Scholars' Journal 2021

Scholars’ Journal 2021 A selection of articles written by our Scholars

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Scholars’ Journal 2021

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Scholars’ Journal 2021 Introduction

The 2021 Scholars’ Journal contains a selection of articles written by our Academic Scholars in First to Sixth Form. They have each undertaken independent research on a topic of their choosing, resulting in a diverse range of final pieces that reflect their varied interests and outlooks.

It is no surprise that some of our Scholars have engaged directly with the pandemic that has shaped our lives for the past eighteen months.

Whether analysing the impact of Covid-19 on businesses, teenagers or even household pets, their articles demonstrate skill in processing and evaluating this unprecedented situation. Others chose to explore new frontiers in science and technology, examining promising new medical and engineering breakthroughs. Cultures both modern and ancient provide further intellectual refuge in some of the pieces, highlighting the enduring power of art and literature to help us navigate the world in which we live.

While the pieces that follow showcase an impressively wide range of interests, the common thread that unites them is their thoughtful consideration of challenging questions and new ideas.

We hope you enjoy reading their work.

Dr S Harrison and Mr P Rudge

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Scholars' Journal 2021 Contents The Scholars’ Journal is a collection of articles created by pupils from First Form to Lower Sixth Form. The articles combine a selection of work across a wide range of disciplines.

Lions as a Symbol of Power Sukhmani Panesar

10 How does Norse Mythology Affect Modern Literature?

Emmeline Black

First Form

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12 The Colonisation of Mars; Making The Red Planet Our Home Alex May

18 Is Autism Really a Disorder?

Caellum Sharp

Third Form

16 Is Carbon Engineering a Viable Means of Combatting Climate Change?

George Keates

Second Form

14 Are Social Media Companies Using You? Joe Norman

20 The Impact of Evolution and its Future Implications for the Human Race Monty Bolton 22 Architectural Landmarks as a Symbol of Spiritual Belief Simran Panesar 24 Has Covid-19 had a Positive or Negative Impact on Dogs?

Archie Wilkinson

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28 How has Covid-19 Affected Teenage Mental Health?

Rachael Elliott

Fourth Form

26 Could Life be a Simulation?

Dee Biles

30 Rats' Laughter Paves the way for New Treatments against Depression Aoife Kirkham 32 CRISPR: The Benefits, the Disadvantages, and its Role in the Future Florence Adepoju 34 What is the Impact of Japanese Culture on Modern, Global Society?

Nathan Taylor

Doctors: Many People’s First Drug Dealers Jenny Allen

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How Did The COVID-19 Pandemic Impact Amazon.com?

Alex Anderson

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Could Swimming be the Key to a Healthier Life?

Sam Cruttenden

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An evaluation of risks associated with ‘Coffin Corner’ in commercial flight Harrison Procter

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The Split Personality of Snake Venom: a Cure as well as a Killer?

Zoë Smith

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Water Wars Casper Bolton

Lower Sixth

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Fifth Form

36 Should the Allies have bombed Auschwitz?

Jamie Wehrle

54 How did a Meme Make People Millions? Understanding the Success of Dogecoin Tony Nguyen

Lower Sixth

52 Does War Affect Fashion?

Jossy Brown

56 Why do Good Characters in Ancient Literature Never Get Happy Endings?

Ruari Kirkham 58 Why have people been experiencing such strange dreams during the pandemic?

Madeleine May 60 What are the differences between males and females in the presentation and diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder?

Rosie Moore 62 Why should film directors be as well-known as actors?

Emily Mumford 64 How do mRNA vaccines work and is the new mRNA Covid-19 vaccine safe?

Khadija Karrouchi 66 Will the True Lives of Women in the Ancient World be Lost to us Forever?

Millie Knight 68 J. S. Bach vs Lil Tjay: An Exploration of Musical Validity Tom Orton

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Lions as a Symbol of Power Sukhamani Panesar, First Form, Queen Anne.

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ith their distinctive looks and fierce reputations, why is it that lions are a critically endangered species? This article looks at how these amazing creatures have been depicted and characterised around the world, and what they symbolise. It also looks at how this is contradicted by the way human actions, if left unchecked, could lead to their future extinction. where people hold them in high regard, both spiritually and culturally. For example, they play a huge part in Chinese culture and in the Buddhist tradition. The Chinese have guardian lions outside their temples. They are traditionally made with either decorative stones like marble and granite or with cast bronze or iron. They are always presented in pairs to stand for the yin yang and according to feng shui they must be in the exact right place. When lion statues appear at an entrance, it is traditional to have a male with an embroidered ball on the right and a female with a lion cub on the left as you enter.

Powerful Symbols Symbols are signs, shapes or objects that stand for something else. They can be easily recognised and convey some meaning such as shared beliefs or characteristics (for example, the cross in Christianity).

Lions are a powerful symbol around the world.

They are feared and respected. They are strong and powerful. Within their natural habitats, they show bravery and loyalty; they are courageous in protecting their young and they are ferocious and formidable when hunting their prey. It is no surprise that they have “pride” as their collective noun. If they were to go extinct, they would be sorely missed.

Lions Around the World Lions are found in number of countries in Asia

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Lions have also been an important presence in Africa for centuries where they are both respected and feared. For example, in ancient Egypt, the people adopted the lion as a symbol central to their social and cultural beliefs. One of the best examples of this is the Great Sphinx of Giza, which has the haunches of a lion, the head of a woman and the wings of a bird! This is not the only sphinx in Egypt; others have been discovered from archaeological excavations.

The ancient Egyptians also made use of lions as a symbol in other ways. To them, lions embodied danger and chaos, and they also impersonated the ferocious heat of the sun in Egypt. Lions tended to live on the edges of the dessert of Egypt, so they became known as the guardians of the eastern and western horizons around modern and ancient Egypt.

Lions are also a recognised part of society even in countries where there is no indigenous lion population, including in the UK and Europe. They are commonly used as symbols in everyday life.

Lions are used in several corporate logos. For example, the Peugeot logo has a lion standing tall and roaring. The logo is a confident and bold image, which uses a metallic colour palette giving their brand the impression of reliability and

trustworthiness.

Football fans will recognise that a few football clubs feature a lion in their logo. For example, Chelsea FC’s logo features a lion standing on its hind legs holding a staff, whilst the Aston Villa logo features a similar image without a staff, but on a claret and blue background. These logos have a regal feel to them and give the impression of power and authority. The Premier League logo itself is the head of a lion wearing a crown; the older version included a full image of the lion, again wearing a crown, but also with a football under one of its paws. The common feature is the crown, which again implies a sense of power and authority.

Images of lions are commonly used in connection with royalty and national emblems, and as such form a central part of our culture and identity. Again, this feeds through to the sporting arena when it comes to national sports. The English Football Association and the England football team use a logo featuring three lions. English football fans take immense pride in the three lions logo, and what it represents. The lions appear strong, powerful, formidable and fierce.

This suggests that players wearing the emblem should be respected. It implies that they are brave, loyal and to be feared. In this context, lions give a sense of national pride. However, you are more likely to see a deer in England than a lion.

Why are Lions Critically Endangered?

Lions are now endangered, and most of the reasons for this have something in common: humans.

Poaching, climate change and loss of habitat have caused their numbers to drop significantly. If we hold lions in such high regard, why are we not doing more to help them?

feline immunodeficiency virus). Although this is not down to humans, the question is whether there is more we can and should be doing to find cures for the most common diseases?

The characteristics of lions are a huge part of what makes them such a compelling symbol worldwide.

Huge populations of Asia hold lions dear to them.

They are a big part of spiritual and cultural life. In Africa, these amazing creatures are respected and feared. They portray authority and respect.

Elsewhere, including in the UK, we have adopted lions as one of our most powerful symbols. They play a part in everyday life and are embedded in our culture, despite them not being native to these shores. So, why are we not doing more to help them?

We can all do our part. We can raise awareness in our schools and educate our communities. There are many organisations, such as Lion Aid and Walking for Lions that supply free resources online.

Donating to recognised animal welfare charities can also help by: •

supplying sanctuaries for animals in the wild to safeguard them from poachers,

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promoting and educating people about the importance of habitat preservation and the threat of global warming on lions and other wildlife,

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promoting research into common animal diseases.

Around 41,000 species of animals are endangered, so the story does not end with lions, but it is a good place to start as they are so central to the values that we all aspire to.

Poachers have played a significant role in causing the dwindling numbers of lions in the wild. They poach lions to take their skins as trophies and sell them to the highest bidder. But is it worth it? Poachers and those that buy from them are endangering one of the world’s most important animals.

References

Climate change is also something we humans have played a part in. As well as the broader impact it has, the increase in carbon emissions is seriously impacting lions’ natural habitats.

The Catnip Times. ‘Symbolic Meaning of Lions.’ www.thecatniptimes.com

Lion Aid. ‘Light at the End of the Tunnel?’ lionaid. org/news Sooke, Alastair. ‘Why the Lion is Art’s Most Powerful Symbol.’ www.bbc.com/culture

Human destruction of forests and rural environments due to growing populations and urbanisation has also led to loss of habitats for lions.

Another reason for lions becoming an endangered species is disease (e.g. canine distemper virus and

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How Does Norse Mythology Affect Modern Literature?

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Emmeline Black, First Form, Feilden.

Clarke Scholar.

orse mythology tells of amazing, magical creatures, lands and gods, and has captured the imaginations of countless generations. However, it is undoubtedly less well-known than Greek Mythology, as for a long time it was passed down by the oral tradition and was only first written down in the Poetic Edda and the Prose Edda

by Snorri Sturluson in the 13th Century, a long time after the end of the Viking age. This probably means that only a fraction of the original myths remain known to us now.

Even after they were recorded in literature, these ancient texts were not well known outside Scandinavia until the 19th Century, which was when Wagner’s Ring Cycle operas and William Morris’s poems were written. Wagner’s operas were hugely popular and even led to the false stereotype of Vikings’ horned helmets, when a costume designer realised the helmets couldn’t be seen from the back of stage and added horns.

In contrast, Greek Mythology has been well documented since around 700BC. The Ancient Greeks and Romans overlapped closely, and the vast extent of the Roman Empire helped spread these stories worldwide. There are subsequently many versions of Greek myths as they have evolved in different places.

However, the gripping tales of the nine realms, Yggsdrasil (the tree that connects them), Ragnarok, Odin, Thor and the many other Gods and

Goddesses, have impacted modern literature and culture in a way that is not immediately obvious.

As Neil Gaiman’s Norse Mythology says, “The best we can tell, the gods of Asgard came from Germany, spread to Scandinavia, and then to the other parts of the world dominated by the Vikings.”

As the Viking influence grew, Norse mythology impacted English through language. Old Norse gave us many place names and animal names, but more directly, the Gods themselves gave us names for the days of the week.

As the Norse tales were not written down until Christianity had replaced the worship of the Norse Gods, some people believe that Norse myths influenced aspects of Christianity. There are certainly striking similarities: the Christian concept of ‘hell’ is very similar to that of Helheim, the place that the shameful went if they did not die in battle and earn a place in Valhalla. There are also strong

Day

God

Tuesday (Tyr's day)

Tyr, god of war

Wednesday (Woden's day)

Odin/Woden, raven god

Thursday (Thor's day)

Thor, god of strength and storms

Friday (Frigg's day)

Frigg, goddess of love and beauty

Sunday (Sun's day) Monday (Mani's day)

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Sol, goddess of the sun Mani, goddess of the moon

parallels between Loki, God of Mischief, and the devil. Loki is able to change form like the devil.

It is believed that when the Christians tried to convert everyone to Christianity, they did so by discrediting the Gods, and turned Loki from a mischievous God into an evil one, who tricked Hod (a blind god) into killing his Christ-like brother, Baldur. Loki is also considered responsible for Ragnarok, the end of the Aesir (the Gods of Asgard). It is, however, much more likely that linguistic similarities are due to shared Germanic root words, and that the Norse myths as we know them now were Christianised by the people who originally wrote it down. However the influence of Norse mythology, and Loki in particular, can still be felt in modern ‘Christian’ characters, such as Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett’s demon Crowley, in Good Omens, who is the mastermind behind the M25 motorway.

Similarly, the epic poem, Beowulf, was the greatest Old English poem and is thought to be about a Norse hero. Although it is not part of the Norse myths, and was put into writing before the Norse stories were, the saga is often associated with the Norse and is another example of the overlap between English and Norse in oral story telling.

However, once the stories of the Norse became known more widely in the 19th Century, many authors were inspired by the fascinating lands and their inhabitants. Almost all fairy tales and fantasy stories about dwarves, elves or trolls relate to Norse mythology. One of the most significant was JRR Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings. As a child, Tolkein was intrigued by Norse mythology and named many of his dwarves after the dwarves in the Prose Edda. Even the name Gandalf appeared there, although many parallels can be drawn between Gandalf and Odin, as both roam their worlds spreading wisdom. Rings and swords played a large role in Norse mythology and rings were often used as a metaphor for power. Middle Earth is relatable to Midgard, the Norse realm where humans lived, and Asgard, realm of the gods, is similar to Tolkein’s Valinor.

In children’s literature, Cressida Cowell’s series, How to Train Your Dragon, is based in a Norseinspired world of Vikings where the characters worship Odin and hope to ascend to Valhalla.

The plot of the Norse myths is complex and violent and rarely retold in its entirety. Unusually, Rick Riordan’s Magnus Chase series, which imagines that Norse gods and goddesses exist now in the 21st Century replicates the myths for children and The Gospel of Loki, by Joanne Harris, retells the

stories from Loki’s perspective.

Whilst Norse mythology may have made a less obvious impact than Greek, the stories are so captivating, they have been widely replicated in modern culture in a way that people do not necessarily recognise. For example, like Tolkein, Enid Blyton was fascinated by the myths as a child and went on to write her bestselling novel The Magic Faraway Tree, based on Yggsdrasil, and explores the concept of a tree connecting different worlds. In Norse mythology there is an eagle at the top of the tree, and a dragon at the bottom. A squirrel travels between them carrying messages and insults, in much the same way as Enid Blyton’s red squirrel carries cushions. Lord of the Rings, in turn, has influenced many more popular books and films, including the Harry Potter series, where JK Rowling named characters after Norse figures, such as Fenrir, the wolf. George Lucas has also talked about being influenced by Lord of the Rings when creating the Star Wars films, and with a pleasing symmetry, Peter Jackson was later inspired by Star Wars itself when making the films of Lord of the Rings.

In wider culture, Thor features in many films in the Marvel Universe and is a key member of the Avengers. The movie, Thor, set in Asgard, introduces viewers to the Norse Gods then turns them into modern superheroes and villains, bringing Norse mythology to a new audience. Of course, the Marvel comics were the origin of the films, and so this is also a reflection of the impact upon modern literature.

In conclusion, the impact of the Norse myths is subtle but significant. Although the plot and language have had less influence, the characters and settings have sparked the imaginations of writers ever since and have led to some of the greatest works of fantasy fiction to date. Recent years have seen an explosion in popularity of Norse mythology, bringing the stories, themes and characters to a younger audience through literature and film. Perhaps someday Norse mythology will feature in our literature as much as the Greeks do.

References Gaiman, Neil. Norse Mythology (2017).

Dögg Friðriksdóttir, Sandra. Old Norse Influence on Modern English (2014).

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The Colonisation of Mars; Making the Red Planet our Home Alex May, First Form, Vanbrugh

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ver the past eleven years, work done to colonise Mars has been expanding greatly, with NASA’s first plans in the works since 2010. There has been a lot of progress on their part recently. With the current overcrowding of Earth, a new, habitable planet would be an extraordinary accomplishment for the whole civilisation of our planet. However, many debates have occurred relating to this topic. The real question here is: would colonising Mars be beneficial to society?

Many years ago, NASA decided that Mars would be a suitable planet to inhabit and that humans had to reach it eventually; Mars was an important step towards our future. Since they had evidence showing that a single planet species wouldn’t last as long as we required it to, acquiring a new planet was simply predictable.

Since 2015, our population has risen by near to 500 million. This proves that the inhabitation of a new planet will be essential to mankind in the coming years as the number of citizens can increase rapidly at any time.

NASA deeply considered a plethora of different questions regarding the safety of colonising a new, unknown planet before coming to the conclusion that the decision would be safe to proceed with. At that time, they didn’t have the technological capabilities that we do now to recreate ordinary living conditions. Despite the blocking difficulties NASA were faced with, they have persevered throughout the years and it shows a greatly developed, proud outcome. This leads us further to the inhabitation of Mars soon, maybe in the coming years.

I personally think this is a great idea, yet several

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issues present themselves whilst thinking logistically about the plan. The most significant issue is that it would take a long time - and it may not even be possible - to transport humans and all of their progressive technology to a whole new planet nearly an entire year’s travel away from Earth using our currently developed space travel technology.

Apart from the logistical challenges that present themselves, there are also moral issues.

Is it fair that we are just taking over a planet that has been in peace for millions of years and suddenly turning it into something that humans created? Would this be beneficial to us?

Still, Elon Musk is promising to put mankind on the planet Mars by the year 2024, with others such as Boeing thinking that they could fulfil that bet even sooner than Musk. This gives us a degree of certainty that we will be able to colonise a new, exciting planet.

Although there are so many promises and bets being made by many people, what evidence do we have to support the fact that it could even be possible to inhabit Mars? Well, on February 19th,

planet can only output 3 litres of oxygen per hour.

Clearly, the technology we have currently would not be enough to support a human’s basic living conditions. However, this proves to society that it is possible in the close and near future to colonise Mars as the first-ever, news-breaking, human-inhabited planet in the history of time. Once we are able to improve our technology to the living standards of humans, for example by providing the rovers with more resources so they are more capable of outputting oxygen, the plans will seem much more realistic and proven to be happening to us. The speed at which the rovers are currently producing resources needs to be significantly improved, but at the rapid rate that our technology is increasingly improving it is sure not to take a long time to be available.

2021, NASA’s Perseverance rover landed on the red planet, capturing photos that have been released to the public which are “offering a neverbefore-seen view of a spacecraft landing on another planet.” This is a huge leap in our mission towards Mars.

Yet, problems are still faced even though we are making huge progress. The average human requires 3 litres of oxygen per minute to remain living, and the rover that is currently traversing the

In summary, we are very close to being able to colonise Mars as we are progressing at a recordbreaking speed so it is expected that in due course there will be significant achievements on NASA’s part. By 2025 we aim to have mankind on the planet, or perhaps earlier as stated by multiple people, including Elon Musk. The current technology just isn’t capable of us being able to start moving to Mars just yet, but soon enough it will be possible. This is a history-breaking achievement that we are still progressing through and I know many people are excited for updates on when it will be possible.

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Are Social Media Companies Using You? Joe Norman, Second Form, Feilden Academic Scholar.

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ophocles once said, 'Nothing vast ever enters the life of mortals without a curse.'

The same thing has occurred with social media, which is beginning to show its colours. There are other dangers on the internet such as strangers, viruses, fraud, and hackers. However, too many people are falling into the trap to be examined in detail below. What is the trap? The three main algorithms that shape social media companies’ marketing campaigns, which are certainly having a significant impact on our lives.

'Hooking' Users The algorithms manipulate you into continuing to use social media software. Not only can this distract you from important things, studies also show it can lead to anxiety, depression and other mental health issues. Social media companies have a way of showing you things that you like. For example, you like a post about cats and a few about football. At this point the algorithm knows that you like cats and you really like football. So, from now on it will show you more posts or videos about football.

There are two dangers to this. The first is addiction.

This can be fuelled by your followers liking your posts or through you seeing a never-ending reel of videos and photos that interest you by reason of the algorithm referred to above. When someone likes your videos, companies have specifically set the system up to give you a hit of dopamine. Getting likes is exciting and makes you feel great, right?

Just like certain drugs, they might be exciting and stimulating, but once their effects wear off you feel terrible and want more. If you’re bored, you will most definitely be looking for stimulation of this kind.

An endless platform of videos and photos with an algorithm that makes sure that everything you see is specifically suited to you will surely keep you interested.

Manipulating Users Secondly a much bigger problem: political manipulation. If you like a post on why you should vote Conservative or Labour, or any political party,

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you will begin to see more videos and posts about them. These videos will usually encourage you to vote for them and will serve to denigrate their opponents. An example of this taking place has manifested in America very recently, with the huge differences that have grown to exist between the Republicans and the Democrats. Their views may not be entirely different, but they have somehow been manipulated so badly on social media that supporters from each camp have begun to hate one another.

A lot of arguments, offensive, racist and/or homophobic comments can be found online. You have your classic “keyboard warriors” as people have referred to them when talking to me. These are people who are not afraid to speak their opinion, make rude comments or hurt others from the safety of their computer. They would often never say it in person. This serves to escalate tensions unnecessarily. As they say these things many people will be offended; whether they think it is ridiculous or not, these people are upset and hurt.

If people feel this way they will complain and call out the person who originally said it, separating us even further and starting upset between people with different views to each other.

Advertising Advertising is the real money-maker for influencers and the social media companies themselves.

When watching YouTube, scrolling through TikTok, watching SnapStories or even using Facebook, you encounter adverts. Either halfway through a

video or plastered all over the site, these earn money for the companies who, in turn, send a cut to the influencers. Take the example of Microsoft, who pay YouTube to advertise their new XBox. YouTube monitor your searches and what you have viewed on their site and know that you are into gaming. They then target the advertising paid for by Microsoft towards you, so you go out and buy an Xbox. This gives all concerned more bang for their buck; all the while your data is being manipulated. The more adverts you see, the more they are paid.

Growth is hugely important because the more people companies can attract to the site, the more they can get hooked, and the process becomes a never-ending cycle. TikTok is a prime example of this: often the creator of a video will tell you to ‘share this with your friends’; this is mostly for their benefit, yet the whole purpose of the sharing feature is to get more people to see the platform.

When the link is accessed, it takes you to the site it came from; if people like it, then they might well download it and use it. Once there are enough users who have done that, it will most likely become a trend and more and more people will join in. If everybody is using it and if a vast majority of people are addicted, everyone’s lives are now

plastered over the internet. This in itself could be a danger: the more you post about your life, the more people will know about you. It is obvious enough that you should never share personal information, but people are coming up with new sneaky ways to steal it.

Looking Ahead At the end of the day, it is not technology that is the problem. Social media companies use you by getting you addicted to likes, shares and comments. They exploit your data and preferences to show you the correct adverts that make them money. But by doing this, they can reshape your view into a much stronger version. As we have seen, this can provoke violence and separation. I do not know what the future will be; nobody does. We can however make a guess. To me it looks like it will be a slow build-up in extreme views and anger between people who think differently.

However, we all share the same planet. Arguing and fighting over each other’s views of the world is simply not necessary. It is how it is resolved that matters.

If we remember what’s behind everything seen online and keep in mind that all may not be exactly as it seems, we can find in ourselves the tolerance needed to care for and share our planet with each other.

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Is Carbon Engineering a Viable Means of Combatting Climate Change?

George Keates, Third Form, Vanbrugh.

Academic Scholar, DT Award Holder.

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lanet Earth , a 3,595 million square mile wide monolith, the one thing we need for existence is fighting a war on two fronts. The first is the Covid-19 pandemic which is harming lives and livelihoods. But the sad reality of many people losing their jobs and loved ones plus the anxiety caused by people having to be contained in their homes for days upon end is still not the largest of our worries.

The largest threat human beings and the giant Planet Earth will have to face together is climate change. The lion’s share of days we all hear stark reminders of this huge threat. Already we can see early signs of the detrimental impact it will have on us. 2019 was the second hottest year on record - a startling pessimistic fact. Even in the United Kingdom, we can already see pollution coming up on death records. But is there a new and innovative way to combat climate change?

Most people have probably heard of the more conventional renewable energy sources: solar power, wind energy, hydroelectricity, and the list continues. But are you aware of Carbon Engineering?

This process is a pioneering and ground-breaking way of clawing back our planet and combatting climate change.

The man behind this ingenuity of a project is named Steve Oldham. Over the course of his life, the preeminent job he trained in was computer science; over the years he worked in many careers centred around this. He then moved to Canada where for two years he was again a software engineer. Using his skills, he has managed to take and develop businesses and grow them. Then, in 2018 he became chief executive of Carbon Engineering.

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Carbon Engineering is a Canadian-based clean energy company focusing on the commercialisation of Direct Air Capture technology that captures carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere. This captured CO2 can be stored underground in what is known as carbon capture and can be converted into carbon-neutral fuel using renewable energy sources by a process the company calls ‘Air to Fuels’. The company is running a pilot plant in Squamish, British Columbia, which has been removing CO2 from the atmosphere since 2015 and converting it into fuels since December 2017.

To break this down, we need to first know what Direct Air Capturing technology is. It begins with the company’s self-designed CO2harnessing turbines. These colossal turbines bring in air from the atmosphere and concentrate it.

Secondly, clean electricity such as solar PV (electricity generated by solar power) is used to electrolyze water before splitting it into hydrogen and oxygen.

Thirdly, the CO2 and hydrogen are thermoscatalytically reacted to produce syngas and reacted again to produce hydrocarbons. These hydrocarbons can be refined into compatible fuels for any form of transportation or engine. This means the fuel created in this process is completely environmentally friendly, making the transition to electric vehicles or hybrids or new innovations such as hydrogen-powered vehicles unnecessary. This means everyone will save large quantities of money as they will be able to keep their combustion-

powered cars instead of having to purchase a relatively expensive car.

This new form of defeating the biggest threat we have could pave our futures. Most people will assume that this is immensely expensive and will not be able to be implemented in time. However, it is estimated that this new solution can be scaled up to a global size in a matter of years. As it is all ready to go, we can learn about the pricing of it and we can compare it to other renewable energy sources such as solar power. The pricing is estimated to cost between £80 to £130 per ton and a target has been set to a mega ton per year. This works out at the very worst of the pricing to cost £130,000,000 a year compared to £1,200,000 per megawatt. A turbine usually is 2 to 3 megawatts in power so usually it will cost between £2-4 million each year. Working off the basis that there are 10,900 wind turbines in the UK and 58,000 in the US, this comes to a total sum of £137,800,000,000 per year (this is excluding other countries where Carbon Engineering operates).

These numbers are monstrous. Surely Carbon Engineering is more cost effective?

At Carbon Engineering’s headquarters in Vancouver they have designed a working site that could be scaled up to increase this target across the world.

They state that everything can be scaled up, for example a bolt to the propellers sucking the CO2 in.

This can help all around the world meaning it can be a smaller version for a town or a larger build to cope with the demands of cities.

We also need to remember that this is not the only solution Carbon Engineering has innovated. Their second solution is called Direct Air Capturing + DAC. This system is really the same, but this time instead of creating fuel, the captured CO2 is then compressed into fluid almost as dense as water and injected deep underground to a geological reservoir which is connected to a secure and highly engineered well. The top of this reservoir is an impermeable layer of rock which creates a barrier meaning the CO2 can not escape. Then, over time, the CO2 will interact with the water and rock within the reservoir then systematically integrating within the reservoir via many ways such as solution trapping, residual trapping and finally mineral trapping, which are all in use currently. This means that there is an emergency backup if other solutions like solar power are not going to be enough to stop this huge battle. These new and innovative technologies could possibly save many lives of not just humans, but also nature.

The remarkable engineering that has gone on here is really out of this world. I think we can all agree that there is a future ahead, but the question remains as to how early we can access it. And with different governments’ competing interests, you never know whether this could be the viable way forward to combatting the grave danger we are in.

Sources: https://carbonengineering.com/

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Is Autism Really a Disorder?

Caellum Sharp, Third Form, Vanbrugh.

Academic Scholar, Cantwell and Music Award Holder.

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n medical terms, autism is thought of as a brain disorder. Many people call it this, including consultants around the world. However, outside of hospitals, should we really call it this?

What is autism?

Autism stems from abnormal brain development. It affects the amygdala which helps control emotions; and the hippocampus, which is important for learning and memory. In the hippocampus, one of two things can happen: either the cells can have shorter or less developed branches (the folds and grooves inside the brain); or the branches can be longer than an average brain should need and have (this condition is known as Asperger’s). This can cause either learning difficulties or incredibly high intelligence in their respective cases.

What are the stereotypes of autistic people?

There are many negative misconceptions concerning autistic people, such as the notion that their condition stems from bad parenting or a drug overdose. There is no clear reason as to why autism happens or if it is passed down through bloodlines.

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Autistic people are not devoid of emotion, although they struggle with social interaction thanks to their less developed amygdala. However, they can still love and care for people, and they still need love in return. The final misconception that needs to be put straight is that autistic people are ‘weird’. In fact, their brains are just working differently.

What are the side-effects of autism?

Being autistic can be challenging as it often comes hand in hand with dyslexia, depression and epilepsy.

Some severe cases may need to be looked after all the time, as they find being alone by themselves incredibly hard and harmful to their mental health.

Normally, autistic people do tasks repeatedly, and in the case of epilepsy, they would be frightened of bright or flashing lights. Not only this, but it is incredibly difficult for the carer and guardians. As Cathy, a mother of twin boys with autism says, ‘When you have children with autism spectrum

condition, you can’t assume anything about family life. You simply have to tear up the rule book and start again’ (action.org.uk).

The Atlantis Plague There is a fiction series, however, that approaches autism as a blessing gifted to us from a superior species that has caused forced evolution. The series is called The Atlantis Plague by A.G. Riddle.

To summarise, there is another race out there that is determining the fate of Earth. An explorer unwittingly unleashes a plague, which is the main source of all the world’s problems. What struck me about this book, however, is the fact that it shows autism in a new light. Here, autism is not an outsider to the world; in fact, it is the very thing that saves humanity. In conclusion, autism is portrayed not as a disease but as the saviour of humanity and shows just how powerful belief can be.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime Another book along these lines is The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon. This shows autism in a positive light, as a 16-year-old boy grapples with autism, exams and a father who has been deceiving him for a long time. In this book, his autism sometimes helps him and sometimes hinders him, but it resolves into a steady balance and he is able to pull through. He does not have just a mild autistic disease; the main reason he is able to pull through is in fact because of his Asperger’s (he has high intelligence).

The importance of names If we were to stop calling autism a ‘disorder’, then many people who are afraid of being classed as ‘diseased’ would be able to be more open about their condition and not fear being shunned. We could change the name from ‘autistic spectrum disorder’ to simply ‘being autistic’. In fact, this is already being put into place. Interestingly, the NHS points out that many people already prefer using the term ‘autism spectrum condition’. I know that I would personally prefer to think that I have a medical condition as opposed to being labelled as having something ‘wrong’ with me because my brain is different to others.

Conclusion ‘Autistic spectrum disorder’ is not the perfect name; however, it is still the most commonly used for this condition. If this is to be changed, a new name must be devised for autism; ‘The throne cannot be usurped unless there is a usurper’. It eventually boils down to what autistic people want to be called, as they are the victims of negative stereotyping here.

Charities for autism Finally, here is a list of relevant charities open to donations: The National Society for Autism: www.autism.org.uk Ambitious About Autism helps out autistic people with jobs and careers: www.ambitiousaboutautism.org.uk Tree of Hope is a charity for children and young people with disabilities and serious illness: https:// www.treeofhope.org.uk/

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The Impact of Evolution and its Future Implications for the Human Race Monty Bolton, Third Form, Vanbrugh.

Trevis Scholar and Drama Award Holder.

E

volution. One of the most fundamental scientific discoveries made by Charles Darwin in the nineteenth century. His On the Origin of Species was published in 1859, in which he posits his theory of evolution: over time, different species and organisms change as a result of growth in their habitat in order to better survive; they then pass these surviving genes onto their offspring.

But how have humans evolved? And are we still evolving? This topic is important to learn about because it has the possibility to fully change our existence and our lives as humans; it is also very important to learn about our origins and history. This article will explain the effects of evolution in Homo sapiens.

The science behind evolution 12 million years ago, apes split into two subspecies. Humans are believed to have evolved from a certain species of ape known as Homo sapiens, whose name derives from the Latin meaning man (‘homo’) and wisdom (‘sapiens’). They were called this as they were the highest evolved ape, and the smartest. They are believed to have originated from somewhere around Ethiopia, but over time and as we evolved, we moved to other countries, which changed our voices, skin and many other things. According to a recent article, DNA has only recently been understood; it can be used to analyse animals, and see where their genes overlap, which can be used to find evidence of evolution (Scoville).

How we changed over time Homo sapiens, having evolved from apes, looked very similar to common monkeys with five fingers, hair covering their whole body, and monkey-like faces. Later they would lose many of these attributes due to evolution. Over time, Homo sapiens gained intelligence. They were originally

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only hunters and gatherers, and were only using basic stone and bone tools, but during the Neolithic period (approximately 8,000 B.C. to 3,000 B.C.) they became smarter, and started farming, using polished hand axes, and more creative practices such as sewing and weaving.

How will we evolve further?

It is very important to look back at human history and find out how we evolved because it may very well may help us to identify how we will evolve in the future. As stated previously, organisms evolve by passing on genes which are best fit for survival; but since humans are already the most advanced animal on the planet, surely that means we won’t evolve further? According to an article from the Scientific American website, What May Become of Homo Sapiens, ‘Homo sapiens have been doing some major genetic reshuffling since our species formed’ (Ward). The writer also goes on to say that, if anything, the rate of human evolution has increased over time. This could be for many reasons, but one possibility is that due to technological and medicinal advancements, people with possibly fatal disabilities survive, and pass on their genes to their children.

On the other hand, some scientists speculate that non-fatal disorders (mostly behavioural disorders) such as Tourette’s syndrome or ADHD can and will be passed down to future generations. This occurs because these disorders, which do not help humankind, are not killing the people with said disorders. Since these disorders

are encoded with few genes, they are highly hereditary, so they can be easily passed down through generations. This is one of the very rare examples of evolution which could potentially harm us in future.

Technological advances in the past 200 years have been immensely beneficial for humans, but with all these developments, we may actually evolve to become less intelligent. This is only a possibility. However, we use roughly 10% less of our brains today than we did in the past. However, on the other hand, scientists believe that as our brain grows, our skulls would have to grow in order to fit our new brains in, but this change would only be a very minor change. Another downside is since the world is becoming more technological, we have slightly shifted away from manual labour, which can very likely make us weaker over time since we will not be using our strength as much.

This could lead to a weaker, and more technologyreliant population.

Gene editing In 2014, scientist Jennifer Doudna helped to create a new piece of technology that made it possible to edit and change the human genome, opening up possibilities to cure diseases, invent new vaccines and help against viruses. This ground-breaking idea was a huge step forward in the science world. It finally gave us humans some control over the cells in our bodies. However, people were sceptical, for good reason, until four years later when Chinese scientist He Jiankui used Doudna's idea to create the world’s first ‘designer babies’. When these children were embryos, gene editing was used to remove a gene that produced a receptor for the virus that could cause Aids, thus eliminating it in these children.

This really revolutionised our understanding of evolution, finally giving us some control. However, is it possible that too much control is a bad thing for the human race?

The environment’s influence on evolution There are many different environments around the world, and with them come different ecosystems.

These environments change and thus the organisms that inhabit them need to change to in order to keep up and stay alive. The Blue Moon butterfly from the Samoan islands is an example of this type of change. A parasite started killing many of the male embryos of the butterfly. Eventually,

only about one percent of the adult butterflies were male at one point, and the blue moon butterfly was extremely close to extinction.

However, the males that survived the parasite were alive due to a genetic mutation that prevented the parasite from killing them when they were embryos.

Since the only males left had this gene, they passed it onto their offspring. Within 10 generations the once 1% of males rose to approximately 40% of the population. The parasite was still a part of the environment, but it was no longer able to kill the male embryos of the Blue Moon butterfly. Instead, the butterflies adapted immunity to the parasite through the survival of the immune male embryos. This is only one example of the environment forcing organisms to evolve.

Conclusion I believe, along with many scientists, that humans are not done with evolution. I think we will continue to evolve in order to survive. But this might not necessarily be for the best, as non-fatal disorders could possibly become the norm in humans. Whilst we are the apex predator, I think that natural selection in humans is not over; in fact, I think it is very far from being over.

References Godfraind, Theophile and Regine Vercauteren Drubbel. ‘A Brief Account of Human Evolution for Young Minds.’ Frontiers for Young Minds. March 2019. https://kids.frontiersin.org/ Isaacson, Walter. ‘What Gene Editing Can Do for Humankind.’ Wall Street Journal. February 19, 2021. www.wsj.com Scoville, Heather. ‘DNA and Evolution.’ ThoughtCo. June 23, 2019. www.thoughtco.com Smithsonian Institution’s Human Origins Program.

‘What does it mean to be human?’ www. humanorigins.si.edu Than, Ker and Ashley P. Taylor. ‘What is Darwin’s Theory of Evolution?’ Live Science. May 2021. www.livescience.com Ward, Peter. ‘What May Become of Homo sapiens.’

Scientific American. November 2012. www.scientficamerican.com

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Architectural Landmarks as a Symbol of Spiritural Belief Simran Panesar, Third Form, Queen Anne.

Academic Scholar.

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here are many incredible architectural landmarks around the world. From skyscrapers to ancient pyramids, human ingenuity has been demonstrated over time by the broad-ranging use of materials, designs, and impressive feats of engineering. Many of the world’s most visited buildings have a cultural significance and a deeper spiritual meaning, making them even more intriguing. The Golden Temple and the Notre Dame Cathedral were built centuries apart and located thousands of miles from one another. This article explores their significance, and how they have more in common than meets the eye.

1604. The foundation stone was laid down by a Muslim saint, to encourage religious harmony and tolerance.

Attacked many times, it was rebuilt between 180139, mostly with marble, and covered with a layer of gold foil in 1830, as ordered by Maharaja Ranjit Singh, leading it to be known from then on as the ‘Golden Temple’.

The Golden Temple The Golden Temple is located in Amritsar, a city in the Panjab region of north-west India. Also known as Darbar Sahib or Sri Harmandir Sahib, it is one of the spiritual homes of the Sikhs, visited by pilgrims from around the world. Sikhism was founded over 500 years ago by Guru Nanak, the first of 10 Gurus, with the guruship passing onto the Guru Granth Sahib (containing holy scriptures) in 1708.

Over time the temple has been recognised as one of the most significant places of Sikh pilgrimage.

It is recognised for the shimmering layer of gold that adorns the main structure at the centre of the complex. It is a truly mesmerising sight.

The temple (or Gurdwara) itself was first built in

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The structure is built lower than the surroundings so everyone must travel down and be humble as they enter. On arrival, visitors must proceed bare foot through a shallow pool of water to clean their feet before going downstairs to capture a first breathtaking glimpse of the temple itself. Harmandir Sahib is surrounded by a huge man-made lake known as Amrit Sarovar (‘pool of holy nectar’), which contains a variety of fish. Pilgrims bathe in the Sarovar to purify the body before entering the temple.

The architecture represents a human’s journey towards God in multiple ways. The complex has four entrances (north, south, east and west) representing that God is accessible to all, regardless of caste or background. The marble stone pathway around the temple, the Parkarma, represents the 8.4 million lives in reincarnation the soul goes through until it reaches a human life, the opportunity to connect to and worship God. The temple is situated at

the centre of the Amrit Sarovar, meaning we should look for God inside our own hearts. The bridge that connects the Parkarma to the temple represents the spiritual journey taken towards God during our lives.

Meditation on God (Naam Simran) and service to humanity (Seva) are important tenets of Sikhism. Inside the temple, Kirtan (God’s Praise) is sung, and can be heard around the entire complex. Open 24 hours a day, Harmandir Sahib is home to the world’s largest community kitchen, which provides free food to those that need it, called Langar Seva. Tens of thousands of meals are served each day, entirely dependent on community service.

Notre Dame Cathedral The Notre Dame Cathedral is situated in the heart of Paris, France. Its striking gothic style and its unique features draw millions of tourists from all over the world.

The cathedral has suffered a lot of damage over the years; it has been rebuilt on at least 10 occasions (most recently, due to fire-damage in 2018). Notre Dame translates to ‘Our Lady’ and is a reference to St Mary. The concept behind the Cathedral originated in 1160 when Maurice de Sully thought of converting two church ruins into a single cathedral. Pope Alexander III laid down the foundation stone in 1163 and construction took place between the 12th and 14th centuries. It is an incredible building. It has a thirty-five metre high roof, and two towers reaching an amazing sixtyeight metres in height.

glass windows depict saints and other key figures, as well as numerous biblical stories (e.g. Adam and Eve and the resurrection of Christ). Stone gargoyles and chimeras play an important part; they serve a functional purpose as they allow surface water to run-off, but also a deeply spiritual one (they are believed to keep the congregation safe from evil spirits).

A huge 8,000-piped organ inside the Cathedral also performs a functional purpose, whilst its inspiring design adds to the overall essence of the building itself. It reaches 16 metres in height and is a central feature. It was last replaced in 1868, although it has seen many restorations and upgrades since then.

Conclusion Despite being conceived, designed, and built in very different times and contexts, these buildings have more in common than it would first seem. They have been constructed to create an inspirational and deeply spiritual place to worship, and have stood the test of time, standing strong against the odds.

In worship, both faiths place a huge importance in singing God’s praises and have captured the hearts and minds of worshippers. Due to their architectural significance, they have attracted people from all faiths and all walks of life from around the globe.

A lot of time, energy and resources have gone into their construction and renovation over the centuries.

Due to their importance to the communities that they represent, great pride is taken in their maintenance and restoration so that future generations can continue to benefit.

The French gothic style is beautiful and inspirational.

The building’s tall spires and high ceilings, made possible by unique flying buttresses to stabilise the walls, inspire a closeness to God. Biblical stories have inspired many architectural aspects of the cathedral, including the façade, which shows three different scenes: Portal of the Virgin, Portal of the Last Judgement, and Portal of St-Anne.

The Cathedral features beautiful rose windows.

These intricate stained-

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Has Covid-19 had a Positive or Negative Impact on Dogs?

Archie Wilkinson, Third Form, Gascoigne.

Academic and Clarke Scholar.

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he Covid-19 pandemic of 2020-2021 has resulted in many periods of lockdown around the world, with many of us being unable to travel far from or leave our homes. It could be considered that one of the main winners in this particular situation are dogs, who are companionable creatures and have appreciated the extra time they have had with their families. However, there have also been drawbacks for dogs, so have dogs actually been winners, or have they lost out?

As well as having the advantage of continuous company, many dogs will have benefited from the fact that the lockdown restrictions have usually permitted exercise. So, with plentiful cuddles, regular exercise and the comfort of their ‘pack’ being around, for many dogs it’s been a delightful time.

Equally many dogowners report that their dogs have helped them throughout lockdown – both acting as buddies and also giving them a purpose to leave the house and exercise every day. It could be considered a win/ win. However, it is not necessarily all good news for our canine companions.

Studies have shown that dogs are wired to feel the need to protect their owners, and with everyone being at home all day, they have no breaks from this ‘duty’, which, prior to lockdown, would not have been the case. Some experts have suggested that whilst at home, it may be good to still spend periods of time away from your dog, whether that be going out on a walk without them or shutting them in a separate room whilst you are working. This is because dogs do like routine, and due to sudden

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changes in their routine brought about by the pandemic, they can start acting unusually. These are known as displacement behaviours.

While the exercise rules have been good for dogs whose owners are well, the restrictions around going out when you are unwell have proved a big issue for dog owners.

With no notice, this could mean a dog being unable to be walked for a fortnight at a time. This can cause anxiety and also destructive behaviour as the dog has not been able to burn off any energy. Also, the dogs can sense when you’re upset or unwell, which often causes them even greater distress. Many people have felt compelled to break quarantine to walk their pets which can result in spreading the virus, and people have even delayed seeking medical help as they are so concerned about what will happen to their pet if they have to go into hospital.

During this time there has also been a huge increase in people buying puppies. While this has been a source of great comfort for many, lockdown

puppy ownership also presents issues. Dogs learn to socialise within the first sixteen weeks of their life; as many puppy socialisation classes have had to be cancelled, they may not have the necessary experience to know how to behave around other dogs, or even other humans. Veterinarian Victoria Schade described this aspect of training as giving puppies ‘the tools to understand that “new and different” doesn’t necessarily translate to “bad and scary.”’ Without these crucial understandings the outside world can frighten them, causing them to be unfriendly and aggressive going forward in life.

There have also been challenges for new dog owners getting their pets safely vaccinated.

Vaccinations are very important for puppies because their immune system has not developed enough to be protected from any potential disease. Older dogs are less likely to get ill and can be vaccinated at any age, but because of all the new puppies requiring their vaccines, it put a lot of pressure on vets. Even the logistics of having the vaccinations were challenging, with owners not being able to accompany their pets and vets not being able to communicate with owners in the way they usually would.

The huge rise in demand for dogs has also resulted in increased levels of dog-related crimes. Dog theft in the UK went up by 250% in 2020. Many thieves have stolen whole litters of puppies, but they have also been stealing older dogs who are due to give birth, or that are desirable breeds. This is both tragic for the dogs and their owners, especially grown-up dogs who are very well bonded with their families.

It also has resulted in dog prices soaring with some breeds quadrupling in value. Currently dogs are treated as a person’s property, so as the law stands, pet thefts are currently treated as a petty crime. This adds to the lack of deterrent to prevent these crimes from occurring.

The dark side to the increased demand is that some people have realised that pet ownership is not actually for them once they have experienced it. Some people have lost jobs and can no longer afford to care for their pets, and others have found the additional burden of caring for them too onerous.

Despite having gone through a period of having been emptied, animal shelters may suddenly start to fill up as we come out of lockdown with many now unwanted pets being abandoned. The shelters may not be able to pass them on to new owners and may run out of space. This is a concern that many experts have expressed – The Dogs’ Trust has replaced its famous ‘A Dog is for Life, not just for Christmas’ slogan with a tweaked version that ‘A

Dog is for Life, not just for Lockdown’.

As we gradually come out of lockdown, pet psychologists have been considering how our pets will have been impacted, and how we can help make the transition smoother for them. Pets who are unused to being left alone, especially new ones that have never experienced life before lockdown may become stressed and destructive to their environment, and this can also result in them damaging themselves. Pet owners have been advised to start leaving them for short periods of time during the day, getting progressively longer, in order to help them adapt. When coming back in it is advised not to make a fuss of your dog, but to wait for them to settle and then reward them for calming down. Coming out of lockdown also presents opportunities to take dogs for longer walks in new environments and meet other canine friends.

So, on balance, has lockdown been beneficial for our dogs or not? There have been positive aspects, particularly the increased amount of time they’ve been able to spend with their owners. However, there have been many disadvantages, some of which will likely become even more apparent over time. The issue of abandoned dogs is not too significant currently but could well present a crisis going forwards. Ultimately this is such an unprecedented period of time that we will only fully be able to understand the impacts of it further into the future.

References: Armstrong, Mark. ‘Huge increase in UK dog theft blamed on COVID-19 restrictions.’ 27.12.2020 EuroNews.

Brown, Stephanie. ‘Caring for your new pet during the Coronavirus pandemic.’ 22.05.2020. Chewy.com Jackson, Debbie. ‘How do you ease your dog out of lockdown?’ 25.05.2020, BBC News.

‘Puppy Vaccinations: How, When and Why.’ Pets4Homes.

Richards, Leonie. ‘Life After the Pandemic For Your (New) Pet.’ 24.01.2021. Pursuit, The University of Melbourne.

Walden, Lisa. ‘Dogs are instinctively wired to protect and rescue their owners, new study finds.’

03.06.2020, Country Living.

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Could Life be a Simulation?

Dee Biles, Fourth Form, Gascoigne.

Academic Scholar, DT Award Holder.

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he question ‘Is life a simulation?’ was first proposed in the seventeenth century when the French philosopher René Descartes asked, ‘It is possible that I am dreaming right now and that all of my perceptions are false?’ This statement alludes to the idea that we, as humans, are not in control of our lives in the way that we currently think. And as technology has evolved and ideas of quantum computing and life on other planets have appeared, many theories have been put forward as to the credibility of this question. This article explores ‘simulation theory’ - the philosophical concept which considers that we live in a world made by technology and that we too are made by technology.

It also presents the information that has been put forward throughout the lengthy debate around this topic and suggests that, though it is not completely improbable that humans live in a world generated by technology, it is highly unlikely. However, it is still important to consider due to the ever-developing world of technology and human’s fascination with recreating our universe.

Technology has advanced at a rate that was faster than expected, and so we assume it will continue to do so. Today, we run simulations to gauge skill level, analyse concepts, predict outcomes, perform analysis and much more. We do this in several ways: •

with live simulations which use real people in a real environment

•

with virtual simulations that involve real people operating a simulated system

•

with constructive simulations which consist of simulated people in a simulated environment or simulated people operating a simulated system.

Simulation theory considers virtual simulations and constructive simulations, depending on which side of the simulation you are on. If we live in a simulation, then we are a virtual simulation run by someone else. Scientists say it is logical to assume that this simulation would be run by future generations - the amount of computing power required to run such an accurate

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simulation with millions of consciousnesses could only exist far into the future (though there are other theories that explore the idea that extra-terrestrial life could be a part of it). With our current most powerful technology (supercomputers), physicists have been able to recreate subatomic particle behaviour at a scale of a few femtometres (one millionth of a billionth of a metre). Though this simulation has only reconstructed a miniscule amount of the cosmos, it is impossible to tell the difference between the simulation and reality, leading people to believe that with continued advancements and interest, humans could recreate much more.

With the probable ability to recreate much more, there is a further theory that with the future simulation comes restraints. If life was a simulation, it would be likely that that it would make sections of a reality that would load when required, like when moving from one level to another in a video game.

It has even been proposed (by Chuck Nice on Neil deGrasse Tyson’s show) that things that were before considered as basic laws of physics are just a limit put in by a programmer. For example, the fact that ‘we can’t travel faster than the speed of light’ is so that humans cannot go to other galaxies, or as an analogy, so we cannot go to levels that have not been created yet. However, this discussion was not based on fact nor was any evidence presented with it and considering there is scientific reasoning as to why humans cannot travel at the speed of light to do with speed and mass, this hypothesis is not a reliable one.

A large question that exists within the concept of simulation theory is that if we live in a simulated world, why does each person perceive it differently? As René Descartes said, ‘I think therefore I am.’ The idea that everyone thinks, acts and understands differently to one another poses a flaw. If we do live in a simulation and each person is made from similar coding in a technological sense, then we would all think the same way or at least similarly. Since this is not the case (scientifically due to people’s brains having different physical connections), it is unlikely that humans exist in a simulated environment.

Furthermore, if our programming was similar, we would be able to understand one another better since we could be able to compare our own patterns of thinking to another person's. However, humans do not fully understand each other without clear communication as we have seen exampled throughout history and in the present day.

In 2003, Nick Bostrom (a modern-day philosopher who is a professor for the University of Oxford with a background in physics, computational neuroscience and mathematical logic) wrote a paper exploring simulation theory. It concluded that if, in the future, there was an advanced civilisation with ‘enormous computing power’ they might attempt a recreation of their ancestors' lives.

He continued to say, ‘they would probably have the ability to run many, many such simulations, to the point where the vast majority of minds would actually be artificial’. The conclusion is that, statistically, it is likely that humans today are among the artificial minds he mentioned. Though it is true that statistically we are highly likely to be simulated, Professor Nick Bostrom is basing this argument on assumptions about the future without considering possibilities of societies that do not rely on technology or who develop other aspects.

His hypothesis is based on a presumed interest in simulating the past and, considering there is no

way of knowing what will occur in the future, it is an estimate rather than proof. Moreover, humans are highly likely to go extinct due to things such as global warming, disease and weapons of mass destruction as well as an endless number of factors that we cannot even begin to predict.

In addition, in 2017 a paper written by researchers at the University of Oxford calculated that in order to store the data required for a simulation on such a large scale, it ‘would require a memory built from more atoms than there are in the universe’. This statement dispels several concepts surrounding simulation theory and yet there is still a near to one chance that we do live in a world created by technology and future civilisations alike.

When first proposed, simulation theory was an idea that was rooted in technologies that were not close to being in existence. However, as Ada Lovelace theorised computers with complex programming, as the Industrial Revolution changed the way we see machines and their use in society, and as NASA sent people along with highly advanced technology into space, the idea that in a few million years humans, or a species with human ancestry, could recreate life as we know it became more and more probable. Simulation theory has been said to have a half-half chance at being true and this seems like a very casual way of perceiving reality that is not based on any real evidence, simply hypotheses.

Without knowing what will happen in the future, it is impossible to prove or disprove simulation theory and so we are left to contemplate the probability.

The general verdict is that our lives are not created.

However, there are still people who will continue to contemplate simulation theory despite this opinion and so it is important to consider the question ‘Is life a simulation?’ further until there is evidence that allows a final, decisive conclusion.

Sources: https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-andtech/virtual-reality-simulation-vr-touch-b986186.html https://www.ox.ac.uk/news-and-events/find-an-expert/ professor-nick-bostrom https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/do-we-livein-a-simulation-chances-are-about-50-50/ https://www.simulation-argument.com/ Vaughn, Lee. Real World Python: A Hacker’s Guide to Solving Problem with Code.

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How has Covid-19 Affected Teenage Mental Health?

Rachael Elliott , Fourth Form, Feilden.

Academic Scholar.

T

he majority of people today know someone who has been affected by Covid-19.

Despite the main concerns being around protecting the NHS and saving lives from the effects of the virus, as well as the devastating impact on the economy, what we now also know is that the lockdown due to Covid-19 has had a significant impact on the mental health of teenagers.

Covid-19 is a viral infection that primarily affects the respiratory system. It is thought to have originated in Wuhan, China in December 2019.

On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organization made the assessment that Covid-19 should be characterised as a pandemic. Less than a week later, on 16 March 2020, the first lockdown in England was announced to try and prevent spread and unnecessary deaths. At this point, few people imagined we would still be in the same position a year later.

How has this affected young people? A large survey funded by England’s Department of Health and Social Care looking at the teenage mental health of 3,570 young people over time showed a rise in diagnoses of mental health problems, from 10.8% in 2017 to 16% in July 2020ͥ. Over a quarter of the 5–22-year-olds surveyed reported disrupted sleep and 1 in 10 often or always felt lonely. Nearly 73% of students have said that their mental health has declined during lockdown. A lack of social interaction also means these young people are not being noticed. This leaves many teenagers with nobody to help or even be aware of their wellbeing.

In particular, research has consistently shown that this effect is even more widespread in children from a lower socio-economic class.

In addition to creating new problems, the pandemic has also worsened teenagers’ existing mental health conditions. Many teenagers with anxiety are finding the pandemic extremely stressful, not just because of the lockdown and being stuck inside, but also because there is a deadly virus in the community.

To start with, teenagers were told that the virus was not a problem for them, but with new variants recently developing, there is more to be anxious about. Furthermore, there is the stress of having loved ones in more vulnerable categories, who are at a higher risk of dying should they catch the

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disease. Lots of people have already faced this fear, especially if the child has not been able to see their loved ones due to the pandemic.

Being stuck indoors with not as many people to talk to and no new situations to learn from is going to cause many problems for teenagers after the pandemic passes. Not being able to socialise is a concern for many people. Most teenagers would be used to passing strangers in the street and talking to a new person every so often, but the pandemic has not allowed for this to happen. Instead, it will potentially cause teenagers to be shy or socially awkward and in severe cases develop an avoidant personality disorder.

Many students are also worried about their education and school grades. Not attending school means students are less able to do well

in their current work as being at home has many distractions. Although being at home means students have lots of time to spare, online learning means their schoolwork needs a lot more concentration.

Furthermore, many people in the UK do not have access to a device they can use for online learning, in many cases this means no education during lockdown. Ofcom estimate 9% of families in the UK do not have a laptop, desktop, or tablet at home.

This will potentially result in lower GCSE and A-level grades, which could prevent them from getting better jobs in their adulthood. There have been some government schemes to try and provide free laptops to vulnerable children across the UK, but only 37% of vulnerable children were allocated a device.

There were 200,000 devices allocated with 540,000 children without access to a working device or wifi.ii Lockdown also means that many opportunities teenagers are normally given, where important life skills are learnt, have had to be cancelled. For example, there are not many places students can go to do work experience, visit museums, go to the theatre, or attend school trips.

What most people are wondering at the moment is when the pandemic is going to be over. Lots of the things that keep teenagers motivated during lockdown have had to be cancelled due to the prolonged pandemic. This can result in nothing to look forward to. Whether someone is looking forward to going on holiday during the summer or just being able to hang out with friends at fun places, there is a large amount of uncertainty with the occurrence of all of these events.

In addition to the direct impact of the pandemic on children’s mental health, a major concern highlighted by the NSPCC is the increased stressors to parents and caregivers. As a result, there have been an increased number of calls to the NSPCC

helpline from both adults and children with concerns about domestic violence. This troubling increase in children and young people’s vulnerability has been accompanied by a reduction in the normal protective services, such as school and mental health services.

Although the effects of Covid-19 and the lockdown on teenagers’ mental health are mainly negative, there are still a few positives worth mentioning.

For example, many teenagers have taken their spare time to learn new hobbies or just to learn to be with themselves. For example, a study of Italian teenagers showed that a third felt that they had discovered themselves, a third mentioned learning to share life at a distance and 22% mentioned rediscovering family.iii Normal life can often be quite busy and having the time to do more things they enjoy can be quite comforting. In addition, some people have enjoyed spending more quality time with their families.

To summarise, Covid-19 has had an undeniably large impact on the normal life of teenagers. This has resulted in teenagers’ mental health declining.

Although we need to be worried about the primary impacts of the virus - case numbers and deaths we also need to be worried about the other effects such as the mental health of the next generation of adults.

Sources https://www.happymaps.co.uk/how-to-support-yourchild-during-covid https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/ coronavirus-advice-support-children-familiesparents https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/ childrens-mental-health

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Rats’ Laughter Paves the way for New Treatments against Depression

Aoife Kirkham, Fourth Form, Feilden.

Academic, Clarke and Trevis Scholar, DT Award Holder.

M

ental health is an issue that has become more widely spoken about especially due to the various lockdown periods that we have faced over the past year and a half during the pandemic. More and more people have come forward and admitted that they have been struggling with their mental health, particularly depression.

Antidepressants are commonly prescribed as treatment for this, however it is debated how effective they truly are. social groups. Dunbar investigated and discovered that humans have a typical social group size of one hundred and fifty which is three times larger than that of even the most social ape groups. However, if an ape does not bond with the individual while grooming, gradually the group will split as the bond is not strong enough; this is the same in human friendships as if they are not maintained, they will likely fade away.

It is obvious that not all cases are the same, therefore it is unfair to expect one singular treatment to combat all individual cases. That being said, antidepressants are still effective in the majority of moderate, severe, and chronic cases of depression.

Unfortunately, these drugs which are widely used do come with their fair share of side effects such as headaches, dizziness, and restlessness just to name a few. More than half of those who take antidepressants suffer from these. For such a prevalent illness, it is shocking to see such as small range of treatments. This essay will explore a novel therapy to combat depression.

Professor Robin Dunbar of Oxford University has been investigating laughter and why we do it.

According to his research, laughter increases our pain threshold as endorphins are released and block pain receptors. This endorphin release can be traced back to the apes and the manner in which they groom one another. But grooming is a one-onone activity and even then, it is only the ape being groomed that has this endorphin release. This need to groom stems from the need of having larger

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As previously mentioned, laughter releases endorphins. Endorphins are related to morphine (a drug that directly acts on the nervous system to decrease the feeling of pain) and the opiate family in general. This explains the light-headed feeling one may experience after laughing, resulting in a relaxed feeling. Consequently, as laughter can trigger the same endorphin release as grooming, laughter effectively means a person can ‘groom’ more people simultaneously. This makes laughter far more efficient than grooming, hence why Dunbar’s theory describes laughter as ‘remote tickling’.

It has also been proven that you are thirty times more likely to laugh with other people than on your own as laughing is an immensely social activity and has a very strong contagion effect. This is due to the fact that laughter itself is very primitive way of producing sound and is less like speech, which is remarkably complex, and more comparable to an animal call. As a result of this, it is no wonder why, no matter where you are in the world, no matter the language or culture, people will always be able to understand laughter. This is not to be confused with what has the ability to make people laugh as these things are usually cultural and personal. A non-verbal interaction like laughter is basic and yet can be universally recognised alongside fear, anger,

disgust, and sadness.

Laughing together also has benefits for relationships as Laura E Kurtz at the University of North Carolina has proved that moments of shared laughter are predictive of greater closeness. This means that the relationships tend to be better and are more intimate as a result of the shared laughter.

Due to the fact that this endorphin release is the same as that which is produced in apes, it is fair to question if apes and other animals too have developed their own way of ‘remote tickling’. So far it is known that apes do have the capacity to laugh as Marina Davila Ross, a psychologist at the U.K.’s University of Portsmouth, has observed when conducting experiments in which she tickled infant and juvenile primates. The results showed apes responding with laughter officially known as “tickle-induced vocalisations”. Ross’s studies also include the evolution of laughter and she goes on to suggest that we inherited our ability to laugh from the last common ancestor that humans and great apes share which happened to live around ten to sixteen million years ago. Using this knowledge, it is completely rational to expect other animals to have developed a version of laughter.

Professor Jaak Panksepp from Washington State University discovered that rats make happy noises that are reminiscent of laughter. Therefore, he set up an ultrasound detector and tickled the rats to determine if what he was hearing was in fact laughter (most of the noises they produce are above the human hearing range), but the detector allowed him to listen to what was truly going on. After the first rat was tickled “it chirped like crazy” say Panksepp. It is correct to question how conclusive these sounds can be as you could say that the rats were squeaking in fear or that they were helpless or even potentially in pain, but the sounds recorded proved that they were the same as those produced when the rats were playing. Moreover, the rats were seen following his hand around the tank as it represented a positive experience. Despite the biting which Panksepp encountered, this behaviour is associated with the desire to continue the play.

This discovery proves that humans and rats share the same basic emotions.

Initially when discussing these findings his colleagues criticised him of attributing human characteristics and behaviours to the rats, but Panksepp explained he was attempting to understand animal minds in the hope of being able to aid the minds of humans. Critics again argued

and said that the brain of a rat is of no comparison to the complex brain of a human and therefore no conclusions can be meaningful. However, the part of the brain that controls emotions is known as the evolutionary ancient brain and it is this that happens to be present in all animals. Some animals have developed high frequencies of laughter and as a result are now resistant to depression. They have certain chemistries in their brains that can protect them against the vicissitudes of life. Animals with lower frequencies of laughter are unfortunately susceptible to depression.

Using this information about rats’ laughter, scientists have endeavoured to identify the precise area of the ancient brain which is responsible for happiness. In doing so they will then be able to identify the neurochemistry responsible for this feeling. Using this approach, a group from Northwestern University in Chicago have determined a neurotransmitter called GLX-13. Consequently, they were able to develop a drug to stimulate its production and in 2013 they began human clinical trials. The results from these tests were so impressive that only two years later in 2015 it was purchased for a staggering $560 million.

Scientists, instead of developing ways of making people less depressed, are beginning to explore ways of making people more happy as therapies for clinical depression. Studies are starting to show the importance or laughter in the animal kingdom and how they have all developed individual ways to receive the same endorphin release which helps to build their bonds. Delving deeper into the brain chemistry of laughter in animals is now providing the tools required for novel therapies to combat depression in humans ultimately aiding our mental health.

Sources American Museum of Natural History. www.amnh.org BBC Two. ‘Horizon: Jimmy Carr and the Science of Laughter.’

Fierce Biotech. www.fiercebiotech.com Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care.

‘Depression: How effective are antidepressants?’

June 18th, 2020. www.informedhealth.org National Geographic www.national geographic.com NHS. ‘Antidepressants.’ www.nhs.uk

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CRISPR: The Benefits, the Disadvantages, and its Role in the Future Florence Adepoju, Fourth Form, Harcourt.

Allen Scholar.

G

enome editing has been around since the late 1900s; however, in 2009, new genome editing technology made gene editing easier than ever. CRISPR, pronounced ‘crisper’, is the common abbreviation for 'CRISPR-Cas9', which stands for ‘clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats and CRISPRassociated protein 9’ (Vidyasagar) . There are two elements to the system: an RNA molecule, more commonly known as the guide RNA, 'sgRNA'; and the protein Cas9 with DNA cutting capabilities (Nature Video). This combination forms a complex that can accurately identify and cut specified sections of DNA. Gene editing as a whole is a risky business as it stretches the limits of our current scientific capabilities and will change the way some organisms, such as humans and plants, function when defending against disease and as they continue to evolve.

The 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was given to both Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier for the discovery and development of the CRISPRCas9 genome editing tool (Rees). Emmanuelle Charpentier’s studies of Streptococcus pyogenes brought the discovery of CRISPR. Her work led her to uncover a molecule, unknown until that point, called 'trans-activating crispr RNA' (Rees).

The 'tracrRNA' was found to be part of bacteria’s immune system, which is the 'CRISPR-Cas', that causes viruses to cease functioning by splitting their DNA (Rees). The discovery was published in 2011, the same year that Charpentier began working with biochemist Jennifer Doudna who has extensive knowledge of RNA. Their combined efforts went towards the successful recreation of the 'CRISPRCas9' in a test tube. The two then went on to other experiments, one of which allowed the scientists to reprogram CRISPR so it could be controlled, allowing them to cut any DNA molecule at a preemptively set site, opposed to the natural form where the complex recognizes specific DNA from viruses (Rees).

The system works similarly to its original form when in a lab. The sgRNA will bind to a specific DNA sequence in a genome. The sgRNA is a part of the complex and is therefore also bound to Cas9. Acting as it would in bacteria, the sgRNA recognizes the sequence of DNA and once they're bound the Cas9 will use its molecular scissors, a metaphor often used when referring to CRISPR, to cut the DNA at the location targeted (Vidyasagar).

Paul Knoepfler, Associate Professor at UC Davis

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School of Medicine, spoke to Vox for their article, 'A simple guide to CRISPR, one of the biggest science stories of the decade', and said that the future possibilities of CRISPR had him feeling like a "kid in a candy store". There has been a "map" of the human genome since 2003, however, scientists are unaware as to the functions of all those genes (Plumer). This means that CRISPR could greatly advance genetic research by speeding up the process of genome screening through the use of fluorescent markers attached to the Cas9, making specific DNA sequences where the sgRNA has been bound easy to be spotted and/ or tracked in the nucleus of a cell (Nature Video).

Scientists have been looking to use CRISPR to manipulate the genes of various crops (Plumer).

The final result may have a significant effect on the nutritional value and taste of crops as well as making them potentially more resistant to extreme weather conditions. CRISPR may eventually be able to remove allergens from foodstuffs like peanuts (Plumer). However, this use of CRISPR could cause a dispute due to the fact that, currently, foods having genes manipulated by CRISPR are regulated with less scrutiny than the traditional GMOs. This means some foodstuffs produced may not be completely safe for human consumption in the long-term. As a separate, related issue, crops have evolved as they have for a reason. Despite the results potentially benefitting humans, altering their genetic properties may disrupt the minor ecosystems created by farms.

The prevention and treatment of human diseases is the main interest among scientists in regard to

CRISPR technology. CRISPR has only been tested on cells in this case but shows great promise for the elimination of genetic diseases like hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, sickle cell anaemia, haemophilia, Huntington’s disease, cystic fibrosis, and various cancers. Scientists have also begun testing on the BRCA-1 and -2 mutations that are likely to cause ovarian and breast cancers.

Scientists have claimed that HIV infections could potentially be removed from T cells (Plumer).

Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go before clinical trials with human subjects. Cas9 enzymes have occasionally “misfired” and begun to edit sequences of DNA in unexpected locations, which could cause all sorts of problems if introduced to the human body, potentially creating new mutations and diseases (Plumer).

CRISPR can also be used in two other genetic projects. The decrease in effective antibiotics is something that CRISPR may be able to combat.

As bacteria strains become increasingly resistant to current antibiotics, the CRISPR complex could, theoretically, eradicate certain bacteria with more accuracy than ever before, once correctly developed (Plumer).

The last CRISPR project is creating ‘designer babies’ (Plumer). It is not something that is often thought about in the scientific community.

‘Designer babies’ would be made to their parents' wishes, pre-emptively deciding their gender, intelligence, eye colour, hair colour, disease resistance, and other traits. The complex changes required to increase intelligence, for example, rely on so many different genes in perfect balance.

As a whole, scientists do not have enough experience, understanding, and skill to safely begin creating the enhancements often imagined when people say ‘designer baby’.

CRISPR appears to be able to do things previously thought impossible by humans. However, there are a great many ethical concerns when it comes to the practical application of this genome editing tool. In November 2018, He Jiankui, formerly of the Southern University of Science and Technology, claimed to have made embryos that were resistant to HIV (Collins). Twin girls, Lulu and Nana, are the first germline edited babies. Seeing as his manuscript remains unpublished, the hard facts are hard to come by, but Jiankui’s claim at the 2018 International Summit on Human Gene Editing, caused outcry amongst the scientific community (Normile). Dr Francis Collins, the director of National Institute of Health, said that he found Jiankui's work “profoundly disturbing & [that it] tramples on ethical norms”. Other researchers and members of the general population have expressed worry as to how irresponsible and premature his actions were, especially since there are HIV prevention methods that are both more effective and much safer. Since germline editing, editing done to gamete cells (reproductive cells), will affect future generations it begs many ethical concerns, like, what are the unintended consequences those future generations may face?

There are limits to human knowledge of the pathways of disease and the links between one disease and other conditions or diseases in the same subject.

CRISPR-Cas9 could be revolutionary. CRISPR-Cas9 could be dangerous. CRISPR-Cas9 is going to be something that greatly impacts this world; whether that is positive or negative is currently unknown.

There is no way of knowing what will happen if we change our crops to eliminate allergens or eradicate genetic diseases or allow babies to be made to a specification. Altering the way things are naturally evolving could have unforeseen consequences, but now that we have the capability to, it is essential for caution to be exercised. We have the chance to do remarkable things, but we cannot get it wrong.

References Collins, Francis S. ‘Statement on Claim of First GeneEdited Babies by Chinese Researcher.’ November 28, 2018. National Institutes of Health. NIH.gov.

Nature Video. ‘CRISPR: Gene Editing and Beyond.’

October 31, 2017. YouTube.

Normile, Dennis. ‘Chinese scientist who produced genetically altered babies sentenced to 3 years in jail.’ December 30, 2019. Science.

Plumer, Brad, et. al. ‘A simple guide to CRISPR, one of the biggest science stories of the decade.’

December 27, 2018. Vox. Rees, Victoria. ‘Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to scientists who discovered CRISPR-Cas9.’ October 12, 2020. Drug Target Review.

Vidyasagar, Aparna. ‘What is CRISPR?’ Live Science (2018).

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What is the Impact of Japanese Culture on Modern, Global Society?

Nathan Taylor, Fourth Form, Harcourt.

J

apan has upheld its culture and traditions for hundreds of years and in that time wider society has been impacted as well. This includes influences on social formality as well as architecture, sports and popular culture (including video games, anime, manga, and so on). During the troubling times of the Coronavirus pandemic, ideals brought from Japanese culture may contribute to improving mental wellbeing for family and home life in a range of settings.

Respectfulness and Kindness The Japanese language maintains a state of wellbeing and politeness using honorifics and common phrases or sayings. The oldest texts recovered in Japan were written in ‘Classical Chinese’ and thought to be read in Japanese through a method called the kaibun method. The language itself is constantly evolving and adapting ideas from the Chinese: from Old Japanese, Early and Late Middle Japanese, and now Early Modern and Modern Japanese.

To show respect in Japan there are many honorifics, or keigo which translates to ‘respectful language’.

The use of these is even ‘mandatory in many social situations’ (xReasons). The reason for this kindness could stem from the Chinese religion Confucianism

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which promotes family over self and provides a strict code of conduct. According to a recent article, ‘For centuries, Japanese have been taught from a young age that they need to be responsible members of their family, and serve others’ needs before their own’ (xReasons).

This respectfulness may also be due to the high population density of Japan, which holds over 120 million people in a relatively small area.

While everyone is generally very polite, there are undefined rules that everyone follows to respect personal space. For example, talking loudly on a train and public arguments are frowned upon. The story of the Japanese language is captivating and if everyone were to be as respectful and polite as the Japanese, the world would be less conflicted, and we could all be more kind to each other.

Art, Life and Tradition

Global Pop-culture

Japanese architecture has had a fascinating influence on the construction of modern buildings.

The architecture of Japan was originally heavily influenced by the Chinese, but the Japanese eventually developed their own style. This includes the traditional architecture of temples, Shinto shrines, and castles found in places like Kyoto and Nara. Many of these buildings include gardens that are influenced by Zen ideas; known as ‘traditional gardens’, they have been elevated to become an artform in Japan.

Popular culture includes products from Japan that may not be traditional, but have been used to influence the rest of society, including Japanese music, video games, anime (cartoons) and manga (comics). Karaoke is a popular custom among friends, and it is extremely popular in Japan. The first karaoke machine, named ‘Juke-8’, was built in 1971 by Japanese inventor Daisuke Inoue (Sood).

Nintendo is one of the best-known Japanese video game companies and has released many products that have grown to be loved around the world. Founded in 1950 as a trading card company, Nintendo released their first system in 1980 called the ‘GAME & WATCH’ in Japan. Later that year ‘Donkey Kong’ was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and the company only went up from there (Nintendo).

Historically, Japanese sculptures were focused on Buddhist imagery, and, in the Nara period (710-794 AD), they were made by the government to increase its reputation. In 1876, interest in Japanese culture spread quickly due to an appearance in the ‘Centennial International Exhibition held in Philadelphia’. This inspired a zoologist named Edward S. Morse to visit Japan to study marine life, however Morse was engrossed by the ‘beautiful, simple dwellings and architectural details that surrounded him’. This resulted in him writing a book in 1886 called Japanese Homes and their Surroundings which may still be the most inclusive record of pre-war Japanese architecture.

After the publication, ‘Western designers were entranced,’ and began to design architecture that we still see in modern times: extended roof overhangs, eves supported by more wood, and even bay windows (windows that are projected outward from the walls of the house) (Davis).

The Life of Sport Sports play a huge role in Japanese culture and society as they provide entertainment for participants and spectators. Sumo is ‘one of the most famous and well-known of the Japanese sports’ (Hisgo). It is a wrestling match that ends when one is either pushed out of the ring where the match occurs or loses the cloth around their body, ‘mawashi’. It is Japan’s national sport originating in Japan’s Pre-Edo period where the matches were purely religious and predetermined outcomes were offerings to spirits called ‘kami’.

By the Edo period (1600-1868), a form of archery called kyudo was encouraged by the military of Japan as well as performed by samurai, and martial arts began to develop, with jujutsu’s popularity growing in schools. In modern society, there are archery ranges, sumo classes in some schools and even dojos where anyone can decide to learn any form of martial arts they wish. All of these activities are influenced by old Japanese traditions.

Lastly, Japanese cartoons and comics, or anime and manga, date back to 18th century Japan when the term ‘manga’ was first used to describe a picture book. In 1814 however, the first manga were released named Manga Hyakujo and Hokusai Manga by Aikawa Minwa. This type of comic did not gain popularity until cartoonist Osamu Tezuka created his manga series Astro Boy. This was the first manga series to get produced as a cartoon in Japan during 1963 and later became the first to be broadcast outside of Japan as well in the late 1960s. The popularity of this genre of comic and cartoon grew throughout the world and became what it is today (Wood).

Resolution and Patience The impact of Japanese culture on modern, global society is much larger than we realise. It has improved architecture, introduced new sports and provided the world with new entertainment. While the kindness of the Japanese culture may not be as well used, it is what people should strive to adopt.

During the hardships of 2021, we must be kind to one another and show appreciation for what we do have.

Sources Davis, Aaron. “Japanese Influence On Western Architecture Part 1: The Early Period (Pre-Edo To Craftsmen Movement).” Nakamoto Forestry, 12 Jan. 2021.

Hisgo. ‘Traditional Japanese Sports.’ www.hisgo.com ‘Nintendo History.’ www.nintendo.co.uk Sood, Suemedha. ‘Travel - Karaoke in the Philippines.’ BBC, 12 Aug. 2011, Wood, Jennie. Manga and Anime: The Japanese Invasion, FEN Learning, 21 Feb. 2017, xReasons. ‘5 Reasons Why The Japanese Are So Polite.’ Medium, 3 May 2019.

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Should the Allies have bombed Auschwitz?

A

Jamie Wehrle, Fifth Form, Queen Anne.

Clarke and Academic Scholar, Drama Award Holder.

uschwitz-Birkenau - the biggest of the Third Reich’s extermination camps, responsible for the deaths of 1.1 million prisoners. 960,000 of them were Jewish.

In 1944, with the outcome of World War II hanging in the balance, the Allied Forces were faced with one of the most controversial questions of modern history: should they bomb Auschwitz-Birkenau?

On 10 April 1944, after hiding near the perimeter of the camp for three days, two Jewish prisoners, Rudolf Vrba and Alfred Wetchler, escaped from Auschwitz. The purpose of their daring escape, which could have resulted in their torture and execution if they were caught, was to alert the Allies to the horrific crimes being committed by the Nazis against the Jews. Furthermore, the two aimed to warn the world about the imminent mass deportation and extermination of Hungarian Jews, which they had overheard SS officers discussing.

After travelling only by night for eleven days, they reached Žilina in Slovakia. It was here that they dictated The Auschwitz Protocol – a thirty-three page report containing information about the camp’s gas chambers and crematoria, as well as the fate of the Jewish population of Hungary. This eye-witness account eventually reached the War Refugee Board

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in neutral Switzerland. Subsequently, a summary of the document was sent from Switzerland to the US, including a plea for the railway, gas chambers and crematoria to be bombed.

Why bomb Auschwitz?

The bombing of Auschwitz may at first appear illogical; why bomb a camp containing members of the population you are trying to save? However, the opinion was that by bombing the camp and removing the instruments of mass murder, it would prevent further human slaughter. In addition, the bombing would be considered symbolic of the Allies condemnation of the genocide being committed by the Nazis. At first, Winston Churchill supported this idea, stating that ‘There is no doubt that this (Auschwitz) is the greatest and most horrible crime ever committed in the whole history of the world’

before instructing his Foreign Secretary to ‘get anything out of the Air Force you can and invoke me if necessary’. Allied reconnaissance aircraft flew over Auschwitz on a couple of occasions, capturing several photographs of the camp. With the initial approval of Churchill and pressure from organisations such as the Jewish Labour Committee and the War Refugee Board, it might appear that the Allies were on course to bomb the camp.

Why was Auschwitz not bombed?

Auschwitz-Birkenau was in fact bombed once.

However, it was bombed by accident. On 13 September 1944, Allied Forces dropped 2,000 bombs on Nazi-occupied Poland, aiming for the IG Farben factory. However, the camp was struck by the raid, resulting in the death of forty prisoners and fifteen SS soldiers. This air raid demonstrated how primitive bombing was at the time, showing how challenging it would be to successfully bomb the gas chambers and crematoria.

The events on 13 September 1944 proved arguments that had been debated since the report reached the Allies. It would be technically very difficult to bomb just the railway, gas chambers and crematoria. In fact, to have a high chance of succeeding in dropping 1 bomb on each of the crematoria, it has been suggested that the Allied Forces would have required 220 bombers dropping ten bombs each. Furthermore, as proven in September, bombing could result in Jewish casualties. This argument was supported by the Jewish Agency in Jerusalem who, on 11 June 1944, voted against the bombing. They declared that ‘It is forbidden for us to take responsibility for a bombing that could very well cause the death of even one Jew’.

A significant reason for the Allies decision was that they believed it would be a distraction from the war.

The Normandy landings took place on 6 June, the Soviet Union was still fighting a brutal war with the Nazis on the Eastern Front, and war was still raging between the US and Japan. With the war at a critical point, there were thoughts that this would be a waste of valuable resources.

There are also questions about whether the refusal to bomb the camp was influenced by Allied prejudice. Had the prisoners been from Allied nations, would the response have been different?

Laurence Rees, writer and producer of the BBC programme Auschwitz: The Nazis and the ‘Final

Solution’, argued that ‘If they were exterminating British prisoners of war do we seriously think that we wouldn't have done all we could to stop it?’

Moreover, the Holocaust might have been less severe if Britain and the US had relaxed their immigration policies, providing sanctuary for more Jewish refugees, reducing the number who were imprisoned in the camp.

Aftermath The question of bombing Auschwitz has been debated since 1944. In his 1978 article, which brought this debate to the general public, historian David Wyman questioned how could ‘it be that the governments of the two great Western democracies knew that a place existed where 2,000 helpless human beings could be killed every 30 minutes’.

Additionally, in 2008, the US President George W. Bush stated that Auschwitz should have been bombed.

Would bombing Auschwitz actually have made a significant difference to the plight of the Jews?

The technical challenges and risk to human life of the bombing cannot be underestimated, and it is debatable whether it would have really hindered the Nazis. With no railways and gas chambers, Jewish civilians may have simply been shot. It would have been unlikely for the Allies to be able to carry out air raids before late 1944, and the camp was in fact liberated on 27 January 1945.

The Allied Forces chose not to bomb Auschwitz.

Whilst the world has not since witnessed a genocide on the same scale as the Holocaust, that is not to say it could not happen in the future. We are all too familiar with the persecution of ethnic minorities in certain countries, and refugee crises remain a significant issue in the 21st Century. We now have more ability to take targeted military action, and if the gas chambers were in use today, our response might be different. For me, however, the question still remains – should we have bombed Auschwitz?

Sources auschwitz.org/en BBC Documentary: ‘1944: Should we bomb Auschwitz?’ news.bbc.co.uk independent.co.uk (‘Bush: We should have bombed Auschwitz’) jewishvirtuallibrary.org Wikipedia

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Doctors: Many People’s First Drug Dealers

W

Jenny Allen, Lower Sixth Form, Harcourt.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

hilst everyone is aware of the COVID-19 pandemic, America and, to a lesser extent, Europe are facing another epidemic alongside it: the opioid crisis. Around 128 people die of an opioid overdose each day in America, with over 2 million Americans misusing them. The ‘economic burden’ of this crisis is costing the country around $78.5 billion a year in healthcare treatments, addiction centres and loss of jobs. This also includes social costs, such as children being taken into care and the breakup of families. long-term develop an addiction to them. Legal opioids can also find their way into the open market for others to use them illegally to experience a ‘high’ (feeling relaxed, euphoric and calm).

Rates of opioid overdoses are extremely high, with patients including both individuals that started on prescriptions as well as other that started taking them after using other illegal drugs. An overdose can cause vomiting, an inability to wake, blue fingernails and lips; all leading to respiratory arrest if not treated in time. Opioids also cause abnormal heart rates with the risk of having a heart attack increasing dramatically.

Opioids are narcotic drugs, being prescribed for persistent or severe pain; they are usually included in post-op pain management as well as helping to reduce pain in cancer patients. These include oxycodone, morphine, tramadol, fentanyl, as well as illicit ones such as heroin. They work by attaching and activating proteins on nerve cells called opioid receptors and prevent pain signals from being sent to the brain via the spinal cord. This effect can occur naturally in the body (endogenously) with neurotransmitters such as endorphins and enkephalins. Opioids have demonstrated efficacy in the relief of short-term acute pain or end of life pain.

However, the effectiveness of opioid use for long term pain is limited, with many patients developing a tolerance to the painkilling effect, resulting in the need for an increase in dose. The body quickly develops a dependence on the opioids, causing withdrawal symptoms; if suddenly stopped, it can cause jitters, insomnia and many more effects on the body. 1 in 4 patients with pain taking opioids

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Opioids can also have knock-on effects; for example, taking them whilst pregnant can cause serious damage to the baby. Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (NOWS) is when a new-born baby experiences withdrawal of the opioid drugs that they were exposed to whilst in the womb. Many babies experience symptoms such as tremors, continuous crying, vomiting, fever and tachypnoea (abnormally rapid breathing). Complications such as low birth-rates, seizures, developmental delays and jaundice can arise, as well as increasing the chance of sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). The first line treatments for babies with NOWS are nonpharmacological approaches including intravenous fluids and high-calorie formula. In severe cases, medications like morphine or buprenorphine are used to gradually lower the dosage, preventing the extreme side effects. Most babies are admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) for monitoring, and the withdrawal symptoms can last anywhere from 5-30 days.

However, the real question is: how did the problem become this bad? Why did physicians prescribe drugs that are both ineffective in long term pain and highly addictive? The reasons for such an epidemic of opioid abuse and addiction can be tracked back to the first wave (of which there were three – the introduction of opioids into the medical industry, the increase in backstreet illicit opioids and finally the

development of synthetic opioids).

The first wave began in the 1990s, when opioids were first used as medications and prescribed for pain. Physicians recognised that their treatment for long term pain was poor, leaving many people suffering in chronic pain. When opioids were first produced, pharmaceutical companies and people in the medical industry believed that they were safer than other analgesic medications.

They also thought that because the two pathways for pain and addiction are separate, as long as the medication was being used for pain, the individual wouldn’t develop an addiction to them.

This all generated from a lot of misinformation surrounding opioids and data that was based on small samples. For example, there was a study of 45 cancer pain patients, of which none of them developed a dependence on the opioids; these data were then extrapolated to the entire population and all opioids. Alongside this, the release of oxycontin created a big increase in promotion of opioids by pharmaceutical companies as they benefited greatly financially through the sale and use of them. The privatisation of the majority of the US medical health services contributed to the mass number of opioid prescriptions being written in the ‘90s as physicians are rewarded financially based on the volume of patients requesting and receiving opioid narcotics. By writing out prescriptions to all the patients, not only would they receive a high patient satisfaction but would also have many individuals returning for more prescriptions.

Even today, doctors in the US are more than five times more likely to prescribe opioids than doctors in France and are eight times more likely to prescribe them than doctors in Italy – mostly due to there being less financial incentive within Europe to fill out prescriptions as well as the countries being more sceptical of the first set of research that was released.

The second wave of opioid overdoses occurred in 2010 with a rise in the number of heroin overdoses amongst many individuals who had become addicted to backstreet opioids in order to aid their addiction.

The third wave then occurred with the production of synthetic opioids, in particular fentanyl.

This opioid is up to 100 times more potent than morphine and many times that of heroin.

It is effective in treating acute pain (e.g. post operatively) as well as pain associated with cancer. However, fentanyl has found its way into the illegal street market, with drugs such as heroin or cocaine being laced with it. A 3-milligram dose of fentanyl is enough to kill an average-sized adult male, so it has contributed significantly to the number of opioid-related deaths per year.

Between 1990 and 2017 the number of deaths due to opioid overdoses more than tripled. But

what are we doing to combat this ongoing epidemic?

Firstly, the US government, other opioid prevention organisations in the US and worldwide are putting significant emphasis on education – to both the public and to healthcare professionals. They aim to raise awareness of the ease in which development of opioid addiction develops, encouraging physicians to not prescribe them as a first line of treatment and to monitor individuals using them closely. They also educate individuals on the dangers of misusing prescriptions and either over-taking them or taking medications not prescribed for them.

Investing in facilities and resources is also something high on their priority list, offering services to individuals who have become addicted to opioids and helping them to come clean and stay off them.

Partnering with law enforcement to address the growing illicit opioid problem makes a up a larger part of the work the organisations are doing, alongside monitoring trends very closely to be aware of any increases in opioid misuse and overdoses. The FDA is an organisation in place to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of each drug with the aim of trying to reduce any misinformation surrounding medications as well as preventing harmful medications being released for prescription or medical use.

However, this is not the end. As one epidemic is addressed, another one arises. For example, the US is starting to see an increase in benzodiazepine misuse, with people sharing their prescriptions with family and friends, alongside the over-prescription of them fuelling it. And this crisis is not limited to the US; in the UK 7.2% of 16–24-year-olds have misused prescriptions not intended for them. There is concern that we will see a similar epidemic develop in lowand middle-income countries as they are in need of better pain management treatments (similar to that of the US pre-crisis). Pharmaceutical companies may also take advantage of this, with their market in high income countries decreasing due to the awareness of the effects of opioids, they can offer a financial incentive to the lower income countries who are in need of financial support.

References Boston Children’s Hospital. Treatments for Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) in Children. www. childrenshospital.org Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

‘Understanding the Epidemic.’ www.cdc.gov March of Dimes. ‘Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome.’ www.marchofdimes.org Mayo Clinic. ‘How Opioid Addiction Occurs.’ www. mayoclinic.org Mayo Clinic. ‘What are Opioids and Why are they Dangerous?’ www.mayoclinic.org National Institute on Drug Abuse. ‘Opioid Overdose Crisis.’ www.drugabuse.gov Patrick, Stephen et. al. ‘Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome.’ November 2020, Pediatrics 146.5.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

‘What is the U.S. Opioid Epidemic?’ www.hhs.gov WebMD. ‘Opioid (Narcotic) Pain Medications.’ www. webmd.com

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How Did The COVID-19 Pandemic Impact Amazon.com?

Alex Anderson, Lower Sixth Form, Queen Anne.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

T

he COVID-19 pandemic has caused most retailers worldwide to evaluate their costs in order to survive during this period and has also brought multiple retailers to bankruptcy. However, there are a few businesses who have thrived during this difficult period, one of which are the e-commerce giants, Amazon. The retailer began its journey when its founder Jeff Bezos opened a bookshop in his garage in 1996 and Amazon has evolved and grown ever since and managed to gain a massive market share in the e-commerce industry selling almost anything from food to electronics. Amazon have proved themselves as a resilient company especially during this pandemic, but exactly how did the pandemic impact Amazon?

Firstly, it is undeniable that the demand for Amazon products has rocketed since the start of the pandemic. Demand is the quantity of a good that consumers are willing and able to purchase at various prices during a given time period. Due to the pandemic, multiple in-store retailers have had to shut down or temporarily close due to the government restrictions and guidelines. This led to a large amount of people looking online, particularly at Amazon to get the goods they needed. It is stated that Amazon’s total e-commerce sales almost doubled in May 2020 (Semuels). This is due to the large number of consumers flocking to Amazon for goods that they would usually go out to individual shops in order to purchase but because Amazon continued to run as an e-commerce retailer, they were able to continue to make sales and make even more sales than usual. Similarly, the demand increased for products such as masks, sanitizers and toilet paper which was heavily sought after at the beginning of the pandemic. In fact, Amazon saw a 186% increase in sales of toilet paper between

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February and March 2020 compared to the year before (Palmer). All these items that people have been mass-buying during the pandemic such as toilet roll, masks, sanitizers and even gym equipment to deal with the boredom of the lockdown have all contributed to Amazon’s third quarter earnings of $97.15bn in revenue (Helmore).

However, Amazon have also seen noticeable changes in the supply of their goods to their consumers. Supply is the amount of a resource that businesses or firms are willing and able to provide to the marketplace. The pandemic is massively affected the lives of people all around the world, and Amazon’s workers are no different. In fact, Amazon stated that more than 19,000 of their workers in the USA got COVID-19 as of October 2020 (Palmer).

This was 1.44% of its front-line employees which would have deeply affected supply. This would have resulted in fewer employees being able to help distribute and supply their goods. As a result of the fewer employees, Amazon would not have been able to supply as many goods as quickly and therefore their supply would have decreased which could have resulted in them not being able to meet the influx of demand that they received over the same time period. However, Amazon have also had positive impacts on their supply because of the pandemic. The number of employees that Amazon had grew by 34% in 2020 (Palmer). This illustrates that despite multiple businesses having to make employees redundant, because Amazon have seen a large spike in revenue over the pandemic, they have been able to afford more and more employees in order to keep up with demand. This has therefore increased their supply as they have more

employees to deliver and distribute their products and therefore productivity has been further increased. Even though Amazon have lost multiple employees as a result of the pandemic, they have been able to cope with the mass demand for their products as a result of increasing the number of employees within the business.

Lastly, COVID-19 has heavily impacted Amazon’s elasticity of demand. Elasticity of demand is a measure of the sensitivity of the demand for a product, to a change in the price of that product.

The elasticity of demand is affected by multiple factors such as how many alternatives there are to the good or service. During the pandemic, around 11,120 chain outlet stores closed between January and June (Simpson). This resulted in their being few alternatives for consumers with regards to their shopping because of the large number of closures.

This resulted in consumers turning to Amazon in order to fulfill their needs ranging from cooking utensils to masks. This therefore suggests that due to the pandemic, Amazon are highly inelastic.

This means that if Amazon were to increase their prices by 10% on all products, consumers are still likely to pay the prices because consumers will struggle to find the goods elsewhere in the current climate which results in them having to pay almost whatever price Amazon will set as they know they will receive what they need within the day with Amazon Prime Delivery and therefore Amazon provide an inelastic service.

In conclusion, Amazon have seen multiple successes during the pandemic and certain

difficulties. During this difficult period, Amazon have seen a record level of demand, and similarly, have been able to bounce back from losing employees, to reach record employment numbers within their business and all of this has added together to ensure Amazon are an unparalleled empire of the modern business world. It leaves us in question, is there a scenario Amazon would not thrive in?

Sources Helmore, Edward. ‘Amazon third-quarter earnings soar as pandemic sales triple profits.’ October 29, 2020. The Guardian.

Palmer, Annie. ‘Amazon is on a hiring spree amid widespread coronavirus layoffs and record unemployment.’ September 9, 2020, CNBC. Palmer, Annie. ‘Amazon says more than 19,000 workers got Covid-19.’ October 1, 2020. CNBC. Palmer, Annie. ‘How Amazon Managed the Coronavirus Crisis and Came Out Stronger.’

September 29, 2020. CNBC. Semuels, Alana. ‘Many Companies Won’t Survive the Pandemic. Amazon Will Emerge Stringer Than Ever.’ July 28, 2020. Time.

Simpson, Emma. ‘Coronavirus drives shop closures to new record.’ October 20, 2020. BBC News.

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Could Swimming be the Key to a Healthier Life?

Sam Cruttenden, Lower Sixth Form, Swift.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

A

s the Coronavirus pandemic has seemingly taken over our lives, a better future full of normality is craved by everyone. Swimming can have enormous benefits both physically and mentally. There is good evidence it helps with both dementia and depression, two common and growing issues in today’s society. One of the more recent breakthroughs illustrates the link between swimming and dementia, a serious problem in modern society. areas responsible for memories that shrink first, for example the hippocampus, hence dementia (memory loss and confusion) being a common symptom of Alzheimer’s. Finding a treatment or cure for this is therefore of growing importance.

Cold water swimming is thought to hold a treatment or cure for dementia, a symptom experienced by patients suffering from Alzheimer’s. As there are more than a million people with dementia in the UK today, which is expected to double by 2050, finding a treatment or cure is of increasing urgency.

Alzheimer’s is a neurodegenerative disease which means it damages the nervous system. Neurones are cells that carry electrochemical changes called nerve impulses around the body and stimulate target cells with chemicals called neurotransmitters.

Dendrites (extensions of the neurone’s cell body) carry the nerve impulse towards the cell body and the axon carries it away.

Alzheimer’s disease is caused by proteins called amyloid and tau. A build-up of amyloid creates plaques in the brain and tau causes the brain cells to entangle. This damages the brain cells resulting in a decrease in the production of neurotransmitters, for example acetylcholine, and the shortening of dendrites. Some brain connections called synapses are therefore lost resulting in areas of the brain shrinking (brain atrophy). It is usually

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A recent study at Cambridge University performed by Professor Mallucci, Associate Director of the UK Dementia Research Institute, and her team, focused on the hibernation ability of some animals. These animals, for example bears, lose 20-30% of their synapse connections during hibernation, but can regenerate them back in spring. The team at Cambridge put mice with and without Alzheimer’s in hypothermic conditions (body temperature below 35°C) to try to mimic these results. When the mice were in stable conditions again, only the mice without Alzheimer’s could re-gain their synapses.

In addition, the mice without Alzheimer’s showed a high level of a protein called RBM3, known as the ‘cold-shock’ protein, and so it is theorised that RBM3 could help re-form the brain connections.

The next step was to make the connection to humans. As forcefully making people hypothermic had its ethical dilemmas, the team decided to test a group of year-round swimmers at an unheated lido in London, whose core body temperatures reach 34°C (hypothermic). The results were promising as all the swimmers displayed raised levels of RBM3.

Thus, a potential treatment for Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases could be a new drug that stimulates the production of RBM3 in the hope that this helps to slow, or even reverse the effects of the disease. It is therefore believed that regular cold-water swimming could help decrease the chances of developing a neurodegenerative disease like Alzheimer’s.

Other research into cold-water swimming has been done in the field of mental health. Similarly, it has also found another benefit to cold-water swimming and the cold shock experienced. Dr Chris van Tulleken presented a BBC One documentary in 2016 called ‘The Doctor Who Gave Up Drugs’, which followed Sarah, who suffered from depression but wanted to give up antidepressants.

Being immersed in cold water induces a response called cold-shock.

This raises the heart rate, blood pressure and breathing rate which all increase the release of stress hormones. Repetitive cold-water immersions of 15°C or less reduce this stress response. However, the stress response experienced in everyday life is also reduced, making this an effective therapy for mental health disorders like depression; in Sarah’s case, this meant that she could come off of her medication.

Cold-water swimming is a useful activity for everyone. Many people feel calm and stressfree afterwards, making the practice beneficial for general anxiety, menopausal symptoms or simply to maintain a healthy, stable mind. Since 2006, antidepressant prescriptions have more than doubled; however, side effects of these drugs may include: insomnia, constipation, dizziness, weight gain and many others. Therefore, finding an alternative for antidepressants is paramount. Coldwater swimming therapy seems to be a promising alternative for some people.

Swimming does not just aid the mind; it has many physical benefits too. It is a great source of cardiovascular exercise while building both strength and endurance. Swimming has also been shown to maintain good heart and lung health, making it an ideal option for asthmatics. It is known that past sufferers from Covid-19 can be left with lung damage and so potentially swimming could be useful to help improve their aerobic fitness.

The sport is also safe for people suffering from arthritis and osteoporosis as the water supports

the body, making it a non-weight bearing activity. For this reason, it is highly recommended by physiotherapists for post injury or surgery recovery, for example using hydrotherapy.

Furthermore, swimming helps to improve sleep, helping to treat insomnia.

Aerobic exercise like swimming releases endorphins, a feel-good neurotransmitter, which helps you to feel more positive and worry-free. Another great benefit of swimming is the number of calories it burns. For a person weighing 72.5kg, they will burn on average 423 calories per hour when swimming at a moderate pace. The same person would burn roughly 25% less calories walking for the same time period. Whether it is used to keep fit, mobile or as a treatment, swimming is a great all-round physical activity.

In conclusion, swimming has many positive benefits. Whether it is with regards to our mental health (reversing or preventing dementia, treating depression, or just reducing stress) or our physical health (improved cardiovascular fitness or the treatment of degenerative joint diseases), swimming can clearly help us lead a healthier life.

References Marcin, Ashley. ‘What are the Top 12 Benefits of Swimming?’ September 9, 2017. Healthline.

NHS. ‘Alzheimer’s Disease.’ NHS.uk.

Rowlatt, Justin. ‘Could cold water hold a clue to a dementia cure?’ 19 October, 2020. BBC News Toole, Susan and Glenn Toole. AQA Biology: A-Level (2nd Edition). OUP, 2015.

Van Tulleken, Chris. ‘Can cold water swimming treat depression?’ 13 September, 2018. BBC News.

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An Evaluation of Risks Associated with 'Coffin Corner' in Commercial Flight

Harrison Procter, Lower Sixth Form, Feilden.

Allen and Strickland Scholar, Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

Q

'

-Corner’, more commonly known as ‘Coffin Corner’ is the region of flight at which the low-speed stall velocity of an aircraft (the lowest speed an aircraft can fly whilst maintaining its altitude) converges with the speed of sound, at or above which subsonic (below the speed of sound) aircraft cannot fly. Commercial aircraft should not exceed 40,000 feet in altitude, as this is too close to Coffin Corner; above this height, the stall speed and the speed of sound are so close together that any variation in velocity could have devastating consequences. Recognising and reacting to the circumstances as an aircraft enters the zone of Coffin Corner is now part of a pilot’s training, although this subject has not always been taught effectively in the past. travelling faster than the spend of sound, whilst the remainder is travelling below the speed of sound.

The lowest velocity of the aircraft as this begins to take place is called the ‘critical mach number’ for an aircraft, the safe maximum of which should lie between 0.82 and 0.86. Flying at too great a velocity in Coffin Corner can trigger powerful shockwaves from the supersonic air which may severely damage the aircraft. Furthermore, this can also cause the aircraft to undergo a ‘mach tuck’ (the nose of the aircraft pitches downwards); the supersonic air creates far more lift than the subsonic air, causing an imbalance in lift. A difficult escape manoeuvre is required to resume normal flight.

As an aircraft gains altitude, the density of the air decreases. The lower the air density, the greater the speed the aircraft must travel in order to avoid a low-speed stall and remain in the air.

However, the speed of sound in air decreases as temperature falls, from around 760mph at sea level to just 660mph at 35,000 feet, where the air temperature can reach below -50 degrees Celsius.

There is, therefore, a point at which the aircraft cannot accelerate, for fear of reaching the speed of sound, or decelerate, since this could result in a low-speed stall. Commercial aircraft are not designed to break the ‘sound barrier’ and become supersonic; the consequences of reaching this velocity can be fatal. On an aeroplane approaching the speed of sound, or mach 1, air is accelerated over the wing, resulting in partial supersonic airflow.

In essence, this means that some of the airflow is

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The tragic consequences of flying too close to Coffin Corner have been proven by the disappearance of Air France Flight 447 in June 2008. On its flight path over the tropical Atlantic, it is thought to have encountered a mesoscale convective complex – a series of powerful storms. Under normal conditions, an aircraft is perfectly safe to fly at around mach 0.8 (530mph at cruising altitude).

However, in storms of this magnitude, wind speeds can fluctuate by 100mph or more in a matter of seconds, the ramifications of which could result in the aircraft entering a mach tuck or a low-speed stall. Insufficient reaction time and corresponding adjustment of throttle can lead to the ultimate demise of the aircraft and all those on board.

Although many details of the Air France crash are still unknown, despite the recent recovery of the black box, it is suspected that the pilots entered a

stall unknowingly, due to an icing-up of the pitot tube, which measures the airspeed. Without this vital instrument, it was extremely challenging for the pilots to gauge the aircraft’s precise velocity; this led to the conclusion, by the investigating body, that by the time the pilots had realised the gravity of the situation, an escape manoeuvre was no longer an option.

As a result of this crash and others like it, more advanced safety measures are continuously being developed by the aviation industry to help prevent further tragedies. For example, new and superior de-icing technologies have been deployed, learning from disasters such as Air France Flight 447 by helping to prevent the icing up of the pitot tubes mid-flight. There are two major types of de-icing technologies, the first being a thermal system: this type of device melts and evaporates the ice using heat energy, and is regularly activated during flight to remove ice from parts of the aircraft such as sensors, parts of the wing and the turbines. The other commonly used de-icing system uses pneumatically inflated rubber ‘boots’ which periodically inflate and expand, forcing the ice to break apart – these are usually

located on the leading edge of the wing. Fortunately, current technology allows pilots to be given advanced notice of potential stalls, giving an audible warning by means of an alarm; a visual warning, shown on one of the displays in the cockpit and also a ‘stick shaker’ warning system – a mechanical device that vibrates the control column to alert the pilot of the danger.

Thankfully, through a combination of superior safety technology and improved pilot training in stall escape, the risk of disaster has been greatly reduced.

Sources https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/flyingin-the-coffin-corner-air-france-flight-447/ https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/2012-05-14/ understanding-high-altitude-aerodynamics-critical https://www.pilotmall.com/blogs/news/coffin-cornerreaching-beyond-the-limitations https://www.boldmethod.com/learn-to-fly/ aerodynamics/coffin-corner-where-vne-and-mmomeet/ https://www.skybrary.aero

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The Split Personality of Snake Venom: a Cure as well as a Killer?

Zoë Smith, Lower Sixth Form, Vanbrugh.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

O

f the more than 200,000 venomous animal species known to science, there are around 600 species of poisonous snake. However, although snakes produce only a relatively small part of the venoms seen globally, theirs seem to be more commonly applied in medicine, especially as time progresses. The earliest use was in traditional Chinese medicine and during the Roman Empire as part of treatments for other diseases such as smallpox and leprosy.

There are three main groups of venom: hemotoxic, which affects the blood; neurotoxic, affecting the nervous system; and finally cytotoxic, which is involved in the breaking down of cells and tissues.

The many varied and gory side effects the venoms cause, such as tissue necrosis, uncontrolled hemorrhaging of blood vessels and paralysis, may make it difficult to imagine their applications in medicine. However, understanding how these venoms have these effects and how we may be able to manipulate these chemicals to be used beneficially in drug treatments has advanced medicine dramatically in many fields.

One of the first uses of venom components in medicine was to treat hypertension and high blood pressure, after it was discovered that patients of snake bites experienced lowered blood pressure as a symptom. This led to the development of Captopril, first synthesized in 1975 as the first angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor approved by the FDA. This was isolated from hemotoxic venom which, as part of its cocktail of toxins, hosted ‘ACE inhibitors’ that prevent ACE from converting angiotensin 1 to active angiotensin 2, allowing snakes to lower the blood pressure of their prey. The problem with this enzyme is that angiotensin 2 rapidly causes vasoconstriction of blood vessels alongside simultaneously prompting certain organs/glands to secrete or respond to hormones.

For example, on angiotensin 2 reaching the pituitary

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gland, antidiuretic hormone (ADH) is released, increasing reabsorption of water in the kidneys and consequently raising blood pressure as the volume of blood increases. Alongside which, ADH causes vasoconstriction in blood vessels similar to angiotensin 2. As well as this, angiotensin 2 causes the adrenal gland to secrete the hormone aldosterone to increase sodium reabsorption in the kidneys, which, as a result of osmosis, would increase the uptake of water too. Consequently, if this process can be controlled and stopped by using ACE inhibitors extracted from venom, snake venom is clearly beneficial.

However, these toxins can be extremely deadly if not handled properly, especially with all the unknown components of these venoms.

For example, they are not only full of unnamed compounds, but also polypeptides which target

receptors that haven’t even been identified yet.

Most snakes usually inject a mixture of venom types too; a combination of hemotoxic and cytotoxic is very common, such as that found in rattlesnakes.

Elements which usually coincide with ACE inhibitors can be hemorrhagic metalloproteinases (SVMPs) which cause endothelial cells lining blood vessels to burst, causing their contents (red blood cells) to leak out, resulting in severe trauma to organs from blood hemorrhaging and death if not treated. This deadly effect allowing erythrocytes (red blood cells) to pass through the walls of blood vessels is only one of multiple ways for hemorrhaging to occur.

Another theory is that the toxins enlarge the gaps between the cells themselves so that erythrocytes can squeeze through them, the rarer of the two – but still possible.

One of the more infamous medical conundrums of today is finding the cure to cancer. One element stands out from recent research into the components of venom and the high number of different polypeptides and proteinases, which has become a part of the most modern thinking cures to cancer. Inside snake venom there are polypeptides called disintegrins which target

integrins – cell receptors that are used in cell signaling and adhesion to other cells. Integrins are present in all stages of cancer metastasis wherein tumors spread throughout the body from a primary tumor. Once these snake venom disintegrins were discovered to be integrin inhibitors, it was theorized that if scientists could use premade disintegrins from snake venom to target specific integrin receptors on cancer cells, it would cut years of lab work synthesizing novel drugs. One such stage of metastasis called angiogenesis – the growth of new blood vessels from already existing ones - was the first to be targeted. With it noticed that all endothelial cells used in angiogenesis expressed the integrin αVβ3, after further research into its purpose, it was discovered that it promoted angiogenesis in cancer cells. Therefore, if a disintegrin which targeted this integrin could block it as a cell receptor and prevent it from carrying out its function, blood supply to the cancer cell it was growing from would be cut off and starved of oxygen, thereby stunting growth and possibly even causing tumor death. As well as this, αVβ3 was suspected of involvement in tumor development by wrongly protecting cells from extrinsic cell mediated apoptosis (induced when receptors bind to proapoptotic death ligands on the

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cell surface). After realizing this, another element of snake venom appeared ideal as a medicine: cytotoxins.

This would remove the need for chemotherapy and other cancer treatments with multiple drastic side effects impacting the entire body.

Cytotoxins in snake venom are used by snakes to cause maximum destruction and begin the digesting process before the prey is even ingested. Examples are found in the snakes of the cobra family which mostly all contain cytotoxic elements in their proteomes (the range of proteins that can be coded for by the genome of a cell).

Cobra venom cytotoxins can be grouped under the three-finger toxin family. This specific ‘three-finger’ structure allows the proteins to carry out multiple functions. Most interestingly, they can destroy cells through creating pores in cell membranes that disrupt the lipid membrane integrity and lead to cell death. In extremely potent venoms, the cell death can be expansive around the area of envenomation from a bite, leading to tissue necrosis - one of the most dramatic causes for long lasting damage after a snake bite as some limbs have to be amputated. With something so effective, if this was successfully coupled with, for example, gold nanoparticles and specific receptors so only cancer cells were affected by the cytotoxin, the results in medicine could be groundbreaking.

The more nuanced type of venom with less obvious applications is neurotoxic. One way these venoms kill is to cause paralysis of muscles as the nervous system is unable to tell muscles such as the diaphragm and intercostal muscles to contract. One of the most famous - and most deadly - snakes in the world hosts a neurotoxic venom: the black mamba.

This snake kills in as little as twenty minutes. The mechanism can either be pre-synaptic or postsynaptic. The pre-synaptic affecting venom can be found in the Mojave rattlesnake. It works by the binding of a toxin to the allosteric site on the calcium channel proteins of the axon of a neuron. This causes a conformational change in the channel and prevents further transport of calcium into the axon. Calcium 2+ ions are needed in the process of exocytosis of acetylcholine vesicles - the neurotransmitters crossing the synapse to the receiving muscle endplate which control depolarizing of the skeletal muscle connected. These ACh vesicles activate the Nicotinic m (Nm) receptors, which are coupled with sodium ion (Na+) channels. When ACh vesicles reach and activate the Nm receptors it causes

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sodium ions to enter, allowing depolarizing of muscle cells. All of this cannot be done if Ca 2+ ions cannot pass into the axon. Without the depolarizing of cells, paralysis is then caused. Post synaptic venoms such as those found in coral snakes target elements after the synaptic cleft, where the toxin binds as a competitive inhibitor to the Nm receptor preventing ACh from causing movement of sodium into the cell and again causing paralysis. These effects can be catastrophic, but when used in medicine could be applied to painkillers with some already developed from mamba venom by peptides inhibiting ASICs (acid sensing ion channels) suggested to be more effective than morphine, as well as muscle relaxants which act as ACh receptor agonists copying the previously described neurotoxin found in coral snakes.

In conclusion, the different types of venom that result from the many disintegrins, enzymes and ions, along with many other substances, can all be applied to medicine. Indeed, only 0.01% of venom elements have actually been identified and characterized to date. With the research into the wealth of proteins and their functions being done on a much larger scale in modern medicine than ever before, we may also be on the verge of finding the long elusive answer to curing diseases and illnesses previously thought debilitating and incurable. It just requires the recognition that the libraries of polypeptides found in these venoms is extremely extensive, not even just in snakes but other venomous animals too (the Australian Funnel Web spider has 3000 different substances in its venom and is considered the most complex chemical cocktail of all venoms).

If these proteins and components are chemically manipulated and altered properly, it could cut back years of research and development. And hopefully

in time, snake venom will be seen not only as one of the most dangerous parts of the animal kingdom but also one of the most miraculous discoveries and sources of medicinal cures in the modern world today.

Sources Calvete, Juan J et al. “Snake venom disintegrins: evolution of structure and function.” Toxicon vol 45.8, 2005.

Chong Ho Phin, Tan Kae Yi, Tan Choo Hock.

“Cytotoxicity of Snake Venoms and Cytotoxins From Two Southeast Asian Cobras (Naja sumatrana, Naja kaouthia): Exploration of Anticancer Potential, Selectivity, and Cell Death Mechanism.” Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences vol. 7, 2020.

Gutiérrez, José María et al. “Hemorrhage Caused

by Snake Venom Metalloproteinases: A Journey of Discovery and Understanding.” Toxins vol. 8.4, 26 Mar. 2016.

Li, Li et al. “Snake Venoms in Cancer Therapy: Past, Present and Future.” Toxins vol. 10.9, 29 Aug. 2018.

Rivas-Mercado, E.A. and L. Garza-Ocañas.

“Disintegrins obtained from snake venom and their pharmacological potential.” Medicina Universitaria, vol 19.74, 2017.

Weiss, Sara M. and David A. Cheresh. “αv Integrins in Angiogenesis and Cancer.” Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Medicine, September 2011.

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Water Wars Casper Bolton, Lower Sixth Form, Vanbrugh.

Academic Grant Recipient.

W

ater is a commodity that we often take for granted, but in certain areas of the world its seen as a war starter. The political problems that the scarcity and abundance of water cause often go undiscovered, however this article aims to discuss the role water has played in past conflicts and how effective and sustainable political solutions really are.

The Indo-Pakistani conflicts give a prime example of how diplomacy can pave the way for inter-state water security and how even through regional conflicts and attacks, good politics prevents serious water wars. After the call for decolonisation following World War Two, the British Raj in India, facing mounting pressure from civil rights activists like Mahatma Gandhi, partitioned their territory into Pakistan, with a Muslim majority, and India with a Hindu majority. This partition created two inexperienced and frail independent states that instantly broke into war. Due to diplomatic inexperience, lack of direct subjugation by the Raj and desire to expand new borders, disputes turned into arguments, which turned into rows which turned into wars.

The region of Kashmir was especially contentious as it lay on the border of land with Muslim majority and in the basin of largest river in South-West Asia.1 The river Indus is a vital river system for

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Pakistan as it provides all its irrigation and capacity for hydroelectric power. What makes the Indus even more contended is that upstream, India has all the control over Pakistani water supply as the river runs through northern India. Practically, Pakistan has no direct method in which it can stop India from controlling their supply. This is demonstrated in the Indo-Pakistani water dispute of 1948 in which only 8 months after gaining independence, the Indian East Punjab region shut off water to the West Punjab region of Pakistan for five weeks.2 Considering past tensions and violence, coupled with the threat of India strangling Pakistani water supply, you would be right to suspect a major war at a first glance. However, rather than start a war, the two adolescent nations, admittedly with help from global peace brokers, formed the Indus River Treaty, a testament to modern diplomacy. The treaty stipulated that India should maintain 20% of the river’s waters and Pakistan maintain 80%,3 with restrictions and parameters being placed on Indian

consumption. This treaty, signed in 1960, remains in place today, with only slight hiccups, an example being the Indian Prime Minister saying ‘blood and water cannot flow together’ after the terrorist attack at Uri in 20164. However, the ability for this treaty to remain in place, even after the Indo-Pakistani wars of 1965, 1971 and 1999 bodes well for the future of water conflicts. Even with the political instability of independence and religious conflict, water remains too important to human survival to fight over. In sum, the Indo-Pakistani conflicts show how diplomacy may be the deciding factor in the possibility of large scale, water influenced wars, and that fighting a war over water is a luxury that cannot be afforded.

Alternatively, the Arab-Israeli conflicts, starting concurrently with the unrest in India, provide an example of how even politics and diplomacy can be irrelevant in the practical usage and sharing of resources, and that regional tensions can be deep rooted enough for conflict to arise, even after political solutions have been agreed upon. The ‘Jewish Question’ bedevilled European foreign policy between the 19th and 20th centuries and ultimately, tragically culminated in the holocaust.

Britain’s ‘solution’ was to create a territory to act as a homeland for the Jews in the Ottoman held region of Palestine, which Britain conquered in 1918 with the help of the Jewish Legion.5 After Britain were given the mandate to rule territory of Palestine in 1922, Jews were able to immigrate freely to their newly formed homeland. Once the Jewish immigrants reached 31% of the population by the end of WWII,6 the British Mandate were forced to create a two-state solution after mounting Jewish guerrilla resistance. This ‘solution’ would be the root of conflict for the next seven decades. After British withdrawal, the Jews declared independence with the Arabs doing the same and on the 14th of May 1948 the Arab-Israeli war was declared. With both sides claiming victories in the war, the Armistice Agreement of 19497 created three Demilitarised Zones, with the largest spanning from the Sea of Galilee to the Yarmuk River and converged on the borders of Jordan, Syria, and Israel. After the war, skirmishes and small fights broke out over the Armistice agreements. These fights were exacerbated by the Israeli construction of an intake for their National Water Carrier in the northern demilitarised zone, and the Syrian reaction of artillery units opening fire on the construction site. These actions and reactions are typical of new and diplomatically inexperienced nations who are still raw from the Arab-Israeli war. However, with U.S intervention in the form of ambassador Eric Johnston, the Johnston Plan was created to share the resources

of the Jordan Valley and while Israel agreed, the Arabs, to not formally recognise Israel as a state, did not overtly accept but obliged with the rules outlined in the plan8. However, even with the newfound cooperation, conflict still arose over the completion of Israel’s National Water Carrier Project in 1964.

Even though Israel was well within the stipulations of the Johnston Plan, the Arabs felt threatened and planned to deprive Israel of 11% of its total water and 35% of its national water carrier.9 Direct military action was taken by Israel to stop the diversion effort10 and in 1964 tensions reached a new height when Israel declared the Diversion Project was an infringement on their sovereign rights. This rise in tension is seen as one factor in the onset Six Day War of 1967 in which Israel’s victory saw them controlling twice the amount of fresh water and four times their original territory.

Even in the period of Arab-Israeli peace-making in the 90s, conflict over water was prevalent. The Peace Agreement of 1994 was not specific enough in respect to water related issues and Israel was able to take advantage; in 1999 Israel reduced Jordan’s water capacity by 60% as a response to drought, in both 1998 and 2009 Jordan received water polluted by Israel.12 This increased regional tensions among the population and the continuing violence between Israelis and Palestinians has further amplified already deep-seated regional issues. In conclusion, even with the diplomatic intervention of independent authorities like the U.S and the political experience of Arab and Israeli politicians, water has still managed to stir up conflict.

While diplomacy may work with time, as seen in India and Pakistan, we do not have time. The UN warns that by 2050, 5 billion people will feel the effects of water scarcity.13 With water becoming more of an issue at the hands of climate change, what is there to stop politically volatile regions like Israel and Palestine imploding under the stress of survival, and for how long can diplomacy prevent that implosion?

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Does War Affect Fashion?

Jossy Brown, Lower Sixth Form, Vanbrugh.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

F

ashion in any country is affected by many things, such as the weather or the natural resources that can be used by the textiles industry. However, the way in which fashion can be affected by war is more subtle. Although sometimes not directly, wars can contribute new ideas to the fashion industry, whether based on the uniforms themselves or influenced by the results of rationing, or the lack thereof. This article explores how the fashion industry is affected by war and what parts of our history lie in what we wear to this day.

World War One had a major influence on the fashion industry when many women took on jobs usually done by men as their husbands, sons and brothers went off to war. This allowed them to become nurses, drivers, factory workers and many joined the militia. With this came the need for uniforms and a more practical style of clothing.

Many women began to wear trousers for work, and skirts became shorter to make them more practical for the labour they were taking on.

A figurehead for this shift was Coco Chanel. She

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took inspiration from men’s clothing at the time, focusing on loose-fitting clothing rather than the tight, accentuated waist that had been popular in the recent past. Due to the change in the nature of women’s work, these designs focused on comfort and simplicity, rather than any detail on existing clothes. This came into fashion very quickly as women opted for the looser, more comfortable fit over the tighter clothes they were used to. Chanel also began the use of black as a staple colour for clothing, which lasts to this day as being timeless.

It was at this time that the divide between gender

typical clothing became less obvious. This period of time changed the perception of gender roles, a theme which even today is prevalent in fashion choices both by the public and those who design their clothes.

An obvious effect of war on the fashion industry can also be seen during World War Two. For the first half of the 1940s, France was occupied. Whereas other countries such as Britain and America had previously looked to them as the home of popular fashion, the newest clothing styles shifted to within their own borders. The uniform of soldiers inspired new looks for both men and women at the time, including padded shoulders and slimmer skirts for women and more boxy structured suits for men.

Military or utilitarian clothing was made in different colours and patterns to be incorporated into everyday street fashion for the general public.

Rationing, however, differed from country to country and so designs varied depending on your position on the map. In America, rationing was not as severe, allowing the use of sequins and other more intricate details to be put into designs. The UK did not get his luxury and instead the high fashion included simpler styles. An example of a dress for women at this time was Claire McCardell’s ‘popover’ dress with attached oven mitt. This was classed as uniform, which brought the price down and made it accessible.

Although Britain and America both took similar inspiration from the military, France had no connection to the fashion industry evolving around them. Having once been the figurehead of fashion, their designs looked very different from those that their allies were wearing. Dior’s ‘New Look’ was almost the opposite of the uniform style of women’s clothing that was becoming so popular. Instead he focused on the femininity of his clothing, choosing rounder shoulders, small waists and a fuller bigger skirt that was the opposite of the slim silhouette that had been chosen.

this time. Because of the communist ideals found in the Eastern countries, clothing was made simple so as not to show an obvious divide between rich and poor and to attempt to give the impression of equality between all people. However, the West was going for the opposite approach. As rationing was easing, more expensive clothes were becoming popular as people could use their newfound freedom to express themselves in a way they hadn’t been able to for many years. Between 1950 and 1960, more freedom was taken in the casual clothing chosen by the public, and a more diverse range of clothing could be seen on the streets. This served to kickstart of people’s confidence in trying different styles of clothing and may be the beginning of the diverse range of fashion we see on the streets today.

The effects of war on the fashion industry can be expected and even predicted due to ideals at the time. However more recently, when equality is getting closer and self-expression is something being encouraged, predicting what events will change the fashion industry is much more difficult.

Pop culture plays a huge part in dictating what the latest clothing trends will be, however major historical events still affect our choices to this day.

The most recent example of this is Coronavirus.

Although seen as a necessity, face masks and gloves have been incorporated into fashion seen in the media. Clothing made with built in masks have been seen on celebrities, and the market for different colours and styles of face coverings has become huge. These items are no longer seen as only for personal protection, but for some are just another fashion accessory that they can use to make themselves feel confident in the way they look and control how others perceive them.

The effects of wars and other historical events on fashion is clear. If analysed further, they could help the fashion industry to predict what will be popular and potentially add practicality to the clothes worn every day.

The war’s separation of the nations alongside the severe rationing and constant exposure to the uniform of the soldiers affected the fashion industry not only in the clothes they made, but in the variety of different designs produced in different countries.

Due to the lasting effect of World War Two on many countries and how recently it occured, this should serve as an up-to-date example of how countries’ fashion evolves with the times.

Even up to the Cold War, fashion has been affected by discontent between different countries. Fashion in the East and the West differed greatly during

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How did a Meme Make People Millions?

Understanding the Success of Dogecoin.

Tony Nguyen, Lower Sixth Form, Vanbrugh.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

I

n the 21st Century we have seen many technological advancements, from being able to fly to the moon to the handheld portable smartphones that we carry in our pockets today. But one technological advancement that has taken the media by storm recently is cryptocurrency. The most known crypto is Bitcoin, but amongst Bitcoin are many alternative coins (alt coins) that all have their unique features in an attempt to be more competitive in the crypto market. So how did Dogecoin, originally created as a joke, become a top 20 cryptocurrency and make people millions? price level) and a 24 hour volume of $2.4B (total value of all trades made within 24 hours) and ranks 14th biggest crypto based on market cap according to CoinDesk. Surprisingly, Dogecoin actually does have its uses such as online purchases and donations, but the main use of it is investing as the price of it fluctuates with high volatility so there’s an opportunity to make money off trading Dogecoin.

Dogecoin is a cryptocurrency created in 2013

by Jackson Palmer and Billy Markus as a joke – Palmer and Markus wanted to make fun of the ridiculous number of alt coins in the crypto market and thus Dogecoin was born. It managed to increase by 300% in value within its first few weeks of release. Dogecoin was named after the meme ‘doge’ which is a Shiba Inu that went viral on the internet. So how is Dogecoin doing as cryptocurrency today? Currently, Dogecoin has a total market cap of $7.3B (total supply * current

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So how did people actually make money of a crypto that was made as a joke? Two main methods were used: crypto mining and trading Dogecoin.

Crypto mining is the use of computers to obtain cryptocurrencies by solving cryptographic equations.

People would buy mining rigs (super computers with a lot graphical processing power) to mine Dogecoin using external software and then sell it on the market to make money. Mining is a less risky method than trading but there are several downfalls to this. For example, the cost of a mining rig can be very expensive and may require a lot of space so starting may be difficult for majority of people. In addition to this, mining rigs require a lot of power so depending on how the crypto is performing, mining may not be profitable due to costs like electricity.

Trading is the more popular but riskier method: investing money into buying crypto and then selling it at a later point in time when the price is at a higher value. According to Coinbase, Dogecoin was valued at £0.0010 in March 2020; however, in January 2021 the price rose to an all-time high of £0.0618.

It surged up 1600% in 2021 alone, peaking at a market cap of $10B. To put this into perspective, if you invested £20k into Dogecoin at its lowest in March 2020 at £0.0010, you would have 20 million dogecoins; if you sold all 20 million coins at its alltime highest in January 2021 at £0.0618, you would have made around £1.2 million.

Dogecoin’s surge in price in January 2021 was caused by several factors. One reason why Dogecoin’s price pumped was due to the conflict between GameStop investors and hedge funds. In short, several online brokerages like ‘Robinhood’ put restrictions on buying GameStop shares as the situation was getting out of control. This led to a lot conflict within the finance industry and, as a result, a lot of stock traders migrated to cryptocurrencies.

Dogecoin was the perfect target for the stock traders - as Dogecoin has the elements of a joke it is less serious compared to other cryptocurrencies, therefore making it seem more accessible and less intimidating to a beginner. This led to a drastic increase in demand for Dogecoin and therefore resulting in an increase in price. Another reason why Dogecoin increased in price so quickly is due to many famous personalities talking about it.

Several celebrities like Elon musk, Snoop Dogg and Gene Simmons have been talking about Doge and crypto as a whole, which leads to many people being influenced and investing their own money into Doge. Elon regularly tweets to his following of 47 million promoting Dogecoin. For example, tweets such as ‘I just set up some little Doge mining rigs with my kids. It was fun.’ and ‘Doge is underestimated’ contribute to Doge’s rise in price from all the media attention it gets. Furthermore, to prove this, you can see from the price graphs that whenever Musk tweets about Dogecoin the price of it increases shortly after.

Is Dogecoin a good investment in the long term and where will it stand in the future? Many people are using the phrase ‘Dogecoin to the moon’,

believing that Dogecoin still has a lot of potential growth, enough to reach $1 (£0.71). However, all memes will eventually die off. Personally, I do not think Dogecoin will ever reach $1 or even half a dollar for a few reasons. One of the biggest reasons is that Dogecoin is an inflationary coin; in other words, the supply of Dogecoin is not finite. If an infinite amount of Dogecoin can be supplied, the price can never be driven up by scarcity. Another reason is that Dogecoin does not really have a competitive advantage over other cryptos in the market, meaning that it is less useful compared to other cryptos. With these factors combined, it is hard to see Doge hitting $1 in the future, but not impossible. In conclusion, although it is unlikely that Dogecoin will meet people’s expectations, it is still a viable investment for beginners looking to learn how to trade as it is less intimidating. As Elon Musk said, ‘Dogecoin is the people’s crypto’. In the end, people will either ride Dogecoin to the moon or ride it until it dies.

References Cohen, Sam. ‘What is Dogecoin and why is it becoming popular?’ 8 February, 2021.

The Denver Channel.

Coindesk. ‘Dogecoin.’ https://www.coindesk.com/ price/dogecoin Coinmarketcap. ‘Dogecoin’ https://coinmarketcap. com/currencies/dogecoin/

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Why do Good Characters in Ancient Literature Never Get Happy Endings?

Ruari Kirkham, Lower Sixth Form, Feilden.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

W

ithin ancient literature, many characters are introduced to the reader as either heroes in their own right, or simply as good people in the realms of heroes.

However, despite the massive variety of these characters, the common theme among them is that they all suffer a tragic fate. This article aims to reveal the staggering frequency with which good characters die and to establish why this fate is so common within ancient literature through the study of various individuals who I believe to be the best examples of either good characters or heroes. characters themselves. The latter is the clearest example of a tragic fate and the lasting effect of a character’s death is also a good indicator of their aptitude as a “good” character, thus granting us the criteria with which to examine each character.

Dido, The Aeneid

The term “good character” could be interpreted in many ways, some as simple as one who commits kind acts, others as complex as the noblest of heroes. I would argue that the term “good character” should apply to any who conduct themselves in such a way that they are shown to be kinder and more forgiving than those around them. An example of such a character would be that of Patroclus contrasted against Achilles in The Iliad. Patroclus is more troubled by the abandonment of the war than Achilles, as shown in the line “Patroclus, hot tears pouring down his face like a stream of dark water flowing in dusky streaks down the face of a sheer cliff, returned to Achilles, leader of men.” (The Iliad, Book 16, Lines 1-2) He is portrayed as a better person than Achilles, as he is willing to forego his pride to prevent the loss of lives, whilst Achilles, the more well-known “hero”, is not.

An unhappy ending is potentially more difficult to define, as it could be seen as something as simple as losing, or as extreme as the death of the

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The character of Dido in the Aeneid is a key demonstration that those who do good deeds and are good characters do sometimes suffer the worst of fates. This is shown by the incredible hospitality shown by Dido to the Trojans, going so far as to say, “I’ll see you safely escorted, and help you with my wealth. / Or do you wish to settle here with me, as equals in my kingdom?” (Aeneid, Book 1, Lines 571-72) This welcoming cements Dido as a good character as she is willing to allow strangers to enter her city due to her compassion and desire to help. Dido is also portrayed as a noblewoman who is still grieving the loss of her husband, Sychaeus, making her a highly sympathetic character who is pitied by the reader. This causes her falling in love with Aeneas to be seen as cathartic and for her benefit. However, Aeneas’ eventual abandonment of Dido and Carthage causes Dido to question her own sanity, “What madness twists my thoughts?”

(Aeneid, Book 4, Line 595). Also, she very nearly sends out her soldiers to capture the Trojans and keep them at Carthage, as shown in the line “Go, bring fire quickly, hand out the / weapons, drive the oars!”(Aeneid, Book 4, Lines 593-94).

However, following Aeneas’ escape from Carthage, Dido commits suicide by stabbing herself with his sword: “her servants saw she had fallen on the blade, / the sword frothed with blood” (Aeneid, Book 4, Lines 665-66). This terrible death causes the reader to feel great sympathy towards Dido, as her

death was not caused by fighting in a battle where death is expected, but due to heartbreak at losing the man she loves. This idea of death after losing your love is not uncommon in more modern works as well, with the greatest example being Romeo and Juliet, where both end up killing themselves as they believe they have lost each other, showing that this theme is not only common in ancient literature, but has moved into later works as well.

Hector, The Iliad Within the Iliad, there are few more noble characters than Hector, the champion and prince of Troy. His actions in defending the city in which he and his family rule, present him as incredibly noble and brave, particularly in contrast to his brother Paris, who started the conflict, showing him to be one of the greatest men fighting on either side of the war. Hector’s position as the best of the Trojans contrasts him directly with the character of Achilles, the best of the Greeks. This foreshadows Hector’s death at the hands of Achilles, but also causes him to be seen as more of a good character, as Achilles abandons the war effort due to an argument amongst the Greek leaders, whilst Hector continues to fight on in the war. Similarly, Hector is used to show the inadequacies in his brother, Paris, whose cowardice and desires caused the Trojan War itself. The lines “Come let us swear an oath before the gods, for they are the best witnesses of such things. If Zeus lets me kill you and survive, then when I’ve stripped you of your glorious armour, I’ll not mistreat your corpse, I’ll return your body to your people, if you will do the same for me.” (Iliad, Book 22, Lines 249-252) portray Hector as both an honourable and pious man; Achilles’ refusal of these terms further highlights Hector’s nobility.

Achilles’ brutal treatment of Hector’s body after his death causes the reader to feel great sympathy towards Hector, due to the poor and dishonourable treatment of a character we know to be good: “So saying, he found a way to defile the fallen prince.

He pierced the tendons of both feet behind from heel to ankle, and through them threaded oxhide thongs, tying them to his chariot, leaving the corpse’s head to trail along the ground.” (Iliad, Book 22, Lines 377-78). This brutal death and treatment of his body, when added to the fact that this was not a necessary war, as Paris could have ended the war during a duel with Menelaus, as well as the strong relationship Hector is shown to have with his wife, shown in the begging from Andromache for Hector to “not make (his) son an orphan, (his) wife a widow.” (Iliad, Book 6, Lines 436-38), unquestionably identifies Hector as a both a good character and one who does not get a

happy ending. The death of a character as good and honourable as Hector is used to show the hardships of the Trojan War, as well as the skills of Achilles; however, it also causes the reader to feel doubts as to the morality of both the Greeks and the war itself.

Odysseus, The Odyssey Odysseus represents a character who has suffered greatly in his desire to simply return home to his wife and queen, Penelope. His qualities of cunning and trickery do not necessarily highlight him as a good person. However, I believe his actions in ending the Trojan War with the creation of the Trojan Horse, enabling the Greek soldiers to sneak behind the impenetrable walls, and becoming the best of the Greeks after the death of Achilles prove him to be a good hero. The incredible hardships he faces on his journey home, such as the Lotus-eaters, Polyphemus the cyclops and Circe the sorceress, show the many “sorrows he suffered at sea while trying to bring himself and his friends back alive” (Odyssey, Book 1, Line 2). However, the events that transpired on Ogygia, the isle of Calypso, truly highlight Odysseus’s nobility. Despite the offers from Calypso to make him immortal if he would marry her, his refusal in order to return to his wife shows his dedication to Penelope and truly cements his position as a good character.

Odysseus’ fate is initially happy, as he achieves what he set out to do in returning, despite having to deal with the hundreds of suitors invading his palace once he has returned home. However, only a few years after he has returned, he is tragically killed by Telegonus, the son he fathered with Circe.

This death, whilst relatively peaceful in comparison to that of Hector or Dido, is no less tragic, causing the reader to feel great sympathy for the hero, who, having accomplished his goal, is killed after he achieves it. The character of Odysseus, who lends his name to The Odyssey, is used as a method to show the immortality of heroes through their achievements, regardless of what happens at the end of their story. This is not only a common theme amongst the heroes of the ancient world, but also in numerous modern films and books, such as in the recent Marvel films, whose heroic exploits have made cinema history.

The fate of a character who appears good in ancient literature is seemingly sealed from the start, as regardless of whether they are a member of the opposing army, such as Hector, a helpful and kind foreign queen, such as Dido, or one of the greatest heroes in history, such as Odysseus, they seem doomed to die, perhaps showing that in ancient literature, nice guys do finish last.

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Why have people been experiencing such strange dreams during the pandemic?

Madeleine May, Lower Sixth Form, Vanbrugh.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

M

any people have reported experiencing unusual dreams since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, particularly throughout the three lockdowns. There are numerous theories explaining why we dream and, although some have contrasting aspects, the dominant idea is that dreams sort through emotions that we suppress. This means that, for example, if someone experiences more feelings of anxiety than they can consciously deal with, a dream in which stress is prevalent might occur. The dreams we do remember are a way of highlighting something that needs to be dealt with; the dreams we do not remember deal with less significant thoughts.

The former should elicit more than a couple of minutes’ thought when we wake up in order to resolve the problem behind them and therefore reduce the occurrence of nightmares. This is why understanding dreams is not only interesting, but also beneficial to us during the Covid-19 pandemic, during which many people will be experiencing worry.

Sigmund Freud dedicated his career from 1897 onwards to investigating why we dream about the things we do. His findings can be applied to explaining unusual pandemic dreams.

He proposed that dreams are a way to deal with anxiety-provoking thoughts. To access repressed thoughts from the unconscious, the dynamic force (that keeps stressful thoughts hidden) is weakened.

When dreaming, this weakens only enough to deal with the thoughts, but not enough to cause high levels of stress - which would happen if we attempted to resolve the problem immediately.

Freud believed that this aids the individual in staying asleep, so the dream can go on to reveal something important. To analyse the meaning of his clients’ dreams, Freud would identify key elements of their dream, and use these symbols as a starting point for psychoanalysis. One technique used is

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free association: the therapist says the symbol out loud, and the client says the first word that they think of in response.

It is important that the response is not thought about consciously, because it is the unconscious mind that contains the true meaning of the symbol represented in the dream. Applying Freud’s findings, strange pandemic dreams could be due to our minds dealing with the unusually high levels of stress we are experiencing.

Free association could help identify the specific aspect causing stress, so it can be resolved.

Carl Jung’s theory leads to the idea that dreams can act as a warning for future dangers, such as potential exposure to Covid-19, or loss of a job because of the pandemic. He worked alongside Freud before forming his own, slightly different theory for why we dream. He placed more emphasis on symbolism and imagery, but the main difference was that Jung believed dreams were associated with our future and that they were not just retrospective and focused on childhood issues.

They were a way of communicating important things to us as individuals. A relevant example of this is that nightmares could be a way of influencing people to stay safe during the pandemic. For

example, the anxiety created in a stressful dream scenario could be carried forward into waking life, leading to people becoming more alert and aware of their surroundings, in order to protect themselves.

Furthermore, Jung investigated more into the objective and subjective content of the client’s dream. Objective content refers to the general meaning of the symbols displayed in someone’s dream, and subjective content is his belief that these symbols have a different relevance to each person. The meaning of symbols is determined by our relationships, events and values in our personalised view of the world. He agreed with Freud that dreams are a tool to help individuals find a solution to their problems in waking life. Using the Jungian theory of dreams, nightmares relating to the Coronavirus pandemic could be a tool to warn us of the danger that Covid-19 poses to our future, both immediately and in the long term.

Psychological, scientific findings explain that our minds remember particularly vivid or emotive dreams because of hormones and our lifestyle.

Most of them (95%) are forgotten because dreaming occurs during the REM (rapid eye movement) stage of our sleep cycle and during this stage there are low levels of the hormone norepinephrine. This hormone links consciousness to memory, so the partial absence of consciousness means it’s difficult to recall most dreams. Dreams that are significant or have the most obvious relevance to us will be the ones retained more easily. The two most common changes to peoples’ lives during lockdown - stress and a lack of physical activity - have been proven to be linked with increased dream recall. This is because they decrease quality of sleep and give rise to frequent awakenings called parasomnias. An ongoing study in the Lyon Neuroscience Research Centre has found that, since March 2020, there has been a 35% increase in people remembering their dreams, as well as 15% more negative dreams.

One factor affecting long term memory is rehearsal (repeatedly thinking about something); if a wild dream catches our attention, we are more likely to think about it, which will then cement it in our longterm memory store. Therefore, an explanation for us retaining the memories and emotions associated with nightmares is that the pandemic has caused anxiety levels to rise.

dreams, such as falling or not being able to run away. The feelings causing these types of dreams anxiety, insecurity and stress - are prevalent at the moment. Recent, scientific research explains, in terms of the sleep cycle and hormones, that we are more likely to remember dreams when stressed and inactive in waking life. If we can understand why we are experiencing nightmares and realise that it is a common issue, it could release some of the anxiety they are causing for many people. Less anxiety would not only improve well-being in general, but it would have a positive impact on quality of sleep and therefore reduce the frequency and intensity of nightmares.

Sources https://www.thesap.org.uk/resources/articles-onjungian-psychology-2/carl-gustav-jung/dreams/ https://www.freud.org.uk https://www.scientificamerican.com https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/284378 Mitchell, Stephen A. and Margaret J. Black. Freud and Beyond (Basic Books, 2016). https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/ article/coronavirus-pandemic-is-giving-people-vividunusual-dreams-here-is-why

Because dreams cannot be objectively measured, there is some disparity between theories as shown between Jung and Freud. There is, however, agreement that dreams deal with complicated emotions that have happened or are happening in our waking lives. This is why dreams are highly personalised, and explains the basis of common

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What are the differences between males and females in the presentation and diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder?

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Rosie Moore, Lower Sixth Form, Feilden.

Academic Grant Recipient.

utism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is an umbrella term encompassing numerous developmental disorders, all with a wide array of symptoms. Since the preliminary investigations of Hans Asperger and Leo Kanner into what we now recognise to be autism, a stereotype has rooted itself into society, confining the condition to young boys of savant ability, or those lacking the ability to talk.

Over decades, this stereotype has been nurtured by the media and blossomed into an opinion prevalent amongst our society even today. Historically, autism was considered to affect only males and today it is estimated that boys are on average three times more likely to have autism than girls.¹ The evidence, however, suggests that autism presents very differently in girls than in boys and our diagnostic criteria as well as genetics, could partly be to blame for this disparity. An understanding of this difference is paramount in ensuring that women and girls with autism get the support and insight that comes with a diagnosis as early as possible.

The initial search for the answer as to why autism is so much more widespread in males led to investigation into the genetics of ASD. Autism is of mostly polygenic aetiologies,² influenced by the environment. This means that no single gene can be attributed as the cause, and so an ‘autism gene’ does not exist. Originally, scientists had hypothesised that a faulty stretch of DNA on one arm of the X chromosome could be to blame, thus meaning that females have a back-up gene on their second X chromosome, which males are lacking.

Despite extensive research, this theory was not backed by the science. However, more research into the genetics surrounding autism in different genders suggested a ‘female protective effect’,³ meaning women require more mutations than men do to develop autism. This highlights the genetic differences between men and women with autism and could provide a reason for why so few females are diagnosed compared to males. The other side of the story, however, lies within the diagnosis.

The UK’s NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) states that to meet the diagnostic criteria for autism, a person must have deficits

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in social communication, as well as repetitive behaviour/narrow interests. America’s DSM5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual) follows a similar manner of diagnosis. These criteria present a problem for the diagnosis of girls and women, who do not obviously present all the symptoms necessary.

Having autism is like speaking a different language to most of your peers, it feels like you’re always missing something, that you’ll never quite understand or be understood. Because of this, many autistic people subconsciously put on a

front that differs from how they actually feel, an act which is called ‘masking’. Autistic people do this to fit in, to make friends and because they believe that it is what their peers are doing too. It is well known and well documented that women and girls mask to a much more extreme extent than men or boys, meaning it is much easier for their autism to go undiagnosed as medical professionals do not see all of the autistic traits they are hiding. It can appear to those making the diagnosis that they are socially adept and thus do not fit the lacking socialcommunication skills criteria for autism, when in truth they find socialising exhausting and feel like an outsider to their group of friends. This means that they may go their entire lives without a diagnosis, unsure of what makes them different, which can lead to problems with their mental health and an increased risk of self-harm or suicidal behaviour.

The NICE manual describes teenagers with autism as being ‘disruptive’ or ‘challenging’ in school, which can be an indication of the condition, yet this behaviour is much less likely in autistic girls.

Instead, girls can mask their autistic characteristics whilst at school, then when they get home they may have a meltdown from the exhaustion of pretending to be neurotypical all day. This means that they are much less likely to be seen as troublesome at school and thus, much less likely to be recommended for assessment.

As for the repetitive and restrictive behaviour and narrow interests associated with autism, research at the Stanford University School of Medicine showed that girls display less of these behaviours. Structural MRI scans of girls and boys with and without autism showed that there were several differences in brain structure between neurotypical boys and girls, yet girls and boys with autism showed a dissimilar set of gender differences in the brain scans, these discrepancies being located in areas such as the motor context, supplementary motor area and part of the cerebellum.⁴ Motor movement associated with such areas is also associated with the repetitive behaviours characteristic of ASD, suggesting that the grey matter structure of the brain is distinct in different genders of children with autism.

Additionally, the ‘special interests’ that are associated with ASD, which are specific areas

of extreme hyperfixaton, are more likely to be overlooked during diagnosis. A boy obsessed with trains and lacking in social skills will ring alarm bells for many professionals, yet a girl obsessed with horses and lacking in social skills could just be ‘shy’ and her obsessive tendencies played down to a notunusual affinity for horses. An autistic girl’s subject of obsession is likely to be in line with interests of their peers and this can mean it goes unrecognised until they grow older and it becomes clearer that these obsessions are pursued with an autistic intensity that is strikingly different to that of their peers.⁵ Because the outdated diagnostic criteria cater to the commonly masculine autistic traits, women and girls are often misdiagnosed with other conditions.

As conditions such as ADHD or OCD have overlaps with the symptoms of autism and are more widely accepted to be common in both males and females,⁶ they are easy to consider as the underlying issue behind the autistic tendencies, so many women are diagnosed with them instead. An autistic teen who has lost a lot of weight could be considered to be anorexic, for example, when the underlying cause is her autism. Medical professionals must look deeper than these to find the root of the issue and give these women and girls the support that they need.

Unfortunately, the medical realm of autistic research has been biased towards focusing on men for so long, that we are undereducated on the phenotype of an autistic female.

This issue is paramount because it is not recognised as an issue by many people. On average girls with mild autism are diagnosed two years later than boys.⁷ Autistic women are over three times more likely than non-autistic women to kill themselves.⁸ Adolescent autistic girls have high rates of depression (34%) and anxiety (36%).⁹ Even the treatments for autism are made for boys on the spectrum, yet offered to girls ignoring their fundamental differences. Steps towards making the diagnostic criteria more gender-inclusive and finding ways to recognise autism in girls at a young age are being taken and hopefully, in the future, the differences in women and girls with autism compared with men and boys will be taken into account more.

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Why should film directors be as well-known as actors?

Emily Mumford, Lower Sixth Form, Feilden.

Clarke Scholar, Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

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hen it comes to film, the actors have the limelight. They live the glamourous lifestyle, attending luxurious award ceremonies and smiling deceivingly when the camera pans over to them at the Oscars. But would you recognise the person who got them there? There is an unspoken inequality between the actors of a film and the directors behind it, making the latter hardly recognisable.

This issue is even more relevant at this time due to the impact of COVID-19 delaying any films from being produced; however, directors are wisely using this time to create the next up and coming blockbuster. Film is constantly changing as new issues come and go in society, making it an ongoing trend unlike any other. But how can so much hard work behind the scenes go unnoticed? This article explains the reasons for this unjust inequality and why directors should not be in the shadow of their fellow actors. Of course, many inequalities are overlooked, but film has always been a big part of society; it generates income, creates jobs and is a source of enjoyment. Film directors should be classed as more than just directors – they are artists. However, we’re perceiving celebrity stature as more important than talent.

The director is like a football manager. They organise the tactics and strategies in order to be successful and the players simply pull the strings

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together. Directors have a severe lack of screen time, which means their audiences are visually unaware of them. However, their work should not go unnoticed due to their impeccable, unique range of skills on show. The concealed nature of a director’s profession is the cause of this inequality; in other words, not seeing the people responsible for what you are watching. This is why the people who spend years directing our favourite films aren’t identifiable to the human eye. However, director cameos indicate that screen time builds profiles. Possibly the most well-known director, Quentin Tarantino, gains his status due to cameos in films he has directed.

Probably best known for his role as Jimmie Dimmick in ‘Pulp Fiction’ and opening the iconic first scene of ‘Reservoir Dogs’, Tarantino has incorporated himself into the actor lifestyle through becoming visible in his films.

Another reason why directors do not get as much recognition as actors do is the media. There are

multiple magazines displaying the recent actor gossip such as OK!, Star and People. However, only one focuses on directors – Filmmaker Magazine.

Therefore, directors experience their fame within their profession, thus staying out of the public eye.

The media view them as a name in the credits, meaning people don’t know the difference between good or bad directing.

This lack of appreciation is also evident at award shows. The Oscars only have one award category for directors – ‘Best Director’ – after discontinuing ‘Best Assistant Director’, ‘Best Director, Comedy Picture’ and ‘Best Director, Dramatic Picture’.

Compared to the four award categories available for actors and actresses, it looks a bit malnourished.

Therefore, society is celebrating superficial skills rather than true creativity. The media is desperately geared towards the recognition of actors and their extrovert personalities in order to create stories that will lead to sales – a money-driven process. On the other hand, smaller film festivals prefer to honour directors in a more sincere way as they want to recognise talent instead of generate profit.

There is an argument that film directors don’t want to be in the public eye, but rather stay behind the camera as their introverted selves feel more comfortable there. Yet, when they do appear on our screens, they often express how they feel valued in the film industry. As well as this, in 2020, Bong Joon Ho valued fellow directors as he claimed he studied Martin Scorsese’s films and that ‘just to be nominated was a huge honour’. Whereas actors sign up to attend award shows – it’s part of the job.

Casey Affleck used the platform of a major awards show at the Oscars in 2017 to show appreciation for his director Kenneth Lonergan as ‘without his part and without his writing I wouldn’t be here for sure’.

So, why should directors be more appreciated for their work? An atmosphere must be formed in which the actors are able to do their best work. A vital part of creating this desired atmosphere includes the director having to open themselves up during the process rather than bringing a stencil as trust between the two is vital. Additionally, there must be a relationship between the director and the audience; a disconnection between the director as an artist, and the audience will lead to failure, even if the filming process was perfect. This problem can occur when directors use their film to explore the human condition – they use it as an instrument to discover what it means to be a human and if these findings are slightly disproportionate then the relationship crumbles. As well as being able to use film for this factor, it is also an ‘outlet for creative impulses’ (Christopher Nolan). However,

these urges must be new and fresh in order to avoid slipping into clichés and the obvious.

Directors express their talent through signature trademarks which are unique to them, yet we still can’t associate these specific techniques with their director. An example of these repetitive trademarks is Stanley Kubrick and bathrooms. Kubrick is invested in the idea of fundamentals – he’s interested in the human character, including thought and feeling. He believed the best setting to probe human emotion is in the privacy of a bathroom to allow observation of humankind at its most basic and animalistic. Suicides (Full Metal Jacket) and attempted murders (The Shining) both occur on Kubrick’s tiled floors. He locks characters away so he can really open them up. Wes Anderson, on the other hand, is known for his symmetrical framing. This technique is simple, central and visually beautiful. His particular style is extremely recognisable as it is very easy to identify one of his films in the opening scenes. An example of this symmetry is in Fantastic Mr. Fox, a very visually pleasing film.

Actors are incredibly talented, but I believe the directors are the ones responsible for their fame.

There wouldn’t be films without directors – they do 90% of the work. The unique qualities required to become a director make them so few and far between, which explains why there are so many more actors and actresses than directors. So, maybe next time you finish a film, stay and watch the credits.

Sources https://www.giantbomb.com/forums/off-topic-31/ actors-get-more-recognition-than-moviedirectors-487385/ https://filmmakermagazine.com/category/interviews/ directors/#.YBahXy2cbBI https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_Awards https://www.careerexplorer.com/careers/filmdirector/ https://directorsview.wordpress.com/2015/01/11/ appreciating-directors/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhpzZRm5rnQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2d9EGFTwqNI

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How do mRNA vaccines work and is the new mRNA Covid-19 vaccine safe?

Khadija Karrouchi, Lower Sixth Form, Harcourt.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

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raditional vaccines use attenuated or inactive antigens found on a specific pathogen, which are injected into the bloodstream, trigger an immune response, and produce antibodies. Alternatively, mRNA vaccines interrupt protein synthesis; they involve cells making part of a viral or bacterial protein, which then triggers an immune response and produces antibodies. Recently, there has been a lot of controversy on social media which suggests the mRNA covid-19 vaccine can alter the patient’s DNA, is full of toxins, causes autism, and can potentially cause infertility in women. However, to counter these concerns it is vital to understand how this particular type of vaccine works and how it causes immunity.

mRNA vaccines contain a single stranded molecule called synthetic mRNA, which carries the instructions needed to make a ‘spike protein’ unique to the specific pathogen during protein synthesis. Once the synthetic mRNA is injected into the recipient, it enters the cytoplasm of the cells. Specific enzymes in the cytoplasm convert the synthetic mRNA into a spike protein through a process called translation. Therefore, since the synthetic mRNA does not enter the nucleus, it does not interfere with the genetic material in the patient’s DNA; this invalidates the claim that the mRNA Covid-19 vaccine (commonly known as the Pfizer vaccine) is genetically modifying. Once the spike protein has been made, it is presented on the cell surface membrane of the cells, which provokes an immune response. Memory T-cells and memory B-cells are produced and remain in the bloodstream to protect the recipient from future

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infection by the same pathogen.

Due to the rapid development of the mRNA covid-19 vaccine, the public have been sceptical as to whether it is safe to use. Despite being relatively new, mRNA vaccine technology has been studied for decades and most clinical trials have been successful. Fortunately, scientists now have the ability to apply a standardized mRNA technology to new vaccines as new pathogens are discovered by tailoring the mRNA vaccine template to the specific disease, allowing them to introduce new and effective vaccines quickly.

There have been many concerns that this particular vaccine could potentially cause infertility in women. This concept originated from information that the protein which is found on the placenta in mammals, called syncytin-1, and the Covid-19 spike protein share similar genetic instructions. Some suggested that the antibodies that are complementary to the spike protein produced once the patient has received the vaccine may also be complementary to synctyin-1, potentially causing infertility. However, there has been no evidence to support this concept. Many scientists argue that the shape of syncytin-1 and the spike protein are relatively dissimilar in structure, therefore the antibodies would not be able to bind to syncytin-1. Currently, there is no data which supports the theory that states the antibodies of the spike protein of the covid-19 vaccine target syncytin-1.

Additionally, there have also been reports that the Pfizer vaccine causes autism. This theory stemmed from information introduced by critics stating that there is a relationship between autism and a mercury-containing organic compound known as thimerosal, typically found in vaccines.

Moreover, this is principally due to the fact that exceedingly high levels of mercury are harmful to the brain and the neurological system. Despite there being no evidence that the small amounts of mercury found as preservatives in vaccines are harmful, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the U.S Public Health Service urged the removal of thimerosal from most children’s vaccines by 2001. Consequently, the US Centre for Disease Control confirmed that even though thimerosal is safe, the mixture of lipid nanoparticles and mRNA, which the Pfizer vaccine consists of, does not contain preservatives, and therefore does not contain thimerosal. Nevertheless, medical and clinical experts are satisfied that current research shows no connection exists between the thimerosal and autism.

Furthermore, there have also been claims that the Pfizer vaccine contains toxic chemicals, which are harmful to the recipient. A Facebook post stating that a poison control expert had confirmed the toxicity of the ingredients of the

mRNA covid-19 vaccines received a large amount of publicity, creating concern amongst the public.

The US Food and Drug Administration released the list of ingredients of the Pfizer vaccine, which included: modified mRNA; lipids such as cholesterol; salts such as potassium phosphate and sodium phosphate; and sucrose. Scientists explained that in significant quantities, these compounds may be toxic to humans; however, they ensured the considerably small amounts used to manufacture the vaccine would not have any harmful effect.

To conclude, there has been no evidence that supports the claims that suggest the Pfizer vaccine is dangerous to humans. Trials that have been carried out over the last year were on a randomized, controlled, and large group of people and have proven to be effective and successful. On the other hand, there is no data which implies that the mRNA covid-19 vaccine does not have any long-term effects which could potentially be harmful. Despite this, the rigorous safety and effectiveness standards are the same for all mRNA vaccines in the US. The Pfizer vaccine had reportedly met these standards and was approved by the Food and Drug Administration. This indicates that the mRNA covid-19 vaccine has met the safety standards, and therefore the chances of any negative side- effects in the patient are relatively low.

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Will the True Lives of Women in the Ancient World be Lost to us Forever?

Millie Knight, Lower Sixth Form, Gascoigne.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

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he study of women in the ancient world provides a fascinating glimpse into the attitudes that governed the lives of women in the past and it is important in understanding patterns we still see today. Although we cannot dispute that there is ongoing discussion of women in ancient literature, it is governed by men due to their command over the literary world. Classics professor Sarah Pomeroy said that 'The study of women in ancient literature is the study of men’s views of women and cannot become anything else.' This statement stems from the lack of female voices vocalizing the female way of life. It also leads us to question whether we are able to recover an authentic experience of a woman, or whether we will only ever see this life through a man’s eyes.

Women are, almost disappointingly, portrayed how we might expect in the large majority of ancient literature, with feminine qualities projected onto them by their male counterparts. In Book 6 of the Iliad, despite her name actually translating to ‘man fighter’, Andromache is told by her husband Hector to “Go home, and attend to your tasks, the loom and spindle” (Hom. Id. 6.490). She is told to leave the fighting to the men, and this is a clear insight into the opinion a man could have of a woman, even one he is close to in marriage.

There are examples in ancient literature that illuminate women with much more strength; however, this strength is often undermined by the fact that their power derives from traditional masculine features. As we see in the Aeneid, it is in fact the moment femininity is showcased that leads female characters, such as Dido and Camilla, to their demise. To the audience of the time, Dido is an agreeable character when in a position of power whilst she is the leader and founder of a city. Yet by falling in love and showing outward signs of emotion, she is soon removed from the plot by suicide. Camilla in Book 11 mirrors this pattern, and even as a woman she is presented as a strong, powerful yet elegant warrior. Despite all this, however, she is killed by becoming distracted by the gold on Chloreus’s armour, “burning with all

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a woman’s passion for spoil and plunder” (Virgil, Aeneid. 11.782). Like Dido, her weakness is her stereotypical femininity, and although we can see strong women being presented, it is only their traditional masculine attributes that are celebrated.

Perhaps despite attempting to convey power in the female gender, the deep-rooted patriarchy prevented men such as Virgil from seeing that women did not need to be like men to be strong – being a woman is enough.

The presence of women in ancient literature standing alone as strong protagonists is scarce, but despite often being sidelined in ancient literature, the integrity of women in many of the plots cannot go unnoticed. Often these stories depend on women, with characters such as Helen causing the Trojan War with her beauty, making her arguably more important than any of the other characters – many men would fight for her but there was only one Helen. However, this superficial power only strengthens the way women were often seen to derive authority from their physicality rather than other methods of strength and power that many of their male counterparts could achieve. Chryseis and Briseis cause the conflict in the Iliad, and yet neither seem to have an identity of their own, with their names meaning daughter of Chryses and

not only discussed the life of women but even the intimate parts of the female experience is the one taste of authentic femininity we can extract from the ancient world. Sappho expresses her emotions with such eloquence and still remains a powerful woman, and her emotions are not her hamartia but rather one of her best traits. She speaks of how, “the most beautiful sight in the whole world is, according to some, a group of cavalry, others say infantry. And still others a fleet of ships. I think it is the one you love” (Sappho, Loeb 16). This proud exclamation of feeling is one men may have portrayed as her weakness, yet she celebrates it. Unlike characters such as Dido, her strength is her stereotypical femininity, which makes her work so powerful as it tackles the patriarchal dominance of the time. However, living in this society dominated by men it may be that these emotions are what is expected of her and fuels her writing, which would be used as entertainment for men, and therefore still distorted by their lens.

daughter of Briseus respectively. This makes the women seem to be merely extensions of men, and yet they are pivotal to the story. We see here how through a man’s eyes there is a clouded view of female existence, where women are used to compliment and contrast the men instead of standing alone, despite an almost reluctant admission that they are needed as crucial members of the plots.

Despite all this, much can be learnt about the treatment of women in ancient times, even if we do not see it through a female lens. The objectification of women is prevalent, and one of our biggest culprits, Ovid, is seen to be repeatedly guilty of many acts of sexual abuse; as Richlin puts it, “more than 50 tales of rape in its 15 books” (Richlin, 1992: 158). However, to a reader in the 21st century, Ovid’s outrageous sexualization of women makes us reflect more on the actions of men than on the women. In Book Three of The Amores where we see him questioning “Why edge away, in vain? The rows force us together” (Ovid, The Amores, Book III, Elegy II, line 20), we do not think of female inferiority but rather of the uncomfortable actions of the male speaker, “forcing” their bodies to touch. It then becomes apparent that maybe the study of women in ancient literature is really the study of not only men’s views on women, but men themselves.

There was however one female writer who stood out from her male counterparts, and her work that

So we may question why this occurred – although sexism has always been ripe throughout most cultures, why is there such a big void of female representation in ancient literature? We may find our answer in the purpose of it. With a few exceptions, art and literature were not made by or for women, which led to the complete dominance of views from a male perspective. Most minorities were left out of literary pursuits, and most of what we can find out about women comes from sources written by men. Even the few precious examples we can find written by women survived in a patriarchal society and will be tainted by this pressure, and we may never recover an authentic study of a woman’s life in the ancient world. Nevertheless, it is crucial that we try, as there can be no doubt that women were an important aspect of ancient life, even if the details have escaped us.

References Hauser, E. (2019, December 02). Homer: Women Why Women Matter. www.massolit.io Jackson, L. (2018, August 15). Euripides: Medea Medea and Women. www.massolit.io Morgan, L. (2018, August 15). Virgil: Aeneid – Women. www.massolit.io Richlin, A. ‘Reading Ovid’s Rapes’. Pornography and Representation in Greece and Rome. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992.

Women in Antiquity, https://womeninantiquity. wordpress.com/

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J. S. Bach vs Lil Tjay: An Exploration of Musical Validity Tom Orton, Lower Sixth Form, Swift.

Academic and Leadership Grant Recipient.

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t seems inappropriate on so many levels to assume any merit in a comparison between one of the world’s most prolific musical genii of the past and a young whippersnapper rapper of recent years. However, an inherent disbelief that the ramblings of Lil Tjay and his hip-hop pals might hold any musical relevance drives me to explore the issue further. Can an underlying harmonic structure be identified in an example of his songwriting? If not, does his writing still hold any musical value? Does it matter?

Contrasting Backgrounds Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Germany in 1685, into a long family of musicians, where he received heavy religious instruction. He was a talented organist, harpsichord and string player and composed music in almost every genre. Having been orphaned as a young child, he went on to live with his older brother, a prolific musician, who was employed as an organist at a church. Whilst here, Bach studied and copied music, skills that were instrumental in developing his use of homophony, visible in some of his later musical works, where hymn-like harmonies and structures provide the foundations for much of the composition.

During his lifetime, J. S. Bach composed a series of chorales for performance in church, intended to be performed by four voices: soprano, alto, tenor and bass – a framework that remains at the core of harmonic analysis to the present day. The patterns of chord movement that make up these works bring with them a set of established rules that are a key reference point for music students at most levels.

In contrast, Tione Jayden Merritt, who is known professionally as Lil Tjay, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter from New York City. Born and raised in the Bronx, his musical career began

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in 2017 and includes a disrupted and turbulent childhood and a prison stay that he feels was instrumental in increasing his creativity.

So, will an exploration of the harmonic structure of LT’s work suggest an understanding of harmony beyond the expected? Could there possibly be any musical features to link the two?

Any similarities at all?

Surprising Similarities Musical value is clearly subjective – the pleasure found by a grandparent in the sweet tones of Vera Lynn nostalgically singing her way through rousing war songs contrasts greatly with the passion found by fans behind the anger and distortion in heavy metal, and the driving rhythms of D and B. Musical quality is not simply determined by the complexity of a chordal structure, it includes so much more, perhaps the simplicity of a catchy melodic line or the sombre purity of the instrumentation.

At first glance, the musical pleasure that can be found in Lil Tjay’s ‘Leaked’ seems to be as a result of the syncopated rhythms that pull the listener in. The repetitive nature of the song produces a commendable simplicity and it is therefore perhaps the extensive changes in instrumental texture, as broken sections contrast with full instrument tutti texture, that create interest. As we build to more

melodic sections within the piece, despite being extremely catchy, the main repeated melodic idea covers a mere interval of a perfect fifth, a very limited range in comparison to the melodies of Bach’s chorales, that use extreme vocal range within the melodies.

Throughout Bach’s chorales, Bach uses the voice very much as an instrument, with a focus on the quality of the sound produced. Bach treats the voice as a sound producer, highlighting the quality of tone and pitch as the trait of most importance. Lil Tjay on the other hand, uses the voice in an alternative way, as a gateway for a narrative, using the singer as a means to present a story.

The lack of importance Lil Tjay places on the tone and timbre of his singing voice, is evident through the often almost talk-like quality he undertakes.

Lil Tjay and Bach both focus on how the words are produced and how they are enunciated, both using this as a means to convey emotion with as much power as possible.

Throughout Bach’s chorales, a strict set of rules is considered in order for the harmony to be built and moved on. When creating his harmonic sequences, Bach will always start by harmonising his cadences. The majority of Bach’s chorales are built around a perfect cadence, chord V to chord I, centring his pieces on the tonic, subdominant and dominant chords (I, IV and V) with restricted use of secondary chords. Bach’s chorale harmonies are, for the majority, kept diatonic and functional, with very occasional use of dissonance and chromaticism. Surprisingly, similarities can be found between the harmony that Bach undertakes and that of Lil Tjay in “Leaked”. The extensive use of perfect cadences governs his song, as it features every four bars throughout. Lil Tjay also keeps his song very diatonic and functional, with no use of dissonance, however he uses a repeated chord sequence throughout - C major, D major, B minor and then E minor. Difference can be found in this through the two musicians, as when stripped back entirely, Lil Tjay’s sequence uses a more diverse range of chords than Bach tends to, as Lil Tjay opts for chords IV, V, III, IV then I. Chord II in the key is a chord rarely employed by Bach - could it perhaps be that Lil Tjay is a more interesting and explorative harmonic creator than first thought?

On a personal level, it comes as a surprise that hidden beneath the misogynistic lyrics of one Lil Tjay’s most popular songs, lies an intellectual, interesting harmonic sequence. The heavily sexualised language he uses offends in its brutality and coarseness and perhaps distances the older listener from the material - perhaps a deliberate choice made in order to attract a younger listener, at an age when a separation from the opinions of elders is to be taken up, wherever possible.

There is also an inherent snobbery to be found in the well-worn pages of the study of music, that perhaps looks down over rimmed glasses to pour scorn on the, apparently, less developed and mathematically crafted form of music.

Emotional Intensity Does it matter if little, or any, musical theoretical value can be attributed to music? Does a simplistic harmonic structure and limited melodic diversity suggest a lack of musical skill? If these descriptors sit comfortably alongside Lil Tjay’s most well-known repertoire, what is it then that is so persuasive about it, that we are able to ignore the offensive narrative and find pleasure in?

Can a link between the two beasts be found in focussing on what is indescribable, what it is that makes our heart sing? There is a quite definite human response found in shared singing, in parts of Bach’s choral pieces – an embrace of a warm and resonant sound that brings with it an emotional intensity that takes you someplace else. That same response follows the rhythms and beats that centre rap music, binding it to our intrinsic pulse that encourages us to move and sway with sound – a quality present from such a young age and seen in the simplistic lunges of young children as they enjoy a first meeting with music.

So albeit that on an academic level, music students are unlikely to sit at desks in the future, mirroring the parts and structures that come together to produce the songs of Lil Tjay – we hope that their continued analysis of Bach’s chorales is not limiting, but instead opens their ears to recognising the joy found in musical works of all ages and all genres.

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