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ottawa high school | ottawa, kan | october 2016
Brittany Crossen [12] has spent countless hours turning data into cosmic events. Over the summer, she worked in KU’s physics lab detecting cosmic rays. Read more on page 10. Photo illustration by Gavin Wade
WHAT’S INSIDE Opinion Staff Editorial: Without Preconceptions Hush Hush: Pads and Privacy Veganism isn’t bad. False Advertising is.
News
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To Be An Addams: Bringing Life to the Undead
Feature Staying Pawsitive: The Psychology of Pets Cosmic Cadet: Searching for Signals in the Abyss
Sports & Entertainment Stars And Stripes: The art behind officiating IN COLOR: Students at OHS Show their True Selves
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The Book Nook: Eleanor and Park Book Review
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Editors: Emma Carriger Gavin Wade Reporters: Christina Christopher Charli Fuqua Lydia Harris Chloe Jones Audrey Moore Megan Olmsted Tyler Roberts Blake Wallis Deedra Zolman Adviser: Kara Lynch Ottawa High School 1120 S. Ash Ottawa, KS 66067 ohsreview.com @ohscyclonenews
Staff Editorial:
Without Preconceptions Gavin Wade | editor On behalf of The Review staff One of my favorite quotes is by Giovanni Giorgio Moroder, better known as one of the earliest pioneers of electronic music. In an interview, Giorgio said, “Once you free your mind about the concept of harmony and of music being correct, you can do whatever you want.” Personally, I think this quote has never been a more true statement for the state of our journalism department. Everything this year is entirely new. This year, we are starting from scratch, and pushing in directions that we haven’t even thought of before. Our staff is bigger than ever, and we plan on using each and every individual on staff to his or her highest potential. The first sight of this fresh take on the department is the weekly newsletter. It is meant to provide a small digest of news happening around the school, as well as important global topics for students to engage in. This, plus a weekly calendar of school happenings and a selection of music chosen by both our staff and other
students fleshes out the weekly newsletter. The second is our brand new magazine. It’s bright, punchy, and more captivating this year. Each issue is more aesthetically pleasing, in-depth, and thought out. From hard-hitting features to light and fun spreads, we plan on making this magazine more fascinating, both in content and in visuals. Lastly is our brand new website. It’s our baby, and we are early in the stages of developing it, as well as new types of content that we have never tried before. We don’t know what will, or won’t, work yet, but that’s part of the process. We’re very excited to say the least. Over the coming months, we hope to fully flesh out the concept for each of these delivery methods. Overall, we’re taking a new approach to distributing our content, and the new techniques we use this year will be just the tip of the iceberg of what is possible with these platforms. With everything new, there will be bumps along the way. There isn’t a rulebook for this, nor is there a tried and true method. We’re coming at this with next to no idea of what to do. It’s scary, but it’s also incredibly exciting. Come along with us.
A special thanks to
OHS Booster Club for funding this year’s printing costs. Opinion | 3 | REVIEW TH E
The newspaper’s primary obligation is to inform its readers about events in the school and community and of issues of national or international importance which directly or indirectly affect the school population. The newspaper, while serving as a training ground for future journalists as part of the school curriculum, recognizes all rights and responsibilities under the First Amendment. Operating as a public forum, student editors will apply professional standards and ethics for decision making as the take on the responsibility for content and production of the newspaper. While the student staff encourages constructive criticism of any part of the newspaper, authority for the content rests in the hands of the student members of the newspaper staff. Students will not publish material considered to be legally unprotected speech, or libel, obscenity, material disruption of the educational process, copyright infringement, or unwarranted invasion of privacy.
The Veganing
Veganism is great. False advertising is not. Audrey Moore | reporter I went to Massachusetts Street in Lawrence, Kan., and was met with many posters promoting veganism. I would be alright with this, because veganism is a lifestyle choice that can be beneficial in many ways. What I don’t agree with was how the posters were promoting it. The posters said things along the lines of (and I’m paraphrasing), “You’re a horrible person. You’re horrible to animals. Become vegan!” Statements like these are misguided and incorrect. It’s great to decide to be vegan, but it’s not great to encourage others to do the same with false information. It is true that many animals processed for eating are treated inhumanely. However, this isn’t true for all meat and animal products. On Certified Humane’s website, there is a list of producers of animal products that are considered humane. To be considered humane, producers must abide by a strict set of standards that are also listed on its website. If these standards don’t live up to someone’s personal morals, those individuals need not fret. Many people who are against the cruel treatment of animals buy their meat
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and animal products from small, local farmers. When you can get more personal with the meat provider, it’s much easier to ask questions and get desired answers. The bottom line is that it certainly is possible to not be vegan while not being cruel to animals. It may be more expensive in most cases, and it may take research, but it’s definitely possible. A lie told by many people promoting veganism is that humans can get all of the nutrients they need from fruits and vegetables. According to Nutrition Secrets, while it’s true that humans can get most of the nutrients they need from a vegan diet, vitamin B12 isn’t found in anything that grows or comes out of the ground. According to Drew Ramsey, clinical professor of psychiatry at Columbia University, being deficient in vitamin B12 puts people at risk of mental health problems, fatigue, poor concentration, decreased brain volume with aging and irreversible nerve damage. I didn’t write this to say that veganism or promoting veganism is a bad thing. It’s definitely not. Veganism can be a great lifestyle with many benefits. However, using unjustified guilt and false information to do such promoting isn’t right.
Only 2.5 percent of the American population is vegan Americans consume 1/6 of the world’s total consumed meat, despite only making up 1/20 of the population 42 percent of vegans are aged 15 to 34
Hush Hush
Periods are a part of life for half of the population, so why is it such a secret?
Yes, it’s a fact. Women have periods. All of them do. Yet, there are people that are disgusted and impolite about that fact and are rude about it. Some like to say, “She’s on her shark week; stay away from her.” Seeing this, I feel like we deserve to be treated better, because it is not something we can choose. Women have to live with it, and it’s not fun. It is just the same as a guy burping and his friends laugh or just make simple fun about it. We don’t judge them for that. As with periods, it is a function that happens in our body and we can’t help it, just like they can’t help but to let a burp go. So why is it such a more taboo subject?
In many cases, women try to tuck their pads in either in their purse, bag, boot, or even in their sleeves to hide the fact that they’re on their period. They try to ask their friends for a pad, and they try to hurry to hide the fact that they have a pad. I know what it’s like to try to hide the fact that I am on my period or have a pad. Many women hint about the fact to others when they need a pad, not just address the issue head on. Sometimes it is hard to understand what they are trying to say because of this. This is what I am talking about; women try to hide that they have this normal function. I am not saying it is just guys that are put off or feel weird about the whole thing. Women also use a
From age 12 to 52, one woman will spend up to $1,900 on pads and tampons.
On average, one woman in her lifetime will use more than 11,000 tampons or pads.
Source: Moon Cup
Source: Jezebel
lot of code, so no one around us knows what we are talking about. Sometimes women don’t show that we’re on our period because we’re scared about what other people might be saying or thinking. Women try to deal with this, but it is just a normal thing. All of us use pads, and I think that women should be able to talk about this out loud, not hide it like a secret. Guys try to avoid the situation, but they will still run into it later in life either when they have a significant other or kids. We all try to avoid letting people know or see that we are on our period. Not everyone is offended by this, but for those that are need to realize that it is just a normal function.
Humans are one of the few living organisms on the planet who have menstrual periods.
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Deedra Zolman | reporter
Meghan Cubbison [12] with her dog Rocky. “My brother and I named him after one of our favorite movies the Rocky series,” Cubbison said. “Although he is really crazy he has one of the biggest hearts.”
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Tyler Roberts | reporter
Staying Pawsitive TH E
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ets can be the best of companions, and are just that for many, many OHS students and teachers. According to the National Center For Health Research, there are more than 71 million American households that have pets in them. Study after study shows that people who have pets get sick less often, go to the doctor less often, get more exercise, have healthier hearts and are less de-
pressed. “Pets are always there when nobody else is,” Tylor Cockrum [11] said. “They’re always guaranteed to have your back.” Animals in general can also be trained to help patients cope with loneliness and depression, and can assist with speech therapy, occupational therapy and physical rehabilitation. Dogs for centuries have been considered man’s best friend. Dogs were the first domesticated animals approximately 15,000 years ago. Over the centuries, dogs have become more people friendly and
better and better companions for human beings. “My dogs have always affected my life, because whenever something is wrong they are always there to make me happy,” Alexis McKown [10] said. “They will come sit by my side and if I’m down they start to lick my cheek or nudge my arm until they know I’m happy again.” It’s not just dogs. Many other kinds of animals can be just as therapeutic. “My cat Ri Ri is so special to me because he is my baby,” Deedra Zolman [11] said. “He helps me with my depression. I have realized how much he means to me since he has been gone for a few weeks, and that helps me remember that he helps me go through my day and it is sad not having him.” It’s not just a placebo. There is actual science behind the calm that animals provide. In a study, researchers asked volunteers to take a math test in two parts; one test without a pet in the room, and one with a pet, primarily dogs, but not exclusively. When the subjects took the test without the pet in the room, the person’s heart rate and blood pressure were higher. The math Bethany Stryker [9] with her dog Ellie May. test results
Hannah Carey [9] playing with her dog, Jayda. “She loves to be outside so we take lots of walks and we have to take some breaks in our walk so she can try to catch cats and squirrels,” Carey said.
were also less accurate. People who took the test with the pet in the room scored higher on the test and did not show as many symptoms of stress. Everyone who has ever relied on a pet to hang with them after a long, hard day, know first hand that pets can make people feel more peaceful.
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To Be An
Through scheduling conflicts, rehearsals, and new leaders, students in the musical learn to act natural.
Addams Audrey Moore | reporter
Musical participants usually find themselves in a time crunch. Between learning lines, music and blocking, rehearsals never seem like enough. Adding to the stress, the fall musical will be a month earlier this year. “There was the possibility of a conflict around the time we would normally do the musical, so we moved it up,” Lori Underwood [music teacher] said. “It would’ve been a very significant conflict, so it would’ve required both me and Mrs. Nichols to be away.” According to Underwood, the musical is usually performed during buffer week. Buffer week is a week where sports teams aren’t allowed to have any practices or games. “We might have sports conflicts, as the musical is usually at the end of buffer week,” Underwood said. With the musical being a month earlier, practices began earlier as well. “We started our late night rehearsals right after school started, which has been tough on everyone,” Underwood said. “They go from summer to sixteen hour days.” According to Underwood, the college that she used to work for had just performed “The Addams Family” last spring. They offered
Meghan Cubbison [12] and Edward Stoops [12] practice the opening choreography of The Addams Family. “I’m really excited to see what the community thinks of the show. It’s so different from any of the musicals I’ve participated in here at OHS and I’m excited to show my school what I’m capable of,” Cubbison said.
Practicing in the music room, Jesse Bentz [12] reads sheet music from his binder. “My favorite part about the musical is the show itself. The entire production is quirky and weird, but it’s a story that can be entertaining and heart warming for the audience,” Bentz said.
Weston Yount [11] practices the role of Fester in the music room. “My favorite part about the musical is the practices. That is the time when everyone bonds, and a lot of funny things happen,” Yount said.
said. But, I really enjoy teaching it more than performing it because I love seeing how it impacts people, my students’ lives. So that’s what got me into the teaching side of it.” The Addams Family will be performed at Ottawa Municipal Auditorium on Oct. 27 at 7 p.m. and Oct. 29 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
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set pieces. Rachel Greasby [drama teacher] had also directed “The Addams Family” last spring. After this, she found out that David Morford’s [principal] high school had just performed it. “It was meant to be,” Underwood said. Alice Ishmael [9] has one of the lead roles in the musical as Wednesday Addams. “I am a freshman, which is a bit scary. I feel like people have really high expectations of me which I am trying my hardest to meet,” Ishmael said. “I don’t think people will be disappointed in me or anyone else in the production, though.” Previously, Underwood would be in charge of both music and blocking for the musical. This year, Greasby will take charge of the acting and blocking side of the musical. “Underwood and I had talked about it this summer, and the fact that I had done the show before and the opportunity to do it again,” Greasby said. “The new cast and new colleagues were really exciting to me as well.” Greasby has extensive experience in drama and musical theater. Her undergraduate and graduate degrees are in musical theater performance. She’s been performing since she was six, and she’s taught theater for 15 years. “I started as a performer, and then I kind of got into teaching it as a fluke,” Greasby
COSMIC
CADET Gavin Wade | reporter
S
ince May, Brittany Crossen [12] has The detector itself looks like a cereal box wrapped been focused one result. Weekend long in electrical tape, with two PVC pipes protruding tests, adjusting voltage thresholds, fidg- from each side. Two wires flow out of each of the eting with terminal commands, all for a tubes, and make single artifact: a flash. their way to a power A sea of characters cascade down her supply and a data computer screen, each one a datapoint, a discovery, a acquisition board. muon. Each one in hexadecimal, Crossen must conFermilab, a vert them all to Base 10. Nestled within the program physics laboratory is a linotype drawing of the characters from The in Illinois, gave a Simpsons. grant to KU to hire “Programmers are weird,” Crossen said. high school students Spanning interested in the field across one of of physics to gain the hallexperience. This was ways was a joint partnership the cosmic with Quarknet, a ray detecscience education tor, with its organization that two paddles partners students 30 meters and teachers with apart. After universities and researchers to bring in more modfig. 1: The Simpsons, ASCII style. the conclusion ern physics practices into the classroom. Maybe a Photo courtesy: Brittany Crossen of each test, dozen have summer programs. In the summer of Crossen and her partner had to deconstruct their 2015, Quarknet offered Deane a seat at an educators’ detector. conference in Greece. Working in a classroom in Malott Hall, Crossen “Only 150 to 200 students have the opportunity to collaborated with other students on research projects do this,” Deane said. “It’s a pretty exclusive club.” for the University of Kansas. One of the projects enDeane has been a participant in this event as a tailed sending an apparatus into the atmosphere via summer research teacher and program leader. Acweather balloon to emit a spark able to be detected cording to Deane, only ten to 15 institutions particifrom Antarctica. pate in this six-week program. “Their project was cooler,” Crossen chuckled. The cosmos has been on Crossen’s radar for quite “We shared a lab with two guys building a lightning some time. She received her first astronomy book detector and two other looking for a missing parwhen she was six, and has been fascinated and ticle, a particle that we think exists but haven’t found entranced ever since. any proof of.” “The fact that quarks are so incredibly tiny and To put her research simply, a muon is a type of they have their own laws of physics, it’s science ficparticle that is produced tion and it blows my mind,” when a cosmic ray hits the Crossen said. “In a way earth’s atmosphere and physics is its own art.” breaks apart, causing a flash Crossen also has passions of radio waves. Crossen’s outside the concentration of apparatus detects these science. A self proclaimed flashes, and in doing so, band nerd, she has pardetects the cosmic rays. On ticipated for seven years, average, there is one every and has learned multiple five seconds. According instruments since the age of to James Deane [physics three. She is also a novelist, teacher], her detector is one starting the practice at age of 15 deployed in Kansas. 12, now with a book and fig. 2: A cosmic ray detector like the one “I enjoyed doing the reshort story published. Crossen used in her apparatus. Photo courtesy: Brittany Crossen search a lot,” Crossen said.
“I enjoyed doing the research a lot,” Crossen said.
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Colorful People Deedra Zolman | reporter Many people in the world show who they are either through their looks or personality. They can show their colors through bright hair colors, crazy cuts, shoes, clothes, makeup and accessories. They can be funny, silly, loud or weird because that is something that makes them stand out from the crowd. “I love showing my true colors because I like to be out there,” Elijah Magee [10] said. “I have a very big personality, and I get along with most everyone because of it.” Those Ottawa High School students who have become known for their individuality have chosen to show who they are through their colors, the reasons why they are differ-
ent and unique. “I think that if everyone would just be themselves and there wasn’t this ‘thing’ that people felt like they had to have in order to be cool, different or edgy, everyone would be happy,” Magee said. Some people show who they are and want to let people know what they do and why they do it. They want to let people know that they are different and have their own personality and style. “I would want people to know that why I’m colorful is because if I’m not colorful in my own way then I’ll feel just like everyone else, and I’m not everyone else, I am my own person and I own that,” Grace Oelschlager [11] said. People can even be inspired by other people, whether it’s family, a celebrity, or some-
one they just met. For Magee, it’s a tie between Rupaul and Beyoncé. “They are amazing people with amazing talents. They inspire me to be better at what I do.” Sage Pratt [9] has learned through trial and error to be as blunt and natural as possible, as well as staying spontaneous. “I guess that inspires people to be more honest and open,” Pratt said. But learning to be herself has taken some time. Showing colors means that people are themselves and are unique in their own way. There are colorful people everywhere, even here at Ottawa High School. Some people want to inspire other people, helping them show their own colors. The diversity of personality is what makes us different, and that should be celebrated.
Elijah Magee “I want everyone to be friends. I don’t want there to be this wall between different groups of people because they don’t match. I want people to be themselves and be comfortable with that.”
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Grace Oelschlager “I think the one person that inspires me would be confident women all around the world, like on the news and on social media. They’re all their own person no matter what they look like and to me that makes them colorful.”
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HISTORY HIGH SCHOOL of the
Megan Olmsted | reporter
The building itself
Although many students never think about the generations and generations that have been in the school before them, almost one hundred years of other students have attended Ottawa High School. OHS, which was founded in 1917, has a rich history that never even crosses the minds of many of today’s students. Throughout the last one hundred years, the school has been through one move to its current location in 1967, and is now getting ready for a renovation since the last addition in 1990. The school has already changed so much since its beginning and it is about to change even more, because of the new renovations happening in the next couple of years.
Of course, there were a world of differences when going to OHS in the 1950s. Barbara Netherland, class of ‘53, says she was never driven to school in a car, but instead, would walk to school with friends when school started at 8:30 a.m. Clubs would meet at 10:30 a.m., and from noon to 1 p.m., students could go home for lunch, because there was not a lunch room. School ended at 4 p.m. and after school students would go to the Dutchmaid, a hangout place for friends. “The school would hire buses to take the students to the out-of- town games which were always fun,” Netherland said. “We even rode a train to Emporia, KS
1864
OHS founded 1917
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Technology
New technology has a huge effect on school and culture in ways that are unimaginable. The school and the surrounding pop culture was very different than now. Up until very recently, students couldn’t just use their Chromebook or phone to look something up. If students were gone, they couldn’t turn in their homework from home. Now, technology has allowed students to have the world’s information at a glance, an incredible contrast to the students of the past.
“Ottawa High School is one of the best memories I have in my life,” -Barbara Netherland
Differences
USD 290 founded
for one of them.” Sports were also different. There were not as many choices for girls to play sports compared to their male counterparts. They could play basketball, which was more like half court basketball. There would be three players on each side of the court and they would never cross half court.
What stays the same
Netherland says that her years at Ottawa High School were some of her favorite years of her life. She has fond memories of friends and of participating in sports, but mostly any kind of social event, similar to what many OHS students enjoy today. Overall, even though technology has changed, there are some things that may never change about Ottawa High School. The love of sports and social events is something that will always be a part of OHS.
New location 1967
New Latest Renovations Renovations Start 1990
2016
AND
STARS STRIPES The decision makers behind every game reveal the truth of their craft.
When an athlete sees the black and white stripes of a referee uniform, they think of a mediator, and of someone who will determine if they will go home with another victory. The officials themselves, however, see the stripes and they see their pasts as athletes, or all of the athletes yet to come. Jeff Freeman began officiating football and basketball games back in 1994. He started this position to stay involved with the kids he’s seen walk through his school and to stay involved in the sports he once played. “I’m a former player and a coach so that’s why I got into officiating.” Freeman not only officiates sports games, but he is also the principal of an elementary school. This is what kept him officiating games; he gets to be around kids even more than he already is. “It’s fun. I love running, I love getting up and down the floor with kids and being on the field with kids,” Freeman said. “It’s just a good relationship to have and keeping that going with the athletes.” Being a referee hasn’t just been all fun and games for Freeman, however. There was one game where he experienced a
fight between the players, where even a fan from one of the teams came out and got involved. They were forced to cancel the game at the beginning of the fourth quarter. “You have to be very calm; I think that’s the most important thing,” Freeman said. Inevitably, as in every sport, there will be negative parent reaction to calls the referees make. But, Freeman has learned to block out the crowds and focus on the game. “One of my favorite sayings is: officials that listen to fans in the stands will soon become fans in the stands.” Another referee that has been in the profession for 20 years is PJ Tuma. Tuma’s connection to athletics began with her direct involvement as a volleyball and basketball player. She mainly played and enjoyed basketball, unable to continue volleyball after her knee surgery her freshman year. Later on, she became a coach and would be asked to fill in for officials when they were either sick or were otherwise unable to officiate. “I got started doing it, enjoyed it, and it just kind of stuck, I guess,” Tuma said. Just like Freeman, her love of the game motivated her to stay involved in officiating and to stay involved in athletics, for
that matter. “I think athletics are a very important part of student life,” Tuma said. “It’s a good way to learn teamwork, dedication and hard work.” While officiating, her firsthand experiences of basketball and volleyball help her when making calls that may determine the outcome of each game. She not only was an athlete and a coach, but she also watched in the stands as a parent. “You gotta know the sport, you’ve got to know the rules, and understand all sides of it,” Tuma said. “I think because [of my experience] that I understand all the different angles at which people see the game.” However, Tuma has not had complete smooth sailing as a referee. In fact, she had a near-death experience while officiating a game. “One night a light fixture fell from the ceiling and missed me by an inch,” Tuma said. All in all, Freeman and Tuma enjoy their craft regardless of any dangers that might come with it. “You can’t really have sports without having officials; it’s just a way to help students become the best person they can be,” Tuma said.
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Emma Carriger | editor
IN
COLOR Emma Carriger | editor
Every year, the art department gathers more and more talented artists that last through the years. One such artist is Rylie Slocum [12], who has been in the program for 4 years and has also been involved in Art Guild. Taking classes from Drawing to Clay Construction, even some art classes in middle school, Slocum has found a love for art. She
the book nook:
has continued it over the years, making everything ranging from paintings to pottery. “I really like [my art],” Slocum said. As shown in the photo to the left, she has drawn art originating from several movies and television shows, such as Alice in Wonderland. She especially has a love for drawing characters from the television show Scooby Doo. “My favorite art I’ve done is my Shaggy and Scooby painting,” Slocum said.
Eleanor & Park yourself down for this book Chloe Jones|reporter
Rainbow Rowell proves to be a phenomenal author with her book, “Eleanor and Park,” published in April 2012. This book follows the course of love between two high school students, from the moment they’re forced to sit together on the bus, to when their love comes to an end. Rowell does a fantastic job of putting you in the story. She writes with such passion that it’s easy to become lost in the story, and to feel what the characters are feeling. She writes in a limited omniscient third person point of view, going from Park to Eleanor. As the characters grow together, the points of view change more often. This shows the evolving feelings of both the characters, and
helps the reader to have a better understanding of what’s going on. “Eleanor and Park” is a book that is far from cliche, and truly seems to capture what it’s like to be a teenager falling in love. Despite some obscene language, it’s a great book for young people to read. It’s not only a book of first love. It tells of bullying, broken families, and doing things that others don’t think you can do. Rainbow Rowell is now forever on my top list of authors, with her ability to write with the originality that many authors lack. “Eleanor and Park” now rests on a high shelf with me, and I hope it can be one of your favorites as well.
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