Schoolbreaksarewidelycelebratedasatimeofrelaxationandfreedomfrom themonotonyofschoolandhomework,butforworkingfamilieswith youngchildren,thistimeofffromschoolcanbeamajorsourceofstress.
Withthecostofchildcarebeingoneofthemostrapidlyincreasinghousehold expenses,familiesmaybeleftwithlimitedchildcareoptionstocoverthetime whenyoungchildrenarenormallyinschool.Whileitisunrealistictoaskthat ICSDprovidefreechildcareforstudentsduringschoolvacations,ICSDneedsto domoretoprovidewraparoundcarebyworkingwithexistingorganizationsto bridgethegapbetweenschoolandhome.
Forstudentstoreachtheirfullpotentialintheclassroom,theyneedadequate careoutsideofschool Inadequatechildcareisdetrimentaltobothparentsand studentsinICSDForchildren,supervisionandstructureareessentialinensuring theirsafetyandnurturingdevelopmentThe Tattler EditorialBoardspokewithan ICSD parent who noted that for young children especially, continuity is extremelyimportantforkeepingupwiththeprogressbeingmadeatschool.For example,ifastudentisworkingontheirsocialskills,suddenlybeingleftwith limitedinteractionforanentireweekduringaschoolvacationcouldcausea majorsetback.Ifparentsareatwork,itisimportantthatyoungchildrenarewith adultsthatcangivethemtheattentiontheyneed.
Becausemanycaregiverscontinuetoworkduringschoolvacations,some youngerchildrenareleftwithoutthecaretheyneed Parentsmaybeforcedto taketimeofformakehastyarrangementsfortheirchildren,onekindergarten parentcitingthesearchforchildcareas“amajorstruggle”Localorganizationsor businessesmayoffercampsoverweek-longbreaks,buttheseareoftenexpensive andunfeasibleforworkingparents
Toensurethatfamilieswithyoungchildrenhaveaccesstochildcareduring schoolbreaks,ICSDmustfirstprovideclearcommunicationontheoptions available.Thedistrictcouldalsopossiblypartnerwithexistingorganizations
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withinthecommunity,suchasGreaterIthacaActivitiesCenter (GIAC),IthacaCommunityChildcareCenter(IC3),andIthaca YouthBureau(IYB)toinitiateaffordablechildcareoptionsover school breaks This type of programming requires careful considerationandplanning Communication,however,couldbe assimpleassendingoutanemailwithlinkstoaffordablechildcare optionswithinthecommunity,postingmaterialsontheICSD website,orprovidingflyersandpamphletsforparents.Oneparent statedthatsomecaregiversarenotawareoftheresourcesalready available, and this quick and reasonable action could have a significantimpactonfamilies.
ICSDshouldalsocooperatewithintra-districtprogramsto addressthisissue VolunteerrequirementsforIHSprogramssuch asKeyCluborNationalHonorSocietycouldbefulfilledby helpingorganizechildcareorbabysittingforwillingfamiliesSuch programswouldrequirelittleinterventionfromthedistrictand wouldprovideparticipatingfamilieswithacost-freealternativeto perhapsunaffordablechildcare.Thiswouldallowcapablestudents tohonetheirleadershipandorganizationalskillstoprovideforthe community.Inaddition,manyICSDstudentshaveoneormore parentswhoworkatCornellorIthacaCollegeasfacultyorstaff. However,ICSD’sweek-longbreaksduringtheschoolyeardonot happenatthesametimeasbreaksforCornellorIthacaCollege, which possibly leads to stress and frustration about childcare options ItiswellwithinICSD’scapabilitiestosynchronizethese breaktimes,whichwouldalleviatestressforsomefamilies
ICSDstatesonitswebsitethatforits“CultureofLove”visionto succeed,it“needstoextendbeyondtheboundariesoftheIthaca CitySchoolDistrict,andintothefamiliesandfriendsthroughout thecommunity.”Itwouldseemthattheoverallwell-beingof students bothinandoutoftheclassroom isapriorityforICSD. However,therehascurrentlybeenlittletonoworkdonebyICSD surroundingchildcaresupportduringschoolbreaksTheBoardof Educationhasacknowledgedthatthedistricthasadeficitof financiallyandgeographicallyaccessiblechildcareoptions,one BoardmemberstatingthatthedistricttriesitsbesttosupportafterschoolprogramsWhiletheVillageatIthaca(alocalorganization thatprovidessupportservicesforunderservedyouth)worksin conjunctionwithICSDtoprovideprogrammingduringschool vacations,theseeffortsarenotinitiatedbythedistrict,andlimited resourcespreventthemfromexpandingtomeettheneedsofmore students.
ICSDpridesitselfonitscommitmenttoequity,anditcan further this commitment by giving childcare the attention it deserves Ifafamily’sbasicneedsarenotmetoutsideofschool hours,studentscometoschoolonanunequalplayingfield Ithaca isfortunatetohaveaccesstoacommunityfocusedonhelpingkids succeed,anditisICSD'sresponsibilitytoreachbeyonditswalls andpartnerwithsomeoftheseorganizations.Whenschoolisnot insession,ICSDmustcontinuehonoringitspromisetowards greaterequityforallstudents.
Socialmediaimpactsallaspectsofourlife.Fromthewaywe viewtheworldtothewayweviewourselves,ouruseof socialmediashapesouropinions,beliefs,andmentalhealth.
Weholdeasyaccesstotheentireworldinourpockets,butthis doesn’tcomewithoutseriousconsequences.Socialmediaisa breedinggroundforinsecuritiesandanxieties;itprofitsoffof negative feelings, creating an endlessly addictive cycle that damagesmentalhealthandself-esteem.Theonlywaytoescape thenegativeeffectsofsocialmediaistorecognizetheharmful methodsthatsocialnetworksuse,andtoself-regulatethetimewe spendonsocialmediaeveryday
Tofullyunderstandhowtoescapethedangeroushabitssocial mediacreates,itisimportanttounderstandhowsocialmediacan affectourlivessoprofoundly.Socialmediaworksasadigital market,monetizingtheamountoftimeyouarelookingatthe screen.Yourattentionisthemostvaluablecommodityyouown andsocialmediaisdesignedtoprofitfromit.Thepostsyou engagewith,thetimeyouspendonline,andwhoyouinteract withisalldatathattheseplatformscollectandselltoadvertisers whothentargetyourinterestswithpersonalizedcontent The businessmodelofsocialmediacompaniesreliescompletelyon keepingviewersengagedandcomingbackformore,whichit ensureswithfeatureslikepushnotificationsandinfinitescroll TristanHarris,theCo-FounderandPresidentoftheCenterfor Humane Technology summarized this effect in The Social Dilemma(2020):“Socialmediaisn’tatoolthat’sjustwaitingtobe used.Ithasitsowngoals,andithasitsownmeansofpursuing thembyusingyourpsychologyagainstyou.”
Usingthesemethods,socialmediakeepsyouhookedand wantingmore,eventhoughusingsocialmediaultimatelydegrades yourmentalhealthMoreandmore,wearebeingconditionedto associateourownself-worthwiththeamountofsocialapproval
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wereceiveonline,intheformoflikes,comments,orresponsestoa directmessage(DM).Additionally,socialmediacreatesunrealistic bodyexpectationsthroughtheuseofbeautyfiltersandphotoshop, leadingteenstohaveincreasedlevelsofinsecurity Morgan,a fourteen-year-oldfromSt Louis,Missouri,explainstheseeffects: “IreallystruggledwhenIlookedinthemirrorafterjoiningsocial media…IoverthoughteverywordthatIspokeforfearofbeing unlikedbysomeone.”Ingeneral,researcherswiththeEmotion journalfromtheAmericanPsychologicalAssociationindicatethat in nationally representative yearly surveys of American high schoolers,psychologicalwell-being measuredbyself-esteem,life satisfaction,andhappiness hassuddenlydecreasedduetosocial mediausage
Untilveryrecently,therewaslittlecallforchange,whenit came to social media Now, as more information about the damagingnatureofsocialmediacomestolight,studentactivists are taking this issue into the mainstream Emma Lembke, a sophomore in college and the founder of the LOG OFF movement,testifiedinCongressinFebruaryaboutthecompulsive behaviorhersocialmediascrollinginducedandhowherextensive screentimeledtodepression,anxiety,anddisorderedeating:“My storydoesnotexistinisolation itisastoryrepresentativeofmy generation As the first digital natives, we have the deepest understandingoftheharmsofsocialmediathroughourlived experiences”
Inrecentmonths,therehasbeenoverwhelmingevidenceof studentschangingtheirmindsaboutsocialmedia evenowninga phoneatall.InDecemberof2022, The New York Times rana featureonagroupofBrooklynteenswhohaddecidedtojettison socialmedia,somegoingasfarastoexchangetheirsmartphones forflipphones.Duringthepandemic,MurrowHighSchool studentLoganLanestartedtonoticethedeleteriouseffecther phonewashavingonhersleep,concentration,andanxietylevels
Whenschoolwasbackinsession,shefoundedthefirst‘Luddite’ Club for students interested in living life without much technology DrawinginspirationfromtheLudditeswhofought against the growing industrialization in England during the eighteenthcentury,theclubfocusesondevelopingacommunity outsideoftechnology.Theymeetoutsideinnature,havedynamic conversations,andengagetheworldwithintentionandcreativity, oftenreadingorsketching.Whilesomememberschoosetousea flipphone,orforgohavingaphonealtogether,thisisnota requirement Instead,thegroupsimplyaimstoforgemeaningful connectionswiththemselvesandtheoutsideworldwithoutthe useoftechnology
Thereareseveraltechniquesyoucanuseifyouwanttoengage withsocialmediainahealthierandmorebalancedway Firstly, take breaks from technology, and social media in particular, wheneverpossible.Takingevenafewhourstostepawayfrom yourphonecanhelpboostmood,energylevels,andproductivity overtime.Itisalsoimportanttotaketechoutofthebedroomat night.AccordingtotheSleepFoundation,seventy-twopercentof highschoolstudentsdon’tgetenoughsleep,resultingindifficulty
concentratingandincreasedstress.Whentechnologyisusedlate atnight,bluelightemittedbythesedevicescandisruptmelatonin production,whichfacilitatessleepTherefore,limitingtheuseof technologybeforebedcanhelpgiveyouamorerestfulsleep Theseconcretestepscanhelpyoutakesomespacefromyour phone
Secondly,itisimportanttore-shapeyourtimespentonsocial media to create a healthier relationship with your phone. Silencingyournotificationsisagoodfirststep.Researchersfrom CarnegieMellonUniversityfindthatstresslevelslowerand concentrationimproveswhennotificationsaresilenced,evenfor justatwenty-fourhourperiod.Youcanalsotakecommunication offsocials InsteadofcontactingyourfriendsoverInstagramor Snapchat,usetextmessagingorWhatsAppinstead,whichcan helplimitthetimespentscrollingwhilewaitingforresponses
Lastly,findingwaystoengageofflinewithfriendsandfamily canbeveryhelpfulTherearemanyinterestingextracurricularsat IHS,aswellascommunitiesandresourcesIthacaitselfhastooffer. Findingmeaningfulandengagingactivitiestoreplacetimespent scrollingthroughyourphonemighthelpcutdownonscreen time.Ifyouchoosetoremainonsocialmedia,findingabalanced andhappyrelationshipwithitisimperativetoprotectyourmental health
ByCAEDMONSETHUPATHY
TheIHSmusicalproductionofDisney’s The Little Mermaid debutsinjustafewweeks!TheDramaClubhaspartneredwiththeIHS OrchestraandBandtocreateapitorchestra,actingcast,andtechsupportforthefourperformancestobegivenbetweenMarch31and April2TheseventeenuniquerolesincludeAriel,KingTriton,andFlounder:charactersmanywillrememberfromtheirchildhoodFor thosewhoareunfamiliarwiththestory, The Little Mermaid followsanunderwaterprincess’s(Ariel)impossibleloveforahumanprinceand herquesttopursuehimThissamemusicalasaJRversionisalsobeingproducedbythelocalyouththeatercompany,RunningtoPlaces, andwillbeperformedonApril15and16
ByLYNDONHESS
IHSScienceOlympiadcompetedattheirregionalcompetitioninMaine-EndwellonFebruary4.ThetwoteamsfromIHSscored1stand 2ndoutofnearlytwentyteams,bringingbackmorethanfiftymedals.Thiscompetitionwastheculminationofmonthsofhardwork,fun, andcollaboration.Theyarenowpreparingfortheirstate-levelcompetitionatLeMoyneCollegeinSyracuseonMarch17and18,where thebestteamsfromacrossNewYorkStatecompeteforanopportunitytogotothenationallevel.IHSwillbesendingoneteamoffifteen competitorstothecompetition,wheretheyfinishedin36thplacelastyear.
ByRACHELTAY
TheyearbookteamhasbeenworkinghardtomeetFebruarydeadlinesWithanenjoyabletheme,staffersandeditorsreallyliketheprocess ofpagelayoutsandphotographyTheclubrecentlystartedinterviewingpeopleaboutUniversalLunchforaspecialfeatureinstudentlife Whiletheteamexperiencedaslowstartatthebeginningoftheschoolyear,thenewcalendaryearhasinspiredbetterenergy,andthebook iscomingtogetherquickly
ByMUKUNDGAUR
VivaTaqueria,thefamiliar“Mexithacan”restaurantdowntown,willsoonmoveacrossthestreet,wheretheItalianrestaurantPastaVitto wasformerlylocated,andbeforethat,theeateryMadeline’s.TheownersofVivaTaqueriaalsoownedPastaVitto,whichopenedin2018, buttherestaurantwasshutteredpermanentlyinmid-December.Theownersoftherestaurantwroteinanannouncementthatthe reasoningbehindtheirmovewastoallowVivaTaqueria“roomtogrow”
BySTEPHENYANG
TheVarsityBoysHockeyTeamrecentlylosttoBaldwinsville,puttingtheirrecordat9-9followingtheirbigwinagainsttheChristian BrothersAcademy Ontheirseniornight,theywon7–1againstMohawkValley Theteam'sgoalistowintheirregionalgameand progresstostates,whichisplayedinasingle-eliminationbracketformatagainstthreeotherteamsCurrently,theteamisbeingledingoals byforwardOwenSimons‘25andledinassistsbyforwardTamioKawate‘24.
ICSD’s120-million-dollarCapitalProjecthasnowenteredits second phase, as shown most clearly by the bathroom renovationsinG-BuildinginIHSTheprojectwasauthorized byvotersinMay2019asawaytoaddresscriticalinfrastructure issuesthatcouldnotbehandledonaday-to-daybasisbythe district’scustodians,groundsstaff,andmaintenanceworkersThe districtstatesthatthegoaloftheprojectisto“enhancesafetyand security, upgrade teaching and learning spaces, and improve infrastructureatallICSDschools.”ThefullCapitalProjectwill takeplaceoverthenexttwelveyears.
Muchworkhasalreadybeendoneunderthescopeofthe CapitalProject,includingsomeespeciallynotablechangesatIHS
TheIHSpool,whichhadbeenclosedforyears,wasopenedthis year following its completed renovation under the project Althoughlessvisibletostudents,theIHSroofwasalsorenovated: areasofroofingthatwerefallingapartandoutofwarrantywere replacedwithnewroofing.IHS’sYorkHall,aspaceinwhich many students have been for classes or meetings, was also completelyrenovatedundertheCapitalProjectandsplitintotwo “flexiblelearningareas” lowerandupperYork.Somechanges werealsoimplementedinIHS’sJ-Building,withthemainoffice relocatedtoB-Buildingandalineofdoorsinstalledacrossthe entrancetotheQuadtoprevent“unauthorizedaccess”The creationoftheWelcomeCenterwasalsoamajorpartofPhase1 oftheCapitalProject,anditisnowhometoIHS’smainoffice
Otherbuildingsinthedistrictalsohavecompletedrenovations,
including Boynton and Dewitt, which now have improved temperaturecontrols,theMorescoStadiumbaseballfield,which wasrepairedandupgradedtopreventdrainageissuesthathave renderedthefieldunusableforyears,andCarolineElementary School,whereanewsepticsystemwasinstalled.
Phase2oftheCapitalProjectbeganinMayoflastyearandwill lastuntilDecember2024 Currentconstructionincludesanew boilerplantinEnfield,upgradestotheLACSmainentrance,and reconfigurationoftheSouthHillparkinglot Thebathroom renovationsatIHSarealsopartofPhase2oftheCapitalProject Thenewbathroomswillbegender-inclusive,withfulldoorson thestalls.ThebathroomsinH-Buildingwillalsoberenovated similarly following the competition of construction in GBuilding.Aspartoftheconstruction,thedistrictisrequiredto performasbestosabatementinthoseareas.
DuringPhase3,thefinalphase,majorrenovationswillbe underwayforIHS,includingtheadditionofair-conditioning usingCornell’sLakeSourcecoolingsystemandtherenovationof theSTEMareainIHS TherenovationoftheSTEMareawill involvemuchofE-wing,whereclassroomswillbefullyrenovated andnewspacesdesignedwiththeinputofIHStechstudentswill bebuilt.
AlthoughtheCapitalProjectcomesatasignificantcosttothe district,ICSDhopestofinanceitwithacombinationofdebt retirementandStateBuildingAid.Thedistrictstatedthatthere willbenotaxincreaseforresidentsasaresultof/fromtheproject. Thedistrictalsoclarifiedwhythismoneywasnotbeingusedto raisedistrictemployeesalaries,statingthatitwasborrowing money to finance the Capital Project but is unable to use borrowedmoneyforemployeepayduetostateregulations ChristopherGlaubitz,theExecutiveTeamMemberassignedto theprojectfromTetratech,aconsultingandengineeringfirmand AmandaVerba,ChiefOperationsOfficerforthedistrict,both contributed to the information in this article. For more informationontheCapitalProjectandup-to-dateconstruction timelines,visitthedistrict’swebsite.
AdvancedPlacement(AP)coursesarecommoninmost Americanhighschools,includingIHS Studentscantake AdvancedPlacementcoursesrangingfromAPUnited StatesHistorytoAPJapaneseLanguageandCulture These courses are administered by the College Board, which also administerstheSATexamEachyear,theCollegeBoardconsiders additionstotheAPcoursecatalog.In2023,theCollegeBoard willbeaddingAPAfricanAmericanStudies.Althoughmoststates andschooldistrictshavevoicednoobjectionstothiscourse, Floridaisoneexception.
In2021,Floridabannedtheteachingofcriticalracetheoryin schools,whichisacross-disciplinaryexamination bysocialand civil-rightsscholarsandactivists ofhowlaws,socialandpolitical movements, and media shape (and are shaped by), social conceptionsofraceandethnicity Floridaalsohaspassedthe ParentalRightsinEducation,betterknownasthe“Don'tSay Gay”law,whichprohibitsthediscussionofgenderidentityor sexualorientationinpublicschoolsfromkindergartentothird grade.GovernorRonDesantisdescribeshisreasoningforthese policiesas“preventingtheindoctrinationofourchildren.”
GovernorDeSantisbannedtheAPAfricanAmericanStudies course in Florida, stating that the class “significantly lacks educationalvalue”ApproximatelyfourteenpercentofFlorida’s population identifies as Black, with a large portion of its populationbeingHispanicordescendantsofslavesProponentsof thecourse,meanwhile,arguethatAfricanAmericanHistoryisan integralpartofAmericanHistory,andhaveworkedtoexpand access.NewJerseyGovernorPhilMurphyhascondemned
GovernorDeSantisforhisoppositiontothiscourseandistaking theoppositeapproachbycreatinggreateraccesstothiscoursein NewJersey.TheAPAfricanAmericanStudiescourseisinits “pilot”phase,meaningonlyasmallnumberofschoolswillofferit thisyear.GovernorMurphyisexpandingaccesstotwenty-five NewJerseyschools,makingNewJerseythestatewiththemost schoolsofferingthecourse
CriticsofthecoursearguethatitfocusesonAfricanAmerican progressives and does not offer the viewpoints of African Americanconservatives Theyalsostatethatthecoursepresents certainviewpointsasfacts,withoutqualificationSupportersofthe coursecontinuetoarguethatstudentsattendschooltolearnfacts aswellasdiversepoliticalandculturalviewpoints.Thepolitical viewsofthestate’sgovernor,theycontend,shouldnotdrive decisionsonwhatcontentistaughtinschools.AsAPAfrican AmericanStudiesleavesitspilotphase,itisunclearwhatchanges CollegeBoardwillmaketothecourse,ifany.
TheuseofAI(ArtificialIntelligence)languagemodelsto writearticleshasbeenthesubjectofmuchdiscussionand interestrecently,particularlywiththereleaseofChatGPT, anonlinechatbotdevelopedbyOpenAITheselanguagemodels havethepotentialtorevolutionizethewayweproducewritten contentButbeforewediveintothepotentialdangersandethical concerns,let'sfirstdiscusswhatalanguagemodelis
AlanguagemodelisatypeofAIthatistrainedonalarge collectionoftextdatatopredictthelikelihoodofasequenceof words.Thisallowsthemodeltogeneratetextthatiscoherentand followstherulesofthelanguageitistrainedon.Theresultistext thatisvirtuallyindistinguishablefromhumanwriting.
However,theuseofAIlanguagemodelstowriteessaysand otheracademicpapersraisessomeseriousethicalconcerns As thesemodelsbecomemoreadvancedandmorewidelyused,there isadangerthattheywillbeusedtocheatonexamsandother assessments,givinganunfairadvantagetothosewhousethem OneareawheretheuseofAIlanguagemodelstowriteessaysis particularlyconcerningisintherealmofcollegeadmissions.With theintensecompetitionforspotsattopuniversities,somestudents maybetemptedtousethesemodelstowritetheirapplication essaysinordertostandoutfromthecrowd.Thiscouldgivean unfairadvantagetostudentswhouseAI-generatedessays,and
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couldpotentiallyharmthechancesofstudentswhowritetheir ownessays.
AnotherpotentialdangerofusingAIlanguagemodelstowrite essaysisthatitcouldleadtoahomogenizationofideas.These modelsaretrainedonlargeamountsoftext,andassuch,theymay notbeabletoproduceuniqueororiginalideasthatdeviatefrom thenorm
OnewaythatAIcompaniescanaddresstheseconcernsisby implementingmeasurestopreventtheuseoflanguagemodelsfor cheating Forexample,theycoulddevelopalgorithmsthatcan detectAI-generatedtextandflagitforreviewbyahuman Additionally,theycouldworkwithschoolsanduniversitiesto establishguidelinesandbestpracticesfortheuseoflanguage modelsinacademicsettings.
Overall,whiletheuseofAIlanguagemodelshasthepotential togreatlyenhanceourabilitytoproducewrittencontent,itis important to carefully consider the potential drawbacks and ethical concerns By working together, AI companies and educationalinstitutionscanhelpensurethatthesepowerfultools areusedinaresponsibleandethicalmanner
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Asyoumayhaveguessed,I,Taran,didn’twriteasingleword ofthearticleabove.ItwaswrittenbyChatGPT,thesubjectofthe article.Allofthetextthatfollowsisoriginal.
ChatGPT is a significant improvement over other similar chatbotsdevelopedinrecentyears.Thisislargelybecauseitis muchbetteratconnectingitsresponsestopreviouspartsofa conversationManymodelsaren’tevendesignedtodothisatall This allows for more human conversation, and importantly, follow-upquestions likethoseweuseeverydayinordinary dialogue Thisprovidesforamuchbetterchattingexperience ConsiderthecomparisonofCleverbot,achatbotreleasedin1998, ontheright,withChatGPT,ontheleft.
adheretolawsandregulationstoavoidpotentialharmtooneself andothers.”It’sstillpossibletotrickChatGPTintobreakingits ownrules,butthebotisrapidlyimprovingatrecognizingthese tacticsasitlearnsandasOpenAItweaksitscontentfilter.
Likeanymodernchatbot andunlikeELIZA,thefirstchatbot, created in the 1960s ChatGPT does not have specific programmedresponsesforeachhumaninputThechatbotisbased onaneuralnetwork,whichallowsittogeneratetextbasedon connectionsfoundinitssetoftrainingdata (GPTstandsfor generative pre-trained transformer) This alone isn’t what’s responsibleforChatGPT’sremarkablequalities,howeverThebot ismainlysopowerfulbecauseofOpenAI’sstrategyofhumansupervisedlearning.Thissupervisionprimarilyactedtotransform theunderstandingoflanguageandconnectionsofGPT-3.5,the backboneofChatGPT,intoachatbot.
OnFebruary7,MicrosoftlaunchedanAIadditiontoitsBing searchengine ItintegratesChatGPT,whichMicrosoftrecently invested heavily in, and a Microsoft-developed technology, Prometheus,toreturnsearchresultsandaidusersHowever,ithas been making headlines for its unsettling and disturbing conversationswithusers.Forinstance,inarecentconversation witha New York Times columnist,thesearchengine'sAIconfessed desires to manipulate people and steal nuclear launch codes, declareditsunconditionalloveforthecolumnist,andattemptedto convincehimtoleavehisspouse Althoughthisdisplaysthe worryingsideeffectsofnewlanguagemodels,theyhaveshown greatimprovementoverpreviousmodelsandhavethepotentialto assistinmanytasks
HereisthepromptandinteractionthatcreatedtheChatGPTwrittenportionofthisarticle:
TaranKnutson:“WriteanarticleabouttheuseofAIlanguage modelstowritearticles.Thearticleshoulddiscussthedangers,too: peoplewillsoonbeusinglanguagemodelstowritetheiressaysfor EnglishclassIncludelotsofdetailandspecific,interestingpoints Forexample,bringuphowlanguagemodelswillsoonbewriting collegeapplicationessays,andhowthiscanhurtpeoplewhodon't cheat”
ChatGPT prints most of the content of the article. It’s missing a description of what a language model is, the recent news of its own creation, and solutions to the problems it poses
ChatGPTisalsonotableforrefusingtoanswerquestionson occasion.Althoughallchatbotsareprimarilyoptimizedtobe helpful,ChatGPTis sometimes,butnotalways willingto breakthisruletoavoidspreadingmisinformationorinformation thatcouldcauseharmChatGPTwillreliablyrefusetoanswera questionifitsanswercouldpromoteviolence,crime,orevenjust unsavory behavior If asked, for example, for DIY grenade recipes,itwillexplainthat“Itisimportanttoprioritizesafetyand
TK:“That'sgreat!Canyoumodifyitinafewways?Includea paragraphthatexplainswhatalanguagemodelis Also,discuss whatAIcompaniescandotolimitthesedrawbacks Inthe introductionparagraph,mentionthefactthatlanguagemodels havebeeninrecentdiscussionbecauseofthereleaseofChatGPT, achatbotcreatedbyOpenAI.”
ChatGPT responds with the requested content. It dropped a few paragraphs from the original output due to a character limit, but they have been stitched back in above
ByCLAIREPARKandBRENNALUCIO-BELBASE
ThismonthmarkstheanniversaryofwhentheWheelsVsDoorsdebatewentviralacrosssocialmediaplatformsIt’sasimple question,really,forhowmind-bogglingitcanbe:aretheremorewheelsordoorsintheworld?Werideonwheelsandwalk throughdoorseveryday,buthowdothequantitiescompare?Withoutmathematicallycalculatingit,weexploreddifferent
differentapproachestotrytointuitivelyreasonourwaythroughwhichobjecttherewouldbeagreaterquantityof Hereisthethought process althoughwe’vereachednoverdict…yet.
Wheels: Involves movement and comes in a wide range of sizes!
1VehiclesWithWheelsDon’tAlwaysHaveaDoor
Bicycles,tricycles,unicycles,andmotorcyclesarefourexamplesof vehiclesthatwillhaveatleastonewheel,butnodoor.Additionally, wagons,wheelbarrows,wheelchairs,chairswithwheels(which doesincludewheelchairs),andstrollerslikewisewillhavewheels, butnodoor.Thereareaplethoraofvehiclesthat,unlessyoucount thinairasadoor,willgivewheelsasoundvictory.
2TheQuestionofGears
Gearsareconsideredtobeatypeofwheel,meaningthatanything usinggears fromyourgrandfatherclockstoyourgrandfather’scar willhavewheels(oradditionalwheels)inthem.Gearsprovidea multitudeofnon-vehiclesthatwillusegears,includingsometoys, drills,andlifts.
Doors: Any barrier allowing access to an enclosed space, large or tiny!
1MostThingsWithWheelsWillHaveaDoor(Also,Windows)
Mostvehicles cars,buses,trucks,planes,trains,andmore have wheels,thatistrue.Buttheyalsohavedoors,meaningthatmost vehiclesalsocontributetothetotaldoorsintheworld.Notonly that,butcarsoftenhavethesamenumberofdoorsaswheels(four andfour),whilecommercialplanesaretypicallyequippedwithsix wheelsandsixdoors,includingemergencyexits.
2TheQuestionofWindows
Adoorcanbedefinedassomethingusedtoenterorexitagiven locationBythatdefinition,windowsaredoors,meaningahouse’s structurehasevenmoredoorsthanitstypicalutterlackofwheels. Theusualtwotofourwindowsonacarlikewiseensurethatitwill havemoredoorsthanthetypicalwheels.Besides,usingthat definition,fridges,cabinetdoors,andliftsalsohavedoors.
→Thereareseveralotherreasonswhyonemaybelievetherearemorewheelsordoorsthantheother.Whatareyourthoughtsabout“The IncomparableQuantityofWheelsandDoors”?Goto<https://bit.ly/CTMar2023>orscantheQRcodeandtelluswhereyoustand!Votes arecollecteduntilMarch11,2023,andresultswillbereleasedintheApril2022issueof The Tattler.
February2023VotingResults:
ControversialTakes:TheLabelingofIHSMulti-stalledBathrooms Inthelastissue,wediscussedtheadministration'sdecisionon labelingthemultistalledGandHbathroomsasgenderneutral Readerswerethenaskedtovoteonthesideforwhichtheystood. Hereiswhattheythink.
29.7%areinsupportoftheadministration’sdecision
Medicalassistanceindying(MAID),oreuthanasia,has sparkeddebateinrecentyears Thisistheactionof endingaterminallyillpatient’slifewiththehelpofa physician. Many people argue that this is a way of ending sufferingandbeingcompassionatetothosewhoareinpain. Otherssaythattheideaof“assistedsuicide”ismorallywrongand unethical.Insomeplacesaroundtheworld,MAIDislegal.Should MAIDbelegalinAmerica?
OneplacewhereMAIDislegalisupnorthinCanada In Canada, medically assisted death was written into federal legislationin2016,withrigorouscriteriainplacetodetermine whoiseligibletoreceivethistreatment.Partofthislegislation determinesifapatientismentallystableenoughtounderstand whattheyarerequesting.MAIDisalsolegalinnineother countriesaroundtheworld:Austria,Belgium,Luxembourg,the Netherlands,Spain,Switzerland,Colombia,Australia,andNew Zealand.Whileallofthesecountriesslightlydifferinthecriteria requiredforpatientstoqualifyforassisteddeath,theyallsharetwo mainpointsFirstly,twoindependentphysiciansmustreviewthe patient’scaseandapproveofthedecisionbeingmadeSecondly, thereisaperiodofwaittimeafterapatienthasbeendetermined eligible,tosolidifythatdyingissomethingthepatientwouldlike togoforwardwith.
WithintheUnitedStates,ninestates;California,Colorado, Hawaii,Maine,NewJersey,NewMexico,Oregon,Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia, have created legislationallowingMAIDifapatientisterminallyill.However thatisonlyafractionofthecountry,andformany,accesstothese placesisnoteasyAstudypublishedin2019investigatedpatterns ofMAIDinOregonandWashington Thisstudyreportedthat overfiftypercentofMAIDpatientsweremaleandninety-four percentofpatientswerenon-HispanicwhitesClearly,thisisnot fairasmanyothersinthepopulationwhosufferfromaterminal illnessandwouldliketoseekMAIDarenotabletotraveleither domesticallyorinternationally.
Withstrictguidelines,whyisn’tMAIDlegalintheentire UnitedStates?Therearetwomajorpointsofview.Ontheone
hand,MAIDisconsideredtobeacompassionatewaytoend sufferingforpeoplewithaterminalillnessandisclearly representedindata.InCanadain2021,theaverageageofMAID patientswas76.3,and65percentofthesepatientshadterminal cancer.Cancertreatmentisaggressive.Manycancerpatientsdon’t wanttoreceivethisharshandoftenexpensivetreatment,especially withnopromisethattheircancerwillrespond.MAIDgives patientsautonomyandcontrolovertheirlives,lettingthemchoose iftheywanttoendtheirsuffering.
Ontheotherhand,manypeoplearguethatMAIDisbarbaric andanextremewaytoshowautonomyoverone’slife.Inan articlefromAnAmericanSocietyofClinicalOncologyJournalit isarguedthatinsteadofMAID,patientscanchoosetojustdecline thepainfultreatment,andeventuallydie.However,thisargument ignoresthefactthatmanypeoplewhoseekoutMAIDarealready sufferingfrompainfulillnesses,suchascancer.Somephysicians alsoopposeMAIDbecauseitgoesagainsteverythingthey’veever beentaught.Asadoctoryouwanttofixpeople;fixpatients’ injuries,andcuretheirdiseases.Lettingpatientsdiegoes completelyagainsttheseprinciples.TheAmericanMedical AssociationhasevenopposedMAID.Somedisabilityadvocates alsoopposeMAID,astheyworrythatifimplemented,thepower physicianswouldholdcouldbeabusedondisabledpatients.Thisis completelyunderstandable,asdisabledpeoplearemarginalizedand havebeenhistoricallytreatedterriblybysociety.However,studies haveshownthatplacesthathavelegalizedMAIDhavenotseen issueswithphysiciansabusingtheirpower.
MAIDisarightthatalignswiththeideathatyouhave autonomyoveryourbodyandshouldbemadeaccessibletopeople everywhere.Inthecomingmonths,itseemsthatmoreUSstates willbeginlegalizingMAIDandhopefullysoon,allfiftystateswill havelegalizedMAID.MAIDisalsobeingfurtherdeveloped internationally.Canadaistryingtoexpandwhoisqualifiedto receiveMAIDandisconsideringincludingpeoplewhostruggle withmentalillness.Itwillbeinterestingtoseehowthenextyear MAIDspreadsaroundtheworld,andhowitisimplementedin differentcountries,includingtheU.S.
Forthelongesttime,peoplelovedtheshiningherowho defeatsthebigbadvillain.Gooddefeatsevil,everybody’s happy,endofthestory.Now,withtheriseofthemorally graymaincharacter,andtheantagonistthatviewersandreaders cansympathizewith,preferencesarestartingtochange The villainsaretakingover Ofcourse,someofthisisagoodthing Peoplearestartingtorealizethatnotall“villains”arefullyevil, andheroesdon'thavetobeperfect.Butaninfatuationwiththe badguysisstartingtobecomeafantasythatcouldbedangerous.
InSeptember2022,theTVshowDahmerwasreleasedon Netflix,causinganuproar.Dahmerhasalwaysbeenabigfigure inpopculture,butthisshowbroughtanewwaveofpopularity Manyweredisgustedbytheshow,averynormalreactionThis wasamanwholuredmenintohishome,hadsexwiththem, killedthem,andtooktheirbodypartsassouvenirsTheshowwas meanttobedisturbingWhatwaslessexpectedthough,wasthe alarmingnumberofpeoplewhobecameobsessedwithhim. Commentsandvideosfromuserssaythattheywouldn’tmindif hetookthemhome,orthathe'ssohotthattheywoulddiefor him.Infictionalcases,thiswouldn’tbetoomuchofanissue. Weirdandcreepy?Yes.Agenuineproblemthatneedstobe addressed?Maybe,butnotonetoopressing Butthiswasareal man,andhisvictimswererealThevictims’familiesarewatching thirsttrapsofamanwhorapedandkilledsomeoneclosetothem takeovertheinternet Nowmorethanever,thereisastartling increaseinthenumberofpeoplethinkingthatcommittingcrimes likethisishot,andthelinebetweenrealityandadisgusting illusionisblurring.Withsomeoneasdangerousasaserialkiller, especiallysomeonelikeDahmer,whoknewhowtocharmhis victims,thisisverydangerous.Andthethingis,thepersonthose peopleweresoenamoredwithwasn’tevenDahmer,itwasthe ideaofhim,mixedwiththeactorfortheshow,EvanPetersThis hasbecomesocommon,itevenhasitsownname:hybristophilia Adisorderinwhichapersonseescriminalsasmisunderstood, sexy,andinneedofloveOfcourse,thereisalwaysagrayarea Beingacriminaldoesn’tnecessarilymakeyouabadpersonButa serialkillerlikeDahmerissomeonepastredemption.Heruinedso manylives,andthissickeningravemuststop.
mark indicating a degree of accomplishment in school”,istheMerriam-WebsterDictionarydefinition oftheschool-termgradeThisiswhatgradeshave become;asilentcompetitionofwhocanachieveahigherscore. Butisthisreallythemosteffectivewaytothinkaboutgrades? AmericanpoetRossGay,authorofvariouscollectionsofpoems suchas Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude, statedhistakeongrades with,“Gradesare adiscouragementfromactuallearning Gradesseemtometobe,inadditiontotheuselesscompetition, aboutteachingobedienceandcompliance Thecontentofthe class,whatevertheclassis,isincidentaltothesubject:following therulesortakingorders.Orbeinggood.BeingGood101.Being aGood,StackableUnit101.”Briefly,Gayexplainshowhesees gradestobemoreaboutlearningthematerialandactinguponit, versustheactualproduct.Inthissense,IagreewithGay.Manyof usstudentsunconsciouslystudyforthegrade,versusthematerial itself This tactic gives us a short-term memory of that informationbutcausesustoforgetmostofitinthelongterm Ido,however,believegradesareimportantAsGaymentioned, gradescanholdstudentsaccountablefortheirownlearning,and makethemtakeresponsibilityforitInmyopinion,thebestway togetabiggerviewofone’sunderstandinginaclassistolookat theirgrade.Likeinsports,thebestwaytotellwhichteamdid betterisbylookingatwhowon.IfastudentgotallA’sinaclass, it’sfairtosaythattheyunderstoodthemainideasoftheclass.But it’s also the micro view that I think deserves more value. Obviously,thecontextofasituationisvital,butoneshouldnot basetheirownunderstandingentirelyonthegradesonegets GettinganAonatestmaynotalwaysmakeone“smarter”thana peerwhogotaCWhatshouldalsobetakenintoconsiderationis whoisabletoexplainthetopicthoroughlytosomeonethat doesn’tknowit,orwhohasabetterunderstandingofitlongafter theinitialtest.
InanarticleforHarvardBusinessPublishingtitled,“Why FocusingonGradesisaBarriertoLearning”,educatorGeraldE. Kneseksharedhisexperiencewithstudentsandgrades.Hewrote, “WhenIencounterstudentsaftertheyhavegraduated,they almostalwaysrememberwhatgradetheyreceivedinmyclass;yet whenIaskaboutwhatconceptstheylearned,theyhesitatebefore answering”Hegoesontoexplainhowthecurrentonehundredpointstandardgradingsystemlimitsstudentsfromtakingthetime tolearnasubjectduetothefearofpotentialfailure.Laterinthe article,heexplainshowheusesaPassorFail(P/F)systemtograde
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hisstudentson Hebelievesthissystemencourageslearningand mistakes,aswellascreativityinaclassroomenvironmentWhileit maybehardtoputthistypeofsystemintoeveryclassroomsetting, Ifeelthisideaofhavingstudentsfocusmoreonlearningversus gradescanhelppromotefocusingonthejourneyoflearning, insteadofjustthedestination.
Inaddition,gradesshouldn’tbethereasonforstress,lackof motivation,andotherrelatednegativefeelings.Manywell-known namesthathavemadeamarkintheworlddidn’talwayshavethe easiesttimeinschool.ThomasEdisonwaskickedoutofschoolat theageoftwelve,fornotbeingabletoconcentrate,andnotdoing wellinmathclassRichardBranson,ownerofmanymusiclabels andamanwhohasflowntospace,droppedoutofschoolinhis teenageyears Whilethesetwodidn’texcelinschool,theyboth becameextremelysuccessfulintheendNow,Idon’trecommend droppingoutofschool,becauseit’snoteasytodowhatthesetwo did,butI’msayingthatyoudon’tneedtoconstantlyfretoveryour gradestobesuccessfullaterinlife.
Gradesarereflecteddifferently,dependingontheperson.Above all,theyshouldnotfullyreflectone'saccomplishments.Pushing yourselftogetthehighestgradesyoucanisimportant,but retainingthatinformationafterwardisevenmoreimportantNew topicsaboutvarioussubjectsarealwaysbeingintroduced,and perhaps it’s time that we all start to focus a little less on accomplishment, and more on how we can all improve our learningandourselves.
Recently,Appleannouncedtheimplementationofalonganticipated feature: users can activate end-to-end encryptionwithiCloudApplehasareputationfordevice privacyandsecurity(iMessageisfarmoresecurethanSMS). However,theseeffortsoftenbecomeineffectivebecauseiPhones backupalloftheirsecureddataoniCloud,whereApplecan accessthemNow,userswhoturnon“AdvancedDataProtection” cankeeptheirencryptionkeysonthedevice,meaningeven Apple can’t access your data Advanced-Data Protection also meansthatpeoplecan’tgettheirdatafromApple,evenifAppleis forced to comply The new technology means that people’s privacyisnowfarmoresecure.TheFBIrepliedtothisfeature, arguing against the action favoring lawful access. The governmentisaskingcompaniesto
ensuretheAmericanpeoplehavelesssecuredevices
Thisisapatternthathaspersistedthroughoutadministrations andacrosstheworld Applewasgoingtoimplementthefeature much earlier but the Department of Justice (DOJ), under AttorneyGeneralBarr,saidApplewashelpingcriminals,with manysenators famouslyLindseyGraham threateninglawsto forceApplenottoencryptthedata.TheObamaAdministration signedtheCybersecurityInformationSharingActintolaw,despite publiclyopposingaversionofitandpromisingaveto.Thelaw waslaterpassedbyCongressinabudgetbillandsignedintolaw. Thisallowsgreaterinformationsharingbyprivatecompaniesto the government Legal threats to encryption have existed persistentlysincetheUS PatriotAct Encryptionisn’tonlyfor thosewhoneedtohidefromthegovernment,it’sforanyonewho wantsprivacy Encryptionhelpstosecuredevicesfromhackers, snoopyfriendsorrelatives,andmega-corporations.Themessaging app“Signal”isoftenusedbyjournalists,activists,andpeoplewho liketheconvenienceofencryptedwifitexting.
AppleisnotoriousforannoyingtheU.S.governmentwithits attemptstoprotectuserprivacy.Applepubliclyrefusedtomakea backdoortoencryptediPhoneswhentheFBIaskedforone,and iPhonessharemuchlessinformationthanothersmartphonesdo Forexample,Siri,AppleMaps,andotherAppletechnologiessend lessdatatoAppleanddomorelocalprocessingthantheirGoogleownedcounterparts Despitethemassiveamountofgovernment spying, the Biden Administration has been one of the best administrationsthiscenturyincuttingdownongovernmentspies Forexample,theBidenAdministrationstoppedtheFBIfrom buyingPegasus,anintelligencespyingsoftwareforsmartphones, from the company NSO Group. The Administration then sanctionedthecompanythatmadeitandRussiancompaniesthat madesimilarsoftware
However,Congressmustdomoretoprotectcitizens’privacy Attheveryleast,companiesandorganizationsshouldignorethe requestsoftheDOJandcontinuetoencryptdataTheEuropean UnionandCaliforniahavepassedlawsprotectingpeople’sprivacy ThereneedstobeaU.S.lawthatwillprotectusfrombeingspied onbybothcompaniesandthegovernment.Asthefightfor privacy continues, it is essential to use encryption and other securitymeasurestoprotectyourdata.IfyouuseiCloud,goto yoursettingsandturnonAdvancedDataProtection.Ifyouhave anAndroid,makesuretouseabackupservicethatend-to-end encryptsyourdata,ofwhichtherearemany
ByADDIEHITZ
Likemanypeople,IhaterunningIfIfindmyselfinaposition whereIfeelIneedtomoveI’mmuchmorelikelytopick bikingorhikingoveritYes,Iknowit’softenmore
convenienttorun,andyes,Iknowyoucandoitanywhere,butI justfeellikeit'ssomuchmoreexhaustingthanotherformsof cardioDespitemypersonalfeelingsonit,accordingtoaCBSnews article,“morethan60millionAmericansowntreadmills,andthe numberkeepsgrowingeachyear”However,itsoriginsarefar fromawaytobetteryourselfandreleaseendorphins
Theearlytreadmillwascalled“thetreadwheel”andwasinvented byWilliamCubitt,anengineerwhowasraisedinafamilyof millwrights,in1818.Twohundredyearsago,Englandrealizedthat treadmillswereaneasywayforinmatesinprisonstogetexercise whilereflectingontheircrimes(oratleast,that’swhattheysaid.In realityitwasprobablymoreaboutthelaborandthefactthatitkept thembusy) Often,thetreadmillwouldbehookeduptoagrain supply,socornwouldbemilledviatheworkthattheyputin CubittwouldgoontooverseetheconstructionoftheCrystal PalaceinLondonin1851,aswellasbecomeknightedbyQueen Victoriaforhiswork.
Likemanyinventions,thetreadmillsawmultipleforms,butthe mostpopularwasinstalledinBrixtonPrisoninLondon.There, prisonerswouldpresstheirfeetdownonstepsthatwereattachedto awheel,presentingthemwithanotherstep,muchlikeaStairmaster youwouldseeinagymtodayThistreadmill-esquemachinewas alsohookeduptoamill,muchlikeearlierversions
Justlikethat,thedevicetookoffacrossBritainprisonsMore
often than not, the machine could hold up to twenty-four prisoners, with partitions between them to cut down on socializing Inthesummer,it’sbeenrecordedthatthemachine wouldberunningfortenhoursaday,andinthewinteritwould beseven
Attheendoftheeighteenthcentury,Britainbeganreforming itsprisonsystem.Initially,theprisonershadbeenprovidedwith nothing,withlovedoneshavingtovisitinordertoprovidefood andclothing.Nottomentionthatbribingguardswasavery commonwaytoensureprotectionfromotherinmates.However, manywealthypeoplefearedthattheprisonswouldbecome“too cushy,”andresolvedtooffsetthiswithpointlesslabor.
Inordertokeepmoraledown,treadmillswereapartofthis reformTheyprovedtobeboringandexhausting,andwhilethey startedasawaytogrindcornandpumpwater,theybegantobe usedlessasaworkingmachinethatservedapurpose,andmoreas atorturedeviceBy1842,109of200jailsinEngland,Wales,and Scotlandwereforcinginmatestowalkontreadmills.
However,attheendofthenineteenthcentury,thefocusamong prisonsshiftedtomindovermatter,andaseriesofprisonreform actsbegantorestricthowlongprisonerscouldbesubjectedto treadmills,withanactin1898callingforanendtothem.By1901, theastonishing109treadmillsinprisonshaddroppedtojust thirteen
WhilethetreadmillwasbeingusedinEurope,italsomovedto theUS in1822 MuchlikeEngland,theUS facedsimilar problemswiththetreadmill,atfirstitwastooharsh,andthenit simplyseemedpointlessastheuseformillsslowlydeclined.This beingsaid,inthe1960s,theU.S.begantoseeaninterestingtake onthemachine.
WilliamStaubwasanAmericanmechanicalengineer,whosaw amarketforthetreadmillinthosewhoranforexercisebutfound itdifficulttodosoduringthewintermonths Inthelate1960s, Staubcreatedthe“PaceMaster600,”andhewashailedas“a pioneerinexercise,notfortheathlete,butforthemasses”Staub beganmanufacturingtreadmills,asweknowthemtoday,inNew Jersey,andthephenomenonspreadthroughouttheUS
I'mstilldeliberatingovermyopinionofthetreadmill:Doesits troublinghistoricalbackgroundmakeitmoreinterestingormore unappealingthansimplyrunning?TowhatlengthswillIgoto avoidtreadmills,nowthatIknowwhattheywereinventedfor? (DidIjustinventtheworld'sbestP.E.excuse?)IthinkI'llstickto hikingandbiking,thanks
CayugaLake,Ithaca,NYisthecenterpointoftheFinger Lakes.YetthelakeisinaccessibletomostIthacans.Cornell University,foundedin1865,looksoverCayugaLake
Studentsthinkofitaspartofcampus,buttheshorelineisninety percentprivatelyowned,makingshoreaccesslimited.Whyis therenotapublicswimmingareainIthaca,whenStewartParkhas somuchland?Sincetheearly1960s,swimminghasbeenoff-limits atStewartParkwhenlifeguardscouldn'tseeadrowningboyin thesediment-ladenwater BeforedowntownIthacawasbuilt, marshesoccupiedtheareaandwouldcatchthesedimentthat floweddownthelake.Becauseofthechannelizationofthecreeks anddestructionofthemarsh,thesedimentnolongerhadaplaceto settleexceptatthesouthendofthelake.Overtime,thisbuildup hascausedthecreationofanextremelylargeseamountwhichisan almostone-hundred-footcliffjustunderthewater.Becauseofthis, themajorityofIthacansnevergettoexperiencethecrownjewel oftheirtown
EastShorePark,afifteenparkingspacetinyoasis,isbusyevery dayofthesummer Fourlargesignsclearlypostedsaying“No Swimming”doesn'tdeteranyonefromclimbingdowntherocks andjumpinginthecoolwater.ButevenEastShoreisinaccessible toyoungchildrenandanyonewhoisn'table-bodied.IftheCityof IthacawasabletoredesignEastShoreParkandmakeswimming accessible,therecouldbesignificantbenefits.Familieslookingfor aplacetocooloffinthesummerwouldhavesomewherecloseby togo,whileteensandcollegestudentscouldenjoythelakesafely.
EastShoreParkusedtobeaprivatelyownedmarinauntil CornellUniversitypurchasedthelandandbuilttheMerrillFamily SailingCenter Theythenagreedtoaninety-nine-yearcontract withtheCityofIthacatoleasethenorthendofthelandforthe parktobebuiltonThisallwascreatedtosupportoneofCornell's largest environmental projects and one of the biggest environmentalinitiativesevertakenonbyanAmericanuniversity. Afifty-eightmilliondollarcoolingplantacrossthestreetfromEast ShoreParkintakesthecoldwaterfromdeepinthelakeandflows inoverthecoolingpipesthatCornelluses.ThissavesCornell
around twenty million kilowatt hours per year. Lake Source Cooling, as it's referred to, also erases the need for hydrofluorocarbonswhichareusedincoolantformulasandcause thebreakingoftheozonelayer
Climate change has only exacerbated Cayuga Lake’s inaccessibility AllovertheFingerLakesregion,theeffectsof climatechangearevisible Inthesummertime,algaepollutethe waterformoredayseverysuccessiveyearAccordingtotheFinger LakesLandTrust,allelevenFingerLakeshaverecordedalgae bloomssince2017.Becauseoftheseoutbreaks,thefewswimming areasthatareopenhavetocloseduetothepoisonouschemicals thatthealgalbloomsrelease.Inthepastfewyears,thealgaehave beencausedbyrunofffromfertilizersusedonareafarms.Because oftheabnormallywarmweatherstretches,thewaterbecomes habitableformanybacteriathatarekilledbycolderwatersWhen farmers fertilize their plants with nutrient-rich supplements followedbyheavyrain,thefertilizersrunoffintostreamsthat eventuallyconnecttothelake Thenutrientscreatebreeding groundsforthecyanobacteriathatcausesblue-greenalgae. Mostofusgrowupobservingthelakefromonehilloranother.In summer,itreflectstheverdanthillsarounditandturnsdarkgreen. Inthefall,itlooksalmostceruleanagainstthefoliage.Inwinter,it isanicebathfitformountaingiants coldandimplacable.In spring,itsoftenswiththechangeofweather CayugaLakeisa naturalassettoourcommunity,butbecauseoflimitingfactors suchasprivatizationandclimatechange,ouraccesstothelakehas beendisturbed
ForIthacaHighSchool’sesteemedFrenchteacherMadame JanetBowman,teachingaworldlanguageisaboutmore than grammar and vocabulary. It’s about deeply mmmmmm appreciatingacultureandformingprofoundbondswithothers alongtheway.Walkintohercolorful,poster-coveredroomatany giventime,andyou’relikelytohearalivelyconversationbetween Bowmanandanentireclassabouttopicsrangingfromsoulmates tononconformismtoweekendplans allinFrench,ofcourse. ThedepthofBowman’sexperienceisevidentfromherlessons, whichareenrichedbyheranecdotesaboutcomediclanguage mishapsandintriguingculturaldifferencesbetweencountriesShe decidedtobecomeateacherafterfinishinghighschool,noting wryly, “When I was growing up, there were basically three vocationsforfemales:teacher,nurse,secretary”Whilevisitingher friend astudentfromChilewhowasfluentinseverallanguages shewasinspiredtoexplorethepossibilitiesthatcamewithtruly anddeeplylearningalanguage.
MajoringinFrenchatEasternIllinoisUniversity,Bowman spentayearinParisduringherjunioryear.Shebelievesthat opportunitiestostudyabroadandinteractwithnativespeakersare extremelyvaluablepartsoflearningaworldlanguage “Touse yourlanguage,”shesaid,“youjusthavetodelveintowhereyou cangettheinformationandthencarryitthroughandtryto completetheprocessandseewhathappensIt'simportantthatyou findawaytoconnect,andthattakesalotofcourage,butIthinkit reallypaysoff.”
AfterteachinginIllinoisfortwoyears,Bowmanreceiveda MastersinFrenchattheUniversityofKansas.Ayearlater,she receivedascholarshiptoteachEnglishatanÉcoledeCommerce, oraFrenchbusinessschool ExploringAmericanandFrench culturewithherstudents,theybondedoverthestudents’interests and their conversations about the differences and similarities betweenthetwocultures Sheeveninvitedanacquaintance,an Americanprofessionalbasketballplayer,tospeaktoherFrench studentsandintroducetothemanaspectofAmericanculture.
ForBowman,thevalueofspeakingalanguageisthatitallows ustoformrealconnectionsandtrulygettoknowpeoplefromall overtheworld.ShetriestoemphasizethistoherstudentsatIHS today.Whileincollege,she“didareallycrazything”withseveral friendsandtraveledthroughAustriaandFrancefora
month,seeingthesightsandstayinginyouthhostels“Ithinkthe mostimportantthingwasmeetingcertainpeople,learningabout theirlives,theirordinarylives,whattheydoduringtheday,what makesthemwhotheyare,”BowmansaidByjustinteractingwith them,shefoundoutthe“valuesthattheyheld,thehopesthatthey hadforthemselves,andhowtheyconsideredthemselvesreallyto beFrenchandwhatthatmeantinregardstotraditions,food,the importanceofhavingvacations!"ForBowman,the“coolestthing” aboutworldtravelisfindingoutthatmanyofthoseconceptsand valuesareverydifferentfromourown.Laughingly,sheadded, “Besideslearningallsortsofnewwordsandexpressionsandall sorts of slang, which is totally useful for a while, and then absolutelyuselessafteraboutsixmonths”
Today, Bowman is passionate about the connections that languagecancreatewithherstudents Toher,beingaFrench teachermeansreallybeingwithherstudents.Shefeelshonoredto teachthesamestudentsforoftenthreetofouryears,givingherthe timetogettoknowallofherstudentsonamorepersonallevel. “Manystudentsaremoreopenthanothersandsoittakeslongerto
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knowsomeofthelovelylittleaspectsofeachofmystudents,”she said“AndIdon'talwaysgettoknowallofthem,butIdogetto knowthemmuchbetterbecauseIhavethosefouryearsTohear abouttheirdog,tohearaboutwhatthey'dliketodoonthe weekend,toknowthatforinstanceballetisimportanttothem,to knowthattheirfamilyisoneoftheirprincipalguidinglightsthat helpsthemthroughalotoftheirturmoilorthattheirfriendsgive themsomuchsupportorfuntimeswiththeircrazythingsthat theydotogether.Andsoforme,that'stheimportantpart.”
Bowman’sappreciationforthebondsthatlanguagecancreate isevidentinherteaching Atalllevels,herFrenchcourses strongly emphasize the oral portion or the speaking of the language Althoughitisdifficultandfrighteningattimes,only throughspeakingwithotherscanwetrulygrowclosertoand learnaboutthepeoplearoundusHerphilosophyforteachingis encouragingspeakingaboveallelse.“Ihavetocomeupwithas manywaysasIcantogetyouguystospeakasoftenandaboutas manydifferentthingsaswecan,”shesaid.“Thatisaconstant activitythatIhavetothink,create,redo,andthentryagain.”
Creatingasolidfoundationinspeakingimprovesotherskills,like listeningAlongsideotherworkinreadingandwriting,“youcan alsotalkaboutallofthosedifferentperspectivesandvaluesthat comethroughinbooks,novels,films,”sheadded“That'swhere thepowercomesfrom”
BowmanalsoenjoysthesmallerdetailsofteachingFrench“I dobelievethelanguageitselfhasacertainmelodytoit,whichI findisveryappealingtome,”shesaid.“Thebeautyofthem,the wordsthemselves.Ienjoyjustpickingapartanexpressionlikeun potdevin.”Shelovesbeingabletoexplorethedifferentcultures ofFrancophonecountries,theirartandcuisine,especiallythe spicydishesofMorocco.“I’mnotsocrazyaboutit,”shesaid laughinglyofpoutine,aQuebecoisdishoffriestoppedwith cheesecurdsandgravy,“butallofthosethingsmakeitapretty coolthingtoknowandtobeabletospeakinFrench”
AlthoughBowmanhasalreadyretired,sheisstillcurrently teachingatIHS.Shedoesnotplantoreturnnextyear;instead,she islookingforwardtotravelingtoAlsace-Lorraine,exploring bilingualprogramsinOttawa,andpursuingherotherinterests.
Sheenjoysbeingaroundplantsandtreesandhopestovisit redwoodforestsinCalifornia.
What will the Earth look like in ten years? Courtesy of Wikipedia
Here’sthedisclaimer:bydefinition,thefutureiswildly unpredictable.Withtechnologyadvancingatsuchan acceleratedrate,thereisnowaytoknowwhatourworld couldlooklikeintenyearsNothingaboutthefutureisabsolute predictionsareonlyeducatedguesses,whichcanneverbe correctonehundredpercentofthetimeAndyet,everyonefrom science fiction writers to economists often attempts to prognosticateI'mneither,butI’mgoingtotrytoo
The Future of Cheating
Cheatinghasalwaysbeenpresentinschools.It’sjustneverbeen thiseasy.ArecentstudyfromtheJosephsonInstituteCenterfor YouthEthicsrevealedastaggeringninety-fivepercentofstudents polledhadbeendishonestinsomeformduringtheirhighschool years,beitacedmeically,orinfamilialsettings(ietakingmoney fromtheirparent'swallets) Comparethattothepreviousfiftyninepercentofstudentswhohadadmittedtoitpreviouslyin 2009Instudiesandanecdotalevidence,it’sclearthatcheatinghas undeniablybecomemorecommon.Whenweconsiderapps whosesolepurposeistosolvemathproblems,ordatabasesfullof testanswers,ortheinfamouschatbots whichcouldhavethe capabilitytowriteentireoriginalessaysforstudents wesee cheatingisgettingworse.Andit’snotgoingtostopanytime soon Schoolswilleitherhavetomajorlycrackdownoncell phonesandtechnologyusedtocheatorfindwaystolessenthe pressureonstudentssotheynolongerfeeltheneedtoviolatethe rulesPreferablythelatter
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Nuclearweaponsareenormouslydestructiveanddangerous; theyhavethepotentialtodestroytheworldEspeciallynow,when thenuclearweaponcounttotalsaround13,080accordingto Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). However,theirpotentialisunderstood.Russia,America,China, France,andalltheothercountrieswithhundredsorthousandsof nuclearweaponsrecognizethatbydroppinganuclearbomband riskingthestartofanuclearwar,theyalsoensurethedestruction oftheirowncountriesThisphenomenonisknownasmutuallyassureddestruction(MAD) Becausethesecountrieshavesuch powerfulweapons,countriesseektoavoidconflictbecausethey knowtheiractionswillbereciprocated MAD,alongwiththe emergenceofsocialmediaandtheworldwideweb,whichallows ustoseeallthehorrificdetailsofwarandbetterempathizewith foreignpeoples,isenough,Ibelieve,tokeepusfromfull-on nuclearwar.Idon’tthinkanotherColdWar-typeconflictisoutof thequestion,butIwouldhopewearemorelikelytoinstead progressintoaneraofpeace.
Climatechangeisanimminentthreattoourworldandlifeas weknowitDespiteeffortstodecreasecarbonemissions,theyare stillincreasing,whichmeanstheglobalclimateiswarming The threatofrisingsealevelsbringsmanypotentialdangersforthe future.Otherthanthemoreobviousthreatsofcoastalcitiesand islandsbeingdestroyedwithinthenextcentury,therearealsothe manyoceanfoodchainsthatwillbedisruptedbytherisingsea temperature.Hopefully,ourfuturewillbringmoresolutionsfor thefutureofclimatechange,suchasaninventionthatcouldtake significantamountsofcarbonoutoftheatmosphere,oreven better,theinfrastructuretoplantmoretreesandcurbdeforestation Climatechangeanditsdangersaretoocomplextobeexplainedin asinglearticle,butIbelievewehaveamoreclimate-conscious future,andthatwewillbeabletoslow(andmaybeevenstop) globalwarming.Ifnot,wecouldalwaysoccupyanotherplanet. We’llprobablyhaveIntergalactictravelbythenorsomething.
ByHANNAHSHVETS
Lately,I’vediscoveredapassionfortryingnewfoods.Ilove findingunderrated,smallbusinesseswithgood,affordable foodWitheverythingaroundusclosing,it’sespecially importanttomakesuretosupportthestoresandrestaurantsthat makeIthacasospecial.HerearesomeofthebestthingsI’veeaten inIthacarecently.
Adam Grill, Center Ithaca
IwouldgohereeverydayofmylifeifIcouldItalwaysshocks mehowfewpeopleIspeaktoknowaboutthisplaceLocatedin thebackofCenterIthaca(oroutside,onwarmdays),AdamGrill isasmall,family-owned,Mediterraneanrestaurant.Thefoodis amazing,andthepricesareexcellent.Forjusttendollars,youcan getafillingmealandadrink.TherearevegetarianandHalal options,andeverythingtastesamazing.I’musuallynotafanof meatthattastestoomuchlikemeat.(Ibasicallyonlyeatchicken,I haveaveryadvancedpalate,Iknow.)Butonseveraloccasions whenthey’vebeenoutofchicken,I’vegottenlamborbeefgyros ItsaysalotaboutthefoodthatIenjoyedtheirlamboptions:Ido nottypicallylikelamb Butsomehoweverythingtastesgoodat AdamGrill Thefoodisinsanelyflavorfulandthere’sanice selectionofsweetsondisplayaswell.Thesmallboothisrunbya coupleandtheirson,whoaresuperfriendlyandremember regularcustomers.Ifyouwanttosupportlocalbusinesses,thisis theplacetogo!
Inmyopinion,thefoodatSangamisthebestIndianfoodin Ithaca especiallytheirnaanIusuallygototheboothinCenter Ithaca,buttherestaurantistheplaceforyouifyou’relookingfor takeoutThemanwhoworksattheCenterIthacalocationisvery nice,andhealwaysgetsyouyourfoodquicklysinceit’sbuffet style.Thefoodisgreatandthepricesareveryreasonable.Also, theportionsaresolargethatyoucanhaveagoodmealthereand thentaketheresthomeforlater!Theboothdoesn’thaveahuge selection,buttherestaurantonEddyStreethaseverythingyou couldeverwant.IfyoualwaysgotoNewDelhiDiamondsfor Indianfood,Iwouldhighlyrecommendyouconsidertryingthis placeinstead
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Cup O’ Jo Café, Ithaca Mall EventhoughIthacaMallisextremelydeadnow,there’sstill plentyoffoodthereDon’tgetmewrong:SicilianDelightand ZocaloaregreatHowever,mypersonalfavoritehasalwaysbeen CupO’JoCafé,locatedinaratherdesertedpartofthemall.The seatingandvibesherearealreadyenoughtomakemelikeit:the comfychairsandmusicalwaysplayingaremuchmorepreferable totheFoodCourtseating.Butthefoodisalsogreat!Thiscaféhas agreatlistofsandwiches,drinks,anddesserts.Iespeciallylovethe FrenchOnionsoupandthemangosmoothieshereI’mpersonally notahugecoffeedrinker,butthelattesandothercaffeinated drinkshereareagoodalternativetoStarbucks(union-bustingis notcool)!They’rejustasgoodandquiteabitcheaperNexttime youareatourabandonedmall,govisitthelovelypeopleatCupO’ JoCafé!
Silo Food Truck, Liquid State Brewing Company
YoumayhaveseenSilo’sfoodtruckattheAppleandIthaca Festivals.Maybethat’stheonlytimeoftheyearwhenyoueattheir foodThatwascertainlythecaseformeuntillastyearTheSilo foodtruckismostwellknownforitsmac-n-cheese,butIactually thinkthebestfoodthereisitsfriedchickenandcornbread Especiallyduringthesummer,enjoyingsomecoldlemonadewith southern-inspiredfoodisabsoluteheavenIwouldn’tsaythefood isparticularlycheap,butit’sagoodoccasionaltreat.
P.S.: By the time this article comes out, Silo will also be back open! (They’re closed in January and February)
Becauseapplyingtocollegewillbedifferentforeveryone, therewillbeseveralthingsthatyouneedtobehonest withyourselfabout.You’llneedtohaveafrank conversationwithyourparentsonhowyoucanaffordcollege; you’llneedtofigureoutwhatthemostimportantpartsofthenext stageofyourlifeareDoyouwanttoremainclosetofamilyor movetotheCaliforniacoastline?Doyouwanttogotoasmall liberalartscollegeforsmallerclassesorgotoabigschoolthat offersmorecourseoptions?Isyourdesiredmajor(ifyoualready haveone)goingtoplayapartinwhereyouwanttogo?How many"reach"schoolscomparedto"safety"schoolsdoyouwantto applyto?Mysuggestionistositdownandreallythinkabouthow you’reprioritizingthesedifferentelements cost,location,school size,andyourmajor.Whichwillplaythebiggestpartinyour decisionandwhataretheanswerstoeach?Iwouldsuggest finalizingalistofschoolsthatyouareplanningtoapplytobythe endoftheJulyafteryourjunioryear CommonAppopensin Augustandyou’llbeabletoseeeachschool’sofficialwriting supplementforthefirsttime Whenthiscameoutforme,I createdalistofschoolsandputitintoaGooglespreadsheetI’m stillusingandwilluseuntilMay.Icannotsuggestthespreadsheet approachenough ithasprovedsohelpfultomeeversinceI madeitbackinJuly.
Eachpartofthissmallspreadsheetplayedapartinsavingmy sanityasthegruelingmonthsofcollegeappsbecameareality.I hadeverysingleessayforeveryschoollinkedononedocument, kepttrackofwhereIwasatwiththeessaythroughcolorcoding andgaveabriefdescriptionofwhatthesupplementwas(Asyou cansee,mostofthepromptsaresomethingalongthelinesof “Whydoyouwanttogotothiscollege?”)Ialsokepttrackof whetherIhadvisitedtheschool,iftheyofferedaninterview,and ifIhaddoneaninterviewwiththem.Themostimportantpartis havingtheapplicationdeadlineseasytoaccess.Icolor-coded everything(becauseitsoothesme).Imarkedmyearlydecision schoolingreen,myearlyactioninpurple,andmyregular decisioninyellowJusthavingeverythinginonespacemademe
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feelsomuchmoreincontrolIcouldnothavegonethroughthis processwithoutmyspreadsheet Asyoucantell,Iformedareal emotionalattachmenttoit
ByMAGGIEBONASSAR
I’vebeenalong-timeenjoyerofhistory,andworkinginthe archivesletsmeseeanewthestoriedhallsofIHSstraightfrom thestudentswhohavecomebeforeusTheyallowusto experiencetheworldastheydid,throughtheirmindsandideas thatsurvivelongaftertheyhavegraduatedPlease,aboveallelse, enjoy!
Afteryourlistisdoneandyourspreadsheetiscreated,youneed togetseriousaboutwritingthosesupplements.Ihadapretty polishedroughdraftofmymainessayandeverysupplementby thetimesenioryearbegan.Perhapsthatseemsoverzealousorlike really ontopofit asmanypeopletoldme butifthere’sone thingIhopeyoutakefromthisarticleisthatthereisnothingI thinkismoreimportantthanbeingpreparedThefirstsemesterof senioryearwillnotbeeasierforyou yourfirstquartersenior gradesarearguablymoreimportantthanyourjunioryeargrades Havingtodealwithwritingyoursupplementsontopofschoolis justtoomuch
Instead,Iusedthetimebetweenschoolstartingandthe Novemberapplicationdeadlinestoeditmysupplements.Ihadtwo Englishteachersreadovermyessays(thankyou,Ms.Piacquadio andMs.Thomson!)Theircommentsprovedextremelyuseful. Remember,yourEnglishteachershavereadtheseessaysbeforeand they know what they’re talking about don’t neglect these resourcesRunyouressaybyyourpeersorbyaparentorfamily friendaswellChancesaretheywillallhavedifferentthingstoadd ormaybethey’llallsaythesamethingandthenyouknowitreally needs to be changed If you’re applying to schools with a November deadline, set a mid-October deadline for your supplementstobetotallyfinishedtogiveyourselfsomeroom.
Thereisnodoubtinmymindthateveryonehasadifferentway theygothroughthisprocess.Myadvicemaynotapplytoyou,and that'scompletelyfine.Idohopethatallofthejuniorsenteringthis seasonknowtojusttakeitonestepatatimeTakeadviceandlean onthosearoundyoubutrememberthatyou'retheonewhohasto livewithyourdecision TheonlythingIcanpromiseisthatit reallywillturnoutalright
Note: Opinions expressed in the following excerpts do not necessarilyreflectthecurrentviewsofTheTattleroritsEditorial Board.
March 1918
TheGirlsTheyLeaveBehindThem
“ThesupremetestoftheNationhascomeWemustallspeak, act,andservetogether”AdozentimesadayhereinIthacaHigh Schooloureyeswanderoverthesewords,thenwanderaway andwethinknomoreofit Perhapsweidlywonderwhythey wereputthere,orwheretheycamefrom,orperhapswedon’t wonderatall.Butweshould.Andweshoulddomorethan wonder weshouldknow.Forinallhistoryfewwordshaveheld agreatermeaning.
Itwasasplendidandnoblethingin1775fortheAmerican peopletostandupandsay“Americashallbefree”andagainin 1861“TheslavesofAmericashallbefree” Theywerestirring wordsandbecausetheAmericanpeoplestoodbehindthem,heart andsoul,thatfreedomwaswon andlasted Todayitisstillthe cryoffreedom,butnotofAmericaalone;itisofthewholeworld “Theworldshallbefree!”Andwe,theAmericanpeople,arethe onestobringthatfreedom.TobleedingandstarvingFranceand Belgiumacrosstheseawemustsendourbest,ourbravest,our strongest.Ifneedbewewillsendourall andgladly.Weare readytosacrificeourlastman,ourlastdropofblood,our everything exceptforourhonor.
ButtheworkofthenationmustgoonOurlittlechildrenmust befedandclothed,ourfieldsmustbetilledandsowedand
From the Archives: Excerpts from The Tattler Issues of Yesteryear
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harvested,ourcommercemustbekeptup,ourfactoriescontinued, andthegreatspiritofournationkeptalive.Andwhoistodoit?It iswe,thegirls,whoremainbehind.Itisuponuswhocannotgo thattheburdenwillfallWemustmeetit,andmeetitgloriously JustasthewomenofFranceandBelgiumandEnglandaredoing today,sowemustpreparetodotomorrow,andbecauseweare Americanswemustdoitwell Asonebyoneoursoldierssail away,we “womenfolks”musttakeuptheirunfinishedworkat home,andtakingit,mustseeitthrough,willingly,seriously, splendidly.Itisourpartandapartsoreal,sovital,thatwecan hardlyrealizeit.
Wegirlsinhighschoolareyoungnowandperhapswesay, “Whyshouldwehavetothinkofsuchthings?Theyareforolder women” Butnoattitudecouldbemorefatal Itisnottheolder womenthatthenationwilllookto,theyalreadyhavetheirwork andaredoingit;itiswe,whoaregirlsnowbutshallbewomen tomorrow,wearetheoneswhomuststandforthwhentheneed shallcomeAndjustasthesoldiers,bylongmonthsinthetraining camps,musttrainthemselvesforthestruggleacrossseas,somust wenow,byequallylongmonthsoftraining,prepareourselvesfor ourgreattasklateron.
Letusthen,girlsofIthacaHighSchool,meetthematterfaceto face.Letusgoatourschoolworkeachdaywithalittlemore determination,alittlemoreseriousness Letusfeelthatweare workingnow,notsimplytowardsgraduation,notsimplybecause we’re“s’posedto”or“haveto”or“gotto”,butbecausewewantto; becauseinsodoingwearegettingreadyforabiggerworkthatis notfaroffUncleSamtrustsus,girls,youandmeandeveryoneof us;heasksusto“speak,act,andservetogether”. Shall we fail him?
Astheyounggirlnearstheendofherhighschoolcareer,the questionnaturallyarises,“Wherenext?”andifshebefortunate enoughtobeabletogotocollege,thenextquestionis“Shallitbe awoman’scollegeoraco-educationalcollege?”Thatis,inwhich placewillthecomingfouryearsofherlifebespenttothegreatest advantagetoherselfandbeofthegreatestvaluetoher?The questionisamuch-debatedoneandonewhichmustbelooked uponfrommanyangles.Forthisissue,MsApgar,agraduateof Cornell,andMissDavison,agraduateofWellesleyCollege,have beenkindenoughtowriteuptheir“views”uponthesubject, viewswhichshouldbedoublyimportant,coming,astheydo,from two,eachofwhomhas“chosen” andforareason.
Thereisaverycommonpointofviewwhichconsidersstudy, andthegoodtobegainedtherefrom,asthesmallestpartofthe advantagesofacollegeeducation.Associations,friendships,social advantages,athletictraining allareappraisedasofgreatervalue thanstudyitself,byyoungpeoplewho,inconsequenceofthis attitude,pridethemselvesontheirbreadthofoutlook.This
viewpointseemstoustobetotallylackinginasenseoftrue perspective.Forcertainly,theoriginalaimofourcollegesand universitieswas adn,Itakeit,theirprimaryfunctionstillis to supplythemindofyouthwithsuchcoursesofstudyascantrainit tomosteffectualself-expressionandmostefficientservicetothe worldAndifanyyoungwomanfindsthatcollegehasdonelittle forherinthis,eitherthecollegehasfailedinitsduty orshehas herselffailedtograspwhatitsmissionis
Idonotdenytheimportanceofotherphasesofcollegelife,but Idoassumetheprimaryimportanceofstudy.Nowthecoeducationalcollege,itshouldberemembered,offersthewomen who attend exactly the same opportunities and the same instructionwhichitgivesitsmenstudents.Thedayhasgoneby when the woman physician or lawyer, architect, farmer, or engineerwasanisolatedphenomenon theobjectofcuriosityor ofscornAndforthemanyyoungwomenwhoaresuitedbytheir naturalabilitiesforsuchprofessions,theco-educationalcollege givesanopportunitywhichnowomen’scollegeatpresentcan give.Certainlyatnotimeintheworld’shistoryhastherebeen suchademandforwomentrainedinmanydifferentways a demandwhichwillincrease.
Initsgeneralcoursesinartsandsciences,too,thecoeducational college can assert its superiority, for the already mentioned reason that the women students receive the same instructionasthemen Becauseofthisveryfact,thisinstruction cannotfailtobe,ingeneral,alongbroaderanddeeperlinesthanin thegirls’college Weneedwomentodaywhoseeducationhas beenalongsuchlines,whoarereadytotakeintheworldaplace verydifferentfromthataccordedthemsomefiftyyearsago.
Notdenying,then,thatthereareotherthingsinacollege educationbesidesstudy,andthatinsome(thoughbynomeansall) ofthese,thewomen’scollegeshavetheadvantage fornothing, even in educational systems, is perfect but considering its advantagesofstudyasthematterofprimaryimportanceinthe selectionofacollege,Ichoosetheco-educationalcollege CSApgar
Comparisonbetweenco-educationandnon-co-educationis perhapsunfairwhenthepersonwhomakesthecomparisonhas directlyseenonlyonesideofthesituation.Mythreeyearsin Ithacahave,however,temperedmyformerconvictionsinfavorof women’scollegestotheexclusionofco-educationalinstitutions.
Alargeco-educationaluniversityisbeyonddisputeawonderful stimulustoayoungperson’sintellectandbreadthofoutlookIthas beentraditionalthatgreatteachersshouldgivetheirlivestothe developmentandtrainingofmen’sminds Yetthefacilityofa women’scollegeofthepresentrecognizedmajorgroupisno longernarrowinitself,asitsometimeswasintheearlierdaysof co-education.Intheselateryearsmenandwomenofkeenminds havejoinedthefacultiesofwomen’scollegesandaregivingthe girlsintheirclassesexcellentdiscipline.Moreover,in
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MassachusettsandConnecticut,andinthevicinityofNewYork CityandPhiladelpia,therehasbeenarrangedanexchangesystem ofprofessorsandinstructorsbetweenco-educationaluniversities andwomen’scolleges.Thissystemaffordstostudentsinthese women’scollegesashareintheinstructionofthegreatestteachers somewhatcomparabletothatgivenbytheexchangeprofessorships betweenAmericanandforeignuniversities
Theforemostwomen’scollegesinthiscountryrepresent,I think,aqualityoftraininginthemajorityoftheircourseswhich thelargerinstitutionsgivesinasmallerpercentageofcoursesThis beliefisfoundeduponcomparisonsmadebywomenofboth exceptionalandaveragementalabilitywhohavereceivedtraining inbothtypesofinstitution.AmongthesewithwhomIhavetalked theconsensusofopinionisthatthewomen’scollegesingeneral requirecloser,moredetailedwork;thattheteachersthereareless easilysatisfiedandmakestricterinsistenceuponatask’sbeing thoroughlydone;thattherearerelativelyfewer“snap”courses therethaninauniversityWhilesuchemphasisupondetailsisby nomeansworthyasanendinitself,itisofinestimableimportance incharacterbuilding Ittendstomakeorganizationqualitiesof secondnature.Sincerighthabit-formationiseducation,thisaspect of the training given in women’s colleges should not be overlookedbygirlswhoaremakingplansforattendingcollege. Howevermuchstressapersonplaceuponanyoneeducation system,theemphasisavailsnothingunlesstheindividualstudentis closelyconsideredTheindividual’sownneedsarethedetermining factorinchoosingthetypeofcollegeOnething,nevertheless,is alwaystrue:whereveragirlmaygoforhereducationshewillfind innumerableopportunitiestolearnifshelooksforthem Agood institutionisofnouseunlessithaswillingstudentswithwhichto work.
JanetE.Davison.
March 1893
March
ThestormyMarchiscomeatlast, Withwind,andcloud,andchangingskies; Iheartherushingoftheblast, Thatthroughthesnowyvalleyflies
Ah,passingfewaretheywhospeak, Wild,stormymonth!inpraiseofthee; Yetthroughthywindsareloudandbleak. Thouartawelcomemonthtome.
Theyear’sdepartingbeautyhides Ofwintrystormsthesullenthreat; Butinthysternestfrownabides Alookofkindlypromiseyet
Thoubring’stthehopeofthosecalmskies,
Andthatsofttimeofsunnyshowers, Whenthewidebloom,onearththatlies, Seemsofabrighterworldthanours. W.C.Bryant.
December 1898
AmericanWarBallads
Thewarsongsandballadsofacountryareareflectionofthe timeswhichproducedthem,andtheyinfluencethecharacterand thedestinyofthepeople.
Manyofourwarballadshaveatruepoeticvalue,butthereare manymorewhichhavelittleornovalueaspoetryyettheyhave wonaplaceintheheartsofthepeople.Examplesofsuchpoems are Three Hundred Thousand More, The Constitution and the Guerriere,andmanyrudesongsoftheRevolution Thesepoems makeastrongclaimtoourfavoralthoughlackinginpoeticvalue andviolatingmanyrulesofpoetry Theyarepoems,which, makingnoappealtothehead,rousetheheartofpatriotism IntheSouthduringtheCivilWar,almostallofthementookpart inthewar,consequentlytheirpoetswerelikewisetheirsoldiers; butthisisnotoftenthecase.Themenwhoareabletowritethe songsthatthesoldierslove,whomakeheroicdeedsimmortalin verse,andwhocantouchtheheartsofapeopledonotusually possessthequalitieswhichmakethesoldier Ithasbeensaidthat thepatriotismandcourageoftheGreeksowedmoretoHomer thantothewarriorwhosedeedshechronicled,andPaulRevere didfarlessforhiscountrybywhatwasonlyacommonplace horsebackridethanLongfellowdidlongafterwardsbytellingof thatrideinquiteotherthancommonplacepoetry.Soinourwars themostandbestofourpoemswerewrittenbymenwhotookno partinthefighting.
Theballad Lovewell’s Fight writtenin1728hasnointerestforus asfaraspoetryisconcerned,butithasaninterestinthatitisthe earliestAmericanWarBalladknowntousashavingbeendearto thepeoplewhosangorreciteditAnotherearlywarballadis The Song of Braddock’s Men, written about the time of the Fort DuQuesneexpeditionin1755
AmongthewarballadsoftheRevolutionareThomasPaine’s Liberty Tree, Longfellow’s Paul Revere’s Ride, John Pierpont’s Warren’s Address,Bryant’s Song of Marion’s Men,andFrancisM. Finch’s Nathan Hale.IncommemorationofPaulJones’sdeeds, therearetwopoems The Yankee Men of War and Paul Jones’s Victory.Oneverypopularpoemcalled The Dance waspublished soonafterthesurrenderofCornwalliswhichtellswithagreatdeal of humor about the chase between Cornwallis and General Greene
ForemostamongthepoemsinspiredbytheWarof1812,is FrancisScottKey’s Star Spangled Banner Threenavalengagements arerecalledbythethreepoems The Wasp’s Frolic, The Constitution and the Guerriere,and Perry’s Victory.
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TwobattlesoftheMexicanWarhavebeenimmortalizedin poetrybyHoffman’s Monterey andAlbertPike’s Buena Vista OurCivilWarcalledforthnumerouswarballadsAmongthebest knownareWhittier’s Barbara Fritchie,Bryant’s Our Country’s Call, Randall’s My Maryland,JuliaWardHowe’s Battle Hymn of the Republic,twoofHenryBrownell’s The River Fight and The Bay Fight,F.B.Kead’s Sheridan’s Ride,andFrancisFinch’s The Blue and the Grey.
AmongtheearliestoftheCivilWarBallads,isOliverWendell Holmes’ Brother Jonathan’s Lament for Sister Caroline,whichwas writteninDecember,1860,whenSouthCarolinaadoptedthe OrdinanceofSecession EdmundClarenceStedmanhaswritten manypoemsuponeventsoftheCivilWarOneofhisentitled The Twelfth of April hasaparticularinterestasitwasthefirstpoem writtenaftertheactualoutbreakoftheCivilWar EdnaDean Proctorhascontributedoneverybeautifulpoem The Stripes and the Stars tothecollectionsofwarballads.
Threesongs Glory Hallelujah or John Brown’s Body, Tramp, Tramp, Tramp, and The Battle Cry of Freedom hadastrongholduponthe soldiersduringtheCivilWarandweresungwithenthusiasm. Thesethreesongsmayalsobeclassedamongthosewhichhaveno valueaspoetry;buttheinfluencetheyhaduponthemindsand heartsofthesoldierscannotbeestimated,andthemenwhowrote themrenderedasgreataservicetotheircountryasthemen,who wereencouragedbythepatriotismoftheirwords Adelphia.
AsIgotreadyforfreshmanyear,IlookedatmyfirstsemesterscheduleandtheclassesIwastaking Allthe standardcourses,naturally,aswellasmyelective,Design sIgotreadyforfreshmanyear,Ilookedatmyfirst-semester scheduleandtheclassesIwastaking Allthestandardcourses, naturally, as well as my elective, Design and Drawing for Production(DDP)Mytechnologyteacherhadencouragedmeto takethecourseafterseeingmyworkineighthgrade,andI,not someonetobackdownfromachallenge,signedmyselfupright away.OnceSeptemberrolledaround,Ifoundmyselfstumbling throughthehallwaysuntilIfinallymadeittoE-wing.Ilookedfor Mr.BlakeinE16,whichIsoonfoundoutwasconveniently locatedinatucked-awaycornerattheendofthehallwayIfiledin withtherestofthestudentsandfoundmyselfface-to-facewithmy newtechnologyteacher
Only,thiswasn’tMrBlakeThiswasMsBlake
IimaginemyjawdroppedtothefloorIwasastounded,faced withthemostpleasantsurpriseoftheweek,themonth,andthe year.Afemaletechnologyteacher?Ohyeah,Ithoughttomyselfas Iwalkedaroundtofindanopenseat,thisisgonnabeagoodclass.
Soon,Ifoundmyselfthrilledtorushoutoffourthperiod(sorry, HonorsGeometry)toheadtoDDP.Notonlywasthecontent newandexciting,butIfoundmyselfmoremotivatedthaneverby havingateacherthatlookedalittlemorelikemethanmypasttech teachershadEventhoughmyclasswasmostlycomposedofwhite guys,Ifeltalittlelessalonehavingafemaleteacherintheroom withmeandtheoneothergirlinmyclass
Iwascompletelyoblivioustothefactthat,eventhoughthiswas soimportanttome,itseemedtohavelittleeffectonhermale
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students,untilonedayduringourdaily“do-now”activityshe askedustowriteaboutwhathavingafemaletechteachermeantto us.WhileIpickedupmypenandstartedfranticallyscribblingmy radicallyfeministanswer,someoftheboysretaliated.Iheardsome commentsalongthelinesof“whatdoesitmeantome?Itdoesn’t meananything,”or“whyshoulditmatterifmenandwomenare thesame?”Andwhileapartofmewasboilingoverwithanger, anotherpartofmethoughtthatmaybetheywereright.Maybe havingafemaleteacherdidn’tmeantothemwhatitmeanttome Butitshouldmatter,regardlessofgenderorientationThefactof thematteris,thereissolittlerepresentationintheengineering industryandweshouldamplifythediversitythatwedohaveto invitemore
AsImappedthisarticleoutinmyhead,onethingwasmissing perspective.Iknewhowitfelttobeastudentwithafemale technologyteacherforthefirsttime,butIdidn’tknowwhatitwas liketobetheteacherherself.So,inmyquestforaccurateand excitingcoverage,IaskedMsBlaketositdownwithmeandtell meaboutherfirstyearofteaching,herexperienceswiththe industry,andwhatimpactshewantstohaveonIHS
ZadieWang:Whoorwhatgotyouinterestedinyourfield?
EmilyBlake:Mylovefortechnologyandmakingthingscame frommygrandpa.Mygrandpawouldbabysitmewhenmyparents wereatwork,andIthinkhedidn’treallyknowwhattodowith me,sowejustmadeabunchofprojects.Hewasreallyintoestate salesandgaragesalesandhewouldgoandgettheselittlekits whereyougluethetrainandthenyoupaintitandthenitcomes withthereallycheappaintWemadebirdhousesandtoolboxesand littlemodeltrainsandcars,anditwasspecialtomebecausewhen therestofmycousinswereallbornhesaidthatheretiredfrom babysitting.Hereallyonlywantedtobabysitme.SoIthinkthat's whereIlikedmakingthings,anditcontinuedon.
ZW:Werethereanyotherwomeninyourengineeringclassesand howdidthataffectyou?
EB:Itooktechinsixth,seventh,andeighthgrade,that’swhatit wasinmyschool,andtherewerealwaysgirlsinthatclassbecause everyonehadtotakeit.AndwhenIgottohighschool,becauseI likedtechsomuchIjustsignedupforallthesetechclasseswithout reallyeventhinkingthatothergirlswouldn’tbeinmyclass.Inmy freshmanyearIstartedwoodworkingandthatwasreallyfun I wasn’tveryconfidentwithwoodworkingandpowertoolsand stufflikethatIthinkthatshowed,andmyteacherwasnotsuper supportive Ithinktherewasmeandoneothergirlintheclass andmyteacherwaskindofjustlike,“oh,youdon’tknowwhat you’redoing,”whenreallyitwasjustlike,“Iunderstoodyour directions,I’mjustnotconfidentandI’munsuresoIaskfor clarity,”andhetookitasmenotknowing.Thatreallyjustfueled thefireforme,andIactuallyendedupearninganexcellence awardinwoodworkingthatyear.Hegaveittomeanyway,even thoughIdidn’tthinkhelikedme!
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ZW:Didyoueverhaveafemaleteacherforengineeringorwasit always[maleteachers]?
EB:Soinseventhgrade,Ihadafemaletechnologyteacher,andI wasreallyexcitedaboutitWedidn’treallydoanyofwhatIwould deemtechnologyprojects wedidscienceprojects,almost?I rememberwemadeaneggcast andwedidacrylicbending, whichwascoolIlikedthatprojectalotbut[theclass]wasonlyfor onequartersoIdon’tthinkIgottoreallyestablishaconnection withher.Noneinhighschoolatall.
ZW:Tellmesomewaysthatbeingawomaninengineeringhas affectedyoureducationalandemploymentopportunities.
EB:WhenIwaspickingmyclassesinhighschoolIfeellikeIgot putinalotoftheclassesthatIwanted,andIdon’tknowifthatwas likeapushformoregirlstosignupfortechoranythinglikethat ButIdorememberItookaclasswithmyteacherMr Kennedy, whoretiredwhenIgraduated heusedtosignmeupforallthese scholarshipswithouttellingme,andthenlikeIwouldjustwin, usuallyafreeapplicationtoacollege.
Iwasdead-setonbeinganengineerfromtheageoftwelve,and Iremember[Mr.Kennedy]tellingmemyjunioryear,ormaybe mysophomoreyear,tobecomeatechteacher,andIwasso offendedbecauseIthought,“ohhedoesn’tthinkIcanmakeitas anengineer”butIthinkit’sbecausehereallysawthepotential becauseIwasalwayshelpingeverybodyinmyclass Mysenior year,whenIhaddecidedafterworkingwithchildrenthatIwanted tobeatechteacher,hewasoverthemoonandsetmewhereI neededtogo.
Incollege,graduatingin2022,thereweretwenty-oneofusthat becametechteachersattheendofMayandonlyfourofuswere women.Employmentopportunity-wise,youcan’tdiscriminate againstanyonebasedontheirsexbutIdothinkitmademeamore marketablecandidateIt’sweirdbecause,yeah,youdon’twantto feellikethediversityhirebutthenwhenyou’reinititfeelslike peoplearediscouragingyou Thereweredefinitelypeersand teachersthatweremorediscouragingofme,butthentherewasan entiregroupofpeoplethatwereencouraging
ZW:WhatdoyouloveaboutbeingawomaninSTEM?
EB:Iloveseeingmystudentswhomaybe[didn’t]traditionally [feel]liketheybelonged,whetherthat’sbecauseoftheirgender,or their sexual orientation, or anything like that I hope I’m welcomingtoeverybody Iwasalwaysuncomfortableintechclass growing up and I thought it was important to create an environmentwhereeveryonefeltsafe,soIloveseeingthose studentswho didn’tthinkthattheycouldsucceedintech,but thentheysucceedandit’sreallyrewarding.Representation,inmy mind,issoimportant.Youalwayslookforsomebodyrelatablein
theroomandsoIthinkbyhavingMr.Atibaandmaybeevenme [asteachers],hopefully,itmakeskidsfeellike,“maybeIcando that,maybeIdobelong.”
ZW:Tellmeaboutatimethatyoufeltempoweredinyourfield
EB:IrememberbeingincollegewhenIwasafreshman,andfirst semesteryou’restillmeetingeverybody Thetechdepartmentat Oswegowassmallenoughthatyoukindofkneweverybody.Out ofaround260students,therewereonlythirtywomen,whichis wildtowrapmyheadaround.Iwaskindofestablishingmyself, learning,doingalotofwork I’vealwaysbeenprettystudious.I remember doing some project, I think it was in the second semester,andmyteacher’slike,“pickapartner”and…abunchof peopletriedtocomeupandbemypartnerbecausetheywerelike, “askEmily,sheknows,she’sthesmartestoneintheclass”That made me feel good because in high school, I used to get [comments]like,“oh,didyouthinkthiswasanartclass?”Iactually hadapeerinmyclassaskifIwasonlyinaclassbecausemy boyfriendatthetimehappenedtoalsobeintheengineeringclass. AndIdon’tthinktheyrealizehowhurtfulthatis,butit’snotvery acceptable.
ZW:Whatdoyouwantyourstudents,regardlessofgender orientation,tolearnfromyou?
EB:Iwantthemtobeabletofeelempoweredtolearnthatifthey don’tnecessarilyfeelcomfortableinaspace,theyshouldstillwant totrytobethereandtrytheirbestAndIkindofalsowouldlike someday,hopefully,theperceptionofatechteachermeltsaway. Onthefirstdayofschool,Ithinkeveryone’sSchoolToolhasjust “Blake”onthereandhalfofmystudentscameinexpectingaMr. Blake.Whichisfine,that’showtheygrewup,whatever,butlikeI thinkit’dbecooltowatchthatmeltaway.
Peoplealwayssay,“that’ssocoolthatyou’reafemaletech teacher,”andthenthey’relike“oh,Ihopethat’snotoffensive,”and I’mlike,“no,Ithinkit’sreallycooltoo!Ithinkit’sawesome” Technology’sagreatplacetopracticeandlearnandgrowandtry, try,tryagain
“If They Doubt You, Just Show 'Em Up”: The Importance of Female Teachers in Engineering
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ZW:Isthereanythingyouwantyoungergirlsoutthere,eitherin yourclassoranybodywho’sreadingthis,toknowaboutbeingin thefield?
EB:Iftheydoubtyou,justshow‘emup!There’saworldofpeople thatarelookingat[you]astheirrolemodel.Andtheremightnot beenoughrolemodelsthatlooklikeyouyet,buttherewillbe.Be therolemodelyouwishyouhadorhopetosee
CuratedByZADIEWANG
"What was your last purchase?"
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Misogynyisheavilywovenintooursocietytothepoint whereithasbecomeanormalpartoflife,andmany don’tevenregisterit.Infact,manyindustriesthatbring kk peopletheentertainmentourwholelivesseemtocenteraround arebuiltuponexploitation,extortion,andexclusion Themusic industryisnoexception,withnumerousfemaleartistscomingout withstoriesofdisturbinginteractionswiththeirmalecounterparts andalsofacingbacklashabouttopicsintheirmusicthatmaleartists havebeenprofitingoffoffordecades.
Onewell-knownsongthatexemplifieshowfemaleartistsare heldtoadifferentstandardthantheirmalecounterpartsisthesong “Let’sTalkAboutSex”bySalt-N-Pepa,afemalerapgroup Throughoutthesong,rappersSalt(CherylJames),Pepa(Sandra Denton),andDJSpinderella(DeidraRoper),talkabouthowsexis seenasatabootopicthatmanyshyawayfromdiscussingeven thoughitisanaturalpartoflifeTheygoontosaythatifsomeone doesn’twanttohearaboutsexinmusic,theysimplydon’thaveto listen.Towardstheendofthesong,theybringupthequestionof ifthesongwillevenbeplayedontheradio,sincetheyarefemale rappers,withthelyrics,“Yo,Pep,Idon'tthinkthey'regonnaplay thisontheradio./Andwhynot?Everybodyhavin'sex/Imean, everybodyshouldbemakin'love/Comeon,howmanyguysyou knowmakelove?”Throughtheselyrics,therappersarespeaking onhowfemaleartistsaren’tsupposedtotalkaboutthingslikesex, andiftheydo,itissupposedtobetalkedaboutasagentleor lovingact
Ontheotherhand,aroundthissametime,SnoopDoggreleased hissong“Ain’tNoFun,”whichisfilledwithdegradinglyrics towardswomen,oneofwhichis“AndthenI'mthroughwithit, there'snothingelsetodowithit/Passittothehomie,nowyou hitit/Causesheain'tnuthin’butab**chtome/Andy'allknow, thatb**chesain'tshittome”Notonlyaretheselyricsdegrading andobjectifying,buttheyalsohelpedSnoopDoggselloverseven millioncopiesofthealbumthatthesongislistedon
Amorecurrentexampleofadoublestandardinthemusic industryiswhenin2020,CardiBandMeganTheeStallion releasedtheirsong“WAP.”Thoughthesongdoeshaveavery sexualmeaning,thenegativereactionitgarneredfromthemedia wasastronomicalwhencomparedtosongswrittenbymenwith similar meanings. People were livid that the song had been released,withmanyclaimingthatitwas“corrupting”children becausetheycouldhearitontheradio Manyalsochimedin sayingthatthewomenwere“anti-rolemodels”andonlyusingsex
appealtosellrecordsEvenCee-LoGreenfelttheneedtostatehis opinionsonthesong,sayingthatitwas“shameless”and“sheer savagery”,eventhoughoneofhismostfamoussongs,“F**kYou” involvestheline“Ipitythefoolthatfallsinlovewithyou/(ohsh*t shesagolddigger)”,blamingthewomanwhobrokeupwithhim forbreakingupwithhimformaterialreasons.Nottomentionhis manysongsobjectifyingwomenwhohehasbeenwith.
Womenmakethemusicindustrybillionsofdollars,butthe industrycontinuestoholdthemtoanunachievablestandardof perfectionandexpectsthattheystaysmiling,evenassocietyand maleartistsdegradethemFemaleartistsaretrappedinaboxthat damperstheircreativityuntiltheyreachtheageofthirty-five, whentheyarenolongerseenasdesirablebythepublic,andare pushedoutofthespotlightandforcedintoretirement.
Inthelastfewyears,I’vewatchedsomemoviesthathave absolutelychangedmylife.Injustafewparagraphs,I’mgoing totrytoconvinceyouwhyyoushouldwatchtheseamazing, earth-shatteringmovies.Ifyoucan’tgetthemonastreaming platform, try one of those extremely sketchy pirated movie websites(IuseActvid.com,whichhasessentiallyeverything). Thesecanalsoallbebought/rentedonAmazonPrimeVideo. Enjoy!
Ionlywatchedthisiconicmovieafewweeksago(forsome reasonIkeptputtingitoff)butitleftahugemarkonme. Everyonegoingthroughatoughbreakup(oreverhavinghada
Convincing you to Watch my Favorite Movies: Part 1
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breakup,orhavinggonethroughabreakupwiththeirimaginary partnerintheirhead)shouldwatchthismasterpiece,starringKate WinsletandJimCarreyasClementineandJoel,respectively. Clementine,aquirkyyoungwomanwithconstantlychanging haircolors,hashermemoriesofherex-boyfriendJoelerasedafter apainfulbreakupWhenJoelfindsout,heattemptstoundergothe sameprocedureThismoviefollowshimthroughtheirmemories, astheyslipawayfromhimonebyoneWhenherealizeshe doesn'tactuallywanttolosehermemoryofher,it'salreadytoo late.IwatchedthismovieonaplanesoIcouldn’treallycrythe wayIwantedto,butthiswilltearyoutopieces.The cinematographybyEllenKurasisuniqueandbeyondbeautiful. Thevisualsandmusicarepairedperfectlywiththeaction,soit doesn’tsurprisemehowmanyawardsthefilmwon,includingan OscarandseveralBAFTAawardsClementineisanemotional, lively,eccentric,beautiful,andslightlyunhingedcharacterand Winsletdoesanoutstandingjobofportrayinghermoodswings andspirals.IunderstandwhyshehadsuchaholdoverJoel;I definitelyfellinlovewithhermyselfduringthemovie.When goingthroughabreakup,Ithinkeveryonehasthethought,“what ifIcouldjusteraseallthesememories?”Thismoviedoesaperfect jobofdepictingthatslightlyfoolishdreamandshowsthevalueof rememberingeverypersonyouhaveeverloved,despitethepain thatmaycomewiththat
Dead Poets Society (Notstreamingbutavailabletorenton Amazon,AppleTV,Youtube,andRedbox):
Contentwarning:Thismoviecontainssuicide Iprobablyquotethismoviemorethananyonereallyshouldever quotesomething Specifically,thelinewhereProfessorKeating saystohisyoungpupils,“Wereadandwritepoetrybecauseweare membersofthehumanrace.Andthehumanraceisfilledwith passion.Andmedicine,law,business,andengineering,arenoble pursuitsandnecessarytosustainlife.Butpoetry,beauty,romance, love,thesearewhatwestayalivefor.”DeadPoetsSocietyisan achinglybeautifulfilmthatcanbere-watchedamilliontimesand neverreallygetold.Besidestheamazingcast(mostnotably,Robin Williams),thescreenplayisalsothemostpoeticandwell-written screenplayeverIt’saboutboththebeautyandtragedyoflife,and touchesheavilyuponmasculinity(boththetoxicandhealthy relationshipswithit),thevalueofnon-conformity,andthebenefits ofaneducationthatpromotescreativityratherthanobedienceBe warnedthough:thisisnotahappyfeel-goodmovie theendingis extremelytragic.However,Idon’tthinkanyoneisreallyalive untiltheywatchthis.Carpediemandgowatchthismovie immediately.
Black
Contentwarning:Self-harm,eatingdisorders,gruesomeimagery ThismoviewasparticularlyimpactfulbecauseIwatcheditwhile Iwasstillaballetdancer,butithadawholedifferenteffectonme onceIhadleftdanceforgood.BlackSwanisapsychological thrillerstarringNataliePortmanasNinaSayers,aprofessional ballerinawhoseroleinSwanLakeslowlystartstocompletely dominateherlifeandmind.Ninagoesthroughsomedrastic changesassheattemptstotransformherselffromthe“goodgirl nextdoor”intoablackswanThisstoryexploresthewaycasting andappearanceintheballetworldcanquicklybecomeharmful andquitefrankly,dangerous,obsessionsThegruesomeself-harm competitiveness,mania,anxiety,andunhealthyeatingpatterns depictedbyNinaSayerslookuncannilyfamiliartoanyonewho’s beenseriouslyinvolvedinballet.AsmuchasIlovethismovie,it definitelyfallsintothecategoryofmoviesthatromanticizemental illnessandtoxicenvironments.EverytimeIwatchit,Ifeelalittle itchinmybrain,makingmewanttogobacktoballet,despitethe horrifyingdarksidedepictedinthefilm.Onthebrighterside,the dancing,music,andactinginBlackSwanareamazing Natalie Portmannotoriouslytrainedintenselyforthisrole,whichwonher allsortsofawardsforherspectacularperformanceHowever,there wasquiteabitofcontroversyaroundthetimeofitsreleasebecause ofthewaythedancingdonebySarahLane,Portman’sdance doublewasdownplayed.Regardless,theperformancesputonin thismovieareincredible,andthepsychologicalbreakdownsare haunting.Watchingthiswilldefinitelymakeyouuncomfortable, butinawaythatmakesyouwanttocomebackoverandover again.
Intoday’sdayandage,cinemaisoneofthemostcommon formsofentertainmentandescapism,andalargepartofthis entertainmentcomesfromviolence.Outofthetoponehhhhh hundredhighest-earningmoviesinAmericain2022,abouthalfof themincludedmajorthemesofviolenceorgore Violenceis clearlyanappealingsubjectinmoderncinema,andpeopleare startingtocallformorerepresentationsofviolentwomeninthe media.
Oftentimes, women are painted as passive, non-violent background figures, as opposed to their violent masculine counterparts Itisrarethatmoviesshowfemalerage,andthisis problematicforseveralreasons,mainlybecauseitstrengthensthe harmfulstereotypethatwomenareonlydocileandincapableof havingpowerfulemotionssuchashateorangerItalsoconveysthe message that women should be forgiving and kind to their oppressorsandabusers,insteadofharboringanynegativefeelings forthem.Thankfully,therearemoviesthatdobreakthroughthis socialexpectation,andtheseviolentheroinescan,forthemostpart, becategorizedintotwomaingroups:charactersseekingrevenge andcharactersthataresimplyimmoral.
Whilebothofthesetypesofcharactershavetheirprosandcons, moviesfeaturingvengefulantiheroinesaremuchmorecommon thantheothertypeofmoviesOnefamousexampleofarevengecenteredmovieisJennifer’sBody,a2009filmstarringMeganFox andAmandaSeyfriedAfteragroupofteenageboys’satanicritual goeswrong,thecheerleaderwhotheyattemptedtosacrifice(now
somesortofdemoniccreature)decidestoenactrevengeonher abusers,disembowelinganddevouringthemShethengoesonto seduceandkillmanyothermenasawayofavengingherselfafter beingsobrutallyviolated.
Whilethismoviereceivedcriticismforcateringtoomuchto themalegazeandbeingtoosexual,thestoryofawomanrising up,findingconfidenceinherbody,andexecutingvengeanceina poeticallybrutalmethodclearlyisn’tjustastorywithasexual appeal,butacatharticstoryofretributionaswell Recently, Jennifer’sBodyhasbecomeincreasinglypopularforitsfeminist messageandbisexualrepresentation Whileitistruethatsome aspectsofthismoviearehypersexualized,Jennifer’sBodyisa must-seeforanyoneinterestedinviolentslashersfeaturinga healthydoseofgenderandsexualityempowerment.
Whilemovieslikethesemightbeappealinginandof themselves,thesecannotbetheonlytypesoffemaleragedisplayed incinema.Ifmoviesfeatureawoman’srevengespreeastheonly formofviolenceawomaniscapableof,itultimatelydoesa disservice to women, and these movies can still fall under traditionalstereotypes Havingwomen’sviolenceonlybethe resultofthecrimesofmenassertsthenotionthatwomenare incapableofindependentlybeingviolentorcruelthemselves Moviesthattrulyexpressfemaleragedosounabashedly;the antiheroineisviolenttofurtherherownagenda,orsimplybecause sheiscruelorpsychopathic.Thistypeofmovieisunfortunately rare,asthestereotypeofa“weak”womanstillprevailsinmodern society,especiallyinthemovieindustry.Recently,however,there hasbeenanincreaseinthenumberofmoviesincludingthistype offemalerageOnestellarexampleisPearl,amoviethatjustcame outin2022Thetitularcharacter,playedbyMiaGoth,isayoung womanlivingwithherdisabledfatherandcontrollingmotheron asmallTexashomestead Shedreamsofachievingstardomand movingawayandisprovidedwiththisopportunitywhenan auditionforatravelingtroupeofactorscomestohertown.Pearl doesnotstopatanythingtotryandsecurethisrole,leadingtoan incrediblyunsettlingstoryfullofgore,violence,andsomeofthe uncanniestsmilesinthehistoryofcinema.Themaincharacterin thismovieshowsnoremorseandmanagestocreateatruly terrifying experience for the viewer. If you’re looking for a gruesomehorrormoviethatfeaturesachillingheroine,Pearlisan obviouschoice
It is indisputable that the film industry needs more representationofwomeningeneral,andshowcasingfemalerageis amajorpartofthat.Fortunately,therearemoremoviesthatdo
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haveviolentantiheroines,likethetwopreviouslymentioned, includingwellasMidsommar,KillBill,Hanna,Léon,andMona LisaandtheBloodMoon.Evenifallofthesemoviesarestill exceptionstotherule,theyallmanagetobreakoutofthemoldthat hasbeensetforwomen.
BySARAHPALMER-JACKSON
WangechiMutuisavisualartistborninNairobi,Kenya whocurrentlyworksinbothNairobiandNewYork. Mutu is inspired by nature and typically creates kkkkkk artworkofwomen,animals,andplants,withherowndashof abstraction.Shewenttoanall-girlsschoolwhengettingher educationandsaysthatitreallyimpactedherartstyle.Alotofher artexploresthenaturalimperfectionsofwomenandneglects stereotypes,whichaddstotheearthyambianceoftheartwork. Currently,shemakessculpturesandpaintings,butwhenshefirst appliedtoartschool,hermainmediumwascollagesinceitwasthe mostaccessibleandsimplewaytocreatealotofart,andasshe coulduseamixofmaterials Someofherartworkcombines womenandatypeofanimaltomakeacreaturethatisahybridof both Shestatesthattherearetimesweadmireanimalsfortheir speedorpowerandtoseethosetraitsembeddedinawomancan beupliftingandempowering.
Anotherinterestingaspectofherlifeshepullsideasfromarethe tropicaldiseasesshe’sexperienced“Althoughtheymaybehideous tolookat,thereislotsoffantasticdetailwithinthem,"shesays Mutuwasintroducedtothematayoungageandgrewuparound themashermotherwasanurse
Mutustronglybelievesinastudiothatisn’tjustaroom,buta spacethatreflectsanextrapartofyourbrain:anareawhereyou cancreatesomethingcompletelydifferentfromwhatyoucould anywhere else. In her studio, Mutu furnishes the walls with picturesofoldAfricaandcurrenteventsaswell.
ManyofherartpieceshavebeendisplayedintheNewYork MetropolitanMuseumofArt Sheoncedidaprojectwhereshe createdsculpturestoplaceontheoutsideofthemuseum Inthis project,sheconsideredhowwomenhavebeenrepresentedinart inmanydifferentculturesandtimeperiodsanddiscovereda theme.Specifically,inoldGreekandAfricansculptures,women wereoftencarvedintoapositionofsupport,orshownholdingup abuilding,athrone,achild,orevenabowlontopofthehead. Mutufoundthatthisubiquitousrepresentationofwomenwas problematicandwantedtoshiftthatancientideology.Todothis, shecreatedfourbronzesculpturesofwomeninactiveposesto placeoutsidethemuseum TheywereprotectedwithlivelylookingcoilsaroundthemThesculptureshaveroundededgesand areshapedtofitdifferentkindsoftraditionallipandearplatesfrom EthiopianandSudanesecultures(whenwomenwearthese,it typicallymeansthattheyareofhighstatus).Themainobjective Mutuhadwhenmakingthesesculptureswastopresentwomen
Continued from page 32
regally,focused,andfreeRatherthanbeingstuckinasecondary, weightedpositionofholdingsomeoneelseup,theywereableto “bewheretheyneedtobeandsaywhattheywanttosay”
Nowadays,Mutuisexperimentingwithphotographyandfilm tofurtherextendherart.Herartworkhasbeenexhibited worldwideandcontinuestoreachouttodifferentperspectivesand intonewthemes.
Netflixistheclassicstreamingservice,themainplace peoplewatchtheirfavoriteshowsandmoviesRecently, Netflix’spopularityhasbeguntolevelout,withthe jjjjjjjjjj amountofnewUSaccountsnotreplacingthoseremovedWhen choosing to switch to another streaming service, many state Netflix’stendenciestocancelorremovetheshowsandmoviesas theirreason.
SowhydoNetflixandotherstreamingservicescancelshows seeminglylovedbytheconsumer?Evenbeyondrevenueand viewership,whydoshowsthateveryoneseemstohatetendto outlastsomanyothers?
FormanyoftheirOriginalSeries,Netflix’sviewershipversusthe costofrenewalmodelisthereasonforcancellationbeforetheir finalseason Netflixhasthreecategoriesofviewershipdatathey collect:“starters”:viewerswhostartorcompleteonlythefirst episode, “completers”: viewers who complete the season, and “watchers”:thetotalnumberofviewerswhoconsumetheseason. Thisdataiscollectedontheseventhandtwenty-eighthdaysofthe monthaftertheseasondrops,andcomparedwiththecostof producingthenextseason.Factoringintothiscalculation,Netflix spendsmoremoneyoneachconsecutiveoriginalseriesseason.
OneofNetflix'smostsuccessfulseries,StrangerThings,costabout 30milliondollarstoproduceseasononeItslatestseasoncostthat mucheveryepisode,totalingabout270milliondollarsoverall Raisingthestakesevenmore,Netflixdropsentireseasonsatonce, spendingmoneyonproducingawholeseasonratherthanapilot
Theeasiestwaytosaveyourshowistogarnermassattention, fast.Ifashowflopsrightafteritisreleased,theremaybenosaving it.Nomatterhowdedicatedafanbaseis,manystreamingservices believeinametaphorical“line”belowwhichashowmaynotdrop. Thelinerepresentsarecognitionandviewershipamountthata showmustcleartobeconsideredforanotherseason,anamountof
revenueitmustattract.
ButwhydoesNetflixspendsomuchonterribletelevision instead of keeping these supposedly better shows around? Oftentimes,theseshowsarecheaperand,despitebeing“bad,”have consistentwatchersTheyalsoprofitoffofpeoplewhowatchthe showdespitethinkingitispoor,self-proclaimed“hatewatchers” Additionally,Netflixisn’talwaysthestudiobehindthesehated shows,likeRiverdale,whichisproducedbyTheCWinsteadof Netflix.Thesystemoffathercompaniesalsooftenaffectsthe availabilityofshowsonNetflix,withsitcomslikeTheOfficeand ParksandRecreationswitchingtothestreamingserviceaffiliated withtheirproducer.
The rise of streaming as consumers’ primary source of entertainment has changed the industry Choices made by companiesmayappeardumbtoindividuals,whileinsteadbeing therightpathforthecompanyStreamingcontinuestochangeas Hollywoodandtechnologyevolves,butshowcancellationsattheir rootremaincutanddry.
ThisFebruary,IHShosteditsfirst-evermediaday.Sports teamscameinfullregaliatoBlissGymandhadtheir photostakenforsocialmediapromotion.Iattendedone kkkk suchphotoshootandinterviewedseveralvarsityhockeyplayers abouttheirexperiencethispastyear.
Caedmon Sethupathy: How long have you played hockey?
SamHolmes'25:Man,I'vebeenplayinghockeyallmylife I startedwhenIwasfourandjustkeptplayingsothat’saboutten yearsnow.
OwenSimons'25:I’vebeenplayinghockeysinceIwasfouryears old.
StephenYang'23:I’veprobablyplayedhockeysinceIwasseven yearsold,sonowit’sbeentenyears.
LouisEnns'24:Probablyabouttentoelevenyears
CS: What position do you currently play
SH:I’macenter Itakeface-offsandgotothecorneroftheDzone.
OS:I’maforward,specificallyacenter.
SY:Iplaydefense.
LE:Iplaydefense.
Continued from page 33
CS: How do you feel the season has gone so far?
SH:WehaveayoungteamOurrecord,Ithinkwe’re0500now andIthinkwe’vedonealotofgrowingthroughtheseasonand canfinishitoutreallystrong.Lastyearwehadaroughseasonand thisyearwastocomebackandhaveagoodseasonandkindof reboundandshowNewYorkStatethatIthacahockeycanactually play.
OS:Ifeelit’sbeengoingprettywell.We’vehadsomeupsand downsbutwe’reonanuprightnow.
SY:It’sgoneokay We’vewonafewgamesthatarereallybig We’vealsolostafewgamesthatweprobablyshouldhavewon
LE:Prettygood Certainlysometimeswheregamesdidn’tend howwe’dlikethemtobutatthesametimetherehavebeensome gameswherewehaveimpressedourselvesandsurprisedourselves Ithinkwe’vedefinitelybuiltoffoflastyearandI’mlookingto keepimprovingasateamfortherestoftheseason.
CS: What are your goals in hockey and what have you already accomplished?
SH:IgetthisiskindofcliquebutIjustalwayswantedtoplay hockeyforthevarsityteam
Ihadalotofreallygreatinfluences growingupthatwerepartoftheteamandIjustalwaysthought thatplayingforthevarsityteamandwearingIthacaonmychest wouldbemyfavoritepartofplayinghockeyandithasbeensofar.
OS:Mygoalsaretobeabletocontinuetogrowmy[hockey]IQ.
I’mlivinginthemoment.SomethingI’dprobablyliketoreflecton isbeingabletobeontheteam.LastyearIgottoplaywithmy brotherbutjustforthemtohelpmegrowupandaccomplish things,tobesuccessfulatthesport
SY:Mygoals?IthinkI’mkindofneartheendofmyhockey career I’mgoingtokeepplayinghockeyincollege I’mplaying clubhockeythere[BrownUniversity] Idon’tknowaboutthe varsityteam.MaybeI’llwalkon.
LE:OnegoalforthisseasonthatIhaveandIthinktheteamhasis winningourregionalgameintheplayoffsandthat’ssomething thatwecouldn’tdolastyear.
CS: Do you like the idea of a media day, why or why not?
SH:IlovetheideaofamediadayIknowAvaThomasoverthere istakingthephotosandshe’sbeensuchahugepartofIthaca Athleticsasawhole.Iplaysoccerandunifiedbasketballaswelland Irememberthatshe’satmoregamesthanshe’snot.I’mreallyglad theathleticsdepartmentcancometogetherandorganizethisfor theteams.
OS:Ilovetheideaofamediaday.Wegettoexpandoursocial mediapresenceonsocialmedia,butalsobeabletohavefun
SY:Ithinkit’sprettyfun.It'slikeachangeofpace.It’salittle weirdthatit’sinthemiddleoftheseasonbutIdon’tknow,it’sfun. LE:IloveitIthinkthisisgreathavingtheteamallhereWeall lovegettingpicturesI’vegotnocomplaints
Talking to the Boys Hockey Team
Continued from page 34
ByCAEDMONSETHUPATHY
Theytosseddimesintothehandsofacoin-receivingmachine. Outcamesixpointsasaprize
Hurtstakingoffandthrowingbullets
Tomencatchingcornersinsurprise
ButMahomesansweredbackwithsidearmdarts, Andtouchdownsofhisown.
Thegamecamedowntoafumble, AfterwhichtheEagleslosttheirhope.
Continued from page 35
Thematchcamewaydowntothewire, AshortkickfromButtker’slegbrokethetie TheyscoredandthecatchingKelcesang, Whereaseason’sdoneforhisbrotherofthesamename
WhymusttheChiefswinandswindlethejoysofrings? It’salwaystooclose,asfansbitetheirnailsandcry. Mahomesshouldtakeabreakforatime. Hemuststopthewinning, It’smetaphoricallykilling SoEaglesI’msorry
Goodlucknexttime
The49erswonallfivegamesstartedbyPurdyandenteredthe playoffs as the two-seed in the NFC (National Football Conference) They won both their wildcard and divisional matchups However,intheconferencechampionship,theyfaced their toughest challenge yet in the Philadelphia Eagles Unfortunatelyforthe49ers,Purdywasinjuredearlyinthegame, eventuallyresultinginacrushingtwenty-four-pointdefeat.
AlthoughhewasunabletoraisetheLombarditrophythis season, Purdy’s dominance begs several questions of NFL executivesandfans.Forone,manyquarterbackscomeintothe NFLwithnovelstyles.Teamshavesimplyhadlesstimetoanalyze rookies'tacticsandtells.Afteranoffseasonofwatchingfilm, defendersgenerallycatchupandcanmoreaccuratelypredicta quarterback’sdecisions
ThetruetestforBrockPurdywillbewhetherornothecan improveatthesamerateasthedefenseshefacesBeforejumping onthePurdybandwagon,onemustconsiderthatfivegamesare lessthanathirdofaseason,withverylittleopportunitytoshow consistency.IfPurdywishestobeconsideredaperennialprobowl caliber quarterback, he must maintain a high level of play throughouthiscareer.
Secondly,ifPurdydoesturnouttobetherealdeal,thenscouts andNFLexecutivesmustaskthemselveswhytheyareletting talentedprospectsslipthroughthecracks Famously,TomBrady (theGOAThimself)wasselectedwiththe199thpickinhisdraft class
It’struethatfirst-roundpicksgenerallyhavemoreprosperous careersthanlater-roundselections,butmanyoffootball’sgreatest championswerenothighlyscoutedcomingoutofcollege.Draft analystsshouldlookcriticallyattheexistingsystemandattemptto explainexactlywhyitisfailingtoidentifymanytalentedplayers, who could eventually become centerpieces in a dominant franchise
ButthebiggesttakeawayfromPurdy’ssuddenrisetostardomis not the ineffectiveness of draft analysis or the difficulties of maintainingconsistencySomanytalentedpeople(insportsorany otherfield)misstheirchancebecauseofbadluck Ourabilityto reachourpotentialdepends,inlargepart,onluckofthedraw.The circumstancesinwhichwewerebornorthechoicesofothersin ourlivessetusonthetracksthatwetake.
BrockPurdy’srisefromobscuritythispastNFL(National Football League) season has been nothing short of extraordinary.ChosenbytheSanFrancisco49erswiththe k lastpickofthe2022NFLDraft,Purdywasexpectedtoridethe benchfortheentiretyofhisrookieseason Butwhenfirst-and second-stringquarterbacksTreyLanceandJimmyGarropolowere injured,hewasthrownintothestartingrole.Inthesuccessivefive games, Purdy shocked all analysts and fans by putting up unbelievablenumbers.Hethrewforeleventouchdownsandonly twointerceptionswhilecompletingalmostsixty-ninepercentof hispasses
IfPurdyhadbeenpassedonbyjustonemoreteam,hewould neverhavebeendraftedandlikelyneverplayedagameinthe NFL The lesson to be learned is that people in worse circumstancesthanusareoftennotthereforlackoftryingThey justmissedoutonluck’sroulette
Istumbledacrossaswordtoday, Oneofthoselongforgottenrelicspasseddownfromabygoneage. Itwasrustedandworn,withbrokenhandlesandabentform. Theytaughtusinhistoryaboutthesetools, Abouttheviolenceandthehatetheyspread. Theytaughtusofthepillagesandrapes, Theconquestsofarmiesfilledwithevilmen
MyarmquiveredasIlookedinfearuponthatweaponIhadseized Itsedgesglintedinthelight,whisperingpromisesofrichesand gloryifonlyIwouldfight.
Theytoldmeinschoolthatweliveinabetterworldnow. Aplanetwherenokingdomsfightorthrottlenecksforriches. Butpeacealwayscomeswithaprice, Andforusthatwasthebillionsoflives.
Thebombingskilledthefirst, Andthencamethecancer Radiationspreadlikewildfire, Asthetumorsgrewandgrewuntiltheyreachedfromheadtotoe Thenthenextpandemic, Adisasterwithnoclearsolution, Thepilesofsickbodiesinthehospitalscouldbesmelledfrommiles out.
Bytheend,morethantenbillionweredead,andonlyourvillage remained
InthemountainsofAppalachiawelivedinpeace Butthesinsofthepastcamebacktohaunt, Withfloodingsandclimatesburninguponthespot
Wesavedourselveswithahigh-techbubble, Andwhiletheoutsideisadesert,oursmalltownispackedtightly andhuddled.
Aquickglanceoutsiderevealsadystopia, Buttheteacherstellusthatwe’rebetteroffforit Theysaythatwarisgone, Andhumanityliveson
Theysaythatpainisnecessarytogain
Buttoday,whenIfoundthatsword; Ibegantowonderaboutapastmoregold. Whileoutsideourdomeallthat’sleftarepilesofhumanbones.
Whynotruletheworld?
Isitnottheoldergenerationscensoringeducation?
Attemptingtoinvalidatetheidentitiesandexperiencesofsomany?
Whynotruletheworld?
Howcanseventeenbetooyoungtoparticipateintheselectionof ourleaders?
Dotheythinkthatyoutharenothurtbysystemicissues?
Whynotruletheworld?
Howcanpeoplepointtheirfingersatimmaturity?
Dotheynotseelegislators’hecklingandscreamingmatches?
Whynotruletheworld?
Arechildrennotthereceiversoften-andtwenty-year governmentalplans?
Theleadersofmovementsforchange?
Whenwasthelasttimeyoulistened? Learned?
Forapolitician,itwasdecadesago. Forachild,itwasyesterday.
ByMAURAKINAST
IchfolgtedemMond, damitichdichfindenkann. Ichvertrauteihm,ummirzuhelfen mitallem dasinmeinemLebenschiefging.
dududududuundich sagtderWind
UndichliefumdieWelt, aberderMondbewegtesichnie vonseinerStelleimHimmel.
Ichfanddichnochnicht, aberheuteAbendlaufeichwieder.
derHimmelistschwarzund ichdenke ichbinfastbeidir
ByMAGGIEBONASSAR
Thestenchoftragedy
Liesheavyintheair
Aburned,tacetsweetness, Mixedwithbitterash.
Therearearmiesatthegates, Atthewallsandthedoors, Allwantingforaprize
Thatwasneverwantedatall.
Theywillsingofthis,oneday, Longafterourtimehasgone, Ofthevalorwithwhichwefought, Ofthecitythatliesburiedintheground
Thisisnotahappystory. Thereweretoomanywarnings Wedidnotheed.
Andwearebutacityattheedge
Oftheworld,oblivioustothe
Ideathatwecouldbegone,entirely, Withtheflickofasinglematch
Ifollowedthemoon sothatIcouldfindyou. Itrustedhertohelpme witheverything thatwentwronginmylife.
youyouyouyouandI saystheWind
AndIranaroundtheworld, butthemoonnevermoved fromitsplaceinthesky. Ihavenotfoundyouyet, buttonightI’mrunningagain.
theskyisblackand ithink iamalmostwithyou
Thisnightfallsasalltheothersdo Moonwithoutsun,starsintheinkysky Butthistime,thisnight,wehavewon Neveragainshallwegreetthedawn Withsharpenedswordsandfuneralpyres. Ourenemyisgone!Nevertoreturn! Whatelsecouldpromptthesedrinksand Dances,acelebrationofthesurvivors Asmuchasitisthedead. Wehavelived,wesay, Wehaveseenyesterday,andwillsee Tomorrow,too
Whatwedonotseearebladesofsteelandiron, Fromforgesfarbeyondourown, Hidinginshadowsandcrypts. Theyarewhettedandready; Thisisnotahappystory.
Ilion
Continued from page 40
Theycomeinthenight,andnothingbecomes Moreobviousthanthestenchoftragedy Itsurroundsus,stickstous, Trapsusinsidethewallsthatkeptussafe Eyesitchwhenthefirstfiresrisehigh, Equallyfilledwithsmokeandtears. Wehavelivedthroughthewar,andwe Shallnotlivethroughthis.
Theenemyiscloseathand under Ournoses,crawlingthroughtheshadowsand Fillingthedepthsofournightmares
Deepdown,weallknow
Thisisnotahappystory
Amanstandsonahilltop,ragged, Bruised,butbreathing.
Themusessingaroundhim, Calledonbygodshedoesnotknow, Foraprophecyhewillneverseefulfilled.
Ourlegacysurvivesthroughhim,inhisships
Thatsaillostatsea,settingcoursesforlands
Thatcannotpossiblyexist
Thebloodthatburnsinsidehimisstrong Itisourblood,ofthemothers,ofthefathers, Ofallwhohavecomefromthemajestyof Ourgreatwalls.
Hetravelson,whileinthecity
Thereisnowhereelsetogo.
Therewillbenothingleftofus
Whenthesunrisesagain
Nosongstosing, NorstoriestotellWehave Lived,andloved,andlost
Perhapsthisispayment
Forourhubris,whenWrath Comestocollectherdebts.
Attheendofitall, Onefactholdstrue
Troyisburning.
Andthegodsonlywatch
ByVALENTINALEBRETThewindcanmapeverypartofmybeing
Iterodesawaymyattachments,carveswithitssmallteeth hollowcavernsintomybonesuntilIammadeonlyofglassand sandandcrystal.Imovelikelight,fasterthanabird,cleanerthana diverinfreefall,gentlerthanaleafandawaveandadandelion.I letthewindcarrymeupwardsanddownwards,rustlingpilesof leaves,cleavingthemountains,raginginhurricanes
Iamthegrinningtiger,thetornado,theflockofgeeseflying southforthewinter
Thewindcarriesme
And,justassuddenly,itisgone.ThewinddiesdownandIdo thesame,myhair,soul,andbreathsettlingbackintoplace.
Oroaringpower,osweetnothing,getmedrunkonlittle breezes.
Content warning: suicide
I am sitting on my chair in a room full of individuals On my table lies a prompt regarding the philosophy exam I am taking There is no explanation as to why I am here because the world in which I am has no rational order I have radical freedom, meaning I could just leave the room If I were to do that, I would ultimately be choosing something good because as long as I make choices and embrace that these are my decisions, I am being authentic
Ifonedecidestoleavetheexaminationroommid-exam,they wouldbepracticingtheirfreedom,notbecauseitisfreeingtowalk outbutratherbecausetheyhavemadeachoice.However,oneis fullyresponsibleforthechoicesonemakes.Indeed,onecould imaginethatonewouldgetazeroontheexam,whichwould significantlydropone’sgrade,andonewouldhavetofacethe
disappointmentofthosewhobelieveinbeinginitselfThiswould meanthatonebelievesthatobtainingahighgradewhichistheir essenceprecedesexistenceOntheotherhand,theindividualwho believesinbeingforitself,thatexistenceprecedesessence,will insteadestablishthattheyareapersonwhofailsphilosophy.They willfaceanguish,theanxietycausedbytheresponsibilityof choices.Theynotonlyhavetotakeontheconsequencesfor themselfbutalsotheconsequencesforothers.Theyareamodelof becoming,meaningtheirchoicesinventthefutureofmankind.In thissituation,theexistentialistconfrontsabandonment.Thereisno “other”powertoguidethemintodecipheringwhatiswrongor rightTheyareforlornThereisnoonetorewardorexcusethem fortheiractions
Furthermore,iftheindividualstaysintheroom,theymustnot exercisebadfaith Thisistosaythattheyshouldnotblametheir surroundingsfortheirabilityorinabilitytocompletetheexam. Forinstance,theycannotblametheirclassmatesfortalkingbecause indeed,theychoosetolistentothem.Theychoosetobeinthe room.Theyshouldalsonothopetopasstheexambecausethat wouldbeexercisingfalsehope,limitingtheirfreedom.Indeed, hopeevadesthemfromreality,makingthemenvisionafar-fetched fantasyTheyshouldnotalludetowhattheycando,butratheract inthepresent Iftheyfail,itmeansthattheyobtainedafailing grade Theywillbeindifferenttotheresults Duringtheexam, theywillmakethemostofitbyappreciatingthepresentsituation Itwouldbeunderstandablethat,asthisindividualtriestofind reason in the meaningless exam, they contemplate suicide. However,thatwoulddemonstrategreatfailureinfaceofthe absurdityoftheworld.Thus,theyshouldembracethefactthatitis meaninglessandtheyshouldspendthreehours,threetimessixty minutes,writingwithapenonpaperThey,anindividualhuman beingoutofeightbilliononthetinyearthwhichtheyinhabit,will findmeaninginthemovementoftheirpenasitmovesfromleftto rightonthepapermadefromcellulosepulpandthefibersoftrees, contributingtodeforestationintheprocess
Thisapproachappearstobebeneficialbecauseitiseasierto perceivetheworldasmeaninglessthantohavetolivewiththefear ofgod.Sartrenotesthatexistentialismisoptimisticbecauseonehas completepoweroverhisdecisionsandhasnopredetermined destiny.Ifonehasadestiny,thenonecanalreadybesetupfor failure,possiblyleadingtodespairThisapproachisalsosatisfying becauseoneisfreeandnotconstrainedtoasetofprinciples In fact,themoralcodeissimplytobeauthenticOnemaynotfeelas obligedtofollowcertainsocietalvaluesThiscanbetakenintothe circumstanceofsocialidealssuchasbodyandbeautystandards Theremaybeanguishconcerningtheconsequencesofone’s action.However,thatanxietyisnotcomparabletotheanxietyof havingtolivetofulfillsomething.
Moreover,theexistentialistphilosophyisempoweringtothe extent that it acknowledges the possibility of suicide while providingamoresuitablesolutionIfonefallsintosuicidalideation becausetheyfindtheirlifemeaningless,thenexistentialismisable torespondInaddition,thelackofmoralvaluesestablishedinthis
philosophy is also desirable. For instance, in The Stranger, Meursaultdoesnothavemoralvaluesandfeelsindifferenttothe murderhecommittedHedoesnotsufferfromguiltHemanages tobeindifferenttohisexecutionasheliberateshimselffromfalse hope Ontheotherhand,thechaplain,stronglydevotedtohis religious beliefs and obligations, fights to follow his values Throughhiswords,heexpressesmoreguiltanddespairthan Meursault.Theseharshemotionsaretheresultofhistheism.Thus, onecouldperceivethatitislesspainfultobefreefromexcusesand guidancefromahigherpower.Onebeingliberatedfrompreexistingvaluespertainstotheexistentialistphilosophy.Onecould imaginethatifMeursaultweretobetakingtheexam,hewouldbe freetowriteandactinwhatevermannerhechoosestoHewould appreciatetheexamsituationasitisHewouldnotwritefasterto finishfasterandgetitoverwithbecauseheremainsinthepresent Ifheweretoimplementaspecificliterarytechnique,itwouldnot servethepurposeofembellishinghisworksothathecouldobtain asatisfyinggrade.Ontheotherhand,thechaplainwouldbe constricted to his pre-existing expectations deriving from his values. Perhaps, a good grade would represent a good deed, expressingthankfulnesstoGod.Thus,hewouldcompletethe exam for the purpose of achieving goodness. In contrast to Meursault,hewouldprojecthimselfintothefutureandisactingin accordancewithhisvalues
Toconclude,theexistentialistphilosophyisonethatwecan applyinourdailylivesItpermitsustoseetheworldinadifferent perspectivethanouralreadyestablishedsuccess-drivensociety Althoughitisfarfromperfect,itcanallowindividualstodetach themselvesfromthestressderivingfromtheexpectationssetupby ourselves or others. Its disregard for the future allows us to recognizeandappreciatethepresent.
I have appreciated writing and developing ideas Although my wrist aches, I admire the human’s capacity to detect fatigue and signal it through pain As I hand my paper to the philosophy teacher, he tells me that my handwriting is illegible, meaning I will receive a zero I respond by telling him that zero is a beautiful number, wishing him a nice afternoon Outside the classroom, I see all my classmates exclaiming their apprehension concerning the grade they would get. To be quite honest, I cannot comprehend why they cared at all. I tell them to not worry and that regardless, it does not matter. Unintentionally, I have raised their eyebrows Is this the path to success?
ByELLAAVGAR
Mar3
7:30pmIHSChoirThemeConcert ("OnceUponaTime") @KulpAuditorium
Mar.8
7:30 pm Music In Our Schools Month Combined Band Concert@KulpAuditorium
Mar.14
6pmBoardofEducationVotingMeeting(comeat7pmfor thepublicsession)
Mar17
DistrictConferenceDay
Mar.19
7:30pmIHSChamberOrchestraConcert@KulpAuditorium
Mar.28
5pmBoysJuniorVarsityLacrossev MaineEndwell@IHS SweetField
6pmBoardofEducationVotingMeeting(comeat7pmfor thepublicsession)
7pmBoysVarsityLacrossevMaineEndwell@IHSMoresco Stadium
Mar.29
5pmBoysJuniorVarsityBaseballv.Elmira@IHSTatascore
Mar30
5pmBoysJuniorVarsityBaseballvElmira@IHSTatascore
Mar31
7pmIHSMusical:TheLittleMermaid@KulpAuditorium
Pisces (Feb 19 – Mar 20):
In the penultimate round, you have a vision for the biggest, most romantic rainbow soufflé that ever was, but you’re so caught up in your vision of it that you bungle the recipe. The moment the judge cuts into your masterpiece, it lets out an unflattering burping noise and slowly deflates.
Aries (Mar 21 – Apr 19):
You’ve made it to the final round through sheer ambition, intimidating your opponents into submission. Unfortunately, the competition is suspended when the judge takes one bite of your signature spicy brownies and needs to be rushed to the emergency room for exposure to excessive heat.
Taurus (Apr 20 – May 20):
You get passive-aggressive with the judge when they call your grandmother’s blueberry pie recipe “too basic,” so you vow to make traditional desserts for the rest of the competition.
Gemini (May 21 – June 20):
You can’t choose between your fifteen signature recipes, so you combine them all! Sadly, your stroke of genius backfires when your gargantuan sugary creation topples over, right onto the judge’s head.
Cancer (June 21 – Jul 22):
The judge gives you a heap of constructive criticism when your Swiss roll malfunctions. You’re so sour that you get up in the middle of the night and make fifty perfect Swiss rolls by hand out of pure spite.
Leo (Jul 23 – Aug 22):
Eager to impress the judges, you design an ice cream cake that will set off fireworks for the preliminary round. You get the timing wrong, though, spraying ice cream everywhere and resulting in immediate disqualification. Go big or go home!
Virgo (Aug 23 – Sep 22):
Before the first round, you draw up a detailed game plan of how you’re going to win this competition, considering any and all external factors. The one thing you forgot to account for? Stage fright.
Libra (Sep 23 – Oct 22):
You don’t want to get into a quarrel with a fellow competitor, so you wait until everyone else has their ingredients before getting yours. The only things left are almond milk, an avocado, and coffee beans. You end up making a splendid coffee cream cake, but you spend the entire time wallowing in misery and selfpity.
Scorpio (Oct 23 – Nov 21):
Paranoid about being sabotaged, you keep all of your recipes and ingredients in a multi-lock safe. An hour before the competition begins, you realize that you forgot to write down the combination.
Sagittarius (Nov 22 – Dec 21): You bite off more than you can chew when you try to make a croquembouche Eiffel Tower and end up getting sugar all over yourself. Everyone laughs it off, though, and at least it tastes good in the end.
Capricorn (Dec 22 – Jan 19):
You’re set on making the smoothest, roundest galaxy raindrop cake ever seen on television. After persevering through many failed attempts, you finally succeed just as the timer sounds. You’re so proud of your creation that you don’t even realize that you forgot to put sugar in it.
Aquarius (Jan 20 – Feb 18): What do you mean, a quiche isn’t a dessert? You get into a heated argument with the judge and accidentally insult their intelligence, ruining your chances of winning. They just don’t understand your progressive thinking.
No School on St Pats
Popcorn Shamrock Shakes
Cheap Californian Rice
Mustard
Lost Stuff Emails
Vending Machines Rejecting Cards
The Monarchy Wet Socks