The Oracle (April 16, 2012)

Lyons and Renazco share views on technology in the classroom

Try lamb chops and crepes at these local restaurants

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Student-athletes climb on top the national stage

THEORACLE Sex&Drugs

Read the winning entries from The Oracle’s short story contest

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PG. 21 SPORTS

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Volume 48, Issue 7

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The Oracle examines the roles sex and drugs play in student lives

Teens hesitant to talk sex with parents Samantha Donat

Entertainment Editor

“Everyone’s doing it.” Well, not everyone (although, according to The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, 46 percent of high school students are). But even if teens aren’t doing it, they’re at least thinking about it, obsessing over it or talking about it. If you haven’t already caught on, the topic on everyone’s minds is sex. Rumors about teens’ sex lives, or lack thereof, permeate the halls of virtually every high school. But where is one place that teens keep sex talk to themselves? The dinner table.

It may seem obvious that teens intentionally limit the discussion of their personal lives with their parents, especially when it comes to the topic of sex. But even

students who have comfortable, open relationships with their parents opt not to disclose information about their sexual activity. Whether it’s because they think their parents would frown upon their actions or they are simply afraid of any potentially awkward conversations, lips are staying sealed when it comes to students’ sex lives, and it’s affecting their good judgment.

Mary Johnson (name has been changed), an 18-year-old student, is one of those teens who limits communication with her parents when it comes to sex. Johnson, who has been sexually active for six months, simply does not feel comfortable talking with her parents about sex. Similar to many other teens, she is concerned that her parents would think differently if they knew she was having sex. “My parents would SEX—p.6

Students use marijuana despite risks Amrita Moitra & Annie Tran

News Editor & Business/circulation Manager

Chasing after the infamous hazy high is a popular pastime for youths. For some, it is a controlled act, but for others, it is a habit that interferes with their lives. The burgeoning use of marijuana is prevalent across the country and the drug has quickly become a national favorite, particularly in California. “Hell yeah, it’s the Bay Area,” class of 2011 alumnus Mark Hyde (name has been changed) said. “[People] already know we keep it lit over here, and I know for a fact that Gunn [students] are among the many that use [marijuana] on a regular basis.”

It should come as no surprise that drug use is common amongst teenagers. With

the recent decline in cigarette use, marijuana has become the most popular drug for youth. The National Institute on Drug Abuse’s 2010 Monitoring the Future study found that on average, 38 percent of high schoolers use marijuana on a monthly basis and, according to a 2011 study published

by The Journal of Addiction Medicine, the most likely users would be upperclassmen, as well as students who maintain a B average or lower. At Gunn, while drug use is still prevalent, the 2009 Palo Alto Reality Check Survey reported that 81 percent of students have never tried marijuana.

Hyde does not believe that there is any real merit in these studies, using himself as an example of someone who can enjoy smoking while also doing well in school.

“I want to just stress the un-importance of DRUGS—p.6

Dunbar to leave GRT next year Elsa Chu

Centerfold Editor

Physics teacher and Gunn Robotics Team (GRT) advisor Bill Dunbar has been at Gunn since 1994. However, after a long stint that included establishing a successful, student-run robotics program, Dunbar feels that it is his time to leave the team. “I’ve been

Gunn Figures

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working here in this building for a really long time,” Dunbar said. “I spend so many hours here. I work all summer to make sure things are okay for this team.”

Although Dunbar is dedicated to GRT, he has decided to focus on other priorities. “It is time for me to spend some more time with my family,” Dunbar said. “I’m going to be sad to leave this place, because

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Students take on YouTube challenges p. 36

I really love working with the students, but my job is suddenly going to be so much easier.” However, Dunbar will remain teaching Advanced Placement (AP) Physics C. Dunbar established GRT in 1996, and after 16 years of fostering a spirit of independence, students are sad to see him leave.

Senior Alex Sutherland expressed DUNBAR—p.15

Students who signed up to participate in the Day of Silence

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Likes Gunn Memes has over The Oracle on Facebook

900

Estimate of money raised by NGC dodgeball tournament

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News

THEORACLE

NEWS BITES

Club raises funds through dodgeball The New Global Citizens (NGC) club organized a dodgeball tournament on March 24 to raise money for Schools on Wheels.

“The funds will go towards purchasing school supplies for underprivileged kids,” Student Activities Director Lisa Hall said.

While the dodgeball tournament is still a relatively new occurrence, there was a lot of excitement over the annual tournament. “It started two years ago,” NGC co-president senior Laura Johnson said. “People got really into it, and they created team shirts. Team Hostile, a team that has won both years, creates a big rivalry because everyone wants to beat them.”

This year, however, Team Hostile failed to win the tournament, losing to the freshman team Shvitz and the baseball team.

“The tournament was really fun,” freshman Michael Kram of team Shvitz said. “Though we didn’t win the tournament, we did beat Team Hostile and that felt really good because they won the tournament in the last two years.”

Lawrence Chen

City holds annual film festival

The Greenlight Earth Film Festival will be held at Cubberly Theater, where the winning filmmaker will receive an award from the City of Palo Alto and named Community Energy Champion.

The films will be shown April 19 at 7 p.m.

The Greenlight Earth Day Film Festival highlights movies that seek to educate the public about environmental citizenship and show the power of individuals who help solve environmental crises.

This festival is co-sponsored by the City of Palo Alto and the Palo Alto Media Center.

The festival has four categories of film submissions based on age group, including elementary school, middle school, high school and open, which allows contestants to be judged in a mixed group.

These top five films in each category will be showcased at the festival. There will be a three-judge panel who will decide the winner and are composed of a student judge, a judge with a background in environment and a judge with a background in films.

This will be the seventh year the festival has been in Palo Alto.

According to Brad Sazenbaher, a key coordinator of this event, this annual festival was created by previous Palo Alto mayor, Jim Burch, who had a passion for the environment and wanted to further impact the lives of young adults through the media. “Student film festivals are meant to be a positive experience and a unique way to showcase creativity,” Sazenbacher said.

Wonhee Park

SEC SCOOP

Courtesy of Peter Froud

Left: Judges watch as the robot balances on an arena ramp. Right Top: Gunn Robotics Team (GRT) members deliberate over team decisions. Right Bottom: GRT members discuss the next objective.

Robotics team competes in regionals Yan Jia Reporter

The Gunn Robotic Team (GRT) won first place in the Baltimore Regional of the First Robotics Competion (FRC) league and qualified for the world championships, which will be held at St. Louis, Missouri.

From March 31 through April 1, GRT participated in the Silicon Valley regional of For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology (FIRST), held at San Jose State University, but they were unfortunately eliminated due to several technical difficulties.

According to senior Hovhannes Avagyan of the shooting team, which makes the mechanism that shoots the basketball into the hoop, the robots shot consistently during practice. “When our robot was working, it worked really well and we got a lot of compliments from other teams,” Avagyan said.

However, several problems hindered GRT from performing well in the Silicon Valley Regional,

Upcoming Events: • STAR testing (4/18 4/19) • Deadline to drop a class (4/20) • Prom (4/21) • Elections Assembly Schedule (4/23) If you have any suggestions or questions, please contact us!

Or ask us a question at www.formspring.me/GunnSEC

primarily in communication and very well when the students were tracking. Two computers guide the practicing.” robot’s movements; one controls Even though GRT was elimimotor speed and communication, nated from the Silicon Valley Rewhile the other does calculations gional, they can still compete in the for automatic shooting and track- World Championships. The coning for hoops. “These two com- trols group will work on making puters weren’t the robot’s work i ng toaiming betgether, and we “We have a great robot, a tal- ter and othhad problems ers will also communicat- ented team and an amazing do research ing with the mentor.” on the other field,” senior tea ms t hat Paulo Mehech senior Sonal will be going said. “Our Prasad to championprograms for sh ips . “We shooting didn’t work anymore won’t let the regional discourage so we had been shooting manu- us for our next competition,” seally and doing defense by blocking nior Sonal Prasad said. “We have other robots.” a great robot, a talented team and Although this problem was an amazing mentor.” eventually resolved, there were Dunbar agrees. “There are aladditional problems throughout ways some things that we can do the competition. “It was very dark better, but I prefer to concentrate in there, so the camera had trouble on the things that we already done finding the baskets,” GRT Advisor well and right now is the good time Bill Dunbar said. “It’s heartbreak- to celebrate the things that we have ing because [the robot] was doing done well,” he said.

PROM COSTS AVERAGE TOTAL: $1,078 Hair: $50 Jewelry: $32

Tuxedo: $127

Corsage: $20

Manicure: $35 Tickets*: $20-50 Dress: $231 Shoes: $45

George Hwang

This data, depicting the national average dollar amount spent on prom, comes from a USA Today survey. *The ticket price only applies to the cost of the dance, and doesn’t include the cost of food or transportation.

News

Monday, April 16, 2012

High school students bring Texan spirit Misheel Enkhbat Reporter

On March 29, members of Dallas’ Highland Park High School Associated Student Body (ASB) leadership class and their advisor arrived to shadow the Student Executive Council (SEC) for a day. The trip was initiated after their ASB advisor contacted Student Activities Director Lisa Hall about setting up a visit. “They have been visiting several other schools around the country in order to learn about different school cultures, as well as ASB activities and practices,” Hall said.

The students arrived at brunch and shadowed SEC students during their classes, met again at lunch and continued shadowing until after school when they met to talk about their experiences with SEC. Sophomore Micah Bires from Highland Park High School commented positively on the experi-

ence. “I liked it a lot—it was different,” Bires said.

“We had to do a lot of walking outside, whereas in Texas all our classes are indoors.”

According to Bires, the trips to different schools were successful. “It was cool seeing other schools and how they run their ASB practices compared to how we run ours,” he said. The Texas students also visited Palo Alto High School the day after.

Senior Cat Perez also picked up new ideas. “I like the idea of how their pep rallies are really wellattended,” Perez said. “I think that comes with their love of sports, but I would like to see our rallies better attended.” SEC also found several major differences between the two schools, particularly in Homecoming. “For their Spirit Week, [which is similar to] our Homecoming Week, they do not have games or floats during the week,” Perez said. “They do dress up, but [there is] no sort of competition during the week which I found surprising.”

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Courtesy of SEC

The members of SEC proudly display the hand symbol of the Highland Park High School Class of 2012 who were visiting from Dallas, Texas.

Bay area student monologue project inspires creativity Lydia Zhang

Features Editor

Michael Wu

Students take a bow at the end of their performances.

A performance of original student monologues, named “Faceoff: Tyranny vs. Resistance,” was recently held in the Little Theatre. “Faceoff” is part of the “Voices United: Bay Area” initiative, which was launched by the Palo Alto Children’s Theatre in order to help foster creativity in a diverse population of students around the Bay Area.

The inspiration for many of the student monologues was taken from Julia Alvarez’s novel “In the Time of the Butterflies,” which told the story of Patria, María and Antonia Mirabal, three sisters who died fighting against Dominican Republic dictator Rafael Trujillo.

Director Betsy Franco was invited

to organize the performance. She visited theatre and creative writing classes at Gunn to encourage students to write and perform monologues.

“I made suggestions, told them they could write about characters from [“In the Time of the Butterflies”] or about something contemporary that’s inspired by the book, but I didn’t tell them what to write their monologues on,” Franco said in an interview for the Huffington Post.

Senior Elena Cabot performed a monologue written by sophomore Dennis Mashevsky, and says that the performance went well. “We had a decent amount of people do their monologues,” Cabot said. “Even though we didn’t have a huge audience, I think it went well, [and] it was a good opportunity for me to gain more the-

ater experience.” Franco says that she was also impressed by the “Faceoff” monologues. “[The students’] writing was excellent,” Franco said in an interview for the Huffington Post. “I was shocked at the skills at this school.

They take drama very seriously and professionally, and that’s what I saw and was amazed by.”

Although the performance has passed, the student monologues will be compiled into a short film. Franco encourages anyone interested to go see the film on May 4 at the Lucie Stern Community Center at 7 p.m. “There is so much going on right now that we could get involved with in some way, or that we could understand better, or open our minds to,” Franco said.

“I would also like people to see how capable teenagers are.”

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News

THEORACLE

Fighting for a passion

Kony activism reaches audience Eileen Qian & Stephanie Zhang

the difference between feeling pity for people and wanting to help them and better their lives. Fortunately, because Allen has worked with the Student Anti-Genocide CoaliOn March 5, the world was hit by a short film that tion (STAND), she has learned to remain passionate and quickly spread virally around the globe. The 30-minute film patient despite the long process. “Although it was hard at entitled “Kony 2012” was created by Invisible Children, an first, I have learned to be okay with not seeing the direct organization whose priority is to raise attention about the effects of my actions, and as a result, it has helped me build crimes of Joseph Kony, a Ugandan warlord and leader of a stronger character,” she said. the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). According to the nonAlthough Allen appreciates the work that Invisible profit, Kony is one of the world’s most wanted criminals for Children has done to raise awareness, she does not support his egregiously violent activities in the past several years, Invisible Children as an organization and the methods that the likes of which include the kidnapping of children and they are promoting as the resolution to the problem. “I think training them to join the LRA. Kony trains many of these that military intervention is not necessary and that there are children to mercilessly murder their own families and also other, more peaceful ways to achieve their goal,” she said. turns some of the young girls into sex slaves for his army.

Not only has the promotion of Cover the Night garnered In Invisible Children’s film, they promote international recognition, it has also atCourtesy of Invisible Children an event called Cover the tracted the attention Night on April 20, in which of local police departsupporters worldwide will ments due to potential cover the streets of their relegal issues arising from spective towns and cities with plastering posters in public posters bearing the face of Kony, places, as leaving the posters hoping to not only bring awareness and not cleaning up is littering. to the crimes that Kony has comOn the day of the event there mitted, but also to drum up public will be extra police officers in support for military action against him.

Palo Alto facilitating the event and The emotional impact of making sure that peace is the film touched the hearts of kept. “If people are going to many Gunn students, promptgather, our role is going to be ing students such as senior the same as any other case Natasha Allen and sophomore and be peace officers and Sara Ameri to commit to raising awareness about make sure that people have the right to express Cover the Night. Ameri, who will be participating themselves as stated under the Constitution, even in the event, says that the actions of Invisible Children if there are differing ways that people do that,” Palo co-founder Jason Russell have taught her that one person Alto Police Lieutenant Zachary Perron said. can make a difference and to have the courage to stand up According to Perron, the officers will ensure that the for what she believes in. “I have often felt discouraged from public is safe and that no laws are broken. “Everyone has protesting or standing up for what I believe in because I freedom of expression, and it is their right to hold signs feel like I, as an individual, might not have a strong enough and have a protect demonstration,” he said. “However, if voice,” Ameri said. “But ‘Kony 2012’ the movie proves this people want to hold signs and have a demonstration, but wrong.” are going to litter the ground with paper or trash, then that However, according to Allen, raising awareness is not is technically a law violation and that is something that we always easy in a high school environment. “Students have will address.” a lot going on in their lives,” Allen said. “It’s hard to catch Cover the Night is expected to span from sundown of their attention and begin the spark that brings about April 20 to sunrise the following day. Thousands of people change. I want them to distinguish the difference between are expected to attend in an attempt to bring justice to the feeling sympathy and empathy.” She wants others to know families that Kony has affected.

Sports Editor & Reporter

Natasha Allen Passion arises in the strangest of circumstances. It could come as a varsity sport or an indulgent piece of cake. My junior year, I found a passion in social and political activism.

When it comes to activism, finding a cause you wish to support is similar to choosing any other activity. It could be as local as promoting eco-friendly transportation in your community or as big as ending global warming. No matter your cause, identify it and channel your passion into it.

I discovered my passion for activism after learning more about the genocides that occur in today’s “progressive” society. I was initially shocked to hear of the raids occurring in Sudan and the extensive imprisonments in Burma. This shock disheartened me, but it gave me the awareness to say that I am not content with passively letting these genocides continue.

As with many things, breaking from the safety of ignorance and idleness is not easy. As a Gunn student, I have Advanced Placement (AP) classes, sports, other extracurricular activities and somehow a social life. Consumed by the entropy of my own life, it wasn’t easy to find time to dedicate to something greater than my previous universe of obligation. However, with a cause I was passionate about, I found myself actively reading current events and researching ways to make a difference as an individual in combating genocide.

No matter what your cause, there are extensive avenues for you to explore. Some things may only take a minute, while others may take days. It ultimately comes down to how you choose to play your part as an active global citizen.

Our world is constantly changing, and it’s truly rewarding to be a part of that momentum. Many people forgo the chance to partake in a movement for many different reasons; however, if your reason is a lack of time, I strongly suggest you reconsider. With websites like change.org, it only takes a few minutes to sign a petition. Whatever your interest, there’s always something that can be done and every action, big or small, is an act in the positive direction. Just remember, it’s not about being a hero or a savior, but rather being an active citizen and companion for those who need support. ­—Allen, a senior, is a guest columnist.

THEORACLE

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The unsigned editorials that appear in this publication represent the majority opinion of the editorial staff and The Oracle’s commitment to promoting student rights.

The Oracle publishes nine issues annually. Subscriptions are $45/year.

Letters to the Editor and Comments and ideas for coverage may be sent to gunnoracle@yahoo.com or posted on our Facebook page. These letters need not be from current student.

The pranking story on the last page was pretty interesting, but it was kind of expected. I feel as if most of the Entertainment section is centered around holidays when it really shouldn’t be.

—Sadaf Rizvi, 11

Staff Photo Audey Shen Michael Wu Jonathan Yong Kyle Zhu

Letters and Comments may be edited to meet space requirements and the writer is solely responsible for the accuracy of the content.

March 12, 2012 I think the stories are easy to read and they are engaging.

—Ellie Ribbe, 10

The Oracle is always entertaining and captures the current spirit of Gunn. I feel that it is always something worthwhile reading.

—Varun Narayan, 9

I was intrigued by the page devoted to Chinese music. It’s refreshing to read about such exotic instruments and the people who play them.

However, I was troubled by the use of the word “Asian.” “Asian” is a term that includes many more cultures than just Chinese there’s Indian, Japanese, Malaysian, Filipino, Korean, Vietnamese the list goes on. The articles stuck to only Chinese music when really there is a whole realm of other Asian musical instruments to explore. I’d have loved to see a sitar or taiko or piri.

—Margaret Deng, 12

News

Monday, April 16, 2012

5

Library introduces eBooks with Bookmobile Catalina Zhao Reporter

The Gunn library recently gained access to an extensive digital media collection, allowing students to download eBooks. In order to promote this new resource, the library is bringing in the Digital Bookmobile, a technology trailer truck that will be open to high school students, teachers, parents and classes.

Together, Gunn and Palo Alto High School (Paly) purchased the collection from OverDrive, Inc., a company that provides digital library services. Currently, there are over 600 titles available to students. “Our wide collection consists of class literature, fiction, sci-fi, audio books and test prep books, [which are] all books you can download

George Hwang

and read on any portable device,” Librarian Meg Omainsky said.

On April 23, the Bookmobile will be parked near the Main Office. “It tours all over the country helping libraries teach their patrons how to download digital and audio books using the OverDrive collection,” Paly Librarian Rachel Kellerman said. People can visit this 74-foot, 18-wheel tractor-trailer from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., explore the schools’ digital collection and download a book onto their portable device. According to its website, the BookMobile has “broadband Internet-connected PCs, high-definition monitors, premium sound systems and a variety of portable media players,” all of which are geared towards teaching and allowing users to interact with the collection.

After creating an online account, people can pick books to read from Gunn and Paly’s collection. They can down-

load their chosen book directly onto their reading device, such as an iPad, computer, Kindle or smartphone. “The collection and downloads are compatible with every single device,” Omainsky said. The download is free, and the book expires automatically after a set period of time.

The two librarians’ idea of offering a collection of eBooks to Palo Alto Unified School District students stemmed about a year ago from the rapidly advancing, technologyorientated environment society encourages today. “More and more students are reading via digital devices,” Omainsky said. “We think the download library is a way users can get the information they want in a variety of formats.”

Kellerman described the reasoning behind the program in a similar fashion. “Digital resources are extremely popular and a growing resource so we wanted our students to have access to this exciting new media,” she said. After introducing the idea, Palo Alto Partners in Education gave the two schools an $11,000 grant for the project.

Students welcomed the prospect of accessing eBooks and being able to read on an electronic device. “I would use the OverDrive program,” freshman Wilson Horn said. “I like reading on my iPad because it doesn’t bother my eyes and keeps track of where I am, and I can highlight words.”

Through the BookMobile, Gunn and Paly hope to spread awareness about the OverDrive program they’ve endorsed. “Our goal is to promote our digital book collection and to help interested students learn how to use this resource on their reading devices,” Kellerman said. Omainsky also has high hopes for the BookMobile and OverDrive collection. “We think lots of students will like it,” she said. “It’s expanding our capability to offer resources to our users.”

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News

THEORACLE

Marijuana use can impact student lives, relationships n DRUGS from p. 1

marijuana,” he said. “Marijuana doesn’t make decisions for people, people make those decisions.” He also feels the stereotypes associated with “stoners” or “pot heads” are unfounded.

While Hyde smoked frequently during his junior and senior year at Gunn, he says it didn’t really affect any other part of his life such as family and academics and that he did not become dependent on it. “It’s all about knowing your priorities,” he said. “Responsibilities should always come first. I smoked frequently but I also managed to get into the University of Southern California, because I was able to sort what was important and what wasn’t. All marijuana can really do for you is help you feel good or relieve your stress.”

Although the Gunn average of stoners is reported to be low, there have been a number of incidents with marijuana in recent years that have not gone unnoticed by the Dean of Students James Lubbe, who recalls a slight increase in drug use on campus. “There were more students caught under the influence or in possession last year than there was in my last four years here,” he said.

The consequences for selling or using marijuana vary depending on the location.

School policy states that a first time offense is met with a three-day suspension and three sessions of Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment (ASAT) classes, a service provided by Gunn’s Adolescent Counseling Service (ACS).

A second strike, though, results in a five-day suspension. “Our only goal,” Lubbe said, “is to make sure that every student gets the help that they need.”

Joe Sung (name has been changed), a junior, has been suspended twice for being caught with marijuana. “The first was [sophomore year] when I walked into a class late after smoking,” he said. “Sanchez pulled me out of class and took me to Mr. Lubbe’s office, where they searched me.” They didn’t find any marijuana on his person at the time, but Sung still smelled like weed and his eyes were glaringly red due to the high. “The second time they caught me was earlier this year before the semester ended,” he said. “I deal a little bit on the side, and I had left a scale in a class that day, so I went back to get it. They called me in the next day and found a gram or so left on my person.” Sung was placed on a five day suspension both times, and police action was also involved in the second suspension. He is currently on probation and is required to do community service.

While there are serious ramifications of marijuana use, students tend to brush these concerns aside. Senior Calvin Kooper (name has been changed) sees his usage of marijuana as just a recreational activity as well as a way to socialize with people. “I think that all of that anti-weed stuff is all BS,” he said. “I don’t think it’s affected me negatively, and it’s actually a great de-stresser in my opinion. It sure beats drinking every weekend and destroying my liver.” Kooper estimates that he smokes three to four times a week regularly.

Sung, on the other hand, has had a troubled life at home and at school due to his usage and dealings with marijuana. “I feel like my parents hated me at times [because of the marijuana], so sometimes when they couldn’t deal with it,

they’d just kick me out of the house,” he said.

In the rush to gain access to marijuana, “People who don’t know me that well would teens often overlook the safety hazards in takspread rumors about me and blow things ing this drug. “I know that the preconception out of proportion. I’m judged by everyone I of marijuana is that it’s safe,” Lubbe said. “But meet based on a bad you don’t always know reputation: teachwhat is in the drugs ers, students, family, you take, and you don’t “I don’t think it’s affected you name it.” Sung’s know what your own me negatively, and it’s teachers are required side effects could be.” to know about his John Nores, a California actually a great de-stresser past drug use, and fish and game warden, in my opinion. It sure beats he feels that because agrees. “The dangers of this he isn’t able to of smoking marijuana drinking every weekend have any good relaare alarming,” he said. and destroying my liver.” tionships with them “Before working in this as a student. area of environmental —Student Calvin Kooper* On plans for the crime, I had no idea of future, Sung is excited to be applying to col- the extensive poisons that are left on the marileges next year; however, he has to send an es- juana plants sold and used by the consumer.” say to each college he is applying to, to explain According to Nores, the harvest phase of the his suspensions along with the regular college process allow toxic substances to be left on the essays that every college requires. final product that is smoked and ingested by Parents and disciplinarians believe this the end user. Approximately 80 percent of the disregard for the consequences of using or nation’s marijuana that is produced in Caliselling marijuana are related to the increased fornia and used illegally is done by drug trafpopularity of medical marijuana. It’s becom- ficking organizations out of Mexico that have ing increasingly popular for students to obtain no regard for human health or safety, so they ID cards to purchase medicinal marijuana. In use severely toxic poisons on their plants that fact, all that is needed is a doctor’s signature are then ingested by the user after purchase. to treat ailments such as anxiety, chronic pain Despite the controversy over the benefits of or glaucoma. Many of these conditions are marijuana, teen drug use is a problem that refaked by teens, and doctors have not placed a quires a strict, in-depth solution that will take screening process to regulate the amount of time and effort. It is imperative for teens to be medicinal cards issued. “The system is being aware of the risks of this black market good. “If abused by everyone,” Lubbe said. “It’s a shared you are using marijuana for any reason, be sure blame across the students, marijuana dispen- you know where it is coming from and what it saries and doctors.” has been treated with,” Nores said.

Parent-teen relationships can affect access to birth control

Williams believes that her parents would severely change that there are still some adults out there who are starting to probably judge me and be less trusting of me [if they their judgment of her if they were aware of her engagement in realize that teenage sex is going to happen whether they want knew I was sexually active],” Allan said. She assumes sexual activities. “They would probably see me very differently, it to or not, and that they may as well be a part of the conversaher parents would think she is too young to be engag- and I know I would be ashamed that they knew,” she said. “I tion if this is indeed the case. ing in such activities. It doesn’t help that Allan is the could easily imagine them seeing me as a slut.” The fact that a There are, in fact, some students whose parents are aware of youngest of three siblings: “[My parents] definitely try to shelter teenage girl feels her own parents would think of her as a “slut” their sexual activity—to a certain extent. Dylan Adler (name me more,” she said. if they were to know she was sexually active illuminates how has been changed), an 18-year-old male who has been sexually Essentially, having safe sex is a burden for Allan. For many uncomfortable teenagers feel around their parents with this active for close to three years now, has a more open relationship teens, such a burden can push a student in one of three direc- topic. This assumption deters Williams from communicating with his parents about his sex life. Both parents are aware of tions: remain abstinent, find alternative ways to get protection with her parents whatsoever, making it more difficult for her to Adler’s sexual activity (they also are more well-versed in dealing or simply have unprotected sex. Fortunately, despite her obsta- get protection. According to another survey from The National with their son’s sex life as Adler has two older brothers who went cles, Allan is still adamant about having safe sex. “[Pregnancy] Campaign, 63 percent of teens say the primary reason they don’t through similar experiences). However, Adler still prefers to is probably the worst thing that could ever happen to me,” she use protection is because their parents will find out. For some maintain a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy with his parents, meansaid. Thus, Allan goes out of her way to anonymously visit time Williams would occasionally engage in unprotected sex ing that both parties are aware of what is going on, but Adler Planned Parenthood despite the risks; although she and her partner try still prefers to go to either his friends or brothers for help when every few months to to use condoms as often as possible, Williams only it comes to sex. Briarwood agrees that the conversation can get get birth control. feels comfortable going on birth control when she is uncomfortable. “[Talking about sex] doesn’t make me uncom“They would probably see Un for t u n at e l y, in college away from what she sees as the watchful fortable because it’s just a part of parenting that we knew we’d me very differently and I the burden created and judgmental eyes of her parents. get to,” Briarwood said. “But I bet the kids are at least nervous by flawed teen-parent But Williams’ firm assumption that her parents about it’s because its new to them. I don’t think its normal to know I would be ashamed communication about would disapprove of her sexual activities might not talk with your parents about sex after a certain point—that’s that they new. I could easily sex doesn’t always be completely accurate. “Although what friends are for.” imagine them seeing me as point teens in the right not many parents approve of their In Adler’s case, one of the direction. Many teens teens having sex, parents are far only reasons his parents are a slut.”

“Although not many are not as persistent aware of his sexual activity —Student Paulette more supportive of contraceptive as Allan and decide to is because they accidentally parents approve of their Williams* use than many teens realize,” Stewart continue sexual activwrote. Another nationwide survey walked in on him having sex. teens having sex, parents ity without protection. According to a survey conducted by conducted by The National Campaign found As awkward as it may have are far more supportive The National Campaign in 2009, condoms are the most com- that although parents are generally unhappy been, at least the lines of common form of contraception for high school students, yet only that their children are sexually active, they munication are now open of contraceptive use than 61 percent of sexually active teens reported using one the last would be generally happy that their teens were between Adler and his parents. many teens realize.” time they had sex. Alison Stewart, Research Assistant at The using protection: 69 percent for daughters and Adler’s parents certainly know National Campaign, believes parents have a huge impact on 62 percent for sons. Teens fail to realize that that their son is sexually active, —Research Assistant teens’ contraception use. “It’s incredibly important for teens to parents would at least be happy that their son but no questions surrounding Alison Stewart talk with their parents about sex,” Stewart wrote in an email. or daughter is using contraception. the topic have been asked thus If the conversation between teens and adults isn’t happening, However, for some parents, the uncomfortable feeling isn’t far. Adler thinks his parents simply know he is smart enough parents can’t help teens make the right decisions. mutual. While parents don’t want to know every aspect of to make the right decisions in being safe, and thus few other Paulette Williams (name has been changed), 17, is another their teens’ sexual activity, they would like to be included in questions need to be asked. In recent years, this parent-teen female student who feels restricted when it comes to commu- the conversation. “I don’t want to be in the dark,” Gloria Bri- relationship is becoming increasingly more common. nicating with her parents about her sex life. But compared to arwood (name has been changed), parent of two teens, said.

To put things simply, parent-teen communication about Allan, Williams suffers from a much restrictive relationship “I’d like to know what’s going on in their lives so I can relate sex, has been skewed for quite some time, and unfortunately with her parents about sex. Although Williams has been sexu- to them and let them know we can answer any questions and will continue to be that way for a good while longer. But given ally active for close to two years, she would never even imagine help when needed.” Briarwood admits, however, that there the impact that such poor communication has on teens’ use discussing such a topic with her parents. Even though she are still boundaries that need to be respected between parents of contraception, the barriers between parents and teens need openly shares other aspects of her relationship with her parents, and teens. “A few talks during adolescence or at the onset of to be broken down. Although parents may not approve, sex is she is certain that they would severely frown upon any sort sexual activity is enough,” Briarwood said. “After that, it’s a indeed becoming a more integral part of teens’ lives with each of sexual relations with her boyfriend. Williams, like other private matter.” year that passes, and it is an issue that can no longer be avoided. teens in her situation, cannot imagine her parents reacting in Although many teens may still feel that their parents aren’t “Sex is one of the ‘facts of life’,” Brairwood said. “Learn about a positive or supportive way. as approachable as Briarwood appears to be, it is a positive sign it, be smart and be safe.” n SEX from p. 1

News

Monday, April 16, 2012

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EDITORIAL: The Opinion of The Oracle

Admin should take necessary steps to support supplementary programs Accord ing to Principa l Katya Villalobos, the administration has no intent to cease engineering programs, and is currently seeking replacement adv i s ors for t he 2 012-2 013 school year. The district needs to provide enough support for the programs they value

Aside from preparing course material, teachers of elective programs seek funding for their own programs, and dealing with filing paperwork, and do so within a longer-than-average workweek. Implementing more boosters programs, and

George Hwang if they want to sustain a strong curriculum. In order to sustain a strong curriculum, the administration needs to support programs of similar magnitude, on many levels.

ma k ing room for donations would benefit the specific courses that require the extra funding needed. Parents with students enrolled in the classes would be the main source

Teens can handle violence, sex in TV Amrita Moitra There has always been a controversy with teens and television. As kids grow older, they are exposed to more adult topics, such as drug and alcohol use, violence and sex. Because of this, parents are often concerned that TV shows depicting these issues push teens to imitate the dangerous, consequential behaviors they see. This, however, is not true. High school students, even with their hormonal imbalances, are not harmed by images of drugs, alcohol, violence or sex on TV shows.

TV shows targeting teens often show underage drinking and illegal drug use, since these are relevant issues that high schoolers face everyday. Shows like “90210” and “Weeds” seem to glamorize alcohol and drug use, which understandably worries parents.

However, parents fail to realize that these shows often illustrate the negative affects of such activities as well.

Teens are shown getting into car accidents while driving drunk or getting arrested for the possession of drugs, often by the same shows accused of idolizing illicit behavior. The risks of drug use and under-age drinking are so painfully obvious that even the most ignorant high school student would understand the consequences.

In addition to this blatant portrayal, the knowledge that teens watch shows that showcase superfluous amounts of drugs and alcohol has pushed parents to reach out to their children. Over 65 studies conducted since the 1980s have shown that with increased amounts of underage drinking and drug use in the media, parents have also increased the amount of discussion with their teenage children about the possible risks of engaging in such behavior.

Gratuitous violence is also a major concern for parents. In today’s mass media, children are constantly subject to images of violence, whether it be murder, rape or a gun fight. To be sure, the effects of violent TV shows are significant, as numerous studies have correlated the two.

However, many people assume that the same holds true for violent television and teenagers— that watching George Hwang

violent shows leads to violent behavior—and this is not true. For instance, a study in 2002 by Science Magazine showed there was no true connection between aggressive teenagers and violent shows. In other words, preference for violent TV programming does not fully explain the tendency to engage in aggressive behavior.

While it’s possible that teens become desensitized to violence because of its constant media presence, watching violent television shows does not mean high school students will engage in violent activities.

Sex in today’s society is becoming less and less of a taboo topic. This fact worries parents, as sex becomes a more prevalent subject in teen television. Parents are concerned about the graphic displays and description of sex on shows, as well as the correlation between viewing sexual scenes on TV and sexual activity amongst teens.

Both of these concerns, while valid, have been addressed in the past. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has strict guidelines on the broadcasting of obscene, indecent and profane material. The FCC’s rules clearly state what is not allowed, including full frontal nudity on morning shows, teen sex terminology and repeated simulated sex scenes.

While there’s clearly a correlation between sexual content on TV and teens’ sexual progression, a study by the Kaiser Family Foundation that examined television’s role in promoting sexual awareness and safe sex practices also found a strong connection. In the study, teenagers viewed a show that dealt with condom efficacy, after which about 65 percent of the viewers were able to recall the detailed condom-efficacy rates, and about 10 percent talked to their parents about the issue.

The researchers concluded that entertainment shows including portrayals of sexual risks and consequences have two beneficial effects on teen sexual awareness: they teach accurate messages about sexual risks, and they stimulate conversations with adults that can reinforce those messages. So while exposure to images of sex affects teen sex life, there are also many benefits.

In the search to find a role model, it is true that teenagers turn to television and that teens sometimes find icons with gratuitous drug use, sex and violence. But it would be remiss to assume that viewing these activities on TV only harms high school students. If anything, it sparks awareness of the consequences of dangerous behavior and opens a natural dialogue between child and parent. While “it seems today that all you see is violence and movies and sex (and drugs) on TV,” parents, at large, should not be very concerned.

—Moitra, a senior, is a News Editor.

of monetary contribution; it’s similar to the way the Science and Athletic Departments acquire the extra money they need to sustain an enriched education and wellsupported sports programs.

In addition to financial support, teachers who run programs like t he s e also deal with a lot of paperwork t hat needs to be filled out. The administration should hire a specific secretary or school official to take care of these logistics, as most filing and paperwork don’t specifically pertain to the teach-

ers of the programs. Teachers can focus on sustaining and improving their own programs, rather than handling tedious busywork, that don’t directly affect the programs material.

These elective programs are supplemental to a strong high school education, and Gunn would be incomplete without them. The district and Gunn administration should focus on providing the support and help these programs need, in order to build upon current curriculum and grow for the future.

—Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the staff (assenting: 31; dissenting: 0; abstaining: 5)

NIOS promotes liberalism Chaewon Lee and Anna Qin

Although the annual Not In Our Schools (NIOS) program has broad goals of spreading tolerance and acceptance, it has instead become yet another program that seems effective in theory, but is not very effective in practice. The program has inadvertently become biased to the extent that many students whose ideals conflict with those of NIOS are having their voice silenced.

Social issues are undoubtedly linked to political alliances, and the natural political make-up of the school influences the promotion and general widespread acceptance of liberal ideas through NIOS. Gunn is generally liberal; a survey conducted

by The Oracle’s February 2012 issue showed that while 21 percent of students considered themselves Democrats, only three percent considered themselves Republican, and four percent considered themselves Libertarian. Thus, during NIOS week, when more liberal ideas such as gay rights are being promoted, conservative students can feel left out or ashamed of their beliefs.

Because the community is so politically unified, NIOS inadvertently forgets to recognize the less pop-

au A lv ina Y

Recently, engineering instructors Bill Dunbar and Bakari Holmes announced that they would not continue to guide the Gunn Robotics Team (GRT) and the Project Lead The Way (PLTW) classes. As the Gunn engineering curriculum is losing long-time mentors for the next school year, The Oracle strongly r e c om m e n d s t h e administration take active measures to support teachers that make programs like this possible.

The Gunn administration, as well as the district, must understand that the community already commends these programs and that programs like these set Gunn apart from other schools.

ular opinions in many controversial issues. For example, Gunn focuses heavily on promoting tolerance for the LGBTQ community with activities like wearing “Gay? Fine by me” t-shirts and the Day of Silence. The program’s thorough covering of the subject is laudable, but the way in which the issue is presented directly challenges the beliefs of more conservative groups like some Christian or Muslims sects. Some student’s cultures or religions, which are just as important to them as sexuality is for gay students, prevent them from supporting gay rights. NIOS should not label these cultures as being wrong or attempt to discredit them.

Additionally, while hosting NIOS activities, teachers and students should be more sensitive to all opinions on campus. They should realize that even though they themselves may be supportive of NIOS viewpoints, not all students are. In their enthusiasm to encourage participation in NIOS, teachers and students unknowingly create an environment where some people can become fearful of sharing their opinions. This fear stems from the possibility of a conflict of views hurting teacher-to-student or peerto-peer relationships.

For NIOS to more successfully achieve its goal, the program’s organizers should attempt to communicate more actively with the lesser-heard groups of the student body and incorporate their ideas into the program. For example, involving various religious and cultural on-campus clubs in the organization of specific activities during NIOS will help make the program more sensitive to those groups. Such changes will slowly transform the program into one that creates an atmosphere where all opinions will be respected, bringing NIOS one step closer to its ultimate goal of wide-spread tolerance.

—Lee, a sophomore, is a reporter, and Qin, a junior, is a Features Editor.

Forum

Monday, April 16, 2012

PERSONAL OPINIONS Embracing a new education system

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Staffers discuss foreign schools, political messages, driving laws

Schools should not impose personal politics Utkash Dubey

Ysé Massot Even though most of the students at Gunn prefer holidays over school, I consider Gunn to be a pleasant place to have fun, study and learn. When I wake up in the morning, I always feel happy, and I look forward to spending another day in this delightful place. But for those of you who think differently, at least be aware that, compared to most schools in other countries, Gunn is a paradise.

I lived in Paris and followed a French education for the first 13 years of my life, and when I moved to Palo Alto for this school year, I understood that even though America and France have similar customs, they differ in many areas, especially when it comes to education.

For instance, in France, students cannot choose their own classes, and freshmen through seniors are respectively divided into classes of about 30 students. In addition, students in the same class have the same schedule, regardless of their academic level. We would usually start at 8:30 a.m., have a one to one and a half hour lunch break and end school at 6 p.m. And when we weren’t at school, we were assigned much more homework, which meant that I rarely had free time.

In addition, French students are graded on a 20-point scale instead of letter grades. However, it is nearly impossible to get a 20 out of 20 in high school, because many French teachers seem to dislike it when students perform “too well” in their class.

Even though this may not be the case for every French teacher, when I was in France it seemed like teachers weren’t particularly concerned with the students’ success in their classes. They would prepare their courses, teach the students and work on the assumption that if a student fails, it’s their fault that they did not study enough, and the teacher is not responsible.

Around here though, teachers encourage their students and always try to find something positive in their attitude and schoolwork. I’ve heard “good job” many times from teachers here and rarely from teachers in France. In fact, teachers in France often ridicule students who don’t understand the material, and they do so in front of the whole class. For instance, “you are hopeless, and you are the shame of this high school” was one French teacher’s response to a student who had failed a test.

American teachers teach their students important life skills such as creativity, critical thinking and, above all, self-confidence. In France, teachers mostly only teach scholarly topics and prefer passive students. This is the reason why French student are usually less comfortable in speaking in public and are more demure, but have more academic knowledge.

French schools only value the grades that you obtain in classes. Clubs, community hours, sport and other extracurricular activities are not required and do not benefit you in terms of credit.

Moreover, French students do not have the opportunity to enjoy dances, concerts, plays, parties or any of the many events that American schools like Gunn organize for its students. Because high school in France is only a place where you study and work, it is generally a place where you don’t want to go.

—Massot, a freshman, is a reporter.

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An assortment of flowers, glistening smiles and friends embracing seem to be the mark of a truly successful event.

Despite this presumption, the deeper context of what seems like an accomplished event goes far beyond school matters. When Freedom to Marry Day comes along, I am simply dismayed, because I take the whole scenario to be a political campaign that essentially propagates liberal ideals, which aren’t necessarily universal. And while this can be said about many school happenings, the publicity and attention drawn to Freedom to Marry Day exceeds the limit of an acceptable form of freedom of expression.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not an evil, intolerant fiend, nor am I a jerk who has a black hole for a heart. I’m just a student

who doesn’t appreciate a school (or for that matter, any government entity) that imposes a particular political stance, especially a stance that is a result of personal opinions and morals.

The fact that the event is on the quad in front of hundreds of students and made completely public suggests that the school is imposing this view on the students. Therefore, it doesn’t really matter who organized Freedom to Marry Day because it comes across as the school endorsing the idea that gay marriage should be legalized.

Freedom to Marry Day simply violates the ethical limits of society. While a community is free to express their respective viewpoints, it is not appropriate for a public school to allow an event that is representative of a particular group of students—even if the group is the majority. The event coordinators publicly advocate a particular view that is not entirely accepted. Not everybody at this school is pro-gay marriage; I’m living proof, and I know that I’m not the only one.

In fact, I have had multiple people ap-

proach me in frustration that the school is openly promoting gay marriage and thereby dissenting the Christian belief.

If Gunn was being a truly open community, then why are people of different religious background offended?

To be specific, I don’t think that Freedom to Marry Day is wrong because it endorses the “right” to formally marry whomever one wants to marry. I believe that it is wrong because it publicly promotes a stance on a debatable political issue that is subject to perspective, background and opinion.

If the school is aiming to promote a healthy and tolerant environment, the administration should seriously reconsider their methods. In my experience, the most effective form of acceptance is one that allows students to make choices for themselves and not spread any sort of concepts or ideas otherwise. The school may have a responsibility to teach and inform students on modern-day issues, but promotion of one side of the story is just not the way to go about it.

—Dubey, a junior, is a Forum Editor.

Students must respect initial driving restrictions Ashley Ngu

Ah, the provisional driver license.

Some students choose to dutifully follow the year-long restrictions detailed by this license; others are not so compliant. I’m here to inform you on why the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) put these restrictions in place and why the smart choice is to follow them.

In California, minors who have had a provisional license for less than 12 months may not transport passengers who are under 20 years of age or drive between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. (with some exceptions). This legislation was adopted in an effort to save lives by reducing the number of teenagers involved in crashes and accidents.

The DMV is not out to get you, nor are they trying be party poopers. The government has very good reasons, backed up by concrete data, to restrict teens from midnight pearl milk tea runs and road trips with friends until they’ve earned their years. For teens, the risk of

crashing when transporting passengers is 3.6 times higher than when driving alone. The fact of the matter is that having more passengers provides more distractions for the driver.

Let’s be honest here. When is a car ride with a group of friends ever quiet and calm? All the talking, arguing and singing distracts a driver from the most important task at hand: driving safely.

Add in more passengers, and the risk of crashing increases even further. By willfully sitting in a friend’s car, passengers are putting their lives in the driver’s hands. And drivers, by giving people rides, are accepting the responsibility of getting their friends safely from Point A to Point B. Why would the DMV want to keep teens from driving late at night? According to the DMV, after 9 p.m., teens are three times more likely to be involved in an accident. Dark, unlit roads and bright glares from headlights both contribute to the raised difficulty level of driving at night. Teenagers are also less experienced driving at night and are more likely to engage in risky behaviors like drinking and driving or speeding. When roads are empty and lights are green, it’s easy to be lulled into a false sense of security. But ultimately, it’s better to play it safe and keep to the curfew.

Now that I’ve covered why prov isiona lly licensed drivers should follow the law, let’s move on to how to say

George Hwang

no to friends who want rides. It’s a tricky situation to be in.

The first time someone asked me for a ride right after I got my license, I felt guilty saying no. But then I realized that it didn’t make me a bad friend if I didn’t give others rides. I wasn’t being mean; I was being responsible. Now, I bet I got a couple of eye rolls with the responsibility schpeel, but back then, I wasn’t 100 percent comfortable driving myself around, let alone driving someone else around as well. Don’t get pressured into driving with passengers until you’ve gained a full year of experience under your belt. Likewise, friends, don’t pressure your licensed buddies into giving rides. Play it safe and don’t gamble with your life and future.

So if someone asks you for a ride and you haven’t gotten your year yet, here are some tactics you can employ and things you can say in response: • “Sure, I’ll give you a ride. Although I have to warn you, my CD player is broken and it keeps playing “Friday” on full blast... Oh, you don’t need a ride anymore? Okay.”

• Fill your car seats with cardboard boxes so there’s no room for passengers.

• “You can sit in the trunk.”

• “I can get you from Point A to Point B, but I can’t guarantee you’ll make it with all your limbs. Deal?”

• Take the mature route and simply say, “Sorry, I haven’t gotten my year” or “I’m not comfortable driving other people yet.”

Obeying the provisional licensing laws is not wimpy or weak-willed; it’s the responsible and mature thing to do.

At the end of the day, whose car would you want to get into: the one driven by a law-abiding friend or the one driven by a law-ignoring friend?

Personally, I’d choose the former.

—Ngu, a senior, is Editor-InChief.

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THEORACLE

Technology helps enhance Reliance on technology may understanding of classwork reveal teachers’ shortcomings Daisy Renazco

Could you imagine Ms. Renazco home with you while you do homework? Don’t worry, I will not be in your room making sure you are doing your homework, but my voice could be narrating a video that may help you finish that Advanced Placement (AP) Statistics homework that you haven’t turned in yet.

Teaching a class of 32 (or more) students can be challenging for many reasons. The biggest challenge for me has been that I just can’t get to everyone throughout a 58-minute period. In a class period, it can be quite difficult to teach a new topic, assess students for learning and provide appropriate practice problems that challenge the students that understand concepts quickly, without moving too quickly for the students that haven’t fully mastered the concept. I want to be able to answer every one of my student’s questions about

the concepts we are learning, but some days a student of mine may s t r u g g le to learn all that he needs to know about statistics.

This challenge is why I

have been seeking the help of technology to hopefully provide my students with resources to help them learn when I’m not around (i.e. when they are doing homework). Throughout the year, I have been experimenting with creating videos which allow students to review concepts we talk about in class that they may not be confident they understand. The videos can cover anything from how to make a normal probability plot with a graphing calculator, to a video solution to an extra example problem that will hopefully prepare students for an upcoming test.

I have heard many students thank me for creating the videos, and they often comment on them being helpful. If students are not sure how to do this one part of a solution, the student can fast forward a particular video to listen solely to the information that they need. They do not need to watch the whole video.

Ma ny st udents have watched videos on Khan Academy in an attempt to teach themselves a concept; however, I have heard comments that Mr. Khan teaches things slightly different from their own teacher. Therefore, if I make the video, then I’m demonstrating exactly what I expect my students to learn in Alvina Yau language that they are familiar with from class.

I definitely cannot say that my students have learned the concepts better due to the availability of these videos, but I do believe that students benefit from having more resources in which they can try to learn the concepts that may suit their individual needs. ­­—Math teacher Daisy Renazco is a guest columnist.

Phil Lyons

Imagine that you have a sibling. It’s Saturday morning and your parents lay out a buffet breakfast for your sibling.

After breakfast they take your sibling to Great America, then to the mall to buy new clothes, then to dinner, and finally a movie.

You stay home all day. For food and entertainment you’re left with yesterday’s newspaper and a can of tuna.

When your sibling returns home, he instructs you to go online to a blog.

It is full of pictures of your family on roller coasters, trying on new clothes, and eating delicious food. There’s even a picture of the ticket stub to the movie, some screen shots and a plot summary.

Question: Are you and your sibling being treated equally?

The answer is obvious. Nothing can substitute for real life experiences, especially not the Internet.

Why do educational theorists believe you can take what happens in the classroom and replace it with a webcast or a discussion board or blog posting? Why do they assert that this use of modern technology has improved education when in fact it has contributed to its decline?

This push toward reverse teaching has several flaws. One, it not only allows ineffective teachers to keep their jobs, but also actually encourages poor teaching. In the past, an instructor who had not mastered the curriculum, who failed to prepare a good lesson and who was unable to communicate subject matter, would have been deemed unfit to teach.

Today, poor teachers simply hand

out laptops and direct students to learn the material on their own by watching videos and filling out Google forms.

What’s worse, when students perform badly, the teacher blames the students for failing to teach themselves.

Secondly, reverse teaching is a time burden. Students visit each class for four hours a week. In that time, a good instructor can distill complex material down to its essential parts and teach it to the class. No extra time outside of class should be required.

However, students saddled with ineffective instructors fail to learn the material during class time. As a result, hours of digital homework are heaped on top to make up for the instructor’s deficiencies.

Teachers should do the jobs they are paid to do: become experts in their subject matter, craft powerful lessons and communic a t e c l e a r l y.

Internet-based lessons at home were invented to be a student r e s ou rc e ;

they’ve turned into a te acher ’s crutch.

—Social studies teacher Phil Lyons is a guest columnist.

Costly technological teaching can distract from school curriculum Emily Yao Ten years ago, the average classroom held desks, a chalkboard and textbooks. Fast forward to the present and much has changed.

Projectors, TI calculators, laptops and iPads filled with applications and SMART Boards have replaced traditional teaching methods. The disappearance of chalkboards and whiteboards is sweeping the nation and we must save them from becoming extinct. By incorporating technology into classrooms, we are losing the many benefits of traditional teaching methods and discovering a whole new set of problems that come with the use of technology.

One advantage of traditional teaching methods is their innate simplicity and lack of distractions.

For example, with only a whiteboard in the room, a student is able

to focus on the subject at hand. that in 2009, the Editorial Projects However, with laptops, students in Education Research Center can easily get sidetracked by surf- gave California a D+ for the way ing the Internet, opening up irrel- technology was incorporated in evant applications and watching schools and in 2008, an F for how distracting videos. Even though schools gave students access to technology offers a multitude of tools, most are not used wisely in classrooms.

In a study done by Project RED, a research initiative which supports giving a laptop to each student in K-12 schools, most of the schools that have opted for technology-integrated learning with laptops and other digital tools are not maximizing the potential of these George Hwang devices. This statement can be supported by personal ob- tech nolog y. servations made at Gunn. When- Instead of serving as a betever a class borrows a laptop cart, ter teaching method, technology I guarantee you that there will acts as a distraction in classrooms, always be a few people that are hindering students from reaching not working on the in-class as- their full learning potentials. signment and are instead surfing A new form of learning called a different site like Facebook or eLearning, or electronically supYouTube. Thus, it is no surprise ported learning and teaching, is

slowly being incorporated into classrooms; however, it presents many disadvantages. Because eLearning is a new concept and involves unfamiliar technological tools, some students may require additional class time to become familiarized. In turn, this will slow down a student’s progress in learning new academic material and may cause him or her to fall behind. In addition, teachers who are even less familiar with technology will need training on how to effectively incorpor ate eL ea r n i ng into their classrooms.

Another great disadvantage of eLearning is that often times, technology breaks or malfunctions. Sometimes projectors don’t connect to computers, computers don’t connect to the Internet, SMART Boards don’t calibrate and even more problems can arise. Furthermore, newer

technology is far more costly to replace and update than traditional products. For an average of $35, a teacher can easily purchase a five-star Dry-Erase whiteboard and a dozen Expo markers. On the other hand, an interactive SMART Board can cost from $1300 to $5000, not including the fees required to pay for repair and maintenance. Thus, it does not make sense for schools to spend money on expensive teaching equipment when the cheaper option has the same or even better effect on students.

It is no question that technology has helped modernize society.

However, we must be careful in the way we incorporate it into our daily lives. It may be impossible to stop the continuous flow technology into our classrooms, but we have to understand that while both online and in-class education present their advantages, in the end traditional learning methods are more effective in helping students learn.

—Yao, a junior, is a Sports Editor.

Monday, April 16, 2012

11

Students should place more stock in STAR testing scores Cooper Aspegren It is not uncommon for students to deem the Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) exam a “joke” or “ridiculously easy.” Some students may not even recognize the purpose of such a test in the first place. However, not only does one’s STAR test results affect the standing of the entire school, but on top of that it also holds the potential to influence a specific student’s academic future.

The California Department of Education factors a public school’s collective STAR test results into the school’s Academic Performance Index (API), which, according to the California Department of Education, “measures the aca-

demic performance and growth of schools.” According to the department’s Accountability Progress Reporting (APR), Gunn’s API score in 2011 was 909, far above the requested state standard of 800.

However, according to the same document, Gunn’s API score in 2011 was nine points lower than its API score in 2010. While this magnitude of score decrease may seem negligible, it serves Gunn’s monetary interests for students to try harder.

This is because the California Department of Education offers multiple incentives by reaching an Annual Percent Grown Target for a school’s API score. In 2011, Gunn did not meet all of its growth targets, therefore missing out on extra rewards. It is clear Gunn students can work to show improvement by trying to earn higher STAR test scores.

On an individual scale, students with low STAR test scores are put at certain disadvantages. An

undesirable performance on the STAR test can limit the number of Advanced Placement (AP) classes

higher on the history portion of the STAR test. A low score on the STAR test, even if out of character, can therefore prohibit a student who meets all other qualifications from taking on the desired advanced history course load offered by APUSH. The impor tance of high achievement on the STA R test also extends to the summer programs a student has the option of attending. The University of California, Davis section of the prestigious California State Summer School for Mathematics Alvina Yau and Science requires in which a student c a n en rol l .

STAR test results as part of For example, Advanced Placement the prospective student’s applicaUnited States History (APUSH) tion. In this circumstance, a lower requires a score of proficienct or than desirable STAR test score may

prevent someone from the education opportunity of a lifetime.

In addition, it is also advantageous for a student to try his or her hardest on the STAR test so that topics of difficulty for the student could be more effectively isolated and targeted as areas in which the student must work to improve. If a student does not work as diligently as possible on every single section of the STAR test, it cannot be specifically determined which areas the student must focus for improvement.

Given the immense quality of education at Gunn, it is understandable that students find an abundant number of the questions on the STAR test simple and overly easy to answer. However, students should realize the STAR test does not exactly qualify as a “joke.” At the very least, students should take STAR tests more seriously.

—Aspegren, a sophomore, is a reporter.

Online living skills is not enough Tetris games belong in the library Solomon Kim Many students have suggested that Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) offer an online Living Skills course because they often have full class schedules during the school year, and also because they believe that the online system will allow students to complete the graduation requirements with less stress and more convenience. However, after trying out an online Living Skills course for two years,

the district has come to the conclusion that the online system does not work due to the fact that the online course does not provide for enough time to teach the materials, and also that teachers cannot engage the students through an online format. Because of this, the disadvantages of an online version of Living Skills class far outweigh the benefits.

According to social studies Instructional Supervisor Lynne Navarro, the online format is not a good fit for Living Skills. Normally students would attend the class four times a week, but in the online program, students only meet for class twice a week. Teachers felt that they weren’t given an appropriate amount of time to teach the lessons to their students.

Furthermore, teachers like Navarro were also concerned about student access to the Internet, because students would surf around the Internet instead of learning the material. In fact, according to Western Conneticut State University psychology professor Tara Kuther, 95 percent of students tend to spend a significant amount of time on Facebook and other instant messaging sites while working on computer-based assignments. Essentially, students would not focus on the lectures online even if they have the class twice a week, and instead they will treat class time as a prep.

The intent of the Living Skills class is to help students become comfortable talking about sensitive topics, such as racism or sex education. However, an online course does not accomplish this, since the topics in the class will be incorrectly delivered to the students.

For instance, during the class, t he teachers do their best to ensure that students feel comfortable and engaged in the learning material, but this accepting environment evaporates when students attend the online Living Skills course in their own rooms, and students are likely to retain shallow and undeveloped views on topics when there George Hwang is not a physical adu lt f ig u re to guide them through the course. Moreover, according to Living Skills teacher Joanna Hubenthal, it is more difficult to educate students in an online manner as teachers are unable to develop personal relationships with their students.

Despite the fact that students want to take online Living Skills due to other challenging classes they are taking during the school year, Living Skills is an interactive course that requires students’ complete participation. The emotional connections formed by the course cannot be replaced with an online system; instead, it can only be experienced in full as a real life course. ­ —Kim, a sophomore, is a reporter.

Ben Atlas Tetris is notoriously known for its dominance of nearly every library, the academic center and student activities center computer on campus. However, online games are often accused of creating unnecessary noise and distractions from schoolwork.

Because of this, according to Librarian Meg Omainsky, the library is on schedule to receive a applircation that allows her and her assistants to view the desktops of various library desktops in order to prevent students from pursuing non-academic interests such as playing online games on computers that designated for work. But such a system has the potential to do more harm than good because it will detract from a student’s responsibility as an indi-

may need for academics pursuits. Unfortunately, since the system will only allow the librarians’ to regulate desktop computers, the main result will be an increase in the use of school-owned and personal laptops. Rather than lower the noise level, the system will simply transfer it to around laptops rather than around the desktop computers. As the school monitors its own desktops, students will be increasingly likely to bring their own means of playing online games—personally owned laptops.

As such devices become more prevalent, robberies or losses of students’ electronics will as well.

Finally, Tetris is not a harmful activity.

A few games of Tetris during lunch are fairly benign; in fact, some studies suggest that Tetris enhances critical thinking capabilities. Gaming can allow students to calm down during lunch so that they can focus during the day. At lunch, it seems unlikely that many students do any quantity of work. Why not let students play Tetris then and get work done at home?

Although Omainsky raises a valid con-

George Hwang

vidual, fail to stop students from gaming in the library and Student Activities Center and remove a benign, yet integral part of students’ on-campus recreation.

When a school chooses to prohibit an activity as insubstantial as a game, they do not allow students to learn about responsible time management skills on their own.

As students aren’t given the choice of playing or working, they are unable to learn the crucial skill of choosing to responsibly balance their work and their fun. If students are allowed to play Tetris, and they play too much, then the consequences of their grade reports will teach them to put work first the next time. It is only possible to learn how to prioritize work if the autonomous option of time-consuming games is at hand. While censoring Tetris pages might initially appear to give students more opportunities to study, it will only hurt them later in life.

Omainsky’s main concerns pertaining to Tetris are twofold. Firstly, it creates an unecessary amount of noise in an environment intended for schoolwork, and it occupies computers that other students

cern in that Tetris takes resources away from academic computer-users, the way to fix the problem is not to disallow games on the library’s desktop. If a student happens to be in need of a library computer for schoolwork, then there is reason to ask a gamer to leave the library or check out a laptop. This should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis rather than the absolute prohibition of Tetris from desktop computers. If there is no shortage of available computers, Tetris should be allowed to continue.

It is obvious that prohibiting recreational games from library computers would do far more harm than good. Because a system of tracking desktop computers and disallowing Tetris in every case would fail to completely solve the so-called problem of gaming, break down a student’s sense of responsibility and needlessly remove enjoyment from the library, it is clear that such a system is not the key to solving the library’s gaming concerns.

—Atlas, a sophomore, is a reporter.

Features

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Students create their own applications for popular smartphone markets Mitch Donat Reporter

Angry Birds, Words with Friends, Draw Something. These are some of the many apps iPhone, Android and Windows Phone users now use daily. But how often does it cross a user’s mind to think about the behind-the-scenes of creating these apps?

Ask sophomore Drew Bent or junior Dmitry Simakov, and they will tell you all about the creation process.

Bent has worked on and published various apps on the market since first discovering

the development of apps in middle school. “I started making apps for the iPhone the summer after seventh grade,” Bent said. “There were relatively few apps back then, and thus it was a huge opportunity for developers to enter the market.”

So far, Bent has created eight applications in total, which revolve around strategy and word games. “One of my most popular games was called “Jumbled,” a word game,” Bent said. “I made it free for a few days, and it received 15,000 downloads.”

While Bent’s app-developing journey began in seventh grade, Simakov’s beginnings

stemmed in first grade from his father’s vision for environmentally friendly education.

“My dad and I had three goals we wanted to achieve,” he said. “To make education affordable for people worldwide, create an artificial intelligence tutor that can personally teach and reduce paper use to help the environment.” Simakov’s journey actually didn’t begin with apps, it started before the app store craze with an interactive website.

The website, named iTestYou.com, was the beginning of Simakov’s development of artificial tutors, and it served as the basis for their first app. “The first version of the website came online five years ago in 2007,” he said. “We released the first mobile app in August of 2011.”

Simakov’s visions came true when he released his applications onto the iPhone/Android market. Collectively, he has developed three applications in total, named iTestYou, and is currently processing the fourth. “The three apps cover three content channels: K-8th grade math, English and foreign language,” Simakov said. These applications help with studying for the SAT, ACT and normal tests that high school students go through.

The process for developing apps is a difficult process when working with just one or two people. After forming an idea and the big picture of the application, the program-

Left: Junior Dmitry Simakov ‘s app “iTestYou” for SAT vocab. Right: Sophomore Drew Bent’s app “Jumbled” where one unscrambles words to find their best match.

Courtesy of Dmitry Simakov

ming and development aspect takes a couple months. “Jumbled took a few months,” Bent said. “I was the only developer, so I had to construct all parts of it. I had to work with Photoshop, graphics, music, legal stuff and programming.”

On the other hand, Simakov’s applications have been a cooperative effort between his father and him. “My father does the programming for the application, and I supply the words and problems that tests such as the SAT and ACT will use,” Simakov said.

Both Simakov and Bent are very proud of the applications they have created and hope to continue making them in the future. “I definitely want to continue developing apps into the future,” Bent said. “I’m thrilled to see the response from customers and people who have downloaded my app. Seeing that people are actually using your app that you spent lots of time on is a very satisfying experience.” Simakov feels similarly. “It’s very satisfying to help the environment and help students learn on their own time,” he said.

Dmitry Simakov’s apps are available on the Apple App Store and the Android Market. They are free, or $1 without ads.

Due to legal issues, Drew Bent’s app “Jumbled” is no longer available, but can be found online at www.jumbled.drewbent.com

Courtesy of Drew Bent

Debate team qualifies for state and national tournaments Utkash Dubey

Forum Editor

On March 12, Bellarmine High School hosted the annual debate tournament, the Catholic Forensic League (CFL) State Qualifiers. Gunn’s debate team performed exceptionally well, as seniors Joe Atlas and partner Sian Ye, as well as seniors David Oyer and partner Jeremy Neff, capitalized on the event and successfully qualified for the state tournament.

Both of the teams participated in parliamentary (otherwise known as “parli”) debate events, where teams are assigned topics on the spot and given 20 minutes of preparatory time.

“There’s no way to prepare other than to bring lots of articles and be generally knowledgeable,” Ye wrote in an email. According to Atlas, parli debate is more of an impromptu style.

The topic changes every round, and teams preliminarily compete in a round-robin format against five other teams.

If a team’s record is 4-1 or better, they move on to the “go round.” The top teams compete against one-another for a spot to the state debate. According to Atlas, the CFL parli debates comprised of well over 50 teams, and Gunn teams Atlas-Ye and Oyer-Neff were of the six qualifying teams. The other four spots were taken by teams from Los Gatos, Saratoga, Monta Vista and Leland High School.

Overall, the teams took a total of two out of six spots avail-

able for states, and Gunn debate is the only group in the league to qualify more than one team. According to Atlas, this kind of success is largely unprecedented and has been great for the team. “It’s very hard to qualify for state in any event,” Atlas said. “Last year, no one qualified from Gunn. This year, Gunn took two out of six spots in parli, which is incredible.” Oyer, who paired up with Neff, feels similarly, “[It’s] great for our program, especially since we lost our coach this year and have been in a state of flux,” Oyer wrote in an email.

A few weeks later, from March 23 to 25, one of Gunn’s policy debate teams competed at the National Forensic League’s National Qualifiers. Out of an initial pool of 18 teams, sophomores Catalina Zhao and David Patou were among the three qualifying teams. The tournament was in the format of double elimination, in which a team is out after losing two rounds.

For policy debate, there is one set topic every year. According to Zhao, the current resolution is “The United States Federal Government should substantially increase its exploration and/ or development of space beyond the earth’s mesosphere.”

This debate event, which is very evidence-orientated and requires extensive research and files, involves discussing a proposed case that falls under the resolution. “The affirmative side’s burden is to provide a well-supported plan.,” Patou said.

“The negative team must argue the plan and prove that it’s not worth it for the government to pass. Issues such as domestic affairs and international relations come up.”

Since the duo qualified for the national tournament, they will be debating in Indianapolis, Indiana, during summer break. Overall, they are pleased with the results. “David and I are honored to have made it this far because the last time a Gunn team qualified to Nationals was two years ago,” Zhao said. “Policy is one of the most difficult events, and this was a tough tournament with some of the best teams around the area. We’re happy to see our hard work come to fruition and to represent our team and school at Nationals.”

Courtesy of David Patou

Courtesy of Catalina Zhao

Top: Seniors Sian Ye, Joe Atlas, David Oyer and Jeremy Neff triumph at State Qualifiers after a successful go-round. Bottom: Sophomores Catalina Zhao and David Patou receive words of congratulations after qualifying for Nationals.

Features

Monday, April 16, 2012

Audey Shen

Divya Shiv

Audey Shen

13

Left: An adult appreciaties art at the exhibition. Middle: The community observes the artwork. Right: Mayor Yiaway Yeh gives a speech about Palo Alto youth and art.

Art exhibition strengthens connection between teens, adults Rebecca Alger & Divya Shiv Reporter & Managing Editor

To help teenagers express themselves and connect with their community, Palo Alto City Hall hosted a viewing of students’ artwork from March 23 through April 13, with an opening ceremony on the first night. The Teen Art Exhibition, in which approximately 60 pieces of art were showcased, was created by Jade Chamness, who is founder and CEO of the suicide support group Break Through the Static, Visual Arts teacher Deanna Messinger and Carolyn Digovich, a mother of a Palo Alto High School alumna.

One of the main goals of the exhibition was to have teens and adults connect with each other on a more personal level in order to establish a stronger support system. “It was really an honor for a lot of the adults to be invited into the stories, the inner lives and the emotions and feelings of the teens

in this community,” Chamness said. “As adults we don’t often feel like we’re connected to teens and vice versa. That’s why it was nice to have this opportunity for us to come together, and for us, as adults, to learn how to better support you guys.”

The three women first came up with the idea of the exhibition when students in the 2010 Palo Alto Youth Forum stated that they wanted to connect with businesses and adults in their community. Once Digovich became aware of the divide between teens and adults, she wanted to create a way to help improve the problem, while also aiming to give teens an opportunity to express themselves. “I decided to follow up on what the teens requested, that adults work together with them to better their relationship with local businesses,” Digovich said.

“The other [issue] was that teens were saying that they felt like they didn’t have a space that belonged to high schoolers where they could

create art, be safe, be with their friends, do music and poetry and express themselves creatively, so I volunteered to put those two items together and this is what we got.”

Messinger created an additional lesson plan in her advanced art classes that emphasized nontraditional self portraits in order to give students the opportunity in class to make their works of art for the exhibition. The new concept allowed students to create pieces in a different, more significant way then they normally would. “This is the first piece I’ve done where I began with a meaning and an emotion I wanted to convey,” junior Ivy Sanders Schneider said. “In the past, I’ve made lots of pieces for the sake of making art and assigned significance later, but this was the first time I had a concept from start to finish.”

While the showcase at City Hall helped teenagers reveal their emotions through art, the five other viewings of student art at local restaurants such as Mike’s Cafe,

Philz Coffee and Bon Vivant allowed students to connect with the businesses in the area. In addition, the event also opened discourse between students, parents and local residents. “One of the best parts of this whole project was seeing the support from the community, and seeing the shop owners and the mayor all come out and talk about how glad they were to have participated and how they could now better sympathize with Palo Alto teens,” Sanders Schneider said.

Chamness, Messinger, Digovich and Palo Alto Mayor Yiaway Yeh made it clear in their speeches at the gala opening that if teens don’t take a step forward and speak up about what is going on, nothing will change. Yeh noted that adults are not mind readers and the only way the community can understand teens is if they express their feelings. “There are ups and downs here within the community and the more you communicate with us the better that we in turn as a community can support you,”

Yeh said in his speech.

Despite the community’s positive reaction, both Yeh, who gave the keynote speech at the grand opening, and the founders of the art exhibition, do not think they will be able to duplicate the event.

“It’s an incredibly special environment for youth to work through their thoughts and emotions and to say that it can be recreated means that it can be replicated exactly,” Yeh said. “I think there’s definitely going to be efforts to recreate this sense of community though.”

The overall goal of the project was to give teens the opportunity to share their life-shaping experiences as not only a healing process, but also as a way to connect with adults and businesses in the area on a higher level. “It’s incredible to see your emotions visually through your art,” Yeh said in his speech. “Your depictions have really allowed the community to join you in your journey as a youth in Palo Alto.”

Artist of the Month: senior Alex Barthelemy The Oracle: How did you start doing photography and graphic design?

Alex Barthelemy: I taught myself by reading stuff online and talking to other people who did photography, and bounced some ideas off of [senior] Michael Underwood. I never took a photography class, but I read a lot. I took art classes when I was a little kid, and stopped at age 10 or 12. I got into photography three years ago, and from there got a camera and got all the use out of that camera, then got a newer camera.

TO: What types of things do you like taking pictures of?

AB: People. I’ve done portraits for people, but really just shooting people on their own is what I like. I walk around San Francisco and take pictures of people. I take pictures of things that catch my eye, or interesting images that seem to fit well.

Wendy Qiu

TO: What made you start graphic design?

AB: I originally took Graphic Design sophomore year to get some practice in for college, because I was considering majoring in that, and thought it was a good idea to take some classes in high school. I did that for a year, and went with what the class told me.

TO: What type of design do you do?

AB: I do a lot of signs and logos. At one point, I made a design for the University of Michigan sailing team because they asked me to. Most of my logos are retro-looking. I’ve done logos for different school events. There was a contest for an online library header, and our own library wanted a logo.

TO: What’s the process of creating like?

AB: It’s nice once you come up with the idea.

I’ll sit in classes and sketch out ideas around it, and when I come up with a concrete plan, I go make it. If I come up with the inspiration in the morning, such as today I started the poster for the Spring Fling and I’m already halfway done, I can get through it pretty quickly. I made the Link Crew shirts. I made other designs that I liked a lot more, but more people liked the Nemo design. I’ve made the track T-shirts for the past three years.

TO: How did you start doing One-Photo-ADay? AB: I saw this blog online where a guy took a Polaroid photo everyday for 19 years until the day he died, and I was inspired to do the same thing.

TO: Why did you decide to start One-PhotoA-Day? AB: I enjoy documenting my day-to-day experience and I think it could be something great to look back upon, as well as the fact that just taking pictures often will help photo technique among other things.

TO: How do you go about choosing the picture?

AB: Usually through the course of my day at least one thing will catch my eye, but most days I take several photos, an average of 30 or so.

Ultimately it boils down to the one that I like best. Sometimes, it’s pretty difficult choosing one or the other, but a lot of the times it ends with either a heads or a tails because I am incredibly indecisive.

TO: Is this something you want to do later on?

AB: I’m thinking of either majoring in graphic design or in photography. At the University of Southern California, there’s a lot of internships with big companies, which is an easy way to get a foot in the door, and I might go get a job with ABC or Apple.

—Compiled by Elsa Chu

14

Features

THEORACLE

Senior sculpts Timmy the Titan for new gym Rani Shiao

Forum Editor

After 48 long years, Gunn’s Timmy the Titan is finally getting a makeover.

Senior sculptor Tony Yin recently collaborated with alumni William Wang and Charlie Yang to finalize a small-scale bronze sculpture redesign of Timmy the Titan. The model is slated to be recast into a seven-foot statue that will be erected in the new second gymnasium, which is currently under construction.

Ceramics teacher Erik Bowman first proposed the idea of remaking Timmy the Titan to his Advanced Sculpture class after speaking with Principal Katya Villalobos about the need to take the Titan mascot back to its original Grecian roots. “This statue more accurately portrays the Titan myth,” Bowman said.

“And as you can see from the statue, Tony built a model that wasn’t static; instead, there’s a sense of motion.”

According to Yin, he is happy with the way the statue turned out. “[Wang] and [Yang] started t his project last year around March,” Yin said. “They made the basic model of the sculpture, while I did most of the detailing and refining. This year, I had to change many body proportions because they weren’t to scale, but we’re finally done, and it looks great.”

Bowman cites the model’s ac- Yin said. “After completing this, tive pose as the most impressive they’ll use the patina, which is a feature of the sculpture. “Our goal process that will color the bronze was to create a dynamic, powerful through the use of various chemiicon to represent the admirable cal sprays.” and heroic qualities of Gunn,” The primary challenge of alhe said. ter i ng t he “Unlike sculpture Timmy the into a stat“Our goal was to create a ue Tita n, [t he for t he new statue] dynamic, powerful icon to gymnasium i s n o t a n represent the admirable and l ies i n t he a ma lga madif f icu lt y tion of vari- heroic qualities of Gunn. Un- o f f i n d ous legends. like Timmy the Titan, [the new i n g s u f f i Timmy curcient funds. rently holds statue] is not an amalgama- H o w e v e r , Zeus’ [bolt] tion of various legends.” thanks to and wears a generous Ceramics teacher d o n a t i o n s spartan helErik Bowman f r o m t h e met, neither of which are graduating appropriately attributed to the classes of 2010, 2011 and 2012, true Titan image.” the $30,000 goal necessary for the However, Yin is far from fin- project has been met. “Our major ished with the project. Bronze hurdle was getting the funds, but Works, a Santa Cruz foundry, is now that we’re done with that, it’s the factory that will produce the just a matter of making the real metal casting for the statue. Yin statue,” Bowman said. still needs to create an enlarged Though the official completion 3-D scan of the statue with the date of the sculpture is slated for small model as a reference and the summer of 2013, Yin remains still has to print out a full-sized optimistic about the future plans styrofoam 3-D design. for the statue. “We never thought After this is completed, Wang, about making the statue with Yang and Yin will reunite to bronze before due to the expenses, perfect the final details of the but the school supplied the money sculpture before it is replicated for us a nd encouraged us to in the kiln. “I believe the foundry pursue the project,” he said. “It is planning on casting the base, was like an impossible daydream body, torso, arms, head, hour- before, and now it’s finally coming glass and staff in separate parts,” true so I’m super excited.”

Kyle Zhu

Senior Tony Yin poses with the new model of Timmy the Titan.

Features

Monday, April 16, 2012

15

Internship inspires dedication to society

Wayland Fong

Audey Shen

Top left: Gunn Robotics Team (GRT) advisor Bill Dunbar and the animation team hug after the video showing. Bottom left: Dunbar discusses the outcome of their competition. Right: Dunbar holds his dedication gift from the animations team.

Dunbar leaves post as GRT advisor

tion in Manchester, NH and asked them are run this way, but the concept is very his concern at having a replacement. “I for information. “They sent me a video- important to me personally.” think the biggest thing about Mr. Dunbar tape, because that was back in the day, Another aspect of Dunbar’s ideology leaving is that since 2002 this has been a and I thought that it looked like a good is competition. “I didn’t want to call it a student-run program,” he said. “We make competition,” Dunbar said. “We started class because one of the things I’ve learned the decisions, especially when it comes to building robots just as an after-school club. is that students are highly motivated by spending money and how we utilize our We still had a fairly generic engineering competition,” Dunbar said. “If you go to fundraising, [but] with any new leading class, and after school we’d build robots. a competition and you yell, ‘Go engineerfigure, there’s always going to be differ- Then, I realized that building the robot was ing technology!’, it’s very lame. But, if ences with teachers letting students spend so much fun that it should be part of the you have a team, and you yell ‘Go GRT!’, money and determine what tools we need. class; it shouldn’t be something separate it stops being dopey and it starts being a It’s not easy to let go of that kind of con- that we do after school.” lot more fun. You don’t think you’re gotrol. We’re going to miss that.”

After six years of working with the ing to class because you’re part of a team.

Since Dunbar students, Dunbar We compete against teams that are really was the founder of took a leap of faith awesome, and we rarely win, and I like that the team, the proand pushed for the because when we do win it feels so good.” gram is reflective “I want [GRT] to be a home program to be comThrough GRT, Dunbar wants his stuof his own interpletely student-run, dents to feel competitive. “If we had more ests, personality on campus for students who giving them full con- engineering mentors, and if they weren’t and beliefs. Junior don’t have a home.” trol of their design, held back because I make rules for them, Wyatt Eberspacher budget and leader- such as they can’t touch any tool because Gunn Robotics Team (GRT) ship. “I started work- I want the students to do it all, then we believes that Dunbar’s methodology mentor Bill Dunbar ing with students would perhaps be more efficient as a has helped students on projects before I group, but the students wouldn’t have the mature. “I think his leaving is really regret- came to Gunn, and I always believed that same pride,” Dunbar said. “I want them to table because he’s a great teacher and he students could do a lot more than teachers feel like the competitors, not the profeshelps us a lot, and he characterizes a lot really thought that they could do,” Dun- sional engineers.” of what GRT is,” Eberspacher said. “He bar said. “It was a combination of things Dunbar is also extremely passionate knows what he’s doing, he organizes us that convinced me to make the program about making sure students feel that and he adds a lot of character to the team. student-run. I knew the students could do they matter and are part of something He’s been doing this since the beginning, great things if we just gave them the right important during high school. “I want and a lot of GRT is synonymous with his tools and I got out of the way. Also, there’s this to be a home on campus for students name.” a little bit of me in here. When I was in who don’t have a home,” Dunbar said.

Many agree with Eberspacher and ad- high school, I just “Some students on mire the faith Dunbar puts in the team and built little things in the team are really in his students. “My favorite thing about my dad’s garage, well connected acaMr. Dunbar is the perspective he brings, and nobody knew “He knows what he’s do- demically and are in because he’s been at Gunn for 18 years and and nobody cared. ing, he organizes us and he drama and on sports he’s been with the program since it started And I thought, if But some stuadds a lot of character to the teams. in 1996,” Sutherland said. “He has a lot of there are any students on this team insight, and because he has it, he knows dents like me on team. He’s been doing this are recruited because when to step in and push, or step back campus, they would since the beginning, and a they aren’t well conand let us further develop it on our own.” really like it if they nected. My first year, With Dunbar’s mentorship, the team could build things lot of GRT is synonymous I used to go out to has come a long way since 1996. Back then, and they could work with his name.” the path and find the robotics area was an empty building together.” kids who were smokjunior Wyatt Eberspacher ing out there, and and the team consisted solely of eight allDunbar’s way of male students. Now, the room is home to teaching has brought invite them to be on 54 students, plus mentors, and has one of many different types of students together the robotics team. If all I wanted to do the largest percentages of girls of any coed in one of the most rigorous extracurricular was work with star students, I would just robotics team nationwide. “I started this activities at Gunn. According to many stay in my physics class. I have some really team because I wanted students to work GRT members, his methods are what great students in physics and that’s fine, on big projects,” Dunbar said. “One of the inspire them to work as hard as they do. but I want to work with students who reasons I came to this school is because “My ideology is based on two things,” need to be given a chance and a reason to there were no shop programs, but there Dunbar said. “One of them is ownership. be motivated.” was the potential because the GRT build- It is very important to me to give the kids While Dunbar will be missed by all who ing was empty when I first came.” ownership and responsibility for what they have known him in GRT, the dedication, While working on multiple projects do. I don’t tell them what we’re going to passion and faith he has ingrained into the with the students then, such as Rube do, I meet with certain students each year team will always stay with his students in Goldberg machines and concrete canoes, and we figure out what we’re going to do. their future pursuits even after he leaves Dunbar heard about a robotics competi- It’s not unique, there are other groups that GRT. nDUNBAR from pg. 1

When I was a kid, I thought I could do anything my heart desired. But there came a time when that enthusiasm waned, and I became just another high school student with a jaded view on the world. After getting a job, however, I was able to find a new perspective. A new reality sunk in, where I could see endless possiblities for the future, all because I exposed myself to a different environment that was filled with motivated and professional people.

At the end of sophomore year I decided that, for better or for worse, I needed to find a job. I needed to escape the gloom of my adolescence and invest my time in something worthwhile.

Through a series of fortunate events, I found myself interning for State Senator Joe Simitian.

However, the glory of having a job quickly faded as I faced the reality of how menial the job actually was. I soon found that, as depressing as high school can be at times, work was equally as bad. The difference was that at work, my only friends were Excel documents and fax machines.

Day in and day out, I adapted a cycle of filing, phone calls and more filing.

The whole time working at the office, my only motivation was the belief that somehow, my work was appreciated and the little things I did contributed to a higher cause. As boring as some tasks were, I gradually learned to appreciate the job in its entirety. I started to realize the professional skills and the political experience I would gain from this opportunity. I appreciated the role government has in society and even the rare moments when I spoke with other staff members. Being in a professional environment gave me the privilege of proving my worth each and every day I worked at that office. I truly enjoyed being in the presence of such wonderful people, discussing politics, family life and even the latest episode of “Breaking Bad.” After my internship came to an end, I looked back on the first day I met Senator Simitian. All he said to me was “Hi, I’m Joe. Thank you for your help here at the office,” but I knew from then on that the time I spent at the office was worth it. I may have suffered through tedious tasks every day, but my internship gave me a new outlook on life. I realized that society cannot function without the working class citizens. Every man is making an impact one way or another. The challenge lies in finding how to personally impact society tomorrow. Everyone is given an opportunity to make their mark in history; finding a job may be the first step. Besides the experience you gain from being in the professional environment, you also learn a lot about yourself. You learn about your strengths and weaknesses, areas you would like to improve on and accepting who you are early on in life. In high school, we often live in the day-to-day events that impact us. But when you are working, you see life in a whole new light.

You are no longer confined to the experience from high school, but life experiences you will need in the future.

If you are ever contemplating if having a job is a worthwhile experience, I would encourage you to apply for a job if you have the right motivation at heart. Sure, you can boast about having a job and not being dependent on your parents for pocket money, but what will benefit you in the long run is the experience you gain from it. At the same time, you should know your limitations as a high school student and go in with a positive mindset. Prove to the staff that you deserve to be there and prove to the world that you are ready. ­—Fong, a junior, is a reporter.

Features 16 ELL classes open doors for foreign students THEORACLE

despite being delighted to meet her father, Kambou described her first day at Gunn as overwhelming. “I would say hi to everyone I Each English Language Learning (ELL) met, but people would ignore me,” she said. student has his or her own story, and although Luckily, Kambou was able to make new they have ended up in the same class, their friends, such as Garcia, in her ELL class. journeys are anything but ordinary. Students Garcia also had to leave her family to purfrom across the globe seek an education sue an education in the U.S. “Living with my where social classes, racial barriers and cul- aunt and uncle in the United States started tures are set aside for a common goal: to learn out as difficult, but I was able to adapt,” she English. said. Every night, Garcia calls her parents For instance, many students, including and reminds them of how grateful she is to sophomore Yi Lei Yu, went through a lot of be here. trouble to obtain an American education. Yu Despite not being as fluent in English remembers the long line of people outside the as most Americans, the ELL students are United States embassy in China. “My parents not afraid to dream big. Kambou hopes to wanted me to get an American education, become a lawyer and then a fashion model. because they said that American education Garcia wants to become a doctor to make is the best,” Yu said. In China, according to money and help bring her parents to the Yu, many people talk about the prospect of U.S., while Yu hopes to go back to China so America, but few have the chance. he can stand out from the competition with Coming to America to seek an education his American education. can have an impact on family life. Many For students like Kambou, Garcia and Yu, ELL students, including Yu, have had to enrollment into the ELL program started at make sacrifices and leave family and friends the district office. If a parent states in the back home. Senior Veronica Garcia, an ELL paperwork that a student is from another student from Mexico, had to country or a language other leave both her parents to live than English is spoken at with her uncle and grandhome, then the student is re“Learning a language quired parents here in the U.S. to take the California America’s education has isn’t magic, so you English Development Test proved to be different for need a lot of time (CELDT) to determine if he many students. “The teachor she should be placed in the ers are different,” sopho- to learn a new lan- ELL program or the mainmore Kloranne Kambou, guage.” stream English program. who came from the DemoIf the student is placed —ELL teacher in the ELL program, they cratic Republic of Congo, Rick Jacobs will then be prepared by said. “[Congan teachers] are not very, very nice. If you pay ELL teacher Rick Jacobs for money, you will have a good education; if you a successful transition into the mainstream don’t, sometimes the teacher will not come.” English program, which requires strong Yu also notices differences between U.S. reading and grammar skills. To do this, every schooling and Chinese schooling. “In China, student reads a variety of books in their readschools don’t really care about sports,” Yu ing level, answers comprehension questions said. “They care, but not as much as the U.S.” and participates in class discussions.

While many students come to the U.S. Even though the students are focused on with the main goal of improving their Eng- improving their English, the ELL classes draw lish, others make the trip for family reasons. out the diversity of the cultures the students Kambou came from the Democratic Repub- bring. “Kids talk about their own cultures lic of the Congo in the hope of meeting her and how they are related to the topic in the father for the first time. “For 17 years, I had reading, but they don’t necessarily focus on lived in Congo not knowing a lot about my their native languages,” Jacobs said. father, except that he was making money in To decide when a student is ready to the U.S.,” she said. make the change from ELL to mainstream, Kambou was ecstatic when her dad Jacobs makes sure he or she satisfies a list of decided to bring her to the U.S. However, criteria. When students pass the class, they Wayland Fong & Emily Yao

Reporter & Sports Editor

gain a stamp of language proficiency on their dents from Palo Alto High School (Paly) can transcripts. Their writing skills also need to enroll at Gunn. However, some students stay have improved sufficiently from when they at Paly because of distance. first entered the program.

Jacobs believes that students who need the Students write in a composition book to ELL program struggle without it. Parents who track their progress, as well as writing four live in the Paly boundaries are not required to book reports throughout enroll their children in the the year. They also need to ELL program at Gunn if receive certain scores on they sign a waiver. “Sometwo different standardized “The ELL program has times the parents put their tests. According to Jacobs, helped me a lot with residence ahead of the stustudents need a score at least language learning,” my vocabulary and I’m dent’s a 4 or 5 on the CELDT, which Jacobs said. “What you end evaluates their listening, pretty fluent in English up with is a large group speaking, reading and writ- now.” of students at Paly who ing skills and at least 325 need an English learner on the Standardized Test—freshman program.” ing and Reporting exam in Current ELL students David Stelzer order to graduate from the agree that the program ELL program. has helped improve their English skills. Yuta According to Jacobs, the ELL program Okada believes that he has learned a lot more has been highly successful in giving kids the English at Gunn compared to his previous tools the need to graduate. “Every year, we Japanese school. “When I was learning Enghave a high rate of graduating kids,” Jacobs lish in Japan, we didn’t focus on speaking or said. “However, the rate of students being listening because it was hard to learn, so we re-designated as ‘fluent English proficient’ only focused on writing and reading,” Okada is lower because sometimes students don’t said. “Mr. Jacobs has taught us a lot and he has meet all the criteria to make the transition.” helped me with writing essays. He reads our According to Jacobs, students who fit work and tells us how to improve.” this description are those who enrolled in Freshman David Stelzer from Germany the ELL program later than others. “It’s not agrees with Okada. “The ELL program has possible to come here as an eleventh grader, helped me a lot with my vocabulary and I’m not knowing English, and then [expect] to pretty fluent in English now,” Stelzer said. get all the high school requirements done “When I first came to the United States, it and graduate,” he said. took me a long time to think about the words Despite the high success rate, every year I wanted to say. However, I work hard in class there are parents who believe that their stu- to improve my English.” dent doesn’t belong in the program. “[Parents] of ten think the student w i l l lea rn English more quickly i f t hey a re just dropped into the mainstream program,” Jacobs said.

“However, learning language isn’t magic, so you need a lot of time to learn a new language.”

Because Gunn Michael Wu is the only high Senior Veronica Garcia, freshman David Stelzer and sophomore Yi school in PAUSD Lei Yu smile outside of the English Language Learning classroom. that offers ELL, stu-

Student makes his mark with custom pens Zoe Weisner

News Editor

Junior Patrick Ruehl can make a variety of objects: bottle stoppers, ice cream scoops, bowls and brushes are just a few examples of what he creates. Pen-making, however, is one of Ruehl’s specialties. “I first started making pens in seventh grade at JLS,” Ruehl said.

“I liked the pen project in the Industrial Tech [class] so much that I started coming in before school in eighth grade.”

Ruehl’s obsession with making pens led him to install his own woodshop in his house during freshman year. As he spent more time developing pens, he began to attract interest from those close to him, especially friends. “In the beginning, he started with simple designs, but then the designs started to

become more intricate,” junior Shazer Chaudry said.

As the quality of Ruehl’s pens significantly improved, people interested in buying his products began to contact him. Once an interested buyer contacts him, Ruehl requires his customer to meet with him in person. “This is the best method of selling items of this type,” Ruehl said. “It allows people to see the detail of the pens up close and to write with the pens.”

On average, one pen takes two to four hours to make, depending on the design and material used.

Ruehl starts off by obtaining all of the materials necessary: interior mechanisms, synthetic material

and high-end wood.

When creating the actual pen body, Ruehl cuts the wood on a

Junior Patrick Ruehl bandsaw. He then proceeds to drill a hole, also known as a blank, which is followed by gluing brass tubes into the holes. “After the glue dries, my next step is to ma-

chine the tube flush with the ends of the blank,” Ruehl said. “I accomplish this by putting the blank back on my drill press and creating a counterbore.”

Finally, he shapes his pens on a lathe, which is a machine used to shape wood. “This step involves spinning the blank and carving it to make it round,” Ruehl said.

“After I make it roughly the shape I want it to be, I begin sanding.”

Lastly, Ruehl applies a finish to the pen and uses different methods depending on the material he used.

By making pens, Ruehl has learned valuable skills, especially in marketing. “He’s learned the art of

Courtesy of Patrick Ruehl

business and it’s helped him gain insight on how business works,” Chaudry said.

In particular, Ruehl’s knowledge of setting prices has improved the most. “Many think that the majority of a price comes from material costs,” Ruehl said.

“This is not the case; while material costs contribute significantly to the price of a pen, labor and crafting costs account for the majority.”

Since Ruehl has started making pens, not only has the quality of the pens become more polished, but the prices have as well. The average price for one of his pens ranges from $60 to $90. “Patrick’s handmade pens are used for special ci rcu msta nces,” Chaudry said.

“They completely outclass any other pen.”

Features

Monday, April 16, 2012

Courtesy of Michael Underwood

Courtesy of Shaun Yee

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Courtesy of Michael Ishimoto

Left: Senior Michael Underwood leads scouts in sanding. Middle: A screenshot of senior Shaun Yee’s Leadership Project video. Right: Senior Michael Ishimoto paints benches.

Students finish leadership projects, become Eagle Scouts Yilin Liang

Centerfold Editor

The Boy Scouts of America organization is most commonly associated with the outdoors and building character through community service and learning.

Members start at the lower levels of scouting and increase in rank to eventually become an Eagle Scout.

Before becoming an Eagle Scout, scouts must finish their own Eagle Leadership Project.

Senior Shaun Yee was introduced to scouting in second grade, but became a scout in 2005 when he joined Troop 476. “In second grade, I saw kids at my school wearing cool uniforms and having lots of fun, and it turned out to be exactly that,” he said. For his Eagle Leadership project, Yee filmed a public service announcement for the Boys’ Lacrosse team. “My passion has long remained in the art of storytelling,” he said. “This was a unique opportunity to practice

and utilize the skills I have learned so far in a time crunch.”

The filming for Yee’s project took one week, but he planned the project for a month in advance.

Yee has learned a lot from his time as a scout. “The scout motto “Be Prepared” has helped me through more than a couple situations of high tension and/or risk,” he said.

“It has reminded me to stay focused and determined. I can also extrapolate it to any part of my life.” Yee plans to stay involved with scouting even after high school. “I will be involved in scouting for as long as I can hold myself upright,” he said.

Senior Oliver Johnson started in 2000 as a Cub Scout. “I got involved with my dad in Cub Scouts,” he said. His leadership project was about renovating the bicycle rack area at his church. Johnson first became interested in this project due to the suggestion of his high school youth pastor.

Over the course of a day, he led a group that extended the bicycle

area to create space for more bicycle racks. Johnson attributes many of his skills to his experiences as a scout. “It’s influenced me in knowing how to handle the outdoors a little better,” he said. “I feel safe being out there by myself.” Johnson is still currently involved in and attends meetings for his troop.

Senior Michael Underwood first became familiar with scouting after listening to a friend in a troop.

He decided to join and became a member of Troop 14. For his Eagle Leadership project, Underwood renovated the outside space of the Abilities United building, an organization that benefits people with developmental disabilities. “My brother’s developmentally disabled so I figured I could work at a place that could affect his life,” he said.

For his project, Underwood led a group that replaced the tanbark in the medians of the parking lot, repainted edges of planter box so they would be more visible and revarnished the benches. The project

took a weekend to complete, but Underwood planned a month and a half in advance for it. Besides his work as an Eagle Scout, Underwood was also involved in various leadership roles within the Boy Scouts organization such as being the Senior Patrol Leader for his troop. “More than anything, being an Eagle Scout is about going all the way through with something and having the ability to finish something,” he said. “It’s a big thing to go through all the ranks.”

Senior Michael Ishimoto became involved in Cub Scouts in first grade because his brother had been a scout as well. His Eagle Leadership Project was building the benches near the computer science room on campus. “I saw those benches and they were pretty destroyed, so I asked if I could fix those,” Ishimoto said.

Junior Arjun Dubashi first joined Cub Scouts in second grade with two of his friends. “Those days it was all outings and fun and

games,” he said. “From there, it was a natural progression to Boy Scouts.

Many of my friends continued with Boy Scouts, and others found different interests. It seems unreal to have finished my Eagle Project.”

For his Leadership Project, Dubashi led a group that built three benches, a tree well and trellises for the Terman Middle School Art Room. “I wanted to help the community of Palo Alto, and I wanted to help the school that I had gone to,” he said. “The Terman Art Room has an outdoor space where students can hang out but it was a mess and there was no place for them to sit. Now they have a place to sit and eat lunch.”

Dubashi hopes to be involved in Eagle Scouts for as long as possible. “An Eagle Scout means many things,” he said. “It means being reliable and dependable and someone you can count on. But it also means being able to have fun and enjoy excursions and activities like hiking and cooking.”

Registrar trains dogs for agility trials

Although Smudgie would go on to win many more ribbons, his agility career came to an end in 2001 when Douglas decided that Smudgie was getting too old to compete. After Dogs are considered man’s best friend for a reason—they Smudgie passed away, Douglas decided to train another are loyal and provide unconditional love. In return, owners Australian Sheppard, Lucy. This time, Douglas was able to spend quality time with their pets, such as taking them out use some of the techniques that she learned from training on a stroll through the park or giving them a tummy rub. Smudgie to keep Lucy motivated.

However, Registrar Tracy Douglas participates in agility Though Douglas has not participated in a trial since 2001, training with her dog, an activity that requires dogs to com- she still hopes to grow as a handler. Main Office Secretary plete a specified obstacle course within a Martha Elderon, who shares Douglas’s certain time limit. love of dogs, has attended several agilDouglas’s interest in agility training ity training lessons alongside Douglas. began in 1997, when she vacationed with She notices Douglas’s desire to improve. her family to Hollister. While the rest of “Douglas often observes how the dog and her family was dirt biking, Douglas’ love owner interact [during dog agility races] of dogs brought her to a dog show, where so she can learn some tips,” Elderon said. she saw her first agility trial. When she saw Currently, Douglas and Lucy attend owners and their dogs run through the weekly agility training classes to improve obstacle courses, she knew that the sport Douglas’s handling skills. Although would be suitable for her and her AustraRegistrar Tracy Douglas Douglas has competed in many agility lian Sheppard, Smudgie. “It just looked competitions with her former dog, Smudlike so much fun,” Douglas said. “I could tell that there was gie, she is unsure as to whether she wants to do the same with so much joy in the ring for both the handlers and the dogs.” Lucy as Douglas found it nerve-wrecking. “Because we were Shortly after returning from her trip, Douglas enrolled in beginners, we had to show up early morning to sign up, but agility training classes in Los Altos with Smudgie. competed in the afternoon,” Douglas said. “There was a lot Although Smudgie was already obedient and disciplined of tension building up throughout the day as we waited for at the time, Douglas still found it hard to communicate with our turn but our turn finally came, those few minutes that him. “My biggest difficulty was staying upbeat and encourag- I spent in the ring were an incredible thrill. The jury is still ing him,” she said. “It is not intuitive for a beginner dog to out on whether I will compete with Lucy.” know how to navigate agility obstacles, and if you have a sensitive dog and show any kind of disappointment in his ability, your dog can shut down.”

Despite these difficulties, Douglas enjoys the activity as it allows her to bond and spend time with her dog in a way that no one else in her family can. “I admit it can be very frustrating at times, but the friendship and bonding that result from us doing agility together is a wonderful thing,” she said. Fortunately, all of Douglas’ hard work and perseverance paid off in 1999, when Smudgie received first place at the Cal-State Hayward Dog Agility Trial.

Eileen Qian

Sports Editor

Courtesy of Tracy Douglas

Top: Smudgie, Douglas’ first dog, jumps over a fence.

Bottom: Smudgie leaps through a hoop during a trial.

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Center

Tw o t sh a r e a ch m e e rs e m p ro fro o m m r i sc h o their e s ol hig h da ys .

Huizing p oses wit h her d ate and friends before prom.

Jordan Huizing The best moments of my prom were not captured in the twopage spread in my senior yearbook or any of the dozens of pictures my parents took. If my prom experience was given the Hollywood treatment, I would not even recognize it. Sure, I would remember dancing, posing for pictures and the girl who broke up with her boyfriend, but all of my favorite moments would have ended up on the cutting room floor. Here are the best of the deleted scenes: The Awkward Asking—It was not the show of a Gunn prom request. There was no music or flowers, just an awkward moment after English class. Evan Millar was the smartest and funniest guy in my calculus class. I had known I wanted to go to prom with him for a month but had not worked up the nerve to ask him. One day after English, he waited as I gathered my things.

“Hey Jordan,” he mumbled.

“Yeah?” I responded.

“Youwannagotopromwithme?” It took a minute to understand he was asking me out. During the seconds I hesitated trying to discern his question, his eyebrows raised steadily until they were lost behind his curly hair.

“Yes. That sounds great,” I beamed. He smiled back. Silence. Just the two of us grinning at each other like idiots until the late bell rang and we sped off to our next class.

The Dress—As a teen, I never liked shopping at the mall for clothes. Nothing in the stores seemed to fit my style or budget. I felt more comfortable rifling through secondhand stores for five dollar boots than trying on silk and sequins. However, even I was excited

to find my prom dress.

At first nothing worked; it was all too typical. Flared pink skirts.

Silver sparkles. Nothing felt like me. After hours of searching, I finally found it: a watercolor print of blues and greens. The best part was that it had a train. In my mind I looked like an actress on the Oscar red carpet and Joan Rivers was excitedly proclaiming that I was best dressed. The reality of the train was less starlet and more comic relief as all night, people kept stepping on it and I would suddenly jerk to a halt in the middle of a dance move.

Pre-Prom Prep—A pair of problematic hairdos. Despite the fact that we were is in the late 90s, not 80s, my friend Lauren and I both had the same hair problem: our hairdos were too big. In order to get the luscious curls I always wanted, I used Perm-for-a-Day curlers.

The result was exactly what I wanted: giant curly hair. Unfortunately all that hair kept falling in my face. Lauren’s issue was all to do with height. In flats, she towered over her date by four inches. Tonight, the height difference was even more apparent because of her heels and towering updo. “He is just going to have to deal,” she muttered as she secured the last bobby pin.

Late Night Laughter—We were exhausted but could not sleep.

Instead, we relived the night over and over again.

“I can’t believe Carol wore that dress.”

“And Rachel was Prom Queen!”

“Did you see Jenn and Chris? She said she was over him.”

“That was so much fun.”

“My feet hurt.”

“The look on Sean’s face . . .”

“I’m never going to forget this.”

All the scraps not glamorous enough for the films are the parts that really shine years later. I don’t remember the theme, what I had for dinner or even the music we danced to, and furthermore I don’t need to. My director’s cut of prom is far superior.

—Huizing, an English teacher, is a guest writer.

Our group started as si around, we were down to th that he was invited to Los An meant that the best-lookin a model for years, was sudd receptive to my semi-joke th of honor to take his date wi Peter and Alex had caved the main group. Their dat about how they were allerg when this group got togeth ing about pro sports. (This hosting responsibilities for Tiffany and Francesca w them wrong. We didn’t tal Dan’s chances of making th conversations that riveting amount of bread we ate, or taurant was, a restaurant Pe But it would get worse.

Our dates were in the la quickly scanned our wallet we did not have enough mo pecially embarrassing given had all ordered burgers, pre Now, we had been in a had decided to go to the Cla Parties Under One Roof!”

Prom ga

Klaire

Repor

There’s no doubt about America, prom is big. Med importance of prom into students and prom continu high school bucket list. For has practically become a r outside America, this tradi event for upperclassmen is there is rarely as much hy Because of this, prom c for nonnative students in

rfold

Monday, April 16, 2012

Mark Hernandez

ix couples, but by the time prom night rolled hree couples. Dan found out at the last minute ngeles for a tryout with the Cubs. His departure ng girl in the school, who had been working as denly dateless. (For her part, my date was not hat as Dan’s best friend, I was obligated as a man ith us.) ed into their dates’ demands that they split from tes had the courtesy of making up some story gic to seafood, but we all knew the real reason: her, we’d end up spending the whole night talkfear was not unreasonable: the six of us rotated nightly viewings of the 11:00 Sportscenter.) weren’t there to see it, but we would have proved lk just about pro sports. We also talked about he bigs. Shockingly, our dates did not find these g, nor were they especially impressed with the our complaining about how expensive the reseter—who, remember, had since bailed—chose.

adies’ room when the check arrived. After we ts, we conferred and discovered the impossible: oney to pay for dinner. This deficiency was esn the fact that at a fancy seafood place, the boys ecisely to avoid this predicament. mess like this before. On New Year’s Eve, we aremont Hotel, whose marquee promised “Five So we showed up and said, “Yes, we’re here for

19

the five parties under one roof.” And this woman behind a registration desk said, “Wonderful. Welcome. That’ll be $75 each, and of course we’ll need to see some ID.” Impossibly, we were dumbfounded at the idea that one, someone would charge for a New Year’s Eve party (or five), and two, that we would need to present ID to prove we were of drinking age. Penniless and ID-less, we were in tight spot. But I took control and played it cool. I said, “Certainly. We’ll just go get both from our mom; she’s waiting in the car.”

Take a second and think about how stupid that sounds.

But this time, we would try a variation and it would work. Matt called his mom, who came by the restaurant; he excused himself to the restroom and met her at the entrance. Elias and I ran some interference and covered for him. Problem solved. Our dates were none the wiser. For the moment, we maintained some dignity.

That wouldn’t last long. Because we were so late to the dance, our dates insisted we get pictures right away. We assented, but then made some more ill-advised decisions. Specifically, in the group photo, we boys decided that under no circumstances would we sell out by smiling. Of course, the girls didn’t know of this plot until later, but when they found out, they, again, were not impressed. To this point, our failures were collective. But the last, perhaps most spectacular, failure, was all my own.

Instead of enjoying our last major dance together, Jodie (my longtime girlfriend) and I annoyed each other to no end. After one particularly petty argument, we stepped outside for some fresh air and agreed to have as much fun as possible in the last hour of the dance. We headed back to the dance floor.

Within moments, I began dancing like a maniac, like, as the song goes, “MC Hammer on crack.” Without regard for social conventions, rhythm or Jodie’s feelings, I began kicking and flailing. (The next day, I would hear rumors that I was slobbering drunk at the time—untrue.) It was a few moments before I realized that a circle had formed around me. It took a few more to notice that Jodie had started walking off the dance floor, humiliated.

I spent the rest of the dance apologizing to her.

Jodie and I broke up a month later. I can’t say that it was because of what happened prom night, but I’m pretty sure it didn’t help.

—Hernandez, an English teacher, is a guest writer.

Hernandez smiles for the camera.

arners much attention in America, but not in other countries

e Tan

rter

t it. For teenagers across dia has long ago drilled the the heads of high school ues to remain high on the r students, the celebration rite of passage. However, ition of holding a black-tie s seldom found and if so, pe as in America. can be an exciting event n America. For instance,

sophomore Kloran Kanbou is looking forward to prom next spring as her school in native Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) didn’t hold dances of any kind. Taiwanese junior Vivian Lee is anticipating the event as well. Like the schools in the DRC, the bulk of schools in Asia don’t hold prom or dances.

According to Lee, students instead organize an annual field trip at the end of their junior year, which is the closest thing to prom for schools in Asia.

However, according to freshman David Stelzer, prom is not a new experience for students in his native country of Germany. The reputation of prom in Germany differs greatly from prom in America as the event is taken much less seriously in Germany.

All of Stelzer’s friends who have attended prom describe it to be a less than impressive experience.

“My friends in Germany all say that prom sucks,” he said. “The music and decorations are all really old-fashioned and prom is held in the school gym.”

However, he plans to attend prom here as a junior due to the hype that surrounds prom in America.

“Compared to Germany, prom here is supposed to be very big,” Stelzer said. “Everybody wants to go, and people all talk about it.”

According to Student Activites Director Lisa Hall, this hype surrounding prom is well-deserved because much more effort and planning goes into prom. The venue is booked a year in advance and preparation includes catering, transportation and entertainment. For senior Madeline Dray, all the extra effort that was put into prom paid off, as her junior prom experience was one to remember.

“Prom was a million times better than any other of the dances,” Dray said. “For prom, you actually leave Gunn and go somewhere new. It isn’t just meeting up in the quad, but something actually special.”

Though most students are looking forward to

prom, whether or not the practice of holding such an event should be incorporated by other countries and adopted as a tradition is still a matter of debate.

Klanbou and Stelzer give their full support to having schools worldwide hold social events like prom and Stelzer believes that prom in Germany could be a lot more fun if it were held like those in America.

Hall, on the other hand, believes that prom might not fit in everywhere. While she supports prom as an American high school tradition, she believes that the practice could be incongruous with other cultures. “Although a fun event for our students, prom is not necessarily something that is valued by every country,” she said.

Nonetheless, prom is an important aspect of our culture. For U.S. students, prom is one of the last glorious hurrahs of high school. “There’s a tradition here,” Hall said. “Prom is a rite of passage in the U.S. It gives students something to look forward to.”

Photos courtesy of Mark Hernandez and Jordan Huizing Graphics by George Hwang, Lisa Wu and Alvina Yau

20

THEORACLE

Features

Sports

Monday, April 16, 2012

21

Talented Gunn athletes rank in Nationals Erica Lee

Reporter

Christine Yang

Among the general population, badminton is seen as a recreational sport. However, for the athletes who seriously train for the sport, there is much more that goes into mastering the sport, both mentally and physically. Freshman Christine Yang, who is a nationally ranked badminton player, understands this and has received recognition for her skills in competitions such as the Pan Am Junior Badminton Championships in 2011, where she won first place for girls’ singles.

To improve her techniques, Yang trains at the California Badminton Academy in Fremont for six days a week.

Yang’s coach Bob Malaythong believes that Yang is a good role model for other players. “She is a student of the game, which I think other badminton players should try to achieve [in order] to understand the game and how it is supposed to be played,” Malaythong said.

To attain awards of such high prestige, Yang undergoes a lot of training. “It takes a lot of energy away,” Yang said.

“It is not only physically tiring, but also mentally tiring. A lot of people would not agree with that because they have not experienced it, and they think it’s a backyard sport.”

Strategies are also crucial because all of Yang’s opponents are talented. During tournaments, Yang uses intimidation and maintains a poker face to look confident in her abilities.

Courtesy of Christine Yang According to Yang, being in the limelight of the badFreshman Christine Yang prepares to smash the birdie. minton world is not always as incredible as it seems. Once a Jean Wang News Editor

Rebecca Vincent

To most people, rock climbing is a recreational sport reserved for occasional excursions to the gym, but to sophomore Rebecca Vincent, who is nationally ranked in bouldering, a type of rock climbing, it is an intense sport that requires a precise combination of strength, control and concentration. “Bouldering is both a physical and mental challenge,” Vincent’s coach Isaac Williams wrote in an email. “It requires excellent problem solving skills and the ability to think out of the box.”

Competitive rock climbing has two distinct seasons involving two different styles of rock climbing, with bouldering in the fall and sport climbing in the spring.

Bouldering, in which Vincent recently competed nationally, involves short climbs over a mat with no ropes or harnesses. Competitors are given a chance to complete an unfamiliar climb in four minutes, with points awarded based on how far they have climbed in that time. The main challenge is that competitors are not allowed to look at the climb before they attempt it for their first time. “It’s really helped me focus on things because you’re faced with a climb you have to do on your first try,” she said. “If you’re distracted, you’re not going to get very far.”

Vincent was first introduced to rock climbing when she was only six. She joined Twisters when she was nine

after attending team practices on Friday as the regular classes overlapped with gymnastics. After Twisters closed in December 2010, she joined Planet Granite. While Vincent’s background in gymnastics helped her start out strong in rock climbing, it was her work ethic that led her to obtain the level of achievement she has reached today.

“I think Rebecca owes her success to continuing to work when others fall by the wayside,” Williams wrote. “She maintains consistent attendance and always tries hard at whatever she does.” This level of commitment led Vincent to practice three hours a day, four days a week, in preparation for Bouldering Nationals earlier this year.

At Nationals, a custom-built wall is set up in a theaterlike format for spectators to watch. “Bouldering Nationals is very stressful for competitors,” Williams wrote. “Competitors show up at isolation very early in the morning, they sit in isolation for hours, and then all at once, it is their turn to go out and sit with their backs turned away from their climbs.” The first day of the competition involved four climbs with four minute rests in between.

Vincent placed 17th, ensuring her a spot in the next day’s round, where she placed 13th, just barely missing the cutoff for finals.

Vincent is currently practicing for the upcoming sport climbing season, which involves a rope and longer climbs. “I felt like I could have done better at the [National] competition,” Vincent said. “So this year for sport climbing, I will.”

Aaron Ong

Reporter

Courtesy of Aaron Ong

Courtesy of Rebecca Vincent

Sophomore Rebecca Vincent climbs up and aims for the peak.

Catalina Zhao

Sophomore Aaron Ong concentrates on attacking his opponent.

player reaches the top, there is pressure to stay there. “Even if they are your best friends, everyone wants to take you down,” Yang said.” Due to her busy schedule, Yang finds it hard to spend time with her friends outside of school. “I really don’t have a social life,” Yang said. “I mean I have a lot of friends here, but a lot of the times I feel out of the circle since I can’t go hang out because I have practice.”

Even with all the stress, Yang still enjoys the sport. “The best moment is when you play someone a lot better than you, and at first they don’t think highly of you and then they realize that you’re good,” Yang said. “The best feeling is when you win a game no one expects you to win and you cry out of happiness.” On the sidelines, her parents and coaches act as moral support. “My two coaches are probably my best friends,” Yang said. “[My coaches] know, because they have experienced the same things when they were younger and know the pressure when they were in Nationals.”

The sacrifices that Yang has made for badminton have earned her respect. “Christine is an extremely hard worker.”

Yang’s other coach Raju Rai said. “Not only does she put in the time and effort, the knowledge she has of the game is extraordinary especially at her age. She aims to be the best and to perfect her craft. Hopefully one day she will be one of the top players in the world.”

While badminton has taught Yang discipline and perseverance, most importantly, Yang has been able to learn about herself. “I really like [badminton] a lot because it has developed my personality a lot because I understand how I play and how I deal with myself,” she said.

Mask on, foil in hand. His eyes analyze his opponent’s every move and his mind calculates his next step. His feet carry him nimbly around the narrow arena strip. He lunges forward and hits his target’s upper torso. Success!

Three years ago, sophomore Aaron Ong, now a nationally ranked fencer, began fencing for fun. “As a kid, I really liked sword fighting, and fencing is the closest thing you can get to that,” he said. After joining a fencing outreach program at Terman Middle School, Ong began taking lessons at the Cardinal Club and later moved to his current club, Silicon Valley Fencing Center.

Since then, Ong has competed for almost two years at about 30 different tournaments, such as the 2011 Summer Nationals. He attends both national and local competitions in the U-16 and U-19 age divisions, and the E rank division, which is the fourth out of five classifications given by the United States Fencing Association (USFA) for performance and experience. According to Ong, the highlight of his career so far has been placing 17th out of 100 at his most recent tournament, the North American Cup. “There were fencers from all over North America, like Mexico and Canada, and that was my best performance,” he said.

To improve, Ong looks to other fencers as his role models. “There are many Olympic caliber fencers in the Bay Area and I respect all of them,” he said. “They’re great

fencers. I can learn a lot by watching their technique.”

In order to maintain his skill and physique, Ong dedicates his time to fencing, training and working on technique. “Aaron is very focused and works hard toward his goal,” Ong’s coach Aleksei Murugin said. Ong’s training consists of conditioning, footwork, drills with the foil and practice with others. “It takes up a lot of his time and he’s always really busy,” sophomore Andrew Chan, one of Ong’s friends, said. “But fencing helps his confidence and perseverance, so it’s worth it.”

According to Ong, the most rewarding part of fencing is the growth that the sport has brought him. “It’s given me something I look forward to,” Ong said. “It’s a way to exercise, make bonds [and it] allows you to discover things about yourself and develop your personality.” Now he is more confident, is able to analyze situations more deeply and has made friends from all age levels.

Ong hopes to fence in college and continue getting better to reach an A rank, the highest USFA classification.

“There’s a lot of room to improve,” he said. “Overall, I need to get better at my technique and my speed.”

Although the sport has many benefits, his favorite aspect is fencing opponents. “The best part is when you’re in a bout,” he said. “You’re really into it, you’re focused and you’re only thinking about fencing.” In addition, he enjoys the sport’s nature, which motivates him to continue. “I like that it’s not just a physical sport,” Ong said.

“There’s a lot of strategy behind it and you have to prep yourself mentally.”

22

Sports

THEORACLE

College-bound athletes commit to schools, look Every year, students excel in athletics while simultaneously juggling academics. These students are specially recruited by colleges, fueled by the colleges’ interests in adding student athletes to their own teams and their desire to recognize and appreciate the abnormally heavy burden shouldered by students participating in sports and academics. This year, Gunn continues to uphold its standard of excellence by sending its highly talented athletes to a variety of stellar universities.

Rachel Acker: Swimming

Senior Rachel Acker has been swimming since she was seven years old, but did not begin to seriously pursue the sport until high school.

As a freshman, she began swimming for her club team, Palo Alto Stanford Aquatics (PASA) and since then, Acker has gone on to earn many accolades for her swimming.

According to Acker, after she attended the Winter Junior Nationals for swimming during her junior year, many coaches from various colleges contacted her. “The recruiting process was really enjoyable,” she said. “Each college team and college coach is different, so there is a lot to think about and weigh.”

In the end, Acker decided to pick the University of California, Berkeley. “I picked Berkeley mainly for the people,” she said. “I

absolutely love the coaches and the team. I finally decided that I wanted to swim at the highest level I could, and Berkeley is now the number one school in the country. I [also] wanted to be surrounded by not only students who share my drive and my passion for swimming, but who are also focused on academics. I think Berkeley balances the two very well.”

Acker is most looking forward to swimming relays at Berkeley.

“Club swimming is a team, but at the end of the day it is really an individual sport,” she said. “High school swimming is definitely more of a team sport, but college swimming is much more intense.”

After college, Acker may continue to pursue swimming. “The 2016 Olympic Trials are in June right after I graduate, so I am definitely hoping to qualify again and stay during the summer to train for that meet, but I am still not sure whether or not I will keep training at such a competitive level after that,” she said. “At some level, I am sure I will always keep swimming and dancing, too, in my life as activities to stay healthy.”

—Yilin Liang

Julia Ama: Swimming

Senior Julia Ama has been winning all over the world as a competitive swimmer. She started competing at age nine and has been honing her talent and techniques since then with her club team PASA, so it comes as no surprise that several coaches from highly ranked United States college swim teams have been vying for her swimming talents.

When considering the recruitment process, Ama looked for many elements that would cultivate the ultimate college experi-

Elizabeth Anderson: Water Polo

Senior Elizabeth Anderson decided to attend Santa Clara University (SCU) for water polo, a decision that resulted from a long recruitment process.

Anderson’s water polo career, which started in May 2007 and spans almost six years, began because of her two older sisters’ involvement in the sport. Now she plays for the Gunn water polo team, the Stanford Water Polo Club, the Youth National Training Team and the Olympic Development Program. Her versatility and talent have won her numerous awards, ranging from Most Valuable Player to Santa Clara Valley Athletic League “Player of the Year.”

ence for her as a student as well as an athlete. “Athletics-wise, I am looking forward to a new team and experience,” she said. “College swimming is definitely different from club swimming, but that’s the exciting part.”

In early fall of 2011, Ama decided to commit to Stanford University. “[Stanford] is obviously known as a great school,” she said. “But I didn’t choose it just for the reputation but rather because I think it best suited me. There were definitely a variety of reasons that came into play, but mainly [it was] because Stanford has a great balance of stellar academics and athletics.” As of now, she is currently training to compete in the 2016 Olympics, and will be attending Olympic trials for Brazil later this year.

—Annie Tran

Signing the National Letter of Intent and committing to SCU was an extremely tough decision for Anderson. “I had a lot of great options,” she said. “It took a lot of pros and cons lists for me to realize that Santa Clara was the right school for me.” The main reason for her conclusion was the university’s lifestyle and team. “Santa Clara offers the perfect balance of academics, athletics, and social life,” she said.

“I love the team, and it was easy to envision myself there next year.”

Above all, Anderson credits her dream of playing water polo in college as a key contributor in her decision. “It helps me stay motivated and drives me to work hard and improve every day,” she said.

After all her hard work, Anderson looks forward to her future collegiate career. “I’m excited to play with the Santa Clara team at a high level and improve to be the best player I can be,” she said.

—Catalina Zhao

Paul Blanchette: Soccer

Senior Paul Blanchette has signed with Loyola Marymount University for soccer. “[The] location, coaches, size of the school and the style of learning [at Loyola was better for me],” Blanchette said.

Blanchette considered all aspects of the school before finalizing his decision, but his connection with the Loyola coaches played a large part in choosing

his college. “I really got along with the coaches and the other players [at Loyola’s soccer team], and that was important to me,”

Blanchette said. His admission to Loyola was finalized on Feb. 1.

Blanchette started playing soccer when he was a toddler, but his passion and commitment to playing soccer professionally emerged at the age of 13. Soccer is one of Blanchette’s top issues of importance. “Since I love soccer, it makes it easy for it to be one of my top priorities along with my family, friends and education,” Blanchette said.

Blanchette hopes to play soccer professionally in the future and eventually become a coach. Blanchette is excited to set himself in a new atmosphere and balance college along with professional soccer. “I love the sport and the life that comes with it,” Blanchette said.

—Wonhee Park

Sports

Monday, April 16, 2012

23

forward to playing at new levels of competition Allison Doerpinghaus: Volleyball

Senior Allison Doerpinghaus committed to Eastern Washington University (EWU) for volleyball last April, after turning down offers from University of Portland and South Dakota University. “Of course getting a good education was number one on my list, but my other ‘number one’ was school spirit, which they seem to have a lot of,” Doerpinghaus said. “All of the sport teams really support the others sports as well.” She verbally committed to EWU, but her spot on the team was finalized on Nov. 9, National Letter of Intent Day. Although she started playing volleyball because people said her

above-average height would be advantageous, Doerpinghaus became more passionate when she found that volleyball stresses both the individual and the team. “The camaraderie and the bond you form with your teammates is unlike anything else,” she said.

After college, Doerphingaus plans to coach volleyball to inspire other athletes to achieve their volleyball goals after college. “I’ve had a few coaches in the past that have really gotten me excited about the possibility of coaching, and now I know that it’s something I most definitely want to do,” Doerpinghaus said.

Despite the challenges ahead, Doerpinghaus knows that she will be sucessful. “I realize that I have a lot of work to do to play competitively at the next level, but I’m looking forward to the challenge and believe I can definitely help my team both on and off the court prepare to succeed,” she said.

—Rebecca Alger

Laura Hayward: Soccer Senior Laura Hayward has committed to Claremont McKenna College for soccer. She chose this school because of its academics, location and strong soccer team.

Having played soccer competitively since kindergarten and participated in a California Youth Soccer Association team since fourth grade, Hayward loves the aggressiveness and physical talent soccer requires and is looking forward to utilizing these components after high school. “I also love the fact that [soccer] is a team sport and that it’s a team’s chemistry that makes a winning team,” Hayward wrote in an email. “Some of my longest friendships have come

Cat Perez: Basketball Perhaps one of the most important questions for every serious athlete is to ask herself whether or not she sees herself playing the sport in the future.

For senior Cat Perez, the answer was an easy yes, so for the upcoming year, Perez has committed to playing basketball for Seattle University.

This decision was made after extensive travel and communication with coaches from different schools. “If I got a call from a coach, we would talk anywhere from five minutes to an hour just about me and my life,” Perez said. “ If the relationship kept building, they could have me either talk to their head coach, or they

—Misheel Enkhbat

You may know him specifically as Harvard, but read between the lines and you may find his actual name, Keenan Venuti. Although Venuti is great at both football and basketball, he chose to chase his dream of playing football at Harvard University. Keenan has been playing since his sophomore year, when his coach gave him the inspiration to play after high school. “My coach told me I had the potential to play Division I football,” Venuti said, “and that if I worked hard, I would be in a good position.”

Since he began playing, Venuti has developed an intense pas-

Having played baseball since age three, senior Jake Verhulp has been given the opportunity to continue his passion for baseball. Verhulp was scouted

by Xavier University and Bellarmine University (BU), and has chosen to play for BU. Though the baseball team at Xavier is in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), Verhulp chose BU, a college in Division II of the NCAA. “Xavier was a great [Division I] opportunity, but in the end, I went with Bellarmine because they were offering me more scholarship money, I liked the campus a little better [and] I really liked the head coach,” Verhulp said. “I’m really

—Yan Jia

would invite me for an official visit. You are only allowed to take five official visits.” In the end, Perez narrowed down her choices to University of New Mexico and Seattle University.

Although the process of committing to a college can be tiresome for both the athlete and her family, “my parents and friends are very supportive,” Perez said. “I think that everyone is glad that the whole process is done. I missed a lot of time hanging out with my friends during the first few months of school because I would be gone weekend after weekend. And when I got back, I would be overloaded with stress from all the homework piling up.”

However, in the end, Perez is glad that she accomplished her goals. “It was stressful at times, but I am glad to say that I went through it,” she said. “It does feel good to accomplish a goal that I have had since I was about 5 years old.”

Keenan Venuti: Football

Jake Verhulp: Baseball

from my soccer teams.”

Going into college, Hayward hopes to contribute to the defense of her future team. “I most likely will start as an outside back, but hopefully by senior year I will become a middle defender,” Hayward wrote. “As a middle defender, I hope to become a leader on the team.” She also looks forward to meeting new people and getting to know a different place. “Hopefully, I will continue to love school even more through college,” Hayward wrote.

Although she is uncertain of plans for after college, Hayward hopes that going to college will help her decide her future. “I most likely will find a career that involves children and most likely I will go to graduate school,” Hayward wrote. “I do not plan on becoming a professional player, but it would be fun to play in intramural leagues after college.”

sion for the game. “I love the competitive nature and physicality of the sport,” Venuti said. “I have also found football to be an emotional and physical release from anxiety and anger.”

When Venuti began the recruiting process, he didn’t receive letters just from Harvard’s Crimson Tide. “My first offer was to the Air Force as their defensive end,” Venuti said. “I went to five football camps last summer, and after Harvard’s camp, I received an offer from them.” After making the tough choice of attending Harvard, Venuti committed to playing his hardest this upcoming fall. “When attending Harvard I will try my hardest to make the varsity team,” Venuti said. After college, Venuti will keep playing in whatever way he can. “It would be a dream to play football in the National Football League, and I will try my hardest to attain that dream,” Venuti said.

—Mitch Donat

excited to play for Coach Tyner because he is a really great baseball guy. And since I’m on scholarship, it’s like I’m being paid to have all of these opportunities.”

Verhulp is looking forward to his time at BU. “When I went on my recruiting trip to the campus, the campus felt right and the thought of spending four years playing baseball there made me happy,” he said.

According to Verhulp, playing on the BU team has another benefit. “I have an opportunity to potentially start in the outfield as a freshman and get more playing time earlier in my college career,” he said. “Bellarmine is very good Division II team, so I [could] play in the Division II College World Series, which is really exciting.

If we made it to the [Division II] World Series, I would be playing in front of thousands of people in Cary, North Carolina, and who wouldn’t want that?”

—Lydia Zhang

Graphics by Alvina Yau Photos by Wendy Qiu

24

Sports

THEORACLE

HOW WELL DO ATHLETES

The Oracle investigates how well varsity athletes can correctly answer a series of questions

Michael Xiong (10)

Badminton

Marc Tsukakoshi

What is your favorite punishment?

Conditioning

Peanut butter and preserved cherry sandwich

What is your favorite snack?

Fruits

Monta Vista

What is your favorite school team to play against?

Monta Vista

Shang from “Mulan”

Which Disney character best describes your life?

Scar from “The Lion King”

Conditioning

Ben Sampson (11)

Baseball

John Harney

He plays in an old man softball league

What is your most obvious secret?

I have two Titanium knees

“Snow White”

Which Disney movie best describes your life?

“Lady and the Tramp”

People

What is something you can’t live without?

My morning hot tub

I bet he’s a sick DJ

What is your hidden talent?

I’m a great gardener

Miko Mallari (11)

Diving

Brien Arakaki

We don’t get disciplined

What is your favorite punishment?

I’ve never had to implement a punishment

He’s bald

What is your most obvious secret?

I’m Asian and a perfectionist

“Toy Story”

What Disney movie best describes your life?

“101 Dalmatians “ because it’s so crazy

His phone

What is something you can’t live without?

Probably my cell phone

Sports

Monday, April 16, 2012

25

KNOW THEIR COACHES? about their coach. If the student’s answer is in a gray box, it indicates a correct response.

Golf Chris Redfield

Avinash Sharma (11) He can dunk

What is your most obvious secret?

I like wearing khaki pants

Grade math tests/quizzes

What is your favorite thing to do on the weekend?

Play golf

Paly

What is your favorite team to beat?

Who else? Paly

Sports

What is one thing that you can’t live without?

A good newspaper

Girls’ Lacrosse

Maddie Sabbag (12)

Doug Arakawa

When people don’t try

What is your biggest pet peeve?

Being late to practice

Work out

What is your favorite thing to do on Friday nights?

Play golf and work out

He’s really good at singing

What is your hidden talent?

I play the flute

His daughter

What is one thing that you can’t live without?

Skylar, my daughter

A lv ina Yau

Chrystal Chern (12)

Gymnastics

Michaela Guillory

Double back flips

What is your hidden talent?

I can dislocate my shoulders

She is a Justin Bieber fan

What is your most obvious secret?

I used to be a gymnast

“The Incredibles”

Which Disney movie best describes your life?

“The Incredibles”

Long, hard, conditioning

What is your favorite punishment?

Cardio-based conditioning

26

Sports

THEORACLE

Spring athletes participate in various competitions,

Kyle Zhu

Wendy Qiu

Courtesy of Nicole Jacobsen

Senior Derek Lai lunges toward the shuttlecock.

Junior Kevin Sharp keeps his eye on the baseball.

Senior Claire Collins slides into home plate to score.

Badminton

Baseball

Softball

After an impressive 10-2 record and a second place finish in the 2011 Santa Clara Valley Athletics League (SCVAL) De Anza division, the badminton team is working hard to achieve last year’s standings. This year the varsity team is focused on rebuilding, as it lost 18 of 24 players from last year. “Although we have a few strong freshmen, it’s difficult to fill the gap because six of the 18 seniors last year were Central Coast Section (CCS) champions,” junior Koji Habu said. “We’re still doing our best, and we may pull off something yet.”

In order to adapt to the team’s inexperience, head coach Marc Tsukakoshi has largely shifted the focus of tryouts and practice sessions. “I’ve changed my philosophy on our tryout process,” Tsukakoshi said.

“Skills based tests benefit the short term. We opened the doors to a spectrum of committed athletes we may not have considered in the past.”

According to Habu, the badminton team’s strength is the intensity of the workouts. “During a close match, our athletes love to tire out their opponents, causing them to make errors,” he said. The team is famous for its various physical training regiments, and a typical practice usually consists of a series of footwork exercises. “Rather than have all events stick to a single drill, I am able to micromanage a collective of a groups to focus on something more relevant,” Tsukakoshi said.

—Rani Shiao

This season, the boys’ baseball team has an overall record of 11-5 and 6-2 in league play. With this record, the team is aiming to make CCS, a feat which has not been achieved by the team in many years. The team claims that their success is partially due to their desire to win. “Something that motivates us is senior Graham Fisher’s motivational speeches,” senior Charlie Smith said. However, junior Chris Rea believes that the team can greatly improve by following through on basic plays. “We need to make the ordinary plays so that we do not put ourselves in a hole that we have to fight back out of,” Rea said. In addition, according to head coach John Harney, the team’s pitching performance has been through the roof and its offense is strong.

According to Smith, they are able to communicate with each other efficiently during game play. “We have been coming together as a team and making fewer errors all together,” Smith said. “They work as a team and balance each other out when they are on offense or defense.”

Furthermore, Harney believes that there is a good team dynmaic this year. “They are a great group of guys who work hard at practice every day,” Harney said. “The team is made up of mostly seniors. So most of this group has played together for four years and work well together.”

—Erica Lee ­

This season, the girls’ softball team has been on a winning streak with a record of 4-1 in league play. “In order to dominate, we are going to need to consistently put runs on the board,” head coach Leslie Conover said. “At the end of the day, we want to have the ability to duke it out with any team at any level and then we want to win those challenges.”

However despite the team’s success, the athletes believe that there is room for improvements. “Sometimes it takes us too long to get into the game,” junior Nikki Schwardt said. According to junior Casey Maltz, the factor that determines the outcome of the game is the mentality of the team. “There is usually one inning where we lose focus, and that can be the determining factor in how our outcome is going to be,” Maltz said.

Even though there are areas that require improvement, the team is still strong in spirit and dedication. “Our main strength is our unity and willingness to come out and give it our all,” Maltz said. “Every game we play is for Gunn and we all love and respect the game so much.”

With the season going so well for the team, there is even more pressure on the seniors to do well. This season there are five seniors. “This is the last chance to leave a legacy on the Gunn softball team,” Conover said. ­—Erica Lee

Jonathon Yong

Sophomore Anson Cheng drives the golf ball.

Kyle Zhu

Kyle Zhu

Senior Emily Igler dives gracefully into the pool.

Swimmers dive into the water as the race begins.

Golf

Diving

Swimming

With the start of the season, the golf team is off to a great start with a 6-1 winning record. Coach Redfield shared some of the secrets to their success. “Playing golf at a high level is all about developing good fundamental skills,” Redfield said. “Our players are constantly working to improve all parts of their games.”

Apart from their hard work, the team has great spirit. Junior Avinash Sharma, one of the team captains, believes that the team is coming together well.

“The team has great chemistry and has bonded quickly, which is a major factor that helps us follow through on our wins,” Sharma said.

Although the team is off to a great start, they will soon be playing against their long time rival, Palo Alto High School (Paly). Paly has so far matched Gunn’s record, with both schools’ only loss to Homestead High School. “Paly will be a challenge to beat, and our team is doing our best to improve and play better in order to prepare for the big game,” sophomore Anson Cheng said.

Even with all the success of the team, there are still some vices to overcome. “The team can improve on making practice productive rather than having a social gathering,” Sharma said. “There should be a balance between practicing seriously and having fun with the other teammates.” ­—Stephanie Zhang

The diving team has been having a great season this year. In the De Anza League, the team has 4 wins and no losses for the girls, and the boys have 2 wins and 2 losses. “The camaraderie within the team is really good,” head coach Brien Arakaki said. “All the members are willing to perfect or try new dives, which is really important in diving. The performance has been excellent, and everyone is doing the best that they can. I hope to have our kids place at league and have at least four people to get into Central Coast Section,” Arakaki said.

Despite the high level of performance that the team has been delivering, Arakaki believes that there are still improvements to be made, especially the athletes’ trusts in themselves. “The level of confidence can definitely be higher,” he said. “The divers need to trust that they won’t hurt themselves from the dive.”

Divers such as senior Emily Igler also make personal goals for themselves throughout the season, hoping to achieve them by the end of the season. Igler has two defined goals. “I am trying to make it into CCS, and I am also trying to get my twist,” she said. “So far, all of my dives are good, except for my twist dive, which I am working on. I enjoy the sport very much; overall it is very relaxing, but you get immediate gratification once you get the dive.”

— ­ Lawrence Chen

This year, the swim team has been doing well in the De Anza League despite the loss of many seniors. So far the girl’s team is on a win streak with 4 wins and no losses, while the boys are at 2 wins and 2 losses. “We will definitely miss the seniors because they helped the team socially,” head coach Mark Hernandez said. “But we have a lot of good returning and new athletes to the team. The boy’s team is doing a lot better this year.

We will do much better in CCS and probably break a few records this year. Overall, I hope for the girls to get top three CCS and the boys to get top fifteen CCS. I would also like to see the boys break three records, and the girls to break five records this season.”

Although the team is doing well and the swimmers are talented, there are still many aspects that can be improved on. “Our swimmers are very fast, but our wall starts and turns need some work,” Hernandez said. “Once they get that down, I think we will do very well.”

Senior Will Thorson believes that the team will have a successful season this year. “Overall, the practices have been going well and I think team wise everything is going well,” Thorson said. “It should be a good season. The great thing about swimming is that it is an individual sport where we all work toward a team goal.”

— ­ Lawrence Chen

Sports

Monday, April 16, 2012

27

continue to persevere in face of difficult competition

Audey Shen

Kyle Zhu

Courtesy of Michael Underwood

Junior Francesca Gencerella jumps on the beam.

Senior Jackson Gardner attempts to pass the ball.

Senior Maddie Sabbag runs with the ball unopposed.

Gymnastics

Boys’ Lacrosse

Girls’ Lacrosse

Although the gymnastics team has not participated in many meets this season, they have a promising future. “Our team has a really great dynamic,” freshman Natalie Byun said. “Everyone is friendly, and there’s a lot of support among us.”

This year, the team lost three seniors, but is coping well with the change. “This year we have some seniors on the varsity team that are very committed to get a lot better,” sophomore Rachel Mock said.

The team is currently practicing with Paly since Gunn does not have a gym to use. Although these schools are rivals, they have been working well together. “Practicing with Paly is beneficial because we get to know them really well and we cheer each other on during meets,” Mock said. “We are practically part of the same team.”

The team is currently practicing at the Twister Gym and working hard everyday. According to head coach Ericka Fusilero, the team is off to a great start.

All in all, the team is off to a great start. “Everyone on the team is very supportive of each other and are always encouraging each other to be the best that we can,” Mock said.

Their next meet is on April 18 at Gymtown in South San Francisco.

After a few disap pointing losses, the boys’ lacrosse team now has a 2-6 overall record. According to junior Eric Cramer, the team has had trouble dealing with the loss of several seniors from last year.

“We lost some of our best offensive players, so our offense has been struggling to pick up the slack,” he said “The team is kind of rocky this year, but we are pulling it together.”

However, according to Coach Michael Blocho, players from all positions on the field have contributed to the team. “Our goalie [junior] Daniel Marcotte is standing strong in net and leading the defense with saves and clears while [junior] Justin Ziebell and [junior] Will Catlin are shutting down some of the top attackmen in the league and also doing a great job clearing the ball,” Blocho said. “On offense, we are getting some good production from [junior]Wade Berry, [senior] Jackson Gardner, and [sophomore] Anatole Colevas.”

Still, Cramer believes that the team has improvements to make. “We hope to get better after every match, plain and simple,” Cramer said. The team hopes to finish the season with a 6-7 record.

The team’s next match is against Leland High School on April 24.

—Stephanie Zhang

—Eric Noh

This season, the girls’ lacrosse team has garnered an impressive 4-2 league record and is currently third place in its league. “As the year has progressed, we have played better and better, and as a team, we are really starting to gel,” coach Doug Arakawa said. “We did not even have our full team until four games into the season so I am very happy with how well things are progressing.”

Although the team lost three seniors from last year, the players have successfully adapted to the loss, according to junior Helen Carefoot. “Nearly all of our starters from last year are still with us, so that has been really nice,” she said.

According to Carefoot, the team largely contributes this season’s successes to its athleticism. “As a team, we are very tall and fast,” Carefoot said. “We are learning to be more aggressive on defense and that is really helping us win.”

However, Carefoot feels that the team still has areas of improvement to work upon. “For the rest of the season, we want to continue to improve our ground balls and draw controls,” she said. According to Arakawa, the girls are hoping to have a winning record and make CCS. The team’s next match is against Sequoia High School on April 18.

—Eric Noh

Jonathan Yong

Senior Jack Kwan hits a forehand to his opponent.

Boys’ Tennis

With a current 1-8 record in league play, the boys’ tennis team is poised to make a comeback to finish off the season. The team’s strong performance in doubles is their most deadly weapon, whose consistent records often guarantee the team a win. “Although there are only three doubles matches, Gunn often wins all three,” senior varsity captain Joe Atlas said. “Then, only one singles player needs to win, as winning four matches out of the seven total ensures a match victory.” Despite this, the team is still struggling in this season.

Although the team’s league play is incomparable to last year, it has been improving in tournaments. “With all our strong players, we managed to place fourth of a total of 120 other teams at the Fresno tournament,” head coach Jim Gorman said.

A typical practice often consists of warmups, drilling and match play. According to Atlas, the team is concentrating on improving their volleys and doubles play in order to keep up their performance in doubles.

For the remainder of the season, Atlas hopes that the team will overcome the problems that plagued the singles players during the beginning of the season. “The team would like to finish strong despite suffering from injuries and absences during the beginning,” Atlas said.

“Ideally, we would like to make CCS.” —Rani Shiao ­

Courtesy of Arjun Narayen

Track and field runners line up at the starting line to begin running the mile to prepare for an upcoming meet.

Track and Field The track and field team started its season strong with an overall score of 3-0-1. Even though the team was hurt by the loss of many seniors, underclassmen have filled the openings and the team is strong as ever. “It’s sad we lost a lot of seniors, but we still have a strong team,” sophomore Stephanie Do said. “There are a lot of good freshman so there is a lot of potential in the team.”

While some join the track and field team to compete with peers, others join to compete with themselves. Do sets goals throughout the season to motivate herself to practice and achieve more. “My three-hundred meter hurdles time is forty-nine seconds right now, but by the end of the year, I want to improve to forty-six seconds,” Do said. “When I beat my personal records and achieve the goals I set for myself, it gives me a good feeling. It shows me how much I have improved since the beginning of the year.”

Recently, the team faced Mountain View High School on March 22. However, the boys’ team lost 56-71 while the girls lost 53-74. Despite the loss, coach Phu Nguyen has confidence in his team. “Mountain View has a lot of good runners and placed second in CCS last year,” Nguyen said. “It only shows that we are getting better.”

The varsity team is using its loss as motivation to keep improving. Nguyen is unfazed by the loss and is still happy to see the constant improvement in his team.

“I value personal improvement more than team wins,” Nguyen said. “I would rather see each member improve than to see the team win because as each individual improves his or herself, the team wins will follow naturally.”

The team’s next meet is against Palo Alto High School on April 19.

—Alvin Wang ­

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Sports

THEORACLE

Physical laziness does not correlate to lazy mindset Amrita Moitra & Lisa Wu

News editor & graphics editor

You know who we are. We’re the ones huffing and puffing on our way from the Village to the science buildings, complaining about getting shin splints from the long trek.

We are the ones who proudly proclaim that we “feel the burn” after half-heartedly completing a set of five crunches. In P.E., we were the kids who gave out the high fives and only passed the class because of participation.

We are, quite simply, lazy people.

We admit w it h mu c h dismay that our laziness is not a newly developed characteristic. It is, in fact, our most enduring trait.

From childhood, we were never successful athletes; the other kids quickly learned that it was no fun to be chased by someone walking, and we were henceforth never chosen to play tag during recess. From this deeply rooted inactivity grew our fondness for couches and our inability to move quickly.

Our love for staying stationary doesn’t mean we are completely unabashed about our laziness. There are passing moments, usually right before digging into jar of Nutella with a spoon, where it occurs to us that it might be a good idea to burn a couple calories every now and then. Of course, being teenagers in today’s image-conscious society, it is impossible to live this exercise-free

lifestyle without guilt or the occasional feeling of crippling insecurity. From “Twilight” movie posters to innumerable tabloid photos featuring Celebrity X’s dramatic weight loss, we are bombarded on a daily basis with bulging biceps and angled abs not perpetually hidden beneath food babies. These glossy images of physical perfection depict a level of fitness we could never hope to obtain. It is clearly easier to re si g n

ourselves to this fact rather than to harm ourselves in attempting to emulate these icons. To the athletes who undergo sprained ankles and torn muscles to stay in shape and on point, we salute you. We are in no way trying to make a mockery of your diligence with our own complete disregard for the value of physical fitness.

We know that our indolence can appear offensive, even despicable, but we have only the utmost admiration for your dedicated athleticism.

In spite of these confessions, the truly

debilitating factor isn’t the body image complex or the lowered expectations of others. Rather, it’s that quiet voice in the back of our own heads that calls into question, not the strength of our quadriceps, but fortitude of our spirit. Are we lazy to the core?

Left unattended, will we be bound u to a slow-moving, exertion-free isa W L future? We sincerely hope not.

Examining our own lives, we may have a certain distaste for physical activity, but we are not apathetic. No one who has seen us work a cumulative thirteen hours to perfect a frontpage layout or finalize a Centerfold graphic can condemn us as useless couch potatoes.

We have the same passion and motivation as athletes; that passion just happens to manifest itself in non-athletic endeavors. Perhaps one day we will find it within ourselves to move at a faster pace, if only to prove to ourselves that we can “just do it” like all those shoe commercial athletes with their thousand-yard stares of intense focus.

We aren’t expecting to run a marathon anytime soon—just a few extra minutes on the elliptical to stave off the effects of

those midnight snacks. We want to be able to declare a triumph of mind over body, to proclaim through the blood, sweat and tears of a real workout that we are, at the very least, healthy. For now, we will live on as the stout and red-faced Gimlis in a world of sprightly Aragorns and Legolases, decrying that our hitherto u nd i s c ove re d athletic prowess is simply wasted on conventional sports.

Our message is not one of derision; how cou ld it be when the writers of this very article are so incredibly inactive? We simply want our lazy brethren to know that they are not alone.

Not every person can sprint 500 meters or successfully pass a ball, nor should they be expected to. Who is to tell us that doing seven push ups is not good enough, or that being pleasantly plump is not the ideal body shape? And so, our dear lazy readers, we urge you to disregard the public opinion and keep trying your best. Keep lifting the neon three-pound dumbbells next to the perfectly sculpted body builders; keep briskly walking next to old man who has been running longer and faster than you.

Be proud of your accomplishments, no matter how miniscule others may think they are; believe in the motto that any activity is good activity. Which is why we would like to end by telling you that writing this article successfully fulfills our cardio quota for the week.

Contest

Monday, April 16, 2012

THE ORACLE PRESENTS...

29

2012 SHORT STORY CONTEST WISHING WELL with the author

Gemma Guo The Oracle: Summarize your short story in one sentence.

Gemma Guo: Always treasure the people you have, because you never know when you’ll lose them.

TO: What motivated or inspired you to write “Wishing Well?”

GG: I’ve noticed that many teens don’t have a very good relationship with their parents. I used to argue a lot with my parents, especially my mom. Once I actually sat down and thought about it, I realized that I didn’t know what I’d do without her.

During that period of pondering, “Wishing Well” was born.

2nd

up. When my mother was my best friend, my guidance, and my pillar of strength.

I don’t know when my innocent world shattered. Perhaps it never did shatter, but rather faded away. My heart darkened, my trust dissolved, and the fantasy I built around myself was pushed into the far corner of my consciousness where it rotted into an unrecognizable mess.

“I don’t know when my innocent world shattered. Perhaps it never did shatter, but rather faded away.”

I immersed myself in fictional lands of my imaginations, attempting to bring back the naïve joy of my childhood.

My mother objected. It was bad for my future, she would say. I couldn’t always live in my dreams.

I grew resentful. My mother was no longer a friend, but an all-controlling nemesis whose only purpose was to pressure me. Some days I would relax my guard and befriend her again,

but those fleeting instances of friendship would soon give in to enraged arguments.

We never again visited the wishing well.

I remember arguing countless times. I remember watching my mother worry every day. I remember slowly watching her wither away, still always trying to help me.

There was one day she called me to her bedside. She held my hand, looking into my eyes and saying one phrase.

“I love you.”

At the time I shook off her words. They were unimportant whisperings I had heard over and over again.

That night, she passed away.

It was like a chunk of my heart was ripped out. I cried.

I screamed to the heavens. All I wanted was for my beautiful mother to be back with me, only for just a day. I would give anything to see her smile again, to hear her laugh, to see her alive and well. I should have treated her better. Regret ate away at my mind, dissolving the core of my being.

But regret can’t change anything.

YOU ARE THE GIRL I NEVER

You are the girl I’ll never meet. I definitely won’t ask to buy you a drink some slow Friday night at the bar, when you’re sitting in the corner all alone wearing your black bandage skirt with green snakeskin boots. And you won’t laugh, thank me and decline, and tell me you’re just here because a friend is out to get wasted and you’re her designated driver.

We definitely won’t have a light conversation about your friend, and how she was recently dumped by some Italian boy who loved his shiny white motorcycle more than he ever loved her and its stupid and how you enjoy your elbow room.

And I won’t feel secretly dejected, because I wasn’t secretly hoping for some sort of thing, a one night stand, a sloppy phone number written in your fuchsia lipstick on a napkin, a kiss goodnight, anything.

I won’t order a Jack and Coke and break down, cry a little about how I feel so alone in this big, big city where you could go to a thousand bars a thousand times and never meet a girl as pretty as you, and how no one will ever find love

like in those paperback books where the girl is 5-foot-2 and the boy has a name like Jacques Fransiscois. And you won’t take pity on me, and you won’t order me another Jack and Coke, and decide, why not, and order two, and you won’t drink it with me, sip for sip.

“We won’t discover, between the coffee queue and our cups of Italian Roast, our mutual love of Yeats, old books, and comical clocks in the shapes of roosters.”

We definitely won’t get drunk after that, and you won’t come back home with me, and we won’t stumble into my room and you definitely won’t, during the middle of taking off your bra, break down and cry, sobbing that it was you with the Italian boyfriend not your friend and that you weren’t in a bar to drive, you were there because home still smelled like his fancy elderberry aftershave and you couldn’t stand the nostalgia. And I won’t shush you, tell you it’s okay, give you

my softest giant t-shirt, and you won’t fall asleep somewhere between my shoulder and arm.

The next morning we won’t go to a coffee shop for breakfast, with you still wearing my giant white t-shirt and your black skirt and green boots. We won’t discover, between the coffee queue and our cups of Italian Roast, our mutual love of Yeats, old books, and comical clocks in the shapes of roosters. You won’t be funny and smart, I won’t be exceptionally charming. You won’t scribble your phone number on a slice of paper I found in my pocket with a pen we borrowed from the barista.

This won’t be how our relationship starts, with a nearly one-night stand and a cup of coffee. And this definitely won’t continue, (the coffee, not the one night stands), for several more months and several dozen more trips to all the tiny cafes we know, perched on street corners with names like Vanilla Bean or Petrichor.

We won’t make puppy eyes at each other, peeking over massive $5.50 mugs of exotic chai and European coffee, our faces covered in whipped cream and cinnamon. I won’t take you to meet my friends; you won’t

invite me to dinner with your parents. We won’t charm and impress, pass every test with flying colours. We won’t go to the beach in the summer, and skiing in the winter, and we won’t have great sex whenever we want. This won’t be when you first say it; it won’t just slip out, a sigh. “I love you.” I won’t stiffen at this. Leap up, gather my clothes. Leave.

We won’t fall in love. Do you hear me? We won’t. Love is an institution love is a liability love is for quitters. We will never fall for each other like Lady and the Tramp, Romeo and Juliet. I won’t bear for it, to lay my heart on a platter in wait of seasonings. I’m not ready for commitment. I’m too scared and you’re too beautiful.

I’m too smart, you’re too wise.

I’m damaged, you’re damaged.

We carry around baggage in chains around our neck. This was never meant to be, this is our hamartia, this isn’t the story where the handicapped boy walks and the blind girl gets the quarterback, this is the story where the entire town is invaded by cats and airborne disease. This will never become what we wanted it to. I will never love you. I can’t, oh help me, I can’t, I just can’t.

Jasmine Garnett

Q&A

You never notice the water until the well is dry.

I peer down the cavernous wishing well, tilting my head and watching the glistening coins catch rays of the afternoon sun. They shine in the darkness, hopeless wishes of desperate people that will never come true.

The well has long been desiccated by countless hours of blazing sun. A breeze plays through my hair, light as feathers. I lift my head and walk away.

Mother would always tell me that the well was magical. At the time, it had been filled with lucid, scintillating water that I had always overlooked. I would stand in front of the well, hands scrabbling at the stone, listening to the rustle of grass underfoot.

Close your eyes and make a wish, mother would say. Close your eyes and make a wish, but never tell anyone else what you are wishing for, or it won’t come true.

That was when life was a fantasy world of innocence and adventure, when I could shut my eyes and run towards the future with open arms. When love and happiness reigned and all I ever wanted to do was grow

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BY: GEMMA GUO, 9

Dead leaves crackle under my feet. There shouldn’t be any in springtime, but somehow this street is blanketed in them.

The cars still speed across the asphalt, like nothing has happened. Like everything is insignificant.

I walk back to the well.

My mother is buried nearby.

Strange, how I used to ignore the water. Now I miss it.

My pocket feels heavy. I dig a quarter out of it and hold it in the air. It glitters like the water in the well used to glitter. I pass my fingers over its rocky surface, listening to the music of the young grass.

Close your eyes and make a wish, mother would say. Close your eyes and make a wish, but never tell anyone else what you are wishing for, or it won’t come true.

I let the quarter hit the bottom of the well with a silvery pinging sound. I close my eyes and wish for many things.

What do I wish for? I’m not telling you, or it won’t come true.

BY: CHRISTINA HU, 11

Q&A

with the author

Christina Hu The Oracle: Summarize your short story in one sentence.

Christina Hu: A love story told in negatives, where the main character is afraid of commitment and the girl never speaks.

TO:What motivated or inspired you to write “You Are The Girl I Never?”

CH: Well, this one time in Creative Writing we had a guest speaker. He got us to write “the worst dialogue ever.” Mine was about a guy who tries to pick up a woman at a bar and fails, and goes home furious. I wrote this story as a flip side to that, the alternate story line.

TO: What do you enjoy about writing? Do you write often?

CH: I like writing because it’s nice having someplace concrete to store thoughts and words. Most of the writing I do happens at two in the morning in fifteen minute bursts.

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Entertainment

Entertainment

Monday, April 16, 2012

31

Prom: 99 problems and a relationship is one of them

The Oracle breaks down the responsibilities and peer pressures of a prom-induced relationship

Boot Bullwinkle A night of elegance, memories and partying, promenade (yes that’s actually what prom stands for) is one of the most anticipated and popular events of the year. I’m going to focus on the single guy’s perspective here, because I can’t say that I had the most experience with relationships during the past couple years. But that doesn’t mean at all that us single guys can’t have a great time at prom with a great date.

Calendar reminder: prom is this Saturday. If you haven’t asked yet, then you are more than likely going solo or not going at all (both of which are perfectly acceptable choices). But if you are lucky enough to have a date to prom, then you have to confront the inevitable question: are you two in a relationship?

Good question. It’s completely reasonable to ask your friends if they are looking for a relationship, because we all love to watch a good love story and it’s especially heartwarming to see a relationship grow between friends.

Prom is one of the largest social events of the year, so it carries extra pressure for people to ignite a new affair.

But it’s their business, and their personal choice of who they want to be in a relationship with.

Now, the politically correct writer in me says that I should respect my friends’ space and let their relationship burgeon naturally. But the realistic side of me knows that I’m one

of the worst gossip kings in the world and there’s nothing I like more than to be a matchmaker. My intentions are good: I want to see both of my friends in a happy relationship. And what better way to start that relationship than with the beauty and elegance of prom?

Unless you’re deep in the wasteland that is “the friendzone” or set on being single, prom is the perfect time to start a relationship. There’s a lot of time to get to know your date. Whether it’s laughing on the bus, talking at dinner, dancing or general partying, keep an open mind.

There will be a higher likelihood of memorable moments, laughing and smiling.

But af ter prom, t he relationship question will really start to come up in conversation. Everyone saw that intimate moment at prom, but no one saw anything more. The sweet smells of rumors follow, and then comes the peer pressure.

The snowball effect can be overwhelming, but it may be the catalyst to a great relationship (or not). There are people who have no intention to date, and there are people who are happiest as a couple.

Me, being the latter of the two, would say, “Yeah, it’s worth a go,” but it always depends. The point is, don’t do anything that you’re not comfortable with, and make sure that the connection is really there between the two of you. If the right chemistry isn’t there, and you’re quixot ic a l ly pick y, then don’t spend you r n i g ht on the wrong girl.

Ju st remember to have fun and be safe.

—Bullwinkle, a junior, is an Entertainment Editor.

Annie Tran ‘Tis the season for creative askings, scattered rose petals and prom dress hunting.

For most, prom invokes a sense of excitement and anticipation. And why not—it’s a classic American tradition. But as many of us prom veterans know, there’s quite a bit of prom-adrama that comes with the whole shebang; and we haven’t even gotten to the catfights over dresses or the messy table seatings yet.

I’m pretty sure over the duration of our high school careers, we’ve all either been that girl and/or seen that girl. You know, that girl with a look of pure horror and painful embarrassment when being asked in front of the entire school by a guy that she either barely knows or a dude that just doesn’t get the hint that she’s not interested. It’s an awkward situation all around, but the true tragedy of this scenario is that the girl will probably say “yes” due to peer pressure, which basically seals her fate of having an altogether terrible night. To these girls, I can only shake my head and ask the heavens where the heck her lady balls are. But then again, I know it’s also not the easiest thing thing to reject someone and risk the name-calling and gossip that will inevitably result from doing so.

Let’s set something straight: just because a girl rejects a guy, it doesn’t ma ke her a bitch. No one should expect an immediate yes, because essentially a girl who agrees to go to prom is doing her asker a favor, not the other way around. I absolutely abhor people who walk

around on campus thinking that they did some girl a favor just because she said yes.

If the asker doesn’t plan ahead and ask a girl they know they’ll have fun with, they might be getting themselves into a night of disastrous awkwardness. Girls do share some blame in this though. We all have to admit that we’re pretty shallow and many of us girls just want a free prom ticket. But to be perfectly honest, a free prom ticket really isn’t worth much if the pair both end up having a terrible night due to just plain awkwardness. He ends up wasting over $250 on the tickets and tuxedo, and that beautiful dress probably won’t feel so stunning to the girl who’s just sitting around at the table because she doesn’t know what else to do.

Save yourself the trouble, and just decline politely or in private.

The stigma surrounding the idea that going stag is the ultimate embarrassment isn’t true. A girl could have fun without having someone attached to her for the whole night.

There are the gambling tables for the risk takers, the photo booths for the camera whores, as well as caricaturists for the adventurers.

And honestly, grinding with a guy in a $300 prom dress isn’t exactly the greatest fun that humanity’s created. If anything, it gets a little banal after awhile.

If grooving is your thing, though, you could always just find a good friend to hit the dance floor with; there are plenty of guys who asked girls just as friends. The night will be what you make of it; we’re generally a smart crowd a nd we k now how to create a fun night for ourselves. Don’t depend on someone else to make prom a great experience for you.

—Tran, a senior, is Business/Circulation Manager.

Tips and tricks to keep in mind throughout prom night

Before

DO get your dress and tux in advance. Alterations for dresses and tux reservations take at least a few days to confirm and you can even attempt to coordinate colors.

DO pretend like you are stoked to be taking pictures. That way there won’t be any awkward facial expressions debuting in the plethora of prom albums on Facebook.

DON’T forbid your parents to come to pictures. The prom experience is actually more important to them than it is to us.

During

After

DO go meet some new people and make friends. Prom is one of the few events that attracts such a diverse group of students.

DO try and take a nap on the bus back home. You still have a long night ahead of you.

DO hang out with your friends as well as your date. You’ll have more than enough time to spend with everyone.

DON’T try to get out of the parking lot as soon as you get back to Gunn. Traffic is a given, so you might as well hang out with your date for another half an hour.

DON’T dance the entire time.

Prom is more than five hours long and full of various activities, so make sure to try them all.

DON’T have high expectations for after prom. It’s most likely not happening…

­—Compiled by Ellen Lee

32

Entertainment

G-Eazy As the rumors trickle out that this Bay Area raised rapper may be performing at Grad Night, the loyal Gunn G-Eazy fan base has welcomed many new members.

The 22-year-old rapper first burst onto the scene when he released a remix of the 1961 number single, “Runaround Sue.” The music video has now received over 620,000 views on YouTube.

Following the release of this video was G-Eazy’s “Endless Summer” mixtape.

The tape featured artists such as Greg Banks, Team Robot and American Idol contestant Devon Baldwin.

G-Eazy uses an eclectic variety of music genres that he adds to his own style to captivate his audience.

Street bangers such as “SB Dunks” and “Hang Ten” show off his hard-hitting Oakland roots, while the songs “Kings” and “Netflix” express his lyrical capabilities. With G-Eazy, there’s something for everyone from, and he’s an up-andcoming artist that may be on the verge of obtaining mass popularity, so he’s definitely worth checking out.

If you’re a senior, then you may end up being luck y enough to see him perform live at your Grad Night.

Log i c Hailing from the opposite side of the country, Maryland-based musician Logic is also a 22-year-old rapper making his way into the music scene. A master of sampling and beat producing, he embodies the Young Sinatra movement with his smooth and intellectual lyrics. He is even reigniting the bobbysoxer movement, a 1940s cultural movement du ri ng which y o u n g wome n e mbraced swing dancing and artists like

Frank Sinatra.

A much more modern sensation, Logic has garnered a robust 5.7 million YouTube views over just two mixtapes. His more recent “Young Sinatra” tape holds mind-bending and crisp lyrics that appear in songs such as “All I Do” and “Just Another Day.” If lyrics are your thing, then check out “Growing Pains II”, but if you’re in a party song mood, he probably isn’t the artist for you.

Logic came from living off $132 a month from the government to support his drug-addicted mother. After moving out at 17, he pursued his dream to be an artist and is now making more than enough to suppor t his ne w l i fe s t y le .

Definitely join the bobbysoxer movement and follow Logic’s rise to fame.

Hoodie

Unsig ne d r apper Hoodie Allen is about to go big, if he hasn’t gone already. Allen just hit it big with his #1 selling EP, “All American.”

The 23-year-old rapper grew up in a Jewish household, writing raps and performing them at parties. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 2010, Allen got a job working for Google right off the bat.

But after he really started to blow up in Silicon Valley (rapping-wise), Allen finally took what he called his “leap of faith.” “ L e a p Ye a r ” dropped t he fol low i ng summer and Allen’s rapping career h it f u l l stride.

“Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”

Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt make two appealing leads in Lasse Hallstrom’s “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen.” As the film’s title implies, their characters (a salmon expert and a public relations employee) work to bring salmon fishing to the Yemeni highlands at the request of a billionaire sheikh (Amr Waked). The film is sweet, if at times a touch too sentimental. However, instead of becoming a government satire in the vein of Armando Ianucci’s “In the Loop,” the film turns into a generic love story by its second half. In the film’s first section, Kristin Scott Thomas brings laughs as Bridget Maxwell, the prime minister’s feisty personal assistant. This character serves as a reminder of the zany heights “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen” could have reached in its latter portion.

His house party music now captivates the high school and college audiences, and can always cheer you up. “#whitegirlproblems” is a great cheer up song, and the catchy sample “I’m Not a Robot” compliments his creatively titled “You Are Not a Robot” single.

Hoodie Allen just blew up on people’s radar, as his “All American” EP has reached #1 on iTunes.

With an album on the way, watch out for his name more often.

—Compiled by Boot Bullwinkle

“21 Jump Street”

“21 Jump Street,” directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller, satirizes the current high school social climate, the police procedural genre and the action movie template which it utilizes most successfully. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum star as Schmidt and Jenko, former high school belligerents who patch up their friendship to help each other graduate from police academy. A drug bust, bungled by Tatum’s hilarious inability to administer the Miranda Rights, brings them to the Jump Street division, where they are assigned to investigate a high school narcotics ring. With an excellent screenplay by Hill and Michael Bacall, “21 Jump Street” joins the ranks of “The 40 Year Old Virgin” and “Superbad,” serving as one of the funniest films of the year so far.

“The Hunger Games”

Gary Ross’s “The Hunger Games” rises to the same level of fan-directed energy that elevated last summer’s “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2” to box office glory.

The film, based on the bestseller by Suzanne Collins, focuses on a group of teenagers in a futuristic, dystopian society who are selected and forced to fight to the death at the hands of an authoritarian government. With a cast led by Oscar-nominated Jennifer Lawrence (“Winter’s Bone”) and Josh Hutcherson (“The Kids Are All Right”), the acting nearly matches that of the Potter films. Ross manages to coat the action sequences with a layer of suspense despite the all too prevalent use of a hand-held camera. For those seeking high-quality Hollywood entertainment, “The Hunger Games” proves worthy of consideration.

—Compiled by Cooper Aspegren

Entertainment

Monday, April 16, 2012

33

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A compilation of the most hilarious and creative quotes from the past month

Local restaurants offer fresh international cuisine Michael Wu

Location: 548 Ramona St. Palo Alto CA, 94305 http://www.bistromaxine.com/ Michael Wu

420 Emerson St. Palo Alto CA, 94301 http://www.evvia.net/ If you are feeling a little tired of the same old restaurants, you’re probably looking for a fresh new bite to eat, so treat yourself to a nice meal at Evvia Estiatorio, located on 420 Emerson St. But remember, Evvia requires a reservation, which may take weeks or months of waiting. Also, be prepared to spend a lot of money as entées range from $15 to $25. In general, Evvia is a place suited for special occasions and not meant for a casual meal.

Evvia is a Greek restaurant that prides itself on using only the freshest ingredients from California and the Mediterranean.

In addition, Evvia does not look like the typical fine dining restaurant; it’s small and has a cozy atmosphere. The service is also excellent; in fact almost every question I had about each dish was answered. I started off with the Spanakotiropita, one of the most

popular appetizers. Spanakotiropita is phyllo dough (super thin sheets of flour dough) stuffed with braised greens, feta cheese and herbs. To my surprise it was perfectly balanced, neither too cheesy nor doughy, and every bite was delicate and extremely tasty.

For the main dish, I had the Kolokithokeftethes, which are zucchini cakes with cucumber and mint yogurt. Although I was slightly daunted by the name, I was thoroughly impressed with the dish. It was perfectly crispy and not overdone, and after I finished, I did not feel overfull. The portion sizes are relatively decent, but they ended up being slightly smaller than I expected.

Overall, Evvia definitely surpassed my expectations as there were no major flaws with the food, service and ambience.

—Compiled by Zoe Weisner

Tucked on a small street off of University Ave., Bistro Maxine transports patrons to the streets of Paris as they enjoy a delicious crepe replete with a bowl of hot chocolate.

Unlike its much larger, f lashier cousin, Crepevine, Bistro Maxine offers a much cozier environment, using batter mix from France and featuring bistro type tables and chairs imported from France as well.

Stepping into the small shop, patrons are immediately struck by the tiny size of the café, as well as the open kitchen, which allows diners to watch the chef makes their crepes. Of course, patrons are also welcome to sit outside, which evokes the feeling of outdoor cafés in Europe. The servers are friendly and attentive, giving it a warm atmosphere. Signs with the words “Please no laptops” located on each table kindly remind patrons that cafés are for conversation and food—not work and electronics, as is commonly the case in other cafes along University Ave. Of course, this quaint atmosphere is perfectly complemented by the delicious food

and refreshments that the shop offers. The café gives patrons a chance to brush up on their French, as all the items, from crepes to alcoholic beverages, on the menu are written in French with English descriptions of the items on the side.

Unable to decide upon which of the many options I would try, I opted to split both a sweet and a savory crepe with my friend. The savory crepe, Forestière, nicely balanced the ham, mushroom, cheese and egg with the perfectly thin and golden-brown crepe. On the other hand, the banana nutella crepe we got provided a delicious blast of sweetness to round out the meal. Served with a side of homemade whipped cream that was light and fluffy, the sweet crepe turned out to be my favorite part of the meal.

With its cozy atmosphere and delicious crepes, Bistro Maxine is the perfect place to stop by and grab a morning brunch, or to catch up with an old friend. And really—is there ever a bad time for Nutella and crepes?

—Compiled by Jean Wang

34

Entertainment

Students’ strategies for saving money on life expenditures The Oracle makes saving easy with a plethora of tips and advice on cutting down your spending

Lucy Oyer

Wayland Fong

Annie Tran

Some dads teach their sons how to play baseball, or how to approach girls, but my dad was different; he taught me how to save money. Even early on in my youth, my dad never hesitated to impart his wisdom when it came to money.

When I was young, he used a light swat on my hand and the simple phrase, “Too expensive!” to show me that chocolate bars were only for Halloween. I soon gained an appreciation for bargains. As I grew older, I developed a whole lifestyle around thrift.

By saving a few dollars each day, you

What’s that you hear—a rumbling tummy perchance?

Well, my friend, let us try to amend that problem frugally.

Prom is around the corner, and we all know how expensive that whole shebang is: dresses, tickets, tuxedo rentals, you name it! Curbing your diet inexpensively is a way to save money here and there, and the little amounts saved can really pay off in the end.

As a Californian, an In-N-Out craving is most likely deeply ingrained in your system, and most would probably order a milkshake, a burger and some fries—that’s about $7 right there! Stave off that trip to the fast-food burger joint and save some cash. Judging by the lack of cars in the parking lot at lunch, it’s safe to say that many of us eat out at least once a week, if not more.

put exorbitant strain on your bank accounts. In general, lighter vehicles use less gas, so take all that miscellaneous junk out of your trunk and enjoy an increased gas mileage.

And if you feel like you are missing out on the scenery that the always lovely Palo Alto has to offer, you’ll love this next idea: slow down because it helps stretch that tank of gas.

Another great idea is to carpool, which is extra fabulous because it allows you to make friends while cruising around town. And if you want to make even more friends, using public transportation is the perfect solution for you. Taking the bus, train or other type of public transportation is a cost-effective way to get where you need to go. Passes are generally cheap, especially when you buy a package deal for multiple rides. Additionally, if you are able to plan your trip well, taking public transportation can be very efficient.

When you think about it, saving money on transportation is easy and with these simple ideas, you will be on your way to a fatter wallet.

will be able to save up for that new car or that prom tuxedo. If you usually just rely on parents for money, saving money can show how responsible you are and you can earn their trust.

Saving money is not always a chore. In fact, circumstances with less money tend to become the most thrilling adventures. For example, a trip to San Francisco with a bunch of cash would be spent going to the typical, safe places (i.e. department stores, The Cheesecake Factory, etc.) But if you limit the trip to a hundred dollars, you will be likely forced to go to places you wouldn’t have normally been.

With all the flashy lights and exorbitant decorations these days, people have taken the simpler luxuries in life for granted. It’s hard to believe that you can have just as much fun at an amusement park in a regular park. With all of the great natural resources out there, there are a million ways to hang out with friends for free. Hiking, camping and a bonfire at the beach are just a few great ideas. So go out, explore the world—you only live once.

Let’s take a look at other Palo Alto favorites such as the oh-so-popular Sprinkles Cupcakes and those scrumptious Verde PMTs (Pearl Milk Tea). If you time your trip right to the Stanford Shopping Mall, you might be lucky enough to score a free cupcake, but even then it costs about $1.44 gas-wise to get there and back. If you’re not so lucky, you’ll end up shelling out $3.50 for a very expensive little cupcake with a little too much frosting. Going the opposite direction in search for a drink? That’s going to cost you about $1.60 for the trip there as well as about $6 for the Tea Time Special between 2:30p.m. and 5:30p.m.

How about trying to make some yummy nomnoms at home instead and cultivate your culinary skills while using materials you already have? Hint: guys who know how to work the kitchen are in high demand—girls fall for that kind of thing. Seriously though, a lot of us don’t really think about these kinds of things, but since we’re in a hard economic climate, we’ve got to start being resourceful, and healthier.

—Oyer, a sophomore, is an Entertainment Editor.

—Fong, a junior, is a reporter.

—Tran, a senior, is a Business/Circulation Manager.

G r ap hics

by L is

a Wu

Whether you prefer a car, a bike, a bus, your trusty feet or perhaps a scooter, getting from point A to point B is a necessity of life, and these expenses of traveling add up. Gas, bike maintenance, bus passes and shoes all contribute to the dangerous downhill from a pleasantly plump wallet to a wallet’s that Olsen-twin emaciated. But worry not! There are a number of simple things you can do to bring down the cost of your transportation while still reaching your destination in style.

Obviously, for the vehicularly inclined, high gas prices

Thrift stores attract students with low prices, vintage looks In today’s economy, virtually everyone, especially high school students who are in the process of breaking free from their parents’ forgiving bank accounts, feel the strain of a low budget. Such difficulties prove to be quite the burden whether you need money for a new gaming system, gas or even just lunch. However, this burden is particularly stressful

on society’s obsessive shoppers and fashion enthusiasts. A cash-strapped wallet doesn’t generally ensure a happy wardrobe, which is why smart shoppers turn to consignment and thrift stores to satisfy their need for “new” clothes. Here are a few of the Bay Area’s best thrift and consignment stores that will be sure to alleivate the stress on your pocket.

Crossroads—1519 Haight Street, San Francisco

Black and Brown—850 The Alameda, San Jose

Wasteland—1660 Haight Street, San Francisco

With four locations in San Francisco alone, along with one in Berkeley and one in Oakland, Crossroads is a fantastic place to find fashion-forward clothing at amazing prices.

Many of the store’s pieces are actually bought wholesale from other companies’ excess inventories, so a large amount of the clothing actually still has the original tags on. Shirts and skirts have average prices around $15, pants—including some designer brands—are around $25, and gently used shoes (from flats and sneakers to heels and boots) range from just $5 to $25.

Crossroads also boasts an extensive men’s collection as well, complete with jeans, hoodies and thermals.

Although Black and Brown’s location isn’t what you might expect (on a busy street in a slightly downtrodden part of San Jose), the store itself is a goldmine of gently used, and sometimes even brand new, trendy clothing.

The pieces in the store are all in fantastic condition, and Black and Brown’s collection of modern-but-still-vintage clothing is impressive (think Urban Outfitters). Prices are fantastic, and the organization of the store doesn’t make you feel like you’re wandering through someone’s dusty, old attic like other consignment stores do. All types of clothing, for both men and women, are carried at Black and Brown, inWu cluding shoes.

Lisa

Wasteland, despite its name, is a gem of a consignment store, if you can even call it that. Although one half of the store is comprised of completely new clothing, the half that is made up of vintage pieces hardly feels like thrift-store clothing at all.

The prices at Wasteland are slightly higher than at other thrifting locations, but this is completely justified in that the employees at Wasteland spend significantly more time searching through the old clothing they receive to only pick out the best and, most importantly, most current fashions for their floor. Again, there are both extensive men’s and women’s sections, with shoes and accessories to boot.

—Compiled by Samantha Donat

Entertainment

Monday, April 16, 2012

35

Gunn picks up internet slang

Best ways to deal with college rejection

Reporter

1. Send your parents to Costco and 5. Talk to people who’ve gone through it already.

Ellen Lee

From rad to raw, and from hip to hoot, teen slang has evolved into a language that is almost incomprehensible to all—except, of course, for the teen demographic. Although this generation’s parents may have used words like wicked and groovy, teens these days are getting much more creative with their language. Raw, hoot, sick and, most recently, YOLO are funky, unconventional terms that have been integrated into our vocabulary because of common usage and popularity. But what makes these words so prevalent in our conversations, and when are the appropriate times to use them?

Raw and sick are two terms that, in the English language, are synonymous to the words cool and awesome. “I use [the word] raw because it’s a good way of referring to beastly athletes and people in those fields, but I only use it to refer to those people,” junior Sarah Klem said. Hoot, which originally was meant to define the howling or calling of an owl, is now a substitute for stupid and dumb. Who decided that hoot would have a new definition? No one really knows.

The term YOLO has gained stature within Gunn vocabulary, but unlike other words, YOLO is actually an acronym for “you only live once.” It is most commonly used as a justified excuse to get away with various things, such as: Not doing my homework today, YOLO! Jay-walking across University, YOLO! YOLO’s popularity makes sense to a certain level, because it is a line in Drake’s song, “The Motto,” but interestingly enough, it is extremely difficult to trace the origin of these terms, despite their prevalent use around school and town. How did anyone concoct the term sick to mean awesome, and hoot to mean stupid? Hoot, raw, sick and YOLO are terms that are so accepted and established on campus that no one seems to think about the ironic, sometimes oxymoronic meanings of the terms.

Naturally, these terms do not appeal to everyone as only some choose to put these words into use. “Raw is a descriptor of uncooked food, often used as a colloquialism for ‘good,’” senior Alex Baker said. These words are almost like social stepping stones. One must know not only what they mean, but how and when to use them. “I would say that the type of people that use these terms are generally those who are not right on the pulse of pop culture, but those who hear them used by their friends and therefore think [the terms] are cool,” Klem said.

have them buy a couple crates of double-ply tissues for your tears. Don’t go for the Kirkland brand; those will be sure to dry your eyes and nose out after a few hours, and you don’t want to feel and look horrible the next day.

They usually have the best insight on whatever situation you’re in, and even if you don’t feel like you could ever accept the fact that you didn’t get into your dream college, you probably will one day.

2. Throw something really valuable at

Disney fan, and I swear that watching childhood movies makes you feel better. It reminds you of a much simpler time when your biggest worry was getting a good snack in your lunchbox, and the cheesiness of it all will cure some of your post-rejection symptoms.

your couch. There’s nothing like throwing an object as hard as you can—it’s an excellent anger reliever.

The importance of monetary worth of whatever you’re throwing allows you to be reckless and stupid while the cushiness of the couch prevents you from actually having to deal with any consequences

3. Plan out your summer. The summer after senior year is an absolutely beautiful thing—you have no obligations whatsoever and basically three months to do whatever you feel like. Want to take a road trip down to San Diego, or fly to New York? Go for it. The possibilities are endless. So get excited and start writing a bucket list for the summer.

4. Eating is the classic way to get over something, so eat a bunch of chocolate, devour a pizza and finish that pint of ice cream. But watch out—you don’t want to gain your freshman 15 before actually going to college.

6. Watch some kiddy movies. I’m a huge

7. Play online games. I’m not ashamed to admit I still have a Neopets account; it’s where I head when I’m most bored. Not only will kiddy games divert your attention, but the seemingly meaningless victories will make you feel better. But avoid playing a game you suck at because losing blows.

8. Start an art project. That stuff takes a really long time and a ton of concentration, and by the time you finish, not only will you feel a bit of pride for what you just created, but so much time will have passed that you might be ready to think about being happy again.

—Compiled by Monica Cai

Lisa Wu

36

Entertainment

The Oracle staffers embark on a dangerous mission to test out some of YouTube’s funniest, strangest and grossest eating challenges. Warning: regurgitation possible.

Powdered donut challenge Amrita Moitra

Kyle Zhu

Wendy Qiu

Kyle Zhu

Wendy Qiu

Kyle Zhu

Top: The Oracle staff members junior Emily Yao, sophomore Leon Cheong and senior Amrita Moitra brave through their challenges. Bottom: The deadly cinnamon and glue-like saltine crackers that the staff members must conquer.

Saltine cracker challenge Emily Yao

Stuffing six salted crackers into one’s mouth in one minute doesn’t seem too hard, and even after watching countless videos of people failing the six saltine cracker challenge, I took it with a grain of salt. Thus, I decided to try the challenge myself to see if I would have more luck in succeeding.

My strategy going into the challenge was to consume each cracker in ten seconds and not rush myself. After starting the timer, I kept repeating the motto, “slow and steady wins the race.” In fact, the first cracker wasn’t bad, but when I saw that 13 seconds had passed, I panicked and began stuffing the crackers faster into my mouth, and at the third or fourth cracker, I found that swallowing the chewed up dough was becoming increasingly harder. Unfortunately, when the timer struck one minute, I was still chewing my fifth cracker. I then decided to

search up ways people have succeeded.

One method I researched was the chunking strategy in which one eats the crackers in a 3-2-1 pattern. The consumer begins by putting three crackers into one’s mouth at once, followed by two and then finishing up with one. It didn’t seem like a bad strategy to try, so I decided to give the challenge another try.

As I examined the stack of three crackers, I realized my small physical features were a hindrance. As soon as I shoved the crackers in my mouth, I realized I was in trouble yet again. My eyes began to tear up from the pain, but I was determined to finish the challenge. Alas, I was still chewing my fourth and fifth cracker when the timer went off. Mission unaccomplished.

Even though I had a numb tongue and a scratchy throat, I actually do not regret attempting this meaningless challenge—I now know that I am not meant to eat competitively. So, if you feel this challenge is worth your salt, go ahead, but be careful and don’t bite off more than you can chew.

—Yao, a junior, is a Sports Editor.

At a glance, this challenge does not look especially difficult. Much like you, I thought, “Oh, only five donuts in five minutes? That is too easy.” But let me tell you, dear reader, how deceiving this challenge really is.

Although five minutes seems like a reasonable amount of time, this period felt as though it went by faster than the last three minutes of a final exam.

Foolishly, I was rather pleased with my progress in that first minute. By the second minute though, I realized that this challenge was no easy feat. I hadn’t even finished my second donut, and already I was behind schedule.

At a certain point,I realized that I was unable to open my mouth. It wasn’t

because I was being polite and did not want to show the spectators the awful mess of half-chewed donuts, but because the powdered sugar and dough had combined to form a paste that effectively glued my mouth shut.

By donut number four I was seriously reconsidering my life decisions. I had one minute to eat one and a half donuts, but the sugar was hitting my blood stream now, adding a pleasant hum in my veins. For some perverse reason, though, I did not stop. My mantra was simple: it does not matter if you cannot feel your tongue. Just eat through your tears.

However, I regret to inform you that my motivational speaking was not successful. I was one-eighth of a donut away for victory, but it was not close enough.

This challenge is deceptively difficult.

Take my word for it. Unless you want to deal with sugar-induced nausea and failure, please do not try this.

—Moitra, a senior, is a News Editor.

Cinnamon challenge Leon Cheong

There is always laughter whenever people watch an attempt of an infamous Youtube challenge. These challenges involve the “victim” testing his or her ability to withstand eating certain kinds of foods, which usually results in pain and failure. Unfortunately, I selected the hardest of them all: the cinnamon challenge, where one must consume a spoonful of cinnamon without the aid of water. When I was presented with this challenge, I expected it to be simple and easy. Later, however, I deeply regretted this mistake.

If there is anything to be learned

from doing the cinnamon challenge, it is simply not to do it. As I began the challenge with people standing by to my imminent humiliation, I pushed away any second thoughts I had and opened wide. Within mere seconds, it began to feel like I had just taken a mouthful of sand and my mouth was completely parched. With such a dry mouth, I was unable to swallow. After this, I did what happens to every person who takes the challenge. Disgusted, I spewed out the load of cinnamon in my mouth, effectively creating a flume of brown smoke. Simple willpower cannot overcome the dry, throat-searing feeling that comes with it. So to all who consider performing this intolerable challenge, ask yourself this: would you eat sawdust?

—Cheong, a sophomore, is a reporter.

Gunn vs. The Cinnamon Challenge “Spicy.”

“Never again.”

Alex Baker (12)

Jonathan Medina (10)

“I was choking!”

“It burns!”

Stefan Jensen (9)

Rubi Alcazar (11) Wendy Qiu and Kyle Zhu

—Compiled by Stephanie Zhang