Issue 2 10/13

PALO ALTO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT PALO ALTO HIGH SCHOOL 50 EMBARCADERO RD. PALO ALTO, CA 94301 NON-PROFIT ORG U.S. POSTAGE

PAI D PALO ALTO PERMIT #44

The Campanile

Vol. XCVII, No. 2

Palo Alto High School • 50 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto, CA 94301 • www.palycampanile.org

Monday, October 13, 2014

Conner Harden/The Campanile

Clockwise from bottom left: Guest speakers David Kelley, Shelby Coffey, Arianna Huffington and interviewer Kara Swisher will attend the ceremony hosted in the Media Arts Center (middle).

Media Arts Center to host Grand Opening

Series of educational events to be held at new media arts building to celebrate opening after four years of construction Maggie Rosenthal

staff writer

A

fter four years of construction, the Media Arts Center (MAC) opened for use at the beginning of this school year.

In celebration, the new MAC will have a series of events for its grand opening, from Oct. 16 through Oct. 18.

“It’s a major grand opening for the largest media arts building for a high school in the country,” Esther Wojcicki said, a journalism teacher at Palo Alto High School.

The first event is to be held on Thursday, Oct. 16. It will include a

viewing of the building as well as a panel of guest speakers who will be interviewed in front of the audience.

The speakers include Arianna Huffington, the founder of the Huffington Post, David Kelley, founder of IDEO and Shelby Coffey, the vice chairman of the Newseum.

These guest speakers will all be interviewed by Kara Swisher, an American technology columnist for the Wall Street Journal and an author and commentator in the Internet.

Attendees of the event will then have the opportunity to ask questions to any of the speakers. The question and answer portion of the evening aims to make the event more interactive for guests.

This event is invitation only, and invitations were extended only to those who were directly involved with the building of the facilities, because of the limited space available.

This grand opening is a celebration of the efforts of many people to show the power of journalism as a curriculum for the 21st century.

Esther Wojcicki Journalism teacher

“The people that were invited are people that are somehow responsi-

ble or directly impact the program,” Wojcicki said.

On Friday, Oct. 17, an open house will be held for for anyone in the community who is interested in coming to see the completed facility. “[The event is] especially for parents, alumni and taxpayers,” Wojcicki said. “The idea is to give people an opportunity to see the building and to meet [Paly’s publications’] staff.”

Actor and Paly alumnus James Franco will be in attendance at the final event of the grand opening on Saturday, Oct. 18 and will be debuting his artwork at the event. The paintings feature student life at Paly.

These pieces will be hung all around the Paly campus including in

the MAC and in the library on the day of the event.

“We are very grateful to James [Franco] for doing all of this wonderful art for us,” Wojcicki said.

The event will be open to all students for a fee of $5 and adults will be charged $20.

There will be screenings of the Global Lives Project, a film project that aims to show the lives of individuals in different situations around the world in five to fifteen minute videos. They will be shown in the MAC during all three days of the opening.

The link for the online ticket store can be found online at palycampanile.org and palyvoice.com.

Oregon senator visits Paly, discusses Internet safety Ron Wyden calls roundtable discussion with technology leaders, speaks on government surveillance policies Coby Parker

Editor-in-chief

O

regon Senator of 18 years Ron Wyden visited Palo Alto High School on Wednesday, Oct. 8, to talk with students and the community about issues facing the nation, namely the mass surveillance by the government of the technology industry.

Wyden called a roundtable discussion with technology leaders to discuss a type of surveillance known as “dragnet”, which collects information from all sources on all people, those accused of terrorism as well as lawabiding citizens. Wyden’s collaborators in the roundtable included technology giants from companies such as Google, Facebook and Dropbox, among others. As head of the Senate Finance Committee as well as a member of the Intelligence Committee, Wyden hopes to use his influence

to end the practice of dragnet surveillance.

“Silicon Valley, like the Silicon Forest in my home state of Oregon, is the launching pad of the new digital economy,” Wyden said. “In the digital economy, the American Brand merits innovation, open communication, economic opportunity and American value, except when it doesn’t. It’s clear that the global community of internet users doesn’t like to be caught up in the US surveillance dragnet any more than the American people. They’ve embraced American technology, but they don’t like it being turned against them in a way that doesn’t increase anyone’s security.”

The roundtable guests, Eric Schmidt, the Executive Chairman of Google, Brad Smith, the Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Microsoft, Colin Stretch, General Council of Facebook, Ramsey Homsany, General Counsel of Dropbox

and John Lilly, a Partner at Greylock Partners all agreed with the premise set forth by Wyden that the type of surveillance enacted by the government hurts business.

“You are entitled to the legal protection [of your information] under our constitution and our laws,” Smith said. “We will not rebuild trust [with foreign consumers] until our own government fundamentally recognizes that moral principle. That’s the reason we absolutely need Congress to [provide reform].”

Before the roundtable, Wyden sat down with Paly publications for an interview on his policies and his time at Paly. The senator voiced his support for a transparent college application process in which colleges publish all information, including their graduation rates, average debt upon graduation and average income cont. on palycampanile.org

Dami Bolarinwa/The Campanile

Senator Wyden discusses technology and the safety of its utilization in government.

Homecoming theme announced; School board candidates call for improvements in diversity and special education in schools Spirit Week structure changed ASB sets date and theme for Homecoming dance; Candidates discuss minority achievement gap; agree on the need for improvement in special education and more focus on socioeconomically disadvantaged students Spirit Week rules adjusted to be more inclusive Rachel Farn

staff writer

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alo Alto High School’s Associated Student Body (ASB) set a date and theme for this year’s Homecoming dance and has begun preparing for Spirit Week, which starts on Oct. 27.

ASB plans to make changes to include more students with different interests by planning a variety of games.

he Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) school board candidate meeting held on Sept. 20 discussed the need for more efforts towards the improvement of programs and resources dedicated towards minorities and students in special education.

The debate was hosted by two Palo Alto parent groups that specifi-

cally represent the interests of special needs students and students of color.

All five school board candidates— Jay Cabrera, Ken Dauber, Gina Dalma, Catherine Foster and Terry Godfrey — agreed that there needs to be advancements made to address the achievement gap, to ensure that every student receives the same opportunities and to hire a more diverse staff.

Although as a whole, all PAUSD schools excel in test scores compared to other schools in the state and

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Like previous years, this year’s homecoming is set the weekend after Spirit Week on Nov. 1. ASB has decided that the theme of the dance will be a black and white ball. The dance will be formal, and students are encouraged to wear black, white, silver or gold.

This year, ASB is focusing on inclusion and planning activities for Spirit Week that will welcome stu-

ASb

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Masha Konkov

staff writer

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country, the district’s population of Hispanic and African-American students fall behind other minority students in California.

This is referred to as the achievement gap, which observes the imbalance of educational performance in groups of students, primarily defined by their socioeconomic status and race.

“What we have here with the

School board

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Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

NEWS

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NEWS TO KNOW

Committee helps to better student experience School Climate Committee designed to create inclusive school environment Jamie har

staff writer

courtesy of NBCnews.com

@mercnews California drought: State residents cut water use 11.5 percent @CNN Walmart cutting health benefits for 30,000 workers to trim healthcare costs @TIME First Ebola patient diagnosed in US dies @cnnbrk Banning travel to West Africa would cause more Ebola problems than it would solve, [Center of Disease Control and Prevention] says

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alo Alto High School’s Climate Committee, created in Jan. 2014, is continuing this school year. Its goal is to make Paly’s school culture more inclusive and welcoming.

In the committee, members will discuss ways to improve the experience of students, faculty, staff and parents at Paly, including reducing academic stress and bullying, facilitating closer studentteacher and parent-teacher relationships and improving attendance. According to the Climate Committee Application, it aims “to build empathy and inclusion across campus and the community” through open discussion.

The committee is headed by Teacher on Special Assignment (TOSA), Eric Bloom, who is a social studies teacher and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) School Culture focus group leader.

Junior Reid Walters will be one of the main students helping Bloom manage the committee. Though the committee was officially announced in second semester of the 2013-2014 school year, “the climate committee [is] going to meet outside of class time

during lunch and after school,” Walters said. “Mr. Bloom and I are just getting it started this year.” They have not had their first meeting yet but are currently gathering applicants.

The committee will be funded for one semester as a test course to determine whether funding will continue based on the committee’s progress.

Success will be measured by decreasing numbers of students receiving Ds and Fs and more students meeting the A-G requirements.

Two major areas of discussion in Jan. 2014 were the academic honesty policy and the consequences of violating it. According to Walters, Bloom has already been working on the academic honesty policy outside of the climate committee. Regardless, these topics will also be discussed by the new committee.

One original idea presented by principal Kim Diorio and Bloom was a process in which a teacher is a “student for a day” or a parent is a “teacher for a day.” This idea has not yet been fully implemented but is still a topic of high interest.

“We are going to be working on projects such as the ‘student for a day’ project once we have the committee set up,” Walters said.

The formation of this committee at Paly was inspired by similar committees at other Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) schools, the PAUSD Safe and Welcoming School Task Force and the WASC accreditation process.

The School Climate Committee is comprised of “dedicated teachers, administrators, staff, parents and students”’ striving for a ‘‘Respectful, Open-minded, Community of Kind and Safe students.’’

Jordan Website Jordan Middle School’s Climate Committee and the positive response it incited prompted Paly to create its own environment for discussion of the school’s strengths and areas of improvement. According to the Jordan website, the School Climate Committee is comprised of “dedicated teachers, administrators, staff, parents and students” striving for a “Respectful, Open-minded, Community of Kind and Safe students,” a model adopted for Paly’s own committee.

Many of the goals of the PAUSD Safe and Welcoming School Task Force formed in May 2013 are being embraced by Paly’s Climate Committee as well. This task force is similar to Jordan’s committee but includes all school age groups and makes changes on a bigger scale.

According to the PAUSD website, the task force’s goal is to “review policies [and] procedures, train staff, guide students and engage parent partners to fortify efforts to help all students build a strong connection to school.”

In addition, the WASC visitation team’s upcoming tour and evaluation of Paly in the winter of 2014 or spring of 2015 encouraged Paly to implement active changes. Many of the proposed changes originated in meetings of the WASC School Culture and Support of Student Personal and Academic Growth focus group, led by Bloom.

With many plans and goals ahead of them, Bloom and Walters are enthusiastic about the year. Walters said, “I’m excited because I think that the climate committee has the opportunity to make a lot of positive changes at our school.”

Theater students put on fun, comical productions Paly theater program prepares for comedy performance of “Server of Two Masters” jeremy fu

staff writer

Courtesy of foxnews.com

@BBCWorld US Supreme Court opens the way to gay marriage in 30 states @cnni Where’s Kim Jong Un? We haven’t seen him in over a month @guardiantech Twitter lawsuit seeks right to inform users of US government surveillance @cnnireport Hong Kong students are returning to school days after the #occupycentral protests @CollegeStudent It’s called fall because everything is falling... leaves, temperature, bank account, gpa, motivation @mercnews Apple expected to unveil new iPads at event this month

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he Palo Alto High School Theatre program is kicking off the year with two madcap comedy plays, “The Stinky Cheese Man” and “Server of Two Masters”.

Theatre department director, Kathleen Woods, wanted the productions to emphasize madcap comedy.

“All of the shows she picked feature really comical, wacky characters and plots that will definitely make audiences laugh,” senior Helen Nguyen said.

The “Stinky Cheese Man” is based off of the book “The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales.”

Tony and Tanna Kienitz, parents of Paly senior Cara Kienitz, are directing the play.

All of the shows she picked feature really comical, wacky characters and plots that will definitely make audiences laugh.

Helen Nguyen senior

“It is a show with singing and a little bit of dance,” Kienitz said. “It should be very funny and wacky. I’m very excited to see it.”

“The Stinky Cheese Man” will also have lots of audience interaction and humor for people of all ages. The play has a very diverse cast which makes it very enjoyable experience.

“The cast is filled with students from all grades and they are all incredibly talented and hilarious,” Kinetz said. “They all have great physicalization in their characters and have developed wonderful voices for their characters.”

The other show the theatre is performing is “Server of Two Masters”, a modern adaptation of a classic Italian play called “Servant of Two Masters.”

Director Tony Kienitz adapted the play so the plot, the characters and the humor all relate to Silicon Valley.

“All of the jokes that are made in the show specifically target funny things about Palo Alto, so I think people in the area who come to see the show will really enjoy it,” Nguyen said.

“Server of Two Masters” will have lots of character- audience interaction and word play in the Commedia dell’Arte style. In Commedia dell’Arte each character moves in a particular and distinctive way, and it is very physical.

“One of the roles, Beatrice, is double casted with seniors Riley Cassidy and Cara Kienitz alternating playing the character,” Nguyen said. “Not only does it give both of them to play

Paly administration takes action on goals for current school year PAUSD employees aim to increase academic awareness, solve over enrollment issues and enhance minority achievement Rachel Price

staff writer

T

he Palo Alto High School administration has three main goals for this academic year: inspire a culture of academic excellence, create a solution to address over enrollment and develop the minority achievement and talent development task force.

The administration hopes to unify itself and center their focus by concentrating on core objectives.

“We want everybody working on these same goals, having this shared vision,” Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) superintendent Max McGee said.

With a new plan and the completion of teacher evaluations by Nov. 1, the administration hopes to improve students’ understanding of their curriculum by creating consistency and unity between classes, grade levels and athletic teams.

Within the larger goal of creating and enhancing academic merit, a goal of Paly is to create consistency in curriculum and assessment, support innovation, align professional development with school and

district goals and support proactive communication. The preparation of the Learning Self-Study report for Paly’s March visit with the Western Association of Schools and Colleges will further help faculty and course evaluation.

“We’re pulling data, analyzing it, writing and revising narratives that go along with the data and so forth,” Paly vice principal Vicky Kim said.

One way they are hoping to improve the curriculum entails implementing more innovative activities.

Paly recently received a grant for Google Chromebooks and is currently designing plans for their integration into academic curriculum.

“We want to see how [devices such as the Google Chromebooks] impacts teaching and learning,” McGee said.

Proactive communication is another topic that the administration is focusing on.

“We will deal with problems upright, forthrightly, and will find problems before they occur,” McGee said.

Another goal is to solve the ongoing issue of over enrollment.

Because the middle schools and

elementary schools have reached their enrollment capacity, the district is considering building another middle school or elementary school in the district. The problem can be credited to the geographical arrangement of the schools.

“Most of our enrollment is coming from the south end of the district and most of our schools are available in the north end and west end,” McGee said.

The third topic on the agenda is to improve minority achievement in the district.

“We want to make sure our students of color have all the opportunities available to them,” McGee said.

Administration hopes to narrow the achievement gap and tap into the potential of students by diversifying Advanced Placement classes.

By evaluating classes to increase consistency between them, integrating technology into curriculum, creating a new school and diversifying high level classes, PAUSD and Paly hope to improve the overall academic performance of schools in the district.

courtesy of paly theater

Paly theater students Oskar Soderberg and Will Kast perfect their roles while practicing their scene from “Server of Two Masters”.

the character, but it makes the show a different experience every time, which helps add to the comedy and fun of it.”

Performances of “Server of Two Masters” start with a free student preview on Wednesday, Nov. 5 at 5:30 p.m.. It opens to the public on

Nov. 6 and there will be performances on Nov. 7, Nov. 13-15 all at 7:30 p.m.

People who are interested in attending can purchase tickets at palytheatre.com beginning in late October.

Tickets for “Server of Two Masters” are $7 for students and $10 for adults and will also be available at the door.

UPCOMING EVENTs OCT

COLLEGE AND CAREER DAY We’ll help you get your ACT together.

OCT

PALY CHOIR FALL CONCERT Listen to them once, and you’ll fall for Paly’s choir students.

OCT

SPIRIT WEEK BEGINS We’ve got spirit, yes we do! We’ve got spirit, how ‘bout you!? Come show your spirit at the rallies.

NOV

HOMECOMING DANCE If you’ve got balls, ask someone to the Black and White Ball.

NOV

“SERVER OF TWO MASTERS” PLAY

15 19 27 1

6

You’ll bow down to Paly’s theater students after watching this.

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

NEWS

Legal costs soar as disputes over civil rights violations continue

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ASB plans Spirit Week Changes made to

District sends packet of complaints about the OCR to national and state officials spirit dance and

jamie har/the CAmpanile

The high cost of recent legal bills is not a new occurrence­ — Since 2013, PAUSD has spent several thousands of dollars on the OCR.

Rachel Price

Staff Writer

T

he Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) has spent more than $200,000 on legal costs resulting from ongoing conflicts with the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) in the past seven months.

In a Palo Alto Weekly article, PAUSD Superintendent Max McGee reported that the district currently has two sexual harassment related OCR cases along with another complaint filed on Aug. 21 regarding a 501 plan, which is a formal educational plan for students with special needs.

A recent article in the Palo Alto Weekly described the basis of the costs, stating that “documents show two attorneys spent more than 100 hours in May prepping staff at Palo Alto High School, Gunn High School and district administrators and then accompanying them to interviews with OCR investigators.”

In the past, Palo Alto’s OCR case legal bills have been just as costly. In

2013, a family sued PAUSD because their child, who had autism, was refused in-home schooling, which resulted in $30,000 spent on litigation.

The Palo Alto Weekly’s review of legal bills through July reports that the fees come from four lawyers and communications consultants from Fagen, Friedman & Fulfrost, the district’s law firm.

The prolonged nature of these cases and the lack of written communication between the OCR and PAUSD are the origins of these costly disputes. In a public board meeting packet titled “Recommendations: Suggestions to Improve Collaboration between School Districts and the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights,” PAUSD listed 20 grievances with the OCR. According to the district, this packet was sent to national and state officials and organizations, including officials from the national and state OCR, California Senator Jerry Hill, Representative Anna Eshoo and officials at the California National and local School Boards Associations.

One publicly released letter sent to Eshoo by Barb Mitchell and Melissa Baten Caswell, the president and vice president of the district’s Board of Education respectively, asks her to “request active participation in discussions and review of ways those processes might be improved for all.”

This [lack of due process] structure places a school district at a constant deficit and undermines a district’s confidence in an OCR investigation.

Recommendations Packet Though the packet was drafted in May, its public release was delayed by the district because the board was on hiatus during the summer and wanted to give Max McGee, who began as PAUSD’s superintendent on Aug. 4, time to adjust to his new job.

Among the grievances listed are the OCR’s prolonging of the overall investigative process and the lack

of due process and written communication. Claiming that OCR is not following its 180-day maximum timeline for an investigation, the document states that “OCR has taken eight, nine and 15 months to complete investigations in the district, and any OCR investigation appears to take a minimum of two months to complete.” PAUSD additionally asserts that the OCR has not given the district due process in its investigations. The document claims that “this [lack of due process] structure places a school district at a constant deficit and undermines a district’s confidence in an OCR investigation.”

However, the OCR has protocol about when and to whom due process is granted. The document further states that “[the] OCR asserts that protections of due process do not apply to a district under investigation unless and until OCR brings an enforcement action threatening removal of federal funds.”

According to PAUSD, the lack of written communication between the OCR and PAUSD throughout the investigation, despite the fact that the OCR has requested it, further delays the resolution. Complaint 18 states that the “OCR has not responded to the District’s letters of May 20, 2013; Feb. 19, 2014; and Apr. 23, 2014, despite those letters following communications where OCR encouraged the District to put its concerns in writing.”

This prolonged battle between the OCR and PAUSD continues to drain the district’s resources. If PAUSD continues to spend money on attempts to resolve the flaws in the OCR’s investigative process, it will prove to be even more costly for the district.

lunch-time activities

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individuals to participate,” ASB secretary Joseph Kao said.

ASB is thinking about including new games such as Minute-to-Winit type activities and Family Feud.

“We’re trying to increase the variety of the activities so that all types of people — creative [and] athletic — can be involved,” junior class president William Zhou said.

In addition, ASB has made major changes in the structure and rules of the Spirit Dance.

Instead of having auditions and selecting the top five students of both genders from each class, as done in previous years, ASB has eliminated the maximum cap of students allowed to participate and invites all those interested to join the dance team for their grade.

ASB encourages students to join by giving more points for each additional dancer after the 10 student minimum amount.

“I’m especially excited for this year’s Spirit Week because ASB is really focusing on inclusion. The first junior practice had almost 80 people which is eight times that of previous years,” Zhou said. “Of course with more people there are more challenges but the higher participation is definitely worth it.”

In addition, the long-awaited class themes have been chosen — freshmen are Lion King, sophomores are “Red Card” (soccer themed), juniors are pirates and seniors are “Green Light” (Great Gatsby themed).

“I’m more than just excited, I’m ecstatic!” Kao said. “I want Spirit Week to start right now.”

Last Issue we left out the following information:

. Individualized Instruction . Basic Thinking and Critical Thinking Math . Reading Comprehension

. Low Student:Instructor Ratio . Writing Skills

Donations to Pie make a difference for Paly students every day by funding guidance counselors, Writing Center staff, elective teachers, College and Career Center staff, and more.

Pledge or donate by November 21 and double your impact with our last challenge grant of the year. Your gift to PiE matters because Paly students matter. www.papie.org

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

NEWS

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Bay Area fights state climate change action

Local leaders oppose funding for pollution clean-up due to flawed plan for determining at-risk cities

courtesy of sustainable cities, sustainable world

The Los Angeles skyline suffers from severe air pollution and smog. Under the proposed plan, Southern California cities would receive more funding to combat this pollution.

Miranda chen

staff writer

F

ollowing President Barack Obama’s speech on Sept. 23 at the United Nations meeting discussing climate change, Bay Area public officials continue to challenge a proposed California state plan to spend millions of dollars fighting the imminent danger of climate change.

The proposed plan intends to use funds to clean the atmosphere in poverty-stricken and contaminated communities of California, with most of these polluted districts located in Southern California and with less than five percent in the Bay Area.

Bay Area officials claim that California’s method of determining which communities are most polluted is flawed, because its method for measuring contamination would exclude some of California’s most atrisk residents.

Officials are calling for modifications to the method in order to include more of the state’s most vulnerable census districts, which are the tracts near refineries, transportation corridors and ports. “[The state’s analysis] overlooks a large number of communities that, by any measure, are some of the most polluted and disadvantaged in the state,” 20 Bay Area state legislators

said in a letter to the California Environmental Protection Agency.

California’s cap-and-trade program, which began in 2012, has raised $832 million for the state with $272 million of those funds allocated for the proposed plan.

This program sets a “cap” or limit on emissions, therefore intending to reduce the amount of pollutants in the atmosphere. The “trade” aspect of the program is the formation a market for carbon allowances. Under this project, companies are distributed carbon pollution permits to regulate their emissions. This aids companies with innovative, new methods whose emissions are under the set limit, as

Annual College Awareness Day prepares students for future Juniors to take PSAT/NMSQT test; freshmen, sophomores, seniors scheduled to attend college and career planning workshops carissa zou

staff writer

O

n Oct. 15, Palo Alto High School students will participate in College and Career Awareness Day, a day specifically dedicated to allowing students to familiarize themselves with college and career options.

As always, the juniors will be taking the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) which provides them the opportunity to encounter the components of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT).

Aside from that, the PSAT/ NMSQT is also an opportunity for students to qualify for the National Merit Scholarship Program. Students with the top 50,000 PSAT/NMSQT Selection Index scores will be eligible for recognition in the National Merit Scholarship Program. In the midst of September, these select students will be notified if they qualified as a Commended Student or Semifinalist.

One of the assistant principals at Paly, Kathleen Laurence, has been involved with planning the activities on College and Career Awareness Day this year. Laurence believes that the PSAT is a good opportunity for students to get a feel for what the SAT will be like. “[Students take the PSAT/ NMSQT] to learn [more] about the SAT.” Laurence said. “It’s a practice [for the] SAT test. What does it feel like? What are the questions like?

What test taking strategies [are useful]? This is a good time [to try new things and experiment with taking the SAT].”

courtesy of getty images

Juniors will be the only students taking a standardized test: the PSAT/NMSQT.

The seniors will continue to participate in college workshops to help prepare them for college applications.

A wide variety of workshops will be provided including essay writing, UC/CSU workshop, community college, personal finance and college interviews. Students can choose to attend whichever workshops they feel would be most applicable to their future.

However, there have been a few changes in the activities that freshman and sophomores will partake in. In the past, freshman and sophomores have taken the ACT’s Explore and Plan, two standardized tests that give students a small taste of their score range on the ACT. These tests also provide valuable feedback on the potential fields that students should consider based on a questionnaire of student interests. Unfortunately, these tests will no longer be provided at Paly.

“The ninth and tenth grade students have taken the ACT’s Explore and Plan tests in the past. The ACT has discontinued this part of their testing program so Paly’s ninth and tenth grade students will have the opportunity to listen to some speakers

and use online tools for career exploration,” Laurence said.

According to Laurence, there will be two main sessions for the freshmen and sophomores that day. In one of the sessions, students will listen to a career speaker in the Haymarket Theater while the other session will introduce various online activities that students can utilize in the future to support career exploration. After College and Career Awareness Day, these online tools will still be available for freshmen and sophomores to use as resources.

College and Career Awareness Day will remain a useful tool that students are required to attend. On this day, students will be exposed to resources which will allow them to become more aware about future college possibilities and career exploration. “[Remember that] it is a school day and everyone is expected to attend. We will take roll and you will be marked absent if you are not here.

[Regardless], it’s a great opportunity to come learn some new stuff and get help [with things related to colleges and careers] which is definitely valuable,” Laurence said.

Izzy’s Brooklyn Bagels

they are then able to trade and auction these unused permits to other, more polluting companies — providing an economic incentive.

The Bay Area leaders against the plan say that the project should not be completely abandoned, but modified so that the hundreds of millions of dollars in funds are not wasted and so that the communities lacking the most are the ones that have access to these funds.

However, officials in Southern California are urging the state to stay with its analytical formula to measure the most severe regions in California, as they believe that abandoning this data as a guide would waste an op-

portunity to address the environmental imbalance across all regions in the state.

“This could be the biggest investment these communities see in a long time,” deputy director of the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation Colleen Callahan said. “It’s critical that the process be systematic, transparent and data-driven.”

Despite the controversy of this plan concerning which regions deserve the funds of the cap-and-trade program, both students and professionals are pleased that California is taking a necessary step towards addressing and combating the dangerous effects of climate change in the environment.

“I think that the protection of the environment is very important,” junior Eric Chiang said. “The issue of climate change is generally ignored and not dealt with in an effective way, so I think it’s good that there’s finally an actual plan in place to stop pollution.”

Sociology professor and director of University of Southern California’s Program for Environmental and Regional Equity Manuel Pastor agrees and is glad that California has created a feasible and legitimate plan to deal with this important issue.

“The good news is there’s now a method and a flow of money that is aimed at addressing the most environmentally exposed and disadvantaged communities and dealing with climate change at the same time,” Pastor said to Los Angeles Times.

“This is a state that’s no longer debating that there is a pattern of environmental disparities, but actually marshaling resources to try to address it.”

School Board candidates aim for equality in district Election brings fresh ideas about inclusion Continued from A1 achievement gap in our schools is, as I’ve often said, a shame on our district,” Foster said.

Dalma agrees with Foster that the district’s hesitance to evaluate this arena is due to PAUSD’s praise as a high-ranked district.

“We believe we’re the best performing school district and the biggest challenge of that is to see where we can learn and grow,” Dalma said.

To target the lack of diversity among teachers, Superintendent Max McGee has already made a commitment to recruit more teachers of color. McGee plans to take a stand to further integrate staff with hopes of improving all students’ academic performance.

“It’s good to have role models who are as diverse as the [Palo Alto High School] student population,” Rebitzer said.

Junior Catherine Davidson agrees that the school staff should better resemble the variety of students at Paly, but she is apprehensive as to whether this will create a substantial change in students’ performance.

“Teachers should be chosen based on their educating abilities, not their race. If a black person was chosen for the job over a white person just because of their ethnicity, then that is racism in and of itself,” Davidson said.

The idea of empowering the whole demographic of the Palo Alto community resonates with special needs support just as much as with race equity. Cabrera took a more personal twist to the debate when sharing his experiences with the flaws of the district’s special education system. Cabrera went through PAUSD himself and had trouble in school when he did not receive appropriate support

or resources until he was diagnosed with dyslexia in college.

Following the numerous lawsuits against PAUSD by parents of special needs children during the 2013-2014 school year, it was unanimous among the candidates that policies and programs surrounding special education need revision.

We believe we’re the best performing school district and the biggest challenge of that is to see where we can learn and grow

Gina Dalma

School Board Candidate “We need to set the tone that the district needs to link arms with every special education family,” Godfrey said.

All candidates also agree that the district should invest in professional training for teachers to better implement the inclusion programs.

“High-functioning schools and districts are those that provide the least restrictive environment for all students and are as inclusive as the needs of students allow,” Dalma said.

“We know that full inclusion is a best practice, but it assumes that a certain support system is in place. The more I talk to parents and teachers, that’s exactly where our school district has not done the best job.”

The five candidates will speak further at upcoming events in an effort to differentiate themselves before the Nov. 4 election.

Despite the candidates’ criticisms of problematic leadership on the board, they are optimistic that with concrete data and direct feedback from students and parents, the district can improve dramatically.

Locations Palo Alto 477 S. California Ave. (650) 329-0799

East Palo Alto 2220-B University Ave. (650) 322-5700-

The Campanile

Monday, October 13, 2014

NEWS

A5

Twelve city council candidates compete for five open seats Palo Alto City Council candidates share their plans for change in preparation for Nov. 4 election MISCHA NEE

STAFF WRITER

T

he Palo Alto City Council Election will take place on Nov. 4 with 12 candidates running for five open seats, in comparison to six vying for four seats in 2012. The issues surrounding growth and Palo Alto’s future have split the candidates into two selfnamed groups — the “residentialists,” anti-development, and the “establishment,” pro-growth.

Wayne Douglass Wayne Douglass was the last candidate to obtain nomination papers, deciding to run based on observations of the effects of the city council’s recent prohibition of sleeping in one’s car. He supported Measure D, city support of senior housing development, which was rejected after much debate. Douglass acknowledges himself as a single-issue candidate, focusing mainly on the issue of homelessness in Palo Alto.

Tom DuBois Tom DuBois, a technology executive in the video-game industry, was a strong opposer of Measure D and soon after helped create Palo Altans for Sensible Zoning, along with Filseth and Kuo. DuBois is anti-development, supporting the current 50 foot height limit on buildings and few zoning exceptions. He also wants to bring Fiber to the Home, city wide high-speed Internet, to Palo Alto, despite its previous failure, as well as more transparency within the council. Finally, DuBois advocates for more collaboration between the city and Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) to prevent the overpopulation of schools.

Eric Filseth Eric Filseth, a retired executive of a semiconductor company, shares similar views to DuBois on the future of development in the city. He also prioritizes more long-term accounting and better fiscal management.

Filseth wants to fight the housing mandates requiring a one percent increase of residents per year to maintain the quality of life in Palo Alto.

Lydia Kou Lydia Kou, a residential realtor, closes out the three candidates who were an integral part in the fight against Measure D. Kou views the current development in Palo Alto as contrary to what most residents want the community to be. According to Kou, the continuous expansion has

courtesy of palo alto online

Palo Alto City Council candidate Lydia Kou speaks at the first debate of the season on Sept. 22. Other City Council candidates, from left to right, Wayne Douglass, Tom DuBois, Eric Filseth, John Fredrich, Karen Holman, A.C. Johnston, Greg Scharff, Nancy Shepard, Mark Weiss and Cory Wolbach listen to Kou at the Elks Lodge in Palo Alto, Calif.

resulted in more traffic, school overcrowding and a decrease in the quality of life. Kou sees a lack of residential input in the current council and hopes to bring more accountability and transparency if elected. Finally, Kou notices a lack of basic infrastructure and believes it must be fixed before looking to bigger projects for the city.

John Fredrich John Fredrich, a retired history teacher of Gunn High School, was a supporter of Measure D but still classifies himself as a “residentialist.”

He believes in status quo zoning, current building height limits and traffic management based on data. Fredrich also wants to preserve the Veteran’s Building and the environment around creeks. Lastly, he wants a reduction of city staff and an improved performance quality review system.

Karen Holman Karen Holman, one of three incumbents running, is one of the few current council members who support slow-development. She argues that the current comprehensive plan does not provide a complete strate-

gic outlook on growth, and the city needs to make decisions based off of future consequences. Holman wants to continue her work on the Council Finance Committee in reducing the structural budget deficit and continuing the more transparent system she has helped to put in place.

A.C. Johnston A.C. Johnston, a managing partner at Morrison & Foerster, is running as an independent candidate and is grouped with neither the “Residentialists” nor the “Establishment.”

Johnston supports growth and innovation that still preserves the quality of life in Palo Alto. He also wants an updated comprehensive plan, better parking and infrastructure and a closer partnership with PAUSD. Seelam Reddy Seelam-Sea Reddy, a retired aerospace engineer, wishes to slow growth and keep the current building height limit. He also wants to end affordable housing projects and lower taxes for residents. He admits that he does not have specific policy issues and solutions, but his experience in tech management will benefit city council.

Greg Scharff Greg Scharff, experienced council member and former mayor of Palo Alto, is proud of the decisions he has made to benefit the community in his past term, but has certain areas where he wants to see more improvement. Scharff looks to create a new comprehensive plan with residents in mind for land use decisions. He also wants to eliminate the contentious planned-community zoning process.

Lastly, Scharff wishes to make a new Public Safety building and 911 Center that is earthquake safe.

Nancy Shepherd Current Palo Alto Mayor Nancy Shepard is seeking her second term as councilmember. She wants to reduce the parking and traffic problems present in Palo Alto by implementing a residential parking-permit program and increasing public transportation.

Shepard prioritizes fighting the state housing mandates and controlling the population density, balancing the budget, as well as providing more services for youth and seniors and continuing the Climate Action Plan policy.

Mark Weiss Mark Weiss, founder of the concert-production company Earthwise Productions and of the blog Plastic Alto, is running for a third time.

He is a strong advocate of more performing-art venues and of the anti-development movement, selfdeclaring himself as a “residentialist.”

Weiss continually points out that he is the only candidate who is a product of Palo Alto schools and his personal knowledge of the system will enable him to make more well-informed decisions.

Cory Wolbach Cory Wolbach, staff member for Sen. Jerry Hill and the youngest candidate in the race, is running unaffiliated with the “residentialists.”

He acknowledges the need to address parking and traffic issues, the poor planning process and the effect of growth on schools. Colbach wants to add more housing to offset the current imbalance between jobs and housing. He also hopes to give more support for youth, seniors and homeless and to strengthen relationships with PAUSD.

Jordan library among those honored Superintendent calls for at “The African Library Project” gala new elementary school Jordan Middle School’s “The African Library project” donates over 13,000 books to start 13 libraries in African countries

Crowded elementary schools sparks talk

Antonio Kieschnick

alo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) Superintendent Max McGee has called for a committee to work on the 13th elementary school. The decision has come after delays that have lasted for years and the majority of the school board supports McGee’s recommendation for the new school.

The board currently does not know where the new elementary school will be located, but the two possibilities are both owned by the district.

According to board member Barb Mitchell, one possibility would be a location near Jordan Middle School, while the other would be located next to Cubberly Community Center.

This decision is a result of many of the elementary schools reporting an overflow of students. If the growth continues, PAUSD will have to send more students to schools farther away from their homes in order to maintain smaller class sizes, as well as using portables and using classrooms at nearly-full middle schools.

“I’ll tell you my experience in looking at this data: I do think it’s time we address this,” McGee said.

The district’s enrollment this year has increased to a total of 12,532. Although elementary school enrollment decreased by 131 students, many elementary schools are over crowded, with some surpassing 500 students — higher than many educators feel

Staff writer

P

staff writer

T

he African Library Project recognized Jordan Middle School at a gala on Saturday, Sept. 20 for starting 13 libraries in Africa and collecting over 13,000 books.

The African Library Project was created in 2005 by Chris Bradshaw to provide books and libraries to children in African countries. Upon her visit to Lesotho, a country landlocked by South Africa, Bradshaw was shocked to learn that there was only one library in the whole country, and began the African Library Project, aimed at providing impoverished African nations with books to increase their literacy rates.

The African Library Project chose to recognize Jordan Middle School for “going above and beyond” in collecting enough money and books to create new libraries in Ghana, Lesotho, Botswana, Malawi and Swaziland.

Jordan has been holding book drives for the past eight years. It requires 1,000 books and $500 dollars in shipping costs to set up a library in an African country.

“About 95% of our libraries are in schools,” Bradshaw said. “Mostly in Africa they don’t have public buildings, it’s not a concept that they have

Noah Smith

Zoe Tierney/The campanile

A Jordan Middle School student looks through Jordan’s library. The library was honored on by “The African Library Project” for donating over 13,000 books.

in rural areas. So these schools, and this usually depends on the area and surrounding villages, are open to the community.”

The African Library Project chose to recognize Jordan Middle School for “going above and beyond’’ in collecting enough money and books to set up libraries in Ghana, Lesotho, Botswana, Malawi and Swaziland.

This year, the school is aiming to collect another 1,000 books to send to Fenaso School in Ghana. The

school’s website encourages the donation of educational or non-fiction books.

Each year, Jordan Middle School holds a flea market to raise funds to pay for shipping costs.

This year’s book drive will begin on Feb. 24 with the aim to collect books from a preschool level through a fourth grade reading level in order to raise money for more libraries in Africa.

A garage sale is going to be held this year to raise funds for the transportation of the books, which will first be shipped to New Orleans, LA. and then shipped from New Orleans to Ghana in Africa.

is the appropriate school size. Middle school enrollment is expected to continue to rise in the next two years and then dwindle. Palo Alto middle schools have had an increase of only 165 students this past year, although many school board members say that all three middle schools are over capacity.

“PAUSD’s middle school student enrollment has grown by over 600 students in the past 10 years,” Mitchell said. “Jordan and JLS are particularly large, with over 1,100 students each.”

The rough estimates for the cost of the new elementary school would be $30 million and $35 million.

“New school facilities or building renovations are paid for with bond funds approved by PAUSD voters, while operating costs, such as staffing and instructional materials, are paid for with PAUSD’s general funds,” Mitchell said.

McGee called to reconvene a study committee from before or create a new advisory team to plan the proposed elementary school as well as a possible fourth middle school.

All of the School Board members except for Camille Townsend expressed a similar urgency in completing the task.

McGee said he is planning the application process and contacting former committee members between now and the next board meeting on Oct. 7 to make sure the advisory team is formed as quickly as possible.

The Campanile

Monday, October 13, 2014

OPINION

A6

Should Spirit Week results always feature a senior victory?

Speculation of the senior class possibly losing this year’s Spirit Week arises after last year’s sophomore upset

Paul Mewes

Lifestyle Editor

L

Yes

ike in many schools, tradition has always been a part of Palo Alto High School. In recent years, however, Paly has begun to disregard its own traditions.

The school’s traditions — some more positive than others — include Streak Week, Freshman Friday, Egg Wars and Spirit Week. All but Spirit Week have been disregarded. However, one of the key components of Spirit Week was that the seniors always won.

Could this be the year that changes? Every year, students and administrators talk about making Spirit Week “fair” by counting points objectively rather than skewing the points in favor of the senior class. In the past, the system never changed and the senior class always won, regardless of how the points were supposedly tallied.

However, this may be the first year that the final tallies won’t support the senior class. Last year, the class of 2016 beat the class of 2015 in spirit points, which indicates that the seniors this year are in danger of losing Spirit Week. Already the junior class’s attendance at spirit meet-

ings greatly outnumbers that of the seniors. Although all signs point to a junior victory in Spirit Week, the seniors should win it, as it is Paly tradition. Spirit Week is fun for everyone involved, but at the end of the day everyone should just accept a senior victory. This way, every class will have something to look forward to at the end of their high school careers and can leave Paly victorious.

Each Spirit Week at Paly builds up to a student’s senior Spirit Week, one that the seniors assume they will win. It is one of the high points of attending Paly for many students.

The thrill of winning Spirit Week is an experience that sticks with students their whole lives, and is something that all students should get the chance to experience. It is unfair to take this opportunity away from an entire class. The current juniors and underclassmen will get their chance to win, but this year is the seniors’ year to bask in glory.

Not all traditions are good, but something as fun and lighthearted as consistent senior victories during Spirit Week is a tradition that should remain embedded in the Paly culture.

Schools are places where students should be able to enjoy the school’s culture — something that develops over years. Paly, founded in 1898, has an extremely long, rich history. Senior victories during Spirit Week are an important part of Paly’s rich culture.

Its traditions are key to its culture.

Paly has lost so many of its traditions over just the past few years that a recent alumnus might come back to visit and hardly recognize the school.

Most high schools have some type of competition similar to our Spirit Week, but one of the things that has made Paly’s unique is that the seniors have always won. Let’s not add that to the list of lost traditions.

Aiva Petriceks

Staff Writer

I

No

t’s almost that time of year where, for a week, classes become closer and inter-class rivalries become stronger. We all know this time as Spirit Week. With the class of 2016 winning second place and beating the class of 2015 last year, tensions are high this year with first place at stake. This brings up the question, should Spirit Week have a senior bias? Absolutely not.

There is no doubt that going into Spirit Week, most students assume that seniors prevail. Nonetheless, seniors should have to win Spirit Week on behalf of their own effort, without the help of the Associated Student Body (ASB) giving them extra points simply because it is their last year as Palo Alto High School students. There has been much controversy concerning this policy for the past few years.

During the 2011 Spirit Week, the sophomores were ahead of the seniors and could nearly taste victory.

However, in the last minute, ASB gave each class “unity points,” which put the class of 2012 in the lead and the class of 2014 in third place.

Library ought to invest more funds to expand inadequate textbook collection

“Seniors [class of 2012] came into ASB and said, ‘Hey we think we should win still,’” student activities director Matt Hall said. “The rest of ASB said, ‘Well yeah, it’s kinda a tradition, seniors always win,’ so they voted to have a new category adding to the scoring.”

This caused rancor throughout campus, and left a bitter taste for the class of 2014, who had worked hard all of Spirit Week just for seniors to get unearned points purely on the basis of seniority. In the succeeding years ASB has worked to make Spirit Week unbiased.

All classes work hard during Spirit Week and deserve to have the same chance of winning as the senior class. Part of the reason that underclassmen enjoy Spirit Week so much is that they have the hope to beat the grades above them.

“The next year [2012], when Jessica [Tam] was ASB president and Michael Wang was senior class president they said, ‘You know what, we’re gonna do this right. We’re gonna do it clean and transparent and above the board and whoever wins, wins,’” Hall said.

A senior-biased Spirit Week only positively affects the senior class, and even these “benefits” are debatable. Other grades feel like there is no point in putting effort into Spirit Week if a senior win is guaranteed.

What makes students fall in love with Spirit Week is that it is a battle to determine which is the better, stronger, most unified class.

If juniors know that there is no way they could place first, they’ll put in minimal effort. Furthermore, up-

perclassmen’s attitude towards Spirit Week influences how underclassmen act. If sophomores and freshmen see a lack of enthusiasm in the older grades, it will cause a domino effect.

All classes work hard during Spirit Week and deserve to have the same chance of winning as the senior class.

Part of the reason that underclassmen enjoy Spirit Week so much is that they have the hope to beat the grades above them. Seniors naturally have advantages going into Spirit Week.

For example, they have experience participating in Spirit Week. They have learned about which cheers work well, what makes a good spirit dance and what a good float looks like. Plus, many would agree that they have the best themes. They have been able to see what has made other classes successful and can apply that to their own class, as well as avoid mistakes that have made others unsuccessful.

Seniors should be motivated to win considering that this is their last time participating in Spirit Week.

They have one last chance to show their greatness in Paly’s fondest tradition, so they ought to give it all they’ve got in order to win. They should want to have the craziest cheers, the most outrageous outfits, the best float, an amazing dance and more spirit than all the other grades combined. If the seniors do not try at all and don’t demonstrate good sportsmanship, they deserve to lose. It’s called Spirit Week for a reason; the grade with the most spirit deserves to win.

When a class wins Spirit Week they should win because they deserved it, regardless of what grade they’re in. If a class wins by their own merit, victory will taste that much sweeter because it will have been achieved through hard work. With that said and Spirit Week just a couple weeks away, let the best class win.

Science Research Projects class should broaden scope

The lack of textbooks in optimal work environments across cam- Expanding to cover all STEM fields would pus hinders efficiency and deters student productivity encourage more students to participate

Haley Fang

Jeremy Fu

Business Manager

Staff Writer

his year the students at Palo Alto High School are very fortunate to have millions of dollars spent on new classrooms, desks, spinny chairs and laptop carts.

In the eyes of many, we are just “rich Palo Alto kids” who get unnecessary luxuries. Though it is true that students here are extremely privileged, there is one place where our school falls behind. We have a shortage of textbooks in the library, one of the most basic things a school can and should provide. The uneven distribution of textbooks in the library has been an issue since I entered Paly.

There are almost never enough textbooks for classes that actually require reading or homework that is based on the textbook, yet there is a surplus of ones that students never touch.

The deficit of in-demand textbooks has been noted by multiple students including seniors Alex Lu and Winston Wang.

“I have to go to places that aren’t really conducive to hard work in order to find textbooks that would actually allow me to get things done.”

Lu said.

Wang found this to be increasingly problematic while enrolled in Advanced Placement United States History (APUSH).

“I think it is a problem, because last year I took APUSH and I tried to use my prep to do my notes which totally failed,” Wang said. “I couldn’t find a single textbook in the library or the [academic resource center].”

The Paly library has more information than any high school student

alo Alto High School should expand its Science Research Projects (SRP) class to allow students opportunities to acquire work experience in more Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) fields, and expand the course beyond biology, chemistry and physics. Currently, SRP is taught by Keith Geller and only has 14 students, representing less than one percent of our school’s population.

Having a high school internship provides students with important life skills, from networking to resume building. Many students do not realize the importance of having an internship, and therefore do not consider taking the class. Internships allow students to participate in a real work environment, and work with professionals in the field they are interested in. This can be a valuable asset to students who are unsure of the career path they wish to take.

Finding an internship is a good learning experience, but can often be extremely challenging. Paly should provide support to students who cannot find internships or simply link up students with potential mentors. This program could be executed in the same way as our Community Service program is done today, which will allow students to access a resource to find these opportunities.

Living in Silicon Valley gives Paly students lots of opportunities to find internships in various STEM fields, so Paly should take advantage of our surroundings and help students discover these opportunities. Cur-

T

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Dami Bolarinwa/the campanile

Insufficient textbook supply prevents students from completing book work.

would ever want or need, but it lacks the proper information students will actually use.

Many people who come to the library to do work are in search of books to help with last-minute cramming before a test. Rarely will one stop to check out a biography of Babe Ruth or a book about the animal kingdom unless a class calls for such a thing. Due to this, the school administrators should spend money wasted on unnecessary books on textbooks instead.

I have to go to places that aren’t really conducive to hard work in order to find textbooks that would actually allow me to get things done.

Alex Lu Senior

Many students including Wang utilize their prep periods to lessen their homework loads. Encouraged to keep heavy textbooks at home and

unable to find needed ones at school, students have no choice but to wait until they get home to begin their work.

Wang claims that this problem has increased the amount he procrastinates.

“If I couldn’t find a textbook, I usually just chatted with my friends.”

Wang said.

This inconvenience can be felt by nearly every student who had the intention of getting work done at school and resolving this issue should be placed higher up on the school’s to-do list. The school ought to evaluate which classes actually use textbooks such as APUSH and AP Biology which are always in high demand to avoid buying unnecessary books.

Students who wish to manage their time wisely by doing work at school should be encouraged to do so rather than prevented to do so by the lack of needed textbooks. The administration is either unaware of the problem or thinks it is not worth addressing. To fix this issue, more students need to voice their opinion and care about it.

rently, in the SRP class, students are instructed to find and approach a mentor in a field that interests them, requiring them to go through the job search and application process. Students who are unable to find a mentor in the summer preceding the start of the course may receive help in this, but ultimately if they do not find one they will be forced to drop.

The limited number of student in the class can be attributed to lack of publicity for the class. Many students attended the first meeting in the spring of last year, only to drop the class later on. Yet, as we are a school of nearly 2000 students it does not make sense that fewer than 50 students would show up to the first meeting, and only 14 students would continue with the program. Clearly, there is a lack of communication about the opportunities presented by SRP. During the school year, students in the program have to do a minimum of 70 hours of lab work each semester, and attend weekly lunch meetings. In addition to this, students also present a scientific abstract, a scientific poster, a multi-media presentation and a technical scientific paper explaining the nature of their research.

SRP should be expanded into more fields, to allow students who wish to gain school credit in internships not related to biology, chemistry and physics to do so. By expanding the number of fields that it covers, SRP can attract a wider range of students and provide this experience to a larger population. The program can even be extended beyond STEM, in fields such as computer science and other forms of mathematics and engineering.

SRP gives students the chance to work with research scientists during the school year. This, it does well, for the small class of 14 students. Ultimately, Paly should try to engage as many students as possible in this program, as it provides valuable work experience, and life lessons. By expanding the program, and giving more support to students, this goal can be reached.

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

OPINION A7 Should there be rivalry between publications?

As Paly publications constantly seek to improve, the levels of competition between them also increases

CATHERINE YU

Staff Writer

P

YES

alo Alto High School has seven main student publications, each one covering a different aspect of journalism. There is Voice, Paly’s online news service, Verde, the school’s feature magazine, Viking, the sports magazine, InFocus, which covers broadcast journalism, Madrono, Paly’s yearbook, the Campanile, the campus newspaper and the Campanile Magazine, which covers culturally popular items.

Having so many advanced journalism programs on campus makes inter-publication competition inevitable, which has recently become a topic of conversation. However, competition is not necessarily a negative thing. Competition between publications not only promotes innovation but also betters the content that each one publishes.

People are naturally inclined to compete and to strive to be better than one another. Competition pushes the individual to think creatively in order to improve. Now that

all of Paly’s publications are located in the same building, the Media Arts Center, the pressure to provide the most up-to-date and most well-written subject matter is greater than it has ever been before.

Competition to become the “better publication” forces the staff members to be more goal orientated.

When each member of the staff is focused on achieving and contributing more, the publication will grow as a result of this. Without competition, we have no motivation and become lethargic, settling for a standard that is far lower than what we are able to attain.

An example of inter-publication competition is the race to be a more prominent online force. This year, Voice has begun to livestream sporting events. Additionally, the Campanile has added a breaking news section and revamped its online story archives. This is only a small illustration of how competition has brought new innovations. All publications now have their own social media accounts on both Facebook and Twitter.

These help to stream information to Paly students more directly at a faster pace.

Competition is a measure of performance. It is a matter of wanting to be exceptional and wanting to improve. Competition is being unhappy with stagnancy. Although, competition between Paly’s publications is not an issue of win or lose; it is about determining the best method to provide the best material.

There are no negative impacts of having some friendly competition between publications. All that result are higher caliber writing, greater accessibility to stories and a more informed student body.

There is no reason to settle when there is room to grow.

lauren klass

News and opinion editor

T

NO

he Campanile and C Magazine are better than Verde. No, Verde is better than the Campanile and C Magazine. All three are better than Voice, but then who gets to be better than Viking?

For as long as I have been writing for The Campanile, I have always been aware of how we stand in relation to the other written publications on campus; we write stories like Verde, we have sports coverage like Viking and we publish online, so that covers what Voice does. We do it all; and, according to our staff, we do it better.

However, I have also heard writers on the other publications say that they are on the “better” publication, claiming that the stories on The Campanile are not as “serious,” or that the kind of writing we do is too simple and easy.

But is there really a point in this competition and rivalry? Instead of putting one another down, we should all be working together to improve

and benefit one another, ultimately bettering Palo Alto High School’s journalism program.

Some argue that competition builds characters and makes people strive to succeed. But what if they do not succeed? It becomes a competition with only two outcomes — winners or losers — instead of learners.

Being the winner inflates self esteem while being the loser is a blow to one’s confidence — neither are opportunities for learning, nor are they character building.

Instead of putting one another down, we should all be working together to improve and benefit one another, ultimately bettering Palo Alto High School’s journalism program.

Furthermore, each “win” or “loss” results in temporary feelings of glory or defeat. This is utterly useless, for neither outcomes build character, which is supposedly the ultimate goal of this “competition.” Competition means that one can only succeed at the expense of someone else’s failure.

This system is neither healthy nor productive.

“The rivalry creates more competition, like in a classic free market system. [However,] the system is not trying to turn a profit, and thus the rivalry should not be a competitive rivalry, like many 500 or so journalism students believe it to be,” Jensen Hsiao, former Editor-in-Chief of The Campanile, said.

Verde Editor-in-Chief Jack Brook believes that having five main publications —The Campanile, Verde, C Magazine, Voice, and Viking— at Paly is beneficial for they cover various topics across the spectrum.

Collaboration is ideal, for it furthers Paly journalists’ abilities to cover more topics and further inform the community.

“I think, right now, five [publications] is a good amount because there’s different sectors of interests and I think we have them all covered,” Brook said. “There’s something for everybody.”

It is important to keep this competition and rivalry in check. Former Editor-in-Chief of The Campanile Maya Kitayama argues that while some competition is “healthy”, too much competition can get in the way of the ultimate goal.

“Competition, although sometimes detrimental, also encourages students to work harder and continually raise the bar for their respective publications,” Kitayama said. “However, I’ve seen it get out of hand to the point where the competition and rivalry become the main focus, and the actual product sometimes becomes secondary.”

Besides being counterproductive, such competition often tends to lead to unnecessary, offensive statements towards the hard work of fellow students.

Editors of other publications on campus have echoed seeing such rivalries go beyond control.

“What I do not like in the rivalry is when people bash on the other publications’ hard work,” Voice Editor-in-Chief Molly Fogarty said.

Competitive rivalry amongst the Paly publications is pointless. We should focus on the main goal we all share: to voice our opinions and inform our community.

“Ultimately, the entire journalism department [at Paly] is an open, friendly and safe space [for] each high school student to explore and learn,” Hsiao said.

The closure of the Buena Vista Mobile Home Park is inexcusable The Buena Vista Mobile Home Park is closing due to negligence from those of a higher socioeconomic status

Mischa nee

Staff Writer

W

ith the closing of Buena Vista Mobile Home Park looming ahead, its ensuing consequences, which include the displacement of hundreds of lowincome Palo Alto residents, and the city’s apathy for the situation is becoming more apparent. As property values in Palo Alto continue to soar higher and higher, Buena Vista remains one of the few safe-havens for families of lower socioeconomic status, and the removal and destruction of this park is unethical.

The Jisser Family, Buena Vista’s owner, began the closure process in 2012 after accepting a deal with Prometheus Real Estate Group. The contract spelled out Prometheus’ plans to purchase the property for $30 million and build a luxury-apartment complex with 187 units. The Jissers have made it clear that they are only trying to sell off the land as part of their retirement — a reasonable wish, both legally and morally. However, a contract to eradicate 400 low-income residents from their homes is completely iniquitous. Since its establishment in 1926, the mobile home park has become one of the only affordable housing options in Palo Alto and the greater Silicon Valley area. Residents are being forced out, after calling it home for the past 50 years in some cases, and 129 children’s education, friendships and community are being stripped away from them.

Yet, all of this is permitted from a legal standpoint, as proven by Administrative Judge Craig Labadie’s final approval of the Relocation

Impact Report (RIR) on Oct. 2 after numerous revisions. The requital plan, required under the California Mobilehome Residency Law, is to purchase each resident’s home and pay the difference in his or her new rent for a year after ejection. Palo Alto does not have any comparable housing option and most tenants will have to move away from their current jobs, not only depriving residents from current cheap housing but also their current income. More importantly, there is no just compensation that can be given for the lesser education that will ensue and the forced loss of one’s community.

For the 400 residents living at Buena Vista, the life they have created in Palo Alto is being sold off for $30 million — or at least so it was.

Despite the tentative approval of the RIR and closure of the El Camino Real park, Prometheus Real Estate Group made the decision July of 2014 to pull its offer for unknown reasons. This leaves the soon-to-beclosed property without a buyer and a chance for the countless benefits of Buena Vista to be retained.

After Labadie issued a final ruling, city council candidates voiced their views on Buena Vista, many of whom supported the possibility of seeking private funds and public loans to purchase the property.

“I don’t want to see anybody forced out of town,” candidate Tom DuBois said. “If I’m elected, I want to work very hard to find a positive resolution to Buena Vista.”

However as of today, current members of city council have made little to no effort to maintain this outlet of affordable housing and the numerous benefits it provides.

These benefits have been documented in a recent study released on Mar. 17 by Stanford professors Donald Barr and Amado Padilla. After surveying every resident with children 18-years-old or younger, the study brought clarity to the advantages of Buena Vista. Firstly, no child living in Buena Vista, more than 90 percent of which are Hispanic, had dropped out of school, compared to the 29 percent of Hispanic high school students who do so throughout Silicon Valley.

In addition, 90 percent of parents had

ella mernyk/the campanile

The Buena Vista Mobile Home Park consist of multiple small, trailer homes which are fairly cramped together.

talked to teachers about their child’s education in the past year, countering the lack of parental support typically found in lower-income families across the nation, which results in a lesser education for those students.

Finally, 97 percent of families have a usual source of medical care, due to the readily available clinics around Palo Alto, which cannot be said for poorer families across the nation.

Our actions regarding Buena Vista have only served to perpetuate the nationwide view of the suburban town filled with selfish individuals.

According to the report of the study by Barr and Padilla, “the children living in Buena Vista, despite being raised in a low-income family and despite the problems often faced by Hispanic families in California, are benefitting from a strong educational experience, and the local availability of health insurance and health care providers.”

Buena Vista has created a community that combats the statistics set up against the families residing in the park. With its closure, these 129 kids will most likely lose these important aspects of their current lives.

Benefits of the mobile home park extend beyond the families living in Buena Vista. In the bubble of Palo Alto, children are typically thought of as being brought up in a community too affluent to give them a real world perspective. Kids who grow up in a place lacking in diversity fail to comprehend others’ lives and situations, developing a sense of apathy. Buena Vista is one mechanism for providing Palo Altans with a group of students that bring different backgrounds and viewpoints to all students’ learning in and out of the classroom.

In the upscaling of Palo Alto, we have forgotten the necessity of diversity. Our materialistic and selfish views are pushing out the people that give us a variation of culture. Affluent alumni and parents are willing to donate millions of dollars for new facilities at Paly, yet most of the community seems to have forgotten the

value of the Buena Vista residents and refuse to invest the equivalent to preserve the park.

Our city of 66,000 people, with an abundance of millionaires, and 10 billionaires whose combined net worth totals $54.4 billion, has so far been unwilling to save this integral part of Palo Alto. There is no excuse for this obvious apathy towards our neighbors.

We claim to be a community of liberal, forward-minded individuals, many of whom support the government’s social welfare programs. So why don’t we care when an opportunity arises to directly help our fellow Palo Altans? Our actions regarding Buena Vista have only served to perpetuate the nationwide view of the suburban town filled with selfish individuals.

The majority of community members have put no thought towards the benefits of Buena Vista or its people.

Instead, the park will only become another listing online for “luxury two-bedroom apartments, combining modern architecture with the classic culture of ‘Shallow Alto.’”

Monday, October 13, 2014

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The Campanile

EDITORIALS

Disclaimer: The ideas and views presented in the editorial section represent over 50 percent of The Campanile staff, and do not necessarily represent the views of any particular staff member.

School board candidates Dauber and Dalma have our support

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he city of Palo Alto prides itself on the high quality and comprehensive education it provides for the students of the district. On Nov. 4, Palo Alto citizens will head to the ballot box and elect two of five competing candidates to serve terms on the Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) Board of Education. In order to better our schools and productively address current district-wide issues, it is key that voters select the best leadership team to carry out the responsibilities associated with an effective school board.

While the large majority of the members of The Campanile will not be eligible to vote this November, we believe that as students who attend a PAUSD high school and are directly impacted each day by PAUSD policies, it is crucial that we voice our support for those candidates running whom we believe will best support young people like ourselves in achieving not only academic success,

but also social and mental wellness, in this district.

Staff writers and editors individually researched the backgrounds and platforms of each candidate running. After compiling information and formulating questions, The Campanile invited all those running for School Board into our classroom, and four of the five candidates, Ken Dauber, Gina Dalma, Terry Godfrey and Catherine Crystal Foster, were able to attend our in-class interview panel. Candidate Jay Blas Jacob Cabrera was not present. As a body of journalists and high school students in the PAUSD system, The Campanile would like to formally endorse candidates Ken Dauber and Gina Dalma in this upcoming race.

We support Ken Dauber, a software engineer at Google, because of his dedication to the district, research, understanding and usage of real, empirical data and his bold, unfaltering commitment to a variety of signifi-

cant issues. Dauber, who has not yet served on the School Board as an official board member, regularly attends meetings and presents suggestions, research and criticism. He possesses knowledge as thorough and extensive as those who are actually on the board and is, as The Palo Alto Weekly stated in their editorial, “often weighing in on issues with more clarity and insight than board members.” The Campanile would like to applaud Dauber for his consistent reliance on collected data and extensive research, which provide legitimacy and clarity to his platform and plans -- something that personal opinion and anecdotal references alone cannot truly achieve for any campaign. We were impressed by Dauber’s knowledge of and stance on the prevalent of Office of Civil Rights cases, his commitment to minimizing academic gap and addressing student stress, as well as his support for a 13th district elementary school.

While The Campanile does acknowl-

Colorado school district course alterations censor US history

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alo Alto High School students have always held mixed feelings regarding the Advanced Placement United States History (APUSH) course commonly taken during junior year due to its reputation for a heavy workload and extensive subject matter. However, most would agree that the class offers a frank view of American history, one which gives both the pros and cons of American policy and gives students the ability to pass their own judgements on historical events.

For APUSH students in Jefferson County, Co., this freedom is in jeopardy after a recent proposal passed on Oct. 3. The Jefferson County school board passed the proposal with a 3-2 vote that establishes a committee to review The College Board approved US history curriculum in order to remove materials that “encourage or condone civil disorder, social strife or disregard of the law.” The board also stated that the “materials should promote citizenship, patriotism, essentials and benefits of the free enterprise system, respect for authority and respect for individual rights.” In response to these actions, hundreds

W

ith the end of first quarter in our recent past, we would like to propose the present as the optimal time for teachers to seek evaluations from their students and to implement a new system of teacher evaluation. While it is most common for teachers to ask for feedback from their students at the end of the semester, this method is ill-timed, and delayed. In addition, current student-written evaluations are rarely shown to have an effect, and oftentimes only certainly selected surveys are passed up to the teachers’ superiors.

The majority of teachers issue an evaluation at the end of the semester. Although the majority of classes offered at Palo Alto High School are year-long, some are only for a semester, in which case an evaluation at that time would have absolutely no affect on the students. Teachers give students performance feedbacks all the time as grades, so reasonably, the two-way nature of this feedback should begin before the end of first semester. Student-teacher relationships would only benefit from this communication, which would make sense to start when teachers report student performance quality — quarterly.

In theory, evaluations collected at the end of semesters could help improve the class for future semesters; however, the method by which the evaluations are collected and read are not effective whatsoever. Arguably the largest issue at hand is the process through which the responses are recorded and implemented. Since the evaluations are completed by the students and given directly to the teachers whom are being evaluated, what

often occurs is that many instructors will review and edit the evaluations before turning them into the head of their department or an administrator, weeding out the unfavorable evaluations. This practice, which censors students voices instead of encouraging improvements to teaching methods, renders surveying practically worthless.

The Campanile thinks that the surveys should be online, created by the administration, with the teachers unable to view or edit the results. Only a universal survey for all classes in a department will get results applicable to each teacher. After reviewing the survey results the administration should release the results for the department as a whole to the public.

In addition, we suggest aspects of evaluations be revised. The surveys should have universal elements such as “fairness of grading,” “how it is compared to other classes in the same lane,” “teaching style” among others.

The Campanile believes the entire process of teacher evaluation should be drastically changed. Surprise teacher evaluations, advisors read written student evaluations, student complaints should be taken into consideration We believe teacher evaluations given by administrators should be surprised visits, rather than planned. When teachers know that they’re to be evaluated, the entire purpose is defeated. Of course, when teachers are expecting to be watched and evaluated in class, their lesson plan for that day will probably not be an accurate depiction of what an everyday class period is like. Having these come as a surprise to teachers would help to display an accurate class experience.

tem, Dalma also is a major advocate for education technology and incorporating innovation into the classroom. The resources that major innovators, such as Stanford and De Anza, offer would definitely help enrich learning and the opportunities offered our schools. Dalma’s appreciation for these resources and her focus on bringing those exceptional resources into our schools make her stand out from the current actions of the school board and from other candidates.

We also believe that Dalma’s progressive perspective addressing how the school board must not remain stuck in tradition but instead become a learning institution in order to push education and match innovation would greatly benefit the ideologies held by the current board members. The Campanile believes that Dalma’s deep knowledge of the system yet her push for action regarding innovation will only benefit the students in the district and add a unique, diverse perspective to the current PAUSD School Board.

COMIC OF THE MONTH

of Jefferson County teachers and students have exercised their right to civil disobedience and have walked out of the Denver area schools in protest.

The Campanile supports the students and faculty of Jefferson County in their efforts to maintain factual and accurate portrayal of US history.

While positive aspects of US history should be taught to students, a favorable portrayal of the US and a comprehensive retelling of our history of civil disobedience are not mutually exclusive. It should not be up to the Jefferson County school board to decide whether its students are taught about the important popular movements that have shaped the country as we know it. What would the study of American history be without the Anti-War movement, the Civil Rights movement, the Suffrage movement, the American Labor movement and even the Revolutionary War? The Campanile believes that the Jefferson County school district should come in line with The College Board in order to put the needs of their students over their desire to promote their personal conservative beliefs.

Students’ teacher assessment process needs revision

edge that Dauber has in the past been characterized as slightly radical, we believe that his consistently resilient mindset, straight-forward speech and behavior is a benefit to the district and will prove Dauber a dependable board officer who commits to solving those crucial district issues he has already comprehensively outlined.

We support Gina Dalma because of her commitment to education at the professional level and because of stance on the Common Core Standards and incorporating innovators into academic institutions. Dalma has been and continues to be involved many education boards and projects including the Silicon Valley Education Foundation and the National Common Core Funders Steering Committee. Her commitment to improving education can be seen through her continued professional involvement in many local, statewide and national education campaigns. In addition to having a deep understanding of the modern-day education sys-

ELLA MERNYK/THE CAMPANILE

I guess I’ll just recycle this one too.

The Campanile Editors in Chief Seth Alston • Esther Doerr • Grace Kim Claire Liu • Coby Parker • Sarah Tayeri News and Opinion Editors Lauren Gargiulo Lauren Klass

Lifestyle Editors Stephanie Cong Paul Mewes

Sports Editors Owen Dulik Kevin Mullin Photography Editor Conner Harden

Online Editor Jeffrey Ho

Business Manager Haley Fang

Staff Writers Dami Bolarinwa Galen Byrd Susana Cacho Miranda Chen Claire Dennis Rachel Farn Bo Field

Jeremy Fu Daniel Hammerson Jamie Har Antonio Kieschnick Masha Konkov Tiffiany Liang Mischa Nee

Joshua Ng Aiva Petriceks Rachel Price Nikhil Rajaram Maggie Rosenthal William Shin Chris Skokowski

Noah Smith William Snodgrass Owen Staiger Alec Sullivan Jake van Zyll Catherine Yu Carissa Zou

Photographers Conner Harden Danny Hammerson

Zoe Tierney Ella Mernyk

Dami Bolarinwa Sara Gram-Knutsen

Advisor Esther Wojcicki The Campanile would like to thank our sponsors Dick & Jerry Smallwood for their contribution to our production.

Letters to the Editors: Email all letters to editors to theeds15@googlegroups.com The Campanile prints letters on a space-available basis.

We reserve the right to edit submissions.

The Campanile only prints signed letters.

Advertisements: Advertisements with The Campanile are printed with signed contracts.

For more information regarding advertisements or sponsors in The Campanile and their size options and prices, please contact The Campanile Business Managers by email at campanile.ads@gmail.com.

Note: It is the policy of The Campanile to refrain from printing articles that misrepresent or alienate specific individuals within the Palo Alto community.

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

L FESTYLE

Getting into the Halloween spirit carissa zou Masha konkov

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Foolproof Homecoming Asking Ideas

BY BO FIELD

STAFF WRITER

Nikhil Rajaram

staff writer

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ver since it began its slow revival in the late 2000s, music on vinyl has been dismissed by many as a token possession of pretentious, delusional hipsters holding onto an obsolete format simply for its style or its irony. The same people making these assumptions then go home and listen to compressed, low quality mp3s through their Beats by Dre headphones and think it sounds great because they can hear some semblance of bass for the first time.

Vinyl is making its comeback not just because it’s fashionable or for its aesthetic value, but because of its superior sound quality relative to most of the compressed digital formats of today. Music listeners should be able to hear sound the way the artist intended it, with no concessions, and with a reasonable investment in a good system, the listening experience is completely new.

When music switched to mainly digital formats, audio compression was created as a way to reduce storage space needed for audio files used for personal storage, distribution through CDs and radio, and later streaming and sharing on the internet. Many compression algorithms and codes were introduced, and the m o s t popular became the mp3.

A l o n g with the o t h e r m a j o r compression file type mp4, w h i c h was made ubiquitous in digital music through iTunes, these two files are the only formats most people ever hear of or use. Lossless, uncompressed digital file types do exist, such as wav and FLAC, but they take up much more space and were deemed inferior by the powers that be in the interest of storage. Quantity over quality, right?

Mp3s and mp4s are flawed formats due to the process behind shrinking the files. Compression codes are created to pick out certain frequencies from the original lossless file that are considered inaudible or unnecessary.

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This sounds logical at first, but if, for example, a very high frequency exists at the same time as a very deep bass frequency, the compression code could cut it out assuming we only focus on one at a time. In addition, even audible frequencies could be cut out in the interest of saving space depending on how small the file is being compressed. Essentially, a computer algorithm throws away sounds it assumes you don’t need so it can save more space for itself. This process is selfish of the computer, condescending towards the capabilities of human hearing and with today’s current storage capabilities, quickly becoming unnecessary.

However, if we go a couple steps back chronologically, there’s a format that isn’t squashed through any digital sausage press between the studio and your ears, gives you all the frequencies you deserve and looks great sitting in your room or while it’s being played. The revolutionary invention of vinyl recording has been around since the 1800s, and the first highfidelity stereo records were produced in 1933. People in the early 20th century could have been listening to better sound quality than your Beats could ever deliver. Thankfully, it’s easy to break out of the five-minute foot rub that is digital music and start getting the auditory full-body massage you truly deserve if you have a little determination and some hard earned cash.

First, you’ll need a turntable. Due to the recent spike in vinyl’s popularity, a variety of models from different manufacturers are readily available at retail music stores or online. As with most purchases, you get what you pay for, and sound quality will definitely suffer with cheaper models, defeating the original purpose. This is something better saved up for. Instead of going for the amazing deal you found on eBay, it’s worth dropping at least $100 or more on a better qual-

Music listeners should be able to hear sound the way the artist intended it, with no concessions.

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DESIGN BY MIRANDA CHEN AND BO FIELD

ity model. Companies like Crosley and Audio-Technica have more affordable players that are intended for analog-to-digital conversion, but can still be used just to play records with excellent quality. More expensive models, such as the Project Debut, will set you back a little farther financially, but boast incredible playback capabilities and stylish designs that will leave your friends drooling at your feet in awe of the sonic fidelity god that you have become.

The next investment you’ll have to make is quality speakers. The selection can seem daunting and threatening to your wallet at first, but you can get what you need from anywhere as low as $100 to up in the thousands, depending on how much income you’re willing to spend in the pursuit of superior sound. A stereo setup is the most compatible with your average turntable, and these can be sold as pairs of speakers or individually, in which case, buy two.

Depending on the bass capabilities of these speakers, it might also be a good idea to buy a subwoofer of a decent size. To put all of these together with the turntable, a receiver console is needed. These can also vary in quality but not as drastically, and anything with enough input and output plugs will do. Having a receiver also makes it easy to switch between audio from your phone or computer and your turntable at the turn of a dial. These can all be found at stores like Best Buy or Fry’s Electronics, and can be bought at great prices second hand as long as they’re in good condition. Tip: go to Goodwill.

Finally, you’ll need some actual LPs. LP stands for long play, used in the industry to denote a full album length. These, along with the shorter EPs, or extended plays, come in either the wider 33 1/3 rotations per minute format or the smaller,

more compact 45 rpm discs. Many modern turntables will play records at both speeds, but some only work for one kind so make sure you know what yours can and can’t play. Most modern record labels are in tune with the demand for vinyl, and the majority of new releases along with pretty much everything released pre-digital, are available in vinyl format. Although slightly more expensive than the average CD or digital downloads, LPs often come with cool e x t r a stuff like posters or lyric booklets to thank you for shelling out the extra money. In addition, some people enjoy having their album art larger than a 500x500 pixel thumbnail and LPs allow true appreciation of the effort and design that goes into an album’s visual aesthetic. Good places to buy records are Rasputin Music, which has various locations around the bay, Vinyl Solution Records in San Mateo and Amoeba Music in San Francisco and Berkeley, which doesn’t rival Rasputin’s selection or pricing but does sell cool T-shirts.

Some of the best LPs are found in Rasputin’s bargain bins, containing a plethora of obscure rock, jazz and soul albums and Hip-Hop singles from the ‘90s and early 2000’s, on sale for 50 cents to a dollar.

In conclusion, you’ve been cheated out of superior sound quality by compressed digital media and inferior sound systems, and the sooner you pursue an interest in vinyl collecting, the closer you are to unlocking an entirely fresh sonic experience. If you’re interested in music and quality sound or just looking for a good way to burn through your summer job money, vinyl collecting is a rewarding and fascinating pursuit. With a decent amount of money and anything more than a basic knowledge of music, you too can ascend to the next dimension of auditory bliss.

The sooner you pursue an interest in vinyl collecting, the closer you are to unlocking an entirely fresh sonic experience.

INSIDE

Transfer students at Paly: What do they experience? Spotlight: Reconsidering the Ivy League Catherine yu

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Stephanie Cong Lauren Klass

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Anxious about homecoming?

Don’t know if your dream date will say yes? Want to win the best ask contest, but don’t know how? Fear not, here are some surefire askings that will guarantee you both your date and the coveted $40 prize.

1. Make your parents do all the work Ever watched Napoleon Dynamite? There’s no way Napoleon would have bagged that Trisha chick if his uncle didn’t talk to Trisha’s mom. Just ask your parents to email her parents, and you’re golden! Be sure to have your parents include something embarrassing about yourself like the fact that you still piss the bed so they’ll pity you even more and force their daughter to go with you.

2. Text her It’s a little known fact that girls actually hate being asked to dances in person. I mean, why would she want to be put on the spot in front of all of her friends and forced to make a decision? If you simply ask her over text, she’ll admire your courteousness and surely respond with a yes. Plus, you’re not really trying to think of a crappy pun and make a sign, are you? When you send her the text, be sure to send something brief along the lines of “yo, hc?” — it’ll show her that you don’t really care — when you actually do — and she’ll become so infatuated with your apathy that there’s no way she’ll say no.

3. Throw in a sob story Everyone knows that sob stories are the best way to get what you want. What better, then, to use one in but a homecoming asking? After asking her, just slip in an “also, just in case you didn’t hear, my dog died last week” and there’s no way she’ll be able to deny you. She’ll be so burdened with guilt that she won’t be able to turn you down. More points for the sadder the sob story is. Remember, if it looks like she’s on the verge of saying no, cut her off and elaborate on your story to make it even sadder.

4. Make her fall for you As long as you can push her over (if you can’t, there’s really nothing I can really do for you), this asking has a 100 percent success rate. It’s foolproof ! She won’t be able to deny that she fell for you because she LITERALLY FELL FOR YOU. When you slip in the “do you want to go to homecoming with me?” slicker than spilled oil, there’s no way she’ll be able to say no. On the off chance that she does say no, continue to push her over repeatedly until she recognizes she fell for you and will say yes.

5. Get your more attractive friend to ask for you Why ask a girl yourself when you can get your better looking friend to ask for you? You don’t have to go through the hassle of thinking about an asking, and you have a higher chance at her saying yes. Make sure you’re watching from a distance when your friend is asking for you — there should be an initial look of excitement and then one of anger and disappointment. If she doesn’t react like that, sorry bud, your friend just stole your date.

Celebrating Banned Books Week Susana cacho

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Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

LIFESTYLE B2 United Nations launches new HeForShe campaign Women Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson announces equality movement and promotes men’s involvement

Courtesy of Mark Garten

Emma Watson spoke about feminism on Sept. 20, beginning an uproar on the Internet over the new UN campaign HeForShe.

Lauren Gargiulo

News and Opinion Editor

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eForShe is a solitary gender equality movement calling for both men and women to come together to face human rights issues and end gender-based discrimination.

On Saturday, Sept. 20, acclaimed model and actress Emma Watson gave a speech as the United Nations (U.N.) Women Goodwill Ambas-

sador where she launched this campaign.

Watson’s main focus was that achieving gender equality is impossible when only one sex is participating.

Watson opened her speech with the misinterpretation of the word “feminist.”

“I was appointed six months ago and the more I have spoken about feminism the more I have realized that fighting for women’s rights has

too often become synonymous with man-hating,” Watson said.

Many times when the idea of feminism is brought up into conversation, many immediately assume that it is the belief that women are better than men and therefore dismiss it, calling it too radical, crazy and overly aggressive.

Though some extremists who identify as feminist have put this idea out there, their beliefs do not follow the true idea of feminism. Wat-

Transfer students reflect on Paly’s unique environment

son clears up this misconception by defining the word as “the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. It is the theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes.”

Watson goes on to discuss the gender inequality she has seen and dealt with, starting from age 8, and how these events have caused her to identify as a feminist, despite the stigma associated with the term.

Watson states in her speech that she has realized that she is a feminist because of her basic beliefs in women’s rights and states that many are unaware that their beliefs match with the definition of feminism, because the word has come to be perceived as unfavorable.

“I think it is right I am paid the same as my male counterparts,” Watson said. “I think it is right that I should be able to make decisions about my own body. I think it is right that women be involved on my behalf in the policies and decisions that will affect my life. I think it is right that socially, I am afforded the same respect as men.”

Feminism does not state that women are the only ones facing discrimination, but in fact calls for the equality of all genders.

Watson points out that the reason the gender equality movement has made little progress through history is because only half the population has been fighting.

“How can we effect change in the world when only half of it is invited or being welcomed to participate in the conversation?” Watson said.

Watson continues to point out that men, just like women, are pressured to be a certain way in order to fit into their assigned gender roles.

Because of this men are needed in the movement to end gender inequality.

Men and women’s assigned roles are often linked and in order to dissolve one, a society must dissolve its counterpart.

In her speech, Watson “extend[s] [her] formal invitation” to all men to join the HeForShe movement to battle gender-based discrimination and stereotype.

Proceeding Watson’s speech, many famous males went public with their support. Men including Harry Styles, Logan Lerman, Chris Colfer, Nigel Barker and Tom Hiddleston all tweeted a picture of themselves with the hashtag “#HeForShe.” Headlines regarding the news of Watson’s promotion of the HeForShe to the UN consisted of words like “game-changing”, “powerful” and “excellent.”

Though her speech did stir an uproar of positive feedback, there were some things that her speech lacked.

Watson excluded many other factors that have to do with the feminist movement such as race, economic backgrounds and gender identities. In fact, the very title of the movement causes issues for not everyone uses the pronouns “he” or “she.”

“HeForShe is problematic, no matter how you slice it,” Amy McCarthy from Huffington Post said.

“Some may call these criticisms divisive and nitpicky, but there is nothing feminist about a campaign that reinforces a gender binary that is harmful to people whose gender identities don’t fit into such tidy boxes.”

McCarthy also said that although Watson had good intentions, her speech gave the idea that women need men to obtain human rights.

“Women don’t need to be rescued, whether it’s by men, Emma Watson, or the United Nations,” McCarthy said. “Positioning men as the saviors of oppressed women isn’t productive, and devalues the work that feminists have been doing for decades.”

The HeForShe movement that Watson promoted told the world that the true meaning of feminism does not involve man-hating of any kind and the importance of all people to be included in reaching gender equality.

Theater’s “Stinky Cheese Man” impresses children

Students transferring from international schools and within the district compare the adaptation to a new school and community Catherine Yu

Staff Writer

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ransferring to a new school is not the easiest thing to do.

It involves a different school schedule, a new student body and an unfamiliar campus.

When a student changes schools, it can be easy for him or her to get lost in the shuffle.

Transfer students are not simply adapting to a new school, they are essentially adopting an entirely different routine and environment.

Compared to my old school, I think that Paly is more academically rigorous. Everyone works really hard. Also, transferring here has been difficult, mostly because it is my junior year, but also because it is Palo Alto. Palo Alto is very special, not in a bad way, but just that it is in its own little bubble.

Lori Huang Junior

Of course, the reason behind a transfer is not the same for every student.

Oftentimes, it is to accommodate for a parent’s new occupation. However, in some cases, it may be for the better athletics a school offers or even the better school community. Sometimes, students may choose to transfer schools for personal issues.

Junior Emmanuelle Poivet is an example of a student who transferred to Palo Alto High School from a different country.

Poivet and her family moved to the United States after her parents changed jobs.

“My parents have also always wanted to move to California. They got tired of France, so we moved [to

Palo Alto],” Poivet said. “At first, I didn’t know anyone and didn’t speak English that well. Also, people here already knew each other, so they did not make an effort to get to know me.”

Different schools will have large amounts of variance between them, especially if students transfer from outside of the state or country.

Although Paly has many students that transfer from its neighboring school, Henry M. Gunn High School, there are still significant differences given that the two schools contain separate communities and student bodies.

One student who transferred from Gunn this year is junior Luma Hamade, who attended Gunn for both her freshman and sophomore years.

Upon transferring to Paly, she initially observed that the campus was smaller and less spread out than Gunn’s.

In addition to campus variances, Hamade acknowledged differences in the schedule.

“I like Paly’s block schedule much better than Gunn’s schedule, because I now have less work to do on every night,” Hamade said. “I also feel like the teachers know how to teach for the entire hour and a half, which is great.”

At first, I didn’t know anyone and didn’t speak English that well. Also, people here already knew each other, so they did not make an effort to get to know me.

Emmanuelle Poivet Junior For international students, the contrasts between Paly and their old schools are likely to be more stark and abundant.

Poivet has noticed the differences in teaching between her education in France and at Paly.

“The teachers actually care here,” Poivet said. “They actually want you to learn. In France, they just want to get paid and go home.”

Lori Huang is a junior at Paly who transferred from an international school in Shanghai.

According to Huang, the culture at the international school was centered around showing off one’s nonChinese ethnicity.

She observed that non-Asian students had a lot of disdain towards the locals.

I like Paly’s block schedule much better than Gunn’s schedule, because I now have less work to do on every night. I also feel like the teachers know how to teach for the entire hour and a half, which is great.

Luma Hamade Junior

“Compared to my old school, I think that Paly is more academically rigorous,” Huang said. “Everyone works really hard. Also, transferring here has been difficult, mostly because it is my junior year, but also because it is Palo Alto. Palo Alto is very special, not in a bad way, but just that it is in its own little bubble.”

Although some may want familiarity, especially students who have had to transfer against their will, many transfers like the fresh start.

When asked if they would transfer back if given the chance, Poivet, Hamade and Huang all said “no”.

“It is important to put yourself in situations that you might not be super comfortable in,” Huang said.

“Transferring schools is a perfect opportunity for that.”

Courtesy of Gordon Craig

Stinky Cheese Man, played by Daniel Cottrell, is saved during a scene in the play.

Coby Parker

Editor-in-chief

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he most recent Palo Alto High School theater department production, “The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales,” is a great play for a young audience it aims for, yet leaves something to be desired for those accompanying a child.

The play, which is based on the children’s’ book of the same name, features a novel take on classic fairy tales. Most of the stories chosen do not have happy endings and make fun of fairy tales for their unrealistic view of the world.

Although most of the comedy is directed at a young audience with slapstick humor as well a fair amount of flatulence jokes, there are some humoristic elements that play on sexual innuendo that is mostly for an older audience. The high pitched voices, however appealing they are for a young kid, make the show almost impossible to watch without getting a headache, and even harder to understand at some points.

Sophomore Daniel Cottrell, the lead role, uses his talent in ballet for some incredible entrances and exits from the stage.

Another lead, sophomore Peter Maroulis, plays Foxy Loxy, the parttime narrator and role in one of the

sub-plot stories. Maroulis is able to make an entertaining character out of the fox, humorously attempting to eat different characters in stages throughout the play.

The full-time narrator, Jack from “Jack and the Beanstalk”, is played by sophomore Jackson Kienitz. Kienitz’s character is able to weave the play into one unified storyline instead of a conglomerate of seemingly unrelated stories. Kienitz’s character also shares a love affair with another character, a plot point sure to interest those in all age groups.

The play features stunning visual effects which are incredibly well done by the production crews. An especially well-orchestrated visual effect exists in the rewind idea, in which flickering lights and characters moving backwards simulates a rewind on an old-timey television set.

Director Tony Kienitz and wife Tanna Herr (producer) are a local couple and founders of A Theatre Near U, a Palo Alto theatre company.

Both are able to implement off-script acting and a visually appealing set to their advantage, doing so excellently.

The Stinky Cheese Man ran for two days in the Paly Theater, on Saturday, Oct. 4 and on Sunday, Oct. 5.

The next production by the is Server of Two Masters, which will have its first show on Thursday, Nov. 13.

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

LIFESTYLE B3 Aphex Twin breaks 13-year Do-It-Yourself Halloween Get into the Halloween spirit with ideas and step-by-step directions of to get involved in the upcoming, haunted holiday Masha Konkov

Staff writer

Carissa zou

staff writer

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here is no better way to celebrate fall than to get into the Halloween spirit with all your friends and family. That means scary decorations, fun costumes and autumn drinks all coming together on Oct. 31.

Take some time away from the textbooks and spend this year’s Halloween night to relieve your stress from school and have a little bit of frightening fun. Here are our tips to make your Halloween experience a little more interesting this year.

Pumpkin Carving

One of the most exciting components of Halloween is pumpkin carving; over the years, the beautiful yet spooky end product, a jack-o’-lantern, has become a Halloween classic.

The process of creating these illuminated decorations is fairly simple and anyone can personalize their pumpkins with their own creative twists. The range of designs that you can experiment with are endless. You can go with the original but classy triangular eyes on top of an open mouth filled with crooked teeth, or you can be a little more adventurous with silhouettes of spider webs, ghosts and graveyards. At the same time, your pumpkin does not necessarily have to be scary. In fact, you can take a more playful approach by carving out cartoon characters or a simple array of shapes, whatever design may appeal to you.

All you really need to create a jacko’-lantern is a pumpkin, a knife and a creative vision of what you want your final product to look like and you will surely make something that will make a great addition to the Halloween decorations circulating your house. But in general, here are our tips to help you make the best jack-o’-lantern yet.

When picking out a pumpkin, find a larger pumpkin that does not have any bruises. Larger pumpkins are typically easier to work with and bruises and mold are usually clear indicators that your pumpkin is about to spoil.

Remember to cut the lid of your pumpkin at a 45 degree angle so your lid has a place to rest and will not just fall through the hole.

If you want your pumpkin to last longer, think about soaking the pumpkin in a solution of bleach and water (one teaspoon of bleach in one gallon of water) and then letting it dry.

If your pumpkin begins to shrivel up, rub both the interior and exterior with petroleum jelly or olive oil to give it a little more moisture.

When you begin to carve the pumpkin itself, draw the design on a separate sheet of paper and then cut and tape the design onto the pumpkin. That way, you can keep track of your lines and make sure that your jack-o’-lantern turns out somewhat similar to the way you had hoped.

Before you light up your jack-o’lantern, sprinkle the bottom side of the lid with cinnamon, nutmeg or cloves so that your jack-o’-lantern can also serve as an air freshener and bring that fresh fall scent.

Places to Go

Halloween falls on a Friday this year, giving people the opportunity to spend the entire weekend celebrating,

but most teenagers are skeptical about trick-or-treating because of its reputation as a juvenile activity. No need to fret, there are numerous other ways to make this Halloween one of the best yet! From having a horror movie night with your friends, to walking through frightening mazes at Great America’s annual Halloween Haunt, there are definitely a plethora of spooky activities that you can partake in to make this Halloween particularly special.

The Halloween excitement can start on screen as early as Oct. 19, with ABC Family’s “13 Nights of Halloween”. Although most of the movies are not the type to make you jump out of your seat, the 2014 lineup includes favorites like “Casper”, “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Coraline”. For those looking for a little bit of heart-stopping terror, some titles guaranteed to freak you out are “Nightmare on Elm Street”, “Friday the 13th” and “The Shining”.

Great America’s Halloween Haunt is also open every Friday, Saturday and Sunday night until Halloween and the terrifying mazes and scare zones are not something you and your friends want to miss.

If you want to stay home, just invite your friends over and break out an Ouija board.

This wooden “spirit board” is marked with letters, numbers and greetings that are used to indicate the spirits’ messages.

Although it can seem silly, light some candles and hold a seance to connect with some spirits, and it will definitely turn into a creepy experience you will not forget.

But Halloween does not always have to entail fearful activities. You can always take your family to a local pumpkin patch and get into the fall spirit by picking out a variety of pumpkins to decorate your front porch. Halloween marks the beginning of the holiday season, which is centralized around spending time with your family, so be sure to include them as you embark on whichever Halloween adventure you choose. If you are not up for that, you can always show your school spirit and cheer on the Vikings at the Homecoming football game on Halloween night.

Halloween Food & Drinks Pumpkin Spice Latte

The cult, fall-favorite pumpkin spice latte is back in season at Starbucks, but believe it or not, there is actually no pumpkin in the beverage, just a load of artificial flavoring. And with each cup costing over three dollars, the fall beverage addiction is going to add up. Check out this do-it-yourself pumpkin spice latte recipe: 1) Whisk ½ cup milk, 1 tablespoon pumpkin puree, one teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract in a saucepan on low heat for five minutes. After mixture begins to simmer, whisk in remaining ½ cup of milk and one tablespoon of sugar, preferably brown sugar. You can also add ⅓ cup of flavored coffee creamer if you like your caffeine diluted.

2) If possible, pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer to get rid

of the chunks of pumpkin that may still be left. Then whisk the smooth mixture for two more minutes. Add ¼ cup of brewed coffee or espresso.

3) Top off your beverage with whipped cream, a pinch of pumpkin spice and a dash of nutmeg or cinnamon. Enjoy!

All ingredients can be purchased at Trader Joe’s, so try out this delicious recipe and save some money this fall.

Candy Apples

Candy apples are the epitome of fall and we all have heaps of leftover candy after Halloween. Try out this twist on traditional caramel apples with your favorite candies and chocolates!

1) Wash and dry a granny smith apple, remove its stem and insert craft sticks into the stem.

2) Place ¼ of a cup heavy whipping cream and one bag of soft caramel candies in a saucepan, heat on low-medium while stirring till the caramels have melted into a smooth mixture.

3) Crush up Kit Kat, Twix and Heath bars, place in shallow bowl.

Also prepare gummy worms and M&M’s.

4) Hold an apple by its stick over the saucepan and spoon caramel over apple to coat. If the caramel gets too stiff, reheat it for a minute to smooth.

5) Press candy and chocolate onto apple, pressing to help candy stick.

When your apple is covered to the desired amount, place apple (stick side up) on a baking sheet. Let apples stand for about 10 minutes till they have fully cooled. Apples can also be refrigerated for a few days, but remember to bring to room temperature before eating.

Decorate Your House

Halloween just is not quite the same if you do not decorate the outside of your house with a collection of tangled cobwebs, hairy fake spiders, luminescent jack-o’lanterns and a few aged tombstones.

Instead of spending money buying new decorations that you will probably only use once a year, try to made do with your everyday household objects.

Cobwebs? Find your family’s stash of cotton balls and start pulling those cotton fibers apart. To connect two frayed cotton balls together, use sticky hairspray to connect the pieces of cotton together and continue to add on. You can also make paper spiders to add onto your web creation. For tombstones, find a large piece of Styrofoam and cut it into a rectangular shape. Then, use a stencil to etch into the Styrofoam the letters of a spooky name and spray paint the Styrofoam with some dark, mysterious colors.

Last but not least, the classic jacko’-lantern. Though it might cost you some to buy the pumpkin itself, this investment is definitely worth it. Not only is it a blast to create the jack-o’lantern itself, but it is always an excellent final touch to your decorations.

Check out our pumpkin carving tips and with a pumpkin, candle and knife, you are good to go.

The best way to make this fall a lasting memory is to incorporate all the various aspects of Halloween into one spooky, but amazing night. Take the time to utilize our advice and prepare your jack-o’-lantern, decorations, food and activities that will make this year’s Halloween one that you will always remember.

silence with release of Syro

New album original electronic, avoids repetition Chris Skoskowski

Senior staff Writer

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phex Twin, or Richard D. James, one of the most influential figures in electronic music, broke his 13-year streak without an album this September with Syro.

James changed the course of modern music during the ‘90s with a series of critically acclaimed and commercially successful albums that diverged from typical electronic selections through the use of ambient sounds, vocals without words, and generally unconventional sounds and beats.

Other artists including Radiohead, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Daft Punk have cited him as an influence and inspiration. His music has been featured in commercials put out by the US government, played by the London Sinfonietta, sampled by Kanye West and featured consistently on top lists for music not only for the decade, but of all time.

The variety of sounds within each track allows each song to stand alone easily, though the overall ambience of the album still holds it together despite the presence of very different sounds.

During the past 13 years without any new music, at least under the Aphex Twin name, James still stood alone with his style. Though many could claim influence from him, his bizarre, looping tracks remained as unique as they were when they were first released. James often cited himself as his sole influence, and the inability of others to follow in his footsteps has only served to strengthen his claim.

It is more than likely that James pulled back from the musical scene so that he could reappear in a much grander fashion. After years of releasing under false names and DJing anonymously, it seems fitting that James showed his logo for the first time in years by flying it above London on the side of a blimp.

So, now that Syro is here, after a wait so long that probably no one in high school knew who Aphex Twin was at the release of his last album, does it live up to to the hype? Well, in a similar fashion to the rest of his releases, James has delivered yet another album that sounds like no one else could possibly have made it.

James’ creative touch is obvious from the start simply from glancing at song titles The album’s 12 tracks all have names derived from the names of the machines James uses, which are all seemingly random combinations of letters, for example: 4 bit 9d api+e+6 [126.6] is a favorite.

But moving past the names, the tracks are just as bizarrely unique.

Every song on the album sounds like it came out of a ‘90s time machine even when the sounds and techniques James uses would not have been possible on technology from that era.

Though songs may reach lengths of nearly 11 minutes, they avoid being repetitive, a trait that electronic music now is so often criticized for.

The variety of sounds within each track allows each song to stand alone easily, though the overall ambience of the album still holds it together despite the presence of very different sounds.

James has never disappointed with an album under his Aphex Twin name, and Syro will not be the album to break the trend. The album only serves to show how well his signature style has aged, and yet how willing he is to attempt new things even after all the success he has found.

Underground rap concert a hit, performance exhilarating SesHollowWaterBoyz’ San Francisco concert entertaining and intense, crowd animated Danny Hammerson

Staff Writer

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h e f a c t i o n o f SesHollowWaterBoyz consists of rap groups TeamSesh, Water Boyz, Hollow Squad and Healthy Boyz. Including rap artists by the names of Bones, Chris Travis, Xavier Wulf and Eddy Baker, all of these artists are very apparent in the underground rap music scene today.

Though the show and its crowd did not have a mosh as active as if you were at a punk or metal show, it was quite an impressive and motivated show, especially for rap music.

Bones is the leader of his own crew, Teamsesh who are upcoming rap group from the Los Angeles area.

Xavier Wulf is a former member of the Miami rap group Raider Klan, and is currently is the leader of his own group, Hollow Squad. Chris Travis is a rapper from Memphis, who leads the group Waterboyz. Eddy Baker is a rapper from Ontario who proudly represents his crew, Healthy Boyz. On Friday, Sept. 26 they played a show at the DNA Lounge in San Francisco.

The show itself was a very live, amped up performance partly due to the artists themselves with a majority of the credit going to the very ener-

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gized and animated crowd members.

The show was quite entertaining but even though it was a group show, there seemed to be a main focus on Eddy Baker. However, the concert could have used more solo tracks performed by Chris Travis and Bones.

The crowd started multiple moshpits in the end resulting in synchronized movement by the entire, packed crowd. The show itself got so intense and electrified that at different moments in the night, a couple of fights broke out. Security took both involved in the fights out of the crowd, then the mosh continued. Besides the interruptions because of these fights, the show was a consistent mosh for a little over three hours.

Though the show and its crowd did not have a mosh as active as if you were at a punk or metal show, it was quite an impressive and motivated show, especially for rap music. The elusive Bones could not be reached for his opinion on how the show went, but the audience’s reactions were quite favorable of both Bones’s performance and on the concert overall.

The show itself was very impressive, even though the venue was small. Though normally I would not be a fan of such a small venue, it fit the show quite well. Overall the show was quite an interesting, memorable time that I would like to experience again. I would easily recommend to anyone attending a similar show in the future.

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

B4

The Campanile

SPOTLIGHT

Monday, October 13, 2014

B5

SPOTLIGHT

ARE TOP TIER COLLEGES

WORTH IT?

tanford. Harvard. Yale. Princeton. Columbia.

“Since I am the first in our family to grow up in AmerThese prestigious, top ranked universities are ica, they expect me to get into a great college,” an anonypopular among the top of Palo Alto High mous junior said. “Literally, whenever I see them, all [my School seniors’ college lists. The pressure of extended family members] talk about is making it easy on being accepted into, and attending top tier my parents and [putting] all my effort into school to go colleges is common, especially in Silicon Valley where we to a good college.” are surrounded by some of the nation’s brightest youth.

So the question stands: is all the fuss and the pressure A survey of 159 current and former Paly students was truly worth it? Students, parents and teachers alike are conducted evaluating pressures regarding the college ap- divided over the subject. The answer to this question may plication process. Students were asked how much pres- lie in the investigation of education, environment and the sure, on a scale of one to 10, they feel or felt to get into a out of school and postgraduate opportunities provided by high ranking college. With one being little pressure and top ranked colleges.

10 being extreme pressure, 84 percent of the students marked a seven or above. Twenty six percent of students attributed the biggest source of this pressure to their parents, 47 percent attributed it to themselves and 37 perhe importance of education is almost common cent attributed it to their peers. sense in today’s society. It is widely recognized “The atmosphere at Paly is overall competitive,” an that education is usually a vital step on the path anonymous sophomore said. “One will constantly come towards one’s goals. Students are encouraged into contact with other students who are drowning in to graduate high school, and continue with workload solely to have the highest GPA. I have noticed some sort of postgraduate degree, whether it be the tradithat my peers focus more on acceptance into ‘name brand’ tional four year college, trade schools or public service. or reputable universities than personal happiness.”

With so many students attending college in pursuit Junior Matthew of furthering their Seligson noted that education in addifellow students prition to all the presoritize the surface sure to be accepted values and advanto top tier colleges, tages of academic one must wonder success, good grades whether the rankand extracurriculars ing of a school is a over doing sometrue indicator of the thing they truly care quality of education about in order to get one receives from a into college. school, and whether “They don’t seem the gap in the qualgenuinely passionate ity of education about the instrument between higher they play or the out and lower ranked of country service schools, should it projects they parexist, is truly signifiticipate in,” Seligson cant. said. “Everything in Generally, the their lives appears ranking of a school to be dedicated to is decided by the building a profile so annual release of they look good on the U.S. News and CHARLOTTE MUNGER (‘14), STANFORD UNIVERSITY paper.”

World Report “NaMany students tional University feel as if acceptance Rankings”. Accordinto college is an all ing to their website, or nothing situation. At Paly, the culture surrounding col- the U.S. News and World Report’s ranking system relies lege makes it seem as if all the effort students are putting on “quantitative measures that education experts have in is to reach the ultimate goal of getting into a good col- proposed as reliable indicators of academic quality, and lege. Either you are accepted into an elite school and have [they are] based on [their] researched view of what matreached this “success,” or you simply do not get in, and all ters in education.” The U.S. News and World Report does the countless times you stayed up into the early hours to acknowledge that there are more factors than academic finish homework, run club errands or write your college quality which may affect one’s experience at a certain colapplications were a waste. lege, but academic quality is the only factor which is easily “To me, high school is only a means towards college measured with data. and ultimately a good job,” an anonymous junior said. “If That being said, if academic quality is the main factor I put the time in during high school, but don’t get into a taken into account, the ranking of a school should cortop college, I’m probably going to feel either like I com- relate with the quality of education one receives at that pletely blew it or that working hard in high school was a institution. However, many Paly alumni who attend top waste of my time.” ranking colleges do not seem to agree with this statement.

For others, much of the pressure comes from their For example, Paly alumnus Charlotte Munger (‘14), families. Some have parents or siblings who have attend- a student of Stanford University, believes that while top ed elite schools. Others believe that getting into a good ranked colleges may have certain benefits, the ranking of school will make up for all the time and hard work their a college is not indicative of the quality of education proparents have invested in them. vided.

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EDUCATION

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“I feel that the greatest dif-

ferences between attending a name-brand college with a large endowment and a lesser known college are the number of events held and guest speakers that come to campus, not the quality of the education itself.”

STATISTICS FROM PALY STUDENTS

“I feel that the greatest differences between attending a name-brand college with a large endowment and a lesser known college are the number of events held and guest speakers that come to campus, not the quality of the education itself,” Munger said.

Paly alumni Malaika Drebin (‘10), a recent graduate of Brown University, agrees with Munger and adds that what a student gets out of their education ultimately depends on the effort he or she puts into their own education, not the ranking of their school.

“Attending a private university such as Brown certainly has its advantages but I don’t think the quality of education is much different from that of a public university or lesser-known school,” Drebin said. “The value of your education depends much more on what you put into it.”

Professors are a key part of the quality of the education college students receive, as after all, they are the ones who design the curriculum and instruct students in the classroom. Paly English teacher Mimi Park feels that while higher ranked colleges may attract the professors which are at the top of their field, this may not directly correlate to better teaching in the classroom, or student to professor relationships.

“Top-ranked colleges attract the big names, the professors who are at the top of their fields,” Park said. “That said, it’s also likely that those big names are doing their own research, and may not have as much time to teach as many classes, or they may teach large classes and you never get to know them on a one-on-one level. And some of those big names are brilliant in their fields, but not great teachers. There’s a difference.”

An anonymous Paly teacher agrees with Park, having noticed the same trend of “Publish or Perish”, professors prioritizing private research projects as opposed to teaching, in order to keep a stable career.

“In my experience many professors are under the pressure of ‘Publish or Perish’ and their research takes priority to their teaching,” anonymous teacher said. “That does not translate well to students who are there to be guided through the next level of their education.”

Nonetheless, Drebin’s experience with professors at Brown has been quite positive, as she noticed that professors still took time to support their students although they might have been at the top of their fields.

“At Brown, my professors were very much focused on teaching and enabling us to succeed, without exception,” Drebin said. “The professors I worked with were extremely qualified and wellregarded in their fields, but went out of their way to ensure we felt supported and engaged. I had nothing but positive experiences with the quality of instruction at Brown.”

Paly alumni Paula Wu (‘07), a current graduate student at Yale added that professors at her school are not only qualified but also easier to reach out to, and more willing to assist students than the professors she met at the school she attended for her undergraduate degree, UCLA, which is also lower ranked than Yale.

“On average, the professors I have met [at Yale] are more intelligent, better accomplished, and more caring

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Ultimately, Song believes that the pressure created by the newer, more competitive environment can affect students either positively or negatively. She believes that this depends upon a specific person and how they respond to the new environment.

“This can affect you in a positive way because it might motivate you more, in might encourage you, it might humble you, and that’s very good for you as a person,” Song said. “In a negative way it might make you think that you need to do this and that to get on top again, that you’re not qualified for certain things, or that you’re inadequate because there are clubs that you don’t get into, or you are getting grades that you never used to get.”

Paly alumnus Stephenie Zhang (‘14), a current student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) agrees with Song in the idea that these students in top ranked colleges used to be the top of their respective high schools, but that this new environment, with peers just as talented as they are, may feel very different. Zhang feels that this new environment pushes students to grow and fosters collaboration between students.

“MIT is difficult, and most, if not all, of these students have always been the students others turn to for help, and for that to no longer happen is a different and unusual feeling,” Zhang said. “But the reason I chose to go here is because I’d be surrounded by a group of motivated and diverse students who could push me to grow. From what I’ve seen and experienced, it’s not necessarily competition that is driving us, or at least not in a negative way. You collaborate instead of compete.”

Even so, while competition can push students to excel, surveys of the mental health of students at these higher ranked colleges have shown that this competition can have negative impacts as well, creating high stress situations for students. For example, in a survey taken by the Harvard Crimson in 2003, almost 50 percent of the Harvard student body had felt depressed during that academic year, and nearly 10 percent of the undergraduate students had contemplated suicide.

The Dean of Harvard at the time, Harry R. Lewis, believed that the high numbers of depressed students were definitely influenced by demanding work ethic and high stress levels.

“Certainly I am not surprised by the generally high levels of reported stress and depression,” Lewis said in an e-mail to the Crimson. “I do think that students expect too much of themselves and sometimes take too much on.”

Drebin agrees with Lewis that students may expect too much of themselves and hold them to high standards they may not be able to meet, which may discourage many students and negatively impact their mental health.

“For high achieving students, college might be MALAIKA DREBIN (‘10), BROWN UNIVERSITY the first time they’ve ever really bombed a test or received a below average grade in a class, and this can cause a lot of anxiety and panic,” Drebin said.

“I think a lot of these mental health issues come Deresiewicz argues in his article that top ranked colleg- from students holding themselves to impossibly high es do a poor job of teaching their students how to “think”, standards, which they inevitably fail to meet.” that altwhough these institutions may say otherwise, they The level of stress and competition are not the only really only train their students in career preparation skills. aspects of the student body and environment of a col“Elite schools like to boast that they teach their stu- lege which may affect the experience of a student — the dents how to think, but all they mean is that they train diversity of a school’s student body, whether it be racial, them in the analytic and rhetorical skills that are necessary gender, or socioeconomic diversity, can impact one’s exfor success in business and the professions,” Deresiewicz periences with their peers and overall outlook on life. said.

Park agrees that diversity of a student body impacts However, Park thinks that the analytical and rhetori- students, and that too many similarities in the backcal skills mentioned by Deresiewicz are necessary to teach grounds of students may even be restricting. students how to think, and that the two should not be “[Diversity is] absolutely important, in the sense that separated. diversity means a lot of different things,” Park said. “Not “To me, effective analytical and rhetorical skills are only economically or racially diverse, but also gender ditied in very closely to learning how to think,” Park said. verse. Diverse in terms of interests and experiences. Be“Analysis is about looking at a problem, taking it apart, ing around people of similar interests or backgrounds is understanding it and finding the most effective solutions. comforting, but it can be very limiting as well.”

Rhetoric is taking those solutions or your insights and Wu believes that due to the selectivity of higher sharing it with others. Maybe rhetorical strategies are the ranked colleges, the diversity of the student body at those vehicles for original thinking, but it’s too simplistic to say schools is severely limited. those are two separate things.”

“Private colleges are less diverse, for sure,” Wu said.

“This is an unfortunate reflection of the fact that fewer minorities come to college academically qualified to perform at the high level that Ivy Leagues require.”

Paly alumni Kat Musen (‘14), a student at Swartht is no secret that higher ranked colleges are more College, agrees with the importance of diversity in more selective, a lot of the time they are ableto a student body, but disagrees with Wu as she believes that be so selective due to their ranking. Most higher higher ranked private colleges ensure diversity in their ranked colleges are also private colleges, which student bodies by instituting programs to harbor diversity. tend to have smaller class sizes and campuses. A “Private colleges and universities, however, are under more selective admissions process usually leads to more such restrictions and many have instituted programs to competition between applicants, and a more achieved, well increase diversity on campus,” Musen said. “I wanted to rounded student body, due to the acceptance of the bright- go to a school that values diversity because I believe that est applicants. diversity broadens one’s understanding of different perPaly alumni Soo Song (‘13), a current student at UC spectives and adds value to an undergraduate education.”

Berkeley, acknowledges the fact that top ranked schools Zhang also feels that her school is diverse, and that are more competitive, and that she believes this competi- top ranked schools have a large enough applicant pool to tion may cause students to feel discouraged. make sure that they can achieve the balance of students “Obviously when you go to a top ranked school, it is they deem diverse. going to be very competitive,” Song said. “Often times “I actually find the diversity here at MIT quite reyou’re really stunned by how many amazing people there freshing; you’ll find people of all different races, gender, are around you, who used to all be student body presi- ethnicities, socioeconomic class, geographic locations, dents, who have worked at NASA, who are really amaz- among other factors, and I believe it’s because these ing and have come from schools where they used to be schools try hard to create a level of diversity that engenat the top. And that’s why when you get to a school with ders not only academic learning, but cultural and social so many top students, people feel discouraged, inherently, discovery as well,” Zhang said. “Also, these schools defibecause they don’t feel as on top of things as they used nitely have the applicant pool to form the balance they to.” so desire.”

might be the first time they’ve ever really bombed a test or received a below average grade in a class, and this can cause a lot of anxiety and panic. I think a lot of these mental health issues come from students holding themselves to impossibly high standards, which they inevitably fail to meet.”

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about mentorship than any I met at UCLA,” said Wu. “It’s not just about academic prowess, but also capacity for teaching and mentorship — I’ve met countless professors here who have taken me under their wing and taken the time to chat with me about my life and ideals. This type of interaction and opportunity for personal and intellectual growth would have been unheard of at UCLA.” William Deresiewicz, author of the New Republic article “Don’t send your kid to the Ivy League,” argues that college is the best time for professors to not only teach students career preparation skills, but to teach students how to think and how to build a self and a soul.

“There’s something in particular you need to think about: building a self,” Deresiewicz said in his article. “The notion may sound strange. ‘We’ve taught them,’ David Foster Wallace once said, ‘that a self is something you just have.’ But it is only through the act of establishing communication between the mind and the heart, the mind and experience, that you become an individual, a unique being — a soul. The job of college is to assist you to begin to do that.”

Park agrees with Deresiewicz in that building a self and soul is essential for success in a student’s post college endeavors, that students should be learning skills outside of a single field.

“I think that having a strong sense of who one is is actually quite important to being successful in whatever field a student ends up [in], especially as people can encounter setbacks in pretty much any field,” Park said. “It’s so important to teach our students how to adapt, and teach them skills that are transferable across professions, rather than one very narrow content field.”

“For high achieving students, college

other

“On a scale of 1 to 10, how much pressure do you feel to get into a top tier college?”

At Palo Alto High School, many students feel pressure to be accepted to and attend top-tier collegeS. Through the analysis of education quality, school environment and post-school opportunities, the value of the experience that comes with attending such colleges is evaluated.

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Top TIER U.S Colleges

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY

HARVARD UNIVERSITY

YALE UNIVERSITY

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

STANFORD UNIVERSITY

UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO

OPPORTUNITIES ut of school opportunities, including anything from career fairs and internships to alumni networks, are viewed by most as a chance for students to get experience in the “real world,” to prepare students for their postgraduate endeavors outside of the college environment.

While Zhang admits that the terms “highly ranked” and “well endowed” are not synonymous, she believed that highly ranked schools tend to be the most endowed, and provide their students with loads of networking opportunities with prestigious companies.

“I don’t want to equate highly ranked with well-endowed,” Zhang said. “But, well-endowed schools, which are typically the more renowned and higher ranked schools, tend to have more networking opportunities and resources because of their large alumni base. For example, MIT recently held a career fair, where they brought in companies from all different areas, a myriad of big name companies as well as startups.”

Nonetheless, Zhang does not believe that such resources are solely limited to higher ranked schools, just that there may be a difference in the amount and quality of opportunities between differently ranked schools.

“I’m sure all schools provide their students with opportunities and resources, it’s just a matter of how many and the level and quality of the opportunities and resources,” Zhang said.

Song also believes that are out of school opportunities no matter what college you go to, the only difference being that students at higher ranking colleges are more willing to capitalize off of these opportunities.

“I guess the biggest difference between a higher tier school and a lower tier school is that there are just more people who are probably willing to capitalize off of those opportunities, people who are more willing to be proactive and go out there,” Song says.

Wu states that the level of opportunities and resources were little during her time at UCLA, which resulted in an increased level of competition over these resources.

“UCLA, due to its high concentration of intelligent students and its low resources, was far more cut throat,” Wu said.

MIMI PARK, PALY Lastly, many contemplate whether the ranking of a college one attends can go as far as to impact one’s lives after he or she has graduated, as he or she goes on to pursue postgraduate opportunities.

Many wonder whether having the name of a prestigious college on one’s resume presents an advantage.

Drebin believes that although her school’s name gave her an advantage, the name of her a school does not guarantee a student success.

“I certainly think my school’s reputation was an advantage when I was applying to jobs,” Drebin said. “However, a Brown degree doesn’t guarantee that I will ultimately be more successful than any student with the same degree from a lower-ranked college.”

Zhang believes that the amount of effect the name of a prestigious school can have on one’s resume varies from field to field, but that the name can never hurt. She also adds that there are various other factors taken into account on one’s resume as well.

O

“Whether having the brand name of a top ranked college [helps] with future endeavors all depends on the field you choose to pursue, but having the brand name of a renowned school can only help your resume,” Zhang said.

“But that is not to say that the name of the school is the only thing that matters, because there are so many other factors: student performance, work experience, among others, that are taken into account.”

Paly math teacher Arne Lim believes that the school one attends, especially for their undergraduate degree, ultimately does not make a huge impact on their future careers.

He believes that the experience one gains through work is more important.

“I believe that the institution at which you earn your undergraduate degree does not matter nearly as much as one might believe,” Lim said. “When one completes an undergraduate degree, there is an assumed amount of knowledge and skills that one has acquired during the past few years.

But both of those can be learned on the job site, too. What makes a bigger difference later on is experience.”

IT’S UP TO YOU o, is all the fuss and the pressure regarding top colleges truly worth it? This question remains somewhat unanswered, for no response will ever satisfy every possible circumstance. When selecting a college to attend, one must evaluate the various components that make up this higher education: education quality, school environment and out of school and postgraduate opportunities.

Every student will thrive in a different type of school, which will had a different combination of the three factors listed above. Students should identify what balance of the three factors work for them in the long run.

“College is a match, not a reward,” Lim said. “What is appropriate for one person may not be appropriate for another. Some students may better suited for a college rather than a university. There are so many factors involved in finding a match.”

Lim believes that there are many options of schools for students to attend, and that while sorting through these schools may take time, and that there ENGLISH TEACHER are many factors involved in finding the right fit of a college for a student, the education and experience one receives at their match school will be worth it.

“There are over 4000 colleges and universities in the U.S. alone, and I can only think of two that are not good,” Lim said. “Finding the right match may take some time, but it’s time well-spent.”

Ultimately, it is up to the student to make the most of their education and experience in college. A student can attend a prestigious school and make no effort, or attend a lower ranked school and make the most of all the resources they are presented, the fruits of their labor depend upon their own efforts.

“All colleges can give you are tools that you use and capitalize upon,” Park said. “Schools can help students on their paths to whatever career success they want, but the schools can only get you so far — it’s up to the students to take it the rest of the way.”

S

“All colleges can give you are

tools that you use and capitalize upon. Schools can help students on their paths to whatever career success they want, but the schools can only get you so far— it’s uP to the students to take it the rest of the way.”

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

Technology B6 GoPro releases two new versions of the HERO The new camera provides cutting edge 4K video and is available in two colors, each with unique features Owen Staiger

Senior Staff Writer

I

f you have been skiing anytime in the last five years, chances are you have noticed various novices with a strange small box attached to their helmets. These magical boxes are GoPros; small, easily attachable, versatile and indestructable cameras that the common consumer can use to record anything and everything.

Since its original HERO model four years ago, GoPro has been successful through easily marketable high quality videos that give the average Joe the hopes of becoming a pro.

Users’ edited GoPro videos have been easy advertising for the company. Much like wearing a shirt with a large brand name on it, viral videos on the internet have paved the way for the company’s success. Everyone loves to film themselves engaging in fun and different activities, and GoPro allows users to capture interesting moments of themselves that were not previously capturable. GoPro users usually keep the camera running in order to increase the likelihood of capturing a crazy moment.

GoPro released the HERO4 on Oct. 5 in two colors, silver and black.

The black model costs $100 more than the silver and not just becasue of the color change. The HERO4 black camera boasts cutting edge quality

shooting 4K video at 30 frames per second (fps) and 1080p video at 120 fps. 4K video refers to the resolution at which the footage was captured at. Chances are, you haven’t seen 4K video since the average monitor does not display such a high resolution.

All of this capture power is stored in a camera that can fit in the palm of your hand.

Both new versions of the GoPro HERO series have many new features. The most obvious being a touchscreen menu attached to the back of the camera where users can navigate through new and improved advanced capture settings, as well as view their content.

If users don’t want to look at their content on the camera, they can instead connect to the GoPro app for smartphones through WiFi or Bluetooth. The connectivity feature also works for a remote that can activate the GoPro from distances up to two football fields away, approximately 600 feet.

Another cutting-edge feature is the HiLight Tag. In order to easily find radical, yet casual triple-cork during long filming session at Tahoe, GoPro has allowed users to apply a “tag” to special moments. Most GoPro users choose to edit their footage so they can show their coworkers or classmates how hip they are. With this new advancement, it will be

Courtesy of techradar

The new GoPro HERO4 black features a higher quality camera, with 4k video at 30 frames per second and 1080p video.

much easier to make musical compilations of best tricks as one can now quickly jump to HiLighted moments.

GoPro’s diverse attachment arsenal is another part of the camera.

Users can mount a GoPro on almost anything, including a dog, which allows for many different angles and creative filming techniques. Some users have fashioned their own attachments.

A popular do-it-yourself mount is one where helicopter-like rotors are attached atop a user’s helmet and the camera is pointed inward at the user’s head. This creates a 360 degree pan

Oculus VR will release Rift

The gaming headset brings Oculus users into a new virtual world Miranda Chen

Staff Writer

I think that the Rift and [Virtual Reality] itself will dramatically shake up the game industry and present a new platform for developers to work with Elias Fedel.

Elias Fedel Junior

Carmack is excited for the release of the Rift and hopes that Virtual Reality in general will become more widespread as a new technology.

“I believe that [virtual realty] will have a huge impact in the coming years, but everyone working today is a pioneer,” Carmack said on Oculus VR’s website. “The paradigms that everyone will take for granted in the future are being figured out today; probably by people reading this message. [The Rift] certainly [is] not there yet. There is a lot more work to do, and there are problems we don’t even know about that will need to be solved, but I am eager to work on them.”

Junior Elias Fedel looks forward to the release of the innovative Oculus Rift and is optimistic about the changes it will bring into the industries of gaming and technology.

“I love playing video games, and they’re really ingrained into my rou-

dropped 11 percent the day after the Woodmans announced their donation. Prior, GPRO experienced a 177 percent increase since the initial public offering.

Each year, the GoPro camera lines increase in quality. Historically, the camera quality has doubled in fps with the newly released HERO4 camera shooting 4K video at 30 fps in comparison to last year’s HERO3 shooting at 15 fps. Can we expect 60 fps 4K video next year? Only time will tell. In the meantime, the HERO4 packs plenty of exciting features that will turn average Joes into pros.

Google updates phones and tablets New offerings include Android L OS, Glass

W

ithin the next year, virtual reality technology company Oculus VR intends to release the highly-anticipated Oculus Rift, a gaming headset that claims to bring users closer to reality in a virtual world experience than ever before.

Oculus Rift is an innovative technology that employs positional tracking to track users’ head positions, a low persistence display to eliminate motion blur, a stereoscopic 3D view and a wide field of view to allow a more immersive video game experience for all gamers.

Oculus VR’s chief technology officer John Carmack recently attended a developer conference in Los Angeles and displayed the latest version of the Rift. While it is clear that serious technological challenges and obstacles remain for the new headset, Oculus VR is still evidently the closest company to producing a software that consumers can use to explore computer-generated, virtual environments in a new and unprecedented way that can make computergenerated worlds appear increasingly realistic.

around a user. Seeing someone with a helicopter helmet however, may not look so good.

All of these features have made founders Nicholas and Jill Woodman very wealthy. GoPro recently went public and experienced immense initial success. On the first of the month, the two married founders announced their plans to donate 5,821,739 shares of GPRO to charity. This requires them to bend the rules of their lock-up restriction that initially prohibited company insiders from selling their stocks until an adequate time had passed. The stock

Josh Ng

Staff writer

F

Courtesy of Business insider

Consumers using Oculus VR’s new Oculus Rift will have a virtual reality expereince.

tine,” Fedel said. “I think that the Rift and VR [Virtual Reality] itself will dramatically shake up the game industry and present a new platform for developers to work with. I think that users can literally be the player and can step into the game by using the Rift.”

Despite the excitement that users have for this product, Carmack has highlighted some of the issues with the Rift, addressing that many people who have tested the product have experienced motion sickness and that some technologies have not been fully developed in the Rift’s software, such as the possibility of tracking hand movements to bring users even closer into the virtual picture.

Even with the Oculus Rift’s new capabilities, some students believe that the new technology is not worth the hype that the product is getting.

“I think that the concept is really neat, and how you can get placed in a virtual world is awesome, but why do that when you can live out most of those visions in real life?” sophomore Timothy Liu said. “After all, it’s just a first person view of situations that someone can likely venture out and conduct on their own. I don’t think it’s worth the money.”

The attention that the Oculus Rift has brought into the technology world has not been ignored by tech

giant Facebook, which acquired Oculus VR in return for $2 billion in cash and Facebook stocks. Furthermore, the Rift is not the only product in the Virtual Reality industry, as Samsung has collaborated with Oculus VR, using software from the company in order to produce the Gear VR, a phone and headset that will cost over $1,000. Other products like the Morpheus, produced by Sony with a partnership with NASA, are also being produced.

There is a lot more work to do, and there are problems we don’t even know about that will need to be solved, but I am eager to work on them.

John Carmack Oculus VR CTO

Although not every gamer plans on buying the Rift once it is released, Oculus VR is definitely the closest company to reaching the virtual reality that many gamers hope will one day exist in all games.

“I think Oculus has finally gotten it right, as seen by people’s reactions to using the Rift,” Fedel said. “I hope it becomes successful, and I hope that the technology of [Virtual Reality] becomes an attainable reality.”

size, with a seven inch screen, it was considered relatively small for a tablet. Its supposed successor, the Nexus 9 — or Nexus 8 to some — has specifications that totally differentiate from its predecessors. The tablet, rumored to be manufactured by HTC instead of ASUS, will most likely have a better quad-HD (2560x1440 pixels), a nine inch screen, an updated processor by NVIDIA and the new Android L system.

or Google, fall is the season where it releases numerous products- both hardware and software- to show that the company is more than just a search engine.

Google’s Nexus line –– consisting of tablets and smartphones –– have stock Android as their software. In fall of 2013, Google came out with their Nexus 7 and Nexus 5 lines.

The Nexus 7 had its hardware built The Nexus 7 tablet was deemed

by ASUS, and the Nexus 5 had its one of the best tablets of the year hardware built by LG.

by CNET, one of the leading Google has also been working on tech websites on the internet. the software department for its products. Google’s mobile operating sysThe Nexus 5, Google’s flagship tem, Android, will be getting a new smartphone, was one update as well. The upof the cheapest smartdate, known simply as phones last year that Android L, will come had flagship worthy with a new design specifications.

Startscheme known as Maing from $350 off conterial. Material adds tract, the price enticed more detailed colors, users who wanted the depth to the shadows Android operating sysand a sleeker, simpler tem at a cheap price. look. Android L priIts rumored successor, oritizes users’ notificathe Nexus 6, will have tions by the applicaan abnormally large six tions he or she uses the inch screen- a similar most. Android L also screen size to that of includes small quirks Samsung’s Galaxy Note of its own. The lock line, a quad-HD screen screen, for example, and a Snapdragon’s latcan be unlocked withest quad-core processor. out a passcode using Flagship worthy specs the user’s home wifi.

Courtesy of Scott Webster make it a big competiThe update will add improvements to the A Nexus phone uses Android L. tor for Samsung and Android phone’s battery. Application Motorola to fend off.

Google Glass (Glass) is Google’s developers will be able to get their hands on tools supplied by Google to take on wearable technology. Glass control how an application affects a is speculated to be released in fall phone’s battery. A new Battery Saver of 2014. The head mounted dismode will be added with the update play allows users to use voice comthat allows users to control how ap- mands to control Glass, surf the inplications will be used, how bright ternet and call or text other peoples the display is and slow down a smart- smartphones. Glass has Android phone processor’s performance. An- elements integrated with it such as droid L is projected to be available Android’s application store, Google by the time its new Nexus line is re- Play. Google Glass was available for leased, however, a developers preview purchase on April 15, 2013 for select people known as “Glass Explorers”. is available right now.

The price of this wearable for “Glass Explorers” amounted to $1500 dolThe update will come with a lars, way too expensive for any normal new design scheme known as consumer purchase. Google hopes to Material. slash prices of Glass to a price that is similar to that of a smartphone.

Google has a product ready for The Nexus 7 tablet was deemed the best Android tablet of the year almost every category in technology,

by CNET, one of the leading tech from smartphones to wearables, for websites on the internet. Based on its consumers and technology developportability and performance for its ers alike.

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

Student life

B7 Paly student library celebrates Banned Books Week Annual Banned Books Week highlights the value of freedom to read material that could be considered controversial

bo field /The campanile

While some books are chosen to be censored or banned by certain schools and institutions, Paly chooses to make all material available in order to give students all possible access to all available literature.

Susana Cacho

Staff writer

W

hile walking through the library, a student notices a bookshelf covered in caution tape and books hidden in manila folders. The student stops and picks up a folder. As he opens it, he see the book, “Perks of Being a Wallflower”

by Stephen Chbosky. He immediately recognizes this book and stops to wonder why it is in this particular bookshelf. After a while he realizes that, it is Banned Books Week at Palo Alto High School.

Banned Books Week is an annual national event that runs during the last week of September.

This year, the event took place from Sept. 21-27. During this week, schools, libraries and bookstores fight against censorship and instead celebrate their freedom to read. Banned Books Week was first launched in 1982 in response to an increase of attempts to remove a number of books from schools and libraries.

Books are banned from schools by parents with the intention to protect students from unpopular, unorthodox

or difficult ideas and information put out by authors.

A couple examples of why books may be banned are because of their “inappropriate” sexual content or offensive language as judged by parents.

However, one should note there is a difference between a book that is banned and a book that is only challenged.

A challenged book is an attempt to remove the material based on objections from any number of people.

Meanwhile, a banned book is one which has been actually removed from a school’s curriculum or library.

What impact does this have on students and members of our community? According to Paly librarian Rachel Kellerman, banning a book limits students’ capacity to learn.

“When books are challenged or banned these ideas from different points of view are not part of the curriculum and a students’ educational opportunities diminish,” Kellerman said. “We live in a global society, so it is to everyone’s advantage to have all kinds of books available to all kinds of students not just in schools in Palo Alto but in Texas, and Illinois, and Florida too... everywhere really.”

In Palo Alto, students might wonder why Banned Books Week exists. Banned Books Week is all about celebrating the freedom to read. It is an opportunity in which students can take advantage of the literary opportunities they have.

“I like to call it Celebrate Your Freedom to Read week rather than Banned Books Week because that is what the week is really all about: making sure students have access to a wide range of ideas from a range of points of view,” Kellerman said.

When books are challenged or banned these ideas from different points of view are not part of the curriculum and a students’ educational opportunities diminish.

Rachel Kellerman PALY Librarian

Maybe you have or have not realized, but Paly is filled with banned books. You might have even read some of the books that have been challenged or even banned in your

Junior draws inspiration from HONY, documents life at Paly

English class. Some of these books have been banned and are no longer used in study or are no longer available in other schools for various reasons, but they are still available to the students at Paly.

“Everything we collect in the library has value to the academic and social and or emotional life of high school students and staff even though the ideas contained in the materials may be about difficult subjects or situations such as war “Slaughterhouse 5”, death “The Diary of Anne Frank”, alcoholism “The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian”, abuse “Speak”, injustice “To Kill a Mockingbird”, etc.,” Kellerman said.

Junior Kate Abed believes that the freedom to read is crucial despite the content, and people should be able to express their thoughts freely due to the right of freedom of speech provided by the Bill of Rights.

“I think it’s important to shed light on the controversy over banned books,” Abed said. “I also think it’s important to have freedom to read what you choose, regardless of what the text on the page says; writing is a form of free speech and it’s important to voice your own opinions.”

Banned Books Week is very significant at Paly, because students have the opportunity to read many books that students at other schools might not have the chance to read due to censorship.

“Ideas are considered speech and protected in this country by the 1st Amendment of our Constitution no matter where someone goes to school,” said Kellerman. “This is important because schools and curriculum in the USA are largely dictated by states and locally elected school boards. So, Paly may have a book that a school in another state/school district does not have.”

It may be a surprise to find out that there are even a few best-selling authors on the banned books list.

For example, Dav Pilkey, author of the “Captain Underpants” series, has been on the most frequently challenged books list of the 21st century.

According to challengers, the book has offensive language, is unsuited for age group and contains violence.

Next time, celebrate Banned Books Week by picking up a banned book and reading it. Take advantage of the opportunities that come with the freedom to read.

Jake’s Takes on “Purge: Anarchy” Purge sequel surpasses first movie by long shot jake van zyll

senior Staff writer

W dami bolarinwa/The campanile

courtesy of Joseph Kao

Left: HOPH creator Joseph Kao prepares to take a portrait. Right: Josh Code and Karina Chan pose for a HOPH portrait.

MIranda chen

Staff writer

“H

umans of New York” (HONY) is a social media phenomenon that has quickly grown into a deep, storytelling photoblog of the culture and people of the city of New York.

The page constantly posts pictures of people with captions explaining the experience of meeting the person or direct quotes. The page turns the lens on people who might otherwise go unnoticed. With HONY’s rising presence in social media, junior Joseph Kao has recently created “Humans of Paly High” (HOPH), a branch stemming from the “Humans of” movement and Internet phenomenon.

The success of HONY has influenced many students in schools across the U.S. to create similar pages inspired by the original “HONY” page—in the local Bay Area, Facebook pages such as “Humans of Saratoga High” and “Humans of Palo Alto” are also well-known and attract much attention from both students and entire communities over social media.

Kao is one of many students who has been inspired by HONY. His goal for his Facebook page is similar to that of Brandon Stanton’s, the creator of HONY, as he aims to portray the unique lives of those who form the student body of Paly.

“I created ‘Humans of Paly High’ because I wanted to show all the different and unique people at our school that others don’t get to see,” Kao said.

“Everyone has an interesting story to tell, and something that has impacted them immensely in their life.”

Kao hopes that his page will provide a medium like Facebook that will allow for all students to share their stories, and that HOPH can give faces, names and life chronicles that were previously hidden a place where they may be shown to the people of Paly.

“HOPH, one story at a time,” reads the “About” section of HOPH. “Dedicated to the unique individuals at our school. Inspired by HONY, ‘Humans of Palo Alto’ and ‘Humans of Saratoga High.’”

The stories communicated through HOPH give students who usually lack the medium to express their lives and individual selves a place in which they may do so.

“I will try to get around and interview all kinds of people to give them a voice,” Kao said. “Usually people have a funny, witty story that they want the world to know, or one specific story that they really want to tell.”

Kao’s HOPH page features a diverse assortment of people at Paly with everything from photographs of students to advice from principal Kim Diorio. The features on his page range from deeper, more profound stories to lighthearted and comical anecdotes, allowing a wide variety of

people to find enjoyment, and even pictures of themselves, in his page.

Kao also wants all students to feel welcome to broadcast their stories to the community of Paly.

“There is no criteria for who I interview, so even if you don’t know me, come up to me for an interview,” Kao said. “I’ll do one for you sooner or later. Don’t be shy, I’m a nice guy!”

Although HOPH is still not as large as Humans of Palo Alto or as other “Humans of ” pages, Kao is eager to grow his site into something larger and more respected by the community of Paly and Palo Alto as a whole. Even after his approaching graduation, Kao hopes that the page he has begun in order to represent the Paly community will continue to grow after he graduates from school.

“My hopes for the future of this page is that it will become a huge project like other high schools throughout Silicon Valley and that it continues to grow at a fast pace with an increased number of photographs that will last for many generations,” Kao said. “I am definitely open to hiring other photographers, and I already have a few friends that want to help and we will be figuring out the logistics. I’ll probably pass [the [page] down to someone else who has the deep passion to be in charge of the page [after I graduate]. I love this school and wanted a page that directly represented Paly High, and so far, it’s going in a great and improving direction.”

hen audiences saw the trailer for “The Purge” (2013), many thought it promised a great plot and had vast potential. Set in the near future, crime rates have been at an all time low since the introduction of annual purge, which is one day every year during which all crime is legal.

Unfortunately, the film did not do the unique concept justice, centering around an upper-middle class family as they attempt to survive the night while harboring a homeless man from murderous thugs. However, the film’s sequel, “The Purge: Anarchy,” took a much broader yet detailed look at the infamous day, and overall is a more satisfying film.

Set in Los Angeles, the sequel follows an ex-police sergeant named Leo (played by Frank Grillo) as he prepares for the annual purge. The audience quickly learns that Leo’s only son was killed at a young age by a drunk driver and that Leo has since been divorced. The driver got off on a technicality, and from the beginning of the film it is clear that Leo seeks revenge on the man who killed his son and ruined his life.

A stronger cast, superior execution of the premise and more developed and intriguing characters make the [“The Purge: Anarchy”’] a fairly enthralling film with more heart than the [‘‘The Purge’’].

While driving through downtown on the day of the purge, Leo comes across four people, all in need of saving from purgers: two sisters and a young couple. Leo’s new mission becomes getting them to safety. His experiences with the insightful wouldbe victims influences his morals and

outlook on the day. However, Leo must ultimately make the inevitable decision: will he go through with his initial plans of seeking revenge against the drunk driver?

Leo is a character that the audience can really root for as we feel great sympathy for him due to the immense loss he suffered. He also clearly has some good in him, as evidenced by his willingness to protect others from purgers. A deeper and more complex character than Ethan Hawke’s James Sandin (protagonist of “The Purge”), Leo is played expertly by Grillo, who gives a sincere and believable portrayal of a self-loathing father out for vengeance.

What really separates this thriller from it’s inferior prequel is it’s depiction of the infamous day in an entire city rather than in one house. We get to see several different scenarios of purging, ranging from people kidnapping others in order to sell them to the purging upper class, to a woman shooting her sister in front of their family due to infidelity.

A frightening aspect of this film is the reality of the series of events.

Though it may seem like an outlandish concept, the film chooses to use scare us with relatable and believable crimes rather than with incessant blood and gore.

When compared with “The Purge,” “The Purge: Anarchy” is better in just about every way imaginable.

A stronger cast, superior execution of the premise and more developed and intriguing characters make the sequel a fairly enthralling film with more heart than the first.

Unfortunately, Anarchy does not have the courage to branch out and become more than just another fleeting horror/thriller. It had the potential to become a more mature and thoughtful film by further exploring what the film should have centered on: human morality.

“The Purge”: Anarchy will be released on DVD Oct. 21.

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

LIFESTYLE

B8

1

in

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Farmers’ Market Text by Claire Dennis and Maggie Rosenthal Design by Mischa Nee Staff Writers

A closer look at California Avenue vendors

Saint Benoît Creamery provides customers with fresh milk and dairy products, and puts an emphasis on sustainability and the environment.

Its products are transported from Petaluma by hand each Sunday and are fresh from the farm. As the products do not have preservatives, they must be sold and consumed as quickly as possible. All products are vat pasteurized as well as non-homogenized.These standards limit the processing of the dairy, ensuring it is fresh and has most of its beneficial bacteria still present.

According to Alexa Kahan, an employee at Saint Benoît Creamery, its products are sold both at farmers’ markets and local stores, including Molly Stones, Country Sun and certain Whole Foods locations. The most popular product is its organic yogurt.

The company values its ability to get the product directly from its farm into the hands of customers, which cuts its carbon footprint and benefits the health of the environment.

“I drive up to the farm and I get the stuff that I’m going to sell at the market,” Kahan said. “So there was no airplane involved in getting the stuff. That’s huge on CO2 emissions and cost and fossil fuel digging in wherever...It also cuts out the middle man of a truck driver driving to a warehouse and then putting it in a Safeway.”

Saint Benoît also appreciates the intimate experience that it is able to have with customers by selling at the farmers’ market.

“If you see something in the store... you can’t taste it,” Kahan said. “Here you just taste it, and you can ask questions. You can be educated while you’re shopping.”

E

very Sunday, Palo Alto’s popular California Avenue transforms into a crowded street with vendors selling a wide range of products, in addition to a vast variety of prepared foods.

The farmers’ market, spanning over three blocks, houses various booths that contain hidden treasures, including, but not limited to honey, yogurt, flowers, peaches and bread.

Small Bees is a locally owned and operated honey store. It supplies all honey products, ranging from beeswax candles to lip balm to the honey itself. The honey is harvested and processed in Saratoga, then brought to various farmers’ markets during the week across the Bay Area.

Small Bees has participated in the Palo Alto market for two years. However, the bee farm itself has been in operation for longer, according to farmers’ market representative Dane Hansen.

In the past few years it has branched out to new markets and to several local stores.

The most popular product is the classic honey; but the beeswax candles are more popular in the winter season.

Hansen enjoys selling at the farmers’ markets because of the interaction with people. “[The market’s atmosphere is] pretty joyful,” Hansen said.

Many locals recognize the name Manresa from the high-end Michelin starred restaurant located in Los Gatos which shares the name.

However, in the past two years, the Manresa brand has expanded into farmers’ markets with its hearty breads and tasty pastries.

Manresa Bread Project participates in just two farmers’ markets, one in Palo Alto and one in Campbell, with the Palo Alto location premiering this March. According to Palo Alto Online, the organizers of the Urban Village, a network of farmers’ markets, encouraged Manresa to begin selling the bread from its Los Gatos restaurant.

All of the Manresa products are baked in Los Gatos and range from potato gruyere focaccia to chocolate orange brioche. According to Andrew Burnham, a partner in the Manresa Bread Project, the most popular items are the pumpernickel rye bread and the sourdough levain.

Manresa is dedicated to quality and the use of healthy ingredients in their products.

“Most of our ingredients are at the very least organic, if not biodynamic,” Burnham said.

Burnham hopes to expand into new markets in the coming years.

He enjoys selling at farmers’ markets because of the unique shopping atmosphere.

“I think we like sort of the ethos of the farmers’ markets in California,” Burnham said. “Our type of marketplace is more in line than selling through a Safeway...There’s also captive demand...which is great — ­ a bunch of people showing up at once.”

Kashiwase Farms has deep roots in the Bay Area. Owner Steve Kashiwase’s grandfather opened the farm in 1921 after he moved from San Francisco. Today, the farm is located in Winton, Calif. and spans 190 acres. Kashiwase Farms produces fresh organic stone fruit as well as nuts. Buyers can find almost any variety of peach, plum and nectarine at Kashiwase, including unique combinations like pluots and nectaplums. The farm is divided equally between fruit trees and nut trees.

Kashiwase has a dedication to fresh fruit, ensuring the picking process delivers a high quality product to his customers.

“We pick it ripe off the tree, rather than pick it [and] then ripen it, because you get the full flavor that way,” Kashiwase said in an interview with Nana Joe’s Granola. “It just costs us more per pound to grow it that way and harvest that way.”

Kashiwase Farms is a farmers’ market veteran, operating at 35 markets throughout the week all over the Bay Area.

“We sell only at farmers’ markets, so we have to get a lot of markets [in] that time because it’s ripe,” Kashiwase said in the interview. “[We‘ve] got to get it moving.”

Kashiwase has sold his fruit and nuts at farmers’ markets for the past 30 years. In that time, he has noticed an expansion in the markets.

“You see a lot more people who are concerned about what they’re eating and so the number of people coming to farmers’ markets has increased during that time,” Kashiwase said in the interview. “Before there used to be, like, maybe 20 markets in the Bay Area, back in the ‘80s, maybe only 10. But now I don’t know how many there are, probably 100 or more.”

This edition featuring

Peter King with The Campanile’s own

Galen Byrd and Grace Kim

The Campanile: Your voice is so cute.

Peter King: Thanks.

TC: Do you think you have a cute voice?

PK: I do think I have a cute voice.

TC: What makes your voice cute?

PK: It’s young and prepubescent.

TC: How’s it being a freshman?

PK: It’s stressful. It’s definitely a step up from eigth grade. More homework, more responsibility. Things that I didn’t do in eighth grade I now have to do — like homework.

TC: What’s it like being the technical director for InFocus?

PK: It’s fun, but I get made fun of a lot by the seniors because... seniors.

TC: Do you feel bullied?

PK No, not really. It’s playful.

TC: You can open up to us.

PK: No I can’t, you’ll beat me.

TC: What does “because seniors” mean?

PK: I don’t know, seniors are just naturally mean to freshman. Always.

Right Galen?

TC: Are you implying that I’m mean to freshman?

PK: Yes. Get wrecked Galen.

TC: How did you get to be on InFocus as a freshman?

PK: Well I did [ Jordan Television] JTV for a year, I learned the tricaster system there. When I came here nobody knew how to use the tricaster, so they let me in so I could teach people.

TC: What do you love? Who do you love?

PK: Well in my free time I do Sea Scouts, which is like Boy Scouts, but with boats. I like sailing, scubadiving, basically anything with water I like.

TC: Where do you see your life in 10 years?

PK: Definitely doing something film related, hopefully in a film school.

TC: Still in school 10 years from now?

PK: Maybe dude.

TC: What color is your hair? It’s very ambiguous.

PK: I’ve been told it’s strawberry blonde. In fact, my science teacher called me a freckle-faced strawberry.

That was her terrifying nickname for me.

TC: Would you like to name this anonymous science teacher?

PK: Ms. Noeth, obviously. She’s really scary. I was taking a quiz and she was like, “well aren’t you a cute little freckle-faced strawberry.” Best memory from middle school, for sure.

TC: What are you most looking forward to in freshman year?

PK: Spirit Week, I’ve heard that it’s really fun.

TC: Are you going to dress up?

PK: Yeah, of course.

TC: Do you think freshman will have a chance at winning?

PK: No, definitely not.

TC: Do you think you’ll beat the seniors?

PK: I doubt it.

TC: What type of music do you like?

PK: I like slapping in the car with Galen, because he has the best music taste, 106.1 for days, cause that’s what the cool kids listen to — quote Galen. He taught me how to be the cool kid.

TC: What are you going to do without him?

PK: Probably be way better off, not get terrible advice from a senior. I mean he’s pretty cool, but not that cool. I’ve seen a little cooler, but not that much cooler.

TC: I am very cool, the coolest, chiller than @mrbrolah.

The Campanile

Monday, October 13, 2014 ATHLETE OF THE Halle Biorn has MONTH

SP RTS

been tearing it up recently on the tennis courts.

We caught up with her to find out more.

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Hopes are high for talented young Warriors team After an anticlimactic finish to last season, the explosive team will look to improve upon its record from last year, develop the blossoming talent and finally make some serious noise in the playoffs

Galen Byrd

senior staff writer

W

ith only 15 days until the start of the National Basketball Association (NBA) regular season, expectations for the Golden State Warriors remain high, based on recent success.

Coming out of a solid 51-win 2013-14 season riddled with injuries to key players and an offseason of strengthening the supporting players, the future looks bright. It may not be possible to contend as the best in the Western Conference, as the Spurs, Thunder and Clippers remain dominant forces, but the Dubs will strive for the fourth spot in the west.

Training camp has gone well.

Working under first-time head coach Steve Kerr, the team has focused on fundamentals. Kerr plans to speed up the offense and reinforce the importance of movement, as the Warriors had the highest offensive efficiency rating in the league when three or more passes were completed, according to Kerr. With two premier guards, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, and two good passing bigs, Andrew Bogut and David Lee, the passing should come naturally.

In addition to a new coach, the team has added depth — something it lacked last season — with the acquisition of Shaun Livingston and Jason Kapono. Both guards will allow more time for Curry and Thompson to rest, keeping them healthy and energized, and provide a spark off the

bench for the reserves. Livingston is a seasoned 10-year NBA veteran that averaged 8.3 points per game last year and will help get the struggling bench play in good offensive form. Kapono was most recently playing professionally in Greece but has played 9 years in the NBA and ranks fifth all-time in three-point field goal percentage, according to NBA.com, and will help create spacing offensively for the bench. With the addition of Kapono, the Dubs should rely even more on their three-point shooting, having Curry, Thompson and first ranked three-point percentage shooter in the league last year, Andre Iguodala.

As long as the Dubs can stay healthy, a luxury that has been unobtainable in recent years, the starting five of Curry, Thompson, Lee, Bogut and Iguodala is one of the best in the league along with a solid bench.

With reserves to back up Lee and Bogut in the frontcourt, defense at the rim should be much improved as as should fluidity and motion in the offense.

One of the biggest questions for Kerr is how he can manage the team’s bench efficiency while on the floor.

The Warriors were one of the most dominant offenses when Curry was playing, but as soon as he got a rest, it was as if there was a cap on the net.

Along with defensive woes without Iguodala, Kerr must find a way to make the bench players step up another level in their gameplay.

This is the major limitation of the Warriors, as every other elite team has a phenomenal back-up unit, it is hard for starters to get rest in im-

portant games when the bench’s plus/ minus is at -16.4, according to NBA. com. This means that when starters rest, they will have to make up for the lost production while they were not on the floor. Kerr must find a way to improve bench production on both ends of the court for the Warriors to have a legitimate chance at going deep in the playoffs.

The last major off-season occurrence was the major trade rumors for Minnesota Timberwolves All-Star power forward Kevin Love. The proposed deal would have sent Thompson and Lee to Minnesota for Love and guard, Kevin Martin.

The front office for the Dubs was torn whether to give up Thompson for Love, but to most in the NBA community, it would have been an obvious net gain for the team. A Curry and Love pick and roll would have been deadly, but this opportunity came and went. At least for the Warriors, Love went to the eastern conference, making the west minimally easier.

With a lot to prove, this young team is up to the challenge and ready to fight to make a playoff appearance for the third straight year, while making a statement in the difficult western conference. Obviously, the Warriors have lots of potential that is simply waiting to be used, and having a new coach like Kerr added to the franchise should bring even more energy. The Warriors look like they could be a team that is seriously competing for a championship. Hopes are high, and if the conditions are right, this season could be one to remember.

Courtesy of the associated press

James McAdoo

Leandro Barbosa

Shaun Livingston

Aaron Craft

Courtesy of the associated press

James McAdoo: A 6-foot-9 power forward who now plays for the Warriors after spending his college years at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

Leandro Barbosa: Also known as the “Brazilian Blur” because of his blinding speed and unparalleled quickness, Barbosa joins the Warriors for this season after playing for a brief stint in his home country, Brazil.

Shaun Livingston: After suffering what could have been a career-ending knee injury in 2007, Livingston has managed to resurrect his career and now finds himself playing for the Warriors after parlaying a successful season with the Brooklyn Nets into a bigger contract.

Aaron Craft: The 6-foot-2 point guard was well known for his lockdown defense in college, and now brings his stellar work ethic to the Warriors.

courtesy of the Associated press

Left: “The Splash Brothers” Klay Thompson and Stephen Curry congratulate each other after one of many three pointers last season. Right: Andrew Bogut and all star David Lee high-five during a game last year.

RUGBY QUIcKLY GAINING POPULArITY IN BAY AreA Already popular in other areas of the world, rugby is attracting football players onto its bandwagon.

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INSIDE CONcUSSIONS IN FOOTBALL With all of the danger that is now associated with playing football, is it still worth it?

C6

TOP PerFOrmerS STILL STANDING IN mLB PLAYOFFS The list includes players from various teams such as the Giants, Cardinals, Orioles and Royals.

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Monday, October 13, 2014

C2

Exit Jeter, Enter Bandwagon

The Campanile

SPORTS Volleyball redeems itself despite losses Girls volleyball team wins the Carlmont Invitational after losing first two games

Jeffrey HO

Online Editor

New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter has announced his retirement from the sport of baseball, and he has been honored not only by every other team in baseball, but by fans across the entire nation. Jeter’s hype has been around for at least a month now, but right when playoffs start, the tributes all of a sudden stop. I mean, it’s not like many know of his .310 career batting average or surprisingly low-profile list of relationships with high profile celebrities such as singer Mariah Carey and actress Jessica Alba.

But now that Jeter has retired from the league, this means the MLB postseason is back. This year both the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants made the playoffs, and for much of the Palo Alto High School community, that means at least one of two things: sneaking in the occasional live stream of the game on your phone or computer during class and/ or getting excited about a sport you wouldn’t care about any other time of the year.

Let’s face it, living near a good team does not give us the free pass for fanhood. But if you really want to game the bandwagon system, here are some tips.

1) Trying to start a conversation about a team you clearly know nothing about Very conventional and very easy to spot. Teams and websites already have people to collect hitting and fielding statistics for the convenience of all. We don’t need people to dictate random tidbits of information, let alone become our personal Joe Buck.

In addition, just because you watch one game does not mean, especially in baseball, that such a performance reflects the success of their entire season. Even if one attempts to be a stats junkie, Trouble with the Curve already taught us the limits to computerized scouting.

2) Using personal pronouns This, like the above, may seem very basic, but few actually abide by these norms. The bandwagon often thinks he or she may sound genuine by referring to the team as “we” or “our”.

But fans are not the team, as fans do not squeak out hits or make SC Top10 worthy plays on the field. “You and I” are not a top-notch baseball team, we are just the huge fanbase that supports a top notch team.

3) Not mentioning the team you support for the rest of the year It takes much more than a minor head collision for one to legitimately have such a change of heart in the blink of an eye. Just because you’re oblivious of the past does not mean others forget your every previous action, and by doing this you’ve insulted the intelligence of many. The bigger stab in the back: you forget about and do not mention the offseason and next 162 of your team’s games the next season (which, if you do the math, means the next time you mention baseball is when the next year’s postseason starts).

4) Only overdressing in team gear for the one big game We all know you buy team accessories to wear at most once or twice a year, if your “favorite” team actually makes the playoffs. As much as teams strive to create a larger fan base, it remains true that nobody likes bandwagons, because bandwagons will probably hop off at some point or another. Kudos for supporting teams’ revenues, but we’re also pretty observant of what you wear normally, so unless this is Spirit Week and you don’t wear these clothes somewhat regularly, you might as well save it for later.

If you do avidly support one or two teams, I commend you for your extended commitment to the team of your choice. If you don’t, I leave you with two final thoughts: either begin watching sports and consistently follow a team, or don’t even bother trying to fool others as a bandwagon.

DAMI BOLARINWA/The Campanile

The varsity girls volleyball team huddles up to encourage each other before playing their match against Homestead High School.

Jeremy Fu

Staff writer

Bo Field

Staff Writer

P

alo Alto High School’s girls volleyball recovers from its early losses after winning the Carlmont Invitational and beating Monta Vista High School.

“You win some, you lose some,” senior Jade Schoenberger said. “Every great team has its ups and downs and at the end of the day both teams out played ours. [Losing] just helps us

notice our mistakes early and hopefully we will get them next time.”

The Lady Vikes lost to crosstown rival Gunn High School in their season opening game, coming up short in all three sets. The team also lost their second league game, against Los Altos High School, in all three sets. “[Although] we lost our first two matches, I think we are all still getting used to the transition of a new coach, and we will still be successful this season,” junior Clara Chiu said.

The volleyball team won the Carlmont Invitational Tournament with

five straight wins against Carlmont High School, Vista del Lago High School, Harbor High School, Encinal High School and San Benito High School.

“I think having the win over Monta Vista really got us back in the groove of things,” Schoenberger said.

“It was a rough first week of league but the Monta Vista game and this tournament win will give us a good confidence boost into the upcoming week.”

The volleyball team has been working hard to improve their skills,

and continue the upwards momentum they just gained.

“We have been working really hard in practice and I know my teammates and I have been putting in a lot of effort to become better players and also a more cohesive team,” senior Molly Fogarty said. “After our first two losses in league, we went back to practice more hungry for a win, so we have been working hard and it has been paying off.”

Senior Charlene Zhu said that a key element to the volleyball team’s recovery was their coach, Daniele Desiderio.

“He didn’t get mad at us for losing,” Zhu said. “Instead he told us that believes in us and that he knows we are a good team.”

Also, team members attribute their ability to bounce back from the losses to great team chemistry both on and off the court.

“Everyone on the team has so much to bring to the game, this sport and it’s really nice to be able to share our obvious passion: volleyball,” junior Gabrielle Bains said. “I believe that this team can take our wins farther and become an even stronger team.”

The Lady Vikes will play against Mountain View High School on Oct. 14 next.

Cross country does Football ready to well at invitational make a comeback Cross country team places 14th at meet Noah Smith

Staff writer

T

he Palo Alto High School cross country team is doing reasonably well so far this

season.

The girls cross country team is especially happy with the outcome of their last meet, the Stanford Invitational meet.

“We finished in the middle of the pack,” girls cross country coach Paul Jones said.

The team came in 14th out of 30 teams at the Stanford Invitational meet. The teams who competed in this meet were from 15 different states with even a few Canadian teams. The Stanford Invitational was a victory for the girls cross country team considering the wide pool of fast runners that were competing at the meet.

Sophomore runner Maddie Feldmeier is doing well this season and has shown her running capabilities in the first few meets. Junior Bryn Carlson, has also been doing well even though she recently came off a cold.

Varsity runners Katie Foug, Sarah

Wang and Ariana Tindel are noteworthy runners from past meets and continue to do well at the recent cross country meets.

The boys, on the other hand, are not doing as well, mostly because some runners are recovering from recent injuries.

“We could be doing a lot better, we just have a few injuries of our best and overall our team is almost at full strength,” junior runner Josh Yuen said. “Our key runners are the ones that are [injured] so we’re asking out freshman runners to step up.”

Lucas Matison, another captain, has just returned from the world mountain running competition in Italy.

According to boys cross country senior captain Matthew Solway, the team is trying to keep injuries to a minimum to ensure that all runners can perform their best at meets and practices. Freshman runners Reed Foster and Sam Craig are two of the faster runners on the cross country team and are helping the team perform well at meets.

The next meet is at Toro Park in Salinas on Friday, Oct. 17.

Ella MernYk/The Campanile

The cross country girls run on the track at practice to prepare for an upcoming meet.

Vikings confident and ready for the future

dami bolarinwa/The Campanile

Paly prepares to hike the ball against Wilcox in their first league game of the season.

Owen Dulik

Sports Editor

A

fter the Palo Alto High School football team won its first game of the season in an exciting fashion, things have unfortunately taken a turn for the worse, with the Vikings having lost their last four games.

In September, Paly played their first home game of the season against a tough Archbishop Mitty High School squad, to which they lost 5514.

Following this game, Paly faced Palma High School at home on Sept.

27. Again, the Vikings faced a team that they, unfortunately, were not capable of matching.

Things looked up for the Vikings, as they were able to start from a clean slate in their first league game of the season against a tough Wilcox team at home on Oct. 3. Wilcox dominated the first half of the game, 20-6.

The Vikings’ new starting quarterback, junior Justin Hull, was able

to lead an exciting and furious comeback, which climaxed with a jawdropping touchdown pass to junior Eli Givens with 17 seconds left. The Vikings decided to go for the two point conversion to win the game, yet were unsuccessful.

While this game put the Vikings in a hole in the standings, they are still proud of what they have accomplished and are confident for the future.

“Obviously losing four straight has been disappointing, but we’re moving in the right direction. That game showed us that we can play with the best teams in the league,” junior linebacker Shaun Pike said.

Following the Wilcox High School game, the Vikings go on to play Monta Vista High School and then Los Gatos High School on Oct. 24. After this, the Vikings go back home to face Santa Clara High School on Oct. 31 and Milpitas High School on Nov. 7. Finally, the Vikings finish their regular season on the road against Saratoga on Nov. 14.

Girls golf on consistent winning streak Golf wins six consecutive games after first loss against city rival Gunn High School Haley Fang

Business Manager

T

he girls golf team has a 6-1 record. Since their loss against Gunn High School, the team has won every game.

Palo Alto High School played against Gunn on Monday, Sept. 15 at the Palo Alto Municipal golf course and lost with a score of 195-192.

Though disappointed, senior co-captain Michelle Xie believes they can beat them in their next match.

“We all played well in the Gunn match,” Xie said. “And we were really close, so I think if we just minimize our mistakes and think positively, we will play our best games.”

After the loss, the team went on a winning streak and won against Sacred Heart Preparatory 216-232, Saratoga High School 210-125, Los Gatos High School 222-229, Lynbrook High School 198-206 and Wilcox High School 230-356.

Unfortunately, one player suffered an injury and cannot play, but with strong training and a dedicated group, the team is still hoping that their streak will continue. Even with one player lacking, Xie thinks that the team can be just as victorious.

“One of our freshman is injured right now, so our top six consists of two seniors and four sophomores, and one of the sophomores is a new member,” Xie said. “We still want

to be able to place well in [Central Coast Sections (CCS)] and [the North California tournament], and hopefully make it to states as a team.”

I think if we just minimize our mistakes and think positively, we will play our best games.

Michelle Xie

Senior Co-Captain In doing so, the team will have to face their toughest competition. They will have another chance to prove themselves against Gunn on Oct. 16 and face another tough competitor,

St. Francis High School, if the Paly team makes it to CCS. With the success from last year, Xie is aware of how tough the teams are but believes her team has enough potential to do as well as they did last season.

“There’s some pretty good competition out there,” Xie said. “But if the whole team focuses and plays well, we can win them all.”

With high goals in mind, the cocaptains and coach, Doyle Knight, have been working hard to improve.

“Knight has put together lots of drills for most of the members to work on,” Xie said. “I think he understands that some of the better players have their own routines, and he respects that.”

The Campanile

Monday, October 13, 2014

C3 SPORTS Boys water polo team holds third place in SCVAL Despite losses, the team is performing well with many high score victories

Chris SKokowski

Senior Staff Writer

T

he Palo Alto High School boys water polo season is now in full swing. The team won its first game easily, beating Homestead on Viking home turf by a score of 17 to 4. Two days later at the Paly pool, Paly edged out Monta Vista by a score of 9 to 7. Other notable early games included a league win at Saratoga against the home team and a league loss against Mountain View two days later.

However, the most important game this season so far was Paly’s game against Henry M. Gunn High School on Oct. 7. This was Paly’s first chance of the season so far to face the top-ranked school in the league.

While the Vikings lost the game 12 to 16, they led the for a good amount of the game. Last year, Paly failed to lead Gunn in any one of its regularseason games, but still went on to beat the Titans in the Central Coast Section (CCS) quarterfinal.

Even so, things are looking up for the Vikings, despite their record, they are performing well.

The team currently sits in third place within the Santa Clara Valley Athletics league (SCVAL), behind Mountain View High School and the number one ranked team, Gunn High School. The Vikings nearly beat

Mountain View on Sept. 25th, losing by only two points and are undoubtedly looking to get revenge on their cross-town rivals Gunn the next time they meet.

Our record doesn’t really reflect how we are doing because all but one of our losses are from tournaments against high ranking teams.

Ray Zhao

Senior Water Polo player However, the Vikings have had some trouble playing opponents outside of their league. While the team currently holds a record of three wins and one loss within the SCVAL, its record falls to four and eight across all matches, a significantly lower winning percentage than that of Gunn and Mountain View.

Even so, things are looking up for the Vikings, as despite their record, they are performing very well. Nearly all of their losses so far have been decided by only one or two points, while most of their victories have been blowouts.

“Our record doesn’t really reflect how we are doing because all but one of our losses are from tournaments against high ranking teams,” senior Ray Zhao said.

Zhao said he has confidence in the team and as long as they can close out games, it should be successful. Paly also has some of the best players in

Courtesy of Barbara Schroder

Varsity boys water polo player Kevin Bowers attempting to score a goal in a game against Henry M. Gunn High School

the league, with seniors Lucas Novak and Ray Zhao along with junior Winston Rosati all placing within the top five goal-scorers in the league.

“Our team is much more offensive,” senior Luke Schroder said.

With their focus on offense this season, the Vikings have been able

Girls tennis team leads undefeated season The girls tennis team thrives after moving down to El Camino League

to create many scoring opportunities but by pushing forward they can also hurt their defense.

If its league record and results are anything to judge by, the Paly team is actually in quite a good spot right now. The Vikings are still ranked at number three in their league, and

both of their games against the top two teams have ended up being closer than expected.

Also, last year the Vikings still managed to edge out higher ranked teams when it mattered in the postseason, even without having beaten them in the regular season.

Girls Water Polo team to improve after season opener The team places seventh in Menlo Varsity Tournament

Courtesy of Bob Drebin

Joanna Falla blocking a shot from opposing team during Menlo Varsity Tournament

Maggie Rosenthal

Staff Writer

Ella Mernyk/The Campanile

Lucy Fox prepares to hit a backhand at the ball during the girls tennis team practice at the Palo Alto High School tennis courts.

Catherine Yu

Staff Writer

M

oving down from the De Anza League to the El Camino League has allowed the Palo Alto High School girls tennis team to have an undefeated season thus far, with a record of 3-0.

On Sept. 23, the Palo Alto High School girls tennis team defeated the Wilcox High School tennis team in an away game with a score of 5-2. The Lady Vikings also scored 5-2 against Fremont High School, defeating Fremont in the home match on Sept.

25. Adding to its victories, the team played Santa Clara High School on Sept. 30 and beat them 7-0.

One of the captains of the team, senior Madeline Lee, thinks that this year is an excellent precursor for next year.

“Being in the El Camino League this year is great,” Lee said. “We are using it as a growth year, and next

photo caption

year, even though I will not be on the team, we will try to take our success and continue to perform well in the De Anza League.”

The Lady Vikings had an additional home game against Cupertino High School on Oct. 7 and the other.

The game resulted in a victory for the girls; they scored 5-2, furthering their undefeated streak.

We’re a goofy team and that’s good, but there are times when we need to be serious and focus, and we really struggle with those times.

Halle Biorn

Junior tennis player The girls tennis team has only two more league games that will take place at Paly. All other games will be away. At the end of the season, the first round of the Central Coast Sec-

tion (CCS) tournament will be held at home.

On Oct. 29, the girls will be playing their neighbor, Henry M. Gunn High School.

“The match against Gunn is always interesting simply because it’s Gunn and we’re close to a lot of people on the team,” junior Halle Biorn said. “We’re a goofy team and that’s good, but there are times when we need to be serious and focus, and we really struggle with those times.”

In addition to Gunn, Biorn feels that Milpitas High School and Mountain View High school will still be tough matches.

Soon, the girls tennis team will begin playing the same schools for a second time. The team will have second match against each Wilcox, Fremont and Santa Clara on Oct. 16, Oct. 21 and Oct. 23, respectively.

“The match against Gunn should be close, but in the end, we will definitely pull through with the win,” Biorn said.

P

alo Alto High School’s girls water polo team has begun to improve after a disappointing season opener, earning seventh place out of 16 teams in the Menlo Varsity Tournament on Sept. 26 and 27 and winning several league games.

The Lady Vikes won their first game in the tournament against Granite Bay High School, with a score of 16-5. They followed this with a loss against Sir Francis Drake High School ending 12-9, despite firing off several shots in the last quarter.

The team lost its third game 4-3 against Los Gatos High School, but went on to win the final game of the tournament against Sobrato High School 11-10.

The two wins during this tournament pushed the team up from eleventh place out of 16 when entering the tournament, to seventh place.

On Oct. 2, the team faced Los Altos High School and won with a score of 3-2. Junior Gigi Rojahn scored during the third quarter, bringing the score up to 1-1. An eight meter out, cross cage goal by junior Alina Drebin followed this, then junior Katie Francis scored in the fourth quarter in order to narrowly beat Los Altos.

Drebin expressed her happiness that the team was able to defeat Los Altos.

“We played as a team, and it was really awesome to come out on top since we were the underdogs,” Drebin said.

The team played against rivals Henry M. Gunn High School on Oct. 7, and lost 7-5.

Paly was able to keep a strong defense during the first quarter and the tie was scored 1-1 going into the second quarter. However, during this quarter the team’s defense started to slip, allowing Gunn High School to get in several shots.

In the third quarter, the team bounced back and scored several times, bringing the score up to 6-4.

Senior Tess van Hulsen was able to score once more during the fourth quarter so the score was 6-5.

Gunn however got in one more shot during a six on five while Rojahn was ejected, resulting in the final score of 7-5.

Drebin emphasizes that the team is continuing to work to improve and prepare for games against Los Gatos and Saratoga on Oct. 14 and 16.

“We are focusing on team defense and finishing our shots,” Drebin said.

“As well as more movement, because we are pretty stagnant on offense.”

Monday, October 13, 2014

C4

The Campanile

The Campanile

Monday, October 13, 2014

Sports

Sports

C5

Rugby Kicks off in Bay Area After decades of popularity in countries of the British Commonwealth, rugby is achieving recognition due to interest of local youth

Story By: Anthony Kiescnhick Staff Writer

Design By : Jeremy FU Galen Byrd Staff Writer Senior Staff Writer

Long b e f o r e football became popular in the US, 30 years before the first rules for association football, or soccer, were written up, in a university in Cambridge, England, there was rugby: A ball-based game played in prep schools throughout Britain, a different interpretation of soccer.

Originally known as rugger, rugby was developed by a student tired of the restrictions of soccer, who picked up the ball and began to run with it.

Soon, this blossomed into a competitive sport, spreading throughout Great Britain, and then Europe.

Once it had spread through Europe, rugby began to appear in both South American countries and British colonies, where it had been brought over by immigrants. It was also taken to

Australia, New Zealand and many of the Pacific Islands, where it has gained a fairly large following and even lead to the development of Australian Rules Football in Australia. The game of American football is even based off of rugby. It does, therefore, come as a surprise that rugby itself did not make the jump across the pond until now, that is.

Peninsula Green Rugby was set up in the San Francisco area in 1998 and has continued on until the present day. It has faced many obstacles throughout the course of its history, namely a lack of players and, in most cases, visibility.

“Some of the coaches for the Peninsula Seahawks came to one of our football practices and were giving out fliers,” senior Thomas Wilcox said.

“My mom asked me and my brother [Ty Wilcox] if we’d like to try rugby.

We wanted to try out a new sport, so we said yes.”

Rugby teams throughout the Bay Area have slowly begun to gain a greater following, with more players joining up, but still having a long way to go before they can even begin to match football.

The rules of rugby are in many ways fairly straight forward. Each team consists of 15 players divided between backs and forwards. The forwards are charged with being both the first line of defence and moving the ball up the field.

T h e backs, on the other hand, are charged with being the last line of defence and scoring tries as well as kicking drop-goals.

A drop goal, worth three points, is when a player drop kicks the ball between the two uprights which are similar to those in football.

A try is when a player runs into an area of the field pretty much identical to the football end-zone in size and location, and places the ball on the ground to score five points. Two more points can be obtained with a two point conversion, similar to the extra point in football.

Rugby has very few stoppages and for many players that is what adds to its allure.

“It’s very fast-paced, it’s super fun,” sophomore Ty Wilcox said.“People think that rugby is super intense, but if you play hard you won’t get injured or anything like that. It’s just really fun.”

To play rugby, players generally have to be in superb physical shape, as rugby incorporates both brawn and stamina. Unlike in football, players have to perform at a high level for 80 minutes in a game. This necessity for high stamina resulted in the need for less padding in rugby to maintain a high level of intensity throughout the match.

This has led to the common misconception that rugby is an incredibly dangerous sport. However, rules have been put in place to avoid any sort of serious injury, such as the rule that a player cannot be tackled above the chest.

As in any contact sport, concussions are a not an altogether unknown occurrence in rugby.

“Well in all my years of playing rugby I got my first concussion last year, and the guy who hit me: it was a cheap shot and a dangerous tackle, he didn’t even tackle right,” Ty Wilcox said. “He basically tried to football tackle me, which isn’t allowed.”

When playing both rugby and other more well-known sports in the US, players can experience both the positives and negatives. Although players do learn safer, and arguably 00 more effective ways to tackle in rugby, many coaches still fear for the safety of their players.

“If [a coach has] a basketball player and he’s really good, then coaches hear that he’s playing rugby, [the coach is] not going to want that, because if [the player] gets hurt, then there goes his scholarship and his season,” senior Tonga Latu said.

There is, of course, a lot of pressure on players to bring visibility to rugby in and around the Bay Area.

Although there are a fair few football players who take up rugby during the winter season, it is still not enough for schools like Palo Alto High School to be able to set up their own rugby teams. Nonetheless, players must continue to strive for greater recognition for their sport throughout the US. “As a marginal sport we have to be ambassadors to the game and we have to give a good image of rugby to our school,” junior Ren Makino said. “So it’s really important for us to be good people at school, on and off the field to show how good of a sport rugby is.”

Rugby is generally considered to be a gentleman’s sport, due to both the tradition of sportsmanship that pervades throughout

the game as well as its aristocratic roots.

Despite its physical nature, a strong sense of camaraderie is held between players of the sport, even those on opposite teams, founded in no small part on the high physical demands placed on a player’s body.

“I think [rugby] builds a lot of sportsmanship,” Makino said. “I never see football players being really happy after the game with each other, but in rugby I really see everyone will shake hands and hug after every match, even in loss.”

Rugby contains a prodigious amount of sportsmanship, a sort of code of honor which players and fans alike violate at their own peril. Players stay to congratulate each other at the end of games, a sort of recognition of the sheer effort both teams have put in.

The same notion of sportsmanship applies to fans as well. The basic motive fans have for coming to a rugby game is not to support their own team but rather to enjoy a game of rugby. This incredible love of the game above all else is unprecedented in any other sport. In most other sports, there is a clear and divisive line between two sets of fans, whereas in rugby, fans tend to mingle.

“I just like rugby because of the intensity of it, I just love running, just getting contact and everything, it’s just really fun,” Latu said. “When you play rugby, when you have a team, throughout the time, throughout the season, you’re going to build a broth-

e r hood.”

The benefits of playing rugby extend beyond those of the sport itself, or even beyond the development of children into effective members of society.

Rugby also helps players in other sports.

“I feel like rugby helps a lot with football” Latu said. “Rugby is compared to Football, or football to rugby. I think rugby helps with track as well, I mean with speed. It also helps with wrestling.”

In many ways, rugby is an incredibly multi-faceted sport, as it could be argued that a player cannot solely specialize in one position, as ultimately the skills required for each position are fairly similar: Strength, technical ability and stamina.

If the brotherhood, sportsmanship and high intensity of rugby are to your liking, you can check Peninsula Rugby at www.PeninsulaGreenRugby.org

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

SPORTS C6 New Stanford center to focus Shortstop Derek Jeter after 20 seasons on sports related concussions retires Former New York Yankees’ player Derek Jeter Jamshid Ghajar leads Stanford’s new Concussion and Brain Health Center in their efforts in combating athlete concussions Will Snodgrass

senior staff writer

O

n Oct. 1, Tom Cutinella, a sixteen year old high school football player from Shoreham-Wading River High School in New York, died following a collision with an opponent.

Cutinella was rushed to the hospital after suffering a head injury. He died during emergency surgery, becoming the third high school football player to die in the past week. Concussions and brain trauma injuries have received increased attention in recent years as physicians better understand the severity of the injuries and try to prevent them from happening in the future.

As defined by the Mayo Clinic, a concussion is “a traumatic brain injury that alters the way your brain functions.” Concussions most often result from a blow to the head but can also occur when the body is violently shaken. Athletes participating in contact sports, particularly football and basketball, tend to be more susceptible to concussions.

The rate of concussions has shot up in the past decade, primarily because new research has allowed athletic trainers to better identify when an athlete is suffering from a concussion.

Although many concussions continue to go unnoticed and untreated, physicians hope that increased awareness will educate athletes to be cautious while participating in contact sports, especially those athletes who have suffered from multiple head injuries.

Stanford University recently opened a brand new Concussion and Brain Health Center, led by neurosurgeon Jamshid Ghajar. Ghajar, who is also an original founder and the President of the Brain Trauma Foundation, has focused their research on

defining the condition which affects so many athletes nationwide.

“The real problem is that nobody has really stuck their teeth into what is a concussion,” Ghajar said. “Even if you come up with a really good diagnostic [test], you don’t know what the condition is.”

Ghajar and his team have made significant strides in understanding brain trauma. People who experience brain injuries are likely to appear dazed and out of sync, and Ghajar points out that this is because the person is in a reactive state that delays their processing and responding to certain events.

“That’s not a good place to be, because you’re behind time,” Ghajar said. “You want to be in real time.

Right now we know that people that are disoriented after a hit to the head or force to the head have problems with balance, simple reaction time and working memory.”

The real problem is that nobody has really stuck their teeth into what is a concussion.

Jamshid Ghajar

Concussion and Brain Health Center Neurosurgeon Ghajar uses eye movement in order to evaluate whether a person is in a reactive state. He developed an eye tracking test that has a dot revolving around a circle. People without concussions are able to predict where the dot is going to be, but a person with a concussion will have terrible timing and their eyes will jump all over the place.

Additionally, Ghajar has worked closely with the military to improve testing and understanding of brain trauma, studying five thousand mili-

tary members at Fort Hood. He and his team have also worked with students from middle schools and high schools in the Palo Alto area, including Menlo School and Sacred Heart Preparatory School, to be part of studies that involve baseline testing of athletes.

Although concussions can happen to anyone, middle school and high school athletes have the highest rate of concussions in sports. Ghajar mentioned several precautions that athletes can take in order to decrease their susceptibility to a concussion.

He says that athletes need to be paying attention while playing their sport, which includes getting enough sleep and being at practice to know what to expect when games begin.

He also mentioned neck strengthening exercises as a way to prevent concussions.

“A lot of [athletes] study really hard and stay up late,” Ghajar said.

“You’re sleep deprived, and that’s a bad situation to be in because then you have problems paying attention and you are very prone to injury.”

Ghajar encourages any athlete that experiences a head injury to visit Stanford’s Concussion and Brain Health Center, where they will receive the newest and latest treatments including eye tracking and high end brain images using MRI to diagnose and treat their injuries.

Athletes should not be discouraged from participating in sports, but it is important that they are safely protected, as these injuries to the brain can be life altering. Medical research involving head injuries has made significant advances in past decades, and society is continuing to move in the right direction in combating head injuries and preventing tragic events such as the death of Tom Cutinella.

plans to launch a baseball commentary website Nikhil Rajaram

staff writer

R

enowned Major League Baseball (MLB) shortstop Derek Jeter has retired after 20 consecutive seasons with the New York Yankees.

In the third inning of his last game against the Boston Red Sox on Sept.

28, Jeter knocked in a run with an infield single, which would be his 3,465th and last hit. Only five other men in MLB history have surpassed Jeter in hits, and only 28 players in MLB history that are in the “3000 hit club.” In addition to his 3,465 hits, throughout his career Jeter logged 14 All-Star Game appearances, five Gold Glove Awards, four Silver Sluggers and won five World Series.

Jeter remarks on his departure as a bittersweet but necessary one.

“Parts of 20 seasons I’ve played in New York and 23 counting the Minor Leagues,” Jeter said in a press conference at the beginning of the season. “So I think I’ve done it long enough. I’m looking forward to doing other things in my life.”

To pay tribute to Jeter, many of the teams that the Yankees played gave Jeter gifts that ranged from a pair of pin-striped cowboy boots to a bronze Yankees hat.

“I’ll never forget how the baseball fans across the country have treated me,” Jeter wrote in his post on the Player’s Tribune. “Ballparks I used to view as enemy territory were transformed with cheers, handshakes and hat tips. If I thought baseball was part of my family before this season, I know now that it’s truly the case. And I am grateful for that.”

Immediately following his retirement from baseball, Jeter launched his new website, the Player’s Tribune, on Oct. 1. The website is intended to give fans direct access to the opinions of players as compared to having re-

porters distort the words of the players. During his baseball career, Jeter kept a tight mouth around reporters in fear of his words being twisted into what was not his original intent.

However, Jeter does not think that this limited player commentary is fair to the players and thinks that there should be a platform that directly connects fans and players. This way, players will not have to filter everything they say and can provide more insight.

If I thought baseball was part of my family before this season, I know now that it’s truly the case.

Derek Jeter

Former New York Yankees Shortstop “I do think fans deserve more than ‘no comments’ or ‘I don’t knows,’” Jeter wrote in his first post on the Player’s Tribune. “Those simple answers have always stemmed from a genuine concern that any statement, any opinion or detail, might be distorted.”

It is a general consensus among professional athletes that their public commentary is limited, for fear that the media will misrepresent them.

“I’m not a robot,” Jeter said. “Neither are the other athletes who at times might seem unapproachable.

We all have emotions. We just need to be sure our thoughts will come across the way we intend.”

Jeter was first drafted by the Yankees in 1992 and played in the Minor Leagues for three years. In 1995 he was moved up to the main team but only had 15 at-bats. The next season, he batted 0.316 and won the Rookie of the Year Award. Since 1995, Jeter has been an anchor to the Yankees, batting 0.310 throughout his career and winning five Gold Glove Awards.

Monday, October 13, 2014

The Campanile

SPORTS

C7 Athletes should receive consistent Athlete of the punishment for the same crime month Gender, race and sport ought not to be a factor when determining punishment

Kevin Mullin

Sports Editor

R

unning back Ray Rice was recently suspended indefinitely from the National Football League (NFL) and cut by the Baltimore Ravens after video evidence of his assault on his then-fiance Janay Palmer was made available to the public. The backlash from the sports community was harsh, and there is the possibility that Rice may never play another NFL game, let alone play this season. To me, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with this result. Rice made a huge mistake and he therefore deserves a huge punishment. A person who makes terrible decisions, like those of Rice, is toxic to the league, and brings a bad name to the game of football. Rice will pay the price for his crimes, and there is a definite sense of justice regarding the matter, even if the NFL has been inconsistent in their manner of doling out the correct sanctions.

However, despite all the controversy surrounding the NFL and Roger Goodell, you must admit that he made an example of Ray Rice. Hope-

fully, the severe penalties inflicted upon Rice will act as a deterrent towards other players in the NFL. In order to play and in order to be paid, the members of the leagues should be expected to represent their sport in a positive fashion. This applies to all sports. Not just football or basketball or baseball, but every sport.

Look at the case of Hope Solo, the US women’s national soccer team’s most famous player, known both for her prowess in goal and her striking physical attractiveness. Unfortunately, Solo made some mistakes off the field that should have wrought the same consequences and national disgust that the Ray Rice scandal met.

Yet the public outrage never came. In fact, Solo was allowed to start in goal for the US national team even as the controversy swirled around her.

According to police reports, Solo was arrested over the summer when officers responded to a 911 call reporting that a woman was hitting people and no one could get her to leave the area. Solo’s sister and nephew both had visually apparent injuries, and Solo has been mandated by the court that she stay away from those relatives.

Why is this case different from that of Ray Rice? Is it because no video of the brutality has surfaced?

Is it because soccer is a less popular sport in the US than football? Is it because Rice is a man and Solo is a woman? None of these factors should be significant when determining the punishment for Solo or Rice. If our nation wants domestic violence to be seen as a serious crime, then punishment needs to be consistent. We can-

not disrespect the NFL for forcing Rice to deal with the severe repercussions of his actions because there was video evidence of the violence.

We cannot say that Solo’s situation was different from Rice’s because “no one cares about soccer in the United States.” We cannot say that it is different because Solo is a woman. Solo deserves to be reprimanded with the same seriousness and severity as Rice was.

Both were famous players, and both were likely looked up to as role models by kids across the nation. The leagues must set an example now in order to assure a better future for not only their respective sports, but the country in general.

If young sports fans grow up with idols like these, what can we expect from these kids in the future?

Courtesy of flickr

Keith Allison/Flickr

Hope Solo (left) and Ray Rice (right) are two athletes that have both recently been perpetrators in domestic violence crimes.

NFL should revise Paly should offer a their conduct code men’s volleyball team The National Football League must consider players’ actions off the field when rewriting the Code

Chris SkoKowski

Senior Staff Writer

A

fter the recent barrage of criticism the National Football league (NFL) has been forced to weather over player conduct and the handling of the Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson investigations, it has become obvious that the league needs a more clearly defined way to decide on disciplinary actions for its players.

The root of the league’s problems seems to come in the Code of Conduct its players are expected to follow. The Code of Conduct was published in 2007 and recent events suggest that it needs an update. The code clearly outlines the expectations for its players, stating that:“Engaging in violent and/or criminal activity is unacceptable and constitutes conduct detrimental to the integrity of and public confidence in the [NFL]” It also outlines the cases for discipline, including everything from crimes to acts that tarnish the image of the league.

However, the NFL does not have a clear-cut process for determining disciplinary action for people who violate the code of conduct. No connections are clearly made between violations and their corresponding punishments.

In light of the recent scandal involving Ray Rice, the NFL no longer commands sufficient public trust to continue with its past course of action. The league needs to adopt a more transparent process for applying disciplinary action on the basis of the code violation committed by the player, not on a case-by-case ba-

sis; perhaps by pulling players from games if they are under trial and suspending them for a few games, or indefinitely, depending on what they are convicted of, and if they are convicted.

NFL football is the most popular sport in the US, and it broadcasts to a very large youth audience. The players are very high profile public figures, and because of their influence on young people, NFL players should be held to a high standard of behavior on and off the field.

If the league cares enough about its reputation to punish players that tarnish its image, it should be willing to discipline its players in a way that will truly deter them from violating the Code of Conduct. The policies could be easily streamlined if the league agreed to suspend players for irresponsible behaviors or accusations of illegal behavior, and in addition ban those who are convicted of breaking the law.

Consider Michael Vick’s conviction on charges of gambling and dog fighting. The NFL only gave him a suspension, allowing him to return to play only two years after his conviction and awarding him with comeback player of the year at the end of the season.

The problem doesn’t just lie with the league though, as fans also seem apathetic of their star players’ actions outside the stadium. Recently, a statue of the Baltimore Ravens fan favorite Ray Lewis was constructed outside the Ravens’ stadium, an honor that few other people convicted of obstruction of justice in a murder trial can claim.

Though much of the focus on reforming football today is centered around concussion prevention and the prevention of violent hits, it seems that the league should place as much focus on the players’ actions off the field in addition. Football is a violent sport, and the league cannot afford to put people with questionable character on the field when a career, or even life ending injuries, are just one hit away.

PAUSD should provide equal sports opportunities for both male and female athletes

Dami Bolarinwa

staff writer

P

alo Alto High School is part of a very small list of schools in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League (SCVAL) that does not have a participating men’s volleyball team.

SCVAL consists of two divisions, the De Anza League — the higher division — and El Camino League — the lower division. Paly has no male volleyball team that can participate in either division and this is simply because it refuses to add the team. An addition of a men’s volleyball team would add diversity to and strengthen Paly’s arsenal of fierce teams.

During the recent quad intramural volleyball tournament, many of the male students excelled and showed potential for a possible volleyball team. A men’s volleyball would be a great idea and this is currently an untapped area that could be very promising for Paly male students.

It’s unfair that students attending high schools in Los Altos, Mountain View, Los Gatos and other areas are able to participate in a men’s volleyball team. Paly, along with our neighbor Gunn High School, does not offer a men’s volleyball team, and in my opinion there are not any reasons for both Paly and Gunn to not to be able to participate in men’s volleyball.

When men’s baseball emerged in 1845, a women’s league was created in 1887, which later became known as softball. If we can have a women’s softball team along with countless other sports offered to both genders, why can’t men have a volleyball team?

I understand that to add a men’s sports team you then have to add a women’s sports team, there is a women’s field hockey league that Paly and Gunn do not partake in because of the lack of a men’s team to balance the number of sports for each gender.

There are many male volleyball club teams, but there is no school team for the sport.

This needs to change. There is a vast group of male students who seemed to be very interested in participating during the volleyball tournament that Paly created. Not having a men’s volleyball team can be seen as sexist to the male population — for each male sport there is a female counter sport; however, there is no men’s volleyball team to complement the women’s volleyball team. The Paly football team even allows girls to try out and play — but boys cannot try out to join the women’s volleyball team.

This is not fair because Paly has an even split between sports that are male and sports that are female, so I feel that the only way to properly add a sport such as men’s volleyball is to add a sport for females such as field hockey, another sport played in many other schools other than Paly. If there is a good amount of students wanting to partake in these sports why not have a compromise and add the two sports?

Sophomore Joao Gabriel de Pina feels the same way about having equal representation of genders in volleyball.

“I’ve been looking for a boys volleyball team near Palo Alto for nearly a year, but I cannot find any clubs and our schools do not provide that sport as an opportunity,” Gabriel de Pina said. “However, I have found that other schools have. I do not see why Paly would not provide [boys’ volleyball]. It seems like a sport that a lot of male students would be interested in playing, just based on the amount of male students that participated in the intramural grade volleyball tournament that was held on the school quad.”

This edition featuring

Halle Biorn

with The Campanile’s own

Owen Dulik

Junior Halle Biorn is on the Varsity girls tennis team. Biorn has been on the Paly tennis team for three years this year. In the game against Santa Clara, the team won 7-0.

The Campanile: You are Halle Biorn of the Paly Varsity girls tennis team. How is the season going so far?

Halle Biorn: Good.

TC: What’s your guys’ record?

HB: We’re undefeated.

TC: Wow. What’s your personal record?

HB: Undefeated.

TC: Nice. What position do you play for the team?

HB: Number one doubles.

TC: Okay, who is your doubles partner?

HB: Meredith Cummings.

TC: And how would you describe your chemistry?

HB: We have beautiful chemistry.

TC: Does it really come together on the court?

HB: Yeah, just magical.

TC: Now that you’re an upperclassman, have you accepted a larger leadership role?

HB: Oh yeah. For sure.

TC: Describe how you help the team out in that way.

HB: I lead them with my intelligence.

TC: How would you describe your growing relationship with head coach Andy Harader?

HB: Andre and me are best friends. We have a love-hate relationship.

TC: For the future, do you plan to play tennis in college?

HB: I mean, if I got in on a scholarship then sure, but I just want to live up the college life.

TC: Do you have a good grunt?

HB: Oh yeah. For sure. Grunts are very important in women’s tennis. You’ve got to have a good one.

TC: How fast do you think you can serve?

HB: Definitely like four million miles per hour.

TC: Alright, four million, that is going on the record. What would you say your athletic talents are that really help you get the edge on the court?

HB: I’m really good at, for volleys, aiming at the other person so that it hits them.

TC: There was actually a girl from Atherton who was in the U.S. Open. Do you know Cici Bellis?

HB: Yes, I do know Cici Bellis.

TC: Do you think that you can beat her?

HB: Oh yeah. For sure. No, she’s really good.

TC: Do you like Serena Williams?

HB: Yeah, I do.

TC: You know, I’ve actually seen you play and you remind me a lot of Serena on the court.

HB: Thank you. Serena has a huge butt.

TC: Alright, any last words you would like to say?

HB: Come support Paly Tennis.

Friday, May Monday, October 25, 2011 13, 2014

The Campanile

SPORTS

C8

The Campanile’s Top Ten Playoff Performers still standing The 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) playoffs, are in full swing with the Wild Card and Divisional rounds already having been concluded.

The Royals beat the Athletics in a wild thriller, and went on to sweep the top-seeded Angels. In the American League, the Orioles easily swept the Tigers. In the National League, the Giants beat the Pirates in the Wild Card game, and went on to beat the Nationals in a close series.

The Cardinals also upset the Dodgers in a tight matchup. With the Championship Series’ and the World Series still having yet to be completed, there is still lots of great baseball left. Here are The Campanile’s picks for the top ten best performers still standing in the MLB postseason.

9 10

Bud Norris Bud Norris was lights-out this season, as shown by his 15-8 record and 3.65 ERA. As arguably the best pitcher on the Orioles staff, Norris also played a huge role in the team’s sweep of the Detroit Tigers in the ALDS. In his one starting performance, Norris recorded a win and a 0.00 ERA in 6.1 innings. This kind of dominance is exactly what the O’s need if they hope to move on to the World Series. Watch Norris break out as he tries to subdue the powerful Royals hitting.

7

Alex Gordon has already had a huge impact in the postseason, both offensively and defensively.

Gordon is known for his ability to crush the ball, as well as being able to gun down runners trying to score from left field. Gordon has three hits, two of which are doubles, and four RBIs with a batting average of .200. Gordon came up huge in Game 3 of the ALDS, when Mike Trout led off the game with a solo home run in the first inning. Gordon answered with a three run double that set the stage for the Royals’ sweep of the top-seeded Halos.

Expect Gordon to be a key offensive factor to further propel the Royals.

Matt Adams 6 PAblo Sandoval

Matt Adams may well be the sole reason why the Cardinals are still alive in the playoffs. In the bottom of the seventh inning in Game 4 of the NLDS, the Dodgers were up 2-0 and looked ready to tie the series when Adams crushed a three-run home run to get the lead. This type of monstrous performance has become expected from the youngster who posted 15 home runs, 68 RBIs and a .288 batting average in the regular season. Expect Adams to come up big in the NLCS if the Cards hope to beat the Giants.

3

Alex Gordon

Pablo Sandoval posted yet another solid season this year, with 16 home runs, 79 RBIs and a .279 batting average. Already this postseason, Kung Fu Panda has gone off. Sandoval has really changed for the better defensively this season, and that showed with his spectacular catch while flipping into the dugout during the Wild Card game. So far this postseason, Sandoval has six hits, one RBI and a .261 batting average. Look for this to only improve, as Sandoval will be working his hardest because he is up for a new contract.

Since this might be his last couple games in orange and black, expect Sandoval to go out fighting, or earn himself a great new contract in the rest of the postseason.

Nelson Cruz Nelson Cruz put the Orioles on the map, with a monstrous season this year. Cruz had 40 home runs, 108 RBIs and a .271 batting average.

And to top that, Cruz has had an even better postseason in just three games with six hits, two home runs, five RBIs and a .500 batting average. If Cruz performs, then the Orioles will do well, and that is exactly what he has been doing. If Cruz keeps this play up, look for them to have a serious shot at the World Series.

2

8

Joe Panik is a beast of a rookie.

Panik is a solid, dependable hitter and fielder that the Giants grew to love when they made him their starter in the spring, after losing Marco Scutaro for the season. Panik quickly flourished, with one home run, 18 RBIs and .305 batting average. Panik continued his success in the postseason in a dominant fashion so far, with seven hits, two RBIs and a .292 batting average. Expect Panik to continue to be an offensive power that will help drive the Giants to the World Series.

Eric Hosmer is a beast. That is all. In four postseason games in 2014, Hosmer has tallied two home runs, five RBIs and a .500 batting average.

W h i l e Hosmer did not have an amazing season with just nine home runs, 58 RBIs and a .270 batting average, he has a knack for heroics in the playoffs. Hosmer’s clutch triple in extra innings is the sole reason the Royals are heading to the ALCS, and he will continue t o be massively clutch.

For Hosmer to erupt against the solid, but not great pitching of the Baltimore Orioles while paving Kansas City’s road to the World Series.

Owen Dulik sports editor

Design by: Coby Parker Editor-in-chief Owen Dulik sports editor

James Shields

James Shields is the final factor that ties in this deep Royals team. They have the hitting and the fielding, but his pitching is the catalyst for this team so far this postseason.

Shields has had two starts so far in just four games, and has recorded a win and a 4.91 ERA. While the stats aren’t great, Shields keeps opposing hitters at bay, while allowing time for his team’s bats to erupt.

Shields is a huge reason the Royals are so successful this postseason.

5 Joe Panik

Eric Hosmer

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4 Madison Bumgarner

Madison Bumgarner, aka MadBum, is a force to be reckoned with. This season was perhaps his most dominant, and he finished with an 18-10 record, and a 2.98 ERA. Bumgarner has also shown how reliable he is in the playoffs, with a 1-1 record and a 1.13 ERA. Additionally, this menacing 6’5” beast is a force to be reckoned with offensively as well.

Bumgarner has pop, and even recorded two grand slams this year. If Bumgarner is on for the rest of the playoffs, there is no doubt that the Giants will win the World Series for the third time in five years.

1 Matt Carpenter Matt Carpenter has easily been the best player in the postseason so far, at least of those whose teams are still alive. The Cardinals’ third baseman had a good season with eight home runs, 59 RBIs and a .272 batting average, but he has had an even better postseason. In just four postseason games, Carpenter has three home runs, six hits, seven RBIs and a .375 batting average.

In other words, he has raked.

If the Cards hope stand a fighting chance against the team that beat them in the 2012 NLCS, the San Francisco Giants.