Edition 7 | 2015

The Voice EDITION Seven

O-Week 2.o debating Pluto the non-planet Astrology city 2 surf North Ryde Fun Run Crayon Art

ANOTHER SEMESTER, ANOTHER RANCH, ANOTHER MEMORY An official warm welcome from us to semester two of the year. The time has already flown as we end week three and approach week four. It’s no secret the year goes quick when you live at college. There just isn’t enough time to sit down and contemplate it all - between Ranch, Ubar, procasination and dinners at 5:30pm I’m completely booked.

We hope your winter break was wonderful and relaxing! Welcome back to winter for those who travelled into summer - say goodbye to that European Tan you were hoping to keep for Ball.

This issue is a light, easy-going re-cap of what has happened in the last weeks of college alongside some interesting crayon art to try and maybe even join up for the North Ryde Fun Run?

Jack + Ivana THEVOICE 1

O-Week 2.0 Monday The week started off with a trip to Mac City for laser tag and bowling where the competition was fierce and a little terrifying for the newer freshers #gotcha

Tuesday The classic City-Outing was spent on this fine night, where a whole bunch of noisy collegians get on the train only to go out and return noisy again.

Wednesday The morning started with a early wake-up call from a fire drill, conveniently located after the City Outing. Rumour has it Wixton knocked over a candle. Pancakes and hot chocolate made the day a little better but nothing fixes an early-start like a ‘Back to School’ Ranch Night.

Thursday The day must go on. Pyjamas were seen after midday but no fire-alarm or Ranch night stopped a true trooper from attending Ubar Winter Haze - just like summer only nobody asks why you’re covered up like a sister.

Friday It was time to lay-back and bring in the family with a bit of block verse block in our own Family Feud. The night was intense. Laura Coleman had been practicing over the break.

Saturday It was adventure time before week 2 came along and we had no choice but to attend classes. RMC went to Taronga Zoo and saw many animals including Jack. The night ended with a relaxed movie night of ‘The Spy’.

Top Scoring Speakers of the night

INTER -BLOCK DEBATING

1.Jim Johnston (B Block) 2.Peta Hathaway (N/S Block) 3.Chris Marlow (N/S Block) 4.Matt Su (D Block) Jim Johnston also came away with the People's Choice for best speaker.

1. That we should all become vegetarian - A Block (affirmative) vs C Block (negative)

Bart Simpson may say 'Don't have a cow, man', but A Block showed that that was the way of the future by winning their debate against C Block

2. That marriage is an outdated institution - D Block (affirmative) vs B Block (negative)

3. That residential colleges would be better run by students - Staff Team (affirmative) vs N/S Block (negative)

B Block proved that marriage still has legs in the 21st century by defeating D Block

N/S Block proved that students should never run residential colleges by out-arguing the Staff in both debating and attire. N/S were also the big winners of the night, gaining the best overall score amongst all the blocks.

The next debate will be the Intercollegiate debate held between DLC and RMC. The topic is that 'Residential Colleges should be alcohol free'. RMC will be arguing against this while DLC will be arguing for it.

Tuesday 17th August at 7.30pm. RMC will be hosting the event this year.

PLUTO ASTROLOGY SAILOR MOON Whether you’re a believer in science, a firm follower of horoscopes or you really enjoy watching cartoons we’ve got you covered

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Jack’s Solar System Throwback Sailor Moon She fought evil by moonlight. She won love by daylight. She never ran from a real fight. She is the one named Sailor Moon.

While most of us would remember Sailor Moon from the television series that aired in the 90’s, Sailor Moon first found life in an immensely popular Manga in Japan. ‘Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon’ first appeared in 1991 as part of a magazine called ‘Nakayoshi’, where it was written and illustrated by Naoko Takeuchi. It continued being serialised in Nakayoshi until 1997, when all 52 individual chapters were released in 18 volumes.

The combined series has sold over 35 million copies worldwide.

The storyline focused on Usage Tsukino, the titular Sailor Moon as she leads the Sailor Soldiers (including Mercury, Venus, Mars and Jupiter), as they do battle against the forces of darkness. Originally only 4 Sailor Soldiers were introduced to the series, those corresponding to the inner planets of the Solar System (Mercury, Venus and Mars), as well as Jupiter. Later on, Sailors Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto were introduced. All these characters were featured in the television adaption of the Manga, but there were other Sailor Soldiers who did not make the cut. The ‘Sailor Quartet’ or ‘Asteroid Senshi’ comprised Sailors Ceres, Pallas, Juno and Vesta. Sailor Ceres is named after a minor planet of the same name located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Pallas, Juno and Vesta are all named after asteroids and asteroid clumps in the aforementioned asteroid belt.

The anime television adaption first aired in Japan in 1992 and was, like its parent manga series, a massive hit. It was originally meant to run for 6 months, but was continuously extended because of its popularity, ending in 1997 after 5 seasons and over 200 episodes. The english dub of the series that is beloved by so many of us as a staple of our childhoods, first aired in 1995, after a lengthy bidding war for the rights to series between Toon Makers and DIC Entertainment, with the latter being the victor. The series was heavily altered in its transition into english. Episodes were blended together, or altogether removed because of mandates to cut length and content to comply with Canadian broadcasting standards. Names, clothing, dialogue and scenes were changed to meet these standards. Scenes depicting violence, including violence towards children were removed, as were scenes of bathing and scenes including brief nudity. Sailors Uranus and Neptune are in a relationship in the original series, but most dubs of the show merely say they are ‘good friends’ or ‘cousins’. In July 2014, a reboot of the Sailor Moon anime began to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the show.

Even with all the changes, the dub series was still a hit with audiences and generated over a billion dollars in revenue in Japan alone. Sailor Moon even aired in South Korea, who had banned Japanese media at the time due to anti-Japanese sentiment. This is how powerful Sailor Moon is.

She will never turn her back on a friend. She will always be there till the end. She is the one on whom we can depend. She is the one named Sailor Moon.

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THE CASE OF PLUTO ‘started as a planet, now we here’

In case you missed it, in July of this year, the New Horizons spacecraft became the first spacecraft to fly past Pluto. In the process, New Horizons completed a 50 year mission - getting a photo of all the planets in the solar system. Oh. Wait. Pluto isn’t a planet anymore.

It was nearly a decade ago that science text books were re-written and Pluto was demoted from the ninth planet of the solar system to being merely the largest of the solar systems dwarf planets (and second most-massive).

The term ‘dwarf planet’ was adopted in 2006, as part of a three way categorisation of objects orbiting the sun, introduced by the International Astronomical Union.

The three categories created by the IAU are; ‘planets’, ‘dwarf planets’ and ‘small solar system bodies’.

A planet is a celestial body that is; a) in orbit around the sun, b) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape and c) has cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit.

‘Clearing the neighbourhood’ refers to a planet becoming gravitationally dominant in the zone it orbits. It also means having no other bodies of comparable size other than its own satellites.

A dwarf planet is a celestial body that is; a) in orbit around the sun, b) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium, c) has not cleared the neighbourhood around its orbit and d) is not a satellite.

Small solar system bodies are any other object orbiting the sun that are not satellites.

The International Astronomical Union said this about Pluto’s classification:

“Pluto is a "dwarf planet" by the above definition and is recognized as the prototype of a new category of Trans-Neptunian Objects”.

A Trans-Neptunian Object is any minor planet in our Solar System that orbits the Sun at a greater average distance than Neptune.

So while Pluto may not be a planet anymore, it can take some consolation in being the king of the Trans-Neptunian Objects. Although that doesn’t quite have the same ring to it, does it?

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Earth

Mars

Neptune

Jupiter

Mercury

Uranus

Saturn Venus

Astrology For most of its life, astrology was considered to be a legitimate scholarly science. It wasn’t until the late 1600’s that astrology began to be called into question, after the development of new scientific principles, such as Newtonian mechanics (concerned with the physical laws describing the motion of bodies under the action of a system of forces).

In the 21st century, astrology is widely regarded as a pseudoscience, having no real explanatory power in describing the universe or events that occur on Earth. There has been extensive scientific testing into the field and no evidence has been found to support what astrology purports to do. Karl Popper, a philosopher of science, said that astrology was ‘pseudo-empirical’ and that it “did not come up to scientific standards”. Popper first proposed that astrology was a pseudoscience under the principle of ‘falsifiability’. Falsifiability is the possibility to prove a statement, theory or hypothesis to be false. A theory, hypothesis or statement, such as astrology is labeled ‘falsifiable’ if it is possible to formulate an argument which proves that the theory, statement or hypothesis is false.

In 1955, Michel Gauquelin, a psychologist and astrologist, said he had failed to find evidence that supported astrological indicators such as planetary aspects and zodiac signs in astrology. He did, however, say that he found a correlation between the success of some professional athletes and the Diurnal positions (the positions of celestial objects in relation to earths rotation) of planets. Gauquelin’s best known finding was based on the position of mars in a successful athletes natal chart. A natal chart is a map of the universe which places the person at the centre. The positions of celestial bodies is related to their position at the time of the person’s exact birth. Gauquelin’s findings became known as the ‘Mars Effect’. The study was replicated by 7 French scientists who did not find any evidence supporting the theory.

The main issue with testing the validity of astrology is that there is no agreed upon consensus of what astrology is and what it can predict. Many professionals in the field seek payment for predicting the future and identifying personality traits in a person. Most horoscopes, however, only make broad statements which can’t be tested. In western counties, ‘Western Astrology’, is the most common form of astrology. Western astrology is historically based on Tetrabiblos by Ptolemy. This itself was a continuation of Hellenistic and Babylonian traditions. Western astrology is largely horoscopic, being a form of divination based upon exact timings - such as the time of someones birth. It is also referred to as sun sign astrology. The zodiac that western astronomy is made up of 12 signs; Aquarius, Pisces, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius and Capricorn.

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Aquarius (January 21 - February 19) Symbol: The Water Bearer Element: Air Planet: Uranus Stone: Amethyst Traits: Aquarians are outgoing, loyal and quick thinkers. They sometimes seem eccentric.

(July 23 - August 22) Symbol: The Lion Element: Fire Planet: The Sun Stone: Peridot Traits: Leoneans are positive thinkers. They are leaders rather than followers.

Pisces (February 20 - March 20) Symbol: The Fish Element: Water Planet: Neptune Stone: Bloodstone Traits: Pisceans are talented, resilient, mysterious and sensitive.

Virgo (August 23 - September 23) Symbol: The Virgin Element: Earth Planet: Mercury Stone: Sapphire Traits: Virgoneans are caring and confident. They are generous, creative and supportive.

Aries (March 21 - April 20) Symbol: The Ram Element: Fire Planet: Mars Stone: Diamond Traits: Arians are outgoing and enthusiastic. They are independent and adventurous.

Taurus

(April 21 - May 21) Symbol: The Bull Element: Earth Planet: Venus Stone: Emerald Traits: Taureans can seem withdrawn or boring, but they are just discreet and determined. They enjoy the comforts of life.

Leo

Libra (September 24 - October 23) Symbol: The Scales Element: Air Planet: Venus Stone: Opal Traits: Librans are charming and harmonious. They are often successful at business as well as being peaceful.

Scorpio (October 24 - November 22) Symbol: The Scorpian Element: Water Planet: Pluto Stone: Topaz Traits: Scorpians are resilient and passionate. They are old souls and sensitive.

Gemini

(May 22 - June 21) Symbol: The Twins Element: Air Planet: Mercury Stone: Aquamarine Traits: Gemineans are excellent communicators who lead unique lives. They are explorative and intense.

Cancer

(June 22 - July 22) Symbol: The Crab Element: Water Planet: The Moon Stone: Moonstone Traits: Cancerians are true romantics, who seem sensitive at one moment and eccentric the next. They are compassionate and contradictory.

Sagittarius (November 23 - December 21) Symbol: The Archer Element: Fire Planet: Jupiter Stone: Turquoise Traits: Sagittarians are honest and optimistic. They aim high in life. They seek adventure and Independence.

Capricorn (December 22 - January 20) Symbol: The Goat Element: Planet: Stone: Traits: Capricorneans are peaceful and resilient. They are goal achievers, reliable and sympathetic.

CITY 2 SURF 2015

For the second year in a row, Robert Menzies College has participated in the annual City to Surf Challenge in Sydney. The 14km course starts in the heart of the city making its way to Bondi Beach. The event had 80,000 participants this year from young children, parents with prams and even the elderly.

"The most fun you can have while exercising!"

I enjoyed the too legit Mexican band...Sombraroes!

The event attracts thousands of fans and shop-owners who set up chairs, banners and entertainment along the race course while owners that are conveniently located on the track will often be blasting their speakers and cheering you on from their lawn chairs. You’ll be spoilt with music and enterainment and hand-outs of lollies from the Sydney public. The crowd is unlike any other.

Often while you’re running you’ll come across a ‘Legend’, a title given to a person who has run the track more times that I have gone to Uni. A shout-out must be given to 75 year old John who was competing in his 45th City to Surf and the Army Solider who wore his whole pack and uniform the whole 14 kilometres.

No matter how fit you are, the City to Surf is for all.

There’s no doubt about it, you must do it once it your life... at least.

“It was a great opportunity for all my fans to come together and cheer me on. The whole way I felt no pain just joy due to their continuous encouragement. I tried to wave to them all, there were just too many”

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- Taylor Anderton

RMC RUNNING CLUB Join your fellow collegians for a run with the RMC running club.

Every Wednesday morning at 7am and Sunday afternoons at 4pm leaving from the car-park

Runners, joggers and walkers. Named ‘Team Carlo’ in honour of RMC’s greatest ever runner Carlo ‘The Man’ Bradac, who used to run a marathon every Sunday morning for ‘fun’.

- Peta Hathaway

NORTH RYDE FUN RUN 2015 SUNDAY 30TH AUGUST Come along and support research in youth anixety and depression while also helping RMC win the Inter-College Sports Comp. Points are awarded for the number of entrants (2km & 5km) as well as positions in the 5km Run. What?

Either a 5km Run competing against DLC and the Village OR a 2km Walk.

When?

11am start for 2km Walk and 12pm start for 5km Run

Why? Raise money for research to treat anxiety and depression in young people.

How? Register by completing the attached form Or going online – http://www.northrydefunrun.com.au/ (pay full price).

Cost? $5 (discounted student rate for RMC members). You can opt to have the charge put on your RMC account.

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Crayon Art What you will need Oil Crayons (they have to be oil) Canvas Scissors Glue Hairdryer What you will need to do Choose the colours you want to use. This can be the entire spectrum of the rainbow or just a select few. Cut the crayons in half. This will enable you to have more of one colour and less of others as well as spread across the whole canvas. For colours you want less of in the artwork, simply remove one of the halves.

Spread glue across the top of your canvas. Place the crayons along the line of glue. Place the canvas against a wall on a slight incline and turn you hairdryer on. Depending on the glue you have used, it can be better to melt the crayons while the glue is wet and sticky. Hold the hairdryer roughly 10 cm away from the canvas and let the heat melt the crayons until they drip. Then let the colours flow, using the air to direct the crayon flow to create better coverage.

When the canvas is covered by the melted crayon, leave to dry for ten minutes. Then place where ever you want.

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JULY 26 - AUG 17 Jasmin Harvey: ‘Did you find out what's wrong with Maddie?’

Immy Southwell: ‘What is she pregnant?’

Simmo: ‘Who better to adjudicate than RMC's longest staying member?’

Jasmin Harvey: ‘That's just sad’ Hannah Murray: ‘I don’t know how much I can drink’. *drinks two shots*

Avanti Joshi: ‘I'm so angry right now I could even punch Jasmin’ Maddie Martin: ‘Is kendrick Lamar the one that was with Khloe’

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUCEMENT The following is a very important message for the residents of RMC. This is the first issue Jack hasn’t been on the quotes page. We thank you for your support on this matter and hope you continue to send Ivana quotes and golden moments. May there be many more issues like this to come.

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Chris Marlow: ‘I've been reading some Harry Potter Fan Fiction...’

Taylor Anderton: (After telling Peta to listen to ‘Pilgrim’): ‘their genre says “doom”’ Peta Hathaway: ‘What! that is not my genre’ Avanti Joshi: ‘Can you fly an elephant?’

Maddie Martin: ‘I'm not eating curry day again if it comes out of me like that’

Amresh: ‘I hate letting people see my ankles. I feel like such a slut’

Daniel Lee: ‘I was going to the co-op but I forgot where it is’ Charlotte Harrison: (while shuffling cards) "I'm such a good dealer! I should be a black jack dealer....... Or a drug dealer" George Timotheiou: "I can't wait until I turn 18 and go to the Ranch for the first time. I'm so sexy, girls are gonna love me"