Issue 3, 2016

AMERICA’S DECISION

Can Trump live up to the expectations of the people?

BY CLAIRE CHIANG AND SHREYAS IYER

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iding the back of populist furor as well as economic and political discontent, Republican candidate Donald Trump defeated Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton to win the United States presidency on Nov. 8, 2016. The former businessman and television personality announced his outsider candidacy for president on June 15, 2015 and later won the Republican nomination following a marathon-like campaign season.

Trump quickly became infamous following his controversial announcements to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico, deport all criminal immigrants and require Muslims to register in a database; despite his apparent unconventionality, he gained support in proclaiming that he would “make America great again.” This message resonated with many Americans who were fed up with the current economic system and the political gridlock harming Congress. On the back of this reasoning, Trump supporters considered him an outsider who would reform America’s political spectrum.

Trump’s triumph comes as a shock to many citi-

zens not just because Hillary Clinton was leading in most major national polls in the days leading up to the poll; the unorthodox nature of some of his campaign promises captivated and disgusted millions around the nation and was frequently viewed as a negative in his attempt to invite moderate voters to vote for him. Furthermore, ever since his rise to prominence in the middle of last June, many political pundits have dismissed Trump’s rhetoric as mere ploys to attract votes.

Come election day, however, the American people chose Trump; both the Rust Belt and Florida went to Trump, propelling him to victory on the back of his populist ideas. With his first 100 days approaching, Trump supporters and detractors alike look ahead to what this nation will be like under the Republican upstart as President—and, in particular, what he will do to maintain his campaign pledges.

This issue, the Epic takes an analytical look inside a futuristic America under president-elect Trump, focusing on the feasibility of all the promises that he made during his controversial campaign about the future of this country. see TRUMP page 8

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY EDITORIAL BOARD

FUHSD election results

BY JOCY HE

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n Nov. 8, the FUHSD community elected two board members to serve on the FUHSD Board of Trustees.

Lynbrook science teacher Roy Rocklin, who won the election with 30,058 votes, and incumbent member Jeff Moe, who came in second with 19,314 votes, will occupy two of the five seats on the FUHSD Board for the next four years.

Rocklin is the father of two Homestead High School graduates and has assisted with the Homestead Band Boosters, Speech and Debate and Chemistry Olympiad. He has also served on the Lynbrook School Site Council and is the current adviser to both Lynbrook Red Cross and Piano Club; additionally, the Lynbrook PTSA has honored him three times for his service to the school. Rocklin plans on addressing the population issue and believes in maintaining communication between the district and the families. He also hopes to conduct routine checks with curriculum to ensure the content is up to date and supports subjects such as music, art and drama while keeping in the essential subjects. As a science teacher, Rocklin is interested in bringing his experience to the implementation of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The standards will change the science curriculum in an attempt to increase students’ scientific and technological understanding and prepare them for their potential future careers.

“I have 11 years of experience as a teacher so I have a really good understanding of what goes on in the classrooms,” said Rocklin. “I think it is important that I represent everybody in the district, not just Lynbrook, and that all five schools in the district should be strong in all academic areas and extracurricular activities too.”

Moe is currently on the board, serving his first term. He is the father of four FUHSD graduates and is the co-president of the Asian American Parent Association and Co-Chair of the Youth Services Committee of the Cupertino Rotary. Similar to Rocklin, Moe also believes in preparing students for the future by aiding with the execution of the NGSS, and planning a Student Life Skills camp for high school seniors. The camp will teach students about important life skills such as balancing a checkbook, social media precautions and other basic skills in order to help seniors adjust to life outside of the accustomed high school environment. He also wants to put a focus on communication by looking for better ways to connect with the community. Moe is looking forward to updating the website and creating open hours for their office in order to address many of the major issues in the community.

“I think the biggest impact is talking to a lot of different people because it gives you the opportunity to hear different feedback from parents and to hear things that are important and not important,” said Moe. “I’m very excited to see the successes of the students and to see teachers experimenting with new things.”

Both Rocklin and Moe will bring their new ideas and expertise to the board, providing the community with their knowledge and a vision for the people.

AIKIDO // pg.15

WILLIAM GUO — EPIC

News in Briefs

ASB Food Truck Fest Celebrate the end of finals season with some awesome food at ASB’s Food Truck Fest on Dec. 15 from 12:30-2:30 in the quad. Donut miss out on this a-maize-ing event - lettuce celebrate the end of finals together!

Winter Concert Come out to watch Lynbrook’s band and choir shine tonight in the annual Winter Concert. Take a break from studying for finals, and enjoy an amazing night of song and music. The show starts at 7:30 in the auditorium. Don’t miss out!

Boys Basketball Hoops Classic Tournament Head to the gym Friday night this week to watch the final night of the Boys Basketball Hoops Classic Tournament. The tournament will be from 8:00am-8:00pm.

Come root for our amazing boys basketball team!

Girls Soccer Watch the girls soccer team play San Ramon Valley at Avaya Stadium on Dec. 17.

This game is part of a high school series hosted by the stadium, also featuring Monta Vista and other local schools, so come out to support the Lady Vikes!

by Mehek Kapur

Harvard’s honorable ban of men’s soccer

Students recognized by Siemens competition SIEMENS FINALISTS| (from left to right) Junior Rohan Mehrotra, senior Marilyn Zhang, junior Andrew Shao, senior Matthew Hase-Liu, junior Isha Mehrotra. Not pictured: senior Pranav Lalgudi

BY AURELIA YANG

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n Oct. 18, seniors Matthew Hase-Liu, Pranav Lalgudi and Marilyn Zhang and juniors Isha Mehrotra, Rohan Mehrotra and Andrew Shao were among 498 distinguished students worldwide that were announced semifinalists in the Siemens Competition in Math, Science and Technology. Shao was then selected along with 95 others as a regional finalist.

Recognized as one of the nation’s most prominent research competitions for high schoolers, Siemens encourages participants to undergo intensive research and scientific studies to prepare for a potential future career of similar disciplines. The competition, founded in 1999, has since grown into a widely-recognized opportunity for students to expand their knowledge and win scholarships ranging from $1000 to $100,000.

Shao’s project centered on the analysis of globular clusters, dense groups of stars. The particular cluster he investigated is located on the outskirts of a giant elliptical galaxy called M87, which became substantial in size after devouring other smaller galaxies. His project aimed to find out about the properties of these devoured galaxies to set parameters for developing future theories about the evolution of massive galaxies. He notes that his experience with the competition has helped him grow as a researcher.

“Since this was my first time doing actu-

al research, I learned a lot from working on a project that does not have a definitive answer,” said Shao. “It is valuable to persevere.

There is not always a set formula to find out what you want to know. You have to be creative with what you do.”

The competition served as a way for students to use past experiences to change the future. Zhang drew inspiration from her grandfather, who was diagnosed with cancer after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

Her project stemmed out of her hypothesis that Alzheimer’s-related inflammation gave way to cancer development, which was tested during her experiments. After months of conducting background research and scouring scientific publications, Zhang was able to acquire the materials and information necessary for experimentation. From her experiences, she concluded that there is more to succeeding in competition than merely a strong scientific background.

“The result came as a pleasant surprise.

I wasn’t sure if my project was ‘technical’ enough compared to all the other projects out there,” said Zhang. “The essence of these competitions is in what I’ve learned and not in the result, which is the mindset I approached Siemens with.”

Others who competed already had a strong background with scientific research projects prior to the competition, using their previous experience to their advantage.

The Mehrotra siblings competed in sci-

ence fairs in their freshman and sophomore years, combining the work from these two projects to compose their Siemens project.

The twins studied Parkinson’s disease (PD), a neurodegenerative disease that causes the death of neurons. After adding to their experiments from previous years, they found drugs that target harmful mechanisms of PD and reduce its toxicity. They note several ways the competition helped them develop as students and scientists.

“This competition really helped us grow.

We gained a lot from reading scientific papers, which can be a challenge at first to understand,” said the Mehrotra siblings. “We also gained a lot from doing the experiments, which helpd us learnnew lab techniques.”

The Mehrotra siblings also comment on the key to success in such competitions, highlighting the importance of focusing on aspects beyond just work.

“The most important thing for success [in these competitions] is definitely passion,” said the Mehrotra siblings. “We were very passionate about our project and interested in the research, so participating in the competition was more ‘fun’ than ‘work.’”

Albeit having made it this far in the competition, the students’ paths to success have not been easy. Through exploring their passions for the sciences, the participants gained invaluable knowledge from their competion experience, which has inspired them to continue pursuing their interests in the field.

in order for us to understand the situation and discuss what we should do,” said Otoshi.

“We wanted to make it fair, to avoid ‘cherry picking,’ and to make sure that what we were doing was in the best interests of Lynbrook, as well as the other high schools.”

Several plans were presented, but the CAC most strongly recommended the option of giving all 8th graders attending both Miller Middle School and McAuliffe School who reside in the FUHSD attendance area but not within the Lynbrook area the option to attend Lynbrook. In addition, students at Hyde Middle School would be able to choose between Lynbrook and Cupertino. A lottery will be held if there are more requests than available spots at Lynbrook. In an unanimous vote, the Board of Trustees agreed to accept the proposal from the CAC. The plan is meant to be a short-term solution to stabilize Lynbrook’s enrollment temporarily.

“In the future, in light of the recommendation from the CAC, it is possible that the district would look at realigning boundar-

ies,” said Lynbrook principal Maria Jackson.

“Of course, it is important that this wouldn’t be done without thoughtful research and involving the community.”

In the near future, Lynbrook can look forward to having a far more diverse community.

With an almost 90 percent Asian population, an increase in other ethnicities at Lynbrook from Hyde and McAuliffe will be a welcome addition to its student demographic.

“I think anytime you can meet people different from you and appreciate them is a good thing,” said Jackson. “That is also why we have IDC, to build a strong community across the district.”

Now that the decision has finally been made, students from McAuliffe and Hyde can start coming into Lynbrook, and eighth graders at Miller can rejoice as they no longer have to fear being separated from one another. Students already at Lynbrook will be able to look forward to continue having a plethora of classes to choose from, as well as plenty of new faces to get to know.

BY MICHELLE LUM

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n Oct. 25, The Harvard Crimson, Harvard University’s student newspaper, revealed that members of the 2012 Harvard men’s soccer team made a “scouting report” of that year’s Harvard women’s soccer recruits. The men had rated the women based on their appearance and sexual appeal, in addition to assigning them demeaning nicknames and making vulgar comments concerning their stature. It was also revealed that such reports had been made annually for multiple years, the exact number unknown, including for the 2016 season.

Following a full investigation, Harvard decided to cancel the rest of this year’s men’s soccer season, which included two games and the postseason. This came as an unexpected but welcome surprise to many, and Harvard should be commended for taking action in this case; a common perception for universities is that they ignore sexual harassment issues, as seen when other colleges and universities have ignored similar cases.

The 2012 “scouting report,” which was publicly searchable on Google Groups until recently, was a nine-page Google document shared with all members of the Harvard men’s soccer team. The 2012 report described the women with phrases such as “tall and manly… not much needs to be said on this one folks” and “the hottest and the most STD ridden.” This derogato-

ry language and objectification dehumanized the women, and the men treated the recruits as if they were not people but objects that they could criticize and demean in whatever way they wished.

“These reports were not an accurate representation of what Harvard should depict.

They were very lewd and disrespectful to the women’s soccer team,” said sophomore and varsity soccer player Denver Yu. “Harvard should not only be known for its elite academics, but also its athletic program that should present itself in a respectful manner to uphold the same high expectations.”

Harvard’s response was a catalyst for the men to take responsibility and make amends for their wrongdoing, instead of attempting to get away with their actions. Initially, the Harvard men’s soccer team was not outright in admitting that it had created this “scouting report,” only issuing an apology to the women in The Crimson after the cancellation of the 2016 men’s soccer season.

Harvard’s decision to punish the team despite its success is one that may not have been made at many other universities. The 2016 Harvard men’s soccer team had been first in Ivy League standings and were on the brink of winning the Ivy League Champion-

ship, which would have guaranteed the team a spot in the NCAA Division I soccer tournament. In canceling the season, Harvard illustrated its prioritization of student rights over athletic success in light of unacceptable actions.

“Sexual degradation behind someone’s back promotes a culture of objectification,” said sophomore Anika Agharkar. “Harvard made the right choice in canceling the season in order to promote a safe environment for its students.”

Additionally, Harvard has opened an investigation into the case to conform to Title IX, a federal law that prohibits sex discrimination in educational programs and activities. The university is still under investigation for Title IX compliance about its response to sexual assault cases, so this newly opened investigation indicates that the university is taking the initiative to move forward from its past inactivity.

Harvard has taken a step forward against sexual harassment and assault, one greatly needed in light of a 2014 survey of 300 colleges and universities by Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill’s office which found that over 40 percent of colleges and universities had not conducted any sexual assault inves-

tigations over the last five years. Baylor University, for example, has repeatedly failed to investigate highly publicized sexual and domestic assault cases involving members of its football program in order to protect the team’s reputation.

Other universities, such as Dartmouth College and University of California, Santa Cruz, have failed to take action in response to similar cases. Ignoring cases of sexual harassment and assault perpetuates the idea that campus rape culture is acceptable.

“I’m pretty proud of the way Harvard handled this. In other universities, situations like this have arisen, and universities haven’t done anything, saying things like ‘locker room talk’ and ‘boys will be boys,’” said senior and varsity soccer player Tuhina Dasgupta. “So many people are scared to talk out about rape culture and admit that there’s something wrong with it. Harvard canceling its season and forcing the men to recognize and own up to their actions is the first step [toward] making a better community.”

By taking action where many other colleges and universities would not, Harvard has put itself at the forefront of the zero tolerance policy toward objectification. The Harvard soccer case has proven Harvard to be an opponent of a lenient rape culture; as such, other institutions may benefit by looking to Harvard when making decisions about cases of sexual harassment and assault.

Lynbrook’s boundary policy update

BY ERIC WU

Letter from the Editors Dear readers, With finals right around the corner, take some time to relax and read our third issue of the year.

Turn to our centerspread about president-elect Donald Trump’s promises to the American people, and get a more comprehensive look into the feasiblity of the implementation of Trump’s policies in America (pg. 8 and 9).

Read about the FUHSD board meeting discussing the Lynbrook boundaries and enrollment policies (pg. 2). Also learn about the Lynbrook semifinalists and finalist in the Siemens competition (pg. 2).

Be sure to read opinionated stories on the collaboration between the Epic and ASB for ASB’s “State of the Union” (pg.

3), and the controversies surrounding the new Disney movie Moana (pg. 4).

Flip to the features section to discover lifehacks for finals season (pg. 7), the best places to find the perfect holiday beverage and a review on the movie Fantastic Beasts (pg. 7).

In in-depth, read an analysis of taboo words and why certain discourse is considered offensive (pg. 11).

Keep up with Lynbrook athletics in the sports section with a recap of the girls volleyball team’s season (pg. 15) and a feature on the Aikido martial arts club (pg. 15).

This issue covers a multitude of interests, so there will definitely be something you like.

Stay warm, Jessica Luo and Shreyas Iyer

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n Nov. 15, the Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) presented its findings on enrollment issues and possible causes to the FUHSD Board of Trustees, focusing on the decline in student population at Lynbrook High School. Since Cupertino, Fremont and Homestead have been experiencing growth and Monta Vista High School has had only a modest decline, Lynbrook is unique in its decrease in enrollment. The issue was brought to light in January 2016, when Lynbrook’s diminishing population gathered concern.

Fewer students meant that classes would be cut, including AP and honors classes.

An initial solution proposed this past January to alter Lynbrook’s boundary was refused by the Board due to uncertainty about community reaction. They decided on a temporary solution that allowed incoming freshmen who attended Miller Middle School but do not live in the Lynbrook neighborhood to attend Lynbrook. Superintendent Polly Bove later took action by creating the CAC in order to study the problem and create plausible solutions for the future.

CAC members studied the issue for several months, looking at data and trends that could offer insight into what they could do.

“I kept an open mind and listened to all the facts,” said CAC member Miko Otoshi.

“We all learned a lot of things from Superintendent Polly Bove and other district personnel who were present at all the meetings and presented reports and findings gathered in order to help make decisions.”

The process was an arduous task, but the time taken was imperative in order to make such an important and impactful decision that would not only affect the future of students at Lynbrook, but also that of students at the other high schools in the district.

“It took a lot of hours, but it was necessary

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY DIVYA NELAKONDA

BOUNDARY MAP| Students from the McAuliffe, Miller, and Hyde attendance area will be given the option to attend Lynbrook.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY WILLIAM GUO AND CATHERINE HUANG

A message from ASB leadership: Lynbrook’s “state of the union”

BY ASB LEADERSHIP

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espite what the title suggests, we aren’t here to belabor the presidential election, which has likely been the subject of countless conversations this past month. Rather, after witnessing this historic political moment, ASB was reminded of one of the core powers and responsibilities of the executive government — one that we, as your student government, had ourselves neglected: to reflect on the state of our union in anticipation of the future.

We would like to present you with a brief report modeled off of the president’s “state of the union.” Hopefully by doing so, you’ll be able to see into the inner workings of ASB — our actions, aspirations and failures — and consequently be able to share with us your thoughts and opinions on the direction in which you want our school to go. It’s time to revisit the fundamental reason ASB exists: to

respond to the voice of the student body.

ASB started the year with three goals: to increase active participation from all groups on campus, to create a culture of unity and pride to ensure that every single student feels part of the Viking family and to encourage students to take care of themselves mentally, physically and emotionally. Attempting to work toward and support these goals, we planned various events ranging from a welcoming first day of school complete with free otter pops to a holistic documentation of the quintessential Lynbrook tradition — Homecoming — through photos, videos and even 360 degrees recordings.

We’ve tried to refocus our events on augmenting the student experience — promoting attendance at sports games through brochures and a spirit squad, increasing the frequency of stories shared on the Humans of Lynbrook High Facebook page, and creating a repository of information about clubs

to help our newest Vikings get involved at lynbrookclubs.github.io.

How well — if at all — we’ve achieved our goals is a question that we can’t answer ourselves; indeed, we have been asking you for your answer to that question these past few weeks. ASB leadership students visited classrooms and walked around campus during select days to poll students and solicit your ideas. Simply put, we want to know what we could be doing better and how we can better serve you.

As for second semester, there are a few key events that are definitely happening: Powderpuff, the annual Fashion Show, the Coffeehouse Talent Show, and IDC exchange opportunities for Lynbrook students to shadow students from Fremont, Monta Vista, and Homestead high school. Additionally, brand new events such as a silent disco – a lunchtime dance where everyone listens to their own music through personal head-

phones – and a Lynbrook lip dub are currently in the making. We will also be displaying photos of memories from this year and sneak peeks of future experiences in the glass cabinets at the top of the quad. However, we have purposefully left both time and space unallocated to address the fresh concerns and new ideas that we expect to hear from the student body. So ultimately, one question remains: how can we use our time and resources to improve your high school experience second semester?

To share your thoughts, please visit wantoo.io/student-input to submit suggestions and upvote those of other students, email us directly at lynbrookvikingasb@gmail.com or speak to any member of ASB. To find out who is in ASB leadership, visit the “about” page of lynbrookasb.com or check the list of representatives posted in the glass cabinet at the top of the quad.

Talk to you soon.

the pipeline protests in south dakota with a horse Dakota Access Pipeline oppresses thestory voices of Natives

Embrace the undocumented students

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he recent presidential election heated up the immigration debate, bringing it back into the public eye. A major topic regards undocumented immigrants having the right to a free public education. If the state revokes this benefit, undocumented youth will be left unequipped to succeed and contribute to the U.S., which, to many, is the only home they have ever known.

About 10.5 million undocumented immigrants reside in the U.S., 1.8 million of which are under 18 years old. Public education is guaranteed to all students in the U.S. regardless of citizenship status under the 1982 Supreme Court ruling in Plyer v.

Doe. If students cannot prove their residence within a school district, schools are directed to treat them as if they are homeless, meaning that they do not provide a home address. Supporting undocumented students in schools requires resources such as Limited English Proficiency teachers. While paying for such services can be a drain on schools, this short term cost is nothing compared to what immigrants can achieve in the future.

“This cost is definitely worth it in the future because in the long term, education helps get more workers in the economy working higher paying jobs, which means they have more money to spend on their kids and boost themselves upwards economically and socially,” said junior Nikhil Ajjarapu.

Though there is concern that citizens must pay more taxes to help the government support undocumented students, undocumented immigrants contribute to tax revenues as well. The Institute for Taxation and Economic Policy concluded that undocumented immigrants paid $10.6 billion in taxes in 2010. Even though U.S. citizens are bearing the brunt of the taxes, undocumented immigrants are putting their share as well.

Denying a free public education for undocumented immigrants is unfair to those who had no say in their parents’ decision

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY OPINION SEC TION

to stay in the U.S. illegally. By refusing an education to these students, the government is punishing them unjustly.

“Children are being punished for something they didn’t want to do, because it’s their parents who decided to immigrate to the United States, they had no say in it,” said sophomore Jessie Wong. “They’re being punished by something out of their control.”

Plyer v. Doe confirmed that all students, no matter their citizenship status, have the right to an education. If it is taken away, it insinuates that undocumented immigrants are undeserving of a universal right. “[If the ruling is overturned], there would be a blatant lack of regard for the education of the youngest in our society over some politicized goals and ideological stubbornness,” said Ajjarapu. “Specifically though, such a ruling would negatively affect undocumented immigrants’ ability to get an education and it would harm their social and economic mobility, which would ultimately reflect on the utter lack of respect for rights of undocumented immigrants.”

A 2005 study conducted by Thomas W. H. Ng, Lillian T. Eby, Kelly L. Sorensen and Daniel C. Feldman examined education as one of multiple factors and concluded that there was a correlation between “subjective career success” and education. Since education is key to success, denying an education to undocumented immigrants traps them in a cycle of poverty. Families move to the U.S. to seek a better life, but without an education, immigrants will lack the intelligence needed to be on an equal playing field as their peers.

This would mean that families will not be able to provide for their children, who could suffer the same fate. A report from the Pew Research Center finds that a majority of undocumented immigrants hold low skill jobs in service, construction and manufacturing.

Without a sufficient education, undocument-

ed immigrants will continue to be forced into low-skill, low-paying jobs.

“Not receiving an education would prevent immigrants from learning skills essential to work even low paying jobs, creating a poverty cycle,” said Ajjarapu.

“This would reinforce negative stereotypes of immigrants as “lazy” and “uneducated” because they are unable to find a job or educate themselves, and are forced to live on shrinking government benefits.”

If the government continues to provide education for undocuJESSIE WONG mented students, SOPHOMORE they will be given the expertise to succeed at higher skilled jobs, allowing students to pursue an interest rather than settling for left over jobs. If undocumented immigrants continue in a downward spiral of poverty, the state will have to spend more money on them for their survival.

“This cycle of poverty will continue because if you do not have an education then you have no chances at a higher paying job,” said Wong. “Everyone, especially children, has a right to a free education so they can achieve more and be successful in the future.”

It is crucial that the government continues to offer the benefit of a free public education to undocumented immigrants since it allows them to contribute back to society in the future, a long term benefit that can balance out the amount the state currently has to spend on undocumented students. The right to an education is key to ensuring an equal playing field for all Americans in the future. This debate encompasses not only economics and fairness, but also the government’s responsibility to guarantee all Americans a proper education, regardless of immigration status.

“EVERYONE, ESPECIALLY CHILDREN, HAS A RIGHT TO A FREE EDUCATION SO THEY CAN ACHIEVE MORE AND BE SUCCESSFUL IN THE FUTURE.”

CATHERINE HUANG//IN MY OPINION

Moana’s Maui defies stereotypes

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n Nov. 23, the newest Disney princess movie, Moana, was released to much fanfare. Moana, voiced by 14-year-old Auli’i Cravalho, is the daughter of the chief of her tribe and possesses magical capabilities due to her special connections with the sea.

In the movie, Moana must convince the Polynesian demi-god Maui to return the stolen heart of the goddess Te Fiti. After they are both attacked by the Kakamora, a group of small warriors with coconut masks, and lava monster Te Ka, Moana and Maui must work together through various difficult tasks to save the tribe.

As I was admiring the animations and humor in Disney’s Moana, I was shocked to see so many people commenting on social media about the purported negative stereotypes portrayed in the character Maui. In the media, Polynesians are often portrayed as obese, unhealthy and lazy, and many critics believe that Maui, who is considerably larger and heavier than most of the other characters in Disney’s movies, looks overweight and gives the wrong impression of Polynesians to children.

At first glance, it may seem like Disney is being inconsiderate of Polynesian culture.

Yet after reevaluating the movie, I realized that the supposedly stereotypical impression stems from the biases of the critics themselves; Disney is actually aiming to build a more accepting culture in terms of race by showing how Maui’s capabilities are unaffected by his large physical appearance and the multitude of stereotypes that surround him.

However “hippo-like”--as critics call him--and big Maui may seem, his size doesn’t stop him from achieving greatness.

If anything, his bulky figure allows him to perform tasks such as grabbing the sun with a hook and flipping boats over after his transformations.

Had Maui been an incapable demigod who constantly depended on others to assist him, Disney would have been fat shaming him. Yet the amount of strength Maui exhibits in the movie emphasizes how he should be viewed as the strong man that he is, instead of the obese character that stereotypes makes him out to be.

Even so, the audience shouldn’t be so quick to judge Maui’s appearance. By recognizing the stereotypes portrayed in the demigod, critics shed more unnecessary light on Polynesian mistruths by inaccurately associating obesity and laziness with the Polynesian culture, setting the precedent for future stereotypical representations of the Pacific Islanders.

Similarly, just like how the inaccurate stereotype that Asians are bad drivers led me to believe that I needed to take up two parking places when I first started driving, the stereotypes that critics associate with Polynesians misinform young Polynesians by giving them a false representation of what they are capable of by undermining their abilities.

Maui’s capabilities serve as a reminder to all children that physical characteristics shouldn’t be a limiting factor in what they can achieve. Through accomplishing unbelievable feats in Moana, Disney’s Maui inspires children by showing how stereotypes shouldn’t affect what they accomplish. So if you happen to hear people negatively stereotyping, refer them to the Disney movie Moana; it’ll be a subtle way to get them to realize that everyone has equal capabilities, regardless of size, weight or any other stereotype.

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his past month, the once peaceful protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline Project (DAPL) by the Standing Rock Sioux Native American have become violent. The Sioux tribe explain that the construction of the pipeline endangers their reservation’s only water supplies: the Missouri River and Lake Oahe. The Army Corp of Engineers who are building

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The Sioux tribe, led by Chairman Dave Archambault II, has been protesting the construction of the DAPL since May 2016. The pipe passes through a 38-mile stretch of land that belongs to the Lakota Sioux according to the Fort

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States military and celebrities such as actress Shailene Woodley who was arrested on October 10th. Despite being shot with rubber bullets, beaten with batons and bitten by dogs, the protesters remain nonviolent, though there is no telling when the fragile peace will be broken.

Although the Army Corp of Engineers argue that transportation of oil by pipe is safer Laramie of means 1868, and the tribe than the Treaty previous by truck, the argues effects that new pipeline of anthe incident, or eventwill thatdamage involvesand the derestroy sites great historic, religious lease of gasthat fromhold a pipeline, could have more and cultural effects significance for its people. devastating on citizens and theThese envisites include burialreleased groundsby as the wellPipeline as battle ronment.

Statistics & grounds, among others.

Hazardous Materials Safety Administration “Native have been suppressed reveal thatAmericans incidents occur an average 560 and people have been encroaching on in their times a year. A single incident can result an land since theto 1500s, evercubic since feet, Christopher oil spill of up 3 million enough Columbus came to the New World,” said juto destroy one third of America’s agricultural nior Nandini Nag. “It’s very unfair because land. In addition to the defiling farmland, a America land, and until this point, single oilwas spilltheir coupld we have taken a lot mile of their land but itwould is our The 1,172 long pipeline job now to treat them with respect and not make it possible to deviate almost 470,000 impede on barrels their rights and oil take to 570,000 of crude peraway day, what from little they have left in the country thatWith was North Dakota to the rest of America. once theirs.” of oil, the U.S. could produce that amount 1,172-mile pipeline up Though to 374.3 the million gallons oflong gasoline per could help decrease the U.S.’s reliance on day, decreasing the U.S.’s reliance on foreign foreign oil, the 470,000 to 570,000 barrels oil. In building the new pipeline, Americans of oilfor thatthe will be pumped through cancrude expect price of fuel and otherthe oil pipeline will also pose aWhile huge gasoline threat topricthe based products to lower. environment.

If domestic an incident, defined ofasgasan es may drop, the production event that involves the release of gas from oline will inevitably contribute heavily to the arise pipeline, to occur, could have devof fuelwere emissions.

To itthe Sioux, whose astating andrelationships the environculture iseffects rootedon in citizens mutualistic ment.

Statistics released the Pipeline with nature, it would onlybymake sense to and opHazardous Materials Safety Administration pose a project that will increase air pollution. show that incidents occur of 560 “We don’t want to seean theaverage construction times a year, and awe single incident can result workers get hurt, don’t want to see law in an oil spill of up to three million cubic feet, enforcement get hurt and we definitely don’t enough destroy America’s want to to see peopleone-third who areofstanding upagto ricultural land. to In get addition defiling farmprotect water hurt,”tosaid Chairman land, the oil from the pipeline will lead to an increase in the domestic production of gasoline and will inevitably contribute heavily to the rise of fuel emissions. The Sioux’s culture and religion is rooted in mutualistic relationships with nature, it makes no sense to support a project that will increase air pollution.

Dave Archambault II, leader of the protest.

“And by no means do I say that everybody who’s standing to protect water are angels.

But when you have law enforcement bringing aggression and when you have law enforcement and the company boxing everybody into a corner, it’s really hard to resist reacting.”

The right to freedom of speech and to proit is easy to what be apathetic or test“Iisknow an integral part of makes Ameridetached from thefree”. reality that fossil fuel ca “the land of the contamination could actually affect indepenyou…

“We’re not opposed to energy [but] if you are a human who requires dence. We’re not opposed to economic dewater to survive, then this issue directly velopment,” said Archambault.

“The problem involves Shailene we have you,” -- andsaid thisactress is a long historyWoodof probley inthat an official wasthe lems evolvedstatement over timeafter -- isshe where arrested with other protesters on Oct. 10.adfederal government or corporations take The “water protectors,” provantage of indigenous landswhat and the indigenous testers have referred to themselves as, rights.” have been joined that by thousands of of other It is no secret a large part Amerprotesters despite military intimidation. ica’s history involves abuse of its native Supporters veterans names of the such U.S. as people.

The include use of ignorant military and such as Wood“Redskins” forcelebrities professional sports teams, to ley. As of Dec.use 2, in attempt to break to the mocking ofan famous Native American strike, the government states that anyone heros such as “Pocahontas” by politicians whobut attempts aid the water protectors are a few to examples of everyday racism. will face a $1,000and fine; nevertheless, Such inaccurate racist displays ofpeoNative ple have continued show theirdisrespectful support.

American heritage to are highly Despite thethe protesters and onlybeing servemistreated, to emphasize stereotype remain nonviolent toward law enforceof ignorant Americans. ment.

It is not only unjust but unwise to ignore don’t want to see the constructhe“We voices of thousands of Native Americans, tion workers get hurt, we don’tthe want peacefully protesting and warning U.S. of to see law enforcement getposes hurtto and we the danger which the pipe America. definitely seewhat people who The Lakotadon’t Siouxwant haveto done they could are standing up tovoices, protect tohas getbewith their limited andwater now it hurt,” the saidresponsibility Archambault.of“When you have come anyone who cares law enforcement bringing aggression and to about the environment and human rights boxing everybody into a corner, it’s really aid the tribe in their quest to protect not only hard to resist reacting.” the environment, but their first Amendment These Native Americans are peacefulrights. ly protesting andopposed warningtothe U.S. of the “What we’re is paying for all danger the pipe poses. The Lakota Sioux have done what they can with their limited voices, and now it is the responsibility of those who care about the environment and human rights to aid the tribe in their quest to protect not only the environment but also First Amendment rights.

the benefits that this country receives,” Archambault said. “Whenever there’s a benefit, whether it’s energy independence ... whether it’s economic development, tribes pay the cost. And what we see now are tribes from all over sharing the same concern that we have, saying, ‘It’s enough now. Stop doing this to indigenous people. Stop doing this to our indigenous lands.’”

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JESSICA LI AND HSIN YEN HUANG

BY HSIN YEN HUANG

BY MICHYLA LIN

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY MICHYLA LIN

Inaccurate representation of student opinions in the legislative council

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here are over 70 clubs at Lynbrook, and every year, students aspire to form new ones, which must be approved by the legislative council, a panel consisting of around 25 select student representatives.

The council meets every other Tuesday during tutorial to listen to presentations from aspiring clubs, then present to their homeroom class about the topics discussed during that meeting.

The council only passed two clubs last year, a small percentage of the number of clubs presented throughout the year. This is largely a result of the fact that the legislative council does not accurately represent the student body’s opinions, and council members often vote based on personal biases.

Junior Ellen Xiong encountered problems while trying to start a club, FiLit, which focused on improving high school students’ ability to manage money.

“Some difficulties I ran into were finding an advisor and making our club unique,” said Xiong. “As a [legislative] rep myself, the first drawback I noticed immediately was the biased voting. A lot of people vote no without any justifications, or friends of the officers vote yes because they’re friends.”

These students, influenced by their own motives and personal opinions, are often unable to make informed decisions that incorporate the voice of the student body.

“There’s always a group of people who

Staff Editorial The Voice of the Epic just vote no on everything, and that’s one of the main reasons no clubs get passed,” said sophomore Jason Dong, who has been a legislative representative for three semesters.

“There’s some people who don’t want to see others doing anything, and they just vote no.”

Currently, legislative representatives visit their respective homeroom classes twice a month to report what they have heard during the council meetings, which take place every other Tuesday during tutorial. Reps do not receive copies of the agenda of that day’s meeting, which gives them little time to comprehend the intricacies of clubs.

Furthermore, since decisions on clubs have already been made, students who are not legislative representatives are not able to share their opinions of the clubs. One group of 25 students does not represent the entire

student population, and although each member of the council represents one classroom, those students’ opinions are not taken into account.

To ensure that the opinions of the entire student body are taken into account, legislative representatives should be provided with a list of clubs and their descriptions prior to the next meeting. Then, council members ask for feedback from their class. By doing so, they ELLEN XIONG will be able to obtain JUNIOR classroom opinion and vote for the passage of clubs accurately rather than personally.

Additionally, after new legislative representatives have been selected in the beginning of the school year, they should be required to attend a training session. Since many representatives are freshmen, they may not understand the function or criteria

“A LOT OF PEOPLE VOTE NO WITHOUT ANY JUSTIFICATIONS, OR FRIENDS OF THE OFFICERS VOTE YES BECAUSE THEY’RE FRIENDS. ”

of clubs or know about existing clubs.

“When I said yes to the first club, I agreed with my friends and thought, ‘This is a good idea, but I didn’t really see what could be bad about it,’” said freshman Nyna Velamuri, a member of the legislative council. “I didn’t think of those things because I’ve never passed a club before. If I had more experience, I would have been more prepared.”

By having a mandatory training, ASB can ensure that new council members will provide an unbiased vote, rather than deciding based solely on personal beliefs.

“I think getting more experience with how Lynbrook clubs work is important,” said Dong. “If there’s more knowledge that they could have about how the clubs at Lynbrook operated, and what certain clubs there are and aren’t, that would help them make a better educated decision.”

Improving the clubs system to ensure that legislative representatives are accurately representing the student body is necessary for the passing of clubs. By giving training to these representatives, and incorporating the opinions of more students into decisions, Lynbrook can better select which clubs to pass. Because clubs will ultimately be serving the student body, all students at Lynbrook should have a say in which clubs they would like to see on campus. *the Epic staff voted 29-0 in favor of this stance

William Guo As a kid who grew up constantly playing with Legos, this challenge seemed like a pretty fun contest. It turned out that Nanda had excellent skills at piping frosting, and Hsin Yen was happy to design the sprinkles and candy placement. I was given the role of designing the roof of the house.

I did the right side first, a spiral, and then the Epic logo on the other. Of course, with this revolutionary and unique design, our opponents copied us, as they attempted to make a spiral design on one side and put words on the other. They failed in both aspects, though. The spiral is unrecognizable, and they spelled “ W i l l Rocks” wrong.

H o w do you

spell it as “SUX”? “Rocks” has five letters, not three...how embarrassing. Anyway, our gingerbread house won by a landslide.

Hsin Yen Huang Having never built a gingerbread house using a kit before, this challenge was an eyeopening experience as I did not know how easy it would be. My previous experiences with building a gingerbread house with graham crackers and runny frosting did not end up as aesthetically pleasing, since the entire roof of my g i n g e r b re a d house caved in. I thought the most difficult portion of the challenge was decorating the gingerbread house. I focused more on trying to use up all of the resources that came with the gingerbread house. The final product turned out better than I expected, since the frosting held the house together. The designs on my team’s gingerbread house had a more traditional look complete with sprinkles and candy, but we still managed to make it look unique.

I thought the hard work my team put into building and decorating the house paid off since we won.

Nanda Pandian Watching Cake Boss really paid off during this challenge. I’m more talented at frosting piping than I thought I was. At first, I was nervous to make a gingerbread house because I have never made one, but I was surprised on how successful it turned out to be.

Having two groups of three teenagers hovered over gingerbread houses, however, turned out to be exciting but also competitive.

My team thought of simply copying the design that was given, but in the end, Will’s replica of the Epic logo really brought out the final finish.

Honestly, even though the experience was a bit tense, I would be thrilled to do it again.

I am now confident that even I, an inexperienced gingerbread house designer, can make a legitimate gingerbread house.

Epic Gingerbread challenge

A unique trip

BY ESHANI MEHTA

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n Nov. 18, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them made its worldwide debut, and Harry Potter fans were able to once again hear the iconic theme music in theaters after five long years.

Fantastic Beasts takes the audience back in time to New York City in 1926, when a dark wizard threatens to reveal the existence of witches and wizards to the world. The movie follows Newt Scamander, played by Eddie Redmayne, who arrives in New York with a mysterious suitcase that hides a large expanse of magical creatures, varying in sizes and personalities.

Niffler, a fluffy, long-snouted beast, charms the audience with its penchant for shiny and glittery objects and its cute and clever attempts to hide from Scamander. Erumpent, a giant rhinoceros-like creature, has an eagerness to mate that is amusing as well. The majestic Thunderbird and Occamy are breathtakingly detailed; the special effects in the movie are stunning throughout.

Newt Scamander is an easy character to fall in love with, especially with his deep passion for magical beasts and his little idiosyncrasies. Jacob Kowalski, played by Dan Fogler, is a hilariously clueless “No-Maj” (the American word for muggles, or humans who lack magical abilities) baker who accidentally becomes entangled in the magical

world. His utmost awe and disbelief at all the magic he experiences is decidedly one of the movie’s most humor-

ous aspects.

The magical community in New York is considerably different compared to the magical community of London that fans have seen before. Instead of an isolated magical society, the wizards and the No-Maj coexist. As a result of this, MACUSA Congress (the American Ministry of Magic) has placed stricter regulations on magical people.

These differences made a large part of the movie feel like a setup for the four other movies planned for this series. The long introduction went over how the wizarding community in New York City interacted with the No-Maj’s and intro-

duced Scamander’s beasts in detail. Although it wasn’t t o o boring, this m ovie did focus a lot o n building up this new w o r l d and setting the stage for the next films.

While Fantastic Beasts does include several references to characters, concepts and locations from the original Harry Potter series, including Albus Dumbledore, Gellert Grindelwald , Legilimens and Hogwarts, it can easily function as a stand a l o n e movie. It is a must-watch movie for both die-hard Harry Potter fans and those completely new to the magical universe alike.

ART ILLUSTRATIONS BY HEDY ZHOU

How to succeed at finals this semester

BY CHELSEA LI Meera Balaji This was my second time building a gingerbread house, so I had some basic knowledge about the construction and a vague idea of what it shouldn’t look like. While I wasn’t very experienced, the art of gingerbread construction isn’t rocket science, so I quickly caught on. I had a great time working with my team to build a creative and colorful gingerbread house. Despite getting frosting literally everywhere, we were able to laugh and create a whimsical gingerbread house (that got all of our editorial board’s vote!).

Luckily, time wasn’t much of an issue for us; the 45 minutes provided were more than enough to think of a design and execute it.

We went for a more modern approach which consisted of a minimalistic Christmas tree and fondant people clinging on to the roof for dear life. Even though we didn’t win, I can say that it was an enjoyable experience that I would definitely take part in again.

Chloe Lai I’m almost 100 percent sure that I’ve

never made a gingerbread house in my life before. If I have, I’m sure I was terrible at it. Before the challenge, I thought, “Oh, this is just like frosting a wedding cake! I can do this without burning down the house!” I was pretty pumped about making a gingerbread house and thought it would be as easy as pie; I could not have been more wrong. Gingerbread houses hate me. Unlike frosting cakes where there’s more open space, I felt kind of squished.

Trying to even remotely frost the entrance was hard, given that there were so many decorations clustered in the same area. But hey, in the end, it’s all about the experience! Our team had a good time messing up and cracking jokes, especially with our designated frosting bag holder, Shiva, who was the real MVP. Shivateja Vemireddy I believe that I held a huge responsibility during the making of the gingerbread house… by holding stuff. If it hadn’t been for me, the icing would have fallen on to Will’s

kitchen counter. It’s a big commitment, but someone had to do it. I stood there, solid as a rock, trying extremely hard not to cough all over the gingerbread house and thinking of ideas for the exterior decor. My ideas left a mark on the overall gingerbread house’s appearance, which read “Will sux” followed by an M&M smiley face (you’re welcome Will). I had to say I was a little bit disappointed when our gingerbread house got a grand total of nine votes (me being one of them) out of 23 students. I don’t think that my teammates even voted for our house.

H o w e v e r, social rejection is just a struggle that all great artists (including mys e l f ) h a v e faced.

ALL PHOTOS BY ALEX XU

F

irst semester is drawing to a close, and finals are just around the corner. If you still haven’t dug out those crumpled old notes or flipped back to the first chapters of the textbook, fear not; here are a couple of tips that will surely get you the grade you want by the end of the semester. Try them out and maybe they’ll work for you!

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATIONS BY FEATURES SECTION

1. Use note cards and study guides wisely.

Most teachers provide a study guide so that students will know exactly what to study. Others may even allow a three by five inch notecard on the day of the final. Use these materials to your advantage by not only reading every chapter, but also reproducing the entire book. Practice writing in five point font whenever you can, starting with homework assignments and tests. Another way to maximize the amount of information that can fit into a certain space is by assigning symbols to every concept. Making your symbols hard to decipher will ensure that no one will be able to read them, thus preventing cheating as well.

This way, you can fit as much information as you need onto any study sheets or notecards you have.

The more the b e t t e r, right?

ESHANI MEHTA—EPIC

2. Clean up your study area.

A messy desk can be a big distraction when you’re trying to focus on the material at hand. After all, there’s barely any space for you to write, let alone for that huge biology textbook. Take the time to clean out your drawers and sift through all the junk that’s been piling up for a semester. You might even find some crumpled notes from the first lecture that you were actually awake for, or that one homework assignment you couldn’t find the day before it was due. Or, you could dig up an old photo album with pictures from your childhood and become lost in the memories for a few hours. Ah, those were much simpler times.

3. Avoid technology.

Electronic devices are yet another distraction from studying. Facebook, Snapchat,

Instagram, Twitter, Youtube and other social media sites all take away precious time from studying. Sometimes, simply closing the tab won’t cut it; there’s so much more to be done on the internet. The only solution is to completely shut down all technology. Studying by the light of a single candle can evoke deeper feelings and give you the experience of the sixteenth-century lifestyle you’ve been reading about for hours.

4. Stock up on coffee.

Maybe you’ve been procrastinating a bit, and it’s finally hit you that there’s only a few days before finals. Just your luck; your teachers have decided to squeeze in one more test before the big day. Now’s the time to cram in those late night study sessions. There’s no more time to sleep now, not even in class, like how you usually do.

Caffeine is a surefire way to boost energy and keep you awake and focused even at two or three in the morning. After all, a warm mug of coffee may be your only companion in those late hours. And when the morning comes, why eat a nutritious meal when you can just grab a cup of coffee on the go? Just be careful not to spill anything on those precious notes.

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is the season of vacations. While many families tend to go to Europe, Hawaii or any trip that spans longer than a day, some Indian families decide to go on trips no further than a 150 mile radius from their homes. It’s cheap, it’s “unique”, it’s an Indian vacation.

It’s a month before a break and all the Uncles and Aunties are gathered at a party when someone mentions the idea for a group vacation. The Uncles’ corner buzzes with excitement as potential destinations are thrown around the group. “Los… Gatos,” “Mount… ain View,” and “Japan… town in San Jose” are just some of the exciting ideas which can be heard. I’m just joking, sometimes they suggest the Japantown in San Francisco as well. They eventually settle on some park or natural area to go and visit. Now you may be wondering where the kids want to go, but in the words of the Uncles, “No one cares.”

Typically, the vacation destinations are a few hours away by driving so it would be wise to start driving early to optimize time spent at the park. However, there is a mathematical formula to determine when the group finally leaves for the location. When there are 1-2 families going on a trip, the beginning time is an hour after the set time and another hour is added for each extra family invited. For example, if you wanted to begin a 2-hour drive at 7 A.M. to have plenty of time to enjoy the area with 5 other families, you would end up leaving your house at around noon. And remember, the goal is to keep the trip as cheap as possible, so no planes and hotels. Therefore, to avoid paying for hotels, trips are typically stuffed into one day. So, if you finally reach your destination at around 2 P.M., just in time to eat lunch.

You are on vacation so it seems reasonable to relax and try new food, right?

Haha... wrong! Every family cooks their own food before so they can completely avoid spending money on food during the trip. The food is made to serve as snacks for the road trip there and back as well as a satisfying meal for 6 families. All that food isn’t just a hassle to carry (especially if you have to hike up to the spot), it also is nice and soggy by the time you finally eat it. Once you reach a satisfactory place, the Uncles and Aunties bust out the blankets, utensils, plates and food (screw the napkins). All fury breaks loose as little kids run to hoard all the chips or any other snacks present. The Aunties chase after the kids trying to make them eat “real” food while the Uncles dig in, content in the fact that there is more food for them. Squirrels snag food amongst the chaos and get the runs from all the spices.

Carnage ensuing, the adults take a quick nap to regain their energy and digest the extravagant meal. A few hours later, they wake up and the sun is starting to set.

Somehow the kids manage to have fun with a frisbee or a soccer ball and not get seriously injured while the parents sleep.

The sun is setting and the trip is presumably over. The only thing left is to endure the long ride home with some cranky adults or cranky kids. While my friends would be sipping Pina Colada at the Bahamas or chilling in New York, I went to a park with some family friends and ate some food with gassy squirrels. These trips may not be the most enjoyable of vacation trips out there, but they hold a special place in my heart and most importantly, they are cheap.

CAN TRUMP KEEP HIS PROMISES?

BY CLAIRE CHIANG, HSIN YEN HUANG, SHREYAS IYER, JESSICA LUO AND ERIC WU

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or the past one and a half years, president-elect Donald Trump has been proposing solutions to “make America great again.” On Nov. 13, Trump announced his plans for multiple campaign issues in his first interview as president-elect on CBS News’ 60 Minutes, including immigration, the Middle East and abortion. Trump’s radical stance on multiple issues won the votes of many American citizens, but during this interview, he lowered the intensity of many of his proposals. Although Trump campaigned upon implementing radical change and succeeded, he has already gone back on his word several times only a few weeks after being elected.

Will Trump be able to keep his promises to the American people? In order to answer this question, the Epic has analyzed the feasibility of Trump’s propositions concerning immigration, ISIS, and jobs.

Immigration Trump’s first major political controversy occurred when he referred to Mexican immigrants as “rapists” and criminals” who bring “drugs and crimes” to American streets. Although the incident caused a political firestorm among the media, many Americans admired Trump’s no-nonsense and unorthodox attitude to-

ward immigration. His campaign promises to deport millions of illegal immigrants, build a wall on the Mexico-United States border and ban Muslims from entering the nation appealed to voters tired of what they viewed as America’s soft stance on illegal aliens and border protection.

The discussion over whether such proposals are feasible, however, is up for debate.

For sure, many of Trump’s promises are politically unprecedented, yet the Trump campaign believes it has plans of action; Trump famously declared that he would make Mexico pay for the wall, for example. Despite the confidence projected by Trump’s team concerning his mandates, these plans contain inherent logistical flaws which threaten to torpedo his projects.

“It’s not feasible at all because of all the funding and political resistance it would face,” said junior Chris Wang. “I guess it would depend on what exactly he means by a wall.”

Trump’s government will need to find an efficient labor system to construct the wall, which may include contracting multiple companies with the managerial experience and technical knowledge to build what would be, upon completion, the world’s longest border wall.

Furthermore, engineers would run into numerous obstacles including working

around the varied topography of the region — the mountainous New Mexico terrain, sandy Arizona desert and winding Rio Grande river would all pose their own difficulties — and managing to fund the project.

“His plan for funding it is to tax revenues leaving the country so money is generated here [by people] and then the money is sent to their relatives in other countries such as Mexico,” said U.S. History teacher Kyle Howden. “You would generate revenue but you may not generate enough revenue [to fund the wall]. You might run into congressional problems in terms of Congress passing something like this because you’re not only affecting one group, you’re potentially affecting anybody sending money overseas.”

Previous fence projects have cost the government $7 billion to reinforce and construct the approximately 650 miles of fencing on the Southwest border. Given its length, this border wall will cost exponentially more funds, with most analysts projecting the cost to be roughly $25 billion. Given that the Mexican government has repeatedly denounced that they will fund the wall, it remains to be seen how Trump can fund his prized project through limited tax revenue.

In terms of deporting illegal immigrants, Trump has proposed a “deportation force” to round up illegal aliens and send them back over the border. While such a proposition has been considered before — Eisenhower’s Operation Wetback deported over one million

Mexican immigrants — the sheer numbers of his policy have drawn ire from critics. America’s 11 million illegal immigrants comprise 3.5 percent of this nation, and identifying, detaining and deporting all of them would take a pseudo-police state team composed of hundreds of thousands of border patrol officials. Howden notes the nearly overwhelming infrastructural obstacles. “[Given] the logistical elements of building a wall and rounding up all these people, you can’t do it,” said Howden. “You need to have somewhere to put these people, [and] you need to have some mechanism for getting them out of the country. It’s a logistical nightmare. The sheer magnitude is so great that I don’t think it’s feasible.”

The Obama administration, which employs 100,000 border officials, has already deported upwards of 400,000 people in eight years; thus, Trump’s proposal would represent a drastic increase in the deportation rate that could foreseeably affect government spending as well. As Howden notes, America lacks the infrastructural capacity to house millions of immigrants before departure, so the government would have to build a series of gigantic shelters which can maintain maintenance, living conditions and overseers for an extended period of time.

These totals lead to an increasingly grand sum of money; The Los Angeles Times predicts that deporting all of America’s illegal immigrants would cost up to $300 billion.

The deportation force may succeed if the new force focuses on criminal illegal aliens; undocumented persons in jails would be easier to locate than an everyday illegal immigrant, and immigrants may be housed in prison before deportation. At the bottom line, however, Trump’s team will have to develop the logistics of the deportation force in a cost-efficient manner and ensure the public that their “force” is a force of good, and not the force of a police squadron one would see under a totalitarian regime.

ISIS Trump’s vision of overcoming the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) first resides in working “with our Arab allies and friends in the Middle East.” The U.S. has a number of official allied countries in the Middle East, including Israel and Jordan. Half of these countries belong in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), an intergovernmental

military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty.

Teaming up with these nations and their military forces in order to drive ISIS away would be an ideal and clean solution.

“It’s a threat that’s not necessarily localized,” said Government teacher Mike Williams. “European countries, the United States, and countries all over the world are facing threats from ISIS, so it’s reasonable to ask for a multinational force.”

Making it happen, however, is not as easy as Trump makes it sound. NATO members will not necessarily band together and will instead act according to their own interests.

If ISIS is not a major problem for a certain country, it is not obligated to ally with the U.S. Likewise, allied countries outside of NATO would not be bound to agree to requests for aid from the U.S. Trump’s plan as stated in his foreign policy continues with his hope to “defeat the ideology of radical Islamic terrorism just as [the U.S] won the Cold War.” Ronald Reagan was able to bring the United States to victory in the Cold War through the overextension of the Soviet Union’s financial resources, resulting in their demise and inability to destroy Western capitalist systems. The same strategy, however, cannot be applied to ISIS. The difference lies in that unlike the Soviet Union, ISIS is not a country or government with citizens to take care of and an economy to manage; it is a terrorist organization that gains the majority of its finances through the production and smuggling of oil in northern Iraq and northern Syria.

“The Cold War was state based; countries knew where each other were based on their geographic location. Communism is also more of an economic system, so you could confront the Soviet Union and its communist system in a more direct way,” Williams.

“However, you can’t confront ISIS and terrorism in the same way. It doesn’t have a border, it’s not a state. How do you defeat an ideology? You can’t.”

Trump’s proposal to bomb the oil fields that ISIS utilizes in order to harm their financial capabilities is not a plausible solution either. The total destruction of such a valuable resource would make reconstruction after the conflict even more difficult than it already would be. The locals who rely on such oil would also be starved of their prima-

ry source of energy. While ISIS would take a hit financially, it would still be able to operate through robberies, ransoms and heavy taxes placed on those living under its rule.

“ISIS can’t be destroyed by simply taking away their oil supply,” said senior Danlin Lillemark. “While their finances would be depleted, they would easily find other ways to support their cause.”

Additionally, ISIS has already shown on multiple occasions that its members are more than willing to give up their own lives for the larger cause in the name of Islam.

Trump cannot anticipate their actions rationally, as ISIS members have already proven to go beyond human reasoning in order to further their cause. In order to shut Islamic extremist terrorism down completely, Trump would have to completely eradicate ISIS and other extremist terrorist organizations. The mandate of radical Islamists instruct them to fight to the last man, and they have proven so far that they do not plan to do otherwise.

“When Trump says that he wants to ‘crush

and destroy ISIS,’ that’s just political theater.

How do you crush an ideology? ISIS is a multinational organization,” said Williams. “If you attack one area, they may just invade another area. ISIS wants us to invade the land as well, to confront them.”

Certainly, if the U.S. were willing to expend the resources and the lives, it may emerge victorious, but at a great cost. The financial strain on the U.S., though, which is already almost 20 trillion dollars in debt, would continue to increase. The military would have to redeploy back to the Middle East, which would be severely protested. And even if elimination succeeds, smaller terrorist groups would reappear over the years led by new radicalists eager to bring back the cause, and constant manpower would be needed to remove these as well. A constant military presence would be needed, as the moment the U.S. steps away, a new ISIS could step in.

Jobs The crux of Trump’s economic plan rests on his promise to bring more than 25 million jobs back to the U.S. in the next decade.

Included within these 25 million jobs are 4 million manufacturing jobs, which have been steadily deteriorating since the 1980s.

Trump attributes the decline of jobs to free trade policies and cheap labor in China, citing that over 900,000 manufacturing jobs have been lost to Mexico since the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), a trade agreement between Mexico, Canada and the U.S. that was signed in 1994 that eliminated tariffs on goods flowing across borders. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, on the other hand, has estimated that about six million jobs depend on free trade with Mexico, which means that those jobs may disappear upon withdrawal from NAFTA. In order to prioritize domestic production, Trump plans to issue a 35 percent import tax on all Mexican and Chinese goods, which he claims will bring back manufacturing jobs that have been lost to foreign countries. The logic is that with the establishment of more domestic factories, more workers will be employed, which will increase the number of manufacturing jobs.

If Trump does decide to follow through with taxation, Mexico and China will likely retaliate with their own tax on American imports, which will dry up global trade. If he is unable to levy taxes, the jobs he promised will remain unavailable. Additionally, labor costs in the U.S. are significantly higher than those of other countries, so bringing back those facilities would drastically increase the prices of goods.

“If [Trump] slap tariffs on goods, all that’s going to happen is a tariff war. [Other countries are] going to slap tariffs on our goods and it’s going to be ridiculously damaging,” said Economics and Government teacher Jeffrey Bale. “Not only will we be paying more for our own goods, but we’ll also have a tougher time selling them. And this is job suicide.”

Furthermore, the goal of bringing back manufacturing jobs may not be feasible in light of rapid technological advances. Factories have become progressively reliant on

robots and assembly lines, and the need for human workers is becoming obsolete.

By 2026, it is highly possible that workers will no longer be employed at manufacturing companies.

“Unless opportunities are opened up, I don’t think Trump will be able to achieve his goal,” said junior Raksha Narasimhan.

“In an area like the Silicon Valley it might be possible, but it’s unrealistic the entire country will have the same amount of growth as we do.”

In addition to bringing manufacturing jobs back, Trump also plans to create new jobs through energy independence.

“Lifting unnecessary restrictions on all sources of American energy...will add over 500,000 jobs annually” (donaldjtrump. com). The idea is clear: by weaning off foreign oil and producing its own energy, the U.S. will need to start utilizing its coal and natural gas supplies, and in turn will need labor to do so.

“We have to take into account that currently in America there are more people that work in the green technology sector than work in coal,” said Bale. “So if [Trump is] talking about moving away from green technology and going back to coal, [he’d] be looking at a net loss of jobs, not a net gain.”

Though the premise is simple, Trump must overcome considerable opposition to overturn the regulations on hydraulic fracturing and increased use of natural resources. If he decides to follow through to redouble efforts in becoming energy independent, which include opening federal lands to the mining of natural resources and eliminating regulations set in place by the Obama administration, he will need to overturn much of the environmental progress made in the past decade.

With Republican majorities in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, Trump does have a chance of curtailing said regulations with congressional support. On the other hand, environmentalist groups, already incensed by Trump’s claim that “climate change is a hoax” and his prioritization of business over environmental concerns, will protest vehemently against his plan to expose formerly protected land to obtain oil, gas and coal and other nonrenewable resources.

It will be difficult for him to overturn highly favorable policies in light of such resistance, and if he is unsuccessful, he will not be able to open the drilling sites that he planned to, and the jobs projected to be created via these drilling sites cannot be generated.

1,075 Lynbrook students were surveyed for their opinions*: *some students may not have responded to all questions

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATIONS BY EDITORIAL BOARD

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY MICHYLA LIN

Holiday beverages to spice up your day

BY CATHERINE HUANG Starbucks Arguably the most popular coffee chain in the area, Starbucks has established itself as a classic, go-to café for holiday drinks.

Although the red-cup controversy has disappointed avid customers, Starbucks compensates by offering a large variety of seasonal beverages, from classics such as the Caramel Brulée Latte to the newer

Holiday Spice Flat White. I ordered the Peppermint Mocha. With the peppermint soothing the throat and the dark chocolate curls complementing the espresso, the amount of hype Starbucks receives for this drink is well deserved. The sweetness combined with the chocolate curls, however, makes it taste more like a rich hot cocoa as opposed to an actual mocha.

The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Of the four cafes, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf is the farthest from Lynbrook, with its closest location in Westfield. With very few seated customers and no barista in sight, I was skeptical about the legitimacy of the cafe. When an unfriendly barista finally came to the counter to take my order, I had relatively low expectations for the Cookie Butter Latte I ordered. The latte was presented in a dull, clear plastic mug

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATIONS BY FEATURES SECTION

Peet’s Coffee and Tea A close contender to Starbucks, Peet’s is another customer favorite when it comes to great tasting coffee. The strong coffee bean-scented and cozy atmosphere makes Peet’s a popular destination during colder weather, especially when customers have more time to enjoy their lattes in-store.

Like Starbucks, Peet’s also offers a multitude of holiday specialty drinks. Among their comprehensive menu, Peet’s has included seasonal favorites like the Eggnog Latte as well as new beverages like the Ha-

that didn’t look too appetizing, especially after my time at Chromatic Coffee. After I hesitantly took a sip of the latte, however, I found it to be delicious. The latte was light in flavor and topped with whipped cream and cookie crumbs, and tasted like fresh-out-of-the-oven cookies. Because this latte lacks strong spices, this drink is perfect for those who are more hesitant to try new flavors. The 20 ounce Cookie Butter Latte I ordered was $4.89.

ALL PHOTOS BY CATHERINE HUANG

vana Dulce Cappuccino. I ordered one of the classics, the Eggnog Latte, despite my distaste for eggs. To my surprise, the latte had managed to capture a distinct eggnog taste without overwhelming my taste buds with the taste of eggs. The latte had the slight aftertaste of alcohol, a defining characteristic of eggnog, even though alcohol wasn’t included in the beverage.

Even with my bias against eggs, this holiday special impressed me with the light yet distinct eggnog taste complementing the foaming latte.

Chromatic Coffee Chromatic Coffee is a local business with only one cafe located in Santa Clara. Even without nationwide recognition, it has consistently had many customers since its opening in 2012. Chromatic Coffee offers stand up bars that encourage socializing and a weekly brunch menu, increasing the conveniency of the cafe. I ordered the only seasonal they were offering: the Ginger Spice Latte, which was a latte sweetened with molasses and raw sugar and spiced with cinnamon, ginger and clove. Much to

my dismay, the latte cost $5.69 for a small 12 ounce cup-- significantly pricier than any of the other cafes. When I received my coffee from the barista, however, I was greatly appeased. My coffee had beautiful latte art at the top, and was one of the most aesthetic drinks I have ever had. The actual taste of the latte did not disappoint, either. As expected, the latte was rich and gingery. The spices in the latte also enhanced the experience and gave the coffee a festive kick, as it bore a strong resemblance to gingerbread cookies.

Shining a light on topics in the dark A deeper look into taboo words and why they exist

BY DIVYA NELAKONDA AND HARSH JAIN

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taboo word is one that is prohibited by a social or religious norm because of its association with certain people, places or things.

The concept of taboo is usually connected with concepts typically relating to the ideas of death, religion and sex. But what is the root of the fear of using taboo words?

Taboo words are not usually intended to be forbidden, but become taboo due to several notable conversational factors: the people included, the subject and the setting of the word’s usage.

Swear words, the most common form of taboo language, are largely dependent upon conversational setting. They are often used to tell a joke or story, to exert physical aggression, to manage stress or to fit in with a group. When the conversation is an open discussion about a controversial topic, the use of taboo or swear words may be appropriate. For example, in a relaxed setting, people tend to be more comfortable using words that may be considered inappropriate in a formal setting.

In a study conducted by psychology professors Jay and Janschewitz, college students have been shown to swear more frequently in areas such as dorms and common areas, but less in offices and classrooms. The speaker and listener relationship may affect how taboo language is accepted.

People tend to be more receptive to such language when speaking with someone they share a strong bond with than with a mere acquaintance.

Gender also plays a significant role in the frequency of taboo language; people more frequently use offensive speech when they are speaking in a group of those of the same gender and social status rather than to those in a mixed group.

Men swear more often when frus-

trated, while women tend to recognize the consequences of swearing could have on their relationships with the people they face. While taboo words may be avoided to uphold a certain reputation, they can also be socially advantageous.

Certain strong language can be used to establish dominance through intimidation, and verbal aggression has been proven to induce compliance.

To lessen the impact of taboo phrases, euphemisms are frequently used instead, especially in formal settings. They are often used as an instrument to mask unpleasant situations, such as death, where it may be more comforting to use the phrase “passed away” instead of “died.” While the word “poor” is not commonly considered taboo, many prefer to replace it with “lowincome” of “underprivileged”.

In formal situations, sexual language is typically replaced by politer synonyms, such as “sexual intercourse.”

“Most people do it as a courtesy to the listener,” said Lynbrook school psychologist Brittany Stevens. “It shows that you’re trying to not offend them. Using euphemisms shows social awareness, as you’re not trying to bring up something that causes others discomfort. We tend to use formal language with those who are professional, older, and more senior than us.”

Slang is language consisting of words and phrases generally considered informal that relies highly on contextual variables. Some, but not all, slang is often considered to be taboo.

When slang is a form of profanity or obscene language, it is considered taboo, and not universally acceptable. It is often used to refer to more discreet matters in a colloquial manner. Slang can also have cultural and timely relevance; as language is ever changing, slang changes with it and can sometimes become taboo. For example, slang to describe any form of marginalized race or certain religions are almost always taboo.

The words may have once been a succinct way to refer to a group of people, but became derogatory over time.

“I feel that using slang is often a good way for people to bring up topics that are more taboo in an informal and light-hearted manner,” said senior Deepthi Pittala.

Taboo words tend to be influenced by social and political factors as well. Racial slurs may not have been considered inappropriate in a time where it was synonymous with their nationality. As times change and the prejudice toward certain groups is more noticeable, however, the slur is no longer a common term for the group of people, but an offensive phrase

that incites disgust. “Gay” was once used to mean happy, but overtime became associated with homosexuality. Now the word has various connotations, based on the speaker and context of the word. Words that refer to a more sensitive topic based on the current sociopolitical situation are often simply avoided; abortion, bigotry and suicide, for example, are words that can be considered taboo because of its sensitive nature or the debate that can spark from its general use and meaning in society.

There is often an assumption that people who use taboo words have a lower level of vocabulary. People with an impoverished vocabulary, however, tend to speak using filler words. Additionally, most usage of taboo words does not tend to result in a negative response. Taboo words typically elicit a humorous, positive reaction. Even when used around young children, there are usually hardly any negative consequences.

Culture plays a big role on what is taboo and what isn’t.Many advertisements of racy products like female undergarments and care products weren’t televised in the U.S. until recently, whereas these types of advertisements have been common since a decade ago in England.

“Taboo words, many of the times come from the culture that we are living in, as taboo topics tend to vary a lot between cultures,” said junior Sophia Ling.

The gravity of controversial words is not always obvious and can jeopardize reputations and relationships if used nonchalantly. Although the offensiveness of words is highly contextual and dependent on the speaker-listener relationship, with a better understanding of the choices made during a conversation, citizens can better comprehend the ramifications of uttering taboo words and thus act in a more appropiate manner.

WILLIAM GUO — EPIC

Investigating the world’s changing climate

The art of spoken communication

BY HEDY ZHOU AND SADHANA SARMA

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lobal warming, defined as the increase in average global temperature, has permeated environmental debates since the 1900s and has risen to a high-priority political issue as of late.

According to various scientific studies, the average global temperature has risen

from 39.2 degrees to 44.6 degrees Fahrenheit over the past 5,000 years. Within the last century alone, however, the global temperature has risen 33.26 degrees.

Most climate scientists agree that the primary cause of global warming is the expansion of the “greenhouse effect,” which describes the process in which gases prevent heat from escaping the Earth’s atmosphere.

Gases such as carbon dioxide, water vapor, methane and nitrous

oxide are considered to be “greenhouse gases.”

Due to the lack of climate patterns over a long enough period of time, scientists have been unable to gather compelling evidence that the proliferation of greenhouse gases occurs naturally. Even so, the concept of man-made global warming has been widely accepted as the reason behind climate change since the late nineteenth century, despite the fact that it is an assumption.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a statement in 2014 stating that “human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century,” and 97 percent or more of actively publishing climatologists agree that “climate-warming trends over the p a s t centu-

ry are extremely likely due to human acCurrently, oceans are rising at a rate of tivities” (climate.nasa.gov). As of December 3.4 millimeters (mm) per year, which is 2016, however, 31,486 scientists have signed 2.4 mm per year greater than the average a petition rejecting the theory of human con- rate in the 1900s. tributions to global warming, citing a lack of According to National Geographic, sevscientific research. eral low-lying lands, such as the Maldives The reasoning behind man-made global and Bangladesh, may be completely subwarming is as follows: greenhouse gases merged in the coming century if rates do contribute to the rise in the Earth’s tempera- not subside. By 2100, it is predicted that ture, and because humans have been releas- many cities along the United States East ing exponentially increasing amounts of Coast, such as Miami, New York City and said greenhouse gases over the last century, Boston, will be underwater. humans are responsible for the rising of the “Maybe if [people] see that water is Earth’s temperature. upon them, coming onto their shore, then Because research conducted by thousands they will recognize that it’s a problem,” of climatologists over the past few decades said freshman Yash Godiwala. have supported the rise in human-caused Lesser known repercussions include release of greenhouse gases—for example, the rise of wildlife extinction rates, one paper concluded that the concentration harsher weather and worsened polluof carbon dioxide in the U.S. in 2008 was 40 tion, because chemicals that are typically percent higher than it was in the 1800s— released into the atmosphere are trapped man-made global warming has been regard- by heat. Ground-level ozone, the primary ed as the basis of several proposed solutions component of smog, is created when gaspeople can follow to combat climate change. es released by transportation and facto“People think that it’s not their responsi- ries react with heat. bility,” said sophomore Ananya Manjunath.

The validity of global warming itself “They think ‘there are 7 billion other people has been disputed since the coinage of the who could do something, so if I don’t do any- term in 1961. Several leading politicians, thing then there will be no effect.’ But really, including the current president-elect every single person affects the Earth.”

Donald Trump, have labeled it as a conThe leading contributor of increased spiracy theory or a hoax created by sciengreenhouse gas emissions is power plants. tists in order to profit off of increased meFossil fuel-fired power plants use natural dia exposure and involvement with green gas, petroleum, coal and other forms of non- energy companies. renewable resources. According to the U.S. In September 2016, Trump appointed Energy Information Administration, 67 per- Myron Ebell to be the head of the Encent of electricity was derived from the burn- vironmental Protection Agency (EPA), ing of fossil fuels in 2015. an agency of the United States governAs the global population continues to ment that was created to protect human rise, the number of vehicles is reported to health and the environment. Ebell, who grow as well, leading to a marked increase has been known to prioritize economic in transportation emisgrowth over the consions. Large amounts of cerns of the environcarbon dioxide, methane, “PEOPLE THINK THAT IT’S ment, stated in 2015 nitrous oxide and hydrothat he hoped the next fluorocarbon are released NOT THEIR RESPONSIBILITY, president would “undo as a result of the combus- THAT IT’S UP TO THE OTHER the EPA’s power plant tion of petroleum-based 7 BILLION PEOPLE IN THE regulations and some products. Methane, 23 WORLD, BUT REALLY, EVERY of the other regulations times more harmful than SINGLE PERSON AFFECTS that are very harmful carbon dioxide, is comto our economy.”

THE EARTH.” monly released through Though it is uncerlivestock, which cover aptain as to whether or ANANYA MANJUNATH proximately 30 percent of not he will succeed in SOPHOMORE overturning much of the Earth’s ice-free land.

Deforestation is the what the EPA has acmain cause behind an escomplished in regards timated 15 percent of gas emissions. Trees to limiting coal production, the fact react as a heat sponge, absorbing heat during mains that he is not in favor of cutting the night and blocking rays during the day. down the release of greenhouse gases.

Without this protective canopy, heat swings Under Ebell, the U.S. may see a loosenbecome more frequent and further damage ing of environmental regulations over the existing plant life. Currently, deforestation next few years. occurs at a rate of 46 to 58 thousand acres Several environmental groups and asper year. sociations have arisen in the past decade The consequences of increasing global as a result of collected data that points to temperatures are varied and numerous. Ris- worsened global warming, advocating for ing sea levels, which occur when ice caps projects such as shifting to renewable enand glaciers begin to melt, have already been ergy, beginning reforestation and institutobserved globally. The rate has been tracked ing a price on carbon. They promote acand is reportedly increasing. For every de- tivities such as biking or walking instead cade before 1900, the ocean has risen 0.6 of driving or cutting down on meat intake inches, but for every decade after 1990, the to gradually lessen the release of greenocean has risen 1.2 inches, the highest it has house gases. ever been.

“It is imperative for us, especially the Diseases carried by organisms that reside younger generation, to start focusing on in warmer climates have also spread gradu- what each individual can do to help in a ally over the past few decades. The West Nile local, national and international level to virus, for example, was formerly absent from help delay global warming” said senior the U.S., but now resides in over 25 states. Marilyn Kung, president of Lynbrook’s Though this cannot solely be attributed to Conservation Action Association. climate change, research has indicated that As the global temperature continues warmer temperatures accelerate the process to increase due to a rise in greenhouse of virus multiplication within insects, which gas emissions, many environmentalallows them to reach the biting age sooner ists are growing increasingly concerned. (scientificamerican.com).

Though climate change is progressing at As temperatures increase, ice caps and an alarming rate, steps on the individual glaciers begin to melt, contributing to the and the national level can be taken to rerise of the global sea level. lieve its effects.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY INDEPTH SECTION

Examining the causes and effects of global warming

BY ALEX XU AND MEHEK KAPUR

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onversing is an instrumental part of everyday interaction that requires much more than simply staying on topic. While there are many intricacies of talking with others, some of which are considered subconsciously, they all contribute to the overall effect of discussion.

In spite of these intricacies, all effective communication revolves around people and what they share with each other. Conversations adhere to the idea of facilitating successful discussion with others.

“Conversations are social exchanges involving two or more people who coordinate verbal and nonverbal actions and behaviors to create, maintain and reproduce meanings,” said Dr. Shawn Spano, Professor of Communication Studies at San Jose State University.

Different conversational behaviors often depend on the situation. A private setting without intrusion can lead to more

charged or truthful speech whereas a public setting often curtails behavior that can potentially receive judgment. These, as well as other situational properties and conditions, lead to two different types of interactions: focused and unfocused.

Focused interaction relies on being in close proximity with and keeping the attention of all who are involved in the conversation, often through taking turns talking. This occurs through conversing with others in order to obtain information. Unfocused interactions deal primarily with what can be obtained through copresence, which is being in the presence of others, and brief modes of information sensing, such as glances.

Ritual interchanges are one of the more common intricacies of speaking and generally rely on eliciting some sort of expected response. Being overly generous in a request, for example, is more often about being declined and seeking reassurance. Similarly, inquiries are commonly spearheaded with

apologies in the hope of coming across as unobtrusive while self-deprecation is expected to be met with denial, sometimes a ploy to “fish for compliments.” Mutual respect between those in conversation can help lead to this result, based on what others may want to hear. This dynamic may shift to accommodate other expected interactions, typically depending on the familiarity between the speakers.

“Ritual interchanges, especially when used with someone you know well or respect can create predictable conversation, and helpw develop a natural flow or tone,” said freshman Nyna Velamuri. “If you have some ideas as to where a conversation might go beforehand, it creates a comfortable environment.”

Each interaction revolves around the impression the speaker is attempting to impart.

A person’s face, which describes the presentation of oneself, attempts to not only be consistent but also accepted by others who expect a specific projected image. Being out

Math Problem 2

of line and breaking this expected pattern of expressing oneself happens when participants in a conversation are not used to the way through which a speaker communicates, including word choice, actions or anything out of the accepted norm.

“Think of conversation as a meaningmaking activity,” said Spano. “Through our conversations we create our relationships, identities and cultures. And we don’t do this alone. We actually co-construct meanings in conversations, which says that all the people in a conversation play a role in shaping the meaning.”

Despite the complexities of communication, its facets are present when attempting to converse in everyday speech.

While some of the body language and vocal cue points may have already been integrated into common speech patterns, the real method to developing a successful conversation involves recognizing many other phenomena which may be present.

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Physics Problem 2 (f=ma exam) Spaceman Fred’s spaceship (which has negligible mass) is in an elliptical orbit about Planet Bob. The minimum distance between the spaceship and the planet is R; the maximum distance between the spaceship and the planet is 2R. At the point of maximum distance, Spaceman Fred is traveling at speed v0. He then fires his thrusters so that he enters a circular orbit of radius 2R. What is his new speed?

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Math Problem 3

Physics Problem 3 All of the surfaces as shown in the figure are frictionless. The external force push on the large block and give it an acceleration a. For what value of a is there no relative motion among the masses?

Send your answers to johnson@huangtutor.com Stay tuned for solutions and new problems in the next issue!

Students explore the Japanese art of Aikido The benefits of rituals and lucky charms in sports

Uncovering the many effects of superstitions on athletes

BY KELSEY LU

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hether it be eating a huge breakfast on game days or repeating a certain phrase over and over, many athletes have some type of ritual or lucky charm that helps them focus and perform well during a game.

Usain Bolt points up at the sky before every race and Gabby Douglas repeats a piece of scripture before competitions: “I’ve done everything that I’ve done, and now waiting for me is a gold at the end of the day.”

As seen through famous athletes, rituals appear to be a way that can help athletes de-stress, focus and perform at their best.

Oftentimes, people do not realize the rituals athletes do in order to prepare themselves for a swim meet or a gymnastic competition; even the athletes themselves do not notice the pregame rituals they do until later on. Athletes may also wonder why such a routine is beneficial.

Nevertheless, rituals help athletes, both professional and amateur, maintain a feeling of control over their performance by providing a source of comfort.

“My doubles partner and I, for tennis, share similar necklaces that go together and it helps comfort me when I’m about to play a game,” said sophomore Leslie Hwang, a member of the girls varsity tennis team. “Also, we have a special high five that we do every single tennis game and it just calms my nerves before starting.”

Rituals are also a way to get rid of anxiety that an athlete may have before a tough game. If they do not perform their ritual, their performance level may decrease.

“In many of these sports, there’s waiting time before they perform and often there’s nothing they can do to prepare or practice during that time. And so these rituals are a way of fending off anxiety and creating a mantralike focus prior to the performance,” said Stuart Vyse, psychologist and author of Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition.

Rituals are usually established when an athlete starts noticing, most often accidentally, that repeating a certain thing improves their performance during games.

“I started noticing that I wore the same exact hair tie and headband for one whole season of soccer and then a different set the next whole season in 6th grade,” said

MICHYLA LIN — EPIC

SHREYAS IYER//IN MY OPINION

Keep the Raiders home

F

or the first time in what seems like an eternity, the Oakland Raiders played in (and won!) a meaningful regular season game. Their defeat of the defending Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos on Nov. 6 punctuated a remarkable turnaround for a once-incompetent franchise; after 15 consecutive seasons of having a .500 record or worse, the Raiders lead the AFC West with a 9-2 record, and look primed for the playoffs.

Unfortunately, it appears as if the city of Oakland may not enjoy the benefits of the newlook Raiders for long since the franchise is

freshman Amy Tse, a member of the girl’s JV soccer team.

Rituals usually generate a placebo effect, a beneficial outcome due fully to a person’s belief that a certain unrelated treatment or action will produce a better result than otherwise when it seems to help benefit athlete’s performance levels.

“I always wear the exact same hair tie and headband because I feel that it’s good luck and if I performed well playing with them one time then I believe that I’ll play well the next time I wear them, “ said Tse. “I feel that wearing these two objects are more of a mindset that I have that makes me feel like it has an effect on my performance”.

Usually, athletes do not wholeheartedly believe that certain rituals will have any effect on their performance level; however, the chance of losing a match will force them to continue performing said ritual. “[Athletes] often know that superstitious rituals are ‘not rational,’ but since on a top level the differences are so small, they think they cannot afford to take the risk to abandon the superstition,” said Dr. Michaéla Schippers, an associate professor of leadership and management at Erasmus University’s Rotterdam School of Management.

Not all rituals have to relate to some sort of a special object.

Something as simple as drinking a certain type of beverage before warming up or listening to a certain genre of music on game days still aid performance level.

“If it’s an away game, I’d bring my headphones and listen to loud rap music in the bus and this helps me focus and gets me in the mood to play football,” said sophomore Zay Batlivala, a member of the boy’s JV football team.

Though not all rituals have been researched to produce beneficial effects, athletes still abide by them in order to maintain a feeling of control.

currently planning a move to Las Vegas. As a longtime San Francisco 49ers fan, supporting the rival Raiders has never been a desirable option; in all honesty, I’ve criticized the Raiders and their fans as being a basket of, well, deplorables. Despite my fandom, this much is obvious.

For the betterment of the NFL and for the city of Oakland, the Raiders management should try first and foremost to keep the Raiders in the Bay Area.

Raiders fans, Oakland residents, and even the NFL itself are apprehensive about the move, despite the strong enthusiasm displayed by Raiders management. Led by Oakland mayor Libby Schaaf, the city has reached a deal with ex-NFL star Ronnie Lott’s management group for the framework of a deal for a stadium to replace the dilapidated Oakland Coliseum.

Unfortunately, neither Raiders owner Mark Davis nor the rest of Oakland’s management have signed off on or have been involved in the process of vetting a new Oakland stadium, disappointing Raiders fans.

But all is not lost for the silver and black faithful; NFL commissioner Roger Goodell

“[Rituals] help people cope with uncertain outcomes in the future, especially if these outcomes are important to them,” said Dr. Paul van Lange, a Professor of Psychology at Virje University, Amsterdam.

Lysann Damisch, Barbara Stoberock and Thomas Mussweiler from the University of Cologne conducted research on superstitions in sports.

Their research led them to conclude that the reason behind why athletes rely on such superstitious ideas is because they give them an increased task persistence, the ability to stick with a certain thing in spite of success which in turn improves efficiency and overall improves a player’s performance overall.

Rituals are actions that help many athletes stay focused and confident during a game. They feel reassured, knowing that they will do their best after repeating an action, helping them shake off their nerves, put on their game faces and play their very best.

has reiterated the league’s desire to keep the historic franchise in the Bay (probably due to the Bay’s larger media market than Las Vegas’), and Oakland retains strong, local grassroots support to maintain the franchise.

Clearly, the groups in power are doing what they can to deny relocation.

Although I hate to say it, the Raiders have one of the most diehard, passionate fan bases in professional sports. After nearly two decades of mediocrity, busted draft picks and questionable decision-making, Oakland should be rewarded for its patience. Led by stars David Carr, Amari Cooper and Khalil Mack, the Raiders appear ready to contend for years down the road, and the least Oakland management can do is reward their fan base’s unyielding loyalty with playoff berths and, most importantly, relevance.

Even if sentimentality may not be a deciding factor in the Raider management’s decision, economics should be. Given the fact that today’s sports franchises are worth upwards to billions of dollars and add generate almost 15 billion dollars toward the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), a competitive Raiders squad represents an opportunity for economic

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY JOCY HE

growth in a relatively stagnant part of Silicon Valley. Oakland’s recent job growth clocks in at 0.69 percent, roughly half a percent lower than the national average. Furthermore, recent studies confirm what should be a common axiom; winning games and an increase in GDP are closely connected. Strong on-field performances lead to increases in ticket sales, merchandising, and national/local exposure. A successful season may help boost Oakland’s economy, and with the recent play of the team, economic success may not be difficult to envision.

Although Oakland has supported its many sports franchises, the Raiders’ relocation controversy comes on the heels of recent decisions by the Golden State Warriors to move to San Francisco starting in 2019 and by the Oakland Athletics to begin thinking of a possible move to San Jose.

While supporting three franchises may have been untenable, Oakland should do what it can to retain what soon may be its last remaining franchise. Raiders fans deserve it for weathering the storm of dysfunctionality that has marked the team for so many years.

promotes peace and harmony and finds a way to do martial arts in a non-offensive manner,” said Seike. “Morals are of very Friday at lunch and afterschool, members of Ai- paramount importance.” kido Club, the only martial arts club on campus, meet to As practice progresses, students split up according to skill socialize and learn about the character-building martial level to work on techniques such as rolling, throwing and art of aikido. Members of the club enter their dojo, typically punching. Students often work in pairs to practice their skills the wrestling room or cove, eager to help each other improve. building trust and forming closer relationships.

Students in the club train under the instruction of literature “There’s a lot of one-on-one interaction,” said Sern. “It’s teacher and aikido instructor Andrew Seike. easy to communicate with each other that way, and that helps The art of aikido is based on the samurai traditions of me get out of my shell.” peace and cooperation. Unlike other martial arts, in which At the end of the year, members of Aikido Club will test the goal is to attack the opponent, the purfor a rank which is determined by the pose of learning aikido is to defend yourself skills that they can perform successfully. without harming your opponent.

These rankings merely rather gauge the “There is no competition in this club,” said “[AIKIDO] PROMOTES student’s knowledge and improvement. senior and vice-president Leslie Sern. “It’s all Those with an exceptionally high level of PEACE AND HARMONY about learning and having fun.” skill wear a hakama, traditional Japanese AND FINDS A WAY TO DO For many of the students, the club is not pants, which is a way to gauge skill level.

MARTIAL ARTS IN A NONonly a place where they can learn differMany students come into the club OFFENSIVE MANNER. ent martial arts techniques, but also a place with no prior martial arts experience, MORALS ARE OF PARAwhere they have formed close friendships. but under Seike’s instruction, they can Through aikido, club members have bonded now execute a variety of moves.

MOUNT IMPORTANCE.” over helping each other improve.

“I was new to martial arts at first, “It’s really easy to talk to people here,” ANDREW SEIKE thinking it was really intimidating. But said senior and president Daniel Li. “If you’re INSTRUCTOR now, it’s something I can enjoy and learn practicing and you need help with a techfrom,” said junior Alie Wu. “People may nique, you can ask Mr. Seike or the experithink that aikido is tense or intimidating, enced club members. Everyone is here to but it’s actually a place where you can learn and get better.” learn while having fun.”

Seike, the adviser, has been practicing aikido for over 25 Aikido’s values in peace and harmony encourage students years. His teaching shows humility and respect to students to respect each other and work together to learn aikido tech, interacting with students in a non-academic environment. niques, while having fun at the same time. They regularly “My goal is for students to be resilient and have some meet to socialize before and after practice. class,” said Seike. It’s about having discipline and being a bet“Aikido isn’t like other clubs where there are individual ter person. That’s my real reason for teaching aikido. There’s groups in the club,” said Wu. “Aikido Club is one whole family.” some self defense elements to it that I really enjoy teaching, Members in the club appreciate Seike’s dedication and hubut ultimately it’s about building character and teaching mor and look up to him for advice outside of aikido. something that’s from my culture.”

“Mr. Seike has helped us with everything,” said junior Judy A typical practice begins with the students on their knees Schel. “He’s helped us not only with aikido, but with life too. in seiza, the traditional Japanese way of sitting. In seiza, stu- He’s like a life counselor.” dents bow to a picture of O-sensei, the founder of aikido, as Aikido teaches students to have a calm and positive minda form of respect. They then turn around and bow to Seike, set, which helps them become more resilient and supportive. their instructor, and say, “onegaishimasu,” which means “It’s about working with yourself. Any enemy that’s out “please teach me” in Japanese. there doesn’t exist. It’s all in your mind,” said Seike. “It’s more “Aikido is an art and samurai fighting style of defense; it like conquering yourself.”

BY PATRICIA WEI

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MICHYLA LIN — EPIC

MICHYLA LIN — EPIC

MICHYLA LIN — EPIC

TEACHING THROUGH ACTION| Instructor Andrew Seike demonstrates the move, irimi nage, or “entering throw.”

Girls volleyball completes a smashing season

BY SRINIDHI SESHADRI

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oud cheers and celebratory high-fives can be heard from the girls in white Lynbrook jerseys on the court as the opposing team scrambles to receive the ball spiked powerfully over the net. The girls get back into position and get ready for the next play, encouraging each other.

This has been a common scene for many of Lynbrook’s opponents, as the girls volleyball team capped off a successful season by making it to the semifinals at the Central Coast Section (CCS) playoffs before losing to Valley Christian High School 3-0. The team ended the season with a combined 20 wins and 18 losses.

This year’s team includes athletes from all grade levels, with three freshmen and two sophomores along with three returning juniors and three returning seniors.

Through their experience on the team all the players have learned to become stronger athletes, especially the freshmen and sophomores who will later become role models for future teammates.

“It feels great to make it to CCS because it’s not that easy to get to the level we did,” said freshman Madeline Shao. “Sometimes it’s kind of scary because everybody’s older but it’s also fun.”

Although the team did not receive first place in the Santa Clara Valley - De Anza league, its wins at CCS Division II playoffs took them into the semifinals. Success was possible due to the team’s arduous training and hard work.

“This season, we had a new coach and many new players on the team, so at first it was a bit of a shot in the dark,” said junior Alice Cai. “Without knowing what we could do, at first our goal was only to stay in the upper league, but we ended up making it to CCS.” The girls typically began their practices

by spending the first 10 to 15 minutes warming up before moving on to more intense training. Warmups include general stretches, shuffle passes and “peppering,” a partner drill where a pair of players pass, set and hit the ball

coaching, and concerned about discipline, perfecting basic skills and fundamentals. Under his strict and determined coaching, the girls learned to adjust to Askanas’ style.

“The sharp transition [between coache s ]

to each other repeatedly. The team then continues to do more drills or has a scrimmage.

The team underwent many changes from the previous season, including implementing the tactics of new coach Dean Askanas.

Coach Askanas is straightforward in his

was a bit hard to get used to but eventually we realized the benefits and worked together,” said Cai. Upon moving up from the lower El Camino League, the girls suffered losses but were still able to achieve great success. The games they played this year were faster paced and

more competitive than previous years. Even if they lost, the girls were able to learn a lot just by playing and watching other higher level teams play. “[Our team] had to face some very tough teams and they have earned and have proved that they deserve the right to stay up in the league,” said Askanas.

In addition to practices, the team incorporates other methods in order to bond. Like other sport teams, they have “secret sisters,” where each member anonymously gifts their “sister” special treats on the day of a home game. The girls spend time with each other by getting lunch or dinner as a team in order to strengthen their relationships.

“Toward the beginning of the season, we lost two teammates and I think that really contributed to us forming a closer bond because all of us [had to] bear more responsibilities,” said senior and captain Jiayi Shen.

Although the season is now over, most of the athletes will continue playing volleyball for different clubs or begin playing other sports, which will help players stay in shape until the next season.

Through club volleyball, they can develop their skills and become more experienced players by playing with stronger players from other schools.

“The [school] team is more bonded than at [my] club,” said freshman Angela Steinmetz. “Since it’s more competitive and aggressive, people mostly play to win there.”

The girls are very proud of their position this year and aim to keep playing hard and to stay in the upper league next year “I feel proud knowing that I [was] on a strong and successful team especially since this is my last year,” said Shen.

The girls end this season primed and motivated for next year, where they will again contend for a CCS championship.

Odd Christmas sweaters for all

BY MICHYLA LIN

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is the season for awkward family reunions and annoying cousins ripping open their presents only to complain that they didn’t get the $200 hoverboard they wanted. On the other hand, it is also the season to inhale gallons of steaming hot

School Psychologist, Brittany Stevens Q: What is your favorite part of the holiday season?

A: The Christmas specials on TV, I love it all. Even the Rankin Bass old ones like, Rudolph the red nosed reindeer. I even love the hallmark Christmas movies where it all gets resolved within 2 hours time and it stars old, washed up movie actors.

chocolate, spend time with your loved ones and sing Christmas carols under your beautifully decorated Christmas tree.

In the 21st century, most families celebrate this festival by consuming inordinately large amounts of food and drink. However, the best part of the holiday season is the multitude of activities tleading up to the celebra-

Teacher, Megan Hamilton

Q: What is your favorite part about the holiday season?

Q: What is your favorite part about the holiday A:season?

My favorite part about the holiday season Mypeople favoritein part about are the holidays is that people isA: that general in a happy giving are generally happy giving mood, There’sthat a lot mood, There’sina alot of community service of community service People are more friendly happens.

There’s a lot. of outreach.

People are which ismore a really nice byproduct of the holidays. typically friendly so I think that’s a really

tion. One such activity is the donning of one’s most horrendous Christmas sweaters. Traditionally, these were hand-made knitted presents from an elderly relative, and were viewed as an embarrassment. But leave it to the modern generation to change things up and transform it into a trend. Below are a few Vikings proudly sharing their Christmas sweaters.

Senior, Kavi Ravuri Q: What is your favorite Christmas memory?

A: In 7th grade, some of our family friends and us, went to Truckee, a town near Tahoe, and rented a house for 7 days. The kids cooked and since it was a house we had our own little mountain, and we went skiing and snowboarding.

Junior, Holly Masterson

Sophomore, Priya Ram

Teacher, Kristy Harlin

Q: What is a special Christmas tradition that you have?

A: We have dinner with my cousins and we only see them once a year so that’s kind of a tradition. My mom also gives us each an ornament every single year. we have this one ornament of a house and it sings and it’s just cute.

Q: What do you usually do for Christmas?

A: My family and I drive around town and we look at houses that have been decorated for Christmas.

We usually go to the Fantasy of Lights in Los Gatos.

I don’t eat much Christmas food, just Indian food.

But, I really like eating samosas and candy canes. I get to spend time with my friends and family.

Q: What Christmas tradition do you follow?

A: My family is not very traditional, but we do always go out to Mexican food on Christmas Eve. We always had this one restaurant up in the North Bay in Santa Rosa that we went to, but it closed down this past summer. So, we have to find a new restaurant this year.