PHOTOESSAY: Taking stock of Tinostock
FEATURES: A look into Pioneers’ obsessions
SPORTS: “Elle-god” brings basketball team success
THE PROSPECTOR CUPERTINO HIGH SCHOOL’S
VOLUME 52 NO. 4
10100 FINCH AVENUE, CUPERTINO CA
Chelsea Voss becomes Tino’s first Intel Science Talent Search finalist
HARINI JAGANATHAN
WINNING MOMENT | On Wednesday, January 26 in the quad during tutorial, an Intel reprsentative presented senior Chelsea Voss with a giant “boarding pass” and congratulated her on becoming a finalist in the Intel Science Talent Search. Voss ‘ mother looks on proudly as Voss is recognized for her work.
HARINI JAGANATHAN news editor
W
hen Chelsea Voss turned sixteen a year ago, she did not receive a car from her parents or have a large party. She received a microscope. Voss’ passion for science does not stop at her love for looking at leaves and mushrooms under the lens of a microscope, but has led her to success in highly esteemed science competitions. Most recently, Voss was selected as a finalist in the 2011 Intel Science Talent Search. This was the first time in history that a Tino student made it not only to the semifinals, but also
to the finals. The Intel Science Talent Search is widely recognized as one of the most prestigious science competitions for high school students. The competition recognized 300 seniors as semifinalists and 40 as finalists, including ten others from California. Semifinalists won $1,000, and finalists fly to Washington D.C. to display their work to the public and to compete for a $100,000 grand prize after a week- long judging process. Winners will be announced on March 15. Voss submitted an application and research paper detailing the see INTEL FINALIST, pg 2
FEBRUARY 11, 2011
New online resource for student research MADHURI SATHISH features assistant
The library’s newest database subscription, purchased by librarian Pat Accorinti, is Journal Storage ( JSTOR), a digital archive of articles from over 1,000 academic journals. These journals span a broad variety of topics in many fields, including literature and history. This plethora of subject matter permits independent researchers to dive deeper into the information they seek and provides students with the opportunity to take their research to a more advanced level. Said Accorinti, “[ JSTOR is more useful] if you’re doing extensive research and you have more time, [or] you have a whole team that is looking at the information.” Accorinti explained that the Lynbrook librarian, Maria Jackson, gave her the idea to subscribe to JSTOR last year, but she actually made the decision to do so this year, when the American Literature Honors classes were doing a mock trial about Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and were in desperate need of evidence. At the end of this year, Accorinti will decide whether or not to keep JSTOR based on how proficiently it has been used and on the state of the budget. Junior Anusha Ramakuri, who used JSTOR for the Huckleberry Finn trial, found it useful because it provided her with articles about JSTOR by the numbers: experts 1,289 Journals who had researc h ed 53 Disciplines the book themselves. Ramakuri 6,361,555 Articles COMPILED BY MADHURI SATHISH said that she found articles about most topics, all of which contained reliable information. According to World History teacher Kyle see ONLINE DATABASE RESOURCE, pg 2
Lack of student vigilance begets traffic problems REGINA HONG editor-in-chief VIRENA GALOTRA in-depth assistant
JAMIN SHIH
WEDNESDAY MORNING | A student steers through traffic on his bike as a car noses out of the staff parking lot.
On the morning of Friday, January 14, junior Jeffrey Ding was hit while riding his bike to school. He was driving past the bus circle and did not see a car nose out of the driveway, according to assistant principal Andy Walczak. “It was more like the kid hit the car than the car hit the kid,” said Walczak. According to student conduct specialist Jerry Sanchez, bikers often believe that they should follow pedestrian laws when they should be abiding by vehicle laws. They frequently think they have the right of way. Students often bike with headphones in their ears and are consequently unable to hear other drivers and their warnings as they speed through the morning traffic. Said Sanchez, “You can get into a trance like television.” Although Sanchez acknowledges that it could get boring to
bike to school without music, he says it is important to keep focused on the road without getting too distracted. But the student bikers are not always the ones at fault. Drivers need to be cautious as well. Just as bikers can be distracted by loud music, student drivers are often inattentive and careless, especially in the school parking lot. In the past, there have been several incidents in the parking lot because of students’ immature decisions. “It is probably not a good idea to give your girlfriend driving lessons or to practice your fishtails in the parking lot during school hours,” said Sanchez. Such reckless driving can easily hurt others, which is what happened around 3 p.m. on January 26. As junior Jillian Wolgast was biking home on Finch Avenue, she was hit while making a turn. Although it was her right of way, the driver failed to notice her and kept driving. Wolgast’s bike was hit from behind she hit the street headfirst. She was uninjured, but her cell phone was crushed by the car. What surprised her was the driver lacked concern and drove see TRAFFIC ISSUES, pg 2
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the Prospector 2010-2011 STAFF
THE PROSPECTOR
Kenya Dream: ALYA OMAR news assistant JESSE ZHOU features assistant
Cupertino High School Established 1958 Vol LIl., No. 4 | 2011
editors-in-chief anthony kao regina hong news editor harini jaganathan opinions editor eric jang features editor tess wu in-depth editors jackie breuer vani mulkareddy lifestyles editor natalie hoang sports editor joanna lee photo editors willie wang amar kantipudi jamin shih copy editors alyssa williams jamin shih fred han business manager jackie breuer news alya omar assistants anand hemmady azadeh rongere opinions gun ho lee assistants kevin chu features jesse zhou assistants emily cheng madhuri sathish lifestyles natasha sharma assistants abhishek zaveri michelle cheung in-depth victoria duan assistants virena galotra nikhil kanthi sports sunwoo jeong assistants sindhu gnanasambandan adviser ann peck editorial policy “The Prospector” is an open forum of expression for student editors to inform and educate their readers. It will not be reviewed by or restrained by school officials prior to publication or distribution. Advisors may and should coach and discuss content during the writing process. The staff of “The Prospector” seeks to recognize individuals, events, ideasand bring news to the Cupertino community in an accurate, professional and unbiased manner. “The Prospector” will not avoid publishing a story solely on the basis of possible dissent or controversy. If you believe an error has been made, or wish to have your opinion expressed in “The Prospector”please contact us via mail or e-mail. Letters sent become tbe sole property of “The Prospector” and can be edited for length, clarity or accuracy. “The Prospector” editorial board reserves the right to accept or reject any ad in accordance with its advertising policy. Contact Us The Prospector 10100 Finch Avenue Cupertino, CA 95014 prospector.chs @gmail.com
D
uring the SuperProm award ceremony last year, former Kenya Dream President and current alum Justin Li declared that “Kenya Dream is now a reality.” One year later, reality is slightly more complicated. The Dream Team’s focus has shifted away from its initial goal of raising $100,000 for Kenya’s Nithimibiri Secondary School, instead opting to simply raise as much money as possible for other less fortunate Kenyan schools, such as the newly adopted Mukua Secondary School. According to the Cupertino Rotary, Kenya Dream’s primary financial partner, Kenya Dream has so far raised $52,000 (including matching contributions from Rotary International) out of its original goal of $100,000. Although the amount of money was only half of what the organization originally promised, it is already more than enough to pay for an entire lab at the school with $27,000 still left over. A long list of other needs is currently being formulated, and when the list is finished, the money will finally be sent over to Kenya. Until then, the money will be safeguarded by the Cupertino Rotary until a definite method of spending the it is developed. “I’m confident that there are no misappropriations in funds regarding this project,” said Rotary representative Cecelia Babkirk. “We choose carefully about who we partner with in Kenya to make sure the money is spent correctly. We don’t want the money to go down a black hole like it does in many areas around Africa.”
FEBRUARY 11, 2011 An update on the organization that gained our school national media attention almost a year ago for raising money for a school in Kenya.
However, to Kenya Dream adviser Chin Song, this initial effort for Nithimibiri is a success best saved for the school’s history. “To speak about raising $100,000 would be to speak of the past. I believe that our organization is more focused on the future,” said Song. “Today, the goal is to raise as much as we can within a given amount of time.” Major events hosted by Kenya Dream are helping to achieve that new goal. Kenya Dance III attracted 26 dance crews from across the country who volunteered to help with the philanthropic cause and a multitude of sponsors, including Dell and the Silicon Valley Red Cross. The event sold well over 1,000 tickets and the Kenya Dance brandname has become more well-known in the past three years. “It’s been expanded hugely,” said Kenya Dream President Al Hassani. “We have 50 percent more ticket sales than at the same time last year. [The tickets] are being sold throughout the Bay Area.” Kenya Dream itself is expanding outside of Cupertino too. Nithin Jilla, an alum who was a pioneer of the organization, has started a UC Irvine branch with over 40 members and counting. That branch has been planning events similar to Kenya Dance III in Southern California, and with this joint effort from both branches, fundraising for Mukua Secondary School is projected to increase. Kenya Dream has changed the face and legacy of this school. From promising to donate massive amounts of money to spreading the word of education, Kenya Dream has spread its influence to myriad people during the past four years. With its new long-term visions and alumni assistance, Kenya Dream will continue in attempting to inspire hope for students in impoverished areas around the world for years to come.
2007
COMPILED BY AZADEH RONGERE
May 2007: 90% of the Class of 2010 pledged to give all funds to Kenya Dream
2008
A look back at past events 2009 April 2009: Kenya Dance
Nov 2009: Kenya Dream Turkey Trot Nov 2009: SuperProm Voting Beg
2010 March 2010: Dell announced Tino as the winners of SuperProm May 2010: Dell SuperProm May 2010: Kenya Dance II
2011 Feb 2011: Kenya Dance III
Intel Finalist:
Traffic Issues:
project she created during the second half of her summer. She studied nematodes, a type of worm, and created a computer model of their early development with limited help from mentor David Dill, a professor of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering at Stanford University. “Finding out I was a finalist was really unexpected,” said Voss. “My research wasn’t actually biological. It was more like computer science based research, so I wasn’t expecting it to get very far.” Voss has had previous success in science competitions, placing third in the world at the International Biology Olympiad in Changwon, Korea this past summer, surpassing her fellow competitors from the United States. She plans on competing again this year. Voss has been interested in science generally since she was young. Her childhood in Nevada sparked some of her interest. “[Nevada] was interesting bio-wise because there’s a lot of stuff there that we don’t have here,” she said. “I found a scorpion once and many lizards.” She developed her skills in Computer Science as a hobby during freshman and sophomore years by learning programming languages on her own and creating games. Her interest in Biology increased after taking AP Biology during her junior year. “Bio AP helped me with knowing how nematodes work and the development I was studying,” said Voss. “It got me more interested in looking under the microscope.” Voss was the gold award recipient in AP Biology last year. “Not only was she one of the best, but she would do little things outside of class and show me, like make microscope slides of a fungus and identify all of the parts,” said Voss’ AP Biology teacher Allanah Ujifusa. Voss plans on combining her interests in Computer Science and Biology in the future as well. She wants to major in Computational Biology at MIT in the fall, and eventually become a researcher.
off. “It was a hit and run. No one stopped to help me and I had to walk myself home,” said Wolgast. Wolgast feels that the school needs to be safer for bikers and walkers. She believes that carelessness on the road deters people from using these methods to commute to school. Said Wolgast, “My mom didn’t want me to bike to school this morning. She begged me to let her give me a ride.” Wolgast’s mother’s sentiments are echoed throughout the school; in a poll of 101 students, 72 percent of students take a car to school while only 10 percent bike, scooter or skateboard. Despite her mother’s wariness, she continues to bike to school because she feels that an accident like this is not the norm.
(cont. pg. 1)
(cont. pg. 1)
HARINI JAGANATHAN
ANNOUNCEMENT | Students looked on as Voss was recognized for her success.
Online Database Resource: (cont. pg. 1)
Fitzpatrick, JSTOR sets itself apart from the other databases the library offers. “The types of information it searches... [are] a higher level of research,” he said. Fitzpatrick believes that JSTOR allows students to develop critical thinking skills. “They have to think about what [they’re] searching for and how [they’re] searching for it,” he said. While JSTOR provides a chance for graduate students to get their work published online, it also gives high school students the opportunity to access a larger array of credible sources that goes beyond basic research, at the same time allowing them to analyze and perform a more advanced level of research. “Once you go beyond the search terms... being able to decipher loads of difficult information in a short amount of time [becomes crucial],” said Fitzpatrick. Using JSTOR takes a great deal of practice, particularly because all search terms must directly convey what kind of information a student is looking for, and not all students may be ready for such complexity. “However, there will always be an independent researcher who goes looking for more,” said Accoritni. “[It is] my job as a librarian to make sure that we have resources for all of the students here at school.” Although JSTOR may not prove useful to everyone, it will be available for those who need it, at least until Accorinti re-evaluates it at the end of the year.
FEBRUARY 11, 2011
Student Doctors’ pig heart dissection cultivates students’ interests
JAMIN SHIH
DISSECTION | Club members
examine a pig heart as they carefully make their first incision.
ABHISHEK ZAVERI lifestyles assistant
The sight of a six-inch wide, blood-filled pig heart might leave many people disgusted and unsure of what to make of it. With its muscular outside and bright red color, a pig heart seems intimidating even to touch. However, the vast amount of information within a pig heart, including its anatomy and its relations to a human heart, mesmerized a curious group of students enough to slice it open. On January 26, the Student Doctors Club brought education to ambitious students in a simple and inexpensive way by performing dis-
news
THE PROSPECTOR
sections on 15 pig hearts to learn about the various parts of a living animal’s heart. The novel idea of performing a dissection was brought to the club by its president, senior Samuel Lee. Lee thought that the dissection of a pig heart would teach the students about simple surgical procedures doctors perform and the anatomy of a heart. For the price of three dollars for every two pig hearts, the dissection seemed inexpensive and easy to execute. “My excitement for biology really caught fire when I first dissected and observed a live crayfish heart. I felt obligated to share the exhilarating experience of dissecting an animal’s organ with other students,” said Lee.
On the day of dissection, 25 members of the Student Doctors Club arrived at the science wing, eager to start cutting into their specimens. Instructed by Physiology teacher Samantha Southerd, the students were thought the basic safety methods with the dissection tools and began immediately. “For some of the students, doing a fresh heart dissection is a huge eye opener. If you can’t handle looking at a fresh heart you might need to consider the path of doctor. So I think that these students are one step closer to knowing if they want to be doctors or not,” said Southerd. Students began noticing various components of the heart when they started to cut into the outer muscles with sharp scalpels. Slicing with precision, many found main arteries, the apex, bicuspids, tricuspids, the apex and the muscular tissues of the heart. It reminded students like junior Natasha Chitnis of their original goals for college and further studies. “Prior to the dissection, I was already inclined to pursue science and medical fields and am in fact thinking about majoring in neuroscience. This experience encouraged this because I’ve never dissected just one organ before and to see all the intricate parts in the pig heart that are very similar to those in humans was really amazing,” said Chitnis. At a minimal cost, this dissection educated interested students with hands-on learning. The process helped generate more ambition in the students, to think of medical fields for their own future. Lee hopes that such dissecting projects become a tradition of the Student Doctors Club, so it may spark many more minds in years to come.
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Letter from the Editors Greetings! I hope you guys missed us! We were so forlorn during break and the first few weeks of this semester because we couldn’t distribute lovely little newspapers to all of you. As you make your way through all sixteen pages of our blood (literally since Anthony was having chronic nosebleeds while compiling this issue), sweat and tears, you may notice several interesting topics, such as an overview of some common obsessions or the awesome shots taken at Tinostock! Additionally, we’d like to thank our illustrious and glorious staff members for following our nonexistent Five-Year Plan to craft The Prospector into a highly acclaimed high school newspaper. Please remember to check out our official website at www.chsprospector.org. You can view supplements to this issue on the website as well as copies of previous issues. Oh, and if you somehow don’t feel the need to preserve this paper in a diamond-paneled museum display case, please feel free to use it as compost to make some nitrigenfixing legumes grow taller! Sincerely, Anthony Kao and Regina Hong Editors-in-Chief
opinions
FEBRUARY 11, 2011
Your wallet just got schooled GUN HO LEE opinions assistant
Just as the Class of 2011 celebrates the end of the college application process, an aftershock of financial worry opens up a second can of worms. For many of us who cannot afford a full fouryear education, college is a dangerous option to be avoided. On average, a UC education costs $29,500 a year in tuition and fees; private schools demand even greater sums. Account for the abysmal four-year graduation rates plus four years of wages that could have been earned as a full-time minimum wage worker and the cost of a college education rises even higher to approximately $300,000. The common defense for a painfully pricey college degree reads like this: over the course of a lifetime, a bachelor’s degree garners $1 million more than a mere high school diploma. This is a lie. A new study conducted for Bloomberg Newsweek calculates that colleges offer returns of only about $400,000 over a 30 year period. Even this $400,000 does not necessarily come from the degree; economist Richard Vedder attributes about 2/3 of the marginal difference to the character and drive of the individual himself, not to what that person learned at school. Diligence, not a diploma, measures the worth of a person to a business. Bottom line: cream always rises to the top, whether or not one clump is more expensive than another. One distinction must be made: professional degrees tend to be worth the investment because doctors and lawyers earn $3.5 million more than those with just a high school diploma. However, for those of us who cannot foot the astronomical bill for higher
Student Career Preferences
education, college is a huge luxury. In fact, investing that money in stocks would offer greater returns. This writer can already hear the scoffing of incredulous parents, teachers and administrators. Not go to college? And invest in stocks? This guy must be non compos mentis. Hemlock is too good for him, off with his head! On the contrary, Al Lee, director of quantitative analysis at PayScale, said, “Prospective students paying full price would probably have been better off investing in the stock market 30 years ago rather than spending their money on a college education.” The problem is that unlike any kind of assets, a college degree cannot be easily turned into cash. Our generation is entreated to a most sickening comedy: while a nationwide Ponzi scheme can be taken to court for some compensation, a diploma cannot. Every educational institution holds out an invisible sign that reads, “No Refunds!” This is why 317,000 waiters and waitresses, 107,000 janitors and 18,000 parking lot attendants have wasted bachelor’s degrees. At this point, advocates of the Eleventh Commandment “Thou Shalt Go To College” retort with a sentimental cliché: you don’t attend just to earn more money—you grow as an individual and an active citizen of this nation. To be fair, the personal growth during four years of college is unquantifiable. The years spent developing as an intellectual can be valuable to some students; however, intellectual growth is not a necessity. Some of us are not as blessed to have the affluence, intellect and desire to attend a reputable four year college. The good news is that there are numerous alternatives. Select careers in a specific trade, such as construction, require no extra schooling beyond high school. For occupations such as health information technicians, air traffic controllers, court reporters, military personnel and radiation therapists, the skills needed are learned on-the-job, sometimes in a two-year certificate program. In fact, tuition and fees for a year of commu-
40% Science/Technology/Medicine unidentified mold
26% Undecided
COMPILED BY: JESSE ZHOU PHOTO BY ERIC JANG 139 STUDENTS POLLED
33% Other S. cerevisiae
27%
of students quit an instrument to make time for homework. COMPILED BY: JESSE ZHOU PHOTO BY ERIC JANG 139 STUDENTS POLLED
PHOTO: JAMIN SHIH
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nity college add up to less than $2,500 a year, a far cry from the $29,500 that goes to a UC education. From freshman year, we were fed the well-intended, but misguided, advice that a college degree is the only way to survive in this modern, global society. It is time to return to sanity.
EMILY CHENG
Happiness isn’t rocket science ERIC JANG opinions editor
For all its pizazz and sophistication, the Silicon Valley is a difficult environment to choose a career. Many parents encourage a variety of extracurriculars and sports, but stubbornly insist that becoming a doctor or engineer is the only way to achieve a steady and comfortable income. This is perfectly acceptable for many of our students—44 percent in fact—but others may be limited by the lack of variety. Consequently, the overemphasis on medicine and science careers may push students away from their true passions. Doctors have been regarded as among the most prestigious of professions. Scientific discovery became the next big thing during the Cold War, and the invention of computers lumped technology in along with medicine and laboratory research. The rest is history; the buzzword of today is STEM: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. Unfortunately, the increase in STEM careers has limited the possibility of pursuing other interests. Granted, the most lucrative jobs of today play prominent—even beneficial—roles in shaping society. However, the stress of competing for these select jobs has already permeated high schools; each year students fight over the handful of summer science research programs in the hopes of making themselves more presentable to engineering colleges and future employers. Medical careers take up most of the top ten best paying jobs in the nation, along with engineering man- agers and astronomers. Meanwhile, life does not smile favorably on art; modern sharing of creative content has forced all but the most successful artists to take up side jobs while pursuing their ambitions. In fact, 27 percent of our students have already quit an instrument to make more time in their schedules. While being a dentist may promise a safe salary, it does not equate to happiness. Over half of all aspiring doctors quit before they finish medical school. Not surprisingly, people achieve a greater sense of fulfillment when they dedicate their lives to what they believe in and what they like to do. Humanitarian aid workers do not have to go through the laborious years of medical school to enjoy the rewarding experience of making a difference in other peoples’ lives. Likewise, video game creators and chefs alike are able to dedicate their lives to their true passions. College students should pursue more career options without the pressure that a Pre-Med or Computer Science major is the only answer to financial security. Instead, they should find careers that combine life fulfillment and sincere interest.
THE PROSPECTOR
28% 20% 43%
Hi Mom! It’s your Bratty Teenage Child speaking. I’ve got an idea I think you’ll love. I think that if you gave me more free time, I’d get more of those A-pluses you’re asking for and start making six figures sooner. Extracurriculars? Ivy League summer programs? No, I mean free time—like time in which I don’t have anything planned and can do anything I want. I promise I won’t go around partying or licentiously dancing. In fact, I’ll tell you why all this free time will actually help me in school. Mom, you see, when I’m actually passionate about something, I’ll do it better. This includes academics. If I’m passionate about history, I’ll darn well have fun—yes, fun— reading Carl Degler’s Out of Our Past—and I’ll do better in APUSH as a result. Sure, debate tournaments may help me pur-
sue my interest in history, but where’d that interest come from? Free time, Mom. If I could independently explore magazines, books and the internet, I could zero in on something that I’d truly love, something I’d be enthusiastic about. And when that ‘something’ is intellectual, the rewards are great. You know the guy who made that Facebook site? Or the Google guys? Silicon Valley CEOs like them are so smart and innovative because they tinkered around with computers in their free time, not because their Moms registered them for Stanford’s Young Children’s Expensive Summer Program. But yes, I know, many teens watch Glee in their free time and don’t end up as CEOs. But this isn’t because of free time itself; it’s because those teens misuse its great potential. So don’t worry, Mom—before all this high school madness set in, you created an environment in which I already learned to use free time for worthy pursuits. Thank you for surrounding me with enlightening books and magazines on everything from Annelids to Zimbabwe when I was younger. Thank you for stocking our shelves with documentaries, always turning on NPR in the car and getting a cable subscription with only CNN, History and Discovery. When you created this environment, you predisposed me to pursuing productive, intellectual interests. Just bring that free time back, and I’ll couple it with my school knowledge to expand and discover more passions. So please share this idea with that Mom-group you like to share my grades with. Tell them that if they create a proper environment and give their children free time, those kids will end up having innate academic passions and therefore academic success. I hope you like this idea, Mom. And thanks for reading so far—I hope it was a good use of your free time. Sincerely, Your Bratty Teenage Child
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ANTHONY KAO editor-in-chief
You check for your wallet twice in one period. You feel for your phone every ten minutes. You assure yourself that everything is where it should be countless times every day. You do this out of fear because you were stolen from recently and that scar continues to shape your conduct. No one should deserve such trauma. When people are negligent, they are vulnerable to theft. If you forget to lock your locker, you risk losing every single scrap inside. We are owed our sense of security and that sense of security comes from each other. Theft is taking advantage of the vulnerable, but we can stop being vulnerable through small acts of mutual kindness. Theft is agonizing at first because of the material value of stolen items, but the bitterness is amplified by how much those items truly mean to someone. To freshman David Han, a visually impaired student, his Braille laptop was crucial to his classroom participation because it was essentially his entire classroom. Still, someone saw it as a source of cash rather than Han’s essential learning tool. A few weeks ago it was snatched out of his locker. This contemptible larceny was met with fury from the faculty. Any thief with the tiniest iota of a conscience would not have stolen the laptop, but the grim coup de grace is that anyone could have locked that locker or told the administration, but the only one to act was a thief. Due to negligence, Han lost not only his belongings, but also his sense of security. Even so, as long as there are those who take, there will always be those who return. Recently, juniors Brandon Gong, Tobias Shin, Rodney Tang and Andrew Yoon were honored by the city of Cupertino because of their small but heroic participation in the investigation of a robbery. In August, they returned some money and a hockey mask found on the sidewalk to police investigating a robbery that had taken place earlier that day. With this new evidence available, the police have been able to lift fingerprints and DNA matches on the mask, advancing their investigation. These boys’ actions went further than returning some cash, for they returned some closure to those who had been robbed. To know that people can choose to do the right thing for a complete stranger is a good feeling, no matter how inconsequential the action. As students, we don’t want to be robbed or afraid for the safety of our personal belongings on campus. We are owed the feeling of security while at school, and we owe that to each other as well. If we closed each other’s lockers, told someone that they had dropped some money, theft itself would perish. No security system is as good as 1,800 helpful Samaritans. You have the choice to be safe and it begins by shutting that open locker.
COMPILED BY ERIC JANG & JESSE ZHOU 142 STUDENTS POLLED
Your bratty teenage child wants some free time
NIKHIL KANTHI in-depth assistant
How much free time do you have daily? *
Kenya Dream. Although belated, this disclosure was a step in the right direction, and we sincerely hope that Kenya Dream will continue such acts of transparency. Even if $52,000 is short of the initial $100,000 goal, it is still an extraordinary amount and in no way discounts any of Tino’s support for the Dream—so there’s nothing to be shy about. Still, for all the support that Pioneers gave it during the past four years, Kenya Dream shouldn’t need any external impetus to provide solid financial figures or present plans more concrete than simply saying, “We’ll raise as much as we can.” In fact, the incentives of complete and willing transparency outweigh any costs. It’s understandably hard to run such an important operation, so full disclosure will allow all Pioneers to understand any challenges Kenya Dream faces and effectively unite to overcome them. If Pioneers don’t know what Kenya Dream’s concrete goals are, it’ll be difficult for them to continue contributing. In short, being completely upfront about Kenya Dream’s actual progress will allow all of Tino to be on the same page of progress—to truly leverage the unity the Dream is all about.
> 3 hrs
Even before the SuperProm contest last year, students could unite in knowing that Kenya Dream exemplified the selflessness and philanthropy Tino stands for. SuperProm solidified that unity—which remains to this day. By heeding the call to invest votes and donations, all members of the Tino community have become stakeholders in Kenya Dream. Now, if these stakeholders are to make new investments, it seems reasonable that they can get clear and consistent updates on how their previous ones are doing. Part of this involves providing two simple facts, revealing how much money Kenya Dream has raised and what exactly has been or will be done with those funds. During the research process for our news update on Kenya Dream, we discovered that, regrettably, getting such facts wasn’t so easy. The Dream Team was unable to provide any concrete plans or financial figures to The Prospector when interviewed, citing procedural paperwork and changing developments with Rotary’s promise to match funds. It was only when The Prospector obtained the figure of $52,000 raised from the Cupertino Rotary that The Dream Team was able to publicly release any figures or statements regarding the progress of
2 - 3 hrs
Full disclosure should be Kenya Dream’s reality
5
Crime watch: A good samaritan in all of us
1 - 2 hrs
STAFF EDITORIAL
opinions
< 1 hr
FEBRUARY 11, 2011
PHOTO: JAMIN SHIH
features
FEBRUARY 11, 2011
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u feat nd a skin hem eir For t t th h t Bu es. ing tif y mselv mage. age u a be di the f-im ugh gnize face an ect sel abso o r th rf co e ely em ely re ne th eir pe mplet ve to h t bar defi e th s co ms y lo sfor t girls n and achiev yone i picall e up to n a s r ty tr k te up it, mo brigh oing to ot eve who ar ma d any s e n g t o e , t r w u e sai o way s ar r hand homo to not y or was n n e e Every May, FanimeCon attracts anime enthusiasts from all l e e h p t t nt th at I so on sc hich the o ree decisi differe got th me at over the Bay, including senior Bianca Tseng. Far from the casual w Th n r . d a o O ons girl bol d us ely f o saw Sam i attendee, Tseng began selling her artwork there at age 15. ll. A the obsess de the treate mplet are wh more for a t ho tc ma dy nd “Preparing for the Artist Alley is my most hectic and stressful nto s I co on m a bles i gnize , day Nobo e day did no aid sop passi up a i l s s o “ , ’ s s h m y c time of the year, but seeing people who genuinely appreciate my l t r g y u l ke ,” zlin and st rely re prime he ugh t I rea rience y Brah a ma fort z o a r A a d t n s work makes all the stress seem like nothing,” said Tseng. “People don’t , e th poi ayle ming t com ne me leep nd b g ou up, RM exp t e tha sitive ore H f beco ahy fel for o ake alf as s on a , pullin make hat sh HA realize that artists recognize returning customers. Seeing familiar faces S m t h f l, s m a po phom n o y, Br e up den A S wal rning , he ligh rawer yers o with w o the SH nt over the years makes me smile.” AM e So piratio ne da r mak confi r A h t T LLI a d I o d a t l T . t W n he m turns ough the tisfie girls on. s o el ea ve o NA s assis r e l At Fanime, Tseng met her favorite Japanese band LM.C, butBY ALYSSA t re a up for not w p to fe e up e a e hr g al lly sa nage dicti to b ro u w n t r h t i i e s S B n u k n e a m i e a id l. h, d ed e ke ad she leaves a word of warning to new Music Fest partici- BLUR ma “ We d r mak ear m ya Sha ror, t of b he hal e shuffl r apply ore, fin s of te en an r stan r i M s ou ea ae nt ow and s ev eve fte late . Sh em pants. ys w have t ore K t is ble m dow irror cils. A r onc f thous etime ould n a i w y m l l t a tu roo the m pen al o om “Don’t try to get front row seats…unirro e o ec om usu erg. Cos- I do n soph ath ce in d eye the m routin and s hat sh — b r b p o e d t It less you don’t mind singing and F n fa ty in g un Saf uty ke u the ders a e face ornin ecessi admits ma said L n for he Bea ke t is always n dancing and catching their h w m u t g g a a po es at s the me dber of t t m ce,” pai itho i o the same pattern: e w r my fa e cam y Side ve tha spit for hours. Leave s star . This as bec a Lun u l e g th lie ho s Left right, right left. Right see e up h Briand e up. e the to cov der of The U irls be the spit for the k v : k e n r a a e a G v left, left right. From blinking to m enio ut m do le I ha , fou y Fac o is. fangirls.” S itho tapping to entering keys on a keyboard, it hen lkan rett bacc es I n w metim even t cy Ma ust a P t as to e e s haunts me when I am stressed. The obsession seems s “So t—but to Sta f Not J sed ju IH irrational, but for those with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder h ding or o verti g SH i N at n ccor auth is ad (OCD), patterns like that are the basic structure of irritating tics. r MI I can’t throw A and p JA edito s ke u y c a I have a fairly mild case of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and it subtly afp i t o m e c away candy wrappers m stry, fects everything I do. Now, I am aware that everyone and their dog claim they have u Ind or gift wrapping paOCD, but what I have found is that many people have a flawed understanding of what it actually is. The general consensus is that Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is simply a synonym for per. It’s such a waste of “neatness” but that is far from the truth. pretty paper—I just ca What people do not realize is that a large portion of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is more “obsession” than “compulsion”. By obsessions, I mean the frequent, disturbing and intrudo that. Shona Hem sive thoughts that abruptly plague the person; the only way to relieve some of that tension is through the ritualistic tics (s)he performs. For example, I tend to get random bursts of disturbingly violent imagery, and compulsions or avoiding stressful or triggering situations altogether are the only ways to stop them. It is much like when people muse over out-of-character actions that they are able to do but would never actually want to carry out. The only difference is that for me, I have an overwhelming and irrational fear that if I lower my guard, I will actually go through with these actions. I am not, by any means, a violent person; the intrusive thoughts definitely are, however, and the caliber of the distress leads to my compulsions. These compulsions, on the other hand, usually seem unrelated at first. However, they tend to stem from real problems. My dominant tic, blinking in a specific pattern when stressed, originally arose from checking to see if my contacts were in by blinking only one eye and then the other to see if the clarity was the same. The problem was that I would end up needing to check I don’t so much countless times until it ended up evolving into a tension-relieving nervous tic. ‘collect’ it as I purchase In fact, the vast majority of my compulsions revolve around obsessive checking. When I was a child, I would check that my alarm clock was on upwards of three or four times a night. It was the technology I think not the fear that the alarm clock would fail to wake me up in the morning that prompted this I’ll use—and that behavior-- it was the genuine feeling of impending horror that if I did not make sure that the tends to be a lot. alarm worked, something horrible would happen, and not just to me, but to the entire world. While a part of me was aware that my line of thinking was illogical, the pure fear compelled me Gavin Higham to check “just one more time”. I rationalized that it did not take much effort to do so and the senior inconvenience was worth avoiding whatever terrible event I had involuntary concocted. This kind of obsessive fear has evolved to checking the stove or garage door repeatedly. I have turned around and biked back miles to my house just to re-check the garage door, getting to At a glance the closet appears peaceful, but upon the point where I need to take a picture of it to quell my predictable fear. Even then, the picture threatening to burst. A Power Rangers backpack, can fail to convince me and I will force myself to return and check again. While the most visible and an old plastic dry-cleaning bag spill out. This aspect of my mild Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder is the compulsive checking and re-checking, stranger to an experienced pack rat, a person wh the obsessions that cause it are the true root of the problem and the lion’s share of the disorder. many different subtypes of this Obsessive-Co Contrary to popular belief, it is very difficult to determine whether or not someone has Obrats (people who find comfort in collecting d sessive-Compulsive Disorder as many of the symptoms, like self-narration, minor tics and ob(people who obsessively collect print medi sessive thoughts, are hard to spot. So while the common assumption of Obsessive-Compulsive as dramatic as animal hoarders or bibliom Disorder is just a two-dimensional view of excessive cleanliness, this imperfect conclusion is far ting can be, nonetheless, second nature. from right. Left. Left. Right.
fanatic feature: bianca tseng
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FEBRUARY 11, 2011
THE PROSPECTOR
rational
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obsession. obsession. obsession.
fanatic feature: kevin wu
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I have a made up language called ‘Votex’ that I created in seventh grade and I keep every record of it, such as any modification of any characters, that I can refer to later.
Confessions of a teenage shopaholic
SINDHU GNANASAMBANDAN sports assistant
UGG Australia ‘Classic Tall’ Boot: $179.95 at Nordstrom. Vera Wang Princess Eau de Toilette: $75.00 at Neiman Marcus. Fighting that impulse and walking away, money intact: priceless. This is the incessant battle against the pull of consumerism. As senior Jeannie Kim portrays, it is also a battle in which many suffer from faulty armor, having to bear the title “shopaholic”. The Deutsche Gesellschaft Zwangserkrankungen (a German organization researching Obsessive Compulsive behavior) has esEric Chen sophomore tablished the addiction to shopping as a disorder, but there is still much debate regarding whether it falls under Obsessive Compulsive, Impulse Control or some other categorization. Regardless of how you define this urge, the need to shop is a cold reality to the affected few; it is filled with endorphin-fuelled highs and guilt-ridden lows. Kim has had a taste of this but she is now a veteran with a closet full of battle scars to show for it—not to mention her extension closet and various other stashing areas. She started working at her parents’ dry cleaners from a young age and n closer examination, the door is bulging and now balances four jobs: a kitchen crewmember of a cafe, a Korean folk crumpled spelling tests from second grade dance teacher assistant, a tutor and a babysitter. Earnings piled up in a savs closet’s condition is gruesome, but it is no ings account until a couple months ago when she turned 17 and a half. This ho collects miscellaneous objects. There are marks the point when her plastic began working overtime. ompulsive Disorder, such as animal pack Sometimes Kim would hit the mall three days in a week, other times it was different animal species) and bibliomanias every day. During this shopping spree period, she would hardly hesitate to make ia). While Tino’s pack rats are not nearly a purchase. manias, to these quirky students, pack rat“If I saw something I liked, I would just buy it. I didn’t think about it,” said . Kim. “I bought stuff for my friends too. I kind of had this idealistic view that I BLURB BY AZADEH RONGERE
bet ween trash and treasure
should just do what I want. Whatever happens, happens. I just went with the flow.” Her best friends, seniors Jackie Breuer and Alex Pommier, saw things a little differently. One night, they drove her up to the mountains, locked the doors of the car and confronted her. It was pitch black. Kim was stuck, forced to face her problem. As Breuer and Pommier revealed to Kim that she was a shopaholic, they jumpstarted the recovery process by confiscating her beloved credit cards. By this time she had spent 80 percent of her savings. Her parents knew nothing—and still know nothing—of this as Kim went as far as to switch from mailed-out bank statements to electronically sent. The clothes continued piling. She kept stashing. Until, at some point, Kim decided for herself that it was time to rethink things. In hindsight, she reflected, “I regret [splurging] a little bit because it was so much money, and I could have done so much with it, but I don’t regret it in the sense that I have experienced it, learned from my mistakes, and now have a lot of pretty clothes.” Kim now hits the mall no more than once every few weeks and has significantly reduced her monthly spending. The true state of her progress, though, will be evident as she steps out of high school into the real world; even more so considering the size of the steps that are ahead of her. Kim is joining the navy. “They’re only letting me have locker space, which is 100 times smaller than my closet, so I guess all my clothes were a really bad investment,” laughed Kim, “but I’ll keep them for the holidays, report to my storage immediately after I discharge.”
lifestyles
TUMBLR WORD ASSOCIATION
FEBRUARY 11, 2011
INSPIRATION HIPSTER HAPPY REBLOG NOTES FOLLOWERS
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It feels nice to know so many other people out there share the same interests. -Leah Chang, senior
PHOTO COURTESY OF CHRIS DAM
It’s both a communication and artistic tool . -Kaila Zager, sophomore
tumblin’ past social networking We post what we love and share our interests with other people who appreciate what we do. -Quynh La, senior
PHOTO COURTESY OF KAILA ZAGER
JESSE ZHOU features assistant NATALIE HOANG lifestyles editor
Easy to use and hugely popular, Tumblr has taken the rantriddled, inspiration-craving teenage world by storm. A scroll down the dashboard brings a multitude of posts from an assortment of users. It is random and spontaneous and exactly what young minds crave. A user may first find it difficult to explain to a friend exactly what Tumblr does and what it is for. It has got that Facebook appeal of being able to network with friends, but then there is also the Youtube ability to share music. Add in a dash of Flickr’s high quality hipster photos and Blogger’s heartfelt rants and finally, a few followers later, is the birth of Tumblr. “I use it because I can write a little more personal things about my life,” said sophomore Jason Chen. “I can write almost anything I want. It’s an outlet for my inner thoughts.” Luckily, when words fail, gifs, music, photos and hilarious as well as relatable memes are at the ready. And just when adults are in the midst of rolling their eyes over our “me, me, me” generation comes the beauty of Tumblr, found in two buttons: a heart and a reblog. Tumblr is not about throwing your life, issues and inspirations on the Internet. It is about catching somebody else’s. When users scroll through their dashboards and stumble upon a noteworthy post, they can either “like” it by clicking a heart or reblog it. “On Tumblr, you can see who may have more serious situations than your own,” says Chen. “You realize you aren’t the center of the world and you realize you should be helping others and moving on from your own problems. It’s also relaxing because people post funny things to help cheer you up. It’s just different.” With this system, posts circulate and appear on dashboards
more than once, truly reaching out to do whatever it was intended to: inspire, teach or express… the opportunities are endless! Tumblr’s rise also peaked with the introduction of fashion blogs. Seniors Quynh La and Leah Chang created their own, known as lifestylefashion, which is known around the Tumblr community. “We love fashion and we shared a passion for it so we decided to just do it and see where it led us,” said La. Said Chang, “I personally really like the photography side of it as well. The pictures on Tumblr also introduce me to new ideas and inspirations.” While La and Chang accumulate followers by inspiring others through fashion, Tumblr famous sophomore Kaila Zager isn’t quite sure how she does it. One of Tumblr’s first users, Zager has a total of six thousand followers and counting. Those as lucky as Zager were able to discover yet another tool on Tumblr’s long list of abilities: meeting new people. “People come up to me in malls and stuff and say, ‘Oh, I like your blog!’” says Zager. “I met a lot of them for the first time through Tumblr because of situations like that. It’s both a communication and artistic tool because I got to meet a lot of people from Southern California and all over the world.” Still, there are those who refuse to jump on the bandwagon of Tumblr. Known as a large inside joke, it is hard to keep up with. But getting right down to the grit of it, Tumblr is truly a host to creative and young minds, where everything can be captured, shared, remembered and looked back on. There is an air of maturity and respect between seasoned bloggers, and anything written on the site that may be private is usually not brought up face to face or used against the writer. Through the multiple mediums of expression available on Tumblr, bloggers will always know there is a way to relate to someone else and that they will never be forever alone.
PHOTO COURTESY OF LEAH CHANG
WHAT DO YOU
USE TUMBLR FOR? OUT OF 50 STUDENTS POLLED
45% 25% 20% 10% BLOGGING
PHOTOGRAPHY
INSPIRATION
OTHER
DAILY DOSE OF INSPIRATION
COMPILED BY NATASHA SHARMA
looking for some interesting tumblrs to follow?
fashion food photos words
lifestylefashion fashionfever cocobellax prettyfoods foodzillah scanwiches
photojojo tonsofland lamahkun
quote-book just-littlethings happythings
COMPILED BY JOANNA LEE
FEBRUARY 11, 2011
lifestyles
THE PROSPECTOR
9
the pen is as mighty as the sword. TESS WU features editor
It had been his childhood dream to become a knight. To be able to use a real sword and fight honorably in glorious and legendary battles were amongst some of the deepest desires in his young heart. Now though, senior Evgueniy Bagdasaryan has to settle for a foil and monitored duels—he fences. And while he may not be gearing up for a bout on the battlefield when he attends fencing practice, he does do something much more discreet but no less fascinating. His pursuit of romantic, medieval days of old has unwittingly brought him his wish in a rather unorthodox way— penmanship. Bagdasaryan has been on the receiving end of many comments regarding his unique handwriting. “I’ve had people tell me that it looks like the type of handwriting that is on the Declaration of Independence and other such documents. Some fawn over how interesting it is and others, like my mother, hate it and call it chicken scratch,” said Bag-
dasaryan. “I personally like it because it does sort of remind of the days with no computers, and there were appointed scribes for writing and copying texts.” His unique handwriting brings up an interesting correlation. As a swordsman who regularly goes through specific muscular training, Bagdasaryan has stumbled upon a littleknown method to improve handwriting. “I guess what I can say is that in fencing one has to make very small, precise and flowing movements. Same can go for written work. At times my writing may be a bit flamboyant, but it’s usually something that just conserves space. It’s not cursive, because quite frankly I’ve forgotten how to write in cursive anyway, but all my letters are connected in some way since I don’t lift the pen or pencil off the paper much,” he said. While he has not achieved his dream of becoming a brave knight, Bagdasaryan has managed to accomplish something else quite remarkable using his time with the sword. And though it may not be something obvious, in a way, his quirky talent has brought him exactly where he wanted to be—closer to those ancient days of chivalry and courage, not as a warrior, but as a scribe.
JAMIN SHIH
Getting into and affording competitive colleges today requires strategies that come from knowledge and experience.
Address: 10275 South De Anza Boulevard Cupertino, CA 95014 Phone: (408) 253-6532
sports A look at what makes Coach “Elle-god” tick
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FEBRUARY 11, 2011
s s e c c u s la l lleb E t e e k h t s a “ B rom f
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he voice of varsity basketball Coach Craig Ellegood roars throughout the gym as his players try to keep up with his coaching. The screeching of their shoes against the floorboard is clearly audible as the audience sees the exchange of fouls while the referee’s eyes are diverted away. Sweat drips down their faces as they run hard down the court until the clock ticks down to zero. The clock runs out of time as the buzzer rings. The people in the crowd leap to their feet screaming, “Elle-god! Elle-god!” as they acknowledge the heart and greatness behind his coaching. Although at times his intensity and passion cause him frustration when his team is performing below expectations, Ellegood’s profound dedication to coaching is reflected in his nickname “Elle-god.” After 20 years of head coaching at various high schools, Ellegood was recently named the Central Coast Section (CCS) Honor Coach for the 2010-2011 basketball season. Before these years of head coaching, Ellegood served as an assistant coach for five years at Fremont High School under head coach and mentor Phil Kelly, a three time CCS title winner. During these years as an assistant coach, Ellegood learned the fundamentals of coaching while experiencing the head coach position as well. The philosophy behind Ellegood’s coaching focuses on consistency, as he sees hard effort and practice as an essential part of success. “When there is an issue, it is really important to go back, find out what went wrong, learn how to fix it and then just practice, practice and practice,” said Ellegood. Not only is Ellegood interested in winning, but he also enjoys the preparation necessary to shape a winning team. He often watches the games of future opponents to see how his team should play against them when they meet. “Every team has its own weakness and, since I enjoy preparing for our games, I often see what the other teams do and try to help out our team in every way.” Mirroring his mentor Kelly’s intense methodologies, Ellegood often creates a demanding expectation for his team’s performance. When players do not perform up to par, he diverts his focus from the outcome of a game to finding ways to correct his players’ techniques. This passion to open his players to their fullest potential is what makes his coaching so profound. “He knows all the strategies of our opponents. He breathes basketball, and when it comes to practices and games, he is a genius. He knows the real definition of ‘work’,” said senior varsity basketball player Terry Chu. Varsity basketball player Gokul Natesan said, “What makes him stand out from other coaches is his attention to the little details that do not appear on the stat book but help the team win. The amount of dedication that he puts in is just amazing.” Going back into the A league this year of the De Anza Division, Ellegood and his team face a tougher schedule with stronger mental challenges, as Ellegood realizes that his team needs to set their mentality to a higher level before going into the season. Said Ellegood, “In the A league, there are no quitting teams, and we have to play hard until the end. I have to make sure the team is aware of that.”
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ALL PHOTOS BY JAMIN SHIH
THE PROSPECTOR
FEBRUARY 11, 2011
“Initially I played as a way to exercise, but I quickly enjoyed both the camaraderie and friendly competition with my peers. It’s fun getting to know people in a different setting.” - Kyle Fitzpatrick
“The best thing about morning basketball is probably that it’s fun. Some added benefits are exercise and the fact that I get to know some teachers better.” - Andy Walczak
11
In defense of the non-athlete AMAR KANTIPUDI
photo editor With teenage obesity on the rise, experts are pointing fingers at schools for not mandating more sports or physical activity. But virtually all high schools offer a myriad of sports, providing the opportunity for students to get their recommended exercise. However, less than half of our own school’s students are active in school sports, prompting a question: why do so many people not do sports? And should we mandate sports for everyone? Of course, there are generic answers as to why students do not play, such as “I just don’t have time” or “I’m not good at anything.” But it seems like these aren’t the main motivation for students avoiding sports. Unsurprisingly, many of those students, like senior Wei-Chih Wang, wish to forgo sports for academic work “because that’s what colleges tend to care about the most.” Though colleges do sometimes prefer well-rounded individuals that play sports, excelling in specific academic areas and having achievements to show for it is often more effective. What about our nation’s obesity crisis? With teenage obesity at a staggering 14 percent according to National Health Statistics, experts argue that schools will do students a favor by helping them keep fit through mandatory sports. But this can only do so much, for students without the motivation to play will continue to languish while time is stripped from true interests. In contrast, students who dedicate all their time to doing what they love often achieve excellent academic results, even if it means not playing any sports. For example, senior Samuel Lee, who spends countless hours playing the violin and studying to become a doctor, was admitted into Stanford University for the Class of 2015, “something [he] wouldn’t have been able to do if [he] spent [his] time playing sports.” With this in mind, it seems that this lack of interest in sports has its roots in students’ legitimate academic focuses, not in banal excuses. Thus, instead of mandating sports and making people do something that they do not want to, allowing them to pursue their passions reaps far more rewards.
For a select group of teachers, basketball is more than an interesting sport. It has become a long-lasting tradition and means much more than a simple ball and hoop.
TRUE BALLERS STAFF SPORTS TRADITION ENDURES
COMPILED BY ANAND HEMMADY
When the tradition started, the teachers played noncompetitively. Around the year 2000, however, these weekly games grew progressively more heated and it was around this time that the core group of players emerged, including Goes, Song, Ellegood, Morse, Walczak, Fitzpatrick and Rosado. The group is often joined by retired teachers and ones from Fremont.
“Friday morning basketball offers a chance for exercise that I normally don’t get. This tradition also gave me a chance to interact with other teachers who I otherwise would not have gotten to know.” - Wes Morse
sports
Every Friday morning, from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m., a group of teachers meet up, shoot some hoops and have a good time. History teacher Wes Morse says that the tradition of meeting every Friday morning and playing basketball started back in the mid-90s by the special education teacher. It was not long until more people became excited and joined in.
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FEBRUARY 11, 2011
12
Tino’s got talent =
O
@Tinostock 2011
n January 28, dozens of students waited patiently for Tino’s finest to come up on stage and show off their talent in the annual Tinostock talent show. Be it senior Jenny Chen pushing boundaries with her modern dance style (top middle), or freshman Ashley Nguyen capturing the attention of the audience with her humor and amazing vocal and instrumental abilities (top left), there seemed to be no end to the diversity and sheer amount of talent on stage. As the night continued, sophomore Takuma Matsui wowed students and faculty alike with two performances—one in a band, and one as a solo guitarist (top right). Though it seemed that the vast majority of the performances were musical, each group varied in genre, humor and charisma. Freshman Bryce Raja represented this diversity by showing off his inner rock star while playing with his band, Frootloops (lower right). However, no matter how brilliant each performance was, there had to be one winner. As the nightdefining envelope opened, everyone, including senior Akaash Mungale (left), waited anxiously, anticipating the forthcoming results. In the end, “Kazamm and the Band” claimed victory as the judges unanimously agreed that guest star Kevin Zhang, also known as Kazamm, had an uncanny knack for rapping (lower left). Nonetheless, everyone who performed at Tinostock 2011 was a winner, exemplifying unique talents and proving to not only themselves but also the entire school that anyone can be a star (bottom). COMPILED BY AMAR KANTIPUDI AND WILLIE WANG