Spring 2020, Issue 7 by The Bottom Line (UCSB)

VOLUME XIV, ISSUE XXIV

MAY 20, 2020

ABANDONED in SB.

MAKING TRANSITIONS Online Orientation Raises Concerns for Staff Features | Page 4

From Top To Bottom Heteronormativity in Queer Relationships Opinions | Page 10

PHOTOSTORY | PAGES 14-15

Photo by Graeme Jackson | Photo Editor BottomLineUCSB.com @tbl.ucsb @tblucsb

Political Debate

o n Ke e pin g DACA CONSTITUTIONAL INTERPRETATION DIVIDES WILL SHAPE UPCOMING DACA DECISION ARIEL ANDRES | Contributing Writer

y the end of June 2020, the Supreme Court will make its final decision as to whether President Trump is legally able to rescind the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program set in place during 2012 by the Obama administration. Paul Spickard, a professor from UC Santa Barbara history department, has tried to shed some light on how the court justices may vote during this landmark case. One may think that the court’s decision will simply boil down to which Supreme Court justices are Conservative and which ones are Liberal. Although this is often the trend for the Liberal wing of the Supreme Court, Professor Spickard points out that there are other philosophies which go beyond party lines that help guide the judicial choices justices make. One such philosophy is living constitutionalism, this idea states that the Constitution should be viewed as a dynamic document that changes over time and molds to fit the context of the current era. The four Liberal Court Justices, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan, fall under this category, and so they would

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most likely be in favor of DACA. The antithesis to living constitutionalism is textualism and originalism. Textualism heavily weighs what the exact words of the Constitution are, but it doesn’t focus on what the intent behind the words are at the time they were written. Former Chief Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. said, “We do not inquire what the legislature meant; we ask only what the statutes mean.” An argument brought up against DACA is that the Constitution should not have allowed President Obama to enact that immigration law. Such power is reserved for Congress, which in turn makes DACA illegal. Justice Samuel A. Alito is considered to be a textualist and his line of questioning during the oral arguments that took place during November 2019 suggests that he will side with President Trump. Originalism also pays close attention to the words written down, but it has a strict interpretation of the Constitution through the lens of the original intent of the Founding Fathers. As Professor Spickard put it, it is like “wrapping the aura of the Founding Fathers around the Constitution.” That aura remains in place regardless of the mod-

ern day context, even when it is opposed to long-standing legal precedent. For instance, the District of Columbia v. Heller case demonstrated an originalist view of the second amendment. An originalist would look back to the reason for why the Founding Fathers wrote it: to form militias that would protect citizens from a potentially dangerous standing army. Former Justice Antonin Scolia argued that without arming citizens, they would not be able to form militias, and the Second Amendment therefore protects the rights of every individual to possess firearms. The current Supreme Court consists of two justices that are generally thought to be originalists: Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil M. Gorsuch. Professor Spickard suggested that since the Constitution does not go into details about immigration beyond the citizenship clause, they would vote in favor of the president because they respect the executive powers granted by the Constitution. The last two conservative justices, Justices John G. Roberts and Brett M. Kavanaugh, are the ones most likely to flip, according to Professor Spickard.

Although Roberts has prominent Conservative views, Professor Spickard pointed out that he has voted alongside Liberal justices in several cases. When President Trump wanted to include a question about citizenship on the U.S. census, Justice Roberts voted against it. Moreover, he defended the Affordable Care Act set in place by Obama when the President tried to dismantle it. It is clear that he has shown a willingness to go beyond party lines when considering significant cases. In regards to Justice Kavanaugh, there is no history of his philosophy in action within the Court, and so it is more difficult to predict what his decision may be. ULTIMATELY, PROFESSOR SPICKARD SAID, “I THINK THAT PEOPLE ARE GOING TO END UP VOTING WITH THEIR HEART ON THIS ONE.” HE QUESTIONS WHETHER THE COURT SHOULD LET “GRATUITOUS MEANNESS” GOVERN POLICY. THAT IS, THERE IS NO REAL BENEFIT

TO DEPORTING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DACA RECIPIENTS. Essentially, it has to do with an argument surrounding common decency. DACA recipients occupy all kinds of essential jobs, from lawyers to doctors. Currently there are over 29,000 DACA recipients who work as health care professionals, and in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, deporting them would severely limit the ability to battle this disease. Uprooting them from our society would ruin their livelihoods and in turn ours.

UCSB's New Scholarship Tool UCSB's New Partnership with CampusLogic's Scholarship Tool ANDREW HERNANDEZ | Investigative Beat Reporter The UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships (OF&amp;S) has partnered with CampusLogic Inc., to use its ScholarshipUniverse service, a browser-based scholarship tool currently surveying more than 11,000 scholarships. The application will allow students to aggregate scholarships by their chosen filters or a personally recommended list of scholarships. Jessica Trumble, scholarship and donations manager for UCSB’s OF&S, worked to implement the application and has since been personalizing it along with a supporting team for the campus community. Trumble said the initial groundwork for bringing the service on campus began before her hiring in May 2019. The scholarship process is hoping to be managed, streamlined, and vetted before students begin engaging with the app. The long-term goal for Trumble “is to have all scholarships that are offered on campus be offered through this tool. But that's a big project,” she said in an interview with The Bottom Line. “We're going to launch using it ourselves to sort of demonstrate it and offer it to other departments or other resources and institutions on campus moving forward.” The other on-campus agencies that have been involved with the process along with OF&S are Student Information Systems

&Technology, the Office of Admissions, and the Office of the Registrar. Hanna Wong, the financial aid advisor from the OF&S, presented some information on the program in a small meeting of faculty last month. “Personally, I feel like ScholarshipUniverse will be a great resource for students once it is operational, and it's something I wish had been available when I was a student,” Wong said. The connection of students to money from within or outside their school, referred to as “internal” or “external” dollars, is the most significant convenience of this awards management tool, but there are other smaller bene-

fits. Students will be able to view scholarships granted to them automatically by the university, making information that is usually found in a student’s award letter more readily available. Every department using the platform hopes that it will provide another level of transparency for all the on-campus grants that aren’t automatically pooled and distributed to students. The filters within the app such as award amount, degree of difficulty, GPA, etc., are all efforts done from the overall desire of the office for “students to have more agency, better access, more effective resources, and also increase transparency,” Trumble said. According to the company’s

website, the ScholarshipUniverse program is being offered in nearly 500 higher education institutions; the preceding preview and product page highlight areas that the company believes will pique institutions’ interest. The preview section says the program will reach more students to more external scholarships, most importantly “reducing reliance on institutional funds.” The following page highlights two of three areas meant to entice institutions with helpful reminders like “a scholarship of as little as $500 can be the difference between a student choosing your school over your competitors,” hinting at the institution's larger priority of increasing attendance.

The ScholarshipUniverse service of CampusLogic is the second program in use by UCSB, the first being StudentForms, allows for the use of a secured single sign-in for all of the university’s financial aid documents. A “Success Story” focusing on UCSB, published by CampusLogic, says a significantly bad financial aid delay in the fall of 2016 led Mike Miller, now UCSB’s assistant vice chancellor for enrollment services, to coordinate with the university to implement the StudentForms program the following fall. At the end of the article, Miller states, “This was the fastest implementation in our school’s history, we stepped forward 15 years almost overnight … I really think this will be one of the best I.T. investments we will ever make.” The interconnectedness between ScholarshipUniverse and StudentForms makes for an easy transition because student digital information will not need to be moved from the main platform to another new service. If ScholarshipUniverse is successful, it can offer numerous benefits to students as they try to find ways to pay for their degrees. However, it is hard to ignore just how aware CampusLogic and UCSB are to the business and financial incentives they seek to gain from its implementation. Illustration by Alyssa Long | Art Director

Opinions expressed in TBL do not necessarily represent those of the staff or UCSB. All submissions, questions or comments may be directed to editors@bottomlineucsb.com A & E Editor | Sheila Tran Science & Tech Editor | Xander Apicella Opinions Editor | Raymond Matthews Video Editor | Fabiola Esqueda, Arianna McDonald Photo Editor | Graeme Jackson Art Director | Alyssa Long Campus Beat Reporter | Madison Kirkpatrick

A.S. Beat Reporter | Kyle Dent I.V. Beat Reporter | Edward Colmenares National Beat Reporter | Jade MartinezPogue Investigative Beat Reporter | Andrew Hernandez Layout Editors | Melody Li, Amanda Wang, Esther Liu, Brian Nakajima, Olivia Berriz, Krystal Chen, Sofia Lyon

FEATURES | 3

Transitions Online Orientation Raises Concerns for Staff RICK ZHANG | Staff Writer

ne of the biggest benefits of an in-person orientation is providing the very first opportunities for incoming students to interact and make friends. But as UC Santa Barbara’s (UCSB) freshman and transfer orientations are moved online, orientation staffers are worried. They now must come up with new solutions to keep students interested on Zoom, connect with students, and adjust activities to an online format. “I don't think [making friends is] impossible over an online format, but I saw a lot of students make friends from the walk from Campbell Hall to Manzanita Village as we moved from

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the welcome assembly to the first academic advising presentation,” says orientation staffer Andre Nguyen. “With no walk over, because this is all being done through a computer, students lose those opportunities to get to know each other through little conversations like that,” Nguyen points out. The directors of UCSB’s Student Orientation program had informed staffers about the shift to an online orientation in late April. By that time, it had been announced that summer session A would be held remotely and summer session B was yet to be confirmed. “When we did get the news,

it wasn't a shock, but a confirmation of what we thought to be the ‘worst case scenario’ in our eyes,” explains Brogan Gallagher, one of the program assistants. Usually, orientation staff have a retreat at the beginning of spring quarter, followed by a quarter-long in-person training. As everything moves online, retreat is also scrapped, meaning staffers will have less opportunities to get to know the people they’re working with. “For example, training sessions started promptly at 3 p.m., but if I was there at 2:50 p.m., I'd get to sit and talk with whoever was seated next to me. That sort of interaction simply doesn't happen over a Zoom call,” says Nguyen. Though it has become harder for orientation staffers to get to know each other, they are making efforts to overcome the barriers by scheduling Friday night Zoom calls and setting up one-

on-one meetings. Fortunately, staffers still have Advising Partners (APs) who help them practice academic advising. “It's been weird to not be in the office anymore and see everyone's faces, but Zoom is better than nothing!” Gallagher notes. Switching to an online summer orientation is going to look different. Incoming students will mainly connect with their advisors via Zoom calls. Other activities are also being planned. “We are trying to preserve as much of the program as possible, and are still planning on giving tours, workshops, panels, presentations, and the student night social where students will get to interact,” explains Rory Bevacqua, one of two student coordinators who lead the staff of 26. The one-on-one advising sessions that staffers have with students will be longer than they were last year. Nguyen recalls having around five minutes to speak with each student about their course placements and academic requirements. “If my information is correct, we will be given 15 minutes to meet with each student individually, and academic advising presentations

will be done with two orientation staffers in a single Zoom call this time,” Nguyen says. To prevent any technical issues, Bevacqua says the lead team is making plans to make sure that everything runs as smoothly as possible. “Internet connection could always potentially become an issue, so we are trying to come up with backup plans in case a staffer gets dropped from a video call,” Bevacqua says. Despite all the changes, staffers are still optimistic and eager to do their best to ease the transition to a new university for incoming students as much as possible. “I think the person I was as a 17-year-old high school graduate would be really nervous in a format like this,” Nguyen admits. “I hope that I can connect with those students, help them feel well-informed, get them excited to attend UCSB, and be a reassuring presence in my capacity as a staff member.” Photo by Graeme Jackson | Photo Editor

Best Quarantine Board Games

re you stuck in quarantine with the same group of people who are slowly driving you crazy? I have a solution: spend even MORE time with those who render you mad! Playing board games can be a way to have fun and forget why you’ve come to hate your housemates during quarantine, although you might destroy your relationships even more through game conflicts. In any case, the funny moments that will ensue will make time go faster. Whether you have all day or just a few minutes, these five board games can be a form of joy and entertainment during the boring weeks of quarantine.

MARION POCHARD | Contributing Writer

1. Dobble

2. Time’s Up!

3. Blokus

4. Secret Hitler

5. Catan

In the land of Catan, your goal is to build roads, settlements, and villages to conquer the biggest area. The more you enlarge your territory, the more you can gather resources and trade them to build your village. Be strategic, trap your opponents, and be the first to reach the largest settlement. If you want to drive your friends crazy by using strategy, this game is for you. This 3-6 player game has many extensions and can last 30 minutes to two hours. Best part of the game: Trapping your opponents and winning by surprise by staying discreet about your resources!

Tired of political debates with your housemates? Transform those debates into a social deduction game between opposing liberals and fascists! In this 5-10 player game, fascists are the main threat and hide their identity to pass laws. Liberals try to stop them while having no idea of who is who. Who is lying, and who is telling the truth? How much should you trust your friends? Those questions can last hours or only a few minutes for skilled players. Full of suspicions, this game will eventually make you question your friendships and the trustworthiness of your partners. Be careful about your neighbors — you might find yourself screaming “fascist” a little bit too loud.

In this strategy game, 2-4 players aim to fit all of their Tetris-shaped pieces on the board. While the game seems easy at first glance, it’s no coincidence that the name of the game is pronounced “Block us.” You can easily find yourself trapped by your opponents or even by yourself if you don’t place each piece strategically. If you like problem-solving, strategy, wracking your brain for an hour, and of course, battling your friends, this game is perfect for you!

Do you want to laugh, move, and see your friends struggle to express themselves? This team game is made for you and can even be created at home if you don’t own it! In 30 seconds, one player draws a random card and must help their team guess the word on the card. But be careful, because each round is harder than the previous one. While players initially can use as many words as they want to describe the card, only ONE word is allowed for each card in the second round. In the final rounds, players must mime the word.

This card game is funny, fast, and comes in a variety of versions that include Disney, Harry Potter, and more. Each card has eight symbols, with one similar symbol between every card in the deck. Find the symbol in common between your card and the card revealed in the middle and grab it first. The player who finishes the game with the most cards wins! Designed for 2-8 players, this game is perfect because it can be as short as a five-minute break between classes and as long as an entire night. If one of your housemates has been getting on your nerves lately, this game is a perfect way to let off some steam! Illustration by Grace Park | Staff Illustrator

This game is perfect for those who enjoy silly moments with their friends and is adaptable to your desired duration and number of players. Create cards with inside jokes or memories that you made with your friends, which will make miming the words even more fun!

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT | 5

Book Review:"PANDEMIC!" ETHAN YU | Staff Writer

lavov Žižek, the famous Slovenian philosopher also known as the “Elvis of cultural theory” and “The Most Dangerous Philosopher of the West,” just published a brand new book this April titled “PANDEMIC!: COVID-19 Shakes the World” that may shake your worldview. In his erudite, yet lucid writing style that draws from Marx to Tarantino films, from Hegel to dirty jokes, Žižek makes the impassionate call for Communism once again as COVID-19 wrecks the world. In 11 short chapters, topics range from a biblical exegesis of John 20:17 to an analysis of the pandemic through Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’ five stages of grief. Žižek explores how our ideological systems “caught [us] unprepared by the [COVID-19] catastrophe despite scientists warning us about it for years.” In almost 150 pages, Žižek looks at the intricacies of capitalism through popular movies, books, current events, and Lacanian psychoanalysis to show it deeply alienates us from our work and ourselves as spiritual beings. Žižek shows that the act of writing is not only to describe and to interpret the world, but to change it. In the novel, Žižek speaks with the rhetorical force of a Marx: “Things we were used to as part of our daily life will no longer be taken for granted, we will have to learn to live a much more fragile life with constant threats … in other words, if we understand ‘philosophy’ as the name for our basic orientation in life,

we will have to experience a true philosophical revolution.” “PANDEMIC!” is daring, especially since it was written in such a short amount of time. The fact that Žižek was able to produce numerous interesting analyses on the pandemic since global quarantine measures have been enacted shows the speed and power of his far-ranging thought. However, the book’s speedy production has caused one of its biggest flaws: some of the chapters are too short and consist of re-published material from articles previously written by Žižek. In particular, two chapters, both ripped from his own online

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articles, address a debate Žižek is currently having with Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben on the role of the state to implement quarantine. Albeit fascinating, these chapters could've been significantly edited as well as featured Agamben’s responses to make more sense to the general reader. Nonetheless, “PANDEMIC!” is bound to be provocative to whoever reads it, whether you consider yourself a staunch leftist or an adamant conservative. Exemplifying Žižek’s revelry through joke and paradox, the back of the book promises to “uncover deeper meanings” of the

pandemic, yet claims in the first chapter that the “epidemic … just happened and hides no deeper meaning.” He compares the unity one feels with Christ when abandoned by God to “Julian Assange, isolated in his prison cell.” He doubts the “epidemic will make us wiser” yet constantly suggests “the arrival of a form of Communism as a result of the coronavirus.” Finally, he also says that he’s not trying to legitimize suffering, yet divinates from the virus a message from nature: “What you did to me, I am now doing to you.” Whether or not the con-

tradictions work in his favor to demonstrate the complexity of our modern times — which requires multiple political, psychoanalytical, and philosophical approaches to analyze — readers will not be disappointed by hearing Žižek’s revolutionary call for change. “PANDEMIC!: COVID-19 Shakes the World” by Slavoj Žižek is available at OR Books (Paperback: $15/E-book: $8) and Amazon. All royalties will be donated to Médecins Sans Frontières. Photo courtesy of Pixabay

' New TV Show Lil Dickys

Balances Comedy

and

Vulnerability

GRAEME JACKSON | Photo Editor

This article contains spoilers for season one of FX Network’s “Dave.”

dapting an entertainer’s comedic voice into a narrative form is nothing new; comedians have been doing it for decades. “Seinfeld,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and “Master of None” have all executed this concept to varying degrees of success while experimenting with different comedic and dramatic tones. Rapper, actor, and comedian Dave Burd (aka Lil Dicky) is the latest to throw his hat in the ring with the debut of his FX television show “Dave.” Following in the footsteps of Donald Glover and his critically acclaimed show “Atlanta,” Burd shows that he is not only capable of making audiences laugh, but also of reflecting on themes like mental illness, identity, ambition, and recognition.

Described by Burd as “loosely based on his real-life experiences,” “Dave” follows a fictionalized version of Lil Dicky and his rise to fame. At first glance, the series may seem like a one-dimensional comedic endeavor from Burd, but “Dave” utilizes each character in its ensemble cast to delve into deeper thematic messages. The audience is invited to explore certain personal and interpersonal struggles from Dave’s perspective throughout the season. Recurring motifs are introduced early in the first episode to illustrate significant themes of the show, like the importance of identity and recognition. Episode two, “Dave’s First,” follows the preparation behind Dave’s first live performance as he struggles with comparisons to other white rappers like Macklemore and The Lonely Island. The series shows that although many people celebrate Dave for his work, he isn’t recognized for his technical skill as a lyricist.

Fans he meets in the show see him as a “parody” or “meme rapper” due to his humorous lyrical content. Illustrating this internal conflict early in the season contextualizes Dave’s headspace and establishes how high the stakes are for Dave to achieve his goals. A highlight of the season is “Hype Man,” an episode centered on supporting character GaTa, Burd’s real-life hype man and confidant. When GaTa begins showing erratic behavior before an upcoming performance, flashbacks reveal that he has bipolar disorder. With an incredible performance by the first-time actor of the same name, GaTa’s episode poignantly handles the topic of mental illness and leaves the audience with an uplifting message on being empathetic to people who may be dealing with internal issues. The next episode is another heavy hitter in the season, exploring the roots of confidence and the influence of the past on how one lives in the present. In “Talent Shows,” Dave’s close friend Elz sheds light on the fact that the attention Dave garnered from his peers in his youth came from ridicule, not respect for his prowess in comedy and

entertaining others. Struggling with this realization, Dave begins to question if anything has changed at all in how he is perceived. In a surreal scene, Dave confronts his childhood self and suffocates him, symbolically killing the part of himself that let others take advantage of him. The season rounds out with two episodes focused around ambition and the sacrifices one must make to achieve one’s dreams. “Ally’s Toast” centers on Dave’s girlfriend Ally, a kindergarten teacher who feels inadequate about her career as Dave pursues music. Through Ally’s eyes, the audience sees that the couple has begun to drift apart due to Dave’s obsession with his work, as well as his growing narcissism and neglect towards their relationship. Consequently, Ally realizes that her relationship with Dave will not work because he prioritizes his dreams over their relationship. The season finale completes Dave’s character arc by revolving around recognition and showing that he’s learned to be considerate of those around him. In “Jail,” Dave wants to debut an offensive track as his first single but is met with opposition from his music label and close friends. Dave’s

obsession with his craft leads him to lash out at those that are close to him, and Ally’s words from the previous episode begin to ring true. At the episode’s climax, Dave is about to play the song live on a popular radio station behind his music label’s back before realizing how his actions will directly affect the people who support him. Instead of playing the offensive track, Dave ultimately decides to freestyle rap on the air. His rapping earns him the respect of radio host and influential hiphop figure Charlamagne tha God, providing Dave with the recognition as a hip-hop artist that he’s been craving since the first episode of the show. Season one of “Dave” has managed to not only successfully toe the line between comedy and drama, but also juggle a number of interesting topics for audiences to contemplate. “Dave” has also become FX’s highest ranked comedy series of all time, averaging 5.32 million viewers per episode. Lil Dicky has undoubtedly shown he can be successful outside of music — fans can look forward to his next studio album and the confirmed second season of “Dave.” Illustration by Graeme Jackson | Photo Editor

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT | 7

UVC

UCSB Researchers Help Fight COVID-19 AMY WANG | Contributing Writer

uring the devastating C OV I D - 1 9 pandemic, proper sanitation is required to keep us safe as the country shifts towards reopening. UC Santa Barbara’s Solid State Lighting & Energy Electronics Center (SSLEEC) has been researching ultraviolet lightemitting diodes (UV LEDs) that could potentially combat the virus. SSLEEC has been working on creating white and blue LEDs for a while, and recently shifted its focus to make UVC LEDs. UVC LED has been proven to kill bacteria and spores and inactivate viruses. It does so by tuning the

8 | SCIENCE & TECH

light’s wavelength to 200-280 nanometers, the optimal range for disinfection. UVC LEDs are meant to disinfect surfaces but are dangerous to humans — they cause skin irritation and damage to eyes. The World Health Organization discourages using ultraviolet lamps to sanitize skin. According to Steven DenBaars, co-director of SSLEEC and professor of engineering and materials at UCSB, this research began as a search for ways to purify water. However, the organization transitioned to making the production of UVC LEDs more efficient and inexpensive as a result of

the COVID-19 pandemic. Fabricating semiconductors by using silicon carbide to grow aluminium gallium nitride structures is an inexpensive way to replicate the UVC LEDs. “A mask could be put under UV light and be sterilized in just 30 minutes,” DenBaars said in an interview with The Bottom Line. There are existing UVC LED products on the market catered for disinfection, but these are generally more expensive because of the materials they use. One example is mercury vapor. DenBaars and his team are focused on improving the efficiency of their LEDs to drive the cost down.

With COVID-19 looming over us, technological breakthroughs in UV light could be a key for returning to normalcy. “This is similar to improving the efficiency of a lightbulb, but with ultraviolet light instead of visible light.” he said. “In a few years, I can see a UVC LED light bulb being sold for a couple dollars.” Current common methods of disinfection are ineffective when compared to UVC LEDs. For one, using chemical disinfectants

or heat can be destructive to the surface or object being sanitized. “Right now it’s quite hard to decontaminate groceries, but you can radiate your food with UV light,” DenBaars said. “UV LEDs are a nontoxic way to disinfect, but it requires improvements in safety protocol and in the cost.” UVC LEDs can even help decontaminate air. To disinfect air, a particle filter in an heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system would be used for circulation while a UVC light purifies the air. This would allow for particles to be filtered out while the light killed any viruses and bacteria. With COVID-19 looming over us, technological breakthroughs in UV light could be a key for returning to normalcy. SSLEEC will keep at work on improving its UVC LEDs. Photo by Graeme Jackson| Photo Editor

TESTING ANIMALS FOR AIYANA FRAAS | Staff Writer

etting test kits for COVID-19 has been difficult and costly, yet places like the New York (NY) Zoo are using the limited numbers of tests to find out if animals have contracted the virus. How do officials decide to test animals for COVID-19? Professionals like veterinarians and ecologists have to look at how testing animals might contribute to solutions for COVID-19 while also keeping in mind the pressing issues surrounding the pandemic, like lack of available tests for humans. It is important to note that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does not recommend routine testing for animals. Tests are so limited that some people who are showing symptoms of the virus and have compromised immune systems can’t even get a test. Furthermore, the CDC currently believes that animals play little to no part in the spread of COVID-19; so, no, this is not another black plague. In order to make the decision a little easier, the CDC has published some guidelines to help public and animal health officials. This includes priority testing for animals that are more likely to be exposed and endangered animals. Tigers are in the endangered species list, so when the tigers at the NY Zoo began showing symptoms, officials and zoo workers decided they should be tested.

The decision to test animals is collaborative and involves many people from local, state, and federal levels. Most times when animal and human health concerns are connected, decisions are made based on what will benefit the community as a whole rather than focusing on solving one portion of the issue at a time. Tests are mostly given to those animals that show symptoms. The CDC highly recommends that veterinarians and owners eliminate all other possible causes before they seek testing for animals. So what do people need to know if they live with pets? You should always contact your vet (remotely) if your pet shows symptoms. The virus has been shown to spread from people to animals so if you are taking your dog for walks, don’t let them come within six feet of other people. Likewise, if you get sick it's not a great idea to cuddle and kiss your pooch. Right now, the CDC is advising everyone to take as many precautionary measures as possible. Though it's not likely that the virus will spread from you to your pets or vice versa, we’re still learning about COVID-19 all the time; it's good practice to follow the CDC’s advice. Illustrations by Alyssa Long | Art Director

SCIENCE & TECH | 9

From Top to Bottom Heteronormativity in RAYMOND MATTHEWS | Opinions Editor

ack in my day as a bright-eyed, bushytailed freshman, one fateful night the Universe (and a generous helping of Kirkland vodka) guided my friends and I to a party on DP which we were assured would “pop off” any minute. We awkwardly stood in a circle, red Solo cups in hand, swaying to “Sicko Mode,” when we noticed a stray bro wandering toward us. To set the stage, he was five Natty Lites in, and he’d adopted a Scottish accent while wearing a Texas University shirt and American flag shorts (a multicultural icon). After staring at me for a solid minute, off-brand Shrek asked me a question: “Are ye gay mate??” I laughed it off and said yes, thinking that was that, but no, discount Braveheart wanted me to give him a deep dive into the gay lifestyle, the likes of which I hadn’t seen since my high school musical theater days.

10 | OPINIONS

“Are you a top or a bottom? Like, if you’re with another dude are you more like the girl or the guy?” he asked. This may sound outlandish and I’ll admit I haven’t run into any drunk wannabe Scotsmen before or since, but the “top or bottom/girl or guy” question is one queer people hear quite often. Most queer people (myself included) find this question insulting because when straight people ask it, they’re asking you to validate yourself by mimicking straight romance and sexuality. I’ll admit that for some, it can be comforting and familiar to understand yourself in terms of an unambiguous masculine/feminine framework, but the beauty of queerness is in its ambiguity. It offers the freedom to explore gender and sexuality without imitating straightness, because by definition queerness is a rejection of straight traditions.

This is to say that queerness is not an oddball parody of heterosexuality, but its own set of gender and sexual identities, making it impossible to “straighten out” in order to emulate heterosexuality. It’s worth noting that this mindset is not exclusive to straight people; many queer people impose these dynamics on themselves because of pressure to perform gender, sexuality, and romance in palatable, familiar ways. Many modern depictions of sex and romance are told from straight perspectives, which can cause queer people to internalize implicit messages that the only romantic and sexual experiences worth having must include a sharp masculine and feminine contrast. While there’s nothing wrong with enjoying masculine and feminine dynamics in your relationships, it’s important to remember that there are other — equally

fulfilling — ways to enjoy sex and romance. Feminine people often have feminine partners, masculine people have masculine partners, genderfluid people have genderfluid partners, and so on and so forth. These relationships are just as fulfilling as the more traditional masculine/feminine paradigm, and allowing yourself to choose which dynamic works for you rather than blindly following “normal” gender dynamics will likely make your relationships more authentic and enjoyable. On the surface, most queer people hate the “top or bottom” question because it’s rude and creepy for someone to ask intimate questions about your sexual preferences out of the blue. But on a deeper level, this question is insulting because using someone’s gender expression to determine their sexual role (or vice versa) is laughable. There are feminine tops, masculine bottoms, and everything in between. This can even g o

beyond queer relationships, as it would be laughable to assume that all straight couples act the exact same way in bed together based solely on their gender. The main issue with all this is that romance and sexuality — whether queer or straight — is not a black-and-white Etch A Sketch. It’s a messy, multi-colored Picasso painting; you can try to make logical sense of it but it’s best to appreciate it for its disjointed, avant-garde beauty. Illustrations by Alyssa Long | Art Director

Okay to be Unproductive it's

During a Global Pandemic ALYSSA LONG | Art Director

ince the start of quarantine, aside from a general sense of bewilderment and far too many TikTok dances, social media has been abuzz with the idea that now is the time to maximize productivity. According to several “motivational” tweets, a pandemic is a perfect opportunity to write a novel, learn a new language, pick up guitar, or get in shape. Isaac Newton discovered calculus during a plague outbreak. As someone whose brain maxes out on dopamine at the sight of a completed to-do list, I initially believed I had no excuse to be idle during quarantine. It’s a logical narrative. Time is normally in short supply, but now that it’s not, getting things done should be incredibly easy. So, why has quarantine felt like an anxious, infinite loop of mediocre Tuesdays? Defaulting to productivity isn’t necessarily an issue in and of itself. Wanting to create and stay busy keeps us sane, happy, and human. But quarantine has revealed problems with the “hustle culture” mindset — the desire to make every moment productive — especially when

this mindset assumes that your purpose is to produce. The culturally-embedded phrase “time is money” best encapsulates why so many of us fret about productivity (or lack thereof ) during quarantine. I realized recently that I view time in economic terms: as a limited commodity, a constraint under which I must maximize output. I can invest free time in activities that will “better” me, and whenever I pick up a hobby, my mind immediately jumps to ways that I can monetize it. When you think of yourself as a machine, you start evaluating your selfworth by machine standards — by how much you can produce. This pressure I feel to maximize productivity stems from the idea that my time is not my own in the present, and that I owe it to either society or my future self to keep the cogwheels turning. Working hard now can be rewarded with relaxation later, but what do you do when you have endless tasks, your home is your workspace, and quarantine life offers no clear distinction between “now” and “later”?

The need to work hard will simply last forever if optimizing every moment is the goal. On top of this pressure, our poor brains must now deal with yearning for what spring quarter could have been, watching people on social media break quarantine to party, expending extra effort to maintain long-distance friendships, and trying to keep ourselves motivated through it all. Isolation from our peers is psychologically taxing, and many students struggle to take tests in distracting environments with unreliable technology. So when you measure your success as a human being by your level of output and it seems you’re locked in a whirlwind of bad news, what can you do? Instead of approaching every day with an intention to maximize productivity, I argue that we should do our best to prioritize healthy habits, even if they don’t agree with a viral tweet about

Isaac Newton. He certainly didn’t have the added stressors of Zoom meetings, dozens of unread emails, or unreliable WiFi to worry about. I’m having to constantly remind myself that self-care is inherently productive. Under current circumstances, it’s easy to neglect activities like changing up your routine, exercising, eating well, and practicing mindfulness; but it’s important to remember that you are a person, not a machine. You truly don’t need to write a memoir or learn how to code right now to be of value. Just bake some banana bread, revisit some old childhood hobbies, and have some compassion for yourself. Life is so much more than checking off boxes on a todo list, after all. Illustration by Cassis Brown | Staff Illustrator

OPINIONS | 11

12 12 || OPINIONS ILLUSTRATION

Illustration by CHRISTINE HO | Senior Layout Editor

THE TRUTH BEHIND LATE-NIGHT READING Illustration by ECHO DIEU | Staff Illustrator

Comic of the Week

Comic by JAKE ORTEGA | Comic Artist

Comic by Jake Ortega | Comic Artist

ILLUSTRATION | 13

ABANDONED IN SANTA BARBARA GRAEME JACKSON | Photo Editor

Still visible from the active 101 Highway, travelers can view this piece of Santa Barbara county’s history on their way up and down the coast.

An abandoned concrete bridge sits above Arroyo Hondo Creek north of Santa Barbara. Improved construction of the 101 Highway called for the bridge’s retirement in the mid-1980s.

Street art and graffiti are scattered across the concrete supports underneath the bridge.

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Perched high above the streets of downtown Santa Barbara, a decaying mansion sits undisturbed amidst one of the wealthiest suburbs in Southern California.

Deemed seismically unsafe by the city, the mansion has been sealed off to the public. Visitors can still view the structureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unique design from the outside.

Nearing a century since its construction, The Barnsdall-Rio Grande gas station still stands in Goleta as a brief reminder of the areaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s past.

Highway 101 was rerouted following a Japanese submarine attack on the California coast in 1942, leaving the station isolated and subsequently forced to close by the early 1950s.

PHOTOSTORY | 15

The Bottom adle Illustration by GRACE PARK | Staff Illustrator Recipe by NOE PADILLA | News Editor

Shepherd's Breakfast

Ingredients

ed bacon slic f o s e c e i 4-6 p o small strips int

Â˝ white onion, diced

Heat a large skillet/frying pan over medium high heat. Once heated, add your bacon strips and cook for about a minute, then add in your onions. Stir occasionally. (If you think the bacon isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t creating enough fat and the onions are burning, add a TBSP of oil)

Thawed-out frozen hash browns or 2-3 freshly prepared hash browns

l in olive oi g r i v a r t x E

Directions

If you are using fresh hash browns, here's how you prepare them: Wash the potatoes, grate them into a large bowl full of water (to help them from drying out too soon), strain the potatoes and wash to remove excess starch, pat dry, and put aside for use.

Salt and pepper to taste

Once your onion becomes translucent, add in a TBSP of butter and oil, then add your hash browns. Try to fill up the pan fully. Mix the ingredients, lightly season with salt and pepper, then pat down the hash browns. Leave them to cook until a golden layer begins to form on the bottom. Flip the hash browns.

1 Tbsp butter 3-4 Eggs

16 | ILLUSTRATION

Once flipped, make 3-4 small grooves into the hash browns and place an egg over each. Place a lid over the pan and allow the egg whites to cook. Once egg whites are cooked, season with salt and pepper. Serve.