Aedes aegypti

Yellow Fever Yellow fever is a potentially deadly infection that has the power to kill with just a bite from a mosquito. This infection, that mainly began in the 1900’s, has caused many people to have nasty symptoms and even death. This potent disease has gruesome consequences if it is allowed to reach the further stages, and it has the ability to transmit rapidly within a short period of time. The initial symptoms will appear three to six days after being bitten by a mosquito. The three to…

We know what caused it, a near-cure, where it came from, and how to prevent it. We know that the Aedes Aegypti, a type of mosquito, causes Yellow Fever. The mosquitos breed and lay their eggs in water and like to come out at night. The incest loves hot weather and comes out during that time. In 1793, though, they didn’t have a complete understanding of…

The article “Zika virus discovered in infant brains bolsters link to microcephaly” by Gretchen Vogel and the article “5 things you need to know about Zika” by Sandee LaMotte both discuss the growing dangers of Zika virus. Each author takes a deeper look into the virus, but also each author varies on the way that Zika virus is discussed. The first author Vogel discusses more about the personal experience of pregnant woman and the link of birth defects caused by the Zika virus. The second author…

Discoveries in the field of genetics have given the world hope for a brighter future. With promises of disease eradication, increased intelligence, and longer lifespans, it is no wonder that people believe that this altering our genetic code is the solution to all of our problems. However, with all of these potential benefits, there come potential dangers. A new scientific breakthrough has come our way. Referred to as CRISPR, this new technology is the easiest, cheapest, and most reliable way of…

Critical thinking is a series of thinking processes to assess judgment, assumption, argument or claim in a thorough and rational manner. Critical thinking is the most fundamental skills that can be achieved by postgraduate students which applicable to other context as well, or termed as a transferable skill. Postgraduate students are primarily working on a research project which suits well with their own interest. On the daily basis, students are using scientific approach to figure out the…

Train Wreck Honestly, I was trying to envision the absolute state of wreckage (pardon the redundancy) my country now finds itself in as something apart from my daily exile experience… when the whole story turned more personal than I’d have expected: A nice woman I know has found herself pregnant during the panic wave surrounding pregnancies in the mosquito-stricken Brazil of these last few weeks. We have been discussing this, and Alan advised me, if I ever wanted to write about it, I should do…

In the United States, a devastating water crisis is occurring. Water in the town of Flint, Michigan has been contaminated with toxic substances, resulting in residents getting sick. The problem originated from a water rehabilitation project when officials decided to build a pipeline in order to draw water from Lake Huron. However, the pipeline became too expensive and was never finished. Instead officials elected to draw municipal water from the Flint River instead. Sadly, the Flint River…

In the war against terrorism, Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) pose a potential strategic scenario (White, 2012). R. James Woolsey, former head of the Central Intelligence Agency believes terrorist possessing the capabilities of WMD represent the single most serious threat to United States national security ( ). The challenges of WMD are; they are easy to build and easy to hide. One of the most challenging weapon types of WMD are biological agents. These agents are viewed as infectious…

Introduction and Background: The population studied in this report is the country of Brazil, located in South America. Brazil has the 5th largest population in the world, measuring a little over 200 million people (Table 1). Brazil’s population is roughly 51% female and has a population growth of approximately 1.2% per year from 2010-2015 (United Nations, 2015). Approximately 85% of people in Brazil live in urban regions, with the majority of the rural populations consisting of indigenous…

Faster, Higher, Stronger? “Go USA!!!” is a phrase many Americans cheer as they watch in anticipation the Olympic Games at home. Many of us enjoy watching sports and will cheer on our country’s athletes while the Olympics are taking place. However, for the upcoming Olympics in Rio, there has been massive controversy over whether they should even take place. Many problems have flooded Brazil recently and organizations like the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and…