Friday, April 30, 2010
The Smoke Signal
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SEA LION BOWL | Team places third in nationals continued from page 1
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headed off to Florida to compete in the National Ocean Sciences Bowl finals where they placed 3rd in the nation. This year’s team consisted of Captain Junior Jared Shen, Freshmen Wesley Chou and Audrey Huang, and Seniors Joy Chen and Youngjun Na, two members that placed second at nationals two years ago. The competition was divided into rounds played between teams of five, each consisting of two sets of buzzer-beater questions and twos Team Challenge Questions (TCQ), case
studies on a topic like the feeding practices of lugworms or applications of oceanographic technology. According to Chen, the TCQ “makes the competition a lot more team-based compared to quiz bowl and science bowl.” The team members worked together to complete a worksheet, which determined their score on the TCQ. Because few schools in the Bay Area have oceanography classes, many teams were illprepared to take on MSJ. “In our area, the
competition isn’t that tight,” Chen explained. “[Our main competitor] Albany was unlucky and really suffered. They were eliminated before we got to them.” Shen was on last year’s Ocean Science Bowl B team, which edged out A team to go on to place 4th at the 2009 nationals in Washington, DC. This year, though, there was no MSJ B team. “We organized one with all the members but found out they couldn’t join,” Shen said. “[The coordinator] said that to attract more diverse teams, [there wasn’t]
enough room for a B team. Shen attributed the team’s success to researching topics and writing questions to practice with. “All of us help ourselves. Other schools’ teams have coaches who write questions to help them study. It’s our own dedication that helps us succeed,” he said. Senior Joy Chen mentioned the importance of teaching underclassmen. “We have two freshman and we want to keep recruiting more. They have a lot going and we’re looking forward to seeing them getting better.” ▪
with armor consisting of pipettes borrowed from Science Teacher Karrie Ware, were part of his costume for his team’s skit. His team, along with three others, competed at the state tournament after advancing from the Silicon Valley Regionals, and three teams will go on to represent California at the 31st Odyssey of the Mind World Finals. Odyssey of the Mind is an international program that promotes creative problem solving in students. The teams must solve one or more long-term problems but must also solve
a spontaneous problem for each long-term they do. The top two finishers then proceed to the next level of competition. Through creative skits, the teams solved their given problem. One team portrayed Kanye West as President and sang a somber cover of “Barbie Girl”. Another team had a jellyfish versus clownfish battle and utilized aircrafts like an “urchin catapult” they had built themselves. Afterwards, three teams emerged with spots at Worlds. One team, comprised of Juniors Erik Chen, Eugenia Chung, Ar-
thur Jeng, Aileen Lu, Christina Shih, Audrey Wu, and Richie Zeng, achieved a rare feat by attaining a Worlds spots with both of thier problems, winning 2nd in Discovered Treasures and 1st in Column Structure. For many of the participants, this is not their first time to Worlds, and their veteran experience comes in handy at competition. Odyssey of the Mind Club President Junior Richard Lu has been involved in the program since sixth grade and the structure problem since seventh grade. Odyssey of the Mind
adviser, Math Teacher Charlie Brucker has great faith in the teams, noting that “Their presentation and choreography and creativeness is exceptional,” and his only concern is if “their tower [can] hold the weight.” The advancing teams will be going to Michigan State University with Mr. Brucker to compete in Worlds from May 26 – May 29. You can learn more about Odyssey of the Mind at its official website, www.odysseyofthemind. com. ▪
shooting a Packet Tracer ITE, or in plain English, a computer network simulation. On April 4, 2010, Senior Raymond Zhong and Juniors Roger Chen and Vaishaal Shankar won 5th place at the StRUT (Students Recycling Used Technology) tech competition sponsored by Ohlone College’s Regional Cisco Networking Academy. The MSJ team, Team Rocket, beat out top-ranked teams in the Quiz Bowl tournament that followed, winning first place and an enterprise laser printer for MSJ. The competition was divided into three categories: a computer build and presentation, a written test, and a troubleshooting
exercise. These determined the overall standing of the teams before going into the second portion of the competition, the Quiz Bowl. Here, the teams faced buzzer-based questions that were projected onto a screen, challenging the players’ instinct and tech know-how. “The teams were seeded—power-protected—based on standings from the three sections played out previously. So we had to defeat several teams before facing Irvington in the semifinals and American in the finals, and we ended up first,” said Zhong. “Although this was the first time that the school had participated in the competition, Team Rocket held its own against some of
the top performers of previous competitions, such as Irvington High School and American High School,” said Chen. “We were really surprised by our performance; the majority of the schools there had Cisco Academy classes on campus where students could learn the material.” Cisco Networking Academy is a global education initiative that aims to provide technical support for school computer networks, while giving students vocational training. Local teachers created StRUT, a separate organization, to organize students to refurbish and set up donated computer equipment at local schools. In addition to their computer
recycling efforts, StRUT coordinators organize the annual tech competition, usually open only to schools with computer technology programs. “This year, they made an exception for us,” said Shankar. “I think that other schools were pretty surprised at our performance. Based on our experience, however, we will be trying to bring Cisco Academy to our school in the coming years.” ▪
ODYSSEY | Students prove creative thinking in Worlds continued from page 1
STRUT | MSJ stomps on veteran competitors continued from page 1
We don’t often hear about a magnitude 7 or higher earthquake. In fact, only about 15 occur each year around the world. But in the past four months, there have been five earthquakes of this magnitude or greater. In the past few weeks, California has been rattled by 16 earthquakes of magnitude 4.0 and above. This is strong enough to topple over decorative items, books, and more. Could these recent earthquakes signify the onset of “the big one?” A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck Baja California, Mexico, on April 4. The epicenter was located 40 miles south of the US border, at the plate boundary between the North American and Pacific plates, which are the same two plates on which the HaywardRodgers Creek Fault lies. This earthquake was felt as far north as Los Angeles and had over 1,000 aftershocks. The earthquake was strong enough to temporarily shut down Disneyland. No rides were damaged, but the shaking left tourists flustered and confused. This is the largest earthquake to strike the area since 1892. Since 1988, geologists have been predicting an earthquake of magnitude 6.7 or above
For upcoming coverage of MSJ student teams at the Santa Clara University Math Competition and Economic Challenge, visit thesmokesignal.org.
RESOURCES.BLOGUITE.COM, NEWS EDITOR MEGAN BERNSTEIN
in the Bay Area within the next 50 years. The Hayward-Rodgers Creek fault has a 31 percent probability of a major quake, the highest of all faults in the Bay Area. The Hayward Fault lies close to MSJ; it runs along Mission Blvd. The last damaging earthquake along this fault was in 1868. The 140 years since then is the same length of time as the past five earthquakes along this fault. For more information see “MSJ Ready to Take on a Rumble” in the November Issue. Earthquakes and seismic trends tend to go in cycles, from more activity to less activity and so on. This is thought to be the cascade effect”where one quake changes the stresses on another. This could mean pressure is being added or removed to the nearby faults. The recent earthquakes don’t necessarily mean “the big one” is on the way, but they could
mean that California is entering a period of greater activity. If “the big one” on the Hayward Fault does occur, the people of Fremont would be greatly impacted. Water would be cut off for over 2.4 million people around the Bay Area. MSJ does have a safety plan in place. This involves clearly mapped evacuation routes, plentiful supplies, fire extinguishers, and first-aid backpacks. There are ten teachers on campus who are Community Emergency Response Team, or CERT trained. These teachers know primary first aid as well as search and rescue. “Having this knowledge will be really helpful in a time of need,” says Librarian Nancy Kent-Berge, “If all the teachers were CERT trained, our safety in case of an earthquake would be much better.” Schoolwide earthquake simulations are set to take
place within the next few months. While MSJ may not have state-of-the-art buildings, they were evaluated and upgraded this past summer. Some of the recent seismic retrofitting includes new plywood, bracing, and window openings. Furthermore, while many MSJ students worry about the safety of the portables in the P- and A-wings, they are the safest of all buildings on campus. The portables are built using moment-frame metal, which means that the whole building is more-or-less a metal box. In the case of an earthquake, the whole building will sway but no part of it will actually fall. Even so, MSJ is not trembling at the threat of an earthquake. “It’s just not that constant fear. That isn’t to say I don’t care when it happens, but I’m feeling much better now that I’m working with the parent organizations, and we are good with supplies,” says Assistant Principal Diana Brumbaugh. “We just all need to stay calm and do the best we can.”▪