The Union - Milpitas High School - April 2015

WHAT’S INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Psychedelic Drugs?

OPINION PAGE 4

Pitfalls of Technology IN-FOCUS PAGE 9

Ice Cream Hot Spots LIFESTYLE PAGE 10

T HE

APRIL 2015

Volume XXVI Issue V

UN I O N

MHSTHEUNION.COM For the latest updates

STUDENT VOICE OF MILPITAS HIGH SCHOOL

School evacuated for bomb threat; perpetrator punished

BY RISHIKA DUGYALA

Denny Bao | THE UNION

The Junior Class of 2016 performs their dance routine during the annual Trojan Olympics (T.O.) . The Class of 2016 dance, choreographed by Junior Class President Hallie Almogela, was awarded 1st place. The Class of 2016 went on to win T.O.

Juniors prevail in upset win at Trojan Olympics

BY DENNY BAO

The Junior class upset the Senior class at the 2015 Trojan Olympics (T.O.) on March 27, according to T.O. Committee Chair Germain Louie.

The annual event, which was held in the MHS gym, is meant to encourage unity between the four classes, Louie said.

According to Senior Class Secretary David Hoang, the judges used six categories to score the competition: dances, decorations, games, pyramids, spirit, and ticket sales. The Juniors won T.O. with 520 points, the

N EWS IN BR IEF AP Examination AP Exams will begin on Monday, May 4, and end on Friday, May 15. Visit mhstheunion.com to find out when your subject’s exam is scheduled, or check your AP student handbook.

2015 Junior/Senior Prom Prom tickets will be on sale from April 29 to May 15. From April 29 to May 8, tickets will cost $50 ASB, $55 Non-ASB. Tickets will cost $55 ASB, $60 Non-ASB from May 11 to 12, $60 ASB, $65 Non-ASB from May 13 to 14, and $65 for all on May 15.

Prom will be on Saturday, May 16.

Upcoming SAT and ACT testing dates ACT Testing will be occurring on June 13, and the last day to register without paying a late fee is May 8.

SAT Testing will be occurring on June 6, and the last day to register without paying a late fee is May 8.

School not in session School will not be in session on May 4 due to “Cinco de Mayo,” as well as on May 25, due to Memorial Day observance.

Grading period ending The six week grading period will end on Friday, April 17.

End of the Year Assembly The annual End of the Year Assembly will be held on the football field on Friday, May 22.

Seniors came in second place with 455 points, the Sophomores got third place with 295 points, and the Freshmen finished last with 270 points.

Attendance at T.O. this year improved over the attendance from last year, according to Louie. Over 1,200 tickets were sold, so the gym was extremely packed, Louie said. People were actually not allowed to enter the gym anymore at one point, Louie added.

“I’m really happy with how the class officers put in so much work to create such a successful event,” Louie said. “We had officers from different

schools like Pioneer, Piedmont Hills, and Independence High School who were impressed with how spirited our school is.”

Being Louie’s second time as the T.O. Committee Chair, he started preparing for T.O. in January, he said.

Louie led two committees that contained three to four members; the committees had officers that were representatives from each class, according to Louie. He would relay information to the officers, who would then pass it on to their classes, Louie SEE TROJAN OLYMPICS ON PAGE 2

AP Economics discontinued

BY AMANDA NGUYEN

An Advanced Placement (AP) Macro/Micro Economics class will not be offered next year, according to Principal Cheryl Lawton. AP Economics, which was initially included on the course catalog when students were determining their schedules for next year, does not have a designated teacher to instruct the class, Lawton said.

Lawton spoke to Co-History Department Leads Liza Gable-Ferguson and Paul Harrison about the options for an instructor for the class, but she was unable to find someone willing to teach the class, Lawton said.

“We don’t have any teachers that would be able to teach it at the moment, so it’s still kind of iffy,” Lawton said. “At this point we’re not [going to offer the class], because we don’t have any teachers to teach it.”

“It doesn’t look like we’re going to have [an AP Economics class] for now. Mrs. Robinson is coming back, but she doesn’t want to teach the class next year,” Harrison said. “No one else in the department wants to teach it either.”

Instructing an AP class requires teachers to attend training to learn about the specific curriculum for the course, according to Lawton.

“If at some point we can hire a social science teacher to teach it, we would be interested in that because we know there’s students interested

[in the class],” Lawton said. “We don’t have any openings for social science teachers right now.”

Schedules and AP contracts were due in March, so students who were interested in taking the AP Economics class already submitted their requests to be in the class.

“People are saying different things.

Some people said that there is not going to be an AP Economics class,” Junior Mihir Thummar said. “Incoming seniors are actually interested in the class, so they should have someone to teach it.”

Counselors will begin calling in students who had registered for the class to discuss their options, Lawton added.

“Counselors will call [students who have signed up for the AP economics class] in,” Lawton said. “Probably in the next couple of weeks they’ll call people in and have them pick something else.”

Students who still need their Economics credits, which are required in order to graduate, will have to opt for taking the general Economics class currently offered or taking Economics at a college over the summer, Lawton said.

“We don’t want to say maybe [the AP Economics class will be offered] and then say never mind, we’re not going to have it,” Lawton said. “We can cut [the class] right now, so that students can take it over summer at the college.”

The administration received a bomb threat through a voice mail message on the main school phone number before 8:40 a.m. on Thursday, April 9, Principal Cheryl Lawton said. Lawton and Assistant Principal Ethan Stocks triggered the fire alarm so students would evacuate the campus quickly, Lawton continued.

Half of the students were moved to Thomas Russell Middle School and the other half to the MHS football field, Lawton said. Administration called the police and the district office soon after, and the police were able to trace the call and locate surveillance cameras in the area that the call was made from, Lawton said.

“We had a process once people were evacuated,” Lawton said. “There’s a certain location where every class is supposed to be, there’s a process for taking attendance, there’s a process for lead teachers that are assigned to check and make sure that the classes are out there.”

Administration realized that students should have their belongings, such as their house keys, wallets, and phones, Lawton said. Thus, from now on, administrators will probably tell students to take what they can quickly grab within five to ten seconds before they evacuate, Lawton added.

“I’ve had people come up to me after and say, ‘You know, we really should have a code word or something so that people know it’s a real emergency,’” Stocks said. “And I said, ‘I thought that was what the alarm was for.’ I realize this may sound unrealistic, but if you hear a fire alarm going off, you evacuate. I realize there have been false alarms […] you have to treat all those moments like they’re real until you know that they’re not.”

It was a good thing that administration kept quiet about the bomb threat during the evacuation, otherwise mass hysteria would have ensued,

Senior Alyssa Gaw said.

“They should’ve told us what it was, that it was really a bomb,” Sophomore Amanpreet Badesha said. “I would’ve ran, and they like turned on the alarm and made us evacuate. What if it was about to explode? They should’ve just let me leave.”

Students were not immediately informed about the bomb threat even after they were evacuated because their parents needed to be notified first, Lawton explained.

After students were told about the threat, they were released at around 10:00 a.m. Administrators decided to release students at 10:00 a.m. when they realized that by the time the search of the campus was done, there would not be time left for students to have any kind of meaningful learning, Stocks said.

Bomb-sniffing dogs were brought on campus to search for any explosive materials in classrooms and the possessions that students left behind, according to Stocks. The dogs were not specifically looking for other illegal substances that students may have had, Stocks said.

“Police would’ve notified us if they found [illegal substances],” Lawton said. “They weren’t looking for it, but if people have stuff and it gets caught, then it gets caught. They shouldn’t have it on the campus.”

Administrators cannot disclose specific details about the situation, but in a case such as this one the most severe punishment would be expulsion, Stocks said. “I can tell you we are following the school and district discipline policies in dealing with the student,” Stocks said.

The Milpitas Police Department later announced the arrest of a 16-year-old male student, according to the San Jose Mercury News. The student’s actions would be classified as a misdemeanor and not a feloSEE BOMB THREAT ON PAGE 2

EYE ON CAMPUS

Courtesy Of Milpitas Post

Christina Luo | THE UNION

News vans (pictured right) were spotted around campus on April 1. The vans were covering an incident in which Senior Miguel Gonzalez was suspended for bringing a horse on campus to ask Senior Catalina Hernandez to prom (pictured left). Gonzalez’s suspension was later expunged from his record.

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NEWS

T HE U NION

APRIL 2015

AP Music Theory class added

BY AYSHA REHMAN

An Advanced Placement (AP) Music Theory class will be offered at MHS in the coming year, according to Music Teacher Emily Moore. The class was approved by the school district this year and will be available for all band students, Moore said.

“This is where you get to do a lot of writing and analyzing music,” Moore said. “You get to learn a lot about music you might not get to learn [in your regular music classes].”

The course will mainly feature techniques and concepts related to reading and writing music, according to Music Teacher Chris Kaldy. The class will also focus on sight-singing, which is singing a melody given the notes, along with dictation, in which the students learn to write out the rhythms they hear, Kaldy said.

“They learn the forms of the music; they learn how the chord structures work,” Kaldy said. “They learn how to understand chord progressions, so that’s what the course is.”

Although the class has no prerequisites, it is strongly recommended that prospective students have a background in music, Moore said.

Freshmen are advised not to take the course, while upperclassmen that have taken a music class are encouraged to take it, Moore said.

“When I was in high school, I took it, and it really helped me understand

music. I really loved it,” Moore said. “I wanted to bring that here and teach it.”

Sophomore Noemi Crisanto, hopes to become a better musician and deepen her understanding of music.

She first heard about AP Music Theory from Moore during class, according to Crisanto.

“I am pretty excited that we will have the option of taking this course,” Crisanto said. “Not only will I be able to learn more about music but I will be able to take it as a class here in Milpitas High.”

The actual AP test will consist of multiple choice questions that involve the recognition of chords and other components of the class, such as sight-singing, Moore said. For sight-singing, the students will be recorded and the recordings are sent in for grading, Moore said.

At the moment there are 33 students signed up for the class, according to Kaldy. The hope is that the course will take place during second period with Moore as the primary teacher, Kaldy said.

Kaldy hopes that the students will become better musicians from this class, Kaldy said. They can also possibly earn college credit for doing something they love, Kaldy said.

“They will definitely have a leg up on other students that don’t have that experience in college if they are a music major,” Kaldy said.

Plans to hire new college counselor

BY IVAN HUANG

MHS will hire a new counselor next year who will focus primarily on assisting students with college applications, according to Principal Cheryl Lawton. This is being done in order to allow the rest of the counselors to concentrate more on academics and scheduling, Lawton said.

The school is understaffed on counselors compared to other schools, Lawton said. MHS hopes to hire more counselors in order to decrease the student to counselor ratio, Lawton said.

“Most schools have a ratio of about 400 to 500 [students] per counselor,” Lawton said. “We’re way over that.

Ideally, we’ll be able to add at least one more counselor for next year.”

The hire is meant to help alleviate the understaffing of counselors at MHS, Lawton added. Though there are about 3100 students at MHS currently, the school is expected to get a couple hundred more in the next few years, according to Lawton.

“What we currently have are four full-time academic counselors,” Lawton said. “We have the full-time CASSY counselors. We also have the equivalent of two full-time psychologists that help with special ed.”

The additional hire will help the current counseling staff greatly, Counselor Cory Nakamoto said. Even though the current counseling staff is handling the workload very well, the presence of a College and Career Advisor would be highly beneficial, Nakamoto said.

“Our counseling team is very competent and effective and we work extremely well together,” Nakamoto said via email. “I’ve worked at different high schools and this is by far the most efficient team I’ve been a part of.”

The hire will hopefully be the first of several more to help reduce the student to counselor ratio, Lawton said. Some more counselors may be brought in to work with student scheduling, Lawton said.

2016 wins Trojan Olympics FROM PAGE 1

said.

The Seniors finished their decorations first because that was their main priority, according to Hoang. They worked on the dance and pyramid simultaneously for approximately three hours a day, two days per week, Hoang added.

The area the Seniors really excelled in were the games, Senior [Game Coordinator] Kyle Nguyen said. “I set up the games and made sure they went smoothly, ” Nguyen said. “They were very competitive, and a lot of games were a lot closer than I expected.”

Ultimately, the Seniors’ dance was what hurt them, according to Louie.

Their dance exceeded the maximum time limit, causing the Seniors to lose points, Louie explained. The Sophomores and Juniors also lost points because their actual ticket sales had discrepancies from their reported ticket sales by an amount of five to ten dollars, Louie continued.

Although the Seniors lost, Hoang is happy for everyone who put in effort.

“It was upsetting at first, but honest-

ly it doesn’t matter because T.O. is meant to encourage unity within our school,” Hoang said. “I was surprised that the freshmen were very spirited this year.”

Junior Class President Hallie Almogela shares the same sentiment as Hoang, according to Almogela. Even though the Juniors won, the most important thing is that everyone was so spirited, Almogela said.

“I’m happy that we won and were having so much fun together, but it didn’t matter what grade you were in,” Almogela said. “This was the most spirited T.O. I’ve been to.”

Almogela choreographed the dance, and another officer was in charge of the pyramid, but people helped out with all the tasks, Almogela said.

“As a class, what we did well was when we had our work days; we had a lot of different helpers. Having a lot of juniors come to help built us up and increased our morale,” Almogela said.

“I think that we should give Germain more appreciation and a big thank you. He was in charge of everything for 12 weeks.”

Courtesy of Alan Pham

The 2015 MHS Inter-School Science Fair High School Division winners display their awards with MHS alum and Science Fair Founder Ivy Pham (far right) and Science Club Co-President Alan Pham (Back row, second from left).

3rd Annual Science Fair held; reforms implemented

BY NEAL BANSAL

The third annual MHS Science Fair was hosted by the Science Club on Saturday, March 21, according to Science Club Co-President Alan Pham.

The purpose of the science fair is to promote interest in science among students ranging across all grade levels, Pham said.

Approximately 30 of the 150 projects entered were from MHS, Pham said. Many of the participants came from the Milpitas middle schools, Pham said. While the science fair was open to anyone from any city, a majority of the participants came from the Bay Area, Pham added.

“The winners were decided by five judges,” Pham said.

The judges were Science Club Advisor Karen Truesdell, Science Teacher Christopher O’Connor, Science Teacher April Hong, Rancho Science Teacher Diallo Sims, and Math Teacher Elena Sherbakov, Pham said.

“We raffled out the prizes, instead of rewarding first, second, and third places prizes,” Pham said. “Our point is to encourage participation.”

The science fair was organized by multiple committees, of which Pham was in charge of, Truesdell said.

The individual committees were responsible for creating the judging rubric, organizing volunteers, and setting up the sales of milk tea, Truesdell said.

“There were a lot fewer high school participants this year,” Truesdell said.

A possible reason for the change is that not as many teachers assigned a science fair project as a class project this year, Truesdell said. Sims was there with his students, who turned in projects into the science fair, Truesdell said.

There will be more guest speakers next year to talk about how to do science projects, Pham said. This year, Stanford Mathematics Professor Arezoo Islami gave a speech about Stanford’s summer math program and encouraged students to join, Pham said. Islami also gave a math lesson to everyone present at the science fair, Pham said.

“Next year, we’re planning on giving students a lot more support with their projects,” Pham said.

New pool water burning swimmers’ skin

BY ABIGAIL ECAL AND RUTH PARK

The MHS swimming pool has chlorine levels that are higher than they should be, according to Varsity Swim Captain Don Huynh. This has been a continuous problem since the beginning of the season, Huynh said.

On Feb. 25, 48 members of the MHS swim team felt a burning sensation after swimming in the pool, according to Huynh. The majority of the team still felt pain when they got home, Huynh continued.

“So, we showed our coach the [pH] meter, and we told her, ‘Oh the chlorine is off, the pH is off,’” Huynh said.

“She kind of played it off as if we can’t do anything about; we just have to swim.”

Senior Katelyn Bui brought a chemical kit to test the chlorine levels of the pool, according to Bui. The chlorine level was higher than the standard level, while the pH reading was too low, Bui said. “[The pool] literally looked like Gatorade,” K. Bui said. “The chlorine was like five or higher than a five and the pH was 7.2. [The pH] is supposed to be around 7.8. I’m a lifeguard and we do these chemical checks.”

People with eczema on the team would get terrible skin conditions after swimming in the pool, according to K. Bui. Irritation would cause them to scratch their skin to a point where it would bleed, K. Bui said.

“Overtime, the chlorine level seemed okay, so we still swam, but then our skin would feel worse,” K. Bui said. “I felt like I dumped my face in acid. It’d get red and super ashy.

At first, individually, we just thought that we were like seeing things, but then as we talked as a team, we realized that everyone was getting it.”

Head Varsity Swim Coach Jennifer Loomis is unaware of the full effects the pool has had on the swimmers’ skin and overall health, according to Sophomore Ca-Zao Bui. Despite this, the coach still makes them swim in the pool every day, C. Bui said.

“Someone overheard [our opponents] complaining about how messed up our chlorine levels were,” C. Bui said. “I guess they felt it after just two hours, and we swim in it every single day.”

Director of Maintenance Operations & Transportation Brian Shreve claims that MUSD checks the pool levels daily. Outside contractors also come approximately three times a week, according to Shreve. “[The chlorine level] won’t be exactly the same every day,” Shreve said.

“With the system being brand new, there have been a couple of times we have not been satisfied with the level and so we closed the pool.”

The maintenance of the pool is getting better with more practice and experience, Shreve said. Other than the few days the pool has been closed, the

chlorine levels have been acceptable, according to Shreve.

Members of the Newark Swim Team have also commented on the pool’s chlorinated levels, according to Junior Holly Nguyen. This might take away MHS’s privileges to host meets, Nguyen said.

“We tried to tell the coaches, and I think they sent people over, but it was kind of just a brushed-off situation,” Nguyen said. “I do know that they didn’t care about it when we told them.”

As of the end of March, C. Bui says that the pool conditions have not been getting better.

Coach claims that to have fixed the chlorine levels, but the other swimmers and I feel that there’s too much chlorine,” C. Bui said. “Our skin has been really dry [and] my legs are still really splotchy and dry.”

Gallery of pool victims can be accessed via QR code or online at mhstheunion.com

Bomb threat incident forces evacuation FROM PAGE 1

ny since he only made a threat, the Milpitas Post reported.

“I would estimate that between the money that the school lost, the money that was lost in cafeteria revenue, the money that it cost the police department for all of their people, all their personnel, it was probably a

couple hundred thousand dollars at least,” Lawton said.

Non-monetary losses include productivity and time spent by law enforcement personnel and the 15 people that came over from the district office, according to Stocks.

“I think in a perfect world the student in question would be responsible for repaying the money,” Stocks

said.

“This is the first time this has ever happened here,” Lawton said. “I have experienced real bombs at my other school. The student was arrested, tried as an adult, and he is now serving a life sentence. […] There are severe consequences for threats too in addition now to a police record.”

APRIL 2015

EDITORIAL

EDITOR I A L : The Opinion of The Union

Campus bomb threat evacuation praiseworthy, communication procedures must be improved We, The Union, commend the way MHS handled the bomb threat situation on April 9. Although there were some actions that were questionable, the overall teamwork of the students and staff is praiseworthy.

We do, however, believe that the school needs to improve the way it handles these types of situations.

Although bomb threats are generally uncommon, this be should used as a learning experience, should the problem arise again.

One aspect that needs to be improved is the issue of miscommunication. Many students who evacuated the campus were oblivious to the fact that there was an actual bomb threat until administrators notified them 10 minutes before releasing them to go home.

Furthermore, it was strange that administrators notified the parents before the students. This can be a problem if a student unknowingly walks into an actual threat without being notified earlier. Moreover, students are the ones in direct danger being on campus, not parents, so students have a right to know first and foremost.

The campus evacuation process can also be refined. Instead of ringing the alarm for five minutes with no announcements, it would have been more efficient to have made an immediate announce-

ment stating that the situation was not a drill and that classes should evacuate in an orderly fashion.

This is imperative, as students are inclined to remain in their classrooms after assuming the fire alarm is false. Because of the absence of an intercom announcement, teachers and students were unsure if they were to evacuate. This lack of communication was the main reason why students left their valuables, such as cell phones and house keys, inside their classrooms, only to be informed later that they could only reclaim them the following morning.

The bomb threat incident should also remind administrators to carefully protect all students and staff. One situation where this was clearly overlooked was when the custodians remained on school grounds, doing their job as they normally would. If there was a real bomb, this lack of notification would have posed a direct danger to their lives, and would also interfere with the work of authorities.

The overall cooperation of students and staff, and how calm students remained, is something that should be recognized. Perhaps administration should remember this when they run into another emergency, as our students are both mature and trustworthy enough to remain calm and cool during even the scariest of emergencies.

abigail ecal | THE UNION

EDITOR I A L : The Opinion of The Union

Classes lacking in sexual and social education, teachers commended for their own initiatives We, The Union, believe that sexual and progressive social education at MHS is lacking and requires heavy improvements in order to create a knowledgeable and healthy student population. We commend the efforts of our staff to advance these topics by introducing curriculum in their own classes. We believe that our school’s administration and staff should encourage further development in this sphere of education.

Doing so would aid our students in living healthy lives, and would provide our students with the skills necessary to be healthy and socially aware adults after high school.

In the case of sexual health education, Advocatesforyouth.org reports that “research has identified highly effective sex education and HIV prevention programs that affect multiple behaviors and/or achieve positive health impacts. Behavioral outcomes have included delaying the initiation of sex as well as reducing the frequency of sex, the number of new partners, and the incidence of unprotected sex, and/or increasing the use of condoms and contraception among sexually active participants. Long-term impacts have included lower STI and/or pregnancy rates.�

Despite similar data that supports the benefits of comprehensive sexual education, the amount present at our school is sadly limited to that of the Biology, Anatomy, and AP Biology courses. The latter two classes are not required courses for our students, preventing a large number of students from reaping their benefits. In addition, the sexual education present in the Biology courses is largely determined by what the teacher of the course decides to instruct. There are some glaring issues as well: For example, in-depth learning focused on basic hygiene, is lacking.

In addition, social awareness and courses that aim to empower students is also lacking, and re-

served only for students who take Psychology, AP Psychology, Sociology, or Facing History & Ourselves. Certain teachers such as Ms. Schwartz and Ms. Ngo have also provided their English classes with customized curriculum on gender equality.

The grassroots attempts of teachers to create their own classes, such as Ms. Draeger’s Facing History & Ourselves and Mr. Anderson’s new health class, is a sign that our staff is willing to make progress while unified standards for this important aspect of knowledge do not exist.

In a changing, dynamic, and diverse world, we must be provided with the knowledge and tools necessary to combat injustice. The fact that many of the above courses are not required, being electives, and that English teachers have to resort to teaching their own gender equality curriculum, is an unfortunate sign of the current state of social education.

We laud the teachers who teach these courses, and wish that administration and staff would further encourage developments in this sphere.

Given how MHS excels in standard A-G areas, we believe that there exists the effort and possibility of expanding our resources in these topics. The effort of the staff to do so already apparent.

Our students, upon leaving Milpitas, often find themselves in environments not similar to Milpitas’ and MHS’ diversity. In these environments, students may find themselves confronted with prejudice and discrimination that they are not prepared to face. In order to prepare our students for a world that may not be as accepting, we must equip them with the proper tools to combat and maturely deal with discrimination.

It must be made clear that we may be taking our diverse environment for granted. Administration must support and encourage the growth of this educational sphere or we run the risk of underpreparing our students for the real world.

THE UNION

U NION S T U D E N T V O I C E O F M I L P I TA S H I G H

The Union is published by the Journalism class of Milpitas High School.

The views in The Union are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the school, students, administration, or Milpitas Unified School District.

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S TA F F Rishika Dugyala Editor-in-Chief É ?G<5HÉ 5GÉ Ć&#x20AC;É News Editor =A9CBÉ @C>=D5BÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Op-Ed Editor =7<9@@9É I5B;É Ć&#x20AC;É Features Editor IH<É 5F?É Ć&#x20AC;É Sports Editor AMÉ ;IM9BÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Lifestyle Editor 9BBMÉ 5CÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Entertainment Editor 6=;5=@É 75@É Ć&#x20AC;É Spread Editor A5B85É ;IM9BÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Co Copy Editor BH<CBMÉ G9B;É Ć&#x20AC;É Co Copy Editor MG<5É 9<A5BÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Web Editor JMÉ ;IM9BÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Photo Editor 99É =BÉ C<É Ć&#x20AC;É Business Manager FMGH5@É F5BÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Ad Manager =JM9G<É <CH5=É Ć&#x20AC;É Asst. News Editor B8F9KÉ IIÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Asst. Features Editor J5BÉ I5B;É Ć&#x20AC;É Asst. Sports Editor

I@=5É ;IM9BÉ Ć&#x20AC;É É Asst. Lifestyle Editor 9FF5É 5@@GÉ Ć&#x20AC;É É Asst. Entertainment Editor 5HF=7?É MÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Asst. Spread Editor G<@9MÉ =7?GÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Asst. Copy Editor <F=GH=B5É ICÉ Ć&#x20AC;É Asst. Photo Editor FID5É 5H9@É Ć&#x20AC;É Asst. Business Manager 5J=9FÉ 5@G65I;<É Ć&#x20AC;É Asst. Ad Manager 95@É 5BG5@É Ć&#x20AC;É Reporter Jeff Colburn

Journalism Advisor

L E T T E R TO T H E E DI TOR A Letter for Our Generation: On the Elimination of Prejudice We, the youth of the United States of America, grew up surrounded by wondrous technology. The internet is now our main source of entertainment, there are free learning tools available to anyone willing to take advantage of them, and social media sites give us amazing ways to connect with people we never would have met otherwise.

Unfortunately, we also grew up in a heavily traditionalist, heteronormative, and patriarchal society. We were taught to live one way, the â&#x20AC;&#x153;normal way,â&#x20AC;? by people who lived in a vastly different world than ours. Nonconformists are labeled as outcasts or rebellious attention seekers. All they want is to bring change to a society that is plugging its ears. We have read the scornful comments of a prior generation, internalized the attitudes, and are bringing forth a collective effort to be the â&#x20AC;&#x153;good citizensâ&#x20AC;? elders want us to beâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;that is, until this traditionalist environment starts to affect each one of us personally.

In a chatroom a couple days ago, I found out something astonishing. Not everyone knows enough about sexuality and gender. I mean this as unsarcastically as I possibly can; that is an absolute tragedy. I believe that public schools need to educate our generation about romantic orientations and gender identities. We need more comprehensive and updated sex education. Some peo-

ple still do not know what the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Tâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; or â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Qâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; stands for in LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer).

Most people have romantic preferences and are unable to be attracted to certain genders. A personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s romantic orientation is a representation of who they can feel romantically attracted to, which can differ from their sexual orientation (who they can feel sexually attracted to). A personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sex is labeled upon birth based on their biological characteristics. A personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s gender identity can differ from their sex, meaning that a biologically born female can identify as male or vice versa. If everyone read what I found from a few social justice blogs on Tumblr.com, I think that the world would be a much less ignorant place.

We live in a heteronormative society which can alienate and put down non-heterosexual and genderqueer classmates. This is not some political issue that can be debated. We need to give reassurance to students. We need to be able to show them that men can love each other freely without strings attached. That they arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t freaks for feeling like they have no gender or two or even more. We, the new generation, need to educate the uneducated and eliminate prejudice. We need to set an example for the next generation, and that starts with us.

-Maria Paquette, Class of 2015

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PRO

Net neutrality aids innovation, ensures economic advancement Net neutrality refers to the idea that over time into what they are now. If no piece of information transmitted the current state of the internet had over the internet should be treated existed back then, these companies differently. would have likely been driven out of Put simply, net neutrality is the idea business. that regardless of what deThey would have been vice or internet service forced to pay exorbitant provider you have, you fees to large conglomerashould be getting the same tions to ensure that they access to a website that would be able to have their your neighbor gets. customers reach them on In recent times, several the internet.

Other than the obvious large net neutrality cases have been brought up. economic impacts, innovation also leads to a variety Netflix was forced to pay Comcast tens of millions of social impacts. An article published by Collaboof dollars to ensure that AKSHAT Netflix users who got their rative Economics writes DAS internet access through that innovation is the basic factor that leads to an Comcast would be able to reliably access Netflix’s streaming increase in the quality of life. service.

Essentially, innovation has the opAfter hearing of the Netflix payout portunity and unique ability to create to Comcast, Apple stepped in and en- new job markets. With the increase tered into a deal with Comcast to se- in higher quality jobs, career mobilicure its own special treatment as well. ty increases, which essentially raises Essentially, the violation of net the amount of household income for neutrality allows large corporations the average American worker. This like Apple and Comcast to overpower money is then re-invested into the economy on consumer products. smaller corporations and websites.

The negative aspect of this is crystal At the end of the day, my belief is clear, because if net neutrality is not that in a country where the economy protected, small businesses and inno- is driven by innovation, I am unsure vation will continue to be stifled. why we are allowing a system to exist Looking at our current economy, — a system that exists solely to stifle there are a few large companies that innovation. stand out as behemoths. Amazon, ApIn order to ensure that our governple, Google, Facebook, and other such ment and economy continue making tech companies dominate our daily strides forward, we have to do our lives. All of these companies started best to ensure that all companies and off as small startups with brand new consumers are given equal access to ideas that they were able to develop the internet.

CON

Net Neutrality Act plagued with flaws, vague regulations in place While the passing of the Net Neu- internet, as the government has attrality Act by the FCC is a milestone tempted to do in the past. Bills can in itself, it is undeniable that there be slipped through Congress quickare glaring flaws in its current state. ly, and with this first step, it will be It essentially gives the government easier to define “lawful content” as it the power to do whatever it wishes in serves them. enforcing the internet. Though I am This is a definite possibility in the a strong supporter of net neutrality, long run. Since the internet was enthe bill in its current state has faults tirely a private sector before, it would that should be considered before be harder to tackle such limitations, people drop the fight with this small and let us face it, who doesn’t love victory. looking up cat videos online? As the The first issue is that the policy world progresses and more technolostates that consumers are given the gy is moved along the internet, there right to “access the lawful Internet will be more opportunities for people to redefine the governcontent of their choice.” ment’s powers in the name What is defined as lawful content? Who is givof national security; this inen the ability to monitor cludes the power to closely the consumers’ usage monitor anything over the internet. to determine how they Additionally, stricter regare using a product?

This is more of a blanket ulation of a private sector statement that can be is that it hinders the rate of interpreted as it needs innovation. Currently, reto be when the situation searching new technology is arises. an extremely high risk, high NEAL Power in this area has reward situation. If a new BANSAL been shifted from interbreakthrough is made, then net service providers to the company who makes it that of the government has the upper hand in im— a dangerous shift that has been plementation. The company is able overlooked because of the bill’s oth- to keep it as a secret and profit off of er benefits. What this entails is that it even more. Less government-supthe government is allowed to access a ported competition also creates a consumer’s internet usage whenever steadier flow of income that they can it wishes to, under the pretense that funnel into various research times it is to determine if unlawful sites while paying for the costs of running have been accessed. a business.

“Lawful content” is also an exBy saying that consumers are givtremely vague term. It presents an en the right to competition, which open door for politicians to use net essentially means that large comneutrality as a cornerstone for reduc- panies cannot purchase out smaller ing the amount of content we are al- companies to monopolize the area, lowed to access on the internet. Since the FCC is going to potentially stifle it is under scrutiny from the govern- current research. Only one question ment, it is easier for the government remains: How will internet service to simply ban certain areas of the providers react?

OPINIONS

APRIL 2015

Discrimination still an issue in a country of denial Of course there is no such thing as discrimination, it is 2015! If there is something wrong with this statement, it is probably because it is not even remotely true. What we as a society and even as a smaller community here in Milpitas fail to acknowledge is that discrimination is still quite prevalent. In fact, it never really disappeared.

As a particularly conspicuous person, I am subject to discrimination on a daily basis. I wear a scarf, and I speak a different language; I am different. Sometimes it is the dirty looks, or perhaps the occasional glare.

Other times it is the outright verbal harassment experienced when doing something as harmless as enjoying my vacation. And sometimes, it is the whitewashing of my customs and culture.

The issue is not the fact that this discrimination simply exists. The issue is how we glaze it over with the assurance that in the modern age such a barbaric mentality cannot possibly exist. Unfortunately, the racist, sexist, and xenophobic attitudes that our society harbors have transformed from blatant discrimination to subtle inequity shaped by everything from our

When Kylie Jenner or Iggy Azalea government’s policies to the media we are exposed to daily. wear ethnic clothing or use another’s To put it bluntly, our immigration culture to make themselves “exotic” and security policies target everyone or even “edgy,” they can enjoy the from African Americans to South temporary satisfaction of seeming exAsians and Arabs. Media portrayal of otic, while being able to shed the discrimination and harassthese groups is often laden with stereotypes and misment that comes with the representations of what a “style.” Things like turbans or even headdresses are certain group is like, and whitewashed and watered double standards dictate down from their original the treatment and behavior towards minorities. cultural significance for With double standards, fleeting trends.

What we need to realize we often do not think is that we are still in a sociabout how often we use ety where discrimination them. For example, when has taken many forms, a girl sleeps around, she AYSHA even if we may not realize is considered a “slut,” but REHMAN it. Racism, classism, and when a guy does the same sexism are all problems we thing he is considered a face as of now, despite the “player.” Similarly, if a girl feels a need to cry over something, strides we continue to make. she is “sensitive,” but a guy is considTo truly change things, we need to ered “weak.” recognize not only the blatant disThis indicates the privilege that a crimination but also the subtle discertain group has over another, not crimination that is prevalent in socijust limited to race but gender as ety as well. This means recognizing a well. Another example is the fashion certain privilege one has and taking industry: People of the “orient” are into consideration how that affects often exoticized and whitewashed all the rest of society. Only then will we see real results. the same.

Psychedelic drugs may offer mental health benefits Have you ever encountered a com- over-the-counter drugs. These solumercial for a drug that claims to treat tions are not advertised as promia health problem, but at the end, nently because because they simply there is a list of horrible side effects? do not give the pharmaceutical comWhen you are undergoing panies any profit. Meditation, getting health-related issues like alcohol more sleep, yoga, and cutting back withdrawal, Post Traumatic Stress on sugar are all simple but effective ways in curing many of Disorder (PTSD), or anxiety, most professionals will the health conditions that prescribe you with prepeople have, and they ofscription pills. Just because fer no risk of addiction. they are prescribed, howevThough prescription suber, does not mean that they stances may be necessary to treat some conditions, are the best solution.

When people think of there are effective substances that have been drug addiction, they think of abusing substances such overlooked for the past as meth or cocaine. The half century because they are not accepted by our reality is that the problem PATRICK legal system - substances may not stem from a drug LY known as “psychedelics.” dealer, but instead, a pharmacist.

Lysergic acid diethylAccording to the Center amide, commonly known for Disease Control and Prevention, as LSD or “acid,” has shown great “prescription drugs are now the lead- medical promise after forty years of ing cause of fatal overdoses, causing abandonment due to its illegalizamore than 26,000 deaths each year.” tion in 1966. And to be clear, it was It is also important to note that many not made illegal because it makes of these prescription drugs are addic- you crazy, or it makes you see dragtive, contain a load of side effects, and ons flying out of the wall. Look into do not truly cure the condition – they the counterculture of the ‘60s and just cure the symptoms. the negative connotation it received There are various alternatives to from the media for that answer. Truth

be told, those “facts” were probably introduced in order to scare you into never looking into the substance.

A study done by The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease reported, “After about two months of weekly therapy, the eight participants who received full doses of LSD improved by about 20 percent on standard measures of anxiety.” No side effects were found - something you can’t say for most substances you find today in a medicine cabinet.

Although this study is too small to be conclusive, it is certainly a great start in bringing back the idea of psychedelic use in mainstream psychiatry and the medical community.

This article is in no way recommending that you, the reader, should go out and drop acid or eat magic mushrooms or pop ecstasy. What I am recommending to you, however, is to research more about alternative ways of treating conditions that you or your loved ones may suffer from.

Don’t just look to a medicine cabinet – it is not the only solution. Just because something is legal does not necessarily mean that it is the best solution. Just because something is illegal does not necessarily mean that it is harmful.

Anti-transgender discrimination an overlooked crisis “Transgender.” It’s a term you’ve probably heard before. But what does it mean? According to the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), “transgender” is “an umbrella term for people whose gender identity differs from what is typically associated with the sex they were assigned at birth.”

On a surface level, the definition is easily understandable—yet the plight of transgender people is something left unknown to the average person.

According to the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, the suicide rate of transgender individuals is 41 percent, which vastly exceeds the average of 4.6 percent of the US population.

Even more shocking is that 45 percent of these individuals were aged 18 to 24, about the typical age of a college student. But why do transgender people have such grim suicide rates?

Take a look at the astounding rates of violence against trans people: 54 percent of transgender people face harassment and bullying at school. 78 percent have faced physical or sexual violence.

The overwhelming hostility to-

wards trans people does not only However, that can’t begin without come in the form of everyday violence proper education in the topic of genand harassment, but also anti-trans der and sexuality.

MHS lacks severely in this area, legislation. Throughout the country, one so vital to the nature of our daitrans individuals are often subject ly lives. I can’t begin to tell you about to discrimination in public utilities; an example being the refusal to allow the amount of bullying, depression, trans people access to puband suicide inflicting trans lic bathrooms. and other Lesbian, Gay, BiWith such hostility and sexual, Transgender, and despair, the astounding Queer (LGBTQ) youth. suicide rates among trans We’d like to think that “it people are less surprising. gets better,” but the mere So, why exactly is this repetition of the phrase important? Well, discrimis useless until our eduination often comes from cational system makes an a place of ignorance. attempt to improve it for Consider this: in my us students.

Ask yourself: Where is four years at MHS, I only SIMEON the change? Where are the learned what “transgenALOJIPAN der” meant three years in programs to help empower as a junior in Sociology. I our youth? didn’t learn it earlier. As a result of my Our world is slowly getting more diignorance to the very term “transgenverse and tolerant, but we as students der,” the suffering of an entire group lack the resources needed to ensure of people was unknown to me. that we are receiving full support.

Now, I don’t mean to speak for a If we could focus on the plights of group of people. I’m just pointing out others, the world would become a the obvious. Transgender people debetter place. serve to live lives free from discrimBut until standard, systemic change ination and suffering, as we all are. comes, the body count will continue.

APRIL 2015

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FEATURES

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APRIL 2015

Dream Act Club aids undocumented MHS students

BY AYSHA REHMAN

It is difficult to tell whether or not students are illegal immigrants, but MHS does have a significant population of them.

The Dream Act Club is dedicated to helping illegal immigrant students get legal documents, regardless of how long they have been here, according to Dream A ct Club Advisor Maria Vargas.

“I think that people that are undocumented are afraid of asking for help; they are ashamed,” Vargas said.

“So we created a club trying to help [undocumented students] and it’s doing well.”

Since its conception last year, the club has been providing free legal services to help the students through the documentation process, according to Vargas.

The main problem is that the students often worry about their legal status and thus don’t focus on ac-

ademics as much, Vargas said. By getting them their legal documents, they can pursue higher education, Vargas added.

One of the undocumented students being helped by the club agreed to speak with me on the condition of remaining anonymous.

Ja n e S m i t h is a student who is currently in the process of getting her legal documents.

“Ms. Vargas has been organizing this since last year, so I decided to sign up after my friend told me,” Smith said. “It has really helped me, like I can now get a job and go to college.”

Smith was born in Mexico and her parents came here when she was about six years old, Smith said.

Smith is currently meeting with a lawyer and has materials ready to finish the process, but the process is being delayed for unknown reasons.

“I really hope to get better opportunities,” S m i t h said. “Right now I

really want my driver’s license, and I want to go college.”

Dream Act Club President Lizeth Vanegas hopes more undocumented kids come to the club and ask for the help they need. Kids aren’t reaching out for the help being given because of the stigma associated with being undocumented, Vargas said.

MHS’s Digital Business Academy (DBA) has also helped out by making the necessary flyers and whatever the Dream Act Club needs, Vanegas added.

For now the club is still in its first year, and there is still much to be done, Vargas said. So far, three kids have been helped through the club, Vargas continued.

“There’s many people who get their hopes down and say, 'no I’m never going to get [my documents].'"

S m i t h said. “But I would tell them not to do that, because there is ways to get [your documents]; never say never.”

Empathy FX hosts supplies drive to ‘alleviate poverty’

BY ANTHONY TSENG Courtesy of Kelly Kwong

Senior Tiffany Nguyen (left) and Freshman Arian Golbakhsh (right) prepare Triple A Cupcakes and Starbucks Chocolate Cupcakes respectively.

‘Battle of the Cupcakes’ event raises money through auction

BY IVY NGUYEN

MHS HERO Club hosted its third annual cupcake themed competition, Battle of the Cupcakes, on March 11.

The event was held after school in Foods Teacher Rosemary Keith’s classroom.

The event was organized in order to promote creativity and get students to show off their passion for baking, according to HERO Club Representative Kosneath Vuth.

The competition was open to all students of MHS according to Vuth.

The club had a fixed entrance fee for competitors who had learned of the contest via morning announcements and through friends in the club, Vuth said.

The money accumulated from the participation fees were used to provide the entrants with essential basic baking tools, according to Vuth.

“All the participants were given the same ingredients required for a generic cupcake,” Vuth said.

“We gave them eggs, milk, butter, baking pans, flour, and sugar. They were expected to be able to bake their cupcakes all from scratch,” according to Vuth.

The creations were evaluated by a panel of three judges comprised of MHS teachers, according to HERO Club Historian Gloria Zhang.

The scoring was based not only on flavor, but also on creativity and originality as well, Zhang explained.

“Each team had fifteen minutes to prep their stations at 2:30,” Zhang said. “From there the competitors had an hour and thirty minutes to cook and decorate at least twelve cupcakes.”

Out of the 11 groups of entrants HERO Club’s own Vice President Katherine Kwong and her sister, Club Reporter Kelly Kwong emerged as the winner of the $50 grand prize, according to Kwong.

The sisters’ winning recipe was a decadent chocolate with Nutella-Kahlua ganache cupcake, Kwong said.

“The cake itself was chocolate, and the icing was a mix of Nutella and Kahlua,” Kwong said. “We garnished it with Ferraro Rocher and orange zest. As for the ganache, we used the fudge filling of the Ferraro Rocher and put it inside the cupcake.”

The cupcakes went through three rounds of taste testing: three of the cupcakes went to the judges, three for the spectators, and six were packaged to be auctioned off, Vuth said.

The auction occurred in tangent with the judging, and all the money received was directed towards club funds for next year, according to Vuth.

“Kelly and Katherine won best of show, which meant that they received a fifty dollar cash prize and that their cupcakes were voted the best by the judges,” Vuth said.

“Participation certificates and other smaller prizes were also handed out to all the contestants,” Vuth added.

The club is planning on changing its name from Future Homemakers of America (Home Economics Related Occupations), or FHA HERO to Culinary HERO next year, according to Kwong.

“Despite the change, we plan on continuing our tradition and will hold another Battle of the Cupcakes next year too,” Kwong said.

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MHS Empathy FX is hosting a school supplies drive in February that will last until mid-April for children in Ghana, according to MHS Empathy FX President Shivani Prabala.

The club aims to help these children pursue higher education by providing them with the necessary supplies, Prabala said.

The goal of Empathy FX is to alleviate poverty by providing access to education, and the group is focusing on helping Ghana, Prabala said.

Empathy FX International, the parent organization of MHS Empathy FX, sends volunteers to Ghana each winter and summer to help educate students, construct schools, and build medical tents, Prabala continued.

“Our club is basically trying to fundraise for [the children in Ghana], and there’s different community service events that we’re doing associated with that,” Prabala said.

“For example, our books and school supplies drive: we were collecting books for any of the children that are trying to pursue higher education, because a lot of the students that were in those elementary schools that they built have now graduated and are going to college," Prabala said.

Items that can be donated to the school supplies drive include pencils, pens, notebooks, and children’s storybooks, Prabala said.

There are currently donation boxes around campus in J-11 and F-20 since the club is still looking for more supplies to be donated, Prabala added.

“[The turnout] was good. We got quite a few supplies,” Prabala said.

“We’re still looking for a little more to send over.”

Empathy FX partnered with other community service clubs to promote the school supplies drive, Prabala said. The clubs distributed fliers in various neighborhoods to bring the event to people’s attention, Prabala added.

“We had some people volunteer for [the flyer distribution events]. They were basically helping us by volunteering for different events and then collecting the supplies,” Prabala said.

“We went to different neighborhoods and requested people to donate stuff, and then other clubs were helping by providing volunteers for that," Prabala continued.

Courtesy of Edwin Parathara

Senior Raymond Vo (left) showcases a hovercraft he built for E-Tech. Middle school volunteers take turns riding on the vehicle. Vo displayed his hovercraft at the Education Technology Symposium Showcase on March 13.

Technology showcase held in Learning Center; features student inventions and class projects

BY TERRA WALLS

The Education Technology Symposium Showcase was held in the MHS Learning Center on March 13.

The event was jointly sponsored by the Milpitas Community Educational Endowment (MCEE) and Milpitas Unified School District (MUSD).

This was the third annual technology showcase, according to MCEE Board Member Yolie Garcia.

One of the goals of the show was to celebrate MUSD, the students, and the new technology and projects, Garcia said.

Although fewer schools participated this year, more students were involved in the project than last year, according to Science Teacher Kimi Schmidt.

Schmidt helped teachers bridge the gap between technology and education by integrating technology into their classrooms, Schmidt said.

The showcase featured a variety of different inventions, according to Senior Justin Le. Le built a hovercraft with other E-Tech students for the show, Le said.

“We had eight to nine weeks of construction for the whole process of building [the hovercraft],” Le said.

“I wanted to showcase my group’s assignment of the hovercraft so we could inspire other young students and scholars to create the same thing, or even better," Le added.

Juniors Joey Gil and Sarah Taylor were partners for the show, Gil said.

They presented coding projects from the Digital Business Academy, Gil

added.

“We presented our kaleidoscope project, which had different sprites doing multiple things. They all draw the same thing but in different locations so it makes a really cool effect,” Gil said.

Juniors from the Engineering Academy presented the plans behind a solar car, Junior Shuvam Bhagat said.

“We came to present a project version of a crane, and we also came to present a bridge that we did for our E-tech class by Mr. Smith,” Sophomore Edwin Parathara said.

“It’s pretty interesting - everything that we’ve seen, how other classes have made different projects - and I think I’ve learned a lot from this," Parathara added.

APRIL 2015

FEATURES

Summer program opens doors for band and color guard students

BY CHRISTINA LUO

A band and color guard summer program will be held through the Vanguard Cadets, from the beginning of June to the beginning of August , according to Instrumental Music Director Chris Kaldy. Three MHS students — Junior Victoria Trejo, Junior Tiffany Hsu, and Sophomore Diana Nguyen —will participate in this program, Kaldy said.

These students went through two auditions that took place last November, Kaldy said. There are around 120 to 140 students who are chosen through the auditions, Kaldy added.

“These students like marching and exploring [band] at a more in-depth level,” Kaldy said. “It is a huge time commitment and [requires a lot] financially as well.”

Hsu and Nguyen both practiced three hours on Fridays, 13 hours on Saturdays, and 10 hours on Sundays for the Vanguard Winter Percussion, which has more rigorous practices than the summer program, Hsu said.

Trejo had a similar practice schedule for color guard, Trejo said.

“The audition packet had major chords, permutations, and four mallets stuff,” Hsu said. “[The audition] was in a big playing setting where we switched off on keyboards, while the callback was focused on watching individuals to see which spots they would get.”

The program costs from $2,000 to $4,000, according to Kaldy. The age limit for this program is when the members reach 21 years old because they would move into a different league, Kaldy added.

“The bingo program at the Bingo Hall allows you to work to pay off the

[program fees],” Nguyen said. “[At the color guard audition], we were taught the exercises for flag, rifle, pilates, dancing, and jumping ,” Trejo said. “You learn just as much as you would for a whole season in just three days even if you don’t make the callback.”

The Vanguard Winter Percussion has prepared Nguyen for the summer program, according to Nguyen. She learned how to be independent and how hard she must work since she is currently the youngest member in the winter program, Nguyen added.

“The summer program is outdoors for two to three months while the winter program is indoors and we meet every weekend,” Nguyen said.

The program puts people in a professional environment where they learn that their performance affects the rest of the ensemble, and both time and effort are necessary to improve, Hsu said.

“You get to experience something different and be part of a family with both color guard and marching band,” Trejo said.

In the last three weeks of the program, the three MHS students will tour throughout the United States with their fellow members, according to Hsu. Food is provided by the program; however, they will have to sleep on air mattresses in cramped gyms with each gender on opposite sides, and they have to shower in the gym too, Hsu added.

“I wanted to follow in my instructors’ footsteps since they also did this program,” Nguyen said. “When you watch the members in the summer program, you realize that you want to be part of it too.”

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THE UNION

ARNOLD FRIEND CLUB PERFORMS AT MOVE CHARITY DINNER

Courtesy of Elton Zhou

From left to right, Sophomore Roz Bamberger, Sophomore Jason Broyles, Sophomore Lucien Mangulabnan, Junior Vishal Reddy, and Sophomore John Suico perform at the Movin' n' Groovin' charity dinner hosted by MOVE Club on April 10 at Pomeroy Elementary School. The boys make up the student band Arnold Friend Club.

Bhogal performs poetry for local contests

BY ASHLEY RICKS

To the everyday teenager, poetry may seem like an obscure, difficult abstraction to grasp. For Junior Paral Bhogal, however, poetry has transformed from a simple hobby to a creative outlet, and is even helping mold her future aspirations.

After journaling and writing for most of her life, delving into poetry began to take on a concrete shape during sophomore year, Bhogal said.

“I started writing more than I usually did, and it turned into more serious writing and more emotion,” Bhogal said.

“It was junior year that I started poetry slams at the Milpitas Library.

Since then, I’ve been trying for competitions in San Francisco and other

places in the Bay Area," Bhogal said.

Bhogal’s biggest competition took place towards the end of February in San Francisco. There were three stages: preliminary, semi-finals, and finals. After advancing to semi-finals, she placed in the top eight, Bhogal said.

"Getting to San Francisco, everyone is top notch, like the best writers you’ll ever hear because we’re pouring our souls out. It’s intense.”

Of the ten poetry slams she has competed in so far, she has gathered a good idea of the best and worst parts of competition, according to Bhogal.

“The best part is, most people who go to poetry slams, they’re there to really listen, [...] and they want to hear your story,” Bhogal said.

“The worst part is definitely wait-

ing for your scores. As much as you don’t care, there’s a part of you that does," Bhogal said.

Bhogal has also furthered her love of poetry right here at MHS. She started a poetry club, Words Onward, which not only touches on poetry but also rap, prose, short stories, and other forms of writing, according to Bhogal.

“My main goal is to be able to just perform nationally and definitely publish some poetry. I’m working on my manuscript right now,” Bhogal said.

“I want to emphasize the fact that poetry is not just a boring, structured thing. It’s free verse, spoken word; it’s basically just performing your soul out. We all have a poet inside of us that we don’t realize," Bhogal said.

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APRIL 2015

APRIL 2015

IN-FOCUS

THE UNION

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OPINION: Technology negatively affects communication, leads to lack of privacy With every technological ad- absorbed in what we post for our folvancement, we gain the ability to lowers or what we wish to share with communicate with others far and the world, we forget about who is wide. While we pride ourselves in right in front of us. I know I’ve fallen this, technology has its own pros and prey to this. How many times have cons when it comes to how people you walked into a room, only to see communicate with one everyone on their phones? another; however, the iPads? Laptops? cons seem to outwieigh Moreover, with advancthe pros. es in communications Take platforms like technology, businesses Facebook and Twitter, and industries in general for example. It is so easy have increased the numfor one to simply log ber of ads and how often on from any device and they appear. How many Tweet or post whatever times have you logged they wish. This includes onto something personal harassment as well as like your email and seen AYSHA messages or posts hat an amalgam of ads taiREHMAN incite violence or hatred lored to your assumed among different groups. interests and communicaThis in turn can be very difficult to tions? What about on Facebook? It control, since the ability to share gets pretty annoying. these messages is as simple as it is to Furthermore, with something write them. as broad as the internet, so many Other negatives when it comes things can go wrong. There may be to technological advances in com- access to many viewpoints in mamunication is when it disrupts our jor conflicts, and the ability to find everyday relationships with people something new and interesting like a we see face to face. The more we are recipe or hobby, but this technology

can be home to alot of misinformation as well. This is precisely why we are told not to believe everything we read on the internet. A person can go about doing something as innocent as looking up their symptoms, only to come to the conclusion they have a brain tumor when it is simply just a headache.

Additionally, with the use of technology also comes an increasing lack of security as well as privacy. When we choose to share our vacation photos--while on vacation, we allow ourselves to fall prey to robbers.

When we share a hateful article, or a misguided one, we are spreading that hate and misguidance. Furthermore, when we post things like where we went today, or what we think of someone else. these things will be known to everyone, and unfortunately, many people dont realize how much they are actually putting online.

With technology, despite the ability to share an enormous amount of information, the pitfalls are inevitable. Unfortunaely, much of this damage is irreversible to say the least.

Abigail Ecal| THE UNION

Out of the 278 surveys recieved, the majority of students claim they have not sent any of their nude pictures.

MHS students caught sharing nude pictures

BY RISHIKA DUGYALA

Let me tell you a story, one that happened at MHS this very year. It’s a story of many guys and many girls in many different situations involving naked photos.

“We had a student come into the office and she had received naked pictures of girls who go to our school,” Assistant Principal Ethan Stocks said. “These pictures had been shared in a group setting on the application Kik, and she shared this with us so we were able to figure out who else was in that group.”

Stocks and other administrators worked on containing the situation for approximately four and a half days, Stocks said. By the end of the week, they had met with about 40 students and suspended 25, the most suspensions on any one incident at MHS, Stocks added.

“Most of what I’ve dealt with prior to this has been relationships gone wrong,” Stocks said. “This was beyond that. [...] There were cases where a boyfriend and girlfriend exchanged images, there were cases where friends exchanged images,

and then there were these situations where it was a guy in a girl’s class would say, send me your nudes and if you don’t I’ll tell everyone you did.”

The violation of school rules included possession of an image, distribution of an image, and manufacturing distribution in which male students coerced girls into giving them a photo and then shared these photos, Stocks said. Law enforcement was involved, Stocks added.

“Some of the girls involved knew that these pictures were out there, and they’d sort of dealt with it,” Stocks said. “Some of them didn’t know that their pictures had been shared and their parents didn’t know about it, and that was definitely very upsetting and disturbing to them.”

Just because you trust someone implicitly doesn’t mean it’s okay to send naked photos of yourself to him or her. I’m not being cynical, just realistic. Even if the person is trustworthy, what if someone else gets their hands on your picture — someone with malicious intentions?

Victims are constantly bullied, especially when sharing their pictures was done so consensually. So don’t become a victim; don’t ever put

yourself in that position. It’s up to each of us to monitor ourselves because who else will or even can? Our parents? Our teachers? Unlikely.

Nobody was expelled from MHS because according to the education code, this incident was not cause for an expellable offense, Stocks said.

The most severe consequence was a five-day suspension.

Maybe as a student you won’t be expelled, but you can be convicted for child pornography if the photo is of a minor. There were cases where students were fined, faced prison time, and had to register as sex offenders for the rest of their lives, according to Matthew David Keenan’s Criminal Law Blog.

A way to stop yourself from being the one who intentionally shares naked photos is to think about your siblings or others that are very close to you. Would you do this to them?

How would you react if someone else hurt them in this manner? The reality is that whoever you may be thinking of hurting is also someone else’s sister, brother, child, or best friend.

You’re the one that has to face the consequences in the end. So think before hitting the send button.

OPINION: Cyberbulling harmful, can be prevented “You are so ugly.” “Go die. Why though most people see the internet don’t you just disappear?” “That’s as a personal cyberspace, personal so gay.” information should not be shared so These are some of the common openly with others. phrases used in cyberbullying. PeoWords on the internet, can hurt ple believe that the posts they put on immensely, especially when they are social media are just for fun, when in about you. We know that they are not fact, they cause greater harm than true; yet, when the nasty comments pile up, we start to believe people think they do.

Statistics have shown that those comments define who we really are. that over 14 percent of high school students have We should remember to thoughts about commitbelieve in ourselves no matter what. ting suicide, and approximately seven percent It is possible to see pictures of ourselves on have attempted to commit social media with dissuicide, according to Bullying Statistics. turbing things added to These numbers can them, like memes. And be partially attributed to people tend to associate CHRISTINA cyberbullying. Another you with those memes LUO or false ideas portrayed report from Bullying Statistics shows that girls are online instead of finding at a higher risk for suicide the truth.

Suddenly, rumors based on unat the age of 14. Bullying should be stopped immediately in order to flattering pictures of you online save lives - lives that can make a big begin to spread like wildfire. So do not post photos that you will regret difference in this world.

Since technology has become or trust people you meet online bemore accessible, it requires less cause they may use your informaeffort to create fake accounts and tion and pictures against you. Trusting people you meet online leads to a aliases.

There is no verification that any higher risk of you getting hurt. of the accounts created actually The internet puts people at a risk match the person who it is created since information and identities can for. A lot of these bullies know what be stolen as well. they are posting and are able to get Remember that cyberbullying is away with it because they can hide never acceptable under any circumbehind a computer screen. stances. It is important to learn how Hence, cyberbullying is known as to speak out and ask for help from “bullying without a face.” It is both trusted adults or friends. Do not cowardly and disturbing to pick on hesitate. others when we, ourselves, have our Become the voice for those who need courage to speak out. Let us own problems to deal with.

It is not within our rights to judge end cyberbullying together! others’ past, present, or future. Al-

Abigail Ecal| THE UNION

Abigail Ecal| THE UNION

Out of 278 surveys, the majority of students claim to not have purposely used technology to view nude images.

Out of 278 surveys, a majority of students claim to have been cyberbullied and use technology from four to seven hours per day for entertainment.

10

LIFESTYLE

THE UNION

FASHION SPOTLIGHT

BY CRYSTAL TRAN

Giselle Constantakis Freshman Necklace gifted Top from Brandy Melville

Cleanse yourself before you wreck yourself

BY ASHLEY RICKS

An overarching trend in the cosmetic and health world has risen: naturalness to the point of complete minimalism. Products boasting about their organicity and the extent to which they have been derived from completely natural sources are hitting the shelves at an alarming rate.

Whether it’s food or beauty products, the differences between the two are continuing to dwindle; I have seen bars of soap so stripped of their chemical components that they are nearly edible.

This fad has spilled into the world of DIY as well. There are countless recipes for both beauty and food products that one can whip up using obscure but natural ingredients that may or may not already be in your own kitchen.

Because products are now de-

Belly Button Ring from Amazon

Sandals from Zumiez

Her Fashion Inspir ation: “I like to shop at Tilly’s, Brandy Melville, PacSun, Papaya, and Victoria’s Secret.”

manded to stripped of unnatural dyes and flavors, processed goodness, preservatives, and other forms of artificiality, our bodies are following suit. A diet craze has swept the social media accounts of the glittering celebrities who boast about their “purification” rituals and remedies: the detox.

What exactly is a detox? Detoxes claim to speed up the purification of our bodies, acting as a sort of clean-sweep.

There is a plethora of detoxes, all ranging in the level of dedication required, the extent to which they dictate your meals, the severity or length of the schedule, and of course, the disgustingness of what they allow you to eat.

One increasingly popular detox is the “teatox.” Most of the programs span over the course of seven, 14, or 28 days. This includes drinking tea every morning and another form

of the tea at night, in addition to healthy exercise and eating.

Another popular form of detoxing is the juice cleanse. There are many variations, and most are gentle and provide a lot of options to try out.

According to Bembu, one safe way to detox is to replace one meal a day with a detoxifying smoothie.

The provocative and severe detox claims are only supported by their strict control of caloric intake; by relying on a detox to lose weight, one is only dramatically altering their calories consumed.

However, there are simple ways and small detoxifying steps that you can take, which can yield a big difference in the way your body feels, looks, and performs. Detoxes do not have to strictly be limited to your diet; forms of exercise that focus on breathing properly and de-stressing, such as yoga, can prove to be tremendously beneficial for your body.

Surviving prom: checklist and suggestions

BY AMY NGUYEN

Pants from Forever 21

APRIL 2015

Prom is just about a month away, and girls, that means it’s time for a full day of getting ready, taking pictures, and dancing ‘til your feet hurt. If you’re unsure of what to do, read through this article for tips and tricks.

The dress you wear is arguably the most important part of the prom experience. If you have not found your dress yet, don’t worry! Check out styles online at websites like Macy’s or Prom Girl. If you choose to shop at Etsy or Amazon, be sure to read the reviews, so you know you aren’t going to get ripped off.

Get a dress that will show off your best features. Two-piece dresses are in this year, so you might want to take a look at those. Most people wear long dresses, but short dresses are just as acceptable and are cheaper, too! Get what you feel good in, and don’t worry about matching with anyone else.

Heels are not as important as they seem to be. If you’re wearing a long dress, then your shoes won’t be visible 90 percent of the time.

Don’t splurge on a pair of shoes that cost 100 dollars unless you plan on wearing them more than once.

If you plan to put your hair up, make sure it is secure, so it does not fall while you dance. Be sure to practice your hairstyle before prom, so you don’t have a crisis the morning of.

If you are like me and don’t know how to do makeup, find a friend who is willing to do it for you. Tell them what you like and be sure to test it before the day of prom. Your makeup will have to stay on all day if you plan to take pictures in the afternoon and dance at night.

Pictures can be taken anywhere you want: in your house as you are walking down the stairs, at school with a professional photographer, or at another venue where you can take multiple shots. Some popu-

lar picture taking spots are the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden, the Japanese Friendship Garden, and the Milpitas City Hall.

Corsages and boutonnieres add to prom pictures, but they aren’t necessary. If you’re looking for where to get them, you can try Corsages for Charity, an event run by Saint John Vianney Chieu Leadership. The funds raised from this project goes towards LEAP, a non-profit organization dedicated to aiding victims of child trafficking.

If you cannot find a date to go with, grab a bunch of friends and go as a group. You won’t have the stress of having to please someone, and it might even be a more enjoyable time.

Prom is truly what you make of it, so do as you see fit. Everyone envisions the perfect day differently, so hopefully yours goes as planned.

Remember to bring your student identification card for admission, and stay safe.

Beat the heat at these local ice creameries

Arthur Handy Junior Jacket from Superdry Button up from Zumiez

Watch from Zumiez Joggers from Zumiez

Shoes from Vans

His Fashion Inspir ation: “I like to shop at Zumiez.”

BY JULIA NGUYEN

As the temperatures rise, so do our cravings for ice cream. With a variety of flavors and places to choose from it’s hard to find that perfect spot to cool down and get your sugar fix. Below is a run-through of ice creameries around the area that will solve your first world problems.

1. Foster’s Freeze Located just 2 miles away from campus, Foster’s Freeze is the perfect stop for an after school snack to cool down. With the classic milkshakes, dipped cones, and floats, you can’t go wrong.

2. Matcha Love Although there are only a handful of flavors offered at the Matcha Love counter, the selection is a unique one that makes the longer drive out to Mitsuwa Marketplace worth it. Matcha Love is unlike any other ice cream joint and is great for those who are tired of the typical variations of chocolate and vanilla.

Matcha Love balances flavor with sweetness which is most evident in the smoky Black Sesame flavor.

3. Cream Find your favorite combination of fresh perfectly baked, fluffy cookies and soft, rich ice cream with the

endless flavors and variety available at the extensively Instagramed Cream in Downtown San Jose.

Along with being photogenic, these ice cream sandwiches are packed with sugar and will definitely satisfy your sweet tooth cravings.

4. Thrifty’s Along with drugs, Rite Aid also sells Thrifty Ice Cream over the counter. There’s nothing too grand about this counter located at the back of the store or the way the ice cream is served, but the creamy consistency makes it much more enjoyable than your average frost-covered carton ice cream.

Novel accessories enhance smartphone cameras

BY AMANDA NGUYEN

With the popularity of photo-heavy social media applications like Instagram, the smart phone camera has evolved into a convenient yet powerful tool. With an abundance of megapixels and fast autofocus, the smartphone camera has developed its own niche market for add-on gadgets and accessories.

1. The Selfie Stick Ridiculed or loved, the selfie stick is a sign of the increasing demand for smartphone camera accessories.

Most selfie sticks are just monopods which utilize bluetooth buttons that allow users to snap photos from a further point. These selfie sticks allow smartphone camera users to grab wider, panned out shots and self portraits, as opposed to an ex-

tended arm.

2. Attachable Camera Lenses In light of bulkier digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) cameras, many companies have released various lenses that either work by attaching to a specialized case or clipping onto phones. These addons give avid smartphone photographers more room to experiment with different angles and hone in on specific types of shots. Just like for DSLRs, there are both tele and wide lenses for smart phone cameras. Clip-on fish eye lenses have become increasingly popular.

3. Remote Shutter Release Another extension of DSLR gadgets to the smartphone camera has been the remote shutter release.

This device allows you to take photos without directly interacting

with your smartphone. This means that users can position their phone further away and get wider shots.

Unlike the selfie stick, however, awkward angles and extended arms are not needed.

4. Photo Filter Apps An array of apps that allow for smartphone photo adjustments and enhancements have made their way onto millions of smartphones. Anything from subtle adjustments to pre-made, apply-in-one-click filters are possible with any of these apps.

The array of gadgets that are offered as add-ons to smartphone cameras signify the advancement of these cameras. As the demand for smartphone photography tools increases, the market for these seemingly excessive trinkets and gadgets grows.

APRIL 2015

ENTERTAINMENT

THE UNION

‘Furious 7’ a wild ride; pays tribute to Walker RATING

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BY DENNY BAO

After the shocking death of Actor Paul Walker, the release of “Furious 7,” the seventh installment of the “The Fast and Furious” series, was highly anticipated. In fact, I went to the movie theater to watch the 8:30 p.m. showing on Friday and found out that I wouldn’t be able to watch the movie until 11:40 p.m.

The story is centered around Deckard Shaw (Jason Stratham), who seeks revenge against Dominic Toretto’s (Vin Diesel) family for crippling his brother. Shaw’s brother was the main villain in the sixth

installment of the series.

The plot revolves around a device called “God’s Eye,” which is a computer program created by Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel) that uses other digital devices and cameras to track down any target.

After Shaw severely injures Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson), Toretto’s men steal God’s Eye and use it to track down Shaw, who teamed up with power-hungry mercenary Moses Jakande (Djimon Hounsou). They are ambushed by Jakande’s men and lose God’s Eye. Toretto’s men return to Los Angeles in order to battle Jakande and Shaw on their home turf.

While the film is filled with action,

FEATURED ARTIST

What exactly do you paint?

I’m most known for my marine life and island style paintings. I typically paint in what’s considered a contemporary-colorist style, combining elements of abstraction and realistic illustration. I usually use acrylic paint, but I use watercolor for specific projects.

Jeffrey Albrecht Teacher | Painting

Courtesy of jeffgallery.com

BY KRUPA PATEL

When and why did you start painting?

I’m a graduate of MHS and learned to paint during my freshman year.

I started painting because I really enjoyed creating art, and I found that I had a lot of friends that were willing to pay me to create things for them.

the movie was very predictable; I could occasionally predict the lines.

Another gripe I have is that the movie is extremely unrealistic. I understand that it’s a movie, but some scenes were way too out there. For example, during his fight with Shaw, Toretto gets hit in the face with a wrench like five times, but he continues to fight like nothing happened.

The focal point of the movie is the death of Paul Walker. The producers pay tribute to him at the end of the movie with a captivating scene filled with flashbacks starring Walker from past installments.

Overall, the movie was easy to follow and had me at the edge of my seat.

Where does your inspiration come from?

I’m inspired by the beauty in nature: Sun, Surf, Waves, Palms, Birds, People, Colors are all things that come to mind. I spend a lot of time in Hawaii creating and selling artwork. It doesn’t take much to find beauty in paradise.

Have you ever displayed your art anywhere?

I’ve worked with private collectors all over the world and several galleries and stores throughout California and Hawaii. Currently, I have representation in Carmel, Kauai, Oahu, and Maui. A series of 25 marine life images can be purchased at The Maui Ocean Center or online at http://shop.mauioceancenter.com.

What is your favorite piece and why?

I don’t have a favorite piece. I’m just beginning to scratch the surface of the potential that my art has to impact the world in a positive way.

11

MUSIC REVIEWS

AUREATE GLOOM

ADVENTURE

by Of Montreal Indie Rock RATING

by Madeon House/Synthpop RATING

BY AYSHA REHMAN

BY DENNY BAO

Of Montreal, a band characterized by its poppy beats and obscure lyrics, released its new album “Aureate Gloom” on March 3. This album is more rock-oriented, sounding like a trip back to the 70’s. However, it does not stray from the fun poppiness that is unique to Of Montreal’s sound.

In one of the best songs on the album, “Last Rites At The Jane Hotel,” Frontman Kevin Barnes brings in the quirkiness associated with Of Montreal, with an abrupt change in tone from fast-paced to sweet and soft, just for a few moments. Another great track is “Estocada,” which utilizes harmonized vocals and riffs that can be described as something along the lines of a break-up song.

The addition of violins is a nice touch as well.

Overall, the new album was an impressive addition to the band’s growing discography and will not disappoint Of Montreal fans, despite the transformation from “kaleidoscopic” sounds to rock-oriented pop magic.

After making a name for himself by uploading the 39-song mashup “Pop Culture” on Youtube, 20-yearold producer Madeon showcases his exceptional production in “Adventure,” his debut album.

The album integrates the pop and indie rock genres seamlessly with Madeon’s signature sound.

Combine that with collaborations with established artists like the lead singers from Bastille and Passion Pit, and you have yourself a winner.

Instead of borrowing vocals from other artists and placing them on top of his productions, Madeon injects character into his album by adjusting his signature style to fit those of the vocalists. “Pay No Mind,” which features Passion Pit, has a very strong pop feel, while “La Lune,” which features Bastille, reminds me of an indie track.

All in all, “Adventure” is just the beginning of Madeon’s promising career. After gaining fame from his remixes of popular EDM songs, Madeon will overtake his predecessors with his versatile production.

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12

THE UNION

SPORTS

APRIL 2015

Maneja coaches JV Badminton; integrates well

BY WEE JIN KOH

Science Teacher Jerell Maneja assumed the role of Junior Varsity (JV) Badminton coach this spring, according to Maneja. He became the JV Badminton coach since the previous coach left after participating in one season, Maneja said.

“I saw the opening [for the JV Badminton coaching position] and saw it as another way that I can continue to contribute to this campus,” Maneja said.

Maneja has had plenty of experience with badminton even before he became the JV Badminton coach, he said.

“I started playing badminton in high school around 2002 and have played ever since,” Maneja said. “I also competed in a couple of tournaments as a recreational activity.”

Maneja’s goal as the JV Badminton

coach is to emphasize the basics of the sport and provide players with the skills and physical ability to compete at the varsity level, according to Maneja.

“With how many players who are playing for the first time, I am trying to emphasize fundamentals, good form, and essentially get them into ‘badminton-shape,’” Maneja said.

“I try to get their agility and strength up so that they can eventually reach the varsity level should they choose to pursue it,” Maneja continued.

JV Badminton players are okay with Maneja’s teaching methods, according to Freshman Gretna Truong.

“Obviously [Varsity Coach] Larry [Chan] has more experience in teaching badminton,” Truong said. “However, [Coach Maneja’s] methods are not bad at all.”

Managing science classes as well as a sports team is not an easy task, ac-

cording to Maneja. Badminton events sometimes conflict with the responsibilities of teaching classes, Maneja said.

“There is less time for me to focus on grading,” Maneja said. “Sometimes, I also have to miss a period of teaching class in order to coach at certain away games.”

Maneja has enjoyed the experience of coaching JV Badminton so far, he said. Maneja is unsure what will happen in the future for the team, according to Maneja.

“We pulled a couple of wins, and it means that we are not that bad,” Maneja said. “Or I guess that I am just blessed to have good players.”

“I love the sport, and while I feel that I am not the best player, I know how to coach,” Maneja said. “I know how to teach and I know enough fundamentals to train the JV Badminton team to where it needs to be.”

Artificial turf potential hazard; contains toxins

BY DIVYESH CHOTAI

Although no significant health hazards of artificial turf have been reported at MHS, recent events have sparked national controversy over the topic of synthetic turf causing health detriments.

Artificial turf is generally composed of rubber granules made of shredded recycled tires and shoes. Synthetic turf has become increasingly popular since the 1990s, when turf was implemented as a more durable alternative to grass fields.

Essentially, artificial turf was initially used to decrease the maintenance costs of watering fields of grass.

Unlike natural grass, synthetic turf does not require the use of pesticides

and fertilizers either. This further reduces maintenance costs.

After its usage rapidly increased, artificial turf was developed to become softer. Thus, this led to fewer injuries on the field and increased accessibility of movement.

Contrastingly, many have speculated about the dangerous effects of synthetic turf. The University of Washington reports that nearly 90 percent of U.S. soccer goalkeepers who play on fields with turf have been afflicted with cancer.

A direct, conclusive link has not been drawn between cancer and turf.

Yet, many reports examine possible correlations between the two.

Turf is not environmentally friendly for several reasons. The National

Center for Biotechnology Information reports that the rubber contains toxic chemicals such as lead, zinc, arsenic, and more, which curtail human development. Furthermore, these chemicals may run off into drains after it rains.

Scientists from Pennsylvania State University found that there is only one conclusive result drawn from studying artificial fields. That is: turf serves as a breeding ground for bacteria that can lead to numerous diseases and negatively impact respiratory systems.

Although turf primarily serves as a commodity to increase the safety of players and cut maintenance costs, synthetic turf may actually be more harmful than we think it is.

Ivy Nguyen | THE UNION

Boy’s Tennis Captain Dillon Lam is pictured above during a home game against Wilcox High School. Lam won the Varsity Singles One match.

Boy’s Tennis season enjoyable; strong individual members

BY IVY NGUYEN

The MHS Boy’s Tennis team’s season has stumbled off to a rocky start, according to Team Captain Peter Dang. The overall team record is 4-8, Dang said.

There is a staggering amount of players gone from last year, Dang said. The team has struggled to fight for a place in the El Camino league, according to Dang.

“We’ve had a few standout players this season,” Dang commented.

“Many of the players who came from JV last year have stepped up and delivered more than what was expected of them.”

Varsity Boys Tennis Coach Bill Conley is pleased with the season’s current outcome. The younger players have much to offer and the focus is to have them unlock their potential and gain experience, Conley said.

“Team Captain Junior Dillon Lam has worked especially hard to whip the team into place,” Conley said. “As Singles One, he’s helped other players develop their games individually and has helped the team establish themselves in the league standings.”

Aside from their performance, the most notable aspect about this year’s team is its level of camaraderie, according to Junior Kenneth Chau.

“Some highlights has to be the team bonding we had.” Chau said. “Our games usually didn’t go our way, but as a team we had loads of fun; I feel that after this season we have created a tight connection with one-another.”

Quick to add on about the team’s bond, Dang commented that the bus rides were probably the most enjoyable facet of the season.

The team will compete in the upcoming El Camino League Finals, according to Conley. The players hope to place in either the singles or doubles events.

“Dillon has only lost to one other player in the league so if he wins singles in the finals, he’ll advance to compete in CCS,” Conley said. “I think he has a great chance at taking home the win at CCS.” Despite the tumultuous start to the season, Dang has faith in the underclassmen on the team. They have the potential to make the team a lot better with a bit of tweaking, according to Dang.

Players prompted to sell candy

BY ANDREW LUU

The MHS badminton team is selling chocolates to raise money for the athletic department, Varsity Badminton Captain Felix Lieu said. If the players are unable to sell enough chocolate, they pay the difference, Lieu said.

The badminton coach bought the candy from Costco, according to Varsity Badminton Player Edmund Lau. They were not threatened with any punishment for failure to raise the required amount of money, Lau said.

The badminton players are fundraising because the team did not raise enough money for the golf tournament, Varsity Badminton Coach Larry Chan said.

“If there is no effort, I could get fired,” Chan said. “I make them run,” Chan said when asked about punishments for those who do not raise enough money.

“I have never threatened to fire a coach for not fundraising,” Athletic Director Jeffrey Lamb said. “I would never, ever encourage any time of corporal punishment for kids. Larry might have said that, but corporal punishment for that kind of stuff is never okay.”

The golf tournament fundraiser is a part of the coaches’ contracts, according to Lamb. Any other fundraising thats goes on is voluntary, Lamb said.

“We give teams three raffle tickets for each athlete on the team.” Lamb said. “Teams are also supposed to provide us with raffle prizes.”

Each team is supposed to find four golfers, Lamb said. They are also encouraged to raise $200 in whole sponsors, according to Lamb.

“We feel like we are always asking, which we do, but we do not have a choice,” Lamb said. “We do not have enough money to run our athletic department.”