed: I’m sorry to hear that (hands him some tissue)
Rodney: Thank you
Rasheed: Why start this movement?
Rodney: I wanted to let everyone what no what happened to mean because of vaping, especially teens becomes so much of the vaping companies targets them
Rasheed: And what would say to one of those executives of the vaping companies?
Rodney: I’d say stop selling vapes, you’ve may have had us fooled, that vaping is safe; That vaping is better alternative to smoking cigarettes, but the said truth is that it may not be even deadlier. So, I’m begging you stop for the sake of your children.
Rasheed: Thank you for meeting with me today
Rodney: No, thank you for having me
