Below is a front-page newspaper article from 2002, which is another very bad one. Again, there are multiple issues, despite this being the lead story of a major U.S. newspaper. Read the article and answer these questions. You do not need to submit this for grading. However, some of these questions will be on the Unit 1 Exam, and you are allowed to keep a copy of your answers on hand and use it to answer the exam questions.
1) From 1982 to 2002, how many people used Accutane?
2) From 1982 to 2000, how many Accutane users committed suicide, or were hospitalized for suicide attempts?
3) In 2002, the U.S. population was about 288,000,000, and there were approximately 32,000 suicides. This means there was 1 suicide for every 9,000 Americans, approximately, which is typical for the U.S. By comparison, by using the numbers from questions 1 and 2 above, I determined that there was 1 suicide (or attempt) for every 82,000 people that used Accutane (approximately). So, was the suicide rate higher, the same as, or lower for people using Accutane, relative to the general population?
4) Who initiated the investigation into whether or not Accutane was linked to suicides, and why?
5) According to the article, was Charles Bishop using Accutane at the time of the incident?
6) What do you think about the mental health of someone that intentionally crashes an airplane into the side of an office building after writing a suicide note that expresses “support for Osama bin Laden”?
7) The article’s title, which appeared at the top of the front page of the St. Petersburg Times, says “Pilot’s Acne Drug Tied to Suicides”. Considering the information provided in the article and the statistics for suicide rates above, is this a reasonable headline? Why?
Pilot’s Acne Drug Tied to Suicides
Investigators searching the home of Charles Bishop, the teen who flew a small plane into a Tampa skyscraper, find a prescription for Accutane.
The teenage boy who intentionally crashed a small plane into a downtown Tampa high-rise Saturday was prescribed an acne-treating drug linked to suicide and depression, authorities said Tuesday.
Investigators searching the East Lake home where 15-year-old Charles Bishop lived with his mother found a prescription for Accutane, Tampa police spokeswoman Katie Hughes said.
The medication, used by about 12-million people since 1982, affects the body’s central nervous system. According to the Food and Drug Administration, 147 people on Accutane committed suicide or were hospitalized for suicide attempts from 1982 to May 2000.
U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., initiated a federal investigation into the side effects of Accutane after his 17-year-old son committed suicide in 2000. The manufacturer says the drug is safe.
“We can’t attest to whether (Bishop) was taking it, or how much he was taking,” Hughes said. “We don’t know any of that.”
The Hillsborough Medical Examiner’s Office said it will take about two weeks to complete toxicology tests to determine if any drugs were in Bishop’s system.
Bishop, an East Lake High School freshman, steered a single-engine Cessna into the 28th floor of the Bank of America Plaza building Saturday, killing himself and damaging offices.
Reached at her East Lake apartment on Tuesday evening, the teen’s mother, Julia Bishop, told CNN:
“He was my shining star. He was the light of my life. There is nothing I would not do for that child. Everybody loved him.”
She said that she has not slept or changed clothes since hearing the news and that she was shocked by the note found with her son, expressing support for Osama bin Laden.
Farley, R., Nguyen, D.P., & Quioco, E. Pilot’s Acne Drug Tied to Suicides. St. Petersburg Times, 9 January, 2002. URL: http://www.sptimes.com/2002/01/09/TampaBay/Pilot_s_acne_drug_tie.shtml
