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DARK NIGHT Learn how light pollution across the nation can be fixed page 2
BEND IT LIKE KAFUI York’s new men’s soccer coach came with only a dream of teaching soccer page 8
FURRIEs!
What’s behind the mask is not what you thought... page 4
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DARK NIGHT Overlooking Guy R. Brewer Boulevard, astronomy professor Tim Paglione tries to show off the cosmos, but a battle with light makes city stargazing a near-impossible activity. By Joseph Darius Jaafari a group of about 20 shuffled onto the fourth floor terrace of the H-wing of York College, Professor Tim Paglione shielded his eyes and looked straight up.
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“There!” he said, and everyone craned their heads back. With squinted eyes – and hoodies pulled over their heads– the group was looking at one of the brightest stars in the night sky, Vega. Once a month, Paglione, an astrophysicist who is also the chair of the Earth and Physical Sciences Department, puts on an open sky observation night for the community and college students fascinated by the cosmos. This time, everyone was expecting to see the “summer triangle,” a constellation that around the early night-time hours draws an imaginary triangle directly above using the three brightest stars from three separate constellations: Altair from the constellation Aquila; Cygnus from Deneb; and Vega from Lyra. Though sometimes viewing conditions can be dubious (mostly because of cloud cover), the sky’s haze is matched with one problem that will just never go away: the lights. “Gertz is off tonight,” Paglione said and pointed to the darkened Gertz Plaza Mall signage. “That’s a blessing.” “Light pollution is the easiest pollution to fix, it’s not like you have to wait centuries for it to leave the atmosphere. I calculated it, it takes a millisecond,” Paglione said. New York is one of the few states in the nation that has no laws limiting light pollution. However, a bill was
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passed through the state Senate in June that would require facades on all lights to reduce glare and light pollution. It’s yet to be seen if the bill will be signed into law. California, on the other hand, has some of the strongest laws and has recently emboldened their program in places like downtown Los Angeles and Oakland by changing the orange-hued sodium street lights (similar to the ones that surround York College) to a brighter, more cost-efficient, LED light. The switch between bulbs has the potential to reduce the overall number of street lamps by 66 percent, according to some researchers. It also saves California over $5 million in electricity usage, according to the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Lighting. “Light pollution is the only form of pollution where you can save money by fixing it,” said Scott Kardel, Acting Executive Director of the International Dark Sky Association. “We tend to think of air and water pollution as a thing. You can touch toxic water, for example. Light pollution is a bit more nebulous than that. You can’t hold or smell it, but you can see it, and you can make an instant difference in turning your lights off.” But light is a finicky particle. You can direct light into a beam by, for example, fashioning a piece of paper into a cylinder around a flashlight, but light photons bouncing off the paper will create a slight halo effect at the opening, creating spillover. “Light easily comes out in all angles, all you can do is put lenses in front of it,” said Dr. Robert Alfano, a distinguished professor of the physics department at CUNY’s City College of New York. “Light emits everywhere, so you have a glow. The light bulb is glowing.
Even tungsten glows in all directions.” The inevitable spillover, coupled with city lights from skyscrapers and billboards, wreak havoc on the ecological environment of many cities. In one example, Florida sea turtles that hatch at night have been affected by light pollution. “Instead of hatching and making their way to the water, they wander towards the lights, away from the water, and die,” said Paglione. “You know how the poster child of global warming is the polar bear? The poster child of light pollution is the sea turtle.” In 1993 Florida enacted legislation to prohibit any illumination on or near beaches during nesting season in an effort to protect hatchlings, which are also on the endangered species list. Jamaica lies roughly ten miles from midtown Manhattan, the most polluted region of the United States according to The Royal Astronomical Society. When it mapped out the level of brightness for each continent, the group concluded that the corridor between Washington D.C. and Boston was the brightest. Paglione contested the severity of light pollution in Jamaica, and said that the neighborhood ranked low on the Bortle Scale (a nine-step checklist that anyone can check from their doorstep to see how dark their sky is). “Hundreds of measurements get logged all over NYC each year, and it’s bad. But it’s really good just 30 minutes away in some directions,” he said. “The intangible factor is that for all of human history we’ve had the night sky,” said Kardel. “The stars have inspired countless people for cool things in regards to art and science and religion and philosophy. Now that we’re cut off from that, it’s hard to say.”
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The York Beat
Is race still a factor in policing violent neighborhoods? Or are they trained to be more aggressive, in general?
The Michael Brown case caused massive unrest all over the country, especially in black communities that have always felt preyed upon by police. In New York, especially in areas of Brooklyn, people still resent the
that the equipment be used within one year -- and no training guidelines.” Talking heads argue that police may be naturally racist due to a
NYPD after recently seeing three unarmed black residents gunned down
poor ethnic mix in police departments. However, a recent study by the
by police including Kimani “Kiki” Gray in East Flatbush last year.
Associated Press found that the racial make-up of the NYPD mirrors
But what’s more disturbing is the use of tanks and military combat gear that have been used against American citizens.
the population more closely than departments in most major American cities.
In 1997, The Department of Defense launched The 1033 Program.
Still, there are issues of whether too many police departments single
According to the Huffington Post, “the 1033 Program authorized the
out black communities, or is it their training matched with their mili-
Pentagon to transfer military equipment to local law enforcement free
tary-grade gear that have made them more hostile?
of charge, without established standards -- other than a requirement
ROBERTO BRUTUS
“There are different variables. Police are on edge depending on the town. For instance Ferguson has a population that is around 85 percent African American but you only have 3 officers that are black and maybe one of them is local , no one really feels safe, including the officers, because no one really knows each other”
NOSA EDIONWE
“I think the police are trained to be aggressive. They’re not trained to solve the problem. I don’t want to say all police officers over react but the ones that do overreact stand out. They make other officers look bad. I think the most police officers tend to be afraid so that’s why they over react”
CHRISTIAN MARMOL
“Race does apply to everything we do. To me at times I believe black people are targeted because of the area they tend to live in. But when they deal with a white person they are treated a different way. Race is a big factor, but its a combination. Officers are being trained to be more aggressive and to target a specific race, it’s not so simple.”
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Furries...
an inside look of a shrouded and misunderstood subculture stands up, puts the head back on the couch and stands up to start taking off his outfit. “We’re not what everyone thinks we are.”
An ancient childish HISTORY
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Photos & Story by Joseph Darius Jaafari
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hawn Fox sits down and puts his paws up on the coffee table. “There’s something magical about foxes -- they’re in almost every folklore,” he says, as he open a bottle of Michelob Ultra and sticks it down a snarling snout of sharp, plastic canines. His hands are too big to hold the bottle, so he has to grasp it as if he was sparking a fire using a stick. Fox spills a bit and hops up on his enormous webbed feet. Startled to see a six-foot dingo looming over them in the living room, his Boston terrier pups begin barking. He takes off his head to reveal himself and put his finger on his mouth to shush them. “I forget they’ve never seen me in costume,” he says, and puts his head back on and sits down, coddling the
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puppies in his arms. Fox is apart of a growing subculture of people who enjoy dressing as anthropomorphic animals called “furries.” Different from cosplayers, who dress up as video game characters, or “bronies,” who dress up as My Little Pony characters, furries are a large, yet lone, group. They have constantly been aligned with sexual deviants or online trolls. HBO shows like Real Sex and VICE have sensationalized the sexual aspect of furries in a number of episodes and short documentaries. Yet, majority of furries have been afraid to speak out and set the record straight, for fear of misrepresentation. “We don’t like to talk to the media,” Fox says. “In the past, I know some people who have had bad experiences. So, they’ve just stopped trying.” Fox takes off his mask again, showing off a fair-skinned, slightly freckled face with a number of ear piercings. He
ot surprisingly, almost all furries recall their childhood as ground-zero for their furry fandom. Fox’s fascination, for example, stemmed from his love for animals and Japanese cartoons -- a staple in the furry community. Cartoon shows like Inuyasha and Sailor Moon have characters that take on human traits. These are often credited with continuing the craze of the fandom. However, the fascination with anthropomorphism dates back thousands of years. The ancient Greeks’ Aesopica, animal fables written by the Greek slave Aesop, had animals represent humans to teach children valuable life-lessons. They are some of the first instances of anthropomorphism in literary history dating back to the sixth century BCE. The Indian Jatakas, the oldest of Buddhist literature going back to the fourth century BCE, also had animals illustrate lessons by taking on human traits. The bible had a talking snake. The Egyptians had Anubis. Even Orwell had a communist pig. But just as animals have been able to provide life lessons through literature, surries have used them as a means to escape.
UNDER THE MASK
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ever. Take. Off. Your. Mask...Ever.” Kyle McCarthy is stern about this
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Gays have been through the wringer with the media. Furries get it because we’ve been portrayed in the same way. Deviants. Unacceptable. Odd.
one rule. He points to his mask, a doeeyed wolf named “NIIC” (pronounced “nice”). “We call it ‘ruining the magic’,” he says. Some furries take on the form of their costumes, giving them special “fursonas” which they try to emulate in performances. For them, taking off the mask is a sign of disrespect. But that’s not something everyone agrees on. “You get these people who don’t talk at all and only communicate through yips and grunts,” says Fox, whose Dingo, named “Raff,” has an Australian accent and a quippy self-centered ego. “I put on Raff and I just talk like him and make fun of people,” Fox says. “It’s not necessarily me becoming him, but I definitely act a bit more like a jackass.” Although many have the option to embody their fursona in real life, the majority of “furries” actually don’t dress up at all. Rather they stay connected through a kind of Facebook for furries, taking their personalities online. This kind of intranet, FurNation.com, is an invaluable website for furries and acts a place of commerce
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for furries that want to sell their art or hire designers to assemble costumes. For furries, reality oftentimes is a hurdle that only artists can overcome. Fursonas can only be imagined, and unless someone is a skilled costume designer or artist, most furries have to pay for their animal to proverbially come to life. And that’s not cheap. Raff cost Fox almost $2,000. His other fox-raccoon costume was made by his roommate and cost $800 in materials alone. However, there is a need for connection beyond the keyboard. “A lot of these people come from the Midwest where they have nobody to interact with like this,” Fox says. “I’m lucky that I live in New York. But, for others, it’s the only chance they get to act, I guess, weird.” The furry community has also been a safe-haven for gay men. This is true, in part because of the parallels in how both furries and gay men are treated in the media, according to the International Anthropomorphic Research Project (IARP), a research group that gathers information at furry conventions throughout the year.
The furry community is approximately 40 percent gay or bisexual men -- about 30 percent more than the national average, according to IARP. “Gays have been through the wringer with the media,” says McCarthy, who is also gay and whose partner is also a furry. “Furries get it because we’ve been portrayed in the same way. Deviants. unacceptable. Odd.” Yet fursonas, even among straight furries, are more likely to be gay or bisexual. “It may be the case that this is way of testing the waters for furries who may be experimenting with homosexual feelings or who are contemplating coming out as gay,” says IARP.
“WE’RE NOT THE FRINGE”
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here are a number of people who use the furry community as an opportunity for a sexual fetish. No doubt, the amount of furry erotica and furry porn on the internet is overwhelming, but the amount of furries who associate themselves within this group is, in their eyes, like comparing FLDS to the greater Mormon church. “Yeah there are some who have sex in their costumes,” says Fox, but then scoffed. “My costume is two grand! You wouldn’t catch me dead doing that.” And he’s not alone. Out of the 5,000 attendees at last year’s AnthroCon, the largest furry convention in the world held every year in Pittsburgh, less than five percent were there as fetishists. However, outside of the community, a majority of people polled by IARP said they believed people became furries as a sexual fetish. “Some people this we have sex with animals,” says Fox. “Some people think we have sex in costumes. Some people think we’re just this group of weirdos. But we’re not. We’re not the fringe.”
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Microsoft’s purchase of Minecraft was their smartest marketing decision
and obviously its true home on PC,” Spencer said. “Whether you’re playing on an Xbox, a Playstation, an Android or iOS device, our goal is to continue to evolve and innovate with MineEarlier this month, Microsoft Corporation his disinterest in staying focused on one project craft across all of those platforms.” acquired indie game developer turned multimil- for so long and being in the public eye. Although Minecraft is continuing support on lion dollar company Mojang, known for their hit “I love games and I love to program, but I all platforms under the ownership of Microsoft, indie game Minecraft, for $2.5 billion dollars. don’t make games with the intention of them be- it remains to be seen whether potential future Minecraft, the elemental building block sand- coming huge hits, and I don’t try to change the projects based on the brand would be coming box game with roguelike elements, has become world. Minecraft certainly became a huge hit, to other consoles outside of the PC and Xbox a phenomenon across all major platforms and people are telling me it’s changed games. family. including Playstation and Xbox consoles, iOS, I never meant for it to do either. It’s certainly “I think its going to turn a fun, creative game Android, Mac and PC since it’s alpha release flattering, and to gradually get thrust into some for players in the community into a new marin early 2010. Although it may seem like a kind of public spotlight is interesting. [...] I’ve keting scheme for Microsoft,” said York College questionable acquisition on the surface, it is a become a symbol. I don’t want to be a symbol, physics major and gamer Elliot Wiseman. very solid investment on Microsoft’s part. Since responsible for something huge that I don’t Wiseman, 21, doesn’t have high hopes for the its console debut on the Xbox 360 back in 2011, understand, that I don’t want to work on, that property in Microsoft’s hands. Minecraft has become one of the best selling keeps coming back to me. I’m not an entrepre“Have you ever seen an Xbox 360 dashboard?,” games of all time with 54 million copies across neur. I’m not a CEO. I’m a nerdy computer pro- he said, referring to the Xbox home screen. all platforms as of June of this year. It’s combina- grammer who likes to have opinions on Twitter.” “Have you seen all of the advertisements? It’s rition of community based creativity, intricately According to CelebrityNetworth.com, it is diculous! I’m sure Minecraft is going be milked complex yet easy to learn gameplay and retro estimated that Perrson is now worth $1.3 billion for money through more monetized in game style graphics has made it a game for all ages, after the buyout. content than its had before.” hardcore and casual audiences alike. What is the fate of Minecraft across all platJust one week prior to the purchase, Minecraft Game creator, Markus “Notch” Perrson, has forms now that one of the big console manufac- had just been release on both the Playstation since stepped down from the company he start- turers now own the property? Much to the relief 4 and the Xbox One. The game became the ed with co-creators and fellow game designers of fans, head of Microsoft’s Xbox division Phil number one downloaded piece of software on Carl Manneh and Jakob Porser following the Spencer said in an interview posted on Microboth digital platforms. Playstaion Vita version acquisition. Perrson announced his departure softs website shortly after the acquisition that of the game is still due sometime by the end of from Mojang on his blog notch.net. the game will continue to be supported on all this year. “I make games because it’s fun,” Persson said. devices. Although he was happy with the amount of suc“This is a game that has found its audience on By Trone Dowd cess the game managed to achieve, he expressed touch devices, on phones, on iPad, on console
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KID TO COACH HOW YORK’S NEW MEN’S COACH CAME TO THE STATES WITH SOCCER ON HIS MIND
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trength, intelligence, and thirst for success are a few defining characteristics of Kafui Kouakou, York College’s new head men’s soccer coach. Being an ex-student, ex-player and one of the former assistant coaches for the 2009 championship team, there are few who would contest him as the person to bring York back to the championships in 2014. Growing up in West Africa, Kouakou was taught by his parents at a young age that you have to work hard for everything that you want in life. His father was a principal of a local school and his mother was a trade broker. Growing up wasn’t easy, he says, but despite his situation he was grateful because he had seen friends in worse circumstances. “The economy was and still is so bad, but my parents worked very hard to send me to school and to keep me in a good situation,” said Kouakou. “They taught me that if you want something you work hard and you earn it. They taught me so much, that’s why even to this day they are still my role models” “Everything I do, I do for them and to make them proud of me,” said Kouakou. Playing soccer since the age of five, Kouakou found solace in his sport at an early age. “I’ve been playing for as long as I can remember. If I had to say an age it would have to be five years old just because I
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By Chris Kumar Singh cannot remember a time where I wasn’t playing,” said Kouakou. “It was the dominant sport in West Africa, as basketball and American football is here.” He began attending York in 2006, joining the male soccer team and winning the PSAL championship in 2007. It was then, he says, that he realized the love and passion he had for soccer was matched with his deep respect and adoration of then-coach Linval Cunningham. Kouakou credits Cunningham with his success, saying without him he would never be the man that he is today. “He taught me so many things about life and soccer, he changed me,” said Kouakou. “Without him I don’t think that I would be in the position that I am in today. He was really good to me.” After he earned his degree and was done playing, he became one of the assistants for the team in 2008. Being an assistant made him realized that he couldn’t impact the game in a physical manner the way that he was used to. Kouakou began to adapt and taught the players different tactics both physically and mentally on how to approach the game. Cunningham was so impressed with the job that Kafui was doing in 2011, that when York wanted a female soccer team, Kouakou became the head coach. He realized it was a completely different world. Almost half of the team didn’t know how to play soccer and just had
passion for the sport, which resulted in a number of losses, defeating Kouakou into the mindset that he needed to find a different approach. Kouakou began teaching the basics, knowing how to really understand the movement of the ball and the precision that went into the a perfect kick, a solid defense and a formidable team. The soccer team began to understand the game. They were a dark-sheep group. Though they never came close to winning a championship, it was almost enough just to do well. Kafui was the coach for three years until the end of the 2013 season. He went on to coach the men’s team after Cunningham retired. “He is a really good coach. The way we practice it seems that we are prepared for anything,” said Chin. “I think that when we get everything together we will be good. We all want that title.” Also team forward Frank Rodriguez thinks that the coach has the talent to take this team far. “He is a really good coach and he knows what hes doing,” said Rodriguez. “The way we practice is unlike anyway I have experienced. I think he can lead us to that hardware. This being my last year and everything I feel good about the situation considering that we just beat an undefeated team.”
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Joseph Darius Jaafari Crystal Alexander Yvette Brown Trone Dowd Raymond Mora Allyson Gill
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Laura Farrell Rosanna Singh Janae Hunter C.C. Atuanya Rodney Gantt Gina Martinez Katherine Ortiz Graciano Clause Valerie Victor Marvin Duarte Kizuwanda Vialva