Aquila April 2019 (Vol. 8, Issue 2)

Volume VIII Issue II March 16, 2019

Aquila

University Preparatory Academy

Can you put down your phone?

See page 10 for an in-depth article on device addiction.

From the

EDITORS

W

e hope you enjoyed reading the stories in issue one, as well as the stories we have been publishing on our website and social media pages. Publishing—both online and in print—requires time commitment and dedication. It takes numerous rounds of edits, revisions and rewriting or redesigning to craft a final product. Before publishing anything, content reaches the hands of our section editors, managing editor, copy editors, other reporters and finally, us. Despite the hard work our staff has put into making significant improvements to the newsmagazine, as well as increasing our presence online, we value the opportunities we have to work with every individual. We love joking around and doing team building activities with them, as it instills the fact that we are a team.

Our writers and editors have continued to go above and beyond with their contributions to our online platforms through our website and social media. Most recently, our staff celebrated our published digital content with a “Feedback Frenzy,” where everyone viewed all the newly published articles on our website during class and made suggestions about how to make the visuals more appealing and the content as engaging as possible.

In this print edition, we report on topics ranging from good reads recommended by students (page 20) to a study looking at confidence in teenage girls (page 8). Avid readers always seem to be a minority on our campus, and by senior year, reading a book just for fun is basically unheard of. But Web Manager Ishan Madan and reporter Paolo Dimacali have flagged down readers and recorded their book recommendations.

On a more serious note, research conducted by Fun & Games Editor Jenna Plasschaert explores the underlying reasons that cause a significant number of teenage girls to feel insecure about themselves. With an academically competitive environment at UPA, students frequently compare themselves to their peers or hold themselves to high standards that are impossible to meet. She speaks with Emily Ryan, the mental health counselor here on campus, to understand the causes for these feelings of insecurity. Also notable is our decision to incorporate stories regarding sports for the first time in an issue of the newsmagazine: an opinion piece on the NBA’s G.O.A.T. (page 5) and a feature story on freshman Andrew Crabtree, a competitive swimmer for the South Valley Stingrays (page 14).

If there are any topics you feel are missing from our content, please contact us on our social media or submit a story idea using the QR code on the following page. We hope you enjoy issue two.

Emily Hung and Nicole Rendler Co-editors in chief

AQUILA

Illustrations by Betty Nguyen

Editors-in-Chief Emily Hung Nicole Rendler

T U ABO A L I AQU

Multimedia Manager Kristian Crowther Web Manager Ishan Madan Social Media Manager Luca Scarra Publicity Manager Rasleen Saran Managing Editor Rafael Castillo News Editor Janessa Ulug Opinions Editor Pallavi Rajani Features Editor Alexandra Rozmarin In-Depth Editor Greg Haessner Arts & Culture Editor Rory Dhanota Sports Editor Dylan Ziegler

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Fun & Games Editor Jenna Plasschaert Copy Editors Arielle Rose-Finn Katherine Nguyen Reporters Isabella Bronner Geraldo Castro Paolo Dimacali Jack Grzegorzyk Farah Noor Tobenna Nwosu Desiree Pekar Colin Updyke-Welch Jacob Villareal Vrinda Vutukury Page Designers Emily Magallon Betty Nguyen Chelsea Nguyen Joshua Nguyen Grace Pham Evelyn Ramirez Joe Shem Akhil Vemuri Julia Wong Graphic Artist Jenica Pham Adviser Laura Gordon Reska

Connect with Us

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Have a story? Scan the QR code to submit your suggestions or email us at aquila@upatoday.com. @upa_aquila

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Aquila News

In this issue...

NEWS

—Next Generation Science Standards (1)

OPINION

—Toxic Gossip (4) —King of the Court (5) —In My Opinion (6)

Archive photo by Kristian Crowther

IN-DEPTH

—Head Held High (8) —Sucked In (10)

FEATURES

—An Ace at Cards (13) —Life in the Fast Lane (14) —Convenient, Cheap, & Dangerous (16) —Spotlight on Hannah Van Gelder (18)

ARTS & CULTURE

Photo by Greg Haessner

—Food Meets Photography (19) —The Books They Read (20) —Reaching the Apex (21)

FUN & GAMES —Match the Baby (22)

Photo by Nicole Rendler

ON THE COVER

The front cover photo, by Nicole Rendler, represents the tight hold digital devices have on our lives today.

See Janessa Ulug’s article, “Sucked In,” on page 10 to learn more about how to combat tech addition.

Volume VIII Issue II March 16, 2019

Aquila

University Preparatory Academy

Can you put down your phone?

See page 10 for an in-depth article on device addiction.

NEWS

By Emily Hung The sound of chatter fills the room as students collaborate on a project, reinforcing their understanding of lectures and readings.

A curriculum, mandated by the state of California, along with 19 other states, has introduced a new set of standards to science classes, according to the National Science Teachers Association.

The hope of educators is to inspire the next generation of students to think in a scientifically literate way. With the new curriculum, students will be taught to think outside the box and question the world around them through engagement and exploration.

The Next Generation Science Standards, more commonly known as NGSS, will officially be fully implemented during the 2019-2020 school year at UPA, as well as in other public and charter schools in California that serve grades K-12.

“It’s more of a project-based curriculum than a sit-there-andlisten-to-a-teacher lecture,” high school Science Department Lead Teacher Richard Prizznick said. “But I think it’s a much more engaging curriculum because it is project based.”

Although lectures will diminish in frequency, they will not disappear completely. Lectures are still necessary to ensure students understand the foundational material before experimenting or drawing conclusions.

But instead of taking a class focused solely on biology, for instance, students will experience a crosscut curriculum, where they will learn components of biology, chemistry, physics,

Illustration by Emily Hung

engineering and math—disciplinary core ideas—and build upon their skills in those topics each year.

“It’s exactly like Integrated Math or core curriculum math,” Prizznick said.

Middle school students will experience the most significant change, as they will witness a reordering of concepts in which they will start learning biology, chemistry, physics and earth science in the same school year.

NGSS attempts to spark students’ interests by providing them with the opportunity to discover concepts on their own and elaborating on or applying the new concepts to related phenomena, according to the NGSS website.

The curriculum revolves around the 5E Model: engage, explore, explain, elaborate and evaluate.

Middle school Science Department Lead Teacher Jill Buensuceso describes the impact NGSS will have on students.

“In so much that it is designed to improve student questioning, experimenting analysis and reasoning, NGSS should better prepare students for college sciences and life,” Buensuceso said, who is currently piloting the Amplify program in her two life science classes using the publisher Amplify Sciences. “It also requires students to be more collaborative—an important life skill—and teaches that sciences are not really compartmentalized, [rather] they’re all connected and affect society and our real world.”

For their semester one final, seventh grade students completed an engineering project regarding macromolecules after they learned about energy and matter. The project, Metabolism Engineering Internship: Health Bars for Disaster Relief, was incorporated into the seventh grade science classes for the first time this school year as it directly aligned with the NGSS curriculum.

The goal of the project was to create a nutritious health bar for people who had been affected by natural disasters, as well as for rescue workers who aid in cleanup efforts. The final culminated with a binder filled with each group’s research and a presentation.

“This project focused on the study of lipids and protein,” science teacher Vaishali Patil said. “It was correlating the [content] and unit we were doing. This is how NGSS incorporates group activity and inquiry based learning.”

For students such as seventh grader Christina Soeleman, experimentation draws her interest and helps her better grasp the content.

“I like hands-on [activities] because it’s easier for me to learn,” Soeleman said. “We did a lab to see which material holds heat the best. I thought that was fun, and my group was really nice and worked fast.”

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How have teachers at UPA prepared to teach the new curriculum?

Prizznick and Buensuceso have worked for the past three years to spearhead the development of the NGSS curriculum to officially incorporate into science classes at UPA for the fall of 2019. Once a month, all science teachers meet at 7:15 a.m. on Fridays to review the upcoming curriculum.

“Part of the reason it’s taking several years to fully implement NGSS is due to the need for teachers to adjust their teaching styles,” Buensuceso said. “Most of us were taught under the traditional model and are comfortable with our current methods, so, as it is with anything new, there is often initial resistance to change. At the same time, we understand and support that doing science is much more effective and fun, and NGSS makes a lot of sense.”

Teachers have been implementing aspects of NGSS in their classes for the past two years, Patil said. This semester, she also derived her curriculum off the same publisher as Buensuceso.

Archive photo by Kristian Crowther “To help us understand and wrap our brains around the changes, the department has attended training sessions at the county office and held in-house follow up sessions,” Buensuceso said. “We continue to self-reflect on our teaching and adjust to the new model today, [as] we are piloting a module for one program in seventh and eighth grades this semester.”

For the past two years, Prizznick has been mentoring the science teachers and giving them lectures regarding the implementation of NGSS. He has organized study groups to prepare for what is to come in the next year.

Science teachers have written some of their own curriculum that corresponds with NGSS, and they have been interviewing vendors to supply the school with compliant textbooks and materials.

All science classes, except for AP classes, will experience this change, as AP classes fall outside of the NGSS curriculum, Prizznick said. The science department hopes the time they have invested in preparations will ease the transition for new science teachers.

“By adapting a package that already has a curriculum map in it, has the methodology 5E, puts together the self guided inquiry process for them, they can step right into it and have a high level of comfort, instead of anxiety,” he said.

NGSS Strengths and Weaknesses

In California, schools must begin adopting the NGSS curriculum starting 2020. This, however, might pose problems for students.

“You may be a tenth grader doing NGSS, but you may not have received the ninth grade and K-8 information, so there might be some holes in your knowledge base,” Prizznick said. “That’s the thing I anticipate to be one of the largest problems you’re going to have.”

It will take a while for students to catch up on information they might have missed from previous years with the NGSS K-12 curriculum.

Teachers will also need to refresh their memories on other subjects, since they will no longer be teaching single subjects as they currently do.

“If you’re teaching NGSS science for ninth graders, you’re covering biology, engineering, chemistry, physics, math and English,” Prizznick said. “From the teacher’s perspective, that’s kind of scary because now I have to teach engineering. I never did engineering.”

Teachers also need to adapt to the curriculum map, especially if

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Illustration by Greg Haessner

Illustration by Greg Haessner

they have been using the same lesson plans for several years.

Still, the standards for the NGSS curriculum directly align with the format of the California Science Test (CAST) administered to eighth graders and seniors.

“NGSS evaluates student understanding using performance expectations, which are essentially goals of what students will be able to do,” Buensuceso said. “Similarly, [CAST] asks students to demonstrate their knowledge through activities, analysis and explanation. The old tests were very much fact-centric. Here, students need to apply their knowledge and use critical reasoning to synthesize information and defend claims.”

And NGSS touches on three learning modalities: auditory, kinesthetic and visual.

This aims to ensure that each student will be engaged when learning and understanding new material.

“In a group, we could have somebody that’s really good at reading and writing and develops the scenario,” Prizznick said. “We could have another person who’s great at building models as part of the group. And then we can have another person who really wants to test and be creative. That’s how things get made and developed. And that’s how we have breakthroughs. It’s not through memorizing data. It’s through asking questions and trying things.”

Archive photo by Kristian Crowther Eighth grade students lined up to launch the paper airplanes they created in a project, aligned with the NGSS standards, assigned by former teacher Mark Kent in his fifth period Gateway to Technology class during the 2017-18 school year. The project’s goal was to test the student’s knowledge of aerodynamics. They also wrote essays before they designed and tested their paper planes.

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OPINION

Toxic Gossip The harsh truth of girl-on-girl hate

By Vrinda Vutukury Cardi B and Nicki Minaj, two extremely talented female rappers, collaborated professionally with hip-hop trio Migos for the hit song “Motorsport” in 2017.

In 2018, Nicki liked a negative tweet about Cardi’s parenting skills. Since then, these two have taken every opportunity to continuously criticize and demean each other.

From insulting each other in their songs, to slandering each other in interviews and on live radio shows, it took to an entirely different level when Cardi threw a shoe at Nicki at a Fashion Week afterparty.

While these artists have openly portrayed their hatred toward each other on a very public and visible platform, their behavior is no different from what many women face in their homes, schools, workplaces or communities.

Girl-on-girl hate.

Most women have experienced it in some form or the other at least once in their lives, and no place is immune to it. It is everywhere and on the rise.

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Though relatively small, our own school, UPA, is home to girlon-girl hate.

Unnecessary judgements.

Unwarranted comparison.

Unfair grudges.

Based on a study that evaluated 300 people’s habits and conversations, Dr. Nicholas Emler, a social psychologist, deduced that gossip makes up 80% of conversations.

Though it might start as harmless conversation, gossip can quickly become malicious when fueled by emotions of jealousy, insecurity or feelings of inadequacy in areas of life people highly value.

According to Noam Schnaper, who has a PhD in clinical psychology, girls undermine and demotivate each other openly or behind people’s backs. This stems from jealousy and their own insecurities. Girls, more often than not, judge each other more harshly, and they body shame and disrespect each other when gossiping.

The tendency to gossip creates our own insecurities. Well aware of the gossip and negativity that swirls around, girls develop a fear of judgment and isolation.

Due to this, they feel oppressed or try to change themselves, often falling prey to peer pressure.

We advocate for women empowerment, yet we are our own obstacle. Our vying and jealous actions hold us back. Our lack of self-confidence stops us from realizing and reaching our full potential, which in turn blocks us from truly being ourselves.

If we want to successfully empower ourselves and each other, we girls have to break our self-created barriers. But most importantly, we must stop tearing each other apart.

We must all support and stand united instead of pulling each other down.

We must learn to recognize and appreciate the positive aspects of others.

It is time to stop girl-on-girl hate.

Let’s all remember: One girl’s beauty does not make another any uglier.

One girl’s achievement does not make another any less talented.

One girl’s intelligence does not make another any less capable.

One girl’s opportunity is not the end of it all for another.

Our individuality will lead to strength and confidence, but our solidarity will lead to empowerment.

Illustration by Jenica Pham

King of the Court: LeBron James

By Tobenna Nwosu It was the 2016 NBA Finals, Game 7.

It was on the Warriors home court, the game tied 89-89.

The Cleveland Cavaliers’ small forward LeBron James bolted down the court as the Golden State Warriors’ small forward Andre Iguodala attempted to score a layup and increase his team’s lead. Seemingly out of nowhere, James elevated himself to block the shot, collected the rebound and blasted a cross-court pass to teammate Kyrie Irving for the 3.

The Cavaliers later went on to win the championship game, and many basketball fans and players regard it as the greatest performance ever witnessed during a finals game.

James is basketball’s greatest player as he has countlessly performed above other successful players, most specifically his biggest competitor Michael Jordan.

Jordan’s accolades and accomplishments present an arguable case for the title, although there are a variety of elements that raise James over Jordan.

Primarily, James has averaged a much better statistical line throughout his career, standing at 27 points per game, seven rebounds and seven assists per game, compared to Jordan’s 30 points, six rebounds and five assists.

James’ career statistical line indicates a greater team impact, as while he was not as proficient of a scorer as Jordan, he was a better facilitator and rebounder.

James has also made a total of eight appearances in the NBA Finals, which trumps Jordan’s total of six.

Another aspect that illustrates James’ dominance over Jordan is his success at some of the highest levels (NBA Conference Finals and beyond) without the All-Star (elite level) teammates that have accompanied Jordan at those same elite levels.

The argument for basketball’s Greatest of All Time (G.O.A.T.) should not be controversial. It is clearly the King, LeBron James.

Some people might remain undecided on this topic and other groups of fans might consider Jordan to be basketball’s greatest player. The actuality remains that many continue to overlook the significance of James’ accomplishments in comparison to other players.

James has individually fueled more championship drives than Jordan for various teams with essentially no assistance.

The longevity James has displayed throughout his career has undoubtedly transcended that of all other players.

Photo illustration by Nicole Rendler Reporter Tobenna Nwosu shoots a free throw wearing a LeBron James jersey. James played for the Miami Heat from 2010-2014.

5

In My Opinion

Compiled by Rafael Castillo

Editor’s note: UPA students sent in their opinions about various topics they feel passionate about, ranging from immigration to Tuesday and Thursday Seminar. Opinions were submitted through a Google form emailed to the student body.

These responses have been edited for clarity and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Aquila staff.

“All people are mentally equal and have the same rights as you do. You can’t force anyone to do the same things you do or like the same things you like. It’s OK to correct someone if you know they’re doing something wrong, but if you’re correcting them simply because your tastes aren’t similar to theirs, then you have to realize that you have no real control over them and that they are their own person.”

“Sometimes, I feel like all of my friends are really supportive of me, but then at the same time they discourage me. For example, they always congratulate me on getting a great score on a test, but then boast about their score and how it’s better than mine. I have a feeling they ask me for my score just so they can do that, which really makes me sad because they don’t care about what I got, only about their ‘perfect score.’”

“Tuesday Seminar is less useful than Thursday Seminar because we only do simple activities instead of doing homework for other classes that we need to do. If Tuesday Seminars were more like Thursday Seminars, that would be better.”

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Illustrations by Jenica Pham

“The American education system is based upon unrealistic expectations and should be modeled closer to European education systems. Everyone here is expected to get an ‘A,’ meanwhile passing grades are barely a ‘C.’ College degrees have been invisible markers for class and wealth while half of the population is unable to get a basic education.”

“I feel like people who talk about ‘cultural appropriation’ and are offended by it should not be. If someone not of my culture wore a prom dress originating from my culture, I would not get mad because they are appreciating my culture. People need to stop being so offended by everything.”

“People are talking about how to help the homeless by building homes for them because they don’t have enough money to buy one for themselves, but that’s not the issue. The real issue is that the majority of homeless do not want to work; they would rather use the money they receive to buy drugs. I am not saying all do, but most homeless people who have a sign with ‘Please help, very hungry, God bless’ don’t accept the food my family gives, but instead prefers money for whatever reason. The way to solve the homeless epidemic is not by building more homes, but creating more jobs to allow more opportunities and also to restrict donations to only food.

When you see a sign with those words, donate food, not money. Who knows what they do with it?

Help the homeless, don’t hurt.”

“I am a conservative and align more with the right side of the political compass. Even though I’m a child of an African immigrant, I am scared of being called a racist for being open about my opinions about politics. My opinion about illegal immigration is that we should build a wall to keep illegal aliens out of our country, but I support legal immigration because my mother is a legal immigrant.”

Scan the QR code to access AQUILA’S Google form where students and teachers alike can submit their opinion on any topic.

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IN-DEPTH

HEAD HELD

HIGH

Cultivating confidence in teenage girls

By Jenna Plasschaert

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Illustration by Jenica Pham

S

he stares at herself in the mirror, pointing out each and every imperfection. It’s not hard. From the blemishes on her face to the stretch marks on her thighs to the way her nose scrunches when she laughs. The river of insults never runs dry. But somehow, the river of compliments do. People tell her she’s pretty. They tell her she’s smart. So why do the insults stay? What makes it so hard for her to believe that she could be enough?

Louann Brizendine, a board-certified psychiatrist, explains that the area of the brain that controls negative thinking is called the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and is larger and more influential in women than in men. Negative thoughts trigger a stress hormone in the central nervous system which has the power to shut down some of the higher cognitive parts of the brain, such as the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for planning, decision-making, problem-solving and self-control.

UPA’s mental health counselor Emily Ryan recognizes that women generally have a higher emotional sensitivity potentially because many of them become mothers.

“Compared to how [men] are wired, in general, [women] are created gentler, more nurturing and motherly,” Ryan said.

In a study conducted by researchers Daniel McDuff, Evan Kodra, Rana el Kaliouby and Marianne LaFrance, facial expressions of both men and women were analyzed while watching different advertisements. Findings concluded that women are generally more expressive with emotions including happiness and sadness, while men tend to express anger.

Furthermore, life experiences play a role in shaping one’s personality. Detrimental thoughts stemming from childhood experiences, social media or bullying from peers have the ability to break down a person’s confidence.

“There’s certain milestones that we all hit as we grow,” Ryan said. “If we don’t have a nurturing and loving environment, then we don’t tend to hit those [milestones] and that can affect us as we grow older.”

Whether it is unsupportive parents, teachers, coaches or peers, when young people hear a message, especially a negative one, they tend to replay it over and over in their mind. This can cause young people, specifically girls, to take labels that other people

Tips for a More Confident You Here are some strategies to help build confidence! Information compiled by Jenna Plasschaert from 76 high school girls surveyed at UPA.

The most beautiful thing you can wear is confidence.

94.7%

OF HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS SURVEYED AT UPA HAVE STRUGGLED WITH CONFIDENCE

63.2%

OF SURVEY RESPONDENTS SAID THAT IT WAS DUE TO COMPARISON TO PEERS

HAPPY THOUGHTS Practice thinking positive thoughts. Look in the mirror and give yourself compliments until you begin to believe them. Be kind to yourself. It is OK to mess up or make mistakes.

SPREAD LOVE, RECEIVE LOVE Surround yourself with people who will uplift you rather than bring you down, so that you have people to rely on when self-doubt creeps in.

Find a good couple of friends you can talk to and are comfortable around. Distance yourself from those who tear you down and make you feel insecure, even if they used to be your friend.

JOURNALING Write words of encouragement on sticky notes and put them around your room. Write down your thoughts in a journal when you feel stressed or confused. Write down all the traits you love about yourself and go back to that list when you are feeling down.

DRESS UP Working out, wearing clothes that make you feel comfortable or putting extra effort into your appearance with hair, makeup or jewelry can make you feel more confident and motivated.

have given them and make them part of their identity, which can be challenging to escape later in life.

Out of 76 female high school students surveyed at UPA, 95% said they have struggled with low confidence sometime throughout high school and 63% said that it was primarily due to comparison to peers.

“We grow up with comparison, what we know is good and bad,” Ryan said. “With grades, ‘A’ is the standard and if you don’t get that, then you are comparing it to the ‘A.’ Comparison is the thief of joy.”

Junior Isabella Cayabyab feels UPA’s competitive environment often steals her joy and causes her to feel insecure in her academic ability.

“UPA stresses having rigorous courses and great grades,” Cayabyab said. “They say we are better than public schools, but on top of that, they want us to be better than the people here. There is this competition of who’s going to go to a good [college] and who has the better grades.”

At the same time, sophomore Thrisha Praveen has found that her confidence has grown partly due to the fact that UPA has a smaller student body than most schools.

“Because it is smaller, you get to actually talk to more people and get to know their problems,” Praveen said. “In bigger public schools it’s easier to think ‘this group of people is so popular’ or ‘oh, they’re perfect,’ versus when you actually get to know someone and you realize they aren’t.”

Feeling insecure at times comes with being human, but there are ways to train the brain to combat those negative thoughts when they appear.

“There are little ridges in our brain and when we think something over and over and over again, the ridge gets deeper,” Ryan said. “When [we] think negatively, [our] brain will start thinking negatively automatically, and so it is really hard to change that.

[We] have to be really intentional about saying ‘I am going to think of this instead of this.’”

Neuropsychologist Celeste Campbell explains neuroplasticity as the physiological changes in the brain that occur as a result of our interactions with our environment. Practicing a new habit can change the connections between neurons in the neural pathways.

By thinking happy thoughts, activity increases in the brain’s left prefrontal cortex and solidifies a pathway, which makes it easier for a person to maintain a positive mindset.

“Changing your pathways isn’t easy,” Ryan said. “It takes a lot of work, but you can do it and how you can start being more positive is by really being intentional.”

“Comparison is the thief of joy.”

— Emily Ryan 9

Sucked In

An unhealthy addiction to digital devices

By Janessa Ulug

Hey! Did u know that we have a test tmr?

WHAT?! NO!!

Well RIP. It’s difficult HELP ME!!

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Junior Sophia Singh sits down to eat, phone in hand, finger poised on the home button as she waits to unlock all the pleasures of the virtual world.

Her parents give her a meaningful look as if to ask, ‘Really? Going on your iPhone at the dinner table again?’

She decides to set it down.

Buzz!

A notification halts her movement and she forgets what she was doing in the first place. A bright green icon occupies her mind instead.

You have three new text messages!

She is sucked into the vortex once again. …

Like Singh, junior Chanelle Snead has been addicted to her phone since middle school.

Her situation is dire, and she does not see it improving.

“Nowadays, tech addiction is detrimental to a lot of factors in our lives and I’m not sure how to stop it because I, myself, am addicted,” Snead said. “But at this rate, I’m positive the outcome won’t be good.”

Snead’s device addiction has not left a corner of her life untouched. It affects her school life, relationships—even her physical health.

“Being addicted to my phone has gotten me in trouble in class, caused me to miss out on quality moments with other people, given me eyesight problems from looking at my phone too much and has made me feel insecure without it,” she said.

Snead, however, is not alone in her struggle with technology addiction. In a survey taken by 87 UPA students, 34.5% reported being addicted to their devices.

“I’ve become obsessed with updating calendars, replying seconds after receiving an email [and] losing track of time on YouTube,” freshman Jasmine Bowles said.

Students generally acknowledge that although phones, tablets and computers are valuable tools, they have the potential to be misused. Yet, 34.9% of students believe that the convenience and countless uses of devices outweigh the tolls they take on the mind and body. Among popularly cited reasons is a device’s ability to be used as several different tools and assistance in completing schoolwork.

“My device allows me to have a calculator, dictionary, map, camera, compass and many other features available at all times,” senior Amy Chattaway said. “On top of the many safety features and varied uses, my phone lets me keep in contact with way more people than I would be able to without it.”

But are devices distracting more than they are beneficial? 79.3% of stu-

Time UPA students spend on a device each day, according to a survey of 87 students.

Illustrations by Janessa Ulug

“I think [device addiction] has made me not want to talk to new people and [only] to the people that I already know.”

—Sophia Singh dents surveyed believe their devices make them less productive either sometimes or always. “[Devices] make you less focused on homework,” Singh said. “You talking to someone will make you distracted and not want to do your work.”

This habit of inefficiency can significantly affect a student’s grades, as well as overall academic and social performance.

“I know a lot of people that—instead of doing homework—are just always on their phone,” Singh said. “They’re always up until late at night and that affects their performance on tests or them doing their work.”

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Conclusions from a 2015 Kent State University study on GPA—“The Relationship Between Cell Phone Use and Academic Performance in a Sample of U.S. College Students”—supports this.

The study found that “a hierarchical regression demonstrated that cell phone use was significantly and negatively related to actual college GPA. … Thus, after controlling for other established predictors, increased cell phone use was associated with decreased academic performance.”

Students believe that technology overuse affects social skills as well. In fact, 48.2% of UPA students surveyed reported that 50% or more of their communication is done via their device.

“I think [device addiction] has made me not want to talk to new people and [only] to the people that I already know,” Singh said. “It’s made me talk to them more over the phone instead of face-to-face, which is not genuine connection.”

Attachment to technology can cause teens to miss out on valuable experiences, such as concerts, where people often record with their phones instead of immersing themselves in the present.

Aside from the mental and emotional effects of substantial device usage, devices can have a physical impact on people, too. Among the numerous physical effects is eyesight degradation.

Computer screens, tablets and smartphones emit blue light, which is not inherently bad. Rather, it helps people maintain their natural sleep cycle and is crucial to eye development. However, as the phrase “everything in moderation” reinforces, too much blue light can damage retinal cells and decrease visual contrast, leading to conditions such as deterioration of the central retina and digital eye strain.

The presence of blue light can also cause serious damage to growing teenagers. Blue light is a signal that the body must stay awake, but if people are using their phones at night, it can slow the production of the body’s sleep-inducing hormone at the wrong time, resulting in difficulties falling asleep.

“When I tend to go on my device before I go to sleep, I can’t sleep for a little bit, and then I want to go back on my device so it’s kind of like a cycle,” Singh said.

The Apple Screen Time app allows Radiation is also a possible effect of device overuse, but people to schedule downtime, set studies on the significance of radiation from computers, screen time limits, track web history tablets and phones—such as a 2011 study on the effect of and monitor app usage. This app is free cell phone radiation by the Journal of the American Medand is accessible to download for iOS. ical Association—have been inconclusive. *Support.apple.com Feeling hopelessly attached? Don’t be. Technology addiction can be combated effectively through the restricScreentime for iOS and Android enables tion of device usage. Users can simply install a screen people to create daily screen time limits, time-limiting app—such as Screen Time by Apple—and block apps at certain times in the day, set restrictions for how long they are allowed to use specifpause device activity and monitor web ic applications on their phone. history. Note: A 14-day trial includes This is what Singh has done, and although she still confree basic monitoring. Afterward, it costs siders herself addicted, she is already noticing results. She $4.99 a month for premium managing. does not feel as attached to her phone anymore and is able *Screentimelabs.com to have genuine conversations with the people around her.

“I stopped relying so much on checking my messagOurPact for Android is a screen time es and social media and focused more on the real world,” app that allows parents to block apps, Singh said.

“I noticed myself socializing more and being internet and texting, locate devices more open minded with conversing.” and schedule screen time limits. Note: …

The Basic Feature is free, but the Plus At the dinner table, five minutes deep into scrolling Feature is $1.99 a month. The Premium through her Instagram feed, Sophia’s food is still unFeature costs $6.99 a month. touched. *Ourpact.com Suddenly, the screen of her phone goes white. A few The Qustudio screen time app for words appear on the display.

Android and iOS can be used to filter Time Limit: You’ve reached your limit on Instagram. harmful content, limit screen time on There’s a flash of annoyance. A flash of longing. But all devices, set time limits for certain she knows it’s for the best. apps and block apps. This app is free.

Sophia sets her phone face down on the table and looks *Qustodio.com up to meet the eyes of her parents. She smiles.

The vortex has been intercepted.

Screen Time Apps

12 Illustrations by Janessa Ulug

FEATURES

An Ace At Cards

By Julia Wong

Seventh grader Maryann Huynh pulls a card out of her deck, and to her participants’ astonishment, it is the card they selected.

They do not know how she did it. They had just watched as she put the card into the pile, and a minute later, she had pulled the card out again.

Not only is Huynh known for her card tricks, but she is also described by her friend, seventh grader Karen Heng, as easygoing and friendly.

“She’s very fun to hang out with,” Heng said. “She’s really nice [and], she gets along with other people pretty well. She’s sociable.”

According to Heng, Huynh is a skilled percussionist in the school’s beginning band.

“She has really good drum skills,” she said. “She used to play the trumpet, but then she switched to percussion.”

Huynh’s vibrant personality and musical skills are only a part of who she is.

Huynh has been doing card tricks for more than two years after she picked up the skill watching YouTube videos during the summer of 2017.

“I learned because I saw other people doing it and I was like, ‘woah,’ and my mind was blown,” Huynh said.

She spends, on average, three days a week practicing her card tricks and performing in front of her friends and family.

“Maryann has shown me some of her card tricks,” seventh grader Amiah Woertink said. “They’re impressive and pretty cool, and they’re as good as any other magic trick.”

For seventh grader Amanda Mussa, Huynh’s tricks blow her away.

“She showed me a trick once at lunch, and I couldn’t figure it out,” Mussa said. “I even went home and Googled it, and I couldn’t find anything. She’s amazing at her card tricks.”

Huynh likes to further impress her friends by frequently showing them her new tricks.

“They’re always like, ‘What the heck?’ and they’re shocked,” Huynh said.

Huynh learns new card tricks by watching channels, such as A Million Card Tricks, which shows viewers easy-to-understand ways to perform tricks, although she puts a spin to them and also makes up new names for them. “[It takes] one video to learn because they teach us step by step,” she said. “But if it’s a really hard sleight of hand, then it might take me a day or two [to learn].”

Although Huynh considers herself to be skilled, she is still learning several tricks, some of which are more advanced.

“I’m still learning the one where someone picks a card, and then you transfer that card to their pocket secretly,” Huynh said.

She calls the first trick she learned “Finding The Missing Card,” wherein someone watching picks a card, puts it back into the deck and lets her find it.

“My dad actually taught me that trick,” Huynh said, adding that it is an easier card trick for most people to learn.

Although Huynh only performs tricks for her friends and family, she is considering to bring her talents to the stage.

“I guarantee you she can make a living out of it when she’s older,” Mussa said. “[There’s] no doubt she should be in the talent show.”

Photos by Julia Wong

13

By Grace Pham He steps onto the starting block after hearing the first whistle.

As the second whistle blows, the row of swimmers transition to their diving positions. On your mark... get set... splash!

Freshman Andrew Crabtree is a competitive swimmer for the South Valley Stingrays team in San Jose. Currently in his fifth year of swimming, Crabtree said the sport helps him destress from school.

“It’s really relaxing and it’s a nice way to get away from studying, but I don’t have a ton of free time because of swimming,” Crabtree said.

Crabtree, who practices an hour and a half to two hours a day on average, started swimming when his family moved into a neighborhood located right next to the community pool.

“I got into swimming when we moved houses five years ago and there was a neighborhood Cabana Club,” Crabtree said. “So my mom thought it would be a good idea to try

14

the swim team.”

Sophomore Ashley Nguyen, one of Crabtree’s teammates, witnesses the dedication he puts into swimming.

“Even when he isn’t feeling well, Andrew continues to do his very best for every single set,” Nguyen said. “He puts a lot of effort in every single set, and he gives it his all.”

Crabtree has learned swimming is an illustration of how hard work pays off. As he practices, he can enhance his skills.

“It’s just very clear as I’ve worked harder, I’ve improved,” Crabtree said. “But in swimming, I can really see that as I put in more time, my time improves.”

His coach, Jerry Bozzo of the South Valley Stingrays, recognizes Crabtree’s hard work.

“Andrew has six training sessions a week that are two hours in length,” Bozzo said. “He makes a high percentage of his practice sessions.”

Bozzo acknowledges the tardiness of student athlete swimmers to practice due to school work.

LIFE IN THE FAST LANE

Photo courtesy of Victor Bittorf “Andrew is occasionally late due to academic and other schedule conflicts,” Bozzo said. “The coaching staff at South Valley Stingrays supports our athletes that arrive late because we want to emphasize responsibility and support our student athletes.”

The staff at South Valley Stingrays also make efforts to have swimmers balance school and still have the energy to make a splash in the pool.

“We strive to create an environment where athletes can strive to be good students and still have passion for competitive swimming,” Bozzo said.

Competition is beneficial to Crabtree, especially since he puts himself side by side with others, so he can improve upon himself.

It helps him have ambition when trying to enhance his swim skills.

“I’m a competitive person,” Crabtree said. “So I like that you can compare yourself to a certain degree. I can compare myself to others, which helps motivate me.”

One skill Crabtree has learned in swimming that he utilizes in school is paying attention. During practice, drills are done con-

stantly. One after another. Going to and from each end of the lane helps him stay afloat in swimming and in school. “[In] swimming, you spend almost all of the time actually doing a set,” Crabtree said. “You’re just spending time going back and forth. You have to stay focused pretty much that whole time.”

Crabtree also makes good use of his time in school and swimming.

“Andrew and many swimmers on his team have great time management skills and use good judgement to excel in GPA and performance,” Bozzo said.

Crabtree believes the reason swimming is different from volleyball, basketball or cross country—the only sports currently offered at UPA—is its focus on diligence and desire, not necessarily about being innately skilled.

“I’d say it’s very much about how hard you work, and it’s less about natural talent,” Crabtree said. “It’s just absolutely based on how you improve. So it’s an equal playing field.”

15

Convenient, Cheap, Behind fun Lime Scooter rides are concussions,

I

By Joe Shem magine riding an electric scooter and traveling anywhere in town for a dollar and a little more, in a world where a bus can only take you to certain stops for the same price. Now, this is possible with a Lime Scooter.

Lime S-Scooters, commonly known as “Lime Scooters,” are electric scooters invented by Lime, a bicycle-sharing system company. According to Lime’s website, the scooters are available domestically in 31 of the 50 states and internationally in Canada, France, Mexico and England.

As stated in Lime’s safety rules, a rider must be at least 18 years old and wear a helmet. The free Lime app is available on the App Store or the Google Play Store, and to activate the scooter, scan the QR code on the handles or baseboard. It costs $1 to unlock the scooter and 15 cents per minute afterward.

During the college field trips in October 2018, freshman Thomas Hagos rode a Lime scooter for the first time at CSU Monterey Bay. “It’s very simple,” Hagos said. “You just download the app, put money in it and get on a scooter.”

Lime Scooters can also make it easier and faster to travel to places near UPA, such as The Plant shopping center, VTA stations or downtown San Jose.

Sophomore Matias Edwards uses Lime scooters for those very reasons.

“It’s mainly for everyday transportation,” Edwards said.

The rules to use it, however, are not explicitly stated on the scooter. Senior Anthony Chavez Ward used the Lime app with his cousin for the first time in 2017, and the rules were not clearly explained to him.

He did not realize Lime requires riders to wear helmets, abide by traffic laws, and leave the scooter by the side of the road when it is finished being used.

In addition, safety is at risk when riding a scooter or walking near a rider. Lime scooters can reach speeds of 15 mph and riders do not wear protective gear every time they ride, nor do they know or abide

by traffic laws.

According to CNN, Daniela Rivera, a 26-year-old actress and restaurant server in Los Angeles, decided to ride a lime scooter just last year.

“I didn’t realize how fast the scooters went and how quickly they accelerated,” Rivera said in an interview with CNN. “I got on the scooter, pressed the gas and the scooter just completely slipped out from under me. I skid across the gravel floor and had burns all over my legs.”

Rivera recovered from the accident, but could not work as a restaurant server for a week because she would bleed so much that the blood would seep through her pants.

The City of San Jose also has not added additional safety laws for scooter riders beyond the laws mandated at the state level.

According to California’s DMV, “an operator of a motorized scooter must be at least 16 years old, possess a valid driver’s license or instruction permit and wear a helmet. A motorized scooter may be operated on a bicycle path, trail or bikeway, but not on a sidewalk. On the roadway, it must be operated in the bicycle lane, if there is one.”

Senior Tabib Hossain noticed during his time on a scooter that it felt more casual than a bike and, therefore, damage could be done by reckless drivers.

“With a public scooter, people are less likely to follow the rules because there is less liability,” Hossain said. “People could do whatever because it’s not their scooter, so they feel like they can do any-

“People could do whatever because it’s not their scooter, so they feel like they can do anything with it.”

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—Tabib Hossain

& Dangerous fractures and liability agreements thing with it.”

Dr. James Crew, MD, a physiatrist at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, has seen three patients who were injured using a Lime Scooter in the last six months.

All three patients had neglected to wear a helmet and suffered from concussions as a result. One of the three also had a severe head injury. The patients happened to be riding the scooters at night and did not know how to properly use them.

“People can just use these [Lime Scooters] without any training, and a lot of times people are using them when they’ve been out eating and drinking alcohol; it affects your judgment and isn’t safe,” Crew said. “Although it’s looked at as being safer than driving, it’s not necessarily a safe way to use motorized transportation.”

Even though the scooters can be as dangerous as cars, Crew believes that by having proper gear and understanding riding protocols, scooters can have a positive impact on riders in San Jose.

“I think if there were a better use of helmets and better public education of when to use these and when not to, that it would [have] a much better effect on San Jose,” Crew said. “As of right now, I think they are dangerous and I think people need to use caution when deciding to use one.”

Illustrations by Janessa Ulug Photo by Greg Haessner

17

Spotlight on

Hannah Van Gelder

By Nicole Rendler

H

annah Van Gelder. A junior. A leader. A performer. An artist.

Van Gelder has participated in 10 drama productions since her freshman year at UPA after taking dance and drama classes with teacher Catherine Dietrich in middle school. She dances, sings, acts and helps backstage as part of the theater crew. She does it all.

Most of Van Gelder’s experiences with the performing arts have come from theater organizations in San Jose.

With her mother’s help, Van Gelder first began performing with an organization called Starting Arts—a non-profit theater teaching program—in the fourth grade.

“I really enjoyed theater, and I wanted to do more of it,” Van Gelder said.

Her work in UPA Productions with Cayleigh Coester, the director of the afterschool theater program, allowed Van Gelder to network with the San Jose Stage Company, where she now works on lighting, audio and stage crew work for the company’s productions.

When a performance wraps after she has worked backstage, there is a sense of accomplishment.

“After directing or [working tech] for a show, I am able to witness and reflect on the overall performance, rather than how I felt I did,” Van Gelder said.

Beyond the crew work, Van Gelder has also been able to perform with these companies and meet professional actors.

Last summer, she played the role of Elise in the musical “Last Five Years” for a company called Roshi Entertainment.

“When I step on the stage I become a completely different person from

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Photos courtesy of Hannah Van Gelder

myself,” Van Gelder said. “I become a character. I am not Hannah, a 16-yearold high school student. I am whomever my character is.”

Van Gelder has seen the power of networking in the theater business as her UPA connections led her to the San Jose Stage Company, which in turn led her to Roshi Entertainment.

Aside from networking, though, Van Gelder has also learned other lessons.

“Two of the most important things I’ve noticed [are] flexibility and communication,” she said. “Because without [them], the production just seems to fall through.”

Drawing from her own experiences, she described a show that required a hospital bed as a prop, but when it never arrived on stage, the crew was forced to be flexible and improvise those scenes.

From her experience, both in and out of school, Van Gelder encourages people to “just go for it and audition.”

“Even if you get cast as a small role, you’re still playing a big role in the whole production,” she said. “You’re still helping build the plot.”

Hannah Van Gelder (front left) on set in 2018 with other stage crew workers and the stage manager for the show “The Lieutenant of Inishmore” held at the San Jose Stage Company.

Van Gelder (middle) with her grandparents after playing Lady Marian in UPA’s production of “The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood” in December 2018.

ARTS & CULTURE

Food Meets Photography

bayarea. foodies

Tacos at Tacubaya (Berkeley), Black Tea Latte with Boba at TP Tea (Cupertino) and Japanese Hot Pot at Shabu Shack (San Jose).

By Chelsea Nguyen Photos courtesy of Tim Cheung As I scroll through my Instagram feed, countless pictures of food appear. It is satisfying when I see pictures of food that people have dedicated their time to capture and write reviews about.

Tim Cheung, the person behind @bayarea.foodies, constantly travels around the Bay Area shooting pictures of new food and dessert places. He started his account four years ago and currently has more than 109,000 followers.

“I had already been eating out almost daily and I would have a lot of photos, and I decided [that] creating a food Instagram would be a creative outlet,” Cheung, 26, said.

Cheung explores food places he feels will appeal to his audience, researching new restaurants on Yelp and Instagram frequently. At times, he would check for restaurants serving scrumptious foods, but had not received enough attention from people.

“I usually tackle 6-7 places in a single day so that I have time for other things in the week,” Cheung said. ¨It allows me to dedicate one day per week for food and the rest to my other priorities.”

Currently, Cheung is a part-time student, working on a master’s degree in computer science. His main goal is to expand his food page and business, offering photography services and social media management to companies.

Cheung uses a Nikon D750 to shoot his photos and is a self-taught photographer, constantly improving every time he visits restaurants, but he has learned editing and composition techniques from friends. Although he did not take any media classes in high school, he appreciates journalism more now because people read his reviews.

“I generally use Adobe Lightroom for color grading,” Cheung said. “Other than that, I try to keep the food looking as original as possible.”

Color is an essential part of a picture and Cheung uses different composition techniques, such as action, symmetry and the Rule of Thirds. He constantly keeps in mind what is appealing to his followers.

“I really respect the hustle of other content creators,” Cheung said. “One of my childhood acquaintances, Karen Yeung, recently became a huge [social media] sensation and that really inspired me.”

Outside of his food platform, he enjoys coding and computer systems, which aids restaurants and social media. The inspiration from his followers motivates him to continue creating quality content for them.

“The most important thing is to do something you have a passion for,” Cheung said. “For me, [I had] an interest in food photography, which [made] me stay interested.”

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The Books They Read

By Paolo Dimacali and Ishan Madan Aghalya Narayanan (10): A Court of Thorns and Roses

by Sarah J. Maas “A novel of adventure, fright, comingof-age and unprecedented romance. I enjoyed it because it covered so many aspects from different genres, and there are so many unpredictable twists that kept me wanting to read it and ignore all my work.

Predictability is important to me; I’ve read so many books where I’ll be able to know what the ending is based on it using plot ideas from other novels. However, Maas expands beyond the basic clichés and invents a whole world with incredible setting and character developments. The fact that it is sort of based on the fairytale, ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ and is a series made it even more of an amazing read, in my opinion.”

Sunaina Karunakaran (10): Divergent by Veronica Roth “I read this book a few years ago, and it’s been an all-time favorite of mine since then. It’s about a dystopian society that’s divided into 5 factions, and each faction represents a characteristic (honesty, bravery, etc.). This book follows a girl as she leaves her old faction and joins a new faction. While she’s in the other faction, she uncovers some secrets that change her life and endangers the people around her.

It’s then up to her to save them. I would definitely recommend most people to read this book. At times this book can be a slow burn, but it is definitely worth reading if you like action books.”

Dante McCormick (11): King Lear by William Shakespeare “There’s this king of Britain, and he has heirs he is distributing his wealth to, and he kind of cheats some of them out, so they kind of conspire to kill him and dethrone him. Later, a lot of tragedies happen, and a lot of other horrible, horrible events happen. It’s a very, very gripping tragedy that I enjoy very dearly.” McCormick rates this book 5 out of 5 stars and would definitely recommend it. “It’s a classic. It’s very, very good. I like to think of it as a horror film because of how the structure is so intensely tragic.”

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Japanjot Kaur (10): Heidi by Johanna Spyri “Heidi is a book written in a light, familial tone. It follows the story of a young girl named Heidi who is sent to live with her grandfather in the Alps as her parents have died. She learns about nature and kindness through his help, [and] her bond with her grandfather plays an important role throughout the entirety of the book.” Kaur gives Heidi a 4 out of 5 stars. “I would recommend this book to anyone as the book follows Heidi's change from a naive young girl to someone who becomes strong enough to help others with challenges in their own life.”

Adam Lawson (10): Carry On by Rainbow Rowell “It’s kind of a wizarding-themed book.

It’s centered around this main character, and he’s this kind of troubled magician, where he struggles with being a magician. He’s the most powerful magician in the magical realm, but he struggles to control his power. The book basically follows him and his tumultuous relationship with his roommate and his few friends. It’s his final year of wizarding school. They’re fighting against this creature called the humdrum, which is this thing that sucks up all the magic. It’s probably my favorite book I have ever read. It’s definitely 5/5 for me.”

Varshith Gunjapally (7): The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown “It’s a hunt for the Holy Grail. [Robert, the protagonist,] gets caught up in it because someone got murdered, and the French judicial police think he’s a suspect. While running away from them, he’s searching for the Holy Grail. Most of the time, he’s a writer. It’s super mysterious because you don’t know what it is until you get to the end. I’d give this book a 5 out of 5 stars because it’s interesting and funny. I would recommend it to people who like crime stories and mysteries.”

How Apex Legends climbed the battle royale craze

By Kristian Crowther

Player count: 100. Loot spawn: Random. Constantly shrinking play zone: Check. Only one winner: Of course.

These game mechanics make up the spine of any great battle royale game. And with the arguable oversaturation of battle royale (BR) games in the industry such as Fortnite and Call of Duty’s entrance into the scene with Black Ops 4’s “Blackout” mode, there are only a few games that have hit mass popularity with Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) in 2017 and Fortnite in 2018. Meanwhile, other game developers are racing to obtain a cut of the industry, trying to add their own spin to the genre, whether it be building mechanics, dropping bullets or turning into a chicken when Down But Not Out. “I feel like every battle royale game that’s released has had a lot of hype to it,” junior Kunal Puri said. “[But], a lot usually die out after the first month [or] even weeks.”

But one game has certainly began its journey to the top of the apex.

Apex Legends, released on Feb. 4, is the newest addition to the BR pool.

Developed by the company Respawn, the same developers that created Titanfall and Titanfall 2, Apex Legends uses the same assets in order to create a BR game set in the same world. Taking place in an arcane blood sport known as the Apex Games on the edge of the Titanfall universe, dubbed The Outlands, players can experience a thrilling 60-player battle composed of 20 trios, utilizing the different skills of playable characters from the overjoyed robot Pathfinder or the interdimensional skirmisher known as Wraith.

Multimedia teacher Leo Salcedo said the developers gave each character their own unique personality.

“Gameplay-wise, I like that [the character Lifeline] heals 25% faster and has a shield when reviving teammates,” Salcedo said.

The game garnered international attention after only one cinematic trailer dropped on the GameTrailers YouTube channel on Feb. 4. In that trailer, viewers obtained a feel for the aesthetic of the game from a lively Borderlands-esque variety of characters and unusual gameplay mechanics never seen before in the genre.

What drives a wedge between Apex and the

other BR games is its unique game mechanics that Respawn has experimented with. This includes zip lines, playable ‘Legends’ with various skill sets, and ultimate moves, like one of the most revolutionary in the BR genre: being able to be brought back into the game after dying via a respawn beacon.

Apart from that, a ping system for every item in the game and attachments automatically being placed on the correct weapon are other mechanics that Apex has implemented that PUBG and Fortnite, what some would call the pioneers of BR, has not implemented.

“I just started hearing how good [Apex Legends] was, so I gave it a shot because it was free,” Salcedo said.

“Had it not been free, I might have ignored it because I’m currently also playing Rainbow Six.” For only one surprise trailer being released, the game has already grown a wide following with an explosive boom of 50 million registered players as of March 22.

Just one cinematic trailer was able to launch a Titanfall 2 spinoff game into the international gaming spotlight with no other forms of promotion, something other game developers only dream of.

The game has grown a large following, including 630,000 subscribers to the Apex Legends subreddit, where players can meet to discuss new updates, cosmetics and memes about their favorite characters.

In addition, the game has already surmounted a stunning 25 million players and one million concurrent players.

But, those numbers have not come anywhere close to the statistics that Fortnite has achieved, with still a long way to climb to hit Fortnite numbers of 200 million registered players and 25 million concurrent across multiple platforms since November 2017.

Apex Legends, however, has arguably grown to become a serious contender for best in genre. As new items such as battle passes and new Legends are in development, fans of the game are optimistic.

“It’s really well made,” Salcedo said. “It looks and feels like a triple-A game, which is amazing because it’s totally free.”

Illustrations by Akhil Vemuri and Kristian Crowther

21

FUN & GAMES

Pair the baby photo to the corresponding teacher.

22

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

Illustrations by Katherine Nguyen Photos by Emily Hung, Evelyn Ramirez and Katherine Nguyen

Answer Key: A - Liz Pettit, B - Reo Sato, C - Katherine Poltorak, D - Ariana Rodriguez, E - Alan Kahn, F - Sandra Trotch, G - Claire Ballard, H - Jesus Del Real, I - Kristin Moore

Alan Kahn

Ariana Rodriguez

Claire Ballard

Jesus Del Real

Katherine Poltorak

Kristin Moore

Liz Pettit

Reo Sato

Sandra Trotch

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University Preparatory Academy 2315 Canoas Garden Ave. San Jose, CA 95125

408-723-1839

aquila@upatoday.com