the Epic, Volume 58, Issue 5, March 10, 2023

2dreamerswith40acres:

Mr. Dybdahl builds his dream home

pg. 9 || features

Volume 58 Issue 5 | March 10, 2023

Class of 2026 unites through Color Clash

BY KATIE CHIN

Freshmen dressed in assorted colors for Color Clash, a five-day competition from Feb. 27 to March 3. Held by the Class of 2026 officers, freshmen and teachers split into four teams — red, blue, yellow and green — competing for tickets to redeem food at a class-wide party. The event featured a week of themed days and concluded with games ranging from dodgeball to “Guess the Song.”

story continues on pg. 2 || news

Swimmers dive into a new sport

BY CHELSEA LEE

In the past few years, Lynbrook’s diving team has consistently been composed of five divers or fewer. In the 2021-22 season, Lynbrook only had two: Claire Chen, current senior and team captain, and Jodi Au, Class of 2022 alum. However, the size of the team grew to a total of 10 total divers this year.

story continues on pg. 16 || sports

Behind SF police’s killer robots

BY DAEUN CHUNG AND QIANZI LOO

In November 2022, San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors initially approved the San Francisco Police Department’s proposal on giving local police rights to kill criminal suspects using lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) or “killer robots.” Although the equipment policy proposal was eventually reversed and sent back to its committee for further discussion, it was only a temporary reprieve, as the SFPD may revise and resubmit its proposal.

These robots integrate artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to identify criminals. Currently, some robots in the police force have dual capabilities: to protect civilians and officers or attack suspects.

story continues on pg. 14 || in-depth

Andrew Yuan merges music and ChatGPT in harmony

pg. 11 || features

Lynbrook High School , 1280 Johnson Ave., San Jose, CA 95129

Minorities ... can be racist too?

BY TIMOTHY KIM AND MYLES KIM

The evening news crackles as a family eats their dinner. Is it another mass shooting? A brutal police killing of a minority? An uncomfortable conversation ensues; the father, a first generation Asian immigrant, comments on the death of another black man at the hands of police with lingering indifference — not because he doesn’t care about the death, but he struggles to find an explanation for his indifference when prompted by his children, ultimately blaming the victim’s substance use.

Policing is predicated on white supremacy, from slave patrols to oppressing African American protests in the Jim Crow South and the War on Drugs. Asian Americans and other minority groups have been active participants in systems of oppression and white supremacy against African Americans.

When videos of George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police officer Derrek Chauvin surfaced in 2020, many pointed toward 36 year-old Asian American officer Tou Thao, who stood by idly as Chauvin held his knee on Floyd’s neck for nine painful minutes.

story continues on pg. 7 || opinion

Art display ransacked by thief

BY SARAH ZHANG

On Jan. 17, 3D Design teacher Charlotte Kruk discovered that her secondperiod students’ hand-made rings were stolen from the glass display case in the art wing hallway. In her 25 years teaching at Lynbrook, this is the first theft Kruk has encountered involving multiple students’ artwork.

A total of 12 rings, made during 3D Design 2’s metalworking unit from October to December, disappeared from the glass cabinet. When Kruk unlocked the cabinet to add a student’s newly-completed ring to the collection, she realized that many of the display spots — occupied just a day prior — were empty. Shocked, Kruk immediately reported her discovery to the office administration.

“I was dumbfounded,” Kruk said. “I’m really heartbroken over it; a whole semester was blown up in smoke just because someone thought they deserved or needed to take the art of others.”

story continues on pg. 2 || news

Anish Lakkapragada uplifts hospitalized youth with nature cards

PHOTO BY KATIE CHIN

PHOTO BY CHELSEA LEE

USED WITH PERMISSION FROM CHARLOTTE KRUK

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY CATHERINE ZHOU AND AMY LIU PAGE DESIGN BY CATHERINE ZHOU AND SOPHIE AU

Letter from the Editors

Dear Vikings, Welcome to Issue 5! In News, discover the new Ethnic Studies/Health course for incoming freshman; in Opinion, uncover the implications of minority discrimination; in Features, join Mr. Dybdahl’s 46-acre project; in In-depth, learn about killer robots in policing; in Sports, meet Lynbrook’s diving team; in Web, see Lynbrook students’ outfits. Interested? Apply to be a part of our 2023-24 staff at bit.ly/epicapp2023. For more information about what it means to be on the Epic staff, come to our informational meeting at lunch on Friday, March 17 in room 611.

As always, we encourage you to submit Letters to the Editors, opinions on any published stories this year, and Guest Columns, articles about your individual perspective, at lhsepic.com/submissions. Selected submissions will be published on our paper and/or website.

Art display case ransacked by unidentifed thief

BY SARAH ZHANG

Story continued from front page.

According to the custodial staff, the burglar may have either picked the lock or lifted the glass door from the display case to take the jewelry. Only the shinier, more polished rings were taken, while the less lustrous rings were left in the case. Several pottery pieces that were also on display were left untouched.

Junior Aimee Tran, whose two bronze rings were stolen, noticed the disappearance of the rings on the same day as Kruk. She had wanted to view her class’s artwork but discerned that several jewelry pieces were missing.

“I assumed that Kruk took them out, as she’s the only person with access to the key,” Tran said. “In retrospect, I regret not telling her that I noticed some jewelry had vanished, but at the time it never occurred to me that someone might steal our work.”

memories. However, a student has already dropped the class due to their distress over their stolen art. They spent months of class, brunch and tutorial time laboring over their silver ring, but gave up hope of it getting returned.

“I was really proud of my rings, because it was my first time working with metal, and I made something I could wear,” Tran said. “I’m disappointed and angry that my work, which was meant to honor someone, was stolen.”

Chakraborty said. “I am upset by the theft, but I still think displaying art is a nice way to show what the class is working on, once there are more secure exhibition spots.” Kruk also cleared out the sofas and chairs from the art wing hallway, where students — many of whom didn’t take classes there — often lounged. She hopes this will discourage future burglars from spending excess time near the display case and being tempted to steal more artwork.

“The hallway was my safe space, even as the displays took on wear and tear from students passing by,” Kruk said. “But this theft shattered my trust in others, so I decided to take it all away, as much as it breaks my heart to do so.”

Kruk and her class encourage whoever stole the pieces to return them. The rings may not have a lot of resale value, as they were not made out of precious metals. However, the rings are significant to the students that spent nearly one semester of time and effort on their artwork.

À tout

à l’heure, Elizabeth Cheng & Amy Liu Editors-in-Chief

Kruk is considering holding a second metalworking unit for her students, so they can make new rings in order to replace any disheartened feelings toward metalworking with new, happy

Kruk has become wary of displaying jewelry artwork. She removed her students’ remaining rings from the pillaged cabinet, once she realized the lock could be easily picked and the sliding door easily removed. Though a small display of studentmade jewelry remains in the district office, they are protected by a complicated lock and are under the supervision of administration. Going forward, Kruk intends to install stronger locks on the display cases in the art building and library.

“I had put a lot of after-school hours and effort into making my ring,” junior Ritam

“It’s not a compliment when you take someone’s work; it’s really just a stab wound,” Kruk said. “I challenge the thief to take my class, so I can teach them to make jewelry coming straight from their own unique spirit as opposed to stealing the spirits of others.”

Class of 2026 unites through Color Clash event

BY KATIE CHIN

Inspired by a school-wide team competition from their time at Dilworth Elementary School, the Class of 2026 class officers hoped to introduce a tradition to mark their class’s first year on campus.

“I love the uniqueness of Color Clash, an event that’s never been done before,” said freshman Vihaan Patel, Class of 2026 vice president.

“With Color Clash, we had freedom and no set guidelines.”

To kick the week off, each freshman received a wristband in their respective team’s color in their PE class. A random name generator was used to sort the freshmen into the four teams, each led by a freshman class officer. The next three days prompted them to “twin with a teammate,” “wear as many colors as you can” and “wear baby blue,” the freshman class color.

Each day built anticipation for the series of games held in the gym during lunch on the final day. The games were dodgeball, Kahoot and a “Guess the Song” game. Cheers echoed through the gym as students eagerly rooted for their teams.

“The freshmen came from different middle schools, so the main goals for Color Clash were unity, participation, and spirit,” Class of 2026 co-adviser Dave Herz said. “I think all three of those were achieved as the turnout on Friday was fantastic.”

Participants earned points through victories in the games on Friday and photo submissions of themselves in wacky spirit wear with the Lynbrook app. The blue team took home the victory following a week

of close competition against the yellow team, who won second place ahead of the green team in third and and red team in fourth.

The class party took place in the cafeteria on March 8th where the blue team received donuts, and all teams watched “Ratatouille”and snacked on free chips, cookies and pizza together. All teams were invited to be inclusive of everyone, but celebrated the winning team.

Without a designated spirit committee, planning out the details of such a large-scale event was a huge undertaking for the class officers, who coordinated with the school administration, class advisers and the Lynbrook App team.

The event’s dates coincided with ASB Officer elections which caused some complications, but the class officers were able to adapt their promotional strategies to still garner participation. Explaining the game rules and managing the point reward system were other challenges officers had to work around. Despite these obstacles, the officers are pleased by the Color Clash turnout and thankful for the enthusiastic participation from the freshman class.

“On Friday, all the freshmen were really hyped and it was nice to see everyone thinking of the class,” Patel said. “Everyone had an incentive and a reason to participate, and they had fun.”

Encouraged by the success of the week, the class officers hope to establish Color Clash as an annual event and tradition for the Class of 2026. The officers look forward to how the event will evolve each year as they improve organization and promotion through other formats.

“Our main goal was just to have a larger scale event, especially in the second semester for people to enjoy,” said freshman Amy Tang, Class of 2026 President. “We’re really proud of the results as more people than we expected showed up, and it was great seeing people dress up all week and come out to the event on Friday.”

Sophomore Kiara Ha’s stolen ring had a bee emblem that was sculpted with wax and molten silver.

USED WITH PERMISSION FROM CHARLOTTE KRUK

Sophomore Matthias Lin’s bronze ring was one of 12 rings stolen.

USED WITH PERMISSION FROM CHARLOTTE KRUK

Story continued from front page.

Film and Photo Society: two clubs merge

BY MAPLE LEUNG

After weeks of discussion and deliberation, Film Club and Photography Club officers have made plans to merge the two clubs into one: the Film and Photo Society.

Conflicting meeting times and shared members and topics have reduced the ability for members to attend both Film Club and Photography Club meetings. The officers and the clubs’ adviser, Mathew Reynolds, decided that merging the two would be beneficial to both clubs. They plan to begin their conjoined meetings on Friday lunches at the beginning of the next school year and are currently waiting for Legislative Council to approve the merger within their club constitutions.

“I think what made us merge was the friendliness between the two clubs, coupled with the fact that we both communicate with Mr. Reynolds and use his room,” Photography Club PR Officer and junior Peter Aguirre said. “We’ve always been kind of intertwined with each other.”

As for this year, the rest of the semester and the summer will give time for current officers to redesign the clubs into one in preparation for Club Info Day next year.

In the past, Film Club was centered around teaching members the basics of videography and editing. Members and officers often collaborated with student groups on campus to film and edit various videos. Notable projects include Homecoming hype videos and promotional videos for clubs, such as Model United Nations and DECA.

On the other hand, Photography Club focused on teaching photography principles and skills, such as how to adjust camera settings for different environments.

Throughout the years, they have held editing challenges and invited past alumni to give their members feedback.

“In the past, these clubs have provided really good opportunities for students,” Reynolds said. “From creating film projects for school activities to photo opportunities on campus to support them.”

Similar camera-related meeting topics coupled with both clubs’ weekly meetings occuring on Friday lunches in Reynolds’ room caused confusion among members. The clubs had made several attempts to resolve this issue in the past, including splitting the Friday lunch time to accommodate both club meetings and alternating the weeks in which each club would meet.

Additionally, officers are working towards creating a new brand identity, which will include an updated club Instagram page, a new logo, website and more. They hope members will be excited at the prospect of future projects, such as new meeting topics, coverage for school events and having studio setups in coordinance with overarching monthly themes. Studio setups, which include a backdrop, lighting and more equipment, can be utilized as both photography and film opportunities for members. Furthermore, film and photography resources, such as cameras and gimbals, will be shared within the club to maximize the pool of resources

“This merge will make the streamlined process of learning photography and film a lot easier,” senior and Photography Club President Sophia Khubchandani said. “We’ll also be able to balance the way we teach members how to use a camera.”

Upcoming Viking Events

Club Food Day, March 10

During lunch, more than 30 clubs will sell a variety of hot food, snacks and drinks to raise funds. Choices range from popcorn chicken and cream puffs to boba and rootbeer floats.

Silsilay, March 11

Showcasing South Asian dance teams from across the Bay Area, Silsay is hosted by Lynbrook’s American-Indo Student Association in the Lynbrook auditorium. No school, March 13 No duty day.

CAASPP/CAST Testing, March 13 - 17

Sophia Khubchandani, Senior and Photography Club President

“Both clubs had strong attendance previously,” Reynolds said. “So I was concerned when their numbers started to go down because of the confusion.” With their decision to merge clubs written into their updated club constitution, FPS awaits the decision of the Legislative Council, who will review this document at a future ICC meeting

The majority of the merging process was led by Khubchandani and seniors Katie Chung and Catherine Zhou, co-presidents of Film Club. For the 2023-24 school year, they have decided to deemphasize the utilization of lecture slides at meetings in favor of having members gain more handson learning opportunities.

FPS’s future officers and members alike are eager to see how this change will bring together both new and returning members, as well as allow for more collaboration, workshops and long-term projects. The new club’s meeting topics will include a mix of photography and film principles, such as different genres of photography or different filming aspects. Learning both photography and film will give members experience in multiple principles.

“We want to thank all of our members for being patient,” Chung said. “Be excited about the future. Film and photography might seem really difficult, but just know that so many individuals in the past have gone through the same learning process.”

Juniors will be taking the CAASPP/CAST while freshmen, sophomores, and seniors will attend assemblies.

Spring Movie Night, March 17

To spend more quality time with friends, students can watch ‘La La Land’ together in the cafeteria with complimentary snacks and drinks.

Class of 2025 St. Patrick’s Day Cookie Decorating, March 20

Cookie decorating event in room 509 during lunch; capped at the first 48 people to sign up on bit.ly/cookiedeco.

Jprom, March 25

Juniors will dance the starry night away at the San Jose Museum of Art.

Staff vs. Student Basketball Fundraiser, March 31

Basketball fundraiser between staff and students in the gym from 4 to 6p.m.

Spring Egg Hunt, April 3-7

Find Easter eggs, hidden by ASB PR, all around campus.

By Qianzi Loo

Photo by Qianzi Loo

New program allows students to attend Monta Vista

BY RIKI MURASE

To mitigate the adverse effects of declining enrollment for FUHSD schools, the district has introduced the Monta Vista Supplemental School Assignment Program for incoming freshmen from the Homestead attendance area. The transfer process for this program is identical to the one for incoming freshmen to transfer to Lynbrook, called the Lynbrook Supplemental School Assignment Program.

who live in the Homestead High School attendance boundaries are eligible to apply to attend Monta Vista High School for their entire high school tenure, beginning in the 2023-2024 school year. The program will have 30 available slots, and if more than 30 qualified applications are received, then up to 30 students will be selected at random.

Students living in the Homestead attendance area were previously only able to transfer to Lynbrook High School through the LSSAP — the MVSSAP aims to distribute incoming freshmen more equitably among each FUHSD school. Depending how the MVSSAP performs during its first year, the district may renew the program for continuation in future years.

Throughout the school year, the FUHSD Citizens Advisory Committee convened in five meetings to strategize how to balance enrollment among the district’s five schools. Though declining enrollment is a prominent issue across the district, it is an especially concerning issue at Monta Vista, where the student population has plummeted by roughly 12% over the last five years. The board approved the MVSSAP to ensure that Monta Vista has a consistent supply of incoming students to stabilize its population.

“I believe the changes could be beneficial,” Monta Vista Class of 2022 alumni Alysa Phattanaphibul said. “Students will be given more flexibility

for their learning and can take more initiative in deciding what type of learning environment they want to be in.”

The LSSAP has similarly enabled eighth-grade students to transfer into Lynbrook as residents of the Joaquin Miller Middle School, Christa McAuliffe School or Hyde Middle School areas following eighth-grade promotion. After the LSSAP’s success in modestly increasing enrollment at Lynbrook since its implementation six years ago, the FUHSD CAC hopes that the MVSSAP will further alleviate the issue of declining enrollment in the district.

Despite the LSSAP’s success, however, declining enrollment remains a prevalent issue at Lynbrook, causing some elective classes to be at risk of being eliminated in future years if low student interest persists. As a direct consequence of declining enrollment, FUHSD may be forced to reduce the diversity of classes offered at Lynbrook, and certain niche electives and language classes are at a higher risk of being cut from Lynbrook’s curriculum.

“Unfortunately, I don’t think that there are many long-term solutions for declining enrollment,” Japanese teacher Jeremy Kitchen said. “It’s just a question of the district and the school’s commitment to try to offer classes.”

While the MVSSAP is only guaranteed for incoming freshmen in the 2023-24 school year, FUHSD’s CAC hopes to study its effectiveness and brainstorm lasting solutions to support its five schools as districtwide enrollment continues to decline.

USED WITH PERMISSION FROM FILM CLUB GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JASMINE RIHAL

Film club members learn photography and camera basics during 2021-2022 meetings.

This merge will make the streamlined process of learning photography and flm a lot easier.

Students and staf of 2023

BY ANUSHKA ANAND

Snow hits close to home in the Bay Area

BY NICOLE GE

On Feb. 21, a rare snowstorm hit parts of all nine counties in the Bay Area. Road closures and traffic troubled some while others were thrilled to experience the unlikely snowfall.

For the first time in 12 years, the National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for the Bay Area. The snow was an attraction for many, especially those who had never before experienced snow.

“We went to visit my grandmother near Auburn, who had been sending us videos of snow dumping on her house all morning,” history teacher Nate Martell said. “My oldest daughter enjoyed sledding, but she and her sister mostly wanted to build snowmen.”

Some members of the long-distance track team traveled to Sanborn County with the intention to run through a trail with snow. They were taken aback by the immense snow accumulation at the trail’s base, which prompted a change in plans.

The group took a two-mile hike through the forest instead of their intended eightmile run. The first half-mile of the trek was strenuous, with numerous fallen trees and a thick layer of snow making the path steeper.

“We kept picking up snowballs and throwing them at each other,” junior Agastya Pawate said. “At the top of the trail, we laid down and made snow angels and slid down

a hill onto the frozen lake.”

The excitement escalated from snowball fights to playfully shoving snow down each other’s shirts and wrestling in the snow.

“This was a great experience and something I’ll remember for a long time — both because of how fun it was and also because of the rarity of such an opportunity,” Pawate said. “Being from Illinois, where it snows a ton every winter, this was somewhat of a nostalgic event because I hadn’t been in true snow since I’d moved from there.”

The snowstorm also caused several road closures and power outages. Highway 17, a major transportation route for teachers living in Santa Cruz, was closed due to snow on the road as thick as six inches. The snow’s sudden arrival also led to more dangerous conditions on higher roads.

En route to San Luis Obispo, Japanese teacher Jeremy Kitchen and his family were faced with the harsh conditions of the unexpected snowstorm near Death Valley. Within a 10-mile stretch, they saw two tractor trailers overturned due to high winds, with one completely upside down on the road. As the snowfall increased, visibility decreased and the family relied on following a truck in front of them to safely navigate out of the snow.

“We drove for about twenty minutes in those conditions, and then the sky suddenly cleared and we descended out of the snow,” Kitchen said. “It was only later that we found out that they closed the pass minutes after we went through because of multiple collisions and a jack-knifed truck.”

An atmospheric river storm is forecasted to impact the Bay Area through early March, potentially bringing heavy amounts of rainfall and a heightened risk of flooding. Calif.’s weather this winter is indicative of the unpredictable nature of climate change. While the sudden snowstorm in the Bay Area brought excitement to many who enjoyed the opportunity to play in the snow, it also caused inconvenience and danger to others. An unforgettable experience, it marks a harsh reality of changes to the local climate.

Heath/Ethnic Studies ofered in 2023-24

BY ELIZABETH CHENG

The Ethnic Studies/Health elective will be piloted by incoming freshmen in the 2023-24 school year, preceding its full rollout as a mandatory freshman course in the year after. FUHSD aims for about 60 enrolled students at each school.

Health course

The Health class will include topics like personal and community health; mental, emotional and social health; nutrition and physical activity; injury prevention and safety; and alcohol, tobacco and drugs; in a semester-long course. Sex education will still be taught in freshman Biology classes for the 2023-24 school year.

Personal and community health will teach students relationship skills and how to resolve conflict and communicate needs and boundaries. Mental, emotional and social health will focus on managing anxiety, coping with stress and developing self-care habits. In injury prevention and safety, students will learn first aid skills and how to respond to emergencies, from natural disasters to harassment. The curriculum hopes to foster a healthy attitude toward alcohol, tobacco and drugs in their respective units. In the nutrition and physical activity unit, students will learn to start an exercise routine and better physical habits. Students are able to personalize parts of the curriculum, such as choosing a subtopic for a project rather than taking a test. The development teams have also emphasized cultural relevance in lesson plans.

“We wanted to honor that we are coming from lots of different backgrounds and really look at each topic in terms of how different habits can impact your health,” FUHSD Health Team Lead Pooya Hajjarian said.

For serious topics, such as substance abuse, lessons will not be fear-based, but instead, provide facts on the reasons behind and effects of unhealthy habits.

“It will be important for the course to respect boundaries by making it clear that there is a safe person to talk to,” HEAL secretary and sophomore Sandhya Padhmanaban said.

The team has also consulted with FUHSD’s wellness committee to address the needs of different communities.

“I hope that this is a class that helps students better understand themselves and build healthy habits,” Hajjarian said. “I hope students look back and say, ‘I have these habits because I started to develop them back in ninth grade.’”

Ethnic Studies course

The Ethnic Studies class will cover broad subjects like dominant narratives — the typical perspective in which history is told — and factors of one’s identity. Students will delve into case studies to understand these topics. Examples can vary from African-American innovators and Latinx social movements to the model minority myth and indigenous mascots. Based on their classroom’s needs, teachers will choose different case studies.

“It’s the teacher’s job to say to students, ‘we learned some things, do they match or not match your experience? You tell me, what is the history of these groups?’” FUHSD Social Science Curriculum Lead Viviana Torres said.

FUHSD development teams have emphasized reflecting the demographics of each class or school to provide both a mirror — a reflection of one’s identity — and a window — a view into others’ perspectives. Providing the proper windows and mirrors for students enables a key objective: developing cultural competence and humility.

Intersectionality, the interconnected nature of social categorizations that often create overlapping systems of discrimination or disadvantage, will also be a focus in the course. For example, a lesson on identity discusses intersecting factors that unite the Jewish-American community. Students will complete activities like “The Iceberg of Identity,” in which teachers will discuss how parts of one’s identity can be visible or invisible to others.

The class strives to guide students in asking open-ended questions that have many or no answers, so students can understand the complexity of social issues.

“Ethnic Studies will bring awareness to our diversity and encourage equity and inclusion,” said senior Khushi Nigam, student director for the Equity Task Force. “For students who feel that history curriculums don’t represent their backgrounds, the Ethnic Studies course will change that.”

The creation of this course follows the passage of Assembly Bill 101 that requires Calif. schools to roll out ethnic studies classes in the 2025-26 school year. Since FUHSD received sufficient funding to develop the course, it has chosen to implement the class earlier.

“I hope every student understands that they have agency and are a scholar and an expert source of their lives that should be included in every classroom they enter,” Torres said.

Class of 2023

Poster Student: Lucy Barnes

Lynbrok students and staff of the year were recognized by the FUHSD Board of Trustees and Leadership in the Board Room of the District Office on March 7.

Lynbrook Certifcated Staf Member of the Year: Economics and Government teacher David Pugh

Lynbrook Classifed Staf Member of the Year: technician specialist Allen Chan

Class of 2023 Poster Student: senior Vikram Thirumaran

The Foundation Scholarship Recipient of the Year: Cougar Karson

Highlighted Group of the Year: the Asgardians esports team.

Some long-distance track team members took a two-mile hike thorugh the snowy forest.

USED WITH PERMISSION FROM AGASTYA PAWATE

USED WITH PERMISSION FROM AGASTYA PAWATE GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JASMINE RIHAL

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JASMINE RIHAL

PHOTO BY ANUSHKA ANAND

PHOTO BY ANUSHKA ANAND

PHOTO BY ANUSHKA ANAND

PHOTO BY ANUSHKA ANAND

PHOTO BY ANUSHKA ANAND

ACROSS:

1. Should be said to seniors at grad

10. Noisy and disorderly

12. Just in ____

13. The ugly duckling's adult form

15. Covers the room on top

18. The art of folding paper

22. A woman's menstruation product

23. Individually priced meals, Fr.

24. Intravenous, abbr.

25. Big green Avenger

28. Make a statement in court

31. Grace ____ , a Lynbrook fencer

33. ____ and tonic

35. Suffix meaning condition or function

36. "____ of the Times" by Harry Styles

38. Message after signature

40. Used to support a canvas

42. His real ones call him Barack

44. To fake being environmentally friendly

47. “Your outfit is on ____!”

49. Frequently asked questions

50. The Epic is ____

51. “Want a break from the ____?”

52. Bill Clinton’s alma mater, abbr.

53. Light, in Latin

54. Lil ___ X

56. You can look at it during a presentation

60. Kim Kardashian's birthplace, abbr.

61. To explain something again

64. Say no

67. Medium size battery

68. You ____ out with your friends

69. They may say, “Take off your shoes!” at the airport

70. Yellowjackets and hornets

73. Action word

74. Is water ____ ?

75. Operating System, abbr.

76. �he "pew, pew" organization

77. �eacher's helper, abbr.

78. �oise a pigeon makes

80. ____, myself and I

81. Of the nose

84. �econd, and usually worse

85. Harry Potter video game

DOWN:

2. Senior’s event on June 9th

3. Cools you down in the summer

4. Popular move in football

5. It’s no ____ crying over spilled milk

6. Luke Skywalker’s sister

7. Sets of three

8. First recorded female ruler of Russia

9. These people are known to wear kilts

10. Place to buy outdoor gear

11. Hoover ____

13. They play this sport in the quad

14. Surfing, catch a ____

16. ___ Bean (outdoor gear brand)

17. North Carolina, abbr.

19. ___ Witherspoon of Legally Blonde

20. Friend, Fr.

21. Frigid (of a surface or attitude)

26. Sheepskin boots brand

27. Kilo newton

29. Martial arts

30. Lawn replacement

32. School math enrichment program

BY SHRI BALAJI// GUEST COLUMN Poplar Beach

I’m Shri. I use a communication device to write. My love for beach is what I’m writing. We went to Polar beach in Summer. I have not gone to beach in long time. My mom chose this beach so I can go near water. It was sunny and windy. I went so close to the water. I heard the waves after a long time. I was anxious then I felt happy and serene. I feel blissful. I was near the waves and didn’t want to leave. What is special?

Many beaches I go to, I cannot go near water. This beach made me hear waves. I feel happy. Now I can go again next summer. I cannot wait to go again. My mom said she find more beaches like this. This is summer activity. I go to many beaches and trails. I love being outdoors.

34. Chai

37. American actor Somerhalder

38. A type of rally, held before sports events

39. Famous French river

41. “___ You Like It,” so says Shakespeare

42. “___ Mice and Men”

43. Mix between blue and green

45. Scientific studies

46. College athletic association

48. Dennis ___, the tennis player

51. The dog ___ my homework

55. I.e. blueprint

57. Heart, skin, etc.

58. Copper on the periodic table

59. Pakistani island

62. Prohibited, or a famous board game

63. “___ gonna hate”

65. Possess something

66. Round elongated shape

71. You be

72. APUSH test question, abbr.

77. ___ gusta mucho, to you

79. The original

82. Alabama, abbr.

Tipping culture has reached its tipping point

service and rail industries, where White business owners often weren’t keen to pay them adequately. Business owners instead relied on tips which allowed businesses to pay Black workers inhumanely low wages. Despite bans on tipping enacted in order to prevent low wages, tipping was codified in 1938 under the New Deal.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY DEEKSHA RAJ

“One latte. That’ll be $5.45,” the cashier says. She turns the register screen around to face you, and the internal monologue begins. The numbers stare you down, 10%? 15%? 20%? How much is appropriate? Should you be tipping for coffee at all?

Tipping gained ubiquity in the U.S. following the passage of the 15th Amendment in 1869, when Black men were given the right to vote. After slavery was abolished, many Black Americans found employment in the food

To this day, many businesses in the U.S. use tips as an excuse to underpay workers. In California, tips are added on top of a set minimum wage varying by city; however in most states they are considered as part of the minimum wage itself, making the national minimum wage without consideration of tips only $2.13. With inflation financially straining many, businesses should take it upon themselves to ensure that every employee earns a liveable wage and customers who can at present comfortably afford to tip should do so.

While everyone has a different outlook on how much to tip and for what goods and services tipping is appropriate, service workers need to be properly compensated,

and further compensation should be added when the employee is waiting on a party or otherwise providing a service. In this way, tipping can also cause friction between server and customer. Some confidentiality and compassion should be maintained on both sides, such as customers understanding the benefits tipping can give to servers and servers acknowledging that financial situations can influence a customer’s decision not to tip. Though, of course, everyone who is able to tip service should do so.

“I generally think that it’s appropriate to tip in any sort of service industry,” said senior and part-time food service employee Samantha Leong. “I always make an effort to tip even if they aren’t waiting on me. They are dealing with me, and customers can be difficult to deal with.”

Additionally, tips are often split between employees, so a generous tip for exceptional service will not always be directly awarded to the intended server. These discrepancies can contribute to unfair or insufficient compensation for employees. Furthermore, tipping has become widespread to an excessive degree

in the U.S.. With the use of technology at many cash registers, a screen with different tipping percentage options often faces the customer after a purchase, incorporating tips into most transactions, including on products that do not require much customer service.

“There’s a tip on just about everything,” Economics teacher David Pugh said. “You’ll buy an ice cream cone and there’ll be a tip jar. Everywhere you turn, there’s a tip jar.”

Putting aside the American tipping system, most Asian countries such as China or Japan, include server wages in the initial price of the purchased items. American businesses should follow this standard so that there is less stress placed on the customer’s tipping.

In an ideal America, every business would pay their employees a livable wage — and have the means to do so — so that tipping would become redundant. Especially with inflation, the most viable solution is to tip whenever possible and however much possible, given one’s financial situation. Reform is necessary for the U.S. tipping system so that consumers may stop feeling obligated to tip, or guilty if they don’t and so workers can receive above adequate wages regardless of a customer’s decision on tipping.

Supporting school elective programs

BY EMILY PEDROZA// IN MY OPINION

Writing bridges

After school, I would lean my head against our dinner table — our house too empty, too quiet. With my father gone for business trips and my mother busy writing countless documents for work, their absence fell heavy on me. The little time we had together during rare family dinners was filled with impersonal conversation and small talk about the news and whatever happened to be on TV. I started to see less and less of myself in them, the gaps between us growing so large they became seemingly uncrossable. All I could see was my mother’s red lipstick and my father’s minty Jo Malone cologne.

Soon, I sought solace through books, quickly becoming obsessed with character psychology and their backstories. Beginning to compose my own pieces, I took notes constantly, storing some elements to use later. This curiosity soon transferred to my parents, their pasts. I remember seeing my father’s old pictures — his messy and bleached-blond hair, and his band’s chaotic gigs at local bars during his college years. My bubbling curiosity soon overpowered my fear of further driving them away by constantly pestering them. He told me about his desire to fit in as a minority in a country not kind to people of color, how he endured the lemon juice bleach solution’s sting as he massaged it into his scalp, how kids beckoned at him to show them his “karate-kid” moves.

I started to realize my parents had so much more history and depth than I could have imagined. From my mother, I learned how she immigrated to America without her parents, spending her free time in high school scanning through English flashcards and babysitting younger cousins.

Though we have never been the kind of family to say “I love you,” to each other, this openness about our pasts is also a form of intimacy. To take the time out of a day to listen, to attempt to understand. From hand-written cards, published writing or even dinner-time stories — our perceptions of each other enriched, and our bonds strengthened by shared experiences.

I hope in the future, I’ll have more opportunities to learn from more people and hear their stories — in turn providing comfort from the shared stories of my own.

While Lynbrook hosts many opportunities for students to build and showcase talents in creative elective courses, many engage in outside organizations rather than their in-school counterparts. Although larger class sizes and packed academic schedules discourage students from taking creative elective courses, the inspiring environment and abundant resources benefit students who seek to expand their preexisting skills or explore creative pathways on the Lynbrook campus.

A combination of declining enrollment at Lynbrook for the past few years and increasing variety of options outside of school have reduced the number of students in elective programs. Still, FUHSD schools offer a robust variety of courses, from cooking to art.

“There’s a minority of students who are taking AP Art outside for enrichment and not for school credit,” 2D art teacher Matthew Reynolds said. “If that trend were to continue, it would be a problem.”

Current declining enrollment could result in some higher level creative electives being lost, forcing students of all skill levels to be confined to one or two courses. To attract new students, Lynbrook’s art department has introduced two new courses, expanding from only 2D art and 3D art to multi-level photography to ceramics programs. Current offerings at multiple levels in most courses means that students can show progression and build their interest in each subject area.

Living skills electives, for example, offer two sections of Introduction to Culinary Arts and one section of Culinary Food Science. Other specialized classes, such as different levels of Art, are combined into one period where students work with greater independence.

“Everyone in AP Art has different styles, so I value the individual feedback I get from Mr. Reynolds,” AP Art student Meghna Rai said.

Similarly, to cater classes toward varied student interests and skill levels, Lynbrook orchestras, bands and choirs continue to offer different levels and of smaller class sizes. However, these groups often combine to cover a wider range of repertoire for their performances.

Staf Editorial

The Voice of the Epic

STEM electives such as Computer Science, Accounting and Business have increased in popularity and are another factor in declining enrollment in other electives. Within the district, two schools have already lost their culinary programs due to declining enrollment. While such courses offer a unique opportunity for students to learn valuable life skills, some choose instead to dabble in these subjects through alternate venues, like clubs.

“I always find it interesting to see students that are interested in culinary enough to look at it as a club, but then not as a course,” culinary teacher Megan Miller said.

In addition to focusing on one’s improvement and skills as an artist or musician, school programs encourage students to actively contribute to their community with their artistic skills.

Ceramic students’ pieces are showcased in the office and library, and Lynbrook’s artists get their art displayed in front office and district offices. School choirs, bands and orchestras provide music for events like graduation, ribbon cutting events, singing the alma mater during rallies and national anthem for sports events.

“As musicians, this is our service to the community,” choir teacher Crystal Isola said. “ It fosters school spirit and brings us together. To be unable to celebrate the important rites of passage, accomplishments, joys and sorrows with our own school ensembles would not be good for the community.”

In addition, students participating in school arts and music classes can

participate in school-sponsored activities such as all-state orchestras and allnational choirs as well as build portfolios for college and beyond.

Training in creative electives can also help students develop practical skills that students do not build from regular academic classes.

“At back-to-school night, I have had many parents involved in the tech industry comment that creative skills like experimentation and creating iterations of possible ideas are skills that are required in the tech industry,” Reynolds said.

The arts encourage students to express themselves and build confidence. The drama and advanced drama courses are one such pathway students can explore unique personal expression, as the collaborative environment encourages students to communicate comfortably with their peers.

“In drama you learn to present yourself in an artistic manner,” drama teacher Larry Wenner said. “Getting up in front of an audience is nerve racking for some people, and to be able to do that will be very handy later on, like in job interviews and the corporate world.”

In addition to being a relief from traditional academic classes during the school day, the uplifting and collaborative environment of creative electives allows students to explore potential interests, build lifelong skills, discover a hobby and share their passion with peers in Lynbrook’s creative elective choices.

“You really get to form close bonds with the people in your elective program,” senior Eunseo Oh said. “It’s also meaningful to connect with people who share your passion within your school.”

the Epic voted 38 - 1 in favor of this stance with 1 abstaining.

Minorities ... can be racist too?

BY TIMOTHY KIM AND MYLES KIM

Story continued from front page.

Thao’s involvement shows how wellintentioned Asian Americans can participate in an institution that disproportionately affects the lives of under-served communities, like those of African Americans.

When African American activists voice their complaints about systems of institutional racism, conservative keyboard warriors point out the supposed Asian American success story: with their hard work ethic, Asian Americans have achieved the American dream. However, Asian Americans aren’t a monolithic group: according to a 2017 American Community survey, Tongan Americans have a staggering poverty rate of 19.30% whereas Asian Indians only had a 4.40% rate of poverty.

“There is an undercurrent in East Asian American communities that despite being discriminated against in the past we still managed to become extremely successful” freshman Steven Hong said. “I feel like many point towards the supposed Asian American success then back to these ‘other’ people that aren’t as successful and look down on them.”

The model minority myth has been used to drive a racial wedge — if Asian Americans, who have faced their own discrimination, can succeed, then centuries of systematic discrimination against African Americans can be

overcomed with strong family values and work ethics. Clearly, African American struggles cannot be due to institutionalized discrimination but merely an individual’s failure. This narrative not only ignores the historical plight of both minority groups, but also serves as rhetoric to relieve conservatives of the responsibility to fix the system.

“Because of the model minority stereotype placed on Asian Americans, they were held to this high standard in popular culture or educational places and workforces,” English teacher Joanna Chan said. “Over time, African Americans were wrongfully told ‘Why can‘t you be more like this group of Asian Americans in this model minority stereotype?’ — this created a rift between both groups.”

The political right has employed a similar strategy in dismantling affirmative action in college admissions: weaponizing anger from high-achieving Asian American communities to wage a legal war against an admissions approach that aims to lift historically disadvantaged groups into higher education, including Asian Americans.

One could argue that affirmative action, despite all its merits, still may not be the most effective way to help disadvantaged communities. However, it is inexcusable to disregard that action must be taken to address racial inequalities.

“There‘s major pushback against the passage of affirmative action policies in general because in a way, it can promote further marginalization of minority groups like Asian Americans, but opposing such measures somewhat ignores the struggles of Black Americans,” senior Avni Mangla said.

Though some African American communities’ struggles are undermined

by misguided Asian Americans, Asian Americans certainly do not experience the same privileges as many white communities — Asian American discrimination is rooted deeply in American and California history. Systemic influences such as the model minority myth, into which many Asian American communities have unintentionally fed, contribute to Asian American reluctance to connect with African American struggles. Although taking pride in the idea of achieving success through hard work and dedication is understandable, it is crucial to recognize that success cannot be so easily achieved for many Black communities that have endured centuries of continuous discrimination.

While minorities are justified in support for their own communities, selective support may detract from others’ struggles and feed into overarching prejudice. Experiences and perspectives greatly differ among minorities depending on their exposure to American culture, and no two minority groups can be grouped together simply for being discriminated against. Yet as our nation continues to be clouded by prejudice, it is more urgent than ever for communities to understand the complexity of generational discrimination and approach unfamiliar cultures with open minds.

“We have to find our common experiences,” Chan said. “Especially due to events that lead to movements like Black Lives Matter, and recurring violence against Asians, there have been more attempts to cross barriers to help recognize close groups that have been oppressed and violently attacked just based on who they are. Recognition, if people are willing to support and help each other across racial lines, can lead to more change that would benefit all groups.”

Dropping natural lawns for a drought-tolerant future

BY MEERA NAMBIAR

Despite a winter of heavy rain and atmospheric rivers, it will take more than one good year to stop California’s drought problem and replenish water sources. Residents must reduce their water use across the board, and one of the most effective ways is by replacing natural grass lawns, which according to the EPA consume about 33% of the average American’s household’s water. Although some people have converted to artificial turf to save water, these can have their own environmental issues, such as preventing wildlife from flourishing and increased plastic pollution, making the best choice for environmentally friendly yards native or drought-resistant plants. Homeowners should switch to native and drought tolerant plants, while local governments should encourage this transition by making the process cheaper.

Like much of the Western U.S., California has been suffering from one of the worst statewide droughts in

1,200 years with consecutive years of little precipitation and an increasingly warmer climate. Although this winter has seen more precipiation, it will take many more similar years to end the drought due to depleted groundwater resources. For the upcoming summer months, California residents should reduce their water usage, so that water remains readily available. To these ends, there are already restrictions in Santa Clara County that limit outdoor water use and if people do not voluntarily reduce their water usage, more restrictions will come.

Californians should replace their grass lawns with other types of yards, such as artificial lawns or with drought-resistant plants like sage to help alleviate the drought. The typical image of American suburbia includes a perfectly manicured green lawn, an outdated symbol of wealth and homeownership. This image is much harder to keep in California with warmer temperatures increasing the amount of water non-native grasses need to survive.

“Lawns or grass is the most widely watered crop in the United States, more than agricultural products,” junior Nicholas Kong said. “So getting rid of lawns makes a big difference.”

fields easier and gives athletes a uniform playing field.

“They use artificial turf for the field because it uses a lot less water,” English teacher David Clarke said. “And also the cost based on the maintenance, including water, is more for grass than it is for turf.”

Despite its benefits, artificial turf has its own problems. Turf absorbs heat, making the temperature of the grass extremely high during warm days. It also has ecological impacts, disrupting the lives of organisms and ecosystems below ground, and unlike natural plants, does not benefit the local ecosystem. Those looking to switch to a fake grass lawn will have to weigh the potential impacts on the ecosystem.

The best way to improve one’s lawn is to combine the drought-friendliness of artificial turfs with the natural benefits of grass through drought-tolerant and native plants. Native California grasses can provide the feeling of a typical lawn, while using nearly half as much water.

“Instead of replacing grass with turf, there are also landscaping rebate programs that are more sustainable, water-efficient, and don't require that much money, " sophomore Daphne Zhu said.

33%

of the average American household’s water consumption goes into natural grass lawns

One solution to conserving water is to replace lawns with artificial turf. These turfs can help property owners save money andthousands of gallons, while still maintaining the look and feel of real grass.

Turf also makes the upkeep of sports

Government programs are now incentivizing people to change their lawn to low-water-use landscapes, with Valley Water offering rebates to those who make the switch. Local residents looking to change their residential landscapes to low water use

can get a rebate up to $3000 through Valley Water, while also saving money in the long run by using less water. By having more incentives and making droughttolerant options more available, local and state level governments can encourage more people to save water, helping California alleviate some of the worst effects of the drought.

Because of the model minority stereotype placed on Asian Americans, they are held to a high standard in popular culture, educational places and workforces.

Joanna Chan, English teacher

Picture-perfect models on poisoned runways

BY ALYSSA WANG

Alight shines on the runway and the audience grows silent, holding their breaths in anticipation of the impending show. Out walks a striking model with chiseled cheekbones, long legs and a skinny waist. As more stream onto the runway, each girl seems to be a duplicate of the previous, with the same thin figure. Despite the modeling industry’s proclamations to become more inclusive and recruit plus-size models, many companies fall short of taking real action. Many brands in the high fashion industry publicize their performative attempts to be progressive, yet lack genuine progress. Their adherence to unrealistic beauty standards creates insecurities, promoting unhealthy diets and eating disorders in younger audiences.

“Mainstream representation of tall thin body types promotes an unhealthy standard to the audience and can cause them to develop insecurities about their own bodies, especially within the younger audience,” senior Russell Lin said.

By primarily showcasing skinny models on the runway or in ads, the modeling industry has glorified an ideal body where one must have a slim waist, hourglass figure and long legs to be considered beautiful. This can also be seen in the commercial industry where clothing companies such as Victoria’s Secret and Brandy Melville cater to similar standards.

Brandy Melville promotes the saying, one size fits all, yet carries clothes solely catered to slimmer body types. Consequently, consumers have become fixated on their idea of the perfect body and tend to resort to unhealthy methods to attain such a physique. Many engage in unhealthy dieting, excessive exercise or other harmful weight-controlling behaviors, often leading to eating disorders. This also creates a culture of fatphobia, in which plus-size people are shamed for their appearance.

“A lot of brands and designers create clothing to fit the beauty standards of an hourglass figure, which the majority of their audience does not have,” junior Crystal Lee said. “A lot of brands have very limited ranges that are not reflective of different body types, and this leaves many customers to feel unincluded.”

40% or more of models may currently be sufering from some kind of eating disorder according to a study carried out by the Model Health Inquiry

Victoria’s Secret has a past of exclusively representing women with one body type — skinny and tall. In 2019, the company hired their first plus-sized model, who claimed to be a body positivity activist, yet had a history of making fatphobic comments on social media. After the model’s comments were revealed, it became clear that her employment was only an act to temporarily appease public outcry and avoid long term scrutiny.

Similar to Victoria’s Secret,

BY SOPHIE AU//IN MY OPINION

Appreciate your time with your siblings

9

:00 a.m. Everyone eats breakfast in front of a zoom screen.

9:30 a.m. I stick my head into my brother’s APUSH zoom room.

10:00 a.m. I watch my siblings giggle in front of a blue screen, wondering why Korean dramas are the newfound quarantine obsession.

10:30 a.m. We all hunt for a snack — including my younger sister, who clearly

While many people are pushing back against these unrealistic body standards, there are still those who argue having plus-size models in ads or on the runway normalizes an unhealthy lifestyle. Commenters on the Brandy Melville Instagram account argued that those pointing out the lack of inclusivity were simply blaming a clothing brand for their personal insecurities about their weight and should either go to the gym or work on their self-confidence. However, these arguments are flawed for several reasons. They assume that all plus-size models are indulging in unhealthy behaviors when, in actuality, many are healthy and active. Additionally, there are many other factors that are often out of one’s control, such as genetics or other preexisting conditions, that dictate how fast some people gain weight and therefore it is unfair to reduce it to a matter of laziness or lack of willpower. Promoting plus-size models doesn’t advertise an unhealthy lifestyle, but rather aids in body diversity and inclusivity.

“It really helps the audience feel more included and beautiful when they see someone in high fashion or ads that look like them, whether that be a similar size or body structure,” senior Janice Chong said.

The industry’s unrealistic beauty standards create significant problems for models as well. Models are expected

should be in class.

Every day was the same. Every week was calm and expected, and it seemed like our peaceful, routine and predictable days would last forever.

My siblings and I are within four years of each other and all grew up living the same lives — traveling to the same places, having the same teachers year after year and trying new foods together. Regardless of summer camps, school or traveling for sports — there was never a need to ever say goodbye.

Being forced to hang out with people that you can’t get away from isn’t always fun: we argued over silly, trivial problems like deciding where to go out for dinner, comparing who had the better toys, or fighting over who would get to use the only computer in the house. The never-ending arguments seemed like they would drag on forever.

As annoying as having siblings is, the “forced” friendship is simply unmatched by any other: sending really dumb texts and videos to each other, open gossip, roasting each other without holding back, and really

to maintain a certain weight and body structure in order to be successful. To achieve that desired body, many diet consistently or use laxatives and other drugstore staples such as conjugated linoleic acid, to prevent natural hunger. There have been reports of models dying due to anorexia and the unhealthy diets they put themselves on to lose weight. The modeling industry also often uses photo editing software to make or dilute curves on models and edit out natural blemishes or stretch marks that are considered unappealing, resulting in more unrealistic definitions of beauty.

“The industry creates a false image of what models should look like, and this makes people believe that this kind of body is their dream body ,” sophomore Gabrielle Kasper said. “People go to extremes and do many harmful things to their body to try to attain an unrealistic body image.”

Although there are still many brands that are still unaccepting of diverse body types, others such as Adidas, Old Navy and American Eagle have proved to be more inclusive, hiring plus-size models to promote their larger size range. Similarly, modeling agencies like Alaeria and We Speak Model Management have begun to showcase plus-size models.

Despite the narrative perpetuated by the model industry, everybody is

just being able to just shout out for help when I needed it.

After returning to in-person activities after quarantine, I found that my siblings and I were always rushing in and out of the house. Days became more chaotic and unexpected, but at least I still had a bit of to catch up with the school day’s gossip with them.

With my brother at college, the other half of the work table and the never-ending jokes have disappeared — the sunroom always feels like it’s missing something. Conversations that we would have used to have almost every minute quickly turned into short weekly phone calls. When I want to talk to my brother, I try to text it only to remember I won’t be able to see his reaction. I am grateful for the weekends and breaks when our family of five can meet back together and the house, finally lively again with the voices of my siblings echoing happily throughout; still, those days are limited as we all need to continue on with our lives.

Soon I will graduate and leave home too, and I’m anxious and a little saddened that these months will be the last time I’ll be able

different, and as such, achieving a specific build can be simply unattainable. By recruiting plus-size models, companies have begun challenging narrow beauty standards and encouraging a more inclusive society, which they should continue to do in a more widespread manner.

to simply just chatter away with my siblings while doing homework or stick my hand out when someone opens a chip bag. Even if I decide to go visit home while in college, the childhood sibling moments just won’t feel the same.

Part of me just doesn’t want to let go of the “us three” childhood life, but that’s not realistic. When all 3 of us are at home together during the holidays, I just sit and think about how lucky am I to have a close and strong relationship with my siblings, one that is hard to say goodbye to. Regardless, I would never want to spend the last days before the oldest sibling has to leave for college sad — I’ll enjoy it like usual, like the life we had shared for the past 18 years.

The last days of my seemingly neverending childhood with both siblings have slipped past without me noticing it. I just wish that I could have another day with the three of us hunting around the kitchen for a snack in between online classes, but nothing lasts forever. For now, I’ll look back and appreciate the good times I had with my siblings as I start a new chapter in my life.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY ASHLEY HUANG

2dreamerswith40acres

Jeremy and Kelly Dybdahl build their dream home

BY CALVIN ZHOU

The night the “bomb cyclone” storm hit, the Dybdahls were caught off guard. The fierce winds and heavy rain battered their property, sending their temporary structures and storage tents flying. Books, games and furniture were left drenched and destroyed. The family scrambled to keep everything in place, but their efforts were futile. Despite the chaos, they managed to fix what they could and found comfort in their safety together. As they took shelter in their trailers, listening to the howling winds outside, they knew that this was just another challenge to overcome on their journey to building their dream home.

‘Two dreamers with 40 acres” perfectly describes math teacher Jeremy Dybdahl and his wife, Kelly Dybdahl. The couple purchased 40 acres of land, or The Ridge, as they call it, in the Santa Cruz mountains in the fall of 2022, planning to build the home of their dreams. The couple has since moved onto the property and plans to build a one-story home on the land as well as other outdoor spaces, such as a soccer field, a lap pool and a fire pit. By utilizing all the land, from the forest trails to grass fields, they hope to create a peaceful environment to live in and enjoy.

“For a long time, I have always wanted to build my own house,” Dybdahl said. “It has been a dream and I am not getting any younger, so we decided to just go ahead and do it.”

When the couple initially began looking for land to build their dream home, they wanted a location closer to Santa Cruz but were unable to find any suitable spaces. They ventured farther outside of the city and found a plot of land sitting on a mountain ridge for sale, providing them with more land than they anticipated and an additional perk of extra privacy. However, the location has not come without any challenges.

“I am four miles to the nearest grocery store and gas station,” Dybdahl said. “To get to work, it is about a 55-minute drive.”

Yet for Dybdahl, who now lives on the property, the commute is not the biggest concern. Rather, it has been more difficult to adjust to a drastically different way of living and a smaller environment. Dybdahl’s family of four lives on two trailers on the land alongside temporary structures for storage. They often have to squeeze past each other in trailer hallways, and even two trailers, one for the parents and one for the children, are still difficult to adjust to.

Before starting the home’s construction, the couple is preparing the property for trailer life. They purchased a skid steer and excavator and dug an 1100-foot water

along with installing a septic system. To make accessing the property easier, they have started working on flattening a quarter-mile dirt driveway instead of immediately paving it permanently.

When the ‘bomb cyclone’ storm hit the entire state, the Dybdahls found themselves in a tough situation. The temporary tents and garage-type spaces they set up were blown into pieces in the 65 mph winds. At one point, they were up in the middle of the night fixing them in the rain and succeeded, but the winds blew them away again during the day.

“I think if we made it through the worst storm we have ever experienced, we can definitely make it through the next few years just fine until we start building,” Dybdahl said.

Furthermore, the heavy rain resulted in ruts on the driveway that needed water diverters to be installed to prevent future recurrence. Around 40 fallen trees needed to be cleared, many of which blocked the path out of the property. However, the Dybdahls plan to repurpose the trees using a portable timber mill and use the timber on other parts of the property, such as for firewood.

A few weeks later, the Dybdahls woke up to The Ridge , all covered in snow from a rare winter storm. The trailers and property were blanketed in a sheet of white and the Dybdahls’ dog, Brownie, had a blast running through the snow for the first time.

Despite all the unexpected situations, the couple has found the process rewarding. They frequently upload videos and Q&As onto their Youtube channel and Instagram account, 2dreamerswith40acres, and answer followers’ questions through the video series ‘Sunrise Chats on The Ridge.’ From a timelapse of rescuing a car that slid off a road to a compilation of animals that cross through the property, the Dybdahls enjoy sharing the fun and excitement building their home. Their supporters also share their advice on building a home from the ground up.

While the couple has faced challenges in building their dream home, they remain optimistic about the future. Their commitment to bringing their vision to life gives them the motivation to continue to make progress every day.

“My plan currently is to hopefully be done with the build for the house in six years,” Dybdahl said. “I love to sit outside by the fire pit, look up at the stars and it is just peaceful.”

Paving the way toward a house:

The Dybdahls live in a trailer while waiting to finish constructing the house.

Storage boxes in the car port for extra space filled with books, furniture, etc.

Installing a septic tank to connect the trailers for basic sewage treatment.

Dybdahl sets up water diverters as a response to the Bay Area Stroms.

I love to sit outside by the fre pit, look up at the stars. It is just peaceful.

Jeremy

Dybdahl, Math teacher

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY INAAYA YOUSUF PHOTOS USED WITH PERMISSION FROM JEREMY DYBDAHL

Shreyas Malladi unfolds his creativity through origami art

BY NEHA AYYER

Surrounded by a stack of paper and intricate designs, senior Shreyas Malladi expertly folds inventive origami creations. Malladi designs his own pieces by hand and through an online software called Pepakura, creating complex figures ranging from humanoids to dragons.

Malladi started his origami journey in his second grade, where his teacher encouraged artistic pursuits in the class. Many students picked up origami, and while it was seen as a pastime to others, the art piqued Malladi’s interest and he continued to flex his skills in the field. He used crease patterns, layouts that show fold lines, to improve his craftmaking, before creating his own. He shares some of his models on social media, enters origami competitions and makes gifts for his friends and family. Recently, Malladi created an origami violinist as a gift to his previous employer, who was a violinist at Carnegie Hall.

“The best way I’ve improved is by surrounding myself with an origami community,” Malladi said. “I talk to a lot of other creators online; they’re very open to sharing crease patterns and happy to see someone else make their designs.”

Origami uses specific typeS of paper, like tissuefoil or

BY KATIE CHIN USED WITH PERMISSION BY SHREYAS MALLADI

double-tissue, to make models that are light and strong. Malladi started by following folding instructions on YouTube, actively following origami creators such as Jo Nakashima and Tadashi Mori. Often, these instructions included crease patterns that set up different head-to-body ratios. Using this method, Malladi usually creates dragons as it is easier to partition the different parts of these models.

Another technique that Malladi currently uses is crease pattern collapses, specifically box-pleats. These patterns often have no specific order or instructional guides. He starts by creating a grid that acts as a base for the model consisting of lines that increase accordingly with the complexity of the model. He then draws diagonal lines that connect the intersections of the lines,

called the “Divine Dragon.” He made this piece based on a simpler crease pattern from an instructional model. His friend, senior Saahil Gupta, 3-D printed a stand for the model to highlight the piece.

“We tend to work alongside each other a lot, as he’ll be working on his origami and I’ll be doing a coding project,” Gupta said. “I’m really grateful for that since it’s more fun to work alongside somebody.”

Malladi makes his own designs with Pepakura, a Japanese software used to simulate the folding of designs to make different bases and creations. He uses angle references and other crease patterns to create models with more complex folding. Some of his favorite pieces include a “Chainsaw Man” figurine and a Japanese Thunder God figurine, which was displayed in a gallery for a few weeks. Malladi usually recreates complex-patterned models that look unique and challenging to build.

“He’s always been talented at origami,” Gupta said. “Origami requires a lot of patience and grit to complete, but now he’s become more accustomed to the work that doing origami has become a natural thing for him.”

created a model to fold parts of the James Webb Space Telescope during launch, Malladi hopes to use origami to further his career in mechanical engineering. He wants to create more optimized, folded models of machines for storage and transportation purposes, using origami’s folding techniques. Intertwining origami with engineering has opened pathways between robotics and avionics research, in which Malladi hopes to find more pragmatic engineering solutions to problems left unsolved in the past.

“I’ve always felt a stigma to let go of origami because it seems like more of a hobby, but I’m glad I didn’t let it go,” Malladi said. “It’s a stress reliever, but it’s also helped me with job opportunities and opening up a wide field of careers.”

The potion for all Potterheads: a review of Hogwarts Legacy

BY ANIRUDH SESHADRI

For years, the mesmerizing world of the “Harry Potter” franchise has enchanted fans worldwide. With Hogwarts’ enchanting castle walls and Hogsmeade’s picturesque scenes, J.K Rowling’s magical universe has transcended beyond a mere fictional series and transformed into a cultural phenomenon that has left an indelible mark in our hearts. Now, with the “Hogwarts Legacy” action roleplaying game, enthusiasts can explore the mystical world in a new way. Touted as the most eagerly awaited “Harry Potter” game ever, “Hogwarts Legacy” assures a spellbinding and unforgettable escapade deep into the core of the wizarding realm.

After several years in development, fans highly anticipated the February 2023 release of "Hogwarts Legacy." While the game captures the essence of the Harry Potter universe, it distinguishes itself from previous Potterhead video games. It does not include Harry Potter or his friends but a fresh cast of Hogwarts professors and students like Natsai Onai, Mahendra Pehlwaan and Sebastian Sallow. The game's timeline is set a century prior to Potter's birth, precluding many of the well-loved figures from the franchise to make an appearance, although Nearly Headless Nick, ghost of Gryffindor house, plays a part.

The level of character customization in "Hogwarts Legacy'' is praiseworthy, as players can create a protagonist corresponding to their own personality and preferences.

The game's narrative structure allows players to engage with various plot elements and decision points that impact the game's conclusion.

“The game did a great job including the essence of the series, with an experience system that rewards players for finding field guide pages or descriptions of magical items and places,” senior Vikram Thirumaran said. “These field guide pages are filled with references from the books and the movies.”

Every location and character is created with the utmost authenticity, and despite utilizing older technology, the game's visuals are impressively comparable to modern hardware. The in-game environment also teems with detail, exhibiting great lighting that is sure to impress players with its impressive realism. The game has some glitches in animations but still mindblowing for fans.

“Going into the game, I did not have many expectations as to world-building,” senior Pranav Tallapaka said. “Yet, the graphics and spell-casting exceeded expectations and rendered really well, which allowed me to explore not only the wizarding world but also the real world, such as the cities and areas where the original book series took place.”

The game’s detailed settings are remarkable, particularly in Hogwarts Castle's secrets and chambers. The castle's famed spots, each painting, staircase and hidden rooms are located exactly where they are depicted in the series, contributing to an immersive experience. Furthermore, the game features various hidden treasures and easter eggs for fans to discover.

The game begins with a wizard visiting a Muggle street, akin to the first book and movie's opening scene, where the player eventually journeys to Hogwarts through a different route from the Hogwarts Express. At Hogwarts, there are lessons like feather levitation, noisy mandrake repotting and broomstick flying, all echoing familiarity. Locations like Hogsmeade and Azkaban appear. Players also collect magical creatures in a bag, alluding to the film, “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”.

“When I entered the common rooms, I felt a sense of immersion in the world of the game and of Hogwarts,” Tallapaka said. “It also brought with it a sense of exploration and excitement with the opportunity to explore past just the castle.”

The Harry Potter universe has perennially engrossed the hearts and intellects of enthusiasts spanning the entire globe.

Now, in “Hogwarts

Legacy,” players embark on an enchanting odyssey and transport to the core of the wizarding domain like never before. The level of detail is truly impressive, from the spellbinding spell-casting mechanics to the realistic depictions of the Hogwarts castle and its inhabitants. “Hogwarts Legacy” proves that the magic of the Harry Potter universe is very much alive, with a new generation of gamers eagerly exploring and discovering everything that this fabled realm has to offer.

“I would definitely recommend this game to other Potterheads as the game in itself is nostalgia from

PHOTO

Nature Card Donations for hospitalized youth

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY

PHOTOS BY SUSANNA TANG, KATIE CHIN AND SURYA SARAF

INAAYA YOUSUF AND VIDUSHI UPADHYAY

BY SURYA SARAF

child afflicted with any condition or trauma doesn’t know what normal truly is. So, why not give them a taste of that experience?”

After enduring a tick condition in middle school, junior and wildlife photographer Anish Lakkapragada launched a mission to uplift those dealing with illnesses that worsen their quality of life. With paper cards and his favorite photographs in hand, Lakkapragada visited various Lynbrook clubs, requesting members to decorate and personalize cards — each embellished with his eye-catching shots of birds and flowers — to be mailed to charity organizations for hospitalized children, a project he calls “Nature Card Donations.”

“What made me move past my condition was the fact that I was not alone and that other children were similarly struggling,” Lakkapragada said. “I hope these cards help children realize that somebody has their back.”

A year-long endeavor, Lakkapragada’s passion project was once a tentative experiment, involving only a few charities, but grew to make a lasting impact on local youth. As of now, he has mailed over 1,100 cards, personalized by Lynbrook students from Spanish Honor Society, ArtReach, California Scholarship Federation and more, to charities such as Cards for Hospitalized Kids and the Mental Health Association of San Francisco.

“Many of these children feel ostracized, and may seek human connection and reassurance,” Lakkapragada said. “That’s why I wanted students to create these cards, to give them a personal touch.”

Lynbrook students write inspirational messages on each card, adding their own drawings and paper cutouts. In their efforts to help others heal through messages like “Have an amazing day,” or “You are brave, worthy and loved,” they enjoy the therapeutic experience to create and design. The cards serve as picturesque reminders of natural beauty to these hospitalized children, many of whom are bedridden and may not have the chance to enjoy nature firsthand.

Inserted in each card’s cleverly-designed pocket is a photograph of a majestic bird or bright flower — a taste of Lakkapragada’s talent. Lakkapragada turned to photography as a coping mechanism for the academic stress he felt as a sophomore. Inspired by his father, a photography enthusiast, he began to explore the art at parks and nature preserves around the Bay Area. Since then, Lakkapragada’s interest in photography has been fueled by his admiration for nature— specifically, for birds. Nowadays, when in any park, nature preserve or even on Lynbrook campus, Lakkapragada always has his camera on hand, ready to take a snapshot of any bird perched on a nearby tree branch.

“As I picked up wildlife photography during quarantine, I started to find the value in capturing split seconds of bird movements, often fleeting but fascinating,” Lakkapragada said. “Photography is a way for me to preserve time, a way to go back and observe those suspended moments.”

With the first few cards Lakkapragada sent came overwhelming support from the charities, their children delighted by the cheerful photographs and messages. Lakkapragada was thus motivated to continue donating, the impact of his work resonating with children across the U.S.

“You never know what situation or struggle someone is going through, so it’s important to recognize the effects the cards have, and how much they mean to these children,” Lakkapragada said.

Regarding the future of Nature Card Donations, Lakkapragada hopes to gauge the interest of more clubs and students willing to help, and connect with more local youth, to work toward a future where everyone can appreciate natural beauty, whether they are confined to a hospital bed or strolling in a scenic park.

Andrew Yuan merges music and ChatGPT in perfect harmony

BY APURVA KRISHNAMURTHY

For senior Andrew Yuan, ChatGPT is more than an informative chatbot. It is an at-home music studio, generating song concepts and lyrics to create music with ease. Using the up and coming AI server and Garageband, Yuan produces original music and released his first single “Finding Love” on his YouTube Channel, GPTSING.

When composing a song, Yuan relies on ChatGPT to construct the concept and lyrics of the song. He inputs a prompt specifying his envisioned genre and idea, and the chatbot generates lyrics and a few chords, establishing a backbone for the song. With his music centered around harmonics, Yuan then turns to Garageband, tinkering with the chords given by ChatGPT. He also creates the backing instrumental by experimenting with different instruments and sounds and layers melodies over the harmonies using the new lyrics. Subsequently, he fits in other instruments, such as percussion, and pairs it with his vocals to officially produce a song.

“It is easier to write melodies now that I have ChatGPT.” Yuan said.

Yuan has always been drawn to music. He dates his music journey back to 2011, when he began taking piano lessons at the age of six. However, singing ultimately resonated with Yuan, as it was a unifying force in his home.

“I started to really like singing because my family was always singing,” Yuan said. “Once we would get together and sing, conflicts were resolved and it was really nice.”

Yuan began his singing career in his middle school’s choir

but decided to take a break from the art. During his freshman year of high school, he rekindled his passion when he began taking vocal lessons and subsequently, sang in Lynbrook’s A Choir. Yuan took pleasure in exploring different genres of music and even discovered his love for jazz. Drawn to the genre because of its improvisational nature, Yuan cherishes the ability to let loose and break the rules of music while still being creative.

“Andrew is very adaptable and willing to incorporate new ideas into his music,” Yuan’s friend and senior Hank Hsu said. “He has not settled on a style and is still innovating.”

Yuan was motivated to create music after watching his older sister write songs. Before he got his footing in song production, Yuan would also develop ideas for

melodies and admired how music theory could gel with creative elements to create an original composition. Moreover, singing and making music helped him destress during difficult times, fueling his passion for the art.

“He is into key changes and interesting chords so he always has good ideas to implement,” Hsu said. “I am excited to see what he does in the future.”

But, Yuan could never fully dedicate himself to composing because of one roadblock: writing lyrics. Yuan had struggled with generating ideas and forming the appropriate words. But with ChatGPT, this obstacle was eliminated and the process was accelerated, making it much easier and quicker for Yuan to produce songs.

Yuan decided to create a YouTube channel because he liked having a platform where he could not only display his work, but look back on it in the future. He had always enjoyed creating content as he used to make videos with his father on a separate account when he was younger. Yuan also uploads music projects onto his website, MusicBytes, which features a collection of instrumentals he produced through Garageband. Each song is derived from a mixture of genres and instruments, showcasing Yuan’s versatility and experimental style.

Yuan looks forward to growing his channel and expanding into other types of videos. He hopes that his music can help him connect with others and that the creativity and skills he gains from composing music can translate into other creative endeavors.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY TANIKA ANBU

PHOTO BY KATIE CHIN

USED WITH PERMISSION BY ANISH LAKKAPRAGADA

Wake up. Let's look into sleep deprivation.

According to an Instagram survey of 201 respondents, 77% of Lynbrook students sleep for an average of fewer than seven hours daily. When compared to the recommended eight to 10 hours of sleep the American Academy of Sleep Medicine urges teenagers to strive for, many Lynbrook students are getting insufficient sleep, indicating a clear trend: sleep deprivation has become increasingly common among teenagers, as pushing sleep to lower priorities has become normalized amid frenetic schedules. While often sacrificed for academic work, depleted sleep ironically incurs larger issues with alertness and efficiency in the classroom. The physical and emotional toll that sleep deprivation takes on one's body is clear through two phenomena caused by natural brain activity: daydreaming and REM-sleep dreaming.

Good night, sweet dreams Snapping back to reality

BY ASHLEY HUANG

Wassociated with sleeping, daydreaming is a common phenomenon while one is conscious. A daydream is a series of wandering thoughts or fantasies that occur while a person is awake, usually due to a lack of external stimuli.

Daydreaming is a natural human mechanism that involves imagining places or people, occurring during moments of idleness or when working on tasks, such as doing household chores, commuting or attending a meeting. While daydreaming, humans direct their attention away from external stimuli, allowing mental images, thoughts and scenarios to be pictured. Not only can daydreaming be made up of fictional characters or scenarios, but it can also concern past experiences.

Daydreaming is shown to serve many benefits. This form of mental exercise allows humans to explore creativity, imagination and problemsolving skills, which can help foster innovation, enhance productivity, promote adaptability and encourage critical thinking. Moreover, daydreaming can help process emotions and past experiences, drawing new insights and perspectives that may not have been considered before.

of rest. Not only may sleep deprivation lead to a higher rate of daydreaming, but it may also affect what one daydreams about. Lack of sleep, often associated with increased irritability, can lead to daydreams about negative, worrying scenarios such as catastrophic events and unrealistic expectations, which may lead to obsessive thoughts and self-criticism.

“External stimuli, like physical activity and caffeine, will mask both accumulated sleep debt and daytime sleepiness,” Mah said. “However, it's just a temporary measure. The sleep debt is still there.”

When people don’t get the amount of sleep their body requires, it can lead to daytime sleepiness. This not only results in increased tiredness, but also leads to microsleeps, which are very short periods of sleep, usually lasting only a few seconds.

77%

“Although you may be motivated to stay awake, there are times when tiredness overpowers the motivational control, causing a lapse in attention,” Northwestern University neuroscience Ph.D. student Erika Yamazaki said.

“That can become a microsleep and can be really dangerous when driving.”

BY SUSANNA TANG

Agrotesque plaster statue is chasing you. You fall into a manhole and land on the sandy beaches of Antarctica. Suddenly gravity dissipates and you find yourself floating through the clouds below. Fortunately, you wake up and forget most, if not all, of the bizarre adventure you’ve just endured — it was simply a dream. Of the two phases of sleep cycles, rapid eye movement sleep, from which principal dreams emerge, is the second stage of sleep that enhances memory and mood and triggers literal rapid eye movement. During a typical night of sleep, a person will cycle through alternating stages of non-REM and REM sleep in 90- to 120-minute intervals.

“Emotional processing of waking memories occurs during REM sleep,” Northwestern University neuroscience Ph.D. student Erika Yamazaki said. “We believe that it’s the processing of these memories that may be connected to dreaming.”

regionsofthebrainduringthisstageofsleep.

“We don’t know why exactly we have dreams or what they mean but we suspect they help consolidate memories,” said Cheri Mah, M.D., M.S., sleep physician and Adjunct Lecturer at the Stanford Sleep Medicine Center. “There’s a lot of theories addressing this question, but the field of sleep is still very young and research is still ongoing.” Scientists have long pondered the theory of dreams’ being epiphenomenal by-products of REM sleep. One theoretical framework, however, postulates the importance of both sufficient REM sleep and dreaming for a good night’s sleep. UC Berkeley neuroscience and psychology professor Matthew Walker proposed this framework and referred to REM-sleep dreaming in his book, “Why We Sleep,” as “overnight therapy,” revealing two main functions of dreams: nurturing one’s mental health and inspiring creativity and problem-solving.

“Daydreaming allows me to drift away from where I am,” sophomore Kashish Mittal said. “It gives me a moment to be by myself and relax.”

However, daydreaming also has its drawbacks, most commonly when it becomes excessive and starts interfering with daily tasks. Maladaptive daydreaming, also known as excessive daydreaming, may lead to decreased productivity and isolation, which diminishes the ability to focus on tasks.

Of 213 Lynbrook students, 58% of respondents voted that they often or always felt fatigued at school. Sleep deprivation, or poor quality sleep, is shown to correlate with daydreaming. A 2014 study conducted by Richard Carciofo et al., found that higher frequencies of mind wandering and daydreaming were associated with poorer sleep quality, particularly with increased sleep latency, night-time disturbance, daytime dysfunction and daytime sleepiness.

“People not getting sufficient hours of sleep, along with possible underlying health conditions, can lead to feeling sleepy in the daytime,” said Cheri Mah, M.D., M.S., sleep physician and Adjunct Lecturer at the Stanford Sleep Medicine Center. "Underlying health conditions including depression, insomnia or sleep-disorders can also result in daytime sleepiness."

When sleep-deprived, people are more prone to daydreaming as a way to counteract the lack

Daydreaming increases creativity and imagination, however, it also leads to decreased productivity and attention span. Good quality sleep, sleep that lasts between eight and 10 hours a day, reduces the negative effects of both sleep deprivation and daydreaming. Sleep deprivation is shown to directly influence the likeliness of daydreaming, which decreases productivity. With the same workload left, teenagers are seen prioritizing finishing tasks over sleep, resulting in an endless cycle that leads to tiredness and grogginess.

REM sleep plays a significant role in boosting the immune system, consolidating memory and regulating mood. Thus, those unable to satisfy their body’s craving for REM sleep may feel fatigued and lethargic in the daytime.

“I run cross country and track, so sufficient sleep is really important for my speed, stamina and recovery between races,” junior Adit Kantak said. “Once I slept for five hours on a race day and I could feel that there was significantly less power in my legs than usual.”

REM sleep is commonly known as dreaming sleep, as dreams are stimulated by changes in brain activity during REM sleep. Magnetic resonance imaging studies have established that the prefrontal cortex — responsible for cognitive behavior and logical decision-making — is suppressed during this stage of sleep, temporarily deactivating rational thoughts. Similar studies have also shown stronger-than-normal activity in visual, motor and emotional

During a 24-hour day, REM sleep is the only time in which a person’s brain is completely devoid of noradrenaline, an anxiety-triggering molecule. REMsleep loss encourages higher levels of noradrenaline, thus increasing restlessness and anxiety. A common example of this phenomenon can be seen in human tendencies to overthink at night and feel better in the morning.

“Sleeping is a big stress reliever for me,” Kantak said. “Sometimes I have trouble falling asleep at night because of stress, but when I wake up in the morning I realize that everything is alright.”

In addition to its mental-health benefits, brain activity during REM-sleep dreaming also extracts commonalities from knowledge obtained during the day by associating distant memories beyond the narrow scope of the conscious mind. One example Walker uses to illustrate this finding is language acquisition in babies: during their REM sleep, babies unconsciously extract rules of grammar from daytime experiences, despite lacking explicit awareness of the rules.

“Sometimes I think of really good solutions to life problems in my dreams,” sophomore Rhea Soni said. “I try to remember the solutions when I wake up but it feels like it’s just in the corner of my mind and I can’t reach it.” Achieving sufficient REM sleep is crucial in optimizing creativity and consolidating memories from waking experiences. Mah describes the concept of memory consolidation as needing REM sleep to hit the “save” button on the material one has just studied; without that sleep, it would be harder to recall those memories in subsequent days.

Having a good night’s sleep is crucial to optimizing not only health but also performance during the day.

“It’s not impossible to balance your sleep, academics and social life,” Mah said. “What you invest in your sleep is going to impact your performance in everything else — how you do in school, interact with friends and feel in general — so it’s important to put sleep first.”

of Lynbrook students surveyed sleep for an average of fewer than seven hours daily

Behind SF police’s controversial killer robots

BY DAEUN CHUNG AND QIANZI LOO

Most of the robots are used for defusing bombs or dealing with hazardous substances. While they can be modified to carry lethal weapons, the changes have not yet been made.

Potential concerns with the use of LAWS continue to arise, though they may place officers in a safer position. These concerns include the liability of lethal action with autonomous weapons. It isn’t probable for a robot to take responsibility, and manufacturers are exempt from the duty of caring toward those the robot would be used against, according to exceptions under the Federal Torts Claims Act. Unlike regular citizens, police officers also receive qualified immunity, which protects them from being prosecuted in many instances should it be deemed that they acted in self-defense. Changes have been made to hold more officers responsible for their actions, yet officers still get a lot of flexibility due to the nature of their job. Supervisors are also not typically criminally liable for their subordinates’ actions.

LAWS are designed to independently identify the target and attack them based on its computer algorithm and collected data from its surroundings, without any human operator. With LAWS, there’s a risk that the information being fed into the system isn’t completely unbiased. Consequently, there will be situations where the robot’s actions may not be foreseeable.

“There are still a lot of concerns with robots in terms of what type of information it collects and how it uses them,” Forensic Science Club President Thomas Zheng said. “All forms of technology or robots can be potentially hacked or malfunction which

can lead to unintended consequences.”

However, the benefits of robots in policing are also worth noting as seen when police dealt with a bomb threat in Austin, Texas in 2018. After suspicious packages with bombs inside were delivered to Austin residents, the police used robots to further investigate inside the facility. The robots could get the tracking number of the package by using their cameras and manipulator arms, identifying the suspect with this information. Later on, a Squat, a steel robot, was also used to search the suspect’s house in Austin to make sure it was safe for human investigators to go inside.

In Dallas, killer robots are already actively involved in policing. In 2016, the Dallas Police Department used a Remotec robot armed with an explosive to take out an enemy sniper, who had killed five officers and injured seven more. It was considered as the safest alternative at the time to eliminate the suspect.

“If you are using an autonomous killer robot, in what situation is it acceptable to kill someone?” Computer Science Club President and senior Ryan Chen said. “Even with remote-controlled robots, if police officers are able to harm people from behind a screen, they might become disassociated with what they’re doing, which makes it easier for them to abuse the technology and over-police.”

Deescalation is an essential part of a police officer’s role, and there are many ways in which they process hidden body language from the suspect that machines may not be able to notice. Under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, “every human being has the inherent right to life,” but with the lack of deescalation opportunity, it is unclear whether suspects will be given a last-minute chance to surrender.

Perhaps with the improvement of AI, there is a possibility machines would be able to take on the role of officers in

dangerous situations, but currently, they lack fundamental “human” qualities that concern critics of LAWS.

“As machines, fully autonomous weapons cannot comprehend or respect the inherent dignity of human beings,” said Professor Bonnie Docherty from the Harvard Law School International Human Rights Clinic.

“The inability to uphold this underlying principle of human rights raises serious moral questions about the prospect of allowing a robot to take a human life.”

encourages the militarization of the police force. Forty-four community groups signed a protest letter which stated that the policy would needlessly endanger lives and make the public feel uncomfortable under any circumstances. With active protests, the board, with a vote of eight to three, banned the use of killer robots on Dec. 7, 2022, sending the policy back to its Rules Committee for further discussion.

All forms of technology or robots can be potentially hacked or malfunction.

Taking a closer look at the Bay Area, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors initially allowed the SFPD to use teleoperated robots to arrest a criminal suspect if risk of loss of life to members of the public or officers is imminent and outweighs any other force options available. As this policy was expected to prevent atrocities and a mass shooting in which automatic rifles are involved, the San Francisco Supervisors voted eight to three in favor of the plan.

Thomas Zheng, Forensic Science Club President

“Robots help reduce the risk of injury to police officers or individuals in the Criminal Defense Department field,” Zheng said.

However, since the SFPD argued to use robots that were developed to disarm bombs in war zones, concerns of this policy were raised by many non-profit organizations and civil activists, who claimed that this policy

The San Francisco city government has always worried about the abuse of technology in policing since 2019. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed the “Stop Secret Surveillance Ordinance” on May 14, 2019, which regulates the use of surveillance technology by the city departments’ law enforcement agencies. They believed that this policy would address the public’s concern about privacy related to questions like how long data is stored and prevent any racial discrimination that can be caused by the technology.

“Studies show that when new technology comes around, everybody initially goes through a fear and distrust phase and it’s a natural part of accepting new things,” computer science teacher Bradley Fulk said. “Whether that technology goes away or not depends on how effective it is. However, I still do not trust a robot’s ability to make important decisions relating to life and death based on artificial intelligence and machine learning, at least yet.“

In November 2022, San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors allowed the SFPD to use killer robots.

The robots are made to protect civilians and ofcers, attack suspects and defuse bombs.

44 community groups signed a petition stating the killer robots would endanger lives.

These

robots

integrate artifcial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to identify criminals.

Story continued from front page.

The sports betting industry fghts against the odds

BY JASMINE RIHAL AND INAAYA YOUSUF

Participating in sports has become an integral part of everyday life, whether cheering for a team, playing a sport, or most recently, placing wagers on certain events or games. Sports betting is a rising industry growing in popularity, bolstered by the increasing legalization of betting around the U.S. and online presence through mobile betting.

“The greater popularity of sports and betting on sports has largely led to the increase of the industry, especially online betting,” said Ronald Riggio, Professor of Leadership and Organizational Psychology at Claremont McKenna College. “With online sports betting, you don’t have to rely on word-of-mouth or face-to-face encounters, which has led to some of the increase.”

In 1919, eight White Sox club members intentionally lost the World Series game against the Cincinnati Reds, now infamously known as the Black Sox Scandal. This scandal exposed the corrupt practices of the sports betting industry and prompted states to ban numerous forms of gambling by creating organizations to combat this growing problem.

During the Prohibition Era, local mafias continued to rise and a main source of revenue was sports betting and making illegal bets. These illegal ventures

increased their income and helped build their empires.

“The mafia was essentially filling the demand for sports betting,” Economics and history teacher Luca Signore said. “It was illegal, but the mafia was more than happy to provide these services at a very steep cost for the consumers.”

Organized crime syndicates dominated the industry, which caused the government to take more action to protect consumers while also fighting the growing corruption in the industry.

In 1992, the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act was passed, which banned states and governments from legalizing sports wagering. States could no longer “sponsor, operate, advertise, promote, license or authorize” sports betting. The Supreme Court has since voted to overturn

online sports communities, fantasy leagues have also become a factor in sports betting.

In fantasy leagues, fans can play and bet games against other fans — a concept similar to the idea of sports betting. These numbers can increase when the season is in play when many fans are invested in what is going on.

“Fantasy Leagues allowed sports betting to get to the point where it is today because at first leagues promoted fantasy leagues but then they made a shift to sports betting as a way to increase revenue and viewership,” junior Pranav Durbha said.

There is also significant celebrity involvement that encourage people to place bets. Notable celebrities that frequent in sports gambling include Drake, who bets on many basketball and football games, 50 Cent, who has won over a million dollars on the Giants and Floyd Mayweather, who used to

opportunity for celebrities to endorse and it can influence our behavior.”

The most common reason people indulge in sports betting is the possibility and excitement that comes with a risky win of money, as most gambling methods do. Sports betting also leads to more fan engagement, it allows people to feel like they are in a community and are becoming more involved in the general sports industry as well.

“We keep gambling to get that shot of adrenaline and the psychological high of being rewarded,” Riggio said. “We never know when the next payoff is going to come, so that leads us to keep trying for the next win which makes it hard to stop.”

Sports betting is currently legal in 31 states while mobile betting is legal in 21 states. The thrill of making risky money drives fans to bet more money causing this industry to grow at unimaginable rates. However, this has led to concerns about issues such as addiction and financial harm, which are important to monitor as the industry continues to

“Gambling doesn’t really provide any sort of positive outcome for society, there’s no positively externality to gambling except for the people who are winning the bets and those who are taking the bets,” Signore said.

Painting false shades of reality with greenwashing

BY EILEEN ZHU AND VALERIE SHU

As consumers have become increasingly aware of their environmental impact, companies have begun marketing themselves as eco-friendly. However, many do not truly follow through with fulfilling their “green” promises. Known as greenwashing, this practice of concealing a company’s harmful operations with misleading claims about their eco-friendly products can result in mass confusion, complacency and devastating environmental impacts.

“Sustainability initiatives or similar efforts might add costs or require changing corporate strategy, so we often see greenwashing with companies wanting to see benefits from the consumer side of being able to talk about a green attribute without actually having to do the work behind it,” said Natalie

Kaner, Sustainability Advisor at Pure Strategies.

Greenwashing and an individual consumer’s sense of responsibility can be traced back to the 1990s, when increasing public awareness surrounding companies’ contributions to climate change prompted the promotion of misleading ideas surrounding eco-friendliness, some of which are still prominent today. For example the term “carbon footprint” was popularized by oil and gas company British Petroleum in the early 2000s as part of a movement attempting to shift public attention away from corporate accountability, focusing instead on the impact made by the individual consumer in their daily life. On the contrary, research has shown that only 100 companies are responsible for over 70% of greenhouse gas emissions since 1988.

In response to this shift in consumer awareness, companies have worked to not only conceal harmful practices, but also attract customers with positive environmental claims. In 1992, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission issued the Green Guides, regulations designed to restrict the extent of deception allowed in marketing and branding. Regardless, companies continued to employ greenwashing in increasingly unconventional or subtle ways.

In some cases, greenwashing can be as simple as using green-colored labels, nature imagery or vague wording. Phrases with generally positive connotations but no official regulations, like “green” and “natural,” are left up for interpretation to advertisers and consumers, allowing companies to withhold specific details or exaggerate certain characteristics. Another example of greenwashing can be marketing products under positive, official sounding certifications with very little actual credibility or

weight. Entire industries can be based on these misleading tactics.

“The whole recycling of plastic is essentially a version of greenwashing,” Biology teacher Isaac Pallone said. “Most plastic products aren’t recycled, they just go to the landfill regardless of the label. Brands lead you to believe that you’re doing something good for the environment, giving people a false sense of contribution.”

An example of greenwashing in the food industry is Coca-Cola Life, a bestselling drink launched in 2013 that owed its success to being marketed as a healthier alternative to regular sodas. In reality, the bright green label sporting the claim of “35% less sugar” misled customers into believing the drink was much healthier than it actually was. Experts have since exposed that the reduction of sugar barely made a difference in terms of health, as the drinks were still significantly high in sugar. After making Coca-Cola a profit of $10 million, the product was discontinued in 2017.

initiatives in general, preventing actual environmental steps from being taken as well. Greenwashing also leads to the spread of misinformation and complacency, undoing the efforts of actual initiatives for climate change.

“It starts with education,” Pallone said. “People need to be more informed and educated as to what is and isn’t good for the environment.”

68%

Of U.S. companies are guilty of greenwashing

The multinational oil and gas company Shell also put out multiple advertising campaigns on reducing carbon emissions and becoming a global net-zero program, implying that their efforts would help the world shift to renewable energy. Reports later revealed that under the facade of these campaigns, the company continued to seek oil and gas production opportunities, only using 1% of its investments to support renewable energy despite its progressive claims.

Similarly, car brand Volkswagen was caught falsifying data on diesel vehicle emission reports in 2015. Their “clean diesel” cars were exposed as being designed to produce lower emissions when tested but having 40% higher emissions during normal driving. Although this scandal led to Volkswagen facing legal issues and fines, swaying its public image temporarily, the brand continued to be profitable and generally successful in the years to come.

While some brands make genuine efforts to meet their claims, companies that greenwash undermine public trust in brands and green

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY LARRY WANG AND VALERIE SHU

Lynbrook swimmers explore new potential in diving

BY CHELSEA LEE

In the past few years, Lynbrook’s diving team has consistently been composed of five divers or fewer. In the 2021-22 season, Lynbrook only had two divers: Claire Chen, current senior and team captain, and Jodi Au, Class of 2022 alum. However, the team grew to a total of 10 total divers this school year.

Sharing some similarities with gymnastics, diving is the competitive sport of doing flips into the water. Because there were so few members in seasons of the past few school years, Lynbrook’s team trained at Monta Vista High School with the Monta Vista diving team and the same coach prior to the 2021-22 season. Since many Lynbrook students did not see divers training at Lynbrook, diving was a lesserknown sport around campus for many years. However, this season, Lynbrook swimmers became more aware of diving as an available opportunity after new diving equipment was purchased by the Lynbrook Excellence fundraising charity: two diving boards and a hot tub to stay warm between dives.

Chen played a major role in building up the diving team by encouraging swimmers whom she knew to explore their diving potential. Since then, nine new divers have been training with coach Hayley Chamblin, who joined the team during the last season as Lynbrook’s own diving coach separate from Monta Vista.

“I’m really impressed with the team,” Chen said. “We’re doing well and people are picking up dives quickly. They’re looking solid even after just two weeks of practice.”

People with some form of background in dance or gymnastics are set with the foundational skills

of diving, such as being familiar with balance, pikes and tucks. However, overcoming the fear of flipping off the board is what crafts a diver with strong potential. For junior Esha Rai, many of the techniques she learned from gymnastics carried over to her techniques on the diving team.

“My background in gymnastics provided me with skills that are equally important to both gymnastics and diving,” Rai said. “Many dives therefore came easily to me — almost like muscle memory — which made me feel more confident as a new diver.”

Overcoming the fear of committing to a dive while flipping off the board is just as important as technique for new divers. Although diving’s largest obstacles are mental, the team’s lively encouragement helps them surmount these challenges.

“When I still could not do a front flip off of the diving board even after three days of practice, my team made me go back to the pool to try it again, cheering me on and singing and clapping,” junior Kyrsten Su said. “They are the best, most supportive group of people ever. Even though I totally sucked at doing it, they cheered when I finally got off the board.”

As the team captain and only experienced teammate, returning for her fourth season on the team, Chen’s demonstrations of technique and mindset are a great lesson for new

divers.

“She has the competence to try really hard dives, which makes us feel inclined to push ourselves as well,” senior Joseph Zou said.

While most of the divers have already gotten to know each other as teammates on Lynbrook’s swim team, the divers’ team dynamics have grown even stronger since joining the diving team. They build memories when listening to music while in the hot tub and getting sushi dinners, boba or frozen yogurt together after diving practices. Chamblin has also organized a hand-eye coordination game for divers in which they attempt to catch marshmallows mid-jump into the pool — a difficult task that sparks laughter all around. The team documents these fun-loving moments on diving their team Instagram profile, @lynbrookdiving.

“Everyone is really friendly with each other, and we have a group chat that’s

really active, which is nice because in such a big group like swimming, we didn’t have so much of a community,” Su said.

After less than five weeks of practice, the team competed in their first meet against Cupertino High School on March 2nd. The Vikings won with Chen in first place for girls and sophomore Tanay Ubale in first for boys.

“I’m very proud of their positivity and effort in just going for it,” Chamblin said. “With dive technique in general, there’s a lot to master, but this first meet was a good learning experience for them, and it looked like they had fun.”

Grace Ker’s journey to the international ranks

BY AUDREY SUN

In a sweaty stadium resounding with the screams of an excited audience, Team USA becomes the World Cup Cadets champion as the final member of the team wins against her opponent.

Sophomore Grace Ker and her teammates rush to the fencing strip, embracing the winner with pride.

Ker was first introduced to fencing when she was nine years old. A family friend had recommended her to try out the sport since it involved a lot of strategy and wasn’t as physically demanding.

Grace Ker, Sophomore

Since joining the USA Cadet Fencing team and competing in sabre, Ker’s schedule has been packed with regular travel to compete against international opponents.

“I was able to travel to many European countries this year during the World Cups,” Ker said. “It was really nice getting to explore the countries while connecting with my team.”

In 2023, Ker competed in two national and international competitions. Her most memorable moment

was winning the world championships at the World Cup in Romania. This win was significant to her because it helped her learn the value of building strong relationships among a team. The close-knit relationships between everyone on their team helped them support each other and reduce stress during the competition, ultimately carrying them to win.

“We were cheering much louder than all the other teams,” Ker said. “I feel like our team dynamic carried us to win, which was really fun and rewarding.”

On average, Ker has two to three hours of training for four days a week. She trains at Cardinal Fencing Club in the Stanford University facility, where they sometimes train with the Stanford fencing team.

Ker initially started learning fencing with foil, the lightest and most commonly seen fencing blade, but she eventually switched to sabre. Unlike the other two fencing blades, which involve timing aspects, sabre is faster so it does not require a timer.

Ker enjoys this because she doesn’t have to worry about the time while competing and can play to her strengths by focusing on her speed and agility.

Success in sabre relies heavily on strategy — Ker likes that athletes are constantly refining their approaches and adapting their mindset to compete against different opponents they face.

“I like that everyone has their own unique way of playing,” Ker said. “It really makes competing more interesting and fun.”

Before joining the USA fencing team, Ker mainly relied on increasing her speed and focusing on quick movements to win a match. This tactic worked in her early years of fencing because her opponents at that age were not fully developed in their skill. As Ker faced older and more advanced opponents, they were able to discern her strategy and figure out how to counteract it.

“I had to learn how to change my strategy,” Ker said. “This was one of my greatest struggles because I had to learn to change and adapt, while still being myself and doing what I’m good at.”

Another one of Ker’s challenges has been to overcome

her fear of falling down ranks. Fencing rankings fluctuate much more often than that of other sports, so it’s important for fencers to stay humble even after a big win.

“After achieving a lot of good results, it’s really easy to get beaten by others because of the pressure from high expectations,” Ker said. “Staying focused in the game and not on my rank helps a lot.”

Something that helps Ker stay focused in a game is to perform various five-second warmups, such as doing jumps before a match or bending her blade after every point. This acts as a mental reset for her, helping her acknowledge that the point is over and to get ready for the next.

In the upcoming year, Ker plans to continue attending competitions and working on her technique. She will also be actively involved in the college recruitment process and hopes to commit before February of next year.

Staying focused in the game and not on my rank helps me a lot.

PHOTO BY SUSANNA TANG GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATIONS BY DAEUN CHUNG AND CALVIN ZHOU

B, E, G: USED WITH PERMISSION FROM LYNBROOK DIVING TEAM A, C, D, F, H, I: PHOTOS BY CHELSEA LEE

D.

E.

A.

B.

C.

F.

G.

H.

I.

Building muscle and confdence at the weight room

BY LILLY WU

Since its addition to the Lynbrook campus, the weight room has become a supportive haven for students interested in fitness, promoting both a healthy lifestyle and self-confidence.

Remodeled in 2017, Lynbrook’s weight room has always been a part of campus and is open to all students every day after school until 5 p.m. Under the supervision of weight training teacher Ray Wright, students work out with the various types of equipment the room offers — machine weights, stationary bikes and resistance bands are just a small portion of the room’s inventory.

The environment of the weight room is supportive and welcoming for all students — even those with limited experience in working out. The seasoned exercisers are eager to welcome anyone into the community to begin their journey. When junior William Jiao first began working out in the weight room, he felt supported by the constant encouragement from his peers. After receiving advice from Wright and having motivational conversations with other students, Jiao grew confident in his abilities and continued to pursue his dreams.

“I have gotten a lot stronger physically from lifting weights, but what I think is even stronger are the bonds I created with my friends in the weight room,” Jiao said.

Senior Sophia Das has had similar experiences with the weight room’s encouragement. Over time, the weight room has built a solid community of dedicated gym goers who will always help each other out.

“If you go up to someone and ask them to spot you or to show you an exercise, they would be willing to help you out and I think that’s really cool,” Das said.

Gym buddies are a common occurrence in the weight room, as friends work together to achieve their shared goals. From spotting to correcting each other, companions can improve cooperatively while developing a close friendship.

“My best friend and I like to go to the weight room together, and

I really enjoy having someone along with me during my journey to drag me to the gym when I don’t feel like going,” junior Alita Huang said. “Though it is nice to have someone cheering you on from the sidelines, I think it’s even better for them to be there with you.”

While students’ motivations for working out vary, many of these students are athletes during their off-season hoping to enhance their sports skills. Meanwhile, other motivations include health reasons unrelated to sports, as regular physical activity is known to reduce the risk of disease, strengthen muscles and ease one’s ability to do everyday activities.

“Personally, I go so that I can correct muscle imbalances and just feel stronger overall,” Das said. “Working out also helps me sleep better.”

Aside from the physical benefits, working out aids students mentally as

well; exercise can be a source of solace and release of emotion, as it can reduce anxiety, depression and negative mood while improving self esteem.

“Going to the weight room helps me relax, destress and get some alone time,” junior Jacky Wang said. “After consistently working out for about a year, I feel like I have become more confident. It’s a great feeling.”

However, the imbalance between the number of men and women in the room is clear from just a quick glance around. To diversify the gym, current gym-goers are working to garner weight room interest from girls through a weight training club. The group plans to hold lunch meetings to teach proper form and etiquette, while spending time after school to do group workout sessions. Mentorship programs where experienced and novice exercisers are paired together will also be implemented for students to make friends as they develop their skills.

“Girls may not want wide shoulders or bigger thighs because it’s considered less flattering in social standards, resulting in many of them not going to the weight room,” Huang said. “I can definitely see how this can be an intimidating situation, but what’s great is that Mr. Wright and most people in the weight room are incredibly encouraging.”

The weight room is also where Wright’s three weight training classes take place. Open to sophomores, juniors and seniors, this course provides instruction on how to use gym equipment properly and encourages students to begin their fitness journey. From enhancing the skills of athletes to introducing newcomers to the world of fitness, Lynbrook’s weight room has brought a new air of community and health to the campus.

“The weight room is a super supportive environment for people of all ages, genders, and experience levels,” Huang said, “Come with the intention to improve your body or mental health, and we will welcome you right in.”

Student athletes squash their way to victory

BY ANUSHKA ANAND

Squash is a racket sport played by two players in an indoor four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball. After the ball is served, the players take turns hitting the ball against the front wall under red lines, which mark the court’s boundaries.

Following his older sister, Kanchi started playing squash in the summer of 2014. He faced the tough decision of choosing between squash and tennis, but ultimately fell in love with the indoor court of squash and the competitiveness and excitement that came with each match. Kanchi also loved meeting others in his age group who had similar interests.

“It was just a fun way to spend time with others outside of school,” Kanchi said.

Athreya began playing squash in February 2016 after being inspired by his friends who played squash — Kanchi being one of them. They encouraged him to play and told

the back corner of the other, because it is really hard for the opponent to continue playing after. Athreya values the straight drive, a shot in which the ball is hit to run parallel along the side wall and land in the back corner.

After winning their first U11 tournaments, Kanchi and Athreya tried to play as many tournaments, usually a month or two apart, to improve their ratings and rankings. As squash is played more on the East Coast, especially in New York and Philadelphia, the sport requires a lot of traveling. Kanchi has played tournaments in 27 states, while Athreya enjoys playing in the tournaments closer to home since he may not have as much time to travel for the tournaments hosted on the East Coast.

Being both academically and athletically rigorous studentathletes, Kanchi and Athreya have worked to find their balance between school and squash and remind themselves every day of their priorities.

“I just have to push myself to set aside time for squash,” Athreya said. “I add it as a big priority and major part of my

court that day. Whether he wins or loses a point, or even a game, Kanchi makes sure he doesn’t react or show his positive or negative emotions to his opponent to keep his mind focused.

Dry patches, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, required the players to work extra hard to catch up to other athletes in their divisions.

“Because of the pandemic, I hadn’t played for a year and a half,” Kanchi said. “It took me a while to catch up to other players who had improved a lot, especially since I was aging up to the next division.”

However, the supportive and competitive nature of tournaments has always been a major source of motivation for Kanchi and Athreya to continue playing.

After every tournament, Kanchi plans a dinner with his friends to celebrate matches he played during the day. Both athletes love traveling around the country to participate in tournaments.

Each practicing two-hour sessions five to six times per week, Athreya is ranked 137 nationally in the U17 men’s division and Kanchi is ranked 55 in U19.

“Playing by yourself might not be as fun as playing against someone else,” Athreya said. “But training on your own against the wall is crucial to improving.”

PHOTO BY LILLY WU GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY DAEUN CHUNG

PHOTO BY ANUSHKA ANAND GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY CALVIN ZHOU

Importance of self-defense skills for a safer future

BY AMISHI CHANDRA

As students graduate high school, they’re often faced with unfamiliar and dangerous situations and places as they journey through adulthood. Students should take it upon themselves to prioritize learning self-defense in preparation for moving out and becoming independent, as it gives them the ability to defend themselves ,if necessary, and develops discipline of the mind and body.

The use of pepper sprays and tasers is commonly associated with self-defense. Unfortunately, these gadgets are neither effective nor reliable self-defense weapons, as they tend to have slow response times ,and sometimes may not work at all. The best way to defend oneself from physical harm is by learning how to properly fight off offenders.

“Martial arts is a form of self-defense and it is very effective,” Martial Arts Club Treasurer James Hsieh said. “You will always have martial arts in your head, but you’re not always going to have a taser or pepper spray with you. Even if it’s a little bit, everyone should have some experience in defending

themselves.”

Martial arts is one form of self-defense in which people learn various combat techniques. Different forms of martial arts — the most famous being karate and taekwondo — teach people how to remain calm if they are ever being attacked and retaliate efficiently and effectively to ensure their own safety. Each form of martial arts emphasizes different parts of the body and is important to learn for any dangerous scenario a person may find themselves in.

“Martial arts has given me more confidence,” senior Iryna Iziumska said. “I know how my body moves and am more aware of my surroundings. If there’s an emergency situation, I know what to do and am not stuck in fear.”

Though Lynbrook has had many assemblies and advisories for students in which teachers and visiting educators speak about maintaining student safety and the prevention of cyber-bullying, it would be highly beneficial to have more school

assemblies which focus on physical selfdefense and what a student should do if they ever find themselves at risk of being harmed by anyone.

In addition to implementing lessons about self-defense, students should also be encouraged to practice physical fitness in new ways and physically engage in exercises that promote self-defense skills. The more that students practice, the more likely they would be able to successfully defend themselves when faced with a threat. One way for students to learn self-defense for free is by participating in Martial Arts Club which teaches various fundamental fighting skills. Students can also take the course Total Body Fitness, which covers a unit of kickboxing, in which students learn how to defend themselves in a different self-defense form.

Another benefit of knowing self-defense is that it develops keenness, allowing people to be more aware of their own surroundings.

People, who train in self-defense learn how to control their mind and body, allowing them to respond efficiently to situations in which they are being attacked or threatened. In addition, people will gain more confidence not only in their abilities, but they will also improve their overall mental health, learning to give priority to their body and mind.

Students would best benefit from learning about self-defense before they leave high school, whether it be taking total body fitness classes, participating in Martial Arts Club or taking free self-defense classes online, because these skills can potentially save their own or others’ lives and will last a lifetime long past high school.

“While pepper sprays are a good measure of selfdefense, you can’t always seek it out really fast,” Iziumska said. “If you know how to defend yourself you can be prepared for any situation. Self-defense has real life applications, so I think it would be really beneficial for the students.”

Spikeball spikes interest among Lynbrook students

BY SAMIYA ANWAR

Whether it be during lunch, tutorial or any momentary break from studying, there will almost always be a Spikeball game happening in the quad or on Stober Field.

A longstanding part of Lynbrook’s campus culture, the game has traditionally been led by seniors, who often have more free time throughout the day with a shorter class schedule. Interest in this hobby spiked at the beginning of the 2021-22 school year, when senior Leo Huang started playing the game with his friends during brunches and lunches. Later in the school year, when members of the track team wanted to

pass time before their practices started, a new friend group was formed. Since then, the playing group has grown larger and larger, eventually creating a welcoming environment open for interested students of any grade level who want to play to join.

“We love expanding our community,” senior Bethany Chan said. “If anyone wants to play, they can just come up to us. We don’t mind if you have experience or not.”

Spikeball has brought the groups closer as friends not only by learning each other’s habits and playstyles while teaming up during the game, but also by creating new friendships along the way. Many students beyond the original friend group have joined in to play over the past semester.

The players have even bought more Spikeball nets to accommodate the growing number of

students who want to play.

“Our rule of thumb has always been that if anyone is interested, they’re down to join,” Huang said. “We’re always open to teaching anyone the game.”

For senior Ryan Kim, Spikeball was his introduction to his friend group this school year. Kim moved to San Jose, California in the summer of 2022 and had a lot of apprehensions about making new friends at a new school, especially during his senior year. At Viking Day he seized the opportunity to ask the Spikeball group if he could play with them.

Ryan Kim, Senior

“Spikeball was my introduction to a large group of people, and these people are still my friends to this day, “Kim said. “When you sweat and rejoice with strangers, it’s hard to stay

strangers with them.”

The future of Spikeball at Lynbrook is unknown. The great majority of the Spikeball group is made up of seniors, meaning they will inevitably graduate at the end of the school year.

“We hope that the few sophomores and juniors who are playing with us will be able to find more people who share our passion for Spikeball, especially those who are too intimidated to try out the game with us seniors,” Huang said.

Having self-defense skills is crucial to student safety when faced with physical threats.

When you sweat and rejoice with strangers, it’s hard to stay strangers with them

PHOTO BY CHELSEA LEE

PHOTO BY MAPLE LEUNG

PHOTO BY MAPLE LEUNG

A beneft of knowing self-defense is that it develops awareness for one’s surroundings.

A look at teachers’ classroom decorations

BY SRUTHI MEDEPALLI

Plastered on classrooms walls around campus, posters, photos and stray Homecoming decorations reflect the individuality of Lynbrook students, as well as the sincerity of lessons taught by teachers. A vessel for each teacher to express themselves and their interests, distinctive decor integrates originality into every lesson.

an environment where every student

Thanh Nguyen, Room 001

A remnant of Homecomings past, Mr. Nguyen displays this large cardboard astronaut next to his collection of astrophysics and space posters.

Larry Wenner, Room 74 Each official poster added to this wall signifies and marks the celebration of another successful play or musical for Studio 74.

Matthew Reynolds, Room 70

This intricate mural bids students goodbye as they leave the art room, the creative haven on campus.

David Clarke, Room 209 A sundry assortment of various momentos and treasured words, Mr. Clarke’s literature classroom is filled to the brim with inspiration and character, almost a living entity that grows everyday.

Nicole Della Santina, Room 303 Paper DNA strands are suspended from the ceiling of this biology classroom, reminding students every time they look up that science is, in fact, all around them.

Josh Miller, Room 611

A collage of photos and postcards commemorate Mr. Miller’s savored travel memories and each of his favorite destinations.

Judy Schulze, Room 73 Displays of student art, such as these sketches and canvases, foster

feels valued.