Issue 4, 2014

As Science teacher Roy Rocklin prepares to leave because of his lymphoma, we examine the impact his departure will have on both students and the science department alike

BY AMANDA CHANG

MINDING THE GAP

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY VIK WAGHRAY

At the start of the second semester, science teacher Roy Rocklin was scheduled to take a leave of absence for the entire semester to allow for treatment of the lymphoma in his abdomen.

R

ocklin, however, will be staying for longer because he has not completely recovered from his last chemotherapy infusion; his kidneys and liver are not functioning at full capacity, and his bone marrow is not producing enough red blood cells for him to have the treatment as scheduled. Until he is ready, Rocklin will continue to teach two of his AP Chemistry classes. Meanwhile, long-term substitute teacher Lester Leung, who has past teaching experience as a chemistry student teacher at Homestead High School and Pioneer High School, will take over the remaining one AP Chemistry class and two Chemistry Honors classes.

Rocklin first found out about his cancer in June 2011, when he felt pain in his abdomen and was diagnosed with follicular lymphoma. After four rounds of chemotherapy during the fall of 2013, Rocklin’s positron emission tomography (PET) scan was clear. These results did not signify that he was cured, but that any remaining cancer had not developed enough to be detected. Rocklin’s oncologist informed him of an 80 percent probability that his cancer would resurface if nothing was done.

As a result, Rocklin decided to undergo the stem cell transplant that might take place later this semester. He compared his situation to that of Steve Jobs, who died from his pancreatic cancer because he did not undergo further treatment.

“I didn’t hesitate to do the procedure because I don’t want to do what Steve Jobs did,” said Rocklin. “He felt fine and decided that therefore, he must be fine. But he wasn’t fine at all.”

The planned stem cell transplant will first extract the stem cells out of Rocklin’s blood and freeze them. After a few weeks, Rocklin will return to the hospital for large doses of chemotherapy to kill the last re-

maining cancer cells. Unfortunately, these doses will also destroy his white blood cells and immune system.

“It’s not a very pleasant procedure, especially shortly after the chemotherapy begins,” said Rocklin. “I’ll have all the usual side effects of chemotherapy like nausea, vomiting, and fatigue. But there’s somewhere around a 50 percent, or maybe even a little bit better, probability that I will be completely cured.”

When the doses of chemotherapy are over, all of his stem cells will be pumped back into his blood to begin making cancer-free red and white blood cells. After another two weeks in the hospital, Rocklin should have enough white blood cells and a stable enough immune system to return home. For the following three to six months, he will have to stay away from people and wear a filter over his face whenever he goes outside to avoid infection.

There is, however, a possibility that Rocklin will not need to have the treatment at all. Although Rocklin’s local clinic doctor recommends the treatment, the doctor supervising the surgery at Stanford Hospital thinks it will be unnecessary since nothing has reappeared in Rocklin’s PET scan. As a result, Rocklin is currently looking for a third opinion.

Regardless of whether the surgery becomes necessary, Rocklin hopes to remain optimistic just as he has until now.

“I stay positive because so far I have been able to live a nearly normal life,” said

KASTURI PANTVAIDYA—EPIC

Rocklin. “The last four months have been the most difficult in the two and half years since I was diagnosed. But even during this time, I have been able to be at school teaching about three-fourths of the time.”

One important source of his optimism is the support and help of others.

“My wife Marsha has been a nurse to me during the times I felt the worst after chemotherapy and helped me follow the doctor’s orders,” said Rocklin. “My fellow teachers have given me moral support and covered my classes in my absence.”

Rocklin is also extremely thankful for the support of his students.

“My students have been wonderful by letting me know that they appreciate my efforts in teaching them and not allowing my illness to degrade the quality of the class,” said Rocklin.

“I really admire Dr. Rocklin because of his dedication to teaching,” said junior Allison Tam. “Sometimes he tells us about his experiences in class, and that’s always very inspiring.”

Sophomore Jeffrey Chang also recognizes Rocklin’s devotion.

“Whenever Dr. Rocklin is in the classroom, we feel this charisma and aura around him that makes students quiet down as soon as he speaks up,” said sophomore Jeffrey Chang. “On the other hand, most other teachers have to yell. Despite his illness, he’s always really nice and happy to help students.”

Finding a replacement for Rocklin was not easy.

“Let’s be honest,” said FUHSD Director

“Whenever Dr. Rocklin is in the classroom, we feel this charisma and aura around him that makes students quiet down as soon as he speaks up.”

-Jeffrey chang//10

JOEY LI—EPIC

5Lester Leung things to know about

of Human Resources Tom Avvakumovits.

“We’re replacing Doc Roc. He’s a legend. Our students and staff will have to adapt to the fact that the new teacher knows the stuff, but he’s not Doc Roc.” Since the new teacher would be teaching AP Chemistry, the selection criteria for candidates was a little different than usual.

“In this particular position, subject matter is extremely important because it’s AP Chemistry,” said Avvakumovits during the selection process. “I want someone that can ooze molarity like no one else or who gets really excited about the molecular weight of plutonium. We’re looking for someone who can demonstrate that they’re highly qualified.”

When the long-term substitute position was first posted online, the district received a large number of applications. After the candidates were screened based on their résumés, letters of recommendation, and cover letters, the most qualified candidates interviewed with Principal John Dwyer, Assistant Principal Maria Jackson, Science Department Chair Drew Coble and a representative from Human Resources.

Following the interviews, the district per-

What are your thoughts on the transition?

formed reference checks on all remaining candidates by calling previous employers and universities. It then conducted a second round of interviews and finally selected a teacher.

Avvakumovits was not as worried about how much experience the teacher had as he was about how well the teacher knew about the material.

“The thing new teachers struggle with the most is classroom management,” said Avvakumovits. “In AP Chem, classroom management is not likely to be a big issue. But the students are going to know if the teacher doesn’t know the material.”

As a result of the selection process, the district chose Leung, who majored in Biochemistry at University of California, Santa Cruz, as the new long-term substitute. Leung has started the second semester using Rocklin’s curriculum, but he plans to start implementing some of his own activities.

“In the beginning, I am going to be using

a lot of Dr. Rocklin’s curriculum,” said Leung.

“But as Chemistry Honors has seen, I’ve already been changing up the activities. I predict that things will change, and I’ll be moving more towards my own curriculum.”

Fortunately, Leung’s transition to Lynbrook has been fairly smooth due to the support of the Lynbrook community.

“It’s been great working with the people here, especially Dr. Rocklin,” said Leung.

“He’s been a really good influence and he’s helped me out a lot.”

Rocklin’s potential absence from campus will be felt by all, but his classes are in good hands. The Lynbrook community hopes that he will make a swift recovery and return to teaching full-time and cancer-free.

“The transition has been very smooth; I get the feeling the class adjusted really quickly to having a new teacher. Mr. Leung’s teaching style is a lot different from Dr. Rocklin’s, but so far it’s been working out.”

“[after this event] They will already have a solid foundation on the strategy of understanding difficult passages,” said literature teacher Robert Richmond.

Tuesday, February 4th, from 7:309:00 AM. The annual AMC test will be administered.

This test measures problem-solving skills that are useful for any kind of problem-solving settings. Students are to find their designated classroom in an email from math teacher Rita Korsunsky via schoolloop.

On Friday, January 17th, organization Instruction by Design will provide the school with a guest speaker to instruct the freshman class on how to close read a passage.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY NEWS SECTION

“The AMC strengthens the mathematical vitality of the nation’s students.”

BY ASHWIN RAVI

News In Brief

“Mr. Pugh’s band will play for a part of the dance,” said Blue Pearl committee member Eloy Fernandez.

This year’s Blue Pearl Dance will be on Feb. 1 from 7:30 to 11:00 p.m in the school gym. Prices are $15 for one ticket and $25 for couples and they will be sold at the top of the quad starting from Jan. 16 up until the day of the dance. Tickets will also be sold at the door.

“Many students will memorize monologues and scenes to present at the studio,” said junior sam Khan.

On January 28th and 29th, the Drama Honors students will be presenting their acts at a showcase in Studio 74.

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YEAR IN REVIEW

LYNBROOK

BY MEERA KRISHNAMOORTHY & FREYA LIU

“I want students to always be in class and TO Not miss out on important information.” //Principal John Dwyer on the new tardy policy

FUHS FOUNDATION 2013 The Fremont Union High School Foundation (FUHSF) is a non-profit foundation designed to serve all schools in the Fremont Union High School District (FUHSD). In the past six years, the foundation has raised over one million dollars, with approximately $250,000 used to benefit Lynbrook.

“Our single goal is to raise money [for] our schools,” said Jeanne Bradford, president of the FUHSF. In 2013, it raised $230,000 for the district as a whole, splitting it evenly among the five high

//LYNBROOK EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION PRESIDENT SANDEEP PANDYA On the EFFORTS OF THE ORGANIZATION IN 2013

Earned first place in Movember, with THE SENIORS COMING IN SECOND. Lynbrook as a whole raised $1,002.85.

$150,000

Amount raised by LYNBROOK EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION. Funds have been used for various purposes at lynbrook, including costs incurred by the epic.

IDC FANTASTICS

Most competitions at Lynbrook are class wars: food drives, Homecoming, etc. The only event in which Lynbrook competes as a whole is the IDC Fantastics.

Usually, the IDC Representatives or Class Presidents choose the team members from those who signed up for the event, but ASB decided to change the entry requirements this year.

“Usually, the same pool of students participate in the IDC Fantastics, and other related events,” said Saha. “Our goal was to make these events open to [more students].”

A pre-Fantastics tournament consisted of 8 teams (two per class) with about 9 students per team. The teams competed against one another in Fantastics-esque games. At the end of the qualifications, one team was selected per class; the winning teams then sent a select amount of boys and girls as representatives.

The new system proved effective: Lynbrook came in second, beaten only by Monta Vista.

PHOTO USED WITH PERMISSION OF IAN PEARMAN

“We grew by over 40% compared to last year in all 3 metrics that we track–amount raised, NUMBER of parents participating and grants made to Lynbrook.

schools. With the $45,000 set aside for Lynbrook-related improvements, the FUHSF was able to contribute to the Robotics program, School Loop, Naviance, the new athletics fields, among others. With a successful year under its belt, the FUHSF has new improvements planned for both Lynbrook and FUHSD in 2014.

“We are working on two things,” said Bradford, “The first is implementing a strategic plan that will engage more technology companies.

The second is allowing for directed donations, so parents can target their contributions to specific programs. Both of these are in-process.”

JUNIORS

“high school Dances get a huge misconception in middle school, and we want to show [FRESHMEN] it’s not LIKE [THAT].” //ASB PRESIDENT DIVYA SAHA ON THE NEW DANCE POLICY

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3

Flashbacks to the biggest moments of the year—from Lynbrook to the world, the Epic has it all.

THE WORLD

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY NEWS SECTION

946,000 $409 MILLION TOTAL NUMBER OF DOWNLOADS OF ROBIN THICKE’s “BLURRED LINES”

the year in babies In the first half of 2013, the world was eagerly awaiting the birth of two very famous babies: that of the Duchess of Cambridge and of reality TV star Kim Kardashian.

On July 15, Kardashian gave birth to baby North West. Baby girl, that is, because the name North West may well be some kind of direction rather than a baby name.

Shortly after, on July 22, Duchess Kate Middleton, and Prince William, welcomed their son, Prince George Alexander Louis (above) to the world. The announcement of the child’s birth was posted on an easel outside Buckingham Palace. The birth of George also signifies the first time in over 100 years that three generations of direct heirs to the throne have been alive at the same time.

phillipines On Nov. 6, Typhoon Haiyan, also known as Typhoon Yolanda, hit ground. One of the most destructive storms ever, Typhoon Haiyan began in the Federated States of Micronesia, and crept westward until it reached the Philippines and devastated most of the Samar and Leyte islands (shown below). Recent reports confirm the current death toll to be at least 6,166 people, though bodies are still being found every day. Thousands have been injured, and 11 million have lost homes. UNICEF, one of many contributors toward reconstruction, is appealing for $34 million to aid the four million Filipino children affected by the typhoon. Relief efforts have been ongoing since the storm happened, with money going toward humanitarian projects and water purifying systems.

4.5 BILLION HOURS OF SONGS PLAYED ON SPOTIFY

Total Earnings Of iron man 3, the highest grossing movie of 2013. Catching Fire was a close second, earning Over $407 million. DESpicable me 2 was third, earning $367 million.

important DEATHS OF THE YEAR Gleeks from all around the world mourned the death of Cory Monteith on July 13. Monteith, who played Finn Hudson on the hit TV-series Glee shocked audiences as news of his sudden death reached the news. Even more shocking was the fact that his death was the result of a heroin and alcohol overdose that came from a long time substance addiction.

Half a year later, the world had to say goodbye to two more: actor Paul Walker and former South American president Nelson Mandela. Walker died on Nov. 30 after his car caught on fire for unknown reasons, rendering Warner Brothers unable to complete the seventh installment of The Fast and the Furious series.

Neither Monteith nor Walker will leave as much of a lasting impact as Nelson Mandela. Mandela will forever be remembered and revered for his significant contribution to the anti-apartheid movement and his work as the first black president of South Africa. He died at his Johanessburg home of respiratory infection on Dec. 5.

“selfie”: OED oxford dictionary word of the year, beating out other popular words

CHERYL

KASTU

T RI PAN

IC A—EP VAIDY

BY KASTURI PANTVAIDYA

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY KATHY JANG

CHANG: FLYING SOLO O

n the evening of Dec. 4, senior Cheryl Chang geared up for what was likely the last music competition of her high school career. With her flute in hand, Chang prepared to audition for the featured soloist position in the 2013-2014 Santa Clara County Honor Band, a distinction sought by 15 talented flutists from the best high school music programs in the Bay Area.

As Chang went into the audition, she “really wanted to focus on giving a good performance.” That meant touching the audience with her music, making them stop and listen and bringing back to life the feelings the composer felt as she was writing the piece.

After not earning the featured soloist title for the past two years, Chang decided to audition one last time as she had “nothing to lose.”

The previous two times, judges told her that she had come really close to being selected, but was “not quite there.” This year, Chang’s was named the featured soloist position in the 100-student high school honor band.

While she was elated about earning the position, Chang was satisfied knowing that she came out of the audition having given it her best.

“My teacher instilled in me a philosophy,” said Chang. “She told me that if I give a great performance, the outcome doesn’t matter.

I’m already a winner.”

Chang’s flute teacher, Ai Goldsmith, has been instrumental in Chang’s journey as a flutist, acting not just as a teacher but also as a life coach while Chang rehearsed and refined her music.

“Our lessons go beyond the general scope of technique and phrasing; she talks about stage presence, performance philosophy and instills courage and hope when I am clearly

lacking it,” said Chang.

When Chang was 7 years old, her mother insisted that it was time for her to pick up an instrument. She settled on the flute because it was “the shiniest one” on display, and from there her career as a flutist took off. Not all of Chang’s performances and competitions have resulted in awards. Yet, Chang feels that these disappointments serve as lessons and reminders as what she must do to be better prepared for future competitions.

“The reflection of what I should have focused on more hits hard after results are out,” said Chang. At times, she feels that she should focus less on impressing judges and more on sharing the music with them in order by bringing the piece to life.

Though her passion has come with its downsides, such as long rehearsals and time commitment, Chang believes they are well worth it. She has had the opportunity to participate in the All-State orchestra, which brings together musicians from all over California to rehearse for three days, recreate a masterpiece and then perform. Many of these extremely dedicated musicians are accepted to acclaimed music schools such as The Juilliard School and The Eastman School of Music.

“I feel honored to have sat next to these musicians and to have performed a symphony with them, knowing that I might someday see them on the news, performing with a major symphony,” said Chang.

As the new featured soloist, Chang performed the Chaminade Flute Concertino at the Honor Band Concert on Jan. 12. She focused on refining her performance for the show by rehearsing individually and with the band.

“Cheryl really impresses me because she doesn’t seem to get stressed like most people do. She works extremely hard and maintains a high expectations for herself,” said band teacher Michael Pakaluk, who has been Chang’s band teacher since her sophomore year and has seen her through various competitions and leadership roles. “She’s like a flute ninja!”

Chang plans to obtain a minor in music performance, and participate in chamber music and school music ensembles. Chang calls her new distinction as the last point on her musical “checklist.” After putting much time and effort into making the Honor Band, Chang feels like she can relax and look forward to other goals for her last high school semester.

“There was a feeling of relief after I played the last note, like I could breathe again, and all this stress that had been building up for the last month was lifted,” said Chang. Even if this audition is likely her last her high school career, Chang knows she will continue to grow as a musician, always ready for the next performance.

Grab your smartphones! Listen to Cheryl’s audition piece on Soundclound.

The Price of Minimum Wage

L

et’s start with simple economics: an increase in price causes a fall in demand. And where prices are concerned, there is perhaps none as controversial as the base price of labor—the minimum wage. Recently, widespread calls for a nationwide $15 minimum wage (the “Fight for Fifteen”) have been met with both popular and political support. While raising the minimum wage has always been popular, it remains economically unfeasible; and it does not take an economist to figure that out.

A raise in the minimum wage would disproportionately affect young workers who depend on low-wage, low-skilled jobs to gain valuable work experience. Instead of raising the minimum wage at this time of crisis-level unemployment, the government should combat poverty and reduce income

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY AUDREY ZHENG

inequality in more sensible ways that are beneficial for employers, consumers and low-wage workers themselves.

Over the next few years, we are slated to see an unprecedented rise in the minimum wage at the local, state and federal levels.

San Jose’s minimum wage is set to increase this month by 15 cents to $10.15 after a two-dollar increase in 2013. Last year, the California legislature approved raising the statewide minimum wage from $8 to $10 by 2016. Even the federal minimum wage may see a change, with President Obama supporting calls for a $10.10 minimum wage.

There’s no question that if such a trend continues, demand for workers will fall, causing a rise in unemployment and making it harder for small businesses to drive the economic recovery.

Minimum-wage jobs form the founda-

tion of the American dream. They serve as stepping stones to better-paying jobs, positions and aspirations for young workers nationwide, from the high school student who is looking for her first job to the college student who is trying to pay for his books.

Teenagers working on these jobs can gain valuable workplace skills such as customer service and time management, which they can carry on to their professional careers.

According to William Dunkelberg, chief economist for the National Federation of Independent Business, when the federal minimum wage was last raised from to $7.25 in 2009, nearly 600,000 teen jobs were lost within 6 months. Today, the teen unemployment rate hovers around 30 percent compared to the overall unemployment rate of 6.7 percent. At a time when our economy is recovering and the unemployment rate

is slowly waning, we do not need another setback.

Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics suggests that workers under age 25 constitute about half of all workers earning the minimum wage or less. If employers are burdened with a higher minimum wage, they will be discouraged from hiring young workers. Because of their immense utility to young workers, these jobs are far too valuable to lose.

Of course, high school and college students are not the only ones depending on a minimum wage job. Research published in 2010 by economists Joseph Sabia and Richard Burkhauser shows that if the federal minimum wage were increased from $7.25 an hour to $9.50 an hour, only 11.3 percent of workers who would gain from the increase live below the poverty line. For this 11.3 percent of workers, there are better alternatives to a raise in income. Federal and state governments should focus on creating strong safety nets and entitlement programs that protect lower-income Americans in times of crises and offer an escape route from poverty.

The basic framework to combat poverty is already in place. All we need to do is expand and innovate certain programs. Extending unemployment benefits specifically for low-wage earners is a solid proposition because they are most at risk of financial collapse when they become unemployed. Because these unemployment benefits reduce the incentive for finding paying work, they need to be supplemented by programs that support those who are already working such as the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) program. The EITC, which makes payments to workers in low-income households, should be expanded so that more low-income workers can avail its benefits. Finally, steady investment in public education will ensure that students have the resources they need to seek higher-paying jobs and make strides towards income equality in the long run.

While some people may be opposed to this type to big government spending, we have to realize that any effort to eradicate poverty requires significant wealth redistribution. Following the Keynesian view of economics, government spending in these types of programs can be especially fruitful during times of recession to boost economic output and trigger spending from low-income families. Properly executed entitlement programs that target society’s most vulnerable will be far more practical than a blanket increase in minimum wage. We need to create focused solutions to help the people who need it the most instead of trying to help ev

KASTURI PANTVAIDYA-EPIC

eryone in a perfunctory manner.

Raising the minimum wage is a policy of inaction on the government’s part. Instead of taking poverty eradication into its own hands, the government only delegates this responsibility to businesses when it raises the minimum wage. When there are clearly better alternatives available, the government needs to direct its efforts in funding and executing these programs with a mission to close the wealth gap.

Proponents of a minimum wage increase also explain that their motive for higher wages is fairness. But fairness is subjective. What may be fair to the 45-year-old father of three who works two-minimum wage jobs may not be fair to the Chinese-restaurant-owner who is already facing the burden of a brand new labor cost: Obamacare. And who is to say who’s fairness is more valuable? Raising the minimum wage is more than just an economic question; it is an ethical dilemma.

To get to the bottom of this confounding dilemma,

we need to understand the meaning of wages in the first place. Wages are not some sort of right or entitlement that we can complain about whenever we feel uncompensated. We earn our wages through hard labor and must make the most out of what we get. Demanding a raise in the minimum wage is no different from pleading a teacher for extra credit at the end of a tough semester.

Needless to say, calls for a minimum wage increase come with the noblest intentions. After all, there are countless families whose breadwinners work multiple minimum-wage jobs yet struggle to attain financial stability. While it is natural to sympathize with low-income workers, we must remember that a higher minimum wage comes at a cost - to employers, consumers, and perhaps most importantly, to the millions of Americans who will become or remain unemployed because of it. Policy, after all, should be shaped by reality, not by emotional impulses.

LETTER TO THE EDITORS

A Response to “Fashion: So last season”

by Kristen Wong (Issue 3)

I

t’s true. Some of us value how we look over over necessities like logic and reason. But the biggest thing I’d like to say about this is that yes, some of us girls put in a lot of effort to look nice - but is that necessarily a bad thing?

I’d consider myself one of those girls that puts in a fair amount of effort when deciding what to wear in the mornings. But I really don’t see anything wrong with it. For me, putting together outfits - as cheesy and cliché as it is- is my way of expressing myself. It’s my art. What I wear defines me as a person.

Put it this way - putting together outfits is my hobby. Some people like sports, some like playing instruments, and I just like being in my room piecing together what to wear next. Everyone spends time on their hobbies, and cataloguing a fashion log really isn’t much different than scrapbooking or having a sketchbook.

As for makeup, I personally don’t wear makeup because I honestly don’t have enough motivation to wake up in the mornings, but I respect individuals that can. Some of my friends don’t even care for fashion but love makeup. It’s their hobby, their art that they express on their own faces. Literally. It doesn’t mean that someone is insecure or needs more confidence. It means that someone has enough confidence to put their work out there to display in front of everyone. And I admire them for that.

Which leads me to my next point. A lot of people say that wearing makeup is to cover up insecurities that the girls previously had. Sometimes it’s true. But as someone that sometimes puts together terrible outfits, I feel like I have to have even more self-confidence myself to be able to put myself out there and stand out of the crowd.

As for the fashion police, most of my best friends don’t wear anything other than a Lynbrook Hoodie and jeans or yoga pants. I don’t know about others, but I’ve never told them to change what they wear to school, and they don’t either to me. We acknowledge what we wear, and quite frankly, what we wear fits who we are - it would take a while for me if they decided to wear anything different.

So really, girls putting in time to put on makeup or to try to wear what’s “in” shouldn’t be viewed as something negative if in moderation. It’s just another aspect of how someone can define himself.

Response submitted by junior Jessica Jiang

Disagree with an article? Have any commentary? Have a correction to make? Email enc.epic@gmail.com with your response.

Limit: 300 words.

Don’t hate on blooming late PESSIMISM

BY SARAH TARTER

A

ART ILLUSTRATION BY AUDREY ZHENG

quote: “If you weren’t ugly in middle school, I almost don’t trust you.” The cast of MTV’s “Girl Code” knows what’s up--call them one of the most reputable sources on feminity. If you never had an awkward phase, if you magically transitioned from being an adorable child to an incandescently poised teenager, then I will probably harbor some suspicion as to whether you are actually a human being.

For the people who spent the majority of their teenage years thinking their features rose from the dredges of the gene pool, I’m here to reassure you: It’s okay! In fact, it’s more than okay! In the grand scheme of things YOU are the ones with the real advantage. The braces, the acne, the poor fashion sense--those are all going to pay off in the distant world of adulthood.

As a late bloomer, you’re learning not to place all your value in your physical appearance, which is helping you develop a strong personality and turning you into a more complex individual. If you had gone through puberty while receiving high praise for your beauty, it would have been much easier for you to transform into a vain, shallow young adult. Remember when

your friends all started going on dates in middle school but you still felt like a repulsive troll in the eyes of the opposite sex?

Well 10 years later those same friends are more likely to be sobbing into a pint of Ben & Jerry’s as they lament the fact that their looks are fading with age and that handsome medical student with a bright future married the bucktoothed girl in your sophomore chemistry class.

By relying on their looks all their life, the (seemingly) ceaselessly attractive have been handicapped and sheltered, since were never forced to develop substantial qualities as compensation for their appearance. Instead of having a teenage identity crisis because you can no longer rely on your looks to get by, you’ll be witty, charismatic and confident in your character. You won’t have to constantly seek validation for your appearance, and will understand that your value comes from within.

The problem with attractiveness at an early age is that we put so much emphasis on it--attractive people usually don’t have to work as hard to get into relationships with people they like, they don’t have to fight to be noticed, they don’t have to struggle to hold attention. By virtue of their outward appearance our society takes care of them.

But, like all good things, looks fade, and the lack of any effort put toward making oneself interesting leaves only a once-pretty shell, now tarnished by age. People who aren’t so attractive in their earlier years work on the things that make them most appealing to people, like developing talents and skills, or just generally being a kind person. And besides, who wants to peak in high school when you’ve got 70 potentiallyfabulous years ahead of you to live with the body you have? Instead of rueing the awkward stages of the past, relish your young physique and be thankful for all the things your body can do for you, instead of all the things other people will think of it.

In the grand scheme of things, gradual development is far more fulfilling than ex-

periencing a sudden burst of greatness followed by a steady plateau of mediocrity.

Too much attractiveness at an early age can thrust you into a viciously ungrateful cycle, driving you into a desperate desire for coveted attention. Perpetual hotness could even become a burden if you start to feel like you owe attractiveness to the world, and can’t let anyone see you as less than strikingly goodlooking. If you’re unable to make fun of yourself because you’re afraid of even slightly damaging your reputation, then I really feel sorry for you. Self-depreciative humor is a magical tool that instantly makes you seem down-to-earth and relatable, so you might as well learn to work it into your repertoire of comedy. Think about it this way, if your #transformationtuesdays on Instagram are just a sort-of-awkward version of you next to a barely-different-but-slightly cuter photo of yourself, you won’t be able to provide your followers with any quality amusement. But if you’re willing to post some golden photos of yourself from the seventh grade when you rocked the middle part and thought it was cool to wear Silly Bandz up to your elbow, you’ll earn some major respect for being able to take pride in your previously unattractive self. After all, true attractiveness is all about having confidence. Whatever you’ve got going for you-work it. If you know you’re more “Honey Boo Boo” than “Megan Fox” but you find a way to own it, you’ll gain authentic respect from the right kinds of people-those who are mature enough not to just take you at face value.

So the next time you feel like the ugly duckling in a sea of graceful swans, refer back to this article and remind yourself that you are not yet done growing. The only way you will ever truly be pleased with yourself is if your confidence comes from within, so be thankful that you haven’t learned to rely solely on the affirmations of others to feel good about yourself. For now, just strut your stuff with pride, and don’t worry about rushing your transformation into a soaring, beautiful, butterfly.

M

arquees? More like billboards for Lynbrook Excellence in Education (LExE) and the Fremont Union High Schools Foundation (FUHSF). Many students think that the marquees are a waste of money, but these displays happen to be the most visible of a few campus upgrades--including a new sound system in the gym--funded through grants in 2013.

That kind of money comes from grant proposals that must specify beforehand what, if passed, the grant money will be used for.

Despite their flashing, brightly-colored displays which are specially designed to catch people’s attention, a lack of pertinent content causes the marquees to be largely ignored by the student body.

At the most basic level, the times displayed by the marquees are inaccurate, or at the very least do not correspond with

the bell schedule, which is what’s really important. Since tardiness is apparently an issue this year, as much should be done to make students aware that no, sitting in the car for another two minutes is not a wise idea. If feasible, the time should be displayed on the corner of each slide so students do not have to pause by the marquees and wait mutely for announcements which they have no interest in to pass.

Upon closer observation, the marquees represent the different aspects of Lynbrook life unequally. For every three announcements about school-related activities, such as the French Honor Society fundraiser, students have to wait through four slides that are of little use to them. “Thank You Lynbrook Excellence in Education” is about as helpful as the FUHSF logo in promoting participation around school. The mar-

quees were funded in part by those organizations, so they deserve a thank-you, but student organizations should play a more prominant part in the spotlight.

“We try to put sports games and then review the daily announcements for events that are relevant to the whole school,” said ASB Publicity Relations (PR) Commissioner senior Shiho Koike. “It can be difficult to update the marquees regularly since we have other responsibilities to fulfill.”

The marquees are supposed to benefit students, and at the moment, students not on ASB are mostly unaware they have a say in what actually goes on the marquees. In this case, good intentions and grand plans for the future mean nothing; as with SAT scores and GPA, it’s the result that matters.

“Clubs can email me and request to have something displayed on the marquee,” said

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION DONE BY SABRINA JEN AND FREYA LIU

assistant principal David Erwin. “There are too many clubs on campus to announce each meeting, but one-off events like fundraisers won’t overload the marquees.”

It would be more efficient to have a well-publicized Google survey that orgnizations and students can use to suggest content and give feedback.

There should be a system similar to the way that announcements are placed, in which club officers can turn in slips to publicize events and fundraisers for a certain time range. Think that will result in way too much content and an overly long loop cycle? ASB PR should look through submissions once a week and accept only what is applicable to at least half the student body, like upperclassmen. PSAT and AP test registration, Vikepound sales, and college visits all fit in this category. Even if content is limited to ASB discretion, there are still many notifications that can be shown. Rallies, fundraisers, and Spirit Week themes would all be helpful in promoting participation in those activities and increasing school spirit.

Besides, not all marquees are placed equally. Parents rarely, if ever, see the marquee in the Quad and students sitting dutifully in class are unlikely to be staring at the girls’ locker room marquee, where parents often lurk in wait to whisk their children home after school. When this editorial was being written, the French Honor Society fundraiser announcement was limited

to the marquee in the Quad, which makes sense in terms of safety and privacy. It was clear that ASB has been making an effort to differentiate between the marquees, which is a step in the right direction. The marquee in the Quad should be reserved for student activities. Events where parent attendance is crucial, like Guidance Nights, should be advertised exclusively on the two marquees outside of the Quad.

What seems utterly pointless to include anywhere, especially now that it’s second semester, is a “Visit Us at lhs. fuhsd.org” slide. To be honest, there is little on the school website that would appeal or be useful to anyone without ties to Lynbrook.

The parents who have not yet visited the website likely won’t ever if the message hasn’t gotten through by now. Displaying a monotonous run-through of an entire week’s schedule is also an inefficient use of marquee space; just limit it to “Rally this Friday” or “Tutorial schedule this Tuesday” and students will figure out the rest through the Lynbrook website.

If ASB wants to bring the school together, the marquees are an underutilized yet fairly easy-to-use tool that can help achieve that goal. To the hardworking administration: make sure the investment of time and grant money truly pays off for the Lynbrook community. How’s that for a New Year’s Resolution?

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY FREYA LIU

Yes, that was the Gettysburg Address. No that’s not how Abraham Lincoln delivered it. Yes, it is how way too many people would have said it today. And no, it definitely does not sound good.

Maybe it’s considered colloquial language, but it shouldn’t be. It’s a nationwide epidemic that’s especially prominent around these parts. It seems illogical, but a lot of people seem to be simply incapable of speaking assertively, whether due to an appalling amount of time spent texting or a general dearth of confidence.

Apparently, every sound sentence has to be followed by a weak, half-word fragment that detracts from the power of the spoken words. The habit of interspersing “um,” “I mean,” “you know” and “lol” throughout our sentences has permeated virtually every facet of our verbal communications, ultimately weakening listeners’ convictions.

Fellow Lynbrook students: I say we kill this habit with fire immediately. It’s time to burn away the excess.

Around fourth grade, I suffered from this malady, subconsciously understanding that I should break the habit yet consciously doing nothing about it. Prior to a session of class presentations one morning, the teacher broke us into pairs and instructed each student to count the number of unnecessary words—the same filler words that we “grown ups” struggle to eliminate— his/her partner used in their speech. My results were astounding. In a mere twominute speech, I had unknowingly polluted my delivery with four different fragments, ten times in all. That’s almost a cheap rap song. And my fellow peers’ results weren’t much better.

Although our 10-year-old minds didn’t realize it, the teacher had a point: fragments slip both our tongues and our minds. These filler words may seem inconsequential to the

speaker, yet they can cause an audience to quickly lose focus and interest.

We should all make a conscious effort to dash these superfluities and improve communication among ourselves. When you say something and follow it up with a careless phrase like “I mean” or “I guess”, not only are you chipping away at the solid core that is tacit, universal communication, but you are also emanating uncertainty and indecisiveness. You are involuntarily implying that you are not fully behind what you’re saying, and perhaps don’t even know what you’re talking about. It becomes progressively more difficult for whoever is listening to take you seriously.

I refuse to believe that I am the only one who has received a text from a friend and stood there wondering whether he was serious. (“Yeah dude I’m like hella going there lol.”) But while that was relatively harmless, such language does have disastrous potential, (“Yo their house is like, on fire.”) When you talk like this, you’re probably half-assing the fragment and the sentence, and in the words of the legendary Ron Swanson, ‘‘Never half-ass two things; whole-ass one thing.’’

It is true that fragments may have a purpose. Adding a cleverly-placed “lol” at the end of a sentence can soften the effect of a harshly-asserted line, (“Dude you need to pay me back like today lol,”) and add levity to the blow. But in many situations, ev-

erybody has to say the unambiguous, ugly, bitter, unsoftened, truth. And boy, has Lynbrook gone soft.

A lot of us want to sound like leaders and visionaries. But virtually all of these tremendously successful people, from Lincoln to Gandhi to Churchill to Martin Luther King Jr., were great orators. These individuals had stunning control over the language - saying a lot but never more than needed - and were able to rouse crowds to achieve their goals. From the beginning, however, they worked tirelessly to eliminate fragments from their elocutions. The result? No instances of “like”, “um”, or the dreaded “-ish.” In the pursuit of success, eliminating the unneeded words that get into our way is a giant step.

And even if none of that matters to you, fragments just flat out sound bad. Imagine if Beethoven inserted a few random, extraneous notes into his timeless Für Elise.

Or if Spielberg threw in a few greens and oranges into Schindler’s List. None are necessary, and would significantly take away from their respective flawless deliveries.

The late Steve Jobs said, “Perfection isn’t when you can’t add anything; it’s when you can’t take anything away.” Now I’m not telling you to aver each sentence like it’s your last, but think about how you want to sound next time.

Uh, you kinda get what I’m like, trying to say, right?

Three students share their experiences with the rising stock market

BY DHIRAJ NALLAPOTHULA

T

he New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and the Nasdaq Exchange have long served as the measuring stick of the American economy by allowing investors to trade stocks of America’s largest companies. There is a wide range of investors who trade, from the stock broker to the classic hobbyist. For juniors Allen Chi, Anshul Shah and senior Eric Chuu, trading stock is more than just a hobby--it is a medium for them to expand their horizons and pursue the American dream.

Allen Chi The old adage “patience is a virtue” speaks the truth for most people, except for investors like junior Allen Chi. At the crack of dawn, Chi is wide awake, his eyes fixed on his computer screen. The NYSE and the Nasdaq, which operate on Eastern Standard Time (EST), have just opened their GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY FEATURES SECTION

floors and he doesn’t want to miss the action on Wall Street.

Chi first got into the trading business in Aug. 2013 after he was motivated by a friend Chi then created a virtual stock portfolio to experiment with trading stocks without having to lose actual money. After making a few hundred dollars off of his investment of $5000, Chi felt confident enough to trade with real money. Even getting to trade with hard cash, however, was a challenge in itself.

“I ended up begging my mom to deposit the funds I had made over the past two summers at my cousin’s company,” said Chi. Though Chi’s mother was initially hesitant about allowing her son to use $10,000 of his own money , she ultimately wanted him to learn something from his passion.

“He needs to learn whenever you do anything, you need put in hard work and effort,” said Chi’s mother

Amy Yao. “The stock market is changing every moment. He needs to learn to never stop learning and fulfill his knowledge.”

For Chi, his first impression of the market was that one trade could leave him with a fat check or a black hole of debt. In Chi’s perspective, the optimum time to invest is when a particular company has a lot of hype surrounding it. For example, one of Chi’s most profitable investments came with Tesla Motors, which had high expectations due to the success of its electric sedan, the Model S. One the other end of the spectrum, Chi is wary of losing large sums of capital with one bad trade, but he is able to prevent losing money by implementing short term trading.

Through this method, an investor invests their funds into a few stocks, and then dumps them quickly, preventing losses in the long term.

“This method obviously accumu

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lates the most gain compared to long term investing,” said Chi. “In a single day you can achieve double your portfolio if you invest in the right stock.”

In reality, there is no safe way to go about trading, but Chi believes he can reduce the risk of losses if he takes the time to research and analyze the market. So far, Chi has profited greatly as he has made a 50 percent return on his initial investment (see graph below.)

Chi has not experienced a severe stock crash, but he has had minor scares along the way. His first large investment lost over $150 dollars in a day. He also suffered a 20 percent loss when he invested in the company VOXELTJET AG (VJET). These losses, however, served as a learning experience for Chi. “It taught me to always do your research whenever investing,” said Chi. “When you lose 20 percent in a couple days it’s scary. You have a huge consideration within a couple days whether to sell at a loss or to hold it. My research and intuition paid off and I was rewarded splendidly.”

Eric Chuu One the other end of the stock trading spectrum lies senior Eric Chuu. Unlike Chi, Chuu utilizes long-term investing to profit while catering to his busy schedule.

Chuu began trading in his freshman year after learning about stocks in his Principles of Business class. He immediately understood that stocks are a double-edged sword that have great benefits but disastrous downsides.

“Stocks are both alarming and intriguing because they can make you rich overnight, but they can also put you out on the streets as

well,” said Chuu.

As a long-term investor, Chuu buys a company’s stock and holds onto the investment for a long time. During this time the stock may fluctuate between high and low points.

Even if the stock drops in price, Chuu still holds on to the stock. Since he deliberately invests in nonvolatile companies, the price will eventually climb higher.

“Since I’m a student, I obviously can’t watch [my stocks] 24/7, so I buy low-risk stocks--high dividend,” said Chuu. “It doesn’t take a lot of maintenance, and you always have some sort of return [on investment].”

Chuu’s first profits from trading left him satisfied but chary of the risk of getting carried away with making money.

He said, “It made me feel good about my decisions. It’s a dangerous mindset to get into though because then you start making riskier investments.”

But even though Chuu was initially content with his trading decisions, he understood that he has a long way to go before he can be confident that his decisions are the best.

He said, “I have to remind myself that there are Harvard graduates, who have spent years and years learning the ins and outs [of the stock market], so I can in no way claim that my decisions are the best.”

Chuu invests in the tech industry due to the surplus of news regarding tech companies in the Silicon Valley. The biggest company he has invested in is tech giant Google.

So far he has made 30 percent gains on his initial investment. As of now, Chuu does not see trading stocks as a future career but is open to the possibility.

ALLEN CHI (11)

Anshul Shah Behind every great company is its suppliers. With this in mind, junior Anshul Shah has made large sums of profit simply by taking a step back.

Shah, like Chi and Chuu, was fascinated by the monetary aspect of trading.

“The fact that I can make money through analysis of numbers intrigues me the most [about stocks]. It isn’t by any means easy, you do have to read the market very carefully so you don’t invest in the wrong stock,” said Shah.

Unlike that of Chi or Chuu, Shah’s style of trading focuses on under the radar companies that supply major companies such as Sony and Microsoft.

“Why do the Xbox and PS3 sell so well?

Because they have a company that makes chips for them,” said Shah. “This company would be Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). If you can identify that a large company is doing good, there is always someone or something behind it.”

Such companies often yield large profits since they have a stable supply of income from profitable companies. These companies include AMD and The XONE Company.

Even though Shah invests primarily in suppliers, he makes sure that he invests in mainstream companies to increase his profit. Some of these mainstream companies include Solar City and Starbucks.

By maintaining a diverse portfolio, Shah is able to maximize his profits by pooling money from various industries. As a result, he has made over a 10 percent return on his initial investment (see graph below). Shah sees a career in finance.

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ERIC CHUU (12) ANSHUL SHAH (11) 30

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GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY FRINA REDOLOZA

T

he closing of the Johnny Rockets on Saratoga Avenue stung for a whole minute. Sure, its diner-style ambience made us feel like the traditional American citizen eating American food and listening to American music, but we knew what kind of food we were paying for when we sat down next to the defunct jukeboxes and decaying condiment stands. As our plates smiled back at us in ketchup, however, so did we. Johnny Rockets was never a place to eat, but a place to experience; it was a sad facsimile of a bygone era that allowed us to feel immersed in some vague yet widely accepted definition of American culture.

No hint of that personality remains in its spruced-up, modern successor, Smashburger. The interior has transformed into a polished, modern take on the burger joint, replete with 21st century counters, booths and tables. There is no vintage heartbeat here. Smashburger roars with the sizzle of an assembly-line kitchen and the din of young and frivolous conversation. This is a place for the five-period-senior with that insatiable teenage hunger, the returning collegiate surprised by a change in his hometown, the twentysomething on a thirty-minute break from the cubicle grind.

The new ambiance is a welcome change, and a reflection of where our culture is focused today. The early 2000s brought on a nostalgia for the past century that has run its course--our recession-battered population only wishes to look to the future for some better hope. Surveying the interior of this restaurant, I found that draw.

But the food is why I came here The menu offers about the same variety as its predecessor, with a few additions, like avocados and jalapenos that reflect the changing American palate. But the classic takes on the burger remain relatively unchanged. The menu seems to be priced to compete with local giant Five Guys, with similar sizing options as well. The “regular” Smash size will set you back six dol-

lars, but the seven-dollar “Big Smash” size is the more realistic and popular option for the famished teenager. On my visit I opted for the Avocado Club, which included a BLT loadout with mayo and an order of Smashfries--individually priced at two dollars along with their regular french fry counterparts. I also had an Oreo malt shake, because if I was going to eat something unhealthy, I was going to enjoy every moment of it. The burgers however, even at the “Big Smash” size, are a little small for seven dollars. The lettuce and the patty jutted out of the bun like Rick Ross’ waistline (and yours, if you keep eating like this), which makes for a messy meal. Those first bites of leaf and meat will leave you wanting for the rest of the burger. Once you start tasting everything in each mouthful, it’s not a terrible eat. But compared to the greasy goodness of Five Guys or the classic Californian foodgasm of In-N-Out, it isn’t the tastiest alternative. I wouldn’t recommend the Smashfries, either.

They’re too skimpy to fill you up but they’re too salty to pick up and eat anyway. And just like old times at Johnny Rockets, the malt was the best part of the meal.

In many respects this Smashburger isn’t very different from Johnny Rockets . I still had a similar wait, still sat at a stool and counter, still ordered the same meal combo as always.

But Johnny Rockets’ burgers were palatable at best and mediocre most of the time. You’d be filled up with a solid meal, but never without a slight pang of regret. The pricing asked far too much for a burger inferior to its cheaper counterparts at In-N-Out or Five Guys.

Smashburger’s offerings, in comparison, are far superior, but still not quite there. For the steadfast adherents to the established burger giants in the San Jose area, it seems like nothing has really changed.

The best and brightest android apps

Everyone has those days. You’re too tired or unmotivated to work through yet another page of math homework. That’s where these apps come in and by helping you get back in control of yourself, you might just score an A on that next Calculus test. I’ll move beyond the staples of every smartphone, Dropbox and Google Drive, and get to the good ones.

Habit Streak Plan***^

Any.do***^

It’s a new year, and people are bound to make resolutions. This app will help you keep them. Every day, tell the app whether you followed your resolution and over time, it’ll show you a streak of days that you have been on task. Just don’t break the streak!

If you don’t like Lynbrook’s planner and would like something cleaner and easier to use, check out this app. Any.do’s interface is more intuitive and simple than most other productivity apps. You can also create widgets on the home screen to remind yourself to finish important tasks.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY MEERA KRISHNAMOORTHY

Admit it. Most of your smartphone usage is limited to Facebook and games. You download all the latest games, and stay up at night playing Candy Crush. Am I right? Here are my recommendations to satiate those desires, and while these aren’t the newest or most popular games, they’re selected because of their innovation, design, and just plain coolness.

Radiant Defense***^

Asphalt 8 Airborne***^

One of the most beautiful tower defense games in a long time. The levels are hard to defeat, but bask in all the radiant colors and weapons. If you’re going to kill aliens anyway, you might as well do it in style.

The best in a long line of racing games. In this iteration of Asphalt’s well-known racing car game, the cars can almost fly. Automakers also allowed the game to include concept cars like the Mercedes-Benz Silver Lightning. Whether it’s for the fast cars or the fast racing, you don’t want to miss this.

BY PRASANN RANADE

for the upcoming year

No, not for note passing. Your smartphone is a great tool for jotting down notes on the go. With these apps, you can keep everything organized, don’t need to kill trees and, they have all the tools you need to work, whether they’re for your random thoughts or notes. I chose these for their functionality, and of the many more out there, these two take the cake.

I

f you haven’t noticed, 2013 has been a good year for Android apps, so good that it cemented Google Play Store’s position as a strong competitor to the iOS App Store. As an Android user, I’ve provided my view on the best Android apps of 2013. (Most of these aren’t limited to the Google Play Store, so you Apple junkies should be able to find them in the App Store.) Check them out, fill up your home screens and enjoy

Key: * = Android, **= iOS 7, ^= Free

Staying up-to-date on current events is now even easier with curation services on smartphones. These apps boil down the vast range of headlines from all the different categories and deliver it to you, in an easy-to-read format. They’re simple and you don’t even need a paid subscription to a magazine or newspaper.

Your standard digital post-it note, colorful, fun and actually really useful. The functionality isn’t as great as Evernote’s, however, and the app is meant for jotting down quick notes, but it’s helpful nevertheless.

Flipboard***^

Google Keep**^

Evernote***^

After using this for a while, you really do manage to remember everything. Evernote is simple, dynamic and versatile, and it also syncs across multiple devices. Its voice-totext feature allows you to speak a note to your phone, instead of spending time typing it, which I discovered is really cool.

Circa News***^

An elegant application that delivers the latest news in various categories, Flipboard is great for also creating your own minimagazines of interesting articles. The app is optimized for reading on smartphones and its flip animation makes you feel as if you’re actually flipping through the news.

Different than Flipboard, Circa keeps the news succinct and clear. While relatively new and not as all-encompassing as Flipboard, Circa breaks down the news into a short paragraph to allow you to quickly glean the main points.

Welcome to Billy

BY STEPHANIE LU

T

here is nothing quite as attractive as the ability to age gracefully.

After seeing how elegantly raw denim ages, junior Billy Lu began looking for other materials that would wear as well as his denim did. Eventually he came upon vegetable-tanned leather. Like raw denim, it changes color and visibly wears as it ages—exactly what Lu was looking for. “[But] most [vegetable-tanned leather goods] cost around what a pair of jeans would cost, and I decided that was too much for me, so I started making my own stuff,” said Lu. While the cost of leather is relatively low, the sizable investment of time needed to finish a product allows craftsmen to set high prices even for small commoditiesw.

Lu originally started leatherworking with a dollar store wood carving chisel, an old cloth awl and plastic rulers--tools sourced from places as diverse as a middle school. Armed with his improvised tools, drafting experience and some basic knowledge from leatherworking forums, Lu began his projects.

The backstory behind Lu’s

As with any other activity, it took a few failures before Lu settled into a smooth crafting process.

“For some beginning projects, [I] stitched too close to the edge or designed a little too small . . . and wasted good leather,” Lu admitted. “Since I don’t have access to a lot of leather like the workshops out there, I can’t tweak designs, so I have to make sure I do each step of [the] design and execution properly.”

The beginner days of amateur mistakes and bending his cloth awl may be over, but Lu’s toolkit has not quite grown in sophistication the way his crafting process has; most of Lu’s current tools and supplies are still surprisingly low-tech.

“I get my razors from my dad’s shaving stuff, and some thread from whatever stuff my family has in that Danish Cookie box used for sewing,” said Lu. “To cut curves, I use jar lids as a template.” Even Lu the most professional tool he has is a filed and sharpened Phillips screwdriver.

Once he has his tools, Lu calculates the project’s length and the sizes of its folds; any other measurements only require “guesstimation.” Using his measure-

Lu’s Workshop hobby in leather working

ments, he draws design plans on manila folders and then cuts them out.

“Wallets and cases and such are just 2D with a fold or two. So far, everything 3D [has] had little more than a fold,” said Lu. After Lu has made a design plan, he draws out the design on leather and cuts out the pieces, which takes around an hour.

Punching holes, stitching and finishing the edges take another two hours, while the final oiling takes only five minutes. “ Pe r s o n a l ly, I like working with tools, [and] working with leather is soothing and takes my mind off other things,” said Lu. Since last summer, Lu has completed ten projects. He started with simple belts and progressed to multi-layered wallets.

As for Lu, he has no plans of stopping

his production process any time soon.

“I [want to] go on to making some bigger things, like belts or suspenders, or some cases or bags. I don’t plan to stop until I possibly get bored of it,” he said.

Though he plans to eventually sell some of his products to finance more expensive materials, Lu currently makes no profit off projects.

Lu explained, “I would need the person to pay first in order to get the funds to buy the materials,” because of a lack of materials on his part. “Usually, buyers aren’t too eager to pay up front and wait for it to be made.”

For prospective customers who are willing to pay in advance, he said that he would sell a small wallet for $20 to $50 and a belt for about $40 to $50--a bargain when compared to the prices of other stores.

If any readers are interested in buying a leather product from Lu, he can be contacted online through Facebook.

KASTURI PANTVAIDYA--EPIC

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PI DY A-E TV AI PA N RI KA ST U

Draw the edge design of the belt on manila paper.

Mark where to punch holes with a screwd r i ve r - t u r n e d - d i a mond awl.

Edge slick with a wooden dowel to push down the freshly cut edges of leather.

Cut the end of the belt with a razor.

Using a hammer and a hole punch, make the belt holes.

Add belt buckle and other finishing touches. Rivet and stitch belt.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY FRINA REDOLOZA

A

h yes, it’s finally the time that I’ve been anticipating for three years now: second semester senior year.

After toiling over junior year, the first semester of senior year, and New Year’s Day college app submissions, I’m more than ready for my last stretch of high school. To celebrate, I’ve decided to create a bucket list of things to do during the semester. So without any further ado: Go thrift shopping: In case anyone didn’t know, guys’ clothing can be ridiculously expensive. So why not channel my inner Macklemore and check out a few local thrift shops to see what’s out there? Granted,

I won’t exactly be taking your grandpa’s style but—alright, I’ll stop there with the pop culture references. But in all seriousness, I’ve heard from a lot of people that they’ve been quite successful in finding good stuff for cheap prices, so hopefully I can also take advantage of these under-visited shops. Plus, I can’t stand malls, probably because I can’t tolerate the massive crowds of people and annoying noises, so this makes for a winwin situation for me.

Watch every movie that comes out in theaters: Okay maybe not EVERY movie, but mainly those that receive high ratings. That’s fair, right? Last semester, I had no clue what was going on outside of school and the such, to the point where I can’t recognize a single one of

the Best Picture nominees at the upcoming Golden Globes; which is pretty damn shameful if you ask me. So this item on the list is basically to help re-immerse myself in the social world. And movies also serve as solid conversation material if you’re ever caught in an awkward situation with somebody else, or haven’t spoken a word to that guy/girl you had never seen until you changed seats at the beginning of the semester.

Get an ice cream sandwich from CREAM: The other day, I went to go check out the now Instagram-infamous Cream in Palo Alto with a couple friends.

It was a Thursday night at around 9:30, a relatively random time if you ask me, yet as we approached the store we found a line longer than the

Great Wall of China. After uttering a collective “screw this,” we walked back to our car, resolving to get some Krispy Kreme Donuts and In-n-Out instead (which resulted in the fattest stomach of my life afterward, ‘cause apparently donuts and animal fries don’t sit well together). Alas, I digress, but my point here is that I want to try it once and for all. I’ll just need to find a time to go so that I won’t spend half my life waiting in line. The only issue is that there are too many flavors that seem delicious, so it’ll be a struggle to select the perfect cookie-ice cream combination.

And last but not least, Not submit to senioritis: You didn’t actually think I was serious did you? Sorry, teachers.

on the fly

A study of active procrastination

BY SHOUVIK MANI

JOEY LI—EPIC

I

magine standing at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. in front of a crowd of 250,000. As you deliver your speech, you suddenly get stuck. You stumble as you reach for your lines, so you finish the speech by winging it. You say, “I have a dream...I have a dream...I have a dream…”

You are standing in the shoes of Martin Luther King Jr. and have just delivered one of the greatest speeches of the 20th century.

Few people may know that King had improvised his “I have a dream” speech, but most students are familiar with the culture of winging it at Lynbrook. For many students, this act of improvising with little or no preparation has become second-nature. For those who have this seemingly inherent ability, winging is more than just a test-taking strategy or a way to give impromptu speeches.

It is a way of life.

Some students at Lynbrook do not feel the need to study extensively for tests or prepare for major assignments. Instead of spending hours getting ready or practicing, they rely on their intuition. While the practice is risky, for some it delivers satisfying results.

“If there’s a subject that you intuitively understand, you can wing it,” said senior Miles Chan, an expert at winging tests. “Last year, I didn’t really study for my calculus tests. But for me, math is just logic, and it makes sense.

So, I just went in there and winged it.”

According to Jin Nam Choi, Ph.D in The Journal of Social Psychology, people who wing it are “active procrastinators.” They purposefully delay tasks because they prefer the time pressure. Despite procrastinating, they are still able to complete tasks before deadlines and achieve satisfactory outcomes.

Senior Sid Malladi polished his winging skills in presentations by doing roleplay events in DECA. At the Silicon Valley district

competition last year, Malladi came in second place in the Automotive Industry Event even though he did not have much technical knowledge going in. When he was given a prompt about the feasibility of electric vehicles, he used general facts and concepts that he had found in books and newspapers to sound professional. From this experience, he learned about the subtleties of winging it.

“In order to be a successful winger, you need to be more knowledgeable about the topic than the person you are talking to,” said Malladi. “You need to know how to form logical arguments, and even though they may not be true, they need to be logical enough to convince the people you are talking to.”

Malladi asserts that he earned the award fairly because even though he had not prepared, he was able to convince the judges, which is what mattered in the end.

“Just because I lacked technical knowledge

important facet of winging it.

“Winging it has to do a lot with how eloquently you present your arguments,” said Kotak. “If you have a small understanding of a topic and you talk about the topic in a sophisticated way, then people will think that you know what you are talking about, even if you don’t know what you are talking about.”

School Psychologist Brittany Stevens understands students’ desires to engage in adlib pursuits and believes that winging it is just another part of the teenage experience.

“There’s a boastful aspect of teenage culture to say ‘I winged it and I didn’t care’ because it’s a part of forming identity,” Stevens said. “Being able to say that ‘I do things the way I want to do them,’ is normal; in fact, it is developmentally important.”

For Chan, winging it has also been effective in his experiences with playing violin.

“They say you can only play up to 80 percent of your potential. So, when you make a mistake, you have to get out of it.

doesn’t mean that I had poor communication skills. There’s a clear reason why I won. Just because you have a lot of numbers crammed in your head doesn’t make you qualified as an automotive industry specialist,” Malladi said.

Winging it has also helped sophomore Aditya Kotak become a semifinalist in impromptu speaking events at speech and debate tournaments. He has found that in addition to having an internalized catalog of information, the way people present themselves is an

Sometimes you do another run or a repeat, but it all comes out of something that you already know, so it’s winging it,” Chan said.

Saxophone player junior Khushal Gujadhur has had similar experiences with winging it through his passion for jazz, an improvisational form of music. Gujadhur describes jazz as “planned but improvised,” in which a tune may be written out beforehand, but is ultimately delivered through winging it.

“We don’t rehearse. We just come togeth-

er and decide what style to play. We play the tune but then we start improvising solos. We bounce ideas from one person to another. It’s all about the moment,” Gujadhur said.

Although some wingers have found success, the quality of their work has been questionable. Winging is a tradeoff: The benefit of a good score with little effort comes at the cost of not understanding the concept. Chan has found that winging can be especially ineffective in projects and class activities, which involve a significant time investment.

“For a test, you go and come out with whatever grade you get. But when you have to create, you need to devote more time,” Chan said. “When you are doing a project, you have to have tangible work, material to present. That’s something I cannot wing.”

While Stevens admits that people have to be able to wing it in certain situations, she believes that long-term preparation is usually the best plan of action.

“Being prepared is an advantage, especially when you think about adult situations like filing taxes. Everybody has to do it by April 15th, but all year long, you can either have a system about it or not. We are all going to have to be accountable for something, and being prepared helps,” Stevens said.

Kotak has found that a limit to winging it exists when faced with excessive competition. Representing Kyrgyzstan at the Berkeley Model United Nations Conference last year, he was shocked at the level of competition and found winging it to be ineffective.

“There were people who were just so good and I had no idea about the policies they were talking about,” Kotak said. “Since I was not confident in myself and felt overwhelmed by what the other person was saying, I didn’t do well by winging it.”

Gujadhur admitted that winging it is not

for the perfectionist.

“With classical music, you have time to sit at home and polish your ideas,” Gujadhur said. “But when you are constantly improvising, you are spitting out what you feel at the moment, and that music may not be your polished work. But that has its own beauty.”

Malladi, however, feels that the quality of work can be preserved by winging it.

“If I were making a poster, it might not have as many colors or elaborate illustrations. But if I can convey an idea more effectively than another group that has beautiful artwork done by a virtuoso, it wouldn’t matter because I created a bigger impact,” Malladi said. “Convincing people that you are right is the end goal of winging it.”

English teacher Connie Willson believes that while students may get away with winging it now, they may suffer in the long run.

She suggests that students should build good habits to prepare for college and also to value their teachers and themselves.

“I usually feel insulted when students wing assignments, especially if I get an essay that is unplanned and looks like the student just threw it together,” Willson said. “It feels like they are wasting my time and their own.”

Regardless of all the merits of winging it, its most dangerous drawback remains: the cost it imposes on a student’s mental health and well-being. If students wing regularly, the behavior may turn into an unhealthy habit. Chan admits that winging has been very tiresome at times, leading to anxiety.

Chan said, “I wing it all the time with borderline grades, and it’s always stressful. Most of the time when you wing it, it’s going to be satisfying and good for your mental health.

But you have to accept that sometimes, it won’t work out. That’s the danger of winging it: you’re always living on the edge.”

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY KRISTEN WONG JEFFREY YANG

Death.

How students deal with the experience of loss

BY PRACHI LAUD & IZZY KIPNIS

JOEY LI —EPIC

Nobody is a stranger to it— but few know how it feels to lose a parent as a child.

“I remember when I was really young, I went to the beach with my family and I used to be really, really afraid of dogs for no reason,” said junior Alexandra Cai. “But I would go to my dad and hide behind him and he would just be there watching out and making sure that the dog wouldn’t bite me.”

The loss of a parent is impossible to describe in words, but it can uproot a child’s life altogether. Losing a parent not only creates disruption in a child’s environment, but can leave emotional scars. Psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross describes the grief following death as “evidence of love.” In her 1969 book, On Death and Dying, Ross identifies five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. The same way each individual’s grief is as unique as a fingerprint, the five stages’ manifestations in different people’s lives are also unique. It is common for individuals to process the stages in different orders or forgo some altogether.

For some, the pain of loss is alleviated by fond memories. For Cai, whose father passed away from cancer when she was 11 years old, those happy memories are the “silver lining.”

They remind her that her father “would have wanted us to not think about how he is gone but to just move on and be happy.”

Regret sometimes comes attached to those memories, as in the case of junior Yaoyao Pei, who lost her mother in a car accident at the age of 11.

“I remember her smile and her laughter and how she never held back,” said Pei. Pei’s relationship with her mother, however, had “ lows and highs,” like any preteen’s.

During their last interaction, when Pei was leaving for a trip to California, Pei’s mother came to see her off at the airport.

“We usually didn’t have any physical contact, but we hugged then,” said Pei. Junior Rohan Khasgiwala had a close relationship with his father, who passed away from lung cancer when Khasgiwala was 14 years old.

“He was mainly my friend, and he was always there—I know some parents who just come home and sleep and eat, but I felt good that I had a dad who I could ask for help,” he said. “He would watch over what I was doing—he would wait for me, and he slept when I went to sleep.

As happy as these lives and memories were, death inevitably brought grief.

Denial Pei received the news of her mother’s passing while Pei was in California. The incident was unexpected and Pei entered the first stage of grief: denial.

“Initially I just didn’t believe it,” she said.

For Khasgiwala, the shock of his father’s loss also led to initial disbelief.

His father passed away in his home while Khasgiwala was attending a party. After receiving an urgent call from his sister that his father was not breathing, Khasgiwala came home to find fire trucks parked outside.

“My mom was crying and there was a guy talking to her,” recalls Khasgiwala. “He pulled me over and he told me, your dad died before we came here. I was in shock. I asked the guy, ‘Can you take him to the hospital or some-

thing, just to see if there’s anything you can do’. He said ‘No, we can’t do anything.’ I was mad at him because I said, I know it doesn’t matter too much to you, but it matters to me, this is my dad and I need to help him.”

Despite having heard the news, the reality did not sink in for him until he saw his father’s body.

“They didn’t let me see my dad initially, so I didn’t really believe it,” he said. “And then when I saw my dad, I thought, this cannot be happening, this is not my dad.”

Cai, on the other hand, was more mentally prepared for the idea of her father’s death once his cancer relapsed.

“I remember I was told in fourth grade after he got his cancer again that he would have two months to live, but he lived for another year,” said Cai. Though she knew he was sick, Cai did not immediately understand what had happened when her father first passed.

“I remember everyone being really sad and I was confused, and I started to understand what was happening,” she said. “I cried really hard, but after that I just fell asleep.”

After her initial reaction, Cai was able to accept her father’s death without having to go through the five stages of grief, and attempted to adopt an optimistic outlook.

“The last month that he was still alive, he just looked weak all the time and lifeless,” she said. “I was never mad at anyone or anything about the fact that he got cancer and passed away. For some reason I felt really peaceful because I knew that he was in a better place and wasn’t suffering.”

Anger When she was told of her mother’s death, Pei did not immediately realize the impact.

“I think an initial reaction was a lot of emotion because I was in turmoil,” she said.

Because the accident was completely unexpected, Pei had difficulty coming to terms with her loss.

“I was still a middle schooler then, so I re

Depression Cai and Khasgiwala’s mothers entered mild depression after the death of their husbands. They were grieving, yet also had to shoulder the responsibility of two parents.

“It was just a low point in [my mom’s] life, and definitely the busiest because not only did she have to take care of me and my siblings, but she had to take care of my dad,” Cai said. Seeing their parents placed under such pressure pushed the two of them to help.

Signs of depression include a loss of interest in routine activities.

“For a while my mom didn’t feel like doing anything,” Khasgiwala said. “I tried to help her by making the calls to India to tell relatives about what had happened, and telling her I would do anything she needed.”

Cai and Khasgiwala were able to better the understand the impacts of their fathers’ passings when they witnessed the burdens their mothers had to shoulder.

Acceptance Recovery was gradual for all students, but each developed coping mechanisms.

“Everyone reacts to loss differently, so different strategies may work better for some than for others,” said school psychologist Brittany Stevens.

Counseling can be a major source of assistance and relief for people processing loss, but it was not always effective for Khasgiwala and Cai. Pei did not seek counseling.

“I know how the counselors are, but sometimes they’re too nice and warm, and sometimes I wasn’t in the mood,” said Khasgiwala.

Similarly, Cai’s mom took her to one therapy session, but Cai found it unhelpful. Fortunately, she was able to turn to her church community for support.

“We started going to church around the time that my dad got diagnosed,” she said.

“After everything had passed it was easier to cope because we had that support and that big family. And everyone praying for us.”

Khasgiwala initially did not want to tell many of his friends because he did not want to be treated differently.

“You’re isolated from society and people treat you differently,” he said. “I didn’t want people to look at me and say, ‘Oh there’s the guy who lost his dad’ and pity me.”

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY CHRISTINA LIU & KRISTEN WONG

member not knowing how to handle it,” said Pei. “I feel like I didn’t properly grieve because I was caught up in the fact that it happened and that she was gone. It wasn’t until a later when her absence really hit me.”

As she progressed through high school, Pei felt the loss more deeply, and anger rose in place of denial.

“Freshman year, I kept asking, ‘Why is this happening to me?’ Sophomore year, I accepted everything and finally realized the effects of her loss. I’m still learning.”

For Pei, with this understanding came regret and guilt.

“I felt a lot of regret because of how I took her for granted,” she said. “I didn’t truly realize how good she was until she passed away.”

Khasgiwala was forced to deal with the anger stage when his father was first diagnosed.

“For a portion of the time my dad was sick, I was angry,” he said. “I don’t know what was wrong with me, but I would get angry and just yell at people randomly. Afterwards I would think, what is wrong with me, what am I doing? We didn’t do anything wrong. He had lung cancer, but he never smoke or drank, never even touched a cigar or put liquor in his hands. Why was it happening to us?”

Anger is sometimes associated with the third stage of grief, bargaining, where people think about ways to get their family members back; however, these three students did not show signs of bargaining in their reactions

Positive Change Not every change after her mother’s death was negative for Pei. As she recovered, Pei began to see positive changes in herself. “[My mother’s] qualities inspire me,” she said. “I wouldn’t be the same had it not been for her. I remember that there are beautiful things to look forward to and that this isn’t the end.”

After parents pass away, the older siblings tend to become more responsible of their families to fill their deceased parents’ roles.

Both Khasgiwala and Cai’s brother tried to take on the role of “the man of the house” after their fathers passed away.

“My brother definitely changed because he got older and matured,” said Cai. “He really tried to look after my sister, my mom and I.” Similarly Khasgiwala attempted to become a paternal figure for his sister.

“My sister was about eight when my dad died, and the first thing she said to me was that ‘our dad is gone, but he’s somewhere here with us. You’re my dad now,’” recollects Khasgiwala. “And that’s when it clicked in my mind that she’s depending on me now as a brother who is almost like a parent and helping her grow up.”

Their experiences taught these three students to appreciate the value of family.

“We take parents for granted until the day they’re gone,” said Khasgiwala. “If both of your parents are gone, you have nothing.

You’re alone. Love your parents and help them whenever you can. Treat them with respect and cherish every moment because you never know what tomorrow has in store.”

For the full version of this story, please visit lhsepic.com

LAST WINTER, A MAN WHO WAS LIKE A SECOND FATHER TO ME PASSED AWAY. In some ways I saw it coming, but I never truly thought it would happen. When I found out that he had cancer I felt bad, but I wasn’t that upset. I didn’t cry, and I didn’t think about it too much. I was convinced that he was going to be fine, especially since I knew plenty of people who’d survived having cancer.

As time went on, though, it became a bit clearer what having cancer actually meant.

He had to go on a special diet and I could only watch as he became thinner and thinner until he looked almost completely different from the man I’d grown accustomed to seeing.

I knew he was going to die soon when my mom started acting differently. She was with their family constantly and she seemed tired and sad. She would give me updates on how he was doing and told me that he didn’t have much time left, but for some unexplainable reason, it still didn’t really resonate with me that he wouldn’t be okay. I was so completely convinced that he was going to be fine, and that what he was going through was just a rough patch. But it turns out I was wrong.

The moment I heard that he’d passed away was one of the first times I’d allowed myself to be upset at the situation.

I WAS SAD, OF COURSE, BUT MORE THAN THAT, I WAS ANGRY. I didn’t want to be around people, and I sure as hell did not want to talk about how I was feeling. I avoided the conversation at all costs with my parents and didn’t tell any of my friends about it. My friends joked around and asked if I was being a bitch because I was PMSing, when I was just preoccupied, trying to figure out how I was going to cope with

having lost someone so important to me.

I was confused about how awful things could happen to such amazing people. It didn’t make any sense to me, and it still doesn’t. I’m a believer in Darwinism and kind of think that if you’re not helping society, then you’re not needed. But then why would people who are kind and generous and beneficial to society have bad things happen to them? I couldn’t justify it. His death also went against what I’d thought about Karma. I always thought that somehow what goes around really does come around, but there was no way he or his family deserved something like this.

I also began to think about how people justify death. I kept hearing “God does everything for a reason” which only angered me more. Oh, really? Why would God allow this to happen? Why would I believe in a god who has all the power in the world and still allows bad people to receive good things and good people to die? It made me question my religion and things that I had previously believed to be true. I came to a sort of realization that crappy things happen to good people and there isn’t a reason why -- they just do.

FOR A WHILE I FELT A DIVIDE BETWEEN MYSELF AND THOSE AROUND ME. I knew my friends were getting annoyed with my seemingly unwarranted attitude and my snappy sass. And I honestly felt awful about the way I was treating them. I knew they deserved a better friend, and that if I were in their shoes I would’ve easily grown tired of dealing with my sullenness. I felt like I was lashing out at everyone, and each time I did I immediately felt terribly guilty which only made me feel worse than I had before.

As much as I tried to move on with my life, I couldn’t stop thinking about how things would never again be like they used to. I miss his jokes. I miss shooting hoops with him in the driveway. I miss hearing him say “Here comes trouble” every time I walked through the door. I remember thinking he was such a cool dad. I remember him watching me and my sister one night when my parents were

out and he dared me to figure out how many licks there were to the center of a Tootsie pop.

When I got halfway to the center he started yelling out random numbers so I lost track of where I was, at which point he told me I’d have to eat as many lollipops as it took to figure it out. I probably went through half a bag of lollipops, and I still don’t know the answer.

I’M NOT SURE WHEN THINGS BEGAN TO CHANGE, BUT EVENTUALLY THEY DID. I wouldn’t say they got back to “normal” because normal would imply having this guy back in my life. But they did get better. I stopped feeling guilty for enjoying my life and started to realize that he would’ve wanted me to be happy and to move on. I feel like the best way to move on is to stop thinking about how you’re going to live without a loved one, and instead think about how they would’ve wanted you to continue your life. I know he would’ve wanted me to have fun with friends and go to college and be happy, and I came to see that being angry at the world was only doing a disservice to his memory.

Were I going through the situation again, I think I would’ve tried to handle it a bit differently. Even though I tend to be private about my emotions I think I’d try to talk about it. If you don’t talk about it everything just builds up inside and though you may not feel like you’re still sad about it, it remains a sensitive subject. Talking allows you to let it go more easily. As the words leave your mouth so do feelings of sadness, guilt and anger. I also think I would’ve told my friends. It would’ve made things easier on all of us, and at least they’d know. Sometimes, even if you don’t want to talk, there’s comfort in knowing that someone knows what you’re going through.

Sometimes I ask myself what he would’ve wanted me to do in certain situations and I think about the advice he may have given me.

I think the best thing that I can do is try to make him proud and remember the many ways that he affected my life, and all of the things he taught me.

THE DÉJÀ VU PHENOMENON

An analysis: what it is, why it occurs, and how it affects us

BY MICHELLE SU & SANA SHARFUDDIN

A

red plate with a single cookie bobbed between sophomore Natasha Agharkar’s hands as she walked down the street with her friend. Randomly, her friend grabbed the cookie off the plate, causing Agharkar to feel a wave of confusion.

Rather than reacting to the situation, she paused in contemplation. She had a nagging feeling telling her that she had been there before with the same plate and the same sequence of events occurring. Agharkar could not figure out where or when she had experienced the same thing previously, but somehow, she knew it had happened to her before.

What she experienced was déjà vu, a commonly experienced scientific phenomenon relating to mix-ups in the brain’s information and memory processing. It is formally defined as the feeling that one has experienced something before, regardless of whether or not it is actually happening for the first time.

Researchers speculate that the phenomenon occurs due to a mismatch in the brain as it pieces together sensory details to form thoughts and observations.

Dr. Paul Reber, Associate Professor of Psychology at Northwestern University, said, “Research suggests that there’s a separate system in the brain that alerts you to something that you’ve seen before. This alert can actually go off by accident. Even when you’re having a new experience, you may think that you’ve seen it before, and that is the likely ba-

sis of the déjà vu phenomenon.”

Junior Rachit Kataria always gets a feeling that he hasn’t actually lived through the experiences he feels déjà vu with. For the past two years, Kataria experienced déjà vu roughly once a month, always feeling a sense of premonition that comes from déjà vu.

“Most of the time, I know I haven’t actually lived through those experiences, but I still get the feeling that I know what’s going to happen. After a couple seconds, I realize that I felt déjà vu, but I don’t really know what caused it,” said Kataria.

The fleeting experiences of déjà vu that most people experience at some point are caused by various triggers depending on the situation. Because déjà vu is such a subjective matter, it is hard for researchers to pinpoint specific causes of the phenomenon.

Reber said, “In my personal opinion, explanations for déjà vu are attempts to describe memory problems that people are unable to characterize. It is difficult to capture in a lab, since you would have to make someone feel déjà vu on demand, and nobody knows how to do that.”

Although déjà vu has various potential of causes, Reber has seen from his research that patients commonly feel déjà vu from events that they dream of. It is unclear, however, whether or not those feelings are caused by actual dreams or by the human mind’s tendency to make certain assumptions in order to explain the phenomenon.

“You have a funny sense of familiarity that it happened but you know you haven’t seen this person or been to this place before so you think you must have had a dream,” said Reber. “This is like a reconstruction that you do to tell yourself a story that you must’ve dreamed of because it looks familiar and there’s no way for you to make sense of it.”

Contrary to Reber’s explanation, Kataria recalls an experience of dream-caused déjà vu in third grade. As he was sleeping one night, he dreamt that the next day he would have a conversation with his friends about cereal. The next day, as he made his way to his friend’s house, he got a sudden feeling that he had already gone through the same motions before.

When he reached the house, Kataria was astonished as he walked in on his friends talking about cereal. After the experience, he realized how he felt déjà vu because of the dream.

Although it is not as common, déjà vu can also be caused by similar environments. When junior Soonho Kwon was walking in the streets of Slovakia on an orchestra trip last summer, he experienced excessive déjà vu.

“The streets of Europe all look similar.

It was hard to tell where we were going. Every time we turned I had déjà vu because I felt as if I was just there,” said Kwon.

His experience is an example of déjà vu triggered by sights. For him, the similar architectural styles in Slovakia led him to believe he had walked down the same streets multiple times. As a photographer, Kwon has also experienced déjà vu at various locations.

He said, “Sometimes when I’m taking pictures of landmarks, I look through the viewfinder and I get the feeling that I’ve seen the exact same image before. It’s really weird because I know I haven’t taken the picture before, but the scenery seems very familiar.”

After ten seconds or so, Kwon realizes that he is remembering pictures of other photographers have taken. Because Kwon and his friends share their pictures with each other, he speculates that many of his déjà vu experiences are triggered by the photos he has seen.

When he went to San Francisco with the yearbook staff, Kwon visited a mall that has an iconic landmark with a spiral. He was inside the mall when one of his friends was taking a picture of the spiral. A year later, Kwon went to the same place and took his own picture. As he was taking the picture, he felt a sense of déjà vu. A couple seconds after, Kwon realized it was the same photo as the one his friend took, and he was immediately able to identify the photographer.

Déjà vu is not known to have adverse health effects. However, there are extremely rare cases in which people constantly experience déjà vu. This condition is known as “chronic déjà vu.”

“Neurology studies show that it is actually normal for people to experience déjà vu occasionally,” said Reber. “Very few severely impaired people have chronic deja vu, and it is definitely not the case that daily deja vu is a sign of progressive dementia.”

Since chronic déjà vu is extremely rare, most people who experience déjà vu simply feel the fleeting sense of familiarity without other side effects. Until researchers are able to observe further cases of déjà vu, it remains a harmless but strange glitch in our information-processing systems.

*According to Scientific American

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JEFFREY YANG

DANCING TO HER OWN RHYTHM

Senior Ashlyn Smith recounts her experiences and training with ballroom dancing

KASTURI PANDVAIDYA-EPIC

BY KHAYA BHATIA

T

he girl is in the studio three hours per day, five days a week. And she wishes that she could dance more often.

One and a half years ago, senior Ashlyn Smith rejected her first dance lesson at the Arthur Murray Dance Studio (AMDS). Now, Smith anxiously waits to get out of school and into the studio everyday.

“I feel free when I dance. It’s a very expressive and fun and energetic thing,” said Smith.

“Dance is kind of like a universal language; if you meet someone who dances, then you instantly have a connection with that person.”

Smith dances at AMDS, where she focuses on two subcategories of dance known as

American Smooth and American Rhythm.

While American rhythm dances consist of fast, Latin moves, American Smooth dances have slow and fluid dance moves. Smith’s favorite dances to perform in these subcategories are the foxtrot, cha cha and salsa.

“The music is very rhythmic,” said Smith.

“I like being improvisational and playing with all the different beats and syncopations in it.”

To Smith, the various styles of dance are an outlet for different emotions. She enjoys ballroom dancing because it allows her to play a different character each time she performs a new style of dance.

“I love to act. I love the different things you can do with dance. If you do a tango, you have to be intense,” said Smith. “There’s a lot of passion in that dance which is totally dif-

ferent from a waltz which is really poised and elegant. Then you go to a salsa or a cha cha which are both fun and high energy.”

Ashlyn Smith’s mother, Carolyn Smith, pushed Smith to start ballroom dancing. Out of all the dance studios in the area, Carolyn Smith chose AMDS because it was a place where her daughter could actually dance from the first lesson onwards.

“We wanted her to have a place where she was able to start dancing right away and was able to skip the basics that other dance classes usually focus a lot of their time on,” said Carolyn Smith on why she selected AMDS. “We wanted her to be dancing steps and learning dances as soon as possible.”

Although Smith is the youngest performer in her studio, she does not find the age dis-

GRAPHIC BY URMILA VENKATARAMANI

rity problematic in the slightest.

“Even though I’m probably the youngest my studio by at least five to 10 years, it’s very supportive environment. Everyone just there to dance —it’s a very safe and endly place. They’re all like my second mily; it’s not awkward at all,” said Smith. hey’ve definitely become some of the most portant people in my life.”

The AMDS dancing program is divided to four skill levels: pre-bronze, bronze, silr and gold. To move up levels, Smith has demonstrate required dance steps for a dge, who is usually a professional ballroom ncer turned traveling consultant. The evaltion criteria, such as posture, musicality, rtnering, and army styling, consists of the ost important techniques of ballroom danc-

ing. Last May, Smith graduated from Bronze 2 to Bronze 3. As she moves up the levels, her anxiety and excitement increase along with the complexity of the moves and routines.

“If I don’t get things right the first time I get a little disappointed, but now it’s starting to get harder as I’m becoming a more advanced dancer,” said Smith. “My instructors are starting to push me more because they know I’m capable of doing it, which is great, but I don’t want to let them down.”

During Smith’s lessons she goes over steps within her current level; when she is training to take part in a showcase, however, her lesson is focused on learning and reviewing a specific routine until the day of the performance. Smith takes notes on her instructor’s advice and videotapes her routines to prac-

tice every day to continue improving.

Smith hopes to pursue ballroom dancing for the rest of her life. Her hopes are high, but Smith believes they are within reach.

“I want to become a dance instructor first and then travel the world and judge [ballroom dancing competitions],” said Smith. “I know that that’s actually a possible thing because the owners of my studio do that. There’s avenues I can take to hopefully do that.”

One and a half years later since her mother coaxed her into her first lesson, Smith cannot imagine a life without ballroom dancing.

“If anything happened to me, I would cry and crawl into fetal position,” said Smith. “It’s honestly terrifying to think about it if one day it’s all gone because right now I’m so invested in it and it’s my entire life.”

SCOUTED

Lynbrook players sign to continue their athletic journeys in college

KASTURI PANDVAIDYA-EPIC

BY JOEY LI

W

inter Cup, Easter Bowl, excellences and championships in NorCal,” is what senior Shravya Adusumilli highlighted in her 10-year career in competitive tennis. Now she’s been scouted

by Brown University and the University of California at San Diego (UCSD).

College-level athletics recruitment is the culmination of years of training and competition for many dedicated high school athletes. While their dedication and skill attract the likes of Stanford, Harvard, Brown and MIT, the stories behind their many hours of sweat and focus are often lost.

“I got started when my aunt bought me a bright green tennis racket when I was 7 years old,” Adusumilli said, in good humor. “I liked the color so I started the sport.”

Her demeanor changed, however, when asked about past difficulties with her sport.

“It was tough last year. The pressure of school really got to me and my parents started to push me more,” she said. Having three hours of practice a day meant Adusumilli started her homework late every day.

“Exhaustion and frustration dominated,” she said. “I would start my homework at nine, and finish around two. I fell asleep on my calculator a lot and the next thing you know I even had button imprints on my cheek.” Adsumilli’s constant fatigue made it difficult to focus during class and maintain academic performance. Mounting external pressure didn’t help, either.

“I would say the main cause of my pressure was my parents honestly, but isn’t that true for everyone?” she said. “They’ve really pushed me to improve a lot both academically and in tennis; I didn’t really think about colleges when playing tennis, that was mostly my parents’ mindset.”

Recruited by UCSD for basketball, six-year player senior Paige Song started out with no intent to actually pursue the sport.

“It’s a funny story—I only tried out because my friend didn’t want to try out alone,” she said. “I went in totally doing it

for fun and I actually made it.”

From there, Song progressed through a number of clubs until joining Palo Alto Midnight, where she was able to play in college viewing tournaments was ultimately scouted by UCSD Injury and the pressure to perform, h o w e v e r, followed her throughout her career.

“A couple slumps here and there when none of my shots would fall and nothing was going smoothly, of course all that with added pressure from coaches and parents,” Song said. “They know what I’m capable of so when I fall short during a game they’re disappointed, which is frustrating.”

Senior David Hsu is now signed to play tennis for Stanford University. A varsity tennis player, he has previously been ranked third nationally in the junior division and fourth in his class, playing at tournaments like Kalamazoo in Michigan and Delray Beach in Florida.

“To be honest it’s been a rough but great ride for me,” Hsu said. “What happens in a lot of kids is they’re good early on but they get distracted, so they quit.”

Even then, Hsu’s path has not been a constant upward trend.

“There was a time where, I believe during my sophomore summer, I had some pretty bad results—stuff wasn’t clicking with me, I was going to tournaments and I wasn’t doing well,” Hsu said. “It was shocking, I had never had these kinds of experiences, and my older friend had gone through what I was going through and I got nervous thinking about that happening to me.”

Hsu’s solution was a mix of logic and motivation.

“I thought that I was going through something similar, but I reasoned with myself that it was because of some bad luck

and ‘cause of a few changes in my game,” he said. “I didn’t let it bother me too much and within two months results were good again by just sticking to the routine.”

H s u subsequently worked t h ro u g h the disappointment, focusing on his longterm efforts to improve his playing for the future. He went on to quarterfinals and finals of the back draw at Delray Beach and later made it to finals at the USTA Winter National Championships in Boys’ 18 Singles out of 128 competitors.

For Adusumilli, the answer to coping with the pressure of bal-

ancing tennis and academics was exactly in her sport.

“Tennis actually helped. Not competitive tennis but the more fun and enjoyable side of it,” Adusumilli said. “I started to decrease on tournaments since things were piling up for school but I was able to stick with my sport where I can get my mind off things and just play.”

Song relied on strict perseverance through the tough times.

“Even when I had ankle injuries, I would still go to all my practices and just stay on the sidelines working on dribbling or other fundamentals,” Song said. “I just keep reminding myself that everything will be okay as long as I keep working hard and never give up for the love for the game--the sport as a whole, the excitement of games, the sense of family you feel with teammates--everything just makes it so enjoyable and worth it.” For the rest Lynbrook’s scouted athletes, that seems to be a universal ideal.

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To some the winter weather is a hassle, but to snow sport enthusiasts, this is the perfect season to head up to the mountains and enjoy the snow.

So come on, it’s time to take a snow day.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY AUDREY ZHENG & JOEY LI

BY CHRISTINA LIU & JJ IGNATESCU

T

his winter, many ski and snowboard enthusiasts have been feeling the negative effects of the snow drought in Tahoe. At ski resorts, a considerable amount of the snow on the lower slopes was manmade, and the lack of real snow resulted in rocky terrain on bigger slopes. More challenging slopes were closed, discouraging hopeful snow sport fanatics from making the trip to the mountains.

“Winter break was a super drag because I bought a season pass to Homewood and I actually didn’t get to use it at all. I went one day over break to North Star because that had the most terrain open, although it was only half the mountain. It was nice to warm up the gear and do groomer runs,” said history teacher Nate Martell. “But it was still pretty horrible.”

Unlike this past break, which was

unsuitable for snowboarding and skiing, previous winters showed better conditions and attracted more people.

“Last year, I went to Canada alone for a week,” said senior Jake Zatz. “I injured myself but I still kept on skiing. I got an amazing powder day on my last day and that was really sick.”

Math teacher Ken Iams also recalls a special experience with snow sports from when he was only three years old. His dad had placed him in a day care program at a ski resort that was filming “Wide World of Sports,” a TV program covering the official Alpine World Circuit.

“They actually used the footage of me skiing down between the person’s legs,” said Iams. “I still remember how we had to make a snow cone or a pizza and that’s how you learned to ski.

We had to pat our leg and quack like

a duck to turn to the right or left, and it’s all on TV somewhere on footage.”

Many passionate skiers and snowboarders begin adding to a long list of falls and successes on the slopes from a very early age, usually because of their family’s influence.

“My parents were really into it when they met. It’s a great family thing to do,” said Zatz. “Nowadays, it’s not necessarily bonding time though, because skiing has become such an individual sport for me.”

It is enthusiasm for the sport that makes preparing for a trip and spending hours traveling to the snow completely worth it.

“You hit that nice curve and you feel gravity. You feel gravity and speed, and it’s cold and your eyes are watering, even in your goggles,” said Martell about the experience. “Slobber is fly-

GRAPHIC BY KELSEY HURWITZ

ing out everywhere, and it’s fun.”

For sophomore Shawn Silverman, participating in snow sports is an essential part of life. As an avid snowboarder, Silverman spends many of his winter weekends on the slopes, catching as much wind as he can.

“I enjoy [many snow sports], but my favorite is snowboarding because the challenge of trying not to fall makes it exciting,” said Silverman. “I try to go snowboarding at least ten times per season, but it is hard with school and all the homework because we usually can only do weekend trips.”

As anxious as Silverman is to be near the snow, Zatz hopes to attend a university that encourages winter sports.

“I really want to go to [the University of Colorado]Boulder; it’s my number one choice and a big reason is because of the snow.”

Zatz has also gone to resorts both in North Lake Tahoe, such as Squaw Valley and Alpine, and enjoys traveling out of the country to hit bigger slopes.

Sophomore skier Masha Koubenski gave her personal recommendations for ski resorts in California.

“The resorts that I go to most often are probably Heavenly, Alpine and North Star.

I think my favorite is Heavenly because of the difficulty and variety of the slopes,” said Koubenski. “They’re challenging but really fun. I don’t like Alpine as much as the others because the slopes are a bit too easy; there’s not as much thrill in skiing those.”

Koubenski judges ski resorts by the quality of their slopes and looks for a variety of challenging slopes that provide excitement.

“I don’t really worry about the other aspects of the ski resorts,” said Koubenski.

“What I often look for in a resort is the length of the ski-lift lines. Of course, the actual skiing experience is the most important, so I try not to judge until I try the slopes.”

For those adventurous snow-lovers ready to try out a snow sport for the first time, Martell explained the differences between skiing and snowboarding.

“Snowboarding comes with a steep learning curve. Whereas skis, you can get on them and you can ski right off the bat, with the occasional falling down,” said Martell. “But with snowboarding, you’re going to spend a lot of the first day or two falling: on your hands, on your face, on your butt. But then once you get it, then you’re off to the races, and you can pretty much just crush it.”

Winter sports are an option for anyone interested, even though this year’s weather has not encouraged it. Skiing and snowboarding offer a momentary adrenaline rushes and a getaway to the stress of school or work. In the eyes of those who hit the slopes often, skiing is a defining characteristic and an integral part of life.

KEY PLAYER CALLOUT

T

he new year has always been a time for looking back to the past, as well as reflecting on the changes we want to make in the future.

Left: Sophomore Rupa Ganesh plans to train regularly to qualify for the Orange Bowl, an international tennis competition that will take place in December 2014.

Bottom left: Senior Stephanie Juang aims to write a poem and fill up her sketchbook regularly for a year.

Bottom right: Sophomore Jeffrey Chang plans to finish teaching himself Latin by the end of the year.

R

ight: Freshman Albert Lin refines his dance skills at the weekly bboy club meeting. Lin resolves to practice one to two hours each day, which he hopes will bring him closer to his goal of establishing a local dance crew by the end of the year.

Bottom left: Junior Megan Benensohn plays a game of Monopoly with her younger brother, Nico. Benensohn resolves to spend more time with her family this year, especially with both of her brothers.

Bottom right: Sophomore Joelle Shieh rows crew with her team at the Lexington Reservoir. Shieh started crew in Mar. 2013 and has learned to love the sport and the feeling of being in the water. Shieh’s goal for 2014 is to be in the lightweight Varsity 8 so that she may be eligible to row crew in college.