The Wally Street Journal | Issue 1 by WHSG School Newspaper

25.11.15 Issue 1

A Quick Introduction to the Newspaper Team! Hey, I’m Nishi, I’m in Year 12. I wanted to be part of the school newspaper team because from a young age, I have been interested in reading and writing so I thought that by participating in this way, I could enhance these skills even further and have a bit of fun whilst doing so. As well as this, I do English Lit A Level and so this provides me with a place to utilise the skills I already have and establish some new ones.

I'm Serena Lewis and in Year 12. I think it’s a great idea that young people can write about what interests them and share those interests with the rest of the school. Therefore I wanted to be part of the team that makes this happen. I also hope to give general advice on any problems you may have.

I’m Lucy and I am in Year 12. I was interested in joining the school newspaper team as I thought it would be a good way to allow the voices in our school to be heard, as there is no existing platform for individual views to be expressed, as of yet. I am taking English A Level and the prospect of having hands-on experience of working with publication was exciting; and it is!

Hello, I am Jemma and I wanted to be part of the newspaper team to improve my skills at editing and organisation. I also aim to raise the profile of Music and Politics through the school.

Hi, I’m Vicki and I am in Year 12. I wanted to be involved because I was usually the person who would sit out of team activities and I wanted to make something and I thought that it would be fun!

Hi, I'm Hannah. I joined the newspaper committee due to my belief in the importance of having a forum where students’ voices can be heard. With the everyday stress of homework and our personal lives, we have little opportunity to ever sit down and write about the issues that really interest and concern us; issues that are worth sharing. I believe the school newspaper is a great outlet in which to stream these creative thoughts, and in the process spark the ideas of others.

Hey, I'm Jasmin. I'm part of the team because I've always wanted to be a part of a cool club, and what's cooler than working on a newspaper? (Also I wanted to worm Maths into the newspaper somehow, and I've succeeded)

Hi! I'm Chelsea, and I joined Year 12 in September from St. Philomena's. I was the only student from my old school that came here, so I was extremely nervous, but I found by joining clubs I was really interested in, like this one, I started to settle in. I love writing and I'm really passionate/geeky about music and so I decided to contribute regular music reviews to the newspaper in Soundtrack to Your Week. I hope you enjoy them!

I'm Aisha, the rebellious one without a picture. I know right, so ready for life! I'm in Year 12 and an external. Yup, a rare one, though I think I'm fitting in… it feels like I've been at this school forever. Why did I join this committee? In days full of bustling around with papers, pens and binders, it's my place to use technology to write something that I want. As Stephen King said "quiet people have loud minds". So how loud is mine?

Hi, I’m Lucy. I wanted to be a part of the school newspaper as I am enthusiastic about journalism and editing. Also, the prospect of having an outlet for young women to voice their opinions is something which is important to me

Hi I'm Zoe. I decided to join the newspaper committee to get a real experience of how a publication comes into being. I study English and so being a part of this team is really important to me to build on my English skills, to work on my own writing and to get involved in other people's work.

A school newspaper has always been the thing that's missing from Wallington Girls, and I am so happy to be a part of it. Journalism is something I've always been interested in, and I think this is going to be an amazing opportunity. I hope we can make it great for you!

Hi guys, I’m Morgane! I’m super-excited about working on the school newspaper! I think it’s a great medium for the students of WHSG to talk about social issues, as well as sharing stories and helpful tips! I’m looking forward to participating in the making of the Wally Street Journal!

Hi I’m Abiramy and I am in year 12. I love writing creative pieces along with doing research on interesting scientific research which I find intriguing. Being part of this committee, I find myself educated by all the various parts of media and the production of a newspaper.

Hi, my name is Mathoorika and I am in Year 12. I love the idea of a newspaper and my aim is to do an article with a mix of science, technology and medical trials to give something new to it.

Hey, I'm Harshini! The reason I chose to be a part of the newspaper team is because I love writing! Not only that, but appreciating and praising others for a wide spectrum of ingenuity. There is A LOT of talent in our school, and often if it is not strictly academic so it can often be overlooked.

Yo, sup: I’m Lauren and I’m in Year 12. I wanted to be the newspaper’s photographer because I love taking photographic images and wanted to experiment with different ways to photograph everything.

Hi, my name is Emma and I am in Year 12. I am so excited about finally making this school newspaper as I think that it will be a great way for everyone to have their voices heard and learn about a lot of new things through the various articles and essays that are being submitted by our own student body! I look forward to creating a fantastic newspaper that we can all enjoy!

Mrs Lake is helping mentor us on our journey of building the first (of many!) school magazines. If you’re interested in joining the team, then please come along to G23 on Fridays at 3pm: all students from all year groups are welcome!

School Life GCSE English Syllabus Upheaval By Lucy Perry, PBD As many students entering into Year 10 know, GCSEs as a whole have experienced a massive upheaval, leaving many people unsure as to the effectiveness of these changes. However, there is one change that I feel personally aggrieved by: the reforms to the GCSE English syllabus. Classic American literature is to be replaced with â&#x20AC;&#x153;modern works from Britainâ&#x20AC;? which address issues such as bullying and family relationships. While I cannot dispute the importance of these topics, I do feel that they do not replace American literary greats produced by the likes of Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller and F. Scott Fitzgerald. The iconic stories told in plays such as The Crucible are, in my opinion, still greatly relevant to our society today, and contain important historical information that can be unavailable elsewhere in the curriculum. The reasoning provided by the Department for Education for the changes was "to prevent an over-emphasis on a handful of over-used texts". In comments from many teachers, they have expressed concern at the lack of choice the new syllabus presents. Also, I wonder if it occurred to them that they are "over-used" because they are literary classics that span time and society to reach modern audiences and educate them on topics that continue to plague our society? It is and will always be important for people to learn about integral issues in our society in the past and present, through the study of texts such as To Kill A Mockingbird and The Crucible. I studied both these texts at GCSE and I can honestly say that my perception of events of history and today has changed. To Kill a Mockingbird presents oppression in the southern American states in the 1930s in a beautifully subtle way and presents racism through the poignant tale of Tom Robinson. Also, in order to gain the top marks in the English exam it is important for students to examine the context of the texts they study. By having TKAM and The Crucible on the syllabus the students are encouraged to discover parts of history that they may not have been taught previously or even in a History GCSE course. For example, through the study of The Crucible, you gain understanding of the events during McCarthyism in the USA; a topic that I was unaware of before my engagement with the play. Similarly, this level of enlightenment can be gained through the discovery of events such as the Scottsboro 5

trials in 1931, which showed me the true extent of racism in the Southern states of America in the 1930s. This, along with events in the 1950s, relating to Martin Luther Kingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s struggle, are valuable pieces of knowledge for 16 year olds and can really help to shape them as young people. I think that removing texts such as this from the syllabus hinders students' education of important events that helped to shape the society we live in today. By limiting the set texts to British prose and novels, you limit the students' understanding of the wider world, which could be detrimental to their development as culturally aware individuals. Despite this, I do think that many of the texts added to the syllabus are valuable texts for students to learn about, such as The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, as it deals with difficult subjects such as disabilities and societal acceptance of people with autism, but in my opinion, they should not serve as a replacement for valued texts like TKAM and The Crucible.

School Life Memoirs of an Educator: An interview with Mr Philippou Jasmin Daley, Year 12

So first of all, what school did you go to? I went to a school called St Joseph’s in Streatham. Would you say that you enjoyed school? I think I had some mixed feelings, generally when I remember school I remember quite an … unpleasant authoritarian presence, so I’m leaning towards saying no. I mean I enjoyed some parts of it, but there was a lot that I found non-pleasant. And what would you say you were like at secondary school? I think I was veering towards an extrovert, in many lessons I enjoyed, like English unsurprisingly, I remember being quite extroverted. I could be a little bit, let’s say cheeky sometimes. It was a very different environment from Wallington Girls, it was an all-boys school and there was a real sense of having to compete with the other boys, and the way you’d compete would not be through getting the best grades, it was through who could be the silliest. Oh I see, so you said that English was one of your favourite subjects, what would you say was your least favourite subject? I think my least favourite subject was, sadly, Maths. I really like maths now and I’m reading a book about it at the moment. However I’m loathed to put it down to the teacher but I do remember having a really monotonous teacher and I remember the fear of asking for explanations. I’m going to have to do that thing that I want to resist to do and say that the teacher didn’t inspire me in maths. I remember having a couple of teachers like that, but sadly it put me off. At least until I got to my twenties. 7

You seem to enjoy teaching T.P. now, but did you like R.S. or T.P. when you were younger? (Without Hesitation) No. I hated it. Because I went to a Catholic school the R.S. we were taught was very different, there was none of this critical/philosophical discussion which is the hallmark of TP here, it was more about, learn this stuff about the Bible, don’t really critically evaluate it, you just need to know it. So because I went to an all-boys Catholic school a lot of the R.S. was quite demoralising, not only in the fact that we only learned Catholicism but we were being told how we should live, and I found that a bit claustrophobic really. Okay, so if you were to teach someone who was essentially your younger teenage self, how would you find it? I would find it infuriating. Maybe I’m exaggerating, I certainly would have engaged in a lot of discussions and I certainly would have been quite argumentative, so I definitely would have enjoyed that aspect of my former self as a student, l would have less enjoyed the frequent silliness. That would have been a pain. What was your favourite teacher like? My favourite teacher that comes to mind, well there were a couple, there was an English teacher named Mr Williams who was very kind and very interested in what you were saying, or at least seemed interested. Also a science teacher named Mr Prasad who was brilliant at telling stories that linked science to the wider world, he made science come alive in that way, so those two. Did you always want to be a teacher? No. I think people always talk about what you want to be. I’ve always known what I’ve been interested in, and I’ve always been interested in, I guess you can say speculative ideas, starting with science fiction moving then to philosophy. In fact just ideas generally, I’ve always been fascinated by taking an alien’s eye view of the world and I see this in my favourite fiction authors like J.G. Ballard and I also see it in some of my favourite philosophers as well. This idea about what you want to be has never really made sense to me but I’ve always known, what I’ve been interested in and that has always been in the alien’s eye view of reality, which is probably why I like science fiction and philosophy. Well that concludes our first ever interview here in The Wallington Express and we’d like to thank Mr Philippou for taking the time to be interviewed.

Opinion Piece Think Before You Print By Taniesha Kadiri, a grumpy Year 13 My form room is G23, also known as the ICT Suite. Since the start of the school year, I’ve seen my fair share of students, new and old, come in to collect their various print jobs. Images not-so-stealthily sourced from Google, a past exam paper from 2003, homework left to the last minute: this is where they end up. However, not all of them end up with their owner. And this is one of the issues that lie with the privileges of being able to print what we want, when we want. Figures from last year show that in total, we as a school have printed 3 million black and white pages and 1 million colour pages. How many do you think were used, and how many do you think were left to the fate of the recycling bin? It may be a surprise to you, but these are the facts. People forget, print one too many, or even realize that maybe they didn’t really need to print a picture of One Direction after all. Each day, a considerable stack of paper is left by the printers in G23, the majority destined to a fate of the bin. Is there anything that we, the students, can do about it? I say, think before you print. Take it upon yourself to send your document to your teacher instead, or once in a while print from home. Consider double siding (now wouldn’t that save a lot of paper, eh?). When you expect something, it’s easy to lose touch of what that could mean for someone else. We’re not ordering the supplies or keeping tabs on the budget and we don’t think about that when we’re scrolling down to find the nearest printer, or selecting two copies instead of one, “just in case”. But changes are in the making to combat the inky reality of the situation. Hey, maybe in a year’s time, this will be old news. But in the meantime, just before you press that button, you’ll remember to come back for it at break time.

Music 'Armia' - KC: Review By Zoe Nicholls, 12KMK A debut album is never something to be rushed, as the impression your first full-length record makes is definitively significant one. Deciding to begin the process towards a debut at the age of just 15 is a risky decision but KC takes this gamble in his stride, and even flourishes within it. Kavana Crossley, the mastermind behind 'Armia', writes and performs as though he's being doing this all his life, which isn't far from the truth. With Crossley being so young it's easy to assume that the album

will

inconsistent

sound in

obviously

lyricism,

amateur

production

perhaps potentially

repetitive- but this certainly isn't the case. He is experimental and creative with his lyrics, with 'Jack in the Box' demonstrating this perfectly. He stretches his ideas past that expected of someone so young, being emotive as well as critical. Not only is there variation in his lyricism, but this is also in the genres that appear to influence him. Where 'Class Act Love' seems to be an authentic jazz song, the guitarsolo introduction of 'No Man's Land' could even be compared to Latin-American music. Whether intentional or not, Crossley is able to stretch himself and his writing between so many genres. He does so with impressive fluidity and without losing a distinct sound that stays present through the entire album. And it doesn't stop there: Crossley explains that he's already begun work on the next album, wasting no time at all to stick to his motto of making music regardless of external factors. This kind of purity in a musician so young, with so much to look forward to is hugely exciting and we sit in eager anticipation for whatever the future holds for KC. Listen

'Armia'

Spotify

and

buy

iTunes:

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/armia/id1042146866

Music Soundtrack to Your Week Chelsea Coates, 12JJS Monday High by the Beach Lana Del Rey The typical Del Rey tale of turbulent love, High by the Beach, is the perfect week-starter. Its pulsating hiphop infused beats are just upbeat enough to put you in a good mood, and Del Rey’s subtle and soothing vocals soaring through the backdrop of a summer paradise are just soft enough to ease you into another five days of work. Tuesday ABC Jackson 5 Why? 1. This classic track is the perfect pick-me-up—if it doesn’t have you smiling by the time its chorus fades out, you probably don’t have a heart. 2. Because no week is complete without a throwback track. It may not be Thursday yet, but why wait? Wednesday Leave a Trace CHVRCHES With its effervescent synths and brilliant sing-along chorus, CHVRCHES’ latest single is electro-pop excellence. Lauren Mayberry, the band’s frontwoman, embroiders the track with her pleading yet valiant vocals, willing you on. This song is one of stunning defiance and will keep you fighting though a week of hard work.

Thursday Magnets Disclosure ft. Lorde Lorde’s sultry vocals slowly emerge through the hazy smoke of Disclosure’s intoxicating dance track, encouraging her lover to dance with her ‘past the point of no return’. Set to a soundscape of electric blues and emerald greens, she sings of ‘smoke and sunset, off Mulholland’: there’s no better song to resemble your longing for the weekend. Friday Run Away With Me Carly Rae Jepsen Opening with a joyous saxophone riff, this infectiously catchy song features Jepsen telling her lover “over the weekend, we can turn the world to gold”. The latest single from the ‘Call Me Maybe’ singer is the perfect mix of euphoria and freedom that will match your longing to run out of the gates at 2:50.

World Issues Reverse Racism: does it exist? Recently, in the sixth form common room, I overheard a debate which was about racism and whether it applied to white people. The two stances were: yes, racism applies to all races and can be directed at anyone no matter what, and no, racism is a system created to oppress a minority group. The debate hasn't ended yet. The dictionary definition of racism is: “a belief that all members of each race possess characteristics, abilities, or qualities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races.” Prejudice, discrimination or antagonism directed against someone of a different race is based on the belief that one's own race is superior. Reverse racism is racism directed towards white people and not people of colour. However, today’s society is based upon systematic power: in western society, white privilege exists to keep white people in positions of power above other races. White privilege is not something to be taken lightly, in America, people of colour make up 30% of the population, yet make up 60% of the prison population as they are three times more likely to get arrested than a white person. Also, ‘Caucasian-sounding’ names on résumés are more likely to get call backs for interviews, as found in a social experiment by Yolanda Spivey. She wrote two résumés, one under her own name and one under the name Bianca White, and sent both to all the same companies with identical qualifications and references, yet ‘Bianca’ got all the call backs and Yolanda Spivey got none. So, a way to diminish a race is to take away their opportunities, which is what white privilege does and so through this system, the oppression lies with people of colour and white people are the oppressors by default. To be racist towards a white person is a hard feat. Racism distinguishes a certain race as inferior which has never happened to white people as throughout history white people have never been a minority or oppressed solely for being white. What white people can experience is prejudice. Prejudice contains two main concepts, ignorance and fear. Everyone can be ignorant, everyone can be afraid and so everyone can be prejudiced. Racism is systematic, institutional and far-reaching. There is no system of oppression that actively works to oppress and subjugate white people, there can be individual suffering but to claim ‘reverse racism’ diminishes and minimises real experiences of racism that occur to oppress a particular group. To clarify, this is not an article saying that all white people are racist. This is an article stating that all white people indirectly contribute to oppression through having white privilege, and so reverse racism cannot exist as white people are not victimised for being white. Sixth Form Poll :Can racism occur towards any race? Yes: 64% No: 15% Undecided: 21% 13

World Issues Miss Bimbo By Abigail Atie, 8 Pankhurst Miss Bimbo is an online game that demonstrates to young girls that they need to have cosmetic surgery and be skinny in order to be considered beautiful. The Western worldview of female beauty is a skinny waist, pouty lips, tanned skin, blonde hair and blue eyes. However, many people on this earth do not possess these features. As a result, they try to change their appearance with the use of hair dye, fake tan, weight loss pills and plastic surgery. “Miss Bimbo”, the game, encourages all of the behaviour previously listed. The aim of the game is to go to the club, kiss as many rich boys as possible, buy inappropriate lingerie and then live off of their prey’s riches. As challenges are completed, points are accumulated as below:

This game encourages girls to care more about what is on the outside rather than the inside. The creator of the game was asked if he would want his little sister to be called a ‘Bimbo’ and his response was: “Of course not… but it is just a game…” However, although it is just a game, children could think that this is how they should conduct themselves. Therefore, instead of this being just a game, children may feel that this is the reality of life. This game is aimed at children between the ages of 9-16 years. At a time when they should be empowered to feel confident about their own image, they may feel pressure to embrace this idealism, even though it will not make them feel happy and contented with their life. The basis of a happy life is to accept yourself and to realise that inner beauty is more important than outer beauty. The sooner this is understood, the happier children will be in their own skin.

Politics David Cameron – is he a leader? There are many conflicting opinions with regards to the effectiveness of David Cameron being in power, including the inequality thereafter, said to be influenced by his privileged upbringing. With black marks against his name; from the dismantling of the NHS, to cutbacks in many public sectors, is David Cameron really trying to help the country, or is it just for personal gain? In the late 2000s, the Global Recession hit the world, causing a general economic decline. With this crisis affecting the majority of the British population, the country needed stability in order to escape the ever-worsening effects of this financial crisis. Having last won a general election in 1992, the Conservative Party was eager to lead the country into success, with David Cameron at the helm. Once in power, Cameron urged that he would pull the country out of the economic problems it faced. However, in order to do this, he claimed that cutbacks in public sectors were necessary. The NHS is a Labour-built system created in 1948 with a long-held ideal that healthcare should be available to all. However, it is funded by taxes, as are other services in the UK, and has fallen into financial trouble. Jeremy Hunt of the Conservative party pledged to protect the NHS, saying the government will give it an extra £8 billion by 2020, however some people are unsure of how realistic the target is, especially considering the other sectors that are limited on funding, such as education. Education is another area where cuts have had to be made. Maintenance grants for students have been axed, whilst tuition fees are still at £9,000 for universities in the UK, though are predicted to rise at high-level institutions such as Oxbridge and other Russell Group universities, from 2017/18. This will affect not just the current generation of students, but future ones also, if this law is maintained. Currently, around half a million students in England receive these grants at £3,387 per year, resulting in a total of £1.57 billion a year, however Chancellor George Osborne has 15

stated that the grants have become ’unaffordable’. With this, the number of students moving on to university is set to decrease, as personal debt increases. This could have positive and negative effects on our economy in the future. Other issues concerning social elitism have been associated with Cameron. His education at Eton College and participation in the Bullingdon club have affected his reputation, as a share of the population have said to believe that this upbringing has made him focus on looking after the richer part of society, and leaving ambiguity as to where the lower class stand. Recent allegations from Lord Ashcroft, former Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party, in his unofficial biography of David Cameron ‘Call Me Dave’, talk of unconventional initiation ceremonies and drugs being openly taken at a party attended by Mr. and Mrs. Cameron, which has raised the question as to whether David Cameron is a true leader, or whether he is purely on a quest for power.

Politics What is the Deal with Donald Trump? Nia Jackson 9 Pankhurst

More than a dozen Republicans and a selection of Democrats have announced they are running for their parties’ 2016 presidential election this year. One person in particular seems to be causing a lot of uproar in the media. Straight-talking billionaire Donald Trump is a real estate developer and reality television star who has announced himself as the Republican nomination for the president. Many people in the media have commented on this fact, mostly because of the way he presents himself (rather ridiculously most of the time, might I add!). “We need somebody who can take the brand of the United States of America and make it great again,” he says. He is considered rather complex, both politically and religiously, giving many opinions and ideas that constantly contradict themselves and make absolutely no sense. He is well known for the statement, “You’re fired” as a former judge in The Apprentice. Donald Trump stated that when he becomes President he is going to round up all the illegal immigrants and get them out. I agree that people who want to live in a country should register legally, but the clear issue here is that Donald Trump thinks that by becoming the President he becomes the CEO of America, which is in fact not the case. He would both need agreement from the Supreme Court and the American public in order for this to happen. He is also very racist. He has stated that he is a Christian but doesn’t seem to put up or agree with many other religions, a direct quote from him stands: “Unfortunately, at this moment in time, there is a Muslim problem in the world.” As a grown man running for president of the USA, I do not think that he should be associating the problems in the world with Muslims. Yes, some extremist groups do have an Islamic faith but he should not state this as a ‘Muslim problem’ because this is in fact an extremist problem. I know many both good and bad people of many different religions and I think he should have thought more carefully before he opened up his mouth and said this. 17

Donald’s Trump Cards: He is ridiculously offensive. Constantly vomiting racist, gender and class-based insults, “All the women on the apprentice flirted with me – consciously or unconsciously.” Right, he can read minds. Maybe he should use his epic mind-reading skills to see what people really think of him? “The wall will go up and Mexico will start behaving.” Trump views Mexicans as inferior. He also said that if he was elected as President, the Hispanics would “love [him]”. “Our great African-American President hasn’t exactly had a positive impact on the thugs who are happily and openly destroying Baltimore!” Yes you guessed it; he is racist towards black people as well! In what way is this helping him to win votes? See, here is the problem: he goes around making orders, plans and incorrect statements, thinking that he can boss anybody around, completely oblivious to what people think of him, probably thinking this will make him popular somehow. So in conclusion (as a reasonable 13 year-old girl with common sense), I think that Donald Trump is a racist, silly and illogical man. I recommend that he should be fired from talking so he doesn’t embarrass himself any further.

Science Are there aliens out there? By Nidhi Doshi 7 Curie NASA has recently discovered signs of water on Mars. Water means the planet is suitable for a few forms of life. Therefore, there could potentially be what we would call ‘aliens’ on Mars. Their main query is where the water comes from. There are two possible answers: either it comes from underneath the surface or it absorbs moisture from the atmosphere. The researchers found salt minerals in some places, suggesting that the water would be extremely salty. This has been found out by data gathered by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft. Dr Joe Michalski, a Mars research specialist from the Natural History museum in London, quoted: "These results provide strong evidence that salty water flows on the Martian surface, even today." Scientists believe Mars used to have rivers billions of years ago but the climate turned cooler, probably freezing and trapping the water in polar icecaps underground. Astrophysicist, Tim O'Brian quoted, ‘One of the real challenges is that if there is life on Mars, we wouldn’t want to contaminate it with life from earth’. He believes that in the future, if they were to send more robots or even humans to Mars, they would be carrying germs/micro-organisms on them which could spread and interrupt the life on Mars. So how could they carry out research and not disturb life on Mars? Is there life on Mars? The answer to these questions could take Science to a whole new level.

Science Can stem cells cure blindness? Mathoorika Sivananthan - 12KBT The London project to cure blindness was established in 2005 aiming to reverse vision loss in patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD). We know that blindness is due to defective blood vessels in the eye. A woman, aged 60, had an operation last month at Moorfieldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s eye hospital. The words of the co-leader of the London Project, Prof Peter Coffey, of the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology said: "We won't know until at least Christmas how good her vision is and how long that may be maintained, but we can see the cells are there under the retina where they should be and they appear to be healthy."

Diagram: New RPE inserted

The cells in this operation are

originally sourced from donated embryonic cells. You can decide whether that is morally acceptable or not. If this treatment is effective on the wet AMD patient then this can be used to treat over half a million sufferers. It is estimated that 1/10 people over the age of 65 have some degree of AMD. There are ethical, economic and social implications and concerns with this treatment being applied elsewhere, however nothing can be confirmed till the end of

The vision of AMD

the year. Based on this, I have hope of a revolutionary breakthrough for 2015.

Science SUPERNATURAL, SURPRISING "SUPERMOON" SEEN ON SUNDAY!!! By Anna Chow, 7 Curie Where were you on the evening of Sunday 27th September? Out, trying to make the best of the weekend before school? Or awake in bed reading a good book? If so, you may have glanced out of your window and noticed an enormous, red and mystifying moon that you couldn’t take your eyes off and wondered what it was. Well, this uncommon sight is called a "supermoon" by scientists. Supermoons are amazing, but still quite rare as they have only happened six times (including the one in 2015) since the 1900s. Despite our limited experience of this phenomenon, scientists have discovered the cause. According to astronomers, supermoons happen when a full moon is at the closest point to the Earth in its orbit; that’s why it seems bigger – 14 times bigger in fact! Noah Petro, Deputy Project Scientist for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter at NASA's Space Flight Centre in Maryland, explained that "when the moon is farthest away it's known as an apogee, and when it's closest it's known as perigee." So, on Sunday 27th September the moon was at a perigee position and caused the supermoon that we saw. The reason why the moon was red is because when we see the moon ‘shining’, it is actually reflecting light from the sun. On the 27th September, the moon’s position was completely in the Earth’s shadow, meaning that the Sun’s light could not reach the moon, and it appeared red in our sky due the angle in which the light encountered the Earth’s atmosphere, leading to the refraction shifting the light down towards the red end of the spectrum. This extraordinary sight was reported to be seen in: Western Europe, North America, South America and Africa. Perigee-syzygies, the scientific name of a supermoon, has appeared roughly every 30 years, with the last one in 1982. So if you missed this year’s supermoon, don’t worry because the next one will appear in 2033! 21

Creative Writing The following essay was entered into the Year 9 Creative Writing Competition following Ms Longleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s trip to the V&A The Diamond Ring By Lakshaajeni Thevapalan, 9Athena Silence. Stillness. Serenity. The forest had lain like this for the past hundred years. No form of life had ever shown itself in this lifeless place. Until now. The earth shook and rumbled aggressively and the ground split in two. Through the crack emerged Gold. Gasping for breath, he pushed his way through the darkness and dimness of this earth to find the light. The light was what he had been searching for. The light was what he had been longing for. The light was all he needed. He dashed through the woods, leaping over thin winding creaks and slippery rocks. He dodged and zipped past rotting oak trees and under lowered and snapped branches. Everything blurred into a dizzying blend of earthly colours. The woods began to widen and thin layers of fallen pine needles disguised the perilous and rocky terrain. He ran besides the twisted creek which was mirrored by the deep greens of the trees. He opened his ears to the mouth of the treetops and listened to the trees, as they sang the songs of life. Gold had fought a brutal battle merely trying to find a glimpse of light. He had battled through the vines that had tangled and swallowed him up. He had battled through the thorns that had made him bleed, made him sweat and made him cry. But Gold was determined. He was tired and bruised. But nothing would stop Gold from finding his way to the light of his life. As he looked up he had come into contact with utter darkness. A sheer black wall of misery stood between him and the light of his life. The wind howled and blew a bitter chill past the dying trees; it danced with the leaves and dragged them away unwillingly from the ground. The floor was damp and stagnant and suddenly an odour of decomposing wood filled the air.

The forest never seemed to end; tall silhouettes shadowed the ground and screams echoed through the wind. Gold felt scared. Gold felt intimidated. Gold felt inferior. But nothing would stop Gold from finding the light of his life. Finally the sky became visible to Gold. A few fragments of blue broke through like scattered pieces of an impossible jigsaw puzzle. But no matter where he looked he could not find the light. He searched the ground. He searched the sky. He searched everywhere. The light was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, through the corner of his eye, Gold caught sight of a glimmer. A sparkle of hope engulfed his entire body. As he turned around he was overwhelmed by the happiness that showered his body. The light glittered and filled him with happiness. But the light he had been longing for his whole life was no light. It was his love. His true love…and her name was Diamond. He went towards Diamond but immediately started melting. His heart was pounding and he just could not withstand the heat she was radiating. Diamond was devastated. They had only just met and he was going to leave her alone and abandoned all over again. She could not bear it. She ran towards him and grasped him tight. She held him so tight they eventually became stuck together. They never wanted to let each other go. They were inseparable. And to this day, they have stayed inseparable. They have become a symbol of friendship. A symbol of love. A symbol of marriage. A Diamond Ring.

Creative Writing Behind the Glass Window By Hannah Shury Smith – 12AST Breaking News: Four million Syrian refugees are forced to flee as the crisis deepens. The conflict in Syria has now driven four million people… The discordant whirring of the emergency services muffled the platinum-blonde news reporter’s perfectly enunciated, unfeeling words into the mumblings of a mad man. The front room pulsed with psychedelic blue light. They were carrying a man. He must have lived next door. He was almost translucent; more skeleton, than flesh. As if he’d given up on having an identity, resigned to embrace the equality of bones. Various wires weaved and looped from his body into beeping machines. The mask over his mouth clouded and then cleared, clouded and cleared. There could only be about four medics wheeling him into the ambulance, but they moved so quickly, darting from one machine to the next, taking notes, sprinting from the car to the man to the house next door, that it seemed a whole ward had come out for the man. Although they could only be a few metres from where she was standing, the scene seemed more surreal than something out of ‘Casualty’. Maybe it was the window; the way it transformed them into dumb goldfish, with their mouths periodically opening and closing. Or maybe it was the fact that their characters were just as distant as those on TV. They were all strangers. She had no idea who they were. Who could blame her for feeling nothing? The blue engulfed the man, bringing a dim reflection of the room into focus. Behind her, the TV was flashing images of dusty landscapes filled with tents upon tents upon tents, innumerable crowds of nameless people that snaked beyond the horizon. Then, the blue faded and the whirring waned and the road looked the same.

Good morning, this is BBC News. On today’s news: shocking images of a young Syrian boy found lying face-down on a beach near the Turkish resort of Bodrum show the terrible reality of the refugees’ tragic plight… Two days had passed since then. The girl had thought about the man a lot in those days; as if her thoughts could replace the years of inactivity. She concocted her own idea of the man; from the cat-flap in his door, she knew he was warm; from the books in his windows, he must be intelligent; a man worth knowing. At meals, her mum replaced the hum of the TV, chanting stories of those few times she had encountered the man as they both jangled for keys at the door step, desperately formulating excuses for never looking in on him. Then one day, when the girl came home, the house was silent. No scents of dinner wafted from the kitchen. No cacophonous song renditions signalled her mother’s presence. She found her mum sat, rigid, at the kitchen table staring at a black note. And, at that moment, the girl just knew. All she could see was his tiny skull strapped under that huge plastic mask, clouding and clearing, and her feeling nothing; a cold voyeur on a desperate scene. She collapsed against the oven. Her head ached and her eyes stung. Her heart seemed to fold in on itself, like a black hole, sucking and churning all her energy into a single fist of pain that knocked the air from her lungs and yanked and knotted at her oesophagus. She felt so helpless, and yet the irony was that she was the exact opposite; not only her, but everyone on the street had plenty of opportunity to help him. He lived next door for pity’s sake. All they had to do was knock on the door, maybe have a cup of tea, simply check up on him every now and then. But it was too late now. And humans have a bad habit of finding solutions once the problem has already descended into chaos. Demand to open doors to Syrians spreads to the United Kingdom: London-based writer Sue Hubbard told BBC Trending she was moved to act by the continuing stream of stories about migrants dying at sea. In two days, more than 65,000 signed

her petition on the website Change.org calling for the UK to provide ‘immediate sanctuary from those fleeing the war’. The whole road turned up to his funeral. The road wasn’t very big, but the church was tiny; they had to open the doors to make sure everyone could be part of the service, causing the gentle chords of ‘All things bright and beautiful’ to dance across the wind. The priest provided a eulogy; no one on the road could have done. There would always be that sense of shame, that knowing that they could have done something. But you can’t go backwards, you can only move forwards, and by remedying the present, they could place a plaster over the wound of the past. “I’m not a professional campaigner…I had no idea the petition would take off like it has…We can’t just be sitting here drinking our lattes while children drown…I think enough is enough.”

Beauty My Two Beauty Tips Hello Once upon a time there was a girl who decided to join the school’s magazine team and, being the rebellious child she wasn’t, she decided that she should start a beauty column. Her aim: nobody would have to try and hide their teenage photos when they were old and beautiful. So here I am, girls, to help you to get through your high school years without shying away. Let’s see how this goes, shall we? Let’s start with something simple. For this month’s edition I’m going to focus on two beauty tips that I actually use. 1. Make Coconut Oil Your Best Friend Coconut Oil is an amazing product with so many benefits that it will render you speechless. Don’t believe me? I’ll tell you some: 

Amazing eye makeup remover- Put some onto a cotton pad, and press it gently onto your eye and wipe the eye makeup right off.



Hydrating Cuticle Cream- apply some on your cuticles overnight and they will be hydrated and healthy in the morning,



Incredible moisturiser- Rub some into the palm of your hands and rub it onto your skin after showers, or whenever those pins look dry. Double it up by using it as a natural lip balm.

2. Use White Eyeliner Pencil In Your Waterline Applying white eyeliner makes your eyes look bigger, instantly making you look less tired, and helps hide the fact that you were up last night doing homework. In order to look less tired use concealer to hide those dark circles by applying it under your eyes in a triangle shape. That’s it all beauties. Try them out, they are so simple for you to add into your daily routine and it will stick. You will thank me. Until next time!

Poetry Liberté for Ana Entendez-vous dans le campagnes mugir ces feroces soldats When the transplant left us and it was every man’s scramble to tear swastikas from stone monuments and the grey pavement smoothed by a century’s footfall impermeable to our puddles offers my bicycle no friction as I glide toward la rue de la republique where the old man felt marauded to his marrow and our anthem rose in him from hum to broken bellow snapped off at an accented ‘e’ by the concrete man. The white stone had no hole to hold his blood it just spread to the cold curbs of the emptied street. It soon dried under the blue sky’s heat. As I cycle through the spot I remove my hat entendez-vous dans la campagnes mugir ces feroces soldats.

By Phil Brown

Puzzles Dingbats: Determine the well-known phrases and words using these clues!

Maths Puzzle:   

The triangle ABC has an area of 9m2 The Line DE is of length 12m O is the centre of the circle

Find the area of the trapezium BCED Hence find the area of the triangle ADE

Answers to Puzzles Answers for Dingbats:

A high IQ The letter i forms a queue in the upper corner of the box

The Missing link The letters L,I,N and K are all missing

The Wrong time and the Wrong place

Potatoes There are 8 letter Os, making the sounds Pot-8-Os

Answers for the Maths Problem:

There are two solutions to this puzzle: The Algebra solution: BC = Diameter = 2r AO= r Triangle ABC= (Base x Height)/2 = (BC x AO)/2 = (2r x r)/2 = 2r2/2 =r2 therefore r2=9 r=3

Trapezium BCED: Height = Radius = 3 BC = 2r = 6 DE = (given) 12 Trapezium: 1/2(a+b) h Trapezium:1/2 (6+12) 3 Trapezium: 27

Triangle ADE: Triangle ABC + Trapezium BCED = Triangle ADE 9+27= 36m2

The Trigonometry solution: Angle BAC is 90° (angles in a semi-circle adds up to 90° - circle theorem) Angle ADE and AED is 45° (isosceles triangle) OPPOSITE = tan45 x 6 OPPOSITE = 6 = height Radius = ½ x 6 = 3 Area of Trapezium = a+b 2 2

( )

12 + 6 x 3 = 27 m2 Triange ADE = b x h 2

= 12 x 6 2

= 72 2

= 36m2

The Problem Page

Starting next issue, The WHSG H.E.R.E team will be introducing The Problem Page to the newspaper. The H.E.R.E team will discuss and answer any questions submitted and then issue some advice confidentially. The problems can be anything from dealing with stress to making friends to working with anxiety, please feel free to submit your questions. If you have any problems and would like to receive some support, please email 32 your problems to WHSGH.E.R.E@wallingtongirls.org.uk

Thank you for Reading! We have come to an end and the newspaper committee would like to thank you for sticking with us through the first ever issue of the Wally Street Journal! Hopefully it will be the first of many! We would like to encourage you all to continue writing articles and essays on whatever you would like and submit them into the School Newspaper folder in the shared area. Also, if you would like to make any suggestions of topics or layout then please save a document into the shared area.

Thank you and goodbye for now!