Part 1 MLA citation
Davis, Kenneth L., and Mary Jeanne Kreek. “Marijuana Damages Young Brains.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 16 June 2019, www.nytimes.com/2019/06/16/opinion/marijuana-brain-effects.html.
Part 2 Summary
The article “Marijuana Damages Young Brains” by Kenneth Davis and Mary Jeanne Kreek is about how marijuana can have a harmful impact on teenage brains. According to the writer, adolescent brains are more vulnerable to the effect of drugs because their prefrontal cortex, which deals with decision making , judgment and impulsivity, is still developing. Marijuana can interfere with processing speed, memory, attention span and concentration. The writers also emphasizes that states that legalize marijuana should set a minimum age of no longer than 25. Davis and Mary use research to go further in debt into explaining how marijuana can have such a harmful impact and damage young brains. They explain that the risk that marijuana use poses to adolescents today is far greater than it was 20 or 30 years ago. The average THC content of confiscated marijuana was about 3.7 percent and by contrast a recent analysis showed an average THC content of 18.7 percent. They conclude by using alcohol and cigarettes as an example to showcase that marijuana can have the same effect in harming society and people’s health and suggesting that states impose stricter limits on THC levels and strictly monitor them.
Part 3 Rhetorical Analysis
The genre of this article is an opinion piece. The primary audience is parents of teenagers. The purpose is to inform and persuade. The author’s writing style is persuasive and objective. They employ a logical tone. Davis uses the appeal of logos by referring to recent research studies. Davis and Kreek are credible because Davis is the president and chief executive of the Mount Sinai Health System and Kreek is the head of the laboratory of the biology of addictive diseases at Rockefeller University. The New York Times is a reliable source because they have an overall rating of 3.8 out of 5 based on 978 reviews left anonymously by employees. The New York Times publishes informative articles without being biased. They have trustworthy and great employees as well. This article was written in 2019.
Part 4 Notable Quotes
“Numerous studies show that marijuana can have a deleterious impact on cognitive development in adolescents, impairing executive function, processing speed, memory, attention span and concentration. ( Kenneth and Mary)
“The reason the adolescent brain is so vulnerable to the effects of drugs is that the brain, especially the prefrontal cortex, which controls decision making, judgment and impulsively is still developing in adolescents and young adults until age 25”. (Kenneth and Mary )
“The risk that marijuana use poses to adolescents today is far greater than it was 20 or 30 years ago because the marijuana grown now is much more potent. In the early 1990s the average THC content of confiscated marijuana was roughly 3.7”. ( Kenneth and Mary)
“Simply because society has become more accepting of marijuana use doesn’t make it safe for high school and college students. Cigarettes and alcohol, both legal, have caused great harm in society as well as to people’s health”. (Kenneth and Mary )
