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Locker Talk: What are you binge watching and why?

April 6, 2015 by lpahomov Leave a Comment

Chiara Nemati

Staff Writer

What are you binge watching and why?

Ari Haven

Bones: “Cause it’s freakin’ amazing and the FBI guy is super hot!”

Kai Burton

Bones: “I always saw it on the tv and I wanted to watch it.”

Addy Gonzalez

The Office: “I saw episodes on and off and decided to catch up on it.”

Jared Trusty

Empire: “It is an amazing show that goes through the life of two people who are successful.”

Kobe Nabried

The Last Ship and Empire: “I was watching the Final Four and could not find the remote and it was on and I decided to keep watching it.”

Cheating scandal at SLA

April 6, 2015 by lpahomov Leave a Comment

Angelica Owens

Staff Writer

In late February, It was discovered by the SLA staff that pictures of a recent physics quiz were being circulated to juniors via text message. Once Principal Lehmann was informed, he sat down the entire junior class to discuss academic integrity and also informed them that the entire grade would be earning a “first strike” according to the policy. All juniors also had to retake the quiz over again.

To measure student opinion on the events and punishment, SLAMedia surveyed juniors, asking numerous questions about the situation and what happened. We asked them questions about what was fair in regards to the punishment, if they thought most of the juniors knew about what happened, etc.

The results of the survey overwhelmingly showed that a lot of students felt that the punishment was unfair while others thought the punishment was fair.

After reviewing the results of the survey, I then interviewed Mr. Lehmann, to see his view on the data that was presented to him and to see his reactions. Here are the questions and his answers below…

What are your reactions to the data?

I think what is interesting about it is that there is no negative thing if no one plagiarized and as we did investigation there were other instances of plagiarizing and that it was enough times that it required more of an action.

How do you feel about the fact that 93% of the students who answered number 2 said that students will not cheat regardless and that culture and trust doesn’t encourage it?

I think that is really important. That speaks to as a community that they are adult values and on some level it requires us to ask why did we see that the situation happened. I spoke to some students who admitted that they were in the text chain and said to me”when we were confronted about it, they felt like they let their school down” and when the whole class had to recognize what they did was wrong.

What would you like to say about the fact that only 19% of the students who answered number 3 said that they don’t think most the juniors knew about the cheating situation in Physics?

I don’t know. I am not sure. I think what is interesting is that I don’t know what to make of it. I will say that if even 20% of the kids knew that it was a widespread cheating going on why would they not say anything about it. If 25 kids in the junior class knew about it, what is the critical mass that no one did anything about it to say this is to much.

How does the subject of Physics make it more common for people to even think about cheating?

It depends on the thing. One, physics is known to be a hard class. Two, quizzes where there is a question with a right answer it makes it more common. We as a school can be understanding of it but it doesn’t make it acceptable.

Has anyone came to you before in past years about cheating in physics, or other subjects? If so, what was the situation that occurred?

Not in any widespread way. There has been plagiarizing but we haven’t been in any situation before where there are numerous people involved in such a widespread way.

Define Horror Plz

April 6, 2015 by lpahomov Leave a Comment

Staff Writer

Corinthia Bell

When was the last time you watched a horror movie? Was it at home? or in the theatres? If so, then you’ve might have or have not been scared watching it. Of what you saw was what today’s movies has to offer, entertainment in horror. No matter where you watched, you may be surprised to know, what you watched is just the same like 65 years ago.

“No waay,” you’re thinking. “movies today are more developed and realistic looking than they were then”. Okay, so maybe the blood and gore looks a little less fake. But the themes in horror movies are exactly the same. They’re the same because they have this effect upon people, that makes them feel “shivery of freight” in some form of way, for those who carry the same feelings that have been felt before. In which no matter how great or little the fear is, it is still fear.

In the 1950’s, movies were often popular and mainly monster themed, such as The Revenge Of Frankenstein, or It Conquered The World, where there would always be this disastrous creature that’d destroy humanity or the Earth. Which relates to movies today, because there’s always someone or something, there to cause havoc to make horror, such as the movies The Lazarus Effect, Innocence and Crimson Peak.

It is said by Douglas E. Winter, who is a writer upon the art of horror that “Horror is not a genre, like the mystery or science fiction or the western. It is not a kind of fiction, meant to be confined to the ghetto of a special self in libraries and book stores. Horror is an emotion. It can be found in all literature.” Meaning that horror is in everything, because it is something that is felt as an emotion by someone.

Today if the 1950s movies were to be seen, they’d be looked upon as “fake looking” or “just not scary, no stop”, so we’d just find them funny and laugh, thinking that was scary back then. But now, the movies we see are often bloody, more deathly, disturbing, suicidal, and demonistic. Which forms same emotion of freight, of what someone else had years ago.

But the main thing of question, is it seen as appropriate that horror has been so different from what it used to be? Well, for things to be grasped fully and understood with the imagination and the kinds of technology used, they have to be displayed want the horror authors want at all times. The reason of why is because they want you to know truth, of whatever it is of what they want you to feel, so that not only the author knows the overall message but the viewer does too.

For the viewer to know what truth it is to offer, then it’ll help expand the viewer’s knowledge of things in this world so that they can know what is being shared. So it actually is seen as what message the author has, as an artist to share it to the viewer. As a artist, viewers are going to always have a reaction to what they’re seeing because it is the art of horror.

By Google, horror is defined as “an attack of extreme nervousness or anxiety, or and intense feeling of fear, shock, or disgust.” Horror today is the way is the what it is, simply because of how the author wants to communicate the displayed hidden truth, and it’s the viewer’s choice to see what they have to offer. So As the years grow, horror movies will always change and be different from the past, but in the end they’re all the same because they’re meant to scare you.

Hallway Fashion: Kai Burton

March 31, 2015 by lpahomov Leave a Comment

Ella Donesky
Staff Writer

Where do you usually shop?
I like Target and J Crew. I like American Eagle a lot, that’s probably where I get most of my clothes. That’s it. Those are my main places.

Who inspires your outfits?
Probably my mother. She’s all fashionable and tiny, so yeah. My mom always gets really dressed up. Wherever she goes, she always has her makeup on, and she’ll put on really simple outfits, but they always look really cute. And when I was little, she dressed me and I was never into fashion, so she still always gives me suggestions. I take her advice more than anybody else. Everyone else in my family is a kind of a hot mess when it comes to clothes.

What’s your favorite article of clothing and why?
My favorite article of clothing would probably shoes, in general. I love shoes. They’re just so much fun. It’s harder when you have big feet, because some shoes make your feet look extra long, but shoes are so fun, you can have boots and Mary Jane’s and heels. They’re just really fun.

Editorial: Heroes or Traitors? The Whistleblower Debate

March 30, 2015 by lpahomov Leave a Comment

Sean Morris

Staff Writer

President John F. Kennedy once said: “The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it.” These days, is it too high? In post 9/11 America there has been an increase in secrecy, or more specifically secrets revealed by whistle blowers. It has led to the age old debate upon what the government is entitled to let us know and what should be kept secret in the interest in national security.

One of the key figures in this debate is Edward Snowden, who made headlines in 2013 for releasing surveillance information from the National Security Agency and publishing that they were spying on US citizens. Is he a traitor or a hero? Depends who you ask. Some believe his actions were treasonous for revealing classified secrets of the United States government while others felt he was a hero for highlighting an injustice done by the government. People that cite him being a hero do mention that he leaked information to the american public of the “unnecessary” and “unconstitutional” spying the government does on its own people. People that call him a traitor bring up the fact that he has released documents about spying on other countries, most specifically China. While countries spying on each other is no secret, the unspoken rule is simply “don’t get caught doing it” and thus Snowden has not only troubled the foreign front but has also given other countries agencies information which can be better used to spy on us.

Another figurehead is Julian Assange, founder of the website Wikileaks which has had an outpour of government documents and footage found. An example of one of these footages being a video showing us soldiers shooting at foreign, Iraqi civilians and even a van full of children. Some have said that this is threatening as it dangers potential US identities and compromises missions overseas. But it’s also worth nothing that whatever was published had more with past missions then ongoing or even future ones.

A third figure is Chelsea (formerly Bradley) Manning, who leaked over 700,000 files to the website Wikileaks. These files have included detainees at Guantanamo Bay; of which has been criticized for wrongfully holding prisoners, war logs from Afghanistan and Iraq; which likely highlighted combat material like the videos mentioned above and state department cable. Like others Manning has faced both criticism and praise for her actions- which have sentenced her to 35 years in prison.

As SLA students, many of you might be asking ‘how does this relate to me?

Here’s the truth- as of now,you are an American citizen. Do you trust your government to have your best issues at heart? And what as a citizen do you believe we as the public should know and what it shouldn’t? Should we become aware or past government missions, current ones or just none at all?

These are ultimately the decisions that will soon be in our hands as voters and taxpayers who have a say in our government. And our government doesn’t always act in the most popular way- take the recent letter to Iran as an example; many people were outraged by on how our elected officials would take a move that could derail sensitive peace talks, and shows examples of what would happen if our government goes unchecked.

Whether or not we agree with the decisions of these whistleblowers or not- our government needs to be check in some ways, otherwise we allow ourselves to controlled rather than guided by our government. Instead of looking to JFK in this situation, we suggest looking to the words of Ben Franklin: “Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”