By Blaise Barger
After a long wait since the announcement of the next game in the “Legends” series of Pokemon. Its previous title was “Pokémon Legends: Arceus,” where the player went back centuries to help the ancient Hisui people to conquer their fears of Pokémon after being summoned by Arceus the god of all Pokémon. However, the next game in the series, “Pokémon Legends: Z-A,” takes place in the future. It specifically takes place five years after the events that took place in “Pokémon X and Y.” After many renovations to Lumiose City, rogue mega energy has plagued the city and is causing random Pokémon to mega evolve without a trainer. The player is tasked to help secure this rogue energy in order to restore peace to the members of the city, but throughout the story the trainer is faced with many challenges like having to take on the previously mentioned rogue mega pokémon. Furthermore, the game’s story follows a ranking system where the trainer has to reach rank A in the Lumiose battle system in order to receive any one wish that they want.
Overall, the game is very well done. The graphics are definitely better than basically any other previously made Pokémon. It also introduced over 25 new mega evolutions that were previously undiscovered. Furthermore, alpha pokémon were added back into the game after their disappearance from the franchise since “Pokemon Legends: Arcéus.” In all, “Pokémon Legends: Z-A” is a great addition to the franchise that takes place in the future where the city of Lumiose needs a hero to save it. Information Source: Picture Source:
“Fortnite,” a popular battle royal game, has just begun their annual "Fortnitemares” event of 2025. In this new update, they included many new skins like “Huggy Wuggy” from the game “Poppy Playtime.” However, the skins that seemed to catch the most attention from its players were “Scooby-Doo” and the “Mystery Gang” from the popular television series called “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” Along with playable skins of these popular television characters, they also released many emotes and cosmetics to go along with them. Some of the emotes include the iconic run of the “Mystery Gang” where it seems as if friction doesn’t exist. Furthermore, another emote added into the game allows the player to ride in a small version of the Mystery Machine that the characters always ride in during the show. To continue, one of the cosmetics is a back bling that includes a burger that grows larger and larger to reference the sandwiches that Shaggy and Scooby-Doo usually eat. In all, “Fortnite” has collabed with “Scooby-Doo” and the “Mystery Gang” by adding their characters, emotes, and cosmetics into the game. Information Source: Picture Source:
By Jasmine Dunaway
The chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), also known simply as the chimp, is a species of great ape native to the forests and savannahs of tropical Africa. It has four confirmed subspecies and a fifth proposed one. When its close relative, the bonobo, was more commonly known as the pygmy chimpanzee, this species was often called the common chimpanzee or the robust chimpanzee. The chimpanzee and the bonobo are the only species in the genus Pan, Evidence from fossils and DNA sequencing shows that Pan is a sister taxon to the human lineage and is thus humans’ closest living relative. Chimps are covered in coarse black hair has a bare face, fingers, toes palms of the hands, and soles of the feet. It is larger and more robust than the bonobo, weighing 40-70 kg (88-154 lb) for males and 27-50 kg (60-110 lb) for females and standing 150 cm (4 ft 11 in). They live in groups of up to 15 to 150 members, although individuals travel and forage in much smaller groups during the day. Chimps are highly sociable animals, care for their offspring for years and can live up to be over 50. In fact, chimpanzees are our closest cousins; we share about 98% of our genes. Chimpanzee | World Wildlife Fund
The Galápagos penguin, Spheniscus mendiculus, represents a singular instance of penguin species inhabiting equatorial latitudes. Endemic to the Galápagos Islands, this avian species has undergone significant adaptive modifications to thrive in an atypical, thermally challenging environment characterized by elevated ambient temperatures and variable trophic resource availability. A notable adaptation is their diminutive stature, facilitating enhanced thermoregulation efficiency in response to the islands’ warm climate. Their dietary ecology is primarily centered on the consumption of small pelagic fish, procured from the nutrient-rich, cold-water upwellings associated with the Cromwell Current. However, the episodic El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events induce perturbations in oceanic productivity, precipitating declines in prey availability and posing a substantial threat to the penguins’ viability. Conservation strategies are paramount for the preservation of this endangered species. These encompass rigorous population monitoring, habitat protection, and sustainable ecotourism management practices. Such measures are imperative to migrate anthropogenic impacts and ensure the long-term persistence of Spheniscus mendiculas amidst the escalating challenges of global climate change and environmental degradation. Galápagos Penguin | Species | WWF Galapagos penguin - Wikipedia
By Johnathon Schonter
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To save on groceries, you need to buy as many deals as you can get. You see a bag of chips that are $8.99? Buy the ones that expire in eight days, but are at $3.99. If you can buy better deals, buy them. If it is frozen foods that expire in three days, buy them. All you have to do is freeze them. Buy canned food on sale, because it has a long shelf life. Never buy full price items unless you actually have to, otherwise your bill will be $200 to $300 per shopping cart load. If you see a box of oatmeal that expires next month on sale, buy it. Take it to work with you if you have to. Do anything that can help you spend less. Finally, use coupons. Coupons can help you save even more money. Save coupons you will use. Those are a few ways to save money on food. Make sure to never spend too much on food, otherwise you will run out of money for other things.
To stay organized in school, you should have multiple binders. Once you have five or six binders, start by moving your school work into each binder. For instance, put your math in one, science in another, history in the third, and so on. Then, put a notebook in each binder to go along with each subject. Make sure you have enough materials, but if you don’t, go to a nearby store and get them. Once you get all your subjects in the binders, make sure you fold them into each other. Lay out the first binder, then put one end of another binder on the first, then fold the other end of the first onto the other end of the second, and so on. Once you finish, put your binders and other things in your locker after school. Finally, on the next day of school, take all the binders to every class, so you save time from going to your locker after each class.
By Aidan Isabelle
The “Predator Carp” of Eastern Europe,-- and perhaps one of the most sought after game fish on the planet– the Asp is one of the most interesting fish of the planet, as it is truly not much different than many other members of the carp and minnow family, except for the fact that it has a taste for fishy scales. The Asp is not present in America and likely would out-compete a lot of other native fish species if it was, although the European Asp could best be compared to the American Wiper. While the Wiper is purely in the bass family, the Asp is a true Eurasian Dace, as its scientific name Leuciscus aspius implies.When Americans think of dace or other species of the minnow family, they commonly would think of a fish like the Bluntnose Minnow or Western Blacknose Dace, and in a way they are related to the Asp, but are entirely different. While American species of minnows are usually related into the microfishing category, (other than Pikeminnow), the Asp is a true sportfish that would make bass fisherman fly to the shelves to try and find the right gear to catch this predator carp. They are one of the few species of Carp that not only eat fish, but actually prey on them. You’ll find them eating insects off the surface of the water all the time, which is why the primary method of Asp fishing (and arguably the most fun) is using topwater. If you tried to explain the idea of fishing for carp with topwater walkers in the United States, anyone would look at you like you’re insane– but these fish are aggressive, and brutally fast. When they’re not eating whole dragonflies off the surface of the water, they’re devouring other minnows and shiners while they school down a river. Whenever they aren’t feeding veraciously, they spend most of their time in fast currents of rivers, where they will gladly eat anything that gets drifted past them. Their behavior doesn’t change much, whether summer or winter, and their spawning season is mysterious. Not much is known about their parental lives, except for the fact that the majority of Asp spawn at night to avoid the predation of their eggs from other minnows and dace. It is said around the world that you will only find trout in beautiful places, but anglers never applied that logic to the Asp– their range extends from as far west from the lochs of Belgium and The Netherlands, all the way to the freezing cold rivulets of Siberia and vast running rivers as far south as Iran. It’s no wonder why the Asp is one of Europe and Asia’s most popular aerobatic sportfish!
The Bluegill could undisputedly be named America’s most recognizable freshwater fish, except for the Largemouth Bass. Its reputation in the United States is gigantic, and its relationship with Americans go hand and hand with childhood memories, and the very joy of fishing. It is arguably the most aggressive fish for their size, and pound for pound, you could even say that they fight harder than the vast majority of America’s game species. For those who have ever gone fishing, their first fish was most likely a Bluegill.
The Bluegill lives a hard knock life, never becoming large enough to be the top predator in a typical lake ecosystem, but being just large enough to not be the easiest meal either. Its diet depends primarily on the ecosystem in which it lives, but usually consists of small fish and insects. Mosquitos, flies, and crickets are top favorites on the menu, with waterbugs and skimmers being the most common meal. In fact, whenever you are close to a body of water that holds Bluegill, you can likely hear the fish “popping” bugs off the surface of the water, sounding typically like popcorn. These fish prefer shallow lakes or ponds, with a high level of vegetation (although still with plenty of oxygen in the water), with a somewhat muddied water clarity. The Bluegill is located all throughout the country, and its coloration actually depends mostly on which part of the country they live in. It is an incredibly easy fish to find and catch, with many citing that you can actually catch a curious Bluegill with just a bare hook. I can personally vouch for it, as I’ve caught a Pumpkinseed this way, a closely related member in the sunfish family. If you’d like some more effectiveness, a simple foam bobber, a small piece of worm, and a panfish hook will do. Any more information about this fish is easily obtainable!
By Jasmine Dunaway
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929- April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assasination in 1968. He advanced civil rights for people of color in the United States through the use of nonviolent resistance and civil disobedience against Jim Crow laws and other forms of discrimination. His grandfather began the family’s long tenure as pastors of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, serving from 1914 to 1931; his father has served from then until the present, and from 1960 until his death Martin Luther acted as co-pastor. Martin Luther attended a public segregated school in Georgia, graduating from high school at the age of 15; he received the B.A. degree in 1948 from Morehouse College, a distinguished Negro institution of Atlanta from which both his father and grandfather have graduated. Martin Luther King Jr. – Biography - NobelPrize.org
Martin Luther King Jr. - Wikipedia
Martin Luther King, Jr. | Biography, Speeches, Facts, & Assassination | Britannica
Martin Luther King, Jr.—facts and information | National Geographic
The Fourth of July, or Independence Day, commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, a pivotal moment in American history that signified the nation’s secession from British rule. This day serves as a powerful reminder of the principles of self-governance and liberty upon which the United States was founded. Observed nationwide, Independence Day is characterized by a range of celebratory activities that underscore national pride and unity. Parades, replete with patriotic displays, wind through cities and towns, while the night sky is illuminated by elaborate fireworks displays. These traditions serve as a symbolic representation of the nation’s enduring spirit and resilience. Beyond the festivities, Independence Day prompts reflection on the ongoing pursuit of justice and equality for all citizens. It is time to consider the responsibilities inherent in a democratic society and to reaffirm commitment to the ideals enshrined in the nation’s founding documents. The holiday also invites critical examination of the nation’s historical trajectory, including its failures to fully realize the promises of the founding documents for all its inhabitants. It is a time for both celebration and introspection. Independence Day (United States) - Wikipedia The Fourth of July - History, Celebrations & Traditions
By Torie Scott
Last Saturday was Rockets over Rio, a firework show that happens in Rio Grande every year. The firework show was beautiful and loud! The firework show is put on by Pyro Spectaculars by Souza which is a well-established pyrotechnics company that has been in business since the early 1900s they put on multiple shows every year including Macy's 4th of July Fireworks in New York City, a show they have been doing for well over 40 years, the Big Bay Boom preparation in San Diego as well as the Pyro North Operator Appreciation event in August 2024. They did an amazing job in Rio with a few surprise fire balls that tied the show together. Whether they meant to do them or not, we do not know either way. This reporter can say that they did a great job, and I will definitely be going again next year.