Entertainment Tech

Teens get ready for a summer of thrills as theme parks reopen

By Nancy Medrano

After a year of closing, California theme parks are taking all the precautions to safely welcome guests back.

On March 30, the County of Los Angeles Public Health, announced that Los Angeles has now met the less restrictive orange tier. This now means di erent restrictions are put into place and more businesses can begin to open up. Within the rst week of April, theme parks reopened.

“I think this will be a super fun way for teens to venture out into “normal life” again,” junior Tia Jarrett said. “It will be really good for people who have struggled to be social during quarantine.”

Six Flags Magic Mountain announced reopened April 1 for passholders and starting April 3, they welcomed California residents. Universal Studios Hollywood reopened on April 16 but pass members have been allowed to enter the park since April 15. Disneyland will reopen on April 30. Each of these three parks will only allow 25% capacity and reservations are required. You can make a park reservation online on the theme parks’ websites.

As for the safety guidelines, all three parks have similar steps to keep everyone in the park safe. Face masks are required all the time, unless you are actively eating or drinking. Six Flags Magic Mountain even o ers a “mask break zone.” When entering the theme parks, you are required to have your temperature taken. There are markings on the oor that are spaced out between parties while waiting for the rides. There are also hand sanitizers placed all around the parks to encourage guests to sanitize their hands as much as possible.

“I feel like it (theme parks reopening) will make teens happy because they get to spend time together and do fun things,” freshman Daniel Hernandez said.

When students heard about theme parks reopening, it brought some hope that things are slowly returning to normal. Some students even went as far as planning some days to go and spend time with their family or friends.

“I’m sure that since they are reopening that my family and I will be going again to Six Flags, I feel many teens think the same,” senior August DeFore said.

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Gadgets and websites that will help make college life less stressful

By Delilah Brumer Many students in the Class of 2021 will be going o to college this fall. This exciting new chapter in their lives also provides an excellent opportunity to buy some helpful gadgets and download some useful apps.

Charger Cord Organizer

Most college students have several devices they use every day and with multiple devices comes multiple charging cords. These cords often get tangled and they take an annoyingly long amount of time to unravel. This nuisance makes charger cord organizers extremely helpful. These small velcro cables will allow you to save your time for more important endeavors.

Pen Scanner

Transcribing physical notes and quoting passages from paper textbooks can be tedious and time consuming. This pen scanner solves that problem. Run this device over whatever you want typed up like a highlighter and it will transcribe it onto any compatible computer application. It also translates text and has a text-tospeech function.

Grammarly

College involves lots of essay writing, which is why the Grammarly app is so helpful. This app will spell and grammar check your writing and suggest edits. To make it even better, the app is free, although there is a paid premium version.

Todoist

There are lots of tasks to juggle in college, from classes to homework to jobs. It’s easy to lose track of when you need to do anything and carrying around a clunky planner can be an issue. That’s why Todoist is perfect for college students. This app acts as a digital planner to manage upcoming events and deadlines. It will even send reminders to your phone.

Portable Charger

Whether you’re traveling, walking around campus or studying, sometimes you won’t be able to nd an outlet to charge your devices. This is why having a portable charger can be very helpful. This charger is universally compatible and can charge an IPhone X up to six times before it needs to be recharged.

EasyBib

When you’re writing papers in college, you will almost certainly need to cite your sources. This is a complicated process that EasyBib simpli es. This website will help you make citations if you enter in your source. It is able to help with citations and bibliographies in multiple formats, including APA and MLA.