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DEC NO 1

15¢ Ripping Through the Binary:

Two Women Explain Their Work To Alter The Fabric of Gender

Social Media:

For Better or Worse?

A Writer’s Hand: How Books Can Change the World

Letter From the Editor

Our goal as a magazine is to give our readers an understanding of culture by giving them the ability to experience stories that reflect the most important events, the most influential thinkers and the most significant ideas of today.

In this issue, the unofficial theme was progress-- pushing through gender roles, exploring new concepts in literature, becoming self aware in social media.

We believe that the best way to learn more about ourselves is to examine our culture and what it says about the people who create it.

In continuing with that theme of progress, this month we push you to go out into the world and change something you want to see changed. Right now, we need to focus on progress more than ever. We have proven that we are willing to let others dictate the path that we’re on, now it is time to redeem ourselves. Progress is achieved by the actions and choices of individuals. What choice are you making?

Regards, Ella Thompson Editor-In-Chief

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Literature A Writer’s Hand: How Books Can Change the World

Technology Social Media: For the Better or Worse?

Fashion Ripping Through The Binary: Two​W ​ omen​​Explain Their​ ​Work​ ​To​ ​Alter​ ​the​ ​Fabric​ ​of​ ​Gender

Gaming

Getting Under Our Skins: Skin Design and the Skin Market

Fandom

Hand-Drawn Heroes: How Comics Evolved Throughout History Pop! Magazine - October 2016 3

Contribution 4 Pop! Magazine - October 2016

Hanif

Amanullah

Born in California, Hanif Amanullah moved to Austin when he was 5, and has since called it his home. Ever since he learned how to hold drumsticks, he has played the drums (and recently guitar) passionately, and has hopes of being a musician one day. He is also a fervent reader and an aspiring photographer, often taking pictures of his travels around the world.

Ella Thompson Ella Thompson,

editor-in-chief of Pop! Magazine, was born in Austin, Texas, in 2002. Her passions include music, fashion and chocolate, and she dreams of moving to New York City one day to pursue her career as a musician.

Trent Wolff Trent Wolff is the resident gaming expert at Pop! Magazine. He runs several accounts under the pseudonym WarAnt Gaming and is an avid player of CS:GO amongst other things. He lives by the maxim “Keep things interesting” and he hopes that he has succeeded in exactly that during this past semester.

Gandharvi Varma

Gandharvi Varma, a native Austinite, is a Freshman at LASA High School. Due to a combination of the city and her parents, she is extremely eager to travel and explore the diverse cultures and people who embody them present in the world. When not sleeping or rowing, Varma enjoys reading immensely.

James Murphy Holden “James” Murphy is a student currently attending LASA High School in Austin, TX. James has been an avid reader since a young age, and developed a strong interest in comic books in 2011 with the launch of DC’s The New 52. He likes to explore how comics are shaped by the social and political issues of the times.

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A Writer’s Hand How Books Can Change the World

By Gandharvi Varma

Diversity in book selection is crucial. Photo by Gandharvi Varma

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ibraries are silent sanctuaries to the young and old alike. But, despite the space shared by the groups, there are clear distinctions between the content of different genres. The jump from one age group’s reading material to another’s is quite vast, the most obvious one being when most people reach the rockiest time of their lives: adolescence.

Through their literary works, authors have the ability to help them through this difficult time of growth. This role seems to have grown in recent years due to heightened awareness of world issues given by news outlets. Because the genre of young adult literature has the potential to imbue confidence and security in the minds of its readers as they become of age, it is important now more than ever to diversify the industry and allow everyone’s views and experiences to be reflected in the stories they read.

As it is right now, young adult literature does not have as much variety as it potentially could. “It really is based on romance, and the reason is that that’s just about all that authors thought teens were interested in. And, they’re not,” says Savanah Truelove, Head Librarian at LASA High School. “I think that your group doesn’t stay in the niche of romance novels perhaps as long as 10 of 15 years ago, or even 20 years ago.”

Due to the changing concerns of the teenage

population, writers remain attentive in their writing. “I’m an author for young readers.

They’re my priority and my first obligation is to them, to tell a great story,” says Cynthia Leitich Smith, New York Times best-selling author.

The newest trends appear to be more centered on dystopian books. But, unlike the previous tendency, this one is far less juvenile. “I think teens walk around being bombarded with disaster information from far flung places. They read dystopian novels to escape, to drop into another reality where characters may be dealing with similar issues in very different ways,” says Lindsey Lane, author of books for children and young adults.

The idea of dealing with the worries of readers is not done unwittingly; in fact, authors are intentionally dealing with issues weighing on the minds of their readers.“At least one of the things that I work with in my books is how powerless you can be when you are young, and how often you are not believed, how often you are given less weight,” says Nikki Loftin, writer for middle grade fiction.

“You’re not treated as well, and you’re just literally like treated like you’re not even fully human, sometimes by the people who are supposed to take care of you.”

“The emotional truth that you discover in life, things that upsets you and that you think about, the deeper issues that you come across as you’re just living, those do work their way into my books, at least.”

-Nikki Loftin

Writing books allows people to find new ways to grow. “Readers and writers want their

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own children to be strong and seeing these strong characters on the pages of a book will impact how kids view themselves and what they believe in possible,” says Tricia Hoover, author for both children and young adults.

By taking on the worries of teens and young adults head on, authors have a profound job to do; make the newest generation better than the previous one. “People who don’t want their kids to have more open minds about certain things are so adamant to ban books, because they know, people know, parents know, that when kids are exposed to books, movies, and all these different things, it can open your mind and make you more empathetic and make you more likely to say, “Those are people too; Let’s not judge so fast,” Loftin says, “So, yeah, so there’s two sides to that, right?”

These authors are not filled with self-deceiving optimism; all of the work they put in truly

can make a difference. “There are numerous studies that show that reading builds empathy in children, builds confidence, helps them deal with the issues in their own lives,” says Samantha Clark, Austin Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators Regional Advisor, “Children who read books can find hope for themselves in stories, as well as tools that they can use to navigate their own difficulties.”

The problems people face in real life are not always solved the same way, so books provide the opportunity to think. “In fiction, readers can wrestle with more subtle emotional hurdles,” says Lane. “Books, I think, provide inspiration, solace, and wisdom on the human experience.”

This drive to teach and change people does not appear to be very hard to come upon for writers.“You’re going to spend years of your life writing a book, so it needs to matter

Author Nikki Loftin. Photo used with permission given by Ms. Loftin. what you’re writing about. You need to believe in it. I’m trying to write stories that will last,” says Loftin, “In my book, I hope that it always reflects that the main characters, who have little power seemingly, discover that they can actually change their world.”

Despite all of the effort of authors, romance continues to play a large role in literary

“We are so divided, so uncompassionate that I wonder if people are reading and expanding their hearts and imaginations.”

- Lindsey Lane 8 Pop! Magazine - October 2016

“We have a long way to go in order to get a fair representation of people who fall outside of particular norms,” -Cynthia Bartek “We have a long way to go in order to get a fair representation of people who fall outside of particular norms,” says Cynthia Bartek, Codirector of the Texas Teen Book Festival.

Head Librarian Savanah Truelove.

Photo by Gandharvi Varma scene of teens and young adults. Because it does not meet the needs of the genre’s current audience, work needs to be done.

“I think books allow kids to peer over the precipice of adulthood without the danger of falling,” says Lane, “We are so divided, so not compassionate that I wonder if people are reading and expanding their hearts and imaginations.”

Preble, writer for young adults. By giving children the opportunity to see the whole picture, society as a whole will make the move towards a more accepting and just place.

Due to the diversity present in today’s society, “it’s important that shelves have lots of books that mirror every type of child and background so that every child can see themselves in the books,” says Clark, “And it’s important for children to read about children who are not like them because, just as books about characters like them help them better understand themselves, books about others help children to better understand others. “ Because books allow people possibility, “it’s so important to have books that are both windows and mirrors. The more we bring previously marginalized voices into the conversation, the stronger we all are,” says Joy

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Social Media: For the Better or Worse?

By Hanif Amanullah Nov 2016

How the rise of social media has impacted our daily lives.

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ocial media. Over the last decade it has become a central part of our daily life. But over the course of the last 10 years, experts question whether it has really helped us in terms of personal, public, and political communication. “It became clear by the turn of the century that news media was expanding beyond newspaper and tv,” says Dr. Max McCombs, a professor at the Moody College of Communication at The University of Texas in Austin. “Newspapers where creating websites and blogs. And the landscape continued to expand. That was the beginning.”

According to a study at Nottingham Trent University, the average amount of times a person checks their phone is around 85 times a day. The real question is whether all this social screen-time is good for you.

The role of social media in our lives has continued to expand. “Some of the key things [social media] has done is allow people to live in the moment,” says Keri Stephens, an associate professor at Moody College. Social media has allowed people to communicate like never before. Quick snippets of communication can be conveyed across the world within seconds. “The immediacy at which people can communicate talk to each other is striking.”

Black and White

One of the common misconceptions that surround social media is that everything posted online can be taken off whenever the user wants. But things aren’t as black and white as they seem. Whatever is posted online stays online, no matter how much you try to get rid of it.“Social media today is very different than forms of social media 15 years ago” Dr. Stephens says. Researchers are finding that the trace it leaves is very different: “It’s out there. It will either come back and haunt you, or it will propel you”, Stephens says. However, one thing is for sure: Whatever steps you’ve taken to delete it, you have not gotten rid of it.

Maxwell McCombs, Donald Shaw and David Weaver, the three founders of the Agenda Setting theory.

Some of the key things [Social Media] has done is allow people to live in the moment - Dr. Keri Stephens

The permanence of this new form of communication isn’t the only thing that differs from traditional news media. According to Pew Research Center, more than 4-in10 Americans get their news online, and that number is only continuing (and probably will continue) to rise.

New and Improved

“I’ve always been fascinated with the idea that if you combine your medias (whether newspaper, Twitter, the radio, Facebook, etc.) you can reach more people”, says Dr. Stephens. Before the arrival of Face-

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New types of media, whether social media sites, online articles, or news websites, are quickly becoming the go-to form of news sharing.

and Twitter and other modern media sites, there were other forms of social media, like Chat and Instant Messenger. Dr. Stephens says, “In fact the newsgroups and chats were the closest to something like social media today. Because it was one to many rather than one to one.” Social media is different, but the real question is whether it improves

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but the real question is whether it improves upon existing types of media. “There is a lot of negativity, and you know, the news is not a happy place,“ says Dr. Stephens. It’s true.

The internet gives adults and kids access to any kind of info from all around the world.

It is knowledge, of course, but some of that knowledge may not always be trustworthy.

However, there are different views. “I actually think it’s a very positive effect. Children and adults alike, when they have access to all this news, they really become citizens. They have some knowledge of what is going on at national and pubic levels,” Dr. McCombs says.

Of course, even before the growth of this modern media, adults still read the paper, watched the news on tv, and listened to the radio. But here’s the thing: kids have access to this news at a very young age because of their access to phones and tablets, whereas they wouldn’t have picked up a newspaper as often as they are exposed to news by accident. And along with that, social media outlets might display news very graphically.

“[Selective exposure] is the idea that people have a preference for information that matches their beliefs over information that contradicts their beliefs.

- Dr. Talia Stroud

“We ...want communication to be briefer. Quick.

Snippets. Give me soundbites.”

- Dr. Keri Stephens

Affecting Youth

And it really does have an effect on youth culture. “We ...want communication To be briefer. Quick. Snippets. Give me soundbites, “ Keri Says. It’s also very visual. ”My biggest fear is that people are not digging into figuring out the details.” We are making decisions without realizing we need more facts. This can be harmful to anything from private affairs to elections. She says, “ How can we be critical consumers with all the data that is out there. How do you decide what you are and aren’t going to believe?”

This brings us to something called the Selective Exposure theory, on which Dr. Tali Stroud, a professor at UT, is an expert on.“[Selective exposure] is the idea that people have a preference for information that matches their beliefs over information that contradicts their beliefs. In my research, I’ve found extensive evidence that it exists for political topics. In order to be an informed citizen, and to relate to others in a community, it is important to know about different points of view.”

And this is definetly helped by social media. The core of the theory was that emphasis of issues in news media has a substantial influence on the emphasis the public puts on a topic.“The 1968 election we came up with an idea (based off of a classic book by Walter Lippmann called “Public Opinion”) that media (newspapers and tv) could influence the focus of intention.

Agenda Setting

The theory, called ‘Agenda Setting”’s thesis was that newsmedia was the bridge between the focus of personal intention and public intention.

Social media isn’t all bad, however. “It connects people that are scattered across the country. So it certainly plays an important role in politics today”, McCombs says. Now what media is the best for political communication? “People from all over are able to discuss politics...just not always in the most civilized way. That’s a downside.

Especially twitter. People say nasty things there.” McCombs says. At least, I’ve always thought of facebook as more of something to manage your friends, arrange things, etc, and twitter is more for comm with people, and news.“That’s what research shows, that younger people have gone off facebook, because that’s where their parents are.” says Keri.

So social media has good sides and bad sides. We know that social media is here to stay, for one thing. Social media has brought together a diverse community of people, ideas, and knowledge. But it’s has also allowed misinfo and insults to spread fast. People these days need to know how to present themselves online more than ever.

“I don’t know what form it’ll take next,” Keri says, ”But I know that the power to share

Keri Stephens, an associate professor at Moody College of Communication

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Social Media: The Facts 14 mind blowing facts about the leading social media outlets.

By Hanif Amanullah

In India mobile devices 1 account for 72% of all web site traffic.

Google+, the +1 2 On button is hit 5 billion times a day.

In all, Snapchat users watch 3 around 6 billion Stories every day

4 Google processes 100 billion searches a month.

5 That’s an average of 40,000 search queries every second.

6 By 2014, Google had indexed

30,000,000,000,000 pages of the internet.

7 To carry out all these searches, Google’s

data centre uses 0.01% of worldwide electricity

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Technology is a bigger part of our lives today then it ever was. Here are some of the mindblowing facts that prove it.

8 There are 500 million Tweets sent each

day. That’s 6,000 Tweets every second.

Pizza is the most popular 9 Instagrammed food. Sushi and steak are right behind.

90 percent of Instagram users are younger than 35

10

11 There are over 1.71 billion users on Facebook. That’s more than a seventh of the world’s current population

12 Facebook adds over five

hundred thousand new users every single day

13 That’s six new profiles every second.

14 300 hours of video are uploaded to Youtube every minute Pop! Magazine - October 2016 15

TOP FIVE MEMORABLE COMIC SERIES

(In no particular order)

By James Murphy

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns

Batman: The Killing Joke

V for Vendetta

The Dark Knight Returns explores a reality in which Batman has returned following a 10 year absence that has left Gotham in chaos.

The Killing Joke is an unforgettable Batman story that pushes Batman’s moral code to the limits when the Joker shoots and paralyzes Barbara Gordon and kidnaps her father.

V for Vendetta is a classic tale of a group of an individual rising up against a fascist society conveyed through unique style and beautiful illustrations.

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Watchmen

The Walking Dead

Watchmen takes place in an alternate history where government-sponsored superheroes are being hunted down and killed, revealing a plot that threatens the safety of the world.

The Walking Dead is a new take on the zombie genre that follows a band of survivors over many years as they try to survive in the zombie infested land of the United States of America.

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Pop! Magazine Magazine -- October October 2016 2016 20 18 Pop!

Sharon Choksi with her daughter Maya Photo by Sarah Beth Photography

RIPPING THROUGH THE BINARY

Two Women Explain Their Work To Alter the Fabric of Gender

By Ella Thompson

From their invention in about 3500 BC until the 1630’s, high heels were worn exclusively by men. The concept of gendered clothing as exists in today’s society is relatively recent,with widespread assignment of colors to genders only dating to the 1960’s.

But in the past 50 years, it has become a commonplace phenomenon. Stores such as Target or Walmart have overtly defined clothing sections, with vivid pinks and turquoises on one side and solid blues and oranges on the other. This is a point of contention for many people, some going as far as creating their own businesses to combat it. Two of these people are Valeri Abrego and Sharon Choksi.

“My mother was very forceful on gender binary,” says Abrego, founder and head designer of clothing company Jinxedaposed.“She’d buy me dresses or like, you know, dress up pants, you know, things that were very feminine and female, and then I would turn around and take them and make them very genderless.”

Abrego is an Austin based designer and performer who puts a very strong emphasis on making clothes accessible to all people regardless of gender. From an early age, she has been deeply interested in clothing, drawing inspiration from the kids who hung out at school.

“A lot of the times, it’s just going and hanging out with with older people and club kids,” she recalls, “and then using what- what they had in their closet, or, you know, whatever they had or they could find at the, you know, the dollar store and putting it on and then going out and dancing.”

She explains that although high fashion is very much just set by a few people and then adopted by many others, she wanted to design clothes at the most local level, working with just the people she knew.

“I would say usually the dichotomy of fashion is usually a trickle down type of situation, you know, you got your designer, kind of trickles down,” she explains. “Well, I was very much interested in the trickle up, because I was inspired by streetwear and street designs and clothes that other people were wearing at school.”

Of course, Abrego wasn’t entirely scornful of higher fashion either. Her favorite designer is Jean-Paul Gaultier, a well-known French designer, who she says is one of the first big people in fashion to really do what she does; that is, he essentially pioneered the concept of gender neutral clothing.

“A lot of his costume work was just not really focused on accentuating certain things rather than using, like, his kind of larger than life design in his work, so it didn’t matter if you were wearing boys’ clothing or girls’ clothing or androgynous clothing, it all kind of just looked the same, and I really loved that and I was really inspired by that,” she says.

Part of the reason for Abrego’s interest in the sort of fashion she describes is due to her childhood. Growing up, she was not particularly wealthy, so she had to make due with what she had.

“Because of my very humble beginnings,” she says, “I was able to be, like, very resourceful and find ways to manipulate certain things that I saw on TV, in the magazines and on TV, and make them to where I wanted them. “

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As Abrego got older, she continued to follow that passion, going to study fashion in San Francisco, visiting New York Fashion Week, creating her company. Her advice to those who want to follow in her footsteps is simple:

“Put your passion first, “ she says, “continue doing what you’re doing. Don’t stop working because eventually, somebody is going to like it”

Abrego’s own passion for designing outside of typical norms has continued to develop as well. She uses transgender models, she designs clothes that do not traditionally fit with one gender role, occasionally she even performs as a drag king.

“I can tell you that personally,” she asserts, “I won’t allow anybody to talk me down or talk me away from breaking that binary...when I was starting out, a lot of people didn’t use transgender models or drag models, and it was this thing where it was like, ‘Oh, I don’t know that I wanna go there,’ and I was just like, ‘You know what? They’re models, and they look beautiful in my clothing, and that’s all that matters to me, so I don’t even care,’”

She explains that social boundaries are just that-- set by society, things that people can change if they want.

“This is our societal platform that says ‘Ok, you can wear that’...and so long as you have designers who are really willing to push those boundaries, that’s really gonna shape people feeling comfortable within themselves,” she says. “Clothing makes you feel comfortable, gives you a personality, and it gives you a way to allow yourself to express yourself.”

Abrego knows that it can be difficult to feel comfortable in one’s own skin, or to be confident enough to wear what one wants to, but she encourages people to remain hopeful and keep trying to change the norms, both for themselves and other people.

“Nothing is off limits because you were born a boy or born a girl.”

She’s willing to uphold these beliefs even if it makes a personal cost. About a year ago, she was asked to participate in a fashion show. She was completely prepared to do the show when she was abruptly told that her gender non-conforming models could not be used because it was a conservative show. She promptly withdrew from the event.

“It’s gotten to this point where it’s, like, I, as a more seasoned designer, I’m just-- I’m not willing to put up with certain things anymore,” she says. “And if that means less work then that means less work, but it’s just something that I believe in.”

Abrego believes in this so strongly because she feels, like many people, that fashion is a core component and expression of personality, and as such should be a bit more sacred; that it should be a person’s choice what they wear.

“I think so long as we have people who aspire to look a certain way- people who look at Vogue and say this is who I want to look like, she says, “they were born masculine and they wanna look more feminine or if they were feminine and they wanna look more masculine; I feel, like, it’s important to fashion for fashion to push those boundaries and continue,” she says.

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Valeri Abrego Photo by Ella Thompson

“No matter where you are,” she says, “whatever city you are, you know, it’s really important to to push those boundaries, because that’s what’s going to break the societal norms and- and make it to where everyone is accepted, that’s how we are going to accept each other”.

Sharon Choksi, founder and owner of girls’ clothing company Girls Will Be, has a similar sentiment.

“There’s something you wanna change; go for it,” she says. “You can make it happen.”

Choski created Girls Will Be, a clothing company for girls that breaks gender roles, after her daughter Maya, now age 11, started expressing a dislike for typical girls’ clothing.

“The boys and girls departments of clothes are very separate, very divided,” she explains.

“You’d walk in and it’s very clear on one side is pink and sparkles and ruffles and hearts, and on the other side is, you know, darker colours and- and themes, like, science and sports and, um, trucks and things on the- the other side,” she says. “And so I think it’s hard for a child who sees that and sees that they, like, the things that are on the boys’ department even though they’re a girl.”

Maya began to buy things from the boys section. This worked fine for a while, but Choski noticed it was having a negative effect.

“She started to say, you know, “why do boys get all the cool stuff?” and that bothered me that she was internalising that message; that these things were for boys when they were really for all kids, um, to enjoy,” she says.

So Choski decided to try to solve the problem at the root, and founded Girls Will Be. She says that Maya has been very positively impacted by its creation.

“You can like whatever you like, you can be whatever you want to be, you can dress however you want to dress, and that is totally fine”

That message may seem trivial but Choksi says it’s extremely crucial. Positive representation is incredibly important for children to get. The commonly used phrase is “If she can’t see it, she can’t be it”, and according to Choksi, this need for representation extends to clothing. “I think a lot of girls then say ‘Well, I’m gonna stop liking science, or I’m gonna stop liking sharks, that’s not cool for me cuz I’m a girl; I’m gonna go over here and, like, these things’,“ Choksi explains.

Choksi saw this problem in her daughter’s life, and in society in general, and decided to do something about it.

“I started my company purely to be for girls to send a message that this is for girls too, that you-- that you don’t have to shop in the boys’ department, um, in order to, like, these things, and there are options because there are girls like you that like these topics as well,” Choksi says.

“I wanted to make sure that girls felt comfortable pursuing whatever, you know, continuing to, like, whatever it is that they, like, and not feeling that things are limited by their gender.”

Of course, not everyone agrees with her mission, and she’s gotten a fair amount of criticism since she started Girls Will Be.

“ I’ve definitely had other people say that to me, right, like, you know, “Clothes shouldn’t matter, the kid should, you know-- you should be able to tell them what you-- either they can be whatever they want to be and be comfortable in their own skin and that clothes don’t matter in that equation’” she says. But she disagrees.

Valeri Abrego Photo by Ella Thompson

“I think seeing that I realised it was a problem that things were so divided has given her even more strength and conviction to be her own person and be herself,” Choski says, “and that being-there’s nothing wrong with liking whatever you like, no matter how society’s labeling it, because I tell her I care about it, and I even started the company to do it, so I think that’s been huge.”

As the company grew in size and started to become more successful, other girls started to feel the same way.

“People are finding us who are overjoyed when they find it-the parents and the girls, because they’ve often been looking for things, like, this and can’t find them,” Choksi says. “My favourite things are when parents say things like, ‘My daughter saw your website and was like, “Mom, there’s girls like me!”’”

Pop! Magazine - October 2016 21

“I think the reality of the world is that kids pick up cues from what they see other kids wearing or what they see laid out for them in the store, identified as boys versus girls,” she says, “and so, when the cues are so limited and so divided by gender, I think that it’s sending a really bad message.”

Another problem people have with Girls Will Be is what they perceive as a militant “anti-pink” stance, but Choksi maintains that they’re totally misinterpreting her.

“A lot of times, people might glance over my site and I’ll get a message like, ‘Why is-- why is pink bad?’ or, ‘Why are girly things bad and why are you saying that?’” she says, “and I’m careful to actually never say that, because I don’t believe things that are stereotypically girly are bad” She says that what she’s opposed to is the finality of those gender roles.

“There’s nothing wrong dressing like a princess, there’s nothing wrong with girls wearing dresses and frilly skirts, but the problem I have is oh that’s the only option available to them”

Some parents, however, are not as open-minded, she says.

“There are a lot of parents out there who won’t cross that divide in the store, right, and I hear them sometimes in Target, ‘Oh, no, no, Honey, that’s the boys’ section, come over here,’” she says, “You can do a lot as a parent which is saying that’s an artificial divide.”

“There’s no girl things or boy things; you’re wearing it: it’s your thing,”

22 Pop! Magazine - October 2016

“If you have a passion about something or if you have an issue with something, then just go make the change...you can do that”

Choksi herself has been telling Maya that since she started taking her to the store.

“We used to say that when we were shopping for toys,” Choksi says, “‘Well that’s silly,’....’Isn’t that silly how they put that in the boys’ section? Like, why would they do that? You love that toy, and your friend Molly loves that toy,’ right, so just having those conversations can be a huge-- have a huge impact.”

And she really has had a huge impact, not only on her daughter, but on all the girls who have come across her store.

“ I think it’s been a great message to send my daughter, cuz she’s watched all this, and my daughter’s friends, and the girls that hear about our company and love it, and that fit our target market. These girls that are so excited to find our clothes, and I think that they all see that experience; that someone saw a problem, didn’t, like, how things were, status quo and then changed that.”

Both Abrego and Choksi have one big thing in common: they encourage people to fix the issues they see in the world, whether it’s toxic gender roles, transphobic fashion shows, or anything else.

“If you have a passion about something,” says Choksi, “or if you have an issue with something, then just go make the change...you can do that”

Valeri Abrego in a dress of her own creation Photo by Ella Thompson

Pop! Pop!Magazine Magazine- -October October2016 2016 25 23

Six Albums To Listen Views - Drake Highest Charting Song: One Dance

Drake’s suave, laid-back tones, sultry basslines, Best Music Video Dance: Hotline Bling and catchy lyrics make the Canadian rapper’s fourth Best Lyric: “You know I rarely have to take- studio album one for the ages. Song of the summer two it, and they still take to it” Controlla’s distinct beat and flirtatious bass give structure to an otherwise ephemeral track; while Too Good, a collaboration with long-time flame Rihanna, mixes festive drums and synth with melancholy lyrics in a delectably bittersweet song that provides a refreshing take on the classic break-up.

Collage EPThe Chainsmokers

The rich synth and captivating basslines which we have come to expect from EDM duo The Chainsmokers are blatantly present in their latest EP Collage. Closer, the duo’s first number one hit, is a perfect combination of Halsey’s soulful vocals and The Chainsmokers’ trademark interwoven melodies, resulting in an immersive tapestry which topped Billboard’s Hot 100 list for 12 consecutive weeks. Inside Out is a lesser known but equally enchanting track whose tantalisingly complex melody and lyrics maintain a serene tone in the verse that quickly builds into a powerful declaration of devotion in the chorus.

Best Production: All We Know Best Guest Vocalist: Halsey Most Underrated Song: Setting Fires

Dangerous Woman - Ariana Grande

Grande’s latest album is her best one yet, her silky smooth vocals blending beautifully with Max Martin’s brilliantly intentional production. It has a decidedly vintage feel, but it is unclear exactly what decade it dabbles in-- the title track offsets classic blues changes with modern instrumentation to accent Grande’s sweeping high notes; while seventies inspired production and intricate harmonies lend a thrilling edge to her ode to reckless love, Bad Decisions. The many collaborations on the record do nothing to detract from the pop singer’s talent, indeed, they accent it perfectly. Lil’ Wayne’s guest verse in the sultry, ice cool Let Me Love You is the perfect next step in a perfectly structured song, the rapper’s soothing vocals reminisent of LL Cool J’s I Need Love.

Grande also features a verse from twice past collaborator Nicki Minaj on her reggae infused third single Side to Side, whose expertly obscene wordplay complements Grande’s unabashed sexuality.

Best Song: Greedy Best Single: Into You Most Underrated: Thinking Bout You

From hip-hop to pop, EDM to house, R&B to rock, 2016’s albums have revolutionised the music industry.

26 24 Pop! Magazine - October 2016

To In 2017

Dreamstate EP- Frankie

Although up-and-coming electropop singer Frankie may not be as high profile as some of the other artists on this list, her poppy synth and candy-coated beats make her debut EP Dreamstate a reverie that lives up to its name. Despite the electronic presence in many of her songs, Frankie manages to cultivate a strikingly raw emotional intimacy in others, such as Chaos, a nostalgic, stripped-back song whose minimal production and abundant harmonies give it a quiet power, as opposed to Blackout, an upbeat, dance-floor ready track whose sugary beats and whimsical production make it perfect for karaoke night.

Savage Mode EP Metro Boomin and 21 Savage

Rising star producer Metro Boomin teams up with Atlanta based rapper 21 Savage for a record that blends Savage’s thrillingly hedonistic classic flows with Metro’s sleek, futuristic beats. The title track’s haunting piano and raw bass provide a perfect atmosphere for Savage’s soothingly monotone raps and pointed declarations of savagery, while Real N**** provides a thrillingly dark, almost operatic take on very real hip hop as 21 Savage explores issues such as race and politics, as well as providing some personal intospection by delving into his childhood.

Most Relevant Lyric: “If Young Metro doesn’t trust you I’m gonna shoot you” Best Beat: X Where You’ve Heard Them Before: Jumpman - Drake and Future, Sneakin’ Drake ft. 21 Savage

By Ella Thompson Best Production: Gold Best Breakup Song: Problems Problems Best Review: “New songs that will make your life better (I promise!)” - Taylor Swift

Death of a Bachelor - Panic! at the Disco

Panic! at the Disco masterfully showcase their diverse range of musical styles in their fifth studio album Death of a Bachelor. Front man Brendon Urie’s strikingly honeyed tones make what would be a sprawling mess of an album a sleek, polished narrative that still manages to be eccentric and colourful. The title track’s 50’s inspired crooning vocals and silky melody are offset by a booming bassline that brilliantly complements Urie’s soaring high notes in the chorus. Meanwhile, the album’s third single, Emperor’s New Clothes, is a delightul contradiction, mixing a contemporary brass section with operatic vocals with Notorious B.I.G. references and bound together with thrillingly dark bass that reinforces its cynical social commentary.

Most Creative Lyrics: Don’t Threaten Me with a Good Time Best Instrumental: Victorious Scariest Music Video: LA Devotee

We took a survey to find out which ones were the best.

Here are six of 2016’s greatest albums to listen to in 2017.

Pop! Magazine - October 2016 27 25

5 Thought-Provoking Books A Discussion in Morals and Justice

By Gandharvi Varma

A

The Alchemist

s it is always beneficial to observe the world, books can help expand everyone’s opinions. Thus, it is important to read books that discuss deeply important ideas.

Written by Brazilian novelist Paulo Coleho, this book provides the world with many life lessons.

There is strong encouragement to be grateful for what you have, to be resilient, and to take action.

Coleho tries to teach his readers to embrace the present and always enjoy life, making this a interesting read.

Of Mice and Men

John Steinbeck’s book is deeply relatable. As with many of his books, Of Mice and Men tells of the trials that the common man experiences. The people reading his stories could relate to the protagonists and their problems.

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Farenheit 451 This book provides insightful commentary on the expectations of society and how mass media suppresses the intrest to read literature. With this book, Ray Bradbury won several awards, including the American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature.

Animal Farm Animal Farm is an dystopian novellla written by George Orwell as a reflection on the events that lead to the Russian Revolution. The politacal air of the story makes it both distinct and very unique!

The Catcher in the Rye

With strong themes of alienation and loss, J.D. Salinger deals with the complex issue of coming of age. Because this book is written in first person, it is very easy to relate to the protagonist.

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C The ABC store in Austin. Photo by David Murphy.

OMICS

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C

Hand Drawn Heroes: How Comics Evolved Throughout History

By James Murphy Humans spend countless hours every year watching the latest episode of their favorite TV shows, or going to the movies for the latest summer blockbuster. Recently, superhero movies like “The Avengers” and “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” have been raking in the dough in the box office. But it’s easy to forget where these films originated from: Comic books.

Comic books have been around for decades, and are well ingrained into modern day culture. Nowadays, with the prevalence of comic book movies, comics are more relevant than ever. But unlike books or film, they have not always been seen as a serious artistic medium, despite being on the front lines of a lot of social justice issues. And in attempting to tackle those social justice issues, some comic books run the risk of alienating parts of their audience, according to Megan Ruch, the Store Manager of Dragons Lair Comics and Fantasy, and Ty Denton, the Sales Manager of Austin Books and Comics.

“I’d consider comics the new mythology of the world,” Denton said. “You get classic tales of heroism, but also, they’re kind of revamped into modern day problems as well.”

The stories people tell are influenced by the times they live in, like how ancient mythology related to the lives of the people at that point in history.

But when talking about comics, it is important to remember that it is a medium for children as well. And comics did not always used to cater to them.

“There’s a lot of weird stuff that was happening during the 30’s through the 50’s. Some rampant racism was happening during them,” Denton said.

“You could see people using very ethnic slurs against Asian-Americans because of World War II.” But this does not line up with the campy, happy-go-lucky vision of comics in the past. So what happened?

“A book was published in 1954 called Seduction of the Innocent, by Fredric Wertham,” Denton said. “... And he basically said, ‘Oh yeah, all the problems that are happening with kids these days are because of comics’, and that’s when the Comics Code Authority came by and changed everything up.”

The Comics Code Authority, or CCA, was an attempt by comic book publishers to self-regulate their own stories to make them more kid friendly. And for a while it worked.

“It still had some dark undertones but it was flashier and happier sounding, I guess, if that makes sense,” said Denton.

“I’d consider comics the new mythology of the world,” Denton said. “You get classic tales of heroism, but also, they’re kind of revamped into modern day problems as well.”

Pop! Magazine - October 2016 29

“Unfortunately, more people hated the character than liked him, so he got essentially murdered by the fans [ . . . ] You know yeah, that was a thing that kinda signified that like, ‘Man, this is going in dark directions’, because now even the fans want the heroes to die,” Denton said.

However comic book writers are tricky people, and had clever workarounds for the CCA. “There is a DC character called ‘The Spectre’, who is God’s vengeance.

That was basically what he was. And they did this like, walk around, or run around on it, whereas basically, ‘Oh, well he’ll just turn them into- all the bad guys into a herd of cattle, and then they have to go into a slaughter house.

So they’re gonna die, but they’re not humans, so we can get around it,’’ Denton said.

By 2011, all comic book publishers has dropped the code, but by then comic books had been portraying dark themes for decades. From 1988 to 1989, a four-part Batman story was published called A Death in the Family that let the readers dial a 900 number and vote on if the second Robin, Jason Todd, would die at the hands of the Joker. And by a slim margin, he did.

“Unfortunately, more people hated the character than liked him, so he got essentially murdered by the fans [ . . .]

You know yeah, that was a thing that kinda signified that like, ‘Man, this is going in dark directions’, because now even the fans want the heroes to die,” Denton said.

But times have changed, These days people are looking for happier stories, according to Megan Ruch.

“They’re looking for a medium that takes you away from the dredge and drear of our day-to-day life, rather than letting us relate to it, like we had been for a long time,” said Ruch.

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Ty Denton. Photo by David Murphy.

Yet in other ways, comics haven’t changed at all. As far back as the 70s, many comic books have helped push progressive themes. In December of 1971, John Stewart made his debut on the cover of Green Lantern vol. 2, #87, as DCs first African-American superhero.

“All of a sudden, you know, Green Lantern, Hal Jordan, this white-guy pilot, you know, was replaced by a guy named John Stewart, you know, who was black, and you know, he kept on bringing up, “I’m not gonna wear a mask because because people need to see that I’m doing this,” said Denton.

And as can be seen today, comics continue to tackle social justice issues.

In August of 2013, Marvel debuted Kamala Khan, an Islamic PakistaniAmerican who would take over the role of Ms. Marvel following the previous ones transition into Captain Marvel.

“I think especially given the political climate right now, it’s a great book to have on the market and available to

everyone. Casting someone who is Muslim and is a person of color in a very good light and as a person like the rest of us, because they are,” Ruch said.

“You’re seeing a lot more female characters. You’re seeing a lot more, just, people of color, ya know, just…

Different characters being represented in comics, and in that way it’s been very progressive,” said Ruch.

And luckily, it seems as if comics aren’t going anywhere. Even in the world of comic book movies and TV shows, people are still returning to the source material.

“They want to know more about the characters,” said Ruch. “We have Adventures of Supergirl. She has her own comic now and everything. So, if you’re a fan of the show and you want more of that, people come and they look for that original- or that source material, so it’s just adding to the fandom, and we get an increase because of that now.”

For now, it appears as if comic books are here to stay.

“You’re seeing a lot more female characters. You’re seeing a lot more, just, people of color, ya know, just… Different characters being represented in comics, and in that way it’s been very progressive,” said Ruch.

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Skin Design

And Skin Market

This image shows my Stattrack Karambit Case Hardened Bluegem, a pattern that is briefly talked about in the main article. Credit- Trent Wolff WarAnt

“They quick sold skins for less than half of their previous value. This event brought investors into the market.�

32 Pop! Magazine - October 2016

By

Within the game Counter Strike Global Offensive (CS: GO), from free default vanilla skins to thousand dollar pixels; skins, or pixels, are in a market of their own. These pixels are known as the “Skin Market”, sought out by rich collectors from around the world.

Many of these collectors are willing to pay over $100,000 for a single “skin”.Why? I don’t know. So I went and interviewed some collectors to find out first hand: Do they add a new depth to the game? Do they make you play better? How do they change the game all around? Is the market of these “skins” failing? I contacted some of the top collectors in the world to find out why.

I managed to get an interview with £KSD£, the number three skin collector in the world. I started asking questions, such as “Why is the market failing?” He started right in: “After the ban of all CS:GO Gambling related sites, the CS:GO Item market crashed completely, items went down by half their value in a day,” £KSD£ stated. This is a large statement coming from one of the top collectors in the world; it will surely have a large impact on the skin economy, including on what people chose to do with their skins.

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After the statement was released by £KSD£, several collectors decided to “cash out”, or sell all of their skins before prices are expected to drop. Many people were led to believe that prices would drop even more, so they quickly sold skins, some for less than half of their previous value. This event brought investors into the market.

These investors purchased the skins during the time that they were selling for half price.

The main reason these recent events were even able to take place were due to CS:GO gambling sites being shut down. Some of these investments proved extremely profitable now that the prices of skins are returning to their previous values. For instance, CombatHD was able to make 16.7431 times the money that he originally invested in the market crash, making his inventory now worth $41,857.75 when he invested only $2,500. He was only able to do this because many skin owners feared that Steam was going to take the items that were gambled and return them to their original owners, resulting in them losing their skins.

Pop! Magazine - October 2016 33

When CS:GO skins were introduced to the game, the amount of people who actively played boomed. “The game started out being called a colorless “COD” (Call of Duty) and no one wanted to play it, then skins came and everyone wanted to play,” CombatHD stated. Steam introduced the first “unboxable” skins into the game in the CS:GO Weapon Case. After that they created item drops that can be won for free by playing the game without having to open the “cases”. This was because not everyone was able to buy keys to open the cases, and Steam wanted people who couldn’t afford them to have a way of getting skins, though it was a slow process and the items given as drops were normally cheaper than the “skins” unboxed.

From the moment the first skins were used in the game, people saw them and became interested in and willing to buy them. From there it only got worse: people started spending hundreds of dollars on these colors and spreading the craving “need” for skins. They spread like a virus, where one person would see it and would want their own. “I’m somewhat glad that they added skins, it adds a nice feature to the game in my opinion. Instead of using the old rusty thrashed down default skins, you can now use great and colorful looking skins that you enjoy looking at while playing,” £KSD£ claimed. People soon realized that there were skins for knives too. They soon became the most expensive type of skin after people realized that they were rare to unbox.

Steam(Valve), the company that created CS:GO, soon allowed the trading of skins, enabling trade without having to sell on the market. People were now able to trade skins with other people with no one really looking at the price. This all changed when the “from nothing to a knife” video was released by Clicky Crisp. This video showed how to trade for profit every time and eventually be able to get a knife with the money you made from trading up. Few people knew about this video at the start and not many people traded for profit, but soon many people saw the video and started doing trade ups. The information about profitable trades spread like a virus, similar to how the original skins in the game did. Soon almost everyone who was trading was trying to trade for profit. This demand for profit at one point got so bad trading almost stopped. I was curious if there was any advice for trading for profit now that most everyone was trying to trade for profit, so I asked the collectors that I interviewed for advice on trading. Here is the best answer that I got: “Focus on bluegems, be patient, don’t give up.

3 Keywords for low tier traders who are just starting out.

If you are not patient while trading, you’ll fail and lose money instead of earning money,” £KSD£ said (Bluegems are a pattern on the skin Case Hardened). What I gathered is this: don’t give up on trading for profit or you will end up losing money, but if you’re patient those who are impatient will overpay for your skins, making you profit.

“Something out of the ordinary that looks great is something I’d probably purchase and keep.”

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Skin collectors are people who purchase expensive or rare skins just because they like it or because it is expensive or sought after highly. There are many different types of collectors such as “Sticker collectors” or “Crimson collectors”. I was curious why people spent so much money on the game and bought such expensive virtual items so I decided to ask £KSD£ what type of collector he was and why he decided to become a collector. “I’m what you could call a mid-sized collector, I don’t collect skins as heavily as some people do. I primarily trade to make money.

I do collect skins that looks nice and are unusual though. Something out of the ordinary that looks great is something I’d probably purchase and keep,” he said. Then I asked him a very similar question to see if I could get a little better answer. “When did you first take interest in skins?” “Well, due to my young-age I usually joined along my older brother in his activities.

I started CSGO in late 2013, and unboxed my first skin right after I started playing. After that I was somewhat hooked and started trading my way up in value to where I am now. I have personally not spent a dime on the game,” £KSD£ stated This quote goes to show what £KSD£ said earlier about being hooked on skins and that if you are patient you can make profit.

Skins come in many different patterns and colors so I found information about the type of skins the majority of people like and are willing to purchase.

I figured that many collectors will go for a skin just because of its value and not necessarily because they like how it looks in game.

“You have something nice looking that you just got, your mindset might be different than before while using that rusty old fork of a knife you normally use.”

These collectors mostly like to show off their wealth by having the highest tier and most expensive skins, but usually lower tier collectors and people with under a thousand dollar inventory tend to go for skins because they actually like the way they look in game, usually because they don’t have the money to buy thousand dollar skins just to show off. This is because you can only use one skin at a time for each weapon on Counter Terrorists and Terrorists. There are however high tier and mid tier collectors that actually get skins because they like how they look. As £KSD£ said, “Me personally, I care about the looks of it. If it looks nice then I’ll use it. I could go for a knife worth $30,000, but if I don’t like how it looks then I won’t buy it.”

Do skins make you play better? That’s a question that is often asked by players with little inventories and cheap skins. There has been no official research study that has been conducted on the subject, so there’s not a proven answer to this question, but I asked ✪ Tyler Merritt and £KSD£. “Well, there’s nothing that says it will. The guns do all the same damage, and have the exact same stats. But look at it this way: if you had a broken down car from the 1990’s and you all of a sudden won the lottery and bought yourself a Ferrari 488 GTB, ofcourse you’d want to show off.

It’s somewhat the same scenario...you have something nice looking that you just got, your mindset might be different than before while using that rusty old fork of a knife you normally use,” £KSD£ said. ”​ Skins have been proven (supposedly) to help you play slightly better. I don’t know who did the research, but it was shown that skins make you more confident when playing, which helps you play a bit better​.” explained ✪ Tyler Merritt.

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r e l pp

s n r e t

t a P

o D

There are 4 different types of rare doppler patterns which include “Sapphires”, “Rubys”, “Black Pearls” for the original “Doppler” skin. The fourth is the “Emerald” pattern that comes from the “Gamma Doppler” skin. These patterns are some of the rarest patterns in the game making them worth several times the normal doppler value. Here are the ranges that the doppler patterns vary from common doppler patterns stattrak and not.

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O G : S

ff l C o W t n n I Tre By

NOTE-These prices don’t include float value price change Common Doppler- $60 to $300 Common Stattrak Doppler- $80 to $430 Sapphire- $250 to $3,000 Stattrak Sapphire- $750 to $8,000 Ruby- $220 to $2,500 Stattrak Ruby- $600 to $7,800 Black Pearl- $270 to $12,000 Stattrak Black Pearl- $1,200 to $23,000 Common Gamma Doppler- $100 to $600 Stattrak Common Gamma Doppler- $200 to $800 Emerald- $900 to $2,000 Stattrak Emerald- $2,300 to $19,000

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