Wednesday , February 28th, 2013
Mr.AAS - Lola Borissenko
Activities ©facebook.com
Winner of the Mr.AAS Title, Boris Bota © AAS Yearbook Dropbox
AAS Mic-Night © StuCo page
IB Column ©ibo.org
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alentine’s Day what better way to celebrate this lovely holiday than by attending a show? Five contestants all equally talented, bold and entertaining gathered in the Maly Theatre on Thursday to compete for the title of Mr. AAS. George Cummins was this year’s grade nine debutant in the high school’s performances. Taemin Kim was the tenth grader competing for the title. Liam Van Son and Yonatan Haviv were opponents, both representing grade eleven. And as for this year’s senior class, Boris Botachev was the only grade twelve contestant performing this year.
As the show progressed, Musical the audience witnessed one and a half minute videos, all depicting the creative nature of the five contestants. We got a tour of George’s Special thanks to super- house and even met his cat; we had a chance to visor Francy Johnson see a few of Taemin’s Introducing Notes ©
adorable baby videos; we looked at Yonatan as quite a competitor; Liam demonstrated his amiable relationship with his girlfriend and finally Boris appeared to be quite the man of his team. For the first part of the show, the audience witnessed some interesting costume choices regarding swimwear. Taemin appeared to be quite the scuba diver and Liam represented the heroic profession of a life guard. When the contestants were faced with the ‘surprise’ competition, each one had to give a makeover to a young lady in only one minute. Boris was quite successful at this task, brightening the lady’s cheeks and lips; Yonatan, on the other hand, was a little bit more creative with his lady, giving her an abstract make over. The judges were fairly strict on our contestants so far… the talent completion was a decisive
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battle for the title of Mr. AAS, in which the contestants had to demonstrate us their most spectacular abilities that they are proud of. The first contestant George was eager to demonstrate his athletic abilities to the judges. He performed a short, yet quite impressive skill with the soccer ball. Taemin’s wild dancing abilities and the popularity of the Korean song ‘Gangnam Style’ motivated him to demonstrate his best moves with this tune. With the applause of the audience, Yonatan might originate a new kind of Olympic Games, known as ‘grape mouth catching’. Liam was quite a surprise, presenting himself as the finest finger painter at AAS creating the images of a rose, a puppy and popcorn only in three minutes time. With his good friends and team mates Boris recreated the finest battles of the acclaimed film ‘The Matrix’ and shocking
the audience with mad fighting skills. Although Mr. Khan made sure that the contestants looked up the word ‘talent’ in the dictionary, the judges and the audience were thrilled to watch all five performances with a great laugh. With the talents concluded, the famous Q and A sessions began. All the contestants are eager to make the world a better pace, take their girl to the most perfect date and certainly win the title of Mr. AAS. With their lovely escorts besides them each contestant was awarded a title based on his performance, but only one became Mr. AAS. Congratulations to Boris Botachev, contestant of the senior class of 2013! A round of applause to all the contestants and to the members of the National Honor society who have made this joyous event, yet another AAS tradition.
Open Mic-Night
Knowledge Bowl
- Annie May
- Julia Montieth
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he annual CEESA knowledge bowl tournament took place at AAS on February 8th and 9th. The visiting schools came from Vienna, Krakow, Kiev, Tirana, and Sofia. From AAS, three teams participated in the tournament, and all performed extremely well overall with a final placement of 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. The Moscow team members were Anna-Lisa Lundberg,
Sean Brame, Iordan Kohut, Ramona Popescu, Laurens Riedler, Kelly Descamps, Steven Bredin, Sun Jin Kim, Rob Wilkie, and Tudor Stoain. Alongside coaches Mr. Khan and Ms. Hogwood the team trained twice a week, by practicing questions in the style of the tournament. The tournament itself involved a multiple-choice written individual round, a written group round, and a
final competition round. The competition round involved two teams competing against each other answering questions. Whichever team pressed the buzzer first had a chance to answer the question. If they answered correctly they earned a point, and if they answered incorrectly the question was passed onto the opposing team. At the end of the round the team with the most points won.
While Iordan Kohut said “the tournament was a bit stressful”, he also described the overall experience as enjoyable, and a great opportunity to meet new people. While the Vienna A team placed first both days, Moscow B was the only team to beat Vienna A throughoutthe entire tournament. Overall, the tournament was an opportunity for students to exercise their brains
and simultaneously meet people from the other schools. One participant, Sean Brame, described that “the competition and atmosphere was really great.” He explained that “it was tiring on the brain and such but we got to meet some really cool people. Basically everyone was really friendly and sociable.” Congratulations to all knowledge bowl participants!
Math Counts Results
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n a Thursday afternoon, after the school day finally ends, there is nothing more that students want to do than to go home and finally get some rest. But why not do that in school? Student Council came up with an excellent idea that would allow students to relax, socialize, and eat some food all while listening to great music performed by other students. Open Mic Night took place on
February 7th and was a great success among students. Couches were set up in the green room so that everyone could get comfortable. Some snacks were provided for students as well which made the event even better. There was a variety of performers who demonstrated their skill with both instruments and vocals. There were performances from students from different grades and the overall reviews of the
night are positive.The performers included Lincoln Pigman, Camilla Simmons, Andrew Mishin, Ellena Soule, Jinhee Kim, and The Killjoys which consist of Robert Stiglitz, Marko Krunic, and Colin Eversdijk. Lincoln’s performed multiple songs such as “At the Bottom of Everything” and “First day of My Life” both by Bright Eyes. Jinhee sang “The Cave” by Mumford and Sons beautifully,
- Xenia Rakovshik
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AAS Math Counts Team ©AAS Yearbook Dropbox
©IBO
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CEESA 2013 Math Counts “First Place” trophy and three bronze medals. ©AAS Yearbook Dropbox
he 2013 CEESA Math Counts competition took place in Skopje, Macedonia on February 08-09, from which the AAS highschool team returned laden with numerous
a thursday instead of waiting for friday to do it. Open Mic Night also allowed the students that performed to feel more calm by holding the event in a casual environment so that no one would even think about being nervous or uncomfortable. The event received praise from many students and Student Council should definitely consider having another Open Mic Night some time this year.
IB Column - Juniors, Welcome to TOK
- Xenia Rakovshik
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and audience responded positively to all of the other performers as well. Robert Stiglitz played a song on the piano and told the audience that “It’s simple to play, but you have to put imagination into it, thats what makes it beautiful”. Overall, Open Mic Night can be considered a great success. Instead of going home like any other day, students got a chance to break out of their usual routine and have some fun on
victories. During the Senior Team Round of the competition high-school seniros Jason Cho, Haezy Kim, and Tetsuya Yamada came in first place while later during the Indi-
AAS Happy Counters ©AAS Yearbook Dropbox
vidual Senior Rounds, Jungwoo Kang won Jason came in first with second place in the Junior Individual events. Haezy a close third. Team coaches were Mr Younger particpants Jerace and Ms Rogers, such as sophomore the traveling team:
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Jason Cho, Tetsuya Yamada, Eric Song Haesung Rhim and Jungwoo Kang.
he IB Column is a section that has been created as a response to a growing demand for clarification amongst students about a myriad of academic subjects. By adressing some frequently asked questions we hope to create a forum where students can voice concerns or give advice to one another to help facilitate a more cohesive and supportive learning environment. If you have any questions, concerns, or corrections, please write to us at aas.point@gmail.com.
ith seniors announcing with great enthusiasm the conclusion of their TOK classes, and juniors preparing for the beginning of their own, this particular IB course has been getting a lot of attention. But then, what exactly is Theory of Knowledge? Ironically these kinds of nebulous inquiries are characteristic of the class, however whether there will ever be a definite answer to such ponderings is rather doubtful. According to the IB Curriculum outline: “The IB theory of knowledge (TOK) requirement is central to the educational philosophy of the Diploma Programme. It offers students and their teachers the opportunity to: reflect critically on diverse ways of know- ing and on areas of knowledge, consider Arts the role and
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nature of knowledge in their own culture, in the cultures of others and in the wider world. In addition, it prompts students to: Be aware of themselves as thinkers, encouraging them to become more acquainted with the complexity of knowledge, and recognize the need to act responsibly in an increasingly interconnected but uncertain world.” “As a thoughtful and purposeful inquiry into different ways of knowing, and into different kinds of knowledge, TOK is composed almost entirely of questions. The most central of these is ‘How do we know?’” Understanding the ways in which one comprehends the world around them is undeniably a fascinating topic of discussion, a catalyst if you will, for reflection and newfound insight
into how it is that individuals perceive their day-today experiences. But then again, the means by which one person may interpret say a colour, texture, or smell, could vary vastly from the sensory experience of another. Theory of Knowledge highlights the dangers of bias, making students aware of the interpretative nature of knowledge, including personal ideological tendencies, regardless of whether, ultimately, these biases are retained, revised or rejected. `` “TOK also has an important role to play in providing coherence for the student as it transcends and links academic areas thus demonstrating the way in which students can apply their knowledge with greater awareness and credibility” (IB Curriculum Outline).
High School Stockholm Syndrome - Cynthia Hogwood
Technology Update - OUYA Console - Alexander Rakovshik
- Xenia Rakovshik
What were your main hobbies or interests during your years in high school, or university for that matter? Favourite bands, music, etc?
© courtesy of Cynthia Hogwood Where did you attend that person. Ms. Rahigh school and what jabi used to give me were your favourite/ books to read that were least favourite and extensions on what we subjects? were doing in class. So, when we read 1984 I went to two high for class, she gave me schools. For 9th and The Handmaid’s Tale 10th grade I went to because she knew I Langham Creek High would enjoy it. I also School in Houston, read everything by which I later taught at Ayn Rand-wrote my for six years. During junior research paper that time, my favorite on Anthem and The subjects were Grade Fountainhead. I even 9 English with Ms. started reading ShakeCarpenter and my speare as I wrote my debate class. Then, I senior English paper moved to Memorial on Much Ado About High School, also in Nothing. Houston, for 11th and 12th grade. I loved my How do you think AP Literature course your teachers would with Ms. Rajabi; she is have described you as the reason I became an a student during your English teacher. high-school career? Did you enjoy reading? What were your favourite books or authors back in high school? I did… I was totally
dedicated and highachieving. My math teachers, well at least until grade 12, would have said “struggling”. What was your English teacher like in high-school (or if you had several, which one was the most helpful)?
I debated (cross-examination) for all four years in high school; my last two years, I travelled pretty extensively in the US and competed at a national level, qualifying for the National Forensic League National Tournament and the Tournament of Champions in Kentucky. It was my life, and I loved every minute of it. Many of my friends from back then are still friends, at least on Facebook. I loved U2, the Dave Matthews Band, Tori Amos, and Sarah MacLachlan— saw them all many times through high school and university. How many places have you taught? Which has been your favourite.
AAS is only my third school to teach at in my whole career…I I already talked about tend to stay places that Ms. Rajabi and Ms. I like. I liked differCarpenter. I had the ent things about all the opportunity to work schools; I don’t know with Ms. Carpenif there is a favorite. ter after graduating Langham Creek was from university, and I learned quite a bit from easy. I had been a student there. Swither. The one who I zerland was different despised, Ms. Belk, is probably the one from because it was a boarding school; but the whom I learned the most. She took an es- days the administration say, drew a red “X” on would cancel school and send us to ski were I know this will come it and said start over. some of my favorite as a shock, but talkWe worked on that ative. Depending on essay with her teaching days. Here, it’s never the same day; I like the subject, my English all the grammar that I the variety. Moscow and History/Governhad not learned along is also a cool city to ment/Economics teach- the way. Intense, but live in. ers would have said so necessary.
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What is your favourite piece of literature to teach amongst your classes at the moment? Seriously…I choose my syllabus for the most part, so I like everything I teach, just for different reasons. I love dystopic fiction, and I am lucky because this year I get to teach it in some form in all my classes. Why do you keep peanut butter in your cupboard? (student question) I try not to snack between classes because I tend to buy things look cookies and food that is generally not healthy. So, the peanut butter is close at hand and is generally healthy. I also tend not to eat protein at breakfast and usually need some by mid-morning with all the tea I drink. If you could change one thing about the high school what would it be and why? I would wave my magic wand and create the opportunity for more electives in English: courses like Dystopic Fiction, Beat Poetry, the novels of Margaret Atwood, etc. If you could choose to be any writer or literary character for a day who would it be, on what day and why? Really…Elizabeth Bennet, for whatever day, hello Mr. Darcy.
Controller © http://www.ouya.tv/
Console © http://www.ouya.tv/
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here are many things that gamers search for in an indeal virtual experience.First ly, a game that doesn’t “by accident” have you stuck in the wall and unable to finish an objective. Secondly, developers who actually care about the gaming experience and put the enjoyment of playing above the most profit and thirdly a console where hacking is open and you are allowed to freely manipulate data and games within it.Though often the three may not always go hand in hand (in
hand) I have some heartening news: at least one of these things is finally coming true. I present to you... the OUYA!!! “The O in OUYA stands for Open. The rest? We just liked how it sounded. Maybe down the road we can flesh out the rest of the acronym, or perhaps one of our fans will. Would you like to take a stab Julia Uhrman - OUYA Founder? The premise is simple enough, it’s a TV console like Xbox 360 or PS3, except for one fundamental difference, the ability to
hack and mess around with the innards of the console. The console will operate on Android (you know, the little green robot dude that looks like he’s some kind of cookie jar with legs? Yeah, that one). This will come with a custom user-interface and game store. For you enthusiasts out there, this baby comes with a quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of storage, and then your Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connector, and if you don’t like the Wi-Fi option, you can plug in using an Ethernet cable. Just plug in the console into the TV
and start working on it. You got your standard controller, along with a touchpad on the top part for mobile gaming (so you can basically play Angry Birds on it whenever!). Also, for all you hackers out there who are planning to dig in, both the console and the controller can be opened up by removing the standard screws, so then you can just plug right in! The OUYA is just three things: easy, open, and cheap. The price for the console is set for $99.00, which is a STEAL compared to $249.99 for the PS3
Advertisements TEDx AAS is Back! Penguin Press If you are interested in being part of the TEDxAAS team for the returning event taking place in December 2013, please collect an application form outside the High School Office or speak to Camilla Simmons, Kirill Mazurin, Moa Schafer or Daniel Galperin. Application forms must be turned in to one of the aforementioned students by the the 01st of March. Find out more about TED and TEDx events at: www.ted.com For more information about TEDxAAS, visit our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/TEDxAAS
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(Amazon.com), and the founder sees no intended increase in the price of this console, that is for now in any case. Although I do have to mention that games released on this console by big-brand companies such as NAMCO Bandai will mostly release free demos, not the game itself. But other than that, this console seems to have a good future ahead of it, and most likely I will come back on this again once it has been released and reviews start to come out. Also, before you ask, yes, it does come with batteries.
ant to submit an editorial piece? An advertisement? Suggestions, comments or concerns? Send us an e-mail at aas.point@gmail.com
Musical Notes
Culture Corner - Sasha Parodi
- Lincoln Pigman
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elcome, loyal reader. You’ve just begun perusing Penguin Press’ first music article of 2013. Each month, we’ll do our best to cover the music events of the past month, make mention of albums deserving of your attention, and let you know about upcoming gigs in Moscow. First, February’s news and happenings: Justin Timberlake has announced a new album, entitled The 20/20 Experience, set for a March 15th release. It is his first full-length album since his 2006 hit record FutureSex/LoveSounds, which featured charttoppers such as “SexyBack”, “My Love”, and “What Goes Around… Comes Around”. JayZ guests on lead single “Suit & Tie”, which hit
YouTube January 14th. On February 21st, Los Angeles-based thrash metal band Slayer (part of the prolific Big Four, also featuring Metallica, Megadeth, and Anthrax) announced that drummer Dave Lombardo will be absent from the band’s Australian tour at the end of the month; on his Facebook page, Lombardo stated that a feud between him and guitarist Kerry King over his pay was the cause of the temporary split. Although it is unknown whether Lombardo will continue to be a member of Slayer outside of the tour, it would not be his first ejection from the worldfamous metal quartet; Lombardo has left Slayer twice, once for a year in 1986 and a second time in 1992, the latter of which had him away from the band for a de-
cade. Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor returns to the stage in April with his side-project How to Destroy Angels, which also features his wife Mariqueen Maandig as well as Atticus Ross, with whom Reznor composed the soundtracks of films The Social Network and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, garnering an Oscar for Best Original Score for the former. It will be his first time performing live since Nine Inch Nails’ farewell tour in 2010. The Postal Service – electronic side-project of Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie – has announced its reunion tour, which will visit locations throughout the world in 2013. Along with the reunion, the band released their first track in ten years, entitled “A Tattered Line of
String”, featuring Jenny Lewis, former singer of Rilo Kiney. Occult rock band Ghost is now obligated to perform under the name of Ghost B.C. for “legal reasons” as stated by the band. The Swedish group of masked musicians is to release their sophomore album Infestissumam on April 9th via Loma Vista Recordings; former Nirvana drummer and Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl guests on the B-side to their new lead single “Secular Haze”. Slayer is not the only Big Four band to lose a member: New York thrashers Anthrax announced the permanent departure of guitarist Rob Caggiano earlier this month; Caggiano cited a lack of input and creativity as his reasons for leaving the band, who are to embark on the
Metal Alliance tour next month along with bands Exodus, High On Fire, Municipal Waste and others. Lady Gaga has cancelled the remainder of her US tour due to a labral tear of her right hip, an injury for which she has undergone surgery. Gaga thanked her fans for their patience and support in a Facebook post on Wednesday. According to Colin Greenwood, bassist of Radiohead, the band is to begin recording their new album in September. Until then, the members of the band are “doing some other stuff, doing their own things”; “the plan is to get back together” at the end of the summer to record the band’s ninth album, Greenwood explained in an interview with BBC.
Albums to Listen to From February 2013
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of photo exhibits of photographers from all over the world. With its wonderful modern style and breathtaking photographs, this museum is a must-visit for art and culture aficionados. And, a huge plus, for the price of one ticket, you can view every exhibit and explore the entire In the Moscow Mul- museum top-to-bottom. timedia Art Museum Enjoy! Address: Mosyou can find a number cow, Ostojenka st. (mets always Moscow is buzzing with interesting activities for everyone to participate in. In this city of millions you can be sure to find something for everyone. Here are a few options which may satisfy your tastes:
ro stations Kropotkinskaya or Park Kulturi). The museum is open every day aside from Mondays, from 12:00 – 21:00; Looking to satisfy that sweet tooth? Then the Museum of the History of Chocolate and Cocoa is the place for you! From learning about the Cocoa tree, to American and Eu-
ropean history – here you are bound to discover something new (and tasty!). So come have a look at Malaya Krasnosel’skaya street, building 7.
tographs and artifacts ranging from the early 1900s to the 1950s and go deeper into Russian history than ever before! Be sure to stop by, it’s showing until the 15th April. Entrance fee Want to delve deeper is 150 rubles. Address: into Soviet history? Petrovka, building 16. The Gulag museum has a fascinating project revolving around falsification in the Soviet era. Check out the pho-
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Upcoming Gigs for March 7th – Jay-Jay Johanson at KKZ Moskva (1,000r), 8th – The KVB & Die Jungen at Artplay (600r), 9th – Kreator at Milk (1,200r), 14th – Matisyahu at Arena Moscow (1,500r), 17th – Hatebreed at KKZ Moskva (1,100r), 18th – Swans at KKZ Moskva (1,800r), 20th – Funeral for a Friend at KKZ Moskva (900r), 22nd – Heaven Shall Burn at KKZ Moskva (1,200r), 23rd – Anaal Nathrakh at KKZ Moskva (900r), 23rd – Reel Big Fish at Samolet Live (1,000r), 25th – Terror at Plan B (800r)
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he high school student council is hosting a spirit week from Monday, 11th of March to the 15th.
Custom T-Shirts
AAS Litmag
o you want custom t-shirts made for your team, class, activity, or event? Absolutely no Photoshop knowledge required! We can work with you to design these t-shirts to your liking. For more information (prices, sample designs, sizes, etc.), contact Sergey Mann at: sergeymann@gmail. com.”
end in submissions under the theme of “Elements” to aaslitmag@gmail.com. Submissions may be in the form of illustration, visual arts, prose, poetry... anything else your creative mind desires.
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Word Search - Economics
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© academicgames.org BARTER BUDGET CAPITAL COMMUNISM CURRENCY DEPRESSION DEVELOPED NATION DEVELOPING NATION ECONOMIC SYSTEM ENTREPRENEUR EXPORT FREE ENTERPRISE GOODS IMPORT INDUSTRIALIZATION INFLATION LAW OF DEMAND LAW OF SUPPLY MARKET MARKET ECONOMY MIXED ECONOMY OPPORTUNITY COST RECESSION SCARCITY SOCIALISM TARIFF TAX TRADITIONAL ECONOMY WELFARE
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“ Lighthouse”, by Hakon Bard (Grade 12)