VOL . 3, NO. 4
DECEMBER 15, 2023
THE YELLOW PAGES BASIS Independent Fremont Journalism Club
HUMANS OF BASIS: AIRPOD PETER
By Alan Xiao
Unbeknownst to a majority of the student body, our school is haunted. On your way to school, you might see a surreal vehicle zoom past you at an unfathomably illegal speed. In the hallways, you might feel a multitude of eyes ominously fixated on you as you walk past the BASIS mural. At our school, Aidan J. Peter’s presence is uncannily pervasive. But he isn’t a ghost; in fact, Aidan turns out to be a mercilessly unique human being. In both his personal and school life, Aidan values challenging himself and working hard: “Struggle is just so important, but we avoid it,” says Aidan, “Confronting struggle is a core value.” This confrontation with struggle in order to improve himself, as Aidan phrases it, has informed many aspects of his life, from his passion for physical exercise to his drive for success in his school and work life. Outside of school, Aidan works parttime at Zero Emission Industries, a startup that develops hydrogen-powered maritime vehicles. As part of a project working on a hydrogen powered speedboat, Aidan designs the boat’s user interface and works on the construction by helping install the boat’s fiberglass. Aidan’s deep engagement with the design process in the workplace allows him to apply his artistic talent. Aidan has been cultivating these skills since a young age. At his after school program, he would draw over his daily math packets instead of actually doing the problems. Noticing this habit, his parents
put him in a drawing class. Since then, he has turned this hobby into a mode of vivid self-expression. Aidan recognizes the ability of art to overturn and progress the cultural landscape by developing new intellectual movements. As a result, he aims to convey a message through his own art. For instance, his yearly endangered species drawings draw attention to the mounting ecological crisis, an issue he cares deeply about. Some of his award winning works depict animals such as loggerhead sea turtles and polar bears. The NHS mural is one of his more well-known works here at BIFU, depicting a congregation of aliens on the moon centered around a single flower. Through it, he aims to spread a message of diversity and inclusion in the community. As someone always fascinated by aliens, Aidan aptly took advantage of the vagueness of the “alien” to open up his imaginative freedom: “[aliens] are like an avenue to express your creative freedom because we have no idea what they could look like.” Aidan called on the students of BASIS Fremont to contribute their own aliens to the mural. The result is a wall of unique aliens, each the product of a BASIS student’s creative power, all united by planting a flower on the moon — the impossible made possible. Aidan says it is poetic: the juxtaposition of distinctive individuality and collective power — a perfect symbol of diversity and inclusion. The power of the mural’s focal point is also reminiscent of the mural itself as an im-
HOSTILE ARCHITECTURE: ITS UNSEEN IMPACT By Olivia Ma
Bars dividing seats on public benches, spikes/bumps lining stairs and building entrances, and the disappearance of seating areas in metropolitan train and transportation settings are just a few examples of techniques that cities implement to ward off people from staying in one place for too long — also known as “hostile architecture.” Such architecture has grown at a rapid rate in America’s biggest cities. Supporters of these new innovations have argued that these designs are “necessary to help maintain order, ensure safety and curb unwanted behavior such as loitering, sleeping or skateboarding” (New York Times). Others have labeled hostile architecture as “anti-homeless spikes,” and argue that it disproportionately targets those who are unhoused and have nowhere else to go. The most common form of hostile architecture is one that may seem normal to most: bars on public benches. Such bars separate flat benches into individual seats, rendering them impractical for sleeping, laying down, or even just sitting comfortably. In 2017, New York
City chief financial officer audited that around half of the city’s available seats technically, through hostile architecture techniques, violated a 2007 mandate that banned any “devices that inhibit[ed] seating” (New York Times). While many continue to raise concerns that such “seating designs” fail to follow city codes and should be prohibited, there are currently no laws in place that explicitly ban the use of hostile architecture (TBR). Furthermore, the removal of benches themselves has become popular in metropolitan areas. In a 2023 YouTube video titled “NYC Is Building Anti-Homeless Streets” by Cash Jordan, viewers were given a tour of New York City’s train and subway stations, which were noticeably bare and lacked any seating areas. Beyond preventing unhoused people from finding warmer shelter in the freezing winter temperatures, “the elderly [and] people who are pregnant”(Jordan) were barred from finding places of needed rest. The few benches that were located were, once again, divided with bars, marking yet another piece of hostile ar-
pressive organizational feat, with Aidan literally drawing from the collective vision of the BASIS community in order to accomplish such a difficult undertaking. Similar to how he searches for meaning in art and poetry, literature allows Aidan to search for meaning in his own life. One of his favorite books is Meditations by Marcus Aurelius because of its intuitive construction of morality and abundance of practical advice. According to Aidan, reading Meditations helped him question the permissive hedonism of modern American culture. More than that, the book’s sensible and rational advice helped him organize his life into a more productive structure: “Meditations feels like a laundry list of things to check off in my life.” Another book that impacted him was The Road to Character, which enticed him with its argument for a moral culture centered around Judeo-Christian values. Aidan was interested in the book’s emphasis on Christian virtues and vices. In particular, two moral values that resonated deeply with him were those of gratitude and forgiveness: “Pop culture places a lot of emphasis on revenge and payback. But forgiveness and gratitude are so important; we don’t thank people enough.” The book reminded Aidan to be grateful for and forgiving towards his friends. Through learning to forgive, Aidan strengthens the bonds between himself and those around him by approaching them with an attitude of understanding. In the gym, Aidan continues to learn about himself by undergoing physical and mental struggle. prioritizes his health by balancing a diverse range of aspects of fitness such as flexibility, endurance, plyometrics, and cardio. For Aidan, however, the gym is more than just a place to stay healthy. Through sticking to a strict diet and exercise routine, Aidan learned to develop consistency and discipline in his life. Due to the satisfaction he derives from confronting physical as well as psychological struggles, going to the gym has improved every aspect of Aidan’s life, greatly boosting his mental state. Aidan’s emphasis on discipline in the gym aligns with values highlighted in his life-long involvement in Scouting, which provides a sense of camaraderie and teamwork on top of its focus on discipline. He enjoys the various outdoor activities that come with Scouting such as rifle shooting, kayaking, and archery. As Aidan recalls, his favorite memory of Scouting was when he won the year-
ly kayaking competition at Lake Elizabeth. According to Aidan, many of the activities teach important skills that schools often neglect, for instance outdoor survival and etiquette. The activities involve intense teamwork, fostering a sense of companionship among the Scouts. More than just the activities, however, he also has learned to appreciate the sense of responsibility and mentorship that Scouting fosters: “ When you’re in a Scouting environment, you’re always with people who are younger than you, and you’re always forced to be in a position where you mentor and help them.” Due to the appeal of the camaraderie and discipline he has experienced in Boy Scouts, Aidan sees joining the armed forces in the future as a bright possibility. In particular, he considers taking on a job where his engineering and design skills will be put to use, for instance a Navy engineer. In joining the armed forces, he hopes to develop disciplined routines and habits which he will put to use for the rest of his life. He hopes the strict sleeping (and waking) schedule and stringent rules for dress and behavior will strengthen his discipline and self-regulation. In addition, he looks forward to the fellowship in the armed forces, relating the teamwork to his experience as a Boy Scout: “ We win competitions together. We raise flags together. We wake up together. That’s the same experience that I’ll get in the Navy.” Aidan’s sense of responsibility extends far beyond his immediate peers and local community. When asked about the most pressing problems facing our world today, Aidan voiced his concern for the growing issue of AI ethics. With the rapidly expanding applications of artificial intelligence in both consumer products and professional software, Aidan argues that it is the responsibility of legislators to regulate the development and usage of AI technology. However, he also voices his dismay at the ignorance of our current legislators in regards to cutting-edge technology. Wherever he goes in the future, Aidan’s sure to make an impact with his bright personality, strong work ethic, and diverse intellect. Even in the present, Aidan is already a positive influence on many of his friends. As Christopher says: “Befriending Aidan is like making friends with a german shepherd, if german shepherds could speak, draw, go to church, and tie japanese square lashing knots.”
chitecture in one of the few warm and protective places in the large city. Implementing hostile architecture does not solve the issue of homelessness. Forcing unhoused people away from the shelter that they can find only pushes more of them onto the street without any other resources or support from the city. As U.S. cities grapple with creating
“cleaner and safer” public spaces, the consequences of hostile architecture on the unhoused and vulnerable population demand attention. It is time for a shift towards thought-out solutions that tackle the root causes of homelessness rather than merely displacing those who have nowhere else to go and forcing them to find their own solutions.