April 2017

Falconer

The Torrey Pines High School

Friday, April 28, 2017

Vol. 42, Issue 7, 24 pages

www.tphsfalconer.com

BIKES AGAINST BULLIES

by Michael Nirula

Students watched BMX bikers fly overhead while they listened to a bullying prevention talk when the Action Sports Association’s “No Place for Hate” assembly came to TPHS on April 5.

“We are part of what is called the ‘No Place for Hate campaign,’” ASA speaker Dustin Grice said. “The idea is to share how big of an issue bullying is.”

Grice shared bullying statistics with students, like “one of 10 students who drop out of school do so because of bullying” and “56 percent of students have witnessed bullying at their schools.” He also explained that there are four different types of bullying: physical, verbal, psychological and cyber bullying.

Grice said combining X Games athletes with bullying prevention is designed to keep students interested.

“We could just sit you down in a classroom and try to explain this all, but it is a whole different type of world when you have X Games athletes out here with a ramp,” Grice said.

While Grice spoke, five awardwinning BMX bikers performed stunts such as 360s, “the Superman” and, to cap it off, a flip over Principal RobCoppo and PALs adviser Don Collins.

“I was honestly a bit reluctant about this assembly at first. I was a bit

concerned about the logistics and the danger and that sort of thing,” Coppo said. “But I was absolutely wrong because it worked out really well. There was a great atmosphere, and the antibullying message they are getting out is an important one.”

Coppo also was reluctant to step on the ramp after he heard that BMX biker Mykel Larrin wanted to flip over him.

But after Larrin successfully cleared him, Coppo said even that was great.

“I was a little nervous about it, but it was a lot more fun than I expected,” Coppo said. “All the guys were phenomenal.”

Robin Yang (9) said he enjoyed the ASA assembly because even though it was hot outside he could move around freely.

“The bikes definitely made it more fun, but it was harder to concentrate on the bullying information itself,” Yang said.

According to BMX biker and X Games bronze medalist Anthony Napolitan, although the bikers compete in the nationally televised X Games, they get excited “anytime they are on their bikes” including when they are at high schools.

The anti-bullying message the bikers help spread is a message that they can personally relate to.

“When I was in school, people would

tell me ‘You ride bikes? What? You don’t play football, how come you don’t play football?’ so there is some relatability there. But all of the statistics are real; bullying is a real thing that happens,” Larrin said.

Not all students came to the ASA assembly and according to Coppo, the attendance “may have been less” than other assemblies. Coppo says students and teachers can choose which assemblies they want to go to.

“Important things are going on in the classrooms, and that is why we have so many assemblies,” Coppo said. “If you miss one, you feel like you have not missed much.”

Coppo said the ASA assembly was a nice change of pace from the normal “guest speaker in the gym” format.

“Sometimes going to the gym yet again to have somebody talk to us about a serious topic gets repetitive and we tune out,” Coppo said. “It is a nice change of pace to focus on an issue in a more light and engaging way.”

TPHS is just the third school the ASA “No Place for Hate” assembly has visited. Their 17-week, cross-country tour will take them from San Antonio to as far as Chicago.

Coppo said that the event worked out really well and that he would like to host ASA again in the future.

PHOTOS BY ANTON SCHUH/FALCONER

CARRYING ON A LEGACY: BMX biker Pat Casey performs a trick on the ramp set up in the quad (TOP). Another BMX biker, Mykel Larrin, pops a wheelie on the ramp (LEFT). ASA speaker Dustin Grice informs students about bullying as a part of the “No Place for Hate” assembly, seeking to bring BMX to a bullying prevention assembly to keep students engaged (MIDDLE). BMX biker Anthony Napolitan lands a trick by riding off the ramp (RIGHT).

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TPHS hosts Go Green Week to promote environment sustainability The week ended with a “Fun Fact Friday” trivia game containing facts learned throughout the previous days’ activities.

“The founding members of the club... brainstormed ideas on what activities to From April 27-31, the TPHS Go Green have for each days as well as the creation Club hosted Go Green Week to inform of posters and advertising,” Go Green Club TPHS students about various current member Dora Tabachnick (11) said. environmental issues, as well as promote While it was the Go Green Club that sustainable practices to preserve and put on the entire week, they worked with protect the earth. the Conservation Club to plan some of the The week consisted of daily events daily activities. and activities hosted at lunch that were “The Go Green Club reached out,” meant to inform the participants about Brian Bodas, AP Environmental Science environmental and Biology teacher issues. Each day of and adviser of the week presented the Conservation a unique theme Club, said. “Given related to a specific the nature of [Go environmental topic.

Green Week, the “[Go Green Club] Conservation Club] wanted to go into decided it’d be better specifics of certain to combine forces.” issues, so each day we Both clubs focused on different collaborated on environmental two of the themed topics, like plastic days with specific consumption events — “Wildlife or recycling or Wednesday” as well endangered species as “Tree Thursday” or biodiversity — and teamed up laws,” founder and to run the activities president of Go Kiana Kazemi (11) and promote the Green Club Kiana ������� events.

Kazemi (11) said.

The week was “We wanted to tap promoted on the Go into a bunch of environmental issues.”

Green Club’s Instagram account run by Day one was centered on recycling and Kazemi, through posters put up around the what can be recycled. “Wildlife Wednesday” school and on the morning announcements.

The two clubs also worked together taught students about endangered species through a scavenger hunt at lunch, and on to create a display of 1,068 plastic water “Tree Thursday,” the club planted a palm bottles that was displayed in the quad all tree on campus to promote a green earth. week. Members of both clubs gathered

It was really satisfying to see people learn something and be surprised. I think it was just good that there was conversation about [the environment].

bottles for the display for months before Go Green Week.

“Every day, 60 million bottles go into landfills, so we wanted to show what a tiny percentage of that looks like, and throughout the week we told people the impact of that,” Kazemi said.

Kazemi, who first became interested in environmental issues when she was eight, decided to start the Go Green Club this school year to try and make TPHS and the surrounding community more environmentally sustainable.

“It was really satisfying to see people learn something and be surprised,” Kazemi said. “I think it was just good that there was conversation about [the environment].

Any talk is good talk as long as it gets people to think.”

This was the first year that the week was held and the club hopes to make it an annual occurrence.

Stacy Hu (11) Jonathan Kuo (11) Ovation Concerto Competition of the San Diego Youth Symphony: Violin: Erica Hwang (11), 1st place Flute: Christine Kim (12), 1st place Yamaha USASU International Competition for Young Pianists: Gold Medal: Andrew Zhao (11) Del Mar Rotary Music Scholarship: Violin: Kana Shiotsu (12) National Youth Orchestra of the Carnegie Hall Weill Music Institute: Violin: Eric Hwang (11) La Jolla Symphony & Chorus Young Artists Competition: Viola: Nathan Rim (12), 1st place Violin: Kana Shiotsu (12), 1st place MTAC San Diego VOCE Competition: Violin: Jacey Yang (10), 1st place MTAC San Diego Concerto Competition: Violin: Jacey Yang (10), 3rd place MTAC Concerto Competition: Violin: Daniel Rim (12), 2nd place Viola: Nathan Rim (12), 1st place New England Conservatory Performance Scholarship Receipient: Soprano: Madison Wright (12)

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9th place: Jonathan Kuo (11)

The Falconer and the Literary Magazine won 5th Place Best of Show.

Review Writing: Sumin Hwang (11), Superior Sports Writing: Michael Nirula (11), Excellent Editorial Writing: Sammy Hallal (11), Honorable Mention Infographic Design: Irene Yu (12), Honorable Mention Yearbook Feature Photography: Morgan Schreiber (10), Excellent

Farzaan Kaiyom (11) qualified for the TOC after reaching octafinals at the Cal-State invitational.

The Millenial Falcons team advanced to the semi-finals at the competition in Las Vegas.

Esha Madhekar (12) Nicole Martindale (12) Mihika Nadig (12) Kalyani Ramadurgam (12) INFOGRAPHIC BY ANGELA LIU

PHOTOS BY LAUREN ZHANG/FALCONER

SEEING GREEN: Go Green Club and Conservation Club created a display of 1,068 plastic water bottles in the lower quad (TOP) and posters to promote Go Green week (ABOVE).

Outstanding Delegate: Lenni Elbe (11) Matthew Ralph (11) Michael Weiser (12)

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TPHS wins award in Directing Change student film contest

TPHS Spoken Word hosts first Open Microphone poetry sharing event

assignment for their PALs class, according to Becerra.

“We thought of it as a project we could do because it is a pretty serious topic so we took it in the most sincere way we could, and we ended up winning,” Becerra said.

Making “Light at the End of the Tunnel” was the first time the group had made a film, which made the regional win even more surprising for them, according to the group. They contacted Butler, who disenrolled from TPHS, to tell him about the win, and he was also surprised about it, Becerra said.

This is not the first time TPHS has won at the Directing Change regional contest.

“This is the third time in four years a team of PALS has won in our region with their films,” Collins said.

“The teams that are connected and clear about their vision usually produce some amazing work.”

The Awards Ceremony will be on May 11 at the California Center for the Arts in Escondido and so will the statewide contest.

“We’re also going [to the Awards Ceremony] to look at all the other videos that won in the Suicide Prevention category, and then there’s the [statewide] judging round,” Aragon said.

“Light at the End of the Tunnel” will be competing against five videos at the state contest, and the winners’ video will be aired on television as a commercial, according to Aragon.

Even though they are hoping their video will win again, the group enjoyed the process of making it.

“It was an amazing experience, honestly,” Meraz said. “It was pretty fun and knowing that we won was astonishing.”

Sage Creek High School Spoken Word club president and Open Mic participant Grace McGuire (12) found out about the event through InVerse and decided to attend to “support a friend as well as test out a new poem in front of an audience.” Sage Creek has also hosted open mics through their Spoken Word club, but at the TPHS Open Mic she hoped to “share pieces [with] people outside [her] close friends to see if they were as poignant to them as it is to [her].”

While Kong “didn’t expect much turnout because [the club] didn’t advertise on campus,” she believes that the social networking nonetheless drew a “good crowd that consisted of students from different schools.”

At the event, participants determined the performance order by signing their names on a whiteboard at the front of the lecture hall and they each performed one poem before several decided to read additional works in later rounds, with Kong making jokes in between poems.

According to Kong, one feature that could have been improved about the Open Mic was the atmosphere of the lecture hall which she hoped would be “more like an Open Mic and less like a lecture hall.” However, McGuire appreciated that it offered space for movement and performance.

“It was pretty standard for most open mics ... I enjoyed the fact that it was hosted in the lecture hall, because it afforded a lot of space to move around,” McGuire said. “I really appreciated Robin’s jokes in between performances, especially when they served to lighten the mood in between particularly intense poems.”

According to Brownlee, the best part of the Open Mic was experiencing the collective community from the various schools, “My favorite part of the Open Mic was all of the positive affirmations and applause after performing, “Brownlee said. “Because the group that attended was such a wonderful, talented, and encouraging student body, it truly made you feel like your ideas mattered and that you had accomplished something incredible by sharing a poem.”

Kong said that the club plans to organize more Open Mic events this year with more campus publicity through printed flyers and the morning announcements.

Cristian Aragon (9), Jose Becerra (11), Nicholas Meraz (10) and Jay Butler (11) won the regional award in the Directing Change Program and Student Film Contest with their suicide prevention video “Light at the End of the Tunnel,” which will advance to the statewide level.

Directing Change has three categories: Suicide Prevention, Mental Health Matters and Through the Lens of Culture. Schools from around San Diego, Orange County and Imperial County submit 60 -second films in one of the categories to the regional Directing C h a n g e contest.

“Light at the End of the Tunnel” follows the story of a depressed and lonely student, played by Butler, and Don Collins background ������� narration explains how students can be more welcoming toward others suffering from depression.

“No one talked to [Butler in the film], and during the course of it, he gains friends,” Meraz said. “At the end, they show him that there’s a better way and instead of being sad, they can talk about their feelings.”

The group wanted to focus on minorities because people tend to see them as the ones who are usually depressed, and they wanted to portray that on the screen, according to Becerra.

“I think the group’s video concept about isolation is pretty clear,” PALs adviser Don Collins said. “I knew they wanted to use Jay’s music and Jose’s narration to produce a powerful message that reaches kids who may be feeling alone and thinking of suicide.”

For the group, making the video was more than a mandatory

The teams that are connected and clear about their vision usually produce some amazing work plus they learn a lot about responsibility, time management and planning.

TPHS Spoken Word hosted its first Open Mic poetry-sharing event on March 24 in the Lecture Hall, featuring 15 performers from TPHS, Canyon Crest Academy, Carlsbad High School, Del Norte High School, Sage Creek High School and San Dieguito Academy, according to Spoken Word president Robin Kong (12).

Spoken Word, a non-school sponsored club founded by Kong in 2014, is a poetry-sharing club that aims to help members “develop an appreciation for poetry and creative writing,” according to Kong.

“The objective of the club is to share the creativity of spoken word poetry and nurture people’s voices and empower people to speak their opinions through the medium of spoken word,” Kong said. “I hope that [members] can see that if they can overcome their inhibitions, they can surprise themselves in a good way.”

According to Kong, many public poetry sharing events in San Diego are hosted in either inconvenient locations or at late hours and are difficult for TPHS students to access.

“I know that many of the members don’t have the time to go these open mics, which are really good opportunities to perform and connect with other artists,” Kong said. “I decided to organize one at our school not only because of that, but also because I wanted Spoken Word to have a greater presence on campus.”

According to club member Shannon Brownlee (10), she and other members used social media outlets, such as Facebook and Instagram, to publicize the event. The club also collaborated with InVerse, a coalition of seven San Diego based high school poetry clubs, to gather more performers from various schools for the event.

“Within the organization, there’s seven schools and four of them attended,” Kong said.

“Among the schools in InVerse that I’ve talked to, like us, they’re also trying to familiarize spoken word with the student body. They have used a lot of writing activities, while we mostly have the [idea] of spoken word.”

PHOTOS BY ALLY JENSEN/FALCONER

SPEAKING FROM THE HEART: Margaux Paul (12) reads her poem in the Lecture Hall. The Open Mic poetry sharing event was the first poetry sharing event held at TPHS (LEFT). Robin Kong (12) uses her phone as a reference as she shares her poetry with the audience members (RIGHT).

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“Rustic Revelry” Prom held by ASB at Paradise Point Resort and Spa

ASB hosted the “Rustic Revelry” Prom at Mission Bay’s Paradise Point Resort and Spa on April 1 from 8-11 p.m.

At Prom, there was an inside area made up of two tents. In the larger tent, students danced to a mixture of slow music, electronic dance music and throwbacks, according to junior class president Sophia LeRose.

“Last year’s was not that good, but this year the DJ chose some really good songs,” Frank Lee (12) said.

Around the dance floor, there were photo booths, tables decorated with flowerfilled mason jars and tables with food and drink. Food included sliders, french fries,

tater tots, and dessert included cupcakes and coconut cookies.

Additionally, a “Silent DJ,” which consisted of music playing through wireless headphones, was held in the smaller tent.

“The DJ Company also offered silent DJ, so we threw that in as one of the big surprises this year,” LeRose said.

Outside, students sat at benches or spent time walking on the pier at Mission Bay. “I thought the pier was really nice.

There were a lot of pretty lights around it. That was definitely one of my favorite parts,” Lee said.

About halfway through the dance, Lee was crowned Prom King and Georgia Downes (12) was crowned Prom Queen.

“I did not really expect to get Prom King,” Lee said. “I told my friends to vote for me and kind of did it for fun. I am upset

photos by ally jensen/falconer

Rustic prom: Prom attendees socialized on the dance floor inside the larger of the two tents in Paradise Point Resort and Spa’s inside area. Students could also sit or walk outside on the Mission Bay Pier. Over 800 students attended prom this year.

that my Prom date did not get it though.”

Four weeks before Prom, tickets went on sale for $50 with an ASB sticker and $55 without. The week before Prom, the prices rose to $60 and $65, respectively.

Although ASB planned on selling 700 tickets, over 800 tickets were sold, according to LeRose. ASB officers entered all students who bought tickets during the first week of sales into a raffle with over 50 prizes.

“We had anything from little, free Baked Bear ice cream sandwiches to $30 gift cards for Snooze to $150 baskets from Empire Beauty,” LeRose said. “We announced the big prize at Prom. You get two tickets to a Padres game of your choice, field passes during batting practice before the game time and a private tour at Petco Park.”

Through fundraising alone, ASB raised over $40,000 for their budget and were able to lower ticket prices to $50 as a result, according to LeRose.

“Krispy Kreme, Panera and Chipotle were all important fundraisers,” LeRose said.

LeRose began planing Prom during April of her sophomore year. Her first priority in planning the event was to find a venue.

“Paradise Point was actually the first venue we saw, and I was hooked on it right away,” LeRose said. “We were set on Paradise Point because it was a venue that had both an outside and inside area. In the past, Prom has always been either inside or outside.”

Originally, LeRose was planning on a “Footloose”-themed Prom, but she could not find any barn-like venues.

“I still wanted to keep that rustic theme, so one day I was looking around on Pinterest and I found rustic revelry,” LeRose said. “We still kept the rustic

aspect with the mason jars and empty wine bottles, and I love that.”

Administrators chose this year’s April 1 date because of conflicts with AP testing, CIF games and Senior Week.

“The only weekend we had in April was that of April 1st because of Coachella, Stagecoach and then Mother’s Day weekend so that left only the first weekend of April,” LeRose said.

Lee said he did not have a problem with the early date while Nathan Rim (12) said the one thing he did not like was how early this year’s Prom was.

“Usually Prom is supposed to be the final event right before we graduate where we get to see all our friends dressed up,” Rim said. “It was really early so I did not like that.”

Rim thought this year’s Prom was better than last year’s, though.

“The location and music were better and it was a fancier,” Rim said. “It just had a better vibe.”

Lee also liked the location and the different activities students could participate in during the night.

“The location was really beautiful because it was right next to the harbor,” Lee said. There were a lot of good selections for the food and I got a lot of nice Polaroids with my friends at the photo booths.”

Principal Rob Coppo, who attended the Prom with assistant principals and private security to “make sure students were safe,” said Prom was a “gorgeous event.”

“The location was perfect, and I think the planning committee did a phenomenal job,” Coppo said. “I was so proud to be a part of that prom.”

LeRose said Prom was so important because eight months of work go into three hours, but said in the end she was “so satisfied” with how everything turned out.

GSA hosts third annual Rainbow Week from April 17-21

GSA began planning the event a few months in advance, according to Carpenter, and came to school during Spring Break to create posters and decorations, among which were the signs found in the hallways The TPHS Gender and Sexualities featuring questions like “When did you Alliance club hosted the third annual decide you were straight?” or “Do you Rainbow Week from April 17-21 to raise have to remind people to use your correct “awareness and support for the LGBTQ pronouns?” community with education and visibility,” “I heard a lot of people opening up a according to GSA adviser Don Collins. conversation, whether it was positive or GSA planned a different activity negative I don’t know, but people were for each day of the week, all of which talking about [the posters],” Nergis said. addressed inclusion and understanding Despite Rainbow Week’s emphasis on of LGBTQ people and spread awareness acceptance and inclusion, it has continually about existing and potential anti-LGBTQ been met with resistance in the form of legislation throughout the country. Daily speech or vandalism of the decorations. events involved “In past years, we had creating a rainbow the usual writing on posters heart out of LGBTQ- It’s a good week for us and torn down decorations, supportive messages, this year we noticed to ... remind ourselves but question-and-answer more verbal insults and trivia sessions ... that our diversity being thrown around, on LGBTQ issues, an especially during our lunch makes us assembly and Friday’s activities,” Nergis said.

Rob Coppo day of silence.

“It’s become acceptable principal Wednesday’s fifthto actually vocalize these period assembly featured Katie Moehlig of homophobic, transphobic thoughts.”

Transfamily, a transgender youth support While Rainbow Week might not have organization, and Rebekah J. Hook-Held of the full support of all students, Principal the San Diego LGBT Community Center, Rob Coppo maintains its importance to who spoke about “important topics that TPHS. “It’s a good week for us to take a second may or may not affect us, but most likely will in the future, especially anti-LGBTQ+ … to remind ourselves of what we have in laws,” according to GSA co-vice president common, what our differences are and that our diversity makes us stronger,” Coppo Megan Carpenter (12).

The Day of Silence was intended for said.

As far as GSA members are aware, students to stand in solidarity with their LGBTQ peers in acknowledgement of the Rainbow Week is an event held at TPHS challenges they face in their lives due to and only a few other schools. The efforts by GSA to increase LGBTQ+ awareness and the judgment of others.

“A lot of GSA members were silent for understanding at TPHS, however, are not the entire day and we had some other limited to Rainbow Week.

According to Collins, TPHS became people come up to us in the quad during lunch who were [also] silent,” GSA co-vice the first high school in the country to sign the Athlete Ally pledge, which is president Piril Nergis (12) said.

Though it is still a relatively new taken by athletes to “lead [their] athletic tradition at TPHS, Nergis said that community to respect and welcome all Rainbow Week was successful in “[creating] persons, regardless of their perceived or awareness of LGBTQ+ issues and [starting] actual sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.” a conversation among students.”

stronger.

photos by ally jensen/falconer

somewhere over the rainbow: The TPHS GSA created posters that were displayed throughout the media center to promote Rainbow Week (TOP). A heart-shaped arrangement of different colored Sticky Notes decorated the glass window in the media center (ABOVE).

GSA plans to continue to organize other Rainbow Weeks in the coming years, but, according to Nergis, “there’s a chance it’ll

evolve into Diversity Week,” which would be a collaboration between GSA and other clubs.

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PRO

By Kahyun Koh STAFF WRITER

Since the late 1900s, the U.S. has grown increasingly reliant on a new, advantageous method of extracting natural gas from shale — or layers of rock — called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, which involves digging a well several thousand meters underground, where it is then bent 90 degrees horizontally. After the drill pipes are replaced with steel, a fracturing fluid is pumped under high pressure to widen fractures in rocks, creating tiny openings that release the trapped gas. According to the Environment America Research and Policy Center and the U.S. Energy Information Administration, 82,000 fracking wells have been constructed since 2005 and provide two-thirds of natural gas in the U.S. With its widespread application throughout the U.S., fracking has become more successful than ever before, justified by the economic benefits it provides.

The Brookings Papers on Economic Activity states that the U.S. fracking revolution in 2013 caused natural gas prices to drop 47 percent.

It is clear that the economic advantages are long-lasting and nation-wide. From 2007 to 2013, there has been a significant reduction in gas prices by $13 billion per year, translating to $200 annually for gasconsuming households, as a result of increased fracking.

Of course, the widespread controversy around fracking is not about its economic implications, but the environmental impacts associated with it. One of the most popular and frequently used arguments used by critics is that hydraulic fracturing produces water contamination,

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is the process of drilling and directing liquids under high pressure into the ground to release oil from shale. Both proponents and detractors defend their positions vehemently.

air pollution, climate impacts and chemical use in the U.S., according to a report released by Environment America. However, a recent study conducted by Yale researchers found that gas wells from fracking do not carry inherent risks to drinking water. After thoroughly analyzing 64 samples of groundwater collected from private residences in northern Pennsylvania, the researchers found that groundwater contamination, measured by levels of methane in the water, are related to fracking operations above the ground, not from the subterranean gas wells produced by fracking. The findings were later published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. As for the concern regarding the use of chemicals, the concentration of additives in most fracturing fluids is at a relatively low constant of 0.5 to 2 percent, which makes up a sliver of the composition of the fluids, with water making up 98 to 99.2 percent, according to the FracFocus website; FracFocus refers to itself as a “chemical disclosure registry.”

Fracking also receives a lot of criticism because of its dependence on large sums of water, but, in reality, critics also fail to recognize that hydraulic fracturing accounts for less than 1 percent of water used nationwide for industrial purposes, according to a 2015 Duke University study.

While it is true that some environmental problems are caused by the steadily progressing practice of hydraulic fracturing, it remains undeniable that fracking is a reliable and economically profitable, clean energy alternative. The fact that fracking releases half as much carbon dioxide as coal is solid evidence that fracking is a great improvement over previous methods of generating energy across the nation. Therefore, the U.S. is taking the right first step by using hydraulic fracturing as a cleaner and less environmentally detrimental way of obtaining energy domestically rather than relying on foreign sources of oil.

In response to a question posed to Americans by Pew Research Center in 2014 ...

Should oil fracking be supported in the U.S.?

41%

47%

YES

NO

said

said

*12 percent of surveyed people did not answer

Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing, is the process of drilling deep into the Earth and injecting water, sand and chemicals at high pressures to extract natural gas from rock. While fracking can be economically beneficial, as it creates jobs and extracts oil for relatively low prices, the process is very harmful to the environment and increases our dependence on a limited supply of fossil fuels.

Corporate influence in legislation is one of the biggest threats to air and water quality and has paved the way for increased fracking. A handful of oil and gas companies like ExxonMobil and Koch Industries have funded projects seeking to delegitimize climate science, promoting fossil fuel use and preventing the development of clean energy in order to further their harmful agendas and line the pockets of their executives.

In 2000, shale beds made up only 1 percent of the U.S. natural gas supply but today that number has risen to 25 percent. U.S. drilling and fracking businesses are exempt from environmental protection laws like the Safe Water Drinking Act due to corporate lobbying and loopholes intentionally created by Congress to circumvent regulation that protects the environment. In Pennsylvania, a fracking company contaminated the drinking water in 16 homes, resulting in a fine that was less than what the company makes in only three hours, yet it was still the largest fine ever levied against a fracking company.

A study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a scientific agency in the Department of Commerce, found that methane emissions from fracking wells, a large contributor to climate change, in Weld County, Colorado, totaled the emissions of 1 to 3 million cars annually. This air pollution not only adds greenhouse gases to the atmosphere but damages local communities. A 2014 study conducted by the Colorado Department of Environmental and Occupational Health found that mothers who live close to hydraulic fracturing wells are

CON

By Sammy Hallal COPY EDITOR

30 percent more likely to have babies with congenital heart defects due to waste fluids from fracking being deposited in open-air pits and left to evaporate, releasing dangerous volatile organic compounds into the atmosphere. The emission of ozone, a compound released into the atmosphere from fracking that contributes to global warming, is also known to cause respiratory issues.

A congressional report showed that 750 chemicals are also used in the process, 29 of which are carcinogens. Oil and gas companies are not required to disclose all the compounds used during drilling, which makes it difficult to monitor and check nearby water sources for contamination. Each oil well produces millions of gallons of toxic fluids containing radioactive materials, liquid hydrocarbons, heavy metals and other harmful substances.

A Duke University study found that 250 billion gallons of water were used in hydraulically fractured wells in the U.S. between 2005 and 2014, producing 210 billion gallons of toxic waste. Before fracking, Oklahoma only had one or two earthquakes per year, whereas today one to two earthquakes occur every day. In 2015, the state of Oklahoma experienced 857 tremors with a magnitude of 3.0 or higher, more than all the lower 48 states combined.

While fracking produces jobs and decreases the cost of oil extraction, the health and environmental hazards it presents make hydraulic fracturing a dangerous and irresponsible process that should not be used.

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STAFF ED: SECURITY CAMERAS HELPFUL BUT UNECESSARY A member of the TPHS Foundation recently suggested using some of the $313,444 the foundation raised this year to install security cameras on and around the school campus.

The topic of security cameras on school property fuels a debate about students’ privacy versus security, as well as the cost of the maintenance and installation of the devices.

However, the use of surveillance is a rational solution to many of the issues schools like TPHS face every day.

As the world rapidly moves further into a digital age, a substantial number of teenagers now have cell phones with cameras and because of this, privacy, especially that of teenagers, has substantially decreased. Installing cameras around the school would not unduly infringe upon the rights of students’ privacy.

If the argument against cameras at TPHS is based on the fact that students should not be videotaped during class hours without giving consent, it is entirely moot. In any public space, students are vulnerable to being filmed and recorded without consent even with no cameras around campus. Using apps popular among

teenagers like Snapchat, Facebook and Instagram, students essentially are walking privacy violations.

The safety of all students and how it may be influenced by use of cameras must be part of the discussion.

Walls of campuses covered in graffiti, rooms vandalized, children bullied, and fights, as well as injured students, are just some of the issues of safety that plague schools across the country every day.

Security cameras would capture the illegal actions of students on camera and deter acts of violence on campus. Even without the cost of constant monitoring of the camera footage, students would be aware of the cameras and the consequences of their actions if they are caught.

Schools like Douglas Byrd High School in Fayetteville, North Carolina, experienced immediate relief from crimes against the campus after placing security cameras. Within a short period, two local teenagers were arrested in separate cases of vandalism, providing not only monetary compensation for the property damage, but sending a clear message to any other student

thinking of committing a crime on school property.

Cheating, an issue seen much too often in the classrooms at TPHS, may also be addressed through the placement of cameras.

Whether it’s a student stealing a test or a test key, or just good, old fashioned looking at someone else’s paper, students may also be less inclined to cheat if they know their actions are being monitored.

As with most districts, money is a significant issue when considering the placement of cameras around campus. With the average cost of a surveillance school camera at anywhere from $500 to $1,000, with higher resolution cameras costing the district up to $8,000, according to a study conducted by the Connecticut Department of Education, many doubt whether it is worth it to spend so much money on a few pieces of technology.

Although the expenditure for cameras is high, the cost of an action committed against a school must also be taken into consideration.

Theft and damage to school property, two factors easily controlled

through the use of security cameras, can cost up to millions of dollars in damages, a price many schools are not capable of paying.

In comparison to a whopping million

REY PROPERTY OF TOROOL PINES HIGH SCH

dollars, a few thousand dollars spent on cameras used to enforce the law and student safety around campus seems well worth the cost.

Security cameras in high schools, a highly debated issue soon to enter the halls of TPHS, are the correct path to take in respect to the safety of students, as well as to deter crime.

Instead o f taking the risk and spending millions of dollars on unforeseen events in the future, schools must equip themselves with the technology to prevent these occurrences, for the benefit of students, teachers, administrators, staff members and the campus.

STUDENT VOICES: Should security cameras be installed at TPHS? The TPHS Foundation is considering the installation of security cameras around the school.

The Falconer Opinion section asked eight students how they feel about that.

No, I think it’s an invasion of privacy.

Carly Honegger (9)

No, I mean there’s not really that many people that are going to be coming in here just robbing people’s stuff.

Lucas Polidori (9)

Maybe. They can monitor violence or cheating but, at the same time, there’s always that sense of privacy invasion.

Sora Oyaizu (11)

Yes. I feel like it would stop a lot of the drugs and stuff that goes on, and that would help people.

Yechan Choi (11)

Jayda Hammermeister (12)

Falconer

We, the Falconer staff, are dedicated to creating a monthly newspaper with the intent of encouraging independent thinking, expanding our knowledge of journalism, and providing the TPHS student body and community with a truthful, unbiased news source, in accordance with our First Amendment rights.

PHONE: (858) 755-0125 x2245 FAX: (858) 523-0794 E-MAIL: falconer.ads@gmail.com WEBSITE: www.tphsfalconer.com

The Falconer is the student newspaper of Torrey Pines High School. Its content, which is the responsibility of the Falconer staff, is not subject to administrative prior restraint. Unsigned editorials represent the opinions of the staff, while opinion columns represent the writer’s perspective. Advertisements do not represent endorsements. The Falconer, an open forum, welcomes signed letters or guest editorials on pertinent issues from the TPHS community, which may be submitted to room 102, via email at falconer.ads@gmail.com or to Mia Boardman Smith’s mailbox in the administration building. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

Maybe. It could benefit the school and security, or it could throw many kids under the bus and get them in trouble.

Frank Van Den Berg (10)

Makena Macias (10)

Yes, especially in terms of safety.

With a rise in school-related crimes, it’s important to hold people accountable.

The Torrey Pines High School

3710 Del Mar Heights Road San Diego, CA 92130

Yes, it depends where; if it’s in the parking lot that would be beneficial, especially because if somebody’s being a hazard to other kids.

Editors-in-Chiefs Public Relations Copy Editors News Editors Opinion Editor Feature Editor Entertainment Editor Sports Editor Photo Editor Adviser

No. While I believe that it is within the school’s purview to put up security cameras across campus and in classrooms, I can’t see a reason for needing them.

Amanda Chen Irene Yu Lauren Zhang Sammy Hallal Natalie Salgado Maya Kota Lily Nilipour Maya Kota Sumin Hwang Anvitha Soordelu Lily Nilipour Alderik van der Heyde Mia Boardman Smith Staff Writers: Ellie Ahles Beatriz De Oliveira Eve Gross-Sable Farhan Hossain Kahyun Koh

Will Nute (12) Estelle Kraft Angela Liu Michael Nirula Alexei Serguienko Ellena Whitfield Webmaster: Jodie Hoh Photographers: Travis Felthaus Ally Jensen Anton Schuh Alderik van der Heyde Lauren Zhang Artists: Carla Hansen Afia Khan Simon Kim Amy Yu

opinion

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A8

Legislation for air passenger rights should be enacted following United Airlines incident

By Maya Kota

NEWS & OPINION EDITOR

ART BY AFIA KHAN/FALCONER ARTIST

On April 9, David Dao, a doctor from Kentucky, was dragged off a United Airlines flight departing O’Hare

International Airport in Chicago for Louisville, Ky. after refusing to give up his seat on the plane. Looking for seats for four of its employees, the airline asked if any passengers would be willing to get off the flight and guaranteed compensation for their tickets in return. When none stepped forward, airline officials randomly picked four passengers to leave the plane, and Dao was one of them. Dao told the officials that he could not deplane because he had “patients waiting for [him] in Louisville” which prompted the airline to call Chicago aviation police who forcibly removed Dao, according to the

Washington Post.

When thinking of the term “forced removal,” what comes to mind is a police officer escorting someone, who may be handcuffed, away from a certain area. What does not, and should not, come to mind is a broken nose, two chipped teeth and a concussion, which is exactly what Dao suffered for refusing to give up a seat he had paid for. Air travel policies, across all airlines, must be altered to protect passengers while legislation should be enacted to protect air passenger rights.

If there is one thing that airlines can stay consistent with and on top of, it is overbooking their flights.

In selling tickets to more people than the plane can seat, airlines routinely count on no-shows to ensure that all seats are full and the airline does not lose out on any potential money.

But what was captured on the cell phone c a m e r a s of various passengers on Dao’s flight was a grave mishandling of a problem that United Airlines created for itself.

The reason behind the removal of Dao makes matters worse. A company

accommodating its employees is important and necessary, but not planning ahead and ensuring that the employees have enough seats is pure irresponsibility. The issue with the overbooking could be cited as a one-time mistake but what ensued after was an unacceptable and conscious decision made by the airline and the aviation police.

In United’s initial response to the incident, the company apologized for overbooking the flight but not for its treatment of Dao; in fact company CEO Oscar Munoz defended his employees’ handling of the incident.

That raises the question of how important air passenger rights are to airlines at all. The Department of Transportation has published consumer fly rights, which include passenger rights in cases of involuntary bumping. Airlines can offer up to $1350 to compensate a passenger bumped due to overbooking. United only offered $800. The fly rights also outline the circumstances under which air passengers can receive refunds or compensation in cases of flight delays or cancellations. However, the fly rights do not include the way passengers are to be physically treated.

So, while the actions of United officials and aviation officers can be cited as wrongful by basic moral standards, they weren’t directly defying air passenger rights. Surely, the officials and police could have gone about the situation differently: Instead of violently dragging Dao through the aisle of the plane, they could have taken longer to speak

to Dao about the seating situation or could have at least removed Dao from the plane without causing him significant harm. What happened to Dao could not have been easily anticipated because it is one of the first instances in which air passenger violence has incited such wide media attention and controversy.

Yet, police brutality and physical violence on airplanes, as seen when an American Airlines employee hit a woman, and nearly her baby, with a stroller he forcefully took from her, call for protective measures to now be taken. Real legislation should be enacted by the Department of Transportation and should explicitly address how air passengers should be treated by airline employees and police officers. It seems like a simple fact that officers shouldn’t give a person a concussion for refusing to give up something that is rightfully his or hers; yet, as evidenced by ongoing police brutality and a general trend across the nation toward hatred and discrimination, the country’s moral compass is becoming increasingly skewed.

Dao intends to file a lawsuit against United Airlines, as he should, and though he seems to have a solid case, not having specific guidelines that spell out how air passengers should be treated, makes it just that much harder for justice to be served.

United and the Chicago Aviation police should be punished for their treatment of Dao but in order for a punishment to take place, in this situation as well as in similar future situations, real relevant laws and rules must be created.

PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE AMANDA CHEN

When I was in fourth grade, my teacher assigned our class a project where we had to make collegiate-style banners for our “dream schools.” Naturally, I picked Harvard. When the banners were hung up on the classroom wall, one of my classmates quickly pointed out that I had missed one “r,” so that it instead read “Havard.” I was mortified.

“How are you going into Harvard if you can’t even spell it correctly?” they laughed.

Turns out, they were completely right. I didn’t get into Harvard. And as pretty much anyone I’ve ever held a conversation via text message or online well knows, my propensity for making typos hasn’t decreased in the slightest.

At least for the former, that’s okay, more than okay, actually. In fact, as I’m writing this piece — sadly, it’s the last thing I’ll ever write for the Falconer — I’m on a plane heading home from UC Berkeley, where I’ll starting school this fall. I’m beyond excited.

You would think that after getting into college I could finally relax, but as I’ve learned over the course of my four years at TPHS, no matter what you do, it’s just never enough for some people. For example, in the past month, a bunch of random people have remarked with a sort of a surprise upon the fact that I did not get into “better” schools; my generally supportive parents have also started to attribute my various character flaws, depending on which one irks them the most at the given moment — usually it’s my absolutely stellar attendance record — as reason to why the “good schools didn’t want me.”

Here, and at other high-performing high schools in North County San Diego, there exists an almost fanatic obsession with college (Trust me, I’ve worked on the Falconer College Map for two years and nothing else we do even comes close to being perceived by our community as having the same level of importance as the map). It commences the moment, or even before, the first day of ninth grade: there’s the onslaught of angry emails from parents to teachers when their child gets a “B” freshman year, the rush to join a variety of clubs and extracurriculars followed by the justification of “I’m just doing it for college;” there’s the overwhelming tendency of sophomores to take on more AP classes than they can reasonably handle, long summers of test prep followed by tears when the scores are released.

This toxic college culture is what allows schools like TPHS to consistently perform well and to its send students to elite institutions post-graduation, but the students are the ones who end up paying the price. When everything is perceived to be a competition in which every person must fend for him- or herself, academic camaraderie ceases to exist. It’s most evident when college decisions roll out; for every congratulatory remark, there will always be an equal number of attempts to undermine the efforts of the accepted students.

“How did he even get in?”

“She’s not even that smart.”

Athletes and legacy students are subject to similar criticism, except all their efforts are ignored and they are reduced to the status of

PHOTO BY ALLY JENSEN/FALCONER

Editor-in-Chief Amanda Chen (12) reflects on her past four years at TPHS and the college application process.

their acceptance alone. I imagine it must feel awful.

But what bothers me more is a certain kind of elitist attitude toward college and education in general that is so prevalent throughout the predominantly college-educated and upper middle class Carmel Valley. It manifests in a very ugly way on campus. Ivy Day, the colloquial designation for the day in late March when all the Ivy League schools release their decisions, is one of the most eventful and emotional days of the year at Torrey. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to go to an Ivy, but it’s usually these same students who will wear UC Riverside sweaters as a joke and complain that because they did badly on a test, they’ll “have to go to community college,” as if going to community college is a bad thing.

My immigrant parents, both of whom have PhDs, were able to give my sister and me a better life here by working hard in high school and testing into the top universities in China; understandably, they placed a great importance on academic success and expected me to attend the equivalent elite institutions in the

U.S. If they could succeed with less than half the resources and opportunities that I have now, why shouldn’t I be able to do the same?

But what I’ve learned, and what I think many immigrant parents and people at TPHS need to realize, is that the extremely arbitrary college application process in the U.S. is so drastically different than that of any other country and that what someone ends up doing after high school, whether that’s attending a four-year university or a community college, entering the work force or the military, or traveling, is by no means a complete representation of their intelligence and work ethic. No one should ever have to feel bad about their path in life; it’s hard enough being here as it is.

And while I’ve mentioned a lot of things that TPHS could stand to improve on, there’s a lot of good things that have come out of my four years here, things that even though I hate to admit it, I’ll miss when I head off to Berkeley this fall.

But to all those who will still be here next year and all future Falcons, I wish you the very best of luck; even if you don’t get into Harvard, trust me, everything will be okay.

opinion

tphsfalconer.com

the falconer

A9

Tomi Lahren should not have been suspended from The Blaze

By Irene Yu

ART BY ESTELLE KRAFT/FALCONER

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Tomi Lahren is best known for being an outspoken young Republican woman. However on Mar. 17, during a guest appearance on “The View,” Lahren said women should have access to abortion and accused people who held pro-life positions of being hypocritical for claiming to want limited government yet supporting anti-abortion legislation.

This caused her to be suspended with pay from The Blaze, the conservative multi-platform news and enter tainment network that hosts her TV show, “Tomi.”

Even though she was not fired, Lahren filed a lawsuit on April 7 for wrongful termination.

According to the New York Times, Lahren’s lawyer said that while Lahren was still being paid, the Blaze told her “she no longer had a job.” As a political commentator and television host, Lahren’s main job and responsibility should be to express and share her opinions.

Lahren’s

suit claims that fellow conservative pundit Glenn Beck, the founder and owner of The Blaze, and others at the media platform were trying to sabotage her reputation and career, and also asks The Blaze to allow her to pursue employment elsewhere.

Even though she was not actually terminated from her job, she should not have been suspended for doing almost exactly what she is paid to do. Lahren’s contract with The Blaze expires in September.

Beck tweeted on Mar. 21 that he “will never and [has] never fired someone for their POV” and that “it is principles that matter.” While Beck claims that Lahren was not suspended for her opinions, he has openly spoken out against her and did not provide a specific reason for her suspension.

For a network that has previously criticized “political correctness” and censorship, The Blaze should have been more tolerant of Lahren’s opinions, even if they do not align with the opinions of the mostly white men that are usually featured on the network. Even Trevor Noah, the liberal host of “The Daily Show,” has spoken out against Lahren’s suspension, saying that it is hypocritical for The Blaze to “get offended too easily when anyone says something [they] disagree with.”

The reaction to Lahren’s comments highlights the problem of modern-day political parties; while there are many outspoken people on both extremes of the political spectrum, there are hardly any in the middle. Especially since the beginning of Donald Trump’s presidency, the political atmosphere in this country has become increasingly polarized,

only worsening an already existing divide between both sides.

The Blaze should not have suspended Lahren and should have instead celebrated the diversity of opinion that she represents for the network. Most well-known political commentators tend to lean either far left or far right on the political spectrum, but there are not many that lie in the middle. While Lahren is nowhere near moderate, having one opinion that does not align with the Republican Party’s official stance should not have gotten her suspended, especially when The Blaze has stood by her as she faced warranted accusations of racism.

For the Blaze, it might be considered worse to be accused of being prochoice.

According to the New York Times, a source on Beck’s side stated that Beck did not tolerate Lahren’s comments because they threatened the unity that he is trying to promote among U.S. citizens, particularly conservatives. Instead of viewing the political atmosphere as a battleground between Democrats and Republicans, those in positions of influence should work toward unifying the American people as a whole.

It is important to preserve traditions and opinions, but that does not mean that those opinions cannot evolve over time. If Beck wants to “unify the country,” he should focus on creating and supporting content that is well-informed and factually substantiated instead of censoring one of his most popular political commentators. Lahren’s suspension not only tarnishes the authenticity and candor of the network as a

whole, but also reinforces the political divide. The Blaze’s disapproval of Lahren’s views on abortion only increases the divide between liberals and conservatives.

Lahren has often been criticized for changing her views and backtracking on comments she has made. For example, Lahren told the New York Times on Dec. 4, 2016 that religion is about “hierarchy, power, control and greed,” qualifying the statement minutes later by stating that “the institution of religion is important.” Even though she is known for being politically conservative, Lahren has said in interviews that she is pro-choice and does not object to gay marriage.

“I have moderate, conservative, and libertarian views,” Lahren tweeted on Mar. 18, 2017. “I’m human. I will never apologize, to anyone, for being an independent thinker.” While people certainly have the right to disagree with Lahren’s opinions or views, they should not denounce or discredit her influence based on the fact that her views do not fully align with one political party.

Lahren has always been outspoken in her own way; The Blaze should be used to that after hosting her show for two years.

Even if her remarks at times have been rash, uninformed or just plain racist, Lahren should not have been suspended because of a remark that did not align with the viewpoints of white, conservative men like Beck.

In order to actually unify a group of people, Beck should stop being afraid of conflicting opinion and recognize his hypocrisy in censoring and suspending Lahren for her remarks.

Trump should attend White House Correspondents’ Dinner

By Anvitha Soordelu ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

The annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner is an event where journalists, celebrities and politicians come together to honor outstanding journalists, as well as award scholarships and grants to rising journalistic stars.

Over time, the dinner has incorporated what is now the customary comedy routine, where the president of the U.S. delivers a comedic speech, and then a famous comedian takes over to make fun of the president and his administration.

The proceeds raised from the tickets for the dinner and other fundraising activities during the event go to fund the scholarships and grants for the next year.

On Feb. 25, just a month after his inauguration, President Donald Trump tweeted that he would not be attending the 2017 Correspondents’ Dinner on April 29. The rest of the White House staff also declined their invitations in order to support Trump’s decision. However, Trump should attend the dinner and take it as an opportunity to repair his fractured relationship with the press.

Even though some have criticized the dinner as moving in a direction where Hollywood celebrities are given more importance than journalists, the Correspondents’ Dinner is still a decades-old tradition.

The last president who did not attend was Ronald Reagan because he was recovering from a bullet wound that was the result of an assassination attempt.

In his original tweet, Trump did not specify why he had decided on not attending the dinner, giving people the impression that he could not handle being made fun of. In reality, Trump barely won the election, and there are many people who certainly do not like him, but almost all other presidents in his position have attended the dinner. To skip the dinner without a reason just makes Trump look more immature than he already does, and he does not need to give people who already dislike him another reason to do so.

Trump did end up having an excuse, but it is one he created himself. On April 22, about two months after he declined his invitation without justification, Trump tweeted that he would be holding a rally in Pennsylvania on the very same night as the dinner. Planning a rally on the same night as the dinner seems like a blatant disregard for the dinner and its traditions, along with the journalists who will be honored.

Of course, Trump has never tried to make his aversion for the press a secret, and planning a rally when many of the journalists in the White House Correspondents’ Association will be at the dinner does not convey otherwise.

The Correspondents’ Dinner is when the presidential administration and the press set aside their tensions for one night, and it would be a chance to least try to make the next three and a half years more bearable for both sides. It is true that other presidents, mainly Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon, have skipped the event, but this is a much bigger deal

for Trump because his relationship with journalists so far has been strained, at best.

Attending the dinner and being able to laugh at himself and others would also make Trump seem more approachable. He may be the president of the U.S., which is a role that is inherently unapproachable, but he has appointed his family members to play key roles in his adm inist rat i o n, a decision that some have questioned because of the Trump family’s government experience, or lack thereof.

Trump elevating his daughter Ivanka and his son-in-law Jared Kushner in both power and governmental status makes it seem like he has created his inner circle of advisers based on family so that he may shield himself from the public.

Besides, ever since his presidential campaign, Trump has defended himself and used Twitter to call out others for trying to harm his reputation.

In fact, Trump’s go-to communication system seems to be Twitter. Trump said that he uses Twitter so much because he cannot trust the press to convey anything he says without distorting his words. This only goes to prove how badly his relationship with journalists truly is, and that it must be

saved.

However, while social media allows Trump to speak directly to his followers, it also ends up becoming a cyber barrier between him and the rest of the world. To attend the dinner, regardless of

ART BY IRENE YU/FALCONER

any professional or unprofessional tensions between he and people, as well as enjoy, or at least pretend to enjoy, the evening, Trump would seem more accessible to U.S. citizens.

Even though Trump already has many loyal supporters, as president of the U.S., he needs to also work toward catering to the American people as a whole.

It also just so happens that Trump’s hundredth day in office falls on the day of the Correspondents’ Dinner. Many people have been skeptical of Trump’s actions during his first 100 days, which Trump denounced as a “ridiculous standard” in yet another tweet on April 21. It would benefit him to be seen following a lighthearted presidential tradition on the last day of this “ridiculous standard.”

The White House Correspondents’ Dinner is meant to honor journalism, journalists and members of the media, and while that may be the last thing Trump wants to do, it is a standing tradition that the president and the Vice President Mike Pence should both attend.

This is a tradition that has been broken before, but breaking it this year, in particular in light of all of the criticism that Trump has received during his campaign, as well as his brief three months as president, just underscores the claims of his detractors and undermines his efforts to complete his term with less political turbulence.

A10 the falconer

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DISTRACTED 80%

of high schoolers believe that they procrastinate on academic assignments.

61%

of high schoolers consider themselves frequent procrastinators.

41%

40%

of procrastinators think it has a negative affect on their work.

23%

24%

pokemon go friends

reading

gaming

texting

900 million total users

high school females

52%

main cause of procrastination

15%

didn’t like doing homework

24%

felt overwhelmed by schoolwork

61%

500 million total downloads

instagram

500 million total downloads

facebook

102 billion total downloads

high school males

37%

snapchat

messenger

most popular procrastination techniques for high schoolers

11%

50% over 100 million daily users

TV tv & movies

63%

social media

100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10%

75%

were distracted by other activities

64% 20% 36% 44% 87%

of Hunt News participants admitted to getting distracted after receiving a social media notification.

PHOTO BY LAUREN ZHANG/FALCONER

of Americans claimed that they procrastinate in both their work and in relationships.

of high schoolers admit to losing at least an hour a day to internet procrastination.

of high schoolers are concerned about how procrastination affects their schoolwork.

of teachers believe that technology creates an easily distracted classroom

Information courtesy of American Psychological Association, Pew Research Center, the Huffington Post, Hunt News and the Telegraph INFOGRAPHIC BY SUMIN HWANG/FALCONER

A12 the falconer

feature

april 28, 2017

The Feature section takes a look at students whose participation in different organizations has made positive contributions for local, national, and international causes.

THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT

BY FARHAN HOSSAIN & KAHYUN KOH

In her sophomore year, Grace Lee (12) was assigned an English class research paper, but had trouble deciding what to write about. Lee, who moved to the U.S. from South Korea when she was 11, began to reimmerse herself in Korean culture. Articles about comfort women, a euphemism for Korean sex slaves who were used by the Japanese army during World War II, outraged Lee, who then decided to further her research by making them the subject of her essay. After finishing the assignment, Lee still felt connected to the women and wanted to take her advocacy further.

“As I got older I became more aware of social problems,” Lee said. “When you’re young you obviously don’t read or see the news much but after I got older, I am [more] continuously involved.”

Lee realized that she would need more people to make an impact. Although Lee searched for existing organizations to create a TPHS chapter with, she could not find any.

Lee founded the Korean Club during her freshman year, where a collection of TPHS students would spend meetings listening to Korean Pop and discussing Korean culture.

“I was personally discouraged by the Korean club [because] it was so lightweight,” Lee said. “People came and then they just ate food.”

Since she could not find an organization already working to raise awareness for the comfort women, Lee started to convert her existing Korean Club into a club with a more focused mission during her junior year.

Lee stood nervously in front of the few students who had come to the first meeting of the Butterfly Effect club. Although disheartened by the lack in numbers, Lee proudly told the collective students what the club was about.

“This is a rather sensitive topic that can also be political at times,” Lee

When you’re young you obviously don’t read or see the news much but after I got older I am [more] continuously involved.

Grace Lee �������

said. “Barely any people came to the first meeting, to be honest, but I just went with it, and now we have these beautiful people who actually want to get involved.”

Although the Butterfly Effect club still keeps the K-Pop on in the background, its work has changed significantly.

“We started off with a boba fundraiser,” Lee said. “I just made the boba at

home and then we also did a benefit concert. We basically collaborated with No Higher Calling last year to put up a benefit concert.”

Beyond events occurring at school, Lee has worked to tie the Butterfly Effect to the Korean community in San Diego.

“I personally know the president of House of Korea in Balboa,” Lee said. “There are a lot of events [that promote Korean culture] at Balboa Park and we send volunteers to get involved there on a bigger scale.”

According to Lee, the money the club raises is donated to a charity based in South Korea that helps fund the War and Women Human Rights Museum as well as raise awareness on the atrocities and provide social services for the old and shrinking population of former comfort women, now less than 50 individuals.

In 2015, the Japanese government formally apologized for the general suffering of comfort women during World War II. But, the apology lacked large public support in South Korea because the Japanese government did not provide direct compensation to the living survivors and still refused to apologize for the forced enslavement of the Korean women.

According to an article in the Daily Telegraph, many of the girls were tricked into becoming comfort women, and the vast majority of them were 13 to 16 years old. Despite World War II having ended over 70 years ago, Lee’s fervor for raising social awareness is not dampened.

“I am going to Korea this summer for the first time in seven years. So when I go back, I’m definitely going to participate in the Wednesday Demonstrations,” Lee said.

Wednesday Demonstrations are a weekly protest in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul that received a 2011 Guinness World Record for being the longest continuous rally surrounding a single issue. The dedication of the protesters led Lee to name her club after the butterfly effect, a scientific concept that hypothesizes that one small flap of a butterfly’s wing can build up and affect weather and wind patterns across the Earth.

While planning the club’s transition the summer before her junior year, Lee was excited by the prospect of forming the first known American high school club focused on demanding the Japanese government to accept full responsibility for the enslavement of Korean sex slaves. However, Lee was aware of the limitations her club would have in achieving its mission, such as the problem of not having other comfort women organizations to collaborate with in the community, as well as the the fact that club is comprised of only a limited number of students.

As Lee looks toward beginning college in Emory University next year, she is preparing to hand her club and hard work down to the remaining members.

Looking back, Lee acknowledges the development of her club as responsible for expanding her knowledge and understanding of social issues far beyond the scope of an English research paper.

HISTORIC TIMELINE First comfort women station is opened 1932 1937

World War II and the comfort women system ends 1945

TIME OF SILENCE

The comfort women system is institutionalized This statue, unveiled near a Japanese embassy in the city of Busan, South Korea, pays tribute to the struggles of comfort women.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CNN

The United Nations demands the Japanese government formally apologize for the sexual slavery of Korean women durring World War II 1990

Former comfort women Kim Hak-Sun breaks decades of silence and testifies about her experiences in South Korea

2008

2017

To this day, the Japanese government has not taken full legal responsibility for the forced enslavement of comfort women.

tphsfalconer.com

feature

ALL IN GOOd health

the falconer

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BY BEA de Oliveira & ESTELLE kraft

It was more than just an ordinary internship; more than simply sitting in a In her experiments at Mahyco, Song used RNA interference, a process that targets laboratory all day while conducting scientific research. Instead, it was something and neutralizes specific RNA molecules, removing the effects they have on the species,; much more significant: the chance to change the lives of rural farmers throughout the a practical application could be making rice crops resistant to brown planthopper world. Madeline Song (12) was offered the special opportunity through her internship outbreaks. with the World Food Prize Organization at the Maharashtra Hybrid Seed Company, Song’s trip was not only spent holed up in her section of the research center, but or Mahyco, in Jalna, India. exploring all labs throughout India. Every couple of days, she worked in a different Following in her brother’s footsteps, Song applied to laboratory conducting various trials about disease and the Borlaug-Ruan Internship through the World Food drought resistance. In doing so, Song was able to learn PHOTO COURTESY OF MADELINE SONG Prize in 2015. After spending the previous summer different research techniques, as well as network with exploring climate volatility in Bangladesh as the subject scientists specialized in areas she never dreamed of of her research paper, she submitted her work to the being interested in.

World Food Prize. Song was chosen, along with a few “I was mainly working with scientists who had an other Californians, to represent the state at the Global education and who had similar interests to me” Song Youth Institute as part of a three-day program in Des said.

Moines, Iowa.

Song also began volunteering at a local eye hospital, “As I was first presenting my research I realized that Shri Ganapati Netralaya, where she was exposed to lives this was something I really enjoyed doing,” Song said. of those less fortunate. The hospital, founded by World “I really enjoyed working with the World Food Prize and Food Prize Winner B.R. Barwale in 1992, was established sharing my personal research.” to give consultations, procedures and surgeries to people Inspired by her experience at the Global Youth in poverty.

Institute and after hearing about the programs offered “I was able to meet people who lived in [rural] by the World Food Prize, Song decided to apply for the villages who were very poor,” Song said. “It was a great prestigious Borlaug-Ruan Summer Internship. In April opportunity for me to be able 2015, after months of filling out an application and being EYE OPENING EXPERIENCE: Madeline Song (12) to just interact with people interviewed, Song was one of the 23 high schoolers in the treats a local patient by providing an eye exam in India. with a completely different U.S. selected for the program. world and upbringing than I Through the internship, Song not only conducted her had.” own research on the subject of her choice at a research center in a foreign country, but Song’s experience working with the people in the she also immersed herself in that country’s culture. Song ultimately chose India; more community was an eye-opening experience that developed specifically, the Mahyco Institute. her communication skills and broadened her worldview.

“I was able to meet farmers and villagers; people who couldn’t even speak English; According to Song, in order to become a better researcher people who couldn’t read or write,” Song said. “It was just a really big culture shock to and find solutions to key global issues, one must be able to me, even more so that I had dealt with before.” collaborate with people all across the world with different According to Song, climate change is a particularly prominent and an important ideas and beliefs. issue in India because even in the slightest drought or flood can cause outbreaks in Conducting research at the Maharashtra Hybrid Seed insects. This became her topic of focus, a significant issue to farmers in South Asia, Company through the World Food Prize was no everyday “[Farming is] their only source of income,” Song said. “Their whole livelihood is internship. The Borlaug-Ruan Internship required centered on farming, so if an insect outbreak were to occur, their whole profit for that emotional investment, in addition to her ability to solve year would be completely devastated.” various issues and think outside the box, making it an Song focused her research on the brown planthopper, an insect that destroys a experience she will cherish for the rest of her life. number of rice crops in the region.

THE WRITE EDUCATION

As he listened to his aunt share stories of volunteering at underfunded schools in India, Ishaan Patel (9) was struck by the realization that not all students are afforded the privilege of sitting at a desk in a classroom.

“I was really surprised because when I compared the schools that she went to volunteer at and the school that I went to, there was a big difference in the quality of education that they got and how they got it,” Patel said. “The students were sitting on the dirt ground and they only had one chalkboard and one teacher for like 60 kids ... When I saw the big difference that there was I wanted to help them out and do something about it.”

Patel then decided to found Planting Pencils, which, according to Patel, a nonprofit “dedicated to supporting and raising awareness about underfunded schools in the U.S. and around the world.” The organization’s goal is to provide underprivileged students with the necessary supplies for learning so they can live independently without having to depend on others for daily tasks like getting food and water.

After being personally moved by the photos and descriptions of the schools his aunt visited, Patel turned his idea into a reality in December 2015, at 13 years old.

According to Patel, his mother, Dr. Alpa Patel, contributed a significant amount of time and effort into helping him start Planting Pencils, and continues to do so as the official president of the organization.

“My mom helped me a lot,” Patel said. “When I was just starting [to get Planting Pencils established] I researched about education in the U.S. and around the world, [and] she helped me with that and helped me get [Planting Pencils] started. And she still helps me run it now since I still have to go to school [during the day].”

The younger Patel’s role as Founder and CEO of Planting Pencils requires that he oversees the collection of supplies and fundraising, while expanding and advocating for the organization within the community.

“I started [Planting Pencils] and I just… run it and make sure everything gets donated to the right schools,” Patel said. “[I also] reach out to different schools to see if they need support and ... I keep in contact with the schools that we’re already supporting and see if they need more supplies or if they need anything else.”

With the packages of donated school supplies that are regularly sent out, Planting Pencils has helped underprivileged students obtain a better quality of education.

Since Planting Pencils’ launch, Patel has arranged several fundraisers, including two collaborations with local businesses to buy more supplies for five schools: Covenant Prep and Trinity Day School in Connecticut, Mercy Child Community School in Ghana, Sankalp School for Orphans and Streetkids in India, and San Jose School for Orphans in Costa Rica. The first fundraiser Patel organized in Carmel Valley was at the Fleet Fleet Sports shoe store on Mar. 23, 2017.

“People could come and shop and 10 percent [of their purchase] would be donated,” Patel said.

The single-day fundraiser accumulated a donation of over $250 for Planting Pencils.

Other fundraisers were a donation-based Zumba class when he lived in Connecticut and a supply drive at his middle school.

The donations sent to schools, according to Patel, are “mostly basic school supplies,

BY angela liu & Eve gross-sable

like pencils, notebooks and pens.” However, the increase in the use of technology for education became apparent to the Planting Pencils team and their donations are not limited to traditional supplies.

“A lot of people in the U.S. don’t have internet access,” Ishaan said. “And now using the internet is a big thing with work and school… so actually a company donated 15 computers…[and] we donated those computers between the two schools in Connecticut [that Planting Pencils is supporting].”

Currently, Planting Pencils relies on Amazon India and volunteers, such as a friend in Connecticut who frequently visits Ghana to volunteer, to ensure the supplies are sent to the five schools. Patel hopes to partner with a shipping service, like FedEx, to deliver supplies to all five schools and more in the future.

Given that 60 million elementary school students in the world don’t have access to basic school supplies, according to WE Charity, Patel quickly realized that his efforts alone would not be enough to support the dire need for school supplies around the world. To help coordinate the more technical aspects of running a nonprofit organization, like shipping and treasury tasks, Patel recruited a board consisting of four members, including his mother. “[The board consists of] all adults right now,” Patel said. “But I’m actually working on getting student representatives in different states around the country.”

To raise awareness at TPHS and in the Carmel Valley community, Patel is currently working on starting a club for the 2017-18 school year so students at TPHS can get involved and “know more about it.” More student involvement would allow the organization to “do a lot more fundraisers here at school and… bring in a lot more donations.”

Although the club has yet to be created, Planting Pencils has already attracted the attention of Patel’s classmates and friends, like Max Myrhum (11) and Sherrie Antoun (12), as well as the FOX 5 San Diego news channel.

“I had an interview recently for [FOX 5 San Diego] and two people in my marketing class helped me out with [the interview] and are still getting involved with [Planting Pencils],” Patel said.

Patel’s former teachers in Connecticut have also supported Patel by recommending schools Planting Pencils could consider donating supplies to. But, Patel credits his family with being his main support throughout the process of working on Planting Pencils since as they have donated a significant amount of money to Planting Pencils and assisted Patel in establishing and running his organizing.

Now, besides brainstorming ways to send supplies to more students around the world, Patel is also considering ways to build schools in areas where students are required to travel long distances to attend school.

“What I want to do later on is build a school in an area that doesn’t have a school at all,” Patel said. “Some students have to walk miles and miles just to get to school in the morning, and that’s one reason why many people don’t go to school.”

However, this goal is a long-term one, according to Patel, as his current priority is to “try and support more and more schools” in any area and to send supplies to “more than just the five” schools Planting Pencils is helping now.

Through Planting Pencils, Patel’s desire to help students less fortunate than him has quickly turned into his success in impacting the lives of students by giving them the resources they need to successfully learn.

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april 28, 2017

From coffee house performances to TPTV plugs, Rayhan Tabani (11) has gone the extra mile to promote his new mixtape. His passion for singing and drive for success have helped him turn his lifelong dream into a reality.

At Public Square Coffee House in La Mesa, the focus is not on the drinks or “A lot of the times [they’re about] what I’m feeling,” Tabani said. “Sometimes, the food; instead, much of the attention is directed toward the live performances if I really start to feel something, I’ll start singing. I’ll just write whatever comes and local artists. The stage, illuminated by red and purple lights and surrounded to mind … and just work off of that.” by late-night customers and musicians, is set up in the center. Jazz bands, soul Not only does Tabani write the lyrics to each track, but also contributes his artists and folk singer-songwriters have already taken the stage, but there own input about the production of this record. remains one more act to supply the crowd with its nightly dose of rhythm and “[They] make [the beats] with me,” Tabani said. “So we get to feel what I’m blues: Sugar Ray Ray. feeling for a specific song. I got a bunch of songs outlined that I record at home Rayhan Tabani (11), who is originally from Orange County, has been and then when I want to record them in the studio, we get them done there.” singing his whole life. Known by fellow Falcons as “Sugar Ray The first song ends, and the room fills with cheers of Ray”, his love of music, from his older brother’s original songs to admiration. The audience applauds, eagerly waiting for those of well-known R&B artists like Tory Lanez, Eric Bellinger Tabani to begin the next song. Instead, he takes a little break and Mario, has quickly turned into the 16-year-old’s greatest and talks to the audience, introducing another new track passion and dream career. titled “Jus Met.” Applause follows an intense spoken word performance, Pursuing music professionally also means adjusting to and a coffee house worker introduces Tabani as a young, upbeing recognized in public, which Tabani equates with “feeling and-coming R&B artist. Stepping onto the stage, Tabani plugs all the good energy”, constantly reiterating how much love he in the auxiliary cord. The small coffee house fills with the feels every time somebody recognizes him. smooth sound of one of his new original songs titled “Ima Get “If you see me driving, you’ll know it’s Mines,” as he begins to sing. me because I got my music playing and Tabani took a break from music when he started boxing I’m just dancing,” Tabani said. “People three years ago, but recently picked the microphone back will pull up to the side of me and be up last November. Since then, Tabani has released his own like ‘Roll down your window!’ and be original music, scored multiple live performances and started like ‘Sugar Ray?’ I’ll be at the store and working on his first official Extended Play. His first release, a people will come up to me. It’s all love.” self-produced mixtape titled “Jus Trust” was recorded in his His EP, scheduled to be released mom’s closet and gave Tabani the opportunity to dip his toes later this year, will include four new tracks, PHOTO BY ALLY JENSEN/FALCONER into the water before deciding to pursue music professionally. according to Tabani. He plans to develop “I was just making [the mixtape] to see if I’ll like a resume after its release so he doing [music] again,” Tabani said. “So I made it, and can easily get gigs and start then I started selling my CDs.” getting paid for playing According to Tabani, it only took him a month shows. Tabani hopes the after releasing “Jus Trust” to start making connections record will give him with other people, including regulars at an open-mic connections with more coffee house and his own manager. artists in his genre.

“I had a really big show yesterday and about 100 According to people came through [to watch me],” Tabani said. “I Tabani, the best have a show tonight, another one tomorrow, Saturday I part of it all, from have a photoshoot and then it goes from there.” recording to live Tabani’s music fills up the small coffee house performances, is the and trickles down the streets of La Mesa. Musicians love. waiting and chatting outside stop to listen and audience “Be positive members look up from their laptops. All eyes are on and feel the love,” Tabani, who is swept by the red and purple lights, but he is not nervous despite Tabani advised. “It’s all love. That’s what I’m the pressure of performing.. about. I’m just about positivity and love.” “[Performing is] a different type of nervousness,” Tabani said. “When I was Tabani finishes performing, and smiles boxing, I’d get nervous but it was a different type of nervous, kind of more like a as the audience applauds. Even though he fear. But with the music I feel more comfortable; I feel like it’s just me. I’m just was only able to perform two of his songs at there and I’m doing my thing.” the open mic, his love and passion for music Tabani is planning to release an EP, which he has been working with are enough to keep Tabani coming back every producers to create in the studio. But Tabani is not letting their contributions week.

by Ellena Whitfield & Irene Yu change his music or his roots for the sake of increasing sales.

@sugarrayray @raytabani PHOTO COURTESY OF RAYHAN TABANI AND CAMERON BALLENSKY

Let’s Break it Down: Supreme Court Nominations In 1801, former President John Adams lay awake late at night, signing federal judge appointments on the very last day of his presidency, appointments that went down in history as the “midnight judges.” However, in 2016, Associate Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died, and former President Barack Obama, with a full 11 months left in his term, was not allowed by Congressional Republicans to appoint the next Justice.

The president is the only person who is authorized to nominate a Supreme Court justice. Once the president makes a nomination, the Senate Judiciary Committee votes on the potential judge. If the majority votes in the nominee’s favor, his or her background is then subjected to intense scrutiny because both Democrats and Republicans research the nominee while he or she fills out a detailed questionnaire and visits senators, who are looking into their past work.

Then comes the confirmation hearing, where members of the Senate Judiciary Committee are allowed to directly question the nominee, as well as other witnesses who can testify either for and against him or her. The committee votes and sends its recommendation to the Senate and sixty senators must vote in favor of the judicial nominee. Then the president must issue a written commission and the nominee must take two oaths. All federal employees are required to take the Constitutional

Oath, by which they swear to uphold the U.S. Constitution. Judges are also required to take the Judicial Oath before they are officially sworn into the Supreme Court. In the event that the Senate does not approve the nominee, the president must restart the entire process, which takes about two to three months on average, according to a Congressional Research Service study.

Until Gorsuch was confirmed and sworn in on Apr. 8, the Supreme Court had been functioning with only eight of nine justices; in a Supreme Court decision with a tied vote, the lower court’s ruling is upheld. Justice Neil Gorsuch was sworn in to replace Scalia after being nominated by President Donald Trump, but Gorsuch failed to receive the 60-vote majority needed to pass the Senate vote. Thus, his nomination went through the nuclear option, which was used to break up the Democratic filibuster, extended speech to stall legislative action, against Gorsuch’s nomination. It reduced the 60-vote requirement to just 51, a simple majority. The Senate is comprised of 48 Democrats and 52 Republicans, so under the customary regulations, at least 8 Democrats would have had to vote for Gorsuch. Under the nuclear option, Gorsuch was approved immediately, since 51 votes were needed and 52 Republicans voted for him.

by Anvitha Soordelu

Justice Kennedy Justice Thomas Justice Ginsburg Justice Breyer Justice Roberts Justice Alito Jr. Justice Sotomayor has served 29 years has served 25 years has served 23 years has served 22 years has served 11 years has served 11 years has served 7 years

Justice Kagan Justice Gorsuch has served 6 years has served 0 years

PHOTO COURTESY OF STANFORD NEWS, OYEZ, BIOGRAPHY.COM AND PBS

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The artwork of five TPHS art students — Jeanette Ju (11), Connie Chen (12), Emma Cecil (12), Rebecca Shin (10) and Alice Yang (10) — was selected to be a part of the Young Art 2017: Beyond the Ordinary presentation at the San Diego Museum of Art and is on exhibit from April 15 to May 28.

Art teacher Jennifer Doerrer encouraged some of her students to submit to Young Art after receiving information about the exhibit at the beginning of January. Teachers are permitted up to five student submissions that follow this year’s theme of creating “unique interpretations of the classic still life” inspired by artists like Henri Matisse, Juan Sanchez Cotan and Georges Braque, according to the Young Art 2017 website.

“In my AP Studio Art course, I teach observational drawing and painting as one technique of many throughout the year,” Doerrer said. “One project required students to create their own still life set-up of interesting objects.

Coincidentally, two months Jennifer Doerrer later the San Diego Museum ��� ������� of Art released their exhibit theme, which was the art of the still life.”

Artwork was due on Jan. 29, and the results were released on Feb. 3. A reception for the featured student artists and their guests was held on April 13, a few days before the exhibit opened to the public. On May 7, the museum will host a Family Drop-In Day where families can tour the exhibit and participate in special activities.

A Teen Art Café will be on May 10, and Student Tours will be held on May 21.

Chen, along with Ju and Cecil, is in Doerrer’s AP Studio Art class and said Doerrer approached her about sending in her still life assignment to the competition.

Chen’s piece “Teddy Bear with Fragile Kitchen

Findings” is a part of the exhibit and is also an example on the Young Art 2017 information site.

“The objects in [the painting] weren’t actually planned — it was just more of how they were placed with the larger bear as the focus of the piece,” Chen said.

“There is a spoon, a bowl, and a cup of juice; those were just things I found in my kitchen that I use a lot. I felt like the triangular composition of the piece knit together [well] with the bear as the focus.”

Though Ju was also encouraged to submit “Plush and Robotic Dog” by Doerrer this year, one of her pieces from her freshman year was selected to be displayed at the Young Art showcase as well. “[My piece] is a still life … [with] a plush Webkinz beagle doll and a robotic iDog, and they’re sitting next to each other with a red ball between them,” Ju said. “It showcases two objects that are the same thing that are supposed to represent a dog, but one is technological and one is manufactured and plush.”

According to Doerrer, the San Diego Museum of Art “provides a rare and amazing opportunity” for students to have their artwork displayed in a “nationally recognized forum.”

“It validates all the hard work and creativity that the students put into their artwork, to see it displayed in a professional museum gallery,” Doerrer said. “It is a wonderful thing to add to their college resume, as well as show real art world experience if the student is looking to make a career in the arts.”

Doerrer said she will continue submitting student artwork to the Young Art exhibit in the future.

It validates all the hard work and creativity that the students put into their artwork, to see it displayed in a professional museum gallery.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF JENNIFER DOERRER

humanz gorillaz

After a seven-year hiatus, Gorillaz has finally returned with their long awaited fifth studio album “Humanz,” which is scheduled for release today. The band, which is comprised of four fictional characters, 2-D, Murdoc Niccals, Noodle and Russel Hobbs, first achieved international recognition for their experimental style in tracks like “Clint Eastwood” and “Feel Good Inc.” over a decade ago. They’ve been quite busy over the past half year: launching their own music festival, Demon Dayz, in reference to their earlier album by the same name, which is set to take place this June in England and an augmented reality app; over the course of the past month, they have also released five singles off their new album.

Upon first listening, “Saturnz Barz” sounds like many of the very formulaic tracks that have been dominating mainstream hip-hop recently, with its generous use of auto tune and trap-style beats.

However, Jamaican singer Popcaan lends his voice for an unexpected twist on a tried and true fan favorite to create masterful and unique synthesis of techno, hip-hop and reggae. Gorillaz also released an animated music video for this track, in which viewers can explore the “Spirit House” alongside the band members using 360-degree view.

In keeping with its name, “Andromeda,” is more representative of the classic Gorillaz’ sound, incorporating video game-like sounds, atmospheric background music and a quicker tempo. Although it features rapper

D.R.A.M., there is nothing reminiscent of the happy and upbeat rap style on “Broccoli” in this track.

Likewise, “Ascension” featuring rapper Vince Staples successfully blends hip-hop and electronica in a surprising and innovative way. Staples, however, does seem to control the entirety of the two-minute song, rapping “you can live your dreams as long as you don’t look like me,” and if the track didn’t tell me otherwise, I would think this was his song featuring Gorillaz.

Out of all five singles, “We Got the Power” is immediately recognizable as the outlier for its overwhelming lyrical and audible optimism reminiscent of ‘80s music. Jehnny Beth from the English rock band Savages and Noel Gallagher from Oasis both contribute, singing “We’ve got the power to be loving with each other no matter what happens,” in response to the election of Trump, which the group has said will be a theme throughout Humanz.

Finally, “Let Me Out,” which was released at a later date than the other four, is most similar to “Saturnz Barz” in its combination of a number of different genres: gospel, from the incorporation of singer Mavis Staples, hip-hop, from the incorporation of rapper Pusha T, and the Gorillaz’s signature electronica.

If these singles are an indication of what’s to come on “Humanz,” we can expect to see more well-executed collaborations and a interesting new direction in their experimental style.

by Amanda Chen PHOTO COURTESY OF PARLOPHONE AND WARNER BROS. RECORDS

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After five years of daydreaming, constantly begging my parents to let me go my senior year and imagining myself jamming out to my favorite indie bands, I finally went to Coachella. The months leading up to the weekend were some of the most excruciating months of my life; as a frequent concert-goer, I was very excited to spend a whole three days with my best friends at what is perhaps one of the most glorified music festivals in the world.

Even though I had a wonderful experience overall and will definitely be returning in a few years, there were a lot of problems I encountered over the weekend that I had wished the cliche Instagram pictures and intense video edits would’ve warned me about. Since I was 13 years old, I had been so fascinated by recurring photos of the giant ferris wheel, bright pink sunsets and beaming Wilhelmina models that I completely forgot that almost everything on social media is as positive and carefree as it is unrealistic.

So, here are a few things that Instagram failed to remind me about Coachella and that I suggest future attendees should keep in mind before deciding to go.

I knew going into this that Coachella took place in a desert, but I wasn’t really prepared for how hot and dry the weekend actually was. It was hard to balance between drinking excessive amounts of water to stay alive and not wanting to risk losing our spots in the pit just to use the bathroom. Looking at a typical Coachella Instagram posts, the last thing any of us would think is “Gee, I wonder how parched they were in this moment.” But now that I’ve actually experienced the weather at Coachella, I can assure you that in almost every photo you scroll past, the people inside of them were sweaty, slightly dizzy and on their way to buy 10 more $2 water bottles from the nearby popsicle stand.

I’m aware that Coachella rakes in thousands of people each weekend, but the Coachella I attended was apparently the most populated weekend of the festival ever. The crowds that I encountered at Coachella were massive, pushy and honestly quite dangerous. There were many instances when my friends and I attempted to see an artist, but ended up leaving because of lack of room in the audience. I had to leave my fifth-row spot 20 minutes before Kendrick Lamar came on because I couldn’t handle the number of people that just had to get closer to the stage, as if shoving me to get one inch closer would make a difference. It was risky business to look away from my friends for more than a few seconds as we trudged through careless pits each day as you could lose them in the blink of an eye.

I left the festival each night wondering how girls even managed to post on their Instagrams and Snapchat stories without waiting until they were back at their hotel rooms with Wi-Fi, because the cell service out there was absolutely horrible. My data plan definitely suffered its hardest blow this weekend as I constantly tried to re-upload my pictures and resend my Snapchats. Every time a member of my group got lost, it took at least a half an hour to find them because no matter how hard we tried, our texts and calls wouldn’t go through. If you’re planning on going to Coachella in the future, I suggest investing in a portable Wi-Fi hotspot. Who knows? It could possibly save a life.

Although the festival opened at 11:00 a.m. each day, the more popular bands and artists didn’t start playing until the late afternoons. This left large chunks of time in the hands of eager attendees like myself, who expectd there to be more things to do than just wait around for the concerts to begin, but there were only so many places I could take my giant watermelon wedge to model with before I was bored, lethargic, and once again, sweaty. I spent all of day three in the one spot, huddled up against the main stage as I waited for Grouplove to start their set at 5:35 p.m. My friends and I got to see one of our favorite bands from the fifth row, but only since there wasn’t enough time to run around the festival freely because we couldn’t think of anything worth ditching our spots for. I think Instagram tends to give the impression that you have time to do every activity available when most of the time, you don’t.

I bought my Coachella ticket during the pre-sale, which was about 10 months before the festival. I bought it without knowing the lineup, and I told myself that even if I didn’t know the bands performing, I would still enjoy for the experience.

When the official lineup was released, I liked a good number of the bands and artists performing, but not as many as previous years. I can now say that being at Coachella and seeing a band that you actually like is the epitome of the so-called “experience.”

On the other hand, when I was watching an artist that I didn’t know that well, it was fun, but not nearly as incredible as experiencing a band I had followed and anticipated. My biggest tip is to hold off on buying that $400 ticket until you actually know the lineup. You won’t have a memorable experience if you aren’t dedicated enought to know every song by at least 5-10 of the bands performing.

At the end of the day, I honestly had a great time at Coachella, but it was very different from what I had expected, and maybe that was my fault. Don’t let glorified social media posts manipulate your expectations, but if you’ve always wanted to attend this music festival and you like the lineup next year, I encourage you to go. With the right bands performing, the right weather, and the right people surrounding you, Coachella will probably be one of the best weekends of your life.

A17

A18 the falconer

entertainment

april 28, 2017

Italian food has always been one of my favorites, so, when I was offered the chance to review Dolce at the Highlands, I was excited to say the least.

Given its location within the Village at Pacific Highlands Ranch and its proximity to the massive Crunch Fitness parking lot, neither restaurant access nor parking was an issue. From the exterior, which had a number of tables with umbrellas, to the elegantly decorated interior, I was immediately impressed with what I saw.

Visually, the Gnocchi ($19) was the least appealing of the three items, but what it lacked in that aspect, it more than made up for in taste. The flavor of the gnocchi did not overpower the rich cream sauce, creating a

well-balanced dish. The gnocchi itself instantly melted price. While it appeared appealing upon first glance, in my mouth, and the piave vecchio cheese on top after taking a bite, I was immediately disappointed. complemented it well. The squash and other assorted The chicken, despite being cooked with fennel, sweet vegetables on the side also were a refreshing addition to peppers, tomato, basil, olives, lemon and chicken jus, the dish. All the components of the dish came together was really dry and too chewy; after the first bite, I was perfectly and it was some of the best gnocchi I have ever already reaching for a glass of water. One piece of skin left an odd taste in my mouth, and I could not finish had.

The next dish I tried was the Salumi, Bacon & ‘Nduja chewing it. Given my previous good experiences with Sausage Pizza ($18), which featured mozzarella cheese chicken at Italian restaurants, the dish served at this and san marzano tomato. The dough was acceptably one was quite disappointing, to say the least.

Altogether, my experience at Dolce at the Highlands, chewy, yet too thin to be appealing. In addition, the crust was burnt in certain areas and the sauce was was quite pleasant. The service was quick, the atmosphere was elegant and, overall, the slightly tart as well. The trio food was decent. While there of meat on the pizza, however, were minor quality issues was prepared and flavored with the food and the prices well. The size of the actual were slightly higher than I pizza left a lot to be desired; would usually spend, the rest for a little more than half of of the restaurant’s attributes the cost, I could get a larger were enough to overcome the pizza from Domino’s. drawbacks. If you ever find The third and final dish I yourself craving some Italian sampled was the Jidori Half food and don’t mind paying Chicken ($28). It was my least a little extra experience, look favorite dish of the three, no further than Dolce at the which surprised me because PHOTO BY TRAVIS FELTHAUS/FALCONER Highlands. my server recommended

by Alexei Serguienko and also because its high

Crudo, a Mediterranean-Japanese fusion restaurant with an Italian name, is not as disparate as it may seem.

The head chef, Pascal Lorange, is nationally renowned as the executive chef of the Fig & Olive Restaurants and has served various celebrities, like singer Julio Iglesias and Barack Obama. So naturally, he merits a certain level of culinary credit.

Crudo was slightly more formal than casual and the all white decor contributed to the sophisticated ambiance of the restaurant. I was confused about the choice of strange music that was playing throughout the meal and the mood lighting progressively got worse as the night when on, but the food easily made up for the discomfort.

A set of six crudotinis ($18), which looked like crostini, with various toppings was light and flavorful, and was

a refreshing first course that kept me from getting full the real highlight of the dish was the bass’ texture.

The fish required little cutting and fell apart almost before the main course.

The special of the day was a Bone-in-Beef Short Rib immediately under the pressure of my fork. ($30). The beef, which was roasted for 36 hours, was Served with zucchini, quinoa, lamb and chicken, the dark and crisp but not burnt, and it was so tender it Couscous Royal ($39) was succulent and tangy. The dish nearly fell off of the bone. came with a side slightly spicy tomato vegetable broth. While It tasted slightly smoky, the two components were but enhanced the natural flavor of the meat without initially served separately, they were best eaten overpowering the dish. When paired with the 16-year-old combined, creating a medley of different textures. balsamic vinegar, the meat However, nothing beats a was tangy, even though the dressing on its own was too good dessert at the end of a meal. The homemade whipped sweet. The potatoes were rich and creamy, and the simple cream was paired with a freshbaked lemon meringue and arugula and tomato salad was one scoop each of both lemon coated in a light and flavorful PHOTO BY TRAVIS FELTHAUS/FALCONER vinegarette, even though they and raspberry ice cream.

The ice cream was light and were only used as sides and garnishes on the dish. creamy, almost like sorbet, and the presentation of the The Coconut Chilean Sea Bass ($38), recommended dish resembled a small pyramid of sweets.

Overall, Lorange’s expertise in fusion is clear in his by the waiter, featured lightly cooked bass in a flavorful tomato, basil, onion and curry mixture with coconut ability to marry flavor and texture. Each dish I tried rice on the side. This plate was a perfect demonstration proves that Crudo easily lives up to Lorange’s grand of Lorange’s ability to successfully combine taste and reputation. textural elements. The spice on the fish was mild, but

by Ellie Ahles Brined All Natural Wings ($14), as well as the En Fuego Burger ($16) and the Farmhouse Pasta ($18).

The Share Plates were the first to arrive at the table.

Originally, I thought that these dishes were going to be the size of traditional appetizers, smaller than an entree and a precursor to the meal, but I was pleased to see portions that could easily be full meals. The Mac & Cheese was steaming upon arrival; the noodles sat

PHOTO BY ALLY JENSEN/FALCONER

Don’t be thrown by its location next to a gym; the food at Westroot Tavern is anything but a light pre-workout meal. While I never usually splurge on meals absent a special occasion, the unexpectedly large portions and wide variety of foods offered at Westroot Tavern easily compensate for the high prices.

Despite being a Saturday afternoon, the restaurant was largely vacant when my friends and I arrived, so we were quickly encouraged to seat ourselves by a server.

After perusing the extensive menu for several minutes, we finally decided on two Share Plates, the Mac & Cheese ($14) and the Chinese Five Spice & Garlic Beer-

in a large skillet filled to the brim with liquid cheese.

The panko breadcrumb layer comprised a nice textural contrast to the creaminess, but the taste of the poblano pepper described on the menu was lost. The chicken wings, the server’s recommendation, were the perfect

accompaniment to the heavier Mac & Cheese. The coating was light and crispy, leaving no trace of excess grease. The seasoning had a distinct garlic flavor, but the sweetness of the Five Spice successfully cut through the pungent garlic.

After the Small Plates, I was already feeling full, but the Farmhouse Pasta, my favorite dish, quickly followed. The thick noodles were well-cooked and the pasta was just lightly coated with a creamy pesto. The roasted vegetables gave the dish a nice crunch, but the baguette seemed excessive.

The last dish to reach the table was the El Fuego Burger, which promised ghost chile cheese and serrano chiles. Maybe it’s because of my high tolerance for spice, but I was underwhelmed by the spiciness, especially considering the various components that were supposedly dedicated to amplifying the heat. But regardless, the meat was a perfect medium rare and the flavor of the citrus guacamole went well with the hints of chile.

After visiting several restaurants at the Village, it’s apparent that high prices are a common trend, but Westroot Tavern justifies its prices with clear quality.

Even though I definitely wouldn’t suggest eating these meals before exercising, the flavorful dishes are perfect for indulgent post-workout gratification.

by Sumin Hwang

tphsfalconer.com

entertainment A motherly teapot. A singing candlestick. A beastly prince, an independent heroine and a touch of romance. The original 1991 animated version was a magical classic, but to see the story literally come to life was a completely different experience. In a grand two hours and 19 minutes, the new, live-action version of “Beauty and the Beast” was just beautiful.

The overall storyline is basically the same, thankfully. Belle (Emma Watson), an independent bookworm, actively avoids the romantic pursuits of Gaston (Luke Evans), who is bolstered by his friend LeFou (Josh Gad).

After her father Maurice (Kevin Kline) finds himself in a difficult situation, Belle saves him and ends up a prisoner in the cursed Beast’s (Dan Stevens) castle.

Lumiere (Ewan McGregor), Cogsworth (Ian McKellen) and Mrs. Potts (Emma Thompson), along with the rest of the enchanted furniture, make Belle feel at home in the castle.

Meanwhile, suspicious villagers turn on what they think is a delusional Maurice, and a mob sets out to the castle to kill the Beast. The final fight between Gaston and the Beast is about as intense as Disney can get, and a seemingly doomed Beast is transformed back into his human self, living happily ever after with Belle.

The story has a few changes, but the liberties that were taken in this film only enhance it. The characters, particularly Maurice and the Beast, are given more in-depth backgrounds,

A dream is a wish the heart makes and it is one that can possibly come true with the help of a Fairy Godmother, a pumpkin and some woodland creatures, just as it did in both the 2015 and original 1950 versions of “Cinderella.”

Both versions of “Cinderella” tell a similar storyline, but the newer version adds a few changes of its own.

In the 2015 adaptation of “Cinderella,” director Kenneth Branagh brings a twist to the classic fairy tale through impeccable costume design and detailed sets. Branagh elevates Charles Perraults’, the writer of the 1950 rendition, original storyline through elaborate filiming locations and innovative costume design changes from the original.

The film begins with a narration of the young Cinderella’s (Lily James) life with her parents, living a normal fairy tale life before the tragedy of her mother’s death occurs. Years later, Ella’s father (Ben Chaplin) remarries Lady Tremaine (Cate Blanchett) and Cinderella moves in with her new family while her father goes away on business and eventually also dies. Cinderella performs various tasks and chores for her step-sisters Drisella (Sophie McShera), Anastasia (Holliday Grainger) and her stepmother, living a dreaded life. The only bearable part of her chores seem to the woodland creatures whom help her along the way by making music to pass the time. Before

she is allowed to attend the royal ball she is given a list of ridiculous chores, but then her dress is torn to pieces by Lady Tremaine. Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother (Helena Bonham Carter) comes to her rescue with the help of magic and some woodland creatures, so Cinderella can rightfully attend the ball. Once there, she has until midnight before the spell wears off. As the center of attention, she dances with the prince (Richard Madden), but this is not the first time they meet, instantly falling in love with him before frantically rushing off, leaving a glass slipper behind on

the stairs. In his mad hunt to find the owner of the glass slipper, the Prince finds Cinderella and their love story is complete. Happily ever after, right?

Well, close enough to the 1950 version.

Unlike the original, this version gives the viewer a more in-depth background on the characters. Lady Tremaine’s cruelty is explained and while this is helpful to the viewer, it sadly does not give the movie the treasured storybook feeling that the original does.

Screenplay writer Chris Weitz changes a few details that most would not notice, unless they had recently seen or

and the characters have more apparent personalities. Gaston is as narcissistic as ever and crueler than he was in the original. Wry humor is inserted appropriately, and Disney’s progressive aspect is shown with some subtle touches of gay themes, something that got the film banned in certain areas.

The biggest concern I had going into this remake was the fact that “Beauty and the Beast” is a musical, and the two

main characters didn’t have a public history of singing, unlike Evans and Gad, who both have performed musical theater in the past. Watson and Stevens do pretty well, and while Evans’ and Gad’s experience is audibly clear, the difference in singing does not take away from the movie as a whole.

In fact, the soundtrack for the 2017 film is really good. The original soundtrack is completely represented, with “Belle,” “Gaston,” and, of course, “Beauty and the Beast.” A few extra

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songs were added, and while some weren’t necessary to keep the plot moving, they were enjoyable, despite lacking the memorable tune of the classic songs.

The remake also makes an effort to give the movie a French atmosphere.

The opening scenes show a dance with a made-up prince, blue eyeshadow and all, accompanied by women in ballgowns and voluminous hair. The costumes seem historically appropriate, the dialogue has more than just the odd French interjection every 10 minutes and the movie even represents a fourteenth century doctor mask accurately.

Belle’s not-so-progressive village features some African-American citizens, and while I appreciate the diversity in a modern movie, I’m not sure how historically accurate it was, but it is an easy aspect to overlook.

“Beauty and the Beast” is not an unknown story, and it can be difficult to make such a popular story stand out, but that is exactly what director Bill Condon did in the 2017 remake. The computergenerated imagery that created the talking furniture gives the movie life, an aspect that the 1991 film could not achieve through animation. Although the original movie will always be the nostalgic classic that truly makes the romance a tale as old as time, the 2017 redesign of “Beauty and the Beast” gave the story the technological update it deserves, and the extra 45 minutes the new version featured was well worth it.

by Anvitha Soordelu

read the storyline based off the classic Grimm Brothers tale. For example, Cinderella never meets the prince before the ball in the original and in the iconic ball transformation scene, Cinderella’s dress is white in the original, not blue.

Her footman is also a horse rather than a goose.

Patrick Doyle innovatively creates the soundtrack for Weitz’s 2015 version of “Cinderella,” as he has previously for other successful films like “Shakespeare” and “Harry Potter.”

“A Golden Childhood” is the star of this movie’s soundtrack because of how it sets up a dreamy and fairy tale landscape.

The instruments complement each other, and work well with the fairy tale storyline.

“Fairy Godmother” gives the actors a magical background.

“A Dream is a Wish That Your Heart Makes” is a classic song that ties the whole film together, from its message and from the magical flute sounds.

“Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo” is also a classic song that appears in both the 2015 and 1950 soundtracks, featuring an upbeat melody and variations of musicians.

Cinderella’s story has always been one of my favorite fairy tales and both of these versions brought back memories of tiaras and movie nights. “Cinderella,” through every version, has successfully taught its audience about magic through a simplistic and successful storyline.

by Estelle Kraft PHOTOS COURTESY OF INTERNET MOVIE DATABASE

Augur’s 10th-inning blast revives Falcons

The TPHS softball team (18-5) edged out Point Loma High School (11-12-1) 6-5 on April 22 at home; the 10-inning showdown ended after three hours of solid defense that kept both teams off the scoreboard for the majority of the game.

The first two innings opened with quick outs on both sides, strong pitching from Kiley Rose (11) giving her teammates an advantage on defense. In the top of the second, shortstop Cassie Kaelber (12) made a backhand catch on a hard grounder, and first baseman Alex Reges (12) stretched to make the play. Kaelber caught another ball on the fly and then whipped back to Reges before the runner could get back to first, swiftly ending the inning with the double play.

In the top of the third, Point Loma had a runner on first with two outs when a hitter slammed a home run to bump the score to 2-0. But the Falcons promptly retaliated, loading the bases with one out. With a full count Alex Reges and after fouling ����� ���� off seven pitches, Makena Macias (10) drove the ball deep between left and center field, bringing home Kristin Bitter (10) and Kaelber to tie the game.

“When [Point Loma] got two runs in the third, we came back with two right away on Makena Macias’s big two-run hit,” head coach Jonathan Moore said. “That was big.”

TPHS held a strong defensive front behind Rose in the fourth and fifth innings.

Macias made back-to-back plays at second base in the top of the fifth, a high pop fly and then a slow-rolling grounder, which she flipped to Reges for the out. Center fielder Sydny Poh (12) and right fielder Chloe Balsiger (10) both caught fly balls for outs as well.

The Pointers pressed offensively in the sixth inning; two singles and a walk loaded the bases with just one out. Third baseman Stavi Augur (12) slid to scoop a short bunt, but was unable to get the ball to catcher Valentina Perrone (10) for the play. Point

Loma stepped ahead of TPHS 3-2.

Bitter led off the home half of the sixth with a walk and stole second but stayed there as Balsiger struck out and Ally Harvey’s (12) popped up to rightcenter field. Then, Perrone slammed a grounder straight down the center of the diamond into the outfield, giving Bitter the opportunity to round third and slide in for the score.

“We didn’t give up, and we stayed positive even though we had a couple of errors,” Reges said. “They definitely got in the heads of some batters and struck us out a couple times, but we came back.”

The game went into extra innings after neither team scored in the seventh.

A focused Falcon defense made rapid-fire plays in the eighth inning. Macias caught the first pop fly, and Kaelber deftly fielded a hard grounder at shortstop. Poh and Harvey collided while running to catch a towering fly to leftcenter field, but Poh managed to come up with the ball for the third out.

The Point Loma Pointers subbed in another pitcher in the bottom of the eighth, while Rose stayed on the mound for the Falcons all 10 innings. Despite dealing with a plate umpire with a relatively narrow strike zone — neutralizing her signature outside and low pitches — Rose kept a steady head and limited Point Loma to balls her teammates easily fielded for outs.

“It was my game, so I didn’t want to [be switched out] because I wanted to finish it,” Rose said. “It was a big game, and I was like, ‘If I’ve already gone this far, I’m not going to just give up.’ So I just kept going, which is my mindset.”

The tenth inning was when the Pointers made a final push to break ahead. Deep hits into left field put two runners on base, and a successful bunt gave a run to Point Loma. A line drive clipped Macias’ glove but got by her, allowing another runner to score.

TPHS went into the bottom of the tenth trailing 5-3. Balsiger struck out first, and Harvey’s line drive was caught by Point Loma’s third baseman. With almost grim determination, Perrone whipped a low

We didn’t give up, and we stayed positive even though we had a couple of errors.

line drive past third base for a single, and Augur stepped to the plate with two outs.

After a few pitches, she slammed a home run deep over the left-field fence to tie the game for the third and final time.

“I was just trying to do something to help our team win — just trying to stay composed and just do what I normally do,” Augur said. “We stayed up throughout the whole game. We picked each other up when we did something wrong, and we just helped each other a lot.”

Rejuvenated by the sudden shift in momentum, Kaelber, Poh and Macias loaded the bases for the Falcons, bringing Reges to the plate. She swung on the very first pitch and hit a line drive past shortstop as Kaelber touched home plate.

“It was a great softball game,” Moore said. “We were down to our last strike in the bottom of the tenth inning, and Stavi hit a two-run homer to tie it. Then, Cassie got a single, and then Poh hit a single, and they intentionally walked Macias to load them up, and then Alex got the winning single.”

According to Moore and the players, their major area of weakness was bunting — both sacrificing and for hits.

TPHS played Sage Creek High school (5-15) yesterday, after the Falconer went to press. They face Carlsbad on May 2 at 3:30 in an away game.

PHOTOS BY ALDERIK VAN DER HEYDE/FALCONER

SWING FOR THE FENCES: Stavi Augur (5) swings her bat moments before slamming the ball over the fence for the home run that put the Falcons back in the game (TOP). Alex Reges (17) crouches, glove to the dirt, in preparation for the pitch as a Point Loma runner leads off from first base (MIDDLE). Kiley Rose (13) tosses a pitch, holding her ground on the mound for all 10 innings of the game (ABOVE).

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DAY IN THE

LIFE

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After his first experience scaling a wall at a rock climbing gym with his sister and friends, Cole Nguyen (12) was captivated by the unique sport of bouldering and has been climbing ever since.

Hanging on the rough handholds of the stone, Cole Nguyen (12) scales the side of a boulder, carefully analyzing each step as he climbs the face on his way to the top.

A year ago, Nguyen grasped his first hold on the climbing wall, and he has continued the unique sport ever since.

“My sister started rock climbing because she had some friends who were rock climbing, and there is a small community of rock climbers at Torrey Pines, so we all try to go out together as much as we can,” Nguyen said.

Through his rock climbing experiences with his sister and friends, Nguyen has become increasingly immersed in the “community of rock climbers” whom he now can call his friends.

“At rock climbing gyms, I meet a lot of people and sometimes I’ll see people from Torrey Pines,” Nguyen said. “You also get to meet a lot of new people by going outdoors.”

Forming new relationships with fellow athletes has greatly contributed to developing Nguyen’s climbing skills.

“The creative aspect [of climbing] is the most challenging part because you really have to think about it,” Nguyen said. “I think of it like a puzzle or a problem.”

Nguyen participates in a type of rock climbing called bouldering, which requires climbing large boulders without the use of ropes or harnesses, adding extra caution to the already-dangerous sport.

“When I get to the very top, and I feel like I’m about to fall and I jump for the last hold, it gives me a bit of an adrenaline rush,” Nguyen said. “It feels good.”

Using every muscle in his body to its maximum potential, Nguyen begins his ascent to the top of the wall as he lithely weaves his body through the maze of climbing holds. He never takes a break.

“I’m trying to work on both my strength and technique because you can be super strong but without technique it’s really hard to climb,” Nguyen said. “My strengths would be big moves like jumping to different holds or moves that require a lot of power.”

Before climbing, Nguyen ensures he is alert and that his “muscles are loose” for he knows all too well that rock climbing is a strenuous activity that demands a great deal of strength and complex, analytical thinking.

A boulder’s difficulty is graded on the V Scale, also known as the Hueco Scale, which denotes the difficulty level of a bouldering problem — the path that a climber takes to complete the climb. The scale ranges from V0 to V17; the number rises in correlation with the difficulty of a problem.

“The most difficult route I have tried is a boulder named ‘Caveman’ in Joshua tree,” Nguyen said. “It’s a V6 boulder problem that involves climbing in a cave … Almost all of the handholds [are] only big enough for you to fit a couple of fingers on and you have to keep your core tight to prevent yourself from swinging.”

Accompanied by his sister and a friend, Nguyen bravely attempted the grueling Caveman route, which is about 20 feet above the ground, but was unable to complete the climb because it was just too hard.

Throughout his diverse climbing career, Nguyen has climbed countless routes, each one requiring varying skills sets and endurance levels, as well as posing new challenges that continue to stretch his abilities. Although Nguyen was unable to set foot on top of Caveman, the experience only increased his drive as an aspiring climber. He “plans on coming back and finishing [Caveman] one day” with his family.

“Even though [rock climbing] can sometimes be very discouraging, if there’s a hard route I’m having trouble with, I’ll move on to an easier one, get really good at that and come back,” Nguyen said. “You have to be persistent.”

The top of the rock becomes visible as he nears his goal, reaching the top of the boulder, Nguyen pauses for a moment to survey his progress.

Eyes scanning the almost impossibly-small crimps, a type of hold used in rock climbing that relies only on the fingertips for support, laid out in front of him, he contemplates his next move.

The freedom that comes along with rock climbing, such as the choices of which route to take and which leg to put forward, is an aspect of the sport that particularly appeals to Nguyen.

“I like the creative aspect of [rock climbing] because, of course, everyone has different body types and strengths so you can climb up these routes the way that works best for you,” Nguyen said.

With the end of the climb, marked by a large, flat surface that is now within a grip or two away, Nguyen’s patience is tested for the last time before reaching his goal. Dangling precariously from the handhold with red-hot adrenaline pulsing through his body, Nguyen makes a final, calculated move. After a few painful, but glorious, seconds that seem like minutes, he is finally able to hook his foot onto the grip nearest to the top. From there, he steps onto the surface with ease. While reaching the surface signifies the end of the climb, the experience is really just the start of scaling the great mountain that is Nguyen’s lifelong climbing experience. He is determined to continue to climb to new and more breathtaking heights.

by Sammy Hallal and Kahyun Koh

PHOTO BY ELLESE NGUYEN/COURTESY OF COLE NGUYEN

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april 28, 2017

Boys volleyball dominates against Ravens The boys volleyball team (18-10) defeated Canyon Crest Academy (6-15) in a three-game match on April 20 at TPHS. The Falcons started the game strong, quickly leading 3-0 after a few spikes skimmed past the fingers of CCA blockers.

But the speed of the game slowed when the CCA outside hitter went over the line after a long rally, resulting in a technical point for TPHS. CCA made a comeback, earning two points and gaining two more after failed TPHS spikes, bringing the score to 5-4.

Later, a sequence of errors by CCA led to the Ravens calling a timeout, down 148. Although CCA earned one point from a touch right after their timeout, the Falcons took the momentum with several kills by outside hitter Ethan Esposito (12) and opposite hitter Kevin Ham (12), bumping the score to 22-10.

“We always say the greatest way to show leadership on your team is by being an excellent server,” head coach Adam Zuffinetti said. “It’s a skill that doesn’t rely on anybody else on the court.”

The first game ended 25-12, after a few unsuccessful spikes by both teams, when CCA committed a foot fault on the serve.

Early on in the second game, after three points from two long rallies and a failed serve by CCA, the Falcons were down by seven.

“I think after dominating the first set like that you start to develop a sense of complacency,” setter William Guan (12)

said. “Once you shake that off you [can] really get back into [the flow of the game].”

Leading 10-3, CCA gave up two points.

The Falcons, seeking to capitalize on the opportunity, bumped up both their offense and defense. Defense played a key role in changing the momentum of the game.

“I’d say we have a pretty strong offense,” Ham said. “We’re not a tall team … but our defense is good so it all works together.”

After making several blocks that led to points, the Falcons became more aggressive on offensive plays, which helped them regain control of the game. Following several spikes from CCA that led to a 14-13 score deficit for TPHS, the Falcons called a timeout to recuperate.

Directly afterward, the Falcons forced CCA to make errors in the next three plays earning the Falcons more points and shifting the momentum in their favor.

Delivering a spike and driving the score up to 17-14, the Falcons not only took the lead for the first time in the game, but drove CCA to take another timeout.

A few longer rallies, with a few out-ofbounds spikes and tools here and there, led to a 23-22 score in favor of CCA. Two more spikes in the net, one spike

by TPHS to end a rally, a one-handed tip

by Jakob Davis (12) and one final out-ofbounds serve by CCA solidified the final score of the second game at 26-24.

Mirroring the first set, the Falcons came out of the second set strong and led 7-3 from several saves that led to spikes. Two of the Ravens’ attempted spikes hit the net.

Each team earned a point by tipping the ball over the net, and then the Falcons launched into a sequence of kills, which ended with a double touch call that brought

the score to 12-6.

Transitioning to longer rallies, the Falcons earned two points, but the Ravens earned three from technical calls. The Falcons closed the final set 25-13 after they overwhelmed the Ravens with a dominating offense, ending the game with three kills.

Earlier that week, four-time Olympian and 2008 gold medal outside hitter Reid Priddy and 2008 Olympic gold medal libero Richard Lambourne gave the Falcons a motivational speech.

“Those are both positions that I have played, so they were able to give me good instruction,” Ham said. “They give us a different perspective.”

The Falcons defeated Carlsbad High School (9-8) 3-1 on April 25. They played La Costa Canyon High School (11-5) yesterday, after the Falconer went to press.

PHOTOS BY ALDERIK VAN DER HEYDE/FALCONER

GET SERVED: William Meader (2) reaches up to slam the ball over the net across the court (TOP). Garland Peed (5) leaps off the ground to serve (ABOVE).

Girls lacrosse takes hard-fought victory over Dons

PHOTO BY TRAVIS FELTHAUS/FALCONER

STICKS TO THE SKY: Taylor Scornavacco (22) fights for draw control with a Don. Draw control has played a major role in keeping the Falcons on top throughout the season.

Girls lacrosse (16-0) defeated Cathedral Catholic High School (9-5) 15-10 on April 24 at TPHS for head coach Kaitlin Doucette’s hundredth win.

“Cathedral is always a tough game no matter what,” Marisa Kuberra (12) said.

“Because we all know each other and that [creates a] rivalry between the schools.”

The first goal of the night was made after Kelli McKinnon (11) passed the ball to Bailee Monjazeb (11), who then cut right through the 12-meter fan and scored a swift goal. Cathedral quickly rebounded just a few plays later, scoring off a free position shot to tie the score at 1-1.

Just a little over one minute after the score was tied, Taylor Scornavacco (12) took possession of the ball right off the draw, passed to McKinnon who drove toward the goal, pulled out, and then

passed to Kuberra for the next point.

Later on, TPHS displayed strong defense as they successfully drove out a free position shot by Cathedral. A foul on the Dons gave Ines Ramirez (12) possession of the ball, who took it back down into the Dons’ half of the field. Ramirez then scored a goal after a shooting space foul on Cathedral gave her a free position shot.

After another draw, TPHS got possession of the ball and worked the ball around the 12-meter fan. However, after TPHS dropped the ball, Cathedral picked it back up and drove it to their offensive side.

The Dons tried to score by rolling the crease, but the shot was saved by goalie Sophia LeRose (11), who quickly passed the ball back to Scornavacco in the midfield.

The ball was then passed to McKinnon, who scored another goal for the Falcons.

At the draw, TPHS started too early which gave Cathedral possession of the ball, and thus another goal, to bring the score up to 4-3.

TPHS’ next goals resulted from successful defensive tactics. After the Dons got possession of the ball off the draw, TPHS performed a successful check and knocked the ball to the ground. The ball was then sent to LeRose in goal, who quickly handed it off to Kuberra. Kuberra passed the ball to Scornavacco, who scored another goal after getting a free position shot due to a shooting space foul on Cathedral.

Then, TPHS’ defense quickly pushed the ball out of the Dons’ shooting range and let LeRose keep the ball safe as the midfielders spread out with sticks high in the air. The ball was then passed to Ramirez who drove it back down the field. After trying to score off a free position, Cathedral’s defense forced Ramirez to pass the ball to Arielle Shahrabani (11), who carried the mission out with a swift goal.

After three more goals by TPHS and another scored by the Dons, the half ended 9-5 with a push foul on Cathedral.

The push foul in the last few seconds of the first half gave TPHS possession of the ball in the first play of the second half. After a number of rushed passes, Scornavacco received a yellow card for dangerous propelling as she tried to shoot.

This was not the first yellow card for TPHS, nor was it the first call that confused the players, coaches, and TPHS fans in the stands. After another misleading call against the Falcons gave the Dons a free position and another goal, TPHS called a timeout.

According to Kuberra, the Falcons were caught up in the abnormal referee calls. “[The referees] didn’t really let us play the type of intense game we are used to playing, which threw us off,” Kuberra said.

After the timeout, the Falcons regained some of their momentum as LeRose saved another shot by the Dons, passing the ball to Elle Degoler (9). The Falcons then worked together to get the ball all the way downfield and to McKinnon, who scored yet another point for TPHS. Scornavacco scored another goal after fighting for possession of the ball on the ground and driving to goal from the midfield.

Possession of the ball was constantly alternating between the Dons and the Falcons. TPHS called another timeout after two more referee calls caused confusion among the players and anger among those in the stands.

Although the Dons had a crease violation when their shot went into the net, they still received a point due to an apparent push violation by the Falcons that occurred at the same time. Furthermore, a shooting space foul was called on LeRose when she was outside the crease, giving the Dons a free position goal without a goalie present in the net.

“It’s hard when you can’t really find a rhythm because of the calls that are being made … and that’s what we struggled with tonight,” w said. “It was not a typical game.”

With just two minutes left in the game and the Dons on their heels, the Falcons pushed through the circumstances and finished the game strong.

Scornavacco scored again as her teammates set themselves up around the fan to draw all of Cathedral’s defense out of her way, bringing the score up 13-10.

With 45 seconds left in the game, the Dons had a pushing foul that gave the Falcons free possession of the ball. The ball was passed down the field into the control of Jordan Hayes (12) who shot and scored with Kuberra assisting.

The final goal of the night came after the Falcons intercepted a pass from the Dons. A shooting space foul on Cathedral gave Monjazeb a free position shot, and she scored in the last three seconds of the contest.

Doucette acknowledged the effort the team put into keeping its composure.

“It was a bizarre game and there were a lot of calls that we really didn’t expect,” Doucette said. “We talked about it beforehand ... making sure to keep our poise … and not let whatever was going on affect us. For the most part, they did that.

They took care of business. Mentally, they stayed with it.”

The Falcons will play Sage Creek High School (1-5) today at 7 p.m. at Sage Creek.

tphsfalconer.com

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f/stop

kelli mckinnon varsity girls lacrosse april 25 7:23:15

camera: nikon d600 lens: nikon 70-200m 1:2.8 ED iso: 4000 exp: 1/1000 seconds f/stop: f/2.8 by alderik van der heyde

the falconer

A23

above 65 degrees, which means you’re spending sixth period having an 1 The weather isInstagram beach photo shoot in the one $80 bikini you own. after seeing picture after picture of Coachella — we get it, 2 You’re feeling major FOMO you wish there was a #CoachellaDay4.

3

You’re a fourth quarter senior; if you’ve shown up to class, you’ve already put in more than enough effort.

4

Netflix has taken over your life, and you realized that its taught you how to be a surgeon, detective and spy, which is more CTE than school ever gave you.

5

That 80.01 percent that you have in AP whatever cannot magically become a 90, so you’re taking the L (only at TPHS is a B considered an L).

6

A new, overpriced bottled beverage coffee house opened up in Convoy and you need to get down there to put it on your Snapchat story.

7

You’re a sophomore and just got your license, which means you’re more concerned about your 2016 Jetta getting hit or not snagging a parking spot near your friends.

8 9 10 11

You’ve managed to find ways to begin throwing “kickbacks” during the week.

Enough said.

You’ve already expended all your energy worrying about studying and complaining about it to your friends and have no time or energy left for the actual thing.

You’ve discovered the power nap that you learned about in AP Psych in the beginning of the year, except your power nap goes an hour and a half into second period.

The AP exam is next week, but your AP US History class has only gotten to World War 1.

Good luck.

12

You’re a senior who has already committed, and your college said you could drop Stats.

13

PHOTO BY GRACE BRUTON

You’re out of juul pods and need to leave school to drive to Rancho Bernardo to “purchase” them.