NOW magazine

Math Predicts Winners

NOW

Politican Predicts Future America

Events that will occur at the prime of your life

Minor Details For

Concussions W/ Athletes Chinese Businessman Space For Lease

By Ishaan Golding

How to Remove Muffin Top Bad Habits Bad Workouts

The Question

Outer Space for WHO?

Issue 1 || March 2011

Dear Reader, Welcome to the first issue of NOW Magazine. We are delighted that you have chosen to read our publication.

Inside, you will find a wide variety of news, profiles, and editorials. From the complex world of Chinese entrepreneurship to professional advice for acquiring a killer beach body, you’ll experience a whole new perspective on the world around you.

Perhaps the reason why you opening this magazine is because you want to read a magazine that talks about relevant, groundbreaking news. Perhaps it’s because you want to think about something that you’ve never thought about before. Whatever the reason, we hope that you come away from this magazine more informed than you were when you began, and we hope enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed making it.

-Daniel C., Ishaan G., and Yahir B.

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CONTENTS 1-2 INTRODUCTION

•Letter from the Editors

3-4 FAMILIZATION

• Table of Contents • Biographies

17-38 ALTERNATE STORY FORMS

• Ryan’s Roadmap: Viable Change for the US’s

• How to Lose your Muffintop in 30 Days • The World that Lies Ahead

future?

38-40 CONTINUED

5-10 OPINIONS

• Empty Space: The Case for Semi-Privatizing Space • Running on Nothing: The Truth behind US Debt • Relax: Your Kids will be fine Playing Contact Sports

11-16 FEATUES

• Journey of the Tiger: The Experiance of Chinese

• A Lifetime of Astronomy • On the Edgic

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entrepreneur

• Journey of the Tiger: Continued • On the Edgic: Continued 41 TILL NEXT TIME • Farewell

Issue 1 || June 2011

Age: 14 Clan: Hispanic Education: LASA High School Contributions: Empty Space, A Life of Astronomy,

The World that Lies Ahead Interests: Football, Future Iincentives,

Watching European Football Favorite Quote: “We cling to our own point of view, as though everything depended on it. Yet our opinions have no permanence; like autumn and winter, they gradually pass away.” --Chuang Tzu

Ishaan G.

Age: 14 Clan: Indian Contributions: Relax, How to Lose Your

Muffintop in 30 Days, Edgic Education: LASA High School Contributions: Reality TV Article; Helmet

Safety Article, Fitness Personal Interests: Reality TV, Rowing Favorite Quote: “Your Fired.” -- Donald Trump

Bibliographies

ABOUT U S

Yahir B.

Daniel C.

Age: 15 Clan: Asian Education: LASA High School Contributions: Debt, Chinese Entre-

prenur, Ryan’s Roadmap Interests: Playing Tennis, Grades,

Traveling Favorite Quote: “If you are ashamed to stand by your colors, you had better seek another flag.”

--Author Unknown

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OPINIONS

H

Yahir B.

Empty Space

The Case for Semi-Privatizing Space.

ave you ever wanted to go up to space? How about setting foot on another planet? Well it’s not going to happen. Why, you might ask? The answer is that the United States owes everybody money and so they can’t fund space exploration; private companies such as SpaceX do not have the expertise of NASA ernment could fund it but that is not the who just got their own space exploration program main concern right now. Congress has their canceled. Even though there’s no money to be made eyes set upon reducing spending, so space in space at the moment; there will be an income af- exploration is not very high on their priorter the collaboration produces the necessary tech- ity list. The current budget should stay at nology for deeper space exploration. NASA isn’t in its current level and the money should go a position to do a whole lot more space exploration towards the new rockets that the coalition like it used back in the 60s and 70s. Instead it should assist these private com- would work on. The new rockets should be panies because neither NASA nor the private companies can do it on their own. an image of the canceled Constellation proThe reason the US can’t do it on their own is because there is no money left gram. The program was created to replace If you don’t know by now, there’s more than 14 trillion dollars that the good the aging space shuttles with new and more Ol’ USA owes. That’s a fourteen with twelve zero’s behind it and that number efficient rockets. The Government Accountis rising by the millions every day. But there’s still a possibility that the gov- ability Office, the investigative arm of U.S.

NOW 15

Congress, said for certain that Constellation is estimated to cost U.S. taxpayers $230 billion over the course of the next two de-

Issue 1 || March Issue 1 || June 2011 2011 BURNING QUESTION cades. Earlier this year President Obama stated that his cuts would reduce the deficit by about 1 trillion every decade. And well, 230 billion sounds like a little bit too much if the president is really willing to make those cuts. To come up with that amount of money the government would have to borrow it from other countries; and that is exactly what it is trying to avoid.

Now who doesn’t like free stuff? The project wouldn’t be free of cost but would be greatly reduced. According to Joel Levine, a senior research scientist at NASA Langley Research Center, private firms could raise $160 billion for a trip and a Mars colony. You see it’s quite easy to work together. Companies could sell merchandise and broadcast rights to pay for the expedition, which could create 500,000 new jobs over 10 years. It’ll be like in 1999, when Pizza Hut paid $1 million to sponsor the launch of a proton rocket that delivered key components of the then-tiny International Space Station. That way the government would have to spend less and save up for flying cars and what not, but that’s a whole other thing.

Government-Private cooperation has brought us things you and I interact with every day.

Take for example satellites. Who thought of it and who used it first? The government, be it Russia or the United States. The first television satellite same into action in 1962. It belonged to AT&T, but it was part of a multi-national agreement between AT&T, Bell Telephone Laboratories, NASA, the British General Post Office, and the French National PTT (Post, Telegraph & Telecom Office) to develop experimental satellite communications. Without this cooperation there probably wouldn’t have been satellite until much later when AT&T could send their own satellite with their own satellite technology; but thanks to NASA, 27 million people currently enjoy satellite TV. And that’s just one example; there are many more things that we use every day that came from collaboration.

Now you may ask yourself, so what? I’ll tell you what. You, yes you, might be able to travel the cosmos if the governments of the world work with the private companies on space exploration. It would relieve the US from the money and encourage space tourism at cheaper costs. If it there’s no teamwork, then you’ll probably never get to see the Earth from space in your lifetime.

Why don’t we have flying cars yet?

We were supposed to have flying cars by now. And jet packs. And — according to vintage science-fiction TV shows — wall to wall computers with large, blinking lights.

Q. Why don’t we have flying cars, anyway?

A. It turns out that if you optimize the performance of a car and of an airplane, they are very far away in terms of mechanical features. So you can make a flying car. But they are not very good planes, and they are not very good cars. The military developed one. They found out it didn’t perform well in either element.

Q. What about jet packs?

A. They’re OK for short distances. The Army developed those. They’re used for assaults: you need to go up the side of a building, a steep rise, you put those on and go up quickly and get out of them. They’re of very limited use.

Q. Any predictions for 50 years from now?

A. I’m working on some predictions for the future.

Things like geo-engineering. This subject will pop into the media as our climate situation worsens — large-scale modification of the climate of the Earth to prevent climate change and warming.

EMAIL yahirb@gmail.com

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Running on

nothing The Truth Behind the US debt

Photo taken by: BrokenSphere

By: Daniel C.

F

The US Treasury has about, 0 dollars in reserve

act: Every citizen of the United States of America, including you, has about $45,000 worth of debt. This means that the US has a total of around $14.3 trillion of debt. However, for most people a trillion dollars is a pretty abstract concept. After all, it’s just a number. But consider this; If you spent $1 every second, it would take you an astonishing 31,000 years to spend $1 trillion. To spend $14.3 trillion, or pay off the equivalent of the US national debt, it would take over 437,100 years. At this rate, the US debt is spiraling out of control and something needs to be done about it. Otherwise, we, the future generation of America, will suffer from our parents’ needless spending.

Currently, the US-debt-to-GDP ratio is the 12th largest among all nations in the world. But despite this, our government continues its extravagant spending that only puts the US further into the clutches of debt. According to the US Treasury, the US had only $75 million worth of debt in 1791. This was right after the American Revolution, when the new nation needed to borrow money to finance the war. But now, our debt increases by that much in just one hour. From this, one can see a main concern of debt, which is that it increases very rapidly and compounds upon itself. This continual growth of debt is what the future citizens of America will have to deal with, either by paying for it out of their own pockets or by losing social benefits. Even now, the US has to

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borrow 41 cents out of every dollar we spend. With the rapidly increasing debt, this number will only grow worse until eventually, we will likely be completely dependent on foreign nations to supply us with money. At that point, the US will cease to be a superpower as it has no means to sway other nations. In fact, the very opposite could happen where the US will have to listen to the whims of other creditor nations. In the 1956 Suez Canal Crisis the US demonstrated the power of being a creditor nation. In the crisis, the US threatened to sell off its debt holdings of Britain if the British didn’t pull out of the Suez Canal. As such, they no choice but to comply with the US demands or face certain economic meltdown.

Yet there are still influential people such as Tim Harford and Zachary Karabell who say that debt doesn’t matter, citing how Japan is still the world’s 3rd largest economy despite having a staggering 198% public debt to GDP ratio. Compared to America’s 91% public debt to GDP ratio, we appear to be pretty well off. However,

“Even now, the US has to borrow 41 cents out of every dollar we spend”

the US debt crisis does have very real consequences that will affect all social classes. Already, 20 cents out of every dollar is immediately used to pay off the burgeoning interest on the federal debt. That is a tremendous amount of money that could have gone toward job creation and entrepreneurial expansion. The debt interest also drains money out of consumers’ pockets that could otherwise be available for the acquisition of goods and services. All these effects lead to a worse economy. With the US bleeding money out to pay interest, Todd Haggerty, policy associate at the National Conference of State Legislatures, thinks that states are “coming to that point where they will have to make additional cuts. ” Among the costs on the chopping block is education spending. As more and more money has to be devoted toward paying off interest on debt, less and less of it can be used to stimulate the economy. Experts say that in all, the stimulus funds provided by the government helped plug between 30% and 40% of the $291 billion in budget gaps that states have faced.

Most of that money went toward maintaining education funding.

With the stimulus package gone, many states will be forced to make

Issue 1 ||1June 2011 Issue || June 2011

photo taken by: Ninjatacosheell

Modern History of US Debt

1945 Debt hits an all- time as WWII starts into full swing. America takes in huge amounts of debt to finace the war.

1950’s WWII debt is quickly brought down by the purchasing of saving bonds.

brutal budget cuts in their education system to keep a balanced budget, resulting in the loss of many teaching positions and the worsening of education in America.

Already the effects of the budget shortfall caused by the growing interest on US debt can be felt. In our very own school, 6 great teachers had to be laid off in or-

1970’s

1980’s

Veitnam War takes its toll and Medicare/ Medicad is enacted.

Reagomics take over, leading to a massive explosion of federal debt.

1990’s For the first time in a generation, Clinton reins in debt and balances the budget.

Obama called for massive new amounts of spending. In his address, Obama pledged to “redouble efforts in repairing America’s aging road system” and invest heavily in clean energy projects. But he made little mention of Medicare or Medicaid reform which would save trillions of dollars every year. Clearly Obama is not ready to

2000’s Tax cuts and wars in the Middle East cause federal debt to grow significantly under Bush

debt problem, has not been endorsed by many Republicans and the leadership has noticeably not made it part of the overall Republican plan. The lack of care is unsettling, showing that politicians in Washington are more interested in their own political position than America as a whole.

As such, if the US debt crisis contin-

“The future generations of America, us, will have to deal with the consequences” der to maintain a balanced budget. Now imagine that but on a much grander scale.

That is what we, the students, will have to deal with and come up with a solution to.

However, despite these devastating effects, debt has remained a fairly unknown issue, remaining inconspicuous and pushed under the rug by politicians.

In his 2011 State of the Union address,

make serious entitlement reform that is needed right now to rescue this nation out of the debt crisis. Even Paul Ryan, the most outspoken politician about entitlement reform, made no mention of Social Security or Medicare in his response to Obama’s State of Union Address. Ryan’s Roadmap, which is the only serious GOP proposal that addresses the long term

ues to be ignored by politicians, then the future generations of America, will have to deal with the consequences. We will be forced to deal with a sagging economy, content with receiving a worse education and find ourselves in a weakened nation dependent on foreign countries to survive. Do we really want America to be reduced to such a low level? To prevent this,

Continued on Page: 38

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art credits: Tim Yates

Relax

Your kids will be fine playing contact sports.

1

Issue 1 || June 2011

A

by Ishaan G.

s a parent, you want the best for your child. Unless you have an irrational hatred of people under 18, or, like the dysfunctional Church of the Sun in Montreal, you believe your child is the Antichrist, your goal is to ensure the well-being of your offspring above all else.

So when it comes to team sports such as football and ice hockey, the best thing you can do for your children is to let them join in.

Of course, the accusations that contact sports can cause injury from concerned parents aren’t completely baseless- it’s possible to get injured, just like with any sport or physical activity. However, the benefits of playing team sports far outweigh the drawbacks.

One of the primary concerns parents have about contact sports is the perceived risk of getting a concussion. In the past, concussions were a big problem- the NFL even had an average concussion rate of 12 per week in 1990- and many players suffered brain injuries. However, this is increasingly becoming the exception and not the norm. Concussions from football have been on the decline since the early part of the last decade. In 2002, Riddell, the largest helmet manufacturer in the nation and primary manufacturer of youth football helmets, introduced a new, more protective version of the Riddell Revolution helmet. This helmet adds thickness on the sides, and adds holes in the top to release body heat and lower the centre of gravity. According to the LiveStrong Foundation, when this helmet was put into the market, it reduced concussions by 23% among youth players. In addition, according to the University of North Carolina, the concussion rate is down 17% from 20 years ago. The risks of getting a concussion are essentially minimal, and the risk to your child is negligible.

In addition, many parents fail to consider that playing contact sports can give a child many health benefits. According to WebMD, regular exercise helps to improve bone strength, skin quality, muscle tone, and more. Team sports are one of the best ways to get exercise and

they are often fun and rewarding. Promoting these habits via team sports is critical for ensuring that your child is young, fit, and healthy.

Playing team sports can provide mental benefits as well as physical benefits. According to Dr. Cadence Bradley, a leading child psychologist who has written multiple books on self-esteem, team sports have been proven to have a positive effect on children’s mental health. Her research shows that team sports can build self-esteem and positive body image, which are two of the most important factors in a child’s psyche. Playing team sports can decrease the risk of suicide, depression, anorexia, bulimia, and many other mental disorders- in some studies, such as a research study by the Women’s Science Foundation, it is down by almost half.

“If you don’t let your child play team sports... they may never reach their full potential in life.”

Of course, there are risks to team sports, like a concussion or other injury, just as there are risks to almost anything in life. But the benefits of athleticism and high self-esteem that team sports provide are far more important than the minimal risk of getting a concussion. If you don’t let your child play team sports, they are more likely to be weak, obese and psychologically unhealthy, according to Dr. Bradley’s studies. On the other hand, if you allow them to participate, they are more likely to go to college (24,500 athletic scholarships are awarded each year) and are more likely to be healthy, happy young adults. The choice should be easy.

CONCUSSIONS BY THE NUMBERS

17% fewer concussions in the United States than in the year 1990.

23% fewer concussions when youth players use the Riddell Revolution helmet.

90% higher chance of getting struck by lightning than dying from a concussion.

85% of people with concussions recover within two to five days.

2.5% of scholarships given out by American colleges in 2009 were athletic.

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FEATURES

An Eastern Tiger By: Daniel C.

A

stack of pristine, untouched papers rest on his desk. A jumble of half-chewed pencils, a couple of pens, and a few pills of traditional Chinese medicine lie next to his papers. A man leans back in his soft-leather executive chair. He’s on the phone with a potential investor, attempting to secure an investment to get the company by for the next few months.

A few rays of light peek through the drab window shades, casting long shadows throughout the room. Green vegetation dot the place, slightly brightening up the grey and blue building. The man, having finished his call, stretches and walks over to his window, peering out to the busy city below him.

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The experience of a Chinese Entrepreneur

Workers at Wei XinZhao’s company This man is Information Service company CEO, Wei XinZhao. His intense black eyes, graying hair and weathered face tell his story of hardship, determination and perseverance. The arduous journey that he has experienced in creating a start-up in China is an unforgettable experience.

His story begins like most other entrepreneurs, with a spark that comes from the most unexpected and seemingly normal experience.

“I originally worked for an Internet techniques or information management company that was based in America.

From my experience there, I felt that since the advent of the Internet, the growth of information has been increasing exponentially every day,” XinZhao said. “Al-

though the great growth of information has brought humanity many kinds of benefits such as fun and joy, it has also in recent years resulted in an overload of information, making it difficult to separate the useful from the useless.”

It was from this concern that the idea for his company was born. He realized that in the near future, people would need to have a method to sort out and find relevant information among the masses of useless or irrelevant information that is available.

“My company offers traditional management software used to manage various programs as well as customised software depending on the customer’s demands in information services,” XinZhao said. “It is

Issue 1 || June 2011

Journey of the Tiger May, 2000 The company that XinZhao worked for goes bankrupt, laying him off

October, 2002 He heads back to China to start his company

Out of work, he iviews this as an oppertunity and decides to start his own company

December, 2000

June, 2004 With his partner, he sets up and hires workers to begin his company

After seraching for many years, he finds the suitable partner for his company

March, 2004

an information service company.”

Since the formation of his idea, he knew what his company’s general goal and basis would be, but to actually take that idea and turn it into a successful company takes a lot more time and patience.

“First of all, you have to realize what is the purpose of starting up your company”, XinZhao explained. “With this known, then you will know where to look for and find the suitable resources to accomplish your goal. This includes money, your partner and the right people. Throughout this process, you will bring and sell your idea to various people and search for the right resources to help further your goal.”

The most important resource, he says, is without a doubt the partner. The partner of a company is one of the most important and central figures of it. They function as the cornerstone of the company, providing necessary support.

“For a partner, you need to find someone with similar ideas and goals”, XinZhao explained. “Your partner needs to be different than you but at the same time complement your weakness and overall make the company stronger.””

Unfortunately, finding a partner is a monumental task in itself.

“Finding a partner is quite dependent on luck,” XinZhao recalled. “If you stay determined the chance is there but it’s not like you can find it whenever you want.

January, 2008

June 2010

A new government restriction causes his company to almost become bankrupt.

Numerous difficluties, including worker complaints and competition, threaten the stability of his company

November, 2004

You need to bring your ideas and ideals and look everywhere to sell your plans.

Whether or not you can find your partner is dependent on your skill and luck.”

Even if a partner is found and the infant company is created, the hardships and work don’t stop there. However, knowing where a company will be in the future doesn’t matter if it can’t even make it to that point. Once a start-up is founded, there is still a long and demanding journey ahead that is filled with many seemingly insurmountable obstacles. One of these is the key identification of the com-

Now, as one of the largest companies in Sichuan, he looks to expand into more locations

Reform and change in his company allows his company pulls through the hard times.

March 2008

tough times. There were months when his company almost went under due to ever pressing expenses and not enough revenue. In fact, there were times where he couldn’t even pay his workers’ salaries.

“In the process of creating a company, you are bound to face lot of problems and hardships,” he explained. “You must always be willing to experiment with new ideas and encroach into a new field regardless of what risks it may pose. You must have the will power and mental strength to do so; otherwise your company will die.”

“You must always be willing to experiment with new ideas and encrouch into a new field regardelss of what risks it may pose.” pany, or what makes the company unique and different than all the competitors.

“When my partner and I first created our company, we were certain that we wanted to do something about information services,” XinZhao said,“but we weren’t too sure what specifically. Information services is a very broad field of technology. I spent close to 5 years experimenting in different aspects of information services before I truly found out what we wanted to do.”

In those five years he faced innumerable difficulties and persevered through

However, XinZhao says, not only does an entrepreneur have to be bold and not fear failure, but he must also learn how to manage and control his workers which can be very tricky, especially in China.

“The biggest difference between American companies and Chinese companies are the employees’ work ethic,” XinZhao said. “In China the employees are very self-centered and greedy, they only care about their own benefits. They are highly uncooperative and often refuse to follow clear-cut instructions. Managing them is a true test of will and patience.”

Continued on page 38

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A Lifetime Of Astronomy Yahir B.

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As her young students continue gaze at the endless sky above, Alison Earnhart sits and takes a break. It’s been four hours since the sun disappeared from view, and still many are anxious to point out each and every constellation that they can.

Earnhart, Liberal Arts and Science Academy astronomy teacher, has been fascinated with astronomy since she was a kid. She now goes out stargazing with her own astronomy class and club students every month-or-so. Like many of us, Earnhart had ever had a real class about astronomy.

“I would always dig into stargazing,” Earnhart said. “I knew some of the constellations but aside from a tiny unit in 8th grade science, I never really had any exposure to it until I was in high school.”

But it wasn’t until college that she took an actual astronomy course in which her class would go out every week and learn about all of the constellations. Even after she completed the course, she desired to learn more and so she signed up for an astrophysics course which was a much more math intensive part of astronomy.

Issue 1 || June 2011 Although she enjoyed every minute of it, Earnhart also admitted that much of what she learned has no real value in everyday situations.

“I would be the first to admit that, [unlike many] of other scientists, astronomy for the common man really has no practical application,” Earnhart said. “Other than [for], ‘oh look it’s pretty’, here’s the constellations.”

Historically, humans have used the stars for navigation but now that part of our way of life has been phased out by our technological advances, including GPS. However, Earnhart believes it should still be taught.

“It makes think about things outside of ourselves [and] it makes us look beyond this little tiny speck of dust that humanity lives,” Earnhart said, “It makes us humbled when we look at the vast expanse of space.”

Astronomy offers more than the mere scientific knowledge; it offers insight and awareness.

“Astronomy is studying where we come from, the origins of reality itself, so it’s helping us get a better picture of what reality is really like and astronomy does begin to intersect with other sciences,” Earnhart said.

Hannah, one of Earnhart’s astronomy students who has learned a great deal from the year-round astronomy course taught

by Earnhart, experienced this herself when she was able to take her true passion, Greek mythology, and incorporate it with what

she learned by being able to look to the sky and recognize the different constellations about the gods and goddesses.

“I really like Greek Mythology and I like being able to look up and say, ‘I know the story behind that and all the constellations and I know why that god is angry about that god.’” Hannah said.

The course was actually written by Earnhart, who modeled it after her college course.

“Even though the course is year-round,” she said, “it is more of a survey class because astronomy is such a broad topic.” Earnhart also added, “I want to make sure I expose my students to all of these different subjects so then if they’re interested in something I hope that they’ll be inspired to dive into that subject more deeply because we just don’t have time for everything in depth.”

Her club is more of a discussion-type pastime where the students and her discuss about something they’re interested in or Earnhart herself will go out of her way and research a topic that the students are very familiar with and give them a whole presentation on it. For example, she gave a lecture about something everybody has heard of but not many know what it is.

“Last year, I did a big two part series on Einstein’s theory of relativity where I went and researched it heavily and made up a presentation and then gave it to the guys,” said Earnhart. “That was cool.”

Most people have never seen a true night sky; the light emitted by the city interferer’s so much that you would have to go out far into nowhere to see the beauty. Earnhart and her students continue to take trips and encourages everyone to take a glimpse.

“It’s actually a breathtaking view; most people have never seen the sky that way.”

14

UTR

On the Edgic

by Ishaan G.

15

art credit: deviantart stock images

NN

VIS5

Issue 1 || June 2011

I

t’s eight o’clock P.M., and the CBS hit TV show “Survivor” has just ended. For the most part, its thirteen million viewers are moving on with their lives. Some stick around to watch “Criminal Minds”.

Others change the channel. Still others turn off the TV and finish the dishes, or put their kids to bed. But for twenty-five die-hard fans, the work has just begun.

These twenty-five people are about to begin calculating this week’s Edgic ratings. Edgic, which is a portmanteau of editing logic, is an online project in which participants use past raw footage editing patterns, math and psychology to determine who the winner of Survivor is before the final episodes air.

“We devote this thread to try and pick the winner by looking at the editing, player by player, and applying logic from past editing patterns [to determine who has a winner’s edit],” says Oowantite, a psychology major from Australia and the leader of this season’s Edgic.

Already, a fierce debate is raging online, as it does every week after the conclusion of the episode. Each week, in order to figure out who can still viably win Survivor, edgic participants must score each contestant for three things: personality, visibility, and tone. Each rating has 5 prospective options from which

to choose. Personalities can be over the top (OTT), middle of the road (MOR), under the radar (UTR), complex personalities (CP), or invisible (INV). Then, their visibility (1-5) is calculated using a formula that takes into account sentences spoken, how much other people discuss them, and interviews/confessionals. They are also toned, ranging from NN (portrayed in a very negative light) to N, to no tone, to P, to PP (being portrayed in a very positive light).

and led to understand the winner’s strategical play style by the editors, or P, which means that the viewers can root for that person and be satisfied that they won.”

However, edgic isn’t all ratings and numbers.

Edgic also tries to identify story arcs, and when they will come to a close. Predicting and identifying conclusions to story arcs can help identify how successful a contestant will be- ongoing story arcs mean that the contestant is sticking around, but a lack of ongoing storylines mean the contestant could be in danger.

“When you put so much effort into “A [good example of a] story arc this season [guessing the connection between [contestants] Matt winner] and end isandtheAndrea, ” says Lexxan. “In this season, up being right, players who are voted out must duel with the castaways who are voted out, and the it’s an amazing other person who remains come back into the tribe feeling.” after a certain period of time. Since Matt was “Tone can help you determine the editors’ intent,” says Lexxan, a twenty-something elementary teacher living in California and longtime edgic contributor. “The basic, underlying theory behind tone is that the editors want the viewer to like the winner, respect the winner, or both. However, they also want the winner to be somewhat of a surprise. For example, almost all the winners are either CP, which means the users are shown

blindsided and Andrea kept [talking] about him, Edgic identified that their story arc was not over, and that Matt would be returning.

However, once Matt returned, Andrea gave an interview saying that she liked Matt, but that he was wishy-washy and that she no longer wanted him. Therefore, Edgic predicted that Matt would not return to the game again after he was voted out, since he no longer has any active story arcs.”

CONTINUED ON PAGE 39

Get more information about TV and entertainment at: nowezine.blogspot.com 16

ASF

Ryan’s Roadmap:

Viable Change for America’s Future?

By: Daniel C.

What is Ryan’s Roadmap?

Ryan’s Roadmap is a plan created by US Congressman Paul Ryan that details what the US government must do to avoid unsustainable debt that would threaten to destroy the US economy. It has stirred up great controversy for its radical proposed changes. Some believe that only through his plan can the US avoid being crushed by unsustainable government spending and debt while others believe that his plan affects the very foundations of US national policy and itself will lead the US to economic ruin.

What does his plan propose?

Healthcare:

Provides universal health-care access to affordable health insurance, by shifting the ownership of health coverage from the government and employers to individuals. It provides a refundable tax credit – $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families – to purchase coverage.

Medicaid and Medicare: The bill modernizes Medicaid by giving states maximum flexibility to tailor their Medicaid programs to the specific needs of their populations. It also creates a Medicare payment of around $11,000 a year with payment adjusted for inflation and pegs it to income. This makes it permenently solvent.

Social Security.

Workers under 55 will have the option of investing over one-third of their current Social Security taxes into personal retirement accounts. These personal accounts are likely to grow faster than the traditional benefit. They are also the property of the individual, and are thus fully inheritable. The bill includes a guarantee that no one’s total Social Security benefits from the personal accounts will be less than if he had chosen to say in the current system.

Tax Reform:

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The bill first of all offers individuals a choice of how to pay their taxes – either through the existing law, or through a simplified code with a tax return that fits on a postcard. The rates in the simplified code are 10% on income up to $100,000 for joint filers ($50,000 for single filers); and 25% on taxable income above these amounts. On the business side, the bill gets rid of our uncompetitive corporate tax – currently the second highest in the industrial-

Issue 1 || June 2011 ized world – and replaces it with a business consumption tax of 8.5%, which is half the average industrialized world rate.

Job Training:

Pros:

Cons:

• Comprehensive and is backed up by numbers

• Brings along massive and radical change to the very foundation of the US

• Expected to cut US debt by around 4 trillion and lift the burden of debt from the future generations of America • Ensures universal healthcare • Makes Social Security and Medicare/ Medcaid permanently solvent • Promotes US job creation and competitiveness

• Although it may cut the deceit, it will do so on the backs of the seniors, the poor and regular working citizens

Pictures from US Government

Transforms 49 job training programs, scattered across eight agencies, into a flexible, dynamic program focused on results, and accompanied by clear measures of transparency. It allows states to consolidate funding into one program if results show that this method improves the outcome.

• Simply transfers the health care costs from the government onto the people • Does not fit with prevailing view on economic policy and economic history and is probable to lead the US back into a recession • Does not mention what kind of “discretionary” or defense spending should be cut • There are better alternatives to the solutions presented by Paul Ryan

Is it Viable?

Although I do agree that the US does have a tremendous problem with debt, Ryan’s Roadmap is not the way to go. It does have very good ideas that look good on paper, but when actually implemented, it it may not work out as planned. The biggest problem is that there is no consensus on it, there are far too many critics of his plan for it to truly gain public support. What needs to happen is a bi-partisan plan mutually agreed upon by both Democrats and Republicans. Ryan’s Roadmap is a good step in the right direction but itself is not a viable plan.

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How to lose your

Issue 1 || June 2011

Muffin Top in 30 days

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How to Lose Your Muffin Top in 30 Days

T E I

D

2. Watch rbs Your CaCarbohydrates, such as bread, pasta, and

rice, can also add to somebody’s weight.

Most people don’t think of bread as being unhealthy, but unfortunately, carbohydrates can be as bad as fats. Since bread is a staple food of the American diet, I won’t suggest that you cut it out.

However, what you can do is eat healthier. Whole grain alternatives are available for bread, pasta, and many other carbohydrates. According to the Whole Grains Council, these foods give you better nutrients and tend to be lower in calories. In addition, they can reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.

Everyone’s seen the ads for the fad diets- Healthy Trim, Reveal Extreme, and countless others spend millions each year advertising their products.

Unfortunately, the hard truth is that there is no “magic pill” you can take to instantly get thinner. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t eat better. Here are some steps you can take to cut down that extra bulge:

1. Cu t down o meat n Meat is one of the heavy hitters that can really add some extra poundage. According to a PETA research study, red meat (such as beef) is particularly bad for you and, in addition to making you weigh more, can also lead to heart problems later in life. Obviously, this article isn’t encouraging vegetarianism. However, if you’re serious about losing weight, try to cut out red meat entirely and eat white meat (such as ) no more than once or twice each week.

The key here is moderation.

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’t n o 3. D Too t Die h! c Mu

Unfortunately, in modern society, many people are under the impression that simply eating less (or in extreme cases, not eating at all) will cause them to quickly lose weight. However, this is not a good idea. According to PBS, when you drastically cut your calorie intake, your body goes into “famine mode”, conserving as many calories as it can, and slowing your metabolism way down. This will make it nearly impossible to lose weight, and besides, you’ll be absolutely miserable. Instead, try to cut between 10 and 15 percent of your daily calories. This will force your body to burn fat reserves, but it won’t send your body reeling and struggling to hold on to each calorie.

Issue 1 || June 2011

Advice from personal trainer Ishaan G. 4. You Don’ t Have to Giv e Up Good Fo od

Just because you are dieting, that does not mean that you shouldn’t enjoy yourself once in a while.

You should feel free to eat cake at a birthday party, or order a pizza if you’re really tired and don’t feel like cooking. I once knew a woman who was trying to lose weight by cutting out all junk food, but the problem was, she fell off the wagon and had a cookie binge every two months.

Don’t worry about the occasional treat, just don’t go overboard!

y r r Wo ee t ’ on tS ’ D n . o s 5 t D l u u s o e Y R f I ct e f y r a e w P tA h g Ri Everyone’s body is different. Even if you don’t see results in the first couple weeks, don’t freak out. Depending on how overweight you are, it may take over a month to start seeing weight loss. Of course, don’t take it to the other extreme and assume you’re doing it right, either. If you can’t seem to lose any weight with your diet and exercise, see a nutritionist, especially if you have special dietary needs.

EXER

CISE

Of course, no diet is complete without a corresponding exercise plan. You’ll need to make a good effort to work out each and every day. In addition, you’ll need to make sure to exercise safely and follow my guidelines to lose weight while avoiding injury and burnout. Using these simple tips, I was able to lose 10 percent of my body weight, and you can too!

Believe it or not, this is one of the simplest tips, but people really struggle with staying consistent. It’s very tempting to come home from a long day of work or school and just collapse. During a recent spring break, a friend of mine decided to take a weeklong break from exercising.

When school started back up again, he was shocked to learn that he had gained 4 pounds! Falling off the wagon makes it much harder to get back on. Trust me: it’s very demoralizing to work for a month to lose weight and find out that you’ve put it right back on again in just a few days. You can also lose muscle tone after just 72 hours! Most of the other tips have wiggle room, but this is very important: if at all possible, work out. There are sev

1.Work Out! Every day!

eral good exercise programs, such as the 10-minute solution series, that try to squeeze as much exercise as possible into a short amount of time.

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Find more tips at nowezine.blogspot.com

2.

Swit ch It Up

When you’re trying to get rid of fat, the easiest thing you can do is turn it into muscle.

Therefore, you should try to do many different types of exercise. According to the CDC, a good formula to follow is: 4 days of strength training, 2 days of moderate to intense cardiovascular exercise, and 1 day of light flexibility or, occasionally, a rest day.

rk o 4. W ith A W t u r e O n t Par If at all possible, (hopefully you have at least one friend or loved one who’s interested in doing this with you) try to work out with someone else. This is a great safety net and someone who will keep you motivated can go a long way towards helping you keep working out. Many people are competitive, and if you are doing better than your partner, you enjoy working out and showing off more. Conversely, if your partner is having more success than you, it might motivate you and propel you to try harder. In addition, having someone else to share an experience with is just more fun!

rk o W t ’ 3. Don ard Too H The key to effective exercise is: not too little, not too much! As I said in tip number 1, avoid skipping days, but at the same time, working out for more than two hours per day is a bad idea. If you exercise too much, you have a high risk of straining or injuring a muscle, and that would be horrible. After all, you’re not going jogging with crutches!

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Exercise should be fun, not a chore. It’s very important to do something that you enjoy. Don’t do something you hate just because you think it’ll slim you down- you’ll just fall off the wagon later. If you enjoy the water, rowing or kayaking can be a great workout.

If you don’t want to leave your house, there are a lot of great exercise videos that you can buy or find on Netflix. If you enjoy having an instructor, a pilates or yoga class can be a great option. The more fun you have, the more motivated you will be to lose weight!

5.

Have Fun With It!

Issue 1 || June 2011

The World That Lies Ahead By: Yahir B.

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2020

Location: Sweden Event: Becomes Oil Free How: Large-scale investments in renewable energy, massive tax incentives and grants for scientific research, and a detailed programme of energy conservation.

You: Move to Sweden as it will prosper in the coming years Extra Info: The country is powered entirely by zerocarbon technologies, and has rid itself completely of gasoline cars and oil-heated homes. From this de-

cade onwards, Sweden experiences massive prosperity and growth.

2021

Issue 1 || June 2011

Location: World-Wide Event: Global average temperatures have risen by 1°C ue to increasing CO2 levels Why: Due to increasing CO2 levels You: Chronic water Shortages SouthWest United States.

Damage to agriculture rising food prices.

Extra Info: This is merely the global average, Many inland areas are subjected to larger fluctuations. Great Plains in the USA is one such region are now experiencing “dustbowl” conditions. This is having a considerable impact on agriculture and the economy, exacerbating the damage caused by higher fuel prices. Some of the larger dust storms are alarming in their scale and severity.

2022

By: WIllow Smith

Location: Qatar, a tiny Persian Gulf nation of just 1.7 million people.

Event: FIFA World Cup Contraversy: Huge risk in terms of the scale of the new construction that is necessary. Of the 12 stadiums, nine do not exist and three need major renovation. Lusail, the city where the World Cup final will be staged, is still being built. Summers in Qatar can reach 50째C. Solutions: However, each stadium employs state-ofthe-art cooling technology, capable of reducing temperatures by over 20 degrees celsius.

You: Average American has no interest in soccer.

Extra Info: It becomes the first country in the Middle East to host the World Cup.

2023

Issue 1 || June 2011

Emir Simsek

Location: Turkey Event: Entirely self-sufficient in energy production - with 10 billion barrels of oil reserves and over 1.5 trillion cubic meters of natural gas uncovered in the Black Sea. Impact: These huge reserves have enabled the country to completely end its dependence on foreign imports and meet its energy needs for at least the next 30 years. Turkey’s standing in the world is increased significantly as a result, boosted further by its recent entry into the EU. You: Will more cheaper oil or they will raise if the country decides to keep the energy to itself.

2024

By: John May

Location: Bangledash Event: The biggest refugee crisis in world history Reason: Torrential flooding in southeast Asia - brought on by a combination of rising sea levels, melting glaciers and extreme weather events Effect: Millions are drowned, while many others die in the subsequent looting and chaos that sweeps the nation, and a whole series of conflicts begins to erupt along the border with India.

Extra Info: Salt in the ground means that fields up to 40km from the new coastline are rendered useless for growing crops.

You: No direct impact..

Issue 1 || June 2011

2025

Emir Simsek By: John May

Location: China Event: China’s economy continues to boom Growth: There are now over 200 cities with more than a million inhabitants, compared with just 35 in the whole of Europe circa 2010.

Effect: All of this has a considerable impact on the price of steel and other materials, which leads to cutbacks of many large-scale development projects in Europe, America and elsewhere.

Extra Info: As China booms, its power requirements are soaring. By 2025 its nuclear power generating capacity is nearly 150 billion kilowatthours (khwh), passing that of Canada and Russia.

You: Prices of goods will rise as chinese wages rise.

2

2026

Location: Maldives Event: Rising sea levels are wreaking havoc on the Maldives Reason: At an average of just 1.5m above sea level, the Maldives is the lowest lying country on the planet.

Effect: Rising sea levels are now beginning to devastate its economy, one-third of which relies on tourism.

Extra Info: The mere talk of a possible submersion, in recent years, had been damaging investor confidence.

By this date, however, the tangible reality of global warming has led to the wholesale abandonment of many islands.

You: No direct impact.. More evidence of climate change.

1

2027

Issue 1 || June 2011

Location: Many Nations Event: Carbon sequestration is underway in many nations Reason: Following years of research and development, a number of geoengineering techniques are now being utilised for trapping and removing CO2. This is offering fresh hope for mitigating the effects of climate change.

Effect: Mitigating the effects of climate change.

Extra Info: The most significant technology is “clean coal�, being fitted to power plants. This is seeing widespread adoption, since it now costs less than unsequestered coal-based power generation. The carbon dioxide is stored in geological formations deep underground (including some empty oil wells).

2

2028

By: Daniel Hu

Location: United States Event: Manned fighter planes are being phased out and replaced with UAVs Example: By this date, the A-10 Thunderbolt II has been replaced completely by the F-35 Lightning II - which itself becomes one of the last remaining manned fighter planes in the US military.

Effect: Less loss of life as human incorporation is unnessesary Extra Info: The F-35 will remain in operation until the 2040s, eventually being replaced by a new generation of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) controlled by advanced AI. The F-35 was the latest manned aircraft the military aquired.

1

2029

Issue 1 || June 2011

Location: United States Event: Human-like AI is becoming a reality Example: A major milestone is reached in the field of AI research this year, as a computer passes the Turing Test for the very first time. In a virtual reality setting, a human judge is made to engage in a natural language conversation with one human and one machine, each of which tries to appear human. The participants are placed in isolated locations.

Outcome: Graphics and voice effects have already progressed to the point that CGI characters are visually indistinguishable from real people. However, computer intelligence and interaction have also grown exponentially, such that the judge is now literally unable to tell the machine from the real human.

2

2030--Global Population is Reach

1

Continued population growth - and the rapid industrialisation of emerging economies - is having a substantial impact on food, water and energy supplies.* In the early 2000s, there were six billion people on Earth. By 2030, there are an additional two billion, most of them from poor countries. Humanity’s ecological footprint is such that it now requires the equivalent of two whole Earths to sustain itself. Farmland, fresh water and natural resources are becoming scarcer by the day.

The extra one-third of human beings on the planet means that energy requirements have soared, at a time when fossil fuel supplies are in terminal decline. A series of conflicts has been unfolding in the Middle East, Asia and Africa, at times threatening to spill over into Europe. With America involved too, the world is teetering on the brink of a major global war. This situation has been exasperated by recent terrorist attacks on Western interests.

There is the added issue of climate change, with CO2 levels now reaching 450 parts per million. There are signs that a tipping point has been reached, which is manifesting itself in the form of runaway environmental degradation. Nature’s ecosystems are beginning to col-

hing Crisis Point

Issue 1 || June 2011

lapse on a scale rarely witnessed in Earth’s history.

The accelerating magnitude of these and other problems is leading to a rapid migration from traditional fossil fuels to renewable energy.

Advances in nanotechnology have resulted in greatly improved solar power. In some countries, this has enabled photovoltaic materials to be added to almost every new building. Maglev wind power is beginning to replace traditional wind turbines, allowing for greater capacity in a smaller footprint. Energy supplies in general are becoming more localised and self-sufficient, while power conservation is being taken more seriously.

Another issue which governments have to contend with during this time is the ageing population, which has seen a doubling of retired persons since the year 2000. People are living longer, healthier lives. Huge budget increases have been made for state pensions, but the funding is spread over such a large number of people that the overall effect is a decreased income for the average senior citizen. Retirement ages are increasing: in America, Asia and most European countries, many employees are forced to work into their 70s.

2

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 12 His personal experiences with those difficulties times and extremely uncooperative workers have forever changed his view on companies and caused him to realize several aspects of the modern company that are hidden away from the view of society.

“Creating a company isn’t as great and glorious as most people think it is,” XinZhao said. “In the modern world, the company doesn’t actually have a lot of power. It can’t do anything to ensure the quality of the work created by its workers, [it can’t force them to do anything]. The company is powerless and weak under the strength of the workers.”

This lack of power and the employees’ uncooperative attitude only further compound the difficulty and complexity of starting up a company he says. Even though he is now the CEO of a strong start-up, XinZhao finds that the benefits of a start-up may not be greater than the stress and worry that an entrepreneur has to endure.

“Many people are eager and excited to create their own business due to the free-

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dom and flexibility that it brings. But in reality, the benefits of creating a company aren’t that stellar,” he explained. “Various laws and overly high expectations from society have caused companies to take on a lot of responsibilities that it shouldn’t have to do. [That] coupled with the fact that companies have no power and it makes surviving as a start-up to be extremely difficult.”

But with that said, the few companies that do manage to find their own niche in the business world and survive the excruciating journey get to experience the benefits of success. XinZhao’s company was one of those. Through his 8 years of sheer determination, bold experimentation and a bit of luck, he has finally prevailed. His company has has gone through it all and now it looks to grow stronger than ever in the future.

“After these recent years of experimentation and hard work we have finally found out our customer base and where we want to take our business,” he said.

“Our success in the future will be determined on how the economy accepts our decision. To just get to this point it has

taken many years of groundwork and perseverance. Many start-ups in this process have already died before they even reach this stage [of self realization].”

Back in his office, XinZhao peers through his window and sees the busy city below him he can’t help but think about the past difficulties he has had to face and how his company almost didn’t make it a few months ago. But the past has already gone by and today he knows his company has survived through the hardest of times and is ready to face any new challenges that may present themselves in the future.

“Initial success is a process of determination, experimentation and perseverance, XinZhao said. “Continued success is to always push the boundaries of what people think is possible. ” CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8 the debt crisis needs to be recognized and the US has to take immediate and decisive actions toward reducing it. Actions such as curbing government expenditures, entitlement reform, raising taxes, and cutting current deficits would greatly help remedy the debt crisis. Although these

Issue 1 || March 2011

a science experiment that actually ended up being a success. It’s a lot of fun to try and guess the winner, and when you put so much effort into it and end up being right, it’s an amazing feeling.” failed to predict the winner of Samoa. Edgic is a science, but it’s a flexible science, kind of CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16 like biology. It’s always chang Of course, Edgic isn’t infallible. ing.”

They’ve misidentified ratings, story Despite Edgic’s drawbacks, arcs, and even guessed a completely however, it is still an incredibly incorrect winner several times. accurate system for predict “We really got burned in Guatemala ing the winner. Out of the 11 and Gabon,” says FatLittleFingers, an seasons of Survivor that Edgic engineering student who resides in has record, Edgic has successOntario. “We just failed to take into fully predicted the winner account how the editing would porseven times, and had the wintray the winners if they had a UTR ner as the second-most-likely play style. Because of our inflexibilpossibility in 2 other seasons. ity and unwillingness to change, we “It’s one of the coolest were completely wrong, and that’s things I’ve ever been a part of,” why we became a little bit more open says Oowantite. “It was a scito unconventional edits. In fact, had ence experiment that actually we not changed the guidelines, we ended up being a success. It’s a would have failed to predict the winlot of fun to try and guess the ner of Samoa. Edgic is a science, but other seasons. winner, and when you put so much efit’s a flexible science, kind of like biology. It’s al “It’s one of the coolest things I’ve ever fort into it and end up being right, it’s an ways changing.” been a part of,” says Oowantite. “It was amazing feeling.” policies may not be popular now, the future generations of America will thank us for not pushing the burden of debt onto them. After all, as the famous American philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “A man in debt is so far a slave.”

Despite Edgic’s drawbacks, however, it is still an incredibly accurate system for predicting the winner. Out of the 11 seasons of Survivor that Edgic has record, Edgic has successfully predicted the winner seven times, and had the winner as the second-most-likely possibility in 2

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