Masha Popovic
Mr. Ippolito
Forensics
Oct. 6, 2019
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/health/mass-
shootings-mental-health.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic
%2FForensic%20Science&action=click&contentCollection=tim
estopics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&c
ontentPlacement=7&pgtype=collection
shootings-mental-health.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic
%2FForensic%20Science&action=click&contentCollection=tim
estopics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&c
ontentPlacement=7&pgtype=collection
The New York Times offered an interesting
article titled “What Experts Know About People
Who Commit Mass Shootings”. It talks about
the psychological ideology behind mass
shooters/shootings. It breaks down the hypothesis
that shooters study previous crimes, mimicking killing
tactics. Forensic psychologists mention that “mass killers
see themselves as part of a brotherhood of like-minded,
isolated and resentful boys and men. To them, previous mass
murderers may be perceived as idols and pioneers.” The
article mentions that there are many possible explanations
behind such patterns of reasoning; for example mental
illness. Scientists have found that a slight fraction of
people with mental distress are more likely to commit
violent acts. However, Dr. Michael Stone, a forensic
psychiatrist, says that about one in five mass murderers
shows evidence of psychosis. The other 80 percent have
“normal” issues including anger or jealousy.
In relation to society today, it's important to note how
certain actions can have chain reactions. In addition, the
article notes how video games have been culprits for violent
crimes. Carey says “in the vast majority of settings, violent
video games do increase aggressive behavior” — but that
“these effects are almost always quite small.” I wouldn't say
that video games are a large reason to why people are violent,
but the point of this is to showcase how building aggression in
oneself(through many events, not just video games) can lead
to dangerous alternative motifs. Constant signs of anger, jealousy,
or depression can be the reason why someone has an impulse to
commit a violent act such as a shooting. It's important to be able
to recognize these signs within people in our societies so that we
can treat/stop events like this from happening before they do.
I thought this article did a great job with organizing their points.
They used multiple examples, such as effects of video games and
illness as mentioned, to back up their understandings about people
who commit mass shootings. It was interesting to read about how
shooters study previous crimes, mimicking killing tactics. However,
I have a lot of criticisms to make about this article. As interesting
as its approach is, acting like we can identify perpetrators before
they commit their crimes is highly unlikely. I feel like the most
logical approach to stopping such crimes is to limit weapon
availability to potential terrorists. I would suggest that the author
try to expand their thought process and think of alternative
ways to put a stop to mass shootings other than psychological
studies. Overall, I enjoyed this assignment and reading a bit more into
the forensic world.
8 comments:
Madison Meehan
Mr. Ippolito D Odd
10/7/19
Current Event 4
Carey, Benedict. “What Experts Know About People Who Commit Mass Shootings.” The New
York Times, The New York Times, 5 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/health/mass-shootings-mental-health.html.
I believe Masha chose a very interesting topic for her current event, as mass shootings are a huge issue in the U.S. Masha did a very good job providing evidence in her summary, specifically in the first paragraph. She uses a great quote to explain what the possible reasons mass shooters have to commit such a horrible crime. She also does a great job summarizing the article in general, making sure to include the most important details. Lastly, she presented her criticisms of the article in a very clear way and made sure to state her honest opinion.
Although Masha did a very good job with her current event, there were some things she could have done better. One way she could improve her current event would be to mention how it has to do with forensics a little more. She did provide a quote that a forensic scientist commented on the subject, but the topic could have been touched on more. Lastly, she could have improved on providing evidence to include in her last paragraph. Although she criticized the article, she could have cited specific parts of the text to make it more clear.
I thought this article was very interesting, which is why I chose to comment on it. It is very relevant today so I enjoyed getting to learn more about a very important issue. One really interesting thing I learned was that only 1 in 5 mass murderers show evidence of psychosis. Its connection to forensics will hopefully help me this year and allow me to understand the topic more.
Randy Ayala Valdez
Mr. Ippolito
Forensics
7 October 2019
Carey, Benedict. “What Experts Know About People Who Commit Mass Shootings.” The New
York Times, The New York Times, 5 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/health/mass-shootings-mental-health.html.
Masha was able to capture the essence of the article she researched by paraphrasing efficiently, organizing her thoughts in a coherent manner, and breaking down some of the patterns shown in shooters with her own insight. She starts her review by examining the hypothesis made by forensic psychologists; mass shooters mimic killing tactics and may idolize previous mass murders. In lieu of adding a myriad of quotes she simply paraphrases, making it easy for the reader to navigate through the topic of her review. Likewise, her writing tends to follow a very clear path, intentionally linking one thing to the other. This creates a bigger picture of the patterns of mass murderers in America. Masha also inserts her own ideas and thoughts about how observing the patterns and habits of mass murders is very interesting but should not be solely relied on to end our issue of mass shootings in the U.S.
Masha could improve by driving deeper into the issue of video games and its detrimental effects on its audience. She highlights the use of videogames and briefly develops a connection but fails to provide sufficient evidence to back her argument. Correspondingly, her conclusion seemed very rushed and bit all-over-the-place, defeating the purpose of wrapping up your argument. She could easily fix these issues by supporting her argument with more examples and being more concise in her last paragraph.
I thought it was really interesting to learn about the patterns that tend to present in the beginnings of a mass murderer. I would have liked to dive into the most conspicuous pattern: the pattern of white males committing these crimes. How are they inevitable linked to this enduring issue? Is there a correlation between hostility and white privilege? How could we use Forensics to answer these questions?
Clara DeMagalhaes Current Event #5
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/health/mass-shootings-mental-health.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic%2FForensic%20Science&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=7&pgtype=collection
https://bhscsi.blogspot.com/2019/10/masha-popovic-mr.html
Masha’s review of her chosen article was overall well written and easy to understand. One thing that was done well was how she incorporated several quotes from the source into her review in a way that still flows smoothly with the rest of the writing. This gives the reader an idea of what the original article was like and also makes the review more credible. Additionally, the critique section was very well thought out and proposed an appropriate remedy to the problem pointed out. Lastly, I appreciate how Masha incorporated her personal thoughts into her writing. It makes her opinion and idea of how credible the information is clear and offers an alternate take on the information.
While the majority of the review was really well done, there are a couple of small nitpicks. Though the summary is clear and concise, I feel like it could have included a little bit more information. The summary talks about how effective drugging or confining people who show signs of potentially being a mass shooter may be, so a sentence mentioning that would’ve enhanced the review a bit more. Additionally, the final concluding sentence feels a bit weak. I think that it could potentially end with an idea of how this topic relates to forensics as opposed to simply saying that it’s part of the world of forensics.
Mass shootings have become a very large concern in this country in the past few years, and learning what kind of psychological connections make these kinds of things happen is important to understanding how to prevent them. This way, scientists can discover preventative measures that are based on a better research foundation than before. Reading about this topic has sparked more of an interest in me to keep up with updates on related issues.
Molly Palma
Mr. Ippolito
Forensics
Due October 18th 2019
Carey, Benedict. “What Experts Know About People Who Commit Mass Shootings.” The New
York Times, The New York Times, 5 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/health/mass-shootings-mental-health.html.
This review had a tone of professionalism about it since Masha provided evidence for both sides of the argument regarding serial killers’ mentalities. An example of this is when she says “scientists have found that a slight fraction of people with mental distress are more likely to commit violent acts” and follows it up with a ‘however’. I found it interesting how Masha connected the often talked about relationship between violence and video games to a broader topic of the relationship between violence and external factors. Masha also provided a couple statistics in this review including “one in five mass murderers shows evidence of psychosis,'' which helped solidify her points.
Even though Masha is open about her criticisms toward the article, she isn’t specific enough about what exactly the author should add. She said the author should consider options on how to stop mass shootings, but she didn’t give any herself. In addition to this, I felt like the conclusion was rushed. Instead of giving loose summaries, she should’ve provided an example from the article like she did in the previous paragraphs.
This review was intriguing to me because it discussed psychology, which is another sector to forensic studies. It is relevant because it brought up mass shootings, a prominent national issue. This review even touched on the identities of these serial killers, which are typically men and quoted forensic scientists who say that “mass killers see themselves as part of a brotherhood of like-minded, isolated and resentful boys and men.” This review ignited my curiosity regarding mentalities in serial killers and hopefully for the professionals that can figure out ways to stop them before committing these acts of evil.
Charlotte Dotson
Mr. Ippolito
October 16, 2019
Current Event 5
Carey, Benedict. “What Experts Know About People Who Commit Mass Shootings.” The New
York Times, The New York Times, 5 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/health/mass-shootings-mental-health.html.
Masha did many things well in her review of “What Experts Know About People Who Commit Mass Shootings”. First, I like that she added numerouse quotes from the article to add credibility to what she was writing. I also appreciate that she integrated her personal opinions on the topic into her review. It was evident she really thought about the contens of the New York Time’s Article. Lastly, I think she did a great job writing a well thought out critique of the article.
One thing that could be improved is if Masha elaborated on the part of the review that discusses how this topic relates to forensics. It certainly relates to crime, but it wasn’t entirely clear to me how this relate to forensic science. The last thing Masha could do to improve would be to slightly elaborate on her summary. Thought it was well written and easy to understand, she could have added a bit more information.
I found this article to be very intruiging and relevant in the modern day. Schootings are such a large problem in America, so it is essential that we know all we can on how to identify potential mass shooters. I predict that in the future these measures that can be taken to identify shooters will be in place in schools and other public places and it will be interesting to see the way this plays out in the future.
Logan Glick
Forensics
Current Event 5
10/17/19
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/health/mass-
shootings-mental-health.html?rref=collection%2Ftimestopic
%2FForensic%20Science&action=click&contentCollection=tim
estopics®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&c
ontentPlacement=7&pgtype=collection
https://bhscsi.blogspot.com
Masha wrote a wonderful current event describing the physci of mass shooters. She explained how many of them try to emulate past mass shooters just how someone would emulate their idol, “It talks about the psychological ideology behind mass shooters/shootings. It breaks down the hypothesis that shooters study previous crimes, mimicking killing tactics.” This sentence is really well written because it uses proper vocab that pertains to the article. Masha later elaborates on this idea that mass shooters try to emulate other mass shooter in the really well put together sentence, “Forensic psychologists mention that “mass killers see themselves as part of a brotherhood of like-minded, isolated and resentful boys and men.” It is crazy to think that other mass shooters are inspired by their processors. Masha also explains that despite popular belief many mass shooters do not have a mental disability, “However, Dr. Michael Stone, a forensic psychiatrist, says that about one in five mass murderers shows evidence of psychosis. The other 80 percent have “normal” issues including anger or jealousy.” It is crazy to think that someone without a mental disease could do something so horrible.
Masha does a great job with her article, but there are some area that are a little confusing. For example, “In relation to society today, it's important to note how certain actions can have chain reactions,” this sentence does not make much sense grammatically even though I get what she is trying to say. In order to fix it I would cut the beginning and instead explain how many things in life can lead to disaster and relate that to a chain reaction. Another area she was lacking is in this sentence, “I feel like the most logical approach to stopping such crimes is to limit weapon availability to potential terrorists.” I feel that she could have explained how to limit weapon availability instead of just stating why it is bad.
Overall, I learned a lot from this article and Masha did a fantastic job. I learned how many mass shooters idolize their predecessors and feel that they belong in some sort of brotherhood. I chose this article because I thought diving into the psyche of a mass shooter is a very interesting topic and potentially one that can be very important. This article will forever change my perception of those who commit mass murders by understanding that they feel they are doing something great for the world.
Esther Devitt
Mr. Ippolito
October 17, 2019
Current Event #5
Carey, Benedict. “What Experts Know About People Who Commit Mass Shootings.” The New
York Times, The New York Times, 5 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/health/mass-shootings-mental-health.html.
https://bhscsi.blogspot.com/2019/10/masha-popovic-mr.html
For this week's current event I chose to discuss Masha's review of the article, "What Experts Know About People Who Commit Mass Shootings". One thing I think Masha did a great job of doing was discussing the article, she made it very easy for the readers to understand what the actual article was discussing and it felt very informative. I also enjoyed how Masha discussed her take on the article and what she agreed and disagreed with. Lastly, Masha used lots of great quotes and pieces of data from the article in her review which increased her credibility to the readers.
If I had to give Masha criticism on this review I would tell Masha that I wish she discussed more in-depth how this story relates more to forensic science, and how that is used to learn more about mass shooters. I also wish Masha discussed in more detail how the author could improve their article.
Overall, I really enjoyed Masha's review on this article because I thought it was such an interesting topic. Many people think that mass shooter are mentally ill, but not only is that putting a negative connotation to other mentally ill people who do not commit mass shootings it is not always the case. I thought it was interesting to learn about the certain patterns that shooters exhibit.
Ellie Dessart
Mr. Ippolito
Forensics C Odd
5 December 2019
Current Event 10 Comment
Citation:
Carey, Benedict. “What Experts Know About People Who Commit Mass Shootings.” The New
York Times, The New York Times, 5 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/health/mass-shootings-mental-health.html?rref=collectio
%2Ftimestopic%2FForensic%2BScience&action=click&contentCollection=timestopics
ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=3&pgtype=collect
on.
Link to Original Review:
https://bhscsi.blogspot.com/2019/10/masha-popovic-mr.html
Masha’s review was well-written and engaging. In her first paragraph, she did a good job outlining the various psychological factors of mass shooters mentioned in the article. Her summary was clear, concise, and simple to follow. Secondly, Masha’s second paragraph exploring the relevance of the article is insightful. She wrote, "In relation to society today, it’s important to note how certain actions can have chain reactions.” Through this comment, Masha provided a thoughtful connection to her article and the world we live in. Finally, Masha brought up a unique perspective in the last paragraph. She stated, “I feel like the most logical approach to stopping crimes is to limit weapon availability to potential terrorists.” I respect Masha’s criticism and the inclusion of her own opinion. Her ability to challenge and question systems in place shows inquisitiveness and an eagerness to learn.
While I enjoyed Masha’s review, there were some aspects she could have improved on. Firstly, although she commented on the article’s relevance to our society, I wish she had related it more to our understanding of forensic science specifically. How can forensic studies contribute to the development of solutions to these type of problems? Secondly, while I admired her criticism in the last paragraph, she could have developed her own ideas more. How would limiting weapon availability help stop potential terrorists? To what extent is this solution effective? More elaboration would have strengthened her final paragraph.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Masha’s review. As a prospective prosecutor, I’ve always been interested in understanding the psychological roots of criminals, so this current event was fascinating. Since only “one in five mass murderers show evidence of psychosis,” I wonder how scientists will unravel the causes that drive people to such actions. As new developments come up, how will our mindsets change? Will we continue to blame violent video games? Will we continue to blame weapons? Will we find come across some new factor we haven’t yet considered? Only the future knows.
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