February Issue 2014

The Oracle explores Gunn’s dating scene.

Stage tech serves key role in theatre program.

Students compete in various cycling events.

PG. 14-15 CENTERFOLD

PG. 16-17 FEATURES

PG. 20 SPORTS

THEORACLE Henry M. Gunn High School

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Friday, February 21, 2014

Volume 51, Issue 6

780 Arastradero Road, Palo Alto, CA 94306

The Oracle investigates gender imbalance in classes Percentage of males enrolled, 2013-2014

Percentage of females enrolled, 2013-2014

Skelly announces end of term as superintendent Shawna Chen Reporter

63.2

AP Calculus BC

36.8

47.3

AP Calculus AB

52.7

60.9

Analysis H

39.1

47.3

Geometry/ Algebra 2H

68.5

AP Computer Science

63

AP Physics C

40

AP US History

36.3

AP English Literature

52.7 31.5 37 60 63.7 Jasmine Garnett

Rebecca Alger Features Editor

Gunn students take honors and Advanced Placement (AP) courses to stand out in the college admissions process and get ahead on college credits. However, though the ratio of males to females in most AP courses at Gunn is evenly distributed, notable gender disparities exist in the student makeup of humanities and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) courses.

Math While Math Instructional Supervisor Kathy Hawes is aware that there are far fewer females in the top math lane, particularly AP Calculus BC, she does not believe that the gender distribution is a problem. “We are really trying to encourage more girls to stick with math,” Hawes said. “But at the end of the day, if they’re not interested in it, if they’re not choosing to, with our recruitment efforts, they’re not successful, then it’s their choice.”

Despite the male dominance in the higher level math courses at Gunn, female students are rarely aware of gender distribution. “None of us in class have really noticed the difference in numbers of males versus females,” senior Sandra Herchen said.

Herchen agrees with Hawes that the lack of females in the top math lane at Gunn is not necessarily an issue that

needs to be fixed. “I honestly don’t see the major problem with having fewer females in these classes as long as it is not because they are being forced into lower lanes,” Herchen said. “People make their own decisions whether or not to continue in the higher lanes of math and science, and if they want to drop down, it doesn’t matter whether they are male or female.”

Junior Nieku Barkhordarian is also unsure as to why there are fewer females. “This pattern is surprising to me,” she said. “The class can be intimidating if you are completely lost, and it really depends on how you personally deal with confusion.”

Because students are placed in their respective math lanes even before they get to Gunn, math teacher Chris Karas believes that efforts to equalize the number of males and females in the top math lane should start prior to freshman year. “The bigger issue is can we get them here in a lane that’s going to get them into BC Calc,” Karas said.

Hawes does not believe that the number of females in the top lane of math is a gender issue, but simply a choice made by students who wish to manage their time differently. “I think as students continue in the four years of Gunn, you have to start making choices. Where are you going to specialize? What is your interest? What is your passion?” Hawes said.

Junior Leah Hirsh, followed a philosophy similar to GENDER—p.3

This week, Palo Alto School Unified District (PAUSD) Superintendent Kevin Skelly announced his plans to step down after the end of the 20132014 school year, effective Jun. 30. “I’ve been Superintendent for seven years, and it feels like time to explore doing something else,” Skelly said. “I hope to use the first half of the year to reflect on my time here and spend more time with people I love like my wife, parents, siblings and parents-in-law.”

According to the email Skelly sent to the PAUSD staff, he announced his decision in February so that the district can “have an inclusive, rich discussion about the characteristics they wish to see in their next superintendent.”

For Skelly, his time as the superintendent has been extraordinary. “I’m very grateful to have had such a great experience in this transformative district,” he said. “It’s been really fun working with quality parents, teachers and administrators, trying to make the schools better for kids.” No other district has displayed the level of commitment to student well-being among the community, Skelly says. “Hopefully, I’ve made a culture of colleague collaboration among the staff, too,” he said.

During his tenure, Skelly pushed hard to accomplish his goals, according to PAUSD School Board member Melissa Baten Caswell. “Dr. Skelly’s commitment to academic excellence and the socio/emotional health of students is illustrated by his Strategic Plan Goals, investment in Project SafetyNet and the district’s commitment to raising graduation requirements so that every student has the option to pursue a four-year college education,” Caswell said.

“He worked with the Board, community, teachers, and staff, to commit to a Strategic Plan in his first year and then has managed to [stick to] that plan for the past six years.” Caswell also noted Skelly’s extensive involvement within school communities.

“He is very invested in teacher-professional training,” Caswell said. “The way he has brought that value in the district is incredibly impressive to me because it’s really focused on teachers, on improving their skills so that students can have a better experience in the classroom.”

According to Caswell, Skelly was more than instrumental in expanding school grounds. “He has kept it on track, ensuring that we still have money left over that can be used for additional projects,” she said.

Principal Katya Villalobos agrees. “At Gunn, we’ve definitely benefited from construction, which was built on time, opened on time, and had very few glitches,” she said. “He made sure our students had good facilities to learn in and absolutely amazing athletic facilities compared to those of previous years.”

Villalobos also believes that without Skelly, it would not have been possible to institute the A-G course requirements for admission into UC colleges. “[Thanks to him], we have different pathways for students in terms of curricular improveSKELLY—p.2

2

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Superintendent announces resignation in June

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district [and] ran basketball open gyms here for SKELLY—p.1 -ments,” she said. “He had three [children] gradu- the community,” Patrick said. “That was probably ate from Gunn and he truly understood what pretty unique to him, the fact that he liked hangGunn was about and what we needed. He really ing out with students so much more than most people that are usually doing his job.” delivered and his leadership paid off.”

For Patrick, his father maintained a good balHistory teacher Chris Johnson regards Skelly as easygoing and open to hearing what others ance between his professional and personal life. had to say. “He respected what we did in the “Even if there were things going on in the district, classroom,” Johnson said. “He was there at he did a really good job of working really hard at the helm in a district that was going through work and then came home and being a really good transitions.” Though Johnson acknowledges dad to me,” he said. “In my eyes and probably in most people’s eyes, he the deficiencies pointed out will be remembered by disgruntled community for making a pretty members, he understands positive impact; he that the position comes with was always dealing its own challenges. “From my with all the adversity experience, I think it’s very in the district, workhard being superintendent in ing hard and listenthis district,” he said. “[Skelly] ing to others.” did a good job.”

According to According to senior Eli Patrick, his graduaDawson, Skelly remained a tion in May played friendly and personable figure Stephanie Kim on Gunn campus. “Among PAU S D S u p e r i n t e n d e n t D r. K e v i n a part in his father’s decision. “He’s been students, he’s pretty looked Skelly will retire at the school year’s end. work i ng here for up to,” Dawson said. A friend seven years, and he of Skelly’s son, Dawson spent a lot of time around Skelly and thought of him as really likes his job, but a lot of the people that had a second father. “He treated me just like his son, been superintendent here before had worked here [and was] always encouraging and inclusive,” for three years,” Patrick said. “So, [seven years] he said. Dawson also notes how Skelly always was long.”

At its next meeting, the Board of Education proved willing to interact with students at Gunn.

“Skelly was often commonly seen on campus, not will begin the electing process for a new superjust once a year,” he said. “[He] let them know intendent. “Part of that includes going out to the he’s not some supreme being; he’s just another community and asking people what they’d like to see in a superintendent,” Caswell said. “Then we person out there.”

One particular incident involving Skelly begin the interview process, and hopefully, we’ll had a lasting impact on Dawson. “Freshman find someone we’re happy with.” Personally, Casyear, a kid came to our school, and [there was] well will be looking for someone who is always mutual agreement that he would be better off learning and thinking about how the district can living with the Skelly’s while attending Gunn,” improve. “One of the things that Dr. Skelly did, he said. “[Skelly] was definitely always looking is he created a culture where management was out for people, and I think that’s probably his about being on campus, walking around, talking biggest legacy, always talking to people, always to teachers, staff and students, so that you’re out looking out for them, and trying to put a smile there [learning],” she said. “I think that’s a very good cultural norm for our district.” on people’s face.”

Skelly believes that the next superintendent Skelly’s youngest son, senior Patrick Skelly, says that he is most proud of his father for creat- should focus attention on the students. “If you ing a comfortable atmosphere within the district. can think about the kids, then that’s the most “He hung out with the kids so much in the school important thing,” he said.

Sweetheart Awards honor special needs allies Hayley Krolik Reporter

Marriage Ceremony Courtesy of Sara Ma

The Palo Alto Community Advisory Committee for Special Education (CAC) Steering Committee will host the tenth annual Sweetheart Awards on Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m. The awards honor those in Palo Alto who have positively affected a special needs child. CAC member and former Steer— Compiled by Ian Cramer ing Committee member Tina Underwood started the awards after she learned that a friend ran a program similar to Palo Alto’s Sweetheart Awards through a special education parent group in Massachusetts.

The awards honor those who go above and beyond, even with the smallest actions, to help a special needs child. “It’s really the most wonderful, heartwarming night of the year,” Underwood said. “It’s meaningful because there are all sorts of people [whose] small kindnesses make a big difference.”

Anyone can nominate someone for this award by submitting a paragraph discussing why the nominee should receive the award to Rachel Paley, a CAC volunteer and parent of a special needs child. “We hear so much about what’s wrong with this school district, and we read about the investigation by the Office of Civil Rights, and this event is what is right and what is good and what is special about this school district,” Paley said.

“It’s my favorite day of the year.”

The CAC notifies people of their nominations but does not reveal who nominated them until the night of the event. Their nominations, or an edited version, are read aloud to attendees. The

nominees receive a certificate and a f lower. Many teachers, speech therapists and classroom aides are nominated, but bus drivers, neighbors, crossing guards and friends have also received awards.

Barron Park Elementary School teacher Nicholas Foote has been nominated five times for the Sweetheart Awards, with 2014 being the third consecutive year that his entire third grade class has been nominated. “It is very humbling to attend a celebration where families have expressed such joy and appreciation and happiness for the entire class,” Foote said.

Foote began his career as a special education teacher and developed a high-esteemed reputation for his work with special needs kids in his regular education class. “I have always said that this [the classroom] has to be a place where inclusion works for all 22 of us, and all 22 of us can be successful, can achieve, can learn and can help each other,” Foote said. “What we try to do is to celebrate those moments where all of us do something together.”

Both nominees and CAC members find the Sweetheart Awards to be extremely meaningful to the community. “We all have things that we struggle with, but I think if you have a special need, no one can imagine how hard that is,” Paley said. “I can’t describe how wonderful it is to have someone who steps up and does something that is either helpful or inclusive.” The awards motivate honorees to continue to support those in the special needs community.

Students can involve themselves by interacting with special needs kids they know, and by observing and matching their behavior so they can develop friendships with them. In addition, students can nominate people for the awards.

News THEORACLE 780 Arastradero Rd. Palo Alto, CA 94306 (650) 354-8238 www.gunnoracle.com

Editorial Board Editor-in-Chief Catalina Zhao Managing Editors Mitch Donat Lucy Oyer News Cooper Aspegren Lawrence Chen Nabeel Chollampat Forum Ben Atlas Leon Cheong Klaire Tan Features Rebecca Alger Chaewon Lee Danielle Yacobson Centerfold Rachel Lew Stephanie Zhang Sports Pooja Belur Alvin Wang Entertainment Sam Acker Misheel Enkhbat Noa Livneh Photo Audey Shen Graphics Jasmine Garnett

Staff Copy Anuva Ganapathi Kavya Padmanabhan Tim Wang

Friday, February 21, 2014

Gender imbalance affects courses of certain subjects GENDER—p.1

Hawes’ when she decided to switch from Analysis Honors to Introduction to Analysis and Calculus (IAC) at the end of the first quarter this school year. “For me math has never been my passion,” Hirsh said. “By junior year, no matter how much work I put into it, my math grade continued to be low. I ended up spending so much time focusing on math that it hurt my grades in the classes that I actually were passionate about.”

While Hirsh primarily chose to switch lanes because of her own skill level and lack of passion for the subject, the class environment was another deciding factor. “I think that for a lot of girls it’s not worth it to do math on such a high level,” she said. “The boys in the highest math lane treat these girls inferiorly and disrespectfully and it is not worth it for these girls to continue to try to prove their intelligence.”

English While STEM courses tend to have more males, the humanities, both nationally and at Gunn, tend to have more females. “I’d like to believe that males and females are encouraged equally in every field, but unfortunately our society hasn’t reached that point,” English Instructional Supervisor Eileen Feigenbaum said.

Students could not pinpoint a reason for fewer males being enrolled in AP English. Despite the imbalance, however, no males have found being in a female oriented class as a problem.

“Being the minority in English wasn’t really a bad thing,” senior Dillon Hu said. “There still are plenty of males in AP English, and for me, it was a perfect opportunity to meet and talk to people I might have never talked to before.”

Hu believes that the lack of males in AP English stems from students being encouraged to follow what society says instead of the courses they actually enjoy. “I think it’ll be better to just encourage people to take classes that they want, not what other people tell them to,” Hu said. “I think we’ll see more males who are really interested in English take English instead of Computer Science just because some of their

Photographers Stephanie Kim Anthony Tran

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Please include your name, grade and contact information should you choose to write one.

Graphics Artists Paige Anderson Ally Gong Anton Oyung Allison Paley Carolyn Zhou Dave Zhu Reporters Elinor Aspegren, Lena Campbell, Shawna Chen, Ian Cramer, Aayush Dubey, Kush Dubey, Nia Gardner, Matthew Hamilton, Prachi Kale, Yuki Klotz-Burwell, Esther Kozakevich, Hayley Krolik, Emily Kvitko, Joanne Lee, Ryeri Lim, Christine Lin, Alex Man, Naina Murthy, Arjun Sahdev, Henry Siu, Isaac Wang, Erica Watkins, Justin Wenig, Kathleen Xue Adviser Kristy Blackburn

teachers or friends suggested it and supported them.”

Computer Science The class with the smallest number of females is AP Computer Science—31.5 percent of students are female. Nationally however, only 15.9 percent of AP Computer Science test takers are female. According to AP Computer Science teacher Josh Paley, other teachers across the country are continually amazed by Gunn’s distribution. In response to their astonishment, Paley poses the question, “If this were any other discipline, would you be saying that?”

Although there is only a four percent difference between the number of females in BC Calc and AP Computer Science, the number of females compared to males is more obvious.

Girls who never noticed that there were fewer females in their math classes quickly pointed out the low number of females in AP Computer Science. “I remember scanning the room during computer science once and realizing that there seemed to be a majority of guys in my class,” senior Kelsey Chan said. “Almost all the girls were sitting on one side of the classroom, which made it pretty easy to tell the gender imbalance.”

Both Paley and senior Amy Shen, who took AP Computer Science as a sophomore, noted that by getting a few more girls in the course each year, the number of girls taking the class will increase. “Some people sign up because their friends sign up and if none of your female friends sign up, then you’re less likely to,” Shen said. “People are more likely to take electives in which they already know other people.”

Nurture vs. Nature According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, a child’s awareness of being a boy or a girl starts before his or her first birthday. By the time they are four years old, children have stable gender identities for life. Despite Palo Alto’s accepting environment, the ideas about appropriate behavior based on sex are still a rampant part of today’s culture. “Palo Alto is a liberal area—everybody is very open minded, every-

body wants their children to succeed, but with that said, somewhere we’re still injecting these beliefs about what’s appropriate based on sex to kids at a very young age,” Paley said. “It might be worse elsewhere, but it’s still not great here.”

The Program for International Student Assessment tests 15-year-old students on their reading, mathematics and science literacy.

In countries across the globe, including the highest scoring countries (Finland, South Korea and Japan), girls either matched or outperformed boys in science and math. Hawes agrees with Paley in that the lack of females in STEM classes and careers is a purely a social issue. “I don’t believe that [the lack of females is a biological issue] because when you look at other cultures and countries, the balance is different,” Hawes said. “I think in general, we don’t put enough value on engineering and the hard sciences.”

Not everyone agrees that the gender distribution in certain careers is purely a social issue.

“Females are more ‘nurturing’ than males by nature, which might draw females to subjects like biology and fields like medicine instead of more technical fields like mechanical and electrical engineering,” Chan said.

Career Choices Herchen understands that despite recent improvements, a lack of females in STEM fields continues. “As with college and the current work force, males naturally are more present in fields of engineering, science, and mathematics,” Herchen said. “Even though the numbers of females in each of these fields is steadily increasing, there definitely is still a stigma associated with women participating in engineering and science.”

Chan, who is plans to go into biomedical engineering, believes that even though she will be working in a field with fewer females, her gender could conceivably help her. “There are a lot of scholarships and programs out there that focus on getting more females into technical fields, so it actually might work out in my favor.”

INBOX

Tech Lisa Hao Roy Shadmon Business/Circulation Erica Lee Shireen Ahsan (Asst.)

Matt Niksa (Asst.)

Regina Tran (Asst.)

3

January 24, 2014 I enjoyed reading all the articles and seeing all the pictures. The last one I remember reading was the one about families of different students at Gunn, such as adoptive, gay and divorced parents.

—Miranda Shum, 10 I really loved that you had recent stories about TedX, the bullying, marijuana, etc, because these are things that are major issues today.

—Riya Goel, 9

Letters and Comments may be edited to meet space requirements and the writer is solely responsible for the accuracy of the content.

Letters to the Editor and Comments and ideas for coverage may be sent to oraclegunn@gmail.com or posted on our Facebook page.

These letters need not be from current students.

I thought all the articles were good and really interesting. However, the sports page used sports that less people could relate to.

—Laurie Perng, 11

I think that the recent Oracle newspaper is incredibly interesting and that the writers are all quite talented.

—Alice Mazin, 9

Last story I remember reading and enjoyed reading was the debate on marijuana.

Both opponents in the debate had interesting points and I was entertained by the fact that Gunn let the story through.

—Alex Molinari, 11

I liked the “Modern Family” portion of this issue of The Oracle.

—Patricia Tang, 10

I liked some articles in particular, like the feature about The Vagina Monologues or the “Modern Family” piece. I like that The Oracle is taking time to feature different kinds of students with unique talents or situations.

—Edut Birger, 11

I liked the well articulated discussion on legalization of marijuana.

—Quincy Delp, 12 The flowchart on “Sports For Your Personality Type” really appealed to my calling because it was fun and accurate.

—Anubhav Jaiswal, 12

I really enjoy how all the articles in The Oracle are about hot topics, like marijuana.

—Natalie Perreault, 11 I think it would be more fun if there was something you could actually enjoy doing.

Like word search and crossword puzzles. I wish there were fun facts that you could read.

—Ray Akamatsu, 9

The Oracle is a 2013 NSPA Pacemaker Award winner.

4

News

PAUSD official nominated for position within Obama Administration Pooja Belur

Sports Editor

On Jan. 29, President Barack Obama announced his intention to nominate several individuals for key roles in the presidential administration. If approved, Palo Alto Unified School District’s (PAUSD) Chief Technical Officer Ann Dunkin will serve as the new Assistant Administrator for Environmental Information through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Dunkin will hold the responsibility of implementing new technology and management solutions to strengthen the quality of information, technology and data collection within the EPA. She will also help manage informational technology (IT) departments inside the agency.

Currently, according to Dunkin, her job is pending approval from the Senate. After she is confirmed by the Senate, she will begin her job immediately in Washington D.C. “Once all of the paperwork is finalized, it will be sent to the Senate, and the EPA will talk to the Environment and Public Works Committee staff about a hearing date. I’ll go to D.C. for a hearing,” Dunkin said. “After the hearing, the committee will request that written questions for the record be answered. After those answers are received, most nominations are referred favorably out of committee for a floor vote.”

The appointment process began in 2012, before Obama’s re-election. Dunkin submitted her resume to the Presidential Appointments Project, which is run by the Gay and Lesbian Victory Institute. According to the institute, the project serves as a recruitment database for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) professionals who are seeking out opportunities to improve federal policies and processes. Dunkin believes that the project is the reason she received the opportunity. “It is pretty hard to get noticed for one of these jobs unless someone opens a door you,” she said.

“Someone from the Victory Institute took my resume, gave it to the Presidential Personnel Office and recommended that they consider me for a position.”

According to Dunkin, shortly after receiving her resume, the Presidential Personnel Office called her and told her about her nomination for the position in Oct. 2012, shortly after Obama’s re-election. Four months later, Dunkin was flown to Washington D.C. to meet with the Chief Information Officer for the Unit-

ed States. By September of 2013, she met with several others, and received a “soft offer” when they told her that she was the only remaining candidate for the job.

“That’s when the fun part began,” Dunkin said. “They

Courtesy of Ann Dunkin

PAUSD Chief Technical Of ficer Ann Dunkin is up for appointment to become the EPA’s new Assistant Administrator for Environmental Information. began my background checks and an FBI investigation.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation ran a background check and spoke to around 40 people Dunkin worked with, including Superintendent Dr. Kevin Skelly. They also examined her human resources files and information regarding her previous jobs.

Dunkin expressed excitement over the nomination.

“I think that the coolest part was when the president’s special secretary called and said, ‘The president has approved your nomination,’” she said. Dunkin believes that working in the administration will be a rewarding experience. “I am very excited that if confirmed, I will be part of the administration and I have a tremendous amount of respect for the president,” she said. “I

think that the EPA’s mission is incredible as well, and I’ve met some great people in the organization.” But, Dunkin also notes that leaving the district will be difficult especially after all of the work that she has put in.

“I’m sad to be going. I feel like we’ve done some really great things here, but I am leaving behind a capable team and I know they will continue to work,” she said.

In the past five years, the IT team has made several changes to PAUSD’s technology infrastructure.

Some of the highlights include the introduction of Schoology, the design and implementation of a new fiber network and the use of several productivity tools for teachers such as new email systems. According to Skelly, Dunkin’s work has been essential to the district. “[Dunkin] has done a lot of work on the ‘plumbing’ of the district,” he said. “She has improved a lot of technology and increased students’ access to devices and their ability to get on the network.” Skelly also believes that the knowledge from her position at PAUSD will help in her new venture. “I think the same skills that made Ann successful here will make her successful in that large organization,” Skelly said. “She is incredibly smart. She knows a lot about technical things, but she also knows a lot about organizations and helping organizations reform and helping them manage people.”

Prior to working in PAUSD, Dunkin also worked for the private sector. She spent 20 years at Hewlett Packard, where she held a number of positions including Senior Research and Development Program Manager, IT Director and IT Operations Director. She believes that the variety of positions she has held, especially her work with a subset of Hewlett Packard called Indigo, has prepared her for her job with the EPA. The district is still unsure of who will replace Dunkin once she leaves. They recently finalized the job description and are looking to get the job posted soon. Skelly believes that they will use a mix of advertising to professionals in the private sector and searching in other public school districts to find a candidate. “[Dunkin] came from the private sector and didn’t understand a lot about the K-12 area, but she picked it up very quickly,” Skelly said. “We may go that way again, or we may pick someone with an educational background. We are not sure what the best approach is yet. We just need to find someone who is able to learn quickly.”

Challenge Success group aims to alleviate stress for students

in the future. “[The talk’s] attendance shows that there paths to success. are Palo Alto parents that want change and are open for In addition, GCS members have implemented the more ideas in order “Student for a Day” opOn Jan. 29, psychologist and clinician Dr. Madeline to address this huge portunity for adminisLevine arrived at Spangenberg Theatre to discuss soci- problem,” GCS memtrators and teachers “GCS has many goals, but we want to ety’s flawed definition of success and ways parents can ber junior Rose Weinto shadow a student change the system so that students enjoy alleviate stress for students in a pressure-filled academic mann said. for a day. “What we’re learning, accepting new paths and getting environment. Challenge Success (CS), a Stanford–based According to Weintrying to do with these program, and Palo Alto parents organized the event last mann, GCS’s objective events is to show the alternate paths to success.” spring. The nonprofit group has expanded to establish is to enhance student many forms success —GCS member junior Rose Weinmann individual high school teams, including Gunn Chal- acknowledgment for comes in, and that one lenge Success (GCS). unconventional methdefinition doesn’t fit CS co-founder Levine shared her beliefs regarding ods of achievement. “GCS has many goals, but we want all students,” Renazco said. “To better the community, success with a sold-out audience and provided parents to change the system so that students enjoy learning, we start by assisting parents and staff members to unwith tools to make their children thrive in a new econo- accepting new paths and getting alternate paths to suc- derstand the current student atmosphere, and this way my. “Today’s competitive world has led to anxiety, pres- cess,” Weinmann said. we can get students to feel more welcomed at school.” sure and a myopic focus on grades and test performance, Parents hold a significant presence in Partners in EdIn addition, GCS members have planned to start a which hinders resilience and the qualities necessary for ucation (PiE) and the Palo Alto Parent Teacher Associ- Success Redefined club in order to more directly affect the next generation ation in addition to GCS. students’ perspectives on success and decrease their to be capable of beWeinmann believes that stress levels. This club will include student-specific acing good citizens,” Challenge Success, which tivities and campaigns about different stresses following “What we’re trying to do with these events she said. has existed for fourteen establishment in the near future. The planned student is to show the many forms success comes Levine explained years, can be improved club would involve a panel of students who chose not in, and that one definition doesn’t fit all stuthat CS considers by incorporating student to go through the normal route with their educational the path to success input to a greater de- careers for an upcoming event called “Diverse Paths to dents. To better the community, we start by as different for each gree. “[GCS] has parents Success.” Additional planned events include “Alternate assisting parents and staff members to unindividual. “One to largely involved with the Routes to Success,” which will be similar to its previous 10 percent of studistrict, and we get them parent talk. derstand the current student atmosphere, dents reported that to talk at staff meetings,” According to Weinmann, a substantial component and this way we can get students to feel they followed the she said. “However, stu- of GCS’s progress has been credited to Stanford’s CS more welcomed at school.” normal path—dodents are the least influ- fall conference. During this conference, representatives ing well in school, enced today, so we plan from all of CS’s affiliated schools discussed a multitude —GCS member math teacher Daisy Renazco getting into a good to make big changes that of ideas to advance their school’s influence and to excollege, and findkids can really feel.” pose one another to methods that worked and didn’t ing a job or career,” she said. “Ninety to 99 percent take According to GCS member math teacher Daisy Re- work. Weinmann believes Gunn’s individual developa more realistic, unexpected approach—a curvy and nazco, CS provides families and schools with the prac- ment would not be possible without this experience. spontaneous path filled with failures.” tical, research-based tools to raise motivated kids. GCS “Everyone here gives huge thanks to Stanford for hostThe large audience for the discussion that evening conducts parent education nights in which students en- ing these conferences,” she said. “We’re growing and gives a positive outlook for the events CS plans to hold rolled in Palo Alto schools talk about their respective changing every year.”

Kush Dubey Reporter

News

Friday, February 21, 2014

5

California declares state of emergency due to drought Shawna Chen

around Palo Alto. “Right now, [saving water] is all voluntary, so we’ve been trying to get the word out on our website, Twitter, Facebook [and] in different bill inserts and ads,” Creed said. “But there are no great [pressures] On Jan. 17, Gov. Jerry Brown declared a drought we’re putting on people for now because we’re still waitemergency in California, and on Jan. 31, the San Franing to see how the situation will play out by the end cisco Public Utilities Commission took action by offiof February.” If the situation regarding snow runcially asking customers of the Hetch Hetchy Regional

At one reservoir near off does not improve, however, CPAU will take Water System to voluntarily reduce water consumption more radical steps to reduce water usage.

Sacramento, water levels have by 10 percent. Hetch Hetchy, which currently pro“If the situation doesn’t improve, vides Palo Alto with its water supply, relies on the dropped so low that old buildings from we might call for [an increase in Sierra Nevada snow pack runoff as opposed A l ly a Gold Rush ghost town have appeared Gon voluntary water reduction] to to local rainfall. Thus, according to the City of g 20 percent or 30 percent, etc.,” Palo Alto Utilities (CPAU) Communications she said. “The very last step Source: http://www.infowars.com Coordinator Christen Creed, it is still too early we would take, and it would for definite predictions on spring water runoff only happen if the situation conditions. “The snowstorm season actually goes became drastic, would be on until the end of February, so there’s still time for [making] water reduction [the situation] to improve,” she said. “But regardless, mandatory, so that a litwe’re trying to urge local businesses and residents Estimates show that tle water conservation to conserve water because it’s always good to conCalifornia only has 2013 was the driest was required to a cerserve, whether there’s a drought or not.” a 20 year supply of year ever recorded tain percent. If customScience teacher Eric Ledgerwood believes fresh water left in the history of the 94.25 percent of ers used above that perstate of California that the current drought is the worst in recorded the state is endurcentage, we would then history. “Many of the reservoirs are extremely deing some level of bill them in the higher tier.” pleted and drying up, plus just agriculture alone is drought conditions Ultimately, CPAU’s goal is struggling to get enough water to make sure the crops for concerned residents to make active efforts in condon’t die,” he said. Though the current storm in Califorin their yards, although serving water.

“There are tons of easy ways to conserve, nia has added some rain and snowfall to the area, it has t o just really basic things you can do all the way to more not occurred on a statewide basis, according to Ledger- normally you wouldn’t have water trees because they have deep roots.”

Howin-depth things you can do like replacing old toilets wood. “It’ll be interesting to see the amount of snowfall ever, Davidson also notes that it can be hard to conserve which we offer rebates for,” Creed said. “Take shorter we get, but with already having three years of not much water in a state that depends heavily on agriculture.

“It showers, turn off the faucet when you’re not using it, water, I know a lot of the plants are beyond stressed, requires a lot of water to irrigate, especially in the Cenand operate your washing machine with full loads, not even the ones that are adapted for dry ecosystems, so tral Valley, where there isn’t much water to start with,” just one piece of clothing.” Though Creed acknowledgyou can’t go that long without a good amount of rain,” she said.

“I guess the normal things like ‘don’t water es that adjustment might be difficult, she believes that he said. “Somehow, agriculture is going to have to look your lawn, try to recycle water, take shorter showers,’ one does not need to change one’s lifestyle in order to at how they can minimize water usage at night or look can help in the long run.” conserve. “You can take little steps,” she said. “Because into drip irrigation systems, but something’s gotta Presently, the CPAU department has been working to a drop that you save now is a drop you save for the fuchange the amount of water that’s being pumped in.” raise awareness concerning water conservation in and ture.”

The impact of the drought is beginning to increase, Reporter

Gunn’s Organic Gardening Club president junior Elizabeth Chang-Davidson says. “It h a s n ’ t rained enough in this state for a year or two,” she said. “[People are starting] to water the trees

Staff, students take part in annual musical Matthew Hamilton

ice then follows the White Rabbit down the hole into Healthcare Land. The show Reporter questions the involvement of lobbyists and The Gunn Choir, along with multiple Wall Street in the Affordable Care Act, the staff members, performed its musical, “Al- Hippocratic Oath and the amount of diice Down the Healthcare Hole: A Musical agnoses and tests in the healthcare system.

Coma,” on Feb. 6 and 7 at Spangenberg The- Alice’s stay in Healthcare Land ends with a atre. The performance included scenes pok- medical malpractice suit against the Queen ing fun at the current healthcare situation in of Heart Surgeons. The play concludes with the nation, along with characters based off Alice returning from Healthcare Land with a renewed interest in of “Alice in Wonderchanging the healthland” with a healthcare care system. twist. Forty-two staff The musical offered members participated the unique chance for alongside the Concert students and staff to inChoir, Treble Choir teract outside the classand Chamber Singers room.

“It is a nice way under Director of Choto see another aspect ral Activities William of people we interact Liberatore’s direction. with everyday in very The musical was formal roles,” Dunlap written by Nancy said.

Gilsenan Hersage and The students enis meant to provoke joyed the involvement conversation about of the staff as well. “I healthcare in America.

Audey Shen think [the addition of Gunn originally perSenior Evy Vaughan and theatre the staff] brings the formed the musical in 2008, and decided teacher Jim Shelby perform in the show a new energy,” to perform it again in staff and student choir musical. senior Evy Vaughan, who played the role of light of the recent AfAlice, said. “It definitefordable Care Act. “When we did it first we ly brings the students and the staff together, were all convinced that this would be a one and I love watching the staff members dance time thing, that there would be no way that and sing. ” years later healthcare would still be an issue,” The choir members also spent a lot of English teacher Paul Dunlap, who played time perfecting their aspect of the perforthe role of Wall Street, said. mance.

“I can only imagine and estimate the Liberatore thinks that the fact that healthamount of time Mr. Liberatore spent and care is still an issue is good for the choir, but got out of the hundreds of students,” Dunlap bad for the country. “It was fun to revisit the said. show and a little disappointing that six years All the time and effort involved with prelater [healthcare] is still just a total mess,” paring the musical did not go to waste. “I Liberatore said. thought it was perfect,” Liberatore said. “It The musical begins with Alice and her was as fun as can be and the audience had cat Dinah out on a picnic, when Alice gets a great time. ” a tummy ache from her arugula salad. Al-

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Living Skills is an underrated class that deserves more respect Danielle Yacobson There’s no way around it: every Gunn student, for better or for worse, has to take Living Skills. Although its mention in conversation is often accompanied by a resentful groan or a trite complaint, the class goes beyond the standard curriculum of any other course and can have an extremely personal impact on a student’s life.

Living Skills is a necessary element of a high school education because it provides a comprehensive awareness of personal health and identity that is necessary as students transition into adulthood.

Living Skills is not the stereotypical health class depicted in “Mean Girls,” where a P.E. teacher recites a painfully uncomfortable “don’t have sex because you will get pregnant and die” monologue.

Instead, instructors encourage students to

participate in class discussions and ask questions that they may not feel comfortable bringing up with their parents. Even though Palo Alto has an incredibly high concentration of educated adults, having a degree does not necessarily translate to effective conversations at home. Some families never have “the talk,” and their children are exposed to an overabundance of false information from their peers upon entering high school. Living Skills presents a time and place for these topics to be addressed in a “parentfree” zone. For some students, units such as sex and drug education may be a repeat of i n for m at ion they already knew. However, not only does California state law require all public schools to teach this information, but it is also unfair to write off any individuals that may be inaccurately informed or unknowledgeable.

In order to eradicate any discrepancies, Living Skills instructors are guaranteed to be qualified and knowledgeable with constant curriculum updates. In fact, teachers are required to take a training course every two years to be up to date on the latest facts, such as Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) statistics.

T he cla ss is designed to personalize the standard material for each student, creating an intimacy hou that is sorely lacking from a student’s nZ y l o standard school day. Assignments like Car journal entries allow for personal reflection and development of ideas. A 30-day health experiment is assigned to each student to change one element of his daily lifestyle, directly impacting an aspect of his physical health.

The administration has shown great

flexibility with the scheduling of the class as well. Students are able to complete the course in a threeweek summer school period if they decide

a full semester class would restrict their schedule. A hybrid Living Skills class accommodates those students who feel inclined to shift to an online delivery of the content. The hybrid option requires an attendance of two days per week rather than the usual four, a feature which allows for additional prep periods during the day. These options provide a more than manageable way to approach the state requirements and allow students to choose a format that suits them best.

To those who claim that Living Skills is a waste of time: there is always more to learn. Even if none of the factual information is new, being an active participant in class discussions will give insight into the opinions and philosophies of fellow peers. Students should keep an open mind—good things often come in unexpected ways. ­­—Yacobson, a junior, is a Features Editor.

Faces in the Crowd What is your opinion of Living Skills?

“I know it’s a requirement at Gunn; I don’t really know what it teaches.”

“Most pointless class I’ve ever taken.”

Jane Ahn (9)

Nikhil Bhansali (10)

“I took it in the summer so it was really short and sweet. I feel that doing a semester course would be too tedious and long.”

Nitya Kasturi (11)

“I feel that it is a good idea on paper but not in practice. I feel that showing people videos on sex and drugs isn’t really effective.”

Adam Schmidt (12) —Compiled by Kathleen Xu

Friday, February 21, 2014

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Drone strikes are necessary to combat conflict P.D.A. is bad Tim Wang War is never at the top of anybody’s to-do list. Each year, hundreds, if not thousands, of American servicemen are wounded or impacted by the horrors of w a r .

Drone strikes are a necessary to ol i n ending conf licts as soon as possible with minimal collateral damage. Though there are many doubts regarding the use of unmanned drones in combat, the facts remain: drone strikes are more efficient at eliminating high-priority targets t han conventional methods and should be accepted as a legitimate form of combat.

One of t he foremost arguments against drones is that they cause unneeded collateral damage. Tossing any bomb will obviously result in unintended damage and casualties, but drones actually cause far fewer unintentional

deaths than people would like by the U.S. Department of Deto believe, according to a study fense. Comparatively, between done by the Massachusetts 2001 and 2010 there have been Institute of Technology. Drone 79 reported American drone strikes have killed a total of crashes, costing the military about three thousand people. only a few hundred million In those three thousand, there dollars, and more importantly, were about 500 civilian ca- no casualties. Though the sualties—translating to a 17 number of lost planes cannot percent civilian-death ratio. be exactly compared to the While this number seems high, number of lost drones due to drones are in fact significantly the different rates of use, drone more accurate than previous usage by the military has undemeans. Comparatively in the niably saved many American Iraq War, records show that be- lives and money. fore drones were implemented Besides minimizing the a staggering 34 percent of risk a soldier faces and being deaths were civilians. effective at their job, drones are In addition to also cheaper. The causing less

Allison Paley

collateral damage, drones help protect the lives of American soldiers.

From 2003 to 2009, 129 helicopters and 24 fixed-wing aircrafts were lost in the Iraq war, costing 300 American servicemen their lives and costing the government material damage worth billions of dollars, according to a report

average MQ-9 Reaper drone used today costs an average of 16 million dollars, and the older MQ-1 Predator drone costs a mere four million d ol l a r s . T he s e nu m b e r s may seem extravagant, but compared to the cost of F-22 and F-35 fighter jets ($150 million and $200 million

apiece respectively), it’s a very cheap price.

Even though drones offer all of these benefits, public opinion remains divided.

Among the biggest issues are that drones can be used for other purposes besides warfare, namely surveillance.

There is concern about law enforcement using drones to spy on people and bypassing privacy laws, but with proper laws and regulation those problems really are not concerns. Already, states are pushing forward bills that make it illegal to use a drone to gather evidence without a liable warrant.

While drones certainly aren’t the perfect solution in every situation, too many myths of their operations are overblown. Drones protect American people, military person nel a nd i nterest s.

Out law i ng d rone st r i kes severely hampers our military’s abi lit y to safely ta ke out specific targets, and may force us to resort to methods that in fact inflict more collateral damage. A controlled and regulated drone program is beneficial to our security and to our nation’s economy.

—Wang, a senior, is a Copy Editor.

Euthanasia should be legal under strict laws Esther Kozakevich

Since 5 B.C., euthanasia, or intentionally ending the life of a human being to avoid pain and suffering, has been a highly contested subject.

Euthanasia has been made illegal in all U.S. states, and physician-assisted death is legal in Washington, Oregon, Montana and Vermont. Euthanasia remains a point of heated debate, and the controversy around the subject only highlights the fact that definitive laws should be made as soon as possible, since safety issues occur with illegal human euthanizations and that can be extremely dangerous. Euthanasia should be legalized, but with strictly imposed consent laws and safety restrictions.

Legalizing human euthanasia would ensure a patient’s control over his death. If one is terminally ill and wants to avoid the suffering and pain that will be imminent in his condition, why shouldn’t he do so? How about when a patient is in a vegetative state, can no longer speak or even think and his heart is y ale nP just kept beating by o s i Al l machines? This patient or his loved ones should have a say before he is kept alive procedurally for months, wasting thousands of dollars and keeping false hope of a miraculous recovery alive in his friends and family.

Along with that, humans should have the right to die on their own terms. The right of death is protected by the same

legal safeguards that guarantee such rights as marriage, procreation, and the refusal or termination of life-saving medical treatment. Right now, most states and hospitals allow people the right to a “Do Not Resuscitate” or have “No Code” written into their medical forms, which is a legal order to respect the wishes of a patient not to undergo CPR or advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) if his heart were to stop or he were to stop breathing. However, having guidelines for euthanasia would help in situations where DNR codes are not in place.

Although legalizing euthanasia primarily concerns the patient and their family, we also need to think about how it’d affect America econ o m i c a l l y.

Prac t i-

cally, legalizing human euthanasia would result in decreased hospital bills and less government money spent on patients who are no longer functioning. Last year, the average patient’s last two months of life cost Medicare $55 billion on doctor and hospital bills alone. Twenty to 30 percent of these

expenses have no real impact. Medicare is required to pay for most hospital bills with no questions asked, even if it’s paying for life support of terminally ill patients who are already on the cusp of death. The worst part is that patients usually aren’t given a choice in the matter of their passing. Family members are highly likely to keep their loved ones alive in vegetative states, even though the patients themselves would have rather preferred to be taken out of their misery, or have their last days spent in the comfort of their homes.

Allowing terminally ill patients to have the choice of when they want to die could eliminate billions of dollars

paid for by taxpayers.

H u m a n euthanasia, if legalized, should be used as a last resort.

It would be strictly and safely administered.

It could ensure that patients and loved ones have some sort of control over a terrifying matter such as death. In the event of a terminal illness or a vegetative state, it could make the process of grieving and mourning for loved ones easier and the process of exiting the world more peaceful for the patient.

—Kozakevich,a junior, is a reporter.

for everyone Nabeel Chollampat

Imagine the perfect day at school: your schedule is light (therefore so is your backpack), you’ve just received the score on your math test necessary to pass the class and your parking spot is near perfect. You’re walking toward the quad, thinking about all these great things with which life has blessed you on this fine day, when your eyes suddenly spot a couple making out on a quad bench. Within moments, your life comes crashing down before you; you fall to your knees, face firmly in palm. Your backpack is now heavier than a freshman’s, you’ve actually failed the entire Palo Alto Unified School District math curriculum and your parking spot now sucks.

To me, there’s nothing more disgusting than public displays of affection (P.D.A., as it’s known in some more underground, shadier circles). Feeling up your significant other in broad daylight, and on the pristine grounds of Henry M. Gunn High School, is less a romantic gesture and more an example of gross misconduct in the workplace.

There are much more honorable endeavors in my opinion—learning, for one, or maybe even just coming to school to hang out with your friends, your teachers, yourself, etc.

Don’t get me wrong, though. I have nothing against people having relationships; in fact, I think having someone whom you can count on, who is always there for you, is invaluable, especially during the tidal wave of pressure that is high school. But no matter your reason for coming to school every day, please don’t make it to eat face with your boyfriend or girlfriend.

In fact, what you’re doing (actually, hopefully not doing) in front of everyone makes the rest of us feel incredibly uncomfortable. I can be great friends with someone and enjoy talking to him or her, but my eyes cannot “unsee” that dreadful scene.

The moment you witness an acquaintance in the heat of passion, there is no salvation for that poor soul’s reputation. That person becomes “the person that always makes out in public,” or the two could collectively become “that one hella P.D.A. couple.”

There are worse reputations to have, for sure—“nose-picker” comes to mind—but when the entire definition of your school persona boils down to one sinful, soulless act, it can be somewhat degrading.

Quite honest ly, couples who enjoy par ta k ing in t hese public displays of shamelessness are just rubbing it in for the rest of us. Yes, we get it; you guys are going out. In fact, we knew that from your “in a complicated relationship” status on Facebook. Contrary to popular belief, we don’t need the constant, in-our-faces reminder of your f lourishing love life. The rest of us are perfectly content with being totally indifferent about or suffering from crushing despair over not having a significant other, but we don’t need you two, the Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie of Gunn, to shove it in our faces.

Everything I’ve said may sound like someone who is terribly distraught over the fact that he doesn’t have a girlfriend and is somewhat jealous. That may be slightly true, but there’s never anything wrong with some advice on moderation.

—Chollampat, a senior, is a News Editor.

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The Oracle examines feminism: What issues does the movement need to address?

...feminists should not try to tell women how to be ‘successful,’ because the truth is, everyone's definition of 'success' is different...

Distorted feminist perception of gender equality undermines women’s rights Chaewon Lee Dave Zhu

In the fight for women’s rights, the rallying cry for feminists has traditionally been: “women should be equal to men.” In the past, feminists took this phrase to mean that women should be treated equally to men and should have the same opportunities. However, lately, many feminists are taking the phrase much too literally.

Now, feminists are pushing women to be the same as men in all areas of their lives. This attitude of “everything must be equal” comes into play especially on the topic of what futures women should pursue.

Instead of encouraging women to choose whichever profession they would like, feminists are pressuring them to enter traditionally male-dominated fields, like science or engineering, so that an “equal” number of men and women will be in these fields. For example, high school girls are offered dozens of scholarships and academic events, especially at Gunn, to pursue a career in engineering, while similar opportunities for future female artists or teachers are not readily available. Feminist media efforts, like the Goldie Blox Super Bowl ad, are also geared towards forcing girls into science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields.

The commercial itself features lyrics like “We don’t want pink, pink, pink; we want to think, think, think,” and insinuates that wanting to play with “girly” toys equates to being unintelligent.

Clearly, feminists have lost sight of their original intent: to ensure that all women can carve their own futures. When feminists demand that a woman be a certain way, they are attacking a woman’s right to determine her own path. In this way, the feminist movement is in fact failing to respect the rights they claim to be fighting for. If feminists truly want to help women, they should stop trying to force women into molds and instead focus on ensuring that they have the freedom to be what they want, whatever that may be.

Over all else, feminists need to stop defining a successful woman as being a certain way—the “manly” way. By putting women who snag high-paying and inf luential positions in male-dominated fields on a pedestal, feminists essentially define a “successful woman” as one that competes with males in the workplace. Young, well-educated girls are fed the message that they should strive to be like these women instead of wanting to be mere housewives, as if being a mother or a wife is somehow a “lesser” profession. Girls are thus unfairly pressured into becoming engineers and doctors and business women, because they k now that if they choose otherwise they will be told t hat t hey a re wa st i ng t hei r potential or “buying i nt o” t he p at r i a rc h a l s o c i e t y. Howe ve r, feminists shou ld not try to tell women how to be “successf u l,” because the truth is, everyone’s definition of “success” is different, and there is nothing w rong w it h t hat. Feminists should respect women’s career choices, no matter what they may be, and stop trying to herd females into male-dominated fields just for the sake of “equality.”

Overall, feminism should not be about achieving equality for equality’s sake, but about opening up doorways so that equal opportunities for both genders exist.

Whether a girl decides to become a doctor or a housewife should be her own decision, uninfluenced and unhindered by biased feminist messages. If feminists can refocus their priorities, then they surely will find themselves one step closer to the equality for which they strive.

­—Lee, a senior, is a Features Editor.

Friday, February 21, 2014

Feminist movement fighting the wrong battles for women Rebecca Alger

GIRLS MAKE UP 60 PERCENT OF THE 61 MILLION CHILDREN WHO ARE DEPRIVED OF AN EDUCATION.

STATISTICS

BY GLOBAL CAMPAIGN FOR EDUCATION

Allison Paley

Recently, the word “feminism” has become an umbrella term for all things dealing with women’s rights. In today’s politically correct societies, everyone is supposed to identify as a feminist—a person who simply believes that men and women should be equal—no matter their backgrounds, political beliefs or even their genders. One might think that such a cause would be teeming with support from people of all different races and socioeconomic backgrounds.

Ever since the first wave of feminism, however, feminists have targeted the same group of educated upper-middleclass women. Feminism needs to be about more than just the expectations and injustices to the women with bank accounts and college educations in America. It needs to be about raising the playing field for all women—particularly those without a voice, instead of excluding women from a cause that should encompass all women.

Today’s feminists focus on facets of modern America: how the media portrays women and the fact that women “can’t have it all.” These women who consider themselves crusaders are upper-middle-class women focusing on problems that only the privileged face. They make up a small percentage of the female population, yet it often seems as if their problems are the only ones being given any attention. At the same time, many women of color and working-class women lack access to the necessary resources for self-advocacy. The problems of educated uppermiddle-class women pale in comparison to those who live below the poverty line, make minimum wage or are without education and clean water. Problems are problems, and while it may seem unfair to marginalize one group’s struggles, certain issues are simply insignificant in the big picture.

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The people who rally that IN PAKISTAN, THE t rick le-dow n economics FEMALE LITERACY doesn’t work argue the same notion when it comes to RATE IS 27 social and political reform.

PERCENT LOWER Fem i n ist s shou ld n’t be THAN THE MALE focusing on the women who LITERACY RATE. in many respects have it all while foolishly expecting other women to somehow gain the tools they need for success somewhere down along the line. Arguing over whether Lena Dunham should have been photoshopped on the latest issue of “Vogue” will not change the fact that over 36 million girls across the globe are deprived access to basic education. Worrying over the hem length of a girl’s dress is not going to make a difference in the lives of women who barely make enough money to put food on the table.

Despite today’s feminists’ good intentions, these issues simply aren’t relevant to the daily struggles of most women.

Feminism has become more of a conversation of ideals instead of a movement that pushes to educate women, lift them out of poverty and teach them how to defend themselves against domestic violence. Women (and men) identifying with mainstream feminism need to take a step back and realize that what they are fighting for are small problems few identify with. Those living lives of privilege should be aware that there are people who are far less fortunate. #firstworldproblems, anyone? However, most feminists still seem blissfully unaware of their own privilege.

Women from all demographics can benef it from empowerment, so a cause that prides itself on gender equality needs to include a range of different voices. In this day and age, feminism should no longer be seen as a movement for and by educated upper-middle-class women. Instead, feminism is a cause that should unite men and women of all races, sexualities and backgrounds.

—Alger, a senior, is a Features Editor.

Female degradation in music blocks gender equality efforts Kavya Padmanabhan Each generation is defined by the music that they listen to. Music has the power to inspire and create new ideas and thoughts. Music, as an art form, is powerful. The popular music that many high-school students listen to today, however, has become degrading to women and pushes back gender equality. Songs like these have obscene lyrics that seem to be accepted by today’s society.

“Not many women can refuse this pimpin’/ I’m a nice guy, but don’t get it if you get with me.” These lyrics from Robin Thicke's “Blurred Lines” exemplify the problem with today’s popular music; it sexualizes women and makes them puppets of desire rather than people. Songs like Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” are ubiquitous. In 2005, there was a study done by Brian Primack on Degrading and Non-Degrading Sex in Popular Music, and the study used Billboard magazine to find the most popular songs. Out of the 279 songs found, 103 (36.9 percent) songs incorporated references to sexual activity. Out of these songs, rap music had 64.2 percent of degrading references to sex. The study also mentioned that current popular music contains more references to sexual activity than any other entertainment medium.

Sexual content degrading women in songs has only increased since that study.

Many popular songs have at least one line that objectifies a woman. For example, Drake’s “Versace” says, “Money my mission, two bitches, they kissin’.” Referring to a woman as a “bitch” weakens women and makes them out to be defenseless creatures, degradation which is unfortunate considering the hard work many feminists have done to increase the value of a woman. By using such words to objectify women, artists demean women and forget about their intellect. By calling women “bitches,” these artists are teaching everyone from young children to old people that it is okay to use that word to describe women. The Social Learning Theory, which says that young children learn through observing behavior, suggests that when artists objectify women, they are

teaching children to take on these roles of sex-driven males and submissive females as well.

These popular songs are reinforcing such gender stereotypes. The Billboard Top 20 Best of 2013 list has several songs that sexualize women. Songs like Pusha T’s “Numbers on the Boards” and Luke Bryan’s “That’s My Kind of Night” are considered the best. In Luke Bryan’s “That’s My Kind of Night,” the woman suggested in the song looks hot and hands him beers. Even songs by the top female artists—Ke$ha, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna and Miley Cyrus—contain lyrics that reduce the standard of a woman. For example, Rihanna’s “What’s My Name” contains this line: “I need a boy to take it over/ Looking for a guy to put in work.” Although this line may not be as blatantly degrading as some of the other songs, it insinuates that a woman is too weak to take care of herself and needs to be looked after.

How can our society progress when songs like these are considered “good music”? Although the tune may be catchy, songs that emphasize a woman’s sexuality in a perverse way

should not be the popular songs of our generation. They should not be the songs that define us. Instead of creating an even bigger gender gap, we should focus on closing the gap that those songs have created.

—Padmanabhan, a senior, is a Copy Editor.

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Allison Paley

“Versace” Drake Anton Oyung

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THEORACLE

Key Club member participates in Mr. Key Club Pageant Emily Kvitko Reporter

Junior Dylan Huang represented Gunn in the seventh annual Mr. Key Club pageant held at Palo Alto High School on Jan. 25. The pageant was an opportunity for male and female Key Club members alike to come together, meet members from different chapters, have fun, and fundraise for an important cause.

Key Club is an international, student-led organization. Members volunteer their time and services for their local communities.

Dylan Sponsored by the Kiwanis Organization, which raises money for underprivileged individuals, Key Club brings together all club members to impact and make a difference in the community. “We help students find ways to get volunteer hours and teach them service and what it’s all about,” club president senior Stacy Chang said. Every week the club meets to discuss past events and plan future ones.

For the first time in Key Club history, the 34 south and north chapters of the California division joined forces to put together their largest pageant yet.

The contestants participated in a variety of events that were categorized into four main groups: fashion, talent, trivia and spirit. The beauty portion of the all-male pageant comprised of a swimsuit and formalwear contest. Fun activities such as a “chubby bunny” challenge made up the talent portion of the contest.

Huang believes the pageant was an informal way to have fun and interact with people from different schools, all with a common goal. “The overall experience was friendly because I met new people and got to joke around backstage,” he said.

Huang Chang is appreciative of being exposed to a new way of helping the community. “The pageant is an important opportunity to get the divisions together, get to know others in your community, and show your spirit,” Chang said.

The Mr. Key Club pageant raised $168, which was donated to the Eliminate Project, a group that works to eliminate maternal and neonatal tetanus. With an audience turnout of about 40

to 50 people, the pageant was a great success and the club members raised more money

than last year. “Social events like the pageant give Key Club character,” pageant division leader Alec Deng said.

According to Chang, the Mr. Key Club pageant instills leadership qualities and spirited participation into its participants. The members incorporate these values of community service into other facets of their lives.

“I learned how to be a good leader and organize myself efficiently,” Chang said. “I’ve learned so much about others and what service is all about. “

Allison Paley

Artist of the Month: sophomore Ryan Araghi The Oracle: What is your inspiration when you play trumpet?

Ryan Araghi: When I play, my goal is to really just make the best sound I possibly can.

I want to make both my listeners and myself happy. My inspiration is to come to a new state of mind—if I’m sad, or if I’m happy— it’s just a kind of rebirth to start thinking again. If I’m stuck on a problem, no matter what it is, if I take a break from it and start playing trumpet, it really helps me start to think again. Then, when I come back to the problem, it’s normally a lot easier to find a solution, whether it’s emotional or physical.

TO: What are you currently doing for trumpet?

RA: I’m currently preparing for the ABRSM [Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music] tests. Once you pass the eighth level, you receive two diplomas. The diplomas look extremely good on college resumes or even job applications. I’m planning on getting both diplomas before I finish high school because according to my trumpet teacher, the second diploma is counted as a minor in college for trumpet-playing. I’m currently getting ready to take the eighth exam.

Audey Shen

TO: Over the years, how has trumpet helped you grow as a person?

RA: Trumpet has taught me two important qualities: to really control my emotions and to be disciplined. There have been many times where I’ve wanted to just give up, but I had to push through and just finish what I started. There are many hard things that I have had to overcome, but playing trumpet has taught me that nothing in life comes easy, and that if you really want something you can do it.

TO: What are your future trumpet plans?

RA: In the future I’m planning to at least minor in music in college. I may double major in music and medicine instead, however. After college I plan to just play with whoever I can. Maybe I’ll join an orchestra or symphony if I have time. Maybe I’ll also do gigs with friends or anyone else; that would be a lot of fun. Trumpet won’t be a main focus of mine in the future because from what I’ve heard, making it big as a trumpet player is really hard. It’s all or nothing, really.

So I’d rather have something else to sustain myself. But I’ll have a lot of trumpet things on the side.

TO: What is your favorite type of trumpet music to play?

RA: I like to play pieces from the Romantic Era, particularly during Tchaikovsky’s time.

My favorite pieces are written by composers such as Rubinstein, Albinoni, Arutunian— they are great composers. I like to play them because they are very emotional, and they have very dynamic contrasts, from outstanding louds to the smallest softs of pianos.

TO: How have the Gunn Wind Ensemble and Jazz Band helped you in your trumpet endeavors?

RA: I have learned how to especially improvise in jazz because at the beginning of this year I had no clue how to improv and now I still do not have much of a clue but I have a better clue! I can actually play an okay solo now during a piece. The Gunn Wind Ensemble has helped me learn how to blend in with a big trumpet section. Normally I only play with three other trumpet players but in Wind Ensemble I’ve had to play with five, so it’s a lot harder to blend.

TO: What constitutes a good composer or player?

RA: A good piece is when the composer has taken all his emotions that have been bundled up for many years, such as Tchaikovsky who was secretly homosexual and condemned by the Catholic church. It’s when those composers take those emotions, harness them, and put them into writing the music—that really makes a great piece because all the composer’s emotions are poured out into one piece of music and you can just feel what the composer is feeling when you play it.

The same goes for musicians—if you can feel what the musician is feeling when they play, and if they bring their emotions into the piece, they really can capture everything that they’re thinking and share it with the audience. That is what makes a good musician, because they can make you feel different emotions even when they play simple notes of music.

TO: How long have you been playing and why did you begin?

RA: I have been playing trumpet for six years.

I originally started playing drums in second grade, but later my brother told me I couldn’t play drums in middle school while I was a fourth grader, which was a lie, I guess. But because of that I chose a different instrument and started playing trumpet. Since then I’ve actually been really happy playing trumpet as it’s a more melodic instrument so it fits my personality better. I think I chose the trumpet because I felt it would be a refreshing change from drums, but I found out later that I really enjoyed it.

—Compiled by Kathleen Xue

Features

11

Friday, February 21, 2014

Happily Ever After Staff share their marriage proposal stories Terence Kitada English Teacher

The Oracle: How did you propose to your fiancée?

Terence Kitada: I was working in Japan from 2008 to 2011 and that’s where I met my fiancée but then I moved back to California. And so we’d been kind of doing long distance and we’d always see each other twice a year. So on our last visit, which was over winter break, we met down in Los Angeles. We were having a lot of fun, went to Disneyland and stuff. And then we went to the Getty Center, which is a museum on the top of a hill around the Santa Monica area. I proposed to her on the rooftop patio of the Getty Center at sunset. It was very romantic.

TO: What was your inspiration for doing it the way that you did?

TK: I think I wanted to have some sort of romantic gesture but at the same time I didn’t want to do it in front of a whole bunch of people, you know at Disneyland or something like that, because it was more of a private moment. I thought that by being a little isolated on the rooftop together would be a little more intimate but also some sort of public display.

Courtesy of Terence Kitada

TO: How sure were you that she would say yes?

TK: That was the nice part because we had discussed it beforehand in terms of logistics of moving to California, and I was 99 percent sure that she would say yes. That took the pressure off. But it was really funny because I got down on one knee and everything and you see it all the time in movies and things like that, but when you actually do it yourself, it’s such a big gesture, holding a ring and staring up at the person. It’s a little bit nerve-wracking and intimidating.

TO: Is there anything else you would like to add?

TK: It’s funny because she’s Japanese but they don’t really do the whole down-on-one knee proposal all the time. I think for her it was a little bit of a surprise because she’s seen it in movies and stuff but to actually have me do it she’s like, “Oh my goodness,” you know, it’s a little bit surprising.

Mark Weisman

Jessica Kalka

Math Teacher

Courtesy of Jessica Kalka

The Oracle: How did your spouse propose to you?

Jessica Kalka: He proposed to me while we were planking in our living room. He had the ring in his pocket and pulled it out in the middle of a plank.

TO: What was your initial reaction?

Social Studies Teacher JK: Surprised at first. And then I was nervous because we exercise and we challenge each The Oracle: How did you propose to your other a lot, so I was nervous that I wasn’t alspouse? lowed to break the plank to accept the proposal.

Mark Weisman: I met my wife when she was a Neither of us ended up breaking the plank student trainer when I was playing football at the during the exchange of the ring.

University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). I took her back to UCLA after we graduated and TO: Did you see the proposal coming? took her to all the spots we’d hung out on camJK: No, I did not. We had previously talked pus. Then we went to the practice field, where we about not wanting to get married—not bemet. I got down on one knee, for everybody to cause we were against it, but just because we see, and cried my way through something about wanted to spend the rest of our lives together stars and moons. And she said yes. but didn’t necessarily see marriage as the only way to do that.

Courtesy of Mark Weisman TO: What preparations had to be made?

MW: I had to get her back down [to Los Angeles] and I just said, “Let’s go visit UCLA.” We went to all the TO: How did you two meet? different spots, and then I had all of our family and friends at the restaurant of our first date. After she JK: We met ice skating in Pennsylvania. We said yes—thank goodness she said yes—we walked down to Westwood and walked into the restaurant. had mutual friends, and our mutual friends Everybody was there so we celebrated. invited both of us separately.

TO: What was the inspiration behind the proposal?

MW: Well, the connection—tapping into something that brought us together, UCLA football. She was happy with the results and we still had a lot of witnesses. It was actually a weekday so dozens of people were walking around, going to class or whatever. It was in front of everybody.

TO: How nervous were you?

MW: Pretty nervous, that’s for sure. I’m a sensitive guy, so when I say, ‘I cried my way through it,’ I literally, you know, waterworks through the whole thing. I probably didn’t even make any sense, but I was on a knee and I had a ring in my fingers, so I’m pretty sure she understood it. She was crying too, just not as much as me.

Allison Paley

TO: How sure were you on a scale from 1 to 10 (10 being absolutely sure) that your spouse would accept?

MW: Oh, that’s a 10. I’m pretty conservative when it comes to stuff like that anyways so I’m not going to do it unless I know I’m going to have a pretty positive answer.

TO: Did you see any clues to the proposal coming, or was it out of the blue?

JK: I think for the last year or so, it became more of a common topic that it might eventually happen, whereas years before, we never talked about it. It just wasn’t something that was in our plans. I guess because both of us kind of changed opinions at about the same time, it seemed like it could eventually happen, but not necessarily. But it did.

–Compiled by Lisa Hao, Prachi Kale and Elizabeth Zu.

12

Features

THEORACLE

Compute to CompetE

Various Gunn students put their programming skills, knowledge and talents to the test by participating in local and national computer science challenges and contests.

Senior utilizes programming skills to win Intel competition wasn’t something I was interested in. I was throughout his research by guiding Liu just interested in pure theoretical math,” through the biological aspect of his work.

Liu said. “Seeing the projects there made Khatri would help Liu understand what his me realize that this is actually something scripts should look for and which genes are that’s really interesting. These people are significant. The senior would then write his using their knowledge of math and science scripts, run them and evaluate the biologito accomplish beyond what’s regularly done cal importance of the results with Khatri in school.” by his side. “My mentor’s been very helpful,” During his sophomore year, Liu pur- Liu said. “He has played a very big role for sued an opportunity to me in the past two years.” experience official research Through this process, in Dr. Purvesh Khatri’s lab Liu was able to discover at the Institute for Immuthe common denominator nity, Transplantation and of patients with lupus and Infection. There, Liu was scleroderma, all without introduced to the new field ever leaving his cubicle. of computational biology, “One of the things my which mixes elements of mentor likes to say is that Charles Liu programming and comanyone could do this,” Liu puter science with biology. As part of his said. “This is a project that even a couch research in the field, Liu would write com- potato could do, but it’s still obviously very puter scripts and then run them against impactful, and it’s great because you don’t genomic data from different studies on have to spend money on all that equippatients with autoimmune diseases. His ment.” code would measure changes in gene exSince joining Khatri’s lab two years pression and highlight genetic differences ago, the senior has logged over 300 hours or patterns among patients, healthy and and has come a long way from being “just sick. Afterwards, Liu would further analyze interested in theoretical math.” Accordthe data using statistical methods such as ing to Liu, his research experience has significance testing to make findings. transformed his outlook on the purpose According to Liu, Khatri supported him of learning. “I’ve gained more perspective

Klaire Tan

Forum Editor

Five years ago, if you asked senior Charles Liu what he wanted to be, “mathematician” would have been the answer, and to no surprise. An avid member of the Math Counts club, Liu was participating in all the major middle school competitions, even making it all the way to state championships in the Math Counts Competition two years in a row.

Yet, five years later, it is not contributions to math that the senior is winning major awards for. Instead, it’s for his work in the field of biology using his computer expertise. Now, at the end of his high school career, Liu has been named a finalist in the Intel Science Talent Search—an honor only 50 students are graced with each year.

This January, judges awarded Liu for his discovery of common genes between lupus and scleroderma patients, a finding which happens to be the culmination of nearly two years of research at Stanford University.

Liu made the jump from competition math to science research at the end of middle school after his parents took him to a school science fair. At the fair, he became intrigued by the idea of using knowledge for a larger purpose. “At the time, [science]

from doing research in terms of education,” he said. “Now I think that learning knowledge to try to apply it for a purpose is more motivating and more rewarding than just learning it in a class.”

In addition, Liu credits two memorable Gunn classes with contributing to his research experience, AP Statistics and AP Computer Science. In AP Statistics, Liu learned many statistical tests and analysis techniques that later became important concepts of his research.

In AP Computer Science, he not only expanded his programming skills but also experimented with applying computer science for practical purposes. “In AP Computer Science, there’s so much freedom to build whatever program you want,” Liu said. “The main focus of that class is building whatever system that you’re motivated to build.”

After graduating this year, Liu is not sure exactly what he will pursue as a career in the future. However, he is certain that computer science will remain in the picture.

“Computer science is definitely what I find most interesting just because of that ability to build programs,” he said. “All you have to do is write these lines of code, and you can make these really interesting programs that solve any problem you want.”

Hackathon challenges students to design original applications Kush Dubey Reporter

From the morning of March 8 to the evening of March 9, Paypal’s headquarters in San Jose will be filled with high-schoolers giving

“hacking” a new name. The action is commonly associated with troublemakers programming viruses, but Bay Area students from Palo Alto to San Ramon plan on innovating and coding in one of the Bay Area’s largest high school hack-

700+ Hackers 50+ High Schools Register for High School Hacks by March 8 at hshacks.com.

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athons.

Student-organized HSHacks, founded by Monta Vista’s Shrav Mehta, will feature more than 70 schools that contribute about 900 students in all. According to HSHacks Gunn advocate senior Angie Wang, roughly 10 Gunn students are currently enrolled.

Programmers of all skill levels are faced with the challenge of creating an application using computer languages, design and collaboration, and often come up with remarkable feats of computer science; freshman Ankit Ranjan created an application in which a user takes a picture of a handdrawn mock up and the application automatically turns it into a website. This was just one of many of Gunn’s students individual achievements.

According to Wang, the large attendance and impressive results reflect positive growth among the academic environment. “It shows that people in the Bay Area want to learn to code and that the community around hackathons is growing quite rapidly with high-schoolers,” she said.

During the event, students work together in teams of up to four people to build applications for the web, mobile stores, Pebble, Google Glass and other wearables

to eventually pitch them to judges.

Award ceremonies also take place in order to encourage hackers to make use of the many developing tools that the sponsors have to offer.

Wang believes the social and competitive atmospheres of hackathons inspires students who have never had the power to construct their ideas to acquire insight and information through communication. “It is meant to provide an incredible learning and programming experience where students are given time to work with other students to build amazing projects,” she said.

HSHacks is tailored to help jump-start newcomers in the field of computer science, not only with on-site professional assistants, but with opportunities to cooperate with peers from other schools. “The purpose of HSHacks is to spread the joys of computer science to everyone that we can,” she said. “We want to encourage beginners and develop experience by providing a close-knit community for computer science students to learn and grow together.”

Sponsored by over 20 different technology companies including Facebook Inc., eBay Inc. and Microsoft Corporation, HSHacks provides programmers with three meals, snacks and caffeinated drinks. Wang believes the combination of energy inducers and

passionate student-innovators results in an enthusiastic atmosphere. “It gets pretty hectic and loud at times,” she said. “But it’s the adrenaline that gets us pumped to both produce our best work and also have fun.” Regarding Gunn’s goals as a team, Wang hopes students get a positive attitude toward computer science. “I also want to see some great hacks built, happy faces and batches of high-schoolers going to every hackathon,” she said.

Wang and senior Amy Shen attended a hackathon at the University of Pennsylvania called PennApps from Feb. 14 to Feb. 16, where they built an app called Moosic that detects a user’s mood based on their social media updates and generates a playlist of songs to match one’s mood.

Another hackathon at PayPal headquarters last summer allowed Wang, freshman Maggie Wang and freshman Andrew Shen to create a game called Educrest which teaches students to learn computer science skills. “It’s empowering to have the access to software tools that can directly affect so many human lives,” Wang said.

Wang hopes that hackathons will inspire other students to further their interest in computer science and become more motivated by the collaborative unity and incessant energy of the international, software community.

13

Features

Friday, February 21, 2014

Emmy winner creates Palo Alto Chamber documentary Ryeri Lim

Reporter

Last summer, six-time Emmy Award-winning director Ty Kim accompanied the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra (PACO) on its two-week concert tour across Italy to film his documentary, “Playing Well With Others.”

The documentary follows 35 PACO students, three of whom currently attend Gunn, and professional guest soloist Matt Haimovitz, creating a travel log of PACO’s performances at musically significant venues and landmarks, such as the Siena Cathedral.

“It was amazing to visit where composers had created some of the most beautiful music ever heard, and playing that music there,” Kim said. Highlights of PACO’s repertoire included Antonio Vivaldi’s “Concerto for Four Violins in B minor,” George Gershwin’s “Lullaby,” and “Hoedown” from Aaron Copland’s ballet, “Rodeo.”

The film explores the way PACO’s focus on small groups and orchestras of approximately 30 instruments develops communication and collaboration skills. “What they stand for, ‘playing well with others,’ differs from any other organization’s goal,” Kim said. “PACO absolutely stresses working with others, and makes that idea almost as important as the music.”

Maestro and conductor Benjamin Simon is an advocate of this concept. “It references what teachers put on the report cards of young children: ‘plays well with others,’” Simon said. “PACO’s approach helps people learn to create something bigger than themselves.” This was proven during a dual performance by PACO and an Italian youth orchestra.

“They couldn’t talk to each other, but they could play together,” Simon said.

PACO’s students also support the philosophy.

“Not many things in life teach you to listen, cooperate and be harmonious with the people around

you,” Palo Alto High School senior Assistant Concertmaster Megan Rohrer said. These skills translate into the students’ musical performance. “For every piece, the orchestra has to come together and play together,” Gunn sophomore cellist Maya Miklos said. “The sense of camaraderie and collaboration is really special.”

“Playing Well With Others” aims to depict PACO’s ideology at work in young musicians. “That’s the one message [of the film], that spark of life of PACO,” Kim said. “Students like Megan give heart and soul to the musical experience, and you can see it unfold on camera. It’s undeniable and inspiring.”

Perhaps the strongest student example, however, is cellist Matt Haimovitz: a PACO alum who began professionally recording at age 17 and founded his own label at 30. “Listening to [Haimovitz] play blew my mind,” Miklos said. “He was spectacular.” Yet Haimovitz’s presence had a deeper significance. “In the documentary, [Haimovitz] comes back to the group who taught him to work well with others,” Kim said. “This is the heartbeat of the film: going back to the group.”

Staff and student members of PACO share the feeling of family. “We’ve created a community of young musicians,” Simon said. “I’m inspired by my orchestra every time we rehearse.”

According to Kim and Simon, this sense of community and gratitude is well-reflected in the film.

The student musicians anticipate sharing their story.

“I’ll never forget what I learned in PACO,” Rohrer said. “PACO influenced my life both musically and non-musically, and I hope the documentary captures that. I’m sure it will.”

The premier screening will take place at 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 28, at the Jewish Community Center at 3921 Fabian Way; admission costs $20 for adults and $10 for students under 18. Seating at this event is limited, but “Playing Well With Others” will also be circulated among several major film festivals this year.

Courtesy of Ty Kim

Courtesy of Ty Kim

Top: Director Ty Kim films a PACO alumnus for his documentary.

Bottom: Conductor Benjamin Simon leads a PACO performance.

14

Cente

An insid

What is actually attractive?

The Oracle surveyed 854 students to

HighRelatio

Exploring the concept of “hook-

Emily Kvitko

Stephanie Zhang Centerfold editor

Attraction. The very word attracts.

“Why would you just cuddle with her when you could do it? I mean, Forman, doing it is it. That’s why they call it it.”

It is the perennial motivator of human —Michael Kelso, That 70’s Show conduct: the provenance of our deepest feelings and desires that inherently inspire Though stated for comedic effect, Michael Kelso’s sentiments closely represent the inclination of the Z generation towards our culture and opinions. Yet how accurately “no-strings-attached” sexual liaisons. Waves of articles point to the increasing number of teenagers who have done “it”; is it represented? recent reports by the American Psychological Association state that almost 70 percent of teenagers have engaged in some He is captivating, well-known and universally sort of sexual activity. Indeed, in a recent survey conducted by The Oracle, 45 percent of Gunn students admitted to regarded as the thrill-seeking bad guy. What makes “hooking-up” with another person without being in an exclusive relationship. him attractive? Is it because girls seek spontaneity and It seems everyone is doing it, but what exactly is it? While surprising that an expression so significant and excitement through adventure? In reality, if the girl does ubiquitous could also be so elusive, the popularity of the term could in fact be attributed to its ambiguity. Acchoose the scoundrel, her exasperation will escalate after cording to a recent report by ABC News, the phrase “hooking-up” is strategically vague because it allows only a few weeks of his roguish behavior. Their relationship students a way to mention their sexual activities without revealing too many details. will not last long.

Still, according to Amanda Holman, a doctoral student at the University of Nebraska, without a Some say most single girls aren’t waiting for a nice, safe guy. definition, the term “hook-up” is misleading and could be driving this generation into further sexual I say, that’s exactly the guy I have. For me, a classily-dressed man indiscretions. Holman states that because so many teenagers attribute their morals and boundaries seems more fun than a boisterous troublemaker. to their environment, defining the term may be necessary so students have a clear idea of what their Dressed in clean, original attire, my boyfriend looks charming peers are getting involved in. and handsome. Like his personality, everything he wears suits him For clarification, The Oracle set out to pinpoint what Gunn defines as perfectly, right down to his shoes. “hooking-up”. In the survey, 57 percent of students identified the lowAlthough physical attraction is present in our relationship, the sentiest level of “hooking-up” as making-out with another person without ment that drives our attraction goes beyond that. Sensitivity and musicality exclusively dating him or her. Surprisingly, the American Psychological Yes are key factors in my boyfriend’s appeal. The arts are a language that we both Association recently stated that a “hook-up” is used to signify oral sex understand and are enthusiastic about. With a soft heart, his passion for music at the very least. and poetry shows that he is not afraid to reflect his emotional side. Honest and true, he says what is on his mind and in his heart. Being able to hold a good conThe History of Hook-Up Culture versation with a guy makes him more attractive to me; it’s an indication that he is a Although the term “hook-up” was coined in the 21st century, the strong-minded, independent thinker. sexual progressivism that the term originated from can be traced No Even deeper than these encompassing themes in our relationship, I look for the little through American history. Recent evolutionary biologists have linked things. Sometimes the quirky or cliché (cheesy) things he says and does are the sweetest and the origins of modern-day hook-up culture to the glamorous soirees most romantic. Witty words keep our conversations light, while not superficial. and escapades of the roaring 20s. During the 1920s, the rise of the Overall, what’s most important is that we have the same values. Also, he makes me laugh Ford automobile not only signified freedom of transportation but also like no one else can. What’s more attractive than that?

—Kvitko, a junior, is a reporter.

18.7%

30.5%

50.8%

56.4%

Facial features

6.8%

N/A

6.3% Hair

Hair

62.6%

8.4%

What is the furthest b 16.

Do you regret any of your high-school hook-ups?

Third Base: Foreplay

Facial features

Cleavage

14.2%

6.5% Torso

10.2% Butt

Legs

36.

No

5.1% Arms

Personality Traits

61.8%

38.2% 8.4%

Secon Feeli

12.1%

Physical Characteristics

Height

What physical trait is most attractive?

Which aspect do you first notice in a potential mate?

A total of 135 freshmen, 252 sophomores, 177 juniors and 293 seniors participated in this survey.

15.5

Fourth Se

erfold

Friday, February 21, 2014

15

de look on. . .

-School onships

look into hookup and dating culture

How many highschool relationships have you had?

-ups”: Past, Present, and Future freedom for young couples to experiment with different forms of sexual activity without parental supervision.

With the sociocultural advancements of the 1960s, a more sexually open generation emerged. This decade signified a “sexual revolution” with feminist movements, wider availability of birth control and co-ed colleges. All of these progressive developments contributed to creating a generation of young adults no longer restrained by the sexual paradigm of their parents.

Since then, popular culture has taken the reins in influencing the sexual morals of young adults. The themes of highly publicized songs, movies and television shows have portrayed lifestyles that reflect the enjoyable nature of having uncommitted sex or “hooking-up.” Recent movies such as “No Strings Attached” and “Friends with Benefits” represent only part of the strong focus modern media places on casual sexual relations.

1-2

44.3%

None

45.6%

3-4

7.4%

5+

2.7%

The Future of Hook-Up Culture

The blurred line between parental frenzy and the legitimate risk of hooking-up has made the direct consequences of hook-ups almost impossible to discern. Some experts argue that hooking-up is detrimental to the physical and mental health of adolescents while others state that a moral panic has blown the consequences of casual intimacies out of proportion.

Recent studies have documented the emotional repercussions of hooking-up. In her book “The End of Sex,” Donna Freitas explains how hook-ups leave students feeling unwanted, used, shameful and (Anonymous disempowered. Freitas points out that the modern-day hook-up culture glamorizes the suppression of emotions and romantic feelings. She argues that this culture not only alters the perception of romance but also makes young adults associate sexual encounters with isolation, boredom and ambivalence.

Other researchers point to the number of students that regret hooking-up to the mental “They provide side effects of uncommitted relations. In The Oracle’s survey, 31 percent of males and 41 worthwhile and percent of females expressed regret over their hook-ups. According to a paper by Elizabeth Armstrong, this regret in women can lead to “low self-esteem, depression, alcoholism, powerful social and eating disorders.” A recent TIME report by Rosalind Wiseman showed that men experience that can who regret their hook-ups are also highly susceptible to depression. prove useful later As with all trends among young adults, this sexual revolution engenders concern among older generations about how extreme it may become. The warning signs, in life, in a lower parents insist, are already growing; a recent report by the American Sociologirisk environment.” cal Association states that hook-up rates have gone up 10 percent since 1988.

However, the Association also states that the rates of students with less than one partner a year have not decreased since the 80s, offering hope that traditional dating will not become extinct in the near future.

Are high school relationships worthwhile?

base you have gone to? .3%

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First Base: Kissing

17.3%

answers from the survey) “People should date with the intention of getting married. As long as teenagers have this in mind when they date, I don’t see anything wrong with it.”

“High school isn’t a time to think about long-lasting love. In my opinion it’s a place to be friendly and to not be invested in dating too much.”

Staffer shares personal dating experience

Samantha Acker

You could say that I’m in a happy relationship and I would agree wholeheartedly. But people that know me well would say that that’s a huge understatement. I couldn’t get happier than this. A lot of people ask me why my relationship is so good and what our “secret” is, like it’s some big unknown mystery. In reality, there are just a few simple reasons why it is working out so well.

Maturity is key. While my boyfriend and I can be really goofy, we also are good judges of when that is appropriate. I honestly can’t say that we have had a real “fight,” because it never gets to that point. When there is a problem or someone’s feelings are hurt, we talk about it and work it out. We never yell at each other or keep things that bother us inside. We go directly to one another when there is something wrong, and we don’t blow things out of proportion.

One aspect of our relationship that helps in pretty much any situation is our communication. My boyfriend is someone whom I go on dates with but he’s also someone that I can sit and talk to for hours. He’s one of my best friends and I am extremely open with him. This openness keeps our relationship healthy.

I’ll admit, there are some parts of my relationship that I can’t really put into words, but it’s a combination of a lot of little things that work well and contribute the relationship. We are both really busy, but somehow even though we may not get to see each other as much as other couples, it makes us appreciate the time that we do have together that much more. It ensures that we don’t take each other for granted and we can also understand each other’s schedules, so no feelings get hurt. We also just treat each other well. It may sound simple, but it is so necessary. My boyfriend and I are considerate of each other’s feelings and we have the highest respect for each other.

High school can be a stressful and crazy place, but I am so glad to have someone to go through it with. I’ll admit, before entering this relationship, I had the same common insecurities that plague many of us. I wasn’t sure whether I would have time or whether it would work out. But the best thing I ever decided to do was to give it a try. Entering a relationship in high school is definitely a risk and a big leap of faith, but there is always a chance that it could turn out to be something fantastic. And I am so happy that I took that risk.

—Acker, a junior, is an Entertainment Editor.

Graphics by Jasmine Garnett and Paige Anderson; photos by Audey Shen

rne Ga ine

BEHIND THE SCENES

tt

THEORACLE

Jas m

16

construction

The construction crew builds the sets using power tools, lumber and a whole lot of screws. As construction is so popular, it is usually one of the largest crews.

Despite the jokes that go around about the actors, construction head junior Jay Goldman says that the actors have a great relationship with tech. “There are plenty of people who are both actors and are in tech,” Goldman said. “We make a lot of jokes that are anti-actor,” construction head sophomore Chris Daw said. “But we get along.”

The biggest challenge for the “Macbeth” construction heads is managing people. “Not everyone in stage tech is as devoted as others, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it can make it hard to get stuff done,” Goldman said.

Despite the challenges, there are a lot of payoffs. “I like seeing the completed set with everything painted and the actors on it,” Daw said. “It’s really a good thing to see.” Goldman agrees. “I like the bit where it goes from being off stage to on stage,” he said.

Stephanie Kim

Freshman Anya Grosskopf uses a saw to carve out a new creation.

props

paint

Finding and maintaining props may look like an easy task, but “Macbeth” props head junior Lianna McFarlane-Connelly knows that the job is not always so easy. They usually have to find or make props, and when they cannot do that, they have to buy them. “Using props depends on the time period,” she said. “You wouldn’t want to see a cell phone in the fifties.”

Props needs to have a good relationship and excellent communication with the actors. “Our relationship is definitely symbiotic,” McFarlaneConnelly said.

But this relationship isn’t the hardest part of props—Designer Runthrough is. Designer Runthrough usually happens around three to four weeks before the show, and the actors perform on stage while the tech heads take notes on what they need to find for the actors. For props, this includes a great deal of communication and demand.

Overall, McFarlane-Connelly loves her crew because she loves the role that props plays in the show. “It is interesting to see how they blend into the background,” she said.

Armed with paintbrushes and paint cans, the paint crew uses its artistic skills to bring color and life to the stage.

Although she has only one-and-a-half years of experience, junior Moriah Bradski is in charge of the paint department for “Macbeth.” Bradski believes that the hardest part is paint’s position in tech. “We’re at the bottom of the tech hierarchy chain, which can mean that we have to come to work at some pretty awkward meeting times,” she said. Paint, according to Bradski, often only knows the schedule at the last minute.

Junior Nele Thode’s least favorite part of tech has to do with her personal fears. “In ‘Rimers,’ we had to paint the back wall on a platform, and I am afraid of heights,” she said.

Still, Bradski values her contribution to tech. “We really bring the set and the play to life,” she said. Thode agree that the most rewarding aspect is seeing the transformation. “The best part of paint is painting,” she said.

“Seeing what we have painted in the play is very exciting.”

Anthony Tran

From left: Junior Ben Walton, junior Lianna McFarlane-Connelly and sophomore Ulyssa Valdivia examine props for use in “Macbeth.”

Anthony Tran

From left: Freshman Cheryl Kao, freshman Grace Xi and junior Moriah Bradski mix different paints to create the perfect shade.

Friday, February 21, 2014

makeup

costumes

The makeup crew’s talent for art makes the actors’ faces come to life on stage.

Makeup head senior Maddy Atmore teaches her crew the basics of stage makeup as well as how to make the performer look old, young or whatever else the performer needs to become. Each crew member is assigned a character to work with throughout the whole production.

While makeup is not the first thing the audience notices on stage, it makes a huge difference in the overall look of a show. “With no makeup, stage lights will completely wash you out and make you look like a flat pancake with two holes for eyes,” Atmore said. According to Atmore, as well as making the performers look like real people, makeup also has a hand in portraying someone’s age or how they live.

The challenges of makeup mostly come in the teaching and practice phase, according to Atmore. “The art and technique of stage makeup can be really challenging to perfect and then to teach to others,” she said.

According to Atmore, however, the finished result is worth the challenge. “It’s so rewarding to see something that you designed on stage on someone’s face and realize that you transformed them,” she said. “It’s the final, finishing touch that makes it all come together and makes the magic happen.”

The costume crew combines its research skills with artistic talent to create the costumes for Gunn’s productions. According to assistant costume head junior Abi Milner, the crew uses books and the Internet to find information about the time period it is working with. Then the crew designs patterns, buys materials and sews the costumes. For many productions, the crew can take costumes from past productions and modify them. However, for “Macbeth,” many of the costumes have to be made from scratch as the time period is a new one.

“The challenges are coming up with ideas and making the costumes fit,” Milner said. “Things rip and we also have to make them look good on stage because it looks different. The colors change based on the lights they use.” According to costume head junior Julia Scott, other challenges include finding lost costume parts during performances as well as staying organized. “The most rewarding part is seeing it on stage,” Scott said. “If a costume is truly well done, the audience shouldn’t notice it because it fits the character so well.”

According to Scott, although creating the costumes is hard work, the sense of community and achievement makes it all worth it. “I love being around a group of people who are passionate about something being wonderful,” she said. Milner agrees. “It’s very rewarding,” Milner said. “I love theatre but I’m not a performer, and this way I can still be involved.”

Stephanie Kim

Stephanie Kim

Senior Maddy Atmore puts makeup on senior Tamar Barlev’s eyes.

The cast and crew pose in their original “ ” witch costumes.

lights

sound

In the production of the play “Macbeth,” the stage tech lights crew makes sure that the correct lighting is present in the correct scene.

In lights crew, the students work with more artistic features for the play. They decide what kinds of lights should and should not be used in certain scenes with the main focus being on making “Macbeth” resemble its ancient setting. “It’s very intellectually challenging,” lights crew member junior Janine Rogers said. “There are three different kinds of work: physical work, intellectual work, artistic work.”

Through the challenges, the crew works together to figure them out, teaching not only each other, but also themselves. “You learn a lot just by going along and trying it out,” lights crew member sophomore Leena Chen said. Lights are what foreshadow the events in each scene, and the lights crew is in charge of sending these moods directly and clearly to the audience. “You’re working backstage, it’s about people collaborating, working together and having a good experience,” Rogers said. “It’s all about making sure the audience is having a good experience. It’s all about the audience.”

Stage tech’s sound crew works behind the scenes in order to make the mood of the scene and characters more clear to the audience. Sound crew ensures that the sound is working correctly and is timed accurately corresponding to the actors.

Sound crew makes sure that certain sound effects or music pieces come in precisely along with controlling the microphones on the actors. “Sound crew goes into the booth where the computers are and sort through the music files,” sound crew member sophomore Julia Axelrod said. “Closer to the date of the show our crew sets up the headsets for communication during the show and the microphones for the actors.” Sound crew is crucial for foreshadowing and creating a certain mood in productions while recreating the story line in the correct context. According to Axelrod, sound crew exaggerates the characters’ emotions that can’t be figured out by the acting on the stage alone.

Anthony Tran

Sophomore Leena Chen and junior Rohan Hofland adjust the lights.

17

Stephanie Kim

The sound crew uses the soundboard to control audio settings.

GUNN STAGE TECH

–Written by Elinor Aspegren, Nia Gardner and Joanne Lee

18

Sports

THEORACLE

Winter sports end season strong; spring sports begin

Boys’ Soccer Girls’ Soccer Senior Elyas Daadi

Wrestling

Senior Jessie Hall

Freshman Raymond Wu

An tho ny Tr an

n he S y de

ra n yT n tho An

Au

Sophomore Joshua Sampson says:

Junior Natalie Perrault says:

Sophomore Tanner Kerrins says:

League Standing: 2-5-1 Overall Standing: 4-9-2

League Standing: 7-2-2 Overall Standing: 10-3-3

League Standing: 4-2 Overall Standing: 7-2

“Playing with the guys is always fun, especially when we do P.K. shoot-outs, and the winners get to punish the losers in a school-appropriate way.”

Upcoming Spring Sports Games Girls’ Lacrosse vs. Menlo Atherton High School @ Gunn Feb. 24 at 7:30 p.m.

Softball vs. St. Ignatius High School @ Gunn Feb. 24 at 4:00 p.m.

“Being with the team is what I love most about soccer; I’m really big on team sports because you get to know different kinds of individuals.”

Girls’ Basketball Junior Meghan Mahoney

“My favorite part about wrestling is the physical effort that you need to put into wrestling, learning new moves and being able to put everything together into a match.”

Boys’ Basketball

Sophomore Andre Augustin

Ant

hon y Tr

an

Boys’ Tennis vs. Los Gatos High School @ Gunn Feb. 25 at 3:30 p.m.

Baseball vs. Menlo School @ Gunn Feb. 25 at 3:30 p.m.

Boys’ Lacrosse vs. Los Altos High School @ Gunn Feb. 25 at 7:00 p.m.

Boys’ Golf vs. Homestead High School @ Palo Alto Golf Course Mar. 3 at 3:00 p.m.

Diving for Palo Alto Spring Invite @ Paly Mar. 7 at 12:00 p.m.

Track and Field vs. Los Gatos High School @ Los Gatos Mar. 8 at 9:00 a.m.

Swimming vs. Menlo School/St. Ignacius High School @ Gunn Mar. 12 at 3:30 p.m.

—Compiled by Shawna Chen

An th on yT ra

n

Freshman Archer Olsen says:

Junior Chris Russell says:

League Standing: 5-4 Overall Standing: 6-5

League Standing: 4-5 Overall Standing: 12-9

“I love making a basket or getting a big block because the whole team celebrates it and just being with my teammates after practices and during games.”

“I really like getting to know my teammates and just having a family atmosphere, becoming closer to the teammates and playing the game we love.”

Sports

Friday, February 21, 2014

19

NCAA athletes should receive endorsements PRO

Leon Cheong

Jadeveon Clowney. Tim Tebow. Johnny “Football” Manziel. Anyone who has tuned into ESPN has probably heard at least one of the names of these famed college athletes. In the hearts of many college-graduated American citizens is a loyalty to a team they became attached to in their transition into adulthood. College team fandom is often times a major factor in the lives of graduates who go through their lives cheering on the latest star for their team. Teams, like the Texas A&M Aggies who employed the talents of Manziel, profit greatly from televising football; according to USA Today, the university saw $120 million in revenue from its athletic department. Needless to say, schools are making a hefty income off their players. But an issue remains: the players are not being rewarded for their hard work.

According to National College Athletic Association (NCAA) rules, schools are forbidden from offering any form of compensation beyond a scholarship in exchange for a student’s talents, and students are not permitted to accept endorsement deals of any kind. That means players make a net-zero profit off their talents throughout their entire four years of schooling, and players who receive partial-to-no scholarships and must pay tuition are essentially paying to work for their schools.

Problems l i ke t hese have a f fec ted widely-known National Football League (NFL) personalities. Heisman-winner and Detroit Lions running back Reggie Bush was charged with accepting a salary from his alma mater, the University of Southern California (USC). The punishments were harsh and long-term. Bush was pressured to forfeit his Heisman Trophy, and USC is on a post-season probation until the conclusion of the upcoming 2014 season. Any wins that Bush was involved in were wiped off the books.

Athletes are not even allowed to make money off their own names.

Johnny Manziel’s number 2 jersey sells for 60 dollars in the Aggies’ bookstore, yet he doesn’t receive a penny.

For a s h i r t w it h a name on it, a jersey can make quite the return for universities that capitalize off their players’ likeness. Yet when Manziel was suspected of selling autographed merchandise for money in Aug. 2013, the NCAA launched a full investigation.

Somehow, the NCAA has allowed for schools to make money off their players’ names that the players get none of. After the investigation into the Manziel scandal, no evidence was found supporting the claim that he had received money. But he was still punished with a game suspension due to a “violation” of NCAA rules. He may as well have been punished for nothing.

Schools can argue that players receive compensation through scholarships and that a separate income is extraneous and unnecessary. This argument at least makes a miniscule amount of sense. But the rule that makes absolutely no sense at all is the one that bans player endorsements. Robert Griffin III (known as RGIII), earned more money than any other rookie in NFL history between his graduation and his first regular season game. This goes to show that college player endorsements are in high demand for companies like Subway and Under Armour. But a ban on player endorsements again prevents students from earning money off of their own name.

For talented players, four years of wasted potential endorsement deals is a rough loss. Recently, colleges have been trying to grow their audiences beyond just their alumni. For example, the Bowl Championship Series plans to switch to a simpler, traditional playoff format next year to encourage people to watch what once before was a confusing and unrelatable series. If restrictions on endorsement deals were alleviated, audiences would begin to see players like Manziel and Clowney advertising the next dollar-menu meal. The player would receive money, and the colleges would increase exposure to their franchises.

Clearly, endorsement deals are a win-win situation. But the bureaucracy of the NCAA has yet to open their minds to these possibilities and continues to immorally prevent players from receiving compensation for their hard work. The best bet for college players to start earning money is to form a player’s union like the NFL Player’s Association and rally for at least some form of pay. For now, they work for free.

—Cheong, a senior, is a Forum Editor.

Roy Shadmon

CON

In recent years, many college athletes have been suspended by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for selling their used equipment and autographs. While many argue that it is in their right to accept money and other benefits, the NCAA rules are fair and the indirect compensation the players receive is appropriate.

First, many division one (D-1) bound players receive full scholarships, which are worth more than $100,000 every year. Approximately $80,000 goes towards tuition, room and food, while the rest goes towards equipment and transportation fees. Assuming the athlete stays at the school for four years (even five if they redshirt, when a player decides to sit out a season to improve their skills and keep their four years of eligibility in their respective sport), the total cost to the school would be around $500,000. The only way for the school to be able to fund scholarships to athletes is through entry fees to the games, food sales, and selling jerseys that don’t have the athlete’s last name on the back. Athletes should receive some sort of allowance from the team for personal use, however, the money the athlete would receive should be neglible sums. The majority of money teams make does eventually go to the players through scholorships; it just does so indirectly.

Ultimately, D-1 scholarship athletes receive pay for their services through scholarships to attend the school, which comes with many other benefits in case their athletic career isn’t suitable for the next level.

One benefit that sets up these college athletes who receive full scholarships is the degree of their choice. They have a chance to learn without paying a single dime—an opportunity most people would kill for. Unfortunately, most athletes who are considered superstars of the college game usually decide to enter their respective sport’s draft before they complete enough credits to receive their degree. If the player does choose to complete the required credits, he has a great back-up plan in case his athletic career comes to an end. A degree is worth much more than $50,000, something a player like

Johnny Manziel can potentially make through selling his autographs or jerseys.

Another benefit D-1 college athletes receive by going to college is a potential rise Carolyn Zhou in their professional stock.

Some at hletes may be unknown by professional sport teams, but college provides them a n opportunity to play against the best non-professional athletes in the world. By playing well and helping the school win games and championships, good athletes make their way on to a professional team’s draft radar. Without college, they would have never been given an opportunity to play the game that they love as a living.

Lastly, it would also not be the smartest thing to give an 18-year-old studentathlete thousands of dollars through endorsements because at that age most players don’t have the maturity to be responsible with a large sum of money. One example of immaturity among a group of players is the University of Oregon football players; the team currently has a problem with drug use, specifically marijuana, and if players are given money without supervision, many athletes might be compelled to use it for irresponsible activities, such as buying drugs.

Universities are taking the right steps in preventing their student athletes from abusing their potential celebrity status. By preventing the money endorsement money from reaching a student’s wallet and immaturely being spent on other items, the athlete gets a few more years to mature and to learn how to responsibly handle the millions of dollars that they could earn from their respective professional team. That will also force the student athletes to appreciate the rare and special opportunity colleges give them, even if their only obvious payoff comes upon either completing school and then entering the draft or entering the draft as soon as they are on a team’s radar.

—Shadmon, a senior, is a Tech Editor.

20

Sports

THEORACLE

Competitive cycling captures students’ passions Matt Niksa Assistant Business Manager

Courtesy of Sal Giovanotto

Courtesy of Grant Fong

Above: Sophomore Sal Giovanotto performs a superman stunt on his bike. Below: Junior Grant Fong cruises down the road in preparation for his upcoming race.

As Gunn prepares for the upcoming spring sports season, the community will turn its attention to sports like track-and-field, baseball, golf, lacrosse, tennis and softball. However, there is another sport that attracts student athletes. Competitive biking may not get the fanfare of other more popular sports, but it too deserves to be recognized for the intense preparation that goes into it.

Three students who are deeply interested in competitive biking are sophomore Sal Giovannotto and juniors Grant Fong and Harry Lee. All three do different types of competitive biking; Giovannotto is a freeride mountain biker, Fong races in cyclocross and Lee competes in track cycling. Although the three bikers take part in competive cycling, their disciplines all differ in style.

Giovannotto takes part in a category of competitive biking that differs from his counterparts. His sport, freeride mountain biking, is a discipline of mountain biking that is closely related to downhill cycling and dirt jumping. It focuses on tricks, style and technical trail features. “Freeride is much more of a ‘succeed-orfail’ sport,” Giovannotto said. “You can’t ‘kind-of ’ land a trick. You either try it and land it or don’t try it at all.”

Giovannotto believes that competitive cycling involves a significant time commitment and can be physically demanding. He practices for twelve hours a week after school. This upcoming year, Giovannotto will be riding on the Freeride Mountain Bike World Tour. Although the event list hasn’t come out for 2014 yet, Giovannotto will most likely participate in seven competitions in the U.S. and Europe combined.

Fong’s sport, cyclocross, is a category in competitive biking that may be unfamiliar to most students. A cyclocross athlete uses his road bike to ride on mountain bike courses, maneuvering his bike around divots and hills. The biker races around a one to two mile course for three to five laps that has all types of terrain, like

dirt, asphalt and sand. “The most unique part about cyclocross is that there are portions of the course you can’t ride, so you have to dismount from your bike and carry it over these obstacles,” Fong said. He describes competitive biking as a physically demanding sport, needing lots of dedication needed to succeed. “During the race season I train for about four hours a week,” Fong said. “The great thing about cyclocross is that the races are about 30 to 60 minutes long and I can usually fit a practice race after school.” This year, Fong has raced eight times.

Lee competes in one of the most difficult competitive cycling events in the world. Track cycling races usually take place in a velodrome, a specially–built banked track. Track bikes differ from road or mountain bikes; they are lighter and they lack derailleurs (gears) and brakes. Without brakes, concentration is key for one to master this cycling event. “I love the amount of coordination that goes into track cycling,” Lee said. “Our reflexes have to be extra fast just to accommodate for the smaller spaces between bikes. The speeds that we bike at are much faster than regular endurance racers, which makes races all the more thrilling.” While track bike races can be over in less than a minute, the daily preparation that goes into each race is intense and physically demanding. “I train two to four hours a day, for six days of the week,” Lee said. “I don’t just go to the velodrome and take part in structured sessions; I lift weights, go on rides around the city or practice my track cycling at an outdoor track.”

As the spring season begins and boys’ and girls’ winter sports come to an end, Giovannotto, Fong and Lee will continue their year-long season. These three cyclists hope to continue their love of competitive biking for the foreseeable future. “I see myself riding through life, whether I remain on the Freeride Mountain Bike Tour or not,” Giovannotto said. “New kids will begin to take part in cycling and the older generation won’t stop. It’s not really a sport for us anymore. It’s really just a part of our lifestyle.”

Sports

Friday, February 21, 2014

Sixth Man Club:

21

Q&A

With Dillon Hu

The Oracle: What is the Sixth Man Club, and what does it do?

Dillon Hu: The Sixth Man Club is a club dedicated to supporting Gunn’s sports teams, especially the basketball team. We attend home games and provide raucous support, similar to that of college sports. Our job is to show our athletes that there are people who care about their success, not just parents or fellow team members.

TO: Where does the name come from?

DH: The Sixth Man Club comes from the term Sixth Man, referring to the most important bench player on a basketball team.

Even though he or she doesn’t start, his or her role is just as important as that of a starter. The Sixth Man Club stems from the concept that even though the club isn’t officially part of the team, our influence and support is just as valuable.

TO: Is the Sixth Man Club for all sports?

DH: It’s traditionally been a club dedicated to basketball, but we have expanded since then. We have expanded to volleyball, water polo and soccer, but the Sixth Man Club is still mainly basketball.

TO: How can one join the Sixth Man Club?

DH: Joining the Sixth Man Club is easy; if you’re interested, you can just come to one of the home basketball games. The Sixth Man Club is a living organism; it’s often hard to predict when or where we might show up, but the general rule is, the bigger the game, the bigger the crowd, and the bigger the Sixth Man Club.

TO: What is a typical member of the Sixth Man Club responsible for?

DH: A Sixth Man member attends games and cheers on the team. We cheer, we heckle, we scream. Sometimes we sing “Happy Birthday” to a random member of the opposing team in an attempt to throw them off so they will miss his or her free throw. We raise our magic hands whenever someone on our team is shooting a free throw. We do everything we can to make sure our team wins.

TO: What made you decide to run the Sixth Man Club this year?

DH: It is traditionally the Sports Commissioner’s job to run the Sixth Man Club. In the past, it has mostly remained an unofficial organization, but I had it chartered as a club this year to make it more official. I’m a huge basketball fan and I love watching sports, and, being an athlete, I appreciate the importance fans have in a game. I was hoping to bring the club back to some of its glory days, where the gym reverberated with the sounds of the Sixth Man chants.

TO: Is there any Sixth Man Club merchandise this year (shirts, hats, etc.)?

DH: There are Sixth Man Club T-shirts every year as part of the club dynamic. Unfortunately, the club has sold all of its T-shirts this year, but if you’re interested, you can wait until the next round of shirts comes in at the next basketball season.

—Compiled by Alvin Wang

Audey Shen

Athletic lunch clubs Cycling Club

olyn Z

Hip-Hop Dance Club

hou

What: Run by senior Gabriel Ca ro Chan, the Cycling Club is an open ly n Zh environment for cycling enthusiasts. ou During meetings, bikers have the opportunity to discuss routes and methods for improving their rides.

When/Where: Meetings are held once a month on Wednesdays in C-6.

Why: “The goal of the club is to put everyone interested in biking together so there is a community,” Chan said. Chan encourages anyone interested in cycling to attend the meetings, whether they have experience or not.

“Some of the members didn’t know how to ride before they joined,” he said. “We were able to teach them.”

Ca r

What: “The club is open to anyone who likes dancing and isn’t afraid to try something they’ve never done before,” senior Jarrod Mock said.

“During the club meetings we usually just turn on music and let people freestyle,” Mock said. “Sometimes we also choreograph dances for events.” Club members also perform during the night rally and basketball games.

When/Where: The Hip-Hop Dance Club meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at lunch in the dance room.

Why: Mock hopes that the club allows students to join together and plan choreographed dances, breakdances and other mediums of hip-hop. Mock’s club provides a safe environment for individuals to be creative.

—Compiled by Pooja Belur

ISAAC’'S Top things to do if it snows in Palo Alto

1. Build a snowman.

2. Throw a snowball at a teacher, and blame it on the snowman.

3. Have a school-wide Frozen reenactment, with mandatory participation for all students. Dibs on Elsa.

4. Have another Frozen reenactment--one where I play every role.

Attendance is still mandatory for all students. Audience members who fail to applaud at the end of each song will be showered with ice water.

5. Freeze myself in the snow and wake up centuries later when the subject of chemistry has ceased to exist. I’ll proceed to emerge into a post-apocalyptic Earth to find that one lone Twinkie amongst the dust and crumbled cement has yet to expire.

6. Eat the Twinkie.

7. Build an igloo fortress. No girls are allowed.

8. Build another igloo fortress. Some girls are allowed.

—Compiled by Isaac Wang

22

Sports

THEORACLE

A different side to the Olympics

UNCONVE NTIONAL SPORTS PARKO U R : M ARIO KHO S LA Henry Siu Reporter

Christine Lin As a young child, I was rarely allowed to watch TV; while my friends watched Hannah Montana and Totally Spies, I spent my time reading and engaging in various extracurricular activities. There was one television program, however, that I watched without fail: the Olympics.

The years between the Olympics were dull and uninteresting to me; I eagerly awaited the next opening ceremony.

While my peers belted the newest Disney Channel song, I hummed the Olympic theme song. When the Games finally rolled around, my eyes would remain glued to the TV screen for two-and-a-half weeks as I watched Carly Patterson leap her way to gold and Usain Bolt fly into the history books.

My fascination with the Games only intensified as I grew, but I soon found an interest in a different aspect of the Olympics: the diplomatic opportunities they presented. I saw individuals with completely different beliefs and cultures come together in support of their favorite competitors. I watched athletes from every corner of the world defeat all odds and become inspirations for legions of people. It astounded me that the entire world could put aside its clashes and worries for 17 days, that all of these nations could come together to plan and orchestrate a massive event. If the world could unite for a couple of weeks, maybe we could find some mechanism for taking a step towards global peace. The unmistakable Olympic rings themselves illustrate the quest for global collaboration: the five interlocking rings represent the unity of the five major continents, demonstrating the potential presented for world peace.

Similarly, the games are a majestic stage upon which we can seek to make the world a better place. Every Olympic games sees the eradication of societal restrictions: the 2012 London Summer Olympics marked the first time women of the country of Qatar were allowed to compete. The 2014 Olympic Games, held in Sochi, Russia, have already been wrought with much controversy and protest. Russia has in place a set of anti-gay laws that prevents both the spread of information concerning homosexuals to children and the public display of materials on gay rights. Individuals from all corners of the globe have already come together to protest the wrongful discrimination of LGBT members, ranging from local Russian activists to world leaders.

Protests have come in the form of everything, including marches and boycotts of the games by key political figures, including President Barack Obama himself.

The protests have spawned a slightly negative atmosphere around the Sochi games, but they also present the perfect opportunity for the world to change its injustices.

The world has united in objection to Russia’s discrimination: even Thomas Bach, the newly-appointed President of the International Olympic Committee, urged against discrimination in his speech at the opening ceremony. “Yes, yes it is possible—even as competitors—to live together under one roof in harmony, with tolerance and without any form of discrimination for whatever reason,” Bach said in his opening ceremony speech. “Yes, it is possible— even as competitors—to listen, to understand, to give an example for a peaceful society.” The Olympic games may pit athletes against each other in heated rivalries, but they are designed to build bridges between the people of the world; the games bring people together.

The Olympic Games acknowledge and applaud the tremendous dedication and unending perseverance of all athletes and coaches, but they also carry a deeper message. Bach, in two sentences, sums up that message: that the Olympics serve to bring the world together and strive to ignite peace among all nations. So next time, when you’re watching Patrick Chan dominate the ice with a quadruple axel or trying to figure out just what curling is, keep in mind that the Olympic Games are about more than just winning medals. They’re about making the world a better place.

—Lin, a senior, is a reporter.

One does not need to look far to find someone performing a double backflip off a two-story building, breaking into a clean roll, continue to hurdle over a wall and perform another backflip off another wall.

They’re everywhere on YouTube. These athletes excel in a particular sport, one that not many know of and even fewer can do: parkour, also known as freerunning. Senior Mario Khosla always wanted to give parkour a try after seeing people successfully leap and move across obstacles on the internet. But it was not until early 2013 when a friend gave him the opportunity to practice together. “I initially thought this was a bad a idea since I was already playing tennis, my main sport at the time, at a pretty competitive level, and on top of a lot of schoolwork,” Khosla said.

Parkour is not a sport that one can learn easily overnight. Over the course of the last year, Khosla has steadily done a form of training to enhance his parkour techniques. “Most of the time when I’m directly training parkour, it’ll be in the form of drilling, or repeatedly practicing one move or a combination of moves until they feel fluid or natural,” he said. “Other times, I’ll simply do plyometric exercises and strength training, so

that I can jump further or higher in order to perform a large move, or get a cleaner flip.”

To Khosla, parkour is not as much about physical exercise as it is about the artistic, fluid movements. “Most of parkour to me isn’t doing huge flips and big jumps, but rather linking flowy, smooth movements together to create something artistic,” he said. Khosla sees parkour as a form of art and uses it as an outlet for his imagination.

“I let only my creativity and surroundings dictate what I do,” he said.

Like with all sports, parkour comes with its injuries.

Despite his progression and mental training, Khosla has suffered minor cuts and bruises. “To ensure I don’t end up with a broken bone, I progress up to everything,” he said. “Through progression I can accurately gauge just how far or high I can jump.” Hours upon hours of drilling helps him know his limits to help prevent any serious injury. “When you see an expert doing an enormous move, it’s most likely because they know exactly where their limits are, and have tested out a similar or identical move many, many times,” Khosla said.

D espite t he existence of many f re er unning competitions, Khosla does not believe that parkour can be considered a competitive sport. “For me, parkour isn’t about being better than someone else; it’s more about being the best you can be,” Khosla said.

Photos courtesy of Mario Khosla

Left: Mario Khosla leaps over a wall with only one hand. Right: Khosla and friends hang off of the top of a wall.

BALLROOM DANCING: FARAMARZ MUNSHI Alex Man Reporter

Ballroom dancing is more than just following a partner and making sure not to step on her toes. Senior Faramarz Munshi believes that it is coordination and the ability to execute a routine perfectly. He believes that learning all the simple steps is the easiest way to improve his dancing.

Munshi took up the sport at the start of his senior year and has attended one competition, where he placed second overall.

Munshi found his liking for ballroom dance in elementary school. “At first I hated dancing because everyone else seemed to hate it,” Munshi said. “It was sort of a follow-the-crowd thing, but as soon as I learned the foxtrot, I realized that I really enjoyed dancing.”

Courtesy of Faramarz Munshi

Munshi took up the sport recently due to fewer time constraints and a simple wanting to pick it up again.

Since then, he has been practicing three to four times a week for about five hours at a time. “I’ve been trying to master tango and Lindy as of late, so a lot of my time is being spent at those classes,” Munshi said.

What Munshi enjoys most about ballroom dancing is the interaction with the partner and the simplicity of the dance. “The grace and eloquence and sheer sophistication you feel when you dance is reward enough, not to mention the impreion you give to another person when you can dance so well and they never expected it,” he said.

As of now, Munshi continues practicing and hopes to further progress into the competitive scene. However, he requires a partner for the endeavor. Munshi has high hopes of joining the competitive scene simply for fun and to see how he fares.

Stephanie Kim

Left: Munshi practices his Argentine tango with his instructor. Right: Munshi performs a dip with junior Emily Kvitko.

23 Trash-talking is more than just a game Sports

Friday, February 21, 2014

Arjun Sahdev Reporter

In the fast-paced, adrenaline-rushing heat of the game, not all players need to depend upon their athleticism to pull through with the victory. Few are blessed with the ability to sling words at their opponents, get into their heads, destroy them mentally and outplay them on the field. Trash-talking has become a more vibrant element in sports, transforming trivial games into personal battles, elevating the standard of play and motivating players to fight for the victory. Smack-talk invigorates the diehard fans and captures everyone’s attention, building reputations and igniting blazing rivalries. Players can now rely upon talking the talk as well as walking the walk.

Richard Sherman, a fifth-round pick corner for the Seattle Seahawks, is now all over the media because of his loud, uncouth jabs at other National Football League players. The media feeds fuel to the fire by analyzing his numerous bashes. His remarks were deemed unsportsmanlike and classless, but he truly possesses the inherent ability of stirring chaos through his words.

During the draft, he was unknown and a small factor to the league; now he is the “best corner in the game.”

Some believe the art of trash-talking is a recent development due to the unrefined etiquette of sports, but its role has been a gamechanging factor for decades. One of the most renowned and accomplished boxers of all time was known as the father of trash-talking. Muhammad Ali, also known as Cassius Clay, was always intimidating as well as infuriating his opponents with his talk. When it came to performing in the ring, his lightning quick reflexes did not fail to prevail. It built his reputation and made him feared by all of his competitors.

Trash-talking provides a different aspect to the lives of the players in and out of the field. It gives the fans a closer look at their tendencies.

It shows how players can be physically strong, but emotionally weak. For example, Shannon Sharpe, a Hall-of-Famer tight end for the Denver Broncos from 1990 to 1999 and 2002 to 2003, analyzed his opponents weaknesses and exposed them during games, watching players melt down before his eyes. Studying the personal lives of the players gave him an edge to all of his games, as it enabled him to get inside his opponents’ heads and thus reveal their vulnerabilities. He watched determined and focused players become anguished with

frustration and self-defeat. One of Sharpe’s most valued games was when he watched the legendary linebacker Derrick Thomas crumble before him. Thomas was called with three personal fouls and was suspended from the next game. His self defeat was due to Sharpe reciting the digits of Thomas’s girlfriend’s number.

Every trash-talker treasures the moment when a player is obsessed with taking out his anger rather than doing his role. The biggest trash-talkers target the weakest minds, corrupt them and own them for the whole game.

For those who believe trash-talking is exclusive to Americans, reassess the 2006 World Cup finals. The superstar captain of the French national soccer team, Zinedine Zidane, succumbed to the provocation and foul language of a player from the Italian national soccer team, Marco Materazzi. Zidane retaliated to the tauntings by headbutting Materazzi in the chest, in full view of millions of boisterous television spectators. The humiliated French captain was given a red card and dismissed from the field with the whole world watching, leading to France’s unjustly defeat in the World Cup Final.

If players were always magnanimous and chivalrous, where would the excitement come from? The excitement spurs through the fans as well as the players, making each game a battle to the finish. For example, Sherman used trash-talk to enter the impenetrable mind of Broncos quarter back, Peyton Manning during the 2014 Superbowl, which affected his performance drastically. This resulted in the poor execution of the legendary Manning, leading to the demise of the American Football Conference division champions. The best trash-talking players are those who have the gift to aggravate their opponent but do not get distracted from the main goal: winning.

Trash-talk is playing an active role in sports around the world. It awakens the spirit within the fans, as well as within the competitors. Stadiums get amped off of the intensity, which makes victories more glorious and defeats more devastating. Smack-talking has made it possible for the less athletic players to compensate with their shrewd and witty strategies. Sports are ultimately competitions and players will do whatever it takes to get the upperhand.

—Sahdev, a sophomore, is a reporter. ­­

Graphics by Carolyn Zhou

Faces in the Crowd

Does trash-talking foster a healthy competitive environment?

“No, it creates a hostile atmosphere. Players should treat each other with respect.”

“A little trash-talking is okay, but if it gets out of hand it can hurt someone’s feelings.”

“Yes, it’s part of the game.

It helps you win the mental game of the competition.”

“No, trash-talk takes away from the quality of the game itself.”

Tone Lee (9)

Mara Greene (10)

Somin Kim (11)

Lauren Johnson (12) —Compiled by Alvin Wang

24

Entertainment

THEORACLE

A look into the life of a hardcore K-pop fan Erica Lee

Today, I reveal something that I’ve kept hidden from the general public. I, Erica Lee, am a G-Dragon addict. For those of you who don’t know, G-Dragon is a Korean pop sensation. Truthfully, if I weren’t such a huge fan my life would be so much better. I would have so many more hours of my life back and I would not have spent so much money on his albums. That money could have been used on more important things like food.

Becoming a hardcore fan doesn’t happen overnight. I gradually sunk into a hole of no return without even realizing it and it happened in stages. Stages that, for me, started in freshman year.

I first learned about G-Dragon after searching for music on YouTube. I wasn’t

really sure what I was listening to and at the beginning I thought the music was nothing special. Then at school, my friends started talk ing about a Korean Pop (K-Pop) group called Bigbang. I had recognized it from earlier ex plorat ions i nto t his new genre, but after hearing my friends prattle on and on about this group I decided to give it another shot. This was my first mistake.

I decided to search up more of their music. Once I found a few songs that I liked, I wanted more. Now that I think about it, becoming a fan is like becoming addicted to a drug.

You want more and more of it, until you need it. By that time, you do not even know how ruined you are.

As I searched for information about t he g roup, I fou nd out about t he indiv idua l members. I listened to their

solo tracks, and that is how I found G-Dragon. He is not the best-looking member, but I started to admire him. I was becoming addicted to his music and wanted to know who produced it. I found that he composed all their music and wrote all the lyrics. To me, he became a diamond. He had a talent that I was jealous of. I wanted to be him.

As I put him higher and higher on a pedestal, I started putting his music on the same pedestal. The music shines, and it was perfect even when it had its imperfections. To be honest, I have become incapable of seeing any f laws in G-Dragon. I defend him to those who criticize him. I want people to enjoy his music and fall down the same hole I did. I’m not trying to keep him to myself because my friends are right: he is not mine. I have become frustrated when people can not see the value

in his work and love him.

To show my devotion and my support, I bought merchandise. I started treating them as my precious treasures. I have in my possession his albums, posters and banner. In my defense, some of these things were gifts. Are these posters and albums laying around or hung on my wall? No. Posters on the wall? They could fall and get ripped. Are albums stacked on my bookshelf? No. The light could fade them, dust might fall on them. They can be ruined and no harm was to be done to them. The outside world is just too harsh for my babies. Oh no. I said it.

My babies.

At this time, I have been fully converted into a full-f ledged fan. Four years of my life have been stolen from me and given to G-Dragon, someone who will never know how much I idolize him. But that’s okay because his music gives me joy. They are the little joys in my day that keep me going. He makes me yearn for the day I see him live in concert.

—Lee, a senior, is business manager.

Photos by Stephanie Kim

d e s o p Ex

gunn edition

fact: Snoop Dogg sold weed to Cameron Diaz in high school.

Of course! Classic, Classic. Wouldn’t you buy some weed from Snoop Dogg? Duh, it’s probably high quality kush.

—Catherine Kim (11) fact: None of the Beatles knew how to read music.

What the heck! But they made music, really good music! How could they not read music? How is that even possible?

—Luca Harbert (10)

fact: madonna has to get up at 5 Taking about 5 hours to get ready.

I think that’s a bit much and that it’s unnecessary to wear 5 hours worth of make up.

—Anushka Joshi (10)

fact: Leighton meester's mom gave birth to her in jail.

Who’s Leighton Meester?

—Peter Kerr (9)

fact: Michael Jordan was cut from his high school Varsity basketball team his sophomore year.

It lead him to become one of the greatest basketball players of all time. People are half-motivated by spite.

—Mohammad Ahsan (12)

fact: Rihanna's legs are insured for $1 million.

I guess she wants them to ‘Stay’.

—Miranda Smith (10)

—Compiled by Naina Murthy

Entertainment The decade playlist everyone should have

1920s

1930s

“It had to be you"—Isham Jones Orchestra “Keep on the Sunny Side”—The Carter Family “Charleston”—James P. Johnson / Cecil Mack “Blue Skies”—Irving Berlin “ Non, Je Ne Reg ret te Rien”—Edith Piaf

“Strange Fruit”—Billie Holliday “Over the Rainbow”—Judy Garland “I’ll Be Seeing You”—Rosemary Clooney “Mood Indigo”—Duke Ellington “Devil Got My Woman”—Skip James

1940s

1950s

“Rudolph the RedNosed Reindeer”— Johnny Marks “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend”—Marilyn Monroe “When You Wish Upon a Star”—Cliff Edwards “Zip a Dee Doo Dah”— James Baskett “Take the ‘A’ Train”— Duke Ellington

“My Favorite Things”— Julie Andrews “Santa Baby”—Eartha Kitt “Frosty the Snowman”—Gene Autry & The Cass County Boys “Cry Me a River”—Julie London “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”—Jimmy Boyd

“Bohemian Rhapsody”—Queen “Rock n Roll Suicide”—David Bowie “Dream On”—Aerosmith “(Don’t fear) the Reaper”—Blue Oyster Cult “Imagine”—John Lennon “I Will Survive”—Gloria Gaynor

1980s “Don’t Stop Believin’”—Journey “Livin’ On A Prayer”– Bon Jovi “Jump”—Van Halen “Another One Bites The Dust”—Queen “Like A Virgin”—Madonna “Hit Me With Your Best Shot”—Pat Benatar

1990s “Vogue”—Madonna “Ice Ice Baby”—Vanilla Ice “California Love”—2pac “My Heart Will Go On”— Celine Dion “Blue (Da Ba Dee)”—Eiffel 65 “Wannabe”—Spice Girls “Smells Like Teen Spirit” - Nirvana

2000s 2010s “Viva La Vida”—Coldplay “Hot n’ Cold”— Katy Perry “Apologize”—One Republic “Hey There Delilah”— Plain White T’s “Oops I Did It Again”—Britney Spears “Behind These Hazel Eyes”—Kelly Clarkson “Say My Name”— Destiny’s Child

25

Good music doesn’t have one definition

Noa Livneh

1960s 1970s “My Girl”—The Temptations “Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini”—Brian Hyland “Hey Jude”—The Beatles “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction”—Rolling Stones “I’m a Believer”—The Monkees

Friday, February 21, 2014

“Party Rock Anthem”— LMFAO “Bad Romance”—Lady Gaga “Club Can’t Handle Me”—Flo Rida “Mine”—Taylor Swift “Grenade”—Bruno Mars “California Gurls”—Katy Perry feat Snoop Dogg “Not Afraid”—Eminem “Bulletproof”—Le Roux “If I Die Young”—The Band Perry

What is good music? How can one declare that one four-minute track of sound waves is better than another? What makes the Beatles better than Miley Cyrus? It’s always been a mystery to me. I was sitting one day, listening to the classic “Life on Mars” by David Bowie; goosebumps were running up and down my arms, and the lyrics were so insane yet all somehow made perfect sense. This is good music. Yet right after the iconic phone ring at the end of the song, Rihanna pops up in my playlist telling me to not “stop the music.” During one of my summers in Israel, all I listened to was that popular 2007 pop song that changed the moods of many middle school dances. Ever since that trip, every time I hear that “it’s getting late,” I am reminded of the beachy cities and the crazy Israeli drivers. Does this mean that David Bowie and Rihanna hold equal spots in my heart? It’s hard for me to write a clear definition of what good music is as there is no one reason that a song is better than another.

“Please Don’t Stop the Music” puts me in a better mood than “Can’t Buy Me Love,” and for no legitimate reason other than nostalgia.

There are two reasons that a song is good.

The first being relatively intuitive—it just is. This might sound a little shady but a good listener will be able to recognize when a song deserves to be labeled as “good.” I’m not going to call myself a music expert, but I do believe that I have a certain instinct when it comes to analyzing music. Every song has to be evaluated differently because every song has a different vital aspect that makes it good. For example, “Let it Be” by the Beatles has barely any lyrics yet it is one of the most iconic songs of its time and it’s still being enjoyed by the younger generations. The song is comprised of high quality tunes, smooth and rhythmic. Other songs such as “House of the Rising Sun” by the Animals and “Dream On” by Aerosmith are great examples of music that captivates with lyrics.

The second reason is because the song makes you feel a certain way. This is personal because everyone has his own rhythmic sense. Each individual will feel differently when listening to specific songs. Whether you begin to feel excited or whether it makes you want to cry, it will be a good song for you. “Art of War” by We the Kings is one of those songs that makes me want to put on Timberland boots and paint my face with warpaint. To others, it’s another trashy pop/rock band that means nothing to music culture. In my defense, one song that comes up more often than it should in the car is “The Holly Dolly Song.”

This concept not only applies to specific songs but genres in general. Listening to classic and folk rock while driving makes me feel like I’m in a movie, while listening to light pop makes me want to put on some sandals and prance in the sun.

Some may call this criteria of music guilty pleasure, but I believe that it’s much deeper than that. Each song on your playlist says something about you. It might say you have a bad taste in music to some, but if the music puts you in a better place, then it’s doing its job. I have some friends with incredible music taste yet each song they show me affects me in no way. As it should be, there are songs that define generations more than others do such as the classic “Bohemian Rhapsody.” I wouldn’t say that “Call Me Maybe” defines our generation, but I can almost guarantee that there is not one person in this school that cannot sing at least the main chorus of the song. Good music comes in a variety of ways and defining what makes a song good is impossible.

—Complied by Shireen Ahsan, Lena Campbell, Joanne Lee, Regina Tran, Erica Watkins, Justin Wenig and Kathleen Xue

Graphics by Anton Oyung

—Livneh, a junior, is an Entertainment Editor.

26

Entertainment

THEORACLE

Book reviews ““Speak” by Laurie Halse Anderson

If you’re looking for a book that is both captivating and heartbreaking at the same time, “Speak” by Laurie Halse Anderson is a perfect match. The novel is told in the first person through the voice of Melinda Sordino, a high school freshman who is ostracized by her peers because she calls the cops on a house party over the summer. However, her classmates are unaware of the real reason Melinda phones the police that night. When Melinda finally admits to herself and the readers the dark secret she has been hiding, the book takes an emotional turn. Beware, this book will make you cry. The adversities and hardships Melinda goes through made me want to jump into the book, give her a big hug and tell her that everything will be alright. That’s not possible, obviously, so I used a big container of cookie dough as a substitute companion to abate my sadness. “Speak” is a roller coaster of feelings; it had me avidly turning pages and having an emotional breakdown, and sometimes both at the same time. Another great feature of “Speak” is that no matter how many times you read and reread it, it will never get old. Melinda’s story is relatable and relevant, and the language Anderson uses to convey it is phenomenal.

““The Art of Racing in the Rain” by Garth Stein If you’re looking for a book where you’ll laugh, cry and leave with a better understanding of how the world works, then The Art of Racing in the Rain is for you. Meet Enzo—the Terrier/Labrador who narrates— who knows he is different from other dogs: most dogs love to chase cars, but Enzo longs to race them. He learns about racing and the world around him by listening to the words of his best friend, Denny, a race car driver.

Enzo finds that life is just like racing—it isn’t just about going fast.

As someone who owns dogs, I fell in love instantly with Enzo’s voice and what I learned about the mind of the dog. Enzo, the dog, is intelligent, hilarious, sensitive and brave. There are a lot of mentions of racing—Formula One, NASCAR, Indy, but it is told in a way that people who know nothing about it can understand it.

The book isn’t short, but I read it in one day. This story is hopeful, but it is told in such a way that you will have some tears by the end of the story. If you’ve ever owned or loved a dog, you will love Enzo. If you haven’t ever had a dog, you will want a dog by the end of this book. If you’re a cat person, you’ll still find something to love in the mind of Enzo. This book is for everyone, and it is for every type of mood. Be warned—this book is heart-wrenching, but it is one of the best books I have ever read. Enzo teaches us that dying is not the end, but merely the next great adventure.

“A Colossal Failure of Common Sense: The Inside Story of the Collapse of Lehman Brothers” by Lawrence G. Mcdonald If you are a Wall Street broker you will likely enjoy this book. If you are a business student in college you will likely enjoy this book.

But will the typical high school student enjoy this book? Maybe. “A Colossal Failure of Common Sense” is definitely not a leisure read. It is a non-fiction book detailing shady business practices that caused the 2008 financial crisis and the fall of the company Lehman Brothers. To fully understand the main events and intricacies of the book requires active participation, a computer with Google handy and a mild awareness of recent economic events. Although this may sound off-putting, as most students read during their free time for leisure and not for learning purposes, this is one of the best books I have ever read. If you are the type of person who is interested in stocks, business, finance or how real world business works, I highly recommend this book. Even if you have been living under a rock for the last ten years, “A Colossal Failure of Common Sense” will take you along for a thrilling ride that ends with a bang.

““Matched” by Ally Condie

“Matched” is a trilogy set in a dystopian universe, where the “officials” decide who you will marry, where you will work and when you will die. A ceremony is held when you turn eighteen to determine your future. The protagonist, Cassia, takes her seat at the ceremony, excited to be matched to the man of her dreams. Her name is called and she eagerly stands up, looking toward a large screen at the front of the ballroom. The face of her childhood best friend, Xander, flashes on the screen. Cassia is thrilled and knows that she and Xander will have a very happy, perfect life together. However, just as she is about to sit down, another face flashes on the screen. It is the face of Ky Markham, a complete stranger. Although this was a glitch in the “flawless” system created by the officials, Cassia and Ky begin to fall in love. Cassia is now forced to choose between perfection and passion. This novel has all the elements of a classic chick book. Cassia is easy to relate to and the conflict between comfort and excitement is something all teenagers face at some point. The dystopian world that Cassia, Ky and Xander live in is perfect on the surface, but allows for no personal choice or sense of independence. Up until her ceremony, Cassia believes that the Officials makes the right decisions and that her life couldn’t be better. But when she begins to fall in love with somebody unexpected, she questions the society and whether or not the people are just happy. If you liked “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins or “1984” by George Orwell, this is the series for you. This novel, as well as the rest of the trilogy, is a great read and will keep you hooked until the very end.

Written by Elinor Aspegren, Lena Campbell and Yuki Klotz-Burwell

Faces in the Crowd What’s your favorite book?

“That Awkward Moment” “That Awkward Moment” is an atrociouslywritten and contrived romantic comedy that wastes the talents of its stars. The film’s premise is three twenty-somethings deciding to remain single for as long as possible. Trying to figure out the rest of the story from that sentence is a logic puzzle you could give to a kindergartener.

“That Awkward Moment” falls below the quality level of a typical Zac Efron comedy. Its script is borderline misogynist and falsely believes itself to be profound. “That Awkward Moment’s” abysmal quality is a shame considering Efron’s co-stars, Miles Teller (“The Spectacular Now”) and Michael B. Jordan (“Fruitvale Station”) are totally worth watching in superior fare.

“The Lego Movie” “The Lego Movie” is a delightful ride with enough energy to surpass even the awards season musical juggernaut “Frozen” as the most effective animation film to grace the silver screen within the past year. The film focuses on a Lego construction worker (voiced by Chris Pratt of the upcoming “Guardians of the Galaxy”) who must rise above his deficiencies to save the world of Legos from mass destruction by a fascist Lego government. The “Lego Movie” directors, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, also helmed the raucous 2012 high school buddy cop film “21 Jump Street.” While Lego features zero f-bombs, it nonetheless registers a level of amusement and heart commensurate to that of “21 Jump Street.”

“The Fault in Our Stars”

by John Green

“The Lost Years of Merlin”

by T.A. Barron

Danielle Bustos (9)

Kelby Senter (10)

“The Monuments Men” George Clooney’s “The Monuments Men” is not a perfect movie by any means, but it’s not nearly as bad as its 35 percent Rotten Tomatoes rating suggests. Clooney directs and stars in this World War II drama focusing on the efforts of the Allied forces toward retrieving and protecting European art from the destruction of a massive armed conflict. This movie succeeds in transforming what could have come across as a trivial premise into a meaningful one for audiences.

—Written by Cooper Aspegren.

“The Pillars of the Earth”

by Ken Follett

“Boy” by Roald Dahl

David Stelzer (11)

Riya Nath (12) —Compiled by Noa Livneh.

Entertainment

Friday, February 21, 2014

? u o y e r a d o o f t a h Q uiz: W

27

1. How social are you? a. b. c. d.

When I leave school people cry more than when they chop onions.

I hang out with a lot of people and I’m pretty popular.

I hang out with friends sometimes but I prefer alone time.

I’m the person you see for the first time in the yearbook.

2. Do you care about consuming animals? a. b. c. d.

I I I I

am a 100 percent All-American carnivore. eat a regular mix of foods and I like meat a lot. love all animals. wouldn’t eat meat or ever harm an animal.

3. Do you care about the environment?

a. Global warming is a myth. b. I try not to think about global warming or endangered species. c. Global warming and endangered species protection needs to be taken more seriously. d. I care more about the preservation of the Yangtze Dolphin species than my own life.

4. Do you like a lot of things or a few? a. b. c. d.

My college application has more white space than my plate after dinner.

I prefer to do a few things and do them well.

I do a lot of things and I like to mix it up every once in a while.

I’m only president of six clubs!

5. Close your eyes and let me put this piece of food in your mouth. a. b. c. d.

Creepy and no.

This sounds like a bad idea.

As long as it’s not broccoli.

YOLO.

6. Let me tell you a story. Once upon a time there was a moose named Richard… a. b. c. d.

I don’t want to hear your story.

Do I really need to hear this?

I’ve heard this joke before but go on…

MY COUSIN IS NAMED RICHARD.

Mostly A’s Slab of beef: You are close-minded and sure of yourself. You do everything with conviction and you don’t have any tolerance for nonsense. A nice hunk of beef will do just fine.

Mostly B’s Macaroni and Cheese: Although you do not understand other people’s views, you are still sure of yourself. You don’t have time for weird foods or trying something new. Macaroni and Cheese suits you best.

Mostly C’s Apple Pie with caramel frosting: You’re always open to a little fun but at the same time like to play it safe. You’re definitely someone who is willing to try something a little outside the box. You’ll love apple pie with caramel frosting.

Mostly D’s Spinach ice cream: You truly are sane and insane at the same time. You are sane because you are very open-minded and tolerant, but also insane because you are willing to try anything. Spinach ice cream is the perfect food for you.

—Compiled by Justin Wenig and Hayley Krolik Graphics by Jasmine Garnett

28

Start Here Start off the day with a cup of coffee and a piece of city-famous tiramisu at Cafe Greco in North Beach. A three-minute walk down Columbus Ave. takes you to Washington Square Park, your next destination.

1. Cafe Greco

Backpage

2. Washington Square Park

3. Take The Muni

A perfect destination to relax on a sunny day. The park setting has been used in films like “Dirty Harry” (1971) and “Bedazzled” (2000). Take time here to recharge–you'll need the energy for the rest of the day.

An iconic element of San Francisco, the Muni is also a cheap and efficient way to get around. With a $0.75 student discount ticket, hop on Muni 1 to the Richmond District until 32nd Ave and Clement St.

A Day in the City End Here Take your ice cream across the street to Dolores Park to finish off the day. Here you will find San Francisco natives lounging on the grass, walking their dogs and playing sports.

8. Dolores Park

An Eight-Step guide to An Adventure in San Francisco

4. Lands End Trail After the Muni, walk down 34th Ave. to Lands End Trail. This hike is definitely worth the trip and has been deemed one of the best coastal hikes on the west coast by tourists and locals alike.

7. Bi-Rite Creamery

6. Buffalo Exchange

5. China Beach Park

After a long day of hiking and shopping, the city’s best ice cream shop is the place to go. Bi Rite is known for its variety of homemade flavors, like Salted Caramel, Honey Lavender, Roasted Banana and Snickerdoodle.

Take Muni 1 and Muni 33 to the Mission District. Walk down Valencia until you reach Buffalo Exchange, a popular thrift store that sells vintage and designer apparel for an average of $15.00.

Hike down El Camino Del Mar and you will reach China Beach Park. Other than a perfect view of the Golden Gate Bridge, the beach also has an interesting history dating back to the Gold Rush era.

Photos courtesy of Hannah Shack

–Compiled by Danielle Yacobson