OUR MISSION
SUBMISSIONS
Published monthly, The Talon strives to be an innovative student magazine that is entertaining, intellectually provocative, and visually engaging. We are conscious of the responsibility of writing and publishing, and we seek to create a dynamic magazine that is worthy of its readers. We show respect for our readers by exposing them to a variety of perspectives. Ultimately, The Talon seeks to bring Graded to the world and the world to Graded.
The Talon wants to hear from you! We encourage submissions and ideas for articles and themes from all members of the Graded community. We publish in English, Portuguese, French, and Spanish. We reserve the right to edit submissions for length and clarity. The opinions expressed in the articles are those of the writers and not necessarily of The Talon. For this reason, we do not accept anonymous submissions. Send submissions, ideas, and themes to talon@graded.br.
TALON STAFF 2012-2013
About the Cover
EDITORS-IN-CHIEF: Julia Wu & Kyle Bissell LAYOUT EDITOR: Nicole Vladimirschi COLUMNISTS: Ines Gil, Lucas Zuccolo, Kat Aliano, Luiza Gundim, Giovanna Regis, Fernão Mesquita NEWS: Daniel Almeida (Editor), Andrea Ferreira (Assistant Editor), Annie Groth FEATURES: Adam Fertig (Editor), Mariana Lepecki (Assistant Editor), Julia Abreu, Clara Bezerra, Rê Sayão ENTERTAINMENT: Yasmin Della Nina (Editor), Kevin Bengsston (Assistant Editor), Mendel Schwarz, Felipe Marques, Larissa Chern SPORTS: Kevin Wolfson (Editor), Rafa Rocha (Assistant Editor)
“THE END IS NEIGH! BRACE YOURSELVES, THE APOCALYPSE IS COMING! STOCK UP ON FOOD, SAY BYE TO YOUR CLOSEST FRIENDS AND JUST WAIT FOR IT TO HAPPEN! IF IT’S ON THE TALON, IT MUST MEAN THAT IT’S TRUE!” —Dani Reis
THE END HAS COME! Enjoy flipping through the pages numbered in reverse order like a countdown to doom. We tried our best to include a little bit of everything—fear, anxiety and relief—in this edition. You are free to use it as a stress reliever or survival guide.
Take Us With You Around the World
Here’s an interesting challenge for all globe-traveling Talon readers. Take a snapshot in an exotic or wellknown place with any edition of the magazine in your hands. Then, send it to talon@graded.br. Next semester, the best photos will be featured on Talonline.
BLOGGERS: Paty Kim, Mariana Bender, Victor Lee PHOTOGRAPHER: Karen Kandelman ▪ ▪ ▪ TEACHER ADVISORS: Josh Berg & Mary Pfeiffer PORTUGUESE LANGUAGE CONSULTANT: Maggie Moraes ▪ ▪ ▪ E-mail: talon@graded.br
And, honestly, with all the talk about 21 December going around, we hope it’s not time for goodbye! Actually, your chances of dying due to too many thrills this holiday season are probably greater than that of the skies crumbling. So remember to “be safe” while enjoying the break. (you’re welcome, Mr. Bair!) See you in 2013!
SURVIVAL! We hope that our next Talon them is what we will be celebrating after making it unscathed through vacation. What are compelling stories of survival? What have you survived? What do you want to survive? Keep the Monday, February 4th deadline for articles in the back of your mind. And remember, you don’t have to write on our monthly theme to write for the Talon!
A green magazine, five years and counting! Since August 2007, The Talon has been printed on recycled paper.
editors-in-chief
Things to Say Before You Die Regardless whether you’re leaving on the 21st or not
Julia Wu
A
slice of the world’s population is bracing itself for the imminent apocalypse foretold by the Mayans who, according to others, simply ran out of room on their calendar. Nevertheless, you might identify with me when I confess that I fear the time when we’ll kiss the sun goodbye and watch the thought of tomorrow grow extinct. This does not have to be the case on doomsday only—the last day of our lives will come for every one of us, and we can’t really control it. When it comes for me, I guess I would wish that I had “lived to the fullest,” but how does one even measure that fullness? I don’t believe that life must include turbulence, drama, and rollercoasters of emotions to be worthwhile. But there certainly are things that we say or do that stay with us and make our lives valuable. Recently, I came across an article on Forbes.com titled “40 Things To Say Before You Die” written by Jessica Hagy, an artist, writer and award-winning blogger who ornaments her pieces with diagrams and illustrations. This article was the most read on Forbes for a number of days. Interestingly, it was more popular than articles about Android tablets and Disney’s purchase of Lucasfilms on a website known for its business-, entrepreneurship-, and billionaire-related features. After skimming through the light and visually appealing piece, I decided to select a few items that are worth sharing with Graded students. So now I greet you with a small list of things that I think are worth saying (sincerely!) before we die.
life. It’s easy to move, but not as easy to move with a motive. It’s easy to know what you’re doing and how, but not as easy to know why. And to truly devote to something because you have faith in it must be incredible.
“I wonder.” You might recall saying, “I wonder how many stars are in the sky” or “I wonder why airplanes can fly” as a carefree child. Of course, you might still wonder, but you probably say things like “I wonder who my ex is dating now” or “I wonder if Mr. X is going to give us a quiz tomorrow.” So where has the passionate, authentic curiosity and questioning gone? You tell me.
“I love you.” Say it to things. To ideas. To events. To people. But don’t take these three words for granted—use them with caution because not everything deserves them. You know you’re doing it right when your heart vibrates as these syllables make their way to the receiver.
“I’ll try it.” It seems as though we are naturally reluctant to try unfamiliar things or tackle issues that might require some struggling. In short, we don’t usually welcome challenges—which makes them all the more valuable when overcome. “Congratulations.” Some people seldom say this word, and others say it frequently with jealousy encrypted. It’s even hard for us competitive Graded students to acknowledge each other’s accomplishments. But it sure feels good when you’re genuinely happy about another person’s achievement, or vice-versa. “I believe in this.” Personally, I see this as one of the most valuable statements in
31 • the talon
“How can I help you?” As an IB student, I find it hard to put aside the to-do list that scrolls past my feet and pay attention to other people’s feelings. Even my mom said that I don’t give her affection anymore… Perhaps someday we’ll be able to balance the shaping of ourselves while lending a helping hand to others. “I can do better.” When receiving the results of a test/quiz/examination, we either jump upon seeing a pleasing score or blame ourselves for being useless and stupid. It is indeed difficult to stand up after an injury and find the determination to improve. And this is just one of the many scenarios where the willpower to outperform ourselves is invaluable. “I tried my best.” This statement accompanies a sense of fulfillment and gratification. You realize that you’ve stretched to your full potential and put forth the best you could. In such cases, not even being rejected from your dream school can bring you down.
“Eureka!” I have learned that the light bulb of discovery is responsible for one of the best sensations in the world. Whether it’s finding the answer to a problem that has troubled me for much too long or coming up with a fresh idea, I always feel like a winner when that light bulb shows up. Don’t take my article (or the article that inspired this one) as a recipe. I haven’t mastered life and don’t expect to do so any time soon. These are just the thoughts of a senior who already misses Graded; of a young girl who’s still learning how to maneuver the paddles of her boat. But please remember that life’s the thing that goes by while we’re busy doing x, thinking about y and chasing z. So let’s make sure that we stuff in some of the essentials before realizing it’s too late. Read Jessica Hagy’s full article on Forbes.com.
editors-in-chief
A Year of Lasts It’s the end of the world as we know it Kyle Bissell
A
nd I feel anything but fine. After what most seniors would call a horrid semester, it is the end of it that we should be dreading. Over a month of doing absolutely nothing, just thinking … thinking. The college apps are in, each acceptance or rejection perhaps signifying a very different next four years. There’s nothing more we can do for our college profile, that’s done. Most importantly (or disturbingly), we’ve been praying for the semester to end but now we’re down to our last one. When this kicks in, there will be some heavy reminiscing. For me, this year has been a year of lasts. Last first day of school at Graded, last class photo, last Big 8 … all aspects of our Graded lives that we have taken for granted, all of these years we will never live again. For the last few years, Graded has practically served as our world. I can say with utmost conviction that this is the only world I really know. All of this acumen we have procured over the years about how to effectively cut in the snack bar line, get an extension for a paper that should have been written long, long ago, or plan on which of the three assignments will most likely be checked next class will be useless come September. No more Zombie Zoo, no more assemblies … no more Graded friends. This is that point where you’ve zoomed out of little details you’ll be missing to see the big picture. It’s possible that the group of people who sit together next Monday morning on the senior benches will never again be together as a whole after graduation. Ever … that’s a difficult concept to grasp. We’ve experienced it, but only in small doses. It may be painful to see your best friend move to Argentina in the middle of 9th grade, but from what I’ve gathered from Graded alumni, that is equivalent to a mere painful prick compared to ripping off a huge Band-Aid that’s been on forever. This may be the point where you are trying to keep down that knot in your throat. Maybe it is too early to think about all of this; graduation goggles can come next semester. We all know to some extent how difficult it is to think about an end. Well, there’s good news.
According to most of the definitions I have found regarding the word ‘apocalypse’, it seems that modern media has affected our vision of the ordeal, pushing it to more of a negative light. When I think apocalypse, I think of my house being overrun by Walking Dead zombies or the movie 2012. Many have looked at December 21, 2012 as the end of humankind but in truth, it would be more accurate to look at it as more of a metamorphosis. This end of Graded life, our world, is in truth just a shock as we enter a new era. Those alumni that we see floating around campus from time to time are here to regain some vestige of the feeling of being at Graded. This does not necessarily mean that they are not happy where they’re at now. According to most people who have gone to college, at least in the USA, life gets better. Imagine waking up, stopping at a Starbucks, and simply walking into class, without any interaction with traffic or cars or any kind. We can also have a mature Graded Photography Department social life, meeting people from all over the world, and learning from them. Yes, Graded 2013 Seniors, you are one short semester away from the end of the world as you know it. Enjoy each last, whether it is as trivial as the last fire drill or as heart-wrenching as the last day as a senior. Graduation will be a tearful event, and I suspect even those who have inveterately asserted again and again that Graded is not the place for them, that it is holding them down, will be sobbing into their mother and father’s shoulders, understanding that their dreams of escape have finally come to fruition. This vacation, I suggest you all do some real soul-searching, maybe actually read those books that you have been putting off to get in those extra hours of cramming before the physics test. No matter what you do, understand that this all is coming to an end. What is up to you is how you take the next steps after walking off that stage in May. But for now, let us enjoy our time together; these will be some of the most important memories of our lives.
the talon • 30
editors-in-chief
Recently @ Graded Our whereabouts as the end approaches Julia Wu & Kyle Bissell
B
ig 8: Once again, Graded was very well represented
HS Play: Five student-led productions took place last month
on the athletic front at the Big 8 tournament. School
in the Black Box Theater, where audiences watched the shows
spirit was plentiful as the basketball and soccer girls
put on by their peers for free. The event was mainly orches-
dribbled their way to gold. Cheerleaders also put on a show
trated by the student directors who cast the actors, took care
with their spins, stunts, chants and cartwheels. It is safe to
of lighting, and created stage directions for regular scripts.
say that the seniors living their last Big 8 found it to be per-
These young directors, actors and stage crew members were
haps the most memorable of all their visits, filled with highs
not constantly guided by teachers or required to participate in
and lows. For the first time, all senior athletes at the tourna-
the productions by any class—the first time for such a drama
ment received exclusive t-shirts as souvenirs.
event at Graded.
Ilha do Cardoso Trip:
Relax Party: On the
Members of this com-
week that November
munity
proj-
passes the torch to
ect were proud to see
the last month of the
many of their aspira-
year, college coun-
tions come to fruition
selors
in the inauguration of
and Ms. Miller threw
the Community Cen-
a “chill” party for
ter,
that
seniors during Flex.
cost close to 150,000
Showing up at the
reais and took years
Choir Room expect-
to
ing a typical college
a
service
building
create.
Students
Mr.
Daniels
were proud to show off
meeting,
seniors
their accomplishments
were
with their parents and
find healthy snacks,
teachers. There were
juices and no lec-
surprised
to
smiles all around, Amaral seemingly experiencing a catharsis
turing. Props to our counselors for making us take a breath.
after months of stress.
What’s next? The return of the massage team we hired three years ago?
Musical Performances: Graded may take pride in the continued quality of its music programs, as seen with the recent
Senior Trip: After generating much commotion among stu-
band, orchestra, and choir performances. There seems to be a
dents, administration, teachers, and parents, seniors traveled
paradoxical coexistence between end-of-year stress and holi-
to Maresias beach, three hours from São Paulo. At a place
day spirit. This month was also a perfect testament of how
where the sunrise and sunset are stunning enough to murder
balanced Graded is in regards to its four pillars of learning.
thoughts of stress, some seniors spent a weekend in reckless
Students of different grade levels with diverse interests came
disregard of school and its demands. While some experienced
together to make up the harmonious components that bring
a painful reality check when returning to the Graded grind,
life to performance arts.
many enjoyed the trip.
29 • the talon
point of view
Once Upon A Time There was no more world... Yasmin Della Nina he theme for this month’s Talon, a theme that is putting
T
and fire because of an astronomical earthquake. I just want
many people on edge, is bothering me quite a lot. Honestly,
to die in peace. And quickly. I’d rather have an asteroid hit
who are these Mayans to say that the world is going to end on
us, that way we won’t feel a thing. Or maybe the sun might
December 21, 2012? Who do they think they are? I mean, so
just explode, and then we’ll be sucked into a black hole. Who
what that they were a great civilization that was way ahead
knows? Maybe we’ll end up in another dimension or something.
of their time? They can’t dictate when the world is going to
Wasn’t it Einstein who said the universe is filled with wormholes
spontaneously combust. Especially if they say that it’ll happen
and that time is warped and all that? We could finally test the
in the middle of my senior year, meaning that all of my life will
theory! There’d be nothing to lose anyway, so why not?
have been spent IN SCHOOL. Not that school is bad or anything. It might be incred-
What if the world ends with a zombie apocalypse? Scientists are constantly exploring a whole bunch of new vaccines
ibly boring and stressful at times,
for all kinds of crazy diseases, so
but it’s a part of my life that I don’t
it’s not like it couldn’t happen at
regret living at all. It’s an experi-
some point. In case it does, I want
ence I enjoy having. The problem is
to say here in this article that if
that, if it depends on the Mayans, it
anyone who’s with me when the
will be all of my life. School. That’s
apocalypse happens knows that
what I’ll have.
I’m about to become a zombie,
The whole nice side of
please kill me. Just do it. If pos-
school is getting to grow old and
sible, before I start thinking like
then look back on those awkward
a zombie. I want my last memory
years. But those years I need to live
to come from my human mind.
to finally be able to look back will
I’m probably going to die so fast
never exist. It’ll just be nothing.
toastyart.com in this scenario. Just judging by
Nothing is what lies ahead, and not knowing what nothing even is kind of scares me.
my skills in games like Call of Duty and Resident Evil I’d be surprised if I lasted two days. No, not
But, of course, none of that matters because the world
even two. Maybe one. If I’m lucky. I just know that while I’m
is not going to end. Right? How many times have people said
alive, I’m going to do what I can to feed the zombies some
that it would? The year 2000 is the example I think most of us
corrupt politicians. They’ve never done anything for the world
are familiar with. Everyone was freaking out because it was
other than stealing, so maybe they can redeem themselves by
predicted that the world would end at the turn of the century.
serving as food for the crazy, half-dead people.
Some people were literally in hiding (like that would make a
The world won’t end. But if it does (it won’t), then
difference) and it turned out NOTHING HAPPENED. I can just
no matter how unfair it might be and how much longer we
imagine how embarrassed they were (for thinking the world
would’ve lived, at least I and my fellow seniors won’t have to
would end AND for actually thinking that hiding would save
take the IB Exams in May. And, hey, the mere possibility of the
their lives). In fact, I will take the main character of the book
world ending will perhaps be a good reason to convince our
The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Charlie’s advice and always
families to open our Christmas presents sooner (just in case
say that the world won’t end, because if it does, there will
we don’t make it to the 25th). And what in my opinion will be
be no one around to tell me “I told you so!” and if it doesn’t,
the best side of the “end” is finally finding out what happens
then I’ll get to say “I told you so!” Guaranteed success!
when we die. Kind of gloomy, I know, but like Peter Pan would
But let’s say the world does end. First of all, at least I
say, “to die will be an awfully big adventure.”
hope it’s not how it ended in the movie 2012. I don’t want to be swallowed by a tsunami or fall into an abyss of raging lava
the talon • 28
point of view
Love?
A twist in the story Larissa Chern
I
want to take advantage of this month’s Talon theme to write an article on something that has nothing to do with destruction, darkness, death, or endings. Instead of looking at the world negatively, let us switch gears and observe what is beautiful and admirable around us. Let us talk about love. I know, this may sound irrelevant in the month where some are freaking out because everything is supposed to go down. But if the world is indeed coming to an end, that gives us more reasons to appreciate what truly matters. Some people question the existence of love. And I used to ignore those remarks; in my head love is all there is. However, some studies have shown that love is simply a result of a chemical released by the body. Thus, that leaves us with the theory that love is actually a drug. Is it really? Well, sometimes that theory might make sense. Think about that boy or girl you like. Whenever you see him or her in the hallway, your hands sweat, you lose all sense of gravity and direction, and you are left with a funny-feeling stomach. You might call that being in love, but think twice. What if that enchanted, precious human being were to kiss someone right in front of you? Oh, the rage that would take over your body, the tears that would fight against your emotions to ooze down your face… And talk about all the swearing involved. In that moment you would definitely beat yourself up for thinking you were once in love. Well, that feeling in the hallway most certainly was not love to begin with. That was hormone activity. But let us go back to the theory that love is actually chemicals. That means that what our parents feel for us is nothing more than a result of hormones and brain activity? I highly doubt it. Imagine a world without love. But consider real love and passion, not that being-in-love feeling. Honestly, nothing worthwhile would exist. The world population would be reduced to those humans who were
27 • the talon
products of pure lust; no one would work for anything, and we would just lie around, waiting for death to arrive. There would be no motivation at all since what moves humans is love. What makes that successful businessman wake up early in the morning and go to that depressing, closed, barely ventilated office is the love for what he does. That renowned writer you admire is only famous because of her love for literature and sometimes because she writes about nothing more than love. Your parents work hard to provide you with a good education and a comfortable home because of love. And can you imagine Taylor Swift in a world without love? No more breakup or getting-back-together songs! If we lived in a world with no love we would not mind the approach of December 2012. The end of the world would be insignificant since we would not have anyone to fear for, or anyone to care for in this universe. We would be indifferent about everything. Can you imagine that? For me that would be the end of the world, already. But if images1.wikia.nocookie.net we come to think of it, maybe we would not even notice we were indifferent about life, since love would have never existed in the first place. Nihilists, I apologize for the rage this article might stimulate, but love is the center of everything. So take some time to think about every time someone showed you love. A look, an embrace, a passionate kiss that swept you off your feet or a smile… we tend to take these for granted, but they say a lot. Therefore, put your massive pile of homework aside, forget about all the stress, forgive that someone who hurt you, apologize to that one you upset. And seniors, put those college applications aside for one second! We do not even know if we are going to be alive for college anyways. Just kidding! We will. But do take some time off all these trivial preoccupations and look at the love around you. Give love, take love. The world is beautiful— embrace it.
point of view
Generation Y
Are we dissapointing or reinventing? Renata Sayão
W
e have all heard an elder talk about how “in my time,
generation is the first in history to be dumber than the last.
few had cars and had to walk to school” and how our
The first thing that I was curious to know is how one measures
lives are “very privileged.” Generation Y, also known as the
such a thing, and after searching the school’s databases, I found
Millennial Generation, those born between the years of 1982
one reliable article that answered my question. According to
and 2000, has been heavily criticized for their “post-emotio-
Public Radio International, “for every five students who start in
nal” attitudes, and the general decline in intelligence. There
community college, only one finishes within three years, even
are numerous documentaries, articles, interviews, and other
though community college is supposed to be two years or less.”
mediums that discuss whether or not we are disappointing our
Education reporter Jon Marcus said that Google might be one
ancestors. Not only do I get defensive when my generation is
of the main reasons for this “all time low,” since people now
trivialized, but after thorough research, I have come to the
have a huge network of information but don’t contemplate and
conclusion that this assumption is also wrong.
reflect on what “they ingest.”
According to a New York Times article by William De-
This might be true for some people, but maybe Google
resiewicz, previous youth cultures like the beatniks, hippies,
might have caused a beneficial effect to our society as well.
punks, and slackers “could be characterized by two related
PBS reported that the Pew Research Center surveyed experts
things: the emotion or affect they valorized and the social
in education and technology and found that “they believe that
form they envisioned.” He analyzed how Generation Y feels no
the Internet is making us smarter overall, although it’s also
significant anger towards the world, has no edge, and no ego.
changing some of the definitions of human intelligence.” I agree
The documentary ReGeneration complements this statement by
with this: Generation Y represents change, and by stubbornly
criticizing how we don’t feel strongly for the world’s problems,
analyzing intelligence through the lenses of those stuck in the
we have become “apathetic.” This is a result of technology
past that defined what intelligence was when Google was just
booms, media, and history, as the director Phillip Montgomery
starting to gain prominence, we are not “ingesting” reliable
stated in an interview earlier this year.
information. There seems to be a nostalgia epidemic targeting
I disagree, and so do a bunch of cybernauts who blog and “vlog” about it. Movie critic Matt Goldberg from “Colli-
the past generations. Admittedly, even I sometimes believe I’m living in the wrong time period.
der.com” even said: “[ReGeneration] spends most of its time
However, we must take into account our own bias.
working off fallacies, personal anecdotes, and generalities.”
French writer Marcel Pagnol once wrote “the past is better
In other words, its main arguments are, dare I say it, invalid.
than it was and the present is worse than it is.” People in the
Still concluding what Deresiewicz said in his article, after
50’s would probably say that the 20’s were better, and so on.
analyzing both viewpoints, he gave some insight into what our
While I agree that not all change is good and our generation is
generation might stand for: The Millennial Generation has an
flawed in many aspects, it does not do justice to belittle us. It
entrepreneurial ideal (“Think of Steve Jobs, our new deity”),
is not the end of the world; we simply run our lives differently
which explains our polite, pleasant personality; we have a
than our ancestors. The Baby Boomer Generation, Generation X,
“commercial personality.” A polite and pleasant personality
and Generation Y must be put in context when being compared,
definitely does not parallel with “apathetic to the world’s
especially since the people’s priorities, technology and tools,
problems,” and definitely not a generation with no cause. In-
knowledge and access to all of these has changed drastically
dustrial and entrepreneurial interests have resulted in a youth
in the last 60 or so years. All things considered, are we disa-
population that is obliged to act friendly in order to succeed.
ppointing the past generations or are we just reinventing life?
This does not mean we are apathetic and we have no “edge.” In my first days as a sophomore, a teacher strategically
Sources: nytimes.com, collider.com, pri.org, pbs.org
used a fear appeal to get us excited about the new school year. He presented us with a “fact” that I will never forget: our
the talon • 26
point of view
Adam Writes Another Article About US Politics We promise it’s the last one...this year Adam Hunt Fertig
W
ell, here we are. It’s all over. The American presidential race is finally finished as Barack Obama begins his second term. Pundits across the US are analyzing and reflecting on the neck-and-neck race, but that’s not what I’m interested in. I’m writing this to file a complaint. A complaint not against the results of the election, but against the election itself. A complaint against how we choose our representatives, and how they get chosen. A complaint against politics. First of all, I’d like to file a complaint against political spending. There are always huge amounts of money spent on presidential campaigns, especially with the advent of Super PACs (Political Action Committees), organizations that can use their practically unlimited funds to help a candidate’s campaign. Super PACs were declared officially legal in 2010 by the Supreme Court, but PACs have been around since about 1974. This election season, however, the spending borders on the ridiculous. Between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, 2.3 billion dollars have been raised for their campaigns. While Obama relied more on small donations of under $200, Romney has received absolutely gargantuan sums. Businessman Rob Perry, for example, donated $17,250,000 to Romney’s “Restore our Future” Super PAC. That’s more than a little bit frightening. And where do these piles of cash go? To advertising, mostly. The Democrats went crazy these last few months when it came to televising ads. They spent around $280 million in advertising, compared to the Republicans’ meager $150 million. Advertising spending has also become ridiculously concentrated. Ohio, as the main US swing state, has always been targeted more heavily when it comes to political ads. This year, however, Ohioans were simply bombarded. The campaigns spent around $181 million in Ohio alone, leading to an onslaught of political advertisements that added up to an average of 333 ads per day. Political satirist Jon Stewart associated this ad frenzy to the damages of Hurricane Sandy, joking that “Tragically, 99% of people in Ohio still have electricity.” I’d also like to file a complaint against what this leads to. Setting aside the effects of on a candidate’s popularity, this mammoth spending feeds one major problem: the continuation of the two-party system. Democrats and Republicans dominate the political playing field to an extreme degree. While some argue that a two-party system leads to political stability and less divisiveness, the disadvantages far outweigh the advantages. For Americans, voting for president has now really just become picking the lesser of two evils. Chances are slim that you agree with everything a candidate says. Maybe you like Obama’s economic policies, but not his stance on gay rights. Maybe you believe in downsizing America’s military, something that neither Obama nor Romney
25 • the talon
believe in. There are other people running for president that probably share your views more accurately. But how would you ever find out about them? How many of you have heard of Gary Johnson? Jill Stein? Virgil Goode? Chances are you might have heard Gary Johnson’s name mentioned once or twice, at the most. These are all third-party presidential candidates, candidates with strong platforms that might match your own political views. But you might never hear about them, because the American mindset is so centered around Democrats and Republicans. Third-party candidates aren’t let into the mainstream media’s debates. When Green Party candidate Jill Stein tried to challenge this debate bias, she was arrested. Also, most third parties don’t accept corporate donations because of the ethical issues PACs present, meaning that their campaigns have much less funding than the Democratic or Republican ones. Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson put it eloquently by saying that candidates might as well wear NASCAR-style jackets covered in corporate sponsor logos. That’s how privatized the US elections have become. Now, there are obviously flaws to abolishing the twoparty system. Here in Brazil, for instance, there is a dizzying number of political parties, many with only subtly different policies. The Brazilian political melting pot also allows for candidates like Tiririca, a clown (yes, an actual clown), to win an election by a landslide. That makes you wonder, though: is the US any different? We have packaged candidates who lie shamelessly, dish out more than hefty sums of money for fallacious ads, participate in “debates” that are really no more than pre-rehearsed press conferences, and win elections only by dint of having a “(D)” or an “(R)” at the end of their name. That’s pretty laughable. So, I’d like to file a complaint. Not just a complaint against the elections or corporate donations or the two-party system or political clowns or clown politicians. I’d like to file a complaint against the lack of complaints. The only thing more infuriating than the poorly designed political system is the popular belief that it’s well designed. We need a drastic change in the political system, and how we view it. Not to sound melodramatic, but we need an end to the political world. I’m not an anarchist: I believe firmly in the ability government has to help the governed. But I also believe that the system we currently use is in desperate need of an apocalypse. Sources: nytimes.com, washingtonpost.com, nationaljournal. com
point of view
The Implosion of the Welfare State Discussing taxation and the future of an unsustainable model for the US Rafael Rocha
L
adies and gentlemen, what we are witnessing throughout the world today is that social welfare policies are becoming a more important and fundamental part of governments throughout the world. Before I start off, let’s make it clear what a welfare state actually means: it is defined as “a nation in which the government undertakes large-scale action to ensure the provision of social goods and benefits” which “are usually provided at public expense with little or no cost to the recipient of the services.” In other words, the goal behind social welfare is very simple, and that is to reduce and combat poverty through government assistance. What we must analyze, though, is whether countries implementing and expanding these programs, most specifically the U.S, are justified in doing so. Since the elections have just recently occurred in the United States and we’ve all been talking about the country’s social, political, and economic issues, I’d like to bring particular attention to the expansion of the welfare state in the country. According to CNS News on August 2012, “Federal and state welfare assistance has grown almost 19 percent.” and there are currently a total of 79 federal welfare programs, at a cost of nearly $1 trillion a year. When you couple that with the fact that the U.S has had an annual deficit of over $1 trillion over the last four years, the effectiveness of the welfare programs can be questioned. In no way am I suggesting that the whole reason for the deficit is the welfare programs, but in my vision they are a big part of it. Capitalism is not perfect, but it’s been an efficient system for the United States, which has led to it becoming the most prosperous nation in the world for a long time. However, social welfare programs cripple the capitalist system, which is based entirely on self-motivation and self-sufficiency. Many view redistributive taxation as a progressive means of reducing poverty, but it is not efficient since the federal government would collect more taxes it could broaden the tax base instead of increase taxes on the rich, who are already paying most of the taxes to begin with. There is this misguided notion that the “1%” benefit from the tax system currently in place. According to The National Taxpayers Union, the top 1% of taxpayers pay 36.7% of the Federal Income Tax, the top 5% pay 58.6% of it, and the top 10% pay 70.5% of it. The bottom 50% of the population, or in other words, about 155 million people, pays merely 2.3% of the Federal Income Tax. I’m not saying “Hey, let’s give the rich people huge tax breaks,” but the U.S has to make sure that 50% of the population isn’t completely subsidizing the other 50% of the population. That is an inefficient system that will destroy itself and the concept of self-sufficiency that has made the U.S so prosper-
ous. Incentives for the poor need to be there, but they should not create dependency and a “culture of poverty,” where even those who are unemployed and not looking for work, can have numerous services covered for them. It’s unsustainable and uncontrollable. If you’re above the poverty line, you should absolutely be paying your fair share of taxes. Many people point to the “Nordic Model” as a reason to continue expanding the welfare state, and how the Human Development Index, as well as many other studies, point to Scandinavia as a region with a high quality of life. However, we must first understand why the Nordic Model has been successful. For one, the norms in regards to responsibility and work ethic are very firmly rooted in the Scandinavian culture, and the culture is fairly homogeneous in comparison to countries like Brazil or the United States. Thus, Nordics are less likely to try to use tax avoidance schemes than Americans. Also, the “onefits-all” solution proposed by the welfare state functions more efficiently in a strong, homogenous environment. The success of the Scandinavian countries has more to do with culture and demographics than it does with the actual welfare state. We should also not forget that the free-market and fiscal conservatism have led the Scandanavians to prosperity. An attempt to recreate the “Nordic Model” in a heterogeneous environment like those of the U.S or Brazil could fail miserably. There is a fine line between giving incentives to people so they can become self-sufficient and making people become government-dependent because they have little to no motivation to go look for work when they are being subsidized by the government. We cannot misrepresent economic freedom as living off of the government. We should not pursue full equality if it puts our freedom at stake. As Alexis de Tocqueville, a French political thinker in the 1800’s put it, “Americans are so enamored of equality that they would rather be equal in slavery than unequal in freedom.” As I see it, President Reagan took this message to heart during his two terms in the 80’s. Reagan showed that tax avoidance schemes could be reduced through his plan of tax cuts, and as a result, that could stimulate economic growth and increase tax revenues from the rich. President Reagan based his tax reform on the ideals that he carried with him: free enterprise, self-reliance, and economic independence. People should be seen as individuals, not as a group. We all have different interests, passions, and desires, and we can only reach these if we are granted the gift of economic freedom, which is threatened by the expansion of the welfare state. Sources: cnsnews.com, bbcnews.com, National Taxpayers Union, amren.com, nj.com
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point of view
Chauvinism It’s time for another look
Faria Nasruddin Guest Contributor
M
achismo, or the English term, chauvinism, has integrated itself into society and is a constant topic for debate. We have to admit that it’s a problem. Not only that, it’s a problem that’s been around for a very long time. The most significant time we females took action was probably the second-wave feminist movement in the 60’s, and it did change things for us. But it is now the year 2012 and peoples’ positions on the problem are still essentially the same. Everyone still cracks jokes about women’s rights, and these jokes are actually perpetuating the presumed inferiority of women. However, no one can blame the male population entirely for this inferiority. We, females, also contribute and perpetuate these kind of jokes. We, too, are locked in that old-fashioned mindset. Females subject themselves to their own negative gender role. Speaking as a woman, I will say that some of us feel the need to apply ourselves to these gender roles to avoid seeming strange. This self-inflicted chauvinism can be seen in how co-dependent we are. Women have developed this image that we do practically everything together. If a woman is independent she is treated with skepticism. This is a significant factor in why women are less respected in positions of power and are still getting paid less than men. It is also the reason that many men still look down upon them. Though most people have started to reject conventional notions of gender roles, there are those who believe that these roles have value. Girls who have been brought up in traditional and narrow-minded ways hold their gender back from overcoming chauvinism. Some girls believe that they don’t need to fight chauvinism because it is normal. Traditional mindsets perpetuate the gap between gender rights and lead to the objectification of women. Those traditional values simply don’t apply to modern and complex society. No one gender is guaranteed additional rights. Gender roles have become obsolete in our era. Why, then, is there still a clash over these roles? Though some women need to recognize these issues
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and change their attitude towards the gender roles that are set up for us, men should also encourage us to defy those roles and have the same respect for us as they have for other men. Recently, a friend told me that “Male privilege is when ‘I have a boyfriend’ is the only response that will stop a guy from coming onto you, because he respects another man more than he respects your actual opinion.” This is the sad truth. One man respects another man more, simply because he is a man. I know there are women out there who want to stop this from happening, but their voices aren’t heard, simply because they are women. They are put aside and ignored. Men who put down women with their sexist comments and jokes discourage those who want to put an end to sexism. Women who go against sexist jokes face the threat of becoming the brunt of the next one. These puns, jokes and comments are set up by the traditional gender roles that men must be stronger silverfox-whispers.com and better than females. This idea is being passed down and enforced from each generation on to the next. Everyone is exposed to media in some form and each generation had its form of media that enforced these ideas. The media illustrates gender roles thoroughly and frequently, influencing the minds of future generations. This is how the traditional mindset passes on through time. The media nowadays still successfully stereotypes women and displays them as weak and helpless. When a woman lands the lead in a blockbuster the public is still surprised by it, and most of the time her being a woman is highlighted as something that she overcame. Why is it still a shock to people that a female can play the lead role? Before the feminist movement of the 60s, ads were able to display images that clearly showed how women were inferior to men. Women were the ones who opposed these ideas and instigated societal change. It’s time we do that again.
news
O que será do futebol brasileiro? Entrevista com Mauro Silva, ex-jogador da seleção brasileira Kevin Wolfson
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auro Silva, agora com 44 anos, é uma lenda do futebol brasileiro. Passando a maioria da sua carreira futebolística no Deportivo La Coruña, da Espanha, fez parte do time que fez história pro Brasil: a seleção de 1994. Nessa entrevista ele nos conta o que faz da vida e o que acha do mundo do futebol brasileiro. Talon: O que um ex-jogador de futebol como o senhor faz hoje em dia? MS: Depois que deixei o futebol em 2005, me tornei um empresário, participando de vários empreendimentos, principalmente no setor imobiliário. Nosso grupo compra terrenos em São Paulo, faz projetos, tipo apartamentos de alto padrão e populares. Talon: Mas você ainda mantém alguma conexão com o futebol? MS: Então, eu passei muitos anos jogando futebol. Por causa disso eu mantive muitos dos meus contatos dos meus anos jogando bola. Hoje em dia eu participo de muitos eventos futebolísticos, como a Copa do Brasil de Masters. Aliás, em dezembro vai ter um jogo na Índia onde eu, o Dunga, o Dedé, e outros ex-jogadores vão estar. Também, tenho uma consultoria esportiva que assessora jogadores, faço intermediações de negociações entre clubes, e outras coisas assim. Talon: Sendo um ex-jogador, qual você acha que vai ser o maior impacto da Copa do Mundo no Brasil em 2014? MS: Eu acho que o mais importante seria o legado que ficasse pra sociedade depois da Copa. Principalmente, na infraestrutura. Um país tão carente com a infraestrutura que nem o Brasil iria aproveitar muito se depois da Copa nós tivéssemos aeroportos melhores, mais transporte público, mobilidade urbana eficiente, aumento de segurança pública; e isso é o que nós queremos que aconteça. Quando a gente fala da copa, a gente tem que pensar que tem a Copa do Mundo em 2014, mas também tem as Olimpíadas em 2016, que são os dois maiores eventos esportivos do mundo. O Brasil está tendo uma oportunidade grande de fazer publicidade para o mundo todo sobre o nosso país, uma imagem que possa atrair mais turistas. Então se o Brasil aproveitar bem dessa oportunidade, o país vai se beneficiar economicamente e sua infraestrutura também vai se beneficiar. Infelizmente, isso não está acontecendo. Nem os estádios que serão a principal atração da Copa do mundo estão prontos, e já no ano que vem, em 2013, o Brasil vai sediar a Copa das Confederações. Os estádios deveriam estar prontos agora, para poder testá-los por seis meses antes da Copa, mas infelizmente nada disso está pronto. O Brasil não está aproveitando a oportunidade de melhorar sua infraestrutura e deixar um legado benevolente (sic) para a sociedade após a Copa. Talon: O novo estádio em Cuiabá que será utilizado para a Copa de 2014, Arena do Pantanal, está orçado em R$520 milhões de
reais. O que você acha sobre gastar mais de meio bilhão de reais de dinheiro estatal em um estádio que receberá pouco uso depois da Copa? MS: Aí voltamos a questão do Brasil, que é uma questão mais política do que outra coisa. Você constrói um grande estádio, com investimentos de milhões de reais, em estados brasileiros que têm muitos outros tipos de problema como falta de saneamento básico, falta de transporte público, só mostra que se o estádio não for usado após a Copa, nós estamos jogando dinheiro fora. Se o Brasil quiser fazer uma Copa, deveria fazer nos estados que vão aproveitar melhor de uma construção dessa magnitude, como em São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, etc. Uma Copa com menos sedes seria melhor para o Brasil porque poderíamos aproveitar dos estádios depois do evento. Os estádios não podem ser usados só a cada quinze dias para jogos de futebol: podem ter espetáculos musicais, podem ser construídos perto de estações de metrô, shoppings, hotéis, etc. Alguns dos estádios que estão sendo construídos no Brasil já têm esse conceito, mas de qualquer forma o investimento de dinheiro público no estádio de Cuiabá que não receberá muito uso depois da Copa é jogar dinheiro fora. Talon: Então você acha que a Copa poderia melhorar o padrão de vida para a população com aumentos em infraestrutura, segurança, e outros aspectos públicos? Ou será que a Copa só está atrapalhando o desenvolvimento do Brasil? MS: Os eventos esportivos, como a Copa do Mundo ou Olimpíadas, são muito bons para o país. Eles dão uma visibilidade muito boa e dão a oportunidade para o país dar uma olhada no que tem de melhorar. O Brasil tem um potencial enorme para melhorar em vários aspectos e sou a favor desses eventos aqui no Brasil, só queria que o dinheiro público fosse usado de uma maneira eficiente para deixar um legado positivo para o Brasil depois da Copa. Quando eu estive na Olimpíadas de Barcelona, de Atenas, deu pra ver que o evento esportivo transformou a cidade, e é isso que eu espero que aconteça aqui no Brasil. Talon: Infelizmente, tenho que fazer a última pergunta (é algo que quero muito saber): o Corinthians vai ser campeão mundial? MS: (risos) Eu acho que sim. O brasileiro dá muita importância a esse título, mais que em qualquer outro país. Há treze anos, quando eu jogava na Europa, notei que o campeonato inglês, a liga dos campeões, e outros campeonatos nacionais eram muito mais importantes para os espectadores. Em Londres, por exemplo, pouco se fala do campeonato mundial de clubes. Aqui, parece que a mídia esportiva está toda voltada para esse campeonato mundial. Acho que o Corinthians ganha, o time vai muito focado, muito mentalizado para essa competição, e acho que a chance do Corinthians ganhar é de uns 60-75%.
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news
Failed Doomsday Predictions What’s next? The zombie apocalypse? Clara Bezerra
H
istory is replete with doomsday predictions that spread temporary panic, but were ultimately proven false. Here is a timeline of a few of the many “prophecies” which reigned over the media during their respective periods of time: The Prophet Hen In 1806, in the town of Leeds, England, news began to spread of a hen that laid eggs with the message “Christ is coming” written on them. When many people started to believe this meant doomsday was near, an inhabitant of the town decided to watch the supposedly miraculous hen more closely. He came to find out that someone, intending to deceive town locals, wrote the message on the eggs and reinserted them into the hen. The Millerites William Miller, one of the most famous false prophets in history, claimed that, some time between March 21, 1843 and March 21, 1844, Jesus Christ would return to Earth for the Second Coming— the prophesied return of Christ to earth at the Last Judgment— and that, during this day, the Earth would be covered by fire. Using the technology available at the time, he advocated his message, and got around 100,000 people, who later came to be called “Millerites,” to sell their possessions and join him in his wait for his end. When the predicted date arrived, but nothing happened, Miller decided that October 23 was the actual date of the Second Coming. When that came along and there were no signs of Jesus’ return, the group broke up. Halley’s Comet In 1881, an astronomer found evidence that cyanogen, a gas related to cyanide to which exposure leads to death, was present in comet tails. Because in May of 1910 the Earth would move through the tail of Halley’s Comet, people came to believe they would be engulfed in a fatal toxic gas. Panic seized countries like the United States where news about “doomsday” spread. Even though astronomers showed there could be absolutely no negative effects because the tail was so dissipated, businessmen began to take advantage of gullibility and sold “comet pills,” which they claimed were guaranteed to neutralize any effects of the cyanogen. Nothing happened on May 20 after Earth had passed through Halley’s Comet’s tail. The Computer Revolution Because computers in the twentieth century worked in such a way that two digits were used to determine a year (96 accounted for 1996, for example), people believed that entire computer systems would crash when 2000 arrived, because of the double zero in the date. Of course, “doomsday lovers” came up with
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another theory: on January 1, 2000, transportation systems would stop functioning, banks and financial institutions would break down, blackouts would occur, and nuclear destruction would take place. Gun sales increased and survival gear were sold; however, besides minor problems like the clock at the United States Naval Observatory, which recorded the date as “19100,” absolutely nothing notable happened during the predicted date. Non-existent Mayan Apocalypse Perhaps the most well known end-of-the-world prediction, the Mayan calendar prophesized that doomsday would occur on December 21, 2012, when several astronomical disasters would take place. Experts have proven this to be erroneous, showing that even though this date is significant to Mayan calendars because it marks the end of a milestone after 13 baktuns—the equivalent of 5,125 years—it does not predict the end of times. Mayan prophecies mainly refer to events that could be repeated in future times, not to the end of the world, and none of their predictions describe an apocalypse in 2012. Geoffery Braswell, an anthropologist at the University of California, described the Mayan calendar and the equivocal notion that the end of 13 banktuns is equivalent to doomsday: “The Maya long count system is like a car odometer,” Braswell wrote, “my first car [odometer] only had six wheels so it went up to 99,999.9 miles. That didn’t mean the car would explode after reaching 100,000 miles.” What’s the reason behind all of these failed prophecies? What binds them together? An eagerness to die; is that it? I sure hope not. But the answer, of course, is not a universal one. It is not possible to know if there are people who truly believe doomsday is approaching, if it is a method of escape from a world that already seems doomed and helpless anyway, or if it is simply a reaction to boredom. However, regardless of what someone’s goal is when coming up with these untrue predictions, there are definitely better, more productive ways of achieving it that do not involve spreading panic. It is important for us to realize that threats such as famine, diseases, and a possible future world war due to resource scarcity are much more likely to destroy humanity than hypothetical situations, and are therefore more worthy of our concern. So, here’s a suggestion to those obsessed with the “end”: stop trying to prophesize; we’ve still got a world to fix. Sources: cometography.com; livescience.com; globalpost.com; latino.foxnews.com
news
Malala Yousafzai
The story of a teenage blogger who wanted to go to school Paula Schulman
I
n 2009, the Islamic militia, the Taliban, had taken over much of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, applying their rigid regime of Sharia law (the moral code and religious law of Islam), and severely limiting the rights of women. Twelve-year-old Pakistani school girl Malala Yousafzai first caught the world’s attention when, under a pseudonym, she began writing a BBC Urdu diary depicting her life in the small Pakistani town of Mingora under Taliban rule, promoting women’s civil rights and education. Her story was also shown in a documentary for the New York Times. “I was afraid of going to school because the Taliban had issued an edict banning all girls from attending schools. On my way from school to home I heard a man saying ‘I will kill you.’ I hastened my pace and after a while I looked back if the man was still coming behind me. But to my utter relief he was talking on his mobile and must have been threatening someone else on the phone.” (Malala Yousafzai, 01/03/09) The Soviet War in Afghanistan was between forces of Afghan Islamic tribes opposing the Soviet Union military presence in Afghanistan and the Communist government set up by the Soviets. The Soviet Union’s presence in the country was disliked by most governments in the world, who were pleased to see the Afghan people fighting back. Countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, China, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan, believing that the Soviet actions were a serious threat to the world, provided aid to groups (called the mujahideen) that had organized themselves to fight the Soviets. What seemed like a war with no end in sight finished nine years later in 1989, but a civil war emerged until 1996 when the Taliban managed to take over the government. They ruled Afghanistan until 2001, putting in place one of the most extreme types of Islamic law in the Muslim world. Under their regime, items such as computers, alcohol, music, statues, paintings, stuffed animals, and television became prohibited. The Taliban’s actions became increasingly severe. A notable example was the destruction of two immense Buddha statues carved into the side of a cliff in the Bamyan Valley in central Afghanistan. “I woke to the roar of heavy artillery fire early in the morning....We got so scared that we hid.” (Malala Yousafzai, 01/26/09) The Taliban also started a policy of women’s repression; that included forcing them to wear the burqa, to completely cover their bodies other than a small area around their eyes, limiting their employment to the medical sector, and forcing them to blacken their windows so they could not be seen from the outside. Additionally, edicts were issued that forbid women from being educated at all, commanding them to leave schools and colleges. “I felt hurt on opening my wardrobe and seeing my uniform, school bag, and geometry box. Boys’ schools are opening tomorrow. But the Taliban have banned girls’ education.”
Guest Contributor (Malala Yousafzai, 02/08/09) The Taliban also welcomed a radical Islamic militant group known as Al Qaeda to help them fight anti-Taliban forces and set up training camps in Afghanistan. This group became known world-wide for their terrorist attacks against the U.S., culminating by the 9/11 events in New York and Washington. Following the destruction of the World Trade Center by Al Qaeda militants, the United States demanded that the Taliban should hand over any terrorists and their leaders. The Taliban denied their request, claiming they needed legitimate proof that Al Qaeda was culpable. The U.S. and other countries then joined forces to overthrow the Taliban, finally succeeding in October 2001. In early December, the terrorist group gave up their last stronghold, and then dissolved without surrendering. Since then, the U.S. and some of their allies have maintained a military presence in Afghanistan, but in 2006 there was a resurgence of Taliban attacks and presence in Afghanistan and northwest Pakistan, where Malala Yousafzai’s family live. “Today is Thursday and I am scared because people say that most suicide attacks take place either on Friday mornings or on Friday evenings. [T]he suicide attacker thinks that Friday has a special importance in Islam and carrying out such attacks on this day will please God more.” (Malala Yousafzai, 02/12/09) Against Taliban rule in the region, Yousafzai’s father was in charge of one of the last schools that permitted girls, which was eventually forced to close down, while Malala and her family were forced to flee. Months later, the Pakistani Army launched a sweeping operation against the Taliban and peace somewhat settled over the valley. Due to the wide success of her blog, Yousafzai became a figure for children’s rights, appeared on television in 2009, was nominated for the International Children’s Peace Prize in 2011, and was awarded Pakistan’s first National Youth Peace Prize. On October 9, 2012, Yousafzai was shot twice in the head by a Taliban gunman who boarded her school bus and threatened her classmates to identify her or they would all be killed. Taliban leader Ehsannulah Ehsan assumed responsibility, claiming that the assassination had been decided a few months prior, their reasoning being that Yousafzai is “the symbol of the infidels and obscenity,” and that if she should survive, they would attack a second time. “Let this be a lesson.” A week after the attack, Yousafzai was transferred to a hospital in Birmingham, England while her family remained in Pakistan. At the time this article was written, her condition had stabilized e and her recovery was progressing. Malala is undergoing a process of recuperation and healing. It is hoped she will make a full recovery, although it is over-optimistic to say there will be no long-term damage. Sources: news.bbc.co.uk; nytimes.com; latimes.com; wikipedia.org; edition.ccn.com
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news
November Quick News Not quite Christmas yet
Daniel Almeida
T
he White House and congressional Republicans remained at an impass—in both public and private—over how to design a deficit-reduction package, with just a few weeks remaining before the nation hits the fiscal cliff.
Brazil is getting drawn deeper into a drug war as surging cocaine use turns it into the world’s biggest market after the U.S. Now, Brazil is adopting a controversial U.S. tactic: reaching across borders to stop cocaine at the source.
The U.S. has significantly stepped up spying operations on Iran’s Bushehr nuclear reactor over the past two months, American officials said, driven by heightened concerns about the security of weapons-grade plutonium after Tehran unexpectedly discharged fuel rods from the facility in October.
Mexico– A jailed cartel kingpin has accused high-ranking members of President Felipe Calderón’s government, including the country’s top police official, of taking bribes from organized crime.
The fallout over the resignation of Central Intelligence Agency chief David Petraeus, embroiled in a scandal over an affair with his biographer, continued with top lawmakers sparring over what President Barack Obama knew about the matter and when.
Israel expanded sanctions against the Palestinians on Sunday following a United Nations vote on statehood last week, withholding the transfer of tax revenue it collects for the Palestinian government. Sources: wsj.online.com, cnn.com
Monthly Update The ups and downs of Graded Adam Hunt Fertig
The Graded Eagles return victorious from Big 8. Also, the Ilha do Cardoso project’s community center inauguration is a success.
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Mr. Bair and Ms. Bree announce that they will be Graded at the end of the year. The community mourns the loss of two selfregulating adults (and one semi-regulating toddler).
The PTA Thanksgiving celebration was another outstanding success. I had to dress as an elf.
features
End of the World?
Insert dramatic song. You’re wrong and you’re stupid. Daniel Almeida
A
s I expect there to be an inordinate amount of coverage on the supposed upcoming end of the world, I plan to take a step back and look at humanity’s impending doom from a different perspective. We can all acknowledge that the year 2012 is one of doomsday theories and all sorts of kooky predictions, but these are nothing new; end-of-the-world hysteria has been around for thousands of years. Since the dawn of humanity, individuals have always believed the end of the world was right around the corner. Many of the predictions were based on faith, fear, and uncertainty, sometimes with a dash of math added. These predictions have been made from a whole assortment of people, some of them insane (hint: Charles Manson). For whatever reason we anticipate the apocalypse in our lifetime, I’d like to go over some of the most famous predictions of the past, and even some we get to look forward to. During the good ol’ days, we had the Assyrians claiming the world would end in 2800 BC, as an Assyrian clay tablet has been unearthed bearing these ominous words: “Our Earth is degenerate in these latter days. There are signs that the world is speedily coming to an End. Bribery and Corruption are common.” Gasp. We’ve also had a variety of Europeans claiming the world would end in the year 1000, 1033, 1284, 1346, 1347,1348, 1349, 1350, 1351… apparently they were just postponing the end of the world as the years went by. We even had one Charles Manson claim that an apocalyptic race war would occur in 1969, inciting the Tate-LaBianca murders in an attempt to bring it about. The name Harold Camping might seem familiar to some of us. How could it not—that old geezer predicted the Apocalypse not once, not twice, but an embarrassing six times. It all started off in 1994, as Mr. Camping predicted that the “Rapture” would occur on September 6 of that year. When it didn’t, he revised his ‘calculations’ (note that I use this term very loosely) and postponed the date to September 29, and then again to October 2. Camping’s fourth predicted date for the end was March 31, 1995, and when that also failed, Mr. Camping went back to study where exactly he had gone wrong. Then, in early 2011, Camping predicted that the Rapture and
devastating earthquakes would occur on May 21, 2011, with God allowing approximately three percent of the World’s population into heaven. When Camping’s previous prediction failed to come about, he revised his calculations (again) and said that on May 21, a “spiritual judgment” had taken place, and that both the physical Rapture and the end of the world would occur on October 21, 2011. But, hey, it’s important to acknowledge Mr. Camping’s devotion and commitment to spreading God’s word, even if he was wrong six times. Now, on to the elephant in the room, the foreboding December 21, 2012. The end of the Mayan calendar gives us many different scenarios including but not limited to galactic alignment, geomagnetic reversal of the poles, collision with an unknown planet called Nibiru, alien invasion, earth being destroyed by a giant supernova, and a lunar explosion. While the validity of this prediction seems doubtful at best, it’s once again important to appreciate the use of the classic technique of “let’s tumblr.com make as many different predictions as possible, so that if it does happen, we get to claim that we called it.” Kudos. Nevertheless, the looming doomsday of the Mayan calendar ending does have a lot of people out there feeling like this year will be their last year on Earth. It’s a scary thought, to be sure, but as we’ve seen, history is littered with doomsday predictions that were ultimately debunked. They go back hundreds and hundreds of years, and we’re still here. So why is it that we suddenly believe that just because the Mayan calendar doesn’t continue after a certain date in December, the world is going to end? Maybe the Mayans just didn’t have the energy to keep adding days, months and years to their calendar since they understood that their civilization would be long gone by then. Or maybe, just maybe, you should sell your house, donate everything you own, and join us on December 21 2012, as we all hold hands and sing Kumbaya for the last time before the Earth is destroyed by planetary realignment—although personally my bet’s on lunar explosion. Source: dailyinfographic.com
the talon • 18
features
It’s the End of the World as We Know it But not really Gi Regis
T
his month, we at the Talon switched it up. We each picked the name of a section out of a basket and had to write for it. I’m just glad I got to write for Features. It probably would be the end of the world to see me writing in the sports section. Taking advantage of this opportunity of change, I decided to go all out (if the world really ends in a few days I need to try new things before doomsday) and write in English, something I’m a little bit enferrujada for (fora os history papers, ToK responses, Biology presentations e English quizzes, etc, escrever em inglês esses dias tem se limitado ao meu college essay e afins). So, for the sake of “featuring,” here are some thoughts on the end of the world. If the world ended tomorrow what would I miss? It’s funny to think about this, because regardless if the world ends or not, I’ll still be leaving Graded soon and just the thought of actually graduating makes me think there won’t be another sunrise after that. It’s that bittersweet feeling: I want to go, but I want to stay too. Besides, in my head I cannot believe this day has come (take this as you wish: leap with joy or mourn with nostalgia). Nevertheless, I think that all the things I could list here would be the same that everyone before me has already said and those after me will say, so let’s keep the idea to shake things up a bit. I won’t tell you how the world won’t really end this year, or how there are a bunch of things that I still want to do if the world does end or even the things that would actually mean the end of the world. No. I would much rather focus on the positive aspects of 2012 and celebrate the end of the year. I want to dedicate this “end of the world” sentiment to the class of 2013. It’s Brazilian tradition to dress in white and pular sete ondinhas on December 31. Every year the same hopeful feeling fills the Brazilian air and I never quite understand why other cultures don’t adhere to the incredibly bonding Brazilian rituals (cada um com suas tradições, eu sei, mas…). Well, if we don’t
17 • the talon
get another December 31 to start smiling more at each other with the thought of new possibilities, then I say we start now. I haven’t been at Graded very long, and personally coming to Graded marked the end of a world, and then from sophomore year to junior year there was another big change; then, from junior to senior year, again. I guess we can call it the ephemerality of high school, but next year, if there is one, will be different. We can all feel that these changes are now happening practically every month. In the midst of dealing with so many everyday tasks, (tudo que se possa imaginar— se preparem juniors) changes are happening daily, and we don’t even notice how big they are. End of the world or not, it’s the end for us, seniors. Now, think about all those things you would do if it was the actual end of the world: skydiving, wind-surfing, declaring yourself, writing a novel, singing at a concert, thedailyaztec.com traveling to an exotic location, becoming rich. Why are we saving doing those things for the end of the world? There will be “ends” in our lives constantly, so I don’t see the point in keeping anything bottled up. So get that bucket list and make it a “things I’ve accomplished” list. Second semester of senior year is a big roller coaster; shouldn’t we make it fun? Everyone has gone through this, and I have no doubt that everyone will keep going through the same motions (maybe I should’ve dedicated this to the entire world). Bottom line: we are seniors, we will be turning our lives 360o degrees in a few months, given the Mayans were wrong, and there really isn’t much time left. We’re in this together, and we’ll survive it—even if “it” is just some IB exams next May—like a 13OSS.
features
Failed Doomsday Predictions A look back at all the failed attempts to predict the end of the world Kevin Shimba Bengtsson
W
ith the oh-so-frightening day of the apocalypse fast approaching, I went out of my way to find other doomsday predictions. I was pleasantly surprised; there have been several over the millennia, many of which have been predicted only in this last decade. It’s a pleasant surprise because, since the predictions were in the past, they haven’t happened. I guess you already know this, considering we’re all still alive. In anticipation of the Mayan doomsday prediction, it helps to take a look at all the predictions that have been made since the beginning of the millennium. The turn of the 21st century was a particularly exciting year for doomsday predictions. In fact, the year had just begun when fear was instilled in the hearts of many with forecasts of a global catastrophe on January 1, 2000. Many believed in what was known as the “Y2K Bug,” a computer glitch that would occur because computers would not be able to recognize the difference between the years 1900 and 2000 (they only process the last two digits of years). Some extrapolated chaos from this “bug,” claiming that it would cause machinery and computers to malfunction, which would somehow lead to global catastrophe and societal collapse. Clearly, they were wrong, and although some computers had difficulty with processing the date, technical difficulties were minor. Just a few months after this failed prediction came another, this time stemming from a book, 5/5/2000 Ice: the Ultimate Disaster by Richard Noone, in which he hypothesized that the Antarctic ice cap would be three miles thick by May 5, 2000 and that on that particular day, all the planets would align, consequently causing the polar icecaps to melt and engulf large portions of Earth. That, too, did not happen, and Noone has pretty much disappeared off the face of the Earth, with no more books to his name. After all, a failed doomsday prediction isn’t exactly great publicity. A couple of years later, in 2003, predictions of the apocalypse came back in full swing from opposite ends of the globe: one from an American woman, Nancy Lieber, and the other from the Japanese cult/terrorist group Aum Shinrikyo. Lieber claimed that, in the month of May, the Nibiru collision—an encounter between the Earth and a large planetary object – would occur. What was the source of her prediction? A message she supposedly received from aliens in the Zeta Reticuli
solar system stating that a planet would enter our solar system, causing a pole shift that would destroy most humans. Perhaps aliens aren’t as intelligent as we think. Or maybe Nancy Lieber is just crazy. In the same year, Aum Shinrikyo made the claim that the world would be torn asunder by a nuclear war that would break out between October 30 and November 29. As a terrorist group, they kind of lost their terror factor by falsely predicting the apocalypse. With the advent of the creation of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), a particle accelerator designed to investigate different theories of particle and high-energy physics, people began looking towards this monolithic construction as some kind of apocalypse-inducing behemoth. There have been a few instances in the past few years in which various groups have claimed that the LHC will produce a planet-eating black hole. Nothing of the sort has actually happened… yet. Finally, the most recent and perhaps the most notable of all doomsday predictions was made just tumblr.com last year when Harold Camping, a devout Christian and radio broadcaster, made a prediction for what he called the Rapture. He claimed that on May 21, 2011, the Rapture and multiple earthquakes would wreck the Earth and that God would save three percent of the population, with the end of the world coming five months later on October 21, 2011. He also claimed that his infallible prediction was grounded in mathematical proof. When nothing of note happened on the predicted date in May, Camping told his followers that what occurred was a “Spiritual Judgment” and that the actual Rapture and end of the world would come about in October. Again, nothing happened. Many devotees of Harold Camping had quit their jobs and sold their homes preceding the predicted Rapture in order to warn everyone about the end of the world. Although Camping did issue an apology, I don’t think that an apology makes up for ruining hundreds of lives. Are you still scared of December 21? Well, you shouldn’t be, because if the past has taught us anything, it’s that people can be stupid and are often wrong. Especially when it comes to predicting the end of the world.
Source: wikipedia.org
the talon • 16
features
Signs, Signs, Everywhere a Sign It’s the end of the world when...
Felipe Marques
I
t took a long while to figure this out, but the Mayans were wrong. Yes, their calendar wasn’t all that accurate: the world won’t end on a certain date, but only after specific events occur. Now, I don’t know about the rest of the world, but here at the Talon, I, along with other members of the staff (special mention to fellow conspiracy theorist Yasmin), have grouped some events that, if they happen here at Graded, are surefire signs of the incoming apocalypse. Without further ado, “It’s The End of the World When”… •
Every single clock in school reads the exact same time.
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There’s no homework on the weekends
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Seniors actually relax due to a lack of homework.
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Students stop relating every class to TOK.
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Someone doesn’t bring a guitar to a HS trip.
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Ms. Petersen messes up her schedule.
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Pepe doesn’t mention the Spanish Revolution in class.
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Ricardo’s head doesn’t shine.
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Mr. Stephenson doesn’t bring his golf club to school.
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Maggie doesn’t call her students “mancebos.”
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Mauro doesn’t call his students “monstrinhos” or “fofoletes.”
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Maggie and Mauro interchange nicknames, for that matter.
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Ney doesn’t post a Facebook status.
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Mr. Bair gives up on making people “go home” on Wednesdays.
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Alternatively, when he drinks from a plastic cup.
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Ms. Stoneman isn’t hyper.
15 • the talon
•
Ms. Hunt doesn’t use Lord of the Rings or Star Wars as an in-class example.
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Ms. Beck brings a tuna sandwich to school.
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Dona Dri ISN’T chill and relaxed.
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Valdemar and Alain become uninterested in current events.
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Ms. Milner doesn’t make a Shakespeare reference.
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Celio doesn’t comment on a volleyball team member’s Facebook post. • Fernão Mesquita makes a grammar mistake in Portuguese. • Rafa Rocha becomes Pro-bama. • Kevin Wolfson gives up on the sports page. • Clara Bezerra grows 5cm. • Daniel Almeida ISN’T being sarcastic. • Kevin Bengtsson starts listening to Restart, Mendel Schwarz starts listening to One Direction, and they trade CDs every month. secretsofthepast.com • Julia Abreu decides she hates singing.
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Kat Aliano says Superman is better than Batman.
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Adam Fertig doesn’t reference a hipster/indie band, thus becoming “mainstream.”
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Felipe Marques runs out of puns, or video game references, or both.
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The Entertainment and Features sections give up on making “Close but No Cigar” into a Talon Theme.
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The Talon lets Felipe Marques into their staff…. Hey, wait a minute…
features
The Truth of 2012 Popular theories on the end of the world exposed Andrea Ferreira
E
ver since the November release of the movie 2012 in 2009, it seems as though the whole world has been wondering if there is any truth to the film’s premise, and if December 21 will mark the end of the world as we know it. There seem to be many theories to proving the 2012 apocalypse, the most popular being the speculation that 2012 marks the end of the Mayan calendar. The Mayans aren’t the only ones; even Albert Einstein held a similar theory. So is it speculation or myth? While there is no way to tell for sure, most scientists insist that we have nothing to worry about. To ease any fears of November being our last month, here are some debunked theories about our impending doom. Myth #1 One common myth is that a planet called Nibiru will collide with Earth, causing major destruction. According to the researchers at NASA, the theory of there being an outward planet that will collide with us is purely an “Internet hoax,” since if this planet were real, astronomers would have been tracking its progression, and by now it would have to be close enough to see from Earth without a telescope. There is absolutely no evidence that this mystery planet exists. It has also been theorized that the dwarf planet Eris could collide with our planet. Although it does exist, it is located in the outer solar system and therefore the closest it could get to Earth is four billion miles away. Myth #2 Another common myth is that breakaway continents (i.e. a pole shift) will destroy the Earth and all civilizations. Supposedly the crust and mantle (the outermost layers of the Earth) will shift and start to spin around the earth’s outer core. This theory is somewhat depicted in the movie 2012 as a pole shift triggered by an extreme gravitational pull on the planet. This polar shift was the cause of breakaway continents and cities sinking into seas, not to mention earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and other disasters. While scientists dismiss these extremities, some researchers support the possibility of a pole shift, causing the ice caps in colder areas of the world to melt. But Princeton University geologist Adam Maloof, who
has done extensive research in this field, reassures that this is just a myth. According to him, “magnetic evidence in rocks confirms that continents have undergone such drastic rearrangement, but this process has taken millions upon millions of years.” This is so slow that humans couldn’t possibly detect or sense any motion. Myth #3 This myth is the most common one, and is probably the cause of most of the talk surrounding the world’s end and the demise of humans at the end of the 2012 calendar year. This theory is based on the notion that the Mayans predicted the world to end in this year. To prove this as a myth, one must understand what it means. The Mayan calendar didn’t end in 2012, but rather the date of the twenty first of December was when the largest grand cycle of the Mayan calendar (1,872,000 days) was predicted to end, marking the start of a new cycle, as explained by Anthony blogspot.com Aveni, a Mayan expert at Colgate University. This December, the era we have been in for most of our history will end, and a new era will begin, starting with what the Mayans referred to as “Day Zero.” “This idea,” Aveni explains, “is nothing more than the idea that time gets renewed, that the world gets renewed all over again—the exact same way we renew time on New Year’s Day or even on Monday morning.” Another Mayan theory is dictated in the final pages of the Dresden Codex, which describe the world being destroyed by a flood of epic proportions. Aveni believes that these predictions were not supposed to serve as actual guidance but rather as simple lessons about human behavior. He also reassures that the Mayan people were not much for predictions, as their measures of time were consistently directed towards the past rather than the future. The Mayans’ work was not meant to be literally taken as a prediction of the future. So, after reading that three of the most common theories of the end of the world are just in fact theories, I hope people will feel a bit safer. Unfortunately, we cannot truly know if December 21, 2012 will be the end of the world until the time comes, so until then, look out for meteors.
the talon • 14
features
A New End Apocalypse with a twist Lucas Zuccolo
A
ll those “end of the world” scenarios are so dull and boring. It’s always earthquakes and fire and explosions... Be it religious or secular, the how of the apocalypse, unlike the when, is always so predictable. I mean, sure, Revelations is an interesting read, and grey goo would make for a funny (if quite horrifying) end, but I could think of a dozen apocalyptic scenarios that would be much more entertaining, interesting, or just plain weird, but nonetheless equally deadly. Here are a few ideas: Specimen 4WW A genetic experiment gone horribly wrong. After creating domestic-sized lions and glow-in-the-dark snakes, Binary Helix Corp were attempting to genetically engineer unicorns, because, well, honestly, who wouldn’t like an adorable, fluffy, huggable pet unicorn? One of their test animals, specimen 4WW, was accidentally released. The specimen worked exactly as expected, maturing into a life-size unicorn, straight out of some fantasy book, within a few weeks. However, the retrovirus used to alter the original horse DNA, code-named Fairy, got out of control. The encoded apoptosis programming in the virus’ DNA failed to activate; once specimen 4WW’s DNA was fully modified, Fairy continued to reproduce, infecting every mammalian creature it came in contact with, including us. Within a few months, every mammal on the planet had been transformed to varying degrees of unicorn-ness. This completely wrecked all existing ecosystems, and all life eventually died off—there simply weren’t enough magic carrots to feed so many unicorns. The Button While exploring some generic ancient ruins, archeological treasure hunter Montana Smith came across a surprisingly futuristic-looking remote control, with a single red button on it. The CIA attempted to hush the discovery and smuggled the device to one of their safe-houses for research. But the location was leaked, and a group of ex-KGB renegade extremists launched a covert assault to retrieve the device. What followed was a wild chase across the globe, involving over 30 independent intelligence agencies and governments. Somewhere along the chase, the button was placed into a normal travel luggage bag, to be transported to another country. The airport baggage workers, oblivious to the suitcase’s contents, handled the luggage too roughly, and the button was presse, and 1.26 seconds later, the moon exploded; ship ports around the world reeled in shock, realizing their whole operation was doomed. In the meanwhile, everyone else was worried
13 • the talon
about the fact that the explosion had knocked the Earth from its stable orbit, and sent it spiraling towards the sun. In 238 years, the Earth would fall into the sun, but much before that all life would have burned up. Just as shocking, however, was what happened next: the aforementioned intelligence agencies and governments admitted that the catastrophe may have been their fault, and funneled all their resources into a single, joint project: the colonization of Mars. With different countries actually working together, the operation went astoundingly fast, and within twenty miraculously short years humanity was relocated to Mars. But humanity would never forget the beauty of their homeworld: the searing desertified areas, the islands of trash, the heavily polluted atmosphere, the multitude of natural disasters, the—okay, scratch that, Mars was pretty awesome. Ragequit Robot With AIs becoming an ever-more-likely possibility, the scientific community become worried about ensuring that any artificial intelligences created were as close to human as possible, so that their goals would not conflict with ours—the AIs needed to be friendly. They ultimately succeeded in making a super-intelligent entity that was still markedly human-like; due to its vast computational abilities, they decided to task it with making the Earth a better place. The AI, self-christened as Joe, exceeded expectations, excelling in a variety of fields, such as urban planning, medical diagnostics, and energy production management. As Joe proved to be increasingly helpful, he was granted more freedom while also being tasked with more responsibilities, eventually being pretty much responsible for running the Earth. However, they made Joe too human; the failures and setbacks that are normal when working with people started to test the AI’s patience, and eventually his frustration reached the point where he decided to outright quit and go do something else. Without the AI assistance we had come to expect, we eventually destroyed ourselves through sheer incompetence. When Joe decided to come back for another try, he found everyone was dead; he raged a bit at having lost all his previous effort, and complained endlessly about having to start from scratch. Okay, these scenarios are still pretty horrible, but, as far as apocalypses go, they could always be worse. I mean, it sure beats being demolished to make way for a new hyperspace route. Seriously, where’s the originality in that?
features
The End is Near ... Thanks to global warming. Not the Mayans.
Pooja Singhi
Guest Contributor
D
ecember 21, 2012. Among adolescents and adults alike, this date serves as a point of humor in daily conversation. When a teacher mentions IB exams, a student says: “Hey, we are all going to be dead then anyway” and, when a thunderstorm roars through the city of São Paulo, two friends jokingly mention, “This is all because of the Mayans.” However, when we take a step back and analyze the amount of hype around December 21, 2012, some astonishing statistics become evident. This supposed “doomsday” has spurred the production of TV specials, YouTube videos, science fiction and nonfiction books, and the movie 2012, which grossed US$769,679,473 worldwide. If we look past all the fascination and fabrication, we arrive at a simple fact: nothing extraordinary will happen on December 21, 2012. Odds are that 99% of civilians will get up, eat breakfast, go to work, catch up on a little last minute Christmas shopping, feed the kids, and go to bed. The other 1% may spend their day screaming and stressing about the “end of the world;” however, when the sun sets, they will disappointedly trudge back to their anticlimactic lives. The facts are that everyone from NASA astronauts to Mayan scholars denies the doomsday myth as a scientific forecast. However, instead of quickly scoffing at all this absurdity and walking away, let’s take a closer look at what is actually supposed to happen on the day stamped as “the end of the world.” Most theories involving this supposed “doomsday” predict the occurrence of numerous cataclysmic and supernatural phenomena—including a rapid increase in the number and in the destruction caused by natural disasters such as earthquakes, tornados, volcanoes, and tsunamis. But, since the 2012 phenomenon theory is not supported by scientific data, I do not have to worry about these negative events, right? Wrong. A much more ominous enemy lurks in the background, twirling his mustache as his plan finally culminates, an enemy difficult to attack and change because the face of the villain is a mere reflection of our own. This enemy was born in the Industrial Revolution, matured through the centuries in which humans did not even think to consider their impact on the environment, and is now causing the same consequences predicted by the 2012 phenomena fanatics: natural disasters of an unprecedented size and destruction level. Global warming is the enemy. As many of you already know, global warming refersto the large emissions of gases such as carbon dioxide that have led to an increased greenhouse effect where gases are trapped within the Earth’s atmosphere and cause the temperature to rise. Both fascinating and frightening, recent research shows
that this rise in temperature will lead to catastrophic natural disasters similar to those associated with the end of the world. One major consequence of global warming is the melting of glaciers and ice caps due to a higher global temperature. When the ice caps and glaciers melt, the sea level rises and, when the sea level rises, both humanity and nature face alarmingly frequent and stunningly destructive tsunamis, floods, and hurricanes. Although the thought of mama penguins without land to lay their eggs and innocent polar bears fighting to find a home is certainly heartbreaking, more water-related natural disasters with greater intensity present an immediate and direct risk to the human race. Furthermore, the global pressure will change as a result of this rise in atmospheric temperature, thus causing natural disasters such as unsurpassed volcanic eruption and devastating earthquakes. As stated by professor Bill McGuire, director of the Benfield Hazard Research Center at University College London, “Not only are the oceans and atmosphere conspiring against us, bringing baking temperatures, more powerful storms and floods, but the crust beneath our feet seems likely to join in too.” For those of you still skeptical of global warming and its effects, take a look at the evidence. The recent Hurricane Sandy was the largest Atlantic earthquake on record, whipping through the city of New York with winds of 175 kilometers per hour, causing US $52.4 billion dollars of damage. The 2011 Tohoku earthquake was the most powerful earthquake to have ever hit Japan, having a magnitude of 9.03 and causing a subsequent tsunami. The 2010 Haiti earthquake, with a magnitude of 7.0, let to the death of 316,000 civilians. The 2005 Hurricane Katrina was one of the most devastating and destructive hurricanes known to mankind and the most expensive natural disaster known to America, costing US$108 billion dollars. With all these record-breaking hurricanes, earthquakes, and tsunamis just within the last decade, it is impossible to argue that the startling increase in natural disasters is part of the typical ebb and flow of our planet. Conclusive evidence exists that an atypical factor is corrupting Mother Nature and many experts make statements akin to mine, blaming this skyrocketing destruction on global warming. After exploring the staggering consequences of global warming, a purely manmade predicament, we arrive at a blunt but undeniable conclusion: instead of wasting time and money on building hype for a ridiculously fabricated “doomsday” theory, we need to focus on reversing the dangerous trend of global warming, the trend that could indeed lead to events just as catastrophic as those propagated in the multimillion dollar industry surrounding December 21, 2012.
the talon • 12
features
How the Mayan Calendar Works In case you were wondering Adam Hunt Fertig
M
ultiple articles in this edition will tell you that according to the Mayans, we’re all going to die. People have repeatedly thrown around the concept of the “Mayan Calendar” that supposedly predicts our impending doom. However, very few of these people have any actual idea of how it works. The Mayans were quite ingenious in their timekeeping method, so the following is an attempt to explain in simplified terms how the Mayan Calendar works. To understand the Mayan calendar, we first must understand how Mayans counted. They used a series of dots and bars to signify a number. A dot equals one. A bar equals five. A shell equals zero. So far so good? Awesome. Of these numbers, the Mayans were particularly fond of 13 and 20. They were so fond of them they decided to multiply them together and make a calendar out of it. The religious calendar known as Tzolk’in has 260 days, and works off of the combinations between twenty glyphs and sypheros.edublogs.org thirteen numerals. This calendar worked by the numerals lining up with the glyphs, and once they had all lined up, the counting started all over again. Think of it as a 13-sided gear inside a 20-sided gear, that clicks into place in a bunch of different combinations to get to 260. Easy enough. There’s a problem, though: This calendar was cool for shamans and religious purposes, but it didn’t measure out a solar year. The Mayans needed another calendar. So they came up with the Haab. The Haab calendar is pretty much the same as the Tzolk’in one, except instead of having thirteen numerals, it has eighteen (20 x 18 = 360). There were still twenty glyphs, but they were all different. Those of you who are good with numbers will remember that a year has 365 days, though. Well spotted. The Mayans got bored, so they decided to throw in five extra “unlucky” days to the end of the cycle to make it all work out. During these five wayeb days, the gods took a vacation and bad stuff happened to the Earth. Yay! Then, the Mayans, being the clever little people they were, decided that having a solar calendar and a sacred calendar wasn’t enough. They had to combine them. So they smushed them together to make the Calendar Round. Remember how in the Tzolk’in and Haab calendars, there
11 • the talon
were interlocking gears within the calendars? Well, the Mayans made those two interlock and cycle through each other. This created the Calendar Round, a giant timekeeping system that could calculate 18,890 different days. That’s about 52 years. But those Mayans just wouldn’t quit. They wanted to go bigger. So they did. They invented the long count, a gigantic calendar that lasted 5,125.36 years. That length of time is called the Great Cycle. This one works by a different system. Instead of using glyphs, it’s divided into five units: the “kin” (one day), the “uinal” (twenty days), the “tun” (360 days), the people.howstuffworks.com “katun” (7,200 days) and the “baktun” (144,000 days). Now jump ahead a few thousand years. Sir Eric Thompson does some fancy anthropology research, and he figures out through the long count system when its first day was August 13, 3114 B.C. That date is the beginning of the Mayan empire and their calendar. If we know when the calendar starts, we can convert dates from our calendar and see where they show up on the Mayan one. Nowadays, we’ve condensed this into long count notation, which goes baktun.katun.tun.uinal.kin. So, for example, the date of the Apollo 11 moon landing is June 20, 1969. In Long Count, that date is 12.17.15.17.0. That’s the 0th day of the 17th uinal of the 15th tun of the 17th katun of the 12th baktun. Awesome. So, what does any of this have to do with December 21, 2012? Here’s where it gets interesting. That date in Long Count notation is 13.0.0.0.0. Now, at the beginning of this article we saw that the Mayans had a thing for the number thirteen. The thirteenth “baktun” is actually the end of the Great Cycle. No more Long Count. That’s as far as the Mayans calculated it. So there you have it. To sum up, the Mayans did a bunch of crazy arithmetic because they wanted to know what day it was. Then they ran out of days. That’s December 21st. Moral of the story: stick to sundials. Sources: saturniancosmology.org, people.howstuffworks.com
features
The First Crossword Puzzle The return of a favorite of the Features section
Nicole Vladimirschi
I
n this edition, we decided to review The Talon’s tradition of crossword puzzles. To do this, we went back to the 19th century, where the first crossword puzzle was published by Arthur Wynne in Liverpool. Ironically enough, the crossword puzzle was published on December 21, 1913, exactly 99 years away from the end of the world. To access the solution to this puzzle, please visit Talonline. Source: thinks.com
blogspot.com
the talon • 10
entertainment
Soylent Green is...? Musings on a dystopian future Fernão Mesquita Warning: This article does contain SPOILERS regarding the movie Soylent Green. If you have never watched it or plan on doing so, do not read this article (unless you don’t care about the plot revelations that will follow).
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am a huge fan of the sci-fi genre, specifically the movies. I love the classics like Star Wars, Blade Runner, Alien, and Planet of the Apes, but when people ask me which one is my favorite, I respond, to their surprise, with the less-known Soylent Green, from 1973. Soylent Green, directed by Richard Fleischer and starring Charlton Heston (from Planet of the Apes) and Edward G. Robinson, takes place in a dystopian future in the year 2022 (surprisingly close to where we are now) where the world is suffering from pollution, over-population, depleted resources, poverty, dying oceans, and an extremely hot climate due to global warming. As one can probably tell, this is clearly not a happy place to live in. In this future, food has become very scarce because of overpopulation, so most of the people live off rations produced by Soylent Corporation, called Soylent Green. The company claims that they create this ration from a special kind of “highenergy” plankton, which is supposedly just as nutritious as a full meal. Heston’s character, NYPD detective Thorne, starts the movie investigating the mysterious murder of one of Soylent Corporation’s executives. With the help of his elderly roommate, Sol Roth (Robinson), Thorne soon finds out that the circumstances surrounding the executive’s murder are very shady, and both of them start suspecting that Soylent Corporation itself was involved in the killing. When Thorne starts digging deeper into what really happened, he soon becomes the new target of the corporation and a manhunt soon ensues throughout the futuristic New York City. At the same time, Sol, who was investigating Soylent’s oceanographic reports found alongside the executive’s corpse, discovers that the “high energy” plankton from which Soylent Green supposedly came from are no longer produced by Earth’s dying oceans. Sol then concludes, to the audience’s surprise, that Soylent Green is made of people. Yes, you heard that right. People. And in one of the movie’s most touching scenes, Sol, unable to live with this truth, seeks assisted suicide in one of the government’s euthanasia clinics (yes, they offer that!). In a large room, surrounded by the sounds and images of a long-gone wilderness, Sol reveals the truth to Roth before dying a peaceful death to the sound of
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Beethoven’s Sixth Symphony. Even more impacting is the ending, where Heston’s character, in the midst of being arrested, screams at the top of his lungs: “Soilent Green is PEOPLE! It’s PEOPLE!” You may be asking yourself why I decided to talk about this movie. Well, with the supposed “end of the world” coming up in December 21, 2012 and the impending threat of global warming and overpopulation, I found it suitable to discuss what I believe a future shaped by these threats would look like. I always found the scene where Sol chose death over living with the fact that humans were feeding on each other harrowingly beautiful. The genuine marvel with which Sol observed the images of nature that were shown to him during his last minutes always makes me reflect on how we take those things for granted. What if, in the future, there is no more nature, and we are only able to witness it through video? What if, because of overpopulation, we have to resort to Soylent Greens and euthanasia facilities to control population levels? Would humanity succumb to those practices so that we’re able to remain in this planet or would our sense of ethics prevail? Would we finally appreciate what we took from the world or would we continue to deplete its resources? After looking at history, I can only come to a pessimistic conclusion. Soylent Green is simply a bleak and exaggerated depiction of what’s probably to come, and it astonishes me how spot-on the film was in its representation of the future, especially since it came out in the 1970’s, a time where global warming wasn’t even a major concern. What’s seen in Soylent Green is already happening! Global warming, China’s absurd population levels, and our endless exploitation of Earth’s resources with little concern in reusing them just come to show that. Sure, people are trying to increase awareness to these issues, but they nevertheless remain unsolved. Which brings me to my final thought. In a world where we’re constantly exploring more and more of what our planet has to give us without replacement, resources that soon become scarcer, why then do we pay so much attention to these preposterous “end-of-the-world” theories when our beautiful world as we know it is already coming to an end through our own hands, with no divine intervention? Let’s stop focusing on the absurd and let’s start paying attention to what’s real, because I for one don’t ever want to taste Soylent Green.
entertainment
Before Kicking the Bucket Top ten scary movies to watch before you die Julia Abreu
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ince many people are seriously considering the world to be near its end, I decided to come up with a list of movies to keep you distracted before electricity runs out. I was at a bookstore the other day and came across a book that listed the top 1001 movies to watch before you die, and I was intrigued by it. Since the end of the world is scary for nearly everyone, I chose the top ten scary movies involving children, which I thought would be indispensable to make you die of fright prior to actually dying along with the rest of the world. The Omen (1976): If you’re looking for truly possessed children, The Omen is indispensable. The story of a boy brought to the world by a devil wolf and switched at the hospital into the hands of a wealthy family, this film will leave you gaping at the murders and other evil-doings committed by this seemingly innocent young boy. The Shining (1980): A classic by Stanley Kubrick, this film explores the effects of ‘cabin fever’ on an employee, after he is sent along with his wife and son to take care of a closed hotel in the freezing winter. You will find yourself as desperate as the caretaker, as he loses his sanity, haunted by two young twins, and attempts to hunt down his sensitive young son and wife around the empty halls of the hotel. Poltergeist (1982): Another classic involving mysterious children, this film portrays the struggle of a family as their youngest daughter gets inexplicably trapped inside the television. You will find yourself desperate to find out the source of this ‘poltergeist’—a supernatural being responsible for physical disturbances within a household. If you’re already one of those people, like myself, who is not quite fond of clowns, beware of the evil clown that resides in the little girl’s bedroom. Children of the Corn (1984): If you believe your younger siblings or cousins drive you crazy, think again. This is a spine-tingling film that depicts children as the main sources of evil in a deserted town, where all adults are killed as religious rituals that worship a malevolent force in the cornfields. Sit and watch as a lost couple winds up at this mysterious town, unable to escape the evil trap of the resident children. The Sixth Sense (1999): Have you ever heard of the famous saying, “I see dead people”? This is the movie it belongs to. A young boy is a medium who has the ability to see and communicate with the dead. They come to him for help, and throughout the movie, there is a hanging suspense of whether the doctor whom he gets help from and endlessly talks to is really alive or as dead as the other bodies he sees. This is an amazing movie filled with tension and the search for closure between life and death. The Others (2001): An incredible suspense story
about a peculiar family, living in absolute darkness within an obscure mansion. Nicole Kidman stars in this deceptive film, as the protective mother, threatened by the visit of unexpected guests, as they strangely communicate with her children and don’t seem interested in leaving any time soon. If you enjoy an ending completely unexpected, then this is the perfect thriller. The Ring (2002): Probably one of the scariest movies I’ve ever come across, The Ring describes the story of an evil young girl adopted by a wealthy family, who has to be locked up in order for the family to be safe from her. Naomi Watts stars in this frightening tale as an investigator of this girl’s case, unaware of the fact that she has just unleashed this evil girl who was trapped at the bottom of a well. Anyone who watches her surveillance tape is bound to receive a deadly call within seven days. You’ll find yourself scared to answer the phone after watching this one. Good luck! Hide and Seek (2005): The obscure story of a single father left to take care of his young daughter, who begins to see a not-so-harmless imaginary friend. If you are one who enjoys unraveling complex mysteries, then I recommend this psychological thriller. This so-called imaginary friend, Charlie, is a dangerous personality very well known to innocent Emma, starring Dakota Fanning. The Messengers (2007): A tense film depicting the haunting of a troubled family who has recently moved into an old farmhouse. The messengers of the title were children used for sacrifice in the old days right within that house, and the little boy living there now is drawn into this vicious cycle of rituals. Will he make it out alive? The Orphanage (2007): Finally, perhaps the most intriguing, clever suspense ever produced, this one tells the story of Laura, an adopted child who decides to buy the old orphanage in which she resided as a child. Upon moving there with her ill son and husband, she finds herself unraveling the mystery of the deaths of all her peers shortly after her adoption. However, she must first play the game imposed by the dead children in order to solve her son’s mysterious disappearance, whom she passionately believes is still alive. You will find it difficult to move as Laura embarks on a journey towards the discovery of the orphanage’s true nature, along with the body of Tomás. A symbolic representation of the Peter Pan story, this Spanish film is incredibly smart and frightening as you find yourself playing the game along with Laura in the desperate search for her son. Sources: imdb.com; blogspot.com
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entertainment
Doomsday: 21/12/12 You decide: live or die Karen Kandelman
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t has been said that the Mayan myth that predicts the world will end this year will be validated on the 21 December, at least according to the movie released in 2009 named 2012. If you are reading this article after the aforementioned date, there are a few possible scenarios I imagine you are in: a) the world didn’t end; b) you are cooped up in a storage compartment with a rifle reading this; or c) you took your Talon to your deathbed. However, if you are reading this before the apocalyptic date you may want to consider your choices. Either you chill listening to music, sitting on a beach or eating uncontrollably since everyone will perish imminently anyway OR you try to survive through it and continue your life beyond the natural disasters that will destroy Earth as we know it. Just to emphasize the notion that the world will probably end very soon, the movie 2012 showed that the problems would begin in October with a hurricane hitting New York. This was confirmed by the recent Superstorm Sandy putting New Jerseyans in panic as they had no electricity, food or shelter for days, even weeks, during the coldest time of the year. The damage was profound. Some of those affected told CNN they didn’t believe they were in their own neighborhood since those things simply had not happened there. The unpredictable did occur and people have already been stripped of their belongings, forced to live in shelters where showers were so scarce that refugees could not wash themselves for days. If that storm is a sign, we have experienced the beginning of the end and now it is time for you to start planning, as many already have. A family featured in the ABC article stores extensive amounts of ammunition, “canned chicken that has a 15-year shelf life” and a first-aid kit in their garage, which has become a preparation center for when the time comes to take action. They train their children to be excellent marksmen as society will engage in battle in order to attain the limited resources that will be available. Further, National Geographic airs a show called Doomsday Preppers that specifically focuses on the people who truly believe and are taking precautionary measures to save themselves. One man, Braxton Southwick, prepares for military to be reinforced and devises a plan to escape with his own family from a governmental conspiracy. To him, the government will
presumably be spreading a smallpox epidemic to kill anybody who lived on, and so Braxton is equipped to fight that too. There is even a guide on the National Geographic’s website on how to get ready by accumulating water, food, weapons as well as how to build shelter. There are excruciatingly hilarious quotes on the Doomsday Preppers website from the interviewed people: “If the grocery shelves are empty, you are nine meals away from anarchy.” In my own circle of acquaintances, my uncle’s sister is convinced the world will end and has invested in a bunker at a high altitude that she can drive to from São Paulo. She has also bought guns, rallied people and researched that sesame will ensure her survival. But perhaps you can lean towards the other side; honestly I wouldn’t want to be part of a fight this immense. No one would want to continue on in fear, living in a Hunger Games situation where nobody can be ensured that the “odds will ever be in their favor.” Many people see the conclusion of the human species ‘called for’ and fair, as we have been the cause of the climate change that will lead to our termination. Therefore, also in National Geographic, a woman concocts recipes in order for people to take their minds off the horrendous events happening outside the kitchen during this inevitable collapse. Personally, I would bid my goodbyes to my family, lie down on my bed and go to sleep while listening to the Beatles’ Eleanor Rigby and never wake up. I don’t know about you, but I hope by now you have thought of something that you will be doing on 21 December: hiding in terror or living life to the fullest. It is completely up to you, but just reflect on how it would be like for you to walk on Earth in this level of anxiety. I would advise you to do whatever you want to do, even if the world doesn’t really end. In this unforeseeable future, follow Carpe Diem.
“We have experienced the beginning of the end”
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Sources: abc.com, nationalgeographic.com
entertainment
To the End of the World and Beyond Top end-of-the-world theories for 2012
Mariana Lepecki
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he countdown has begun. Have you already raced through all of the items on your bucket list? Better get going, because according to the many theories, life, the universe and everything else is about to perish before our very eyes. No wait, that wasn’t it. The theories state that the universe will most likely remain intact, but our planet will be burned by a massive supernova that will destroy all of us. But that’s still not it. Theorists argue that nothing will happen to the universe or to our planet, since what will eventually wipe out the human race is a massive nuclear World War III. An infinite number of theories and only a month left to live—this will be our doom. For if we remain stuck in the middle of these competing ideas, how will we ever prepare for the inevitable end of the world? Well, before you give up all hope, here’s a little list of the possible terrors that we might face and a couple of suggested solutions as to how best to face them: The Collision of Planet X Some people believe that the end of the world will be triggered by the collision of this mysterious planet with our beloved Earth. Planet X, also known as Niburo, was discovered by astronomers in the early 1980s. Apparently, it has been tracked by infrared observatories, seen traveling in the Kuiper Belt. However, it seems that some astronomers believe that this planet is currently roaming towards Earth, leading some to assume this is the final proof that the world is close to its end. What we should do: Run to the nearest astronomy store, buy a telescope and frantically watch for any signs of Planet X in our solar system. We might not be able to deflect its course, but at least we’ll know its exact proximity! Shift in Earth’s Magnetic Poles While some people helplessly await the inevitable collision of Planet X, others believe that our demise will be triggered by drastic changes deep inside the Earth’s core. According to this theory, by December 2012 the magnetic poles present in our planet will reverse completely, with the north magnetic pole located under the South Pole and vice versa (which will be perceived by the massive reduction in magnetic field strength). This shift will eventually increase the effects of global warming, for it will weaken the ability of the Earth to deflect cosmic rays. What we should do: Unlike the previous theory, this one actually has a viable and realistic solution. We must all gather up as many refrigerator magnets as we can, divide the total number by two (it’s important to be exact here) and group each half at opposite sides of the world. This will counteract the reversed action of the magnetic poles and will bring them
back to their original designated locations. Sun Supernova “Supernova” might make an awesome rock-band name, and the end-of-the-world theory associated with it would make for an awe-inspiring end. In science, a supernova is a star that has greatly increased in brightness due to an inner explosion that has ejected most of its mass. This theory is heavily based on the sun’s solar cycle, which will apparently be reaching the peak (or “solar maximum”) of its 11-year-cycle at the end of this year. Some predict that this “solar maximum” will contain much more energy than the one which occurred in 2003, officially freaking out Earth’s population for good. This is mainly because there have been some correlations between the Mayan calendar and the Earth’s solar cycle, suggesting that this would be the catastrophe that would wipe out our entire solar system. Moreover, some religious texts (such as the Bible) state that we are all due for a day of judgment that will involve a lot of fire and brimstone. What we should do: Buy a lifetime supply of sunscreen or tanning lotion, for this summer vacation might be extra hot. Global Warming and Massive Floods As most of us are aware, the Earth is slowly getting warmer, leaving many scientists to debate the human impacts on the environment and its relation to our planet’s elevating temperatures. However, many have begun to fear the concept of global warming and its ultimate connection to the end of the world. Some theorists believe that this change in our global temperatures will quickly melt most of the ice caps present in the world, causing major floods that will eventually drown out entire countries (a theory which became extremely popular with Roland Emmerich’s 2012). What we should do: Call up J.K. Rowling, ask her where we can find Nevil’s supply of Gillyweed and distribute it to as many people as we can. If the world will eventually be submerged underwater, we might as well learn to adapt, right? So there you have it, a small glimpse at a growing number of theories and beliefs in regards to our end. The fact is that, though we may predict the weather with some accuracy, we still don’t have enough knowledge or even equipment to predict the future of our planet and universe yet. So I guess that until we do, all that is left for us to do is get caught up with these extreme theories and wait to see what happens in December 21, 2012… Sources: voices.yahoo.com; universetoday.com
the talon • 6
entertainment
12 Things to Do in 2012 What Graded students should do before the world ends Ines Gil
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t is hard to say if the world will end or not, but it doesn’t hurt to take all the necessary precautions. And no, I’m not talking about packing supplies and belongings, but completing things you have always wanted to do before the end of the world in 2012. Here is a list of a recommended to do list for Graded students. Whether you will complete all of these is up to you, but now is the time to let go a little and become that risk-taker you also wanted to be. What do you have to lose anyways? 1. Make a visit to Graded’s bomb shelter. Yes, it exists. Whether you have thought it was a myth or never gave it any thought at all, wouldn’t you like knowing that you saw it with your own eyes? And who knows, maybe that could become your hiding spot once the end of the world comes around. 2. Take the rest of your classes in the Arts Center. Enjoy and breathe in that air-conditioned environment. If there aren’t that many school days left anyways, why not spend them in air-conditioned rooms? 3. Walk under the bell. There might be the popular superstition that if a Graded student walks under the bell, she won’t graduate. But if the world ends in 2012, why would it have mattered? So go ahead, walk under the bell. Strut if you please. 4. Walk from the end of the elementary school gym to the tennis courts. This could be the perfect way for Graded students to reflect on the past and how much they have developed and progressed through the years. Or it could just be a way to burn some calories. 5. Experience/take part in a flash mob. Film it, and make it the kind of video that would have gone viral if it weren’t the end of the world. 6. (For girls) Visit the boys locker room. Girls, it is a must that you see the boys locker room, mainly to be amazed at its greatness. It’s about double the size of that girls locker room. At first be amazed, and then surprised, and then angry. How did this even happen? It’s too bad that you might be a little too late for a rebellion. 7. Have a food fight. Since the world is ending, what’s another stain or two on the
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floor or some clothes? 8. Eat as many snack bar cookies as possible. And when I say as many as possible, I mean as many as possible. To put it simply, try to enjoy these pieces of heaven while you can. 9. Get pizza back on the lunch menu. Remember the good old days when the cafeteria served pizza? Let’s make that happen again, so at least one day before the end of the world we can sit down and have pizza for lunch again. 10. (For all the non-seniors) Have a Graded Student skip day. Since there is a chance you might not have your senior year, why not have a skip day for all Graded students? This could be a good opportunity to catch up on homework (psh, yeah right, as if we are going to worry about homework at a time like this) or go out to lunch with friends and enjoy your free time. 11. Get a book from the library and write notes all over it. Maybe if the book survives, someone in the future can read it. And you can’t deny that you would feel like quite the rebel when writing on a library book, even if it didn’t have a relevant due date. 12. Have a massive sleepover. There might be nothing scarier than being in an empty school at night, unless you are with all your friends. You could do things like look up at the stars from the field or explore Graded after hours. In no way has this article been written to make you dread the end of Graded things, but really to enjoy them, at least while you can. If you can complete all of these by the time December 21 comes around, then you will have accomplished tasks any Graded student would be proud of. What will you be doing before the end of the world?
entertainment
People-Free The story of what would happen to the world without humans Annie Groth
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ecember 2012 has arrived and everyone has started talking about scientific, opinionated, proven, fictional—you name it—kinds of stories on how the world will end. Will the earth start to shake, until suddenly cities will crack in half and be swallowed up from the inside? Or will elephants start to get panicky, a sign that predicts tsunamis are to wash over coasts? Or better yet, will we somehow be exterminated through an enormous meteor, the same fate as the dinosaurs? The how-and-when of when the world will end has always been the focuses of conversations. What many people don’t seem to question is if there is a difference between the end of the world and the end of our world. The two are very different in the sense that one must distinguish. After the “end of the world,” will the world not exist anymore, or is it just us who will have died? What if the purpose of natural disasters on 21 December are not to end the world, but to end us? In 2009, the History Channel launched a series titled Life After People. The show explores how the world would be like if, suddenly and without explanation, all humans disappeared from the world. The fate of national monuments to entire cities, from house pets to endangered species are all addressed, depending on how long people have been gone. Here is what would happen to the world after various periods of time. As the tagline of the program puts it, “Welcome to Earth… Population: Zero.” 1 Day: Power plants shut down. With no one to run them, power plants all over the world will start shutting down in just a single day. There will still be electricity in some places, but sooner or later the earth will go back to being dark at night. The places with longer lasting electricity will be the ones powered by windmills, which will run a few more months after finally stopping from lack of lubrication. 1 Month: Hope for humankind. Inside the International Space Station, a large memory drive is the only hope for humankind. Known as the Immortality Drive, this device stores the digitalized DNA codifications of an eclectic group of people including physicist Stephen Hawking, comedian Stephen Colbert, and even Playboy model Jo Garcia, in a hope that one day intelligent life beyond the earth will decode the inscriptions and be able to replicate the human species back to existence. 3 Months: The Sistine Chapel is safe. The fresco artwork painted by Michelangelo is conserved by more than 20 miles of pipes, pumps, and air filters to prevent it from absorbing too much humidity. This is all controlled through a computer, but without electricity, the paintings become jeopardized. However, without the body heat and disturbed air currents caused
by over 2 million tourists annually, the disappearance of humans will actually help conserve the Sistine Chapel. 3 Years: Falling satellites. Every month, humans have to recalibrate the International Space Station so that is precisely 200 miles above the earth. After three years, the ISS will have fallen so much out of orbit that it will re-enter earth’s atmosphere as a blazing ball of metal. The Immortality Drive is destroyed. 20 Years: Sports stadiums are infested. The Houston Dome, one of the most well-kept and air-conditioned sports stadiums, becomes overtaken by bats who create a swampland. The arrival of the bats soon attract other species that feed on them until progressively, the dome is turned into the skeleton of a new ecosystem. 35 Years: Bye-Bye Boston. Boston’s eighteenth-century Old North Church, which survived the American Revolution, will collapse shambles merely 35 years after people disappear. The wooden steeple that once gave the church its characteristic look will be the first to collapse, soon totaling the entire building to bricks. 50 Years: Collapse of the Chrysler Building’s Eagles. After a long 50 years without humans, the Chrysler Building in New York is starting to fall apart. The eight gargoyle eagles, which stand watch over the city, will suffer a fall of over 1,000 feet after having their attachments corroded. However, the building itself will remain intact for several more decades as it is made of stainless steel. 100 Years: No more beaches. Miami Beach was first developed in 1914 when investors started removing over 2,500 acres of mangrove forests from a narrow strip of sand. The buildings of luxurious vacation resorts, millionaire beach houses, and gourmet restaurants actually create a huge sand deficit which humans once helped control. Now, over 200 years later, there is nothing stopping the Atlantic Ocean from taking over Miami. 100 Million Years: From pieces to petroleum. In the city that used to be New Orleans, human bones are now buried under over a mile of sediment. The combination of high temperatures and pressure make the bones denser and denser and the soft tissues of the bodies carbonize. After the bones turn almost to rock, what is left of the tissues enter a process to become oil. Humans who once explored the Gulf of Mexico for oil now become oil themselves; they have turned into the fossil fuels they once exploited. Source: history.com
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entertainment
Talon Toons November optimism Felipe Marques
7 Songs For the End of the World What to listen to during the apocalypse Adam Hunt Fertig
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f you believe that your insignificant soul can in some way help the world in a limited amount of time, then listen to “4 Minutes” by Madonna. If you’re feeling fine about the apocalypse, then listen to “It’s the End of the World as We Know It” by R.E.M. If you have delusions of grandeur and think you’re going to make it, first of all, not true, second of all, listen to “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor. Or Cake. If you kind of hate the world and think the apocalypse would be kind of cool, I worry about you. Listen to “Apocalypse
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Please” by Muse. If you’re looking forward to spending the culmination of your pitiful existence with that special someone, listen to “When the World Ends” by Dave Matthews. If you were born between January 19th and February 18th, you’re in luck. Listen to “Aquarius” by the 5th Dimension. And, if you work at a hospital or pharmacy, I’ve got a punderful pick for you: “The End of the World” by the Cure.
sports
Exotic Sports What are some sports you have to play before the end of the world? Mendel Schwarz
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abaddi is a game originally created in India although its roots are very much unknown. There is proof, though, that the game is around four thousand years old, which explains its rather rudimentary form of play. It is primarily a mixture of wrestling and rubgy, and doesn’t require any equipment or lots of space. In Kabaddi a court, usually measuring 12.50m x 10m, is divided in two even sides so that each team occupies a half. These teams must consist of twelve players while only seven can be actively participating in the game, which has two, twentyminute halves with a five minute break separating the halves. The game starts traditionally after a coin toss that chooses the side that will begin by sending an “invader” into the opponents’ half. The objective is for this player to touch as many of the players in the other half as possible while chanting “kabaddi.” Any athlete touched by him will be immediately sent out. What is particularly interesting about this sport is that the “invader” may only breathe before entering his adversaries’ half. The objective of the opposing team is to ensure that this runner is not allowed to return to his field without breathing a second time characterizing the end of his turn and thus allowing for the other team to send an “invader.” The team with the most players on the court by the end of the two halves wins. Underwater Rugby Underwater Ruby is as weird as it sounds. First, this game must be played in a pool at least twelve feet deep. Each team has a total of eleven players whose main objective is to place a rugby ball inside a round metal basket at the end of the opposing half. Detail: the ball doesn’t float. This sport requires quite a bit of equipment. Not only do you need to find yourself a pool that meets the requisites but you will also need fins, diving masks, ear protectors, and a snorkel. This activity really requires contact but the water doesn’t allow for extensive harm as happens in this sport’s land version. Chula-PakPao Chula-PakPao is Thailand’s most popular sport during the summer. In a nutshell, this is a kite UFC. What do I mean? First, one of the two players chooses either the Chula, a square shaped kite with a long tail designed especially for aerial fighting, or a PakPao, a star-shaped, heavy, sturdy kite requiring strong winds to fly. Players are allowed to choose the same kind of kite. After they have chosen their “weapon” the
athletes in question try to bring their adversaries’ equipment down according to a very complex set of rules. This game has been practiced since ancient times in this region of the world. Hurling Hurling is supposedly the world’s fastest sport, being a mixture of ice hockey, rugby and soccer. The origins of this game are tied to the last ice age, when it was the Celts who came to Ireland and brought hurling with them. Therefore, this game is Europe’s oldest field game that still exists. In order to play this sport, fifteen players are divided into two teams. This sport is very much like ice hockey in the sense that a hurling, a wooden stick similar to the one utilized in the modern sport, is used to hit a small bouncing ball. The players, as in rugby, may pick up the ball with their hands. They may run a total of four steps while clutching it and then they have to bounce the ball on their hurling stick. Players are only allowed to hold the ball a total of two times. A way to bypass, this rule is to strategically place the ball on the tip of the stick and run with it balanced there. Although this may sound clever there is a great chance that an opponent in the process will smash you. Their main objective is to get the ball into the net at the opposing side of the field or to hit the ball over the crossbar. The goalposts are around the same size as those utilized in soccer. Yubi Lakpi Yubi Lakpi is essentially rugby being played on a 45m x 18m field with oiled coconuts. This game was originally created in Manipuri State in India and the word “yubi” means coconut. The objective is to get the coconut across the field and into a goal. The main difference between this game and rugby is, first and foremost, the coconut. Second, after every goal, the coconut has to be offered to officials who are seated behind each the goals. This game is commonly played in palaces and temples around the state. Source: resolutionlenses.com
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sports
The Downfall of a Hero How Armstrong reached the end of his world Luiza Gundim
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ance Armstrong has always been considered one of the greatest cyclists of all times—he won seven consecutive titles at the Tour de France between 1999 and 2005, an extraordinary accomplishment. That was until October 2012, when the cyclist was accused of doping throughout his career, and was banned from the sport for life. Armstrong was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 1996 and his incredible recovery made his feat even more extraordinary. The disease had spread to his lungs, brain, and abdomen before he went through radical treatment and carried on to win his first championship in 1999, a clear display of perseverance. After his heroic battle with cancer, Armstrong instituted the Livestrong Foundation, which acquired close to US$500 million to fight the disease. As in a Greek tragedy, Armstrong’s unprecedented glory was followed by his fall from grace. The 41-year-old cyclist now faces undeniable accusations of doping from the United States Anti-Doping Agency. The first time Armstrong raised suspicions of doping was back in 1999, when a test came back positive from a prohibited substance. In his defense, it was allegedly a cream prescribed for the treatment of saddle sores. Armstrong escaped unharmed. The rumors, however, refused to go away. In 2004, a book called “L.A. Confidential: The Secrets of Lance Armstrong” claimed that the cyclist made use of banned substances to enhance his performance. Emma O’Reilly, Armstrong’s previous personal assistant, confessed that she used to go on clandestine trips to collect doping products for him. Earlier last month, rumors proved to be true with the release of the USADA’s report on Armstrong’s doping scheme. There was plenty of evidence for the report, including his personal assistance’s account, and
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accusations of misconduct from his former teammates, who had raced alongside Armstrong in his glorious career. Armstrong fights back, saying that, out of more than 500 drug tests, he has failed none. There is enough proof, though, that he was part of what has been called the “the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen.” With his reputation broken, a disgraced Armstrong faces the loss of all his Tour de France titles, as well as his bronze medal at the 2000 Olympic games. He was also forced to renounce his position as Livestrong’s chairman, and is asked to pay back millions of dollars from all his prizes. The French Cycling Federation called for Armstrong to return 2.95 million euros that he collected for winning the tours. Companies that have oaredgenow.com sponsored him during his epic winnings such as Nike, RadioShack and Anheuser-Busch have already ended the sponsorship for his team, although they claim to continue their support of Armstrong’s foundation. The term “Armstrong Era,” previously a sign of his greatness in sport, is now a synonym for shameless cheating. Most importantly, however, Armstrong has lost his fame as a hero. The plot of his career shows that his place should be in a classic tragedy and not in sports. In a competition as serious and physically challenging as the Tour de France, there is no room for cheating, let alone doping. The USADA is more than correct to rescind his awards, and let him serve as an example for cyclists, and athletes to come. Source: edition.cnn.com