The Synergy Project Magazine - September 2020

COLLABORATE
THE
SYNERGY
PROJECT
MAGAZINE
TOPIC:
EDUCATION
FEATURING
GaoKao: China’s College
Examination (pg. 4)
Why COVID-somnia should be a
wake-up call for teen mental health
(pg. 6)
The New Kid: A Memoir (pg. 10)
The Mental Health Crisis in Schools
(pg. 15)
SEP 1 2020
CONNECT

CONTENTS
FEATURED
GaoKao: China’s College Examination
By: Jessica Yan
Why COVID-somnia should be a wakeup
call for teen mental health
By: Brandon Ly
The New Kid: A Memoir
By: Julia Loritz
The Mental Health Crisis in Schools
By: Lauren Daniels
Herd Immunity and the COVID-19
Vaccine: What Does the Future Hold?
By: Julia Loritz
Meatloaf & Mehendi:
Diversity in Literature
By: Avani Guduri
The History of Bubble Tea
By: Jacqueline Chen
Stress Management Tips and Tricks
By: Whitney Le
Pros & Cons of Online Learning
By: Julia Loritz
What’s In My Backpack?
By: Emma Munro
04
06
10
15
18
21
22
24
26
26
02 THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE

THIS ISSUE
A toddler’s fingers curl into the warm, gooey chocolate of a foreign object. A
scientist peers into the microscope, witnessing a miracle. Whether it be tasting a
chocolate chip cookie for the first time or examining the dead cells of a deadly
virus, new discoveries are made every day. As time passes, we build on the
discoveries of others until we find revelations of our own, contributing to society’s
rapid technological and intellectual growth. None of this would be possible
without education. As students like us return to school, we thought we’d share
our experiences and thoughts about the topic as we explore new avenues for
education through virtual platforms and social distancing this new school year.
THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE 03

GAOKAO: CHINA’S CO
By: Jessica Yan
Standardized tests are
well-known by our students
in the United States; they
affect the outcomes of the
students’ GPAs and grades
and hold only a portion
of what colleges look for
in accepting students. But
what if one standardized
test determined the outcome
of one’s entire future? For
Chinese students, this isn’t
theoretical—it is reality.
The GaoKao, also known
as the National College
Entrance Examination, is
one of the most competitive
examinations globally. It
is an annual examination
held in July for students in
China in their final year of
high school. It consists of
subjects such as the Chinese
language and literature,
a foreign language,
mathematics, another
subject of their choice,
along with bewildering
essay prompts. Lasting a
total of nine hours for two
days, the GaoKao is said to
be the main standard that
determines a student’s future
and success. However, the
GaoKao should not be the
only factor that decides the
students’ fates because of
its substantial advantages
given to high-income
students and restrictions on
free speech.
One major concern
with the GaoKao is how it
heavily favors students living
in urban areas. According to
the article “The World’s Most
Important Exam Is Flawed,”
“those who have the best
chance of scoring well are
rich city-dwellers. Poorer
people in many countries
suffer disadvantages in
education, but in China, such
problems are magnified
by government spending
on schools that are heavily
skewed in favor of cities.”
This hinders students living
in poorer regions from being
able to get higher scores.
Seeing that the GaoKao
puts certain students at a
disadvantage, it is not an
effective way to gauge
potential and future success.
Another issue with
the exam is the limit on
free speech with the essay
questions. The article states,
“students have to tailor
their answers to suit the
Communist Party’s views.
Sun Chunlan, a deputy
prime minister, recently said
the GaoKao system was
‘tasked with the important
mission to educate and
pick talent for the state.’”
Whenever students write
essays about Mr. Xi or the
04 THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE

Students in Xujiahui,
Shanghai take the GaoKao
exam as family and friends
wait anxiously outside the
testing center. June 2019.
Attribution: Sarah J on flickr.
LLEGE EXAMINATION
government, they must write
in agreement to the party’s
ideals—going against the
government’s teachings
can result in a significantly
low score that prevents the
student from attending a
top school. Therefore, the
GaoKao impedes on the
students’ freedom to write
their own opinions and
forces them to conform
to a state of uniformity,
preventing students with a
different perspective from
achieving high scores. As
a result, the exam should
not be the only standard
for determining a student’s
success.
Although the
Chinese government
commends the meticulous
teaching in preparation for
the GaoKao, performance
on the exam doesn’t
help prepare students for
their future. According to
Tiffany May from the New
York Times, “while the
Chinese education system
has been praised for its
rigor—a Stanford study
says that the GaoKao
incentivizes memorization
over creativity.” So why
should memorizing sheets
of paper be more useful
than having a creative
mind when preparing
for future career options?
Putting memorization above
creativity stops students from
achieving their best future
by preventing their ability
to have originality and
uniqueness, which are more
important.
Overall, allowing
the GaoKao to determine
a student’s future is
unreasonable due to its
many flaws: it places
students on an uneven
playing field based on
family income, hinders
their ability to be different,
and holds memorization
to a higher level than
uniqueness. In essence, the
exam causes students to
lose the skill they need for a
promising future: creativity.
Works Cited
1. May, Tiffany. “For Survivors of
a 9-Hour Chinese Exam, a
Door Opens to America.”
The New York Times,, 13
June 2018, www.nytimes.
com/2018/06/13/ world/
asia/china-gaokao-newhampshire.html.
Accessed 16
December 2019.
2. “The World’s Most Important
Exam Is Flawed.” The
Economist, 30 June 2018,
www.economist.com/
leaders/2018/06/30/
the-worlds-most-important
-exam-is-flawed. Accessed 16
December 2019.
THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE 05

06 THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE

WHY
COVID-
SOMNIA
SHOULD
BE A
WAKE-
UP CALL
FOR
TEEN
MENTAL
HEALTH
By: Brandon Ly
2020 has certainly been a
stressful year for Americans, especially
for teenagers. With the coronavirus out
of control in our nation, combined with
stressful news regarding racial tensions
and the economy, teens are worried
about what the future holds for them as
schools plan to reopen this fall.
How are teenagers coping with
the added stress of 2020? Without
a direct solution towards reducing
the source of their stress, the global
pandemic, teens are instead turning
their new free time into screen
time. According to a survey from
the National 4-H Council, teens are
now spending 75% of their waking
hours on screens (Chase). Beyond
virtual learning, teens are spending
more time on social media apps like
Instagram and TikTok, watching more
Netflix, and playing more Minecraft
and Animal Crossing.
Stay-at-home orders, cancellations
and more screen time has become the
new norm for 2020. However, these
THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE 07

TO ALL THE TEENS FEELING
YOU ARE NO
dramatic changes to teens’ daily lives
are keeping them awake at night.
According to Sleep Standards, 77%
of Americans are finding it harder
to sleep during the pandemic (“62
Eye-Opening Sleep Statistics”). With
shifted schedules from online school
and work, lack of exercise due to
cancelled sports and safety concerns
and an overall increased stress during
2020, America is not only seeing a
rise in COVID cases but also insomnia
cases. Research from Express Scripts
showed an increase in prescriptions
for sleep disorders by 14.8% from
February 16 to March 15, as well as an
increase for anti-anxiety medications
and antidepressants (“America’s State
of Mind”). Neurologists are calling this
“COVID-somnia”.
What is sleep? What is
insomnia? Sleep is a state in which
our awareness and physical activity
are lower compared to when we are
awake. There are two mechanisms that
regulate how we fall asleep and stay
asleep: homeostatic regulation and
our circadian rhythm. Homeostasis,
our body’s way to regulate our system
and maintain balance, causes us to
fall asleep faster when we are sleep
deprived. Circadian rhythm is a 24-hour
clock in our brains that synchronizes
our sleep and wakefulness cycle with
our environment’s light and dark cycle
controlled by the suprachiasmatic
nucleus, which is located in the
hypothalamus. During sleep, the
pituitary gland releases hormones
that are important for growth and
development. Sleep is also associated
with maintaining cognitive thinking and
memory formation.
Insomnia is the most common
sleep disorder. According to the
International Classification of Diseases,
people with chronic insomnia have
trouble falling asleep or staying
asleep for at least 3 days a week for
a month (The ICD-10). While transient
and intermittent insomnia due to
daily stress are common and normal,
chronic insomnia is associated with
an increased risk for depression and
anxiety, especially among young adults
(Buysse).
Why should there be growing
concern for insomnia as schools
reopen? Due to irregular schedules
caused by online school and extra free
time, teenager’s sleep schedules have
wildly shifted during the pandemic.
The increase in teens’ screen time
combined with a lack of exposure from
natural sunlight during stay-at-home
orders are also contributing to the
disruption to their circadian rhythms
and their sleep-wake cycles. Even I am
finding myself wide awake at three in
the morning, either mindlessly scrolling
through TikTok or thinking about school,
colleges and the pandemic.
The surge in insomnia due to
COVID-19 is also contributing to an
increase in depression and anxiety
among teenagers. According to the
same study from 4-H, almost half of
all American teens are stressed or
depressed during the pandemic and
70% of teens wish that school taught
them more about mental health
and coping methods (Chase). It is
clear that more teens are worried
about mental health and think it is a
major issue to be addressed during
COVID-19. Unfortunately, schools are
finding mental health counseling to be
difficult in an online environment. In
my own state of Virginia, even though
over 100,000 teens suffer from mental
illness, students who were originally
receiving mental health services
before the pandemic either no longer
had access to resources or found
their schools’ telehealth options to be
insufficient (Angelus).
As select schools are attempting
to juggle between online and inperson
options, they seriously need
to consider both the physical and
mental health of their students. If
a school is attempting to reopen
for all of their students, they should
take advantage of that opportunity

to check in with their students and
build up their mental health services
and staff, all while observing rules to
mitigate the spread of COVID-19. On
the flip side, if a school is sticking to
a hybrid or completely virtual plan
for the next school year, they should
reach out to all of their students,
make sure everyone’s families are
safe, create regular online calls with
counselors and psychologists and
refer students to more mental health
resources available online and in
their area. While COVID-19 imposes
serious obstacles to our economy and
education institutions, the physical
health, mental health, and well-being
of everyone should be at the forefront
of our priorities when we go back to
school.
Works Cited
1. “America’s State of Mind: Use of Mental
Health Medications Increasing with
Spread of Coronavirus.” Express Scripts,
16 Apr. 2020, www.express-scripts.com/
corporate/articles/americas-state-minduse-mental-health-medications-increasingspread-coronavirus.
Accessed 14 Aug.
2020.
2. Angelus, Alexis, and Stacey Dec. “Schools
Struggle to Provide Mental Health
Resources during Shutdown.” NBC12, 9
May 2020, www.nbc12.com/2020/05/09/
schools-struggle-provide-mental-healthresources-during-shutdown/.
Accessed 14
Aug. 2020.
3. Buysse, Daniel J., et al. “Prevalence, Course,
and Comorbidity of Insomnia and
Depression in Young Adults.” Sleep, vol.
31, no. 4, 4 Nov. 2008, pp. 473-80. National
Center for Biotechnology Information,
doi:10.1093/sleep/31.4.473. Accessed 14
Aug. 2020.
4. Chase, Chevy. “New Survey Finds 7 in 10
Teens Are Struggling with Mental Health.”
4-H, 17 June 2020, 4-h.org/media/newsurvey-finds-7-in-10-teens-are-strugglingwith-mental-health/.
Accessed 14 Aug.
2020.
5. The ICD-10 Classification of Mental and
Behavioural Disorders. 1990. World Health
Organization, www.who.int/classifications/
icd/en/bluebook.pdf. Accessed 14 Aug.
2020.
6. “62 Eye-Opening Sleep Statistics, Trends, and
Data for 2020.” Sleep Standards, 2 Apr.
2020, sleepstandards.com/sleep-statistics/.
Accessed 14 Aug. 2020.
PRESSURE:
T ALONE.

THE NEW KID
A MEMOIR
By: Julia Loritz
I remember the night before lying
in an unfamiliar bed. We’d been here
for less than a month, through the
dwindling weeks of summer. As early
as it was in the season, outside the
leaves were turning ever so subtly -
slowly - into crisp reds and yellows. My
room was one I shared with my little
brother. Our older brother, we knew,
lay awake in the room across the hall,
one just as empty as our own, nothing
more than a closet, bed, thin layer of
paint, and little decor we would often
add to as we adjusted to life in our
new neighborhood.
Sleep came slowly and left all
too soon as our bodies attempted to
coax us into the morning, one that we
all were dreading. Mom woke us from
our shallow slumbers promptly at 6:30,
tapping our shoulders and speaking
softly but just loud enough to open our
eyes. She half-smiled as we stretched.
I felt my heavy eyelids rise while my
pupils adjusted to the light seeping
through the blinds. I woke in a good
mood, that - as quickly as it arrived
- disappeared with the realization of
the day ahead. With no idea what
to expect, I was tempted to pull the
covers over my head and hide, but
instead found the courage in my naive,
elementary mind to give in. I crawled
to the edge of my bed, where I found
the outfit I had meticulously picked out
the night before. I pulled my shirt over
my sleep-swollen face and trudged
dizzily down the carpeted steps. My
dad had prepared breakfast, but I
wasn’t in the mood to eat. Anxiety
made me sick to my stomach. I
remember feeling that everything I
was experiencing was only temporary:
from the house, the school, to leaving
everything I knew behind.
Saying goodbye to my best
friend of 8 years felt temporary, too.
I preferred not to acknowledge the
truth sitting in the back corners of
my mind. At least we’d be together
again in 3 years when middle school
began. We figured it would come
soon enough. I thought about this as
my parents guided me and my little
brother to our new bus stop. At the
cul-de-sac, another girl who looked
about my brother’s age joined us. We
didn’t speak, not even to our parents,
until waving goodbye from the foggy
windows of the school bus. I found
10 THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE
a spot at the back. I sat at the edge
of the seat next to a girl with purpleframed
glasses. I felt her eyes burning
at the side of my head. I turned my
knees and feet into the aisle, almost
falling off with every sharp turn.
Looking ahead, I stared cautiously
at the girls ahead of me. They were
jabbering with little hesitation as I
watched, wondering how they could
be so comfortable on their first day. I
guess not many were like me, foreign
and unknowing of whatever was at the
end of the bus ride.
‘The new kid’, that was me.
I’d never been the new kid before.
I’d always been welcomed and
recognized at school, but today that all
changed. I couldn’t believe that all the
faces I was seeing- brand new to my
eye- were ones that existed this whole
time in an alternate, adjacent reality.
My world seemed so small before.
Now, it was growing, or perhaps just
shifting. I wasn’t sure if I liked it yet.
I watched out the window,
reading street names I’d never heard
of. New faces waited impatiently at
cul-de-sacs and intersections with
flat backpacks slumped over their
shoulders. Barbed wire wrapped
around my throat as the bus grew
closer to the school. Swallowing tears
and clenching my teeth, my legs shook
as I stood to match those in front of
me. Kids pushed to get into the aisle
as others bounded down the steps,
marching onto the sidewalk. I walked
at the edge of the mob. I was shoved
through the doors into a hallway
with colorful tiles barely visible with
the tennis shoe-d feet stomping and
ruining the freshly waxed floors. I
looked from side to side. Standing on
my tippy toes, I tried desperately to
remember where my classroom was
supposed to be. I found my cubby
hidden at the very end of the hall,
my classroom to its left. I swung my
backpack down off of my shoulders,
hooking it inside. Unzipping it, I
emptied my brand new school supplies
from my backpack, looking at my
shoes as I walked into the classroom.
I smiled shyly at my teacher. She had
a blonde bob haircut and a sweet
Carolina accent she cheerily greeted
each student with.
The desk with my name plastered
onto its sleek wooden surface was all
the way in the front of the classroom.
Reading the names surrounding it, I
realized I recognized no one. I was
alone. The pressure behind my eyes
grew as I sank into my chair, not
looking up as several others skipped
into the door.
The bell rang. I sucked in my
breath and squeezed my eyes shut.
“Good morning everyone!” Her name
was Mrs. S. The
class mumbled
a response. My
mouth stayed
glued shut.
I
managed to
avoid eye
contact with
everyone at my
table until one
asked, “Wait,
are you new?”
“Yeah,”
I muttered,
looking down
once more.
“Oh.
Cool.” No, not
really, I wanted
to say.
“So, how
was everyone’s summer?” Mrs. S asked
the class.
“Good!”
“I’m glad to hear that.” She
continued the introductory spiel, but I
barely heard over the pounding in my

head.
I merely survived alongside my
racing thoughts. I sat stationary, yet
trembling, with no way to cope. And
then, just as I was getting comfortable
minding my own, I heard: “As some of
you may have noticed, we have some
new students joining us this year!” Now
alert, I turned away from the class as
heat rose to my cheeks. “Why don’t
you both stand up?” Oh no. I bit my
cheek, looked around at all the staring
eyes, and slowly- cautiously- rose to my
feet. I resisted nervous tears nagging
at my waterline. Panic weighted my
shoulders, like a barbell of trepidation.
My sweaty palms gripped the sides
of my desk as I made contact with
the other new kid at the back of the
room. Mrs. S introduced us to the class
as they all waved dreadfully in our
direction. The moment lasted forever.
I was getting faint before I was finally
able to sit back down. I wanted to melt
into the blue chair.
Recess came around. I leaned
against the cold brick in the cool air,
looking around desperately for a
familiar face. I watched as the boys
played soccer on the field across the
blacktop and envied the group of girls
swinging on the monkey bars with their
friends. I sighed in defeat. Alone. I slid
down the wall and sat knees-to-chest,
my head down.
And then: “Julia?” What? I looked
up abruptly. I caught the eye of a
girl with a long blonde ponytail. She
waved and giggled, and in a moment
of pure relief, I realized I recognized
her. She was on my softball team. I
beamed.
“Hi! I didn’t know you went here!”
“I didn’t know you went here!”
I laughed for the first time all day.
She helped me up and into a hug.
I couldn’t have been more grateful.
Together, we skipped to the swings.
There, she introduced me to some of
her friends who were waiting for us.
They became my friends, too- friends
I’d have not only through the school
year, but also through early middle
school.
Walking home from the bus
stop that afternoon, I saw my parents
smiling nervously from the driveway,
waving. I smiled wide and waved
back. They were visibly relieved. I
trotted over to them as they both
smothered me with hugs and lots of
questions. I answered eagerly as we
walked hand in hand into the house. It
had started to feel more like a home.
That night, I lay again in a
familiar bed, ready to welcome the
early weeks of autumn.

THE
MENTAL
HEALTH
CRISIS IN IN IN IN
SCHOOLS
By: Lauren Daniels
A bubbly, outgoing student
goes home after a long day in
class and the mask melts away.
There is a secret world none of
us know about, and that is a
student’s life at home. According
to NPR, in the United States,
one out of every five children
within the public school student
body show signs of a mental
disorder, whether it be ADHD,
an eating disorder, or thoughts
of suicide. These students often
have difficulty learning and
miss out on both class time and
opportunities due to their mental
health (Anderson & Cardoza,
2016). When a student struggles,
it is often behind closed doors,
tucked mysteriously away in
secret. Depending on the victim
experiencing this mental turmoil,
signs can slip out and shine light
onto their pain and someone
takes action to assist them. In
different cases, the individual
comes forward willingly and
confesses their feelings to a
trusted adult or friend, receiving
support in return. Unfortunately,
for many others, they suffer
without it being noticeable;
nearly 80% of these students
never receive counseling of any
sort (NPR, 2016). It is a time
where mental illnesses are either
over-treated or under-treated
instead of the happy and healthy
medium.
Schools are legally
responsible for the safety of
their students, which is why
teenagers may not be in a
room by themselves without a
trusted adult or staff present.
These regulations are put in
place as a way to protect the
administration and the students’
physical wellbeing and safety.
This is even more evident when
presented with the fact that
there are plenty of schools
out there who provide free or
reduced-price lunch to students
along with mandatory physical
education. With these set in
stone, shouldn’t the institution be
further involved and responsible
for the students’ emotional
health as well as push for more
publicized and widespread
counseling? From the fifty high
school and university students I
surveyed, roughly 66% feel that
their school is responsible for
helping students with mental
health concerns, yet 76% feel
there is a lack of support from
their school.
The education system
can cause many pressures for
students; this burden is becoming
noticeable and too heavy for
them to bear. Schools have
made an attempt at promoting
mental health, but have
THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE 15

ultimately made little to no progress.
An article from the National Center
of Biotechnology Information has
stated that schools must include, “(1)
public health protection, promotion,
and maintenance that foster positive
development and wellness; (2)
preschool-age support and assistance
to enhance health and psychosocial
development; (3) early-schooling
targeted interventions; (4) improvement
and augmentation of ongoing regular
support; (5) other interventions prior
to referral for intensive and ongoing
targeted treatments; and (6) intensive
treatments” (Adelman & Taylor, 2006).
It is a difficult task to pick up on signs
when the teachers are assigned to so
many students, but it is an important
task nonetheless. There are parents
who believe therapy is excessive or
are in denial that their child may
need help, which is why the school
should take charge and provide
this service, if needed, so that the
student has a clear voice in their
emotional health and wellbeing. Many
schools have guidance counselors
or advisors assigned to a student
whose main objective is to help said
student find the college suitable for
them — or when in college, remain in
it and be successful. There are also
school psychologists, who various
students don’t even know the name
of. Universities and high schools could
adjust their mistakes, but it certainly
takes effort. I have found that students
feel their school genuinely does not
care about their emotional wellbeing
or only make greater strides after an
unfortunate tragedy within the student
body. I am sure that is not the case,
but schools have done a poor job of
showing their concerns.
In the survey, many students left
remarks on how schools could do
better. This is a discussion all deans
and principals should reconsider. For
starters, there are schools with social
workers that students do not know
exist. It is important that in orientation,
the school highlights the importance
of mental health and the names of
who they can turn to. Students tend to
build and connect with their teachers,
who are trustable adults, but they
need professional help from those who
have had training. Creating similar
bonds with the social workers in the
school would provide a safe space for
students willing to seek it; bi-weekly
meetings with counselors to create said
relationship is crucial. Another issue is
that many students fear the violation
of the confidentiality of their trust and
what they say to their counselors.
Survey respondents were allowed a
space to choose if they would like to
share their experiences or not. In one
specific case, a student’s sexuality was
outed to their traditionalist parents by
their counselor. A professional therapist
only reports personal, confidential
information when there are signs or
threats that their patient will harm
themself or someone else. Why would
there be a difference between a
guidance counselor and a therapist
in terms of the legality of releasing
information?
School nurses can play a larger
part in this crisis than we realize.
Many school nurses perform vision
screenings. The education system could
also add mental health testing to the
vision screenings that many school
nurses conduct. (Adelman & Taylor,
2006). These could take place after
the collaboration of both the teachers
and parents watching the attitude,
mood, and possible signs a student
possesses, and those at risk could be
screened.
One concern raised in the survey
was that some schools simply do
not have the funding while others
do not put in enough effort into
providing mental health awareness.
This can be represented by the fact
that many students do not know who
their school psychologist is. To have
a school psychologist is a service
that not all schools possess. Ava, a
student described in The Hechinger
Report, successfully transitioned back
to school with the help of “BRYT, or
Bridge for Resilient Youth in Transition,
which helps students return to school
after extended mental health-related
absences” (2020). She attended this
program for one period a day where
they helped her catch up on work and
focus on her emotions and mental
health. She found it helpful and it could
be incorporated into other schools
(Serrano, 2020).
After surveying fifty students, it
is evident that our education system
needs to reform how we tackle the
issues of mental health. My survey has
flaws, such as the small sample size,
yet it is only one small step towards
insight on how students feel towards
mental health in schools. It is just as
important as our safety and physical
health.
Works Cited
1. Adelman, Howard S, and Linda Taylor. Mental
Health in Schools and Public Health. NCBI.
2006.
2. Serrano, Alfonso. How to Help Students
Cope with Mental Health in Schools. The
Hechinger Report. 30 Mar. 2020.
3. A Silent Epidemic: The Mental Health Crisis In
Our Schools. NPR. 2016.
16 THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE

THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE 17

HERD
IMMUNITY
AND THE
COVID-19
VACCINE:
WHAT DOES THE
FUTURE HOLD?
By: Julia Loritz
Mounting pressure from the
eager worldwide community fuels
the race for a COVID-19 vaccine. In
standard situations, researchers take
years to ensure the safety of the latest
vaccinations. But since scientists only
began human trials in March (as
reported by the New York Times), they
will require several additional months
before they can present a prototype
to the public. With the severity of
the virus, it is uncertain whether the
population can withstand the wait.
Moving forward will undoubtedly call
on analysts and governments alike to
cultivate ingenuity and adaptations to
conventional processes as confirmed
international cases surge towards
eighteen million.
Even after a developed
vaccine is available for use, it may
not mean the defeat of the virus—at
least, not yet. The timeline extended
by politicians (which expects the
pandemic to subside once companies
curate an immunization by the end
of this year) does not array the
full picture. According to Medical
Xpress, not only must there be a
substantial amount of doses to
yield to the growing populace, but
the vaccine itself must also reach a
certain level of effectiveness. Just
like any other product, its supply is
not as important as its functionality,
which makes it worthwhile. In terms
of a vaccine, it must safeguard each
patient holistically. For example, if
the COVID shot turns out to be sixty

percent effective, then out of every
one-hundred people, only sixty would
be safe from infection. The other forty
remain vulnerable even after reception,
unfortunately sustaining the risk for an
unprecedented spike in cases.
To organize members of a
community, epidemiologists may label
residents as one of three conditions:
contagious, susceptible, or immunized.
Those who are contagious have
contracted the virus and can spread it
to susceptible citizens. This relationship
allowed the SARS-CoV-2 strain to rage
across the globe. Individuals who
have received an immunization are
contrastingly incapable of hosting the
virus. This is because they possess
antibodies, which the CDC defines as
“proteins that help fight off infections
and...provide protection against
getting [a particular] disease again…”
Antibodies are present in vaccines,
and are disease specific. This means
they directly attack the virus we deploy
them to respond to, conceivably
eradicating COVID from the patient’s
body.
Based on the status of each
community, researchers can then
determine the chances for “herd
immunity.” This term describes an
indirect defense against an infectious
disease such as COVID. If achieved, it
can prevent the spread in a specific
area without further intervention.
When a fit person without pre-existing
conditions (a prime candidate for
recovery) catches COVID-19, self
isolates, and returns to health, they join
the herd. As more and more patients
rehabilitate, the presence of antibodies
increases. Although research is unsure
if at-risk people can contract COVID
more than once, for the sake of
explanation, it can be assumed that
once an individual enters the herd,
they remain a part of it.
To illustrate, imagine there is an
infected person within a group. That
person, the host, traces the virus to four
other people, who in turn contaminate
four more people each, like a pyramid
scheme. Now, there are twenty-one
contagious residents. Now, instead,
imagine that three of the four original
recipients have received a vaccine. The
transmission of the virus to an immune
individual, in theory, blocks the chain
of exposure at that point. Since none of
those people will contract the virus to
extend to others, it will only infect six in
the long run rather than twenty-one. If
enough people become immunized, it
would slow the spread to a minimum,
therefore demonstrating herd immunity.
This scenario is exactly what
experts are hoping for with the rise of
a potential vaccine. So, how “good”
does it have to be to foster this
outcome? A study from the American
Journal of Preventive Medicine says
at least seventy to eighty percent
effective, as opposed to the flu
vaccine, which is about twenty to sixty
percent by comparison. Still, tackling
the coronavirus must continue to be
a team effort. While companies and
universities work tirelessly to provide
a successful and safe solution, society
must comply with social distancing,
mask mandates and stay-at-home
orders in their local factions. By
respecting what proves to flatten the
curve, the world can welcome what will
become the new normal.
Works Cited:
1. Corum, Jonathan, et al. “Coronavirus Vaccine
Tracker.” The New York Times, The New
York Times, 10 June 2020, www.nytimes.
com/interactive/2020/science/coronavirusvaccine-tracker.html.
2. (Image) Coston, Michael. “GAO: A Herd
Immunity For COVID-19 Primer”. Avian
Flu Diary. 9 July 2020, https://afludiary.
blogspot.com/2020/07/gao-herd-immunityfor-covid-19-primer.html.
3. Lee, Bruce Y. “How ‘Good’ Does a COVID-19
Coronavirus Vaccine Need to Be to
Stop the Pandemic? A New Study Has
Answers.” Medical Xpress - Medical
Research Advances and Health News,
Medical Xpress, 15 July 2020, https://
medicalxpress.com/news/2020-07-goodcovid-coronavirus-vaccine-pandemic.html.
4. “Test for Past Infection.” Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, 11 Feb.
2020, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-
ncov/testing/serology-overview.html.
5. “What is Herd Immunity?” YouTube, uploaded
by Microbiology Society, 7 February
2017, https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=cEn1PKyBUNc
6. “What is Herd Immunity?” YouTube, uploaded
by The Royal College of Pathologists, 12
February 2020, https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=tC47JjakPSA.
THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE 19

MEATLOAF
AND
MEHENDI:
DIVERSITY IN
LITERATURE
By: Avani Guduri
“I’m a writer.”
I’ve made this declaration a
thousand times--in an introductory letter
to a teacher, in my first conversation
with a stranger, in my head as I stare
hopelessly at a blank page. For a
long time, I thought “being a writer”
meant being able to put words on
paper and sentences on a screen.
I’ve since realized that while this is
one definition, there is so much more
that constitutes a writer (or, more
specifically, the writer I want to be).
When I was a kid, I used to write
these short poems on random topics
like cookies and seasonal colors. As I
got a little older, those poems turned
into short scenes, which eventually
grew into short stories. No matter
what I wrote, the result was the same:
characters with skin a hundred shades
lighter than mine, environments I’d
never seen growing up in my Indian
household, food I’d never eaten and
probably wouldn’t even have liked.
I was writing about meatloaf even
though eating beef was prohibited by
my religion.
But why?
A writer’s purpose is to create a
story. Contrarily, a reader is exposed
to millions of stories. What better way
is there to improve your own stories
than learning from those of others?
So, most writers double as part-time
(or even full-time when they’re on a
break) readers. Living in a country
where English is the official language,
I grew up reading books lacking POC
characters and diverse cultures despite
the “melting pot of cultures” the United
States was dubbed as. As a result, the
stories I produced mimicked the same
white culture that dominates literature.
There are millions of kids
growing up in cultures with certain
identities that find it difficult to relate
to the books they read. Beyond
race and culture, there are tons of
other underrepresented minorities
including the LGBTQ+ community
and the disabled. I can’t imagine
the number of young writers making
the same mistake I did: hiding their
own beautiful identities because they
don’t think it’s okay to write about
themselves and the worlds they come
from because they never read about it.
More than anything, I wish I’d spent my
childhood writing about the mehendi
I wore on my palms, the mythology I’d
heard from my grandparents, and the
palak paneer I’d eaten for dinner. For
our future writers, this needs to change.
The root of the problem is the
author behind the book. A majority of
authors are white men, and though
the number of authors belonging to
minority groups has been steadily
rising in the past years, there’s still
more growth to be had. Authors write
from their own experiences, and since
they belong to the majority, they can’t
necessarily speak for the experiences
of minorities. While I believe an
increase in POC authors can also result
in greater diversity in literature, I think
all writers can speak for minorities.
Now, I believe “being a writer”
means including diversity in my own
works.
Even if an author hasn’t lived the
experiences of a minority, they can still
research these experiences. Whether
it’s through reading books about the
topic or interviewing members of
the community, authors are capable
of educating themselves on topics
underrepresented (or misrepresented)
in literature. After using their research
to write their books, authors can have
experienced people read through
their work for accuracy and sensitivity.
Then readers of all ages can relate to
literature, feeling no need to hide when
their own cultures and experiences are
on the pages they read.
I think a portion of the lack of
diversity in literature can be attributed
to the laziness of authors or even
a lack of care, however grossly
insensitive this may be. Even though
these setbacks exist, there’s a lot more
diversity on bookshelves right now
than there was even five years ago.
Hopefully, this amount will continue to
rise. Until then, I’ll be working on my
own novel, replacing meatloaf with
mehendi to capture the diversity I
dream of seeing conquer literature in
the future.
THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE 21

THE HISTORY OF
BUBBLE TEA
By: Jacqueline Chen
Over the past few months,
the world has seen more Asian
representation in every industry around
the world. BTS and BlackPink continue
to top the charts with their latest hits,
Mulan is preparing to make a splash
at a box-office hit after Crazy Rich
Asians paved the way and bubble
tea has taken the food industry
by storm. The drink has become
extremely popular among the current
generation—and amongst all ethnic
groups—as people across the globe
sample flavors that are often found in
Asian treats.
The exact origins of bubble tea
still remain a mystery, with multiple
locations and backstories claiming to
be its true origin. The two competing
origin stories come from two different
tea rooms in Taiwan during the 1980s:
The Hanlin Tea Room in Tainan and
the Chun Shui Tang tea room in
Taichung. According to the Hanlin Tea
Room, the teahouse owner at the time,
Tu Tsong He, invented the drink after
purchasing tapioca balls in the Ya Mu
Liao market and adding them to his
black milk tea. The beverage was so
delicious that the Hanlin Tea Room
switched from white to black tapioca
pearls, the main difference being that
the black pearls are mixed with brown
sugar and honey. However, the real
inventor is credited as Lin Hsiu Hui,
who was the product development
manager at the Chun Shui Tang
teahouse in 1988 after dumping her
fen yuan, a confectionary dessert of
sweet tapioca balls, into her cold tea.
Regardless of its origins, the
drink became a huge success in its
country of origin, Taiwan, and later
spread first to southern China, then to
Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. The
pairing between cold tea and sweet,
chewy pearls made it a perfect drink
to enjoy in the hot and humid climates
of these regions. Today, bubble tea
is found all over the world in different
venues and under different aliases
including pearl milk tea, bubble milk
tea, and boba tea. Various additions
to the customary pearls have been
added over the years, including
grass jelly and red beans. As society
becomes more health conscious and
companies strive to adopt healthy
beverage options such as green tea,
black tea, oolong tea, and white tea,
bubble tea has become a popular
choice. As the demand for new
flavours and blends from the young
population, the variety is expected
to provide ground for more lucrative
opportunities to expand markets.
No other country could rival
Taiwan for one’s love for bubble tea.
For the people of Taiwan, bubble tea
is a literal representation of embracing
age-old cultural traditions with a touch
of modernism: the fusion of the ancient
tea-making process with the newer,
current tapioca pearls. It became a
sense of Taiwanese self-confidence
and an integral part of their identity.
In fact, in 2004, in hopes to convince
the public that a proposed weapons
purchase was not costly, the island’s
defense minister decided to distribute
leaflets stating that if every Taiwanese
skipped one glass of bubble tea each
week for the next 15 years, there would
be enough money left over to pay
for military expenses. The campaign
massively backfired and stirred heated
oppositions while simultaneously
bonding bubble tea makers and
drinkers from across the country.
Bubble tea has been and
continues to remain a popular
beverage among all age groups.
The rich, silky and satisfyingly chewy
bubble tea still remains the perfect
beverage for all hours of the day and
any occasion. But the best thing about
bubble tea is its variation. It boasts
an astonishing number of flavour
and blend combinations and topping
selections. So whether you’re with
your friends at the amusement park
or on your way for another study cram
session at your local library, consider
picking up a drink of bubble tea from
your local tea store and customizing
it to your liking. Your bubble tea, your
way.
Works Cited
1. Esa, Jessica. “The History of Bubble Tea + How
to Make It at Home.” Books and Bao, 28
Apr. 2020, booksandbao.com/history-ofbubble-tea-make-it-at-home/.
2. Krishna, Priya. “A Brief History of Boba.”
Food & Wine, Meredith Corporation, 6
June 2017, www.foodandwine.com/tea/
bubble-tea-taiwanese-street-drink-turnedamerican-addiction.
22 THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE

STRESS
MANAGEMENT
TIPS
AND
TRICKS
By: Whitney Le
According to the
American Psychological
Association, roughly 83% of
teens commonly reported
that their main sources of
stress comes mostly from
school (Alvord and Halfond).
It’s no wonder considering
grades and test scores
for college applications
are so stressful. Now, with
the current pandemic, this
makes it even worse for
students. Here are a couple
of tips to help manage
stress.
Works Cited
1. Alvord, Mary, and Halfond, Raquel. “How to Help Children and Teens Manage Their Stress.”
2. American Psychological Association, American Psychological Association, 24 Oct. 2019, www.apa.
org/topics/children-teens-stress.
3. “Exercise and Depression: Endorphins, Reducing Stress, and More.” WebMD, WebMD, 18 Feb.
2020, www.webmd.com/depression/guide/exercise-depression.
24 THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE

01
02
03
04
05
With the amount
of work teens have to
do, oftentimes they feel
overwhelmed or completely
burnout. One easy solution
is simply by taking breaks,
whether it’s short five-minute
breaks or full mental health
days to relax. Focusing
on yourself is much more
A major factor
contributing to academic
stress is a lack of sleep.
Teens often get less than the
recommended amount of
eight hours to maintain their
grades. Additionally, schools
often start early because
of transportation costs.
Most school districts prefer
Having your own
social support network is
vital to managing stress. In
your own network, it should
consist of family, friends,
peers, and anyone close to
you. This network provides
a sense of security to assist
you in the darkest times by
either leaning an ear and/or
Cluttered workspaces
can contribute to stress. By
cleaning up your workspace,
it reduces small distractions
and creates a more positive
feeling, allowing you to
study more effectively. But
most importantly, being
organized is not just
cleaning your surroundings;
Poor mental health
is not the only factor of
stress; poor physical health
also negatively leads to
increased stress. According
to WebMD, exercising
causes your body to
release a chemical called
endorphin. Endorphins act
as the body’s painkillers,
important than grinding
away on assignments when
it can negatively affect your
productivity and mental
health in the long run.
to have the same buses
running multiple routes. As
a result, elementary, middle,
and high schools have
different schedules for those
limited sets of buses. While
later start times are unlikely,
students can still readjust
their sleep schedule for
more sleep.
giving advice. Not only that,
it can certainly boost your
own self-esteem through
encouragement in the form
of compliments.
it’s learning how to properly
manage your time and
prioritize certain tasks. This
can easily be done by
writing to-do lists or keeping
track of deadlines on a
calendar.
and they help reduce stress
as a result (“Exercise and
Depression: Endorphins…”).
So instead of constantly
sitting at your desk to attend
a Zoom lecture, make sure
to communicate with your
teachers that you need a
short break to move your
body.
THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE 25

PROS
OF ONLINE LEARNING
By: Julia Loritz
01 Remote learning is much safer for both
students and staff. Staying at home
maintains social distancing and group
gathering restrictions, resulting in less
exposure to the virus.
02
03
05
While at home, student daily schedules,
routines, attire, and location are flexible
to accommodate what works best for
them.
No mask is required.
Students can fit their learning around
their home life, allowing for a more
versatile use of their time.
01 Students and teachers are put at high risk
of contracting the virus.
02
03
04
05
06
Teaching during the coronavirus
pandemic deviates deeply from typical
schooling. It is hard for teachers to adapt
their content and teaching styles to a
new platform on short notice.
Students may become easily distracted
or unmotivated.
In low-income communities, computers
are not always accessible.
Students with learning styles that thrive
in an in-person and tactile setting are
forced to consume information in a way
that they aren’t used to.
Parents may carry the burden of teaching
their child if they are struggling with
fewer resources available to them.
05
06
Online learners will have an easier
transition if schools end up returning to
all-virtual learning.
Learning largely by yourself will
strengthen your self- and timemanagement
skill sets.
CONS
OF ONLINE LEARNING
By: Julia Loritz
WHAT’S
IN MY
BACKPACK?
By: Emma Munro
In School
Mask
Hand sanitizer
COVID screening
form
Car keys
Wallet
Granola bar
Both Virtual
Laptop
Chargers
Notebooks
Books
Agenda
Pens
Pencils
Calculator
Water bottle
Headphones
Phone
Textbooks
Blue-light glasses
Study buddy (in
the form of a furry
friend)
Blanket
26 THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE

THE SYNERGY PROJECT
President
VP, Writing
Staff Writer
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Editor
Editor
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Editor
VP, Design
VP, Operations
Operations
Marketing
Marketing
Marketing
VP, Finance
Finance
VP, Website Development
Tara Sangal
Tara Sangal
Avani Guduri
Emma Munro
Jacqueline Chen
Jessica Yan
Julia Loritz
Lauren Daniels
Whitney Le
Brandon Ly
Emma Munro
Avani Guduri
Jacqueline Chen
Julia Loritz
Karleigh Belli
Saba F.
Tara Sangal
Toan Nguyen
Whitney Le
Avani Guduri
Whitney Le
Aryan Panpalia
Ameya Mulay
Carter Brutosky
Esther Ajayi
Bridgit Jung
Kayly Kassab
Bryan Lee
Website
www.synergyprojectglobal.org
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Podcast coming soon to Youtube and Spotify!
THE SYNERGY PROJECT MAGAZINE 27

Education is the most powerful weapon
which you can use to change the world.
--Nelson Mandela
02