mlabib's blog

Firstly, the methods was extremely interesting as it forced us to get out of our shell, walk on campus, and observe the nature on our campus, something I do not do too often. I was able to walk around and look at the ground rather looking at my phone in fear of being late to class. Before this project, I thought it would be very tedious as it required some detailed work on a computer using the app that was similar to Photoshop (forgot the name!) However, I loved using this app! It was like an art project. As I did the project, I enjoyed looking at the map of my school, as that is also something I do not do often enough. I also enjoyed following someone else's methods, setting this project up like a scavenger hunt and a challenge. It definitely meant a lot to us as a class because we all got to interact with each other and see the cool findings after the methods were followed by another student. In the future, I now know how to approach scientific figures!

“JUUL LABS WAS FOUNDED WITH THE GOAL OF IMPROVING THE LIVES OF THE WORLD'S ONE BILLION ADULT SMOKERS BY ELIMINATING CIGARETTES.”  This quote is significant to this research paper because I do believe that this is what Juul wants people to think, along with ; “We did not create JUUL to undermine years of effective tobacco control, and we do not want to see a new generation of smokers. We believe JUUL can accelerate cigarette displacement.” Is that so Juul? I believe that Juul is in fact doing the opposite. I believe they made this product knowing it could help smokers quit, but with the real intention to help college students have a mini, portable device to carry during their night out. Altria told analysts that Juul generated about $200 million in 2017. The person briefed on the latest results told Bloomberg that Juul's 2018 revenue was $1.3 billion and that it made a profit of $12.4 million.  This $12.4 million dollar profit is clearly not for the smokers who are trying to quit; but for the teenagers and young adults who can use it as a “fun device”.

After watching the short film “In Sickness and in Wealth”, I have learned many statistics which saddens me, especially given such poor statistics for a country who spends 2 trillion dollars spent on medical care. Most of my family lives in the United States, so to learn that we have very poor health rates and disease rates scare me and my families future.In this paper, I will be exploring three major concepts, the sadness’ going on in Louisville, excess death (low employment grade deaths), racism and health and lastly solutions to U.S health inequalities. . These three concepts connect as they are all correlated in one way. In America We live shorter and sicker lives. 30th in life expectancy. We are at the bottom of the list, and babies die earlier in America than Malta, Slovenia. This is sad considering we are much more advanced than them. Lastly, 47 million of us do not have health care coverage. Unfortunate reality. 

Hello,

My name is Mariam Labib, and I am a junior presenting to you the Effect of Air Quality on Lichens in Different Areas of the Forest. I will start off by speaking to you about the background as well as methods. My classmates and I went to a secluded area filled with trees, bushes, etc right behind Orchard Hill Residents Halls. We walked across a road which then led into a forest. We then created a plot which was three meters into the forest. Within this plot, we had put flags around the edge to make sure we respect the guidelines of our project. We then took a 1 meter measuring tape, we started at the bottom of the tree and went up 1 meter. We then split the task, and each person counted how many lichens there were in a 5x5-inch metal grid. We repeated this until the grids filled up the one meter. It is important to note we made sure that we took these measurements on each “north side” of every tree, as per the Lichens Textbook found in Professor Brewer’s office, this is what was noted. We repeated this in the second plot which was 20 meters into the forest. Our hypothesis was that there would be more lichens in an area 20 meters deep into the forest, as it has less disturbances such as gas rising from cars from the road, thus having better quality of life for the lichens to grow and populate. We found that the trees which were 20 meters deep into the forest had more lichens, thus proving our hypothesis. Additionally, our p value was small which indicates it is significant. Overall, it was a very successful project. In the future, I believe there are many modifications that can be done to have a larger difference in our results, but this is a great step forward in the research area of lichens! 

We have all heard of Gentically Modified Organisms. Recent developments in the science community have allowed recombinant technologies to be used to create new vaccines. In the past decade, there has been a significant increase in the number of medications produced to prevent infections and diseases. Before any product is released, it must be tested to ensure the quality, safety and efficiency of the product when used on humans. Few countries are trying to legalize the use of genetically modified organisms in their vaccines. The use of GMOs in vaccines is to enhance the immune response against the infectious agent or tumor cells. The GMO used in chosen on a case by case basis to ensure that appropriate evaluations can be determined after. GMO regulation is very complex and requires a lot of trials. The hope is that these GMO vaccines can be used to treat HIV, malaria, tuberculosis and other emerging diseases in the future. 

            Some successful vaccines have been released in Europe, including the Dengvaxia vaccine. Dengvaxia, is a GMO vaccine, used to prevent the dengue disease, a mosquito borne viral disease. This virus causes 20,000- 25,000 deaths each year, mainly children, and can infect a person more than once in their lifetime. In the past multiple vaccines were usually needed to prevent infections. The dengvaxia vaccine was developed by using a strand of the yellow fever vaccine as a vector, which was then genetically modified to express different genes. 

Recent developments in the science community have allowed recombinant technologies to be used to create new vaccines. In the past decade, there has been a significant increase in the number of medications produced to prevent infections and diseases. Before any product is released, it must be tested to ensure the quality, safety and efficiency of the product when used on humans. Few countries are trying to legalize the use of genetically modified organisms in their vaccines. The use of GMOs in vaccines is to enhance the immune response against the infectious agent or tumor cells. The GMO used in chosen on a case by case basis to ensure that appropriate evaluations can be determined after. GMO regulation is very complex and requires a lot of trials. The hope is that these GMO vaccines can be used to treat HIV, malaria, tuberculosis and other emerging diseases in the future. 

            Some successful vaccines have been released in Europe, including the Dengvaxia vaccine. Dengvaxia, is a GMO vaccine, used to prevent the dengue disease, a mosquito borne viral disease. This virus causes 20,000- 25,000 deaths each year, mainly children, and can infect a person more than once in their lifetime. In the past multiple vaccines were usually needed to prevent infections. The dengvaxia vaccine was developed by using a strand of the yellow fever vaccine as a vector, which was then genetically modified to express different genes. 

The religious violence then came not too long after the political violence. President Hosni Mubarak has urged Egypt's Muslims and Christians to stand united against terrorism after a bombing outside a church in Alexandria in 2011. At least 21 people were killed and 70 hurt in the suspected suicide attack, which happened during a New Year's Eve service at the al-Qiddissin Church. You may have thought this violence would reside but on 11 December 2016, a suicide bomber killed 29 people and injured 47 others at St. Peter and St. Paul's Church (commonly known as El-Botroseya Church). Another example being 2017, where bombs went off at two Coptic Christian churches in Egypt on April 9th, killing more than 40 people and injuring dozens of others. The attacks occurred on Palm Sunday ― one of the holiest days in the Christian calendar. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attacks, which were aimed at a vulnerable religious minority on one of the most important days on the Christian calendar

in the novel Nadia’s doctor cousin is “blown to bits, literally to bits, the largest of which … were a head and two-thirds of an arm”. The man who sells Nadia and Saeed magic mushrooms is beheaded, then “strung up by one ankle from an electricity pylon where [his body] swayed legs akimbo until the shoelaces his executioners used instead of rope rotted and gave way”. Saeed’s own mother dies while looking in her car for a lost earring, “a stray heavy-calibre round passing through the windscreen … and taking with it a quarter of her head”. These examples of individual terrorism could be easily compared to many cases I have personal experienced with involving my Coptic Otthodox community. The EgyptAir Airbus A320 flying overnight from Paris to Cairo crashed into the eastern Mediterranean Sea on 19 May 2016. All 66 passengers and crew on board Flight MS804 died. My friend, Mariem Tanious’ father passed away during this flight, and they are Coptic Orthodox as well. Nevertheless, my direct cousin who is also my religion and is a famous drummer in Egypt, was held to gunpoint by a terrorist, asking him for all his money. Luckily, the wallet was given and the terrorist had fled.  

The religious violence then came not too long after, President Hosni Mubarak has urged Egypt's Muslims and Christians to stand united against terrorism after a bombing outside a church in Alexandria in 2011. At least 21 people were killed and 70 hurt in the suspected suicide attack, which happened during a New Year's Eve service at the al-Qiddissin Church. You may have thought this violence would reside but on 11 December 2016, a suicide bomber killed 29 people and injured 47 others at St. Peter and St. Paul's Church (commonly known as El-Botroseya Church). Another example being 2017, where bombs went off at two Coptic Christian churches in Egypt on April 9th, killing more than 40 people and injuring dozens of others. The attacks occurred on Palm Sunday ― one of the holiest days in the Christian calendar. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attacks, which were aimed at a vulnerable religious minority on one of the most important days on the Christian calendar

When I tell people, I am Egyptian, I get nothing but “Wow! That must be amazing!” or “Were you born in a Pyramid?” It is true that Egypt carries one of the 7 wonders of the world; The Great Pyramids of Giza. However, beneath the beauty of this country comes violence, a violence that saddens my heart and could potentially affect my family lineage. I am Coptic Orthodox. Currently, we occupy 6-8% of the Egyptian population. The city “Alexandria” is even named after the Alexandrian priest, Arius. It is sad to see that for me, as we were once the dominant religion in Egypt, before Islam took over. Currently, it is estimated that 94.9% of Egyptians are Muslim. Although both religions consist of many amazing individuals, problems occur when two religions have different beliefs but reside in the same country, and are a part of ISIS, a terrorist militant group.