Bailey Phillips

November 22, 2024

The upcoming week of Nov 27 begins Uwharrie Ridge’s Thanksgiving break. Students will be on annual leave from Nov. 27 to Nov. 29. There are many memorable activities in North Carolina that you and your family can do during this break. Some of these include Tanglewood, Winter Lights at the North Carolina Arboretum, WinterFest at Carowinds, and Chetola's Festival of Lights. 

Tanglewood is a drive-through path that is five miles long. It is lined with several different Christmas lights that can be viewed. There is also a rest area where you can stop, get hot chocolate, and hang out before continuing your journey through the path. Winter Lights at the North Carolina Arboretum is three acres and offers a tour of their natural landscape with wildlife and Christmas lights. Another very popular attraction is Winterfest at Carowinds where they offer Christmas lights, a large Christmas tree, lavish displays, live shows and strolling performers, and special holiday dishes and desserts fill the midways. All of these activities are open during our Thanksgiving break and some of them even longer.

Citation:

“Your Guide to Thanksgiving Weekend Fun in North Carolina.” Visit North Carolina, https://www.visitnc.com/story/pgpZ/your-guide-to-thanksgiving-weekend-fun-in-north-carolina. Accessed 21 November 2024.

Shawn Ormond

November 22, 2024

I’m sure through one source or another, you’ve heard that the video game Minecraft is getting itself a movie. We got ourselves a trailer for the movie a few months ago that was just to show what the movie is going to look like visually. People are very mixed about what they’ve seen in this trailer and since then the Minecraft movie has gotten a lot of backlash and poor responses due to the movie being a live-action and not an animation. 

On November 19th, the second, or official, Minecraft movie trailer came out revealing some of the plot for the Minecraft movie where the main character, Steve, as a child wants to go to the mines and, as a child, he can’t do that, but it ends up becoming his goal. He ends up being seen later on as an adult getting in the mines and mining some sort of blue glowing cube that sends him into the world of Minecraft.

In my opinion, this movie trailer is really good compared to the original teaser we got showing the graphics. In no way do I think this movie is going to change the filming industry. I don’t think this movie will be a complete flop, it looks like it has some potential. We get to see more of the plot which we had already seen in previous Minecraft games where we have the Nether dimension fighting the Overworld dimension. 

Citations:

Tenner, Rachel, et al. “A Minecraft Movie - Official Trailer - Warner Bros UK & Ireland.” YouTube, 19 November 2024, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLCC1bOKarg. Accessed 21 November 2024.

“A Minecraft Movie | Official Trailer : r/movies.” Reddit, 19 November 2024, https://www.reddit.com/r/movies/comments/1gv6e5v/a_minecraft_movie_official_trailer/. Accessed 21 November 2024.

Kamryn Heerschap

November 22, 2024

I am currently in 11th grade attending the same school as all of you. My job as an older student who is graduating next year is to help all of the younger classmen and give you guys advice on stuff that I believe is important. One of the things I’ve always been told was how important your current actions are for your future. It’s not worth skipping classes, or coming in late just to enjoy the moment, for your future to be ruined. That's not to say that coming into school late or missing a class is going to impact your future plans tremendously, however, it's important to care about what you’re doing now. People also worry about friendships and relationships, and neither are important at this time in your life. I mean sure, you want to have friends and enjoy your life, but don’t push important things aside to focus on unnecessary things. One thing you can take away from this is that you should always turn your work in. Even if you need to go home and complete it at home, maybe even turn it in late, turning in your work is extremely important. Lots of teachers are flexible. I’m someone who often does work at home instead of at school because the atmosphere is sometimes really distracting. With that being said, school is not always the most important priority in life to some people and that's okay. Just make sure you know what you want to do with your life and go after it. Sometimes that doesn’t always involve attending college or getting an education, but don’t be motivated just by not going to school. Learning can be really fun if you're learning about things that you love. That's why I think it's important when you can, to include your interests in your work to help you stay motivated. With all of this being said, I will continue this series on and give more advice on my next article. Please make sure you keep your priorities straight and always do what you love, but that doesn’t always mean quitting what you hate. 

Sometimes it's good to do things you don’t like. 

Citations:

Tye, Dany L. “National Center for START Services® | Institute on Disability.” Institute on Disability, 1 November 2024, https://iod.unh.edu/national-center-start-services. Accessed 18 November 2024.

Wing, Amy W. “Things I'd Tell My Younger Self - Good Things Are Gonna Come.” Jasmine Rice, https://goodthingsaregonnacome.com/things-id-tell-my-younger-self/. Accessed 18 November 2024.

Bailey Phillips

November 18, 2024

On Nov. 5, Donald Trump won this year's  presidential election. He has now been re-elected as the president of the United States. Last election, the popular vote took over Trump and Biden won. This year, Trump won the popular vote and won this category over Kamala Harris. Although Trump was elected in November, he will not be sworn into office until Jan. 20. This year’s election was very mixed with different opinions. Trump won 312 electoral votes compared to Kamala who had 226 electoral votes. This year’s election was very close to being tied between both Republican and Democrat parties. As the upcoming president, Trump had to choose a vice president to help him along his term. He announced that Sen. JD Vance, (R) Ohio will be his vice president for the next 4 years. Susan Wiles has been steering Trump’s past two elections, she is a long-term republican strategist, and she has been selected as Trump’s Chief of Staff, a very prestigious position in the White House 

Works Cited

Fowler, Stephen. “Trump picks J.D. Vance as his vice president at RNC Monday.” NPR, 15 July 2024, https://www.npr.org/2024/07/15/nx-s1-5040236/jd-vance-vice-president-trump-rnc. Accessed 12 November 2024.

PRICE, MICHELLE L., and ALEX CONNOR. “A guide to key figures in Donald Trump's orbit.” AP News, 11 November 2024, https://apnews.com/article/trump-key-people-transition-election-93605a3ffa9f929cb1b74fde7f1ee877. Accessed 12 November 2024.

Shawn Ormond

November 18, 2024

As AI begins to develop more and more each day, people are using this to do many different things from incorporating it into a browsing engine to give results summarized for its consumer or making images and videos. A specific AI model with the name Oasis managed to make a game without a game engine using purply AI.

It works just in your web browser by taking your inputs, sending them to the AI’s server, which uses your current frame and your input to assume what the next frame should look like, and then sends that. For the most part, it does a good job but it has no memory of the world and by turning around the environment it regenerates around you.

This is what we have after the AI learns from 1 Million hours of Minecraft. Just to think about what a better model and more hours and better training could do is huge, or if it was to be trained on other games too. 

October 28, 2024

Our school has planned a field trip to UNC Greensboro on November 6. To be able to go on this field trip, you must have a "B" average in ALL of your classes. Also, you can not have missed more than 4 days in any of your classes in order to attend this field trip. If you have paid for the Appalachian field trip that has been canceled, you can transfer the money to the UNC Greensboro field trip. Please turn in all money and forms as soon as possible. If you are interested in applying there in the future, here are some major degrees they offer: Business Administration and Management, General Psychology, General Biology/Biological Sciences, Registered Nursing, Elementary Education and Teaching, Liberal Arts and Sciences. UNC Greensboro admissions has an acceptance rate of 90% and an early acceptance rate of 100%. UNCG has more than 150 areas of undergraduate study and over 200 areas of graduate study, a picturesque campus, a thriving city, a welcoming environment, and much more. So if you are interested in this college make sure to attend this field trip. Also look out for any college tours that may be coming!

Citations:

The University of North Carolina at Greensboro | UNC Greensboro. (2024, October 21). UNC Greensboro.

Bailey Phillips

October 28, 2024

This year on November 5, 2024, the United States will be voting on a new president. Every four years there is a presidential election, considering that a president can only be in office for four years. Our current president, Joe Biden, was only in office for one full term. On July 21, 2024, Biden dropped out of the presidential race. He posted this on his personal Twitter account specifically saying, it would be “in the best interest of my party and the country.” He stated that he would serve his full term as our president until his term ended. 

This left Kamala Harris, his vice president, to step up and run in our upcoming election as a democrat representative. The current top two candidates for this election are Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. There are many mixed opinions on each candidate. To vote in the United States, you have to meet certain qualifications. The main qualification is that you have to be eighteen years old. You also have to be a U.S. citizen along with not currently serving a felony sentence. You also need to have your driver's license when you go to vote. There are many places you can go to register to vote including your local DMV. Voter registration ended on October 11, 2024.

Citations:

“Upcoming Election.” NCSBE, https://www.ncsbe.gov/voting/upcoming-election. Accessed 21 October 2024.

“Who can and cannot vote.” USA.gov, https://www.usa.gov/who-can-vote. Accessed 21 October 2024.

Kailee Bruno

October 21, 2024

Earlier in the week around October 9th, Hurricane Milton intensified from a tropical storm to a major Category 5 hurricane over the Gulf of Mexico waters in 24 hours. Taking an unusual track east and then northeast toward Florida, Milton officially made landfall near Siesta Key around 8:30 p.m. as a Category 3 hurricane on Wednesday, October 9th.  Meteorologists emphasized the danger of the somewhat weakened storm, which still had 120-mph winds at landfall. Along with a devastating storm surge, Milton also made many tornado outbreaks during the morning and afternoon, which accounted for many deaths from Milton so far. Still, some neighborhoods remain without power. Many severely damaged homes and businesses, their streets flooded and filled with debris. Florida power companies had restored electricity to about 93% of the 3.4 million homes and businesses that lost service after Milton made landfall late Wednesday October 9th as a Category 3 hurricane south of Tampa. Hitting with 120 mph winds and a storm surge of up to 10 feet, at least 11 people died less than two weeks after Hurricane Helene made major damage in Florida and other Southeastern states. The death toll from Helene is more than 240. The three major power companies in the area hit by Milton deployed thousands of workers to quickly repair lines, poles and other infrastructure. Florida Power & Light, Duke Energy and TECO Energy also were trying to put more power lines underground, install stronger utility poles and adopt technology that enables electricity to be rerouted around damaged equipment. Areas that remain flooded will be the last to get power, and homes with damaged electrical systems won’t be able to receive it.

Citations:

https://www.accuweather.com/en/hurricane/hurricane-milton-aftermath-death-toll-climbs-with-hundreds-of-thousands-still-without-power/1702797

https://apnews.com/article/hurricane-milton-helene-florida-tampa-8e2247b63eb024ef9d406f88c53a735b

Bailey Phillips

October 21, 2024

Everyone knows that Hurricane Helene destroyed many areas around our mountains, and one main area that was affected is Appalachian State University. Appalachian State’s campus was flooded with water. Students were unable to arrive at school due to the damage caused by Hurricane Helene, conditions of the roads in the High Country vary and many remain “treacherous” or “impassible,” according to the email. Recipients were advised to limit travel and use “extreme caution when traveling.” They stated that all of their activities such as athletic events have been canceled. 

The members of Appalachian State University are devoted to making sure that they help their academic community as best as they can considering that they are currently online. They are working with many other people and businesses such as the Town of Boone, Watauga County, American Red Cross, the University of North Carolina System to help with the destruction. Specifically, the university and Red Cross have coordinated to open an emergency shelter in the Holmes Convocation Center, and App State Campus Dining continues to prepare hot meals for campus and community members, free of charge. They have stated that, “We are so grateful to the emergency responders, volunteers and utility providers, and so many others, for their incredible work.” Although this hurricane did ruin a lot of Appalachian State, all of the residence halls remain structurally sound and have access to power, water and internet. The school’s classes have been closed since October 3. It has been rumored that their classes will start back up again on October 16. Since individuals may not have any way to receive updates about this matter, there is a website that was set up. This website offers immediate updates and can be found at “appstatealert.com.” There are many people dedicated to help get Appalachian State back on their feet and resume their regular schedules. 

Lana Stefanov

October 11, 2024

The month of October is dedicated and recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast Cancer Awareness Month is a yearly international health campaign organized by breast cancer charities every October to increase awareness of breast cancer and raise funds for research into its cause, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure.

In the United States, the National Football League promotes breast cancer awareness by wearing pink on and off the field, and comic strip artists use pink on one day in October. 53.5 million people have cancer, and just in 2024 alone 310,720 new cases have been found. In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and in support of the survivors in our community, you can wear pink every Wednesday in October.

Many celebrities that you watch everyday have had breast cancer. For example, in 2018, actress and producer Angelina Jolie, due to the BRCA1 gene, was diagnosed with breast cancer a few years later. Another example is actress Kathy Bates who in 2012 was diagnosed with breast cancer but beat it in 2019! 

Some great foundations to donate or find more about breast cancer are The National Breast Cancer Foundation, Pretty in Pink, and American Cancer Society. There are more ways than one to show your support. Donations, wearing pink on Wednesdays in October, and there are even 5k’s one can do to raise money and awareness for Breast cancer. 

Citations:

https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/blog/2022/10/04/its-national-breast-cancer-awareness-month/ 

https://www.nationalbreastcancer.org/breast-cancer-fundraising/ 

https://www.cancer.org/involved/fundraise/diy-fundraising.html

Kailee Bruno

October 11, 2024

Another hurricane was on its way! After Hurricane Helene left such a disaster in many states. Hurricane Milton was on its way to cause more damage to Florida. Hurricane Milton weakened but remained an extremely powerful storm that could double in size before going into west Florida late Wednesday. Milton has the potential to be one of the most destructive hurricanes on record for Florida. Damaging winds, life threatening storm surge and heavy rainfall are possible. Winds reaching 180 mph are also expected. Early Tuesday, October 8, those winds were at 145, still a Category 4 storm. 

Across the region, supplies were already running low, especially fuel. In Lakeland, about 30 miles inland of Tampa, drivers are waiting in line at multiple gas stations to fuel up. Some stations had already run out by that point. Many Tampa stations are closed. In a Lakeland Walmart, workers stocked shelves with Gatorade and snacks. The store was sold out of toilet paper and cases of bottled water. Many stores like Starbucks, posted signs that they would close Tuesday night to give their workers time to prepare for Milton.

Citations: 

Today, U. (2024, October 8). “Time is running out”: Florida braces for monster Hurricane Milton. Live updates. USA TODAY.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. (2024, October 9). What to know about Hurricane Milton | AP News. AP News.

Dorn, S. (2024, October 8). HurRICANE MILTON: Winds pick up as ‘Extremely Dangerous’ Storm heads for Florida—Here’s What to Know. Forbes.

Bailey Phillips

October 11, 2024

Everyone knows that Hurricane Helene ruined several different areas during its path throughout Florida to the southern Appalachians. Helene flooded towns, destroyed roads along with bridges and swept away homes all over the southern part of the United States causing the death of at least 230 people. However, as individuals are attempting to clean up after the natural disaster, another category five hurricane, Milton, is on its way from the southern Gulf of Mexico reaching winds of 150 mph. 

Hurricane Milton became a category five hurricane on October 7. A hurricane is given the title of a category five hurricane when the winds reach 157 mph or higher. This hurricane is predicted to make landfall around the Tampa Bay area by Wednesday, October 8, or early Thursday, October 10. Locals are hoping that the hurricane is not strong enough to reach our mountains again. Forecasters, however, appear to believe that hurricane Milton will spare our Appalachian area. 

Florida areas are not as lucky though. People in Florida are preparing for evacuation. A local of Florida stated that, “We are preparing ... for the largest evacuation that we have seen, most likely since 2017, Hurricane Irma.”  People are also being asked by government officials to leave the area. Many schools in Florida are currently shut down and online due to the hurricane season. Residents of Florida are also placing their vehicles in public garages in hopes to protect them. The governor of Florida, Desantis, is suggesting that the people should prepare themselves for this hurricane. Helene was a very destructive hurricane and we as humanity are hoping that Milton is nowhere near as bad as Helene. 

Citations: 

“Hurricane Milton is downgraded to a Category 4 storm.” WCVB, https://www.wlwt.com/article/milton-forms-in-gulf-of-mexico-threatening-florida/62520877. Accessed 10 October 2024.

“Maps show track of Hurricane Milton as it makes landfall in Florida.” CBS News, 10 October 2024, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hurricane-milton-maps-florida-forecast-tampa-bay-landfall/. Accessed 10 October 2024.

Mock, Cary. “How Hurricane Helene became a deadly disaster across six states.” The Conversation, 7 October 2024, https://theconversation.com/how-hurricane-helene-became-a-deadly-disaster-across-six-states-240522. Accessed 10 October 2024.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hurricane-milton-maps-florida-forecast-tampa-bay-landfall/. Accessed 10 October 2024.

Bailey Phillips

October 4, 2024

With the fall season approaching, many people often look for fun activities to do. With the chilly weather coming up, some activities that come to mind are usually pumpkin carving, hay rides, corn mazes, and more. However, another fun activity to do during the fall season is fall festivals. A local fall festival that is full of fun things to do is the “49th Annual Asheboro Fall Festival.” At this specific festival, they offer things including craft and art vendors, local vendors, food, beverage, live music, non-profits, and more! The festival does not only offer fun for the visitors, it also offers benefits for the vendors or artists such as, “local and regional artists to bring art experiences to the community and visitors to Randolph County while supporting their passions with the sale and exposure of their work.” The vendors there sell many valuable items. These items may include, jewelry, cosmetics, wooden figurines, seasonal items, greenery and more! Although this festival is full of fun, there are also a few rules that are for the satisfaction of the public. These rules include no pets; there are exceptions for service animals. There are also no skateboards, bicycles or “hoverboards” this rule keeps people safe. They also ask for you to keep sidewalks and pass throughs clear at all times and do not block doors of open or downtown merchants and, last but not least, be respectful of the City of Asheboro and dispose of all trash properly in city bins or take trash with you. These rules are all very simple and very manageable so it would be smart to follow these rules so that we as a community can still continue to have fun festivals. The festival is very large therefore, there are some roads that will be closed due to it including Sunset Ave., Fayetteville St., Worth St., North St., and Bicentennial Park and parking lot. With all of this being said, put on your favorite fall outfit and head on down to Asheboro’s “49th Annual Asheboro Fall Festival!”

Kailee Bruno

October 4, 2024

Western North Carolina has taken a big hit from Hurricane Helene. On September 26, the hurricane hit, leaving damage that North Carolina has not seen before. In the western area, there is major flooding that has left many roads collapsed. Many people are stranded in one area with no way to leave. This hurricane has caused over 56 deaths in just North Carolina. More than 1.5 million people are still without power a couple of days after. 

At least 130 people have died across six states and officials fear the death toll can rise. Many more remain missing, unable to leave their location or unable to contact family. Hundreds of roads remain closed, especially in the Carolinas, halting the delivery of badly needed supplies. More than 2 million people remain without power. There’s a chance of a new storm developing in the western Caribbean or Gulf of Mexico later this week. It’s too early to know where it’ll go from there. Approximately 600 people were still unaccounted for in Asheville, North Carolina. Due to the lack of electricity and cell service, locals are unable to communicate to find out where these necessities are. Communication with loved ones and emergency personnel is also spotty, and residents are relying on temporary cell service towers that have been set up in select locations. But outside those locations, there is still no service or roaming data.

Citations:

Gilbert, Mary, et al. “The Latest on the Aftermath of Hurricane Helene.” CNN, 30 Sept. 2024.‌

“A Tiny Town Just Got Slammed by Helene. It Could Massively Disrupt the Tech Industry.” NPR, 30 Sept. 2024

“How Helene Became the Perfect Storm of Destruction in the South.” AP News, 29 Sept. 2024.

Kailee Bruno

September 20, 2024

On July 13, President Trump was shot during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A bullet grazed his ear. About 2 months later, on Sunday, September 15Trump was targeted again. US Secret Service agents identified and fired on a suspect aiming a weapon. It happened at the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach early in the afternoon. The suspect fled in a black SUV and was later detained in nearby Martin County by local law enforcement. Police in Palm Beach found an "AK-47-style assault rifle" with a telescopic sight and a GoPro camera in the bushes at the scene. Trump recently has been greatly targeted, and yet he still goes around making his voice heard. He cares more about this country than his own well being. Two traumatic events in the past three months have proven that, in my opinion. 

Bailey Phillips

September 20, 2024

Attention to all students that drive to school! You must get your forms for parking this week if you have not already. You can receive one of these forms from the front office during any point of the school day. The first step of this process is to ask for your paper and take it home for a guardian to sign it for you. Then, you must return that paper to the office. After returning that paper, you will be given a laminated cut out of a wolf that you can hang inside your car on your rearview mirror. The pass can also be placed on your dash, or anywhere that it is visible. As long as the officer can see your pass, you should be good. If you do not get your pass this week, you are at risk of getting a ticket. Our SRO officer, Ms. Beck, will begin writing tickets next week. Therefore, just remember to pick up your parking pass sometime this week to avoid getting a ticket. 

Kailee Bruno

September 13, 2024

The school is having a field trip! On October 16th, our school will be having a field trip to Appalachian State University. Everyone attending this trip must be at the school by 6AM. We will not be back until 4:30 to 5 PM. You cannot miss more than 2 days before the trip or you cannot go. You must have a B or higher in every class. No lunch will be provided so make sure to bring your own lunch or money! On this trip, only 25 kids can attend. All dress code requirements must be met. This opportunity will be given to seniors, the juniors, and then sophomores. Make sure to check your email for updates!

Bailey Phillips

September 13, 2024

September 11th was picture day. On picture days, students should make sure that they look their best! Some people may get anxious before picture day, but that is okay because there are several helpful tips to help you prepare and look as good as you can. These include; Making sure you get a good night's sleep! You don’t want to appear sleepy in your photo. This may sound silly, but you can also practice your smile beforehand, but don’t over practice it because then you may stress yourself out and then your smile may appear forced. One more way you can prepare for your school's picture day is picking our colors to wear that look good on you. Some colors make you stand out more than other colors. These are three helpful tips to help you prepare for your picture and look your best.

Kailee Bruno

September 6, 2024

Have you heard the big news? The school has something new in the cafeteria! This school year we have switched over from milk cartons to a milk machine. This machine has two different flavors: chocolate and white milk. Most of the students like the machine and prefer it over carton milk. I personally have not tried the new milk but I'm sure it's really good. I'm sure the school will keep the milk machine for the upcoming school year. Especially since they just added it at the start of this school year. We asked a few 8th graders what they thought about the milk. Riley and Ally prefer the glass milk over the carton. Gavin preferred the carton over the glass milk. Lana prefers the carton over the glass because she says it tastes better. What do you think about the new milk machine?

Bailey Phillips

September 6, 2024

On Friday, August 30th, our seniors had their “Senior Sunrise” event. They arrived at the school extra early that morning. Most of them had arrived at 6:30 am. Several of them had special customized clothing to celebrate this upcoming year. The clothing included jeans and shirts that had the words “Senior” painted on them for the occasion! They had snacks including candy, chips, and other kinds of goodies. They used chalk to doodle on the pavement to keep them busy while they waited for the sun to rise. A few dedicated teachers also arrived at the school early to participate and spend some time with our seniors. As seniors continue to be with us for one more year, we try to make plenty of events for them to enjoy their last few months here at Uwharrie Ridge.