2022-2023 Archive

Woodstock Union High School does have some electives that we enjoy, but there aren't enough choices. We have seven visual art classes. Some students may not enjoy art and join it because they do not have any other elective options to choose from. In my experience in art class this year, I have enjoyed them, however, each course starts to turn into doing the same thing, which can get mundane over the days. For example, I witnessed many classmates lose interest in a painting class this past semester; this is a sign we should have different electives.

Kelley Boymer and Claire Keith have created a yoga and mindfulness program for students to join during ARE time. This is a great step towards adding some fun things to do around the school during the day. They have a yoga and mindfulness program on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Since I have joined, I feel like it is an amazing program to take a break from the hard work you have been doing in the morning and to prepare for the work you will be doing in the afternoon.

Since we have a kitchen in the school, we should start a high school cooking class! “I would definitely take it if they had that here,” Paige Stone expressed. While having the enjoyment of cooking, kids are also learning the cooking skill they will need when they are older. In my opinion, it is important to have good cooking skills for when you are older so that you don't get into the habit of just eating microwaved food and instead, you can cook your own meals. 

“Before I came to this school, my brother was in a wood-working class; that was more hands-on,” Stone pointed out. In every class I have, I see at least one-fourth of my peers fidgeting with something or trying to create something. We now have a newly created CRAFT program that is an expanded vision for our previously known Agriculture Department. The program includes Gardens and Greenhouses, Foundations of Agriculture, Food and Forest Systems, and Stewardship Action Projects. Now this sounds like something exciting for students. 

Overall, students should have more choices in electives for their interests.

As the newest and most important addition to the faculty, Cody TanCreti (affectionately known as Mr. T) has made an impact as the Assistant Principal this school year. Previously, he worked in a similar position at Hartford High School, our rival. Before that, he worked with elementary school students at Woodstock Elementary School.

When walking the halls of WUHS, you will see Mr. T interacting with students and faculty consistently. However, not many people know what his job entails. He explains that it is important to him that he works on his paperwork before or after school, so he has the school day to work with people. He constantly gets pulled into classrooms, meetings, and phone calls. Previously, the position Mr. T held was labeled Dean of Students, but it has been renamed this year as Assistant Principal, which ropes in other duties and responsibilities for him.

When asked how he is liking his new job, he expressed how much he has learned so far, and how he appreciates working in this position. As he puts it, he is “trying to de-stigmatize what a principal is. I try to really have those relationships with students still because… that was a big fear of mine, is that I would lose that going into an admin job.” Mr. T noted that he loves working with high school students now, and making an impact on their lives: “It’d be hard for me to go back to elementary now, and I didn’t think I'd ever say that.”

If there is any message that Mr. T would want to spread to his students and school, it would be this: “You belong here, and if you don’t feel that way, let’s work on how we can make this place a place where you feel like you belong.”

Marvel is in a weird spot right now. Back in the late 2000s up to 2019, Marvel was a highly praised film industry. They put out many quality films such as Iron Man, Captain America, Guardians of the Galaxy, and many others. And to finish it all off they released Avengers: Infinity War, which was highly praised, and then released Avengers: Endgame, a huge finale between every Avenger and Thanos. This whole decade of films were amazing to so many people - from kids enjoying a cool superhero movie to older folks who had already read all of the comics and got to see it all in live action.

But that was then. This is now. After Marvel released Endgame, they weren’t going to stop making films as the comics kept going afterwards. Around this time though, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, so the filming industry was hit hard and production was put on hold for many projects. At this point all Marvel put out was a couple shows focused on certain characters, and then the Black Widow film, which was alright in its own way. However, sometime last August, Marvel revealed what plans they had for phase 5 of the MCU. A couple projects were basically sequels to previous movies including, The Marvels, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and a new Daredevil. All over social media people had mixed reactions, mainly saying that people are getting tired of superhero movies nowadays. Around this time as well, people had been leaking all over Twitter that Marvel was splicing their staff and resources, so this led to a string of lackluster CGI films (but not as bad as “The Scorpion King” from 2002).

Recently I was scrolling Twitter and came across a clip from the new “Ant-Man movie”, and oh my did it look bad. It pictured Ant Man and a teenage girl in the middle of a battlefield fighting enemies, but the acting was stale, and the CGI wasn’t any better. I’ve also felt that the acting quality has been decreasing over time. In the recent “Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” film, the movie started with an alternate form of Strange and a young teenage girl jumping around through what looked like space and time. But at multiple points it just felt so staged and unalive compared with acting in prior films. And in the most recent Thor film (“Thor Love and Thunder”), I had seen a lot of posts on Twitter making fun of a specific scene where there was like a kind of hologram of a kid talking to the protagonist, but the CGI was atrocious: It looked out of place and unnatural. 

Then again, we do have to consider another thing which is the actors themselves. Making deals with Marvel to continuously make movies each year for the past decade can surely be a draining task. I myself suffer from desensitization, meaning I can’t stick to the same exact thing for an extended amount of time. Using this knowledge, we can connect this to the actors in the films. Some of them have only been doing it for a couple years like the actress for Captain Marvel, Brie Larson, but some like Chris Evans (actor for “Captain America”) have been at it for over a decade by now. Because of this you have to consider that some of them are just getting tired doing the same stuff over and over again for so many years. This is probably one of the leading causes of the now stale acting.

But hey at the end of the day, Marvel is still one of the highest grossing franchises in the world, and they’ve definitely put out some absolute bangers. Die hard Marvel fans will continue to anticipate every new release and tell the workers to just “suck it up” (yes, this has happened before). Other people will probably start to meander towards other films and franchises, and critics and youtubers alike will continue to milk each new release for content. 

For many years, different programs and government officials have been trying tirelessly to undo or slow down the effects of climate change.  The Willow Project is an approved oil drill project by ConocoPhillips. The Biden Administration approved it on March 13, 2023. It will consist of drilling for oil all across Alaska and it will make the effects of climate change irreversible.

There were many petitions being signed and funded to stop this project. The area in which this project is planned holds up to 600 million barrels of oil. Although our planet is burning before our very eyes, such as the California wildfires and our melting ice caps, our government and world leaders are still money hungry. They will not listen to the cries of climate protesters. Native American activists protested at the White House on Friday, February 24th, traveling thousands of miles to try and prevent the oil drilling of Alaska’s North Slope. 

The Willow Project has many other attractions to leaders in addition to the money they would get from the massive amounts of oil in the North Slope. The state’s lawmakers say this will create jobs, boost domestic energy production, and lessen the country’s reliance on foreign oil. 

All three lawmakers in the Alaska congressional delegation met with Joe Biden and his advisors on March 3rd and urged them to approve the project. Although many citizens of Alaska disagree with this, there are some Native American groups on the North Slope that support the project. According to Willow Project, explained: What to know about the controversial Alaska oil-drilling venture | CNN Politics, the groups say it could be a much-needed new source of revenue for the region and fund services including education and health care. Sierra Bystrak, a freshman at Woodstock High School said, “The Willow Project needs to be stopped; it’s not right to drill in a habitat that is already losing lots of ice and becoming less habitable for the animals fit to live there.”

You can help stop other oil projects like these from happening.

Petitions Below:

Petition · Stop Cypress Oil · Change.org

Petition · STOP oil drilling in The Bahamas, Push for moratorium on oil drilling and licenses · Change.org

The NFL Draft is coming up in late April and the NFL Combine showed potential to some players and boosted their draft stock. Quarterback for the Florida Gators Anthony Richardson had one of the greatest combines of all time for quarterbacks. His draft stock boosted and he is now in consideration for the No. 1 overall draft pick. The 2023 class is filled with amazing college football players; as for quarterbacks, it's one of the most stacked that we've seen in awhile. Starting with QB C.J. Stroud from OSU and Bryce Young from Alabama. Will Levis showed off his amazing arm strength looking to be the strongest thrower of them all. Also, we now have Anthony Richardson who emerged as the front runner for the No. 1 pick. 

The teams with the top five picks in the upcoming draft:

1. Chicago Bears  

2. Houston Texans 

3. Arizona Cardinals

4. Indianapolis Colts

5. Seattle Seahawks

The Bears are expected to draft down to a later spot as they can capitalize on a great deal for the No. 1 pick. The reason they are expected to as many teams need a quarterback and the Bears already have great talent in Justin Fields.

The Houston Texans are going to take a QB. If they do not, then the world will be shocked. QB Bryce Young is the best fit for this Texans team as they need a quarterback to be the leader of this team and Young has that leadership mentality.

The Cards are in need of a lot of things as they may lose top 5 receiver Deandre Hopkins. But with a new head coach this team is going in the right direction. Losing J.J. Watt, a Hall-of-Famer, is not going to be easy to replace, however, this pick can help them get that star power back by picking Will Anderson out of Alabama.

The Colts have struggled through the years trying to find their game changing quarterback. Ever since the retirement of Andrew Luck due to injuries they have had five starting quarterbacks since 2017. With Bryce Young off the board, go to the next best Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud, an amazing prospect. Unfortunately, he has not won a CFP championship, losing in the first round this year ruins his chances of getting to hoist the trophy.

The Seattle Seahawks just signed Geno Smith to a three year $75 million contract so that's showing the trust they have in Geno and his longevity. However, Geno is a bit old so they could draft a young talented QB and have Geno mentor him for a year and maybe start the young 2nd year next year. I believe they should draft Will Levis out of Kentucky. Kentucky runs the same scheme as Seattle does so Levis will be familiar with the team and it will be easier for him to learn.

Last night, our Woodstock Girls Hockey team, 2022 Vermont State Champions, came out of the ‘Ships with another title under their belt. Making history, these girls are now back-to-back state champions. This is especially impressive after some of these ladies secured a State Field Hockey Championship title this past fall.

Starting off strong, Woodstock scored the first goal in the first period, and then went on to score 3 more, ending the game with a 4-1 scoreboard. Senior Isabel Konijnenburg scored 3 goals and was named by the student section our “MVP” of the season. The crowd did a great job of hyping the girls up, with posters and large flags and miscellaneous decor. Most proud were the parents of the players, such as our own Mr. Bremel, cheering his daughter Meridian Bremel on as she deflected Kingdom Blades’ shots. Kassidy Haley scored the second goal of the game.

Surely this is a bitter-sweet moment for our seniors. They truly ended their high school hockey careers with a bang, and brought pride to their school and its students. The team will be remembered for their dual title, and incredible bond. We love our Woodstock girls!

The Woodstock Art Gallery is an art gallery on the corner of Elm St. in Woodstock, Vermont that displays many forms of art including paintings, sculptures, beaded works and pottery. Some of the artists whose work is featured in the gallery are Peter Batchelder, Matt Brown, Hannah Sessions, Lila Turjanski - Villard, and Patty Castellini. 

Peter Batchelder is a Masscusetts born artist whose art works depict different New England buildings. His art shows brightly colored barns and farmhouses. He was trained at University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He writes on his website in his artist statement on how he focuses on the architecture, “I am interested in the nature of the architecture, how it sits within its landscape, color and light.” More of his work can be found in galleries in Vermont, Boston area and New Hampshire or on his website.

Matt Brown is a Harvard graduate who later made a career of carpentry. He studied the traditional Japanese Hanga method, which is a style of woodblock printing, where each block is a different color. He creates his works based on nature in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine in Lyme, New Hampshire. “My imagery is mostly from New England: mountains and lakes of Vermont and New Hampshire, ocean imagery from the coast of Maine.” His work can be found  in various galleries across New England. 

Hannah Sessions is a Vermont farmer who paints the animals that surround her. Her goat farm, Blue Ledge Farm, is nestled into Addison County, Vermont. She writes on her website on how her farm is the perfect place to create art, “I live surrounded by my muses—be it the landscape, animals, farms or food, I am constantly moved and inspired by what is around me.” Her work can be found on her website , Northern Daughters ,  and Alpers Fine Art.

Lila Turjanski - Villard is a sculptor with a background in dance who was born in Argentina and now lives in New York State. Her art is based on movement and ideas surrounding movement, “The themes of movement, space and communication are constantly present in my artwork.” Her work can be found on her website in various art shows and galleries across the northeast. 

Patty Castellini is an Enfield, NH artist whose works are of abstract paintings, collages and prints. She found her love for printmaking from volunteering in the AVA art center in Lebanon, Vermont.  Patty Castellini focuses on color in her work, “Color is the beginning of my creative shift from technical plans to being present with my art.” Her work is published in the Willard Gallery, Saatchi Art , and the Woodstock Gallery. It can also be found on her website. 

"Welcome to the Woodstock Gallery." http://www.woodstockgalleryvt.com/.
"Peter Batchelder Studio." https://peterbatchelder.com/.
"Hannah Sessions." https://hannahsessionsfineart.com/.
"Northern Daughters." https://www.northerndaughters.com/.
"Alpers Fine Art - Home." https://www.alpersfineart.com/.
"Lila Turjanski-Villard: Home." https://www.lilaturjanski.com/. 

Vaccinations are a part of science, and science is the foundation and function of our world today. So, how can people discredit their use, and purpose? A question that has been on my mind for a long time. But maybe there is no straight answer to this question; perhaps it is more complicated than those who chose to be vaccinated may perceive. 

I’ve been surrounded by those who are for vaccinations, completely against them, as well as the ones who are in the middle and indifferent. At first when I come across opinions like: “God will protect my body from sickness.” 

And a very popular one:  “But I am a healthy person, I just don't need it.”

And: “The FDA is lying to us, it’s unhealthy, and they know it!”

While at first they made me confused and frustrated how someone could make statements like these; now I am flooded with curiosity, and wonder. There are a plethora of questions that just need to be addressed. 

People have so many reasons why they choose to not vaccinate, but among the most prominent stands stems of religious beliefs. For example, when the Covid vaccination was released Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) conducted a poll that found an interesting insight. It reads “52 percent of those who refuse to get the vaccine cite personal religious reasons, while 33 percent say it goes against their religious teachings.” That is a large sum of the total 5,336 adults that took part in this survey; note that a variety of political parties were included (independents as well).

But this survey only extends to Covid. Is this a popular trend? Yes. Scientists are seeing a direct correlation between religion and extreme outbreaks of various diseases (most have been of the potentially fatal kind). This includes Measles, Whooping Cough, and Chicken-pox; all of which would have been prevented by the vaccine. In fact Measles has been surging across the U.S. and Europe lately. The main reason for this acute level of spreading is due to religious families who refuse to vaccinate. A 2013 scholarly article which examined outbreaks in religion and vaccines stated: “That’s mostly how outbreaks in religious communities have played out in the U.S. In New York, the epicenter of the largest U.S. measles outbreak in recent history, the Orthodox Jewish community has been hardest hit. It’s also where anti-vaccine campaigners made inroads, drawing on rabbinical authority to spread misinformation about autism and vaccines.” This does not just extend to religious groups, it's everywhere. 

We all know that the number of virus cases ebbs and flows like per usual, but this trend of religion and sickness, should mean something more. 

Now, I am not against religion by any means, but this needs to be talked about more. Think about it like this: if this growth is not taken under control, then we will continue to see potentially controllable viruses let loose among communities. The only way we can get this problem cleaned up, is if we as a country limit philosophical and personal exemptions. An exemption is when you get special permission from the state not to take certain vaccinations because of your religion, or personal reasons you might have. As of now “There are 44 states and Washington, D.C. that grant religious exemptions for people who have religious objections to immunizations. Currently, 15 states allow philosophical exemptions for children whose parents object to immunizations because of personal, moral or other beliefs,” according to the National Conference Of State Legislatures. We need more states to impose stricter rules about what can qualify as a ‘personal exemption’, because let's be real, you can make up any ‘personal reason’ to avoid being vaccinated,  and your health care worker will just have to go with it. Leading to another family/persons unvaccinated, adding to the continuous incline of folks who are choosing not to be vaccinated. 

On my hunt to find the answer (to my possibly unanswerable question) another thing came up. Misinformation. Research has shown that in addition to religion being a leading component, so is misinformation spread through social media, which is leading more people not making the right choices. An excerpt of an initial statement from VacincesWork.org reads “Scientists used data from Twitter, Facebook, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to investigate how online misinformation is associated with vaccination rates and levels of vaccine hesitancy across the US.”

Here is what they found: “The researchers noted that ‘Associations between vaccine outcomes and misinformation remain significant when accounting for political as well as demographic and socioeconomic factors’.”

In the end there are so many reasons why people chose not to be vaccinated. But that doesn't mean it is not a problem. We need to ban personal and philosophical exemptions as a country.  

You see,

chocolate,

The snap,

The shine,

The bite,

And as it melts in your mouth,

You encounter the overpowering bittersweet bitterness of the cocoa,

The smooth, redefined, refined texture,

The crunch of nuts,

The zing,

Sting, of tart refreshing raspberries,

the soft oozing sticky chewy sensation, explanation,

All,

Like a developing relation,

Where you first encounter, 

Skeptical of thy,

Rather curious than dubious-

Then time,

Turns

The inspection, and satisfactory bite of chocolate,

Into an adventure of uncovering,

Love,

Prosperity,

And

Joy.

By now, we are all familiar with the AI language model known as ChatGPT. Whether you’ve used it firsthand to help you with work or you’ve seen videos on it, ChatGPT sets new standards for AI creation and use, and ChatGPT’s developing studio, OpenAI, has no intention other than to continue advancing the AI’s capabilities.

But what is a language model? Well, according to ChatGPT itself (yes, I clarified its  preferred pronouns - apparently it prefers to go by gender-neutral pronouns), “A language model is a machine-learning model that is trained to generate text that is similar to the text it was trained on.”

This means that when I asked ChatGPT what a language model was, it searched its data banks for any key phrases relating to the question and generated a response that the AI interpreted as matching the prompt. 

ChatGPT has been trained on millions of topics and styles of writing, making accessing information quick and easy. But how reliable is the information that is a quick prompt away? ChatGPT’s training has a cutoff in 2021, meaning that information published after that is not reflected in its response accurately. Essentially, the AI will guess the information according to previous data it collected, but not tell you that it was a guess. According to The Washington Post, “The answers pieced together by ChatGPT from second-hand information can sound so authoritative that users may assume it has verified their accuracy. What it’s doing is spitting out text that reads well and sounds smart but might be incomplete, biased, partly wrong, or, occasionally, nonsense.”

Microsoft recently announced a partnership with OpenAI to upgrade the currently finicky Microsoft Bing search engine to provide well-rounded and accurate responses using the most up-to-date AI learning models. This partnership benefits both companies greatly, as AI such as ChatGPT is starting to get more regulated throughout tech. 

It’s clear that ChatGPT is a genius tool that can be used for good, but issues start to arise as students begin to use it in a more nefarious fashion: cheating on assignments. Luckily for educators, a Princeton University student had a brilliant idea. Edward Tian had noticed the exponential rise of ChatGPT, and saw a gaping flaw. Students could easily access entirely written essays, answers to math equations, and everything else. While schools could block the site from being accessed on their standard-issued Chromebooks, students could bypass it easily with a phone or personal computer. Working quickly, Edward created GPTZero, a fully functional AI detector, designed specifically for educators. It highlights text that is likely to be generated by AI, and also shows specific sentences that have a higher probability of being written by AI. 

WUHSMS administration hasn’t officially released a statement regarding the use of ChatGPT, which has left students and teachers confused. Ms. Topliffe recently identified a student using ChatGPT by running their submitted work through GPTZero, and observed the efficiency of the AI detector. After the incident, she said that some students may not know if they’re allowed to use it or not and they may not see anything wrong with using it. The student identified using ChatGPT later said, “I saw it on TikTok and I was just using my resources.”

In an interview with Woodstock’s Assistant Principal Cody TanCreti he explained what the school is doing to counter nefarious usage of ChatGPT and how teachers use tools such as Edward’s to catch students taking the easy route out of an assignment. “We have an academic integrity policy in our handbook. Any type of cheating is automatically a 0. If it happens multiple times, there’s a chance that a student might not earn credit in that class.” The WUHSMS Handbook clearly states, “WUHSMS has zero tolerance for cheating and/or plagiarism. Students found to be cheating and/or plagiarizing will receive a 0 on the assignment and may not redo that assignment.” Mr. TanCreti also said that he and other teachers use GPTZero to identify work generated using AI.

Mr. TanCreti finished by saying, “There are ways that you can use this as a powerful tool, but we want to make sure that students are still using their brains to organize their thoughts.”

At one point or another, we have heard people talk about how they remember their school lunches and about how they don’t usually live up to their delicious expectations. However, our school lunches are amazingly different from the many schools I have attended. These ones are definitely edible and they taste good as well. The majority of our students get school lunch every day, and there are multiple options so you do not have to feel entitled to only eating the hot lunch option. The cafeteria has options that you would not find in most schools, such as caprese sandwich or tomato soup and grilled cheese. The school allows students to have the choice to please whatever food they are wanting. When asked about how students feel about our options, Miriam KO responded, “I love it because it gives you choices and for students who don't want the hot lunch, they can grab a salad or sandwich and still have a fulfilling meal.”

However, the school does fit one stereotype about the school lunch, the repetitiveness. Almost every single week, we have chicken patties and/or chicken tenders and it becomes a dreaded day for some students. While the options are varied and we find new lunches coming up every day, the chicken tenders and patties always seem to come back. The chicken tenders are generally liked by students due to their crispy texture compared with the chicken patty. When asking Mia about which lunch first comes to mind, she responded immediately with, “The chicken patty sandwich. It’s dry and salty with no ketchup.” Our school allows students to make decisions fit for their own taste, yet some of the options still are lacking in the deliciousness we crave. 

Compared with other Vermont schools, it shows that both schools Woodstock Union and Rutland High have options and variety. When looking at Rutland High School’s menu, they have similar options to us, but they sound more appealing. Thursday’s lunch at Woodstock included “Rice and Bean bowls”, while Rutland’s lunch was “Roasted Chicken burrito bowl or Carnitas burrito bowl”. When given between these two options, most students would most likely prefer Rutland’s school lunches. However, whether it tastes just as good as it sounds is still unknown. Regardless of the taste and texture, Vermont students are fortunate enough to get free breakfast and lunch, every day. Schools started providing free lunches during Covid when many families were struggling to afford living costs, and schools provided a way to help support those families. It was scheduled to end after Covid but continued on, and our governor, Phil Scott signed the Universal School Meals Act, which makes school lunches continue to be free from 2022-2023. This is for schools all over Vermont, and we live in one out of three states in the United States to provide free meals for students statewide. Whether it’s Woodstock or Rutland, Vermont students have the variety and openness to choose what they want to eat, for school lunches that's a win. 

Can the language we speak determine how we represent the world around us? Most people would assume that in various languages, the concept and use of gender-neutral pronouns and LGBTQ+ inclusivity are not an issue. Although languages such as Turkish, Chinese, Estonian, and Finnish are considered "genderless,” other languages such as German, French, and partly English may have they/them pronouns. The pronouns in these languages may not acknowledge them in the way they should, prohibited them entirely, or not even use them. It is worth noting that the use of gender-neutral or nonbinary pronouns is becoming more widely accepted in many languages and communities, there may be new developments to create more inclusive pronoun systems. Before diving deeper into language and pronouns, we must understand that each language has its advantages and limitations with pronouns and how they are used. For example, in English, pronouns only take the gender of the noun they replace in the third-person singular form. The second-person plural pronouns are identical to the second-person singular pronouns except for the reflexive pronoun. On the other hand, you have romantic languages such as Spanish and French, which have considerable differences in pronoun use compared with English, such as formality, plural forms, and reflexive and object pronouns.

Furthermore, one could argue that there should not be an expansion and addition in inclusivity in language and pronoun use because, scientifically speaking, there are only two biological genders, male and female, even if some people may identify as nonbinary. However, language is about not being biased and having a mental understanding of an idea without promoting certain stereotypes and gender bias, etc. In addition, one could add that including gender-neutral pronouns and continuing to expand their use and creation could promote gender equality and eradicate gender bias. This could be because, for some people, literature and language are powerful keys and tools to understanding the world around us and using our voices to speak up. 

The main reason gender bias in language is such a critical situation in our lives is because of education and the social status or aspect of gender in the location. For example, suppose one cannot afford education or may not have the ability to go to school. In that case, that person may not understand gender differences and be influenced or educated on gender inclusivity in language. Alternatively, if one's family may have certain beliefs in just two genders, that may also impact one's perspective or use of specific pronouns. In addition, some countries may be so preoccupied with their economy that they may not focus on encouraging people to be educated on gender inclusivity in language at all. Many factors could lead to individuals needing to learn or understand the diversity of pronoun use and inclusivity in language. 

In other languages, the limitations of pronoun use can be much more complex. For example, in Arabic and Hindi, the use of pronouns is primarily influenced by the social and power dynamics between the speaker and the person referred. In these languages, different pronouns are used based on factors such as age, gender, and social status, which can lead to a complex and nuanced understanding of the relationships between people.

Despite these limitations, using pronouns remains a fundamental aspect of language and communication. By understanding the constraints and complexities of pronoun use in different languages, we can gain a deeper appreciation for the diversity of human communication and how language reflects our relationships.

In conclusion, while using pronouns can be straightforward in some languages, it can be much more complex in others. However, regardless of the limitations, using pronouns remains a crucial aspect of language and communication, allowing us to refer to people, places, and things without repeating their names repeatedly.

We are highly influenced as a generation. It seems we spend hours at a time on TikTok, myself included. The endless scrolling becomes addictive, liking videos featuring people we wish we were. The algorithm really is real, people.

There are some deeper problems that come with downloading TikTok; most that we would not know unless we open our Apple News apps. The United States government is more focused on the threats to national security that come with TikTok. In December, Senator Hawley (R- MO) introduced a bill banning TikTok from US government devices. Because TikTok is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, the FBI has concerns about the Chinese government and their interference with American technology through TikTok. 

However, there are other concerns that come with TikTok that may seem more relevant to teenagers. CNN says that, “lawmakers and researchers have also been scrutinizing the impact that the short-form video app may have on its youngest users.” It is said that TikTok is the new “digital fentanyl.” The app has been declared addictive through its highly personalized algorithm, designed to keep us scrolling for longer. Research shows that prolonged social media use leads to higher chances of mental health issues. 

I think the most helpful feature to prevent this is the screen time feature in your settings (if you have an Apple iPhone). When you notice how fast the time flew when scrolling on your bed after school, check your screen time and see how many hours on social media you’ve accumulated. You can even play parent and set a time limit for yourself. Self care is important!

Last night, the Woodstock varsity girls hockey team pulled through with an 8-0 win against Stowe in their home quarterfinals game. Defense was on the top of their game, including goalie Meridian Bremel with an amazing shut out. Not only did the girls play great defense, but came out with some impressive goals. Kassidy Haley, a top forward in her sophomore year, scored a hat trick. Haley says, “We played together as a team last night which pushed us to the best of our abilities. With the Semis coming up, we need to continue our team play and focus on our opponent.”

 Lily Gubbins, finishing out her high school hockey career strong, scored two goals last night, along with Isabel Konijnenberg. Goalless until the 2nd minute, the girls scored their first point and never looked back. Highlight of the night? The Gubbins sisters in the penalty box, together. 

Next up, the semifinals against Middlebury this Saturday, March 4 at 7:30pm at Union Arena. The girls are feeling pretty confident about their upcoming game, and have their eyes set on the championships. Hannah Gubbins, a Junior, says, “I think our team is prepared for our upcoming game. We have been working hard during practices, preparing for Middlebury and how we can be successful and I think we are ready. It should be an exciting game.”

 What’s still up in the air is their opponent for the Championships. Will that change their feelings about the upcoming week? Junior Maggie Mello feels ready as she says, “We’re feeling prepared and excited going into Semis and, hopefully, on to the Championship. The team is not only cohesive and strong, but we’re all best friends too, which makes us a threatening opponent to play against. I’m pumped for the next week of hockey!”

Rap has long been a genre known for its dissing and violent verses. Since the start of the genre in 1973, rap lyrics have been known for inciting violence and back and forth between oppositional gangs, and I would argue that the continued dissing between gangs is what is fueling the genre and keeping it alive. The roots of rap can be traced back to the Bronx, where iconic DJ Kool Herc concocted original beats at school parties and private events, and the genre has only skyrocketed in popularity. Subgenres of rap have sprung off, such as New York and Chicago Drill, and the genre has changed significantly since its founding. 

With the rise of popularity of rap and rap subgenres, thousands of aspiring rappers have stepped into the industry, without knowing what they were getting into. Since the beginning of rap, there have been over 500 instances of rap lyrics being submitted to the court as evidence against rappers on trial, most notably the current YSL members Young Thug and Gunna. In their ongoing court case, which was inciting violence and RICO charges in Georgia, Gunna ended up “snitching” on Young Thug, saving himself but throwing Young Thug under the bus. 

One of the primary debates that spurred from this trial is the validity of using Gunna and Young Thug’s rap lyrics as evidence in the courtroom. The main lyric submitted to court was “I never killed anybody but I got something to do with that body," and, "I told them to shoot hundred rounds." Free speech and the First Amendment protect these lyrics fully, and nobody should be persecuted for making a rap song. What’s even more ridiculous is other artists getting away scot-free with making songs that don’t fall under the rap genre. 

In conclusion, with the rap industry primarily being people of color, and few other genres' lyrics being submitted to the court, using rap lyrics as evidence is a violation of rappers' constitutionally protected right to free speech, and is potentially another instance of systemic racism implanted within our courts system. 

What is ice fishing? Ice fishing is the fourth most popular wintertime sport in the world and is especially popular in Vermont. Ice fishing involves catching fish via an opening in a sheet of ice atop a body of water. We recorded the pros and cons of ice fishing as we traveled to Dewey’s Pond in Quechee. 

Pros: 

• Good opportunity to spend time with friends and family

• Takes substantially less effort than normal fishing

• It was a great time for the class to come together and bond during this experience

• Working together with teachers and students to pull a fish up from the water

• “I liked chillin,’” said Joaquin Jones-Welker

• “There was snow on the ground so we could have a snowball fight,” said Anna Fink

• “I liked being outside and getting in the sun,” said Agnes Kardashian.

Cons:

• It was cold and wet out on the frozen pond

• Barely any fish caught for both days

• “Mr. Wolfe wouldn’t let me make a flaming torch,” said Paige Stone

• Slippery on Tuesday, then icy on Wednesday

• “I didn't like how little opportunities there were to catch fish,” said Agnes Kardashian 

In summary, ice fishing received mixed reviews from our peers, but it was pretty COOL overall. Many students enjoyed the trip and as one student stated, “It’s not about catching the fish; it’s about spending time with each other.” Our experience proved this as throughout the day our class bonded over things other than fishing, like the snowball fight we started. When we actually did catch fish it brought us closer as well. It was an opportunity for us to share our excitement about the fish we caught (or the ones we didn't) inevitably connecting us to our peers.  We can’t wait for next year’s 9th graders to enjoy the adventure as well.

On January 28 to February 4, 2023 a Chinese operated, large white high altitude balloon was seen in North American airspace, including Alaska, western Canada, and the contiguous United States. The U.S. was concerned that the Chinese were spying on the U.S. The U.S. Navy has recovered the remains of the alleged Chinese spy balloon after it was shot down over the weekend. Officials believe it's part of an effort by China to improve its ability to gather data and other information about American military bases as well as those of other nations in the event of a conflict or rising tensions between the countries.

One of two F-22 fighter jets from Langley Air Force Base fired a Sidewinder air-to-air missile, downing the balloon, which was flying at an altitude of between 60,000 and 65,000 feet. China has claimed that the balloon, which was spotted by the public flying over Montana last Wednesday, was a wayward “civilian unmanned airship” that was used for “weather research.”

U.S. military fighter jets on Sunday shot down another object it was an octagonal object over Lake Huron, the Pentagon said, the latest incident since a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon put North American security forces on high alert. It was the fourth flying object to be shot down over North America by a U.S. missile in a little more than a week. China's foreign ministry said it had no information on the latest three flying objects shot down by the United States.