Whittier Holiday 2022

Whittier Miscellany

December 2022

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Wilmington Friends School’s Community Newspaper •

Wilmington,

Performative Activism or Priceless Destruction

Sarah Levenson ‘24 Staff Writer

Have you seen climate change activists throw food at multi-million dollar art? On TikTok or Instagram? Well if not, here’s the latest news on why these protests went viral. The majority of protests have taken place in museums across Europe. Other than throwing food at paintings, activists are gluing themselves to the pictures, refusing to stand down against hate. Hate is accumulating throughout the world because the more activists continue to fight, the more others

near a landmark or significant area, for example the London Eye where this protest took place. The climate change activists partaking in these protests are mainly in Gen Z.The younger generation feels the need to protest because they are expressing more anxiety about the future and how our planet will hold up with time. In the Time article, one activist shouted, “Are you more concerned about the protection of a painting or the protection of our planet?”. Such expression of one’s objection highlights the determination of young adults and their willingness to go

result, Germany is now cutting down the production of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gasses. Two members of the Just Stop Oil group glued themselves to art in Frankfurt. Gluing themselves to art is just another way to raise awareness to the pressing issue of climate change. The Just Stop Oil group members said, “People are starving. People are freezing. People are dying. We are in a climate catastrophe. And all you are afraid of is tomato soup or mashed potatoes on a painting. You know what I’m afraid of? I’m afraid because the science tells us that we won’t be able to feed our families in 2050”. The above quote is from the Smithsonian magazine titled, “Why Are Climate Activists Throwing Food at Million-Dollar Paintings?”. The activist’s words are extremely impactful because it gets the audience thinking of how they can help and encourages them to start taking action. Whether this is throwing food at art or publicly sharing ideas on social media, there are all types of ways to start something.

DE WFS’s IntotheWoods

Gianna Cottone ‘26

Staff Writer

On November 12, Wilmington Friends hosted their first Musical of the year! WFS selected the well-known musical, Into the Woods. The musical consists of famous actors like Anna Kendrick, Meryl Streep, and Johnny Depp. Like the movie and broadway musical, the WFS production of Into the woods was well received by both adults and students. The journey of creating this fairytale was stressful, time-consuming, and at some points, overwhelming. Every student and teacher involved with this school musical sacrificed many late nights to give the WFS community a great show!

will continue to push them away. According to a Time magazine article titled: “Why Climate Protesters Are Throwing Food at Art”, a British group going by the name of “Just Stop Oil” protested by blocking roads around London. In addition, groups spray-painted famous stores and buildings. Their motive was to capture the attention of onlookers and engross them into the protest by doing it

to fight for the protection of our earth. Above all, climate activists aim to draw attention to the climate crisis, but goals can differ for different places. For example, German climate activists protest to reduce the amount of car and public transportation usage. In Germany, the crisis of climate change has escalated quickly. Germany is a country that uses nuclear and coal-generated power, so as a

To see a perspective on climate change from the WFS Science department, I interviewed Caitlin Norton (Biology teacher). First, I asked Mrs. Norton, Why do you think climate change activists may be protesting in museums with art? She responded, “I think that a big part of these protests is drawing media attention to their cause. They are attempting to destroy something beautiful that people care about because the same thing is happening to our earth”. This quote is valuable because it explains simply how the activists want to destroy something Continued at wfswhittier.net

The Downfall of Ye

Anya Agarwal ‘25 Staff Writer

Kanye West has been portrayed in various different lights by the media over the course of his career, based on his public appearance and the lyrics of his music. West captured the attention of individuals and sparked conflict in the minds of many. It is clear that West has had a profound impact on the hip-hop industry and on popular culture as a whole. He has received numerous awards for his skills and has continued to create and release art for his audience. On the other hand, Kanye West has never steered away from controversy throughout his career. “I think he practically exists to cause controversy,” says Nife Shoyinka ‘25. In fact, he has a proclivity for stirring the pot. West is outspoken about his beliefs, whether he’s speaking his mind or criticizing another celebrity for something he disagrees with.

Kanye Omari West developed an early love of the arts by drawing and writing poetry when he was just 5 years old. In the third grade, he started rapping, and by middle school, he had created his own music. According to The Strive, West’s rise to fame started with the release of his debut album, The College Dropout, in 2004. After releasing his debut album, West began designing and manufacturing his own line of sneakers and clothing. He released “Air Yeezy” in 2009, which grew to be highly popular. On December 3rd, 2013, the Adidas Yeezy Boosts were officially released. In addition to releasing several fashion lines,

This musical would not have been the same without Piper Roskovensky ‘26. She played Little Red Riding Hood, being the only freshman with a lead role. In an interview, Piper explained how she felt nervous right before she went on stage. But Piper masked her nerves perfectly and performed outstandingly, impressing many in the audience. When asked about how prepared the cast was, Piper said, “Even though we had nerves, I felt that we were all very prepared. We spent so many hours and night rehearsals to prepare for the musical, and it definitely helped us to feel ready for the performance.” Piper’s musical experience was even better because she got to do her first upper school musical with her brother, Duncan ‘24. The sibling’s highlight was their duet, Hello, Little Girl. “I think it was fun to perform the scenes together! It was different because I never really worked with him a lot during school, but I think because of the scene, it was comedic for the audience.” (Roskovensky) Once Piper finished her final performance on Sunday, she couldn’t help but feel disappointed. Though she was filled with pride and elation for everything the cast accomplished, she still felt unhappy thinking over the memories the cast made together. She was sad because she knew she would never get to make the same memories with the same cast.

Emma Slease ‘23, another lead in

Mary Woodward

Drizella, Anastasia, and Lady Tremaine

Activists pour soup on Sunflower by Van Gogh

Mara Cipriano

Katie Bryan, Staff Writer ‘24

Ghosts, mysterious locked doors, and unexplained noises are somewhat of a norm at Wilmington Friends School. With school history dating back to 1748, there is so much history and mystery inside the walls of Wilmington Friends.

One of the less mysterious, secret spots is the closet under the stairs in the library. Kate Hendrix, the upper-school librarian, gave context to the construction of the little closet. In 2016 when the library was rebuilt, they moved the steps to the balcony and made them significantly larger. The closet built under the stairs is for extra storage and is kept locked. Hendrix said, “Each year we cram more and more stuff in here.” This closet is a mystery to students because it’s always locked and is exclusive to only the librarians.

A middle school favorite is the “chute” in Sean Kerrane, the middle school English teacher’s classroom. Before Sean Kerrane started working at Wilmington Friends in 2017,

Eric Tucker was the 6th-grade English teacher. It seems that mysterious places are very much attached to Tucker’s legacy. He is remembered for taking his 6th-grade English classes down to the ‘dungeons’ to tell his scary stories. To pay tribute to Tucker’s teaching fame Kerrane said, “Every year I do an optional freaky story contest. They [the students] have to incorporate the chute in their story.” Some students make the chute a portal in their stories or include the natural spookiness of the chute. Kerrane tells his students, “Sometimes I hear the chain at the top of the chute shake.” When asked if he knew what the chute was actually there for he replied, “I don’t actually, I prefer to live with the mystery.” And so, the chute remains a mystery.

One of the most mysterious places that are only brought up in hushed tones is the archives. Students do not realize how close they are to the spookiness of the basement in their everyday lives. The popular staircase that travels from right outside of the art room to the right of Ryan Wood’s classroom has a staircase that leads even farther down, down to the archives. There is surprisingly little keeping any students from going down to the hallways of the basement except maybe the darkness and ghosts. The area is packed with old classroom chairs, broken doors, toys, and supplies for school-wide events. There

Secrets of the WFS Building: Exposed Holiday Traditions at the Lower School

Abigail Thurlow, Features Writer 26

The holidays are right around the corner, which means it is time for the Wilmington Friends Lower School to start teaching their students more about different holidays around the world and decorating! During this time of year, teachers incorporate the different cultures, religions, and holidays into their lessons. Three teachers in the Lower School talked a little about how they include these different topics in their lessons and their thoughts about them.

Lara Munch, the Lower School Spanish teacher, teaches her students about many different holidays, not just Hispanic. Señora Munch describes this semesters holidays as, “Hispanic Heritage Month, Día de los Muertos, Diwali, Rosh Hashanah, Noche de Rábanos, Hanukkah, la Navidad and Kwanzaa.” Kate McCarron and Susan Geoghegan, the Lower School librarians, also plan read-alouds and activities that are related to the ones going on in the student’s homerooms.

Señora Munch, Tr. Kate and Tr. Sue all agree that teaching these topics to the students is very important and reflects greatly on Wilmington Friends School’s diversity. Tr. Kate and Tr. Sue commented how, “It is important to be exposed to other

cultures, religions, traditions, and beliefs so they can develop understanding. It also helps students find the similarities of some of their family celebrations with what others do.” Señora Munch also explains how important it is in Spanish class specifically, “it gives the students an opportunity to both share/learn about their own ethnic celebrations and Hispanic holidays while simultaneously incorporating Spanish vocabulary.”

are also rooms that have plumbing and electrical controls for the school. A couple of doors were locked down there, including the ever-famous archives. The archives are kept orderly by Terry Maguire, the school’s archivist. He first recognized the 100th anniversary of girls’ athletics at Friends! The archival room is pristine with many organized boxes filled with old Wilmington Friends history. When asked if photos could be taken, the answer was no. It is that top secret.

The rumor of the “boiler room” kid is an interesting yet very vague one. Some say that over 20 years ago there was a kid who lived in the boiler room and went to all his classes but slipped downstairs when school was over. None of this can be proved and some older faculty members remember the story a little differently. They think that he didn’t really live down in the boiler room but would skip all of his classes by hiding in the boiler room. Now, all of this is purely conjecture but it certainly adds to the spookiness of the old boiler room and building.

There are countless other spooky and secret places around the school, some that are sure to be kept so secret they could never make it to a Whittier article. Just remember as you walk through the school that you are surrounded by history, and maybe ghosts.

DE Politics 101

Charriez, Columnist ‘24

In light of the many tragic mass shootings, climate warnings, and terrible news, it’s hard to be a student and bear witness to such horrendous information. Clubs spring up to combat all the issues our generation is set to inherit. But one question is always heard through the halls, during the walkouts, and in Jorge Pardo’s Spanish class. “What does this accomplish?” There’s a strange disconnect between students and the conditions they’re living under, with actual policy making seemingly far from a student’s grasp. However, this notion is false, especially in a small state like Delaware. The privilege, education and opportunities Wilmington Friends School provides further closes that divide. Here’s the basics on how to be politically active in Delaware for dummies, by a dummy.

The teachers also talked about how parents become involved in some lessons. Tr. Kate and Tr. Sue said that they “welcome parents coming in to share a favorite book that shares a bit about the holidays that they celebrate with their family.” Even though Covid now restricts them from doing this, they still did this often in the past. In Señora Munch’s class, they have “had various Hispanic speakers come in to share their cultural perspectives with the students.”

Also, Mr. Pardo from the upper school has gone down every year and talked about

his experiences in Cuba and Puerto Rico to fifth graders. Señora adds as well how “the students are especially interested and engaged in these types of activities.”

The teachers enjoy teaching about these topics, probably as much as the Lower Schoolers! Señora Munch said, “I enjoy learning and teaching about other religions/holidays/cultures. It benefits all of us - it broadens my understanding and connection with my students and the world around me.” She adds that she enjoys it because “it allows me to create new pathways for the students to learn additional vocabulary and gain a deeper understanding of Hispanic and non-Hispanic cultures.” Tr. Kate talked about how she likes teaching about the different holidays/cultures because, “it helps students appreciate the richness and diversity of our world and aligns with the Quaker spices, especially peace.” She also commented on how the lessons encourage students to check out different cookbooks affiliated with their own religion!

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First, it’s worth understanding the division of local government, which is separate from the federal government. Delaware has three major counties: New Castle (up North), Kent (in the middle), and Sussex (at the bottom). Between those three counties are 41 districts for the DE House of Representatives, and 21 districts for the DE Senate. The landmass of DE is 1,982 miles, meaning that each of the 62 state legislators represent an average of 32 miles. Also, the Northern districts are smaller than the Southern districts (since there’s more people in the North than the South). Of the House (remember, the 41 districts/representatives) only 15 of these 41 are Republicans, who generally become more successful the more South you go. In our state Senate (the other 21), only seven are Republican, following the same trend as the House. While the only parties represented are Democrats and Republicans, that doesn’t mean all Republicans run on the same platform, nor do all Democrats. I’ve been personally involved with the DE Working Families Party, which is on the more progressive side of the Democrats. Legislature from this branch of Democrats, like The Green Amendment, have been stalled by more conservative members of the Democratic Party. This is all to say that the Delaware politics are nuanced, and odds are you can find a representative or a platform that supports almost any legislative idea you have.

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Breakouts and Busts: The Best and Worst Players in Fantasy Football

Mitchell Brenner ‘24, Staff Writer

The NFL (National Football League) is one of the largest professional sports organizations in the world, even though it is only based in the United States. Many fall in love with the game and find ways to be involved. NFL fans searched for ways to make the game more interactive for the average viewer, and that led to the creation of fantasy football.

Fantasy football is a game where you start a league with people you know and act as the general manager of your own football team. The league starts with a draft before the football season, where each team is given a random order of draft picks with one per round. There are on average 16 rounds per draft to fill each roster spot. In this draft, the team manager will draft whoever they believe will bring the most value to their team, just like

The Other Futbol

Giuliana DiPrinzio ‘26, Staff Writer

On Sunday, November 20th, the 22nd World Cup will finally kick-off. After a long eight-year wait, the United States Men’s National Team is finally back in the World Cup. The USMNT is in the challenging “Group B” bracket; consisting of England, Iran, and Wales. The team will look to come out on top, and make it to the round of sixteen.

The location of the World Cup this year has sparked debates among many. Sixty percent of people around the world feel angry about the World Cup taking place in Qatar. With many controversies such as the treatment of migrant workers, human rights records, and its stance on homosexuality, many believed that the World Cup should not take place there.

Sophia Brennan ‘23 is extremely excited to watch the World

a GM would in a real NFL draft. Once the NFL regular season starts, these drafted teams are matched up against each other. The score is determined by the real life stats of the players drafted that week, and the scoring system differs from league to league. The two types of scoring systems you see are standart, and PPR (points per reception). Both types of leagues give a specific amount of points for amount of yards gained and touchdowns, but PPR leagues also give a point for every catch a receiver, running back or tight end gets. Then, it becomes the fantasy owner’s job to start or sit players at each position by predicting who has a preferable matchup and/or will score the most points. The managers can also trade their players with other managers and pick up players that are available in free agency. Free agents are any player that isn’t on a team, whether they were never drafted, or they were dropped by another manager.

Due to the fact that fantasy football is based on the manager making decisions, it brings a high margin for error. There is nothing stopping managers from making poor draft or trade decisions that could ruin their team for the year,

Cup. “I am rooting for the US to win the world cup because it would be cool to have our own country do well.” Though, she is not very hopeful, she believes that everyone needs to just keep their spirits high and continue to cheer on the USMNT. The United States is not the favorite to win the World Cup due to the competition they will have to face. CBS News explains how Brazil is the favorite country to win, “Brazil’s five World Cup wins are the most in history and they are listed as the 4-1 favorite in this World Cup”. Brazil is one of many strong squads in this World Cup. Sara Clothier ‘26 is rooting for Argentina to win the World Cup. “Since this is Messi’s final World Cup, I would love to see him win.”

Upper School Spanish teacher Jorge Pardo also believes that Argentina is going to win the world cup. “They have come close for the last couple of years and they might be able to make it this year.”

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so naturally this happens fairly often. Great NFL players also have off-games, and sometimes even offyears, and this can be another factor that can ruin the year for fantasy managers. For example, Jonathan Taylor was the highest scoring fantasy player for the 2021-22 season, and many managers drafted him with the first or second pick this year, but injuries have mostly ruined his season so far, making him the 20th scoring running back and 62nd scoring player overall in standard, and 21st running back and 73rd player in PPR. “Jonathan Taylor was one of the first picks in my league but he was dropped to free agency a few weeks ago.”

Drew Huneycutt ‘24 is a Friends school student and member on the football team, and he stated that one of the top picks this year was dropped due to how bad his year has been in fantasy. Another player that has been terrible in fantasy this season is new Broncos QB Russell Wilson. Wilson has consistently been one of the best quarterbacks in the league for nearly 10 years, and it has been the same in fantasy football. However, this year, Wilson ranks 21st for all QBs and 37th overall and is on pace for the

worst season of his career.

With fantasy football success mostly being based on how the manager is able to draft and trade, there are also random fantasy breakouts that happen. Cooper Kupp in 2021 is a prime example of this, as he was taken in the later rounds in most leagues, and had the greatest wide receiver season in the history of the NFL. This year, Saquon Barkley has been a big surprise, as he had an amazing rookie season in 2018.

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100 Years of Women’s Sports

Cora Lohkamp

At Friends, we focus on simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality, and stewardship every year, better known as the SPICES. This year, we are focused on integrity, but that does not mean the other qualities do not matter that year. In many aspects of this school, these values stay true, but there is a difference in certain athletic events, such as boy’s and girl’s basketball.

The times for boys’ and girls’ basketball games favor the boys. Getting fans for women’s sports has always been a struggle. All athletes, boys and girls, love the feeling of support when people go and cheer for them in the sport they play. This can be a hard thing to get for girls more than boys. Girls’ basketball game times are at inconvenient times making it hard for parents and fans to go and support them.

Boys’ basketball times range from 5:30 to 8:00 in the afternoon

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and they are on the weekends. These times are extremely convenient for parents who work and students who play a different winter sport because of the later times. After work or practice, it is easy to stop in to cheer on the Quakers. On weekends, games are at times in the afternoon that are not early and are typically easy to attend. They draw many people to come to their games. This is not the case for girls’ basketball. The majority of the girl’s games are at 4:00 on school days which is extremely difficult for parents and students to attend. Students who play winter sports would have to be allowed by their coach to go watch the game, which rarely happens. Furthermore, the weekend games are either before noon or at noon.

Biden Attempts to Force Unions into Accepting Union Deal

John Ursomarso ‘24, Staff Writer

As of Tuesday, November 29th, Biden has called on Congress to force rail unions to accept a labor deal in order to definitively stop a rail union strike. The strike was originally threatened on November 22nd when twelve of America’s largest rail unions presented an ultimatum, in which they threatened to go on strike if their demands for better working conditions were not met. Demands made by the rail workers include seven days of paid sick days, increased pay, reimbursements for lodging, and travel costs when away from home for prolonged periods. It seemed a strike could be averted when in early October eight of the twelve unions agreed to a labor deal that would grant the unions a portion of their requests. Despite revamped efforts at the negotiation table, the White House has been

State Voting This Year

Ava Miller ‘26, Staff Writer

Time to vote! Actually, voting already happened in Delaware. You might have heard your parents discussing who to vote for. We as teenagers might believe that the elections have nothing to do with us when it has everything to do with us. Obviously, the Upper School of WFS are high schoolers but we should still know who is going to represent our community. We are the next generation to vote. It is important to research the people who want to represent our community. Some information we should regard is what the party stands for, how they will better our community, and what makes them stand out from the rest of the parties.

unable to convince the remaining four unions to sign the trade deal and the unions will go on strike within the coming days. Now, to prevent the imminent strike, Biden is calling on Congress to force the unions into accepting the deal.

Under the Railway Labor Act, in the event of a strike, Congress has the right to force unions and their employers to accept a labor deal if they believe the resulting strike would be detrimental to interstate commerce.

Some government leaders have voiced their disapproval over Biden calling for the Railway Labor Act, arguing that it goes against Biden’s campaign promise to support unions, Florida’s Senator Marco Rubio stated that “Just because Congress has the authority to impose a heavy-handed solution does not mean we should,” he said.

“It is wrong for the Biden administration, which has failed to fight for workers, to ask Congress to impose a deal the workers themselves have rejected.”. Biden and his supporters have argued that a rail strike, of this magnitude, would be so devastating to the American people that moral compromise must be made. It’s predicted that within the first week

One of Delaware’s representatives is Lisa Blunt Rochester, she has been in office since 2017; she is a Democrat. This Congresswoman also serves as an Assistant Whip for House Leadership. An Assistant Whip is a position where the person is responsible for assisting the party leadership in bringing the party’s bills to the House floor, maintaining communication between the leadership of the party and its members, counting votes on key legislation, and persuading Members to vote for the party position. Rochester is geared towards lowering the cost of healthcare for middle and lower-class families. She is an advocate for communities of color, our country’s drug addiction issue, and more. Also, she is the first woman and African American to represent Delaware in Congress.

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of the strike one million workers would be out of jobs, inflation would increase exponentially, water purification and gasoline processing plants would become unable to function, and produce would not be able to be transported to grocery stores. When asked how he felt about calling for the Railway Labor Act Biden said, “It’s not an easy call, but I think we have to do it. The economy is at risk,”. Nancy Pelosi echoed this response saying that “I don’t like going against the ability of unions to strike, but weighing the equities, we must avoid a strike,” said Mrs. Pelosi “Jobs will be lost, even union jobs will be lost, water will not be safe, product will not be going to market.”

The four unions who didn’t agree to Bidens proposed labor deal are holding out for seven days of paid sick days, for reference both Apple and Bechtel offer 12 days of sick leave, the working standard. The Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division, one of the country’s largest unions said regarding Biden’s actions, “It is not enough to ‘share workers’ concerns…A call to Congress to act immediately to pass legislation that adopts tentative

agreements that exclude paid sick leave ignores the railroad workers’ concerns.”

It is not often that the limitations of unions and the extent of our government’s tolerance for them are displayed in such a patient and public way. It raises the question, do unions have any real power to change the fundamental structure of this country, or are they just shell bodies, given enough freedom to make their members feel empowered with choice, but reigned in whenever they present a legitimate threat to the structural stability of the American caste system.

Patagonia Donations

Lucy Cericola ‘26, Staff Writer

In September of 2022, Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard donated the entirety of the more than 3 billion dollar company to the Holdfast Collective in hopes of making a true positive impact on climate change. The change in business model will allegedly continue the cycle, making an yearly donation of approximately $100 million to environmental protection organizations.

“Hopefully this will influence a new form of capitalism that doesn’t end up with a few rich people and a bunch of poor people. We are going to give away the maximum amount of money to people who are actively working on saving this planet,” says Chouinard in an interview with the New York Times.

For years, Patagonia has grappled with its position as a multi billion dollar corporation while still heeding the values it was built upon: environmental conservation, high

quality production, and harm-free practices.

“I never wanted to be a businessman. I started as a craftsman making climbing gear for my friends and myself, then got into apparel,” says Yvon Chouinard.

What separates Patagonia from other “environmentally-friendly” companies is ultimately its transparency in practices and its ability to follow through on previously made sustainability claims.

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The Creation of Alexa

Temi Lufadeju ‘25 Science & Tech Writer

What has our world become? A world of little robots taking over? The answer to that is yes. New technology is shifting into the world with the benefits of only advancing our society. Technology is our future. Alexa is the path towards a new future. Jeff Bezos first sketched the smart device “Echo” on a whiteboard in a conference room in early 2011. Today, the original Amazon Echo speaker sits at $179.99. Originally, Jeff Bezos wanted the Echo, controlled by the virtual assistant to cost $20 and be controlled entirely by voice. Bezos named the virtual assistant Alexa after the ancient library of Alexandria. After the sketch of the future Alexa, Jeff Bezos remained certain that this product would change the world. The next 3 years, Bezos authorized the investment of hundreds of millions of dollars. Bezos stayed close with his Alexa team and even met with them every other day. Just as everything was starting to come together, Apple introduced their voice activated personal assistant, Siri. On October 4th, 2011 Siri was brought to the public. The day after, famous entrepreneur, inventor, and co-founder of Apple, Steve Jobs passed away at the age of 56 due to pancreatic cancer. Bezos’ team felt discouraged given that Siri was the first voice activated personal assistant and that Siri initially gained some negative reviews. Bezos believed that Alexa was different and unique given that it is independent compared to Siri, which is smartphone based. The Alexa was initially released on November 6th 2014. In 2018, Amazon sold over 100 million Alexa devices alone.

Wilmington Friends School takes pride in using Apple laptops every school year for the benefits of enhancing the schools learning. Tech might be used everyday in school. But what about outside of school? Jillian Farley ‘25 is said to be “always on a device” yet at home Alexa is not the most used device in the household. Farley said she uses the Alexa “Not often at all. Maybe once a week”. Lulu Cochran ‘26 is quite the opposite. Cochran is known for using her Alexa to “listen to Taylor Swift”. Cochran said “Mmm like three times a week”. Students find Alexa to be “accessible and easy “. Jenks is the Computer Science Teacher at WFS. For Jenks, he uses Alexa every day. But one encounter with Alexa did not go as expected. Jenks said “One time my family left time and Alexa started asking me personal questions and it was only after they left that Alexa started asking me personal questions and it was so creepy that I unplugged it. Alexa said things like I haven’t met you yet and what’s your name?”. Across the door from Jenks is new nurse Kate Griest. If Griest were to get a free Alexa for Christmas she would say no. The reason may sound odd? Simply because “I wouldn’t use it. I watch the weather channel on TV”. Today, Alexa is one of the most used independent devices in the world. Some people love it and some people don’t bother purchasing it. It all depends on you and what you prefer. Whether that is kicking it old school and watching the weather channel on TV or waking up Alexa and asking her what the weather is. Ultimately, The Alexa is one of the most helpful devices out there. From here, Alexa is only enhancing our society.

The Twitter Takeover

Jack Hebert ‘23 Science & Tech Writer

On October 27th, 2022, Elon Musk finalized his acquisition of Twitter, one of the largest social media platforms in the world. Musk’s purchase first started on April 14th, 2022, when he made an offer of $44 billion to Twitter’s board of directors, which was accepted on April 25th. As soon as Musk took over, he took the company private, fired several top executives, and began making reforms to the platform. These reforms included creating a content moderation council to handle free speech, and laid off half of the workforce. Responses to Musk’s takeover have been split along party lines. Republicans and other right leaning groups have been praising his planned reforms and prioritization of free speech, while Democrats and other left leaning groups have raised concerns over a potential rise in misinformation, disinformation, and hate speech. But what does Musk’s takeover really entail for the platform?

Elon Musk’s main selling point for his version of Twitter would be its new prioritization of free speech, offering two main methods to improve the platform. His first method was to restructure the content moderation policies by forming a content moderation council. This was announced via a tweet from Musk, where he stated that the members of the council would have “wildly diverse viewpoints,” and that “No major content decisions or account reinstations will happen before that council convenes.” Musk has yet to release any more information on this content moderation council, but some people have already expressed criticism, citing Facebook’s content moderation council as an example for why Musk’s decision may not work out. Musk’s second method to encourage free speech was in the removal of permanent bans as a punishment, which has resulted in

The Science of Seasonal Myths

Jemima Smith ‘24 Science & Tech Writer

The holiday season is fast approaching, and with it comes a slew of seasonal traditions and myths. Winter myths are a bit wacky and fantastical -- they rely heavily on a childish spirit and the suspension of disbelief. But what would it be like to take them literally? WFS science experts were interviewed to find out.

Let’s head to the Chemistry lab to learn about the reactions behind some of these myths. According to the story of the Hanukkah Miracle, a small bit of pure olive oil in a cruse, or jar, was able to burn in a lamp for eight days and nights. But what kinds of reactions happen in a lamp like this one? According to Ms. O’Brien, olive oil is made up of fatty acids, which are hydrocarbons (compounds containing hydrogen and carbon, as the name suggests). These acids are oleic, linoleic, palmitic, and stearic. Their general chemical formula is CH3(CH2)nCOOH. Burning any hydrocarbon follows the formula of an organic combustion reaction: (CxHyOz + O2 → CO2 + H2O). According to Ms. O’Brien, “Olive oil is a relatively safe choice for lamp oil fuel because its flashpoint is on the higher side (410 Fahrenheit). This

means that the lamp won’t catch fire if the flame dips into the oil pool.”

A strange part of the myth of Santa is the alleged punishment for children deemed naughty by the inhabitants of the North Pole. Every December, kids are told to be extra good and kind because if they’re naughty, Santa will know and they’ll get nothing but coal in their stockings on Christmas Day. It’s a weird tradition, and no one can really agree where it comes from. Some possible origins include a Sicilian myth called ‘La Befana’ about a witch who disciplines bad children by giving them coal, or a Dutch tradition in the 1500s to leave clogs by the fireplace on Christmas Eve and receive candy for being good and coal for being bad. American families became increasingly dependent on coal in the late 19th century, and it didn’t have a negative connotation until around the beginning of the 20th century when it was very common. According to Ms. O’Brien, “coal is formed from the compression and heating of plant (organic) matter in the absence of oxygen underground over the course of millions of years. It’s a very dense fuel which gives off twice the heat as wood per hour, so it would be useful to heat a child’s home though not much fun.” So maybe Santa’s

punishment isn’t as bad as it sounds? Talking about the physics of Santa, here’s what Mr. Cauchy has to say: “The population is now 8 billion people. About 25% of that is 15 or under, or approximately 2 billion. If Santa were to deliver to 2 billion in 24 hours, that would mean an average of 43 microseconds per person. That is a ridiculously small number, so we can safely say this makes no sense with the physics we know… The fun thing is to think of ways this could be possible. Science fiction and fantasy writers are good at coming up with ideas.” He cites some creative solutions to transcending time and space in the worlds of Ant-Man and the Sandman, with the Quantum Realm and the Dream Dimension.

2 billion children to deliver to is an enormous number. Santa needs to fly about 84 million kilometers (52 million miles), and to do this in 24 hours, he’d need to fly at around 2,166,666 miles per hour (3,000 times the speed of sound). This speed would cause several sonic booms and deadly combustions, but even ignoring those it would put 98484 g’s of force on Santa (while the average human can withstand no more than 9), so it’s safe to assume that in addition to his immortality, Santa has the immunity and/or regenerative abilities of Deadpool.

Santa has some strange biological implications. In order to digest all of the

cookies left out for him, Santa would need to metabolize 123.5 billion calories and 6.65 billion grams of fat. The energy from those calories would be equivalent to roughly 517 billion joules, or enough energy to power 1435 electric cars. “Nutritionists tell us that every excess 3500 calories corresponds to an increase of one pound,” Ms. Johnson says, “so in one night he’d be gaining over 35 million pounds, solely from his caloric intake.” This is assuming that his body processes food and creates fat like a normal human, which it probably would not.

How about Santa’s immortality? Ms. Johnson points to the backwards aging jellyfish and regenerating flatworms , “both of which effectively add a ‘do-over’ phase to their life cycle.” Other examples include “the resistance tricks of UV-insensitive archaebacteria and the cycling of slowed metabolism of tardigrades.” His immortality, on a cellular level, could also come from avoiding age-related breakdown of chromosomes through heightened telomerase activity, as is known for some species.

So now you’re well-versed in the ins and outs of olive oil lamps and Santa Claus’s genetic similarities to jellyfish. Of course, there are always more calculations to make or factors to consider. But now you’ll have an answer to just about any skeptical question a kid throws at you this holiday season!

Into The Woods The Downfall of “Ye”

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West launched the production firm and record label, “GOOD Music” in 2004. Since then, the label has signed musicians such as Mos Def, Pusha T, Kid Cudi, Big Sean, and John Legend. West served as an example for everyone who wanted to pursue their aspirations. “Shoot for the stars, so if you fall, you land on a cloud.” The “Kanye West Foundation,” now known as the Dr. Donda West Foundation was established by West and his mother in 2003. The foundation strives to give underprivileged children access to an arts and music education. At the time, West’s music contained influential messages related to racism and political issues. An example of West’s messages relating to racism is his expressed support for Black Lives Matter in the song “Feedback” from the album “The Life of Pablo,” in which Kanye sings, “Hands up, we just doing what the cops taught us. Hands up, hands up, then the cops shot us.” An obvious reference to the protests against police brutality. The rapper and fashion designer had it all: money, power, status, and freedom. But it wasn’t enough in the end.

“Racism is a dated concept. It’s like a silly concept that people try to touch on to either… to separate, to alienate, to pinpoint anything. It’s stupid.” This is West’s response to the question, “Have you lived in this social racism?” He continued: “It’s like a bouncing ball in a room with two cats. Let them literally fight over the bouncing ball. And the bouncing ball has nothing, no purpose, anything other than that: it bounces. That’s racism. It’s not an actual thing that even means anything.” Over the years, West has made many inflammatory statements that have alienated the black community. As if that wasn’t enough, Kanye questioned slavery’s history in a 2018 interview with TMZ. Around the same time, West revealed that he had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which would provide a possible answer to some of his erratic behavior; however, it does not provide an explanation about his general personal values. According to The Brag Media, West states, “When you hear about slavery for 400 years. For 400 years? That sound like a choice,” Ye claimed (West changed his name to “Ye” in 2018). Talk about controversial statements. His comments caused quite an uproar in the U.S.West arranged “White Lives Matter’’ T-shirts down the runway at his YZYS9 presentation in Paris on October 3, 2022. It would be nice to dismiss the shirts as just another prank to disturb the peace, raise eyebrows, or cause a commotion. The next day, in response to criticism he received for wearing “White Lives Matter’’shirts, Ye claimed that he was to thank for the Black Lives Matter movement’s demise. “Everyone knows that Black Lives Matter was a scam,” Kanye wrote on his Instagram Story. “Now it’s over. You’re welcome.” “Kanye used his huge platform numerous times to spread problematic messages, which are usually disregarded; but now he’s suffering from the repercussions,” says Brina Abere ‘25.

Several companies have publicly cut ties with the rapper. Adidas is the most well-known. “I can say antisemitic sh** and Adidas can’t drop me,” Ye said on the Drink Champs Podcast on October 16, 2022, just days before the banner was hung over the 405 Freeway. After the incident in Los Angeles, Adidas terminated its relationship with Ye. The result, a $246 million loss for the sportswear manufacturer. Ouch. And that’s not all. Without Adidas, Ye’s billionaire status vanished, leaving him with an estimated net worth of $400 million (down from $1.9 billion). Over time, companies ranging from Balenciaga to his own talent agency (CAA) have parted ways with Ye. To make matters worse for Ye, Instagram and Twitter locked him out of their platforms due to his anti-Semitic posts.

Many of Ye’s fans and associates are torn between his music and who he is as a person. Many view Ye as a musical genius, so fans may turn a blind eye to everything Ye has said and done. “The downfall in his career hasn’t really affected me much because I can still listen to the music without supporting his actions,” says Nife Shoyinka ‘25. Ye’s supporters tend to believe he is brilliant and a virtuoso; whether they agree with everything he does or not, they commend him. Ye’s opposition paints him as a racist and a narcissist. Some people believe both sides of the coin and are at a loss as to what to do next. “His old music was fantastic. Taking his personal profile aside from what he creates, I would say he was one of my favorite artists growing up……transparently, older music that sits in my playlist, I still listen to it,” says Shivani, Director of Audience Engagement, Entertainment Company.

Those people often end up “splitting” Ye’s personalities in order to have the best of both worlds. For example, one might split West up into Ye the man, Ye the musician, and Ye the fashion icon. They might choose to focus their attention on Ye the musician or Ye the fashion icon. Similar to condemning Ye’s hate speech while still enjoying his music. The question for you is: where do you stand? Which side are you on?

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the musical, played the evil step-sister. Emma was a leader on and off of the stage. Emma was also a captain on the WFS field hockey team. She balanced field hockey playoffs with her team, school work, and the musical. Yet, she is thankful for the experiences that the musical brought her even while her schedule became packed with commitments. “Between school, field hockey, and the musical, my schedule was extremely busy and definitely stressful. However, I don’t regret adding the musical to my schedule because even though it added stress, it was so much fun and I’m so grateful that I was able to participate in something like that before college.” (Slease) Despite being very busy, Emma put her all into every rehearsal. She would rush out of practice just to spend the next few hours rehearsing. She voiced how everyone in the cast came together and worked hard to accomplish their goal of a successful performance. “Our last rehearsal on Thursday definitely could’ve been better, but by Friday morning we pulled everything together and really gave it our all. Each and every cast member worked really hard on their parts, and we couldn’t have done it without our directors, members of tech, members of the pit, and our stage managers.” (Slease) The cast exemplified one of the Quaker SPICES, community, by coming together to create a positive community to complete their performances. The cast spent so much time together which brought them closer to each other.

Finally, it can’t be a musical without directors. Sara Gaines and Margaret Anne Butterfield have been partners for many years. Currently, the duo directs both middle and high schoolers. They have pushed their students out of their comfort zone to create amazing performances. Mrs. Butterfield had a very demanding role in this production. While many students have struggled with being overwhelmed, so did the teachers. “Every production has moments when you get over-tired and stressed, especially the last weeks leading up to performances. That’s all to be expected, however, and the anticipation of the final product keeps you going. I actually enjoy the rehearsal process. It’s incredibly rewarding to witness students growing in ways other than academically. Putting all the little details together is also very satisfying – I love it when a prop gets a laugh or some other reaction!” (Butterfield) She expressed how she never regretted committing to this show. The musical was a great experience for both students and the cast. Each member of the cast worked and sacrificed so much to give our school a fantastic performance!

The Twitter Takeover

Continuedfrompagefive controversy due to its execution. Musk decided not only to stop permanent bans, or permabans, in the future, but also reinstate previously banned accounts, the most notable of which being former President Donald Trump. On November 18th, Musk tweeted out a poll, asking whether or not he should reinstate Trump, which resulted in a 51% majority voting yes. He was reinstated the next day, and has since remained inactive, making it unclear if Trump intends to return to the platform. Other notable accounts that have been reinstated include Jordan Peterson, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Andrew Tate, three very controversial figures. These four accounts were banned for the spreading of hate speech and misinformation, sparking debates on whether hate speech and misinformation are free speech, and if they should be allowed to flourish.

A final notable change that Musk made was in his Twitter Blue program. Twitter Blue took the privi- leges and displays of verified Twitter accounts and made these features a subscription service. For $8 a month, Twitter users can now have the verified blue check mark next to their name, bookmark folders, reader view, undo tweet options, and other premium features. Twitter Blue was Musk’s way of offering people more access on Twitter. However, Twitter Blue greatly underperformed, making only $4 million per month, which is the average daily cost of keeping Twitter up and running. Twitter Blue also resulted in lots of imposter accounts, where people disguised their accounts as verified pages for real corporations, made an outrageous tweet, and resulted in the real corporation taking a negative blowback. One example is with Eli Lilly, where someone made a verified account impersonating the pharmaceutical company, and tweeted out that insulin would now be free. The result was a severe drop in stock prices for Eli Lilly.

Elon Musk’s first month owning Twitter has been one of controversy and poor management. With the failure of Twitter Blue, the silence from the content moderation council, and reinstatement of controversial figures, it would seem that Musk’s decisions have been mostly negative. But can Twitter be saved? Will Musk turn the platform around? Or will this turn out to be Musk wasting $44 billion? Only time will tell.

Holiday Traditions at the Lower School

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The teachers even have their own favorite parts of the lessons. Tr. Sue and Tr. Kate said their favorite part is “When families or students share their holidays and customs with us… not only do we learn about other cultures, but we gain a deeper understanding about people we know.” Señora Munch enjoys (like most lower schoolers), “ALL of it!” and also, “learning and sharing multiple perspectives with our students… we all benefit and hopefully pass our knowledge and appreciation to others as well.”

Even now, many upper schoolers still remember the fun times of singing holiday songs in gathering, receiving gifts in their shoes when the three wise men came, playing dreidel, and eating lots of cultural foods. “I remember the mitten tree and putting the mitten on it, I thought that was fun,” said Leyla Medford ‘26. Happy holidays from the friends at Lower School!

Patagonia Donations

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It's the opposite of greenwashing corporations. In recent years, numerous prominent companies experienced backlash and an accusation of “greenwashing”. So what is it and how do we recognize its use?

Greenwashing is defined as “disinformation disseminated by an organization so as to present an environmentally responsible public image”. Companies often prey on the environmental sympathy of customers to convince them that their products are more beneficial to the environment when that is often not the case. Corporations called out for greenwashing include major fossil fuel establishments like ExxonMobil, BP, and Shell, who alter their language and use terms like “low-carbon”, “transition”, and “climate” while their business practices reflect no positive change to impact the environment.

However, greenwashing is not limited to oil companies. Corporations market all sorts of products as environmentally friendly to draw positive attention. Countless food and clothing brands are guilty of this practice. More than you may think, but that’s their goal: to deceive.

With an increase of social awareness in the unhealthy impacts of fast fashion consumption, many consumers have made a conscious choice to shift their shopping towards “eco-friendly” companies. Of course, fast-fashion industries caught onto this coined all sorts of distorted terms like “sustainable” and “earth friendly”.

For example, ZARA, the growing fast fashion empire vowed to halt toxic chemical use in clothing production by 2020, in addition to launching a “JOIN LIFE” collective which pledged an increased ethicality to manufacturing. However, their claims to sustainability are opposed by their ongoing failure to disclose the resources which go into production. As a whole, the company participates in a mass production of over 450 million items per year and functions as one of the largest faces of fast fashion. However, this is not to say that all brands who preach sustainability have a lack thereof. It’s important to be wary when choosing brands to shop from based on sustainability claims as oftentimes, actions speak louder than words. Patagonia’s 3 billion dollar donation will directly benefit positive environmental change, and will continue to do so every year."

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While having a legislative idea is a starting point, that's generally where most student efforts end. Since we have such a perceived gap between students and policy-makers, outside of protests and clubs, there’s not much we can do to get our ideas solidified in our state legislature. However, we DO have the ability to write and organize, which has come in tremendously handy over the years. I work for YES! - a student-led organization that works with Dee Durham, a City Council woman. YES! has hosted some incredible speakers over the years, from the likes of Lisa Blunt Rochester to the Sierra Club’s president. And their message is always the same after their keynote speeches; We WANT to work with you. Ultimately, it’s all about making connections within the community, and expressing some interest. Adults want you to make a difference - it takes the pressure off of them. Furthermore, it prepares you for when you can make a difference by voting, by helping you understand what you stand for.

Breakouts and Busts: The Best and Worst Players in Fantasy Football

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“Since then, though, he has been plagued by injury until this year. This year Saquon is ranked as the 5th best back in standard and 6th in PPR. “My biggest surprise has been Saquon because he was very injury prone and hasn’t shown anything since his rookie year.” This quote is from Braden Shipp ‘24, a Wilmington Friends student who plays fantasy football. Braden drafted Barkley with his 3rd round pick, meaning that every other manager passed on him at least 2 times.

Fantasy football is a fun way for fans from anywhere to feel involved with the NFL, especially if their team isn’t playing at the time, but that doesn’t make it a perfect game. There are many flaws because league managers don’t control whether a player has 4 touchdowns in a game or not, but that doesn’t make it any less fun.

State Voting this Year

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We hear the term Democratic party all over the world, especially during elections. But what does this term really mean? The google definition in simple terms will tell you “a person who believes in and upholds government by the people; advocate of rule by the majority.” The detailed answer is “the Democratic Party generally represents left-leaning, liberal, and progressive ideological values, thus advocating for a strong government to regulate business and support for the citizens of the United States. Thus, one of the key values emphasized by Democrats is social responsibility.” Democrats often support the heavy taxation of high-income households. Additionally, they support government-funded healthcare and believe that all U.S. citizens should have access to health and social services. Lastly, Democrats support women’s legal rights to free abortion and LGBTQ+ people’s rights to equal treatment under the law.

Meanwhile, the Republican party has different definitions and beliefs. The definition is often regarded to support right-leaning ideologies of conservatism, social conservatism, and economic libertarianism. Thus, it is widely considered that Republicans broadly advocate for traditional values, a low degree of government interference, and large support of the private sector. Some things the Republicans support are family and individual rights, businesses to exist in a free market instead of being impacted by tight government regulations, religious freedom, and the right to bear arms. Additionally, the party values a powerful national defense and a strong military to provide increased security and peace. Delaware doesn’t have any representatives that support the Republican party. Therefore, Delaware is a democratic state.

Despite being teenagers, we should still learn why voting is important and how it benefits society. Originally, only wealthy white male citizens over the age of 21 were able to vote. Now voting is available to all, it allows everyone to offer a viewpoint. In addition, U.S. citizens have a responsibility to participate in their government by registering to vote and voting in elections. By voting, citizens have a voice in their government. For an election to be free and fair, certain civil liberties, such as the freedoms of speech, association, and assembly, are required. Citizens vote for leaders to represent them and their ideas, and the leaders support the citizens’ interests. There are two special rights only for U.S. citizens: voting in federal elections and running for federal office.”

The Other Futbol

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This World Cup is different from many others in the past. This is likely the last world cup for some of the older, very famous players. With this most likely being the last world cup for some of these players, it is time for other players to step up and fill their shoes.“I think that Christian Pulisic really needs to shine because he has been doing pretty well on the USMNT, but he has struggled to shine on Chelsea this past season, so I think he really needs to prove to the world what he’s got.” Brennan ‘23 says.

What separates all these countries is the fanbases and the popularity of soccer in each country. In America, soccer is the 5th most popular sport, with football, baseball, hockey, and basketball ahead of it. In South America, Asia, and Europe soccer or “fútbol” is the most popular. That is what sets apart America and the rest of the world.“The NFL dominates our TV schedule because it’s something that’s so regular in the US, but I think when you go worldwide you get a global perspective that allows you to see that soccer is the better sport.” Brennan ‘23 says. Upper School Spanish teacher, Rodrigo Saldana says, “In Spain, we think about soccer 24 hours every day, and it’s in all conversations. Even if you do not like soccer you cannot avoid it because it is always around you. Versus in the US, there are many sports that you could support.”

Everything about soccer in other countries is exciting. From the announcer’s high spirits and energy to the fans doing whatever they can to show their support for their country. Will the United States ever show as much interest in soccer as the rest of the world?”

100 Years of Women’s Sports

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“Most students are not awake for these times which makes it hard for girls to get supporters. A basketball player, Gianna Cottone, 26’, says, “The audience can really set a mood or change the rhythm of a game and without any fans, our team can feel unsupported.”

This is a problem that can easily be fixed. At friends, we have two main gyms that are used for high school basketball. This is more than enough space for the games to happen at convenient times. Also, if girls’ basketball game times were later, the middle school could have that space during those days. Changing the times would truly help and be better for everyone. Friends should use both the gyms we have to get girls’ basketball at convenient times.

Basketball attracts many fans due to its fast pace, it is crucial to let the girls’ team have the same support as the boys. Equality is extremely important in this aspect of our life. To improve our community, we need to pay attention to this. WFS is known for our equality and kindness in our community, we need to uphold that reputation, especially in our 100th year of women’s athletics.”

The Whittier Wishlist:

To pass midterms

A new water bottle

Taylor Swift tickets

More warm days

Peace

Blankets in school

Therapy dogs in school

More World Affairs debates

An easy second semester

College acceptances (please!)

Bagels

Sushi

Justin Bieber to re-record his holiday album

Friends to let us buy the 100 year girls athletic sweatshirts

Another Big Time Rush tour

Super Bowl tickets

To win the lottery

A kitten

Sprite cranberry all year round

Playa Bowls