Mrs. Ho's AP Lang - 2021/2022

Growing up, we have all been asked the same question; “What do you want to be when you grow up?” At the time none of us really knew what we wanted to be because we were only kids. As young children, this question was simple to us. We would normally say astronaut or pop star, not knowing how unrealistic those answers were. At the time though, that answer did not really matter because we were only little kids, but today that is all we think about. It is junior year. This is the year of decisions. “What school do you want to apply for?” “Are you going to take the ACT, SAT, or both?” And of course, the question that was once so simple, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” This question used to be so easy to answer, but now it feels like the most difficult decision of our lives. Life changes too quickly. It felt like only yesterday when my dream for the future was to be a pop star, but now it is all different. Now I want to be a psychologist. At the age of five when I hoped to be like...

     Recently, most of us have been spending so much time reviewing and studying for the SAT/ACT. Well, one day, when I was with my tutor, we read a passage about the value of gift-giving and what people consider when preparing a gift to give. While reading this passage, many questions were in my head about what I was reading and it left me reflecting on past decisions I have made.       The passage mentions how many people don’t take into account the true meaning of giving the gift and instead only account for how much the gift costs or how much quantity of gift they received. This left me thinking and really come to the realization that this is so true. It wasn’t until I read that, that I truly realized what I was doing wrong in life. I feel as if when I was going to get a gift for someone else, I would say to myself no that isn’t enough money or no that isn't nice enough for them. For instance, my mom gives me an idea and says “let’s get them a cute...

  I like food so much. It’s probably my favorite thing in the whole world. If I had to choose between you and good food, I’d choose the food. Because of this, I like to think that I’ve become good enough at cooking to make some good tasting food, below you’ll find some information, and some recipes for that good good-     The most important part of making food, no matter what food that is, is balancing out your flavors. For those who don’t know, there are FIVE primary flavors- sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. For sweet, think honey. For sour, think lemons. For salty, think salt (or anchovies if you’re into that sort of thing). For bitter think yogurt. For umami, think tomato soup, or cheese. These five flavors make up all the food in the world, and getting the combination right can yield some pretty awesomsauce results. The next component of food is texture. There are four types- crispy, crunchy, soft, and chewy. Last component (stay with me here) is aro...

                                                                   Ariella Green Week 13: Sunday What would I rather be doing right now than what I’m actually doing? That’s a great question Ariella. Well, in a few minutes I will be going to Costco to fill up on gas to then drive all the way down to West Boca to babysit for the night. Do not get me wrong, I am glad I have a job and will be making money, but it is sometimes an inconvenience. Today, Sunday January 30th, at 4:08 pm, I am feeling exhausted and lazy. I woke up early to go to Hebrew School, drove home, did a DBQ for history, and now this. I rarely have a day where there is absolutely nothing for me to do. I also find that the cold weather can affect your energy depending on whether you like the cold weather or not. ...

          Warning! A few spoilers ahead, but I mean if you haven’t seen the movies yet then you’re probably never going to.           I love Marvel. I’ve seen pretty much every movie and tv series they came out with and plan on seeing everything they come up with in the future. The whole idea of a world with superheroes, alternate dimensions, villains, awesome battles, and more draws me in like you would not believe.           I used to see Marvel movies and get excited about them, but it was different than what it is now. It used to be that I would love seeing the crazy fight scenes and the powers that each superhero and villain had. Now, since Spiderman No Way Home, I began liking everything I saw so much more, and I get more and more excited. I decided that I want to become a movie director or producer because of these movies. It looks amazing, working with the actors, creating new worlds, ...

Alfred Lord Tennyson coined the phrase, “It is better to have loved and lost than never have loved at all.” The logical question that comes from this statement is, is it true? A definite answer will never be found because this is opinion based, but in my opinion, I think that it is indeed better to have loved and lost than never have loved at all.  Anyone who has experienced some kind of loss or heartbreak knows just how painful it is. It may not necessarily be romantically, it can be the loss of a loved one to death or perhaps the loss of a home if you have moved to a different city or country. No matter what the situation is, it takes time and strength to overcome these obstacles in life, but at the end of the day, once we have put in the work to heal, we are left with all the wonderful happy memories to look back on.  I am one to always be trying to collect memories in many unique ways. I love taking photos and I have a whole box filled with old photos, cards, cringy diarie...

 (Yes, I got this idea from Mrs. Ho's assignment. Thanks Mrs. Ho!)      The zombie apocalypse. A very imminent threat that we need to prepare for. Which is why everyone should be thinking about how they will get food and water, how to defend themselves, and, most importantly, who they want to survive with.     For me, I think that my top choice of people to survive with is Bill Murray. We know that he has experience with Zombies (he appeared in both Zombieland movies, and we witnessed in the second one his skills in kicking their butt), and we also know that he can come up with new and creative ways to survive like using makeup to look like the zombies and confuse them. Additionally, Bill Murray is a famed comedian and can provide an uplifting attitude in a truly depressing time. I think he would be an invaluable asset to have on my team during a zombie apocalypse.     I would also want to bring Mrs. Leibowitz with me because I think she could add...

  After winning her 39th game of Jeopardy this Monday, Amy Schneider passed Matt Amodio’s streak, claiming the title for second-most consecutive Jeopardy wins. The top spot is held by the current host of Jeopardy, Ken Jennings, who won an impressive 74 consecutive games back in 2004. As of now, the engineering manager from Oakland California has collected $1,319,800 after winning 39 games. Amy Schneider was the first woman to pass $1 million in winnings on the show and the first transgender contestant to qualify for the tournament of champions, where she will face off against Matt Amodio. In a message to Amodio, who ended his run on Jeopardy with $1,518,601 after winning 38 games, Schneider says that “it's going to be an honor playing against you, and it's going to be a tight competition.” She admitted that she is "definitely looking forward to" but is also "a little bit intimidated" to go up against the former champion. After a long day of school, I alway...

If you didn't know what creatine was, it is a power monohydrate that when taken daily for a certain amount of time can help improve strength, increase lean muscle mass, and help the muscles recover more quickly during exercise, it is not a steroid! Creatine is found in vertebrates where it facilitates recycling of adenosine triphosphate, primarily in muscle and brain tissue, so it is already produced in us, so taking it would be to get more of it to help improve these things. Lifters like me who want to improve these physical things will take five grams it before or after their workout, or if they want to see the results faster they will start with a loading phase which is twenty grams throughout the day for the first five to seven days then going to down to a consistent five grams per day. It has got really popular over time since quarantine started because people were stuck at home and had lots of time to make change. Since it has been getting popular and popular there ...

Covid Vaccines One of the most common topics brought up today is the Covid-19 vaccine. The Covid-19 vaccine has shown tremendous prevention of infection through all the variants. Although it is still possible to get Covid with the vaccine, it has made the case more mild than severe. As Covid-19 continues, its properties are changing, creating new variants. The vaccine has to continually update as new varients of Covid are created. For example, the Covid vaccine has prevented the majority of Covid cases, up until the Omicron variant came through. The vaccine has prevented severe Covid-19 cases like hospitalization and death rates from erupting. The vaccine has been extremely helpful to those at high risk and the elderly from getting severely sick when attracting the virus. There are many benefits to the vaccine, although it is not perfect prevention from the virus.  Everyone reacts differently to the vaccine, and some people may have severe side effects from the vaccine. Therefore...

  The popular trivia competition series Jeopardy! has undergone many changes since its syndication in 1984, including doubling money values, removing a buzzer sound, and implementing the rule that contestants can only buzz in after the entire clue is read. However, no rule change has been as significant as the one made at the start of the twentieth season in 2003. Previously, contestants could only win a maximum of five games and 75,000 cumulative dollars, however, both caps were since removed. After the rule change, contestants could now win as many times until they lost, which was seen almost immediately with Ken Jennings, who won over 2.5 million dollars over a span of 75 games between 2003 and 2004. Since Jennings’ historic run, multiple other contestants have taken advantage of this rule change to win many games and amass large sums of money. The most recent of these contestants is current contestant Amy Schneider, who has accumulated 1,382,800 dollars in 40 games (as of Ja...

     The topic of abortion is one that is deemed controversial. When many people think of abortion, they tend to immediately think of the pro-choice v. pro-life debate. In 1973, women were given the right to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restrictions. The right to choose was secured through the ruling of Roe v. Wade. Since 1973, organizations and people indifferent to the ruling have been protesting in hopes to overturn the decision.       January 22 marked the 49th anniversary of the landmark decision. Many pro-life activists are not happy the right is still provided to this day. In response to the anniversary, protesters attended an event known as March for Life Utah. The event took place in the Utah State Captial. Many activists were seen holding signs emphasizing the word “LIFE”. Speakers at the event explained that they are hopeful that the decision will be overturned by the next anniversary.       Man...

   They Want to Mine Where? Idaho Is Sitting on One of the Most Important Elements on Earth      Eureka! We struck oil in one of our most forgettable states Idaho. An area most Americans would regard as “the middle of nowhere”, or what Arabic speakers might call “Akhar Jahanam” (meaning “after hell”). Idaho is sitting on a 34-mile-long geological formation of sedimentary rock that consists of some of the greatest cobalt deposits in the country, and is named appropriately as the Idaho Cobalt Belt. Cobalt is one of the most crucial and desired elements on Earth right now. This dark silver metal is used to make heat resistant alloys for jet engines as well as highly sought after lithium ion batteries which have been ushering the world away from the use of fossil-fuels for energy. Commercial interest in the belt has developed in tandem with the global demand for lithium-ion batteries, as has the price of cobalt. At least six mining companies have sought permission t...

     Highschool! Time for hours of standardized testing! By this time, most of us have already taken an SAT or ACT and have had to go through the tiring process of standardized testing. The tiring mornings just to arrive at a testing site and have to sit through a tedious three-hour test that leaves you feeling drained. Will this process ever be changed?       Collegeboard has been reviewing their SAT tests and has a few ideas on ways to improve. Their goal is to make these tests less stressful. In the future, the SATs will be digital. It will be in person at testing centers, but completely online. There will also be devices provided to those who are not capable to have. Time-wise, the test will be shortened from three hours to two. These new tests will also have some changes to content. The math section will only have the calculator allowed test and the English section will be shorter paragraphs with fewer questions. Some of the topics on the exam wil...

  Months after introducing the opening of their Supermarkets, Amazon Fresh , Amazon announced last Thursday the opening of Amazon Style , the first in-person clothing store of Amazon. The first one will be opening later this year in the Americana at Brand shopping center in Los Angeles. The store will have men’s and women's clothing along with shoes and accessories for all. Unlike most retail stores, Amazon Style will display only one of each item giving more room for other designs and giving the customer a higher selection of goods. Furthermore, by only displaying one of each item, this doesn’t require the customer to take time to find the right color and size. Those working the store will be placing all sizes and all colors in the back of the store and the customer will only see one of the colors in one of the sizes on the rack.  Amazon Style also consists of several technological advancements that no other retail store has. For example, as shoppers walk into the store, they...

  This past Saturday, January 22, 2022, a huge wildfire broke out along the mountains in Big Sur, California, which forced authorities to shut down the main roads in the area, as well as forcing hundreds of residents in said area to evacuate. The fire started Friday, January 21, 2022, in a canyon, and then it spread toward the ocean rapidly, with winds as much as 50 mph. The blaze burned about 2.3 square miles of the redwood trees, according to a spokesperson for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, Cecile Juliette. "The fire lined up with the wind and the terrain and that gave the fire a lot of energy to make a big run," she said Saturday. The authorities contacted around 500 residents, highly recommending that they evacuate the area between Carmel, California, and Big Sur. 250 plus firefighters from various agencies and volunteer groups helped the situation by water-dropping aircraft, which contained about 5 percent of the blaze. With no estimated time...

 Ori Shai AP Lang 1/25/2022                                                                                Part Man, Part Pig     On January 7th, doctors in Baltimore, Maryland completed a successful heart transplant surgery. This was no ordinary surgery; the man's human heart was replaced with a pig's heart, and it worked. This man was 57 years old, and he had life-threatening heart disease. The pig heart used belonged to a genetically modified pig, and because of the surgery's success, people believe that animal organ transplants will be the future of surgery.     This was the first successful surgery of a transplant of a pig heart into a human being. The operation was eight hours long on a Friday, and the Patient, David Bennet, ...

    The Covid-19 pandemic started out as a global health issue, but quickly into a political debate. Throughout the last two years one of the major debates has been about masks. I believe the lion’s share of society can agree about the efficacy of masks, and that they do indeed work. Although not everyone agrees about whether they should be mandated or not. Throughout the pandemic many states have issued state-wide mask mandates. One of these states is New York, and just yesterday on January 24, the Nassau County Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of their mask mandate.      The mask mandate which has been in place since December was due to expire on January 15, although that state’s health department requested for it to be extended until February 1. The mask mandate forced masks in most public places including schools, shopping centers, restaurants, and transportation. Thomas Rademaker, the supreme court judge ruled that Governor Kathy Hochul did...

      As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on throughout the world, many are left wondering how much longer it will continue. The omicron variant has ripped through the world, leaving many hospitalized, and leaving others questioning the authority of the vaccines. However, with the omicron variant finally beginning to decrease, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and Pfizer has plans to further this progress.       This morning, the USA-based company, along with their partner BioNTech, started to research methods to further improve their vaccine. They plan to do this by tweaking the vaccine to match the omicron variant, which is highly contagious. Though the makers of the vaccines have constantly tried to improve their vaccines to match the ongoing mutations of the virus, this instance is especially important, considering how contagious this variant really is.      Though the original vaccines are already effective and offer good protec...

As recently as January 9, 2022, Bob Saget was unexpectedly found dead in an Orlando hotel room. His death brought great shock and grief to his family, friends, and fans. Before his death, Bob Saget, was on his “I Don’t Do Negative” comedy tour. Saget was a phenomenal actor and is best known for his performance on the show “Full House”. Apart from his extremely successful Hollywood acting career, Saget was also a well-known comedian. He also hosted the television show “America's Funniest Home Videos”. Bob Saget was born in Philadelphia and raised in Norfolk, Virginia. He started acting when he was a teenager and during that same time his family moved to Los Angeles. After graduating high school, Bob Saget attended Temple University Philadelphia. In 1981, Saget landed his very first film role in the movie “Full Moon High”. Many know Saget from the show Full House, where he played Danny Tanner, a widowed father of three daughters. Saget played the role of Danner Tanner for eight years...