VOLUME 47, ISSUE 8 © 2014 North Pointewww.northpointenow.org@myGPN

COURTESY OF JULIA BABCOCK

1 News2 Calendar3 Ideas4 On Campus

5 Life6 Reviews7 Sports8 Feature

“INTOLERANCE HAS BROUGHT SKYSCRAPERS TO THE GROUND AND NATIONS TO THEIR KNEES.”

Ideas - Page 3Contents

Michigan drops ACT for SAT in 2016 NORTH POINTE

FRIDAY, JAN. 16, 2015S I N C E 1 9 6 8

Seasonal depression worsens with popular behavior patterns

Gearheads begin 2015 seasonBy Emma Puglia & Yena BerhaneWEB MANAGER & WEB SPORTS EDITOR

The game is set. The Gearheads’ build season started Saturday, Jan. 3 when they received the manual con-taining the rules for this year’s robot-ics competition, allowing a six-week period to prepare for the contest. The competition’s theme, arena and objec-tive change every year.

“We start by f iguring out how we want to play the game and think of designs of a robot that could play that game, and we prototype those and then go on to troubleshoot and build those and then finally decide on the robot,” build captain and senior Nicholas San-trock said.

Judges award points for the robot’s design and its ability to complete the task. Points are also awarded for safe-ty procedures and the team’s effort over the course of the six-week season.

“It’s how well you work as a team and what you can do with the community as well that you can get prizes for,” team captain and South High School senior Ryan Hackenberger said. “And indi-vidual prizes for accomplishments of mentors and students on the team, but it’s mainly just trophies and recogni-tion of what you’ve done, and where you’ve been and what you’ve accomplished.”

To organize the robot-building pro-cess, the club split up into different subcommittees with specialized goals: safety, build, fabrication, design and media teams. Since safety is an impor-tant aspect of the competition, safety captain and South senior Kimberly McBryan takes it seriously.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

By Anu SubramaniamCO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

According to the National Comorbid-ity Survey-Adolescent Supplement, about 11 percent of adolescents have a depres-sive disorder by the age of 18. In Michi-gan, seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a major contributor to that percentage. SAD is the feeling of depression during a specific season every year. Sophomore Grace Sexton said she can see why SAD could be a contributor to depression dur-ing the winter.

“Since winter is so long, it seems once the holidays end you feel like there is nothing to look forward to, I suppose. And since spring is far away, and then there is finals,” Sexton said.

For freshman Becky Lubera, however, negative feelings are more attached with summer than winter.

“When it’s summertime, and it’s really hot and humid, I just sort of feel dead inside. I don’t want to do anything or go anywhere, and I get really lethargic, and I feel really down about everything,” Lubera said.

The number of depressed teenagers, in-cluding those affected by SAD is continu-ously increasing. A study conducted by the University of California Los Angeles’ George Slavich links brain inflammation to depression.

“A diet rich in trans fats and sugar has been shown to promote inf lammation, while a healthy one full of fruit, vegeta-bles and oily fish helps keep it at bay,” the article said. “Add this to the fact that stress, particularly the kind that fol-lows social rejection or loneliness, also causes inf lammation, and it starts to look as if depression is a kind of allergy to modern life.”

A bit of seasonal depression can become chronic depression if conditions don’t change. Depression causes people to isolate themselves and find comfort in other items such as food. Staying home to binge watch TV or Netflix and eat junk food has become a more popular behavior, but that social ac-ceptance hides the potential harm such

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2HALEY REID

LIFEPAGE 5

Left: Junior Julia Babcock poses with Jackie Stevens, her fellow yoga instructor.

Middle: Babcock, in child’s pose, practices yoga as a form of excercise.

Right: Babcock, a dedicated yogi, feels yoga cleanses her mind and relaxes her.

By Radiance Cooper & Conner BottASSISTANT EDITOR & INTERN

Starting in the spring of 2016, students and staff will see a major shift in standardized testing. The state of Michigan is replacing the ACT portion of the Michigan Merit Exam (MME) with the SAT beginning with the Class of 2017.

“I don’t know what to think. I think that it’s nice because it’s not mandatory to take the ACT, and colleges out of state can look at your SAT scores so you don’t have to take two (tests),” sophomore Cate Troost said.

The Michigan Department of Education and the Depart-ment of Technology, Management and Budget noted in their Jan.7 press release that the bid from the College Board for the SAT was $15.4 million dollars less than the bid from ACT Inc. ACT coordinator and English teacher Jonathan Byrne sees both benefits and drawbacks to the shift.

As of Jan. 13, ACT Inc. is protesting the switch, claim-ing the state informally changed the contract, and ACT Inc. was not given an opportunity to rebid. The company also claims that the SAT did not include the writing portion in their bid, which accounts for the smaller sum. The Depart-ment of Technology, Management and Budget will review

the claims later next week.“I mean, I guess it’s good to save money, although I think

that the state is being a little bit shortsighted even in that be-cause the state schools, almost all of them, at least for now, require the ACT. So if somebody wants to go to Michigan State, U of M or Central or Eastern or Wayne State, they all require you to take the ACT,” Byrne said. “A lot of students only took it the one time that it was provided by the state. So now if they want to take it in order to get into one of those state schools, they are gonna have to pay for it themselves, and so that’s a financial burden on the families as well. So it’s not just ‘Oh, we saved a bunch of money, that’s great.’ It’s more complicated than that.”

Despite the cost of taking the ACT outside of the MME, taking the SAT in school could be easier for students who want to attend a university outside the state. Most univer-sities nationwide will accept either the ACT or SAT as their standardized testing requirement, but the SAT is more com-monly taken outside the Midwest. Math teacher Lauren Nix-on sees this as one of the positive things about the switch.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

College Board outbid ACT Inc. for a three-year contract.

The SAT will now be in the MME

ANU SUBRAMANIAM

2 – Friday, Jan. 16, 2015 – North Pointe NEWS

I think the transi-tion will be easier on the students than it will be on the staff.

Jonathon ByrneENGLISH TEACHER

GearheadsCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

“I have gotten the MSDSs (Material Safety Data Sheets), which we have never gotten before, a safety manual, and (I) got them to wear safety glasses,” McBryan said.

South senior Anna Karcher captains the media subcom-mittee, which monitors the team’s website and social me-dia. While the website isn’t scored as part of the competi-tion, it’s stil l a year-round commitment. Karcher highlights post-season events such as the Village Fest, where the team showcases their retired robot.

“We work on The Gazette, which is our newsletter, and we write articles about updating our sponsors, about what we’re actually doing with their money and updating Face-book and Twitter and all that stuff with day-to-day updates with what our team is doing,” Karcher said.

As soon as build season began, the team noticed the game’s striking differences from previous years. This year’s game is called Recycled Rush.

“The game itself is a lot less exciting ‘cause last year we

were passing a ball between robots and then shooting it over a bar in the middle and then shooting it into a goal. It kept people on the edge of their seats,” Santrock said. “This year the f ield’s divided, and you cannot cross the division to the other side, so you can’t interact with the other alli-ance’s robots. So there’s no interaction. You’re just stacking bins. It’s not going to be as exciting, but it’s a more chal-lenging game.”

The team members are interested in the competition but also in the effect the experience will have on their futures.

“First (it) provides scholarships. These scholarships are taken at many schools around. A lot of them are full-ride scholarships,” Santrock said. “So first, it’s definitely a very helpful program for going into f ields, and it’s not just tech-nological f ields. You can also go into other things such as media and design and stuff like that.”

Build season aside, the robotics team continues to grow, en-couraging new members to become involved with the the group.

“It’s like a big family, and everyone there’s just really ac-cepting, so when I went in, they opened their arms and ac-cepted me in, so it was really welcoming,” freshman Mon-tana Payton said.

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New clubs stem from student interests

Junior Jeffrey Valentic noticed the lack of photography-oriented clubs at North and decided to take action to elim-inate the problem.

To begin a club, one must acquire a faculty sponsor, complete an application and receive district approval. Then it is up to the adviser and club founder to organize meetings and other club functions.

The photography club instituted by Valentic and the Sparks Innovations Club founded by senior Trevor Joy are the two newest clubs to join North’s array of organizations.

Valentic felt it was necessary to reinstate the old pho-tography club which disbanded in 1970 when photogra-phy began being offered as a class.

“This club is going to be a community thing, where ev-eryone teaches what they know to everyone else,” Valentic said. “We are going to have a topic, and everyone has to go out and shoot pictures for that topic. Then we are going to bring them in and criticize them, talk about what can be improved and what was good.”

Members critique each others’ work, and the more ex-perienced photographers assist newcomers.

“Basically we are going to have the more experienced people kind of coaching others, helping out and making sure people know what they’re doing so they can get better and improve.”

Valentic recruited art and photography teacher Susan Forrest to be the club’s adviser.

“I hope a network of support for each other is developed and stronger photography skills through critical think-ing,” Forrest said.

Photography club meets Mondays right after school for an hour in Forrest’s room, A-21-G.

Joy founded Sparks Innovations Club to promote technol-ogy and business within the new innovation lab.

“Taking Digital Seminar influenced me to start think-ing about a technology club. I started the club because I wanted to bring everyone together who has the same interest in technology as I do,” Joy said via email. “Tech-nology runs our daily lives, and I wanted to make a place where people can focus on creating the future. So I went to Mr. (Sean) McCarroll and asked him to be my sponsor, and we pretty much took off from there.”

When choosing a name for the club, members wanted something clever that captured the essence of the club.

“The word ‘Spark’ represents how we inspire innova-tion,” Joy said. “Most of the time we spend tinkering with stuff and just having fun. Right now we are creating a ro-bot that will actually ride around the room and can be given commands to do certain actions.”

Joy said club members also create objects such as iPhone cases on the 3D printer.

Spark Innovation Club meets Tuesdays after school in Science 304.

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NO SCHOOL

Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, Jan. 19

MIDTERM WEEK SCHEDULE

Jan. 20 - Jan. 23Exam 1: 8:00-9:30Exam 2: 9:45-11:15

Tuesday: first and second period exams

Wednesday: fourth and fifth period exams

Thursday: sixth and seventh period exams

Friday: third period exam and makeups

END OF SECOND QUARTER

Friday, Jan. 23

The robotics team made it to the quarter-finals last season with their robot Howie. Howie can grab a big red excercise ball and shoot it with tennis rackets.

MME changesCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

“The fact that Michigan is switch-ing over to the SAT could help those students that want to go to college out of state so that they can take the SAT through state testing,” Nixon said.

Since the ACT has been a major por-tion of the state’s testing system, most teachers have been aim-ing to prepare students for ACT-style questions. The state’s decision will most likely make teachers focus their preparation more heavily on the SAT.

“The portion of our in-struction that we reserve for preparing for tests has been aimed at the ACT, and so now we’re gonna have to change gears and try to aim more of our instruction towards the SAT,” Byrne said. “We all teach skills, so it’s not like we teach to the test, but we definitely have the ACT in mind when we’re trying to prepare the students for the different skills that they’re gonna need to do well to get into college. So we’re gonna have to step back, look at the SAT, what skills it’s testing, to realign what we do.”

Senior Raymond Mattingly feels that too much focus on one test could result in negative effects for students taking the other.

“I think that everyone should take both regardless of the state mandate

in order to see which one they’re best at, so I don’t really have an opinion on which one the state requires us to take,” Mattingly said via e-mail. “If we spent too much of a focus in our classes on the math to be tested on the ACT and lacked focus on the vocabu-lary tested on the SAT, then that could result in students scoring lower than they otherwise would have, assuming that they don’t just try both tests.”

Troost however, said she is prepared for both tests.

“I think it can go either way. I think that it’s kind of nice because the state now pays for the SAT,” Troost said.

Byrne said stu-dents won’t have a problem shifting from the ACT to the SAT except that now they’ll have to pay for the ACT and come in

on a Saturday to take it if they want to attend a school in state.

“I think they’ll be able to make the transition. I think the transition will be easier on the students than it will be on the staff,” Byrne said. “The skills that the two tests evaluate are not very different, and so (to) the students, it’s just gonna look different when they take the test. I don’t think it’l l be that big of a deal for the students.”

Seasonal depressionCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

habits can have on individuals prone to depressive behavior.

“We increasingly eat, sloth and isolate ourselves into a state of chronic inf lammation,” the article said.

Lubera agrees that teenagers are increasingly en-gaging in these behaviors.

“I think if you feel sad, you don’t want to be with other people, and you hide. And when you’re hiding, you think about everything, like why you’re so sad and it makes you wonder why you’re feeling worse and why you don’t want to see people even more,” Lubera said. “I don’t think it’s really good for people to be inside all the time and not really interacting with other people as much.”

Dr. Shyam Moudgil, a neurologist at Lakeside Neurol-ogy, sees the link between inflammation and depression.

“Depression is common in individuals that have inf lammation in the brain. But the reason for depres-sion is because they’re sick. They can’t function, they can’t walk, they can’t talk. So when you’re physically affected, you’re more likely to be low,” Moudgil said.

Dr. Jennifer Hauser, a clinical psychologist at Beau-mont Hospital, has also seen the physical effects de-pression and other disorders have on her patients.

“We certainly see changes in sleep habits, that’s one of the diagnostic criteria for depression, so either peo-ple report sleeping more, not feeling well after sleeping for a long time, or they may sleep less, have trouble fall-ing asleep, wake up frequently during the night. So we see changes in sleep—changes in appetite is another physical symptom we see in folks with depression. And again that can go either way, either you start eating more and you may have associated weight gain with that, or you may decrease in your appetite and some unintended weight loss may be a result of that,” Hauser said. “Additionally, although it is not one of the official diagnostic criteria, we can see people with depression and anxiety complaining of aches and pains and just generally not feeling very well.”

These symptoms worsen with increased depres-sion that can be caused by biological or environmen-tal factors.

“It can be a sort of chicken-or-the-egg thing: are people spending more time eating high calorie carb-loaded foods and sitting around watching TV, play-ing video games on the computer, because they are depressed and they do not have the energy to do other types of activities?” Hauser said. “Or are those kind of lifestyle choices making us more depressed? Chances are, there is some interaction there and it’s

not as easy as saying A causes B, but I think the fact that we do tend to isolate more certainly doesn’t help depressive symptoms. If you are sitting around at home by yourself, I think that can contribute to ei-ther worsening some of those depressive feelings or symptoms, or prolonging them, so potentially if you are not getting appropriate social support, exercise, healthier foods in your diet.”

While research is going on, researchers are link-ing certain behaviors to increasing depression, behaviors that has become more common among teenagers. These behaviors don’t necessarily cause depression, but they can worsen depressed feelings, like SAD, or can prolong the feeling.

“I guess it’s sometimes about what social group you are in. There are some groups that will party ev-ery weekend and stuff, but the more studious ones tend to do that (remain at home) in their spare time,” Sexton said. “I guess our generation is lazy in that sense, but as long as you practice that type of relax-ation in moderation, I don’t think it is an issue.”

Contributing: Haley Reid

ALANNA SPARKS

OUR EDITORIAL

North Pointe – Friday, Jan. 16, 2015 – 3

Conservatism in the crosshairs

EDITORS-IN-CHIEF: Erica Lizza, Anu Subramaniam

MANAGING EDITORS: Haley Reid, Andrea Scapini

SECTION EDITORS: Olivia Asimakis, Katelyn Carney, Brittney Hernandez, Jennifer Kusch

WEB EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Emma Puglia

WEB SECTION EDITORS: Yena Berhane, Dora Juhasz, Kaley Makino, Emily Martinbianco

BUSINESS MANAGER: Wendy Ishmaku

PHOTO EDITOR: Alanna Sparks

ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR: Sydney Benson

ASSISTANT EDITORS: Josie Bennett, Emma Brock, Radiance Cooper, Mora Downs, Audrey Kam, Billy Moin, Thomas Remenar, Ritika Sanikommu, Gowri Yerramalli

STAFF REPORTERS: Luke Sturgill, Addison Toutant

INTERNS: Caitlin Bush, Allison Lackner, Lauren Sexton, Conner Bott, Nathan Lonczynski, Dajai Chatman

The North Pointe is edited and produced by Advanced Journalism students at Grosse Pointe North High School and is published every two weeks. It is in practice a designated public forum without prior review. Comments should be directed to the student editors, who make all final content decisions. The views expressed are solely those of the authors or the student editorial board and do not reflect the opinions of the Grosse Pointe Public School System.

We are a member of the Michigan Scholastic Press Association, Columbia Scholastic Press Association, National Scholastic Press Association and Student Press Law Center. We subscribe to McClatchy-Tribune Information Services and iStockphoto.com.

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CONTACT US707 Vernier RoadGrosse Pointe Woods MI, 48236Phone: 313.432.3248Email: northpointe@gpschools.orgTwitter: @thenorthpointeWebsite: NorthPointeNow.org

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Our editorial represents the opinion of the North Pointe Editorial Board consisting of the editors above. Members who have a conflict of interest with an

editorial topic do not partake in that meeting or vote.

I ‘m a left-leaning Republican. I’m a feminist. I believe in equal rights. I’m not a middle-aged white male or a member of the 1 percent. And no, I don’t think that global warming is a myth.

Yet, I am a Republican. I have my own values, and like many Americans, I sup-port the conser-vative politicians elected into office.

However, ac-cording to Susan J. Douglas, a Uni-versity of Michigan professor of Communications and the Depart-ment Chair, it’s totally okay to hate an entire pop-ulation of our country.

In a column published in In These Times, Douglas doesn’t dance around her own opin-ions. Oh no, she cuts right to the chase.

“I hate Republicans” she says, in the very opening of her piece. Subtle. My kind of girl.

She goes on to tear into a value set that many Americans hold dear and support for religious reasons. She criticizes the belief in fetal “person-hood” and fetal rights, but suggests that as a liber-al, she’d never use the word “hate” against people of color, women, or gays. Republicans, she insists, are not as sparing with their hate.

So they deserve hers, and all of her readers’. In my (very conservative) family, we don’t

spread hate. My mother and I support gay rights, and we certainly don’t despise our own gender. I don’t have aspirations to only bake apple pies and wait for my husband to bring home the ba-con. Most importantly, I certainly don’t hate any-one for the amount of melanin in their skin. And, last time I checked, Herman Cain was a product of the Republican party.

Yet, according to Douglas, we deserve your hate.

University of Michigan, while quick to say that her own statements don’t reflect those of the uni-versity, has saught no reprimands for their De-partment Chair. Her hateful words have instilled a fear of my own beliefs in me.

I now fear for my own beliefs. I fear the docu-mented retribution and degradation that my fel-low conservatives have had to bear on campuses nationwide. I fear the fact that a professional ed-ucator (of journalism, an ideally unbiased medi-um, no less) can propagate hate and ill will with no fear of retribution.

Discrimination is denying social rights to people based on prejudice of someone’s mem-bership in a certain category. Political beliefs, however, are not protected.

I am a Republican. I believe in rights of all people (including the fetal “personhood” she de-spises). I do not hate, yet I am afraid.

I am afraid for our government. I’m afraid that our country’s metamorphosis into a hate-ful political machine will be irreversible. I am afraid that my family and friends will be viewed as people with the sole desire to, as Douglas said, “deride those around (us)”—whether people of color, LGBT people or Democrats.”

Miss Douglas, I am not “single-minded”. You hate the Republican party because of the

hate and single-minded ideology you believe that they and their supporting news outlets, spew. Yet somehow, your column seemed less open-mind-ed and more insulting than any shoddy, biased story I’ve ever seen on Fox News.

All I ask for is tolerance. Tolerance of my per-sonal beliefs and political affiliation, as perma-nent and undeniable as my race or gender.

Two wrongs don’t make a right, Miss Doug-las. Intolerance has brought skyscrapers to the ground and nations to their knees. We don’t need more hate, we need collaboration. Without the conservative faction you despise so much, we wouldn’t have a democracy. Our single-party government would resemble China more closely than the land of the free. Neither party is close to perfect, but vituperative attacks like this solve none of the myriad of problems facing us all, lib-erals and conservatives alike.

As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

“I would have it mow the lawn. I don’t like mowing the lawn at all.”

“A massage. I want a massage every day ... I just come home every day from work, and I get a massage.”

It would make my meals, and it would clean the house—that’s what it’s gonna do ... It would make wonderful meals.

Anne CoatesLUNCH SUPERVISOR

Debbie KonkeySUBSTITUTE TEACHER

By Sydney Benson and Yena BerhaneYOUR TURN: If you could build any type of robot, what would it do?

“Grosse Pointe Public School administrators and teachers are responsible for encouraging and ensuring freedom of expression and freedom of the press for all students, re-

gardless of whether the ideas expressed may be considered unpopular, critical, controversial, tasteless or offensive.”

BOARD OF EDUCATION POLICY

Erica LizzaCO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Olivia AsimakisNEWS EDITOR

Dora JuhaszWEB NEWS EDITOR

Ritika SanikommuASSISTANT EDITOR

Anu SubramaniamCO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Brittney HernandezLIFE EDITOR

Jennifer KuschIDEAS EDITOR

Haley ReidCO-MANAGING EDITOR

Wendy IshmakuBUSINESS MANAGER

Kaley MakinoWEB IDEAS EDITOR

Emily MartinbiancoWEB LIFE EDITOR

Noah GekiereSENIOR

“It would be like a pterodactyl. It would fly. Pterodactyls are cool. It would munch on people.”

“It would probably make me food—my favorite type. Probably spaghetti. “

John KinnardSOPHOMORE

“ I would have it help people. If somebody can’t do something for them-selves, that robot would help them do it.”

Sierra PetersJUNIOR

Mike MullensFRESHMAN

MY TURN JENNIFER KUSCH

IDEAS

EDITOR’S DESKRADIANCE COOPER

Lost legacyMLK. The boycotts. The

marches. The sit-ins. This Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, instead of just relaxing, I urge everybody to take a step back and look at the legacy he left. We’ve all heard the classic tales of his famous feats. The word “freedom” might as well be synonymous with this man’s name. Dr. King singlehand-edly led a movement that had stalled for years to the forefront of people’s hearts and minds.

I know the majority of us heard his name growing up, either at school or at home. Our teachers, our parents and others have shared infor-mation about him but only what is taught in schools. I don’t think this generation has a complete portrait of who Dr. King really was.

When I was young , MLK was just a face frozen in time, a name to learn about during Black History month and later a reason to have the day off from school. Of course I heard his most famous words and watched snippets of his life re-played on TV, but I could never connect with his message.

Now things have changed. My own image of King came to a head in recent weeks when I finally stopped to watch and listen to the words of “I Have a Dream” on my own time. Listening to his words, I felt hopeful as he cried, “We will be free one day.” As he de-scribed the new meaning of “My country ’tis of thee,” I felt inspired. I felt my throat swell as he cried “Let freedom ring,” from all over the country. I really feel Dr. King’s dream for society should be a sort of holy grail for the human race. I dare you to go home and lis-ten to it yourself.

My idea of MLK includes a black and white image deliv-ering a powerful message of equality that shook the world and the people that stood on it. A halo glowed over his head as he marched with millions to the Washington Monument and belted out the words that would become legend.

Watching the new movie Selma, I got a more in-depth view of not only the pub-lic Dr. King, but also of his more private side. The trials. The guilt. The struggles. The man I thought was morally indestructible turned out to be no more superhuman than I am. He had his own demons to deal with.

I also began to ponder: have we really accomplished Dr. King’s ideal dream? Is it possible that maybe we’ve been taking one step for-ward, two steps back?

When Dr. King climbed those steps to his place be-hind a podium, he described his dream of seeing people of all races joined hand in hand. It is a beautiful scene. But we have to ask ourselves: have we really accomplished this?

On the surface, maybe. However, the way we self-seg-regate into groups in schools says otherwise. Segregated communities say otherwise. Riots in Ferguson and protests in New York say otherwise.

I think we need to look at ourselves and be honest: we can do better. If we had truly accomplished King’s dream, wouldn’t things be different? If we had fulfilled this dream, then why is there such a huge disconnect between the racial communities? Why do a cer-tain group of young men feel targeted in this country?

I leave you with this food for thought this Martin Lu-ther King, Jr. Day. How can we close this gap? How do we fix this problem before it comes to our own city? It’s imperative that we accept and embrace each others’ differences so our country can move forward.

State’s quick switch causes turmoil

The state of Michigan has administered the Michigan Merit Exam (MME) in high schools since 2008. The mandatory test is composed of three parts: Michigan-developed assessments in math, science and social studies, the WorkKeys job skills assessment and the ACT Plus Writing.

However, after only six years of using the ACT, the state has de-cided to replace it with the SAT. The College Board’s bid to use their newly revised SAT was $15.4 million lower that of ACT Inc., enticing the state to make the switch. Now, at least for the next three years, juniors will take the SAT as part of the MME.

In high schools across Michigan, teachers and schools help students prepare for the rigorous ACT. Teachers dedicate time to teaching students test-taking skills for the exam, and schools provide additional courses to help students improve their scores.

High school students spend years anticipating the ACT. Many work outside the classroom with tutors and enroll in specialized classes to improve their chances at a better score. This includes the those in the Class of 2017, who now must switch gears and learn about the SAT.

The time spent focusing on the ACT, in and out of the class-room, can be applied to the revised SAT but preparations will need adjustment. Since the SAT being included is the 2016 revised version, limited knowledge about the test available beyond its general compo-nents. The sudden switch doesn’t allow much much time for current sophomores to prepare for the new test.

The psychological impact of switching tests cannot be calculated, but it could potentially dissuade many students who spent time pre-paring for the ACT from even trying on the new SAT. The free ACT gave financially disadvantaged students an opportunity to succeed on a test that is more widely taken and accepted by colleges across the country. This has all changed because the state sought to save money.

The Michigan Department of Education previously emphasized the importance of the ACT by pairing it with the MME and making it mandatory. It was sold as the most important part of a student’s junior year. The SAT became an afterthought in today’s educational environment, and its slide prompted the College Board to lower its bid and revise the exam.

Michigan decided that the saved funds would be worth overhaul-ing a system that has taken years to build. This fickle desicion is causing difficulties for students, especially because the state acted as ACT’s biggest advocate.

The all-about-ACT nature of the past six years has led some students to disregard the SAT as a whole. The state’s incessant need to make everything about the ACT puts the next three classes of juniors at risk as they are suddenly bombarded with a brand new test to tackle. Schools who were finally perfecting their ACT preparation systems and seeing improvements in their students’ scores will now be forced to start from scratch.

ACT Inc. is currently protesting the switch to the SAT. The com-pany claims the changes were informal and that they were not given time to rebid. According to ACT Inc., the $15.4 million difference in bids is because the ACT includes a writing portion and the SAT does not.

The state’s Department of Technology, Management and Budget will review the protest and make a recommendation to the state in a week and a half.

In light of possible negative repercussions of the switch, we feel both the ACT and SAT should be prepared for equally in a school setting. By making either test mandatory, the state puts schools in the position to emphasize a particular test. Instead, students should be encouraged to try both exams and focus on the one they feel best measures their individual abilities.

The Michigan Department of Education should encourage schools and teachers to emphasize both tests for students. In all likeli-hood, the contract could change again in the next three years. If the possibility of another switch exists, the state should focus on both exams in the meantime to reduce the disruption.

If students are both psychologically and academically prepared for both exams, another switch won’t cause such an upheaval.

ANU SUBRAMANIAM

4 – North Pointe – Friday, Jan. 16, 2015

FACES IN THE CROWDMackenzie Simon

At age two, most chil-dren are just acquiring their first language, but sopho-more Mackenzie Simon was acquiring two. Her family moved to Germany when her father’s job transferred.

“I spoke English at home. None of my family knows German, so I was the only one. I would just speak German with my friends,” Simon said. “I definitely lost some of it, but I’m in AP German right now. I’m sort of fluent, I guess.”

While Simon still speaks the language when she visits Germany, her memories are vague.

“I remember the kindergarten I went to, and I remember the town and stuff because we’ve visited,” Simon said. “There was a big town square that had a bunch of shops and res-taurants, and there was a big fountain in the middle.”

Simon visited most recently this past summer.

“Its a lot of fun to see everyone I grew up with,” Simon said. “I would love to go back anytime.”

Kitty Clark For freshman Kitty Clark,

scuba diving killed two birds with one stone. She not only overcame a fear, but scratched an item off her bucket list. Clark decided to go to a scuba center in Michi-gan and explore a giant pool with friends.

“It was this scuba shop somewhere near Wy-andotte about a half an hour away,” Clark said. “We were allowed to just (snorkel) around, and we had to find things at the bottom of the pool and stuff, so it was fun.”

Scuba diving can be an amusing and mind-less activity, but it can also be dangerous, and Clark experienced a haunting fear.

“I started drowning. I was trying too hard, and I was so involved with everything around me that I forgot to breathe, so I inhaled water, and it was a mess.”

Despite the initial scare, Clark admits she’ll do it again.

“Yes. It was an experience.”

Charlotte DuusThe bellowing voice of

freshman Charlotte Duus can be heard throughout the halls—but she isn’t sing-ing a typical pop anthem.

Duus has been yodel-ing since she learned two years ago.

“My classes, they like to hear me yodel, and so I do it a lot in choir,” Duus said. “I kind of yodel down the hall-ways when it’s a good time to so I don’t weird people out.”

Duus’ sister, sophomore Lolly Duus, pur-sued the hobby as well.

“I kind of got inspired by Lolly ‘cause she was doing it around the house, and I just started it. She just kind of stopped, and I just took over,” Duus said.

Duus wants to continue the hobby and hopes to perform downtown on the streets to entertain others one day.

“It’s just kind of in me. People sing and dance and act, but yodeling is special,” Duus said.

By Yena Berhane, Caitlin Bush & Emma Brock

ON CAMPUS

By Ritika SanikommuASSISTANT EDITOR

Born in Bucharest, Romania, French teacher Andreea Ciocovena-ru left her hometown to travel to the nation of opportunity when she was 18 years old.

“It’s a big city. It has about 2.5 mil-lion people. It is really easy to get around because we have a lot of pub-lic transportation. We have a trolley bus, a tramway, a metro. It’s devel-oping a lot right now. We have an Arc de Triomphe in Bucharest. It used to be called “the little Paris” at the beginning of the 1900s, so it is very similar to Paris,” Ciocovenaru said.

When she became an adult, Cio-covenaru’s family moved to the United States. She adopted many American cultural norms after her move but maintains some of her Ro-manian traditions.

“We have something really cool—we have a name day. Because my first name is Andreea, I also celebrate (that) just like my second birthday. We also have a cake. We have pres-ents. It’s a lot of fun. It’s (for) a saint, so for Saint Andrew. Usually your name is going to be based on the day

that you are born ... I was born in Oc-tober, but Saint Andrew is Novem-ber, so it is kind of close.”

Ciocovenaru is a self-proclaimed foodie and enjoys a myriad of cui-sines, but she is especially fond of her traditional Romanian dishes.

“I like sushi. That is my favor-ite. I like Thai food, I like Indian food, I like Romanian food (such as) stuffed cabbage (and) polenta. We eat a lot of pork—like everything from the pork—we eat the skin, too,” Ciocovenaru said. “They make this thing—not a lot of people like it—you basically have pork, and you put jello—not sweet jello, it’s a savory thing—you put it on top of the pork, and you make it salty. If you are not used to it, you are not going to like it.”

A staple of her childhood, Roma-nian family gatherings still bring Ciocovenaru enjoyment.

“We usually decorate a Christ-mas tree on Christmas Eve, (and) we usually have carolers. They’re Ro-manian, so we had about 10 people, singing carolers, and we told sto-ries,” Ciocovenaru said.

French teacher Andreea Ciocovenaru sits with her dad on the Spanish steps in Italy. “I love to travel. I love southern France. I love Barcelona, it’s one of my favorite spots. I really loved Venice. That was my number one place to go,” Ciocovenaru said.

French teacher Andreea CiocovenaruFIVE MINUTES WITH

Are you superstitious?I am superstitious, I am. So if I leave home and I forgot something, I’m like ‘Darn I have to come back,’ and that is not a good sign. Romanians in general are very superstitious. I am trying not to be, it can get a hold of me.

Any favorite actors or movies?My favorite actors are, in the following order, Brad Pitt, Ryan Gosling and one of my favorite actresses is Marion Cotillard. I also like Julia Rob-erts. My two favorite movies are Pretty Woman and The Notebook. Every time I see that movie, I cry. Every single time. It’s horrible.

Any memorable travel experiences?Well, three years ago when I traveled with my two best friends, and it was one of the best trips ever because we did not plan any-thing. We did have hotels and the planes. Every three days, we would take a plane to go to a different city. So we traveled to three different countries in 10 days. It was so relaxing and fun. We tried so many types of food and met a lot of people. It was beauti-ful. It was great. We took a bunch of trains and almost missed some flights, but it was the best thing ever.

What is something that changed your life?When I came back from France, I was very confused. So I started subbing, and I made some friends, and one them said, ‘Have you ever tried this book? It’s called The Alche-mist.’ That was the book that changed my life. It made me see things in a more positive light.

ANDREEA CIOCOVENARU

The lunchroom assistants days of food preparation and sales begin as early as 6 a.m.

Behind the lunch lineBy Alanna Sparks & Ava Deloach

PHOTO EDITORS

LEFT: Lunchroom assistant Anne Coates arrives early to school to cook and prepare food for lunches. She works continually through the morning and into the lunch hour. “It starts early, at about six in the morning, and it’s very busy until we get it out here for the kids to eat,” Coates said.

BELOW: Before manning the register, lunchroom assistant Irene Cummins arranges salad boxes on lunch carts. “I put out the cold stuff. The prepping I do is just putting out the milk,” Cummins said.

BELOW LEFT: Lunchroom as-sistant Irene Cummins typi-cally works behind the cash register, rolling and counting money earned after the two lunches. Though she enjoys this, she prefers to work with students. “I like the kids,” Cummins said. “I like work-ing with the kids.”

BELOW RIGHT: Lunchroom assistant Anne Coates re-stocks the lunch counter. The lunchroom assistants also help with school catering. “We do catering in there too, so a lot of times we will get an order for catering as long as it comes in before 9 A.M,” Coates said. “All around the school, sometimes people will call and want 30 sand-wiches with coffee or juice or water, so we have to prepare that, too.”

LIFE North Pointe – Friday, Jan. 16, 2015 – 5

Retro ressurection

As she cues her students to lie on their backs for final resting pose, junior Julia Babcock ends her yoga class by reading her class a passage. The scent of aromatherapy spray is in the air, and Babcock leaves with a refreshed outlook for her day.

“It really helps to kind of clear your mind but also center your thoughts. It helps focus on your breathing, so you just kind of relax. I get out, and I just feel so mellow,” Babcock said. “I feel like I can be nicer to people, and I feel like I have so much more joy to give out when I’m peaceful with myself.”

Babcock entered her first yoga class four years ago and in-stantly caught the yoga bug. She became more dedicated after she joined Living Waters Yoga a year and a half ago, and since then, yoga has become a part of her daily routine.

“At first I did it just because my mom was doing it way, way back. Now, a lot of my friends are doing it, and it seemed like a good way to exercise, and then immediately I kind of fell in love with it,” she said. “My Young Life leader, Jackie (Stevens), works there, so I like going to her classes. Then I started going to other classes, and I just love the teachers there and the environment. It’s just awesome.”

Stevens saw potential in Babcock’s yoga performance when she became a regular yogi.

“I just feel like her passion for life makes her qualified to be a good teacher, and she loved it, and it kind of all clicked right away,” Stevens said. “Then this opportunity came up that she could get certified, and I think all the stars kind of aligned, and it all fit really well for her to instruct.”

Becoming a certified yoga instructor meant traveling to a farm in Lake Odessa, Michigan for a 17-day intensive class last summer.

“Every day was doing lots of yoga and studying and book-work and stuff. It was really educational and cool. I loved it. It was hard, but good hard,” Babcock said. “I was the youngest by a long shot, so it was intimidating, but good.”

The class proved to be beneficial for Babcock, as job oppor-tunities arose soon after she became certified.

“They asked me to demo at Lululemon, and I started being able to teach. I’m teaching for the Liggett boys hockey team now, so all this fun stuff that I never would have gotten to do if I didn’t get trained,” she said.

Teaching the boys yoga has broadened Babcock’s teaching methods.

“I was so apprehensive at first to do it because it’s like, they’re boys, and I’ve never taught that kind of yoga before, so I wasn’t really sure, but they’re super fun and not weird,” Babcock said.

“It was definitely a learning experience though, like I had to teach in the hockey rink. Last time I did it while a game was go-ing on, so I had to scream. Just adjusting to your environment, I guess, is a good way to help me learn how to become a better teacher.”

Babcock teaches three classes a week at Living Waters but also subs there when needed. Oftentimes, friends and family attend her classes, which provides a new experience in itself.

“I really love going to her classes,” junior Lauren Beach said. “We usually always make eye contact, and we’ll giggle or some-thing, or I’ll fall right down on my mat, and she’ll laugh at me, but she has to remain professional. So it’s hard, but it’s funny.”

Since it’s uncommon for high schoolers to instruct, Babcock takes extra care to be professional. However, she does not view her age as a disadvantage.

“I feel like it’s ... put me ahead of the game for future oppor-tunities in yoga. I’ll be able to have this on my resume, and I started early, so I get to learn now, which is really cool,” Babcock said, “I honestly think I’ll be a little old woman doing yoga.”

Andrea ScapiniCO-MANAGING EDITOR

Head over heels for yoga

PHOTO COURTESY OF MARIA TSAKOS

The resurgence of vinyl holds musi-cal and emotional value for senior Will Lorenz.

Records have always been a part of his life, but the trend is new for most of today’s youth. “I don’t remember the first record I ever listened to, but my fa-

vorite recent release is FUZZ, self-titled, because I bought it without hearing it first and was completely blown away and listened to it hundreds

of times over the summer, and not many albums put out recently have made me feel that way,” Lorenz said. Junior Dalaney Bradley attributes the comeback to accessibility.

“I think it’s coming back because they’ve started putting new music onto vi-nyls, and it has become easier to buy. Like at Urban Outfitters and other stores they

sell new stuff on vinyl,” Bradley said. Although records appear to be soaring in relevancy, they have provided a steady sys-

tem of music for many years.“The reason I don’t really consider it much of a comeback is because all of the record stores around

here have been there for decades and haven’t changed much. Bands were releasing music on vinyl still, and you could buy a record at any show,” Lorenz said. “But recently big chain stores like Best Buy, Hot Topic and Urban Outfitters started selling records, which makes them more accessible maybe to more people, which seems like some kind of comeback.”

Senior Steven Licari believes that comeback is due to the new “hipster” trend and thrifting fad. “I don’t know. I think they’re becoming a little more popular because of people trying to become

hipsters. More companies are trying to sell to that market because it’s becoming more popular,” Licari said. “People are super into thrifting now. Buying records is kinda similar if you are into older music.”

Whether it’s a true comeback or a lingering relic, record players serve a specific musical purpose for Lorenz. “I don’t prefer it as a way of listening to music because it serves a completely different purpose

than iPods or CDs, but to me, it sounds way better hearing music through actual speakers than through cheap headphones or an iHome,” Lorenz said.

The sound of a spinning turntable presents a whole new clarity to music for Licari. “I like the sound of vinyl more. It’s more full, and you can hear all the instrumentation,

things I can’t easily pick up on a digital copy with my headphones. It’s more fun than just downloading something. Going to a store and seeing good music with big album covers

you recognize is exciting,” Licari said. “With a nice speaker system, you can hear all that the artist intended you to hear, and it’s pretty cool.”

For Lorenz, records are just part of the full practice of music. “I like records because the experience of going to a record store with friends and not knowing what I’ll find that day and finding some-

thing cheap or rare or discovering something new is more fun than trying to find music on iTunes or even ordering a

physical copy online,” Lorenz said.

ABOVE: Junior Julia Babcock demonstraights a yoga pose for the camera. “My leader, Jackie, and the women at Living Waters, and my parents were really supportive and they really urged me to do it which was huge because without their support I wouldn’t have been able to it obviously because I couldn’t pay for it myself,” Babcock said. “I’m really thankful that they were so supportive of me wanting to do that and not thinking I was crazy. I was kind of nervous about being away from home during the sum-mer for that long, but I got home and I was just so glad that I went.”

Emily Martinbianco & Brittney HernandezWEB SECTION EDITOR & LIFE EDITOR

PHOTOS COURTESY OF JULIA BABCOCK

Junior Dalaney Bradley and seniors Will Lorenz and Steven Licari prefer listening to vinyl records, which have begun a trend in recent years

LEFT: Julia Babcock and Young Life leader Jackie Stevens pose together at yoga certification class in Lake Odeessa, Michigan. “She didn’t skip a beat and was so on and just super fluid in her teaching, which is so cool among a group of women. She’s the youngest one and was probably one of the most calm and collected teachers, which is really cool. She kind of just went and did her thing,” Stevens said.

6 – Friday, Jan. 16, 2015 – North Pointe

REVIEWS

TV SHOW

AGENT CARTER

The United States In 1946, the United State is recovering from World War II, is mourning the first fallen Avenger, Captain America. In Agent Carter, ABC’s newest

Marvel Comics collaboration, actress Hay-ley Atwell reprises her role as Peggy Carter from Captain America: The First Avenger.

Agent Carter recently returned from the war in the wake of losing her love Steve Rod-gers (Chris Evans). It’s difficult for Carter to be accepted by society as a female soldier, so she must keep her skills and place of em-ployment under wraps.

The Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR) is the best intelligence agency in existence, even though it flies under the radar of the American people. The SSR is better known as ‘the boys club’. As the only woman in the Reserve, Carter is stereotyped as too frag-ile, even though she is the most skilled in combat.

Howard Stark, founder of Stark Indus-tries, America’s ally and Tony Stark’s fa-ther, has been framed for selling weapons on the black market, threatening national security. The genius millionaire entrusts Peggy Carter and his butler Edwin Jarvis (James D’Arcy) with clearing his name and saving the nation.

Agent Carter has a great plot that leaves viewers wanting more. Emmy award-win-ning designer Giovanna Ottobre-Melton brings out the flare of the 1940s classic look. Hayley Atwell and James D’Arcy up-hold the original standards of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s original comics.

Agent Carter is Marvel Comics’ next hit show. The movie Captain America: Winter Soldier left viewers wondering about the origins of S.H.I.E.L.D., which Agent Carter successfully explains. The show airs Tues-days at 9 p.m. on ABC.

Agent Carter; 2015; TV-14; ABC.

By Lauren Sexton

WWW.IO9.COM

APP

LOONEY TUNES DASH

V i v a c i o u s Bugs Bunny and his evil foe, El-mer Fudd, are making a come-back in the high-speed chase of Looney Tunes Dash. Released on Dec. 14, 2014

by the company Zynga, this free game takes players back to their childhood memories of Looney Tunes cartoons. Players must make Bugs Bunny jump, duck and run around objects to evade Elmer Fudd as he attempts to hunt the clever rabbit down.

The app is just another version of Temple Run with Bugs Bunny as the main character and Elmer Fudd as his antagonist. The player uses the same controls as in Temple Run to move the main character and the same star system to rate the number of points achieved. The user also has to avoid the obstacles in Bugs’ path. Both apps have the same backdrop of the pro-tagonist sprinting through a wooded area. These similarities will disappoint many users.

The game does have a few extra fea-tures to it. Unlike in Temple Run, the runner can progress to consecutive levels. Users can also win free prizes or power-ups after each level to increase Bugs’ speed and gain additional points. These features make the game more enjoyable but don’t compensate for the game’s boring premise.

Overall, Looney Tunes Dash is a com-plete disappointment. If you’re look-ing for an original, entertaining game, this one isn’t for you. It’s too similar to Temple Run. It may be better to “dash” on to the next game before considering this one.

Looney Tunes Dash; Zynga; Dec. 14, 2014; Android and Apple; Free

By Gowri Yerramalli

WWW.IPHONE.MOB.ORG

ALBUM

DAYS OF GOLD

Jake Owen’s Days of Gold is based on sum-mer. The only problem is that it’s January in Michigan. The album’s whole concept is not attractive when

warm weather is so far away.Days of Gold is just Jake Owen. Hear-

ing his voice for all 12 songs gets an-noying on repeat. Maybe a guest artist would have spiced up the album and made it more interesting.

Then, like every album, there is al-ways one song that gets skipped. “What We Ain’t Got” is that song, describing how everyone wants something and they can’t get to it. The lyric “we ain’t happy where we are” might not be the case for everyone. Plus, the song doesn’t fit with the rest of the album. It’s super slow, dragged out and feels like it’s five minutes long.

Overall, the songs do give off cheer-ful vibes. “Beachin’” has summer writ-ten all over it. It has a great beat in the back with snaps at some parts. One lyric is “having coke cans,” and the song fea-tures the noise of a can opening. The al-bum’s overall tone embraces the idea of having fun with your friends and doing crazy things.

A number of songs actually start off sounding like pop songs. Unfortunately, this is disappointing because the begin-ning should set up the tone for the rest of the song. Paying $10 for a country al-bum and only to receive crappy pop in-tros isn’t worth it. This album contains no pure country.

Days of Gold is average. It’s not neces-sary to buy all twelve songs. Save some money and just look up the fun, fast-paced songs on YouTube.

Jake Owen; Days of Gold; RCA Records Nashville; 2013

By Allison Lackner

WWW.KICKS99.NET

MOVIE

NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: SECRET OF THE LOST TOMB

The epic sto-ry of museum exhibits com-ing to life has returned again for its third in-stallment in The Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb.

And just like before, much of the sto-ryline revolves around the Tablet of Ahkmenrah, the magic Egyptian tablet that brings everything to life.

But that’s one of only a few similari-ties. This time, there are a couple more faces joining the museum action, in-cluding Tilly (Rebel Wilson), the secu-rity guard at the British Museum, who was part of the a cappella group in the infamous movie Pitch Perfect.

Along with the new faces, there is also a unique spice of comedy which makes the film stand out a bit from the others. But you can still find the famil-iar antics along with the new. The com-edy wasn’t hilarious, just mildly funny.

The movie also includes some meaningful concepts, including the themes on family. Throughout the film, viewers get to see different family situations and how they are dealt with.

Though the movie’s content was en-joyable, the one thing that really makes this movie stand out is just one name: Robin Williams. While watching, some viewers are aware this was his last pro-duction. As such, a sense of sadness permeated the theater, especially to-wards the end of the movie.

Although seeing the late Robin Wil-liams was slightly upsetting, Night at the Museum: Secret of the Lost Tomb was still a delightful film to watch.

The Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, 2014, directed by Shawn Levy; PG

By Josie Bennett

WWW.FILMORIA.CO.UK

UNBROKENWWW.CONSERVATIVECHRIS

TIANUSA.BLOGSPOT.COM

AN INSPIRING WAR MOVIE SOARS UNDER DIRECTOR ANGELINA JOLIE’S WINGS

By Emily MartinbiancoWEB SECTION EDITOR

The real-life tale of war survivor Louis Zamperini, a young bombardier during World War II, is exhibited in cinemas across the world in the new film Unbroken. The awe-inspiring story about the strength of human spirit was depicted by director Angelina Jolie and her talented troupe of cast members.

The journey begins in the 1940s in a World War II war zone during an air attack. Zam-perini and the other members of the Army Air Corps crew aboard the aircraft exchange witty banter while bullets and bombs pierce the air. After the plane’s successful aerial escape, the audience is introduced to the main charac-ter’s previous life.

Zamperini, a mischievous child, had been in-spired by his older brother, Pete, to run track. Driven by his newfound purpose and pride, Zamperini sprints his way to Olympic success and competes in the 1936 Berlin Olympics.

Just as Zamperini is entering the train to leave his family for the Olympic Games, his brother de-livers a line that resonates through the rest of the film: “A moment of pain is worth a lifetime of glo-ry.”

Zamperini doesn’t achieve glory at the games. But, despite leaving medal-less, he broke records and proved his strength in character. He claimed that this Olympics was only his first, and in the next, he will dominate.

In a twist of fate, Zamperini must experience far more than a moment of pain as his time at war is unfathomably gruesome and heart-breaking. Zamperini stays faithful to the line despite it all and holds out for his moment of glory.

Flashing back to the war, the rest of this man’s remarkable story includes 47 days lost at sea in a life raft with the two other survivors of a plane crash (all the while, struggling with starvation, dehydration, exposure, storms, Japanese shootings and shark attacks). This miserable journey continues with confinement, heavy abuse and cruelty as Zamperini becomes a prisoner at a Japanese war camp.

Despite the controversy over director Angelina Jolie’s role in making the film, pro-duced a beautiful, insightful and gut-wrenching movie out of the tremendous story. The most notable of her feats for this film is the cast she compiled.

Her casting for the roles produced a crew of incredibly talent-rich actors. With big shoes to fill, Jolie recruited actors like Jack O’Connell (as Louis Zamperini), Domhnall Gleeson (as Russell Allen ‘Phil’ Phillips), Garrett Hedlund (as John Fitzgerald) and Finn Wittrock (as Francis ‘Mac’ McNamara). Jolie even went as far as casting a popular Japa-nese rockstar, Miyavi, for the role of Zamperini’s tormentor at the camp, Mutsushiro

Watanabe. This choice paid off as the star portrayed the role with incredible ease and talent, on par with his professional actor counterparts.

This cast’s dedication and ability were apparent from first glance, as each had to starve themselves into the state of the real-life soldiers and depict horrific scenes of pain and death. They reproduced the emotions of the men they stood in the shoes of with

raw and strenuous authenticity, never disrespecting or concealing the realities of war.

The story, though an incredible one, was long-await-ed. It had been floating around as a possibility in Hol-

lywood for decades until Laura Hillenbrand released a book about Zam-perini’s tale in 2010. This was the movie’s launching pad (even sporting the same name as the novel), but some criticize that the film doesn’t

begin to touch the amazing feats the man overcame and

that there are portions of his story missing.The most apparent problem for the viewer is the lack of rea-

soning behind his survival. In the book, it’s clear that Zam-perini’s faith in God, along with his will to live (among other

things) allowed him to survive, but the movie only scraped the surface of what should have been the most impor-

tant concepts. In old age, the real-life Zamperini was able to run in his second Olympics (not com-

petitively) that were ironically placed in Ja-pan. His forgiveness and survival allowed him to live to tell his stunning story, and now Jolie and her cast have shown his jour-ney to the world.

Despite the hiccup in Jolie’s vision, the story was well played out. This must-see movie is a story that needed to be told. The unfathomable hardship Zamperini faced unleashed a tragically inspiring story of the human spirit and forgiveness.

SIDEWALKHUSTLE.COM

Unbroken (2014)

Directed by Angelina Jolie

PG-13; 2 hours, 17 min.

North Pointe – Friday, Jan. 16, 2015 – 7SPORTS

Athletic secretary Laura Huff and her husband Dave Huff completed an Ironman triathalon in Busselton, Australia on Dec. 7

THE HUFFS’ BIG ADVENTUREAnu SubramaniamCO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Standing on the edge of the Busselton Jetty in Western Australia, athletic secretary Laura Huff counted to 30 before jumping into the Indian Ocean and began her first Iron-man triathlon with her husband, Dave Huff.

“You are standing on the beach in your wetsuit, and you are standing there feeling anxious, and my husband looked at me. He said, ‘Alright, just count to 30, and let the crowd thin out,’” Laura said. “So what I did to calm myself down, I just said, ‘Okay. I’m just going to count to 30, and I’m going to walk in. I know I can swim the distance.’”

Swimming is one of three disciplines in an Ironman triathlon. In addition to swimming 2.4 miles, the Huffs also had to bike 112 miles and run a full marathon to complete the race within its 17-hour time limit.

After enjoying small-scale triathalons, the duo became interested in signing up for a triathalon.

“A couple of summers ago, we started do-ing some sprint triathlons — small ones, half-mile swim, 12-15 mile bike ride and a 5K run — so we started doing these small ones and had a lot of fun doing that. Then we tried an Olympic distance, which is basically double that, so my husband decided that he thought we could do a full one. And so then he started to try to convince me to do it,” Laura said. “He did all the research and kind of made his case, and he was going to do it. So I decided that ba-sically training for an Ironman is like a part-time job added to your regular day, and so I thought, if I’m going to spend time with him, I’m going to have to train for it, too.”

Deciding to join her husband and getting to pick the location of the place they raced, Laura began researching different Ironman locations.

“I looked at all the full Ironman races, and what I did was try and find the flattest, fast-est course that I could because I thought that would give me the best chance of finishing be-cause it’s such a monumental task,” Laura said.

To help prepare them for the 140.6 mile race ahead of them, Huff’s husband Dave created a training schedule on Google Calendar to guide the couple’s workouts for the next year.

“Having to train all the time was what was hard. We were targeting 15-20 hours a week for working out, and that’s tough to allocate into our lives. Last year alone, in preparation for the Ironman, we ran over 500 miles, rode probably 2000 miles, swam over 100 miles … and that’s actually light for the really competitive tri-athletes,” Dave said via email.

Both agree that sharing each other’s company while training made it easier for them to stick to their schedule and made the hard work more enjoyable.

“Imagine leaving the house three to four nights a week to go workout and taking off every Saturday to go for a three- to four-hour run or five- to six-hour ride while leaving your best friend at home,” Dave said. “Laura is tough, and she pushed me to keep our training schedule many times when I wanted to skip sessions. Maybe we pushed each other on some days, but mostly, it was her pushing me to get moving.”

The two also enjoyed the support system they found at Frasier Cycle Club.“Every Friday we would go out to Island Lake Recreation Area, and some days we would

meet up with one or two of the Frasier Bike Club members, and some weeks there were like 10 people or 12 people there, and we would swim and bike. We’d spend the whole day because I had Fridays off in the summer, so we would spend all day Friday doing ... ‘bricks,’ where you swim, bike, and run, but shorter distance,” Laura said.

To make sure that their bodies could handle the physical stress of an Ironman, the Huffs signed up for different races that had equal distances to each discipline in the Ironman.

“We scheduled a marathon because the Ironman is a full marathon, we did a 5K swim last summer, and then we did a number of 100 mile bike rides, or close to 100 mile bike rides, so that we could know that we could do all the distances,” Laura said. “And then so we signed up for a half Ironman in April. We did that in New Orleans. And then we did another half Ironman at the end of summer in Muskoka, Canada.”

The year of training the duo endured was tested December 7 on race day. Dave com-pleted the race in 13:54:06, and Laura completed it in 16:15:29.

“It was almost therapeutic, so I just kept swimming, and it was actually my favorite part of the race, the swim ... the weath-er was great. The wind, some-times it can be really windy there, and the wind wasn’t too bad ... but (then) my GPS went out on me, so I didn’t know what my pace was. I didn’t know how fast I was going, so I was worried that maybe I used up too much energy, but then I got off,” Laura said. “The vol-unteers there were amazing. They help you with all your transitions and stuff like that. They helped you get dressed, eat and everything. And then I got on to the run. Surprisingly, the run was the hardest part for me. And that’s usually my best discipline of the three, but it was so hard, and it was hot, so you know, I just trudged on and finished,”

When the two crossed the fin-ished line almost two hours apart, they found that they shared the same feeling and were welcomed with the same reaction.

“Kids were reaching out for high fives, music was play-ing, everyone was cheering and the announcers have this thing where they yell out over the PA, ‘Dave Huff, you are an Ironman,’” Dave said. “It didn’t

seem to matter to anyone what place you were in … they were genuinely happy and supportive

of everyone who finished … that was cool. I was tired, but you have so much adrenaline … and we were pretty well trained ... that you just want to soak it all in.”

For Huff, it was an additional joy seeing her husband waiting for her at the end of the race. “Coming around that last loop and getting that last wristband and knowing you only

have a quarter mile to go to finish, and you start getting choked up a little bit and then you get there, and you can hear the crowd cheering. You can see the lights. You kind of know you are there, and then you come down the chute. It’s just a sea of friendly faces, cheering people, and then I saw my husband because he finished,” Laura said. “I could hear his voice. I saw him, so I ran over and gave him a big hug, told him I loved him, and I just ran through the finish line ... it was just a great feeling, like I just accomplished some-thing really big. And then there was, again the great volunteers. They just scoop you up and take care of you after. It’s pretty cool.”

Go to NorthPointeNow.org for more about the Huff’s race experience including pictures and information about their trip to Australia.

Junior strives to achieve college gymnastics goal By Andrea ScapiniCO-MANAGING-EDITOR

Last year’s foot injury marked a major setback in junior Chandler Lynn’s continued effort to pursue college gymnastics.

“That put me back for this year because I’m a junior already trying to get college re-cruiting. You’re supposed to start a lot younger than that, but I’m just doing what I can right now,” Lynn said. “Getting injured is hard in gymnastics because you get so be-hind.”

The injury meant that Lynn had to revert back to level eight for another year rather than advancing onto level nine, a level more ideal for college recruitment.

“When you’re doing it, you’re sometimes like, ‘I’m so tired’ with all the conditioning and endurance stuff, and you’re like, ‘This is really hard. I just wanna take a break,’” Lynn said. “But when you physically cannot do the sport, it’s so hard watching everyone doing it and wanting to do a flip so bad but can’t.”

Lynn was first introduced to gymnastics when she was a toddler at a birthday party and fully committed to the sport at age six.

“I loved getting new skills, and I loved the endurance of it and the skill of learning new things,” Lynn said. “When I’m performing, it’s kind of really scary because you don’t wanna mess up, but you don’t wanna think that in your head, or else you’re gonna mess up. You just have to pretend like it’s a practice.”

Despite her love of gymnastics, Lynn sometimes feel overwhelmed by the rigorous schedule it brings.

“With homework and stuff, it’s really hard. I used to go to my old gym and practiced until 8:45 at night, so I got home at like 9:30 and had to do homework and stuff, so it’s really stressful. But at the gym, I’m not really thinking about that until I get home.”

Now, Lynn competes at Hunt’s Gymnastics in Harrison Township, where she prac-tices from 3 to 7:30 p.m. during the week and 8 a.m. through 1 p.m. each Saturday.

“There’s always times when you can’t get a skill, and you’re like, ‘Ugh I just want to quit.’ My mom always told me that I wasn’t allowed to quit until I got the skill that I was struggling with because then once you get the skill, you’re like, ‘I love gymnastics again.’ So she never let me quit or give up on it,” Lynn said.

Lynn’s mom, Justine Lynn, understands the difficulty that the commitment brings but sees value in Chandler’s gymnastics.

“I know my daughter better than anyone, obviously, and she just gets down on her-self, so I know that if she put her mind to it that she could eventually get it. She just needs to believe in herself,” Justine said. “With any kid who does sports, I think it’s great. It keeps them out of trouble, too, if they have something to focus on.”

Chandler also sees her sister, senior Justine Lynn, as a major supporter. She says that since Justine received a soccer scholarship, it inspires her to strive for a

college scholarship as well.“Because we’re always at our sports, we don’t really see each other that much, but we

always have something to talk about about it because we can relate to each other,” her sister said. “I couldn’t do what she does. It’s crazy. I love going to her meets, and she gets really into it, and she’s really good, so I like it.”

Chandler recognizes the determination needed to earn a scholarship but is hoping her work proves to be worthwhile.

“My problem is believing in myself,” she said. “I just have to remember to believe in myself because I’m the only one that stops me from being good. I can’t hold myself back.”

CCCOURTESY OF LAURA HUFF

Athletic secretary Laura Huff and her husband, Dave, smile proudly with their bikes at the airport follow-ing their race. “It was like being a celebrity…now I think I know how sports heroes feel. The entire town of Bussleton was focused on this event (1 out of 9 citizens volunteered to work that day) and we were pampered and treated as well as the professional athletes who were there,” Dave said.

Junior Chandler Lynn does a split jump during her beam routine while compet-ing at a gymnastics meet.

COURTESY OF CHANDLER LYNN

8 – North Pointe – Friday, Jan. 16, 2015 FEATURE

Anxiety

WHAT IS ANXIETY?In general terms, anxiety is the feeling of fear, unease, and/or worry. In psychiatric terms, it can be used to refer to an actual nervous disorder which is characterized (as most disorders are) by an excessive or con-stant display of fearful emotion. Everyone at some point has felt nervous or stressed out, but as midterms approach, more and more students find themselves searching for ways to deal with stress. Anxiety is not just being stressed out. While this infog is meant to inform you about actual anxiety disorders the second half of the page could be helpful to anyone trying to stay grounded in a haze of approaching assessments.

Panic Disorders

Diagnosed when a person worries exces-

sively about various every-day problems, usually with-out something provoking the chronic anxiety, for six months. Severe anxiety can

affect a person’s social life and job.

Generalized Anxiety

irregular heartbeat

feelings of unease dry mouth

shortness of breath

inability to hold still and be calm

muscle tension

cold or sweaty hands

upset stomach

twitches

headaches

trouble concentrating

irritability

FEELINGS

Social Anxiety

Phobias OCD

PTSD

Panic attacks are sud-den, debilitating spells of

extreme anxiety symptoms. They’re so severe they are oc-casionally mistaken for heart

attacks. A person is diagnosed with a panic disorder when the attacks frequently

disrupt life.

Defined as an over-whelming anxiety or fear a

person feels in either a specif-ic social situation, such as talk-ing to people or raising his/her hand in class. People who have

social anxiety may even be fearful around close

friends and family.

An irrational fear of a specific situation, object

or type of person, most often things that aren’t realistic or dangerous. Some of the most

common phobias include arachnophobia (the fear of

spiders) and aviophobia (the fear of flying).

Characterized by persis-tent, upsetting thoughts and

compulsive rituals, like repeat-edly saying or touching some-thing in an attempt to control anxiety. These rituals are in-

cessant and agitating, and they interfere with dai-

ly life.

An anxiety that devel-ops after a traumatizing

or distressing event. In most cases, PTSD is established after a person has been affected by harm, whether by rape, tor-

ture, kidnap, child abuse, accidents, bombing, natu-

ral disaster or war.

Ask how you can help and take time to listen to the response.

Be patient and respectful. Real-ize you don’t know exactly what they’re going through, so it’s important to remain nonjudge-mental and supportive even if you don’t understand why they’re upset.

Learn about your friend’s disorder. It will help you better understand what they are going through.

Encourage professional help, whether from a counselor, a therapist or a professional like a doctor or teacher.

Let them know that they can call anytime, anywhere.

Be forgiving. There will be ad-vances and setbacks when treat-ing anxiety, so be prepared for both. Don’t take harsh words they may say personally. Be proud when they’ve accomplished a goal.

Spend some time outdoors with your friend. Stay active—exercise is known to help remedy anxiety.

Be yourself. Your friend asked you to support him or her for a rea-son.

Neglect your own mental health and let anxiety affect you as well. When you’re being supportive for a great amount of time, it’s easy to forget about your own issues.

Bring up the topic of anxiety often. Let them bring it up first, unless you think they are in pos-sible danger.

Force them to do anything they aren’t comfortable with.

DON’T

HOW TO HELP

Undermine their disorder. Anxiety is a real issue, it’s not just jitters before a test.

Make them feel guilty for be-ing anxious or withdrawn. They needs support, not criticism, and making them feel ashamed about their mental health may worsen the situation.

Expect immediate results. Treat-ing and controlling anxiety can take time and energy.

Give up hope. Remind yourself and your friend to stay positive because anxiety is one of the most treatable conditions today.

United States Population

Phobias Social anxiety

OCD

� Nervousness about an excessive amount of homework or before a test. � Increased heart rate or shakiness

before a performance or presentation in front of the class.

� Insomnia after a breakup or an em-barrassing event from the day.

� Self-consciousness in an awkward social situations such as going to a party

where you don’t know anyone. � Making sure a place is safe or clean when in a dangerous or

hazardous area.

what it is and how to copeBreathe

Exercise

Talk about your anxiety

with someone you trust

Reduce caffeine intakeStress

coping activities like

yoga or meditation

By Emma Puglia & Audrey KamWEB MANAGING EDITOR & SECTION EDITOR

% affected by anxiety disorders (18%)

Panic disorder

Generalized anxiety disorder

PTSD

Stay healthy, drink water and get sleep

Surround yourself with

positive people

Write feelings in a journal

Healthy distractions like listening to music,

being with family or friends or reading a

book to stop focusing on the anxiety of the

moment

SYM

PTOM

S

free appCalm is a free app to help with anxiety management

COPI

NG

STRA

TEGI

ES

GAINAX.CO.JP

anxiety by the numbers:

MAYOCLINIC.ORG

CALMCLINIC.COM EVERYDAYHEALTH.COM

PSYCHOLOGY.ORG.

ADAA.ORG

ADAA.ORG

inability to sleep