Analysis : ' Kiss ' The Bugs Goodbye ! '

Many animals kill countless numbers of humans every second, minutes, and hours. The mosquito is among those predators, and it causes the most morbidity and mortality among humans compared to any other animal or insect. Mosquitoes are notoriously known for causing malaria worldwide. Malaria is a disabling illness which can result in mobility and mortality. People infected with the disease become weak over a period of time. This reduces their productivity level; thus it makes simple activities of daily living difficulty to accomplish. Some of the common symptoms of malaria resemble those of the flu. Malaria is an extreme health burden in low and middle income countries especially African countries. Moreover, the disease is mostly prevalent in sub-Saharan African countries, among pregnant women and children age 5 and younger. Over the years, scientists have discovered and developed several methods to control the spread of malaria. One of the most controversial control methods for malaria is DDT. DDT is short for dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane; this method come in the form of a pesticide or insecticide. It is used to kill pest and insects specifically mosquitoes. “DDT is used in indoor spraying for control of vectors of malaria and visceral leishmaniasis” (Van den Berg, 2009). Scientists have realized that the pesticide could be effective at preventive malaria by reducing the amount of mosquitoes in the environment. Despite this, concerns about the effectiveness and safety of

The one thing that could keep me inside on a nice summer’s day is the threat of mosquitoes. Where they bite me, I swell up and itch for days afterwards. It’s a hard choice between slathering myself in nasty smelling insect repellant or staying inside. Sometimes even with the insect repellant I still get bit. To add insult to injury, they sometimes get in the house and attack me. They seem to be an annoyance I can’t escape. I’m lucky that the mosquitoes that bite me don’t carry dangerous diseases like the ones in other counties. Daniel Engber who wrote the article “Let’s Kill All the Mosquitoes” has the solution to our problem. He makes a great argument to kill the dangerous mosquitoes and it’s very well supported with credible sources.

No one would have ever thought that a little bitty bug, with a painless bite could cause so much harm. This deadly virus was going around for awhile until it suddenly disappeared for about 20 years, causing everyone to make false assumptions that it was gone forever. Mosquitoes, the pesky bugs, will sooner, rather then later, become a threat once again.

What's really important is to use bug spray, they get really annoying. I got at least like 50 bug bites, it was very, very, annoying. 150 more to go.

DDT has been used since WW2 as an insecticide to control the outbreak of malaria and typhus among troops and civilians. This is because malaria is spread by mosquitos and DDT was considered to be a powerful in eliminating these populations, thus decreasing the infection rate for malaria. Since it was first discovered as an insecticide, worldwide it was used in very large amounts because nobody knew any better and it was considered to be revolutionary. It wasn’t until 1962, when biologist Rachel Carson first outlined the potential harm DDT has on the environment, believing it caused cancer in humans and harmed bird wildlife. This led to the United Stated ban of DDT use in 1972, and later, a worldwide ban under the Stockholm

Department of Health. (2009, April). Information Sheet: Malathion and Mosquito Control. Retrieved July 11, 2011, from New York State department of health: http://www.health.state.ny.us/publications/2740/

Typically this type of spray should be used in the evening and night time if you plan to be outside. It is also recommended if you are going to be in a swampy or wooded area for any length of time. Insect repellent containing 5 to 30 percent DEET is the most effective. Be sure to choose a DEET product that is suited for the age of the person using it and time being spent outside. This information will be available on the product label. Be sure to read the instructions carefully and to apply the product properly.

“The recipe I posted for bug/tick repellent that I got from Becky (thank you so much) works!!!!! Stock photo on left is what her belly would look like in minutes of being outside from fly/gnat attacks. On the right is today after being outside for several hours. Awesome awesome homemade recipe” -Liane Ferraro

In her article The Best Bug Repellent Leigh Krietsch Boerner states that spent countless hours pouring over mountains of research about different bug sprays and repellents and their safety and effectiveness. Cutter Backwoods Dry has twenty-five percent DEET and is the easiest to apply and more comfortable on skin. It also has the most reliable spray. It is apparent that people put a lot of effort into what they want to protect their skin,

In the early 1940’s, a new technology emerged that was able to successfully combat crop-damaging and disease-carrying insects. A new age of synthetic chemical pesticides use arose. After their impressive success in fighting deadly insect-borne diseases during World War II, pesticides were used widely to combat insect pests for agriculture and public health. Few people challenged the benefits of the new scientific and technological products and many embraced pesticide use with enthusiasm. Despite its success, doubts about pesticide use began to appear a decade later in the 1950’s, when the government began a vigorous pesticide campaign across the country against insect pests. Scientists began reporting heavy losses of avian and

Of concern is the overuse of insecticidal bed bug products, which can pose a threat to humans, especially children. With increased exposure comes, increase risk of toxicity to bed bug insecticides (Doggett, et al., 2012). Professional eradication is preferred, however, bed bugs are becoming resistant to pesticides and the eradication can be unaffordable to some households, especially when multiple treatments are needed. As a result people are increasingly using homemade recipes found on the Internet and unregulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which have unknown toxicity risk and adverse reactions (Doggett, et al., 2012). The University of Texas A &M acknowledges that professional and consumer products such as aerosol “bug bombs” and “fumigators” are only moderately effective and that there are effective do-it-yourself bed bug control measures that need to be used in conjunction with hiring a professional (Doggett, et al.,

Staying away from areas that have a high risk for infected ticks is the best way to not get the disease. This, however, can not be avoided when the high risk areas are increasing and that those areas are inhabited by many animals, insects, and humans. There are ways to avoid getting infected with Lyme disease such as tick and insect repellant, protective clothing, and proper tick removal. Tick and insect repellants are effective for keeping ticks away for several hours to several days, depending on the repellant used. Trans-p-menthane-3,8-diol is a repellant that can last for several days and is effective for the prevention of tick bites when camping, hiking, living in an area that has a high risk for Lyme disease. N, N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide, or DEET, is another repellant that prevents tick bites. It does not last as long, however, and must be re-applied for the best results. Protective clothing is also important for people who could be bitten by ticks. This decreases the exposure of a person’s skin so that the ticks are not able to latch on and transmit the disease. It is also advised for people to practice good personal hygiene after possible exposure to ticks. Ticks will find the warm, moist, crevasses of the skin to latch on, so those areas of the body must be checked often. The most effective way to remove a tick is with forceps in a swift, smooth motion that pulls the entire tick

This paper explains how the movie A Bug’s Life used sociological concepts to explain the challenges faced in an animated society of ants. They were overwhelmed with fear from the grasshoppers who constantly reminded them of their inferior class. Coming together and building relationships with one another was their only way out of their own demise. Stopping the grasshoppers from continuously using their race as a way to place them all within a low-class category. Despite their manipulative ways and social stratification uses, the ants came out on top while the grasshoppers felt the wrath of ants who had finally come together as a family. Unleashing their power, as one big family, onto the grasshoppers and reclaiming their home island.

However, I still stand by my opinion that DEET is the best. There have been studies that show proof that DEET has no adverse affects. Many doctors agree that it´s one of the best ways to repel the nasty blood suckers. Consequently if people somehow start dying or getting cancer or mutating into weird stuff from using DEET, I will stop using it and use an alternative.

The texts “eat your bugs” by miguel vilar and lura allen and “Insect Farmers...” by The Washington Post have both similarities and differences.