News & Features, Opinions February 1, 2017

Perspectives from the Women’s March

Hey guys, gals and everyone else out there, it’s Riley and Calvin here to interview some members of the Friends’ Central community who attended the Women’s March. If you don’t know, the Women’s March was an event where people of all ages, genders, and ethnicities gathered to protest many issues, but mainly women’s rights and president Trump. Millions of people attended these marches all across the world and there was even a march in Antarctica. So today, we share interviews of some people from the FCS community who attended the march. Interview #1: Mrs. Quinn Q: So, what’s your name? A: Alexa Quinn Q: Who did you vote for? A: I’d prefer not to say. Q: Why were you at the Women’s March? A: Because I felt that it was important to stand alongside other women to give voice to our concerns about being treated equally, paid equally, and respected equally. Q: Did you…

News & Features February 1, 2017

What’s Happening in the White House?: Weekend Order and Supreme Court Nominee

Hi, I’m Dylan and I am starting a column on what President Trump has been been doing in the White House during the past week. Two things that Trump has done in the past week have been his nomination of a Supreme Court Justice to fill Justice Scalia’s vacated position and his Executive Order on immigration.     Yesterday, January 31, President Trump nominated Neil Gorsuch for the Supreme Court Justice position. Gorsuch is known for his firm conservative views, and he could tip the court’s balance on hot-button issues like abortion, voting rights and religious freedom. Gorsuch is 49 years old, making him the youngest Supreme Court nominee in 25 years. He was among a group of federal judges reported in recent weeks to be on Trump’s shortlist.  Gorsuch, a Colorado native, is popular among most Republicans. This past weekend, President Trump has jumped right into controversy with an Executive Order on immigration and refugees. He…

News & Features February 1, 2017

The FCS Plague

Today, as January draws to a close while February arrives, a violent outbreak of sickness has arrived throughout the FCS middle school. This sickness has now been commonly called “The Plague.” “I’m sad to see that so many kids are out sick, but we’re hoping parents will keep children home as to not spread germs,” said Mrs. Petrarca, when I asked her about the plague. “We sanitized the school over the weekend, and hopefully this will prevent more germs being spread around the school.” This infection began on Monday morning, where around 25 kids were declared absent, while yesterday 46 kids were absent. Luckily, only 37 kids were absent today, so it appears as if the plague is weakening. School nurse Mrs. Rosenblum said that symptoms included fever, malaise, fatigue, runny nose, coughing, and body aches. There are many ways to prevent the plague. It is a good idea to still…

News & Features February 1, 2017

Struggling with Math?

Struggling with Math? Many math students say they don’t like math. It’s confusing, overwhelming, and something a lot of people struggle with. Often certain people react better to different explanations, and most people learn and solve problems at a different pace. However, math doesn’t have to be a source of worry. Most students don’t hate math, they just struggle with it. “How many different steps you have to do confuse me.” “It’s boring.” “I zone out during class, and then I don’t know how to do it later.” Sometimes, explanations just don’t click with students. Math can be hard, especially if you don’t understand a concept and the class starts moving forward without you. It’s overwhelming and a little scary. The worst thing to happen is when you are out sick, come back, and don’t understand anything. “I missed so much school, I came back and there was a test…

News & Features, Opinions February 1, 2017

Everything Super Bowl

Jacob and Charlie here, and we are going over everything Super Bowl! Overview Charlie here, and here is a quick overview of the Big Game itself. It is the championship game of the National Football League, featuring the winner of the American Football Conference and the winner of the National Football Conference. It is usually held on the first Sunday of February, unofficially known as Super Bowl Sunday. This year Super Bowl 51 is held on February 5, airing on FOX at 6:30 pm. Every year the Super Bowl is held at a random venue, this year’s being held at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. Last year the Denver Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 24-10, and this year’s participants are the New England Patriots and the Atlanta Falcons. Who will win? The Teams Patriots Charlie again, and the New England Patriots have been one of the…

Drama, Opinions February 1, 2017

Thespians on Diction

Once, during the intermission of a play, my music director stood up from the pit, banged on the stage, and yelled, “Diction!” I thought it was really weird that he would do that, especially when there were still people in the audience. I understand now, though. Diction is one of the most important parts of a performance. Don’t know what it means? Dictionary.com says it is: DICTION [dik-shuh-n] the accent, inflection, intonation, and speech-sound quality manifested by an individual speaker, usually judged in terms of prevailing standards of acceptability; enunciation. Got it? Good. I’ll say it in English, too, because I don’t know about you, but I don’t always speak dictionary. Basically, diction means you pronounce your consonants sharply, like you’re stabbing them, and your vowels roundly, like you are trying way too hard to push them out of your mouth. It’s really important, because if you don’t pronounce your…

News & Features January 25, 2017

Trump Happenings: The First Five Days in Office

Are you looking for an article with “alternative facts”? If so, then you’ve come to the wrong place. As you probably know, Donald J. Trump took the presidential oath on Friday at noon, beginning his term as president. Trump has made numerous promises during his campaign, and he hopes to fulfill as many as possible. Throughout the five days that he has been president thus far, he has been trying to repeal ObamaCare (the Affordable Care Act), build a longer Mexican border wall, and more. On Inauguration Day, January 20th, Trump was sworn in. After the swearing in, he made a passionate and rather unusual speech acknowledging that we must put “America first.” After the inauguration, a controversial photo surfaced, comparing the crowd at Barack Obama’s inauguration to the crowd at Trump’s. On a much larger scale, women’s marches took place on all seven continents (see upcoming article on the Women’s…

News & Features, Opinions January 25, 2017

Happy Chinese New Year!

With 春節 (the Chinese New Year) just around the corner, this article will tell you all you need to know about this major holiday. Being Korean-Chinese myself, we almost always celebrate the New Year with my grandparents. I’m pretty sure I’m a rooster, which is cool as this is the Year of the Rooster! This year, the Chinese New Year begins tomorrow, Saturday, January 28. History In stories and legends, the beginning of the Festival was started by a beast named  年獸 (Nian). He had a weakness for humans, especially children, apparently. One year, the villagers decided to attempt to hide from the beast, to save themselves and their children. Right before they were about to leave, an old man suddenly appeared and told them he would stay the night and try to extract revenge on the beast. Needless to say, the villagers thought he was crazy. At night, when…

News & Features January 25, 2017

Science Fiction Becoming a Reality

If I told you that Captain America could become real in the next ten years, you would probably say I am mad and my head was filled with fantasies. But read this, and your life will be altered forever. Scientists have developed a technology called CRISPR/Cas9. CRISPR harnesses the immune system bacteria, and they use it to snip a part of a gene and modify it to their own liking. Naturally, this causes some controversy. Having this tool lets you change a baby before they’re born. You can choose their IQ, eye color, skin color, and at some point you might be able to modify their growth so they’re super strong or super tall. (You see what I mean when I say Captain America.) In a relatively short explanation: In the past four years, scientists have figured out how to exploit a quirk in the immune systems bacteria to edit genes in…

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