Physics B AP - The Talon

sPoRTs
PG. 18
mid-season
update
Junior Nolan
O’Such
celebrates a
ENTERTAINMENT
PG. 14
Talon
he
201 ALMond AVE. Los ALtos, cA 94022
Los ALtos high schooL
VoLUME XXVi, issUE 2
octobEr 19, 2010
Senior ‘Nice Greg’ makes music, friends, fans
Drew Eller
Staff Writer
Nice Greg and Friends is
not your average rap group.
It consists of one known
member and possibly two other
mysterious members (maybe
there are more, or maybe there
are none at all). It combines
handwritten guitar riffs as the
rhythm for its music with the
beats of a hip-hop song, all of
which are mixed digitally. The
lyrics, while rhythmic and witty,
also aim for laughs. Oh, and its
front man is a bit crazy too.
Science & Tech
Week
Physics B AP
may replace
Lauren Liu
Copy /Content Editor
h o m e c o m i n g
dressing
No-No s
school victory. IN-DEPTH
The Science Department hopes to
introduce a new Ap physics class, Ap
physics b, and integrate Ap physics C
electricity and Magnetism into the current
physics C class by the next school year.
“Currently at this school we only offer
one Ap physics class … Ap physics C,
Mechanics,” Ap physics teacher Adam
randall said. “Next year the school,
Superintendent barry Groves and
[principal Wynne] Satterwhite are going to
propose to the school board that we offer
Ap physics C electricity and Magnetism
as well as Mechanics.”
The physics honors class will be
replaced by an Ap physics b course.
“The issue with Ap physics C is that it is
a calculus-based course, so many students
are concurrently enrolled in calculus as
they take Ap physics C,” randall said. “but
we use [calculus] from the very beginning,
so it’s difficult if you’re just learning the
language of calculus and have to depend
on using it on a regular basis right away.”
unlike course C, course b will utilize
trignometry and algebra and is intended
for those who have not taken calculus.
“[Students will be] getting an
exposure to similar material as they
were in a regular physics but at a
higher content level … and a broader
Physics Honors
range of material,” randall said.
randall said that course b will be
“a significant step” away from the
honors curriculum.
because the school only teaches the
mechanics portion of course C, students
are limited to taking the Mechanics Ap
exam. by adding course C electricity
and Magnetism to the current physics C
curriculum, the Science Department hopes
to provide students with the opportunity
to take both tests.
randall anticipates that both Ap
additions will help the school.
“The students benefit from having
more access to more rigorous scientific
curriculum,” randall said. “...as a whole
the school has more Ap test offerings and
the [school’s] API score benefits from
students taking more tests.”
randall said that both he and physics
teacher Karen Davis are willing to take on
the work necessary to teach the new courses.
To fund the courses the school must invest
$20,000 into the course C electricity and
Mechanics program and what randall
estimates to be $5,000 into the course b
program. The funds will be used to purchase
necessary lab equipment for both courses.
“It’s pretty exciting that the school
is financially supportive and the
superintendent is enthusiastic about
making that change,” randall said.
Senior Greg Cairns works in his
personal studio—his bedroom,
that is. As the leader of his group,
Greg takes it upon himself to do
all the technical work behind the
music. The band was originally
going to be a cast, and Nice Greg
and Friends would have instead
been made in the style and form
of a television show.
“The idea was that we were these
hella good rappers, even though
we were terrible,” Greg said.
According to Greg, the group
consists of just three members
—Nice Greg (Greg Cairns), The
Snuggler and Lil’ Cesar. The
PG. 10-11
true identities, whereabouts
and contributions of the
group’s other members
remain a mystery, however.
Some speculate that they don’t
even exist. Other rumors
suggest that the unknown
members are children Greg
has adopted solely because of
their musical talent.
“I actually don’t know who
the other guys are,” said senior
Wesley Oribello, who was
introduced to the group by Greg
himself. “I’ve heard they’re some
guys from another school, but I
don’t really know who they are.”
Water
polo
dominaTing
The waTer
Whoever they are, they
definitely have some sort of
involvement with the music,
as they have made small,
anonymous appearances in
certain songs. Greg would only
allude to one line in the song
“Nice Greg, Twice Greg,” which
was dropped by a rapper other
than himself.
So far, Greg has released
only three songs to the general
public: “Nice Greg, Twice Greg,”
“Gregalicious” and “We Get real
high.” These three songs have
been enough to already drive
his popularity to levels unheard
phOTO ILLuSTrATION by JeNNA LOuIe
sEE PG. 20
phOTOS by ALex KeNT
of at LAhS. Friends and fans
alike have taken a liking to
Greg’s music because of both
the professionalism and humor
that goes into making it.
“I feel like if he tried hard and
put some more time and effort
into it, Greg could be really
famous,” Wesley said. “being
a DJ myself, I’ve noticed that
it’s really hard to make music.
Greg has really good editing
techniques. It sounds really
smooth. It sounds like someone
See Nice Greg,
page 13
Q&AwITh
NIcE GREG
The Talon: Who are these
other members?
Nice Greg: There are actually no
other members. It’s all me, baby.
Talon: What is your goal with
this music?
Greg: This really gets to the
core of what Nice Greg really
is and ... he’s an idea. He’s
above the influence.
Talon: Do you have anything
to say to your fans?
Greg: I feel that I have too
many fans and I might ask
some people to leave.

October 19, 2010
Shilpa Venigandla
Sta� Writer
The Los Altos City Council
plans to renovate downtown
Los Altos. Its plans, which
are intended to stimulate the
economic growth of Los Altos,
include making downtown
more pedestrian-friendly and
adding office buildings.
The first major plan to
take place downtown is the
renovation of the Safeway
located on First Street. At a
study session held Tuesday,
September 14, the City Council
discussed plans for the new
Safeway with a 41,575-square
foot market with additional
rooftop parking.
The existing 21,000-square
foot store was built in 1967
and does not have all the
amenities that are found
in other Safeways. The
improved Safeway will offer all
departments that the Safeway
located on Grant Road has.
In addition to the new and
larger Safeway, 4,800 square
feet of extra retail space will be
used. The money for this project
will be provided by Safeway.
“The old Safeway didn’t
provide much; it was very
old,” freshman Elizabeth
Fuchs said. “But now that they
are renovating it, I’m probably
going to visit it more often.”
Safeway has been trying to
persuade the City Council to
allow it to renovate the old
building for years. Assistant
City Manager James Walgren
told the San Jose Mercury
News that the main reason
the council has ignored the
request is limited parking.
News
Downtown Los Altos to undergo renovations
AMELIA EVARD
Construction downtown is the beginning of the renovation and revitalization process in Los Altos. City-owned property
where the Home Consignment Center (above) was located is being demolished and will be used for new buildings.
In addition to the rooftop
parking on top of the new
Safeway structure, the city
needs about 65 more parking
spaces. Accounting for the
area that the new Safeway
takes up, it needs at least 231
parking spots, but only has
room for 167. In order to fulfill
its requirements, Safeway has
opened up its parking to the
public, and has decided to
become part of the “downtown
parking district.”
At another forum held
Monday, September 20,
council members discussed
plans that could accelerate
downtown growth. At the
forum, officials suggested
plans to increase productivity
in the downtown area, draw
consumer attention and
maximize retail growth.
“[The renovations] will
definitely change the minds of
others who don’t live around
[Los Altos],” sophomore Jami
Hsia said.
The exact topics and plans
discussed have not been
released to the public yet, and
they are to be broadcasted on
KMVT Community Television
Channel 15 on Sunday,
October 31. The uncertainty
of the projects has caused
differing opinions about the
renovations.
“I really didn’t know anything
Native American artifacts showcased
Justin Koehler
Features Editor
At the beginning of the school
year, the Jane LaDu Eustice
Memorial Collection of Native
American items was brought back
to the school library. Librarian
Dr. Nina Waite was instrumental
in bringing the collection back to
the school and installing it at the
entrance of the library.
The artifacts were assembled
to commemorate the life of Jane
LaDu Eustice, who served from
1959 to 1967 as a member of the
Board of Trustees of the Mountain
View-Los Altos Union High
School District and one year as
president. She was also involved in
the advancing of women’s rights,
starting the Los Altos branch
of the American Association of
University Women, and serving
as a member of the Los Altos
Morning Forum and League of
Women Voters.
Eustice was a supporter and
collector of Native American art,
particularly that of the West. After
she died in 1975 at the age of 56,
her husband, Gordon Eustice,
thought donating the collection
to the school would be a fi tting
tribute to her educational and
cultural contributions.
“It honors her memory,” Waite
said. “She was an avid collector and
ALEX KENT
Artifacts from the ancient collection are displayed in the library.
collected some really nice things
that refl ect a lot on the cultures of
those who made them.”
Dorothy Dunn Kramer, who
studied Native American art in
the 30s and established Native
American schools and craft
centers, served as the consultant
for the art collection. She also
contacted others to contribute
to it, and put together a catalog
detailing each item, which can still
be found in the school library.
When Waite began her work
in the fall of 1999, the collection
was boxed in storage while the the
library underwent construction.
It contains baskets, dolls, a
headdress and a variety of other
items that are from the Miccosukee,
Cherokee, Comanche, Kiowa,
Apache, Navajo and Yurok tribes.
The items in the collection were
crafted more recently, although
they represent longstanding
artistic traditions of Native
American tribes.
When Waite found out money
for trophy cases had been donated
to the school, she worked to fi nd
the appropriate cases in time for
the beginning of the school year.
“I love it,” Waite said. “Anything
that brings people in and gives
them something interesting to look
at and something new, something
beautiful, brings another shade of
glory to our school.”
about it, or that [City Council]
was considering changing
downtown,” Elizabeth said.
Another major project is
the construction of a 3-story,
48-unit building, which will
be located on First Street.
This building may add more
private businesses, offices
and possible lodging sites to
the downtown area.
Minor replacements will
also take place in order to
further beautify downtown.
These decorations include
monuments, fountains and
trellises along First Street and
Main Street. Art pieces will
be hung around First Street
and Main Street. Also, street
Many departments at school
have staff who participate in a
reading apprenticeship group,
which helps teachers make
changes to their curriculum so
that students can read and use
their textbooks more effi ciently.
The English, Social Studies,
Science, Math, World Language
and the Special Ed departments
are involved in the group.
Staff members attended
trainings and seminars
held at the Oakland office
of WestEd, an organization
that receives grants and
funding to study research
and teaching methods.
The WestEd researchers also
designed a study to fi nd how students
of different grade levels get
information from text.
Seniors in English teacher
April Oliver’s class and freshmen
in English teacher Keren
Robertson’s class read a poem
by Gwendolyn Brooks and an
excerpt from “House on Mango
Street” for the study. The data
collected will be used in the
group’s fi ve-year study of how
kids use text to get evidence.
Some of the group’s current
plans are to encourage
students to follow a process
of thinking out loud, making
2
lights with banners, hanging
baskets and string lights
will be added to downtown.
Sidewalks and roads will
be completely refurbished
and new benches and bike
racks will be added to make
downtown more accessible
to bikers and pedestrians.
A variety of trees and new
plants will also be added to
finish the new look. Parts of
downtown will still be open
during construction.
“I thought of Los Altos as
a small town with mostly
old people,” Jami said. “But
now that they’re changing
[downtown], it gives Los Altos
a bit more life.”
Sta� promotes reading skills
Catherine Hua
Sta� Writer
predictions, visualizing and
breaking writing into chunks.
However, some teachers believe
that the reading apprenticeship
group’s plans are unnecessary.
Math teacher and Reading
Apprenticeship member Carol
Evans explained a possible reasoning
behind certain teachers’
reluctance to implement the
group’s plans.
“Some teachers have put many
hours into creating lesson plans,”
Evans said. “They don’t want to
change them. [Incorporating the
plans is] easier with a new class.”
However, Oliver saw good results
come through after incorporating
reading plans.
“I think it’s making a big
difference; [it gives] students
more power to work independently,”
Oliver said. “It allows
students not to have to wait
to be told what that reading
meant, but to be able to work
through it on their own; to
feel that kind of power and
independence.”
Evans believes that teaching
students to learn to use and understand
their textbooks is a skill
that will be useful in the future.
“If I don’t teach students
[reading] independence in
high school, they’re not going
to know how to do it in college,”
Evans said. “It’s not a
zero investment.”

October 19, 2010
Science and Tech
Week encourages
interest in STEM
Jasmine Xu
Sta� Writer
The school’s Science and
Technology Week, otherwise
known as Science, Technology,
Engineering and Math (STEM)
week, takes place from Monday,
October 18 to Wednesday,
October 20.
Science and Tech Week is
dedicated to promoting elements
of STEM through speaker
presentations and lunchtime
activities.
“We have this week to show all
of you the possibilities [of future
careers],” STEM coordinator Dr.
Patty Einarson said. “We want to
expose as many kids as possible to
the opportunities and excitement
that [are] possible through math
and science as topics or careers.”
In previous years, the week has
been a “great way to promote
science school-wide as well as a
great opportunity for students,”
science teacher Greg Stoehr said.
The Science and Tech Week
committee seeks to enforce a
permanent structure and system
for organizing and marketing
Science and Tech Week. One
major change from previous
years is the movement of Friday
speakers to Wednesday in order
to accommodate the Parent-
Teacher Conferences that are
happening this week. A number
of small changes have been made.
Popular speakers have also been
invited to return to stimulate a
marketing buzz.
Lunchtime activities in the
past have included bringing a
horse on campus for students.
This year, activities will
include cars on campus as well
as a relay experiment.
“The main difference is the
lunchtime activities. This year we
have [Assistant Principal] Cristy
Dawson involved, and we’re
going to try some new things that
will hopefully be more impactful,”
Einarson said.
A wide variety of speakers
usually come to the campus to
talk about their jobs. Topics that
are selected for presentations are
based on ideas and themes that
are innovative and interesting to
high school students.
At the end of each year’s
Science and Tech Week, students
fi ll out a survey selecting
their favorite presentations
and themes from the year’s
speakers. A student committee
is then established to provide
even more feedback for topics.
The volunteer committee then
compiles a list of trends that
reappear throughout the years
AMELIA EVARD
Students in Chemistry Honors listen to a lecture in class.
Students drop Chem Honors
Michael Drake
Sports Editor
Over 30 students have dropped
Chemistry Honors this year,
leading faculty and students to
hope for a system that will avoid
this in the future. This number
is so large that many are unable
to take regular chemistry due to
space constraints.
Chemistry Honors was fi rst
offered last year, and former
students said that the class was
equally as diffi cult as Biology
Honors. This year’s Chemistry
Honors class uses new textbooks,
which many cite as a factor for
increase in diffi culty.
Teachers maintain that
because it is an honors course,
the work should not be lessened.
“We’re not going to change
the honors curriculum; it is
appropriate,” Chemistry Honors
teacher Craig Seran said. “[There
is signifi cantly] more math in
honors because we’re trying to
provide a greater challenge and
the pacing is faster.”
The high number of dropouts
has nonetheless caused much
distress for the teachers.
“It breaks my heart when the
kid’s been here for four weeks
and realizes, ‘I’m in over my
head,’” Seran said.
The Science Department is
discussing methods to prevent
high dropout rates in the future.
Ideas include adding more explicit
course guideline sheets at the
beginning of the year, worksheets
that compare Regular and Honors
problems, and tests similar to the
mathematics knowledge test that
Physics AP students take during
the fi rst week of school.
Seran believes that an aptitude
test would serve as a “frame of
reference” for students, allowing
them to evaluate their own
abilities before making decisions.
He said that the faculty
members do not mean to act
as “gate keepers” to whether
students can take the class, but
are instead in favor of “providing
as many tools to kids as possible
to make the right choice.”
News
SPECTREPERFORMANCE.COM
Amir Rosenbaum, a STEM Week speaker, will display his record-setting gasoline
powered vehicle today at lunch in the quad as a part of the school’s Science and Technology Week.
to aid them in the upcoming
year’s speaker selection process.
Popular topics throughout the
past years have been security,
entertainment and forensics.
“The keynote this year [Danielle
Feinberg], works for Pixar and
has been involved in many movie
productions,” Einarson said. “Past
speakers have talked about cyber
security as well as the trajectory
of sniper bullets. There’s always a
huge variety.”
Speakers are chosen based on
their presentation abilities, their
ability to relate with students
and their capability of moving
students and instilling the same
passion that they have for their
topic. They are evaluated by a
student committee as well as
through interviews. Presenters
are usually found via mutual
acquaintances, but “teachers have
been an integral part of fi nding
viable speakers for Science and
Tech Week,” Einarson said.
Speakers tend to be people
who are extremely passionate
about what they do. The Science
and Tech Week committee
hopes that these individuals can
convey and infect students with
the same sort of passion.
“I think that it’s [really]
generous that [speakers] actually
come to our little high school to
talk about their magnanimous
lives,” science teacher Carl Babb
said. “It’s generous [of] them to let
3
us see what professionals do.”
Science and Tech Week was
founded by PTSA President Mike
Abrams fi ve years ago. Abrams
started the week to counter the
stereotype that “math and science
were for nerds and geeks.”
“[STEM Week] was really fun
because [speakers] were talking
about a job where you can hack
stuff,” sophomore Jacqueline Liu
said. “It just reminded me of a lot
of different jobs. It’s impactful
because it shows me all of the
different possibilities.”
AP plans grading, curriculum changes
Grace Gao
Sta� Writer
This year, the Collegeboard will
change the grading of AP exams
so that students will not be
penalized for guessing incorrectly
on multiple choice questions. The
raw score will be derived from the
number of questions a student
answers correctly.
Collegeboard has set new
standards for several of its AP
classes and plans to change the
structure and grading of many of
its tests. This decision will impact
students who will be taking the AP
test this coming May.
Specifi cally the AP exams
in the science, world language
and history departments will be
impacted. The fi rst tests that will
be changed next year will be the
AP French Language and Culture,
AP German Language and Culture
and AP World History.
The changes that the
Collegeboard plans on
implementing are intended to
help the courses focus more on the
students’ ability to think deeply.
“For the French test, [the
students] will hear an audio sample
and then refl ect into it,” AP French
teacher Christophe Barquissau
said. “They have to look at their
own cultures and other cultures,
and then compare the two.”
In particular, the AP Language
courses will be changing how
classes are taught. According to
the Collegeboard website, instead
of using textbooks, teachers are
required to fi nd authentic materials,
such as articles and news reports,
to incorporate the language and
culture into the curriculum.
For the AP science classes,
Collegeboard plans to change the
tests because scientifi c discoveries
and knowledge increase daily.
Instead of focusing on broad
knowledge, the new changes will
focus a student’s attention on
reasoning and experimentation.
According to Collegeboard, these
changes should not signifi cantly
affect the scores of the students.
For more on
see the centerspread
The students’ own test-taking
strategy might, however, be
impacted by such modifi cations.
“It will help me, [because] I’m
not good with multiple choice
tests,” junior Nirav Agrawal said. “I
think it’s a good decision overall.”
History teacher Gabriel
Stewart agrees.
“Psychologically it will help
a lot of students,” Stewart said.
“Know your information and you
will be rewarded.”
There are other students
who do not feel the same way.
“You can guess and know
absolutely nothing about
the question and still not get
penalized for it,” junior Carla
Alonso said. “I don’t think that

4 News October 19, 2010
MYA BALLIN
Auditions for the school musical were held after school last week. Thirty students will be chosen for the production’s fi nal cast.
‘Fiddler on the Roof’ announced
as school’s next drama production
Sarah Corner
Sta� Writer
At the informational meeting
held on Wednesday, September
22, it was announced that this
year’s school musical will be
‘Fiddler on the Roof.’
This school-run performance,
separate from Broken Box
and individual performing art
classes, is put on every other
year by Choral Music Director
Mark Shaull, drama teacher
Nancy Moran, dance and
English teacher April Oliver
and band and orchestra teacher
Ted Ferrucci.
Auditions were held at 3 p.m.
after school on Monday, October
11 and Thursday, October 14.
Oliver said this year they are
looking for a smaller cast of only
30 people, so they tried to spot
Karen Davis participates in nuclear missile project
Katie Gonsalves
Sta� Writer
One week after school let out,
physics and integrated science
teacher Karen Davis began her
summer internship at Lockheed
Martin, working on nuclear missiles
for naval submarine defense.
Davis worked on test missiles that
the military will use to test a new
submarine coming out in 2028.
Before beginning the internship,
Davis had to sign a security clearance
as well as be a United States
citizen, and could not state exactly
what work was being done with
the missiles due to top-secret legal
and safety aspects.
“I was surprised when I interviewed
for the job; I knew it had
to do with submarines, but I didn’t
know it was serious ballistic missiles,
so it was kind of scary when I
got there,” Davis said.
The internship lasted the whole
summer, and the missile was actually
built in Utah.
“It was basically an engineering
job for eight weeks, which is what
I did before I began teaching,” Davis
said.
However, Davis enjoyed the
internship much more than engineering
because she got to see
“triple threats,” students who
can sing, dance and act.
“Personally, I am looking
forward to working with a
smaller group than in years past
because it will give me more
one-on-one opportunities to
help students develop realistic
characters and create poignant
moments that will really touch
the audience,” Moran said.
Before auditioning, students
learned one solo song and one
chorus song in either Girls Glee
or Varsity Men’s Glee. Those
who auditioned said that because
music was taught beforehand, the
proccess ran more smoothly.
On the fi rst day of auditions,
about 55 prospective performers
reviewed music, read through
scripts, practiced lines and
learned dance choreography.
They showcased these skills
and understand the importance of
precision while working with such
important materials.
“It had to do with creating a
test missile for the navy starting
to build this new submarine,”
Davis said. “But for me it was
just interesting to see how long
and slow these military projects
are. These missiles that we are
working with have been here
since 1990 so it’s a 20-year-old
product, but you realize they do
need to move that slowly in case
something goes wrong that’s a
giant worldwide event.”
Davis said the internship encompassed
much more than
just working with missiles. She
was able to tour NASA and said
she saw the construction of real
satellites right in front of her.
“Every day I found some totally
cool thing for me to go check out,
and that’s what I liked about it,”
Davis said. “In a lot of ways, it was
like I was a student for a summer.”
After hearing about the job
from many other teachers, Davis
began the summer internship
as a way to do something
different than teaching summer
school as she had done in
past years. Davis said that she
was able to easily apply aspects
in the evaluative part of the
audition, which began with
rotating groups, allowing each
student time on stage to perform
the rehearsed material.
Although the rehearsal
schedule is not fi nalized,
practices will take place between
Wednesday, January 5 and
Wednesday, February 2 three
days a week, with the addition of
Saturday practices. Singers will
have their own sessions during
lunch, while actors and dancers
will meet during zero period.
Extra rehearsals for soloists will
be added after casting based on
prior commitments of the cast.
The musical, which opens on
Thursday, February 3, renews
the classic tale of “The Fiddler
on the Roof” based on the book
by Joseph Stein. The story takes
place in Czarist Russia and
centers on Tevye, the father of
fi ve daughters, and his attempts
to support his family and
maintain his religious traditions
while outside infl uences
encroach upon their lives. He
must cope with both the strongwilled
actions of his three older
daughters—each one’s choice
of husband moves her further
away from the customs of her
faith—and the edict of the Czar
that evicts the Jews from their
village.
As this year’s musical
date draws closer, Moran
anticipates that a high school
twist on this classic tale will
promise entertainment and
fun for both the cast members
and the audience.
“For those students who earn
a place in the cast, this will
be an amazing experience,”
COURTESY LOCKHEED MARTIN
Missile Trident II is one of Lockheed Martin’s nuclear projects.
she learned this summer about
seeing how science is used in
the real world to her teaching.
When she asked the interviewers
what they were looking
for when hiring students out of
college to be engineers, their
answers were unanimous.
“Without a doubt they needed
people who can write and communicate,
so I will apply that to
my teaching and work it into my
classes,” Davis said. “And now I
know I should have more writing
and have my kids do more
communicating.”
The 1990 missiles have never
been used and are tested annually.
Despite the military’s secrecy, they
fi lm the missile tests and post them
on YouTube as “Trident Missile
Test,” to show other countries what
the military is capable of doing.
“It was a very different kind
of job and that’s really what I
liked about it,” Davis said.
News Briefs:
AVID speaker shares
advice, experience
On Tuesday, October 12,
speaker Melanie Watkins
talked to AVID classes
during second, third and
fourth period about her life
experience and struggles
while growing up.
Melanie is a single mom
who became pregnant at the
age of 16, but still fulfi lled her
dream of becoming a doctor.
Watkins has written stories for
“Chicken Soup for the Single’s
Soul” and “Chicken Soup for
the African American Soul.”
“Dr. Watkins [came] in to
share her experiences and
expertise for several reasons:
to be an inspiring role model,
to encourage students to
consider careers in medicine,
and to give AVID students
more direct involvement in
the STEM activities,” AVID
Department Coordinator
Joanne Miyahara said.
Students write about
cell phone use policy
English teacher Michael
Smith’s Creative Views
classes collaboratively wrote
a letter to Principal Wynne
Satterwhite about changing
the cell phone policy at school.
The letter was completed and
sent on Friday, October 8.
The composition of the
letter was a collaborative effort
between Smith’s second and
fi fth period classes, as the
students worked together to
come up with ideas. In the
letter, students addressed their
desire to adopt Mountain View
High School’s cell phone policy
of allowing phone usage before
zero period, after seventh
period, and during brunch
and lunch. They also included
potential punitive options for
violating the electronics policy.
“I would like to work
something out with the staff
and students,” Smith said.
School alumni reunion
gathers class of 1970
On Saturday, October
2, the class of 1970 held
its 40-year reunion in
Portola Valley. According to
attendee Kim Gabriel, the
event was “a success.”
“It was great catching up
with everyone,” Gabriel said.
“It felt like we were back in the
quad at school, hanging in our
small groups again.”
In the 40 years since they
graduated, the school has seen
a lot of change.
“When I last went there,
we were still the Knights and
our colors were blue and
gold, so it’s strange to have a
different mascot and school
colors,” Gabriel said.
She noted that reuniting with
old friends was a fantastic way
to spend an evening.
“The group obviously
wanted to be there and
seemed pretty happy with
their lives,” Gabriel said.
COMPILED BY JACQUELINE CHU
AND MARK SCHREIBER

The Talon
October 19, 2010
Editorial
Opinion of The Talon
Thumbs up to the online
lesson lectures from
the Math Department.
After math teacher Betty
Yamasaki attended a technology
conference last spring, she began
uploading videos of how to complete
practice problems onto her website.
Other Math Department teachers
are also experimenting with ways to
move extra resources for students
online. By moving information
online, students who have been
away from school or students who
need to review at home can access
the website at any time. Also, the
introduction of videos adds a more
dynamic element to plain solutions.
and during brunch and lunch,
“Cell phones must be turned
off and may not be visible in
classrooms, offices, library,
tutorial center, gym or theatre.”
But LAHS should take it a step
further by permitting cell phone
use whenever students aren’t
involved in an educational
activity. Whether or not the
school approves of cell phone
use outside of class, students
will continue to text and call.
Faculty members have
expressed concern over the policy
as well. Many staff members
agree that cell phone use during
breaks will continue regardless
of teacher enforcement.
Out of 50 staff members
who responded to an online
voluntary poll, 55.3 percent
said they did not agree with
the current cell phone policy.
Three of the 50 did not
comment. One staff member
said teachers’ time would
be “better spent helping
students than enforcing the
cell phone policy during
brunch [and] lunch.”
The implementation of a
policy that allows cell phone use
during non-educational periods
would encourage teachers to
strictly enforce cell phone bans
in the classroom. Students
would have no excuse for using
their phones in class when they
could have used them during
breaks, and teachers could
enforce the now-effective policy
without ambiguity. Teachers
Thumbs up to ASB’s
and Green Team’s
initiative in making
the school more eco
friendly. Their efforts
have earned the school a certification
from the state deeming it a “Green
Business.” On Monday, October
11, a representative for Ira Ruskin
recognized the school for being a
local environmental leader. Green
Team’s constant efforts in greening
the school—from spearheading the
new solar panels and encouraging
biking to crushing cardboard by the
dumpsters and leading the paper
recycling—were instrumental in
earning this award. ASB’s drive to
recycle the school’s cans and bottles
was another factor among many
that made the school stand out.
Editorial
School should permit cell phone
use during non-academic periods
Walking across the quad
during lunch, students and
teachers alike share no surprise
when they see people on their
cell phones. Students on their
phones know fully well that
they are violating the school’s
cell phone policy, but they
continue to text in the hallway.
This policy, as defined in
the school’s parent/student
handbook, requires phones to
be “turned off, not used, and
out of sight during the school
day (7 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.).” But
students’ blatant disregard
for the rule and the lack of
strict enforcement highlight
how unrealistic the policy is.
The school should revise its
cell phone policy so that students
are able to use their phones
whenever they aren’t disrupting
a learning environment. Now
in the 21st century, it’s unfair to
deny access to phones during
students’ leisure time—especially
with such an ineffective policy.
Use of phones in classrooms
should still be banned. But during
brunch, lunch, passing periods
and free periods, students should
be able to use their own time on
their own terms—cell phone in
hand or not.
Mountain View High School is
heading in the right direction by
stating that although students
may use their phones before
zero period, after seventh period
Letters to the Editor
Non-school sports
should be included
Dear Editor,
The Talon only focuses on
sports at the school. Many of its
readers, myself included, would
enjoy a few articles on local Bay
Area teams and the sports scene
in general. For example, The Talon
could write about the Giants’
current playoff run. My suggestion
would be to ask the students
about their favorite athletes, such
as NBA guard Ray Allen.
Jonathan Yu
Sophomore
thumbs
School should not
lock back gates
Dear Editor,
It would be great if the school
could refrain from locking the
gates at the back of the school.
This poses an inconvenience
to students who arrive early.
Although I’m unsure of the gate’s
justification, I can surmise that it
is to keep people out; those who
would be the target of this policy
would be completely unfazed by a
locked gate.
Egan McComb
Senior
should still confiscate phones in
the classroom; phones should
be off and out of sight during
educational periods.
But the administration should
realize that it’s important for
students to stay connected
SCVAL rules should
still be changed
Dear Editor,
I have poured over the pages of
the CIF (and CCS) Constitution
and Bylaws and could find nothing
that required seniors to play
on varsity teams. In regards to
the application of Title IX rules,
equity is not a matter of which
team you play on.
I think the players and coaches,
along with their parents, have a
much better idea as to which team
a player is best suited. If they are
worried about litigation (which
I am sure is the main reason for
this change) the waivers and letters
required by CIF are enough! I
see no reason for the enforcement
of any “seniors must play varsity”
Thumbs down to
the morning senior
activities held
during the PSAT on
Wednesday, October
13. While the focus for the day
should rightly be on testing 10th
and 11th graders, the administration
should be more creative in thinking
up senior activities. Though the
administration tried to recruit senior
attendance with prizes, it failed to let
seniors know the day’s scheduled
activities. Because seniors were
never informed of specific activities,
many did not show up to school. As
the school receives funding based
on attendance, the administration
should have allowed more time for
helpful workshops—such as the
after-brunch essay workshops.
in a growing technological
world. Daily cell phone use is
commonplace for both adults
and teens, and with appropriate
cell phone use now, students are
prepared for a fluid transition
out of high school.
supposed rule, as it impedes the
joy of participation that interscholastic
athletic competitions
afford our students.
I implore the Administration
and SCVAL Board to repeal
the “Seniors must play Varsity”
“rule” and let the students play
at the level they are best suited
to play.
Becky Larsen
Parent
The Talon welcomes letters to the
editor. E-mail letters to lahstalon@
gmail.com or drop them off in room
409 or the box in the attendance
office. If you have any questions, send
an e-mail or call (650) 960-8877.
In the case of spelling or grammatical
errors, obscenities, libelous
information or personal attacks, a
letter may be edited or not run. Letters
must be signed, but a name may be
withheld upon request. Letters may be
published online, in print or both.
Thumbs up to ASB’s
efforts to air video
a n n o u n c e m e n t s
for Homecoming
Couples. In previous
years, the PSAT was scheduled a
week prior to when it currently
takes place. This change took effect
last year and left little time for
ASB to organize announcements.
But this year the ASB Film
Crew and the Homecoming
“babysitters,” who are assigned to
ensure Homecoming events run
smoothly, worked hard to find a
way around the PSAT schedule.
Thanks to the extra work that
these team members have done,
Homecoming King and Queen
nominees get a chance to showcase
their personalities to the students.
The Talon
Los Altos High School
201 Almond Avenue
Los Altos, California
www.lahstalon.org
October 19, 2010
Volume XXVI, Issue 2
Editor-in-Chief
Carolyn Huang
Managing Editors
Mark Levin
Zia Rosenzweig
News Editor
Trisha Nangia
Opinions Editor
Max Wiederholt
Features Editor
Justin Koehler
In-Depth Editor
Jason Hu
Entertainment Editor
Nika Ayat
Sports Editor
Michael Drake
Information Editor
Anny Dow
Copy/Content Editors
Vivian Hua
Lauren Liu
Curran Mahowald
Kelly Moulds
Business Managers
Alex Kent
Erika Schonher
Staff Writers
Caleb An, Sarah Corner,
Jacqueline Chu, Megan Davis,
Drew Eller, Grace Gao, Katie
Gonsalves, Rachel Grate, Alice
Hau, Catherine Hua, Libbie
Katsev, Sparsha Saxena, Mark
Schreiber, Julia Son-Bell, Shilpa
Venigandla, Jasmine Xu
Photographers
Mya Ballin, Amelia Evard, Alex
Kent, Jenna Louie, Niki Moshiri
Graphic Artists
Joey Giacomini, Jason Hu,
Tin Huynh, Lauren Liu, Lizzy
Lukrich
Webmasters
Seena Burns, Austin Conlon
Adviser
Michael Moul
Los Altos High School’s
Compositional Journalism class is
solely responsible for The Talon, which
is published eight times a year. The
Talon also maintains and updates its
website, www.lahstalon.org, with fulltime
coverage. The Talon is a public
forum for student expression.
The Editorial Board sets the
policies of The Talon and crafts its
editorials and thumbs. Its members
are Jason Hu, Carolyn Huang, Alex
Kent, Justin Koehler, Mark Levin,
Curran Mahowald, Zia Rosenzweig
and Max Wiederholt.
Please send subscription and
advertisement inquiries to Alex Kent
and Erika Schonher at thetalon.
business@gmail.com.
Talon
Supporters
5
Honorary Pulitzers
Ashok and Bharti Killer, Jeanine
Valadez, The Bergevin Family, Myriam
McAdams, Jeff and Katie Wiederholt,
Zorica Ljaljevic, Seth and Debra
Strichartz, Shu-Hua and Ching Hu,
Chuyen Do and Quyen Nguyen, The
Nangia Family, Kefeng Hua, Ted and
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Silver Supporters
Jaleh Morshed, Alex Barreira,
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Lytle, Karen Eustis, Jacob Kuo, George
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Biondi Family, Bill and Karen Shannon,
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Grate, Trudy and Jim Chiddix, Eugene
and Shirley Radding, Don Schreiber
and Lynn Saunders, the Kent Family,
Mark Drake, Kip and Kathy Skinner

The Talon
October 19, 2010
Opinions
November election propositions reviewed
Prop 19:
no
Proposition 19 allows people 21 years
or older to possess or transport up to
one ounce or cultivate up to 25 square
feet of marijuana for personal use.
The proposition also allows the local
government to authorize the sale
of larger amounts of marijuana
and collect taxes to offset any
costs associated with marijuana
regulation. However, marijuana
is prohibited on school
grounds, cannot be used in
public and cannot be smoked
in the presence of minors.
Although Proposition
19 will yield several
significant benefits, a few
provisions must be made
before the proposition is
safe to be passed.
Under the current law, the
possession, cultivation or distribution
of marijuana is generally illegal. (The
severity of the punishment depends
on the offense.) Nevertheless, state
and local governments spend millions
of dollars annually incarcerating and
supervising certain marijuana offenders.
Prop 21:
yes
Proposition 21 establishes an $18 annual
vehicle license surcharge to help fund state
parks and wildlife programs. The proposition
could be the answer to California’s dying
state parks and beaches.
Over the last couple of years, state parks
have accumulated a backlog of more than
$1 billion in repairs and maintenance due
to lack of funding. In the past year alone,
150 state parks were closed part-time or
suffered service reductions. Public parks
have been poorly maintained. The problem
has grown to the extent that the National
Trust for Historic Preservation has named
California state parks one of the 11 most
endangered sites in America.
Prop 23:
no
Over the past several decades, global
warming has become an increasingly
important issue. According to “Sci-
Tech Today,” the United States is
the world’s second largest emitter of
greenhouse gases in the world, and
California is the second largest emitter
of greenhouse gases in the country.
Increasing concentrations of these
greenhouse gases result in increasing
global temperatures that could
eventually cause significant problems
such as rises in sea level and the number
of extreme weather events. California
must play its part in addressing the
issue of global warming.
Proposition 23 suspends the
implementation of the air pollution
control law (Assembly Bill 32) for
reducing greenhouse gas emissions
until the employment rate drops
to 5.5 percent or less for one year.
State agencies cannot propose or
adopt new regulations, or enforce
previously adopted regulations, that
would implement the bill during the
According to the Drug Policy Alliance,
implementation of the proposition could
allow police to focus on more violent
crimes (which have been overlooked in
the past as a result of the prevalence of
illegal marijuana possession), help cut
off funding to drug cartels, and generate
LAUReN LiU
$1.4 billion
in revenue by allowing the government
to tax the annual $14 billion in marijuana
transactions in California.
Furthermore, outlawing marijuana
hasn’t stopped over 98 million Americans
from trying it. According to a survey
California’s state parks and beaches are
literally in danger of becoming extinct,
threatening the wildlife habitats that exist
in those areas. But Proposition 21 can
save and protect state parks and wildlife
programs. By implementing the vehicle
surcharge, the state would be able to
generate at least $250 million annually for
state and wildlife conservation.
Not only will Proposition 21 protect
the diversity of plants and animals in
California, but preserving parks will
contribute to public health because forests
and natural areas are sources of clean air
and water and can reduce greenhouse
gases, combating climate change.
Opponents argue that the proposition
is “a cynical ploy by Sacramento insiders
to bring back the ‘Car Tax.’” However,
Proposition 21 creates a new
suspension period.
In 2006, the state
enacted the California
Global Warming Solutions
Act, commonly referred to as
Assembly Bill 32 (AB 32). Under
AB 32, the state would try to reduce
emissions of greenhouse
gases to 1990 levels by
2020. Achieving this
target could mean
a 30 percent
reduction in
greenhouse
gases in
2020 from
where the
level would
be in the
absence of
the bill.
However,
u n d e r
Proposition
23, AB
32 would
be suspended immediately and
the suspension would be sustained
until employment dropped under 5.5
percent for a whole year. For the first
conducted by the Office of National Drug
Control Policy, 41 percent of Americans
aged 12 and older have tried marijuana at
least once in their lifetimes. Proposition
19 would actually increase the penalty of
selling marijuana to minors.
But although the proposition has
evident benefits, it is not complete. The
proposition fails to provide standards for
what can be deemed as “driving under
the influence,” an issue that could
seriously compromise safety on
the road and in the community.
People could technically use
marijuana right up to the point
when they begin driving. For
example, school bus drivers
would be prohibited from
smoking marijuana on school
grounds or while they were
behind the wheel, but could
drive with marijuana already in
their system.
According to the National Institute
on Drug Abuse, marijuana affects many
skills required for safe driving such as
alertness, concentration, coordination
and reaction time. Studies show that
up to 14 percent of drivers who died or
sustained injuries in car accidents tested
positive for THC.
trust fund that requires funds to be used
solely for the maintenance, operation
and repair of
state parks
and the
protection
of wildlife
and natural
resources.
T h e
formation
of the
C i t i z e n s ’
O v e r s i g h t
Committee
and annual
audits will
mandate strict accountability, ensuring
that funds are properly spent and not
diverted to extraneous projects.
2 quarters of 2010, the unemployment
rate was above 12 percent while
economic forecasts for the next 5 years
estimate the rate remaining above 8
percent. Given these numbers, AB 32
would most likely be suspended for
many years.
Proposition 23
will temporarily
p r e v e n t
energy cost
increases by
putting off the
implementation
of new clean
energy laws.
Proponents of
the proposition
also argue that higher
energy prices as a
result of AB 32 will hurt
California’s poor, working
and middle class families
who are dealing with lost jobs
and fewer hours.
However, by keeping us
dependent on fossil fuels, Proposition
23 would eventually increase household
electricity costs in California by 33 percent.
According to David Roland-Holst, the
GRACe GAO
GRACe GAO
6
By Anny Dow
InformAtIon EDItor
California Vehicle Code 23152(a) VC
criminalizes driving under the influence
(DUi) of alcohol and/or drugs. However,
proving that an individual is driving under
the influence of marijuana is challenging,
as the life span of THC ranges from hours
to months, depending on the amount of
marijuana consumed, the concentration
of the THC, and the individual’s personal
tolerance to marijuana. Chemical
tests alone cannot determine when
the marijuana was actually used, only
that it was used at some point. Under
the law, all that matters is whether an
individual was DUi marijuana at the
time he or she was driving. Additionally,
California DUi marijuana law has no
standard for prosecution, unlike the 0.04
percent blood alcohol content for alcohol
impairment.
Despite the benefits of the measure,
safety must come first. Before Proposition
19 is approved, further research must
be conducted on how to test for DUi
marijuana.
Furthermore, vehicles that pay
the surcharge would be granted free
parking and
admission in
all state parks
( c u r r e n t l y
ranging from
around $5 to
$15 a day). The
$18 annual
vehicle license
surcharge is
a small price
to pay to save
C a l i f o r n i a ’ s
state parks
and preserve its
wildlife, not to mention set precedent
for other states to follow as far as state
parks are concerned.
A g r i c u l t u r a l
and Resource
e c o n o m i c s
Professor at UC
Berkeley, these added
costs would reduce
economic output in
California by more than $80 billion and cost
over 500,000 jobs by 2020.
Suspending AB 32 will allow air
pollution to increase, resulting in a
decline in clean energy companies
which will have trouble competing with
oil companies like Valero and Tesoro.
Large oil companies, among the worst
polluters in California, are actively
supporting Proposition 23 to escape
accountability for gas emissions. If the
proposition was implemented, portions
of the health and safety code requiring
the reduction of air pollution in California
refineries would be repealed. This would
contribute to more air pollution, leading
to asthma and lung disease.
Implementation of clean air laws
under AB 32 would contribute
greatly to increasing respiratory
health. Although the proposition
may work for the time being, it
is important that the long-term
repercussions are considered.

October 19, 2010
Opinions 7
SCVAL rule change unfair to athletes Surely, you jest?
Grace Gao
Staff Writer
In an effort to make the
competitive opportunities equal
between males and females,
the Santa Clara Valley Athletic
League (SCVAL) now requires
all senior athletes to compete on
varsity teams. The change has
generated a strong reaction from
athletes and coaches alike, and
while SCVAL’s effort to adhere
to its reactions is commendable,
the changes were unnecessary
in the first place.
PHOTO IllusTraTIOn By Mya BallIn
Originally, girls of all grade
levels were allowed to participate
on JV teams. But this year,
SCVAL began implementing
a new system to standardize
competition rules. Under
these new rules, all seniors
can participate only on varsity
teams. Cross country teams
have been hit the hardest by
the change due to another new
rule enforcement that limits
competitors on varsity teams to
the top seven runners.
Cross country coach Patti Sue
Plumer said that both the runners
and the coaches were unaware of
the new SCVAL rules before the
beginning of the season.
“It really hit us a couple weeks
ago when we had to run all our
seniors on varsity,” senior Tori
Greenen said.
However, that was not the
only rule the league changed.
Now only the seven fastest
runners on the cross country
team are allowed to run on
varsity. Because cross country
is a no-cut sport, many seniors
were able to compete in the
past. The rule of only letting
seven varsity members run
prevented many who wanted to
run from doing so.
“This is frustrating to us as
coaches because we coach a
non-cut sport,” Plumer said.
“It is supposed to be open and
accessible to everyone who is
willing to work hard.”
Before, there were 12 runners
on varsity who switched in
and out. Under SCVAL’s new
policy, varsity runners had to
participate in at least 50 percent
of the races. Runners who
were neither seniors nor in the
top seven would not be able to
participate in the races. Because
the school has the largest cross
country team in the league, it
was hit the hardest.
SCVAL realized that many
athletes couldn’t participate in
the meets and therefore decided
to hold an emergency meeting
on Monday, September 27 with
the league’s athletic directors,
including LAHS Athletic
Director Kim Cave, to talk about
altering the rules to let more
athletes run in cross country.
The meeting focused on how
to change the rules to benefit
the students who cannot
compete at the top level in
cross country. As a result of
the meeting, varsity teams
now have an A and B. Varsity
A will have the original varsity
runners, while the rest of the
seniors will run in Varsity B.
“everyone else who wasn’t in
the top seven can race,” Cave
said. “So they can still run.”
Although SCVAL did respond
quickly to the public’s concern,
it should have anticipated these
results. Not all athletes are ready
or want to compete at the varsity
level, and they shouldn’t be
forced to because of their grade
level.
“Why do they call it Varsity
B when it is not Varsity B?”
senior Audrey Cole said. “It’s
basically JV.”
In the school’s cross country
league, the two divisions are
frosh/soph and varsity, with JV
no longer a race. But in other
leagues, seniors can run on JV.
Before the emergency meeting,
the schools in SCVAL would
have been unable to compete in
leagues outside of SCVAL.
Although the cross country
girls were affected the most, the
rule was put into effect to make
the rules equal for girls and boys.
“Girls aren’t necessarily
faster as seniors than they are
as freshmen or sophomores,”
Plumer said.
Cross country rules in years
past were simple and accepted
by the majority of those involved
with cross country. The rule
changes were unncecessary,
only serving to complicate the
original rules.
Though SCVAL should be
commended for making an
effort to revise the rules, it
should have notified the athletes
and coaches well before the
change was in effect in order
to smooth out problems before
the season began.
Teen shows portray hyper-sexual reality
Rachel Grate
Staff Writer
“Are you sexually active?”
I was at the doctor recently
when that pesky little question
came up. Distracted by the
“Juno” line that pops in my head
whenever I hear it (“Am I gonna,
like, deactivate some day or is it
a permanent state of being?”), i
was a bit slow to respond.
“No,” i said as my doctor raised
her eyebrows doubtfully and
checked the appropriate box.
I blame modern television for
her doubtful eyebrows. More and
more TV shows are portraying
an altered reality in which sex
becomes the priority in teen lives.
Take my guilty pleasure, “The
Secret Life of the American
Teenager” (ABC Family). “Secret
Life” is the only show you
can count on to have as many
pregnancies as it has seasons.
“If I just focus on what she’s
saying, maybe I won’t think about
oral sex,” Alice, a character in
“Secret Life”, begins a rare high
school classroom scene in season
two, episode seven. Her willpower
quickly gives out, and the camera
takes turns panning to half the
students in the room (who,
amazingly, are all thinking about
sex). The only exception, one could
argue, is one anonymous character
who wonders, “Am I the only one
JOey GiACOMiNi
in here thinking about sex?”
Call me crazy, but while in
Biology I never wanted my
teacher to “point me to the
direction of a nice pistil.” A nice
grade on my report card was
more central to my thoughts.
I suppose a school full of
determined overachievers wouldn’t
attract as many viewers as a school
full of self-professed sluts.
Other shows seem to agree,
because networks are swarmed
with images of teens skipping
school to have sex in a hotel
room. (Never mind that I know a
fair number of students at LAHS
who, if skipping class, can be
found in the library studying for
a test later that day.) One such
show is “Gossip Girl” (The CW).
“Gossip Girl,” which follows
the lives of spoiled Manhattan
teenagers, stole 16-year-old Jenny
Humphrey’s virginity at the end
of season three, thus making all
main characters sexually active.
One minor detail, though, is that
the man she slept with (notorious
player Chuck Bass) is the same
man who tried to rape her in the
very first episode.
I forget half the plot twists of
these drama-filled shows, so i’m
not surprised that an assault
was rendered ancient history
after three seasons. The threat
of being quickly forgotten makes
producers vamp up the sex appeal
in an effort to retain viewers like
you and me. But
how far is too far?
I can’t deny that
there are a few selfprofessed
sluts at
our school as well
as in “Secret Life”
(though in a less
exaggerated form).
However, some
realities shouldn’t
be diluted by
television as doing
so risks minimizing
their implied
importance in real
life. Rape is one of
the realities which
should not have its
severity undermined.
Until producers agree, we’re
stuck with shows in which the
“Secret Life” of students like you
and me is assumed to revolve
around the newest sex position.
We are the ones who supposedly
start “Just Say Me” masturbation
campaigns at school (“Secret Life”)
instead of sticking to studying. We
are the ones who supposedly work
our way through a little black
book of prostitutes to get over
a bad break up (“Gossip Girl”)
instead of relying on plentiful ice
cream and romantic comedies
(my preferred approach).
And so, we are the generation
that needs to get used to getting a
lot of raised eyebrows.
By
Max Wiederholt
Statements made in this column are not to be taken as
fact. Satire is protected by California state law. None
of the content in this column is malicious in nature.
Marijuana illegalization working
‘just fine,’ local dealer says
In an announcement
proclaiming his opposition to
Proposition 19—which would
legalize, tax and regulate
marijuana in California—
local marijuana dealer Darryl
Hummins said the current
system of strong federal
crackdowns has been “great
for business” and thanked the
DeA for providing “the kind
of market protection that you
can’t find anywhere else.”
“I think it’s great that
marijuana is illegal,”
Hummins said. “If it were
legal, then I’d have to deal
with a market that is affected
by all that business crap
like supply and demand
and federal regulation.
There’d be taxes, I’d have to
advertise—that’s not why I
got into selling weed.”
Hummins said that in the
past, he was able to operate
his business as he pleased
with all the protections
afforded any average small
business owner. Under Prop
19, however, all this would go
“up in smoke.”
“It just hurts when the
politicians say they’re
protecting the common
man and then they jump
to legalizing marijuana,”
Hummins said. “I’ve built my
life around this business—
they can’t take it away from
me. i feel betrayed.”
While billions of dollars in
potential tax revenue might
be persuasive to many people,
Hummins said he believes
that it is “selling out to just
focus on the money, man.”
“Real people are going to
lose everything they have for
this proposition,” Hummins
said. “The feds should show
more compassion and stop just
dismissing us as criminals. Of
course, we are criminals, but
we’re people too.”
Larry Prine, one of
Hummins’s customers, said
that he will try to support
Hummins if marijuana
becomes legal but warned
that it might be hard.
“Of course I’m going
to look out for Hummins
because we’re friends, but
I’m not gonna lie, it might be
tough once the competition
really heats up,” Prine said.
“Bigger companies might
have special promotions, like
‘Buy McDonald’s weed and
get 10 free cheeseburgers.’
Darryl can’t compete with
the corporations, man, and
to be honest his homemade
brownie recipe just isn’t
cutting it anymore.”
As a backup to selling weed,
Hummins is considering
panhandling and passing
a donation box around his
local church.
“If all else fails, there’s
always God,” Hummins said.

8
guest columnist of
the issue
“Coming
out,
Coming
home”
By Justin
Koehler
The evening of its
Homecoming game this year,
a Rutgers stadium of over
50,000 observed a moment of
silence in the loving memory
of Tyler Clementi, who,
earlier that week, decided to
end his life after discovering
that his roommate secretly
broadcasted his encounter
with another man.
The afternoon of the LAHS
Homecoming game, the
student body will instead
roar in applause as openly
gay members of court walk
out onto the football field
and a pair is crowned King
and Queen.
And these candidates, just
like all the others, have been
highlighted by the student
body for making outstanding
contributions to the school
community. Throughout the
month of October, they have
been included in student hype
about who is coupled together,
jokes about romantic drama,
and debates over who will
become King and Queen.
That these candidates are
respected by their peers
enough to make it onto
court, regardless of their
sexual orientation, says a lot
about the level of tolerance
at the school.
It’s easy to forget in the
tolerance of Los Altos that
hatred is still an issue in
schools across the country,
and the tragedy at Rutgers is
only another painful reminder
of this truth—thousands
of high school and even
college campuses struggle
to understand or even
acknowledge homosexuality.
Gay bullying doesn’t just
affect gay students. Many
students acknowledged by
their peers at these schools
consider declining recognition
to avoid judgment and hatred.
Once a part of a Homecoming
court, even if they are
comfortable with themselves,
these students stand in direct
confrontation with violence
and bullying. Students like
Clementi weren’t even openly
gay before being criticized for
their sexuality.
As a school, we can’t deny
that some homophobia still
exists, but we should be proud
of how far we’ve come with
regard to treating gay people
just like anyone else. At LAHS,
gay students can return
each year to a community
that embraces them, and
this year’s Homecoming is a
testament to that fact.
We’ve come a long way, not
just for gays, but for every
group that has ever felt alone
or misunderstood. But we
can’t be complacent; we still
have to fight for equality both
here and in other campuses.
And maybe someday, stories
like that of Tyler Clementi will
be a memory, and only that.
Libbie Katsev
Staff Writer
Opinions
October 19, 2010
Why one girl refuses to go to Homecoming
Homecoming is in less than
two weeks, but instead of exciting
plans I’ll be making excuses not
to go. My whole life, I’ve dreaded
dances: They’re loud, crowded
and full of potentially awkward
situations. No thank you, I’d rather
stay at home and watch Hulu.
Reasons I can’t go to
Homecoming:
I have a lot of homework. But
maybe if you helped me with
my math, I could go—hey! Why
are you running away?
I’m grounded, my parents put bars
on my windows and everything.
A girl is sitting in the quad at
brunch, when all of a sudden
she notices the man of her
dreams walking across the
grass seemingly to talk to her!
He approaches. No chocolate.
No flowers. No elaborately
decorated sign that singles
her out as the perfect girl. He
just asks, in one measly word,
“Homecoming?” How did he
know! This is exactly what
she had been dreaming of the
last few weeks: a plain, simple
asking to one of the most
important dances of the year.
Sorry boys, but not many of
those girls exist. In fact, in today’s
day and age, most girls have all
sorts of crazy expectations about
being asked to Homecoming.
Now for girls, it’s not only about
who you’re going with, but how
you were asked.
Homecoming
2010
The secrets to a yes: How to pop
the question, Homecoming style
Erika Schonher
Business Manager
Do you plan to ask someone to
the Homecoming dance?
Boys:
Yes No
Girls:
No
66%
Yes
8%
It’s flu season. I’m contagious.
It’s flu season. You’re contagious.
I broke all my toes. Ouch.
The dog ate my dress.
I spent all my money on my
dress (the one the dog ate) and
now I can’t afford a ticket.
I’m allergic to teen spirit.
Six years ago today my goldfish
died, and I just can’t have a
good time knowing how much
he’d love to be here right now.
Terrible things that will
probably happen at
Homecoming:
I’ll be trampled to death in the
crowd of dancing people.
Note to boys: We understand
that we girls are complicated
creatures and that it’s hard
to think of ways to ask us to
Homecoming. So, in order to
help out, I’ve devised a stepby-step
process to help you
guys figure out what the heck
you’re going to do to ask that
perfect girl.
1. Decide: Public vs. Private
The first step in deciding
how to ask a girl is to ask
yourself how far you’re
willing to go. Public askings
include anything in front of
a crowd, from writing your
prospective date’s name on a
giant sign at a sports practice
to crooning her name at a
brunch activity or football
game half time. These
methods require the guts to
face some potentially scary
consequences. A good tip to
avoid public humiliation: be
pretty darn sure
148 POLLeD
your girl is going
to say yes.
Another way to
avoid mass public
rejection is to do
something private.
It is important for
you to know your
girl’s capacity for
attention. Maybe
she’s not into
public scenes, or
maybe all that
attention isn’t for
you, either. In that
case, stick to the
private option.
Private askings
are usually more
intimate. A
My feet will be stepped on.
I’ll go deaf from how loud
the music is.
I’ll stand alone in a corner
all night.
My future son will
travel backwards in
time and I’ll fall in love
with him and not my
husband.
scavenger hunt
at her house or a
decorated room
when she arrives
home are usually
good ideas. (Make
sure you ask her
parents’ permission
first, though!)
2. Do a little
research
Find out what
she likes. Asking
a girl based on
shared inside jokes
or interests adds a
personal touch that
makes it hard for
any girl to refuse
your proposal.
Whether that means asking her
by writing on a tennis ball or
spelling out “HOMeCOMiNG?”
with her favorite candy, the
thought is sure to not only pluck
some heart strings, but make
her laugh as well.
3. Enlist the Help of Friends
Asking your prospective date’s
friends to help can be extremely
beneficial, as long as you are
very careful about which
friends you choose. By working
with her friends, you can gain
insight into things about her
that you probably didn’t know.
For example, if you were
thinking of asking your date
with a delicious treat of your
mom’s famous peanut butter
cookies, it might be helpful to
learn beforehand that she is
fatally allergic to peanuts.
Her friends can also do a little
prodding about what she thinks
of you if you are feeling unsure or
Will you go to the Homecoming
dance if you don’t have a date?
Boys:
Yes No
45%
Girls:
Yes 71%
No
POLLS
COMPiLeD
By eRiKA
SCHONHeR
AND LiBBie
KATSeV
nervous about asking this girl.
Friends can also be good at
directing your date to where you
need her to be. For example, if
you need her to be somewhere at
6:24 p.m. in order to ask her in a
place she normally wouldn’t be,
you can get her friends to help
swoop her away without making
it too obvious that she is about
to be asked.
4. Just do it
Don’t worry so much. Girls
appreciate whatever you do to
ask because we just want to be
asked. Work up the guts to ask
someone you’ve always wanted
to, or think of a funny way to
ask one of your best friends.
No matter what, just don’t be
scared, because a girl is never
going to reject you based on
the way you asked her. Girls
may be complex, but when it
comes to being asked, we’re
just happy it happened.

9
Features
the pop culture grid
Silly Bandz:
yes or no?
If you could
describe yourself
as any animal...
Favorite subject,
and why?
Teresa Fabbricino Jose Villanueva Carolyn Huang Randy Jimenez
Yes
Tiger—they are cute
and ferocious at the
same time
Physics. [Adam]
Randall is hilarious
and I love the challenge.
a look at this
year’s court
“if I were
Homecoming
King or
Queen
for a day”
Yes
Elephant
Math, because it’s
straightforward.
ASB, field
hockey,
soccer,
basketball,
badminton,
LAAL
President ASB, LSU
Outreach
Commissioner,
Peer Tutor,
freshman
advisor
What’s your favorite music album right now?
Dainen Bocsary: water
polo, swimming, Main Street
Singers, Varsity Men’s Glee
“I have musical
ADD. But I
am always, no
matter what,
ready to rock
out to Led
Zeppelin.”
Editor-in-Chief of
The Talon, Interact
Co-President,
Concert Choir,
Girls Glee
match-off
Who’s your favorite actor/actress and why?
Martin Luna: LSU, Broken
Box, Varsity Men’s Glee
“Jack Nicholson, because he
often plays seriocomedic roles
which make you laugh on the
surface but play tricks on your
mind underneath.”
Yes (glow in the
dark!)
Koala—they are
loving and like to
hug
Talon, because I love
writing, reporting,
and I love all
of the
Talonites!
“I would celebrate with all my family and friends.”
Alejandra Ruelas: cheerleading, Latino Student Union
Important Homecoming “dates” to remember
October 19, 2010
“I would participate in all school activities and encourage others to participate as well.”
Alex Cala: Broken Box, Students for Haiti, field hockey, softball
“I would give everyone free Otterpops.”
Danny Giacomini: Broken Box, Sixth Man Club, soccer, football, baseball
Libby Strichartz: ASB, Class
Council, Juntos, Mock Trial,
Cultural Unification Club
“Anything 80s. That was the
best music.”
Kayla Valpey: Marching
Band, Klüb Kitchen, softball
“Tim Curry. He played Dr.
Frankenfurter in Rocky Horror
Picture Show, i.e. the greatest movie
of all time. Plus he’s got an awesome
afro.”
No
Cheetah—they are
classy animals and
just look hella good
History. I love
learning about the
past. It’s just hella
interesting to me.
cheer,
wrestling,
diving,
gymnastics,
dance
“My first act would be to shave my head (I haven’t done this since third grade).
Then I would probably just draw pictures of cakes.”
Mikey Vendelin: cross country, Broken Box, Tea Club
Q & A
“The Mayan Civilization because they had the most
modernized weapons and I wouldn’t have to fight as hard.”
Claire Evangelista: varsity basketball, ASB, Random Acts of
Kindness Club, freshman advisor
“Since I have studied Latin for three years, I would
probably be a Roman. Romans were the most powerful
and authoritative of the ancient civilizations.”
Wesley Oribello: wrestling, cross country, track, Key Club,
ACLU, Breakdancing Club
ancient
civilizations
Which would you join?
“I would live in the Egyptian era because of all the
glamorous jewelery and the bomb Egyptian hieroglyphs.”
Mari Molina: LSU President, Mock Trial, Concert Choir, Class
Council Activities Commissioner, ASB
“I would choose to live with the Vikings because they had
the opportunity to explore the world. Also, they didn’t
worry too much about shaving regularly.”
Justin Koehler: School Garden President, Features Editor for
The Talon, tennis
Tawny Peek: Yearbook, Sisters’ Club, LSU
The Talon: What are you looking most forward to this
school year?
Tawny: “I’m looking forward to ending the school year
and graduating with everyone in the senior class. Yeah
seniors!”
Jack Montgomery: ASB, Interact Club, Science
and Tech Week, Site Council
The Talon: How does it feel to be recognized by your
peers and make Homecoming court?
Jack: “I feel very flattered, surprised and elated.”
Tyler Stout: ASB, Class Council VP, Jew Crew,
Sixth Man Club, Finance for the Future, football,
baseball, Silicon for Society
The Talon: What are your thoughts about this year’s court?
Tyler: “[They are a] very diverse and fine group of people.”
Erika Schonher: soccer, field hockey, Class
Treasurer, Business Manager for The Talon, Sixth Man
The Talon: What has been your most memorable high
school experience?
Erika: “When my super awesome kickball team won
sophomore year, or when, as freshmen, we beat the
seniors in tug-o-war.”
Tuesday, October 26 Homecoming Assembly
Friday, October 29 at 1:30 p.m. Homecoming Parade
Saturday, October 30 at 11 a.m. JV Homecoming football game
Saturday, October 30 at 1:30 p.m. Varsity Homecoming football game
Saturday, October 30 from 8 to 11 p.m. Homecoming Dance

October 19, 2010
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
monday tues
Failure is not an option—it’s pre-installed
with the standard package
David Cohn, Ph.D., Senior Research Scientist, Google
computer security: the road ahead
Dan Boneh, Ph.D., Professor of Electrical Engineering & Computer
Science, Stanford University
erase/replace: it’s all aBout stem cells
Jill Helms, M.D., Associate Professor, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery,
School of Medicine, Stanford University
It’s not your everyday nose job. In recent
years, the field for superficial socialites
has gotten a makeover to include the
new area of stem cells.
Yesterday, October 18, Jill Helms, Professor
of Surgery in the department of Regenerative
Medicine at Stanford University, addressed
myths and facts surrounding the controversial
native Bees: the urBan Buzz
Marissa Ponder, Ph.D. Student, U.C. Berkeley
topic of stem cell research. Stem cells can be
used to heal broken, not simply imperfect,
body parts, and seeing this goal accomplished
is one of Helms’ personal dreams.
“If enough smart, motivated, inquisitive
young people are interested in helping then
I am sure we can accomplish the goal,”
Helms said. -MD
learn to walk again using the tiBion Bionic leg
Matt Murphy, Vice President of Engineering, Tibion Bionic Technologies
Most of us will never have to learn how to walk again, but for the unfortunate few
who do, Matt Murphy is your second chance. At Tibion Bionic Technologies, Murphy
helped develop a robotic prosthetics that will help patients with stroke relearn how
to walk, and yesterday he shared that technology with the school. -GG
moon, mars, and Beyond: space exploration
Jen Heldmann, Ph.D., Research Scientist, NASA, Division of Space Science
and Astrobiology
Water, agua, eau, or shui is not just on Earth. Jenn Heldmann is looking for
extraterrestrial water.
At NASA, she has been involved with LCROSS, which detected water ice
on the moon thanks to a plume kicked up by a rocket’s impact, and various
missions that explore Martian terrain.Each mission is a multi-step process
that brings variety to her job. She has worked on the actual instruments that
now analyze planetary bodies.
“I like the fact that my job is not just stitting behind the desk,” Heldmann
said. “I also get outside and I go to places and I get dirty. I like the fact that
I’m not stuck in the office all day.” -MLD
When it comes to bees, it was love at first sight for Urban Bee Gardens
cultivator Marissa Ponder.
“I remember the first time I saw a Megachilid bee fly across the garden with a
leaf in her mouth,” Ponder said. “I instantly became fascinated with native bees.”
To many, bees are hidden traps in a barefoot stroll through the grass, yet they
are part of a diverse species that sustains our food industry and are responsible for
90 percent of pollination worldwide. In her presentation during Science and Tech
Week, Ponder addressed the importance of California native bees.
Ponder was a psychology major in community college but realized that something
was still missing from her life. Ponder’s love of gardening inspired within her a curiosity
of bees. This curiosity bloomed into her ever-growing and slightly quirky devotion.
“I love the faces audiences make when they hear that there are 1,600 species of bees
in California. Or that there are green, blue and polka dot bees,” Ponder said. -MD
medical imaging is liFe-saving technology
Ismayil Guracar, Senior Key Expert, Siemens Medical Solutions
Babies, hearts, internal bleeding and cancer are all part of Ismayil Guaracar’s
day. Guaracar works in the ultrasound department of Siemens Medical Solutions,
developing new applications and software for the versatile diagnostic tool.
One of Guaracar’s specialties is a diagnostic ultrasound that detects cancer. Close
to being FDA-approved, the test injects small bubbles into the bloodstream and uses
sound waves to bounce back for a contrast image.
Yesterday, Guaracar presented students with the opportunity to perform
an ultrasound using a hand held unit and a “phantom.” The phantom mimics
the human body and has targets placed inside, so that students are able to
visualize how an ultrasound is performed on a human body.
“I hope [LAHS teens] will get excited and inspired and realize that there’s a lot to
do,” Guaracar said. “And we need their help.” -MD
“First, be open-minded.
your life will never be what
you expected. second, be
kind to people. and finally,
learn from everything.
what you might initially
see as bad may actually
turn out to be a blessing.”
“right now we [at cliff Bar] are
launching our reformulated
energy gel and are very excited
about the eight new flavors that
will be released soon.”
“i once made a film
involving a chimpanzee
who ... unloaded a
massive quantity of urine
along a hallway. “
10
students will have extended tu
using vir
Ugochi Achol
School of Des
Shane Gran
engineer
Nabeel Ka
the scien
K K Mui, Prod
scien
Amir Ro
living w
Henry Rosent
Commander
drug
Brent Tre
Articles compiled by staff writers Ca
Davis, Grace Gao and Mark Schreibe
editor Michael Lincoln Drake
to inFinity
& science B
Danielle Feinber
& Lighting, Pixa
Danielle Feinberg created many of o
The Director of Photography for L
Animation Studios, she’s worked o
A Bug’s Life; Toy Story 2; Mons
Incredibles, Finding Nemo; Wal
recently Toy Story 3. Tomorrow, s
exeperience with the school.
Feinberg says that her presenta
how Pixar makes a movie from be
but more so show what she lov
computer graphics and computer a
“ I will go through each step in
Feinberg said
be

11
October 19, 2010
stepping out oF your proFile Box
Dave Fetterman, Engineering Manager, Facebook
day wednesday
torial to see speakers oF their choice
tual worlds to teach
onu, Education Ph.D. Student, Stanford
ign, Stanford University
real liFe csi
berg, Detective, Homicide-Crime Scene
Unit, San Jose Police Department
ing the next generation
mboh, Senior Software Engineer, Cisco
Systems
and Beyond! the math
ehind movie making
g, Director of Photography
r Animation Studios
ur childhoods.
ighting at Pixar
n movies from
ters, Inc.; The
l-E; and most
he shares that
tion will show
ginning to end
es most about
nimation.
the pipeline,”
. “There will
a lot of
physics, some basic math principles like the XYZ
axes, some trigonometry and a few other tidbits
sprinkled in there.”
Feinberg was first exposed to computer graphics
when she was eight, when she designed spirographs
in LOGO. During her junior year at Harvard, Feinberg
“fell in love with computer animation” when her
professor showned her computer graphics class a few
of Pixar’s first animated short films.
Jobs were popping up everywhere following the
release of Toy Story, and as a female in the maledominated
field of computer science, Feinberg
remembers that “it was much easier to stand out.”
With the industry suddenly booming and her
aspiration to combine both her mathematical skill
and artistic mind, Feinberg knew what she
wanted to do with her life.
C o m p u t e r
animation was
“everything she
had ever tried
to do,” but
it’s no walk
in the
p a r k .
games people play: analyzing strategic Behavior
Yossi Feinberg, Ph.D., Professor of Economics and Joseph and Laurie Lacob
Faculty Fellow for 2010-2011, Stanford University
room
702
room
410
room
708
ce oF Food inventions
uct Development Manager, Cliff Bar Inc. room
ce & technology vs dumB
luck and hard work
senbaum, Owner, Spectre Performance
408
room
409
ith eyes wide open
hal, Independent Film Producer/Space room
development and human
clinical trials
iger, MD, Vice President, Clinical Affairs,
leb An, Megan
r, and by sports
Apthera Pharmaceuticals
tesla
Aditi Garg, Tesla
701
room
710
room
706
Game Theory isn’t about games, but Yossi Feinberg
still can beat you at poker, while explaining
mathematically why you lost.
Feinberg is a professor of Economics at Stanford
who specializes in Game Theory, a behavioral branch
of mathematics, and its applications in economics.
A math major in college, Feinberg was curious
about human behavior and how mathematical
models could predict how people act. After taking a
few courses in Game Theory, he was hooked.
For Feinberg, revelations do not come from
keynote
According to Feinberg, people are most surprised
with how much work goes into an animated film
after hearing her presentation.
“About 1,600 to 2,000 shots are in each movie,”
Feinberg said. “My team and I begin working on a
film three years before it even comes out.”
From every detail of plant life to the inferno
erupting from an explosion, Feinberg is required to
use up to 40 controls over each light to produce a
realistic image that the director wants to see.
During “Finding Nemo,” for example, creating
the jellyfish scene was no easy task; each of their
amorphous shapes all had to be created from scratch.
“It was a really hard sequence and the hundreds
of jellyfish images were bogging
the computers down,” Feinberg
said. “I spent hours slaving
over making a realistic image
of jellyfish that would
actually be in the Southern
Pacific.”
But it wasn’t
for nothing. At
the director’s
review meeting that
afternoon, Feinberg
presented the sequence, and
she remembers “the director
starting to clap, and then
the entire room following
along.”
“Finding Nemo” then
went on to win an Oscar for
Best Animated Feature.
In the future, Feinberg
random events like being hit by a falling apple; it
takes a lot of thinking and a strong cup of coffee
to develop his theories.
“This usually requires a whiteboard, a pen, lots of
paper and a large recycling bin,” Feinberg said.
Luckily for Feinberg, mathematics is both his work
and his passion.
“Both research and teaching are activities I
enjoy tremendously,” Feinberg said. “The only
activity I prefer to them is spending time with my
family.” -CA
the luck and skill oF scientiFic discovery
Diane Wooden, Ph.D., Research Astrophysicist, NASA
For a phone call and some cash you can have a star named
after you, but it takes something far more extraordinary
for your very own asteroid. Diane Wooden’s asteroid,
17421 Wooden, is testament to her ground-breaking
work with crystals and comets at NASA. However,
Wooden won’t be focusing solely on her work, hoping to
Wednesday
7:00 p.m. eagle theatre
1st
2nd
the plastic vortex: causes and solutions
Dennis Rogers, Crew Leader, Project Kaisei on Pacific Gyre4th
From toy chest to the Fastest electric car
Picture a sleek green and white racecar zooming
forward under the Monterey sun at 93 mph. But
the roar of a gas-guzzling V8 engine is nonexistent;
this racecar is completely electric.
Dante Zeviar is CTO at Kleenspeed, the
automotive company that created this paradoxical
eco-friendly racecar. While he has only been at
Kleenspeed for a few years, Zeviar’s relationship
with cars runs all the way back to his childhood.
“My parents would buy me toys and stuff and
Dante Zeviar, CTO, KleenSpeed
3rd
inspire students to follow a path in science.
“If I was in your shoes I would want to know ‘How do I
get from my shoes to her shoes?’” Wooden said. “Tips and
tricks that I have learned, things that I have experienced.”
Perhaps students can apply these lessons and one
day have an asteroid of their own. -MLD
5th
I wouldn’t play with them,” Zeviar said. “All I
wanted was a motorcycle.”
Zeviar earned his master’s degree while working
with BMW, and armed with experience at one of
the top carmakers in the world, Zeviar now works
at Kleenspeed, where automobile technology is
racing ahead.
“New technology gets familiar fast,” Zeviar said.
“Where I see the technology going, soon you’re just
going to take electric vehicles for granted.” -CA
size matters: engineering and nanotech
Hilary Lackritz, Ph.D, Senior Staff Engineer, Lockheed Martin Nanosystems6th
is excited to continue working on more fun and
artistically interesting projects. She is working
on the movie “Brave” (set to release in 2012) with
the first female director at Pixar and is ecstatic to
go back to realism. Her last project, “Wall-E,” was
more sci-fi. “Brave,” however, is set in Scotland,
and Feinberg is looking forward to designing “more
realistic images of nature.”
“I get to create new worlds,” Feinberg said. “It’s
like nirvana.” -MS

October 19, 2010
Hau
I see
It
By Alice Hau
Getting wheels
All teenagers look forward
to the moment they sit in the
front left seat of the car, grasp
the steering wheel, and slam
the pedal to the metal.
This wondrous moment
quickly ends when they realize
they’ve forgotten to put the car
in reverse and have rammed
through their garage wall.
Almost 11 months away
from turning 16, I have begun
to dream of coasting to school
in the sweet ride I’m inheriting
from my brother: the Toyota
Sienna XLE Minivan.
My dad, though, says that
he doesn’t trust me enough
to even start learning how to
drive. His thinking is absurd,
considering how responsible
and focused I am. Right?
In fact, I was able to muster all
of my brainpower and channel
all of my energy into counting
down the days until I’ll be able
to get my permit: 111 days.
After proudly telling my
dad about this proof of my
responsibility, he gave me
an ultimatum. He said that I
had to test my natural driving
instincts on a kiddy go-kart
racetrack. If he found that I
was naturally gifted enough
to deserve the family van, I’d
be able to start learning.
I laughed at his silly
idea. Who would want to
participate in a go-kart race
with 12-year-old kids?
My dad defensively said he
was being completely serious,
and that I was taking his
suggestion with too much levity
to deserve to drive. He retracted
his offer of bringing me to the
go-kart track, permanently
ruining my chances of driving
until I’m 40.
I plopped on the couch and
munched on some potato
chips to think of a way to deal
with this major crisis.
I flashed-back to the
racetrack that my dad took
my brother to when he was
15, and I remembered the
horror flickering in his eyes
as he ran over unsuspecting
little moles popping up in
the racetrack. He didn’t start
driving until a long two-anda-half
years later.
At last I understood why
my dad was so hesitant to let
me drive. If I had the ultimate
power of driving, I could be
hurting innocent people,
not just cute moles and the
occasional slow squirrel.
If you are itching to get
behind the wheel, remember
that driving is really
dangerous. If you think
that you’re ready for this
responsibility, visit the kiddy
racetrack, pity those poor
moles, and think again.
As for me, I’m too afraid
to wield the ultimate power
of the Sienna just yet. It
looks like the only wheels I’ll
be getting are those on my
mom’s rusty old bike.
Features 12
Costume enthusiast fights school monotony
AmeliA evArd
Sophomore Brandon Blackman, dressed as a ninja, peeks
around a corner during one of his pre-planned costume days.
Caleb An
Staff Writer
Every Friday, fanciful
characters from our fantasies
invade the school. A stealthy
ninja stalks the English wing,
a pirate cries for booty in
chemistry class, and a cowboy
kindly tips his hat at passerby.
All three are the same person—a
man on a mission against
monotony. Sophomore Brandon
Blackman comes to school every
Friday decked out in a costume
and acts in character for the
whole day.
Reactions to Brandon’s
appearances have been mostly
positive. While there are a few
naysayers who are weirded out
by Brandon’s costumes, Brandon
has felt a lot of acceptance and
support from students.
“You’ll get the people who
are like ‘You’re awesome, I love
you,’” Brandon said. “Then
you get the people who are like
‘You’re a weirdo,’ but generally
people have liked it.”
Brandon cites the dull
routine of high school life as
a motivator to do something
quirky on Fridays. Bored of
the monotonous routine of
school life, Brandon decided
to start wearing costumes after
he discovered his father’s old
giant pantaloons and realized
the fun that costumes offer.
“I figured I might as well spice
it up a bit for myself and for
others,” Brandon said.
Brandon’s teachers are
supportive of him as well.
Chemistry teacher Danielle
Paige was so enthusiastic about
Brandon’s masquerading that
she joined him in costumed
camaderie on the day he
was a pirate; she taught that
day dressed up as Captain
Feathersword, a pirate from the
TV show “The Wiggles.”
“My third period class is
definitely the most lively class
because of it,” Paige said.
Another student joined
Brandon as well. Sophomore
Neal Kenney donned ninja
robes with Brandon on his “act
like a ninja” day. Brandon is
enthused at the possibility of
this movement growing larger.
He has been raising publicity
about his dress-up days and
trying to increase participation.
Brandon hopes other people
will join him to spice Fridays
up as well, as the whole point
is raising school spirit. Schoolwide
super-casual Fridays would
certainly lighten the mood and
add some spontaneity to the
high school routine.
“I’ll do this until I run out of
ideas, which is hopefully never,”
Brandon said.
Color guard often misunderstood
Catherine Hua
Staff Writer
Any student who is
unfortunate enough to have a
zero period can testify to how
hard it is to wake up in the
morning, especially when the
gloomy dark sky challenges
every optimistic thought about
the day. However, the dedicated
members of color guard do
it every morning without
complaining because they love
what they do.
What many people don’t know
is that the purpose of color guard
is to serve as a visual addition to
marching band. Members spin
flags, rifles and sabers, timing
their actions to match the music.
While marching band may play
the music, the guard represents
the emotion the music conveys.
“We make marching band
more interesting to watch,” color
guard co-captain senior Mariela
Rodriguez said. “Color guard
is what gives life and color and
prettiness [to marching band
performances]. There would
just be music without it.”
A normal practice day consists
of stretching and running with
the band, and then separating
to rehearse and practice on their
own. On Saturdays, members
sometimes practice for 12 hours
at a time, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
The incredible amount of
dedication needed for color
guard may seem overwhelming,
and practice is difficult.
Members are careful when
tossing rifles and flags because
they are heavy and can injure
members if caught incorrectly.
The most important aspect of
flag and rifle work is to make
sure that it corresponds with
the music beat by beat, and
everyone needs to stay in sync.
“If there is some delay, it
can ruin the visual
that the whole color
guard makes,” color
guard member senior
Brenda Navarro said.
Color guard
members also use
dot books, which
have pages that mark
where they should
be on the field on
a certain count of
music.
“I feel like we’re
unique because it’s
not really like any
other activity on
campus,” color guard
co-captain Neha
Rathaur said. “Guard
combines marching
on the field; you
march, you perform
to the audience,
you’re spinning your
equipment, you have
to go along with the
music, it’s just like a
lot of different acts
put together into one
activity.”
Even though the
members of color
guard enjoy their
activity, they lose
family time and it is
often hard for friends
and other students
to understand why
members would
put so much time
and effort into color
guard.
While a majority
of students like
sophomore Lauren
Waller may view
color guard as
“interesting, but
a little pointless,”
they often don’t
senior Mariela Rodriguez
“Color guard is always something good to look forward to”
understand the hard work it
takes.
After hearing about the
long practice hours and the
activities that color guard
combines, sophomore Caroline
Deng said that “it seems a lot
harder than I expected.”
Although it’s a major time
commitment, members are
motivated and look forward
to performances where
their hard work
pays off.
Even during its performances,
color guard has the support of
the band. Given the small size
of the color guard, members are
both able to form close bonds
within their team as well as to
have the support of marching
band. Experience level doesn’t
matter in color guard, and
members gain many friends
from marching band.
Whether it’s learning
new routines, staying
in unison or
performing, the
color guard
is always
excited to
improve.
“ C o l o r
g u a r d
is always
s o m e t h i n g
good to look
forward to,”
Mariela said. “Getting
on the field is the most
amazing thing.”
AMELIA EVARD

13
Jacqueline Chu
Staff Writer
Features
October 19, 2010
Students sip tea, play Ultimate to destress
Some students are engaging in a heated
debate in mock trial while others are
investing their time in improving life
in third-world countries by building
schools, all the while keeping in mind that
these activities will bolster their college
applications. But some clubs view lunchtime
in a different manner that doesn’t affiliate
itself with college advancement.
The Tea Club
For Tea Club presidents senior Simon
Zorin and junior Adam Colcord, inspiration
hit at three in the morning.
In April on a Europe art trip, while most
students were fast asleep in a hotel, Simon
Adam discussed the idea of starting a tea
club for the following school year.
Perhaps it’s because Simon drank tea
daily in English teacher Keren Robertson’s
class last year.
“At least two or three people would want
tea anyway,” Simon said. “And there were
cups provided by Ms. Robertson that we
could just take and sometimes I would bring
in my own tea just to widen the selection for
myself and others.”
Or maybe it’s just because Adam and
Simon both have a love for tea. Adam drinks
two or three cups of tea on a daily basis and
Simon grew up drinking tea with his family.
“I have a whole cabinet dedicated to
tea, including my favorites: peppermint
tea, earl grey tea, red African teas and
green tea,” Simon said.
While Simon has more tea at home
than Adam, Adam still has a huge
appreciation of tea.
“We buy tea in packs so we have a lot,”
Adam said. “I usually drink black tea in the
morning and I really like raspberry tea, too.”
Tea clubs are not a new addition to the
school’s club history. Adam’s older sister
told him about the club, which died out in
2007 because its members graduated.
“I heard it was just a small group of
friends,” Adam said. “It wasn’t very open.”
The Tea Club had its first meeting on
September 27 in Robertson’s room with
Klüb Kitchen, which was generous enough to
share its food with the Tea Club members.
AmeliA evArd
On the left, junior Stephen Soward (left) looks to pass around junior Adron Mason. On the right, senior Julia
Sauerhaft receives a pass over her shoulder. Ultimate Frisbee Club meets purely to have fun, unlike many clubs.
About 20 to 25 members came to the first
meeting, and more are expected to come.
Although they originally intended for the
clubs to mingle, Simon and Adam changed
the meeting time to every other Monday
and occasionally Friday so the two clubs
would not coincide.
The members said they plan to bring lots
of food and many different types of tea.
Simon and Adam said they understand that
students have busy schedules, and don’t
want the tea club to be a burden.
“We just want people to enjoy the tea and
food [and] chilling with friends,” Adam said.
Senior Mikey Vendelin said Tea Club pays
homage to a seemingly mundane activity.
“Tea is such a wonderful healing drink,
and this club allows us to sample all kinds of
tea and bring food,” Mikey said.
Ultimate Frisbee Club
At lunch, while some students are
scarfing down their sandwiches, others
are busy running back and forth across
Courtesy GreG CAirns
Senior Greg Cairns (right) and his mysterious “friend” point down to the camera.
Nice Greg: avid rapper creates humorous music
who’s an actual musical artist.”
Greg’s quirky music and
somewhat silly lyrics have
grabbed the attention of many
students. With lyrics like “I
was born in a stable at the age
of three/skipped two years
because of my destiny/I want to
be like Jesus, but even better/
Jesus didn’t have his own line of
sweaters,” from the song ‘Nice
Greg, Twice Greg’ or “I’m on
match dot com/gettin’ ladies one
click at a time/I got a sign as I look
out my window/I saw a lady, her
name was Roberto (man, who’s
Roberto?)/Sh*t, I don’t know,
CONTINUED FROM FRONT PAGE
I’ve never met her before/I’m
going crazy bro,” from the song
‘We Get Real High’.
Even further proof of Greg’s
popularity is his Facebook fan page,
which already sports 231 fans, a
number that has continued to grow
over the past few weeks. Unlike
most rappers, however, Greg isn’t
excited about the attention and
praise he’s receiving.
“I feel that I have too many
fans,” said Greg. “I might ask some
people to leave my fan page, or I’ll
create another fan page for them.”
Wesley feels Greg is a different
breed of musician, as he puts
aside the allure of fame to aim for
something much bigger.
“I think one of the reasons [he
makes music] is to meet girls and
get money like most rappers, but
I feel like Greg goes deeper than
that,” Wesley said.
Greg’s reason for starting a
project and his ultimate goal in
making music is much deeper
than the bass in his songs.
“I don’t know, that really
goes into the core of what Nice
Greg is,” Greg said, when asked
what the purpose and goal of
his group is. “He’s an idea. He’s
above the influence.”
the field, chasing a disk. And at the end,
friends say goodbye to each other as they
head to their next class and the players
on the field pat each other on the backs
for a game well played.
Consisting of 80 members, the Ultimate
Frisbee Club plays Friday at lunch and
Sundays from 2:30 to 4 p.m. The idea
of the club developed out of a series of
pickup ultimate frisbee games at cross
country.
“There was a club started before we
were freshmen that played pickup frisbee
games at lunch,” Co-President junior
Stephen Soward said. “But it didn’t have
enough popularity, so it just died.”
During baseball season, Stephen
and his friend junior Joe Chedid more
seriously considered forming a team.
“Stephen started bringing frisbees to
cross country and we started playing with
them before and after,” Co-President
junior Adron Mason said. “Because frisbee
[became] a tradition in cross country, we
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figured we could ... start the club.”
On the second Friday of the school year,
Stephen, Adron and about 30 other cross
country members all went to the Bullis
Gardner Elementary School to play.
“Ultimate is not about competition.
It’s about having fun and being low-key,”
Adron said. “It’s all about the spirit of the
game. We want to make the club about
playing frisbee and having fun. Not about
meetings, officers and qualifications.”
The club is talking about the possibility
of forming a casual team for those who
are interested. When Stephen visited
American University in Washington, D.C.,
he talked to the club frisbee team president,
who happened to be his tour guide, about
frisbee tournaments and websites like
Bayareadisc. The club hopes to enter some
of these tournaments.
“What we’d love to do is put together a
semi-official team,” Adron said. “Not with
the intention of being super hardcore and
competitive, just to get some experience.”

The Talon
October 19, 2010
Entertainment
What not to wear for Homecoming Dance
Curran Mahowald
Copy/Content Editor
You’re psyched to party like
it’s 500 B.C., and the outfit is
the finishing touch on your
theme for the dance. But wait
–are you guilty of one of these
fashion faux pas? As a four-year
school dance veteran/fanatic/
evangelist, I’ve seen it all, and
these are some of the most
common style mistakes that
turn heads in a bad way.
The semi-decent polo you
wore to school yesterday when
you spilled that spaghetti
sauce–This one’s self-explanatory.
Guys, the girls are inevitably going
to put at least three times as much
time and effort into their appearance
on the big night than you do. If
nothing else, at least try to clean up
for your date.
Your baby brother’s outfit
–News flash: You grew since
elementary school graduation.
Congratulations! Now get pants
that cover your ankles and a shirt
that goes past your elbows.
A great suit and then …
tennis shoes–You were so close!
Don’t worry about having to make
a quick escape or not sporting the
right athletic gear; there is life after
track practice. Remember, the word
“semi-formal” applies to the entire
outfit, shoes and socks included!
A ninja headband, wife
beater and running shorts–
You must be nostalgic for the
Back to School Dance! That was
in August. No matter how fierce
you think you look baring upper
thigh muscles, the Homecoming
Dance is not the time.
Silly Bandz craze stretches across school campus
Anny Dow
Information Editor
What do Justin Bieber,
princesses and Batman have in
common?
They are on the wrists of
thousands of students across
the nation in the form of Silly
Bandz, a phenomenon that is
stretching from East to West.
Silly Bandz is a brand of
silicone rubber bands formed
PHoto IlluStratIon By mya BallIn
into a variety of shapes such
as animals and letters. The
idea took off in November
2008 when Brain Child
Products (BCP) Imports
started selling the bracelets
online. Since then, Silly Bandz
have taken America by storm.
Even though they hit stores
for the first time in 2009, as
of August 2010, Silly Bandz
are already available in 8,000
stores in the United States.
America can’t get
enough of these Silly
B a n d z .
Curled, straightened, braided, crimped and dyed
updo–So you’ve nailed the outfit, but as a female you still have
one more important element to take care of: the hair. Instead of
short-circuiting your house by making simultaneous use of all the
electronic hair devices you own, keep it simple yet elegant. You
want people to wonder how you got your hair to look so shiny, not
what is eating your head. Besides, crafting an elaborate hairstyle
for Homecoming is similar to monogramming your bathrobe;
only a few people will see it until it inevitably gets soaked.
Bandz fans show off their
collections on Youtube and
the Facebook fan page has
gained a following of more
than 400,000 fans. EBay even
holds live auctions for the
Bandz in 15 countries where
they can be purchased for
prices as low as 1 cent.
With themes ranging from
sea creatures to fruit to Tom
and Jerry to Spongebob to
Hello Kitty to dinosaurs, it’s
clear that BCP Imports has
gotten pretty silly with their
accessory designs.
But it doesn’t end there.
Silly Bandz fans can send BCP
a message and request
designs they want to
see. Some people
have requested
bands in typical
shapes such as
skateboards
a n d
Nintendo
characters
w h i l e
others have
r e q u e s t e d
more obscure
designs such as
a platypus.
With enough
shapes and colors
to satisfy nearly
all customers and
a cheap prices of
JaSon Hu
only $5 for a 24-pack and $2.50
for a 12-pack, Silly Bandz have
become collectibles that people
just can’t get enough of.
But with their raging
popularity, they have become
a distraction for some student
collectors. In fact, some schools
in North Carolina, Colorado,
New York, Texas, Florida and
Massachusetts have banned Silly
Bandz from the classroom as the
fiddling with and swapping of
bands during class detract from
the learning environment.
The Silly Bandz craze has
turned into a serious addiction
for some. Some of the
testimonials on the official Silly
Bandz website demonstrate
peoples’ tight bonds with the
Bandz.
On the Silly Bandz website,
Johnathan from Turlock, Calif.
declared his obsession for Silly
Bandz: “I love Silly Bandz! I
have 1,253 and [am] getting
more tomorrow!”
But kids aren’t the only
ones jumping on the Silly
“Bandzwagon.” Heidi from Las
Vegas, Nev. said that her teacher
gives them to her class to reward
students for good grades.
Jane from Jefferson City,
Miss. said, “My co-workers and
I use these little animal rubber
bands as currency around the
office. It’s fun! Can’t wait to
14
A classy mini-toga–While
tempting because of the ancient
civilizations theme, dressing
slut-chic is not in this season, nor
will it ever be. Take the phrase
“semi-formal” as a personal
invitation to cover up more than
you would for hot tubbing, at
least this one night. Double the
amount of fabric on your body
before you even think about
getting past the administration
on the way into the dance. Don’t
try to pretend you didn’t know it
was sheer. Here’s a quick check:
If you feel the wind on both sets
of cheeks, you may need to add
some garments.
The jeweled/glitter/rhinestone/
extra-sparkle dress–Dressing up
like shopping Barbie is not only
tacky, it’s dangerous for all eyes
that have to fend off the glare from
your dress that looks like it was
bedazzled twice by a three-yearold.
“Special occasion” is not code
for princess-status bling coating
your dress. Keep it simple with one
or two sparkly ornaments to avoid
overwhelming the dress itself.
The floor-length white gown–
Don’t forget the “semi” part of
the “semi-formal” concept just to
compensate for the guys’ oblivious
donning of t-shirts and jeans. Keep
the dresses that are so expensive
you could retire after selling them
safely in the closet until Prom or
your very own wedding. After all,
it’s only Homecoming.
show my underwear-shaped
Silly Bandz!”
Students from the school
have also been joining the Silly
Bandz craze.
“Pretty much after I started
wearing hella bracelets every
person I would meet saw them
and ended up talking to me
about how many bracelets I
have and if they had Silly Bandz
they would give it to me,” junior
Emily Nitzberg said. “I guess in a
way each band has its own little
story about someone else, and
that’s how they started being
part of [my] collection.”
There have also been some
concerns regarding the safety
of the bands. The fact that
some children wear Silly
Bandz extensively and in huge
quantities has led to reports of
injuries, primarily loss of blood
circulation and wrist numbness.
However, school bans and
health concerns have not
been able to deter the surge in
popularity of the colorful bands.
Silly Bandz even has a blog and
Twitter that you can follow to
find out about the latest Silly
Bandz events. Enthusiasts can
show off their Silly Bandz in the
Silly Bandz runway show, trade
Silly Bandz with others, and get
new Silly Bandz at these events.
Isn’t it time you jumped on the
Silly “Bandzwagon?”

October 19, 2010 Entertainment
16 Entertainment
October 19, 2010
mark my
WordS
Fall brings various show premieres
Alice Hau
Staff Writer
After a long summer,
September had many notable
TV show premieres. Eager fans
waited for their favorite shows
to return, and new shows have
collected interested audiences.
Outsourced (First Season)
In this comedy, Todd Dempsy
is an American forced to go to
India to keep his job as a manager
and pay off his immense college
debt. He manages a call center
for American novelties. In the
pilot episode, he has his Indian
employees play with the
novelties they sell to get into
the mindset of American
customers. Not only do
the employees learn about
American culture by the end
of the workday, Todd also
accepts Indian culture and
decides to eat
the traditional
Indian lunch
rather than
American food.
Despite the frequent use
of stereotypes of both Indians
and Americans, this show
highlights the benefits of
working so closely
with another culture.
B o a r d w a l k
Empire (First
Season)
E n o c h
“ N u c k y ”
T h o m p s o n
is a corrupt
t r e a s u r e r
running Atlantic
City during the
Prohibition. After
delivering a speech
condemning alcohol,
Nucky ironically tells
his bosses about the
possible fortune they
could make selling
illegal alcohol.
Watch “Boardwalk
Empire” to find out
which scandals Nucky
gets involved in and
the dire consequences
sure to follow.
Nikita
(First
Season)
Nikita was once a troubled teen
on death row. In the dramatic first
season, the rogue government
organization “Division” rescues
her and trains her as an assassin
to carry out top-secret missions.
Three years after escaping from
Division, she comes out of hiding
with the goal of destroying the
secret agency from the inside in
this exciting spy drama.
Outlaw (First Season)
Cyrus Garza quits his job
as a Supreme Court Justice to
work in private practice, hoping
to deliver more justice to the
people in this courtroom drama.
This playboy gambler works
with a team and travels across
the country settling difficult
legal cases. Although it seems
unlikely that any Supreme Court
Justice would resign, the story is
a touching one that fights for the
underdogs in society.
TheDefenders (First Season)
Pete Kaczmarek and Nick
Morelli are two lawyers working
together in Las Vegas in this
legal drama. Lisa Tyler, their
associate, worked as a stripper
to pay for law school, and now
battles her trashy reputation.
They use their keen street
senses and not-so-good legal
knowledge to solve a variety of
strange cases they
encounter on the strip.
Glee (Second Season)
In the musical comedy-drama,
Will Schuester is director of
McKinley High School’s Glee
Club. He tries to inspire students
to join and embrace their singing
abilities, but the students face
much opposition from their
peers. The cheer team is the Glee
Club’s enemy, and its coach, Sue
Sylvester, enjoys torturing Will.
The personal lives of the Glee Club
members are large parts of the
show. Stereotypical high school
drama dominates the show, but
the musical element makes it
unique and worth watching.
Community (Second Season)
In this comedy, Jeff Winger
is a lawyer forced to attend
Greendale Community
College after his college
degree is deemed invalid. He
and six other students form
a Spanish study group made
up of an old moist-towelette
tycoon, a former high school
quarterback, a divorced
mother and other quirky
characters. Jeff acts as the
knowledgeable father of the
group and has intermittent
romances with two other
group members. In each
episode, these
i n d i v i d u a l s ’
surprising comments
and behavior in a community
college setting will delight
audience members.
Chuck (Fourth Season)
In this action-comedy-romance
Premiere Dates
drama, Chuck Bartowski’s old
Stanford University roommate
implants classified secrets into
Chuck’s brain after he is expelled.
He is forced into the spy world
as a tool, not as an agent, for
the CIA. Although his new spy
life is much more exciting than
working at the local electronics
store, he may find his actionpacked
life full of secrecy to be
too exciting. With his father
murdered, will Chuck be able to
locate his mother who left his
family when he was only a child?
30 Rock (Fifth Season)
Tina Fey writes and stars in
this comedy as Liz Lemon,
a head writer for the
fabricated comedy TV
show “TGS with Tracy
Jordan.” “30 Rock”
follows Liz’s hopeless
love life and her
attempts to make
friends with her
employees, rather
than act as their
boss and mother. In
this season, Liz’s new
boyfriend Carol is
an emotional
airplane pilot.
Is she ready to
take the plunge
and take it a step
further with Carol?
The Office
(Seventh Season)
Steve Carell plays
Michael Scott,
the incompetent
manager of a paper
sales company,
Dunder Mifflin.
The show
portrays
D u n d e r
Mifflin’s
s t r a n g e
w o r k e r s
and their
e c c e n t r i c
b e h a v i o r s ,
s o m e t i m e s
delving into
their personal
lives. Though the
show is a scripted
comedy, it follows
a mockumentary
format in
which the
characters often
gossip about each
other, specifically
to the audience.
Carell plans to leave
“The Office” after this season
and move on in his career. It
is unknown who will replace
his character, and many fans
believe that “The Office” won’t
be the same without him.
Outsourced: Thursday, September 23 at 9:30 p.m.
Boardwalk Empire: Sunday, September 19 at 8 p.m.
Nikita: Thursday, September 9 at 9 p.m.
Outlaw: Wednesday, September 15 at 10 p.m.
The Defenders: Wednesday, September 22 at 10 p.m.
Glee: Tuesday, September 21 at 8 p.m.
Community: Thursday, September 23 at 8 p.m.
Chuck: Tuesday, September 20 at 8 p.m.
30 Rock: Thursday, September 23 at 8:30 p.m.
The Office: Thursday, September 23 at 9 p.m.
By Mark Levin
15
Fortunate Criticism
I lost my innocence to a
fortune cookie. Just as my
father began to pressure me to
finish my plate of chow mein, I
unfurled that little slip of paper,
which told me: Believe it can
be done. So following its advice
and giving in to my father’s
demands, I chowed hard and I
chowed fast. I was believing in
Chef Chu, a mysterious deity.
So I struggled, chewing quickly
and recalling my ancestors
back in Egypt—the ones who
built pyramids and ate nothing
more than crackers. I finished
my plate with triumph, but
just after, the seas parted. My
stomach erupted like a volcano,
spewing out partially digested
Chinese food.
Ever since then I have never
trusted a fortune. That is why
I would never have mine told
by a psychic.
But because I would never
do it, I had to do it anyway.
I went to a psychic last week
and let her read my palm.
Now I know it’s not fair to
stereotype and to say that all
fortune tellers are wrinkly,
old ladies with silvery hair,
wrapped in blankets. It’s really
not fair to make assumptions.
But I met my fortune teller and
she really was a wrinkly, old
lady with silvery hair, wrapped
up in a wool blanket.
I admit I was reluctant to
show her my hands. Because no
matter how much of that rosescented
hand lotion I put on,
they still peel. I think if I were
ever a hand model, it would be
for a Halloween catalog.
But despite my concerns,
I showed her my palms. She
looked at them as if she were
in a deep trance and then
began to recite an infuriating
series of observations about
my life. She told me that I had
“problems with confidence,”
PAC-MAN
and I clenched my ugly fist.
Then she said I “take things
too personally,” and I almost
got up to leave. Then she told
me I was “temperamental.”
She gave me advice. She told
me to escape the negativity
in my life, which I found
impossible as long as the San
Francisco 49ers still suck.
She read on and I really did
not understand where she was
coming from with all of this
criticism. Were the creases of
my palm forming a maze that
I just could not solve? I left the
room scratching my head.
I have never been good at
puzzles, and from where this
woman got her psychic senses
is a puzzle I will never solve. But
there is one thing I do know,
that it can take some outside
forces to prompt you to reflect
on how you live your life.
So give it a shot. Reflect. And
if you ever want to examine
my hands, go ahead. You
can feel them, smell them,
taste them, whatever. But be
careful — I’m temperamental,
and who knows what those
hands can do?
ThE Talon ExplorES TrICk-or-TrEaTIng alTErnaTIvES for TEEnagErS on halloWEEn WEEkEnd
Sparsha Saxena
Staff Writer
Talon Top 5: Trick-or-treat alternatives
It’s a waste of Halloween to
spend every year walking around
town trying to chase down that
Snickers bar. Trick-or-treating
doesn’t make for a memorable
Halloween as much as these
options do.
Spookfest
If you’re in the mood to wear
a Halloween costume and dance
all night, then the Spookfest is the
place for you. Hosted by Live 105
at the Cow Palace, it will feature
techno artists and bands including
The Limousines, Classixx and Steve
Aoki. Spookfest takes place on
Friday, October 29 from 6 p.m. to 2
a.m. Tickets are $50 and you must
be 16 or older to attend. There’s
no need for candy to sweeten up
the night when you can spend it
sweating the night away.
Halloween: an excuse to dress inappropriately?
Erika Schonher
Business Manager
For five-year-olds, Halloween
is about being an adorable little
princess or Transformer. For
10-year-olds, it’s about being
cool, creative and scary. For
17-year-olds, apparently it’s
about being a sexy piece o’meat.
Halloween means different
things to different age groups,
but the principle is essentially
the same: dress up, get candy and
embrace the scariness. However,
this principle of Halloween
seems to go over the heads of one
age group:
teenagers.
As stated in
the timeless
c l a s s i c ,
“Mean Girls,”
“Halloween is
the one night a
year when a girl
can dress like a
total slut and no other girls can
say anything about it.” Let’s think
about this: Girls tend to wear the
same type of costumes every year,
whether that be a sexy cop or a
slutty school girl, and nobody
ever seems to ever care. Huh?
Okay, so maybe some girls
prefer to show a little extra skin
on Halloween, but at least get
creative. Should girls choose to
dress a little more risqué than
normal, they should try to be
original and make sure not to
Haunted Houses
What’s the point of Halloween
without a good scare? Instead of
rotting your teeth, go to a local
haunted house and have the
time of your life.
One of the most praised
haunted houses in the Bay Area
is the Beach Street Haunted
House at the Santa Cruz Beach
Boardwalk. The house has
professional actors that can
scare even Marilyn Manson out
of his make-up.
Another spooky place is
California’s Great America
Halloween Haunt. During October,
on Fridays through Sundays from
7 p.m. to 12 a.m., step into a creepy
world of goblins and mazes, and,
not to mention, several haunted
houses. The entire park is fogged
and filled with frightening
creatures roaming around,
providing few opportunities for a
normal heart rate.
take it too far. For example, if
a girl dresses up as a straightup
stripper, that’s not creative,
that’s just showing too much of
what we don’t want to see and
giving teens a bad name.
To see if a costume is
appropriate, a good rule of thumb
to avoid falling into the trap of just
being plain ol’ slutty is this: If the
word “Playboy” is i n
the name of the
costume, skip
it. The same
goes for the
words sexy,
h o t t i e ,
steamy or
lIzzy lukrICH
French-maid.
Instead, go
for something
like 60s Flower
Power Barbie (yes,
that’s my costume
this year). It might
be more “out there” than
something I’d normally wear,
but it is still appropriate enough
to wear when walking around
the neighborhood. Another idea
Halloween Party
Halloween is the night that
we all want to spend with our
friends, so combine every aspect
of your ideal Halloween by
throwing a spooky rager.
Before the party starts, make
creepy creations with your friends.
Some classic dishes that still
manage to taunt guests are peeled
grapes representing eerie eyeballs,
shortbread cookies that look like
witches’ fingers and gravestone
cookies. Have plenty of facepainting
booths, fortune-tellers
and candy so you aren’t missing
out on the best parts of Halloween.
Later, offer prizes for the
funniest, scariest and most original
Halloween costumes. Feel free to
have your party outside with crazy
decorations like skeletons and
disco balls. When night falls, share
spooky stories over a crackling
fire. Bring the fun from the streets
to your own home.
might be to dress up in a princess
or mermaid costume that allows
girls to show some skin but still
look cute.
Now, it may seem easy to
predict what kind of attire girls
will don for Halloween, but
what about guys? Most guys
opt to not dress up, thinking
they are too cool for costumes,
and the few guys who do dress
up think they are even cooler
than the guys who don’t.
Teenage guys’ costumes usually
involve anything shirtless to allow
them to show off their hot bods.
You know what I’m talking
about: the togas, lifeguards
and “300” costumes.
This skin-showing effort
makes the dudes who
dress up no better than
the gals in the nurse
costumes, but
maybe that’s
why no one
complains.
They’re all
in the same
boat. They
are all just
looking for the
same thing: to
excite the raging
hormones of the
opposite sex.
So, it might be okay to
show some skin, but keep it
appropriate and be creative!
Dress up with a group of friends
to keep each other in check, and
Horror Movies
If Halloween happens to be
your all-time favorite holiday
but you’ve grown out of that old
witch costume in the basement,
a horror movie marathon is the
perfect solution.
Make a short trip to the
movie rental store and pick out
a scary movie that will keep
you and your friends awake
until sunrise. If you aren’t an
expert on scary movies, some
notorious ones include “The
Fourth Kind,” “Arachnaphobia”
and “The Human Centipede.”
Share a bowl of popcorn and
your favorite Halloween treats
to maintain that Halloween
spirit, and make sure to hand
out candy to the kids who ring
the doorbell. If you want a little
extra fun, try scaring them. The
best part about this is that you
and your friends are entertained
without much effort at all.
don’t be afraid to go with a funny
or scary costume. Just don’t be
so skimpy that when people ask
tIn HuynH
Bigger or Better
Who wants candy when you
can get something even bigger
or better?
Here’s how the game works.
First, divide your group of
friends into teams. Each group
gets a small item (preferably all
the same object, like a paperclip),
and then each team is assigned
to a different neighborhood.
The objective of the game is
to go to each house and ask
for an item that is “bigger or
better” than what you have. At
the end of the night, choose the
winner by determining which
team has the biggest or the
best item.
People can end up with “bigger
or better” items such as couches,
bikes or TVs. There are definitely
a lot of possibilities for the best
and biggest item, and Halloween
privides the opportunity to seek
them out.
what you’re wearing, you have
to answer like Karen in “Mean
Girls”: “I’m a mouse, duh!”

October 19, 2010
Entertainment 17
‘Life as We Know It’: cheesy, yet entertaining
Shilpa Veniglanda
Staff Writer
Most people picture a romantic
comedy as a movie in which
two outrageously opposite
people somehow fall in love in
a hysterical and unpredictable
way. Now, add an adorable baby
who not only causes mayhem,
but also brings the enemies
togther against all odds.
The movie “Life as We Know
It” is a romantic comedy about
two opposite people, Holly
(Katherine Heigl) and Messer
(Josh Duhamel), who are set
up on a date by their two best
friends. Since Messer is an
irritating player and TV sports
director and Holly is a busy,
responsible and dedicated
caterer, the
date isn’t
e x p e c t e d
to last
long. Their
first (and
last) date goes horribly;
Messer shows up an hour
late, improperly dressed and
without dinner reservations.
As expected, they both gladly
part ways.
Flash forward a couple of
years, and the two enemies are
forced to reconvene under the
same roof, this time not as dates,
but as guardians of their best
friends’ one year old daughter,
Sophie, after their friends die
unexpectedly in a car crash. As
much as they dislike each other,
they don’t want to send Sophie
off to foster parents and would
rather fulfill their late friends’
wish of taking care of Sophie.
The challenge: Holly and
Messer must struggle with
work and money on top of
raising a child. As their love
for Sophie grows, Holly and
Messer’s relationship changes.
Yes, predictable and cheesy,
but also entertaining.
Whether its Josh Duhamel
as the roguish player, or
Katherine Heigl as the
responsible and determined
entrepreneur, the actors in
this movie tie the comedy and
humor in with the struggles
the main characters face. Both
Heigl and Duhamel get into
their characters, and as they
evolve, their acting sums up
the whole movie.
However,
the film
moves a
little too
fast in
terms of
emotions. When Holly’s and
Messer’s friends die, there’s
only a brief moment of sorrow.
The characters barely get any
time to grieve for their friends,
because by the next day they’re
already planning how to take
care of Sophie. However, the
film’s purpose is to focus on
Holly, Messer and Sophie, not
on Sophie’s parents.
The main plot of the movie is
a little impractical; since when
did enemies decide to come
together under the same roof
and act as a married couple
just for the sake of an adorable
baby? But then again, it is a
romantic comedy—when are
they realistic?
Although it’s predictable and
a little unrealistic, the movie
is funny and
entertaining.
As the main
c h a r a c t e r s
slowly forget
their hatred,
they understand
and respect each
other more. The
baby is hilarious.
Not only does
she set the tone
for the movie
and bring the
two enemies
together, but
she also gives
the audience
something to
laugh about.
D i r e c t o r
Greg Berlanti’s
main goal was
to entertain
the audience,
not to show
a hardcore
movie about
the struggles of
the “parents.”
The director
definitely
accomplished
that, and
the movie is
filled with a
lot of humor.
He conveys
the movie
events in an
new iPod nano doubles as watch
Vivian Hua
Copy/Content Editor
What time is it? Time to get
a Nano.
As he revealed the new iPod
Nano on September 1, Apple’s
chief executive Steve Jobs joked
that one of the Apple employees
would have liked to turn the
new model into his personal
watch. Unbeknownst to
this far-sighted executive,
users from across the
world have wasted no
time in strapping this
useful little device
to their wrists.
The birth of
the hybrid
iPod-watch
baby owes
partly to
the Nano’s
new size
and shape.
Apple’s newlyreleased
version
flaunts a 1.5-inch
LCD screen and a
lower resolution of
240 by 240 pixels.
Shaped like a square, it
is 46 percent smaller and 42
percent lighter in comparison to
previous Nanos.
While the new model introduces
a touchscreen, it has lost the
built-in voice recorder, speaker,
camera, games and click-wheel
characteristic of its predecessors.
Preserved features include volume
buttons, VoiceOver, FM radio,
Nike+, Pedometer, support for 29
languages and 24-hour playback.
Most importantly, however, the
sixth-generation model comes
with a clip that allows users to
strap it onto whatever they desire.
Jacket, shirt pockets, bags, you
name it. Oh, and watch straps.
While Apple itself has not
produced any matching watch
straps, several
aspiring
companies, including
iLoveHandles and Watch My
Nano, have released “carrying
solutions” that offer compatible
wristbands and cases. Watch My
Nano provides straps that come
in an array of colors, including
brown, diver blue, gray, “original
James Bond,” red, black, desert
tan, orange, racing green and
sporty yellow.
“It is awesome as a watch,”
said sophomore Neal Kenney,
who bought the strap separately.
“It feels like that watch from Spy
Kids ... If you’re on the go and
need something that is a Shuffle
with a watch, this is your
iPod.”
There are,
however, some
disadvantages
to the
“iWatch.” For
one, it is not
w a t e r p r o o f
and can only
w i t h s t a n d
temperatures
between 32
and 95 degrees
Fahrenheit.
M o r e o v e r ,
it must be
c o n t i n u o u s l y
charged and
activated because
it automatically dims.
But the benefits
far outweigh the costs.
The Nano is small and
comfortable, and provides
the date, a stopwatch and
a countdown timer. The
configurable clock is also designed
to appeal to the tastes of various
owners with the option of black
and white background color. And
obviously, who doesn’t want a
watch that can conveniently play
music and tell the time at the
same … time?
Avid technological enthusiasts
can just sit back and relax. Now
that the wristwatch Nano is here,
the wristwatch phone won’t be
far behind.
organized manner that leaves
the audience cracking up and
wanting to see what else is in
store for Holly and Messer.
Although this movie has
Katherine Heigl (left) and Josh Duhamel (center) star in “Life as
We Know It.” In the movie, the stars must quickly adjust to parenthood.
Embarrassing Stories
One time I clogged my friend’s
toilet. Instead of going through
the embarrassing ordeal of
asking him for a plunger, I
decided to try and flush again,
praying that it would go down.
Unfortunately, it did not go
down, but instead, began to
overflow out the top of the toilet
along with gallons of toilet water.
My friend and I spent the next
two hours cleaning.
-A senior
I was doing hookah with my
brother and his friend in the
garage. They passed me the pipe
to take a hit and I couldn’t resist.
I began to rip it hard, when all
of a sudden, I let one rip myself.
I farted long and loudly in the
middle of the pure silence. They
couldn’t stop laughing at me.
-A senior
One time when I was walking
home past curfew, I saw a car
coming and quickly jumped
into the nearest driveway. I
didn’t want the car to see me so
I ducked behind some bushes.
However, the car happened
to be heading toward the
house I was hiding in front
of. Not having enough time to
move, I sat quietly and prayed
the driver wouldn’t see me.
However, as soon as he pulled
in, the headlights shone right
on me. The driver got out and
started yelling at me, thinking
I had broken in to his house.
Knowing he wouldn’t believe
me if I tried to explain, I got up
and bolted.
-A senior
its flaws, being unrealistic
and predictable, the director
accomplished his main goal
by keeping the audience
entertained and enthusiastic.
It was the fourth grade, when I
was really skinny. I was wearing
this one pair of jeans with a belt,
but it didn’t help much. I stood
up and my pants went straight to
my ankles. After I quickly pulled
my pants up, I looked around
the room to see if anybody
saw, and luckily enough only
my best friend had seen. For
a few minutes after that, I had
complete embarrassment on my
face and couldn’t stop smiling.
-A sophomore
One time at football practice,
we were doing hitting drills.
They made me, the smallest
guy on the team, go against the
biggest guy. As I was running
the ball, he came in to make the
tackle and body slammed me to
the ground in front of everyone.
After that, I was super dizzy, and
everyone was laughing at me.
-A junior
I was doing my speech on how
George Washington saved the
Revolutionary War. During my
speech, I was about half way done,
when I noticed how many people
were staring at me. I started to
sweat and I was really nervous
because it was worth about half
of my grade. I felt pressure in my
appendix, and then it just came
out. I cut the cheese, and it was
a big one. It lasted for about five
seconds. The entire class broke
into laughter, and I just walked
out without finishing the speech.
I was ridiculed for a week.
-A sophomore
Note: All stories are
submitted by students.

October 19, 2010
Katie Gonsavles
Staff Writer
Tennis
JENNA LOUIE
The varsity boys cross country team
is ranked 4th overall in all of CCS.
The team is composed of a tight-knit
group of upperclassmen that trained
rigorously over the summer.
“I owe my improvements to summer
training and an incredible coaching staff,”
senior Blake Bowers [right] said. “The
cross country team has become my second
family.”
Blake decreased his average mile time from
6:22 last year to 5:33 this year, and the entire
team has improved as well.
“A lot of it has to do with depth,”
senior Ben Schneider said. “We
have people close behind [the top
runners] …. five people get into the
top ten [at a race].”
However, the varsity girls squad
has not been as successful. The
team has had trouble recruiting
athletes from the other fall sports at the school and
club teams. In addition, they lost their two best runners
from last year, Erin Hicks ’10 and junior Serina Rye who is
not running this year.
A significant percentage of the runners are sophomores and have
little experience on the cross country team. In addition, not as
many ran in a group over the summer.
“You can’t get in shape in five to six weeks,” head coach PattiSue
Plumer said.
However, the fact that the girls varsity team is young also gives
the team a lot of potential to improve over the course of the year,
and later in their high school careers.
The girls field hockey team
is pushing itself
through a tough
season. Led by
captains seniors
Teresa Fabbricino
[right] and Erika
Schonher the team is
composed of just 17 players
and has struggled for wins.
“We’re in the top division for
our league so it’s
always a challenge,
especially when
we’re playing
both private
and public
schools,” coach
Mary Donahue
said.
Unlike LAHS,
5-3
Cross
Country
these top schools, such as Los
Gatos and Gilroy, enjoy the
advantage of year round, club
team players.
2-5
Sports
MID-SEASON
T he
varsity girls tennis team lead
by coach Hung Nguyen is halfway
through its season with a De Anza
Divsion record of 5-3. The team is looking to
take third place and hopefully sneak into CCS.
They’re only losses have come against Monta
Vista and Saratoga, the two best teams in the
league, and Gunn High School in the first
league match. However, in their second
match against Gunn, they defeated
them 4-3. The team had many
seniors last year, so it has been
a welcome surprise for Nguyen
to see how well they have done.
“In my opinion we’re over achieving,
[because] we lost nine seniors to
college last year.” Hung said. “We
should be one place higher [than
last year] if we place third this year.”
In the rest of its games, the team
hopes to defeat all its opponents except
Monta Vista and Saratoga to take third.
The number 1 singles player is freshman
Kacey Incerpi and the leading doubles are
juniors Alice Carli [left] and Ali Dyer.
Julia Son-Bell
Staff Writer
Field
Hockey
Katie Gonsavles
Staff Writer
ALEx
KENT
MYA
BALLIN
The varsity football team has
gone undefeated so far this
season. The team has won every
game except against Santa Cruz
on Friday, September 24 which
ended in a tie.
However, injuries have
hindered the varsity team.
Specifically, starting quarterback
sophomore Steven McLean
injured his throwing wrist at
Santa Cruz He hopes to return
by the homecoming game on
Saturday, October 30.
Second-string quarterback
junior Todd Grimm’s
concussions forced senior Martin
Aycott to step in
as quarterback
at Santa Cruz
and Mountain
View, leading
a last minute
comeback to tie
Santa Cruz 27-27, and handily
defeating MV 28-14 .
“I was surprisingly
comfortable,” Martin said.
“Coming in playing quarterback
as a wide receiver, I knew where
to place it for receivers. Like
the connection I have with
McLean, I can develop that
with my receivers.”
Todd’s recent recovery
allowed Martin to return
to his original receiver
position against Monta
Vista, a 38-19 win on Friday
This year the majority of
the team isn’t just composed
of upperclassmen. a big
component of the team
has been the freshmen and
sophomore players, making
this year’s team more diverse
than previous years.
“[The team needs] to gel
better together” said coach
Jason Kennedy. “There
are so many new players
this year.”
Kennedy said he is anxious
to see the team continue to use
its rapidly growing skill the
next half of season. Because
their are so many new players,
the team is learning from
its mistakes each game and
becoming a stronger team.
“I think that the team is
“Not many
of our players
play in the offseason
like the other
teams, so we learn as we go
along,” Donahue said, “We try to
improve in the second half and
build up wins.”
True to the coach’s word, the
team has improved recently.
In their past four games the
team has defeated Leigh and
Saratoga high schools 2-0
and 1-0, while narrowly
falling to Archbishop Mitty
and Presentation High
Schools 1-0.
“We’ve improved a
great deal these past
weeks,” Donahue
said. “Overall our
defense is playing really well. I’m
pretty pleased with the way we’ve
been playing and we’re working
on scoring more.”
Football
4-0-1 (2-0)
JuliaSon-Bell Staff Writer
Volleyball
October 8.
“A good quarterback is
a quarterback that can
produce points and win
games,” Steven said.
“ Martin and Todd
are those type of
quarterbacks. They
produce the points
needed and extra to
come out on top.”
Other notable
injuries include a
twisted ankle to leading running
back senior Jason Lopez, and a
separated shoulder suffered
by wide receiver senior Joey
Giacomini.
However, the
injuries have
not kept the
Eagles from
dominating.
“This year
our team has suffered a few key
injuries, but I think it shows
how ready our whole team is
to play in every game,” Steven
said. “I’m not concerned [with
injuries], especially with how
well our defense is playing.”
Opposing offenses have
averaged just 13 points.
“The defense has been great all
year,” head coach Bill Waggoner
said. “[Its] very aggressive and
[good at] blitzing. We have two
really good linebackers, seniors
[Tyler] Stout [above] and
3-3
improving our game every
time we play,” sophomore
Natalie Dwulet said.
“For being such a young
team and with many of the
starters not having played
with each other before, I think
we are really growing as a
team.”
Natalie said the “amazing”
freshmen are constantly
showing the team that they are
ready to help. She said they
contribute to the team “every
second they are on the court,”
making them an essential part
of the team.
The freshmen players are
Hanna Koehler, Meghan
McDermott [right] and
Katie Tritschler
“This is the game that made
me realize how much potential
we have, because we won by
coming back from a huge hole
in the 3rd game,” Hanna said.
“[We] beat the other team by
[using] our energy coming from
the court and the bench.”
18
[Jason]Lopez
and defensive
ends junior Nolan
O’Such and senior
Daniel Tangi. [junior
linebacker George]
Schneider (3 sacks) was great
against Mountain View.”
Above all though, Waggoner
attibutes the success of his team
to its character.
“The team plays with a lot
of heart,” Waggoner said.
“Expectations are high. Other
teams are surprised by how hard
and fast the team comes out.”
Sparsha Saxena
Staff Writer
JENNA
LOUIE
JENNA
LOUIE

October 19, 2010
my Torture fetish
By Drew Eller
I’ve never been so happy to
be tortured. From April till the
last day of September, it felt like
the whole Giants organization
was taking turns strapping me
to a wooden plank and waterboarding
me. I thought it would
get better. I even prayed. But I
was foolish. Ever since October
started the team has taken to
pulling finger nails instead.
After seven dormant years,
the Giants are finally back in
the playoffs. It was a trying
season. Even as a fan it was
exasperating. From the horrific
struggles of Tim Lincecum
in August to the extinction of
the one ‘Panda’ held captive
at AT&T park, this year has
been best described as “Giants
baseball ... torture!”
The outcome of the season
came down to the very last
game, and the playoffs have
only raised my blood pressure.
Against the Braves, the Giants
enjoyed a narrow 1-0 win,
a heartbreaking 5-4 extra
innings loss, a 3-2 win that
came down to 2 outs and 2
strikes, and another 3-2 win
that got interesting at the end,
(and by interesting I mean to
say I hyperventilated). But the
Giants escaped to see another
game, and now face the Phillies
for the title as NL Champion.
As a fan I have no control
over the game, other than the
Brooks Conrad voodoo doll I
made, so the torture is only that
much more. .. well, torturing.
The only release I have when
Brian Wilson walks the first
two batters in the ninth is to
laugh at Dodger fans or imitate
a Bobby Cox ejection. I can’t
help but scream in angst when
Buster Posey, this season’s
messiah, hits into a double play
to ruin any chances at a win.
But at the end of the game,
all the times my dad had to
use the defilibrator on me were
worthwhile. A baseball team is
representing the Bay Area in
the playoffs, and with its young
artillery of pitchers, its thongwearing,
superstitious players,
and its caricature-headed
manager, I wouldn’t hold
anything against this team.
The number of bases loaded,
two out, ninth inning jams
we’ve been in have only made
the season interesting. All the
untimely errors were to test the
resilience of our pitching staff.
And every time we allowed
Barry Zito to pitch was just
to see who the true fans were
(because only a true fan would
endure watching Zito).
So torture us as they may,
I’ll take it if they make it to the
World Series. It really is the time
of year when the impossible
can happen. The Giants in the
World Series? Why not!
So when it comes down to
it, yeah, I like the torture. You
might even say I have a bit of a
torture fetish.
The University of California,
Berkeley (Cal) announced that it
would cut 5 varsity sports from
its 29-sport program for the
upcoming school year.
Two of the athletes affected are
recent LAHS graduates.
Current Cal junior Erik
Johnson and sophomore Arla
Rosenzweig are among the 163
athletes whose sports were cut.
Erik pitches for Cal’s baseball
team and Arla competes
all-around on the women’s
gymnastics team.
“Our whole team was pretty
disappointed and the last two
days we had some guys who did
not know what to do and were
very confused,” Erik said.
Cal cut the teams due to
statewide budget cuts and will
save an estimated $4 million.
“I was devastated when I first
heard the decision, as was our
entire team,” Arla said.
For the Cal student-athletes
who were given athletic
scholarships, the university’s
administrators promised to
honor those scholarships until
the affected athlete’s graduation.
The university will help students
transfer to other universities
Sports
Berkeley cuts affect grads
Lauren Liu
Copy/Content Editor
if they wish to continue their
athletic careers.
Arla, although she did consider
transferring, “loves Cal too much
to leave.”
But Erik did not feel that there
was a reason for him to stay at Cal
beyond the baseball program.
“I’m planning to play with
the team and finish out this
season,” Erik said. “I
am eligible
“
to play
professional
b a s e b a l l .
H o p e f u l l y
that will
work out for
me, [but if it
does not] I’ll
find another
school to go
play at.”
Since the
sports will not be cut until the
end of the academic year, both
baseball and gymnastics will
finish their current seasons.
“There is nothing complacent
about any of the teams that have
been dropped,” Arla said. “Only
being given one last season is
going to take a toll on a lot of my
teammates, and myself, but I
know it will motivate us to work
harder to make [it the best].”
Erik shares these sentiments.
After everything I’ve
sacrificed to achieve that
goal, it was hard to process
that gymnastics was being
taken away from me.
“Our team has really made the
choice to play the season out
and hopefully the core guys will
stick together,” Erik said. “We’ll
show people this year that they
made the wrong decision to cut
baseball.”
The other sports affected were
men’s gymnastics, girl’s lacrosse
and men’s rugby. In addition
to the 163
athletes, the
”
Arla Rosenzweig ‘09,
Cal Gymnast
cuts will also
affect 13 fulltime
coaches.
“ T h e
majority
of us have
been doing
gymnastics
since we
s t a r t e d
w a l k i n g
and have
dedicated our entire lives to
it,” Arla said. “After everything
I’ve sacrificed to achieve that
goal, it was hard to process that
gymnastics was being taken away
from me.”
Photos Courtesy ArlA rosenzweiG And CAtherine shyu
LAHS graduates Arla Rosensweig ‘09 and Erik Johnson ‘08 were recruited to Cal for
gymnastics and baseball respectively. Both programs will be cut at Cal after this year.
Sports
Briefs
Spring coaching
spots available
Varsity boys tennis and
frosh/soph boys and JV girls
swimming still have coaching
openings. However, because
the spring sports do not begin
until March, Athletic Director
Kim Cave is not worried about
finding a new coach.
In fact, the new Varsity
Boys Tennis coach should be
announced shortly.
“We’ve just finished
interviews for varsity boys
tennis coach, so we should be
making that decision pretty
soon,” Cave said.
Cave is open to either oncampus
or off-campus coaches
for the remaining positions.
On-campus staff have been
helping with the absence of
former coaches.
“Though on-campus coaches
have their benefits, the
application process for coaching
candidates will continue for off
Props prohibited
in sports photos
This year the Athletic
Department has chosen to prohibit
the use of props and costumes in
the team photos displayed around
the school.
“The pictures we take for the
school are to show off our teams,
seniors and coaches. Most of the
time, the props used will cover
most of the athlete’s face and
nobody really knows who it is,”
Cave said.
Cave also added that in
some cases the props or hand
signals used in a picture can be
inappropriate.
“This is not how we like to
display our athletes,” Cave said.
But for those athletes who
plan to purchase and take home
their photos, props are allowed,
Article first
published on
lahstalon.org
meaning the limitation of
additional costuming is only for
display case photos.
Preliminary winter
-campus coaches,” Cave said.
sport tryout dates
The first day winter sports can
start tryouts is November 1. Most
of the teams will start on this
date.
Tryouts for winter sports will
last a few days past the end of the
fall sports season. Fall athletes
cannot try out for the winter team
until their fall season is done.
However, depending on the
coach, the extra time could
just be for fall sports athletes.
Prospective players not involved
in fall sports should not count on
having the same amount of time
as fall sport athletes. They should
show up to tryouts as soon as
possible.
The only anomaly so far is that
girls soccer tryouts will start on
November 8.
COMPILED BY SARAH CORNER
Soaring
Eagles
Martin Aycott
Senior
The Talon: What was it like
going in for Steven McClain in
the Santa Cruz game when he
broke his wrist?
Martin: I was pretty
nervous. At first I had a lot of
pressure on me, [but] the line
takes a lot of pressure off of
me. I can depend on my line
if I need to pass. In the end it
worked out pretty well.
T: How do you think your
team reacted to the injury?
M: We have a lot of injuries,
but the second-string players
have really stepped it up.
The secondary players really
know their positions. They
come in with intensity, so
yeah. We’re doing pretty well.
T: What do you want to see
happen the rest of the year?
M: Well, obviously I’d like
us to go to CCS. I want to play
QB a little bit more. Being
introduced to it really turned
me on to the position. [When
Steven’s back] we’ll probably
pick up where we left off.
Nicole Larsen
Junior
19
2 games: 8/17 127 yards
27 carries 112 yards 3 TD
4 goals allowed per game
11.4 saves a game
The Talon: As goalie you
do a lot of waiting, right up
until the moment you’re being
attacked. What’s it like?
Nicole: It’s making sure I
have a really intense focus. I
try to help the rest of my team.
You don’t really notice until
after, like, ‘woah I’ve been
yelling for 20 minutes.’ But
just concise short orders ... I
used to be a field player, so that
really helps me decide what
they need.
T: Goalies tread water the
entire game. How do you get
in shape for that?
N: At practice I have a
weight belt that’s about 20
pounds I use. I have thighs the
size of most people’s torso.
T: How long ago did you
switch to goalie? Was it hard?
N: I’ve played for five years
and I’ve played goalie for
three. It’s a lot of work but
it’s worth it. [It’s] definitely
hard to get used to it. I know
people who have tried but
couldn’t do it. The position
has to pick you.

20
Colin Mulcahy treads water
and hoists the ball high up
by his ear. Underwater, a war is
waging between the lower halves
of Colin’s body and the two players
defending him. As a third defender
rushes over to provide yet another
set of arms in Colin’s face, Colin
casually tosses the ball across the
pool to senior Emilien Fritsch,
who easily puts the ball past the
goalie in a matter of seconds.
Since being named the CCS
Division 1 player of the year
last season and a preseason All-
American this year, senior captain
Colin Mulcahy has dealt with the
increased defensive measures of
other teams.
“I’m so used to double and
triple teams I just approach it
like it’s one defender,” Colin said.
“You just have to be creative and
more physical.”
This type of unprecedented
defensive attention on one player,
and the Eagles’ unselfish team
mentality is what has lead boys
water polo to an undefeated (8-0)
record this season. Due in large
part to its two leading scorers, the
team has not lost in league play.
“Those two [Colin and Emilien]
go hand in hand, they play really
Sports
well together,” said first-year
varsity head coach Johnny Bega.
“They’ve played for the last someodd
years together, and they do
really really well.”
Bega took over as head coach of
the Eagles this season. He spent
the last five years coaching the
boys team at Menlo Atherton High
School, leading them to three CCS
finals appearances, winning one in
2007. Bega expects the same from
LAHS’s team this year.
“I told them at the beginning of
the season that I thought we could
end up in the finals, whether we’re
D1 or D2 and it’s very realistic I said
that,” Bega said. “We’ve become
an exceptional team.”
Emilien echoed his sentiments,
stating that he never doubted the
team’s ability to do well.
“My expectation for league was
to go undefeated and win league
because we have done that for the
past three years,” Emilien said.
“I am hoping we at least make it
to the finals of CCS. That would
make my senior season.”
If the team meets all expectations,
though, a lot of the credit will be
due to Colin.
“To have a guy like that to pass
to, it’s just unheard of,” Bega said.
“You can throw the ball to him
anywhere and he’ll score at any
will. And the other players know
that, and they’re okay with that.”
Colin agreed with his coach, and
the ability of the team to play as a
cohesive unit has really attributed
to its success.
“Everyone is stepping up and
accepting their role on the team
which is good,” said Colin. “We
are the same team in a lot of ways
as years in the past. We have a lot
of offensive talent and we put up a
lot of goals.”
Colin’s dedication to the sport
goes beyond personal growth as
well, for he has taken his role as
team captain very seriously.
“In training, he personally
works hard so he can achieve what
he wants to do later on in college,
but also he’s really good with all
the teammates,” Bega said. “I see
many players at his level say, ‘oh
this high school thing is stupid’,
but he’s really done a great job
helping these guys out.”
As far as college goes, Colin’s
top choices so far are UCLA, UC
Berkeley, and UCSB. Wherever
Colin decides to go, he’s sure to
have a pretty big impact. Even if
he’s triple teamed.
Girls League Totals
October 19, 2010
domination
4-year varsity stars lead teams to perfect de Anza records
Boys Season Totals
Goals Assists Steals
Colin Mulcahy 97 29 48
Emilien Fritsh 57 30 25
Ma�hew Orton 22 23 18
ALEx KENT
Senior KK Sandlin shoots in a game against Palo Alto. KK led
the team with 4 goals, 8 steals, and 4 assists in their 12-5 win.
By Drew Eller
staff writer
All stats and records
are updated as of
Thursday, October 14.
Caitlin “KK” Sandlin steals
the ball, weaves through the
opposing defense, cocks her arm
back, and fires a shot into the
back of the net. A few minutes
later, KK snatches the ball from
her opponent, switches the ball
from her left to her right hand,
springs up out of the water, and
slings a shot past the reaching
goalie. As the Eagles venture
into the second half of their
season, don’t be surprised to
see KK steal the show and shoot
down the hopes of any and all
other teams.
At the forefront of the Lady
Eagles’ (8-0) undefeated league
season is team captain KK
Sandlin, a four year Varsity
water polo player who leads her
team in both steals and goals this
season. KK’s defensive prowess
has made her one of the most
dominant Los Altos water polo
players in recent memory.
“She’s everywhere in the pool
at the same time. I’ve never seen
someone be able to steal the ball
from as skilled of players as KK
can,” Coach Brian Whitlock said.
“She’s like a seventh defender in
a six player defensive game.”
While KK has always been an
outstanding defensive player,
this season, her increase in
offensive production has made
Senior Colin Mulcahy rises up over a Palo Alto defender. Colin
scored 9 goals in the Eagle’s 17-6 victory on Wednesday, October 13.
Goals Assists Steals
K.K. Sandlin 26 19 51
Katy Schaefer 27 6 13
Carrie Beyer 23 3 12
her more dominant.
“[KK] stepped up her offense
immensely this year, leading our
team in goals and being able to
hit the tough shots,” Whitlock
said. “We have plays that revolve
around just KK taking a shot.”
Brian Whitlock ‘03 is a former
LAHS waterpolo player as
well. Whitlock went on to play
D-1 Waterpolo at Pepperdine
following his time at Los Altos.
He has coached the team the
past three years.
“We also have five girls that I
started off with as freshmen two
years ago when I started coaching
who are now juniors that have
solid varsity experience,”
Whitlock said. “They all played
on varsity as freshmen and got
really good experience. And now
that they’re juniors, with KK
leading the team, we definitely
have a solid chance at winning.”
This core includes several
players, including juniors Katy
Schaefer, Alyssa Waln, Carrie
Beyer, Nicole Larsen, and Olivia
Santiago, who was named to
the Youth National Team. The
experience playing together
goes a long way in creating
a ‘symmetry’ as the team’s
chemistry and comfort has been
instrumental in helping the team
keep an undefeated record.
ALEx KENT
“Most other teams lost many
of their strong players who were
seniors last year, so we have an
advantage [over] them,” KK
said. “We barely lost any of our
starters or main players”
One returning player is
goalie Nicole Larsen. KK didn’t
hesitate to name Nicole as a key
component to the teams ability
to rise to the top of the league.
“I feel like the difference
is that this year, our main
players have stepped up and
have become bigger threats to
the opposing team,” said KK.
“Especially our goalie Nicole
has been doing great and
helping out the team a lot by
working hard this year.”
However, life as a goalie is
made somewhat easier when
a player with KK’s defensive
prowess is in the pool at all
times.
With just four games left in
the season, the girls prepare
for their shot at both a perfect
season, and hopefully a CCS
championship, which Coach
Whitlock believes will come
down to ‘whichever team plays
the best,’ since all the superior
teams are even in strength.
It’s having a player like KK
Sandlin that may just prove to
be the difference maker.
(1