November 2013

Visual and Performing Arts take center stage.

The Oracle explores coffee culture.

Students chronicle their blind date experiences.

PG. 12-13 CENTERFOLD

PG. 10-11 FEATURES

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Palo Alto Unified School District Henry M. Gunn High School 780 Arastradero Rd Palo Alto, CA 94306 NON-PROFIT ORG U.S. Postage

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Henry M. Gunn High School

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seniors’ addition

Friday, November 8, 2013 Volume 51, Issue 3

780 Arastradero Road, Palo Alto, CA 94306

workloads grow with of college applications

Cooper Aspegren and Nabeel Chollampat News Editors

Summer has ended, fall has begun, and now the real work begins for most of Gunn’s nearly 1,900 students. Yet, for most seniors, the workload has been doubled instead of just merely being started. During the final three months of the calendar year, seniors who plan to attend college must finish applications, along with experiencing the normal or perhaps enhanced rigor of their academic course loads.

Campus administrators have noted rising stress levels for senior class members over the course of the past few years as a result of these college application pressures. “It’s probably increased a lot in the past few years especially with all the students during early decision and early action,” Assistant Principal of Guidance Tom Jacoubowsky said. According to Registrar Tracy Douglas, 43 percent of the senior class of 2014 applied early, up from 37 percent of seniors last year.

A survey conducted by The Oracle within the current senior class revealed that, of the 203 responding seniors, 23 percent reported they were at a stress level of eight on a one to 10 scale (10 being extremely stressed).

Administrators believe students’ viewpoint on how college will factor into the rest of their lives has contributed substantially to the stress. “The pressure they feel about colleges and how they feel it would be the be-all, end-all to whether or not they will have success in life has created a lot of unnecessary angst that really shouldn’t exist,” Jacoubowsky said.

Guidance counselor Myesha Compton concurs with Jacoubowsky that seniors who elect to apply to schools through Early Decision or Early Action are usually the ones who feel the most stressed. “I think many students underestimate the amount of time it takes to do all the supplements,” she said. “And at the time their applications are due, around November 15, that’s typically when their courses are starting to ramp up, so it makes for the perfect storm.”

College packets for students applying early were officially due by Oct. 4 as a means of ensuring the guidance office can send in all required materials to colleges by the deadlines.

“Even if you come in with a November 1st packet and it’s October 25th, I’ll always take it,” Douglas said. “But, because you didn’t get the packet in by the deadline, you’ve lost Guidance’s guarantee that we will be able to COLLEGE APPS—p.3

Dave Zhu Dave Zhu

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News

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District attorney visits law classroom 1st quarter grades matter for some colleges Tim Wang

public and we are always trying to be more Copy Editor efficient,” he said.

For those who want to become lawyers, On Oct. 25, Santa Clara County District At- Rosen encouraged students to be open-minded torney (D.A.) Jeffrey Rosen visited social studies and to work hard. “If you’re interested, look teacher Patricia Holmes’ Law 1 class. Students for mentors, they can teach you a great deal,” were invited to ask questions for the majority of he said. “Getting help in the LSAT will help the period after he gave an outline on his duties as well.” and road to becoming a Junior Dylan lawyer.

Thomas appreciatAlthough Rosen was ed the D.A.’s visit, elected as the D.A. in noting that it was 2010, his career in the very inspirational D.A.’s office started in despite wanting to 1995 as one of the coungo into a different ty’s 185 deputy district field of law. “It gave attorneys. Since then, me more substance he has gone a long way to back my interest from investigating miswith,” he said. demeanors to his final Holmes was very case in 2010 related tograteful and excited murder. that the D.A. was As the D.A., Rosen able to come. “The no longer participates fact that we got the directly as a prosecuDistrict Attorney of tor. Instead, he now Santa Clara County manages the office and to stop his day to overviews some 30,000 come to Gunn High criminal cases each year.

School is an opporSome of his chief duties tunity I hope the include communication students can truly with the general public, take advantage of,” signing warrants, and Holmes said. “The being the final shot callstudents had so Audey Shen er on cases involving Santa Clara County District Attorney Jefmuch to say on the murder or government thank-you card they frey Rosen answers the questions posed officials. Since he bewrote.” by students enrolled in the Law class. gan, Rosen has instiIn addition to tuted two new units—the Cold Case Unit and hosting Rosen, the Law 1 class recently had a the nationally acclaimed Conviction Integrity visit from Santa Clara County Judge Thomas Unit—and has constantly worked to improve Kuhnle. The class also visited the site of the public safety. “We are working to protect the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.

Kavya Padmanabhan Copy Editor

As the first quarter came to a close, many seniors were shocked to hear that first quarter grades do matter and do have an impact on the college admission process.

There was a misconception on campus that first quarter grades did not matter at all, and it was only after the grade report came out that seniors started to learn that they do. “The message that we, or at least I, had received about quarter grades was that they were simply a glorified progress report,” Senior Class President Janet Titzler said. “Something to fill our parents in on how we were doing so far and that they weren’t relevant in terms of college admissions.”

According to Registrar Tracy Douglas, Early Decision (ED) colleges can call the school and ask for students’ quarter grades if they need them. Senior Evy Vaughan was never informed that quarter grades do matter. “Everyone else said that quarter grades don’t count,” she said. “I feel like we should have known about this.

It puts more pressure on us to do better. I’m kind of scared now.”

Douglas expla ined t hat f irst quarter

grades do not show up on the transcript issued by Gunn but can be accessed by some schools who request they be sent.

“They’re considered progress grades, so they don’t go on the transcript,” she said.

“But if you are a senior applying to an ED school, there are some ED schools that want to see your quarter grades.”

Vaughan believes that knowing about the importance of quarter grades would have changed her academic performance.

“They could have told all the seniors at the senior assembly that the quarter grades do matter,” Vaughan said. “I think knowing about quarter grades would have changed my school performance.”

According to Douglas, however, there have been fewer than five colleges that ask for quarter grades.

Pa son A l li

ley

News THEORACLE

Friday, November 8, 2013

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College applications affect seniors’ general stress levels

Staff

Senior Madison Thomas believes college applications have negatively affected her social life. “My friends and I don’t see each other as often submit your materials to the colleges on time. We will do the best we because we’re all worried about getting our applications done on time,” can.” she said.

Compton and other counselors advise students to start the applicaCompton believes that social media has had a large impact on the coltion process over the summer. “For many students, the idea of applying lege application process to college just does not become for students. “Students real for them until they enter can now advertise where into their senior year,” she said. t hey’re apply ing a nd “The procrastination could just their own horror stories,” be a subconscious wanting to Compton said. “It defidelay the inevitable.” nitely helps to build angst When students report to because some students counselors with extreme cases The Oracle surveyed the senior class about college feel pressured to apply to of stress, sometimes including applications and reported the following results. the colleges that everyone a severe lack of sleep, there are a else is applying to.” number of ways their problems (203 seniors were surveyed).

Social media has also can be alleviated, according to created another burden Compton. Students are somePercentage of responding seniors who are for students applying to times advised to cut down applying early college.

According to Jaon the number of schools to coubowsky, many private which they apply, recycle esPercentage of seniors applying to 11-15 colinstitutions look up prosays for supplements, or switch spective applicants on leges in total from an early application to a popular sites such as Faceregular one. book, Twitter, etc. to check Compton advises students to their digital records.

Percentage of seniors taking 6 classes at factor in college apps as part of Senior Rauhul Varma their daily schedule. “The way I Gunn this semester believes that colleges now look at it, college apps are like have a more personal an AP class-and-a-half,” she Percentage of seniors taking 4 AP classes look into applicants’ lives. said. School administrators this semester “From the college side, say that the workload for comthey get to see more into pleting college applications has who you are,” he said. expanded due to the growth of Percentage of seniors at a level 8 of “Now, it’s not just what the Common Application. “It’s stress because of college apps alone you send them in your so easy now to apply to so many application.” schools that it’s hard to know Percentage of seniors at a level of 8 on a In addition, Thomas when to stop,” Jacoubowsky one-to-10 scale regarding college apps afsays she is now constantly said. fecting time spent with friends and family bombarded with adverAccording to senior Tejas tisements for colleges. “I Kannan, working on college Jasmine Garnett get a lot of emails about apps has affected the time he colleges that want me to spends on many of his other apply, but they’re all places that I didn’t even want to think about,” she said. activities. “College apps take away from a lot of time for doing homework Kannan says that his social media presence has been severely affected and other extracurriculars, so I have less time to have fun, and I have to by the college application process, and he is more careful now with what spend more time doing work,” he said. The Oracle survey revealed that he posts. “Now we have to spend more time monitoring our profiles so 18.6 percent of responding seniors’ social lives and 6.4 percent of their that nothing inappropriate is visible,” he said. extracurricular activities were “heavily affected.”

Copy Anuva Ganapathi Kavya Padmanabhan Tim Wang

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780 Arastradero Rd. Palo Alto, CA 94306 (650) 354-8238 www.gunnoracle.com

Editorial Board Editor-in-Chief Catalina Zhao Managing Editors Mitch Donat Lucy Oyer News Cooper Aspegren Lawrence Chen Nabeel Chollampat Forum Ben Atlas Leon Cheong Klaire Tan Features Rebecca Alger Chaewon Lee Danielle Yacobson Centerfold Rachel Lew Stephanie Zhang Sports Pooja Belur Alvin Wang Erica Watkins Entertainment Samantha Acker Misheel Enkhbat Noa Livneh Photo Audey Shen Graphics Jasmine Garnett

Tech Lisa Hao Roy Shadmon Business/Circulation Erica Lee Shireen Ahsan (Asst.)

Matt Niksa (Asst.)

Regina Tran (Asst.)

COLLEGE APPS—p.1

64. 2 46.6

35.8 35.3

23.0 13.7

The Oracle strongly encourages and prints signed Letters to the Editor and Comments. Comments are generally shorter responses, while letters are longer pieces of writing.

Please include your name, grade and contact information should you choose to write one.

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

Letters to the Editor and Comments and ideas for coverage may be sent to oraclegunn@gmail.com or posted on our Facebook page.

These letters need not be from current students.

Photographers Stephanie Kim Anthony Tran

“I would like to see an article about my accomplishments in track.”

—Tone Lee, 9

“I would like to see an article about not having breathalizers at dances in The Oracle.”

—Laura Patou, 10

Graphics Artists Paige Anderson Alexandra Gong Anton Oyung Allison Paley Carolyn Zhou Dave Zhu

“I liked that the Big Band received publicity because we usually don’t receive any.” ­—Nikhil Ghosh, 10

“I thought the forum articles about the dress codes were really interesting.”

—Ton Bui, 10

“I really liked it—the layout was appealing and the information was relatable to my life.”

—Schuyler Sun, 11

“Something I really enjoyed last year was ‘Ellen’s Top 10’ and maybe bringing back something similar would be very interesting.”

—Danny Golovinsky, 11

Reporters Elinor Aspegren, Lena Campbell, Shawna Chen, Ian Cramer, Aayush Dubey, Kush Dubey, Yuki KlotzBurwell, Esther Kozakevich, Emily Kvitko, Christine Lin, Alex Man, Naina Murthy, Arjun Sahdev, Henry Siu, Justin Wenig Adviser Kristy Blackburn

October 11, 2013 “I really liked the issue especially because there wasn’t much important going on at Gunn from a holiday perspective besides Halloween, and I thought they did a good job filling the paper with content.”

—Bjorn Hessen-Schmidt, 11 “I liked seeing my brother in the fashion section. He looked really good in it.”

—Lisa Cheong, 10

“I liked the things about the exchange students and the like but the vegetarian story

by Matt Niksa was my fave because it’s about food.”

—Neel Thronson, 12 “I liked the back page with the cool iPhone image. I really like the Entertainment section too.”

—Sahej Singh, 12 “I enjoyed reading about the pros and cons about the party scene.”

—Anatole Colevas, 12

“I would like to see a story about choir in The Oracle!”

—Tatiana Boyle, 12 “I liked this issue, but I didn’t really like the dress code articles.”

—Ahran Cho, 12 “I think The Oracle is very informative and strong in vocabulary and style in most articles.”

—Alex Hasnain, 11

4

News Social studies teacher put on paid leave

NEWS BITES Project Outlet provides aid to Gunn’s LGBTQ community

Situated on El Camino Real in Mountain View, Project Outlet is an organization that seeks to provide help to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual and queer (LGBTQ) community. Project Outlet’s mission is to empower LGBTQ and questioning youth and to create safe and accepting communities. It has helped over 2,500 youth through support groups, mentoring and counseling.

Over 20,000 people have participated in the many educational workshops that are organized by Project Outlet.

The organization has brought its support to both Gunn High School and Palo Alto High School through the Adolescent Counseling Services. Project Outlet began providing its help to Gunn since the second semester of 2012. Since that point in time, Project Outlet has been running a group at Gunn two times every month. Even though it is only scheduled for twice a month, Project Outlet comes to help the Gay Straight Alliance at Gunn when needed.

A Gunn student who preferred to maintain anonymity believes that Project Outlet has helped students acquire higher levels of self-esteem. “It’s a big difference when you talk to someone who has been through what you’ve been through,” the student said. “It’s not like talking to someone who is confused, it’s actually talking to someone who knows what they are.”

Alex Man

Students and teachers take part in anti-bullying events On Oct. 8, classrooms participated in a discussion about online bullying during B period. The day after this discussion, they celebrated National United Against Bullying Day (Unity Day).

The goal of these two events was to educate students about the repercussions of cyberbullying and to celebrate the upstanders who try to prevent it.

President of Reach Out Care Know (ROCK) junior Danny Golovinsky regards Unity Day as a success. “I would absolutely do something like Unity Day again,” he said. “It is simple, fun and spreads an amazing and very crucial message.” As for the bullying assembly, he heard mixed feedback from both students and staff.

“I would say that it is important to do something like this again, but with different content so students do not get bored of the same scenarios every year,” he said.

According to Golovinsky, the next step in bullying prevention for the students involves watching out for their peers and stopping various kinds of incidents before they take a turn for the worse.

“Watching out for things like [bullying] is an excellent start to a safe community where all people feel accepted and welcome,” he said. Assistant Principal Trinity Klein holds a similar viewpoint. “[Kids] will keep hearing [these messages] again and again, and hopefully they will be better digital citizens,” she said.

Elinor Aspegren

Catalina Zhao Editor-in-Chief

Social studies teacher Deborah Sanderson is currently on administrative leave, which is a district-initiated paid leave, according to Principal Katya Villalobos. Sanderson is still an employee of the Palo Alto Unified School District. Villalobos stated, however, that once a teacher receives notification from the district’s Human Resources section that he or she will no longer be teaching, he or she must comply. District officials have declined to comment because this matter is “a personnel issue.” Sanderson also declined to be interviewed.

A few weeks before Sanderson was placed on leave—at the end of the first quarter—14 sophomores transferred out of her B period Contemporary World History class after the students and parents made the request to the administration.

According to Villalobos, the administration created a new class for these students that social studies teacher Brian Miguel now teaches.

Students said that they transferred because they did not feel safe in Sanderson’s class; they felt uncomfortable with Sanderson’s seemingly racist and sexist remarks, and they explained that Sanderson was unapproachable and would not properly answer students’ questions, even when she calculated grades incorrectly. They added that Sanderson would tell the class about her is-

sues with the administration. “There was like a fight between her and the administration that we were caught in between, and I didn’t want to be in that situation,” sophomore Ana Jones (name has been changed) said.

For sophomore Susie Scott (name has been changed), being in Sanderson’s class was so stressful to the point where it was affecting other aspects of her life. “I couldn’t focus in other classes. I couldn’t focus at home,” she said. “After I switched out, I was so relieved and so thankful.”

Parents of Sanderson’s students approached the administration because they were also concerned. An anonymous parent found her student’s reports of Sanderson’s strange language, swearing in class, seemingly inappropriate comments to minority students and questionable grading practices to be worrisome. “What topped things off for me was a very odd email she sent to all the parents of the class and her response to the parents that replied,” the parent wrote in an email. “The email was about incorrect category percentages and quarter grades, but it mostly insulted the students’ concerns over [their grades].

She seemed to blame the students for her [grading] mistake.”

Villalobos stated that she is trying to find a permanent substitute teacher for the rest of the semester for Sanderson’s classes. At this point in time, Villalobos does not have information regarding Sanderson’s return.

Leaf-blowing time shifts after complaints Shireen Ahsan

Asst. Business Manager

Gunn’s grounds workers have stopped operating leaf blowers before 8 a.m. because neighbor complaints have brought to attention that their actions do not comply with Palo Alto ordinances. For years, the workers operated before 8 a.m. because district maintenance assumed they were exempt from the ordinance.

Assistant Principal of Facilities Kimberley Cowell stated that there are some entities, such as businesses and hospitals, that have exemptions from the ordinance and therefore are allowed to blow leaves before 8 a.m. Since the district now knows that there isn’t an exemption, grounds workers are now working during the time allotted by the ordinance, which states, “No person shall operate any leaf blower within any non-residential zone except during the following hours: eight a.m. and six p.m. Monday through Friday, and ten a.m. to four p.m. Saturday.”

The ordinance restrictions have led to various repercussions, including dust and noise complaints from both students and teachers. “I know it’s not their choice when or where they blow the leaves so I think there

needs to be better management,” senior Mariam Rizvi said. “It’s hard to study with the smell and disruptive noise.”

Music teacher Todd Summers believes that a decrease in leaf blower use would not be detrimental. “For me, it’s mostly the dirt,” said. “What would our campus look like if we used leaf blowers 50 percent less? It’s nature, not garbage.”

According to Cowell, there is a downside to not using leaf blowers. “There is a slip and fall hazard to both bicyclists and pedestrians, due to the many oak trees on campus dropping leaves and acorns,” she said.

Grounds worker Chandara Vinoukkun believes there are more than just safety benefits to the students of having a clean campus. “We believe students study and feel happier when a school is clean; it encourages them to learn,” Vinoukkun said. “Nobody should come to a dirty school.”

District Head of Grounds Chuck McDonnell, who works with the grounds workers, has been trying to figure out when would be a good time to blow the leaves to accommodate students, teachers and the grounds workers. Leaf-blowing on Saturday is also not an option because the grounds workers have the weekend off.

According to Cowell, a neighbor from Gunn’s adjacent apartments called her, complaining that leaf blowers disrupted her on a Sunday morning despite the ordinance stating, “No person shall operate any leaf blowers on Sundays.” Cowell notified McDonnell who apparently reported that the workers were county maintenance issuing community service to supervised workers, not district grounds workers.

The district is currently tryi n g to determine a regular time frame to blow l e av e s that takes into consideration students and staff while also respecting grounds w or ke r s’ union labor Allison Paley rights.

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People, places and things

Lisa Hao Ask.fm offers social benefits with anonymity

The social media website Ask.fm has recently sparked controversy across the country, especially in high schools.

Ask.fm is a popular social networking site with over 60 million registered users. The website allows individuals to ask other users questions either anonymously or as an identified user. Though many use Ask.fm to entertain themselves, critics say that it can easily be used as an instrument of cyberbullying. However, Ask.fm is a useful social tool because it allows people to find out what others think about them and build upon flaws after hearing constructive criticism through the anonymity of the site.

The anonymity of Ask.fm allows people to ask questions or write comments without social consequences.

Since one does not need an account to write messages to other people, it is nearly impossible to figure out who wrote what unless the asker decides to reveal his or her username. This aspect takes away the face-to-face judgment and discomfort that comes with an unusual question. In high school especially, where cliques and judgment are plentiful, it can be difficult to approach someone outside of one’s “normal” social group. With Ask.fm, one can get to know more about people from other social groups, classes and grades by their answers.

This tactic can be used to clear up rumors, get to know a person’s interests, find out about a person’s thoughts and stances on issues, etc. Also, individuals can tell others their honest opinions of them. In return, users get a chance to find out what their peers think about them

ask.fm PRO

via the questions and statements asked. They can find out how others view them. Users often receive commendations and compliments about personal qualities and achievements. It’s always nice to feel appreciated and to be recognized for a job well done. While people should not need others to validate themselves, this is simply not the case in a world filled with insecurities. Questions can help people realize that there are others who care about their lives. In the case of negative questions and comments, people can turn them into constructive criticism to help better themselves. However, if users don’t want to answer a question or respond to a comment, they can just ignore it, and it will stay in their private inbox until they answer or delete it.

Ask.fm receives a great deal of bad press because individuals can use the website to cyberbully users by sending hurtful messages. However, there are actually a lot of features on Ask.fm that help ensure a safe environment.

Users can report messages considered to be harassing that Ask.fm administers will investigate within 24 hours of the report. If worse comes to worst, there is always the option to disable the account to avoid the problem altogether.

Ask.fm may not be for those who are sensitive and easily offended, but it can be beneficial for those who want to learn more about how their peers perceive them.

In return, the anonymity gives curious minds a chance to ask the questions they’ve always wanted to ask without the consequence of anyone finding out who they are.

Ask.fm can be an entertaining, informative and helpful site—it just depends on how it is used.

—Hao, a sophomore, is a reporter.

Like . Comment . Share . 2 hours ago

Faces in the Crowd What are your thoughts on Ask.fm?

Quinn Hamilton (9) It’s a trap because girls want to know what people think about them, but get upset when people say rude things.

Like . Comment . Share . 4 hours ago

Mikaela Wayne (9) It’s pointless because people say really rude things and think they can get away with it because they’re anonymous.

Like . Comment . Share . 6 hours ago Lydia Sun (10) It’s interesting to see what people’s questions are, but it’s easy for it to get out of hand.

Like . Comment . Share . 14 hours ago

Lucas Mosing (11) It’s addicting but pointless.

Like . Comment . Share . 16 hours ago Justin Yoo (12) Ask.fm is a great way to tease yourself about finding out the “secrets” of others.

Like . Comment . Share . 19 hours ago Camille Steger (12) I have one, and the questions are regular and instill high school drama.

Like . Comment . Share . 20 hours ago

Friday, November 8, 2013 Anuva Ganapathi Ask.fm is a burden on teenagers’ emotional security

Log onto Facebook at any given time and you’ll almost always see a few people posting their Ask.fm account links, prompting their peers to ask them questions through the anonymous social media site. It experienced an explosion of popularity among teenagers, with over 20 million users as of November 2012. That figure has more than doubled since then. Unfortunately, the anonymity of Ask.fm creates significant potential for cyberbullying and the spread of malicious rumors by allowing anonymous individuals to send in unmoderated questions and comments to insecure users without ever being held accountable for their statements.

At first glance, the site seems relatively harmless—simple banter about after-school plans and some obscure information you never would have dared to ask someone in person. Unlike Facebook and Twitter, Ask.fm has traditionally not employed privacy settings, prohibiting users from controlling who can and cannot see and question their accounts. With no parents to look over students’ shoulders, Ask. fm has become a breeding ground for cyberbullying and unnecessary online drama. Questions that deal with private and personal stories are often asked without hesitation, and answers that openly insult or shame others are not uncommon. Sexual language, profanities and obscene name-calling add to the picture—all for the world’s viewing pleasure. Oftentimes users don’t even ask others questions, but simply send blatantly rude statements. The fact that users can hide behind their computer screens has only encouraged crude and hurt-

ask.fm CON

ful questions and comments. Most of the victims actually know their tormentors, but the site’s signature anonymity allows them to commit acts of bullying without getting in trouble. In cases like these, young people are often naïve and susceptible to harm without even realizing the severity of what they are doing. Anonymity creates irregular conversation that would not take place if questioners were identified. It removes social trappings and restrictions, prompting students to do rash, harmful and dangerous things.

It is true that users have a choice as to whether they want to answer questions. Yet they often unwittingly choose to answer them, even if means hurting someone else or putting themselves in a dangerous position. Even if they choose not to, malicious questioners are given an anonymous and unregulated path to the users. We have constantly been told to keep our Facebook clean and to not post things that could potentially get us in trouble. The same goes for any social media site.

For whatever reason, people seem to disregard this when it comes to Ask.fm. People often use Ask.fm simply to pass the time and they don’t think before posting.

The few minutes of entertainment you might get by answering questions are not worth the consequences and risks that come with Ask.fm. Answers on Ask.fm about yourself and others can easily be used against you. Along with anything else on the Internet, it is important to keep in mind that anyone can get access to what you say, and even by deleting your account or specific answers, there are ways for that information to get out.

—Ganapathi, a senior, is a Copy Editor.

Like . Comment . Share . 14 hours ago Leon Cheong Social media offers revolutionary new platform for communication

With seniors stressing about college applications and freshmen experiencing life as Gunn students for the first time, there is a flux of people deactivating their Facebook accounts. Left and right, people are classifying social networking websites as a distracting frivolity that detracts from productivity. Students believe that removing themselves from Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr will allow them to focus more on their studies. True, disconnecting from social media can allow a person better concentration, but those who refuse to engage in it altogether are doing themselves a serious disservice.

Let’s face it: social media is taking over the world.

From Facebook’s conception in 2004, it has rapidly become, for the general population, the primary means of communicating. It won’t be long before it starts taking over every facet of our lives (if it hasn’t already). It has almost become an obligation for professionals in the business world to sign into social media, with sites such as Linkedin, where 89 percent of hirees now come from, connecting employees and employers with each other. Many businesses have also already taken to adding a social media sector to their marketing departments. Certainly educational administrators have seen the vitality of social networking, as Gunn is one of many schools that uses Schoology to connect with students. Even students have seen the necessity of involving social media with their academic lives; most are members of at least one class group that they use to post questions or receive help. It is becoming more and more apparent that in order to maintain a successful lifestyle, one must keep up with social media trends.

Staying in touch with online networking has proved advantageous for the distribution of information as well. According to socialnetworking.procon.org, social media is now the main news resource for 27.8 percent of Americans, only 1 percent below newspapers, and Like . Comment . Share . 17 hours ago

a whopping 22.8 percent above other print publications. As the number of connected Americans rises, social media will soon overtake newspapers as the primary and conventional means of newscasting. It’s a sad fact that most of the new generation won’t pick up a newspaper, but publications like Newsweek have embraced Web 2.0, abandoning paper to push for profits online. Social media has become the new face of mass communication and now provides a convenient, instantaneous way for people to receive information.

This wider and faster range of data exchange has led to an increasingly connected and informed populace.

Some argue that social media is a distraction that Paige Anderson can endanger the grades of teenagers. While this may be true, this claim is too broad to accurately classify it as a detriment to society. There is one reason why it is not social media’s fault: there is an off button. If a student wants to get his homework done, he will temporarily shut down his computer and finish his assignments for the day. If he can’t help himself but to check his screen every five minutes, that’s a problem of his own inability to control his temptations. But that doesn’t mean we should be pointing fingers at Facebook and Twitter; those companies have no responsibilities for a student’s actions. A decade ago, parents would be scolding their kids for talking on the phone for two hours instead of studying. Today, teenagers spend that time on social media. But back then, people were not unhooking their phones and writing articles about why phones are destroying the youth. The same situation applies now, except with a much more prevalent and progressive medium. Ultimately, unproductive behavior is a personal choice.

—Cheong, a senior, is a Forum Editor.

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Forum

THEORACLE

Electronic music is artificial

Internet not the place for arguments Ben Atlas

Nabeel Chollampat I cannot stand electronic music. It’s a broad statement, to be sure, but the types of music that fall under the umbrella of “electronic”—dubstep, trap, house, EDM, etc.—bear no differences. To me, they represent little to no actual musical talent, and the whole enterprise comes off as artificial.

My taste in music, however, is also fair game for ridicule; I am an avid R&B aficionado, specifically for the classic works of Trey Songz, Justin Timberlake and Boyz II Men. So, in all respects, I’m obviously not the shining example of musical elitism. Yet the common factor among R&B, hip-hop, soul and other types of music is the vocal expression of emotions. The ability to sing well is a talent few are born with, and the ability to rap is just as admirable. Rap and R&B songs are anchored by the vocals that ground their tracks. They express feeling, thought and emotion, and they provide a base from which the song can build upon. Yet, in its simplest, most broken down form, electronic music is a few beats superimposed on one another and the producer layering and distorting the track in various ways to achieve different effects.

Almost everyone is guilty of, at some point in their lives, singing/lip-syncing/butchering various songs they have heard and liked. Yet, to do this, one needs lyrics. Trying to sing the latest Swedish House Mafia song would be akin to making clicking noises with your tongue—actually, I think it would literally be that. In addition, lyrics can tell a story, such as the classic hard-to-get routine this girl at the club is running on Mr. Songz, or portray a deeper message, like Frank Ocean questioning the meaning of life and positing the existence of extra-terrestrials in the same verse. To be fair, the use of lyrics doesn’t represent musical quality, but it provides people with, if nothing more, an avenue for spontaneous karaoke to their hearts’ content and a medium with which to explore more than just the notes.

Moreover, a huge aspect of a music artist’s career is live performances. We have heard of that time when Beyonce got caught lip-syncing at a concert. Yes, there are times when artists have been caught selling the hungry crowds an artificial performance, but there is nothing more artificial to me than an electronic concert. When your favorite singers take the stage and begin to belt out your cherished jams, you know they are genuine; they are performing music, doing what they—some, at least—were born to do in front of people who want to be there for them.

Yet, when an artist, using a laptop, turntable and f lash drive, graces the stage and barely “performs,” the concert itself seems artificial and insincere. In my opinion, this ostensibly anticlimactic culture corrupts the whole enterprise of music, and that’s something I doubt I would pay for; what would be the difference between your favorite DJ and me performing a set at a concert off of a laptop? The same music would play, with maybe a few variations here and there, but the core performance would remain mostly the same.

Despite my objections to the entire spectrum of electronic music, I will concede that, in certain situations, some songs are definitely enjoyable. After all, there’s truly nothing to be gained by judging people based on what music they like. Unless they listen to electronic music.

Then, judge them.

Ever yone’s seen t he cringe-inducing posts from ignorant users expressing their opinion on everything from gay marriage to fiscal responsibility. In fact, insensitive bigotry, fallacious logic, poor grammar and thoughtless commentary have become t he new norm on a certain medium: the Internet.

In the past decade, the Internet has become much more social. Forums, message boards and social media sites have become a force to be reckoned with, especially among the younger demographic.

Since so many indiv idua ls are networked together by the web, ordinary civilians are given a public ear through websites that never existed before the Internet. It is thus tempting to trumpet one’s arguments on important political and social issues of the day by posting on such mediums.

Normally, social discourse and intelligent conversation is laudable.

However, it is best to refrain from arguing about important topics on the Internet.

Even in real life, people are sensitive to aggressive arguments on

religious and political issues of the day. However, people are accountable for what they say—an actual person must bear responsibility for his or her words. On the Internet, anonymity and social media remove this accountability. Posts on forums, message boards and sites like Ask. fm are unmoderated and under a pseudonym where users do not know who other users are. On social media sites like Facebook, even if a user

and even racial slurs and bigoted statements that would never be considered appropriate in a real-world conversation.

The worst part of this phenomenon is that people should be more accountable on the Internet than they are in real life. In normal arguments, only a select few other people will hear you, meaning that you can only offend a few at worst. On sites like Facebook or Reddit, even the most asinine st retches of logic are given a n a r t i f ic ia l megaphone to hu nd re d s i f not t housands of people. This creates a bizarre scenario in which people give no thought to their words because they are not held accountable even though they are being judged by thousands of other users.

If you’re arguing on the Internet about sensitive issues, you have two choices: shape up or shut up. If you’re about to post an inf lammatory message, reread it to yourself first. Better yet, just post nothing—at the end of the day, no one cares what your username has to add to the American political tradition.

On sites like Facebook or Reddit, even the most asinine stretches of logic are given an artificial megaphone to hundreds if not thousands of people. has a name registered, he or she may not really know the other people in the discussion. People on Facebook often barely know their “friends,” and comment on posts in response to people they don’t know at all. It is tempting to be bold and rude instead of respectful and polite when you don’t know whom you’re talking to.

Anyone who doubts that people are insensitive on the Internet is just wrong. If you’ve seen a political argument, you know that all websites on which users interact contain arguments f illed with rank logic, u n necessa r y r udeness , blat a nt ly destructive comments from “trolls”

—Atlas, a senior, is a Forum Editor.

—Chollampat, a senior, is a News Editor.

Jasmine Garnett

9

Features

Friday, November 8, 2013

Students share their collections

Erina Kamiya

Alberto Lombatti

Rubber Duckies

Pointe Shoes

Records

Hair Bows

Starting from his first encounter with mini rubber ducks, junior Noah Krigel was hooked. Well, not exactly. “At my very first swim meet, my coach told me that if I got first in the race, she would give me a rubber ducky,” he said. Receiving ducks as rewards became a huge motivation for Krigel; whenever he was given a new one he would say, “Oh, cool!

A rubber ducky!” Luckily for Krigel, he won many races and expanded his collection. “At one point I had thirty of them,” he said. “Some look like ninjas, some like dogs, and others have hearts all over them.” His collection is not only eclectic, but kooky and one-of-a-kind. “I definitely don’t know anyone else who collects duckies,” he said.

72 pointe shoes symbolize six years of dancing on pointe for senior Erina Kamiya. Through the years, her dedication to and love for ballet have grown dramatically. “I go through approximately one pair of shoes every two months, so my collection is rather large,” Kamiya said. These dance shoes definitely do not come cheap. “I was never able to throw them away because I felt like it would be a waste—each pair costs around eighty dollars,” she said. As she dances through countless pairs of pointe shoes, Kamiya sees herself intelligently growing and technically improving as a ballerina.

“My collection of old, stinky pointe shoes still continues to grow today,” she said.

For the record, senior Alberto Lombatti has about 50 new and vintage records, which he purchased in Italy.

“I like buying records, especially used ones,” Lombatti said. He enjoys looking at various records with his father, who inspired Lombatti to start a collection of his own. “I also listen to them often,” he said. Lombatti’s timeless compilation is full of classic rock records and alternative jams, including tracks by David Bowie. Lombatti purchased the first record in his collection during a spontaneous trip to the local store in his hometown in Italy. “One day, I just decided to buy a record player,” Lombatti said. “Then I bought a new record every month.”

Red bows, green bows, polka dot bows and jean bows—junior Paula Kyin owns all of them. Her obsession began with her first step into American Apparel. “I walked into the store, saw a bow, bought it, started to wear it, fell in love with it and bought more,” she said.

Passionately dedicated to her collection, she has fun customizing the bows. “Currently I have about 36 of them, however, I’m always making new ones,” Kyin said.

“It’s hard to wear 36 bows, I’ll give you that.” Her collection is both diverse and colorful. “I have almost every color of the rainbow except for orange, because orange is not my thing,” she said. Kyin has a motto that she lives by: “A bow a day makes everything okay.”

Noah Krigel

Paula Kyin

Q&A Artist of the Month: Courtesy of Noah Krigel

Courtesy of Erina Kamiya

The Oracle: What type of art do you do?

Gowri Sunder: I do mostly drawings in chalk, graphite or charcoal and paintings in oil and acrylic.

TO: What is your favorite part about drawing and painting?

GS: My favorite part about painting and drawing is the process of creating a piece— struggling through the technical aspects to create something really cool. I like painting and drawing because it is very direct—you physically create something tangible without having to deal with software or something that creates a separation between you and your work.

Audey Shen

TO: Do you have a common theme in your pieces?

GS: My portfolio has mostly figural work, but some landscapes and still-lifes. My work mostly relates to psychology and describing people, processing emotions, relationships and that kind of thing. So going off of that, for [my] AP Studio concentration I am trying to describe mental disorders from a first-person perspective, to try to help people see the work and understand what people suffering with these disorders go through.

Courtesy of Alberto Lombatti

Courtesy of Paula Kyin

—Written by Emily Kvitko

senior Gowri Sunder

TO: Where do you garner your inspiration from?

GS: I get my inspiration visually from other artists. I mostly look at Art Noveau, German Expressionism, Surrealism and the Dutch master for inspiration on color scheme, style, symbols, and composition. I also draw inspiration from movies, animation, video game design, books and music.

TO: What piece are you most proud of?

GS: I did an oil painting of my grandmother in the Dutch Masters style and I like it mostly because of the amount of work it took me to complete. It took me three months because I had to do a lot of layers of glazes to get the richness of color and depth of values. But it came out pretty well, so it was definitely worth it.

TO: Do you plan to pursue art in the future?

GS: If it works out, I would like to. I am moving more towards fine arts and painting, and because that field is a lot harder than design or digital art it might be kind of harder to do it full time. I am trying to go for a double major arts and humanities so I will either have more to say in my art or be able to go into an interdisciplinary field.

TO: What do you want people to get from viewing your pieces?

GS: I want my art to be relatable and make people think/feel. I feel like a lot of contemporary is really inaccessible to most people, so I want to create work that makes people excited about art.

TO: Do you have any advice for beginners?

GS: Study the masters’ techniques and learn as much as you can about everything that interests you. You have to be technically good and knowledgeable about a lot of different things—social issues to literature—to create visually and conceptually interesting art.

—Compiled by Rebecca Alger

Courtesy of Gowri Sunder

10

THEORACLE

Coffee makes the How to have coffee (without actually drinking coffee)

You are what you drink: Coffee Stereotypes Americano

1. Tiramisu

coffee is the life fuel for a fidgety, sleep-deprived college student who needs a rejuvenating triple shot for his second time today. If you need him, you can probably find him in the bathroom.

Tiramisu, a beloved Italian treat, is a classic example of a delicious coffee-based dessert. It contains several alternating layers of coffee-dipped ladyfingers and mascarpone cheese, egg yolks and sugar for a light texture.

2. Coffee Crunch Cake Coffee crunch cake has a sweet chocolatey taste that is accentuated by a coffee-based exterior. The coffee whipped cream frosting contrasts perfectly with the crunchy coating of coffee-flavored honeycomb candy.

Dark Roast is for the guy com-

ing into the shop because he ran out of pre-ground Folgers this morning.

Intimidated by the voluminous menu behind the barista, he takes a few seconds and orders, “Uhhh… coffee.”

Decaf coffee is the drink of the

soccer mom who’s addicted to the taste of coffee but can’t handle the caffeine rush anymore. If you mistakenly give her a regular coffee, she’ll be jittery all morning.

3. Coffee Barbecue Sauce Coffee barbecue sauce may seem questionable at first, but its elements blend surprisingly well to create a sweet and slightly bitter taste. The sauce can be spread over beef, pork, chicken and more to add a bit of flair to the food.

4. Dark-roast Coffee Gelée

Espresso is what runs through Usain

Bolt’s arteries. A tall, European guy with a goatee and beret sips this drink as he writes poetry on his MacBook. The guy could probably drink a bottle of Tabasco and not bat an eye.

Dark-roast coffee gelée puts a sophisticated twist on regular pudding. The darker and richer the coffee, the better the dessert tastes. A mixture of whipped cream and a little bit of curry powder can be a great way to top off the gelée.

Frappucino is liquid ice cream for

the teenage girls that make up 80 percent of Starbucks’s customers. It doesn’t have a drop of coffee in it, a fact that is ironic considering it’s the favorite drink of many self-declared coffee lovers.

5. Short Ribs Braised in Coffee Short ribs braised in coffee take advantage of coffee’s deep flavor to add a boost to ribs’ meaty taste. For the best results, the ribs should be marinated in coffee for an extended period of time—the greater the time, the richer the taste.

Hot Chocolate

is t he highlight of the day for an adorable little kid who comes into the coffee shop with his mom. He eagerly awaits the warm nectar that will soon touch his lips. Future coffee addict.

6. Candied Espresso Walnuts

Skinny Vanilla Latte

is the drink for a skinny vanilla girl. This is the girl who’s obsessed with staying healthy and making sure everything is low-fat, but still has a sweet tooth that needs to be satisfied.

Candied espresso nuts are the perfect snack for coffeelovers who need their daily coffee dose but don’t have time to brew a cup of joe. The sweet and crunchy nuts can be prepared in a matter of minutes and require only a few simple ingredients.

Photos courtesy of Flickr.com

—Compiled by Chaewon Lee

Faces in the Crowd

—Compiled by Leon Cheong Graphics by Carolyn Zhou

How do you prefer your coffee?

“Decaf. Caffeine doesn’t make me feel any different.”

“With ice, cream and sugar.”

“Right before school, with a little bit of sugar.”

“Sweet, sugary and milky.”

Nicolas Borbolla (9)

Miya Miller (10)

Kirill Demyanenko (11)

Clara Kim (12) —Compiled by Chaewon Lee

Friday, November 8, 2013

11

world go round Tamar Barlev: A day in the life of a barista I go to work and I get that it’s okay to not be obsessed with college and have this academic hysteria. Just do what you love, live your life and have hobbies.”

For those who have not yet experienced Philz, Barlev recommends trying Philtered Soul, one of the most popular Philz blends. According to Barlev, it’s important to order with cream and sugar instead of trying a more healthy alternative, for it simply does not create the same effect. The Mint Mojito is another crowd pleaser that is constantly ordered on hot days. “My personal favorite is the Chamomile Yerba, but it’s an acquired taste because yerba tastes a little earthy,” she said. She suggests trying the drink with a teaspoon of honey.

Yacobso n

testing later, he decided to transform his corner grocery store to a coffee shop that would combine thirty of his best-tasting At first a tiny coffee shop on 24th blends with the social aspect that coffeeand Folsom in San Francisco, Philz drinking entails. From then on, each Coffee has spread like cup of coffee at Philz wildfire into Palo Alto, has been made one by creating out-the-door one, tailoring to each lines of loyal customindividual customer’s ers waiting for their request. daily “cup of love.”

Making coffee at In late August, senior Philz has become only Tamar Barlev joined part of the baristas’ the Philz team and jobs. To achieve Jastarted working as a ber’s vision of creating barista at the corner a lively and interactive of Forest and Alma in atmosphere, a huge downtown Palo Alto. is placed on Senior Tamar Barlev emphasis “I love the place, I love customer service. the atmosphere, I love the people,” she Only the most friendly and sosaid. “And the coffee is blatantly amaz- ciable applicants are hired, which ing.” has gained Philz a reputation After studying for countless hours that has customers returning during her junior year at Philz, Barlev purely for the interactions now spends her weekends fulfilling the with the baristas. “It’s kind of company’s motto of “making people’s like speed dating,” Barlev said, day, one cup of coffee at a time.” Although reminiscing about some of the making coffee seems like a simple task, funny and interesting things she the training process took twenty-five has heard during the few minutes hours, during which she had to learn she has to chat with her clients. One to master the precision and technique of her customers happened to be an expected of the workers. interviewer for a college she is applyWithout revealing the tricks of the ing to and gave her helpful pointers trade, Barlev explains that the coffee’s and advice with her application. appeal can be attributed to the simple Although it is difficult to juggle devices and unique blends, all developed school, extracurricular activities and by founder Phil Jaber. Making coffee in a a job, Barlev believes that working at small section of his grocery store in San Philz has been an incredible experience Francisco, Jaber began experimenting and has helped her keep perspective while with different blends from all over the dealing with the stress of senior year. “I world to create the perfect cup of coffee. am constantly with people who are in a Twenty-five years of researching and hysteria over school,” Barlev said. “Then Features Editor

Danielle

Danielle Yacobson

Places to fill up for your daily caffeine dose Café Venetia

Coupa Café

Café Venetia, a coffee house with a flair for northern Italian coffee and pastries has two locations on University Ave—one in the heart of downtown and the other closer to the train station. The café has a cozy, intimate interior and a European-esque feel to it overall. Your sweet tooth certainly won’t go unsatisfied there with the immense variety of cakes, tarts and five different types of hot chocolate.

Coupa Café often brings to mind caffeine-crazed Stanford students, but there’s a location on Ramona St., in addition to the one at the prestigious university. The business prides itself on using solely organic and fair trade coffee, so there’s no reason to feel the environmental consequences that often come with the coffee trade. This Venezuelan restaurant and coffee shop serves a variety of both native and American food and drinks.

Mon.-Thu. 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Fri.-Sat. 7 a.m. to 12 a.m.

Sun. 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Open Daily Mon.-Sun. 8 a.m. to 11 p.m.

3 G’s Cafe

ZombieRunner

If you’re in the mood for ZombieRunner on Calisomething a little different fornia Ave. may look just like Map showing various coffee cafe locations from your normal coffee a shoe store inside of an old shop fare, check out 3 G’s movie theater, but it’s actually Café on Cambridge. Its Bolivian coffee has a slightly spicy much more than that. The shop does sell plenty of runand smoky flavor that is sure to wake up your senses. And ning gear, but unlike most sports stores, there’s a coffee you won’t leave hungry—the cafe also has incredible Bobar in the middle of the store. There isn’t much of an area livian food ranging from saltenas, a savory dish similar to lounge around for too long, but the espresso will give to empanadas, to alfajores, a type of cookie popular in you so much energy that you’ll want to buy a pair of shoes South America. and go running instead.

Mon.-Fri. 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Mon., Sun. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

—Compiled by Rebecca Alger

Confessions of a coffee-holic Danielle Yacobson Hello, my name is Danielle, and I am a coffee addict. I have been the subject of interventions, watched my debit card balance drop to double digits, and spent sleepless nights waiting for the caffeine to pass out of my system, but nothing has been reason enough to stand between me and coffee. As long as there’s coffee, things really can’t be that bad.

My love for coffee did not just develop overnight; it was a gradual process that evolved over many years. It started in middle school when, like any other pre-teen, I indulged in Starbucks frappuccinos, which, in hindsight, should not even be considered coffee. Slowly but surely, my coffee intake turned to lattes, a phase that lasted about two years. As my workload increased, I found that doing homework at my local Starbucks eliminated distractions, and in about two months I found myself to be the proud owner of a Starbucks gold card. The rewards system on the Starbucks iPhone application made it even more appealing, for I would get a free drink every twelve items bought and unlimited refills of coffee and tea with every purchase. Starbucks was practically calling my name.

Coffee only became more vital when I signed up for a zero period class this year. My body was not used to waking up at such an ungodly hour, so my caffeine intake increased to black coffee—no room for milk. In order to be able to clearly think in Mr. Virmani’s zero period statistics course, my morning coffee was no longer a luxury—it was a necessity. The fact that Philz is right across the street from my house hasn’t helped my growing addiction either, for the smell of freshly brewed coffee beans practically wafts into my bedroom window every morning. Furthermore, 6:30 a.m. is the only time during the day that Philz does not have a line extending halfway across the block, so passing up such a golden opportunity seems like a crime.

Now, coffee has become my life line and my way to stay on track during the ups and down of junior year. A steaming cup of Pumpkin Spice Latte warms my soul as I take my APUSH notes, and a Mint Mojito from Philz actually makes writing essays on Shakespeare fun (don’t judge me). The rush of caffeine spurs me to study for my SATs and soothes the nauseousness as I dive into yet another critical reading section. I can even meet up with my friends when doing work, providing some vague resemblance of a social life.

Coffee is more than a drink; it’s a lifestyle. I have made peace with the fact that I will forever remain at the short height of five-foot-two and that I might have to pass up some shopping trips with my friends to save for my coveted study time. In the end it’s all worth it, for calling myself a coffee drinker makes me feel empowered and mature.

I can see myself ten years from now, rushing to important business meetings and catching cabs, coffee cup in hand. It suggests that I have places to be and people to meet, even if that may not actually be the case. It says I’m serious and determined.

It says I’m going places. It also says that I simply love coffee.

And yes, I did write this article while drinking a large Silken Splendor at Philz.

—Yacobson, a junior, is a Features Editor.

12

z z a J

Cente

: d n Ba

with senior Avner Kreps How does the audition process work?

At the beginning of the year the band director, Mr. Summers, sets everything up. You sign up for auditions, and in them, you have to play a small prepared piece and a sight-read piece in front of Mr. Summers and Mr. Hunter. They release a list of who made the cut a few days later.

When and how often you practice?

In Jazz, we practice for about four hours a week, so it’s just like a normal class. We practice for like an hour and a half on Mondays and two hours on Wednesdays—so not quite four hours.

Also, we’re all expected to practice outside of class—that’s just kind of need-based on how hard the part is for you.

Are certain positions limited?

Well, for the Big Band Jazz Ensemble, which is the top Jazz Band, we take five saxophones, three to five trombones, three to five trumpets and then generally four rhythm section players.

If you don’t make that cut, there’s Jazz 2, which is more informal. It’s not a class; it’s a club, and that pretty much has no limit of different instruments.

What does a typical practice look like?

We run through the songs. Our director, Mr. Hunter, isolates areas where we have trouble and we practice those. He has a lot of different techniques to help us improve. We don’t really have tests or anything like that.

How often do you practice?

Overall, I’d say I try to practice about an hour a day; some days I won’t be able to because of school work, so then I try to make that up on the weekends and when I’m free.

—Compiled by Henry Siu

Behind th Performing Art Senior Tatiana Boyle offers The Oracle a glimpse into Gunn Choir Aayush Dubey

Courtesy of http://album s.phanfare.c

om/

Reporter

Walking by the choir room, one might hear the choir rehearsing harmonious melodies. This, along with the team atmosphere, is why senior Tatiana Boyle believes the class is “a great experience.”

The choir classes are divided into three groups, which are all based on a choir student’s grade level and his or her ability to sing. Two of these groups are the freshmen girls’ choir known as Treble, and the group for freshmen boys, sophomores, juniors and seniors called Concert Choir. Chamber Choir is another group that students from Concert Choir must audition to get into.

On a typical day, students warm up their voices by practicing with the “do re mi fa so la ti do” scales, warm-up scales or the four-part harmonies. According to Boyle, the choir students spend most of their time rehearsing songs to prepare

“We never go into a concert feeling unprepared.”

Graphics and Photos by Paige Anderson, Jasmine Garnett, Stephanie Kim and Audey Shen

for some upcoming concerts. Other ways for the students to practice is by having them sing with their assigned sectionals, which are led by one or two sectional leaders. The sections— Altos, Sopranos, Bass, Tenors and Baritones—exist to help students practice within their learning groups and to enjoy doing so.

According to Boyle, Concert and Treble Choir only practice within their given one-hour class period, whereas Chamber Choir calls for a little more time commitment. She also believes that Chamber Choir usually has to plan ahead for a concert because of how advanced the group is.

Moreover, Chamber Choir requires the students to stay after school on Monday evenings to practice singing for additional hours, and also for students to contribute more effort to the choir group; for example, arriving one hour before a concert is about to start. Boyle thinks that this additional time and effort is necessary for the students to work well and keep up their work. “We have to really focus during the class time we are given,” Boyle said. “We spend the whole hour going over the songs and make sure we perfect everything.”

Despite the time commitment, Boyle says the choir teacher, Mr. Liberatore, does his best to get the classes focused and on task. She also thinks that it is important for the students to “always feel prepared” and “make sure that [they] learn [their] parts,” “We never go into a concert feeling like we don’t know our songs,” she said.

erfold

Friday, November 8, 2013

13

A day in the life of sophomore violinist Tsutomu William Copeland Shawna Chen Reporter

During F period, sophomore Tsutomu William Copeland participates in Gunn orchestra rehearsals as the first chair violinist and concertmaster. After school, he arrives at his house around 4 p.m. and practices violin until 6:30 p.m. He takes a break for dinner, then returns to practicing from 7:15 to 8:30 in the evening.

Some days, he wakes up at around 6 a.m. to take notes on taped recordings of his previous music lessons. Saturday’s hours of 1 to 8 p.m. are dedicated to rehearsals with the San Francisco Youth Orchestra while solo performances and auditions occur every month. Copeland has been playing the violin since he was three years old and music has become a significant piece of his life. “It’s hard to explain [why],” he said. “It’s like asking why it’s important to be able to see things.”

Four musical aspects are vital in Copeland’s life: orchestra, solo practice, private lessons and chamber ensembles. According to Copeland, they all contrast in terms of objectives and dynamics. “In orchestra, you need to be focused and keep in mind what the conductor says to everyone, not just to your section,” he said. “Solo practice is more spontaneous; private lessons are when you show what you’ve worked on [in practice].” Chamber music, however, is completely unique, Copeland says. “It’s so much more of collaboration, whether it’s in a string quartet or with an accompanist,” he explained. “You have to be so sensi-

tive because it not only affects the music but also how your partners react.”

Currently, Copeland is working on 14 different musical movements, excluding warm-up scales and etudes. He believes that six to 12 months of practice is the ideal amount of time needed to prepare for a performance, but he rotates practicing each piece based on impending performances or auditions. “Recently, I had to do recordings after getting a piece two weeks before,” he said. “That’s doable, but it’s extremely hard.”

When practicing, Copeland begins with 30 minutes of warm-up that exercises the left and right hands. He then moves on to 45 minutes of scales and etudes before turning to solo or orchestral pieces. “Basically, [there are] two things I work on in music: how to play the notes and how to play the music,” he said. “How to play the notes, that’s all technique, and how to play the music is about phrasing [the notes].”

For Gunn orchestra rehearsals, the period begins as students seat themselves with their respective instruments and music sheets. Students then start to tune, an exercise during which instruments are adjusted to the same pitch. According to Copeland, the orchestra teacher usually has a specific plan. “We warm up in a scale of the key of the main piece we’re gonna be focusing on that day,” he said. “Then we rehearse various pieces. However, rehearsals vary from day to day.”

For Copeland, the atmosphere of the F period orchestra room is positive and very encouraging. “Some people take it very seriously and others just go with it,” he said. “But everyone enjoys the class.”

Individually, Copeland’s musical goals change every week. However, in the long run, he hopes to improve each day and discover the copious treasures found in music. “The opportunities are endless once you go into the music,” he said. “Unlike anything else where you just kind of stop once you get to the top, in music there is no limit.”

he Scenes: ts Production

: e r t a

What about this year’s fall play “The Rimers of Eldritch” drew you to perform in it?

e h T

Before I even knew what the play was, I knew I wanted to be involved in it in my senior year. But really, the message is what drew me to audition. It’s a lot about questioning what you believe in, and questioning stereotypes and how much we believe in stereotypes. Also, just the sort of surreal, almost absurdist aspect of it really draws me. I really like that kind of style of theater.

with senior Sivan Spector

A huge part of it is going through the lines and trying to find objectives for everything you are saying. What I like to do is animal work; like, we try to think about what kind of animal your character is because that’s really helpful to find your body. Trying out different voices is really important. You also just have to try to think like [the character] and empathize with them.

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Si v a

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How do you develop your character?

How do you choose costumes?

We have the costume loft, and I know that the costumers do a lot of research on the period that [the play is] set in and then they look through all our clothes based on that, but I’m not entirely sure. It’s definitely a lot of hard work.

What is the rehearsal schedule like?

We have rehearsals Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, and on Wednesdays stage tech does stuff because there’s a tech class. And then when we get closer to the show we have rehearsals on the weekends, like eight hours a day. It’s a lot of time. The show is on November 14, 15, 16, 20, 21, 22 and 23, so make sure to stop by!

—Compiled by Naina Murthy

14

Features

THEORACLE

Remind101 links students to teachers by text Kush Dubey Reporter

When the average teenager receives a text, he typically is not expecting it to come from his math teacher. However, teachers across the country are now finding new ways to communicate with their students by directly sending messages to their students’ phones or emails using a free system called Remind101.

Math teacher Michael Bautista is one of the first staff members on campus to use this free application created by a start-up based in San Francisco. He uses Remind101 because of its reliability and efficiency outside of the classroom. “It’s a great supplementary tool for students to quickly receive updates from me or if I forget to mention something during class,” he said. “I use [Remind101] because it allows me to easily send mass messages to my students.”

Bautista uses Remind101 for a variety of reasons. “I use it to provide students with homework reminders, test tips and extra practice material,” he said.

While Bautista only uses the application to communicate with students, the program is also fashioned to allow teachers and parents to communicate.

After learning about Remind101 from a teacher at a different school last Math teacher year, Bautista decided to implement the new way of communicating with his students himself.

According to Bautista, he has received positive responses from students in all his classes regarding the Remind101 application.

“I think it is a very useful and efficient communication tool,” he said. “Students like it

because they can be notified from a device privacy setting. “The system recognizes they use often, whether it is their phone or their email or phone, but the teacher does on their email.” not have to see it if the student chooses,” Students agree that the Remind101 is he said. useful simply because it is so convenient.

Because Remind101 is simple enough for Junior Austin Traver everyone to use, is just one of the many Traver believes “Students like it because students who have had that no substana positive experience tial changes are they can be notified with the program. “I currently needed. from a device they use thought it [was] a re“I don’t see any ally simple, nice way i mprovements often, whether it’s their to receive assignments that are desperphone or on their email.” and reminders,” he said. ately needed; [it] “It makes it way easier accomplishes —math teacher Michael Bautista for Mr. Bautista to stay what it was made in contact with us if he needs to change the to do. Remind,” he said. homework.” Fellow classmate junior Alex Some improvements can be made howSobil uses Remind101 to know when Bautista ever. Sobil believes that the system could will be in his room for additional support. “It function more effectively because somehelps me know when there’s a tutorial time times it is difficult to receive messages. “An where students can come in and study or improvement would be to maybe find a way prepare before a test,” he said. to prevent messages from going directly The process of setting up the Remind101 through spam filter,” he said. “Sometimes system is fast and sim- your phone will think that Remind101 is ple for teachers and some sort of advertisement.” students alike. After Bautista hopes that Remind101 will the teacher signs up continue to grow and have more features for an account online, in the upcoming years as more teachers they create different begin to adopt the system.

Anton Oyung classes that students can join through an access code specific How to set up Remind101: a step-by-step guide for each course. The students can then 1. Confirm that your teacher uses Remind101. It’s free and a great way for teachtex t t he teacher ers to communicate with their classes.

Michael Bautista through the class number, all while 2. Text the access code to the assigned phone number. Both the code and phone keeping their personal contact information number are given to you by your teacher. confidential.

Remind101 is perfectly safe for teachers 3. You will be able to reply to messages for your teacher to see. and students alike. Neither see the other’s phone number or email address. Bautista 4. You can change your settings at any time to determine whether you will be believes that one of the great features ofsent automatic notifications to your cellphone and/or email. fered by Remind101 is the adjustable

VGo robot makes an appearance on campus Stephanie Zhang

Centerfold Editor

Stephanie Kim

VGo is for students who are unable to attend school.

Over the past few months, a white, four-foot tall robot has roamed the Gunn halls, taking in the sights of students, teachers and administrators.

Miles away, a special-needs student at Gunn sits at home, controlling the robot from his bedroom. Although this student is not physically able to attend school due to his special needs, VGo—a new remote-controlled robot—allows him to be active during class and participate in the school community.

The VGo robot is a telepresence device that allows someone to not be at school without sacrificing mobility or interaction.

The remote-controlled robot is equipped with two wheels, a wireless digital screen and a video camera. VGo users download an application onto their computer home. The software allows students to monitor the VGo’s surroundings, video conference with others and remotely control the robot’s movements through the keyboard. VGo essentially serves as a personal avatar for users.

In terms of education, VGo is focused on distant learning and is targeted towards home bound students. The Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) first took interest in the technology of telepresence because of the increasingly large number of students with physical disabilities who are unable to come to school. “PAUSD was interested in buying a telepresence robot because we

wanted students with special needs to physically in the classroom may be disbe as integrated in school as possible,” tracted by or will be unaccepting of the Gunn technician Brett Demetris said. “different” student at school. “One of PAUSD started the pilot program for the biggest issues with the robot is the VGo at Gunn in August 2013. During stigma that’s attached to it just because the pilot, the robot was evaluated for being the only one using something in a sustainability, reliability and classroom classroom just really stands out,” Gadus acceptance through a series of test runs said. If the robot were to be implemented and student trials. “The first thing we in the classroom, Gadus plans to have did was drive the VGo around campus,” a pre-orientation lesson with students, Assistive Technology Specialist Brian discussing basic conduct with the VGo Gadus said. “Many teachers around and how to treat it. Gadus hopes that Gunn and I drove it to see how the students would be able to treat the controls felt, pushVGo like any other ing its limits to see st udent at Gu nn. what it could and “You wouldn’t lift “...we wanted students couldn’t do as far up your classmate or as navigating the start touching his or with special needs to campus.” her face, and it’s imbe as integrated in Even in these portant that students first stages of testremember that,” he school as possible.” ing, the robot exsaid. perienced a numGadus explains —technician Brett Demetris ber of difficulties. that the robot will The major issue is that the robot relies on be placed in one class and eventually, if a wi-fi connection at all times. Because VGo proves to be useful, be moved all the robot is completely wireless, it loses over school to other classes and around all capabilities once it is unable to receive campus to interact with other students. a connection. “If the robot is interact- “As it is, we’re experiencing a lot of ing with a person when the robot is not technical difficulties so we’re looking connected, it can be really troublesome to conduct more student trials and get for the person on the other end, because more feedback,” he said. they’re not seeing anything and they Still, the Gunn technicians are can’t do anything about it,” Gadus said. hopeful of the potential uses of VGo. According to the students who tested the “Imagine Gunn students being able to robot, it was a cool technology, but it was tour the Louvre from their classrooms,” weird to handle and control.

Demetris said. “Thousands of VGos Technicians are also troubled by the would be rolling around the Louvre, all possible reception of the robot in the student controlled. The impact of VGo classroom. Gadus believes that students on education is boundless.”

Features

Friday, November 8, 2013

15

Students work for Food Lovers United Company Lena Campbell Reporter

Most people have experienced a time when the restaurant they desperately crave food from is too far away or just doesn’t deliver at all. Fortunately, this is no longer an issue thanks to Food Lovers United Company (FLUC). FLUC is a brand new service that delivers food straight to your home from restaurants. Adam Ahmad, Tim Davis and Pako Magdaleno founded FLUC earlier this year because they felt that the food delivery industry needed to be consistent. The founders, as well as the employees, guarantee that your food will arrive at your door in fewer than 45 minutes, which is far faster than getting the food yourself.

FLUC has been spreading like wildfire thanks to word of mouth. Students from Stanford University, Gunn High School and Palo Alto High School have been actively calling in orders, and the company is seeing a steady increase of 20 to 30 percent in orders each week. “Eating is a group activity,” FLUC employee senior Andy Kidder said. “Once one friend knows about FLUC, the knowledge spreads and the company grows.” This has proven true at Gunn, with FLUC becoming the go-to service for students during their study breaks.

A typical workday at FLUC is different from one at most part-time jobs. A FLUC employee drives across town to various restaurants and personally delivers the food to different houses in Palo Alto, Mountain View, Menlo Park, Atherton, Stanford and even the Castro in San Francisco. Encounters like these may sound uncomfortable for most high schoolers, but Kidder enjoys delivering. “It isn’t awkward at all,” Kidder said. “Everyone is always so excited to get their food.” Going to random people’s houses can even be an enjoyable experience. “It’s a great way to meet new people,” senior Hans von Clemm said.

“They are always very gracious when we delivery their food so fast.”

To use FLUC, visit its website or use the mobile application for iPhones. Menus of the restaurants that have signed up with FLUC are displayed on the home page of the application and are listed with the hours during which they are open. To order food

Paige Anderson

from a restaurant that is not yet linked to FLUC, make a request and the company will contact the restaurant. When an order is placed, an employee is alerted on his or her phone. The hungry customer is then able to track his delivery person’s progress on his phone through Global Positioning System (GPS). He can also receive text messages or notifications via email about where his FLUC employee is located.

The size of the order and the distance driven has no impact on the delivery price.

Whether a customer orders just one cup of coffee from a local café or enough food for a party, the price is always the same—$5.95. In order to guarantee hot, fresh food (or cold icecream or frozen yogurt), meals arrive in a heat-retaining box designed by the founders. “We deliver food from almost all restaurants in Palo Alto,” senior Justin Yoo said.

“We’ll bring it to you hot and ready, even if they don’t offer delivery.”

According to Yoo, with the company’s growing popularity among students and its creative use of technology, it looks like FLUC will be a success that’s here to stay.

“I think that with the way things have been going, FLUC will definitely last,” he said. “We’re still expanding, so things can really only get better from here.” FLUC is looking to spread to more of the Bay Area, specifically San Francisco, and hopes to advance its mobile application and GPS. To join the FLUC team or order food, visit fluc.com or download the app.

Gunn’s senior FLUC employees:

Hans Von-Clemm

Justin Yoo

Andy Kidder

16

THEORACLE

Sports

5

Steps To a 540° Hook Kick with sophomore Khoa Nguyen

1 2

Step forward with your back leg, pivot and then shift your weight onto it.

3

Look for the Aurasma symbol to watch videos of Gunn sports on your smartphone or tablet

Place yourself in a balanced stance, with legs shoulder-width apart.

Jump with your front foot and swing your back foot around like a heel kick.

Step 1: Download Aurasma from the App Store or Play Store.

Step 2: Tap the “A” at the bottom of the phone screen, tap the search icon, and search for “GunnOracle” to follow the account. (You will only need to do this once.)

Step 3: Look for the Aurasma symbol at the bottom left corner of an article or photo in the newspaper.

Step 4: Tap the middle icon at the bottom of the screen and hover your phone/tablet camera over the photo. When a purple spiral appears on the screen, the video is loading and is about to play. (Remember to turn your speaker on and enjoy the video.)

4

Take the leg you jumped off of and, while still in the air, swing it forward.

5

Land with your jumping foot before placing your kicking foot on the ground.

—Compiled by Ian Cramer

Photo by Stephanie Kim

Sports

Friday, November 8, 2013

17

Sports teams finish strong, ready for final matches From left: senior Jack Sloan, junior Noah Krigel, junior Sammy Passell, junior Kushal Nimkar, senior Antonio Puglisi, junior Romain Hardy, senior Ian Malone

Anthony Tran

Cross Country

The cross country team hopes to use its momentum and finish just as strong as it started. As the team moved forward, one of its goals was to do well in Santa Clara Valley Athletic Leagues (SCVAL).

“During practice, we worked out and ran everyday,” freshman Tone Lee said. “We really wanted to prove ourselves as a strong team at SCVAL.” On Nov. 5, the team competed in SCVAL with the girls’ varsity team taking first and the boys’ varsity team taking third. Both varsity teams also qualified for CCS. “I feel proud of us for doing so well in SCVAL,” Lee said.

“The whole team put a lot of effort into preparing and our results clearly show it.”

The team’s next meet will be on Nov. 16 at Crystal Springs.

—Alvin Wang

Junior Anjali Herekar

Junior Anthony Zunino

Junior Somina Lee

Boys’ Water Polo

Anthony Tran

The boys’ water polo team is off to a terrific start this year in the SCVAL league with an overall record of 13-4 and a league record of 12-0. “The season is going great.

After placing 6th in leagues this year, we are currently in first place and undefeated in our league,” senior Coby Wayne said.

Wayne has high hopes for the rest of the season considering the level of play that the team has been at this year.

“Our biggest goal right now is to win the league tournament, which would be the first time for Gunn since 2005,” Wayne said. “After that, we hope to go on and win CCS.” —Lawrence Chen

Senior Caroline Anderson

Audey Shen

Girls’ Tennis With the end of the season approaching, girls’ tennis has begun to reflect on its performance over the past two months. “Our players all have become stronger individually and our doubles teams have gained more teamwork,” said senior Jenny Yoon.

According to Yoon, the team has made up for the loss of last year’s seniors with strong players who moved up from JV. New on the varsity team this season was freshman Quinn McGannon. The team’s biggest successes in the season included victories in competitive non-league matches and its win against Mountain View in the De Anza league.

—Rachel Lew

Freshman Archer Olsen

Stephanie Kim

Girls’ Golf The girls’ golf team finished its season last Monday, Nov. 4 after placing fifth in Northern California Regionals. “We only missed qualifying for [the state tournament] by five strokes,” senior Jayshree Sarathy said. “We are still happy that we got so far.”

The girls finished their season this year as co-champions of the SVCAL division and third in California Coast Sectionals (CCS). “We have definitely made a lot of improvements this year.

You can clearly see this from our scoring averages,” Sarathy said. “I think that this is one the reasons we were so successful this year.”

Coach Chris Redfield is also proud of the team as a whole. “Golf is a sport that takes a lot of perseverance,” he said. “The girls certainly have that.”

—Pooja Belur

Anthony Tran

Girls’ Water Polo

As the season comes to a close, girls’ water polo remains on top of its game. Undefeated in the league, the team has a shot to play at the CCS finals. This would be the first time in history that the team has qualified. It hopes to keep up its streak in its third league championship.

According to senior Rachel Wong, the team is pumped for CCS. At the Northern California Regional tournament last weekend the girls beat Clovis, a team two seeds above them. “Right now, we are at the peak of our season,” Wong said.

—Elinor Aspegren

Varsity football

Volleyball

Anthony Tran

The volleyball team finished its season successfully in the De Anza League. Its final record was 13-13. “The season is going really well; we’re playing well as a team and we have had some really good matches,” senior Erica Johnston said.

Johnston thinks the team has improved. “In general, we are pretty consistent,” Johnston said. “One of the few things we need to improve on is learning how to clutch the really close games that could go either way.”

Johnston has high hopes for the future. “We want to make it to CCS and hopefully get into the finals,” Johnston said.

— Lawrence Chen

Football

Stephanie Kim

The football team has been working hard to keep up with the opposition, but it is struggling to do so. Senior Sean Lydster reports that the small team size and accumulative injuries are damaging the team at the end of the season. On Nov. 1, the team played Monta Vista, who is its league rival, and lost with a score of 7-48. Currently, the record stands 0-4 in the El Camino division and 1-7 overall. “The players who are stepping up have worked hard in practice and to learn their responsibilities,” Lydster said. The last game of the season is at Gunn on Nov. 15 against Lynbrook.

—Shireen Ahsan

18

THEORACLE

Sports

Faces in the Crowd You know you are on the ___ team when......

boys’’’ Water Polo

Dance

Cross Country

GIrls’’ tennIs

“...you don’t have a problem wearing tightywhiteys in the pool.”

Ari Wayne (11)

“...you accidentally kick yourself in the face.”

Emma Wilson (11)

“...ten push-ups is harder than the mile.”

Justice Tention (12)

“... love means nothing.”

Quinn McGannon (9)

Football

GIrls’’ Water Polo

GIrls’’ Golf

Volleyball

“...you walk into a smelly locker room.”

Sean Lydster (12)

“...your stomach is a different color than your back.”

Lauren Johnson (12)

“...you have a glove tan.”

Tiffany Yang (10)

“...you have no skin left on your knees and elbows.”

Tahra Knudsen (11) — Compiled by Erica Watkins

Exercises for the holidays

1.

Go on a stair climber for 15 minutes. Not only is it a great fat and calorie burner, but it can also tighten your glutes.

2.

Follow a workout video. It will keep you moving, and all that is required is your T.V. Some challenging programs include Insanity and P90X.

3.

Try out an indoor spin class.

It is a fun alternative to outdoor cycling that you can do alongside your friends.

4.

Take a yoga class. It can help work your core and improve your relaxation.

5.

Do alternating push-ups: right hand in front of the left. Do a push-up, and then alternate hands, having the left hand in front of the right.

— Compiled by Sam Acker and Roy Shadmon Graphics by Jasmine Garnett

Sports

19

20

THEORACLE

Entertainment

The Oracle staffers go on a double blind date: round two

This story is a follow-up to the double blind date The Oracle conducted last year in our October issue with staffers Sam Acker and Roy Shadmon.

Esther’s Story I was pretty skeptical about the outcome of this blind date—I have an arsenal of bad date stories. I had no reason to think that a date with a total stranger would be any better than some of my previous experiences.

On the way to downtown Palo Alto, I assured myself that at least I was prepared for failure.

Justin and I arrived at our meeting point, Starbucks, twenty minutes late. In retrospect, we should have planned for downtown’s crazy parking and terrifying unprotected left turns.

Regardless, in the first two seconds of our date, I felt my negative bias begin to thaw. For starters, my date, senior Patrick Skelly, showed up on time promptly at 7 p.m. in a nice attire consisting of a button down shirt and khakis. Justin’s date was Riley Fossum, whom I knew and was pretty friendly with. At this point I was calm and even allowed myself to think that maybe I’d enjoy myself.

On the way to the restaurant, Patrick did a great job at trying to keep up a conversation. Of course, things were a bit awkward in the beginning, but that was to be expected. He even held the door open for us upon entering Pizza My Heart (major points).

Justin’s Story

A blind date is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you’re going to get.

In the weeks before the date, I was hoping for no less than a fancy chocolate—the type that is so beautiful that you don’t want to eat it because you can’t stop looking at it. The day of the date, I heard rumors that the person I was going to go with could not come, and The Oracle staff members were scrambling to find someone else for me. That’s why, when I walked into Starbucks twenty minutes late, I was more than happy to see that my date had not left and was in fact a living, breathing person.

My date, sophomore Riley Fossum, was seated at an outdoor table at Starbucks. Riley and I had been friends previously, and I was glad that our initial conversation was not awkward. We decided to go over to Pizza My Heart to grab some dinner.

I’m going to be honest, for the bulk of the time at Pizza My Heart, I didn’t talk to Riley. Unfortunately for Riley, I am quite the gregarious creature, and when a homeless man named Manuel Chavez walked

Then came the fated moment that would decide the outcome of this date: paying for the meal. I know the subject of paying for a meal is always a bit touchy. Some girls get extremely offended if their dates don’t pay while others think that men offering to pay for someone’s meal is a chauvinistic practice that promotes gender stereotyping. For me, offering to pay for my meal is one of the best things someone can do on a date. When Patrick offered to pay, I nearly fainted from happiness. Patrick was polite, sweet and well-mannered, and all my worries beforehand were completely useless and unnecessary.

The rest of the date passed quite well.

Patrick mentioned his parents three times during the date, an act that was sweet and endearing. He kept the conversation going pretty well, wasn’t phased by a homeless guy talking to us for 10 minutes, and was a great sport even when we decided to go to Yogurtland, despite him being lactose intolerant.

Patrick’s manners and overall sweetness really helped me have a great time. I will not be rushing out for more blind dates in the future, but this experience has taught me to never expect the worst and to keep an open mind about things—even those beyond your control. I would even go as far as to say that Patrick’s impeccable manners gave me hope for the men at Gunn.

This may be super cheesy but, seriously, don’t be afraid to try new things and push yourself to step outside your comfort zone.

Once in a while you might end up with a great experience and an even better story to tell afterwards.

Date Rating: 8/10

up to our booth looking to make some conversation I happily obliged. Chavez told us a lot of stories about fictional historical events. Among other things, he told us a captivating story about Richard Nixon’s suicide and how he was in fact my uncle. After Chavez made several guesses about the names of my family members, I decided to refocus my attention on Riley.

After all, Mr. Chavez told me he would see me later; to my disappointment, we haven’t met up since then.

My date with Riley concluded with a leisurely stroll to Yogurtland. We had a great conversation about our social lives and mutual interests. During our time together I learned that we had more in common than just our interest in baseball and softball respectively. Even though our time together didn’t feel much like a date—more like an extended hangout— I had a ton of fun. We strengthened our friendship and learned a lot more about each other.

My advice to anyone going on a blind date is to just be yourself. It’s not going to be awkward unless you make it awkward. In fact, I think that my conversation with Manuel Chavez improved the overall

quality of our date because it showed that I was comfortable being there. If you be yourself you may end up having a great time like I did.

Date Rating: 7/10

Q&A: Blind Dates

Patrick Skelly

The Oracle: What was your first impression of your date?

Patrick Skelly: She was nice and friendly.

TO: How did the date go?

PS: I liked going to Pizza My Heart and I liked finding out about my date’s unique background. She was pretty easy to talk to. It was nice getting to meet Justin and Riley. Justin had a pretty funny encounter meeting his “great uncle.” I probably gave it such a high rating because I enjoy meeting new people and the people I got to go with were pretty entertaining.

Courtesy of Riley Fossum

Blind date senior Patrick Skelly and junior Esther Kozakevich pose for the camera upon meeting at Starbucks.

—Kozakevich, a junior, is a reporter.

TO: What was the highlight of your date?

PS: My dad being thrilled that I was finally “off the bench.” My advice would probably be to have fun with it and ask lots of questions. It helped me to think of these people as friends I hadn’t met yet. I’d also say to smile and laugh a lot. Don’t be nervous, it’ll be fine.

Date Rating: 8/10

Riley Fossum

The Oracle: What was your first impression of your date?

Riley Fossum: I laughed when I first saw him because he’s actually one of my good friends, so it was funny that we ended up there together.

TO: How did the date go?

RF: The date wasn’t really awkward.

However it didn’t really seem datelike. We stayed in a group and it was just friends hanging out. Justin is a social catalyst and he keeps the conversation going really smoothly and naturally. He was really calm, too.

This random guy just started talking to us for about ten minutes and he didn’t have any trouble making jokes to ease the tension.

Courtesy of Riley Fossum

Sophomore Riley Fossum and junior Justin Wenig enjoy their coffee on University Avenue during their date.

—Wenig, a junior, is a reporter.

TO: What was the highlight of your date?

RF: The highlight would have to be going to a Halloween store and sword-fighting with Justin.

Date Rating: 6/10

—Compiled by Misheel Enkhbat

The Gunn Illustration Club presents an original college app comic

Courtesy of Gunn Illustration Club

Entertainment

Friday, November 8, 2013

21

Top six reasons to overeat at Thanksgiving

1) You overate last year so how 3) You wouldn’t want to upset 5) Thanksgiving only comes are you going to fit into last Aunt Helen; she spent so much around once a year so you might year’s clothes if you don’t time perfecting that green bean as well dig in. overeat? casserole.

6) You need that extra fluff to 2) More to love.

4) Children are starving in Africa. stay warm in the winter.

—Compiled by Noa Livneh

Allison Paley

Foods from around the world: Thanksgiving style Vietnamese Chicken Salad

Israeli Filet Mignon

Hungarian Farfel Pasta

Regina Tran

Roy Shadmon

Sam Acker

When I think of cabbage and shallots together, tasty is not the word that usually comes to mind. I’m not a fan of these ingredients, but when put together, it becomes one of my favorite salads. Vietnamese Chicken Salad is one of my family’s favorite dishes and we incorporate it into our meals during special occasions. My family came from Vietnam, so they grew up with this awesome recipe. During Thanksgiving, we make turkey, stuffing and all that, like most American families. However, we also order Chinese food from local restaurants because my dear family cannot live without it—the turkey is just a supplement to make it feel like a true Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving for my family is really just a big potluck of all our favorite foods. This salad is really refreshing, healthy and brings the whole Thanksgiving meal together.

After many years of celebrating Thanksgiving, I’ve had enough of the unfathomable amount of leftover turkey. I have already eaten enough turkey subs over the years that I don’t want to be forced to eat leftover turkey for three weeks anymore. In more recent years, my family has been eating steak on Thanksgiving. For my mom, who does all of the cooking in the house, preparing a turkey takes multiple hours while grilling a steak takes just one hour: 50 minutes preparing and 10 minutes grilling. Our family has a nice 13–ounce filet mignon steak with mashed potatoes and gravy. There is also an added benefit: there isn’t likely going to be any leftovers, allowing for a variety of foods in the weeks to come. Not cooking a turkey gives a family the freedom of not eating turkey sandwiches, turkey casserole, turkey pot pies or turkey soup for the next month. If you think about it, how much turkey can one human being eat?

This recipe has been passed down through my family for five generations. It originated in a region near the Hungary and the Czech Republic border and combines the flavors of the region with a Jewish flair. My greatgreat-grandmother Rose started cooking this tasty dish and the recipe has been used ever since. This region was known for growing barley, and my family members ate this pasta dish as a substitute for barley when their stores were low or when they came to America where it was harder to find. Therefore, this recipe works well with real barley grain and also with faro perlatto, for an Italian twist. Every year we eat this delicious side dish with our more “traditional” Thanksgiving foods. It compliments mashed potatoes and turkey very well. The measurements are very flexible, and when making this you should taste the pasta as you go. Sometimes we make this dish with real onions for a more flavorful end product.

Ingredients • 8 medium chicken drumsticks • 1 cabbage • 2 shallots • 1 bunch of mint leaves • 4 tablespoons of vinegar • 4 tablespoons of sugar • 1 tablespoon of finely chopped garlic • 2 small peppers, chopped • 5 tablespoons of fish sauce Recipe 1. Boil the chicken drumsticks for 15 minutes.

2. Thinly slice the cabbage, shallot and mint leaves.

3. Mix the sliced shallot with 1 tablespoon of vinegar and 1 tablespoon of sugar.

4. After the chicken is done cooking, let cool and shred meat.

5. Place ingredients together. Add peanuts.

6. For sauce, boil water with the remaining vinegar and sugar.

7. Combine garlic and peppers. Add mixture.

8. Stir in 5 tablespoons of fish sauce.

—Tran, a senior, is an Assisant Business Manager.

Ingredients • 1 large-cut steak • sea salt & ground pepper • 1 whole white onion Recipe 1. Season steak with salt and pepper on both sides.

If you’re unsure if you put too little or too much, go by the saying “if you don’t see it, you won’t taste it.”

2. Let the charcoal completely heat the grill. You know the grill is ready to cook when the charcoal pieces are white in color.

3. Rub some onion on the grill to clean it and to prevent the steak from sticking.

4. Put the steak on the grill. Time is determined by preference and the size of steak. Try not to flip the steak over more than once and do not press down on it.

5. Let the steak rest for a few minutes to let all of the juices to spread out throughout the steak.

6. Cut the steak with a sharp steak knife to prevent releasing all the juices.

—Shadmon, a senior, is a Tech Editor.

Ingredients • 2 cups of Manishewitz Barley Shaped Pasta • 2 tablespoons butter • 1 tablespoon finely minced garlic • 6 cups of chicken broth • 1 tablespoon onion powder • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley • salt to taste Recipe 1. Brown the pasta over medium heat in a pan with the butter until it turns a golden color.

2. Add the garlic and stir swiftly until the garlic is fragrant but not burned.

3. Add 2 cups of broth and stir gently every 2 minutes until the pasta starts to absorb the broth.

4. Add the onion powder.

5. Add the rest of the broth slowly and keep stirring until all of the broth is absorbed.

6. Take the pasta out of the pan and place it into a serving bowl. Stir in the parsley. Serve while it’s warm.

—Acker, a junior, is an Entertainment Editor.

22

Entertainment

THEORACLE

Students reflect on what they are thankful for this Thanksgiving “I’m thankful for No-Shave November and Turkey Feast.”

“I am thankful for having high amounts of swagger and currency.”

—David Alcazar, 12

—Dominik Lucha, 10

—Josh Spain, 10

h ome ul for f k n ha ” “ I’m t ade food. m

“ I’m water thankful fo r clean a n d th e press my op ability to ex inions safely .”

—Willi a m Ga rvey, 12

r my nkful fo ing “ I’m tha nd giv aising a t.” r s t n e r pa oo d I ea me th e f l Lacy, 9 —Danie

“I’m grateful for dancing.”

“I am grateful for being alive and doing well in school.”

“I’m thankful for my friends.”

—Miranda Lin, 9

—Stina Spinsky, 12

-

, 11 K ram y e ik —M

“I am most grateful for my family and friends” —Vanaisha Pamnani, 12

“I’m thankful for my parents.”

—Avery Robinson, 10

—Compiled by Misheel Enkhbat and Erica Watkins

Graphics by Paige Anderson

Use this guide to spot the best sales this Black Friday

Brandy Melville Everything in store will be 50 percent off but only for a few hours, so don’t miss out.

Rasputin This Black Friday, Rasputin will be offering discounts on some of its top inventory.

Fry’s There are always good deals on computers, televisions, cameras, speakers and gaming consoles/games. However, they are first-come-first-serve.

Sunglass Hut Venture over to the Sunglass Hut for a mystery sale and a new pair of shades.

Teavana Awesome deals include 15 percent off two pounds of tea and 30 to 75 percent off sale items.

Ally Gong

—Compiled by Emily Kvitko and Roy Shadmon

Entertainment

Friday, November 8, 2013

23

A night on the town: three ways to spend a Friday

The Oracle staffers Mitch Donat, Lisa Hao, Naina Murthy and Matt Niksa spend their evenings with a date, family and friends

Date Night 4:00: A bike at the Baylands for some outdoor time and a romantic sunset 5:30: Vero Ristorante Italiano for a fancy dinner 6:30: Monique’s Chocolates for a cute dessert 7:30: Stanford Theater for a classic movie in a beautiful environment A bike in the Baylands is a refreshing, fun activity to get some exercise and appreciate the lively ecosystem living there. On my date, we went to Vero, a small Italian restaurant just off of University Ave. After dinner, you could always settle for CREAM and its 45-minute line. However, there are so many fun dessert shops downtown that put CREAM to shame. My date and I went to Monique’s Chocolates and didn’t wait in a single line. Movie time. Century 16 down CA-101 is always there, but with prices for a bag of popcorn reaching a limb and a leg, why would you? The Stanford Theater is a gorgeous, early 20th-century theater that plays classic movies in its one auditorium. Not only is the structure and design breathtaking, but the deals for tickets and food are unparalleled. Tickets are $5 (if you’re younger than 17) and popcorn doesn’t cost more than $1.50.

—Mitch Donat

Courtesy of Mitch Donat

Top Left: Senior Mitch Donat and his girlfriend pose for a photo. Top Right: They visited locations such as Monique’s Chocolates. Bottom: Monique’s charming desserts are placed on display.

Family Night 4:00: Show your Cardinal spirit by attending a Stanford football game with the family 7:30: Go to In & Out Burger restaurant for a good family celebration feast 8:30: Treat the kids to a late night movie at the Century 16 Theater 11:00: Go home and get some well-deserved sleep

www.visitrenoetahoe.com

In-N-Out is a delicious option for a family night out.

Watching a Stanford football game is a great activity to do with the family because the game will get them pumped. There is no team better than the Cardinals. After a fantastic win, a dinner at In & Out will go down well with the hyped-up kids; a delicious meal of cheeseburgers, French fries and milkshakes awaits. I strongly recommend a bite from the restaurant’s “secret menu,” which includes animal-style French fries, a Neapolitan milkshake and the legendary 4 x 4 burger. You’re thinking the family is tired from all of this winning and celebrating, but there is no such thing as having too much fun.

Spending the remaining hours of the evening at the movie theater is a must on every family’s agenda. There are a lot of family-friendly movies available and it is a memorable way to end the day. Make sure to treat the kids with a large popcorn and an ICEE to end a perfect family moment.

—Matt Niksa

Friends Night 4:00: Nature walk and frisbee at Foothills Park 6:00: Dinner at The Melt 6:45: Get your nails done at Forever Nail Salon 8:00: Go ice skating at Winter Lodge 9:45: Go watch a movie of your choice 11:00: Eat ice cream and bake cookies To start off the night, we decided to head down to Foothills Park, which is open to all Palo Alto residents, to play some frisbee and go on a quick hike.

When it started to get dark and we were getting hungry, we headed to The Melt at Stanford Shopping Center. When we got to the restaurant, we grabbed a quick bite to eat and then rushed on over to the quick and affordable Forever Nail Salon to get our nails done. After our nails dried, we thought it would be a great idea to go to Winter Lodge to go ice skating. The hot chocolate there was delicious. After we had enough, we went home to watch “She’s the Man” and relax after the long day. When the movie finished, we wanted to have a late-night snack, so we went to Safeway. It’s open 24/7 to buy ice cream, and we topped the night off by baking cookies.

—Lisa Hao and Naina Murthy

Courtesy of Lisa Hao

Sophomores Naina Murthy and Lisa Hao smile after bonding over a movie, nails and skating.

24

Entertainment

Random acts of Kindness The Oracle staffers step out of their comfort zones and do good deeds for strangers.

Brunch line donor

Batch of warmth

Secret delivery

Sam Acker

Misheel Enkhbat

Lucy Oyer

Entertainment Editor

Entertainment Editor

Managing Editor

We spend money almost every day, but we rarely spend it on people other than ourselves. It was a new experience for me to willingly give away my money to complete strangers. I never thought that it would be so rewarding to pay for random students at the brunch line, but I was pleasantly surprised at the rush of joy I felt as I handed out each dollar. Five dollars in today’s world is such a small amount and even though it seemed daunting for me to pay that amount to people I didn’t know, giving just one dollar to someone meant so much. I received overwhelming gratitude from the students that benefited from my act of kindness. I was hugged and profusely thanked after the initial looks of surprise on their faces. With my action I made an instant connection with people I would normally pass in the halls without a glance.

Everybody loves food, right? This is the question I kept asking myself as I awkwardly lugged a giant box of fifty chocolate chip cookies to my first class period. In an attempt at a random act of kindness, I decided to surprise my photography class with a sugary treat in the morning. Walking from class to class I was caught off guard by the number of questions I accrued. Most of my fellow peers automatically assumed I had lost a class vocabulary game and was carrying out my punishment. In fact, I felt dejected when most people responded to my explanation that I was just trying to do a good deed with a confused stare and an awkward chuckle. Nevertheless, I didn’t let their obvious confusion faze me. After all, I was the bearer of treats and therefore received many compliments. I held my head high and I have to admit, my class’ thankfulness made me feel great about myself. Walking into class, I informed my teacher that I brought cookies to share with the class and she informed the class that they were up for grabs. Everyone was incredibly gracious and their “thank you’s” warmed my heart. In my experience, the random act of kindness didn’t just affect other people, but I also felt a sense of joy in the act of giving.

Although, I wouldn’t encourage bringing baked goods to make people like you, an act of kindness can truly bring a feeling of contentment and happiness.

Two weeks ago, I purchased a pair of candy grams from an eager sophomore with the intention of sending them to two of my friends. However, when I realized that one of the wouldbe recipients had an A period prep and thus couldn’t get one, I decided to be bold. Instead of sending the candy gram to another friend, I would send it to a stranger to brighten his or her day. I selected one student at random; it turned out to be a freshman girl, and I wrote her a friendly, anonymous message, wishing her “Happy Halloween.” I submitted the gram to the box in the SAC and off it went.

I will never know what she thought of it, but I imagine I would be pretty happy if someone randomly sent me a bucket of candy. But, what’s great about my anonymous act of kindness is that since I can’t know how she actually reacted, I get to make up my own vision of her reaction.

And I like to think that she loved the candy and smiled when the candy gram deliverers called her name. I will never get anything material in return–not even a thank you, but instead what I got was a warm feeling of making somebody else just a little bit happier, even if just for a few minutes. It’s surprising how doing something selfless for someone else can be make you feel so much better.

A hand to the homeless

Noa Livneh Entertainment Editor

For my act of kindness, I decided to head to downtown Palo Alto and give a homeless woman twenty dollars. It was important for me to help out a fellow woman like myself because I do understand that there are some things that need to be bought monthly that truly add up over time. I found a woman after walking around and asked if she would accept my gift. The glow on her face lit the entire street. I felt so rewarded after this act, more than I would have felt if I had just used that money myself. I really encourage anyone to help others in need. It not only makes you feel great, but also it will make their day, maybe even their week. You never know how much a small good deed affects the person you are helping.

Allison Paley