Block A: October

Pandemic Ponderings

Single-use Masks are The New Plastic Straws

Haemin Y.

Recently coronavirus cases have been spiking and more people are starting to wear masks regularly when going out. But is there a negative effect of increased mask-wearing? Single-use masks are now being worn by so many people worldwide that they are creating an enormous amount of plastic waste every day.

Back before Covid-19 cases started increasing in March, a few people wore masks when going out. However, when more people started wearing masks, everyone followed. Most people wore single-use masks instead of reusable masks. They were easier to access and they were more comfortable to wear. Because of everyone starting to wear single-use masks and throwing them out every day, the amount of plastic trash has increased at a fast rate in a short amount of time. Not only do single-use masks affect the planet but they also affects animals. Birds have mask straps tangled in their feet causing them to lose their ability to fly. Turtles have mask straps tangled in their fins causing them to lose their ability to swim.

Do you want to help solve this problem of increased waste due to masks? If so, here are some solutions.

First, start wearing reusable masks that you don’t have to throw out every day. You can wear these masks for a couple of days, then wash it and wear it again Wearing designer reusable masks doesn’t only spark up your look but you can also be part of the pollution solution.

Second, if you only have access to single-use masks, make sure to cut the straps from the mask before throwing it away. Cutting the straps helps the environment and saves animals from suffering and getting hurt by the waste we create.

7 Business Ideas to Start in Quarantine

Pia S.

More than six months ago, COVID-19 forced the whole world to retreat into our homes. Despite the sudden quarantine restrictions that caused the unemployment of 1.6 billion workers worldwide, people found ways to thrive in the new normal. Here are seven of those ideas.

Masks and Face-Shields

Amidst the pandemic, masks and face-shields are necessities when it comes to protection from the virus. No one can tell who is a possible carrier or not. With people going out every so often, it’s hard to own only one of either. Custom designed or disposable, masks and face-shields are in high demand everywhere.

Disinfectants

Disinfectants are another important product during quarantine. They can come in different sizes, some small enough to be stashed in your bag and can be brought anywhere, and a bigger size to store at home. People use disinfectants to keep one's hands or objects clean and free from germs.

Snacks and Baked Goods

With quarantine limiting people from eating out, a lot have started to make their own snacks. However, some can only do so much at home and will rely on others for variety. From bread to cookies and even apple pie, there are many options out there to try and make if you enjoy it. Is there a snack you love you think others would enjoy?

Plants

Whether with a garden or a small space in an apartment, plants can keep people busy while stuck at home. You could also plant vegetables or herbs so that your family and friends don't need to buy from the grocery.

Computer Accessories

With everything moving online, computers, tablets, and cellphones have become a big part of our daily toolbox. From chargers to headsets, to tripods, people are soon going to need something to replace or go along with their devices.

Personal Care

In this category are personal grooming, hair care, facial care, and body care products. This presents a big business opportunity because people groom regularly, and wash frequently.

Pet Products

The groomers may still be closed when your dog is due for another haircut. Your cat may need some cat food, and your hamster used up all his bedding. People are no longer able to go to pet stores at this time, so they will rely on online sources to keep their pets healthy and happy.

In the middle of this pandemic, it is practical to buy things online. The risk of going out is higher than the benefits of buying directly from a shop. It may be even faster and more convenient to get things from your online community store. Experiment with social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram to sell your wares, and maybe one day you'll be the one deciding how much you'll get for allowance.

Baking to Cure Quarantine Boredom

Ainsley S.

We have been in quarantine for about seven months now, you’ve probably run out of things to bake and crafts to make. In this article, you will find some interesting things you can do while still stuck at home.

Recipes

By now we all know and love the app ‘Tik Tok.’ Here are some easy, interesting, delicious recipes you can make while trapped inside.

Dalgona ‘Whipped’ Coffee click for recipe

This rich drink started trending around the start of quarantine in April 2020. It is made with 5 simple ingredients most people have at home. It’s a nice alternative to a regular cup of coffee.

Cloud Bread click for recipe

This ‘bread’ is very fluffy and light giving it it’s name ‘Cloud Bread’. It’s made of 3 ingredients everyone definitely has at home, it’s very easy to make and you can customize it however you would like.

Pumpkin Mug Cake click for recipe

This recipe is perfect for the autumn season that’s starting up. You can make it in three minutes with 11 ingredients you probably have at home.

When the pandemic ends, how will it change school and our lives?

Alaleh A.

It has been many months and the Coronavirus is still very much here. Sweeping the world, killing more people than any other virus, creating constant confusion over its transmission, incubation and intensity as well as how it affects adults, children and the elderly, a cure is still to be found. On January 30th 2020, the Department of Health confirmed the first infected Covid-19 case in the Philippines, and soon after it started to spread. On the 7th of March 2020 the first transmission in the Philippines was confirmed. Today, the Philippines has over 307,000 cases, the majority of which have recovered, but there have been more than 5,000 deaths as well.

All over the world, many lives have been impacted due to Covid-19. Amongst these, the lives of children have suffered greatly. In the Philippines, 22 million children (plus adolescents) have not been able to attend school since the beginning of March 2020. Such unprecedented scenarios pushed schools to adapt and change their ways in order to enable students to be educated while at home during quarantine.

The students of ISM have been ‘in-school’, through an online platform, Zoom, to keep up with their education. When questioned if students preferred this way of learning, 43.5% considered it excellent, while 56.5% considered it okay. Those slightly concerned with online learning worried about the uncertainty of the internet, which causes occasional disruptions.

Even though distance learning has proved to be quite successful, for a more holistic learning experience, it will be best to return back to the ‘normal’ school days at ISM. To determine student willingness to return to ISM, we conducted a small survey.

In terms of who would find it the hardest to return to school, the order was as follows: students 50% - finding it the hardest, followed by teachers - 25%, while the staff plus others added up to the remaining 25%. There are many reasons that could be a factor for these numbers. The implications of the Covid limitations would be felt the hardest by the ISM student body. Once so carefree, they would now be subjected to lots of rules and regulations. This would include keeping a certain distance from each other, no sports, possibly different lunch times, mandatory wearing of masks and face shields making it hard to listen and learn, also a longer commute time to get through all the temperature checks before entering school, and therefore less sleep. Many teachers and other ISM community members would also be affected by the above factors as well as other staff to varying degrees.

From the small survey of 23 respondents from grades 6 through 8, 56.5% were willing to come back to school and 43.5% had reservations. Although when questioned about different transition options, should a return become possible, the majority indicated in favour of different safety protocols - 40% for masks and face shields, 26.7% for half grade attendance, 20% for different lunch timings - while only 13.3% preferred continuing with the current scenario of online classes.

SURVEY RESULTS

This does signify that the ISM community misses attending school ‘in-person’ and the majority would be happy to return with proper safety measures to ensure Covid-free premises.

Even though doctors and scientists are working tirelessly for a Covid vaccination, some doubt that it will pass safety trials. This pandemic will certainly end with a new definition of ‘normal’ for our lives, inside and outside of school. However, what that will be, and when, still remains uncertain.

How Online Class Has Affected The Mental Health Of Students

Natalia P.

After having online class for almost six months, students are able to confidently say that the teachings online are inferior to those in classrooms. The fear of asking a question when they don’t understand something and the amount of work on a daily basis has increased. The steadiness of everyday life has left students feeling like robots when all they do is work.

When speaking with a number of students we were able to gather information on how online class has differed from class in real life.

The fear of having bad WiFi or cutting out has been the struggle for most teens nowadays. With the anxiety of everyone staring at you, it has been hard for students to feel comfortable in this environment. In a normal classroom setting students would be primarily focused on the teacher rather than their other classmates. However, during this time of online class students are forced to look at each other and have to pay attention to everyone in the class. Focusing on a screen at all times in the day can lead to negative mental health effects, said by Dr. Katzenstein from Johns Hopkins University. “Increased screen time usage, especially for non-academic activities, has been found to be linked to increases in depression, anxiety and perceived attention problems.”

When talking to one student, Stella G., she said, “It is different from real life class because the homework and being able to learn is really hard. I constantly feel embarrassed to ask. However when I email the teachers they rarely reply.” With everyone looking at you and trying to listen to overlapping voices it is hard to ask a question without isolating or embarrassing yourself.

Surveyed students have spoken about how interacting in a class of silent students is more difficult online than in person. Student Kate L. said, “I would rather be asking questions in a real life class because our voices are better heard.” It has also been hard because students are put on the spot. They are embarrassed because asking a question makes it look like students don’t understand the concept." Tia S. stated, “I feel very uncomfortable when I have to speak during [Zoom] class because that means I have to interrupt the teacher and I have everyone looking at me.”

Furthermore, with the COVID-19 virus students have been given the task of sitting in the same chair for almost 6 hours a day with a limited amount of exercise while staring at a screen. The Johns Hopkins News Letter has stated  that students feel less focused and tired when having to sit down and look at the same screen constantly. The mental health of students is of the utmost importance, and if there is even partial in-person learning it would greatly benefit students' involvement and long-term learning.

Sophia G

IS CHRISTMAS VACATION CANCELLED?

Tia S.

It’s no secret that most people enjoy traveling. Whether it be to the far-off European countries of England, France and Italy or the relatively closer destinations of Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore, vacations are a way for us to forget the stress of day-to-day life. Even before president Duterte announced the community quarantine way back on the 12th of March, plans were already being cancelled, with the quarantine only reinforcing the fact that traveling wasn’t a good idea. Now, after 196 long, grueling days of self-isolation, the quarantine still stands. We have entered the “ber” months now, Christmas inching nearer and nearer, yet it seems that we will most likely not be able to go anywhere internationally when the holidays come.

To shed a little more light on the topic, the most popular destination spots for Filipinos are Japan and Hong Kong. As of right now, the Philippines is on Japan’s travel ban list, whilst non-residents aren’t allowed to enter Hong Kong. Regarding Japan, 7.4% of their GDP stems from the travel/tourism industry and 6.9% of employees work in that field. These numbers were expected to rise when the 2020 Tokyo Olympics rolled around, but as we all know those were postponed. For Hong Kong, 4.5% of their GDP comes from tourism, with 6.6% of employees coming from there as well. Both of these countries' statistics are very relevant, which could be a reason to re-open borders. While this is could be good news, a traveller would most likely be required to undergo two weeks of quarantine, a timespan that may be a little long to fit in a vacation.

3 Ways to Stay Productive During Online Learning

Lucas K.

Distance learning has posed a challenge to many students, as many problems have occurred while adjusting to this new way of learning. One of the major problems that occurred was the lack of supervision for the students. Some students tended to stray away from their learning, as more distractions were present. This resulted in the decline of some students’ grades. There are several ways to reverse this, and here’s how.

Set a routine/plan. Many students struggle to complete assignments and tasks because they do not have a structured plan. It is exceedingly difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get things done without a proper routine. The way to get things accomplished with ease is to make an organized, realistic schedule.

Designate your study spaces. Setting up one spot to organize all your study materials can help significantly. Doing this will eliminate distractions, making it extremely easier to focus. According to business.com, a study space must be on a desk, and it is best to eliminate any non-school related things from the space. The co-founder of X-space stated that "Your personal workspace is one of the most overlooked factors that affect productivity." Xspace is a company that produces custom desks from environmentally friendly resources.

Organize. Close unnecessary tabs. Keep all your documents in one file. One of the biggest time consumers during online learning is navigating between classes and documents. Use Google Drive, as it is a very efficient way to organize your files without going through the trouble of downloading them all.

Is the Pandemic Healing the Earth?

Kate. L.

The coronavirus pandemic has resulted in being stuck in our homes with no outside human contact. With there being a decreased number of people travelling, it makes us think that our planet finally gets a rest.

It’s no shock that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected how we live our lives. Many shops and restaurants have closed because of safety guidelines. People are waiting to be able to go outside without their mask, face shield or alcohol based products. As people are changing their habits to avoid the virus, there have been subtle changes to the environment as a result.

Right now, the effects of COVID-19 on the environment are affecting us in ways we cannot control. Hospitals in Wuhan are now producing an average of 240 tons of medical waste; pre-pandemic they produced only 50 tons or less. In addition, countries such as the USA have been experiencing an increase in garbage from personal protective equipment: disposable face masks and gloves. In addition, there has been a decrease in waste recycling since the pandemic started. As a result, countries like the USA have stopped recycling programmes in various cities. At the start of the year, emissions in New York were down 5-10% and in China emissions were down 25%. In Northern Italy, nitrogen dioxide emissions have started to fade away. There has been a dip in the carbon emissions, but who knows if this will continue in the long run. Companies are eager to bounce back, so when this pandemic ends, businesses are going to work harder than ever which will cause a rapid increase in emissions.

There are plenty of things that are destroying the environment that many people did not pay much attention to before the pandemic. However, we have to make sure that we keep our environment from continuing to suffer. Even if COVID-19 is not forever, we must keep our earth as clean or even cleaner than ever before.

“Nature is taking a few breaths while the rest of us are holding ours."

Pandemic Effect

Do Anti-Mask Protesters Have a Point?

Jae

Anti-masker have been protesting wearing masks, saying that shop owners shouldn’t be allowed to force people to wear them, all the while giving nonsensical reasons to back up their claims. But, what if they’re right?

To begin with, what are their reasons for why you shouldn’t wear masks? Do they even have reasons, or do they just want to wear them? One common argument amongst anti-mask protesters is that they cannot breathe well with masks on, and that they’re inhaling the carbon dioxide that they just exhaled. While this does sound like a legitimate reason why they refuse to wear masks, there is evidence that proves this reasoning wrong.

Multiple sources, ranging from different articles, posts on Facebook made by doctors, and even to TikTok, show people using pulse oximeters whilst wearing various types of masks. A pulse oximeter is a tool that measures the oxygen levels in your blood. Hypothetically, if the protesters were right, then their oxygen levels should drop whilst wearing masks. However, all sources and videos have shown that these pulse oximeters measured no difference at all when people were wearing a mask and when they weren’t. In videos that do show changes in oxygen levels, the change was so small that it wasn’t significant enough to cause breathing problems. This was the case even for people who use inhalers and have various breathing problems.

All evidence points to the fact that wearing a mask does not change oxygen levels, meaning that masks do not cause breathing problems. However, the reason people might feel differently is because of the nocebo effect, which is the opposite of the placebo effect. The placebo effect is when an improvement is observed, despite an individual receiving a fake medicine or a medical treatment as opposed to active and real medical treatment. However, because the person expected the treatment to work, actual improvement is observed. The nocebo effect is the exact same thing, except that instead of expecting a positive outcome and seeing improvement, the person expects a negative outcome, and they're met with deterioration. Since some people expect to be able to breathe less with a mask on, they feel like they breathe less, or are unable to breathe.

The feeling of not being able to breathe might seem real, but evidence proves that the feeling is only an illusion. So keep your masks on, and keep on social distancing.

WorlD News

Afghan Government and Taliban Peace Talks

Attempt to end the 20 years of conflict between the Taliban and Afghanistan

Huda K.

The Afghan government finally came face-to-face with the Taliban after nearly 20 years of war. The Taliban and the Afghan government talked about the future of Afghanistan in meetings in Doha, Qatar. The Taliban want an Islamic government, and the Afghan government wants to protect the achievements of the last 20 years, which include the rights for girls' education, freedom of speech, democratic government, and many more developments that have happened in the last two decades.

It has been 10 days since the peace talks started. Meanwhile, in Afghanistan, there have still been bombings. At least 17 people were killed on September 12, 2020, including six civilians. There was also a security alert sent by the US Embassy in Afghanistan which included the risk of attacks targeting female government workers and civilian workers, including teachers, human rights activists, office workers, and government employees.

Afghan people are worried that the peace contract may not be signed soon because the Taliban are still bombing and they are not making much progress in Doha, Qatar.

In Herat, Afghans came outside of their homes holding signs to support the peace talks and they are losing their hopes every day. They pray for the war to be over.

“The peace talk and peace negotiation is currently happening in Doha, Qatar between the Taliban and the Afghan government. It is a good opportunity to end the 42 years of conflict in the country,” stated an Afghan citizen.

Gender Reveal Causes Massive Wildfires in California

Leeyah B.

A gender reveal party in Yucaipa, California sparked a wildfire that has rapidly spread to much of the west side of the United States of America. On September 5th, 2020, the party started a wildfire in California, which has spread out and has now claimed more than 7,000 acres of land.

The gender reveal is a party that one had to has to see the gender of their unborn child. The fire’s not all that is shocking people, though. What people are so concerned about, is that this has happened before - multiple times. In 2017, a party in Arizona caused the same thing. This April, a small 10-acre bushfire was caused which used tannerite (binary explosive targets) and a weapon.

Jenna Karvunidis, otherwise known as the creator of gender reveals, said, "Stop having these stupid parties. For the love of God, stop burning things down to tell everyone about your kid's gender. No one cares but you.”

Currently, officials are doing what they can in order to help stop it. Until then, fires will keep spreading and getting worse.

Wildfires Rage Across The US West Coast

Ethan C.

Recently, wildfires have been raging across the US West Coast. The fires originally started as a result of two gender reveals in California. “Wildfires are burning millions of acres in California, Oregon and other parts of the western U.S.,” says BBC news. It is said that over 17,000 firefighters have been sent to help fight the fires, and 35 people have been killed. The fires have burned over 3.4 million acres of land in California alone, and at least 57 uncontrolled fires are still burning across the American West Coast.

The pollution from the wildfires is so bad, that in some places it's too dangerous to go outside because of the amount of smoke. BBC news has said that the jet streams have taken some of the smoke all the way to Europe. People are having to move because the fires are getting too close to their homes. People are worried and scared for their own and others' safety.

Entertainment

Outcry Over ‘Cuties’

Alexandra

The new movie ‘Cuties’ was released to Netflix on September 9th and has caused a recent uproar on all platforms. The twitter hashtag ‘#cancelnetflix' trending September 12th, has people cancelling their Netflix subscriptions.

The movie ‘Cuties’, from Franco-Senegalese and director Maïmouna Doucouré, was labeled a flawed debut feature for Netflix. This movie was released September 9th, 2020, though it wasn’t just the movie itself that sparked controversy. Before the movie had been released, Netflix had posted the official trailer to its Youtube channel. This is where the drama began. Once the public had seen the trailer for Cuties, most were disgusted. The public would argue (this includes influencers, the media and subscribers to Netflix) that the movie had actively shown children objectifying themselves. Though Netflix and Maïmouna Doucouré had argued against that, it still wasn’t enough to end the drama. After the uproar, the director was interviewed about the movie and its content and said that we were all “fighting the same battle."

Cuties was originally supposed to be about how horrible it is for children to objectify themselves, but most would argue how it was done and filmed was completely flawed. The public would argue that certain scenes didn’t need to be there, specifically the scenes of the young girls dancing in provocative ways. After the movie's release, Maïmouna Doucouré had an interesting interview from Netflix, talking further about the film. The interview was released to the public and it prompted feedback on different social media platforms.

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