Cedar Bulletin, Vol.I, issue 8

VOL.I ISSUE VIII | OCTOBER 2024

BULLETIN

BAKE SALE FUNDRAISER: Cedar Culinary Society is set on expanding the boundaries of delicacies, broadening their horizon far beyond the College premises. Recently they represented Cedar College at Dolmen Mall, Clifton, organizing a charity bake-sale of home-cooked goods, on Saturday 29th September, collaborating with Indus Hospital to raise funds for cancer patients. This fundraiser was executed by the PECHS heads who brought baked goods, cookies, cake pops, as well as savory items like pastries.

The attendees were immensely impressed by the efficiency and the overall management of the food stall, and were satisfied with the quality and price of the food. Financially too, the occasion was a big success as our heads single-handedly handled the entire execution of the venture, with an overwhelming amount of audience and the generated revenue. The bake-sale went on from 3:30 to 5:30pm, the entire span of the event resulting in a phenomenal turnover.

Overall, with the event declared as a huge accomplishment, Cedar would like to acknowledge and congratulate our Knights who made the Bake-sale possible, and managed everything so flawlessly. Kudos to our PECHS Culinary Team for making this happen!

ETTIN

STUDENTS’ SUGGESTIONS Wi-Fi Issues

Cafeteria Improvements

The unreliable Wi-Fi on campus The cafeteria (in the PECHS campus) is affecting students’ ability to lacks shaded seating, making it attend classes and do research uncomfortable for students to eat in during breaks. Improved hot weather. If additional seating is not connectivity is essential for possible, opening rooftop classrooms academic work. or the art room as alternative.

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Cricket Space

The hub is too congested for cricket, and students need a larger, open area to play casually during breaks without joining a formal team or disrupting other activities.

SPOTLIGHTAimen Mengal For many, writing is a way to express their thoughts and feelings. That was the case for one of our own Knights, Aiman Mengal. She started writing back in 2021 as a way to cope with her thoughts and experiences as a teenager. What began as short poems soon led to the creation of Aiman’s first book, titled Lost Desires.

After posting her book online, it started gaining attention and eventually amassed nearly 1.2 million views. Aiman soon selfpublished the book—she did everything from designing the cover to editing the content on her own! Aiman reflects, “Designing the cover was probably the hardest part. The whole process was a learning curve, but looking back, I’m glad I did it all myself.”

Aiman draws most of her inspiration from the works of Agatha Christie and Michelle Heard. Her rough idea for a book soon turned into an amazing opportunity when, in January 2022, Aiman signed a contract with a website that promotes young authors. She was required to write 2000 words every day for a whole month, and by the end of 30 days, she had completed a 60,000-word book.

In addition to this, Aiman won a bronze award in The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition. Moreover, she also freelances on Fiverr.

To conclude, Cedar College is extremely proud of our young and creative Aiman for achieving so much at such a young age, and we look forward to seeing her accomplish all her dreams.

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PROUD PAKISTANINergis Mavalvala Astrophysics is a field notoriously known for being dominated by men, while physics as a general area of research experiences significant gender disparity.

Challenging these norms, Nergis Mavalvala is a PakistaniAmerican, award-winning physicist who has made significant contributions to our understanding of gravitational waves.

She was born in Lahore in 1968 and raised in Karachi in a Parsi household. Growing up, Nergis had a natural inclination towards math and science, which not only enabled her to fix her own bike but also to undertake the arduous astrophysics graduate course at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States.

Unbeknownst to her, Nergis would go on to achieve a tremendous career highlight in 2016. She collaborated with other scientists to make the first detection of gravitational waves, a sensational discovery that caused ripples in the scientific community. She helped design the prototype of the detector, which eventually took its final form as LIGO. LIGO went on to be recognized by the Nobel Prize Committee, as the 2017 Physics award was presented to Nergis’ advisor. Nergis herself has led a team of scientists in conducting further studies on LIGO.

Since 2020, Mavalvala has served as the Dean of the School of Science at MIT. She is not only a pioneering female scientist with a MacArthur Fellowship Award to her name, but also a trailblazing mother who “loves puzzles, sports, the arts, and the study of black holes.” In the words of this unconventional yet groundbreaking scientist, “We think that when we make a discovery, we have answered a question, but almost always, what we have really done is pose a new question.”

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WELLNESS WORKSHOP Cedar College held its second Wellness Workshop on Tuesday, October 3rd. The workshop aimed to address the mental wellbeing of the students and help them stay present and engaged in their tasks. The Knights had a chance to become more aware of their feelings, thoughts, and surroundings.

Ms. Perin Avari, who holds a Master's in Clinical Psychology from Columbia University, was the speaker for the workshop, ensuring that the students had a productive afternoon.

The workshop began in the late afternoon, with the first agenda being breathing activities to help students counteract their mental clatter. The students focused on practicing the correct techniques to alleviate their stress and anxiety. This was followed by a “Rose, Thorn, and Bud” activity highlighting different parts of everyone’s story. The students had to each draw a rose, a thorn, and a bud. The rose represents an acknowledgment of their current state and a feeling of contentment. The “Thorn”, a symbol of obstacles and ongoing crises, continues with the “Bud” giving importance to a future goal.

Ms Perin Avari

To conclude the workshop, using paper, two colors of paint, and an outline of a tree, a powerful metaphor about the working of mindfulness was served. Ms Avari further explained the importance of being present, enlightening the Knights about psychological well-being. The workshop aimed at improved conscientiousness proved effective.

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COPERNICUS OLYMPIAD

IDP UNIVERSITY FAIR With the season of university applications commenced, Cedar indulged representatives of various universities from Ireland, Australia and UK, for the benefit of our Knights. These representatives expanded on their respective university’s merits, so that our students were well-informed and can make prudent decisions. This University Fair was organized

by IDP, an establishment that assists students in finding and applying to universities abroad.

On September 28, 2024, the Cedar Knights took part in the 6th Copernicus Olympiad, held online. This format allowed participants to join from anywhere. Approximately 78 individuals participated in the Natural Sciences and Physics and Astronomy Olympiads.

The task consisted of answering 25 multiplechoice questions within one hour. Each correct answer was worth 4 marks, with a penalty of 1 mark for every incorrect response. Despite technical issues, our team remained focused and determined, with many qualifying for the global round.

The University Fair took place on Monday 7th of October, PECHS and DHA campus both. It lasted for an hour and a half, with various students coming and interacting with their desired universities’ representatives.

Students were informed about the offered courses at each university, the finances and scholarships as well as the job opportunities available. The Fair hosted some of the leading universities of each region; with Cardiff University, University of Edinburgh from the UK, National College of Ireland, University College Dublin, from Ireland and University of Technology Sydney, RMIT University, from Australia, to name a few universities that were present.

The Physics and Astronomy round featured 25 multiple-choice, mind-boggling physics questions and fascinating astronomy questions that were challenging and, in some cases, beyond A2 level. However, our team handled them well. The Natural Sciences round covered various categories, including geology, astronomy, biology, physics, and the mysteries of chemistry. Notably, Aisam Abdul Wadood Malik secured a gold medal in this category, an achievement we are proud of.

Having successfully completed the Natural Sciences and Physics and Astronomy rounds, we now look forward to the Mathematics round. All Cedar Knights are encouraged to participate.

As Cedar aims to provide our students with the best opportunities, we hope to see our Knights sail smoothly in the tumultuous sea that is life. Good luck to everyone applying to their desired universities in the upcoming months, we wish you all the very best!

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LUMS VISIT TO CEDAR Representatives from one of the most prestigious universities of Pakistan, Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), visited Cedar for an informative session regarding university applications.

Students were introduced to the opportunities at LUMS, the institute offering 45 academic programmes, 19 undergraduate and 26 graduate, divided between 5 departments; of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences, Business, Education and Science and Engineering.

While LUMS is best known for its engineering program, due to the university being up to date with the latest technologies, it is notable that the faculty in each department is top-notch, with graduates from some of the top universities in the world, i.e Harvard, as faculty members.

The representative mentioned the institute's encouragement of “tailor-made” degrees. He said there are no prerequisites for minoring in a subject, so students are free to major in one thing and then minor in whichever field interests them. By studying what students are passionate about, the representative said they are more likely to excel in their careers and fields.

He repeated the need to minor in Education several times; minoring in Education makes one capable of going into the education ministry in Pakistan where students can improve the education system by creating better policies.

Regarding the entry requirements, LUMS requires a minimum of 8 Bs in O levels 2 Bs, and a C in A levels.

Furthermore, students must either submit their SAT, ACT or specialized LUMS test scores, such as the LCAT. Doing some sort of social service is very important. “Even if you plant one tree, we will accept that,” said the university representative.

The representative also debunked a myth that claims 'LUMS does not offer good scholarships'. “In reality,” he said, “1 in 3 students at LUMS are on some sort of scholarship.” LUMS offers need-based scholarships, merit-based scholarships, and more.

The session was concluded by playing a video created by the students at LUMS, which showed the diversity in the student body, with each student being from a different part of Pakistan, ending on a positive note.

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Best Art Interpretations from Bulletin 7 For me, the patchwork in the background represents life, with the lighter tiles representing the times that were good, and the darker tiles representing times that were not so good. The tiles all have different colors because all the experiences of life are complex and cannot be fit into 'good' or 'bad'.

Similarly, you cannot objectively say that one color is brighter or darker than a totally different color, but it is possible that to one observer it appears lighter, and to another it appears darker, which is also symbolic of life where you cannot objectively compare two different experiences and each person would interpret this differently. For me the person in the photo represents the spirit of motherhood, or in other words your parents. The figure is spreading out it's whiteness to as far as it can, trying to make all the life experiences lighter.

The dark parts are not so dark anymore. The light parts are even lighter. And yet, despite the figure trying their hardest, there are still some places where this whiteness does not reach.

Because it is, after all, life.

The Mysterious Garden Margaret Macdonald Mackintosh (1911)

~ Muhammad Salman

Check out todays Murdle Mystery!

CEDAR COMICS

Cats@Cedar LOT OF CAT-TITTUDE!

CEDAR CAT-HLETE

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J.K MEOWLING

ART CORNER Internal Sunrise (2020) is an Abstract Expressionist painting by Swedish-Chinese artist Camilla Engstrom. Engstrom paints a colourful and vibrant landscape with a dreamlike touch to it, on canvas using oil paints. This specific artwork uses vibrant colours and bulbous patterns, giving the landscape a Surrealist vibe. Being one of the promising contemporary artists, she infuses all her paintings with natural patterns and sensations to channel her inner emotions, and titles her artwork accordingly. Engstrom has put ideas of beauty and climate change at the heart of her creations, being an environmentalist herself. Engstrom channels major themes of environment, fantasy and humans' connection to Nature through her paintings, making her a brilliant emerging artist that expresses herself and her emotions through the presentation of landscapes.

What do you think Engstrom is trying to convey in this painting? Keeping in mind her style and channelling, mail us your interpretations of Internal Sunrise at cedarpublications@cedar.edu.pk to get featured in the next Bulletin!

Publications Team for Bulletin 8

PUBLICATIONS ENDNOTE

Patron: Aysha Sheikh

As we close this week’s article, let’s remind ourselves to keep pushing forward, whether it’s in academics, personal growth, or just everyday life.

Editor-in-Chief: Muhammad Mehdi

Every challenge is a chance to learn something new, and every achievement, no matter how small, counts. So let’s stay curious, stay driven, and keep supporting each other along the way.

Designer: Anumta Rashid Wordsmiths: Alishba Azam Aliza Faisal Amnah Khan Anumta Rashid Anusha Hasan Madiha Kadir Zarlish Farhan

Until next time, take care of yourselves, keep exploring, and make the most of every moment!

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