Welcome to our final term of 2022! With summer holidays looming and 2023 right around the corner, it’s important to reflect upon how far we have all come throughout this year.
Starting the year with masks, RAT tests every Mon day and multiple classmates online, our school has certainly changed. However, COVID isn’t the only thing we were able to overcome, and to show just how many events this year occurred, here is a short list:
1. 2022 marked the deaths of prominent world lead ers including Shinzo Abe, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Queen Elizabeth II, the latter of whom reigned for more than seven decades
2. Russia invaded Ukraine, leaving multiple countries and millions of people around the world to gather to provide support for the almost seven million peo ple displaced by this war
3. The 2022 Winter Olympics were held in Beijing, China, making it the first city ever to host both the Summer Olympics and Winter Olympics, and ended with Australia breaking their national record for to tal medals won at a single Winter Olympics
4. The 2022 Australian federal election sparked some important changes to our nation with a new Prime Minister, but also a change towards having more In dependent members of Parliament
However, our year is not over yet so without further ado, I give you the next event of the year: reading the first edition of the Stag Term 4!
Read on Reddam, Izzy Lowe
We’re in the final stretch of the school year. Once term 4 begins, there’ll only be a couple weeks until the end of the year exams and, ultimately, the much awaited summer holidays. If you’re struggling to find something to do for the summer holidays, why not take up a job? See how it goes! Thrive and survive in those workplaces, and slap that qualifi cation onto your bedazzling resumes.
Hyper Karting in Moore Park is looking for some enthusiastic people to join their pit crew. A small snippet of what you will do: customer service rep resentative at the front desk, helmet fitting and seating of customers in go-karts, manage and con trol races, ensure any incidents are dealt with in a timely manner, operate the Kid’s Track, respond to customer enquiries, pre and post-race sales. It’s also nearing the Christmas season, so that means many places are looking for Christmas ca suals! They’d love to exploit cheap teenage labour for the next few months.
Dusk has multiple locations and is very open to Christmas casuals. Why not try out the one in our very nearby Bondi Junction Westfield and see how you fare against their application process? Nike (which also has various locations, for example their Sydney CBD store and their Bondi Junction store) is also in search of Christmas casuals! Why not take up this festive seasonal opportunity and slather yourself in the ‘holiday spirit’ so often embodied in Hallmark movies that seem to forget that Christ mas is a Christian (not universal) holiday?
Keep thriving, Quinn Luu
Can I get a hallelujah in the chat?
Yes darlings, this week I’m in a good mood and the art criticism will for once be positive. Y’all heard the name Salvador Dali? If not, you’ve either been living under a rock, or you’ve just been totally distracted by his fabulous moustache. In which case, fair enough. Dali’s moustache was pretty much a work of art in its own right, and it was so legendary that photog rapher Phillippe Halsman even made a book about it. (Titled, rather creatively, ‘Dali’s Moustache’.)
But don’t fret, my precious unborn fawns, the man was known for more than his moustache. He was one of the most influential members of the surre alist movement and one of the most technically skilled. The Surrealists were a group of artists in the post-WWI period who aimed to create artworks that were unsettling or illogical, and in Dali’s case, often hallucinatory. (Dadaism was the other postWWI art movement, which my loyal readers will know we are less fond of.) Dali’s most well known artwork is ‘The Persistence of Memory’, depicting a desert landscape bordered by a clear lake, and also an incongruous swimming pool, just in case you needed two forms of water. Three melting clock faces drape over the landscape, one over what appears to be the ghostly face of a sleeping fig ure, with eyelashes long enough to make the Kar dashians melt like camembert. Maybe it’s just the moustache talking, but my faith in the future (or more accurately the past) of art is restored.
- Poppy Hartley and Adi Alroy
On October 10th, a landslide in Venezuela’s north central state of Aragua killed at least 35 people and left more than 52 missing.
According to Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodrguez, the landslide occurred in Santos Mi chelena after days of heavy rain caused the five streams near Las Tijeras to overflow. The flood washed away trees, vehicles, houses, and shops in the town. In total, 317 homes have been destroyed and 757 homes were affected by the landslide. According to the Ministry of Communications, the landslide has affected at least 1,300 families. Carmen Meléndez, who has lived in this town her whole life said: “The village is lost. Las Tejerías is lost.”
More than 1,000 officials from the National Risk Management System and police officers are in volved in the search and rescue operation. The Venezuelan government has distributed 300 tonnes of food and water in the affected area, and over 3,000 members of the police and fire depart ments, as well as the Civil Protection agency and the Bolivarian National Armed Forces, have been sent to assist with recovery. Rescuers are using drones and search dogs to help find the 52 people who are still missing.
The president, Nicolas Maduro also declared three days of national mourning starting Sunday, “in solidarity with the families affected,” according to his tweet. Shelters would also be set up for people who had lost their homes.
You may support those affected by the Venezuelan crisis by donating to the Global Emergency Fund.
- Victoria Zeritis
Welcome back to the Integration Portfolio’s Culture column. We have a very ethnically and religiously di verse school, and we wish to keep you up to date with upcoming fes tivals, cultural events, and religious holidays.
If you have any questions or wish to share an upcoming event, please email me at zoe.littler@reddam house.com.au
Yom Kippur:
The 4th - 5th of October is Yom Kip pur – also referred to as the Day of Atonement. It acknowledges the
val Vijay Dashami, commemorating
the victory of good over evil, and is a time for spiritual awareness. Tra ditional methods of celebration in clude reciting chants, listening to music and carrying statues of Sur ga, Lakshmi and Ganesha.
Sukkot:
This week-long Jewish holiday lasts from the 9th to the 16th of October and commemorates the gathering and harvest of fruits. It is common ly celebrated by building a Sukkot to pay homage to the 40 years Jew ish people spent in the desert after escaping slavery in Egypt.
Fun Fact: ‘Your Mum’ Jokes History
in 1594. Throughout the centuries, ‘Your Mum’ jokes’ popularity have definitely increased, especially in the 90s. These jokes aren’t as harm less as they seem with them often getting backlash for misogyny and general offensiveness. The mater nal insult is not as common as it used to be and, personally, I think that is for the better.
Riddles:
Here are the last edition’s answers:
1. ‘o’
historical event when Moses jour neyed to Mount Sinai and prayed for forgiveness after worshipping a false idol. On the Tenth of Tishrei, Moses came down from the moun tain after achieving divine favour and that day has since been known as Yom Kippur. It is prepared for by the 10 days of Repentance the week before the day. It is import ant on the day before Yom Kippur to eat a lot of food to prepare for the fasting.
Vijay Dashami:
October the 5th is the Hindu festi
The first ‘Your Mum’ joke to ever be recorded was in 3500 BCE on an an cient Babylon tablet found in Iraq. The once-thought modern, pop ular culture insult is not so origi nal. Most people reading this are probably all too familiar with this overused joke that even Shake speare has used. Yes, you read that correctly, the first official publish ing of a ‘Your Mum’ joke was in the play ‘Titus Andronicus’ published
2. Lawsuit
3. Windows
Can you solve these riddles?
1. What is something that the more you take the more you leave be hind?
2. Where is the only place that ‘To day’ comes before ‘Yesterday’
3. What is always running but never gets hot?
- Zoe LittlerHave a religious or cultural event coming up?
Do not hesitate to share your re ligious or cultural background by writing about an upcoming event to be published in the Stag.
Email zoe.litter@reddamhouse. com.au to help better recognise the diverse culture at our school.
Since 1882, when Bondi was made public, the beach has been the ide al place to cool off, play in the sun and just relax a little. It has been a staple part of our community for centuries, attracting people world wide and making all of Bondi what it is today. However, on the 12th of November, the beach will be closed in order to host a posh pri vate picnic approved by Waverley Council, begging the question, “Is this the future of Bondi?”.
For $32,411, Waverley Council will see the beach roped off to provide a space for 5,000 Sydney residents
Le Dîner En Blanc:
of people waiting to attend. There is even a list of rules you must fol low regarding what to wear, bring and how to act.
Le Dîner en Blanc, which François Pasquier started in 1988 with a few friends, now attracts up to 10,000 guests yearly in Paris alone. Over time, the means of communicat ing with guests has changed, but they continue to gather at a se cret location with the sole pur pose of sharing a gourmet meal with good friends at the heart of one of their city’s most beautiful locations. Alongside Sydney, this
of Sydney only. Making Bondi no longer a place everyone can enjoy equally. Furthermore, selling the beach in this way begs the ques tion as to if it will happen again, and more importantly what is go ing to stop the beach from becom ing fully privatised once more.
to attend a picnic. This interna tional event is called ‘Le Dîner en Blanc’ and comprises thousands of people gathering for a large “elegant picnic” in a public area while wearing all-white attire and acting with the utmost decorum, elegance and manners. The loca tion of the event is kept a secret even to members, with it only be ing revealed last minute to add to the mystery of the event. Le Dîner en Blanc is very prestigious, with it being invite-only and a waiting list
event has been held in Paris, New York City, London, Athens, Dubai, Ho Chi Minh City, Bangkok, Tokyo, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Auckland and many other places all over the world.
Some say this event is “the world’s most magical picnic experience”. An event that is both remarkable to observe and participate in, is not agreed on by everyone. Lenore Kulakauskas, one of the beach’s co-conveners said, “Privatisation of the beach for single functions or [commercial club] proposals are against the egalitarian nature of this space,” and she might be right. With Le Dîner en Blanc tickets cost ing approximately $93 with a $15 membership fee on top to simply attend, this event is for the elite
Although this event sparks a lot of controversies, this event would be incredible to see - to admire or criticise. And although we don’t quite know what the future holds, right now the beach isn’t going anywhere and with a little luck, it will be part of this community for centuries to come.
- Kiera Millin and Larissa Rose
A Short History of Nepal:
Nepal is an incredible country with very hospitable people and great food. However, until I was over there, I realised that besides it being home to the Himalayas and being a hotspot for mountain ad venturers, I really didn’t know much about its his tory at all.Two incidents in the past 20 years are the most interesting to those of us that went on the Nepal trip: the massacre of the royal family in 2001 and the bloody civil war that ran until 2006.
From 1996 until 2006, Maoist rebels and the Royal Government of Nepal engaged in brutal conflict. War crimes were committed by both sides, and 17,000 people were killed over 10 years. The Rebels gained support by allowing women to fight within their ranks, which was banned in the Nepali mil itary until 2003. In fact, they claimed that 40% of their fighters were women.
Mummies:
Mummies are cool. We can agree on that, right? The specific techniques for pre serving thousand-year-old corpses have enraptured the viewing public. A hundred horror films, books, bad Halloween costumes, and speeches given by enthusi astic 5-year-olds have been spawned by mummies. From the 1999 films to the ‘Goosebumps’ books, they seem inseparable from today’s zeitgeist. But there is a problem with these bodies (other than our insistence on mythologising the burial prac tices of other cultures, and our turning them into horror icons symbolic of the way we treat ancient cultures as “backwards” and “savage”). Where are they all? Given how widespread the practice of mummification seemed to be in Ancient Egypt, you’d think you couldn’t dig 6 feet in Cairo without bumping into a burial.
In 2001, almost every member of the royal family was wiped out in one day. At a garden party, the Crown Prince shot and killed 10 members of his own family (including his mother and father) and injured 5. He was put into a coma in a hospital after attempting to commit suicide, but didn’t survive. His uncle, who was the only royal not at the party, was named King instead. But there are many con spiracy theories. The Crown Prince had a left tem ple wound, despite being right-handed (implying that it wasn’t self-inflicted, as claimed). There was no security at the event, and eye-witnesses have given varying accounts of what happened.
Well, history has the answer to that, and boy is it gruesome. Cannibalism. In medieval Europe, it was commonly believed that mummified remains could cure any number of illnesses, from epilep sy to minor headaches. I say medieval Europe. In fact, that’s a bit facetious. The last recorded case of this was in 1908. What was that I was saying about viewing OTHER cultures as backwards? The practice seems to have started early, in about the 12th century, peaking in the 16th to 18th centu ries. Though the practice started with the alleged mythical and medical magic of mummified men, by the end, people were eating any kind of dead body, even striving to grave rob fresh bodies to get the best blood for healing. Ew ew ew ew ew.
- Jo Gilliatt
Summer of Maths Competition:
11 days ago, the winners of The Summer of Math Exposition 2 were announced. Wait, the winners of what? The Summer of Math Expo sition i
s an annual recurring event creat ed by the Youtube channel ‘3Blue 1Brown’. First held in 2019, it was originally designed to help foster the mathematics community on Youtube, jumpstarting many chan nels in the process. The one held this year served as an expansion on the ideas of the first one, with over 400 video projects submitted alone, not even counting submis sion types ranging from interactive websites to video games.
All of the video entries since the start of the project have accumu lated over seven million views, de spite the fact that many of these were created on completely new channels. But how was this rapid growth accomplished? And what were the submissions?
The submissions in the competi tion focused on tackling interest ing mathematical topics in a nov el and educational manner while maintaining creativity, with topics such as how to derive a continuous formula for a factorial, the history behind calculus, puzzles, chess ma
noeuvres and realistic CGI. As you can probably tell, it not only fo cused on theoretical mathematics, but on other applied fields such as physics and computer science, but the point of the competition was that a viewer must come away learning something mathematical.
Once the submission period of ten weeks ended, the videos un derwent a peer-review process, during which hundreds of volun teers watched two videos in one round and voted for which video they thought was better.
This not only helped to create an objective ranking of the videos but also flooded views to the videos, boosting videos from only a few hundred views to several hundred thousand. This not only applied to the videos which are a part of the competition, but also to previous ly posted videos, which boosted
and for each new added element, awarding each of them $1000 and a gold plushie of the number pi.
But what is really the point of this competition? Well, it has served to
them in the algorithm.
After this, a panel of judges re viewed the top 25 and chose 5 win ners based on the criteria of clarity, novelty, memorability and motiva tion, for both watching the video
stimulate the maths side of You tube, jumpstarting many chan nels and leading to more success from them. The flood of education al content also lets people learn about curious things in maths that they may have not had the chance to experience or have forgotten, or to further deepen their under standing about a topic, its applica tions and importance.
In short, this competition helps to show more people the wonders of mathematics, while helping more people get recognition for making quality work that they love.
- Sophia BudkinWelcome to Term 4! We hope you all had a fun and relax ing holiday and are back and ready for another fast-paced, action-packed term.
Term 4 is going to start with a bang - literally - with the renovations to the Bondi campus scheduled to com mence soon. The builders are planning to start with the B block, meaning that side of the campus will be off-limits to students as the renovations take place. They are scheduled to continue during Term 4 and the summer holidays, and will hopefully be finished by our return to school next year. But while we wait in anticipation for this exciting development, there’s plenty to look forward to this term. As always we’re moving quickly here at Reddam, a lot is happening in the 8 weeks between now and the summer holi days.
A group of year 10s have been hard at work over the holidays working with professionals from all over Sydney to put together TEDx Youth@ReddamHouse. This event will be taking place on the 23rd of Octo ber and more information on the event will be fea tured in this edition’s Spotlight On. Just a gentle re minder that exams for all years are coming up soon, starting at the end of Week 6 for years 7-10 and the end of Week 7 for the new year 12s.
Finally, as another new term starts, we see the threat of COVID still hasn’t disappeared completely. RAT tests were distributed on the first day back. Students are recommended to take one if they develop any symptoms, and remain at home until receiving a negative result.
- Florence Gatt
Hockey Canada:
Despite allegations of abuse in Canadian ice hock ey being present for quite some time, there has been little urgency about addressing this issue until recently.
The head of Hockey Canada and the entirety of the board of directors has recently quit amid a quickly growing scandal involving the sport’s governing body not prioritising addressing sexual assualt allegations. Hockey Canada released a statement to address this issue: “Recognizing the urgent need for new leadership and perspectives, the entire board of directors announced it will step aside”.
However, this resignation of the board is the most recent development in a long-fought battle to address this serious issue, with Nike already having dropped their support for Hockey Canada, an ac tion which was continued at the hands of multiple provincial hockey organisations, all of which stat ing they would stop remitting fees to this national organisation. “Parents scrimp and save to register their kids in Hockey Canada programs. And the rev elations – both the allegations of sexual violence and sexual abuse and how that is handled within Hockey Canada, but also the complete lack of fi nancial transparency – are profoundly disturbing,” Peter Julian told Hockey Canada’s board chair, An drea Skinner.
With this being said, despite the long period of time where these allegations were consistently ig nored, it is really great to see that the world is start ing to take steps to eliminate issues such as these. Hopefully, the mounting pressure of the continu ous public outrage will change the behaviour of Hockey Canada.
TEDxYouth@ReddamHouse:
