MDLII - Volume 6 by Bedford-School

MDLII VOLUME 6

CONTENTS The Editorial Team: Current Affairs: Shivam Patel, Alex Stammers, Oreayo IsraelBolarinwa, Daniel Hickey Maths and Sciences: Daniel Tune, Jonathan Konstantinidis, Arjun Vaingankar, Max Williamson The Arts: Arol Bosut The Humanities: Nick Cowen, Christopher Turner, Ben Poslad, James Smith Languages: Frank Kupshik, Josh Carmichael Music: Ben Anstis, Nic Reay, Peter Wood Sports: Max Smith, Jake Carter Production Assistance: Anna Garrett With thanks to: Nicholas Allen, Matthew Bolton, Michael Herring, Florence Markham, Laura Stephenson and Karoline Jeffery Cover Art by: Jacques Bell

Current Affairs

Humanities

5 Black Lives Matter: Political Force Or Social Media Fantasy? 7 Oscars So White 9 Was The Iraq War Legal? 11 A Term Of News And Current Affairs 13 Should We Let The Syrian Refugees In? 14 How Changes In World Commodity Prices Affect Domestic Inflation 15 Has Gun Violence Become A Norm In The US?

36 Geography Society Lecture: Evolving Risk And Vulnerability From Snow Avalanches 37 RS Trip 2016

Editorial 17

Languages 38 39 41 43 44

Spectrum Textured Thoughts How Do We Write Without An Alphabet? Spanish Play Write-Up

Music 45

18 The Truth About Grades

Maths and Science 20 21 Brief Overview Of How Obesity First Occurred 25 Pythagorean Article 26 Remote sensing by Professor Mathias Disney

46 West’s Side Story; Is Kanye West Really “The Greatest Living Rockstar”?

Sports 48 49 Champions Trophy Final Review 50 The Basketball Experience

Mosaic

The Arts 27 28 On The Nature Of Contemporary Artwork 30 Gilbert Lloyd Lecture 31 J.M.W. Turner & The Art Of The Watercolour At The Higgins Gallery, Bedford 32 Careers In Literature, Media And The Arts Evening 33 Designing “Space Chairs”

51 52 The Lighthouse 54 War’s Rewards 58 (Dis)Grace

EDITOR’S LETTER Every person has their own way of expressing themselves; each student is an individual with feelings of self-respect, sensitivity, responsibility and compassion. It is important to recognize, appreciate, applaud and foster the fine blend of creativity in every being.

ence, this magazine is a platform for every boy’s creative urge to explore his horizons. A person’s mind, like a parachute, works best when opened. MDLII intends to allow pupils to explore the realms of expression, innovation and imagination. The magazine covers a complete range of articles, catering for all boys with varied interests. From Current Affairs to creative writing, from Science and Maths to Language and the Arts, I can assure you will something which will draw your attention. This edition,

volume VI, features a write-up of the recent Champions Trophy, as well as a reflective piece on the Gilbert Lloyd lecture series. There is a consideration of the validity of grades and a review of the Spanish play. We cannot cover all the events that occur at the school, but we hope to give you a flavour of our busy community. I hope you will enjoy reading the wide spectrum of articles and immerse yourself in the creativity and energy of our student body.

Letter written by

Shivam Patel

on behalf of the 2016-2016 editorial team

Current Affairs

BLACK LIVES MATTER: POLITICAL FORCE OR SOCIAL MEDIA FANTASY? The names of Walter Scott, Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland and many others may slowly fade from memory in the coming year.

o, too, may the campaigns of Chris Christie and Jeb Bush fall from the headlines. The familiar refrain ‘Black Lives Matter’ will, however, no doubt be uttered, or indeed tweeted, many times more - as will, one must fear, the cry to ‘Make America Great Again’. The course of 2016 will no doubt serve to answer many of the questions posed by the strained relations of presidential candidates and Black Lives Matter (BLM) activists in 2015. For Brittany Packnett - a BLM representative in the presidential police-reform task force – 2014 was a year of “weaving the broader story of systemic injustice”. The past year necessitated a change in the story. The situation, however, remains distinctly unchanged. Though disruptive protests have forced the issue on many a politician’s lips, the prospects of immediate national police and judicial reform in the next years are bleak. There are, seemingly, too many questions with too few answers. Trump and his fellow Republican candidates have, instead of providing these answers, coolly denied the political sway of BLM. In doing so, they have failed to address an issue that weighs heavily upon the national conscience. At the time of writing, the movement has scarcely been mentioned at all in the televised debates, despite the fact that 73% of the 40 million potential black voters believe racism to be a key national issue. Carson, the only

black candidate standing for the presidency, labelled the movement “silly”; Chris Christie interpreted the activists’ aim as to murder police officers; whilst Donald Trump advised that an interrupting protestor be “roughed up.” In turn, their supporters have taken to chanting “All lives matter”, to deny, they say, the black community of its attention-seeking ways. If, however, we overlook their glaring differences, both Trump and the BLM movement are allied by a relentless drive to ignite controversy, and, often, clash in the name of publicity. Donald Trump, always the entertainer, will certainly don his clown mask once again. More worryingly, the Black Lives Matter activists risk adopting the heroic guises of ‘Dr. King’ and ‘Mr. X’ in the great competition for media attention that 2016 will inevitably become. Politicians and activists alike are true masters of set design, and our dependence on social media has only added to this great game. Die-ins, ‘Black Xmas’ and road-blockades have all graced the newsreels – the Baltimore Protests even managed a venture across the Atlantic – but their effects are left in only trace amounts: six police officers charged and a state of emergency lifted. Thus far, we have heard but mere promises of significant reform. After vigorous persuasion, Clinton has called for a “new New Deal” that would enforce police body cameras and bolster misconduct trials, but neglected demands 5

Article written by

Thomas Rainbow

these ‘black lives’ are not solely confined to young black men, but are centrally populated by trans-gender and disabled victims, can the true value of the phrase be gauged.

for the upright treatment of transgender, disabled and imprisoned blacks. There is contained within her words, a certain sense of appeasement. She has maintained reservations as to whether the movement will ever truly balance its image with its implications. It seems, ultimately, that prospective presidents are only willing to devote 13% of their efforts to secure 13% of potential votes.

To add to its issues, the movement’s stated intentions are dangerously open to interpretations, thanks to the unquantifiable nature of the racism it seeks to discredit. The deployment of body cameras can hardly capture the tacit suspicion that may well account for 37% of police shootings. Invisible racism should perhaps be dealt with in the same manner as ISIL infiltration – an issue that firmly arrived on American shores in December’s San Bernardino Shooting. In its aftermath, Democrats called for tightened gun control, senators called for a revision of encrypted communication legislation and Trump called for a ‘total and complete’ ban on Muslim entry to the United States.

In spite of this negligence, the movement is, in some part, responsible for its own woes. I ask you this: who are the leading personae in this Black Lives Matter production? Look to the movement’s Wikipedia page and one will find a troubling response: “the overall Black Lives Matter movement… is a decentralized network and has no formal hierarchy or structure”. 2016 must ultimately decide between a faceless, unrepresented movement that fights for familiar-faced victims, or a plastic face that preys upon, or more appropriately, criminalizes, societal castaways.

For African-Americans, the heady days of clear-cut reforms are firmly over. Even if the new Congress can overcome its all-toocommon lethargy, judicial and police reform would be patchy at best. Introducing body cameras would shed more light on the movement’s publicity efforts than police malpractice. As Anthony Jones, a Philadelphia police officer puts it, wary citizens have adopted “a cell phone ‘gun’” in anticipation of wrongdoing – another camera angle may well prove fruitless.

In November, fresh protests emerged when two white supremacists shot and wounded five activists in Minneapolis. Similar protests, however, erupted when a Dunkin’-Doughnuts employee wrote the slogan on a police officer’s cup in October. 2015 offered countless examples when nation-wide awakening seemed imminent. Yet still, the movement seems nothing more than a passing triviality to many politicians.

In the wake of 1960s civil rights - this supposed new era of ‘post-racial America’ - suggestions that legislation still discriminates against the black community could easily lapse into a suggestion of entirely demolishing and rebuilding American social infrastructure. The 18 counts of drug possession and burglary on Freddie Gray’s criminal record do not provide justification for his death, but do offer some explanations for disproportionate police killings.

Regardless of whether America chooses to discuss the matter, the social media feeds and trends of 2016 shall no doubt be rich with further ammunition for accusations or indeed official investigations. Every streaming of an incriminating mobile-phone video may well inspire a new proclamation of support for the movement, but the nature of hash-tag activism is such that it runs the risk of overuse. How many of the 9 million tweets carrying the phrase in 2014 truly engaged with the issues it entailed? We are often too quick to disregard the meaning of a phrase for the sake of sentimentality and unity, which, though critical for success, crucially lacks political momentum. In many ways, its greatest obstacle to meaningful government collaboration is its objectives.

In the worst affected urban areas, criminal justice has become the dominant government institution. According to the Justice Mapping Center, a single block can demand over a million dollars to incarcerate its residents. As author Ta-Nehesi Coates suggests, a ‘post-racial’ vision of America is often deployed by the media ‘to measure progress’ under the Obama administration. When Black Lives Matter is no longer cited in reference to a politician’s failings, only then can it develop a truly productive identity.

#BlackLivesMatter is, at its core, a byword for a foggy list of political agendas that, for the time being, will struggle to be realised. Only when the American public appreciate that

BLACK LIVES MATTER 6

OSCARS SO WHITE Diversity within the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

here was much controversy on January 14th when the Oscar nominations were announced; it transpired that for the second year in a row, all 20 of the acting nominees were white. Last year the backlash came from disdain that Selma, about Martin Luther King’s efforts to organise the 1965 Selma March, failed to pick up nominations for star David Oyelowo and director Ava DuVernay. But this year the anger has gone further, with notoriously contentious director Spike Lee (director of numerous films about racial politics, such as Do the Right Thing) announcing that he will boycott the “lily white” ceremony. The lack of diversity is disappointing, considering the number of actors from an ethnic minority background who were eligible for awards consideration. For example, it

was half-expected that Samuel L. Jackson might be noticed for Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight, and although it’s highly unlikely that many of the Academy voters have seen Céline Sciamma’s Girlhood, stars Karidja Touré and Assa Sylla would have been worthy nominees. Many have also pointed out that, despite director Ryan Coogler and star Michael B. Jordan being African-American, Creed’s only nomination was for Sylvester Stallone. Similarly, NWA biopic Straight Outta Compton, a film with a largely black cast, received a Best Original Screenplay nod for its four white screenwriters. Personally, I think it’s a great shame that Latin-American actors Benicio Del Toro (Puerto Rican) and Oscar Isaac (Guatemalan-born) weren’t recognised for their excellent work in Sicario and Ex Machina, respectively. 97

Article written by

Logan Jones

does it explain 12 Years a Slave’s success, receiving a nomination for lead actor Chiwetel Ejiofor and further wins for African-American John Ridley (Best Adapted Screenplay) and Lupita Nyong’o (Best Supporting Actress).

Since the announcement, several actors have spoken about the subject, sometimes controversially. Julie Delpy apologised profusely for claiming that she sometimes wished she were African-American because being a woman in Hollywood is harder, while nominee Charlotte Rampling explained that her comments about a boycott of the ceremony being “racist to white people” were misinterpreted because ideally all performances would be given equal consideration. Michael Caine also faced some criticism for advising black actors to “be patient” (although the words were somewhat put in his mouth) and added that “you can’t vote for an actor [just] because he’s black”.

So have the last two years just been unhappy accidents? Admittedly, twice in a row does look suspicious. But perhaps the problem really is less the fault of the Academy and more an industry-wide issue. Idris Elba, snubbed this year for his award-winning performance in Beasts of No Nation, has said that “talent is everywhere but opportunity isn’t”. One good thing that can be taken away from this year’s nominees is that women are more widely represented. Last year, none of the writing nominees were female and almost all of the Best Picture nominees were films about men. This year, four women are nominated for writing and the Best Picture category is more diverse: Brooklyn and the extraordinary Room have female protagonists, Mad Max: Fury Road has been commended for its feminist themes and in The Martian, Jessica Chastain leads a mission to save Matt Damon from the Red Planet.

Other industry figures who spoke perhaps more wisely on the issue include white nominee Mark Ruffalo, who has also suggested that he may even boycott the ceremony. Steve McQueen has also had much to say, given that two years ago he made history when 12 Years a Slave won Best Picture (McQueen was the first black producer to win the award, although the Best Director Oscar has still never been won by a black filmmaker). He has talked both to the BBC and The Guardian about the Oscars not being the root of the problem: “I think racism has a lot to do with it but also the whole idea of people not being adventurous enough in thinking outside of the box … it can’t be about box office … it’s about executives in cinema, film studios, television, cable networks giving those storylines and those actors a fair bite”. McQueen has also talked about the issue being “an us problem”.

Not only that, but after expressing that she was “heartbroken and frustrated at the lack of inclusion”, Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs (an African-American woman herself) announced that the organisation is pledging to double the number of women and ethnically diverse members of the mostly white, male membership by 2020.

Accusations of racism, however, don’t explain why in 2002, the Best Leading Actor and Actress awards went to Denzel Washington and Halle Berry, respectively. Nor

Let’s hope that next year, the Academy doesn’t make it three in a row. Despite pleas for him to step down as host, Chris Rock will no doubt shame them into making sure it doesn’t happen again.

WAS THE IRAQ WAR LEGAL? Growing up through the 00’s, it would be difficult for anyone in our generation to not have vague memories of seeing reports on the Iraq war, and the furore surrounding it, frequently appearing on our television screens. Speaking for myself, I can say that until recently I have never really had a sound understanding of why the war happened, or why it was so controversial, and it is with this in my mind that I write this article.

in 2002, another resolution, “resolution 1441” was passed, which gave Iraq a final chance to comply with its obligations, with regard to disarmament and international cooperation, as outlined in “resolution 687”.

In order to address this question some context is needed. In 1991, Iraq, under Saddam Hussein’s regime, invaded Kuwait. This was mainly due to economic tensions regarding debt and the oil trade. The Security Council (the body of the UN concerned with maintaining international peace and security) denounced the invasion. Ordinarily, the only circumstances where the Security Council accepts the use of force against another sovereign state is as an act of self-defence or in order to avert an overwhelming humanitarian catastrophe. Clearly, neither of these conditions applied to Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait, and thus the Security Council passed “resolution 678”, which allowed coalition forces (US, UK etc.) to use force in order to remove Iraqi troops from Kuwait and restore peace and security in the area. Thus, “Operation Desert Storm” occurred and the conflict was ended. This was the First Gulf War.

It is within this legal framework where the arguments for and against the legality of the Iraq invasion of 2003 can be placed. According to George W. Bush and Tony Blair, the objective of the coalition invasion was “to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, to end Saddam Hussein’s support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people”. The argument for the legality of this invasion, without the official ‘green light’ from the Security Council, was that the Iraqi failure to comply with resolutions 687 and 1441 allowed the revival of resolution 678. In other words, the failure of Iraq to disarm (its supposed possession of weapons of mass destruction) allowed the coalition forces to invade the area in order to restore peace and security. The key foundation on which this argument relies is that, in the immediate aftermath of the First Gulf War, it was definitely the case that, in the event of Iraq failing to comply with resolution 687, resolution 678 would come back into play, and the use of force would again be deemed acceptable. Thus resolution 678 was merely suspended, not abandoned altogether, and resolution 1441 was just an extension of resolution 687. Thus, one can see how there

In the wake of the First Gulf War, the Security Council passed “resolution 687”. The terms of this resolution obliged Iraq to comply with conditions regarding weapons of mass destruction and inspection of their country by UN commissions. About ten years later,

Article written by

James Smith

is a school of thought linking Iraq’s failure to comply with resolution 1441 to the use of force under resolution 678 as a legal undertaking. However, this argument is tenuous on many levels. Firstly, it is debatable whether or not Iraq was failing to comply with its legal obligations. The head of the UN inspectorate in Iraq, Hans Blix, had found no hard evidence of weapons of mass destruction; the extent to which the Iraqis were failing to comply with the commission is often misconstrued too, as the inspectorate was making progress at a rate such that the remainder of their task was expected to be completed in a few months. Then questions of authority are raised. The coalition forces that removed Iraqi troops from Kuwait in 1991 were very different to those who invaded Iraq in 2003. Surely it is ridiculous to suggest that this vague group of a few nations should have the authority to decide whether or not to invade another country, when their legal justification for doing so is to uphold UN resolutions? It should be the UN itself and the Security Council that decide how to act, not a group of ‘vigilantes’ acting without a clear mandate. Another question over the invasion was the matter of timing. Resolution 1441 conveyed that this was the last chance for Iraq to comply with its disarmament obligations before action would be taken. It would have been ridiculous, however, for the “action” to have been taken

the next day, without even giving Iraq the opportunity to comply. Again the question of authority arises: why would the US, the UK and a small group of other nations feel they should make this judgment over timing, when there is a legitimate body whose sole purpose of existence is settling the intricacy of such matters: the Security Council? A final thing to note at this point is that the UK and the US did try to attain a Security Council resolution for the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Their claim, however, was denied by the other nation members of the Security Council. Perhaps this identifies the fact that the invaders knew their legal grounds were weak and were aware of what would have been the standard procedure for such an international issue: an authoritative verdict from the UN Security Council. The issues I have just discussed are very much topical at the moment with the release of the Iraq Inquiry in the UK due later this year. It is unclear what the outcome of this independent inquiry will be for the likes of Tony Blair. Although I have not taken a particularly controversial stance, with the bulk of my argument suggesting that the legal grounds of the Iraq invasion in 2003 are dubious, I hope that by reading this your understanding of the Iraq war and its implications have been somewhat clarified, just in time for the Chilcot report.

A TERM OF NEWS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS The last term has seen the beginnings of the US primary elections, one of the most interesting we’ve seen for the last few election seasons (which is why my “summary” is 350 words long).

n the far right; Donald Trump. On an unusually far left for America; Bernie Sanders - both of whom have gathered enormous support. We also have our own political rumblings with the EU referendum, as well as several notable (in my opinion!) news stories from the past term. US Primary Elections Begin The race for the US presidency began on the 1st of February with the Primaries to determine each party’s candidates. The US presidential primaries are held in each state at staggered dates between the start of February and mid –June. US citizens vote to elect delegates from their state who will later go to their national party conference to nominate a presidential candidate. On the republican side this year, Texas Senator Ted Cruz narrowly took the leading election in the Iowa vote over Donald Trump and Marco Rubio, and following a poor performance in Iowa, three other candidates suspended their election campaigns. Media sensation Donald Trump then went on to win a decisive victory over his contenders in the New Hampshire primary, where Cruz and Rubio came in 3rd and 5th respectively. The campaign of Jeb Bush, brother to former president George W. Bush, was also revived in this election when he came 4th, revitalising a previously stagnant campaign. At the moment, Trump leads as Republican candidate with 17 delegates out

Article written by

Daniel Hickey

of the 50 assigned total so far, but at this early stage (1,237 delegates are needed to become Republican candidate) nothing is for certain. It’s a similar story on the Democratic side, although there are far fewer Democrats running in the primaries: only two! In Iowa, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders effectively tied, with the state’s delegates only narrowly going to Clinton. However, Sanders won the next vote in New Hampshire more convincingly. At the moment, Sander’s campaign has more popular momentum, but Clinton has the benefit of having an enormous number of un-elected ‘super delegates’, delegates who can vote for any candidate they choose and who have their voting rights based on current or former status as party leader or elected official. Currently Clinton has 363 delegates total, of which 356 are super-delegates, while Sanders has 44, of which only 8 are super delegates. 2382 delegates are needed to win the Democrat presidential candidacy, so Sanders has a lot of ground to make up with his grassroots support to challenge Clinton, something that may well be possible. EU Referendum Prime Minister David Cameron has confirmed the date of the United Kingdom European Union membership to be the 23rd of June this year. The question that will be posed to the public is: ‘Should the United Kingdom remain 11

‘Should the

United

Kingdom remain a member of the

European Union...’

a member of the European Union or Leave the European Union?’, with voters being able to respond ‘Remain a member of the European Union’ or ‘Leave the European Union’. Phrasing matters when it comes to important questions like the upcoming referendum, as was seen last year in the similar Scotland UK membership vote. Currently 6 members of the Government cabinet have rebelled against the Prime Minister, who is in favour of Remaining, and are campaigning for the Leave campaign, and they have been joined by the Mayor of London and potential future Conservative leader, Boris Johnson. Opinions on British membership are divided in Britain and in Europe as well, but the treaty the Prime Minister returned from Brussels with provisions for giving the UK special provisions within the EU if it Remains is likely to sway both voters and ministers. North Korea nuclear test The hermit state of North Korea undertook its fourth nuclear detonation on the 6th of January this year. According to the DPRK itself, the weapon was a hydrogen bomb of unspecified yield, and the United States Geological Service recorded an earthquake of magnitude 5.1 (4.9 according to the China Earthquake Networks Centre). Disputing the claims that the bomb was a hydrogen bomb, South Korea has contended that the device was probably a fission bomb, or a boosted fission bomb, which uses a small fusion reaction to make the bomb smaller for mounting on a delivery system (a missile, usually). The blast recorded was reportedly far too small to be a true hydrogen weapon, and North Korea is hardly known for its realistic

and open reporting style, so it is likely that some details have been fudged somewhere. Nevertheless, this does show that the DPRK’s nuclear program is progressing. Joining calls of condemnation of the test, however, is North Korea’s one and only ally, China. A spokesperson said that China strongly opposed the test and urges North Korea to commit to its denuclearisation commitment. With their only ally opposing their nuclear program, it remains to be seen whether sense or stubbornness will prevail in North Korea’s leadership. UK based researchers receive official go-ahead for gene modifying human embryos Stem cell scientist Dr Kathy Niakan at the Francis Crick Institute in London has been given a license to perform genome editing on human embryos, the first official approval for such research in the world. The license allows Dr Niakan to study individual embryos, surplus from IVF treatment, for up to 14 days for research purposes only. They cannot be implanted into women. At present, groups opposed to human gene editing based on fears that it could lead to routine editing of human embryos and eugenics have expressed dismay at the go-ahead, while other health research institutes have said that it is a victory of balancing regulations with research. Similar research may have been undertaken in China in recent times, but without official approval. It is expected that Dr Niakan’s research will give insight into the early days of embryo development, particularly in IVF scenarios, allowing researchers to better understand the process and reduce failure rates.

SHOULD WE LET THE SYRIAN REFUGEES IN? We must let the Syrian and Iraqi refugees in. This is not a matter of human rights; ISIS are already taking those away from people and simply letting them into another country does not preserve them.

his is a matter of the saying ‘there is nothing more dangerous than a man with nothing to lose.’ If western powers took in families on a temporary basis we can prevent these people from feeling helpless and in danger. We must sort out a problem that we Westerners caused in the first place. The days of pretending we are the only moral people in the world will inevitably end. We must fight for the equal rights of women in the religion of Islam and wherever it may be, then sort our own problems out with our economies. Addressing flaws in a way of life is the way to go about it, not persecuting everyone in sight, otherwise they will realise one day they can access revenge with such ease we will all pay for the society’s insolence. In response to those who claim the Syrian’s would take our jobs and benefits, great? So

what? They would be made to go back to their country afterwards so there is no problem. This is a case which is seen on many a school playground every day. A case of bullying and undermining the self-worth of others and the lack of compassion or confidence to aid them. All members of the House of Commons, you are all adults! You may not act like it much of the time but please realise these people do not need a political battle over their future, they just require a long term bed and breakfast. We can then all live in the knowledge that we, not only did a good deed but also stopped the alienation of a whole religion. The events in Paris are a disgraceful act of brutality and must be dealt with in the moderate and forgiving way to show people the behaviour of extremists will be unacceptable in today’s society. 13

Article written by

Robert Stevens

HOW CHANGES IN WORLD COMMODITY PRICES AFFECT DOMESTIC INFLATION Article written by

Edison Xiong

Commodity prices are argued to be leading indicators of inflation for two reasons.

ne is that they respond more quickly to general economic shocks, such as increase in aggregate demand (i.e. demand-pull inflation); the second reason is that some changes in commodity price reflects external shocks of primary, such as a flood that deteriorates the supply of certain agricultural products. Cost push inflation is a rising price level caused by an increase in the cost of production, shown by a shift of the short run aggregate supply curve to the left. In the diagram below, the new equilibrium point will be at a higher price P2 and a lower output Y2: Poor weather conditions, for example, could reduce the supply of agricultural commodities and increase their price. The higher prices would eventually reflect the price of the related final good products bought by consumers. To the extent that shocks affect aggregate supply and that, the consistency in the prices of other consumer goods limited their adjustment. We have seen as a rule that a general increase in the price of goods can emerge because of the increase in the level of demand. Higher wages in turn lift the cost of producing goods and services, and force businesses to pass these upsurges to consumers by raising values. This is known as wage-cost inflation, which is when a rising price level is caused by an increase in wages and salaries.

The message covered by the diagram above is clear. It shows the commodity prices index (CPI) from 1986 to 2016; commodity prices were remarkably stable since start in 1990 until early 2004, contributed by relatively low rates of consumer price inflation in those years. Since 2004, the global commodity price increased rapidly, culminating in two highly significant price ‘spikes’ in 2008 and 2012. The term ‘spike’ usually means the large upward or downward movement of a price in a short period. In 2013 and 2014, the UK inflation rate reduced by falling prices of imported food, energy and raw materials. The four largest emerging and developing economies by nominal countries are the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China). Commentators believe that a third ‘spike’ in world commodity prices will soon occur.

HAS GUN VIOLENCE BECOME A NORM IN THE U.S.? * Is gun related crime on an increase in the U.S.?

Article written by

Shivam Patel

* What are the arguments for and against gun control laws? * What can be done to bring about safety in American society? It is widely believed that modern society is being drawn into the direction of disarray. Crime, especially, is widely considered to be steadily soaring out of control. In America, politicians frequently join the fray, using the crime issue to assert various political points. For example, Donald Trump recently declared that Latino immigrants are “bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” Or Democratic Party front-runner Hillary Clinton is an advocate of the death penalty, but hopes to address an “unacceptable” increase in incarceration. Similar rhetoric is uncommon in other advanced countries, most of which have much lower crime rates than the U.S. Gun control is a particularly difficult issue in the U.S., a fact that most other first-world nations find baffling. In spite of a plethora of high profile multiple killings in the past, most Americans remain hostile to any further restrictions on guns. It is widely believed that communities are safer where citizens are free to purchase weapons to defend themselves. Just a while ago, Starbucks Coffee in America requested its customers to not bring their guns into their shops. Although it was brave of Starbucks to go even this far in a country where people are better armed and only slightly less nervy than rebel fighters in Syria,

it is time America rises to address the problem of people who go armed to buy even a latte! The supporters of gun control believe that stronger laws can prevent the needless loss of life. Even individuals who support gun control rights acknowledge that certain people should not be permitted to own guns. Current gun control laws prevent criminals, mentally ill individuals and children from owning guns. Unfortunately, there have been instances where young people and mentally unstable persons have acquired weapons and used them to commit mass murders. But, the thing to understand is that guns, weapon technology, gun ownership and even gun control laws can have unexpected consequences. The creation of a national gun registry would give rise to privacy issues, and the use of outdated or unclear gun control laws can result in a lot of confusion. Unfortunately, a perfect gun control solution has not been created. There isn’t a way to know if gun control will make the nation safer or more dangerous until the Americans are willing to implement it. If America can’t adopt stronger gun control laws, maybe its citizens can adopt safer ways to use their guns. There have been various arguments against more regulations on gun use. It has been 15

Statistics

don’t change people’s

minds, people do.

at 21,000 annually and that number is not dropping. Everywhere you look in America, people are trying to make life safer. On roads, for example, there has been a huge effort in the past 50 years to enforce speed limits, crack down on drink/drug driving and build safety features on highways, as well as in vehicles. The result is a steadily improving record; by 2015, it is predicted that for first time road deaths will be fewer than deaths occurred due to firearms. So why can’t any actions be taken to reduce the number of deaths by firearm? Plainly, there’s no equivalent effort in the area of privately owned firearms. It is true that no nation sees itself as outsiders do. Half the country is sane and rational while the other half simply doesn’t grasp the inconsistencies and historic lunacy of its position, which springs from the second amendment right to keep and bear arms, and is derived from English common law and our 1689 Bill of Rights. We dispensed these rights long ago in Britain but American gun owners cleave to them with the tenacity that previous generations fought to continue slavery.

frequently reminded that Americans have the right to bear arms. Gun control laws would prevent individuals from defending themselves and their property. One of the most common laws that the supporters cite is the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. This law includes the famous phrase “the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” The fundamental argument that gun control opponents make is that the right to own and use weapons is an undeniable personal freedom guaranteed by the Constitution. However, with this right of the citizens, comes the responsibility of the holder to use it appropriately. But this side of the law has unfortunately not been clearly justified by the U.S. Constitution. Also, many supporters have pointed out from referencing incidents from the past that the chances of death are not just correlated to increased possession of guns. The usual retort that risk is everywhere might be boring to be repeated but remains true. Indeed, guns are “designed” for killing whereas knives are not, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have stabbing incidents. Guns can level the playing field, especially for women - who are often the targets of violent crimes from more powerful opponents. A world without gun is one in which the advantages of youth, size, strength, aggression, and sheer numbers are almost always decisive.

In regards to their own safety, Americans often have an unusual ability to hold two utterly opposed ideas in their minds simultaneously. That can only explain the past decade in which the fear of terror has cost the country hundreds of billions of dollars in wars, surveillance and intelligence programmes and homeland security. Ten years after 9/11, homeland security spending doubled to $69 billion. The total bill since the attacks is more than $649 billion. So what shall be done? People shouldn’t abandon their instinctive responses of horror to even rare occurrences like mass shootings, but also need to realize they are their guides to taking actions against it. The selective use of statistics masks the objectivity, validating their instincts and making them less willing to see the real side. If Americans are ever going to reach a consensus on gun control, it will happen because their principles would have evolved, not because the numbers led them there. Fewer guns would reduce deaths and outweigh any loss of liberty and freedom, the very basis on which America was formed. The only way change can be introduced is by altering the beliefs of Americans about liberty and freedom, not by inundating them with numbers. Statistics don’t change people’s minds, people do.

From a statistical point of view, gun killings wouldn’t stand out as the most egregious cause of death in the U.S. In 2013, there were 16,000 homicides in the U.S., 11,000 of which were by firearm, predominantly pistols. Auto accidents still kill three times as many people as gun homicides do, 50,000 in 2013, despite vehicular deaths are consistently falling since 1980’s. But at least that rate is also going down. Gun suicides occurred at nearly twice

Editorial

THE TRUTH ABOUT GRADES Article written by

Jaynil Patel

In every school there are teachers who will keep their grade books at the ready, using any disruption to wave it about in the air and threaten students with a bad grade. They claim that an A circled in red ink helps to ‘motivate’ the young, curious minds of their students. It might. But I have always found the best teachers are the ones who cast aside their grade books, and inspire and challenge us students to think independently and open-mindedly about the world outside of the confines of the syllabus. It is therefore not a coincidence that there is serious evidence supporting the growing belief that grades are harmful. There will always be people that will defend the practise of dishing out grades at every opportunity. However, recent research carried out by number one educational research group ASME, has shown that the three main effects of grading are: * Grades tend to diminish the student’s interest in learning itself * Grades tend to make students pick the easiest task, avoiding any forms of challenge * Grades tend to reduce the quality of a student’s thinking These all make sense. If a teacher hands out more and more grades as rewards for good work, neat handwriting or replicating the perfect template for a paragraph, then that once curious mind is going to be lead astray by the rewards of his work, and it will lose interest 18

in what he is learning and why he is learning it. Is this ‘Victorian’ educatory system, as Tony Little the Headmaster of Eton described it, really the best way to educate and nurture the minds of the future generation of our country? A student’s will to challenge himself will get weaker the more teachers or parents put pressure on them to get an A. At the end of the day, students are still children and if you say that grades are a guarantee of success, they will just take the easiest route, missing out on so much over the course of their whole school life. Also, a series of studies carried out by educational psychologists from the prestigious University of Denver revealed that those students who received quantitative feedback, i.e. grades, were significantly less creative than those who received qualitative feedback, i.e. verbal or written feedback. If a student is forced to learn only what is in a syllabus, how is he/she to cope when confronted with a topic that challenges or contradicts what has been preached to them in lessons? Hundreds of thousands of students value themselves as a B or an A, blind to the arbitrary nature of that grade. An A doesn’t show what a student can do, what a student can’t do and what a student needs help with. Even the ultimate percentage of a Biology test is a

larger reflection of how the test was written, what skills the teacher wanted to assess, and what the teacher felt deserved more or less marks. Equally qualified teachers could give completely opposite grades for the same grades. A student could write the most nuanced and evaluative essay on the effects of global warming, yet score a B because of his handwriting, or because he didn’t use the same case study the teacher wanted him to use. Despite this both teachers and students have become accustomed to grading work and receiving graded feedback on every bit of work they do. This needs to stop. Schools are too obsessed with data at the moment; instead of trying to measure a child’s ability with a letter, they should assess their ability with written feedback without a grade. Grades are not only damaging to the teacher and student, but to the parents as well. Try and think back to the saddening conversations at parents evening, a time where unfortunately most of the focus in on grades. Some parents feel like their child, who they know they brought up to be a clever child, is struggling because their effort grade average is 3.7, their attainment grade is a B- and they’re predicted a B in History. There are thousands of excellent teachers who are dealt the hard job of relaying the bad grades they were forced to give by their school, even though there really wasn’t any need to give the grades in the first place. Ultimately, all of this disappointment and confusion caused by grades affects the student most. Due to the myth that grades are “a ticket to academic success”, which students then associate with happiness, some children can’t cope with the pressure and disappointment. Many people will say that grades aren’t the cause of any serious damage, and that they’ve been part of schooling for ages so it must be the right thing to do. However, the stats below show the harsh reality that they are oblivious to.

* 20 young students take their lives every day in India due to pressure caused by grades and exams. * 70% of self-harming teenagers in the UK have suicidal thoughts due to exam stress. The number of lives ruined or lost because of grades will drop the sooner we get them out of the system. Students need to be born into a world where everything they learn isn’t associated with a letter, because then they won’t focus on the rewards of their learning, instead they will challenge themselves more and naturally develop into inquisitive learners. Over the last decade schools have started to change, and are now turning to only verbal and written feedback which is proven to be much more useful. This is a sign of hope, and I urge you, whether you be student, teacher or parent, to not place so much value on grades in order to make your own, your child or student’s education so much more fruitful. When the goal of education becomes a grade at the top of a homework, on the front of an exam, or printed in black and white on your résumé, the intrinsic motivation to excel in other realms of life becomes much harder to find. Anyone can get an A star, and it doesn’t take a lot to realise there is more to ticks and crosses in education, but it does take a lot to act on that and change.

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Maths and Science

BRIEF OVERVIEW OF HOW OBESITY FIRST OCCURRED A few thousand years ago, it was very unlikely for someone to be overweight.

owever nowadays one in six adults are now classified as obese, along with more than a million children under the age of 16. Even more shocking is that more than 66% of Americans are currently overweight and/or obese. I believe this is due to overproduction of food. Data from the US shows that food production vastly outstrips human requirements. It is estimated that food supply provides around 3800Kcal/day for everyone, which is vastly in excess of the 2200 Kcal that the average person requires. While a small portion of this excess is exported, turned into biofuels or simply wasted, the main part of the excess goes into over consumption, fuelling the obesity epidemic. Every year, food producers and manufacturers are pushed by the financial sector to increase profits and most of this is done by getting everyone to consume more, often in the form of highly processed (and highly profitable) foods. Most Western supermarkets devote the whole central section to processed foods whose advertising promotion runs into billions each year. These ever increasingly processed foods are not only being eaten in far larger portions than necessary, but are also much lower in nutrients. This claim is backed up by a recent study at the University of Colorado; the nutrient density of food has declined significantly over the past 100 years. In fact, nutrient density has declined approximately 40-60% over the past 100 years. That means that our food today typically has 50% fewer

nutrients compared to the food that our grandparents ate. Nutrients such as the vitally important vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants and phytochemicals, are the foundation of healthy cells and a strong body. Today, if you ate the same amount of vegetables that your grandparents ate, you would only receive half the nutrients. Overall, you can credit pesticides and chemical fertilizers with disrupting soil quality, depleting it of vital nutrients. Now that it is clear that we ourselves are to blame for our obesity problem, there is also a clear correlation of body weight linking to people’s perceptions of intellect. Obesity in Entertainment (stigmatism) Overweight and obese characters are normally portrayed as dumb. Fat people are almost never the heroes in plots of movies and they are never the protagonists in a romance, but rather the “clownish buddy”. There are a huge range of cartoon and real actors who are obese, and hence are portrayed as the ‘stupid’ type. These include household names such as; The Simpsons: Homer Simpson, Ralph Wiggum, Chief Wiggum; Family Guy: Peter Griffin, Chris Griffin; Home Alone: Joe Pesci; SpongeBob SquarePants: Patrick; Step Brothers: Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly; The Goonies: Jeff Cohen; Snatch: Tyrone (Ade); Hangover: Alan Garner; Anchor-man: Brick Tamland (Steve Carell). This stereotypical, debatably unjustified assumption of obese people being less clever leads to a harmful social stigmatism. 21

Article written by

Taliesin Crook

is eating to death; its funny how these so called ‘fat genes’ only affect certain countries.” says one indignant reader. Side Note: your BMI stands for “Body mass index” and is calculated by dividing a person’s weight in pounds by the square of their height in inches, and multiplying the result by 700. A BMI of 30 or above is considered to be obese. First quantifiable Findings Linking Obesity to Intellect Studies concerning the more quantifiable side of obesity have recently been published – with very surprising results. Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University quizzed 29 people who were having FMRIs (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) and noticed a trend: the brains of obese people work harder than those of normal weight people to achieve the same results. The connections between the brain parts responsible for memory and decision-making were hyperactive in overweight people, but functioned normally in average weight people, says study author Timothy Verstynen, Ph.D. High blood pressure and inflammation — which go hand-in-hand with obesity — irritate your brain’s communication systems, making it harder for messages to come through. It’s like your brain is trying to make a call when the phone lines are down.

“A heap of studies show that obese people are stigmatized and discriminated against.” says Associate Professor, Tor Ivar Karlsen at the Morbid Obesity Centre at Vestfold County Hospital. This stigmatism is not only related to brain functioning, but also other qualities that obese people apparently possess, such as them being generally lazy, dumb, greedy and unmotivated. This palpable discrimination can also occur within the workplace: “Studies show that doctors are less willing to treat people who are obese than ones with normal weight. For instance, fat women have been shown to be less likely to get a mammography or a cancer test by health personnel,” says Brewis Slade. As a result, these people might not be getting the medical help they deserve and need.

Comparison of Humans to Primates Another reason why levels of intellect can be linked to obesity is by studying similar mammals (the primate family) and interpreting the diversity between us and them. It is commonly known that humans are more intelligent than monkeys. However, what can we ascribe this to? Matt Ridley (author of the Rational Optimist) believes it can’t be due to evolution, and is instead due to specialization and trade. He argues that “There is now little doubt that hominoids spent much of those million and a half years eating a lot of fresh meat.”

On the other hand, it raises some complex issues for some people. Often the cause and the solution to the problem of obesity is presented as a simple equation: Weight = (calories in) – (calories out) This notion is what legitimises stigmatization and discrimination of obese persons, asserts Brewis Slade. As we assume that being fat or slim is a relatively easy option, we turn the problem into a moral issue: fat people are morally deficient and should be ashamed and get their act together. Of course this is not true, and it is way more complicated than the equation above, but a lot of people fail to recognise this.

Around two million years ago, ape-men had become much more carnivorous. As they had feeble teeth and finger nails instead of claws, they needed sharp tools to cut the skin of their kills. The sharp tools were like external canine teeth. This in turn led to a richer meat diet and also allowed erectus hominids to grow a larger brain. The brain is an organ that burns energy nine times the rate of the rest of the body. As meat enabled them to cut down on the huge gut that their ancestors had found necessary to digest raw vegetation and raw meat, they could grow a bigger brain instead. Fire and cooking again then unconstrained the brain to grow bigger still by making food more digestible with an even smaller

Although there is constant discrimination/ stigmatism towards obese people, it is not completely unfounded. Some have tried to explain that it is not possible to be ‘genetically disposed’ to be overweight. “No time in human history did we have such an obesity problem until a few decades ago. Did our genetic marking somehow change in just 30+ years, I don’t think so? Half of the world is starving to death, while the other half 22

your BMI, the more likely you are to eat fast food.

gut – once cooked, starch gelatinises and protein denatures, releasing far more calories for less input of energy. As a result, whilst other primates have guts weighing four times their brains, the human brain weighs more than the human intestine. Cooking enabled hominids to trade gut size for brain size.

3. It causes dementia Being obese in middle age means you could be four times as likely to develop dementia when you’re older, according to a 2011 study in the journal Neurology. Researchers tracked the weight of 6,500 people over the age of 65 and found a link between those who were obese and those who had dementia. It’s believed that obesity-induced inflammation could actually kill part of your brain’s circuitry that’s needed for memory.

Using this chain of logic, it can lead us to conclude that eating too much food (and becoming obese) can restrict the brain growing and being sustained at a manageable level. What Ridley does not mention is that not only is the brain not able to grow to its potential size, but it is also does not increase in density. As the brain (of an average-weight person), becomes denser, they have more neurons in the same available space. More neurons lead to more potential connections, which results in a thicker and more innovative thought process. Obese people can struggle to think as less energy goes to their brain, as the stomach and muscles have to carry around extra fat.

Obesity Causes Loss of Brain Tissues In the journal Human Brain Mapping, Paul Thompson, a UCLA professor of neurology, compared the brains of people who were obese, overweight, and of normal weight, to see if they had differences in brain structure. They found that obese people had 8 percent less brain tissue than people with normal weight, while overweight people had 4 percent less tissue.

Other Problems Associated with Obesity There is a long list of problems that are associated with being obese other than diminishing your brain’s functionality. These include; affecting testosterone levels; increasing your risk of depression; possibly leading to dementia.

Due to the big loss of tissue, your brain is less dense. This is similar to what was mentioned above; the brain struggles to make the necessary connections and fire enough neurons to have a complete thought process. As the neurons are just not there it “depletes your cognitive reserves, putting you at much greater risk of Alzheimer’s and other diseases that attack the brain,” noted Thompson.

1. It affects testosterone A 2012 study in the journal Clinical Endocrinology found that testosterone levels in obese teenagers were 40 to 50 percent lower than those of healthy guys the same age. That’s because fat cells can convert testosterone into oestrogen and interfere with how your brain calls the production of more testosterone.

The new study used brain images from an earlier study known as the Cardiovascular Health Study Cognition Study. The researchers converted the scans into detailed threedimensional images using tensor-based morphometry, a neuroimaging method that offers high resolution mapping of anatomical differences in the brain.

2. It gives you the blues A 2010 study of 58,000 people found that obesity increases your risk of depression by 55 percent. According to a 2012 report in Public Health Nutrition, the top 25 percent of fast food eaters are more than 50 percent likely to suffer from depression. Similarly, there is a strong positive correlation which links obesity to fast food. I.E. the higher

In looking at both grey matter and white matter of the brain, the researchers found that the people defined as obese had lost brain tissue in the frontal and temporal lobes, areas of the brain critical for planning and memory, and in the anterior cingulate gyrus (attention and executive functions),

hippocampus (long term memory) and basal ganglia (movement). Overweight people showed brain loss in the basal ganglia, the corona radiata, white matter comprised of axons, and the parietal lobe (sensory lobe). “The brains of obese people looked 16 years older than the brains of those who were lean, and in overweight people looked eight years older,” said Thompson.

unhealthy and dangerous actions of others. We shouldn’t “turn a blind eye,” or “mind our own business,” when it comes to the health and safety of ourselves and impressionable children. People who are suffering and struggling with addictions are not only hurting themselves, they are affecting their families, their friends and the whole of society. References:

However, some argued that “This is an irresponsible and misleading statement. It is not possible to estimate someone’s age from a brain scan.”

The Rational Optimist – Matt Ridley

Bedford School

Human Brain Mapping, Paul Thompson

Luckily for students such as us at Bedford School we have at least 2 hours of sports a week and have healthy lunches. This leads to a healthier weight, which results in increased brain activity etc. This healthier lifestyle is not only good for ourselves, but also greatly improves the chances of our school attaining good academic and sport results.

The stigmata of obesity. Thoughts and attitudes of adolescent school pupils –

Overall, as this is a very controversial and speculative article, the one thing that I hope we can agree on is that for our own personal safety and the safety of our society, we have the right to protection against the

bit.ly/249Y1u8 – Men’s Health Magazine bit.ly/1PQsvrl – The Telegraph Newspaper

A. HUTCH, M. HE, A. REILLY, M. LEAN, W. LESLIE, C. HANKEY. University of Glasgow, UK. Research notes by the Associate Professor Tor Ivar Karlsen of the University of Agder and the Morbid Obesity Centre at Vestfold County Hospital. Nestle. Animal v. plant foods in human diets and health: is the historical record unequivocal? Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 1999; 58, 211-218

PYTHAGOREAN ARTICLE The Pythagoreans’ Club is a mathematical society that runs a series of lectures throughout the year on different mathematical discoveries and theories. to areas of mathematics only touched on at GCSE level. We were also fortunate enough to have some lower sixth mathematicians present mathematical curiosities and discoveries they found interesting.

he aim of these lectures is to broaden the mathematical intellect of mathematics students, by showing how mathematics has affected and created the world around us. During the past week, the Pythagoreans’ Club rejuvenated an old tradition: the student lecture. The student lecture is an event where sixth form mathematicians present interesting mathematical discoveries they have come across. This year, we were fortunate enough to even have some IB2 boys, Max Williamson and Brian Ng, present their IB mathematics coursework. Brian’s presentation on how you can never perfectly tune a piano and Max’s on modelling the spread of disease were both interesting and extremely informative. Ray Ren then discussed Ptolemy’s Theorem – some early Greek mathematics bringing a further understanding

Tonny Lou discussed how the sum of all the natural numbers equalled an unexpected number, which was not infinity as most people thought! Luke Qian discussed the Golden ratio (1.61803398875) and the convergence of the Fibonacci sequence. He showed the links between the successive numbers in the Fibonacci sequence and the golden ratio. There were also presentations on lesser known areas of mathematics, such as philosophical mathematics and the application of mathematics in the modern world. Harjeet Sumal gave a presentation on the introduction of zero into our number system and the lack of development in mathematics because of the refusal to accept “nothing” as a number. Finally, Taliesin Crook gave a presentation on fitness bands and the mathematics that enables them to carry out specific functions. The whole evening was a huge success with every seat in A21 taken. The atmosphere was really superb with all boys wanting to know more about certain areas that had been discussed. We hope to run another student lecture next year and hope that you will join us!

Article written by

Harjeet Sumal

REMOTE SENSING BY PROFESSOR MATHIAS DISNEY Article written by

Adam Johnston

During the Autumn Term, Dr Mathias Disney, from University College, London, came to give a talk on his work on remote sensing, focusing mainly on a project he undertook in the Amazon rainforest.

rofessor Disney talked about his interest in how radiation interacts with vegetation and how remote sensing has allowed us to expand our understanding of plants and how their processes, such as the release of carbon, actually occur. He showed us some excellent videos and images concerning how remote sensing works and how much remote sensing helps our understanding of how forests work. Some of the images shown were quite amazing, especially in terms of how much

detail they were able to show. After Professor Disneyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s talk, Alex Kemp, an Old Bedfordian, gave us a quick insight into university life, both overall and in terms of studying Geography as an undergraduate degree. His final year project is also based around remote sensing. It was a very useful talk for those in the younger years, showing them the opportunities open to them at university and the types of projects you can undertake during your degree.

The Arts

ON THE NATURE OF CONTEMPORARY ARTWORK Article written by

Thomas Rainbow

The pursuit of art has a responsibility to represent, with utmost execution, the cultures, the philosophies and the politics that govern any given period of time. artwork with great caution and scepticism. For me, the works being produced at current are, in some desperate way, in direct competition with one another. In the digital age, there seem endless individual voices, each gasping for a breath of recognition. As in the Theory of Evolution, an artist should absorb others’ shortcomings and relentlessly seek their own work’s betterment. This, in my opinion, would prove the only viable method of achieving a reputation that rises above the vast expanse of expression that is the current art community.

uch is my overarching criteria with which I approach any contemporary work. We, as the audience of an artwork, have as great a responsibility in shaping future notions of this particular age as the artists themselves. By translating criticisms into creativity, we can breach further towards a satisfying definition of modernism. When one approaches Rembrandt’s masterful ‘The Jewish Bride’ in the Rijksmuseum, you would undoubtedly be shunned if you were, say, to question its internal balance. I am not suggesting that this painting, or indeed other masterpieces, is undeserving of its status. Far from it. Its acclaim has been rightfully achieved by years of criticism meriting unanimously positive reports. One can only begin to imagine, however, the number of paintings that suffered rejection thanks to these reports. As would have been done in the 17th Century, we should approach modern 28

How then, are we to identify potential in this conglomerate mass? My thoughts are in many ways best expressed by the prologue to E H Gombrich’s The Story of Art, where the author warns against judging artwork by our instincts - we must avoid forming an opinion simply based on whether we ‘like’ or ‘dislike’ it. In accordance with my prior discussion, I therefore extend this notion to the specifics of contemporary art. The innovator should not revert to the satisfaction and resignation of ‘liking’ a work. If they do so, they risk losing any incentive to contribute and better their own work in the domain of contemporary art. However, it would be perfectly acceptable to ‘admire’ or, further, ‘praise’ such artwork if it so merits it. In this way, one could reach a conscious judgment upon something as unplaceable as artwork. Think to the rivalry of JMW Turner and John Constable. Through lifelong

competitiveness, one and the other were equally encouraged through mutual admiration to undertake increasingly powerful and meaningful works, eventually gifting the nation with some of its finest paintings and sons. This leads to the practice of incorporating external, contemporary influences upon one’s own work. A thorough understanding of visual art would, to my mind, incorporate intense familiarity with the scrutinized and glorified temples of excellence, such as Rembrandt van Rijn as discussed previously, rather than resting our knowledge base upon unstable and untested foundations. If the art we produce is so readily influenced by contemporaries of no significant acclaim, we risk treading a path of similar insignificance.

innumerable toils and tests may eventually find its end in the digital age. Miró’s twisting geometries found revival in Pollock’s simulated spaces, which in turn made appearances in Basquiat’s dismissal of dimension. Modern art itself is not at fault; it’s how to find the artistic nuggets in a digital stream of expression.

The greatest problem facing the art community today is simply overpopulation. The Internet revolution has made the business of art ‘excessive’ in every sense of the word. Artistry is no longer solely limited to the professional. Nor is it a pursuit limited to the talented. Any visit to the endless number of online communities, such as Deviant Art, or artist blogs would demonstrate the necessity for a scathing disapproval of the majority of today’s art. A failure to scrutinize will inevitably result in a severe absence of great inspiration from the lives of the future artists. The lineage that has developed through

Figure at Night Guided by the Phosphorescent Tracks of Snails, Joan Miró, 1940 Number 1, 1949, Jackson Pollock Bird on Money, Jean-Michel Basquiat, 1981

GILBERT LLOYD LECTURE Article written by

Josh Taylor

Following two very successful Gilbert Lloyd lectures earlier in the year from Anne Lyles and William Feaver, on Thursday 28th of January it was the turn of Alex Chinneck.

lex is an OBM who lives in London and is well known for his ‘impossible art’. At just 30 years of age, he is the youngest (and by his own admission, the coolest) board member of the Royal British Society of Sculptors. His major public artworks have turned heads and grasped the attention of thousands. Alex spoke with passion about how he and his team create works that include melting houses made from 75,000 wax bricks; a building where the facade had slid its way into the front garden; a floating stone building over the Covent Garden Plaza and even a pylon standing upside down on its tip. It was amazing to have our eyes opened to what ‘art’ is and can be - art is so much more

than simply pen and paper or canvas and paint. A truly fascinating and awe inspiring lecture. The next Gilbert Lloyd lecture is by Dr Caroline Vout on Thursday 3rd March and is entitled ‘What is classic about Classical art?’ Admission is free and will be held the Erskine May Hall.

J.M.W TURNER & THE ART OF THE WATERCOLOUR AT THE HIGGINS GALLERY, BEDFORD At times, small quantities of beauty resonate with a pertinence that more substantial offerings could scarcely rival.

Article written by

Thomas Rainbow

back into Turner’s realm from paintings of perfect mysticism and realism becomes an uneasy transition. His paintings speak like a language of the most intricate grammatical forms, but the unprocessed, local dialect of John Robert Cozens or Thomas Hearne is unexplainably appealing. Hung one after the other; they seem to wait for unquenched approval that was inexplicably withheld two hundred years ago.

snippet of pure perfection can hold an audience for minutes; a room of it will often be passed in a matter of seconds. There seems, at present, a widely held belief amongst the legions of galleries and curators worldwide that bigger is always better. We are all too accustomed to career-spanning retrospectives to the extent that anything less is deemed inferior. What often serves as an exhibition advertisement should instead be treated with caution – prepare to be bored by Matisse or Rembrandt. Naturally, the pillars of national collections (Tate, National Galleries, etc.) have an invaluable role in protecting priceless artwork from distant, private collections. This, however, does not mean we should disregard obscure, local brilliance.

In the midst of the Napoleonic Wars, recognition could perhaps depend upon the good fortune of the artist in securing a sketching tour of Europe. Of course, Turner’s most famed painting of this exhibition, The Great Falls of the Reichenbach, was undertaken on one such excursion. For a war shattered continent, paintings such as this must have possessed an affirming strength that swept away thoughts of conflict and devastation. By painting the ruined streets of Paris, bleak histories instead evolve in the works of Turner’s contemporaries. In this way, the exhibition offers its audience a tantalizing glimpse into the power that supercedes the aesthetics of watercolour. For artists of this period, watercolour was an essential means to communicate and to comment – Turner’s commentaries, however, are so universal and organic in scope that they shall remain relevant in spite of time.

The Higgins’ collection of nine Turner watercolours is, consequently, an understated goldmine for local art enthusiasts. It is not extensive, but it is broad. It does not chronicle every turn of his career, but it is insightfully personal. Perhaps more significantly, it eloquently contextualises his life’s work through appearances by contemporary romantics. Turner’s name is so frequently, and indeed justifiably, proclaimed to be the artist of the early nineteenth century that it becomes difficult to name any others. And given this honourable title, it is inappropriate that so many of his works outings are isolated from the influence they still hold upon British art. In a refreshing buckling of this trend, the Higgins has collated precursors, peers and successors to the invaluable legacy that Turner left to the medium of the watercolour.

Succinct and direct, a visit will last no longer than an hour. However, these paintings, so fundamental to the heritage of the British tradition, may well be owed an hour each. Contained within pastoral landscapes, rural depictions and war-torn testaments, there lies voices that are yet to earn the recognition they so deserve. We all know and love Turner’s paintings, but seeing them can hardly compare to these bittersweet and brilliant tragedies of artists that shall never know the praise this exhibition.

In a peculiar way, we are left with the impression that Turner’s hand, and his most recognizable style, is in part a generalization of the diversity that came before him. Moving 23 13

CAREERS IN LITERATURE, MEDIA AND THE ARTS EVENING Article written by

Daniel Hickey

On the 1st February 2016, Bedford School held the first Careers in Literature, Media and the Arts evening.

We hosted six guest speakers in the Music School Recital Hall, each of whom had pursued careers in Literature, Media, and the Arts ( including an Old Bedfordian). The purpose of the evening was to educate the assembled audience from Bedford School, Bedford Girls’ School and Bedford Modern School about the various career paths that were open to students of Literature.

career in journalism?’ and ‘whether they had faced any morale quandaries over the course of their careers?’. A common theme within the speakers’ answers was a general enthusiasm for English as an educational and career choice, but above all having the bravery to simply go for what you enjoy most, and not hesitating to take an opportunity to do what you enjoy.

The guests included Ian Grant, currently an actor and formerly Non-Executive Chairman for Inpress Books as well as former Managing Director of the Encyclopaedia Britannica; Claire Paul, who currently oversees the BBC Academy’s ‘Make It Digital’ Traineeship for young talent and has held a multitude of positions within the BBC, and Professor Celeste-Marie Bernier, Professor of African American Studies at the University of Nottingham and author of numerous books in her field. We also had Oliver Yew, old boy of Bedford School and Digital Sports Journalist at Sky, with many sports journalism jobs in his portfolio; Anneli Howard, a barrister working in EU law with experience in the European court of Justice, and Phoebe Morgan, an editor currently moving to HarperCollins to work as a fiction editor with a background in journalism.

Another major theme of the evening was career switching; most of the panel had held a completely different job in the past to the one they hold now, and they stressed that one’s initial choice in career is absolutely not final. The question time was followed up with a chance to ask any remaining questions to the panellists directly in the foyer of the music school over a drinks reception. The evening was enlightening for anyone considering a career in Media or the Arts, and of course the Bedford School English Department issued its thanks to the six guests for their time. Having a personal interest in journalism as a career, I found it very useful to hear about the ways to get into the media, and the panellists advice was excellent in suggesting such avenues to anyone wishing to do so.

As you can see, we had a lot of insight into the experiences of those who had pursued English and Journalism degrees and to provide further insight, we also welcomed back to Bedford School old boy Robin Hampshire, who started the evening with a talk on his current experience of studying English at the New College of Humanities. He discussed the transferable skill set of English – essay writing, analysis, criticism, an eye for detail – and how it could be applied a broad range of careers in publishing and journalism. After Robin’s talk, the floor was opened to students to ask the panel questions, and we had questions ranging from ‘what was the panellists favourite part of the job?’ and ‘what was the most unexpected part of their job?’ to ‘how to pursue a 32

DESIGNING “SPACE CHAIRS” What are the challenges faced in designing a space chair and how to tackle them?

Designing chairs which can keep humans safe in space is a major scientific hurdle which has not yet been completely crossed. However, a few Bedford School boys have attempted to do just this, and this succinct report talks about what they think a space chair should be like and how it may work. It was a very interesting project which provoked numerous scientific ideas and thoughts, as well as challenges to be tackled to withstand the environment in space and of course, maintain the safety of the people who used them. Some of the main issues to consider whilst designing the chair were concerning safety, security, comfort and feasibility. Security, of course was the main priority, but attempts were made to make the design as comfortable as possible. The shape and form of the chair is quite similar to that of a car, however the fabric and the cushioning is replaced by a

memory foam, which makes it not only more comfortable by shaping itself to the person’s body, but also reduces impact on the person during acceleration. The person sat on the chair is held by a five-strap seatbelt which makes secures them in place and also ensures the force on the body is evenly spread out, thus reducing the pressure on the person’s body. The position of the footrest can also be altered depending on the size of the passenger. Some experts from relevant fields were also consulted in order to get a better idea of what factors were to be considered. One of the potential issues that was discounted was the G force that the passengers would be subjected to. It turned out that 45° angle take off would not be particularly dangerous to them. The suit which the passengers would have to wear (Anti- G suits that astronauts use), would ensure proper circulation of the blood 23 3

Article written by

Alexander Williams Bryan Ng Christopher Junge Ray Ren Wilfred Hamilton

in the body. After discussions and meetings with experts, the following key points were crucial for the design to be successful: comfort of the passengers-vibrations; orientation with respect to direction of travel and design of the seats for comfortable sitting position. Safety and reliability was also a consideration; equipment must be durable and chances of failure remained small. One of the main matters of consideration is the performance of the chair while taking off. At this moment, the passenger would have to sit upright, similar to the taking off position in an airplane or even a rollercoaster as this position reduces pressure on the body. In a similar manner to how seats on an aeroplane change their angle on taking off with respect to the direction of travel, the same practice has to be followed in a space vehicle. However, during landing, the chair has to face in a parallel direction to travel, not only for comfort, but also to minimise the force on the spine to avoid serious injuries. Passenger safety is always the key priority and measures have to be taken to keep passengers safe. According to the Pascalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Principle, pressure cannot be diminished in a closed

system. In practice, pressure will greatly vary throughout the journey; however, a five strap seatbelt can be used to distribute the same force over a larger area than a two strap seatbelt typically found in automobiles. In order to decrease the impact caused by vibration, a damped spring is used. This consists of a spring sealed in a tube with some gel to act as a shock absorber in two different directions, one going from the top to bottom and the vice-versa. A ball bearing system will allow the seat to move freely to compensate for the movement of the spacecraft. Although, the potential problem here is that the seat may move too much and the passenger will be in danger in case the spring fails. To solve this problem, four damped springs are used, so if one of them fails, there are others which can still operate perfectly. The probability of all four springs breaking is extremely tiny and can be ignored. To sum up, these were a few points of concern considered by the team. A lot of scientific scrutiny goes into making space chairs which are safe, but with advancing technology, we will get close to designing a perfect chair in the future.

Humanities

GEOGRAPHY SOCIETY LECTURE: EVOLVING RISK AND VULNERABILITY FROM SNOW AVALANCHES Article written by

Duncan Johnston

CASE STUDIES FROM FRANCE, ICELAND, AND JAPAN

n the 25th of January, Geography students were fortunate enough to attend a lecture on ‘Evolving risk and vulnerability from snow avalanches’ by Professor Chris Keylock from Sheffield University. He was welcomed with a packed EMH with students ranging from Year 9 up to Year 13, including students from Sharnbrook Upper School and Bedford Girls School. This lecture proved to be very beneficial for A2 students as it related directly to the course due to it being an essential element of the A2 Earth Hazards topic. The lecture provided students with useful examples in mitigation techniques towards avalanches. Examples included mitigation techniques in Iceland and France; thus allowing students to get a solid foundation of knowledge in terms of how to mitigate the hazard. An interesting aspect of the lecture was the fact that all of

the examples he presented to us were based on his own work. We were able to see the videos and photos he had taken during his fieldwork. A personal favourite of mine was seeing a controlled release avalanche in action and seeing its ginormous size in comparison to a large pole (which measured important aspects of the avalanche) that ended up looking like a matchstick compared to the avalanche. In summary, the work from France coupled avalanche frequency to mesoscale climatic phenomena, the work from Japan introduced a multihazard context and the work from Iceland was the core business in terms of risk determination and remediation. The Geography Society now looks forward to the follow-on project that will involve Year 9’s modelling mitigation techniques and testing the techniques with flour to act as snow.

RS TRIP 2016 On February 1st, as part of our Lower Sixth IB Philosophy course, we were lucky enough to visit a Philosophy conference held at North London Collegiate School.

Article written by

Chris Lamb

his included four lectures held by figures in the field on topics as varied as machine consciousness, the life and ideas of Ludwig Wittgenstein, experiments in neuroscience relating to free-will and political philosophy. I am going to outline the second and fourth talks since these seemed the most interesting and accessible. Ray Monk delivered our second lecture on the life and ideas of Ludwig Wittgenstein. Many would consider Wittgenstein to be one of the most important philosophers of the twentieth century. Wittgenstein lived as part of a wealthy family in Vienna which bore much tragedy. His sister Gretel was his main source of inspiration as she provided him with works of the time- these built up his interest in philosophy culminating in his work with Bertrand Russell at Cambridge University and challenging Russell’s set paradox. Wittgenstein’s work included the notion of ‘language games’ which attempt to explain our contextual understanding of language, and his belief that ‘eternal life’ doesn’t exist in the afterlife but in the present. The last speaker was Professor Jo Woolf, a dean at UCL, who spoke about political philosophy. This was a particularly interesting talk in which he explained about the distribution

of power in society. As well as mentioning the importance of ‘weighted questions’ in politics which demand a certain answer, Woolf talked about a study in America which showed how our background influences our future prospects. Though it was predicted that race would be the biggest determining factor, social class turned out to be the most influential. He pointed out that whilst we like to think that pure hard work got us to where we are, with the same effort it may have been impossible had we been from a lower social class, contrary to the promoted idea of the American Dream. In all, it was an enjoyable and thought-provoking day. A big thanks to Reverend Atkins for taking us.

social

class turned out to be the

most influencial

Languages

SPECTRUM Think about the colour of this page of which the article is printed on – is it white? How white is it? Is it wrong to call it black?

Article written by

Calvin Fang

they were able to immediately spot the different shades of green when given a picture of twelve green squares, because the Himbas have more words of types for green than English.

he ancient Greek poet Homer famously described the ‘winedark sea,’ sparking debate amongst scholars – is the sea blue or red? Has this got a deeper meaning? Former British Prime Minister Gladstone argued that people in ancient Greece had no perception of blue since the word was not created, and thus references to colours are often odd. He cited the extraordinarily high number of references to black and white and noted that other colours were rarely mentioned, with yellow and green gaining fewer than ten mentions. This is in line with the theory of linguistic relativity: in 1969 two scholars argued that languages follow an evolutionary pattern, first there were words for black and white, then red, then followed green or yellow and eventually a word for blue. Mark Bradley from the University of Nottingham further argues that the Greeks viewed an object’s colour, or chroma, as its visible outermost shell. For instance, a table would not be brown but wood-coloured – the idea of abstract colours did not exist. The sea that Homer saw may well have been blue, but there was no word for him to describe it. Conversely, a study conducted amongst the Himba, an indigenous people living in Northern Namibia, shows that

An interesting fact: some languages (most notably Vietnamese) have the same word for blue and green (what English linguists refer to as ‘grue’) which they translate as oceangrue or leaf-grue respectively. However, in Russian, there are two different words for what English-speakers refer to as dark blue and light blue, akin to having both the words red and pink, when pink is just a lighter shade of red. As language progresses, new words come up to facilitate our everyday needs and thereby it enables us to recognise the uniqueness and individuality of colour, and so should we seek ways of recognising progress. After two and a half years at Bedford School, I have personally seen a growing trend of this phenomenon, with academic stripes, ties for Heads of Houses and so on. It is great that recognition is given to those who deserve, but alas, I fear a 23 93

downside: by increasing the availability of awards, we are reducing the proportion of people without such awards (what may be implied as ‘the norm’) perhaps despite their efforts. Over time, I believe this practice could have the reverse effect of its aim – rather than incentivising progress, we may be deterring it. From an economics perspective, this is not great; we are failing to maximise our efficiency and only working within the production possibility frontier (PPF). To illustrate, I will use my own example: “close, but no cigar.” This is an idiom that I encountered while desperately memorising English idioms for my GCSEs that can apply to so many situations. Although I am aware that many would be happy to have obtained my GCSE results, please be assured that I am not here to brag: with a GCSE profile of 7A*s and 3As, I was in fact just one mark below the threshold for being awarded an academic stripe (being one mark off an A* for RE). I also learnt that in my ALIS test, I had obtained a score of 129, one mark below the threshold of what is defined as ‘gifted and talented.’ Both the provision of academic stripes and the label of ‘gifted and talented’ are used to define the academically capable, but being so close, it was perhaps discouraging to be falling to the norm. Going back to colours; should ‘cyan’ be seen as more blue or more green? I can perhaps now see why the Vietnamese have the same word for blue and green, and to also see why the word cyan was created. This is a colour in its own right, but it is also part of a broad range of shades of one colour (or more). I propose, from personal experience and from an economics viewpoint, the best way is by

a ‘spectrum’. By using a spectrum, everyone would be known for their individual strengths and thereby there would be no labels. In a TED talk given by Sir Ken Robinson, he argued that diversity is one of the principles in which human lives flourish. When everyone’s individual skills are celebrated, we can achieve specialisation and full efficiency (working on the PPF curve rather than within). Perhaps this is why, speaking from personal experience, so many overseas boys come to study in England: the GCSE programme offers a wide range of disciplines and one can use it as a base from which to decide upon A-levels or other programmes of learning, rather than being forced to study Chinese literature, Maths, History and so on until the end of Sixth Form, as would be the case where I am from, where there is little flexibility and students have limited capability to know what they might specialise in at university. Robinson also pointed out that tests should support learning, rather than obstruct it. Contrary to popular beliefs, behavioural economists have now proven that incentives sometimes can have the reverse effect: a study in the 70s showed that people were less likely to donate blood when they were offered financial incentives, suggesting these incentives ‘crowded out’ the motivation. If we shift the focus of grades onto being diagnostic and about knowing one’s capability, could it lead to the same outcome? Perhaps with such a system of spectrum, many people would be a little less blue. I now encourage you think of my first question again –things are not usually black and white, even this piece of paper…

TEXTURED THOUGHTS At 19 months old, a child called Helen Keller contracted a bout of meningitis that left her irredeemably and profoundly deafblind.

er journey to become the first deafblind lecturer, political rights activist and prolific writer, is by itself astounding and extraordinarily moving, shattering the silence and darkness of the world that had enveloped her at such a tender age. However, in addition to these reflections, anyone who chances to read the memoirs of Keller is also struck by a linguistic problem. In someone with no experience of sound, of the written word, of images: how possibly do thoughts find a means to vocalise? Keller’s autobiography is itself proof that she found no difficulty in adequately constructing and understanding sentences in English, German, French, and Latin. Keller could speak, but like Beethoven’s experience of performing, she spoke the words without hearing them, indeed, without ever having really heard them. Yet without being able to listen to the sound of a word in her thoughts before speaking or writing (because she had almost no memory of word sounds), as most of my readers might do, to what extent can we consider Keller’s dialogue a translation, and if we do, what of? As you have been reading this, the phonetics you learned in early childhood have been triggering the sounds of the speech qualities that they represent in your mind, engaging in a process known as ‘sub-vocalisation.’ In other words, when we read, it is a great deal like being read to. In addition, we access a whole variety of images, impressions and imaginary sense data in a subjective

but universal manner. The key thing here is that it is our language that enables us to produce such an action, to formulate coherent thought. Keller herself describes the difference between the periods in which she knew language as “two lives;” the period of being deafblind she describes as thought consisting of a series of “wordless sensations.” This precisely then is the point of our enquiry. What changed in Keller’s thought processes when she began to learn language? It is for this reason that no account of Keller would be remotely complete without the inclusion of her teacher Anne Sullivan (who was herself blind). Sullivan first began her Herculean task by spelling the word “doll” onto Keller’s hand and teaching her to imitate. In this manner, a whole vocabulary was tediously and intimately constructed, hand to hand, over the course of several years. A particularly defining moment occurred when Sullivan first spelled the word love into her hand; Keller describes in a particularly touching scene her realisation of the concept after a flurry of questioning. What we might notice here is that, by some ineffable mechanism to us, an abstract concept 24 13

Article written by

Joshua Carmichael

has been represented in touch impressions, and what is more, the thoughts about it will likewise be rendered in the imagination of sensation of touch, or even smell. We have no trouble in imagining sensations, without any difficulty at all my readers can conjure the smoothness of silk, the sharpness of a thorn, the taste of mint. But what we struggle with is the idea that whole thoughts could be contained in these, that musings on love could be captured in the imaginings of a brushing or light pressure. Keller’s case thus represents a powerful argument for Chomsky’s conception of universal grammar. Chomsky argued that all grammar was in part at least, innate. By means of some hypothetical Language Acquisition Device (LAD), people have the ability to acquire vast amounts of linguistic understanding, with no need for formal acquisition of specific rules that govern the language. Consider young children; no one ever explains to a child the exact process of syntax and yet children string their sentences together (roughly) correctly. When we consider Keller then, through this perspective we can explain her ability to relate ideas coherently in a vacuum of conventional language as emerging from an innate LAD responding to the only sense data it perceives. If we take this approach, we

have no problem explaining how Keller could translate the difference between the verbal communication of the world and her own totally alien internal monologue. The answer is simply that there was no difference; although they differ in content, thoughts constructed in the medium of imaginary touch and even perhaps smell, construct themselves with the same logic that construct our predominantly image and sub-vocalisation-driven thought. Keller was unquestionably one of the most diverse polyglots in history. In addition to the spoken languages she mastered, she also perfected her reading of braille, lipreading by touch and hand drawing words, even describing how she could experience music by feeling for the vibrations. Her case, in my view, demonstrates that our conception of our thoughts as representing some kind of ongoing internal speech or monologue is nothing but a fallacy. Rather, we communicate to ourselves via a whole quartet of imaginary sensations. More importantly, however, Keller demonstrates the flexibility of language; that whole thoughts, abstract concepts, ideas can be represented in ways we cannot even conceive of. What does love ‘feel’ like?

HOW DO WE WRITE WITHOUT AN ALPHABET? For people who are used to European languages, Chinese characters will probably look identical to one another. In fact, based on their origins, all Chinese characters can be classified into 6 different kinds, making it much easier to understand: 1. Pictograms This is probably the most well-known way of creating Chinese characters; the character is drawn to depict the physical appearance of an object. An example would be the character for ‘wood’: This is the oldest character for ‘wood,’ which clearly shows branches on the top and roots at the bottom. A few thousand years later the modern character has been stylized and standardized, becoming: 2. Simple ideograms These characters do not have an obviously touchable object associated with them, so early writers added further strokes to another character; for example, the character for ‘root’ is created by adding 3 dots to the bottom part of the character for ‘wood’:

3. Compound ideographs Another method to create characters that represent an abstract idea is to put two pictograms together; the character for ‘rest’ is created by putting the character for ‘man’ and the character for ‘wood’ together: This symbol depicts a person sitting under a tree, perhaps resting in the shade, and now it looks like this: 4. Phono-semantic characters As they ran out of ideas for new characters, early writers depicted the category of a word by using a radical (or root) meaning, and then added the phonetic element of the character to its right side. For example, the character for the verb ‘wither’ combines the characters for ‘wood’ and ‘ancient’ (which has nothing to do with the meaning of the character). Over time, this: has become:

The three dots eventually evolved into a horizontal line and now it looks like this: It is easy to see the link between the character for ‘wood’ and that for ‘roots.’

24 3

Article written by

Bryan Ng

SPANISH PLAY WRITE-UP Article written by

Jake Duxbury

One cold, bright afternoon in September I was handed a thick stack of papers.

o my horror, I realised that this stack of papers was the play we would have only four months to learn, rehearse and perfect before throwing ourselves into the spotlight at the newly-opened Quarry Theatre. Progress to begin with was painfully slow- trying to coordinate the movements of eight ‘actors,’ all with busy lives, is no mean feat. However, poco a poco, the play began to take shape, thanks (in no small measure) to the monumental efforts of our choreographer/motivator/residentexpert María. Many evenings, days off during the holidays and even Sundays were sacrificed in the pursuit of the sort of perfection María has been accustomed to during her illustrious career in the performing arts world. Buoyant with our success in III Festival Hispano de Teatro, where we claimed the prize for “The most unique theatrical experience,” we attempted to transform our initial 10-minute

performance into something much more substantial. Eventually, after months of line-learning and rehearsals, we were ready to perform to a packed-out Quarry Theatre, and despite the nerves, we delivered two excellent performances, which were found to be entertaining and humorous by English and Spanish audience members alike. I would like to thank the other members of the cast, who were great fun to be with, and who made the potentially monotonously repetitive rehearsals into something truly enjoyable. Also, our collective thanks must go to Mr Huxford and to África, without whom this production would never have taken place, and finally to the amazing María, who has taught us all so much, not only about theatre but also about Spain itself: to her we all surely owe our future careers in Teatro Español.

Music

WEST’S SIDE STORY; IS KANYE REALLY “THE GREATEST LIVING ROCK STAR”? Article written by

Jim Cooper

Kanye West’s boastful outburst at last year’s Glastonbury festival sparked outrage from many fans of popular music.

he now infamous remark was accompanied by boos from the capacity crowd. In fact, his appearance had caused controversy right from the start. Prior to the event, over 135,000 people signed a petition to try to stop West from headlining on the Saturday night. I however seem to be alone in agreeing with Kanye West in his claim to be “the greatest living rock star”. The first issue to deal with (which happens to be the sole pillar of most peoples’ argument) is that West’s music is not rock music. West’s music has developed a lot over the years from the classic hip-hop of The College Dropout of 2004, to the sonic masterpiece that is Yeezus of 2013. What is certain however, is that West’s music could never be described as rock.

42 36

When I first heard Kanye declare that he was “the greatest living rockstar”, I immediately agreed with him. Surely, as Rihanna said, “a rock star is more of an attitude” and if so, West certainly fulfils the brief of a rock star in this respect. One of the main reasons for this is his ability to provoke controversy. In his 2011 collaboration album with Jay-Z, Watch the Throne, the song Murder to Excellence includes West highlighting the prevalence of gang culture in America with the line “314 soldiers died in Iraq, 509 died in Chicago”. His willingness to point out social problems and provoke controversy is a characteristic trait of a rock star. What’s more, the statement that he is “the greatest living rock star” is thus a self-fulfilling prophecy. By saying this, West fuels disagreement and conversation, a most coveted skill of any rock star. It’s an impressive feat to be talked about by the old and the young across the globe. This idea was well illustrated on the School’s recent choir tour to Spain. When the sixthform were all at the back of a coach listening to West’s Made in America through a set of speakers. A key feature of hip-hop is when the backing drops out for a few seconds to add emphasis to the rapper’s words. Unfortunately, West’s line was fairly explicit in this case. As the Director of Music stood up from a seat in the middle of the coach, the backing dropped out and West uttered the line. Mr Sanders turned purple and shouted “Off now!”

West’s music never fails to divide opinion. On a more practical level, doing an entire 90 minute set under the full heat of around 1,000 lights on a rig just metres above his head is no mean feat. At one point West asked the technicians to raise the rig slightly for fear of hitting his head while jumping. A sizable proportion of the set was delivered from a cherry-picker that extended over the crowd. West was even unfazed by a stage invasion by a comedian. It takes a special talent to put on such a herculean show (and many people don’t realise how involved West is in every artistic element of his performance). However, I believe that there is a more fundamental reason for West’s supremacy as a musician, let alone as a rock star. West is one of the few artists nowadays whose music is written for a purpose other than sheer enjoyment. The aforementioned Yeezus,

pushed the boundaries of hiphop, testing the skills of the best producers in the business. A recent academic study found that West has one of the largest vocabularies of any singer in history, beating the likes of Frank Sinatra. Kanye West never makes music for the sake of creating this summer’s club anthem, it always has a message or a purpose, whether to point out inequality among races or the downfall of religion. Kanye is one of 2015’s true artist, with a major influence in the worlds of music, social media and fashion. Perhaps we should take him more seriously. After all, from 2020, he may well be sitting in the Whitehouse with one eye on his record sales and the other darting between the world’s finances and the nuclear button. Then again, maybe he’ll stick to music. Maybe that’s for the best…

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Sports

CHAMPIONS TROPHY FINAL REVIEW Bedford went into the final as firm favourites after defying the odds and winning their previous two matches.

Article written by

Oliver Thrasher

Epsom responded well as a certain pass was blocked by Adewale’s hand and was deemed a deliberate knock-on by the referee; understandably this doubled the pressure, Bedford then having to defend with fourteen men. Following some breathless attack play, Bedford then defended extremely well and managed to not concede until Adewale came back on the pitch. About five minutes after Epsom hit another penalty, Bedford scored a great team try. After receiving a kick from deep, Olabooye played in Dingwall who broke the line, he then managed to offload to Cooper who majestically played a great inside ball for Boyd to effectively seal the game. With just ten minutes to go, the Bedford fans then erupted, as we knew we were nearly home and dry. Epsom, however, played right until the end as they scored in the final play of the match. As the attempted conversion struck the post, relief and celebrations in the stands met the referee’s whistle.

he school was visibly excited as they swarmed in numbers to make the trip to Allianz Park Stadium. Epsom, however, were not to be underestimated having also knocked out some big teams on their journey to the final. So, the chants were prepared as the Bedford XV entered the pitch to a loud reception from the fans. The game started off cagily with big hits and dropped balls coming in from both teams.

The Bedford XV have been outstanding all season and managed to return the first national trophy for quite some time. This a great achievement and the school are grateful to them. Team: 15 Fraser Dingwall, 14 Faysal Olabooye, 13 Shay Boyd, 12 Fraser Strachan, 11 Tunde Adewale, 10 Oliver Burgess (vc), 9 Jack Dalton, 1 George Cave (c), 2 William Kerr, 3 Colston Kane, 4 Philip Cooper, 5 David Hickey, 6 Simon Beal, 7 Charlie Clarke, 8 Jake Carter.

However, it was Bedford who broke the deadlock with a wonderful bit of solo brilliance shown by Faysal Olabooye at the 10-minute mark, the only try of the first half. With Burgess’ trusty boot kicking three long penalties, Bedford were 14-6 up with 5 minutes to go in the first half. Just as half-time was approaching, Bedford fell asleep as Epsom ran in a try, which was converted to cut the deficit to one point. Bedford’s dominance within the game up to this point, however, was not reflected in the score line.

Replacements: 16 Edward Jonson, 17 Euan Weed, 18 William Bowes, 19 Alexander Dennis, 20 Oliver Hind, 21 (1) William Entwistle, 22 Joseph Rogers. Coach - Mr Burgess

Bedford came out the better of the two sides after the break and two minutes into the half Burgess scored a great individual try under the posts. Our nerves calmed in the stands as he added the extras, re-establishing an 8- point lead.

MOTM - Oli Burgess

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THE BASKETBALL EXPERIENCE Article written by

Matthew So Shivam Patel

Basketball is a minor sport in our school. However, it is not only the most important and influential sport for every single player in the basketball team, but it also holds a special place in the hearts of boys who play.

Unfortunately, we lost our home game against Mark Rutherford Upper School. They deserved to win because they had better skills than us and were thoroughly well-prepared for the game. This mirrors the idea of accepting defeat and having a positive attitude towards improvement. Practice makes one perfect. We believe that we can achieve more if we do better and better. We are believers of the fact that those who practice in order to get better will reap the rewards in terms of improved skills and ability. The same can be applied in life â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the harder you work, the more you will be rewarded. We then added in some more training sessions to focus on our weaknesses. Our complete dedication definitely paid off as we have won the last league match against Biddenham Upper School and a friendly match against Stowe. Throughout the whole experience, we have learned a lot, not only sporting skills but also life skills, which will apply in numerous situations in future and make us better people. It has been a great year and special thanks to Mr. Green and Mr. Beale for coaching us and for organizing our fixtures.

his academic year has seen a complete transformation in the team and we are glad to have some new blood to strengthen our performances in every game we play. To begin with, Harun Cehovic has always been an inspirational leader in all our matches. Be it a friendly game or a competitive league fixture, he has demonstrated great defensive abilities and has proved to be tough competition for our opponents. Chizu Chukwu, who is the rookie of the basketball team, has a God- given talent and the potential to become a powerful Centre in the future. We have had some excellent opportunities in the competitive side of Basketball as we participated in league games against other teams from Bedfordshire. These league games have not only made us realize that we have a lot of room for improvement but have also taught us to accept defeat. Losing is almost as important as winning, because everyone will fail at something or at some point in life. The important thing is to learn about the failure and to use it to your advantage. Losing a game or a league has helped us teach that these losses are temporary and can be overcome next time. The same goes for setbacks later in life. When we lost our first match against Sharnbrook School, our team captain, Victor Lee pointed out the importance of teamwork. One of the best attributes of our team is that we all understand the value of working together. Playing as a team teaches us that the success of the individual is not as important as the success of the team. The lessons of selflessness have been well learnt after various games which ended in defeat. We always try to work on developing the chemistry between one another and our training sessions are mainly focused on passing as well as improving our communication in a game situation. Our team defence did a good job helping us to win matches against St. Thomas More and a friendly match against Oakham. 50

M O S A I C

Artwork by Benson Chan

THE LIGHTHOUSE Article written by

Joshua Garrett

Poised. Perceptive. Particular. Delicately positioned above a protruding precipice, the lighthouse stood stone still.

about to begin. In the depth of darkness the audience would become illuminated. With every 360 degree rotation came a new face. A new face with scrutinizing eyes, pursed lips and a look of disapproval that told you only one thing; failure.

t was as if the beacon had gazed into Medusa’s eyes with the complete composure that the sea below would never possess. It was motionless. A blanket of stars wrapped it warm when the sun went down and if it were not for this, I am certain it would shiver. Slowly, the body would twist its head, attempting to view every available angle of the earth. It would stare so far into the distance that I am certain it could see the future. Searching for a response, a reply. The sailors stuck out at sea shouting “save me” would only receive an echo in return.

The building itself endured a stark nature. Cramped with complicity, one was forced to blink several times before realising that they in fact perceived reality. It was not striped with red and white like the illustrators to those childish novels always thought they were. It was marked with black and white vertical bars, as if it were the cell of a prison, capturing those it once endeavoured to save. The lighthouse would sadistically search for carnage within the sea, smile, and then close its eyes.

The light was bright. So bright that if you were to look at it in the dead of night you would think the day was now. You would hear the birds singing, and you would feel as though you were on stage, caged by a spotlight; your monologue

Artwork by Lennard Nornemann

WAR’S REWARDS Article written by

Angus Watson

He stirs the tea with a spoon. His body is an immobile statue, eyes fixed on the peeling wallpaper, the only movement being the constant circling of his hands.

been the implication that, though brutal and bloody, war was at its’ heart a glorious and noble enterprise. They had been told that it was the bravest thing a man could do, to go and fight for his country and the Greater Good. And, if you were wounded, why - then you were a hero. And if the worst should come to the worst, and you should fall in combat, then you were a greater hero still, for Dulce et Decorum Est, Pro Patria Mori. But this is a lie. War is the closest place you can get to Hell on Earth. War is the warm sensation of urine running down your leg as you wait for the order to attack. War is the smell of blood in the air as you stand over the twisted corpses of enemies and comrades. War is seeing your friend scream in unimaginable agony as he bucks and thrashes on the ground, the remainder of his legs lying metres away. War is the feeling of power when an enemy is in your sights, the timeless instant when your finger squeezes the trigger. War is the berserk rage that closes over you as you knock an enemy to the ground, and bayonet him in the chest, again and again, until the gore coats your boots, and you stand there shaking and crying.

is body is an immobile statue, eyes fixed on the peeling wallpaper, the only movement being the constant circling of his hands. His stillness is unnatural, like the paralysis of a long dead body. Yet if you looked closely, you would see the slight twitching of his eyes, as if he were watching something happen in front of him. And if you looked more closely still, you would see more reflected in those cold eyes. The flashes of gunfire, the smell of cordite in the air, the screams, the crack of artillery, the rattle of machine gun fire, the screams, the whine of rockets, the screams,

This baptism of fire stole his youth. Eyes, once full of laughter and hope, were replaced with weary resignation and a constant horror. His face seemed to age a thousand years, harsh lines cut into it by an avatar of blood and iron, whose voice is a million screams, roars and cries, all mingling in one terrible harmony that echoes its way across the expanse of history. And beneath his weary exterior, a beast struggles and rages against the chains of civilisation that binds it, this animal that harks back to the time when man stood over his fallen foe, and bellowed his triumph and exultation at the sky. And with each moment of battle, each shot that is fired, each battle cry screamed, the chains erode and rust away.

the slickness of blood on a body, the screams, the screams, the screams. When he was a child, his parents talked of him becoming a doctor or a lawyer. But he knew with absolute certainty that he wanted to be a soldier. He left school at the age of 16, and joined up with the Coldstream Guards. And then, finally, war came to Britain in 2003. Aged 19, he went on his first and last operational tour of Afghanistan. He served in Helmund province, fighting against fanatical insurgents. And there his naive mind received a baptism of reality. There had always

A person’s mind is like an iron bar. It can withstand great 54

a gaping hole in the side of his head. An eye socket was a black opening. And then something happened, which left the man crying out to God for a mercy that was not there. His friends remaining eye opened. The eye darted around franticly for a moment before settling on the man. Crazed by pain, he opened his mouth, and husked two words from his ravaged throat.

pressures, and will recover from them. But under the constant, heavy weight of war, it will gradually begin to flex and bend, and eventually it will snap. And when that snap happens, the titanic energy released will wash away all before it. It could be the simplest of things that provides final push. One firefight too many. A killing, so similar and yet so different from all the others. Or the committing of a monstrous deed to save a friend.

“Kill me” he whispered, and closed his eye again.

They attacked at midnight. The sentries were killed by knives, gripped in the merciless hands of men who had lost all ability to feel compassion, emotions stripped away by the unending death and fear. They stormed the compound, the night lit by strobing flashes of gunfire, tiny pinpricks of light against the blackness of the night. Men spun and fell, blood misting the air, their bodies like tiny mounds in the shroud of smoke. They kicked in the doors of the main building, moving through the rooms in pairs, methodical in their killing. And as he killed, and killed, and killed again, he found himself wondering “How did it come to this? Which Fate led me to this moment, to be the executioner of so many? Which god ordained that I should be the master of their fate?” And in his mind’s eye he could see the golden lines of fate, criss-crossing, overlapping and tangling themselves against the steel juggernaut of war, which chewed up individual threads and spat them out, stained by death and terror. As he gloried in the beauty of this moment of revelation, time seemed to slow, and he felt the titanic fist of a god lift him and throw him into the night air. Night turned to day as a thousand flashes lit the gloom. He could hear victorious cries in foreign voices, as he saw dark shapes running up the slope and into the compound. He saw his comrades cut down, hacked apart by killers yelling with bestial hatred. Disorientated, lying on the ground, he saw a small trapdoor by his head. He opened it and dropped down, torch sweeping the gloom, rifle poised to fire. He found himself in a long tunnel with small cells cut into the rock. As he looked along the passageway he heard a whimper. He walked along the tunnel to the source of the noise, and looked into the cell. And then his eyes widened in horror, and the beast howled anew, and the chains fractured, the cracks running down their lengths. He stared down at the mutilated remains of what had once been a human being, this terrible body that was once one of his closest friends. This friend had been a beacon of hope in the savagery of battle, who had had a purity of spirit which seemed unmarked by the horrors of war. He had been left, assumed dead, in the ruins of a village they had been retreating from. It seemed that he had been found. His arms and legs were gone, his torso covered in a web of scars from torture. One of his ears was gone, leaving

And, his soul vomiting forth a torrent of pain and anguish, he did. The beast exploded with rage, against Humanity, against War, against its’ very Existence. It struggled and strained against the bonds. The chains shook for a moment, then shattered. Screaming in triumph, the animal rose up from the part of him kept bottled deep inside, and filled his mind. The world faded away, to be replaced with pure, unadulterated rage which could only be cooled in a glorious sea of blood, painting the ground like a magnificent canvas. He walked out into the night, and the beast howled at the sky. They found him in the ruins of the compound. He was sitting there, quite still, tears silently streaking down his face. His body was ruined, blood puddling on the ground around him. Dead bodies were scattered across the ground, flung like leaves on the wind by a whirlwind of destruction, testament to the power of the darkness inside Man. As they manhandled him away he started laughing, a manic hysterical laugh. He sits there stirring his tea. In time the wounds had healed, and the holes in his shattered mind had scarred over. And he sat there, searching for something inside. He looked for the human part of him, that could love, that could cry, hoping to wash away his past in a flood of tears. But there was nothing there, except an empty void filled with grey ashes.

Artwork by George Hayward

Artwork by Winki Chan

Artwork by John Holroyd

(DIS)GRACE Article written by

Daniel Hickey

To the whole population of Earth, Daedalus Bell seemed have achieved the impossible.

resources, and human effort) in a cavern system underneath the oceans of the New World, had been meant to provide all the raw materials and finished products for the inhabitants of the surface – migrant colonists from Earth. The entire undertaking to colonise this new world had been the most difficult, complex, and expensive undertaking in human history, and Bell’s one-of-a-kind manufactory, a masterpiece of ambitious engineering and technology, had been crucial in making the whole thing possible. It contained the most advanced human technology, had been built with the most modern equipment in existence, and was cooled by venting heat to the oceans above, receiving its raw materials from the ground below. It was a monument to the human race, but above all, it was Head Engineer Bell’s magnum opus, the culmination of his career. He had named it after himself, and took full responsibility for its cost – and its magnificence.

rom the day of the discovery of a human-liveable planet in 2152, Bell had claimed that before the end of his time as Head Engineer, and the highest authority of the unified human race, he would have established a human colony on the New World able to support over 5 million people. He’d had only 10 years to muster the funding and technical expertise to develop everything, from a way of reaching the distant planet to the means of processing resources there. Building a colony on another planet had been predicted to be a process taking upwards of 100 years of sending probes, manned missions, and construction ventures funded by a myriad of corporations and private enterprises. But Bell had used his own technical genius and political clout, as well as a large helping of ambition and luck to take a world with no human life and a barely breathable atmosphere and by 2160, turn it into a place where humans could survive without any contact with Earth at all. He was even taking a visit to his New World to review his accomplishments. Even now, nothing threatened the human race’s faith in the most ambitious leader they had ever had.

And now the whole 12 million tonne facility was beginning to melt into a mountain of slag before his eyes. ---

On the New World, however, in the central command centre for the colony, the hearts and minds of a few had fallen silent with terror. The size of the screen that covered the entire front wall of the command centre only served to increase the magnitude of the disaster that was unfolding before the assembled staff. From the lowly secretary (who had happened to be delivering coffee when the video feed was received) all the way up to Head Engineer Bell himself; everyone stared at the scene of devastation displayed on the screen with numb shock. The message relaying news of the accident had come just a few hours before; at that point, no one, not even Daedalus Bell, had predicted that a seemingly small industrial accident would escalate into the inferno before them now.

One of the many nuclear reactors that powered the facility had apparently overheated and the pumps to the oceans above somehow failed to resolve the issue. From there, the build up of heat must have caused the other reactors to fail as well, which probably damaged the cooling pumps. Now, with nowhere to go, the heat was building up so high as to melt the very structure of the compound, and may soon crack the roof of the cavern, possibly causing the ocean to flood in and destroy whatever remained. Daedalus reflected on the number of unknowns in that story, and that the lack of clear facts and eyewitness reports were probably a result of the hundreds of specialists focussing on trying to find a way out of the building he had designed, the building he had sent them to work in, the death-trap they were now almost certain to die in…

The Bell Subterranean Manufacturing Plant, a city-sized factory built (at astronomical cost to Earth in money, metal, 58

Fiona Smeaton glanced away from the screen momentarily to observe the leader of humanity staring boldly upwards at the destruction displayed there as everyone slowly recovered from their horror and got to work organising a response. It was awful, how many people could be inside the BSMP? And after so much work! No doubt Head Engineer Bell wouldn’t waste time and would begin right away on an emergency response initiative. Then, when the flames had died down, a thorough investigation into determining who was responsible would begin. At first she had been too shocked at the sight of the BSMP glowing red hot to move, though she did consider that if the command display had been a bit more realistic she might have bolted straight away.

Bell had started his career as a humble engineering student, and over the last 36 years had risen ceaselessly through the ranks of humanity’s technocratic government, but it hadn’t been simple or easy. He had trodden on the careers of other people, and sacrificed so much on the way; his professional rise had entirely eaten his romantic life and precluded any kind of leisure activity or hobby. He had been ruthless in pushing aside competitors and put every effort into making his work - his policies, his designs, his theories - the best of any, which of course was why his name was all over the worst industrial disaster in history. He remembered people he had left behind… kind-hearted companions and vicious rivals in his youth; fellow hopefuls with whom he had built up everything from robots and structures to personalities and friendships. Now they only saw him on their computer screens. He never saw them at all. He probably never would again. He thought about the possibility that someone he had known was inside the Manufacturing Plant. He then tried everything in his power to stop thinking about the certainty that no matter who was inside his factory, a mistake he had made somewhere had caused the deaths of hundreds of mothers, fathers, sons, wives, cousins, brothers.

Now that the initial shock had passed, she began informing various relief and emergency services and organising response teams to send in to try and salvage the situation. In fact, the state of the BSMP was not as bad as it seemed, when looked at objectively. True, parts of the plant were suffering structural failures and the temperature inside was rising, but plenty of safeguards were in place to manage the situation. Analysis showed the heat would take time to spread to crucial areas, and thank-goodness the cooling pumps were still working. Some of the engineers were already reporting that they had managed to evacuate their section without any major casualties. As long as people stayed calm and focussed, a lot of the factory could be saved.

The other rising stars, the brightest minds in the world, people he had shunted aside to make way for his own dreams… now his dreams were a glowing, viscous wave of molten steel; his dreams were shortages of all kinds of goods for the colonists; his dreams were the end of the possibility of the New World being a launching-pad for the exploration of deep space. He dared to look away from the nightmare and examine the faces of those near him, he could feel their horror, and he knew they were blaming him inside.

She thought again of the Head Engineer. In the years he’d been leader of the human race she had never heard of him making any kind of mistake, and he always seemed to have a level head. She had faith that he would take control of the situation, and even in the face of such a terrible tragedy, everyone in the command centre still supported him. Obviously, he was already thinking about the various avenues to pursue in saving all the people inside and rebuilding his greatest achievement. After all, what could possibly be more important than that?

They were once the greatest minds of other fields: Head of Biological Sciences, Director of Culture and Heritage, Prime Economic Minister... all of them had sought to occupy the position of the highest authority on Earth, but he had come in, swept everyone away with wild dreams. How could he have let this happen, how could he let something so grand and glorious transform so suddenly into something so horrifyingHe had never even shattered a plate on the ground beforeWhat the hell was he going toWhat had he done---

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