Randle, Aaron. “Why the N.Y.P.D.'s DNA Database Has Some People Worried.” The New York Times,The New York Times, 16 Aug. 2019,
The New York Times offered an interesting article
titled “Why the N.Y.P.D.’s DNA Database Has Some
People Worried”. It explains public concerns with
using genetic databases to store people’s DNA without
consent. The article states that “There are 82,473 genetic
profiles in the city’s database, known as the Local DNA Index
System” which, police say, are highly effective. They aid
in the identification of criminals and resolving crimes, but many
feel that the system is violating privacy rights. After receiving a vast
amount of criticism, the police countered by explaining that they aren't
indiscriminately collecting peoples DNA. They mentioned how “DNA
had helped solve 270 cases, including sexual assaults and homicides”,
proving that the database is being used effectively.
This article is pertinent to daily crimes ranging from minor to serious.
While many people feel their privacy is being attacked, others argued that if
everyone had data on file, it wouldn't be discriminatory. This piece is shining
a light on the voice of the public and their opinions on “forensic/scientific topics”
that deal with their personal lives.
This article was very well written and concise. I enjoyed the fact that the
author explained both perspectives of the situation and provided great evidence
to back up each point. I, however, would have liked to see additional mention of
crimes where the DNA system helped/did not help the case in order to get a better
understanding of its operation.
6 comments:
Randle, Aaron. “Why the N.Y.P.D.'s DNA Database Has Some People Worried.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 16 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/16/nyregion/newyorktoday/nypd-dna-database.html#commentsContainer.
Masha’s review of “Why the N.Y.P.D.’s DNA Database Has Some People Worried” by Aaron Randle was well-written and very informative. To start, Masha did a very good job of providing context and background information about the article. This allows the reader to gain a better understanding of the database that is being discussed and how important the database is in certain cases. In addition, Masha also did a good job of integrating quotes from the article in her review. The quotes help make the discussion much clearer and more real as the ideas and facts being presented in the review are accurate. Lastly, Masha also did a good job of pointing out areas the article could have been improved. Specifically, in pointing out more cases in which the DNA system helped or didn’t help.
While Masha did a good job summarizing the article and the contents discussed there were a few things she could have done to make her review better. First, the review had some minor formatting errors and grammatical errors. I think simply reading the review once more would have allowed Masha to realize that some sentences could have benefited from being worded differently. I’m not sure how much of the formatting Masha could have fixed and it didn’t make reading more difficult; it would just help appearance-wise. Additionally, the review could have benefited from more of her own opinion. Masha does a great job discussing the contents of the article however, I think more of her own opinion on the DNA system would make her review even better.
Overall, I found this article and review to be engaging and informative. It was no surprise to me that DNA is crucial in helping solve a number of various crimes. However, the biggest takeaway for me was that some people argue that the over 82,000 DNA profiles the police have are held unfairly and the police are violating people’s privacy by keeping them in the DNA system.
Sophia Prior
Ippolito
Current event
December 13, 2019
Randle, Aaron. “Why the N.Y.P.D.'s DNA Database Has Some People Worried.” The New York Times,The New York Times, 16 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/16/nyregion/newyorktoday/nypd-dna-database.html#commentsCont
After reading Masha’s review from the New York Times called, “Why the N.Y.P.D.'s DNA Database Has Some People Worried.”, she discusses the article in detail, giving contextual information which thoroughly added to the piece. I really liked how Masha said this piece was shining alight on the voice of the public and their opinions, which was really strong. In addition, she gave good facts to back up the claims she made in the review.
I think she could have added more of a background in her summary about public concerns in genetic databases. Although she did an amazing job of integrating quotes into her piece i think it would have improved her review to have added more of her own opinion rather than just facts found in the article.
After reading Masha’s review I was able to learn more about genetic databases and how they can and have been storing people’s data without their consent, which is involved in minor to serious crimes. It really helped me to understand the need for privacy in our society today.
Riley Morgan
Mr Ippolito
Forensics current event 11
12/13/19
Randle, Aaron. “Why the N.Y.P.D.'s DNA Database Has Some People Worried.” The New York Times,The New York Times, 16 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/16/nyregion/newyorktoday/nypd-dna-database.html#commentsContainer.
https://bhscsi.blogspot.com/
The review Masha Popovic performed on the article:“Why the N.Y.P.D.'s DNA Database Has Some People Worried.” was very interesting and informative. She discusses public concerns with using genetic databases to store people’s DNA without consent. I like how she was straightforward with the information. When she stated “They aid in the identification of criminals and resolving crimes, but many feel that the system is violating privacy rights.” it was a good way to put the information because it was a bunch of information packed into one sentence. I also appreciate how she was able to captivate the reader by using captivating words in the beginning like genetic, and NYPD. She did a good job talking about the relevance of the article.
One thing Masha could improve on is explaining how and why she chose the article. She did not provide any reasoning behind her decision to write about it. Masha’sAnalysis was also very short and didn't provide the detail she needed to do the article justice. She could provide a longer analysis that makes the reader feel she has read the full article and knows what it is about. To improve, Masha could spend more time talking about the details explained as well as making more connections as to why she chose the article..
I chose this article because it was very interesting and I enjoy reading things like this. I also wanted to see Masha’s writing style as I have never looked at one of her reviews before. By reading this article I learned about public concerns with using genetic databases to store people’s DNA without consent. It will change my perception because now I have another piece of knowledge that I can use.
Randle, Aaron. “Why the N.Y.P.D.'s DNA Database Has Some People Worried.” The New York Times,The New York Times, 16 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/16/nyregion/newyorktoday/nypd-dna-database.html#commentsContainer
For this week's current events, I decided to reflect on Masha’s response to “Why the N.Y.P.D.'s DNA Database Has Some People Worried.” Her response was very detailed, and did an excellent job at providing background of the topic “It explains public concerns with
using genetic databases to store people’s DNA without consent.” Masha’s background sets the stage for describing some of the public concerns of NYPD’s police database. She then used direct quotes from the article to back her point, which gave good insight to the author's point of view. “There are 82,473 genetic profiles in the city’s database, known as the Local DNA Index System”. By using direct quotes from the author she provides good backing for the initial point she introduced. As well as quotes and good context, Masha also did a good job at explaining how this article pertained to society and everyday life. “ This article is pertinent to daily crimes ranging from minor to serious. While many people feel their privacy is being attacked, others argued that if everyone had data on file, it wouldn't be discriminatory. This piece is shining
a light on the voice of the public and their opinions on “forensic/scientific topics” that deal with their personal lives.” Masha does a good job at recognizing and figuring out the importance of this issue presented.
Masha did a good job at her response, however she could have gone into more detailed when she said she wanted to see additional mention of crimes where the DNA system helped/did not help the case. She could have gone into specific examples of stuff that she would have liked to see present in the article. As well as this, she could have included more background information on the crisis and controversy between the people and the NYPD.
Overall Masha presented a very well written and intellectual response on the NYPD’s database. The article was very interesting, and so was her interpretation of it.
Randy Ayala Valdez
Mr. Ippolito
Forensic Science
12 December 2019
Current Events 11
Randle, Aaron. “Why the N.Y.P.D.'s DNA Database Has Some People Worried.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 16 Aug. 2019,
www.nytimes.com/2019/08/16/nyregion/newyorktoday/nypd-dna-database.html#commentsContainer
https://bhscsi.blogspot.com/2019/12/randle-aaron.html
Masha reviewed her article in an informative manner, stating relevant facts with covering the topic. Her review possessed minor details and some feedback to the claim that genetic databases are immoral because they violate civilian’s privacy rights. She did not overcompensate and include unnecessary information in the review. Masha approached this controversy in a very utilitarian approach, claiming that since it is beneficial to broader society, the genetic databases should have access to records without your consent. Masha also provides the readers with statistics, building her credibility by utilizing that data.
Masha could improve her by implementing more valuable feedback on the author of the article. If she offered more information from another standpoint, the review would have given the reader a more neutral review. She could also benefit from adding more context, particularly the systems of oppression or huddles people run into when ownership of genetic data is given to databases.
I learned about the public concerns with using genetic databases to store people’s DNA without consent and the ways it is useful for forensic chemists and law enforcement. DNA data is crucial to solving certain crime scenes, therefore we must examine the weight of our privacy rights and whether these genetic databases are worth abandoning this opposition.
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