T a i p e i a m e r i c a n S c h o o l

Blue & Gold

“I am always touched by seeing my projects completed,” said Mr Yao, founder and head architect at Artech Architects.

He looked around at his latest creation, a light-filled Science and Technology Center, a project very different from his landmark Taiwan buildings such as the Hsinchu High-Speed Rail Station or the stunning Langyang Museum.

Mr Yao was one of the dignitaries at the dedication ceremony held September 28 in the new gym. He joined Mr Winston Town, Chair of the Board of Directors, and Dr Sharon Hennessy, Superintendent, in cutting the

ribbon to officially open the building. The ceremony, almost

p o s t p o n e d b y T y p h o o n Je lawat , was held ins ide

the new gym, packed with hundreds of upper and

middle school students. B e c a u s e o f t h e

inclement weather, traditional Chinese firecrackers were lit outside. As a special treat, the Hong-Sheng Lion Dance Theater group also performed

j a spectacular Lion

Dance, fulfilling Dr Hennessy’s long-time dream of inviting the dance troupe to a school event.

Dr Town also read a congratulatory letter from a special guest who unfortunately was unable to attend the ceremony-President Ma. “With the completion of the new multi-functional education facilities where teachers can engage in more innovative ways of teaching, I believe that TAS students will

be further motivated to excel academically, socially, creatively, and physically...I very much look forward to seeing TAS students write hopeful new chapters in the history of Taiwan and the world,” the letter read.

According to Mr Yao, the building aimed to embrace open space. “We kept [it] low to create an efficient link to the center field and open space,” Mr Yao said. “As

you see, you are surrounded by nature, sky and mountains, instead of building blocks.”

The blonde wood stairways are very different from the gloomy functional B-Block stairwells. “The glazed triangular stairs near main campus have great natural lighting and also a view to the outdoors,” Mr Yao said. “At night, it’s like a lantern in the alley to lead people in, as a second gateway to TAS.”

Another special guest present at the ceremony was Mr Brent Christensen, Deputy Director at the American Institute of Taiwan (AIT), who previously worked for Dr William Stanton, who now teaches Political Science and Forensics at TAS, as well as English .

“I thought the dedication ceremony was very impress ive ,” Mr Chris tensen told Blue and Gold.“TAS is sort of the gold standard [in the community]. I think the bui lding wi l l demonstrate that TAS is continuing to reach new levels of excellence...it will ensure that the student body has the best technology and facilities available.”

Dr Hennessy wrapped up the ceremony with a challenge to students: she asked them to keep an eye out for a special surprise as they left the building. As students filed out onto the track, they turned around to see a huge, new mural of the TAS tiger emblazoned on the side of the new building.

by Berlin Cheng

Volume XIX, Issue II

Tech PageSee Page 8

Child ModelsSee page 3

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Lions dance and tigers roar for our new home

Photo courtesy of PhotoOps-Emily Wang (12)

by Valerie LinService and fun in Cambodia

In middle school, we had a daily bulletin board. In upper school, we have… a TV station?

Tiger TV is a student-run news broad-cast that is aired on the screens around school. They are used to inform students and other members of the TAS commu-nity about upcoming events and activities.

“It was originally a plan between me and XiaoYang (10)," says Alex Tai, one of the founders. "We were discussing something like a school bul-letin and then later on, Mr Gray came to us ask-ing if we wanted to do this thing [Tiger TV],” and so Tiger TV was born. The team consists of Alex Tai (10), Allen Hwu (10), Brandon Le (10), Duan-duan Hsieh (10), and XiaoYang Kao (10), with Mr Openshaw as the sponsor and resident guru.

“Brandon Le is the host, the rest of us write the script, edit, and film. Mr Open-shaw is kind [of] like the Director, he helps us when we work on the episodes; he gives us tips and advice about filming stuff,” Alex said.

Although it’s a small team, the members work together efficient-

ly to post a video story every week.They plan on Saturdays and Sundays,

shoot on Mondays, and then edit and air the show on Wednesdays. “I have to say that the whole process is driven by the group students," says Mr Openshaw. "I’m very impressed how dedicated they are into making this happen every week.”

Alex researches the stories and sets the ball rolling, “I write it on a Google doc. Duan-duan then writes them into short passages, and then we get together on Monday with print copies of the script. Brandon looks over them, takes some notes and then we just start filming.

Tiger TV updates the student body of any upcoming events but it’s also an op-portunity for those interested in broadcast journalism to produce their own stories.

In the near future, Tiger TV will be available on the new Blue and Gold On-line, giving the club a much wider audience.

Who knows? Maybe in the fu-ture, Tiger TV might even replace Mr Vandenboom’s Week Ahead emails.

Founders of Tiger TV: (left to right) Sara Chen (11), Laureen Liang (12), Janne Deng (11), Allen Hwu (10), Alex Tai (10), and Xiao Yang Kao (10) get ready for their close up.

NEW!

Photo courtesy of Mr Openshaw

Photo courtesy of Cecily Hale (11)

Photo courtesy of

Crystal Yin (11)

Every year, twenty-eight students have the opportunity to journey to Cambodia and make a difference. The Cambodia Service Trip isn’t just an average community service trip; it’s an experience that requires great dedication, both mentally and physically. The twenty-eight students have to build ten houses in the span of two days, a feat that seems quite daunting.

“I thought it was very intense,” Bridget Elly (11) said. “A lot of effort and patience was required. But it was [worth it] to see the villagers’ smiles and happiness when we finished building the houses.”

Visiting a third world country is a vastly new experience for most TAS students, “I learned to be grateful for everything after witnessing how the [Cambodians] are always so positive despite their poverty filled lives,” Joey Lim (11) said.

On the last day of their trip, many students did not want to leave and return to their busy TAS lives. The trip was one that no one could forget. “I thought it was a really great and unforgettable experience; I really enjoyed it,” Joey said. “I really recommend anyone to go on the trip, you won’t regret it.”

-Valerie Lin (11)

Photo courtesy of Cecily Hale (11)

News cubs on Tiger TV

Photo courtesy of PhotOps-Nick Yeh (12)

Photo courtesy of Mrs Lowman

Favorite Horror Movie

NewsBlue & Gold2 October 31, 2012

Senkaku Islands: Are they worth the angst? By Hannah Lin

The Blue&Gold asked Upper School students what their favorite classic horror movie was. The votes were relatively spread out, with The Exorcist (27%) just barely knocking out Friday the 13th (25%) from first place.

Af-

The Exorcist

Friday the 13th

The Grudge

The Shining

Texas Chain-saw Massacre

27%25%18%14%13%

The Blue & Gold is produced and distributed free of charge monthly during the academic year by the Journalism classes of Taipei American School, 800 Chung Shan N. Road, Section 6, Shih Lin, Taipei, Taiwan 111. The views expressed in the Blue & Gold are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect views of the school, its students, staff, faculty or administration. The Blue & Gold demonstrates leadership in the school community as a non-biased newspaper that is dedicated to maintaining jour-nalistic integrity, presenting timely information and coverage on events and issues affecting the school and community. In striving to create and produce a comprehensive school newspaper, the Blue & Gold website (www.blueandgoldonline.org) is dedicated to providing a greater voice to the members of the community. Speech is protected on the condition that it does not infringe on others and upholds the Taipei American School values of Honesty, Respect, Responsibility, and Kindness.

Blue & Gold

Editor-in-Chief: Meg SilsbyManaging Editor: Jinnie Khatri

VOLUME XIX ISSUE II October 2012

Berry SheuValerie LinJuliana ChangRachel KwakAlly SeoRebecca Tseng

Sectional Editors: Adrienne Shih Berlin ChengOnline Editor: Hannah Lin

Heyun JeongVivian LeeCarol ChenVergil HsuConner LinJodelle Lai

Advisor: Ron Bell

O n S e p t e m b e r f i f t h , a wa t e r f i g h t broke out between the Japanese Coast Guard a n d Ta i wa n e s e s h i p s o ve r t h e S e n k a k u I s -lands , known in Ta iwan as the Diaoyuta i s . T h a t a l m o s t s o u n d s f u n a n d p l a y f u l . However, the weapons used were not water balloons, but water cannons. This encoun-ter was a sign of rising escalation between China, Taiwan, and Japan over the long disputed islands. Recently, the conflict over the Senkaku Islands has been gaining more and more intensity.

Ta iwanese ac t iv -ists, many of them f i s h e r m e n , h a v e been sailing to the islands to plant Tai-wanese flags.

J a p a n “bought” the i s -lands from a Japa-nese couple living on them in Septem-ber . In response, thousands of Chi-nese jo ined ant i -Japanese r iots in

cities all over the mainland, holding mass demon-strations, burning the Japanese flag and hurling eggs, rocks, and bottles at the Japanese embassy.

“The longer it festers, the longer there are provocations on all sides,” warned Dr Stanton, TAS English teacher and former AIT Director (the equivalent to the U.S. ambassador). “And the more

likely it is that there will be an accident, or national fervor, will get aroused so much that it will lead to a further downturn in relations, which isn’t good for anyone in the region.”

Taiwan, Japan, and China all claim sov-ereignty over the islands. But who really owns them? “I’m not really sure,” said Joyce Lee (12), “but I do think we should be very careful about the issue because they’re so close to where we are and are directly related to us.”

According to Dr Stanton, “part of the problem is that there are historical claims, records, treaties and agreements that are conflicting.” Throughout the last hundred years, the Senkaku Islands have belonged to China, Japan, and the ROC in some form or another.

“The issue of proximity is also up in the air because of the Law of Sea, which is based on how far your shelf extends to the sea,” ex-plained Dr Stanton. “Mainland China’s coasts are a lot further from the islands than those of some of the other nations, not unlike their conflicting claims over the South China Sea.” With all the controversy surrounding the islands, it seems unlikely that there will be a long-lasting resolution any time soon. As of now, Dr Stanton believes in a temporary solution. “In my own view, and President Ma has hinted at this as well... the nations laying claim to the Senkakus should sit down and talk it over, and come up with a practical solution to divvying up fishing and min-eral rights… It’s better for everyone to get a share of it than no one.”

Concert Fever: Audrey Kuo’s (11) excitement about Maroon 5 did not stop at the concert on September 29. Eager to meet the talented heartthrob and lead singer of the band, Adam Levine, she went to their hotel in the early hours of the morning before school on October 1.

Maroon 5 Madness in Taipei

Photo courtesy of Sydney Chiles(12)

Taiwanese Trick or Treating By Jinnie Khatri

“It’s the most exciting time of the year,” says Sarah Wu (12). “Picking out a costume, getting ready for it, and getting all your friends together to plan out which houses to hit.” Sarah is not explaining how to break and enter. Instead she describes the build-up to America’s favorite holiday: Halloween. According to Sarah, who lived in California until she was nine, Halloween is the embodiment of everything a kid loves: costumes, decorations, candy, and more candy. “It’s like a buffet of candy,” she says. “The most exciting part was deciding if you were going to eat it all in one night or ration it out over the year.” Like many others who have moved from the States to Taiwan, Sarah is a little disappointed at the lack of Halloween spirit. But for those who are homesick for the traditional Halloween, all is not lost. Hidden in the corners of the Yang Ming Shan mountain is one of the few places in Taipei that celebrates the holiday in style. The families of those who work for the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), all of whom live on one street, treat-or-treat every year on Halloween, inviting their friends to join in.

Here, it bears some resemblance to the American Halloween, as the entire street is decorated, kids rush around from house to house, and parents answer the door dressed up in crazy costumes. “None of my friends had ever gone trick-or-treat-ing, so I took them with me for the first time. They loved it,” says Sydney Chiles (12). So despite the fact that in most of Taipei, Halloween is a night like every other, if you know the right place to go, a world of costumes and candy is just waiting

to be discovered.

Photo courtesy of Audrey Kuo (11)

Dr Stanton: “It’s better for everyone to get a share than no one.”

Sweet Success!: Sydney Chiles (12) relaxes after a night of trick or treating with her friends.

3Features Blue & GoldOctober 31, 2012

: Mr Peter KimballBy Jinnie Khatri

When he was in high school, Social Studies teacher Mr Peter Kimball wanted to be a ninja. Little did this scrawny little kid know that in a few years, not only would he be competing in the U.S. Nationals for Taekwondo, but he would also finish with two medals (silver for forms, bronze for sparring).

Mr Kimball’s interest in martial arts began long before he got the chance to pursue it. In fact, when he was in high school, his friends called him “Kimballsan” knowing about his passion. Maine provided few opportunities to train in martial arts in the 1980’s.

So when he got to Boston University, he seized the chance to take a martial arts class. “I was kind of bullied as a kid, kind of weak and scrawny,” says Mr Kimball, “and that always bothered me. So when I went to Boston University, I discovered they did have martial arts courses.”

After being selected for the BU taekwondo team four years running, Mr Kimball set out to train seriously to make the national team. In 1992, after years of dedication, he achieved an honor far greater than that of a black belt: a place at the U.S. Nationals.

“It always stunned me when I was successful at the Na-tionals,” recalls Mr Kimball. “I was always waiting for the next opponent to knock me out.” He obviously had nothing to worry about, however, as he finished in the top four in the country.

This incredible accomplishment earned him a spot on the U.S. National team, as well as an opportunity to train at the Colorado Springs Olympic Training Center. Although he did not end up getting a chance to go to the Olympics, Mr Kimball says the experience was a precious and unique one.

“It was a great experience and definitely taught me a lot about myself,” he says, “But it also made me realize that if I was going to train seriously, something had to give.”

At this point in his life, Mr Kimball was juggling graduate school and two part-time jobs on top of his taekwondo training. It was this fork in the road that made him rethink his priorities. Either choose to pursue taekwondo and sacrifice his education and personal relationships, or give it up.

“It was very difficult to manage and balance every-thing,” says Mr Kimball. “Ultimately I decided to give up the competitive side of it,” Mr Kimball says. “I realized that the amount of time and energy that would be necessary to train at that level was more than I could give while I was doing grad school and also pursuing my teaching career.” His passion for taekwondo still remained, however, as he formed a taekwondo team for high school students, and then later became assistant instructor for the BU team.

At 43 years old, Mr Kimball no longer practices taekwondo, but he realizes it was an invaluable formative

experience. “My martial arts experience was a really positive one

in many ways, and it helped me become the person I am today,” says Mr Kimball. “So much of my life now is still based on all of these tenets - the perseverance, the self-discipline, the indomitable spirit, and my belief in myself.”

Although he didn’t end up b e c o m i n g t h e next Bruce Lee, Mr Kimball has no regrets.“You can’t live your life with re-grets and worry about things that happened in the past.”

College applica-tions: stress, pres-sure, and PANIC

By: Rachel KwakHow many phrases from the following list do you

recognize? SAT, GPA, extracurricular activities, community service, AP, IB, internships, early decision, and early action.

If you knew more than seven, congratulations on being part of the majority. In a recent poll of TAS high school students, about 95% recognized more than seven of the nine words.

However, the alarming part of this is that the numbers apply not only to upperclassmen, but to underclassmen as well.

Unlike juniors and seniors, freshmen and sophomores do not have mandatory college counseling sessions. Then how is it that they are fully aware of the college application process?

Sophomore James Wang is an underclassman who already carries the heavy weight of college applications on his shoulders. “You have to compete against all the other people out there and only a select few with the best college resume will get in,” he said.

One reason for this pressure is that parents stress the importance of getting a high SAT score and GPA from an early age from parents. A student told Blue&Gold, “my parents stressed [the importance of] grades ever since I was a kid, and now I impose the stress on myself.”

The low acceptance rates of prestigious colleges that TAS high school students wish to attend adds to this pressure. The 2013 average acceptance rate of Ivy League schools was 11.4%.

But even more daunting is the pressure that students put on each other. Today, students are willing to go beyond their limits to keep up with their peers and are becoming increasingly competitive in every aspect of high school life. One such aspect is sports, where the competition between athletes decides who gets into IASAS. Getting into IASAS fulfills the extracurricular portion of the college application.

“Students, especially freshmen and sophomores, should focus more on developing their passion during their high school years rather than trying to fulfill the college application requirement,” said Ms Chien, Upper School College Counselor.

This competitiveness may or may not be healthy, as some sort of competition is vital for having a successful school life. However, excessive competition results in teenagers being too consumed with college admittance and thus losing sight of what high school life should be like.

Chloe Lowman:What’s the greatest thing about

being a model?

“The greatest thing about modeling is getting to wear make- up and having my hair

done. ”Why do you like modeling?

“I like modeling because I get to earn

money. ”TAS CelebrityChild ModelsImagine being stopped on the street by a stranger who wanted to take pictures of your kid. Would you let them? For Mr Kimball, this is not unusual. Modeling has become an integral part of life for Mr Kimball’s children, as well as for the Lowmans’.

Mr Kimball:

What do your children think about modeling?

“Oh they basically think it’s dress-up.”“They have a lot of fun doing it. If they didn’t have fun doing it we wouldn’t do it.” A family of models: All of Mr Kimball’s children, Shaera (top right), Vaire (right),

and Kiana (top left) are regular professional models.

Photo courtesy of Ms Lowman

Photo courtesy of Mr Kimball

Go!: Mr Kimball was top four in the U.S. Taekwondo Nationals

Photo courtesy of Mr Kimball

Young highfligher: Chloe Lowman’s modeling career has already started.

Opinions4 Blue & GoldOctober 31, 2012

HE SAIDSHE SAIDHere at TAS, I wear all blue during Field Day to represent my grade. At my old

school in California, wearing all blue meant you were declaring yourself a member of the local gang.

I’m not kidding.Compared to the majority of teenagers living in the U.S today,

Taipei American School students are about as cushioned as you can get. 70% of America’s 8th graders can’t read at their grade level and here we are, with a 99.9% high school graduation rate and 9th graders doing university level math. We aren’t isolated from “the real world”, but we definitely are not experiencing what reality is for the average American teenager.

To me, living in a bubble doesn’t mean we’re com-pletely blind to what’s happening in the world. On the contrary, I think existing in this bubble actually gives us a better view of the world than most people. It’s like we’re floating in a hot air balloon, with a clear birds-eye view of everything below. We see it, we understand it, but at the same time, there’s this distance between us and the dirt. We never get a chance to build up the mental calluses needed for life beyond high school.

And I’m not talking about the lack of TAS school shootings or gang fights in our cafeteria either. Obviously, it’s easy to appreciate the absence of violence here, but it’s the little things that eventually end up hindering us once we leave.

A counselor that actually knows your name. Teachers that go out of their way to help you when you’re struggling. Awards to celebrate all of our achievements, even the smallest ones.

Taipei American School is a bubble not because it’s physi-cally isolated from the States or because it’s relatively drug and pregnancy free. It’s because here, it’s easy to feel like we matter. We become reliant on people that care about us, and even expectant that people like that will always be around. But in reality, once we fall out of this red brick castle, the world isn’t waiting to catch us on a velvet pillow.

- Juliana Chang (10)

Do we live in a bubble?

P R E S I D E N T I A L E L E C T I O N S 2 0 1 2

“I support Obama be-cause he understands

equality and freedom of choice. Also, because he

probably understands why windows on planes don’t

open.”

“I like the way Obama pres-ents himself as a president. He’s so easygoing and good

with the people.”

“America was in a very bad situation four years

ago. Obama provided the leadership to get America at the state it could be at the moment. Therefore, I think he deserves four

more years.”

“I want Mitt Romney to win. I think that the government needs a change and he’s

the right person for it. I agree with his plan to help with the housing market. I also really like his view on abortion...

the state government should decide on whether or not it is

legal.”

“I would vote for Mitt Romney because I believe people should

receive what they earn. What I mean is that people should

work and earn what they want or need, instead of relying heav-ily on the government for basic

needs. The Obama policies are setting up a system where everyone is dependent on the government. Go Romney!”

B&G: Do you have any plans to take over Canada?OBAMA: That is a quite a sensi-tive topic we’re discussing and we can’t officially comment right now.B&G: What do you plan to do about Santa Claus if the North Pole were to melt?BIDEN: We’ll definitely send out the US air force to pick him up and send him to the South Pole if he pre-fers somewhere cooler but if not, I’m sure we can make arrangements with our neighbors in the North.B&G: What is your view on social media?BIDEN: We love to tweet, we love to Facebook! Both of us have shared our fun moments on Facebook and Twitter and we think it’s a great way to connect with people and that’s the core way in getting the young population to vote. B&G: What do you think of the recent influx of foreign musicians in American music?OBAMA: [Laughing] Well, [Biden] is a pretty big One Direction fan, right?BIDEN: [Laughing] No but I thought you were a Justin Bieber fan!OBAMA: We all have our different interests.

B&G: Why should we vote for you?

ROMNEY: The fact of the matter is that every legislation we pass or every law we make basically does affect high school students. All the Republican Party thinks about every day is how can we get the most amount of profit and benefit for the common Ameri-can citizen. That’s the basic goal: we want more for you. If you want more for yourself, more stuff to do, and more freedom, then you should vote for me.

B&G: What do you think of the recent influx of foreign musicians in American music?

ROMNEY: Personally, I think it’s al-right. It gives teenagers a way to interact with each other across different cultures and countries. And you know that new song, Gangnam Style, that’s been coming up, yeah? Everybody knows the music video [doesn’t] make sense, but why not?

B&G: What do you have against Big Bird?

RYAN: Big Bird and Elmo were my childhood, but we can’t enjoy watching television if we don’t first improve our economy. If you don’t have a house that you own or rent, then how can you enjoy privileges such as watching television?

With the US presidential elections coming up on November 6, four TAS students will represent the four candidates in TAS’s very own Mock Presidential Debates on the same day. B&G decided to take a sneak peek at both parties with a short Q&A. The Democratic Party is represented by Mathew Lee (11) and Tim Yim (12) as President Obama and VP Biden. The Republican Party is represented by Jae Hun Shin (11) and Joyce Lee (12) as Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan.

LiLi Broder (10)

ALex Kuo (12)

Mr. ives

Meredith BAnKs (12)

CeCiLy hALe (11)

In the 1970s, world-wide media frenzy fed on the life of David the Bubble Boy, who had no working immune system and lived in a sterile bubble. Was David’s situation

analogous to our lives at Taipei American School? Obviously not.A bubble is meant to surround and protect from the dangers lurking

outside the transparent prophylactic covering. In David Vetter’s case, the dangers were not only scary bacteria, viruses, or protozoa, but also the

most banal of microorganisms. Is that our situation? Do we feel threat-ened by the foot traffic on the sidewalks outside the low walls of our

school? Do we come to TAS each morning to escape contagion from the world around us? TAS is a bastion of privilege, not a fortress of fear. Our community is not built to protect our weaknesses, but to foster our strengths. While it is okay and very cool to com-plain about life at TAS, no one is ever fooled by the jeremiads. I know that you know that it is an enormous privilege to attend Taipei American School. About the strongest condemnation anyone can proffer about our school is that it is like democ-racy: it is the worst school, except for all the others.

What is the real world? South Central? Kinshasa? Holly-wood? The Good Potato-Picking Place in Kansas? South Park? I admit that, for some students, affluence serves as a shelter that protects them from most of the harsher circumstances of life in our city; however, I do not recall a single instance where

our school has attempted to hide or to screen the harsh reali-ties that some people face all over the world. If the real world is

Aleppo or Juba and if our goal is to inure students to that kind of reality, reality and we are in a very sad state.

I propose that our goal is to teach and to learn that the real world is filled with both wondrous opportunity and frightful despair,

and that it is our obligation to take advantage of our privilege to enhance the former and to combat the latter. In the meantime, while we are here at

TAS and in Taipei, let’s also remember that we must cultivate our garden.

- Dr Hartzell

As a TAS student, you enjoy many privileges.

But does this play to your advantage, or does it hinder your

ability to adjust to the real world?

Interviews by Heyun Jeong (12) & Rachel Kwak (10)

Blue & GoldOctober 31, 2012 5Arts & Culture

By Carol Chen

She’s toured the United States as a member of the Nike hip hop team and worked as a choreographer for the Los Angeles Laker’s Girls cheerleading team. Now she works for us. TAS is very lucky to have Kari Jensen choreograph Fiddler on the Roof for us. “ S h e ’ s a v e r y f r i e n d l y person” says Rachel Lui (11), who is dancing in this year’s musical.“She helped change our movements s o i t l o o k s l i k e a w h o l e . ” Kari also created a very interesting dance sequence with bottles. We can’t say any more! As a top hip hop dance choreographer, Kari has scored courtside seats at basketball games (she got pretty close to the legendary actor Jack Nicholson at one Lakers game) and invitations to celebrity-crowded movie premieres. While working for Nike as a member of their dance crew, Culture Shock, Kari had the chance to perform at the 2000 Democratic Convention. Kari has a long association with TAS and visits the school every year. Not only is she choreographing Fiddler, but she also offers classes in hip hop and jazz dance. So what’s the difference between hip hop and jazz? “The jazz class has a little more technique to it,” she says.

“Hip-hop class is more based on choreography”. Justin Traub (11) is one of her many fans. “She’s a really fun teacher and when she teaches it makes me feel like I’m in a dance team”. If you want to see Kari in action, she has her own personal YouTube channel, kgirldnc. She has more than 50,000 views! She posts these videos mainly for her students back in America, so that they have a chance to practice the choreography at home. “It’s for educational purposes, not for my ego or anything,” says Kari with a laugh. Kari’s multiple visits to TAS were initially made possible by Mrs Flemming, TAS’s dancer teacher. They met at a workshop in Southern California over 10 years ago. In fact, Kari was actually the teacher of one of Mrs Flemming’s workshops. Since that first encounter as a student, MrsFlemming has been bringing Kari to teach master classes and workshops at TAS. So what does Kari think of us? “TAS students are really energetic, very receptive to what I bring, and they’re very polite.” No wonder she’s kept coming back - this is now her 11th year of whirlwind visits to Taiwan.

“Without our traditions, our lives would be as shaky as… a fiddler on the roof!” sings Tevye in the opening scene of the musical, Fiddler on the Roof. Tevye, a poor Jewish milkman struggles against his five defiant daughters to uphold Jewish religious tradition within his household while outside influence threatens the Jewish survival. He’s a Jewish Tiger Dad!

Fiddler on the Roof is a Broadway production that first opened at the Imperial Theater in 1964, and has been staged all over the world, in England, Australia and even Israel. On October 25 , 26, and 27, Mr. Corey, the director, and his crew will revive this musical in the Guy Lott Auditorium, taking us back to the year 1905, and life in the small Jewish village of Anatevka, Russia.

Time is creeping up on the Jewish village, and as Mr Edwards notes, the same applies to TAS.

“TAS students are experiencing the same social pressure that the Jews have undergone. Just l ike them, students juggle with tests, sports, clubs, and many other activities, and they may feel so overwhelmed sometime that makes them want to quit,” said Mr Edwards.

The play touches people at an even more personal level. Zach Verne (9), who

plays the character, Mordecai says, “My character influenced me as a person mainly by making me think about what it would be like to live at the time. The social boundaries and walls separating people because of their beliefs should be brought down and I think that this is a theme that I try to incorporate into my daily life.”

Kelsey MacKenna(10), who plays a villager, is inspired by the perseverance of the Jewish character and their drive for a more accepting world.

“ I ’ v e l e a r n e d s o m u c h j u s t b y being a part of it [Fiddler on the Roof ]. It s i m p l y o p e n e d u p m y m i n d ! ” s h e s a y s .

The play starred Jae Hun Shin (9) as Tevye, Audrey Christensen (9) as his wife, Golde, and Samantha Preisinger (12), Anjoli Guha (9), and Eli Morimoto (9) as his rebellious daughters who all fall in love without their dad’s permission.

When at last Tevye acknowledges that he must change with the changing world, he forgives his daughters. Under the order of the constable, the villagers leave Anatevka, and Tevye beckons the fiddler, who is a symbol of tradition, to follow him.

The play ends with an uplifting acceptance of

By Vivian Lin

Tale of a Jewish Tiger Dad

“I wasn’t thinking much, just stared at the two performers and enjoyed the beautiful music, because it was so amazing,” says Angela Huang (10). On the evening of September 29, Dr Lin, our very own Upper School Orchestra’s violin teacher performed a series of violin duets with her sister, Wen Chuan Lin, and a piano accompanist at the National Concert Hall. She began her musical studies at the age of 4 in Taipei. While in the U.S, Dr Lin had the privilege of performing in some of the most prestigious NYC venues including Weill Recital Hall, Tsai Performance Center, and Jordan Hall in Boston. Some people believe that only the flashy techniques lead to great music. But without a connection between the musicians, it is difficult to achieve harmony. “We don’t have to say much, all we need to do is look at each other, and we both know what we want,” says Dr Lin. Just as everyone has a different personal style of playing, Dr Lin and her sister also have two very distinct personalities and styles. “Listening to my sister playing is like drinking warm soup, but listening to me playing is like drinking

soft drinks,” Dr Lin quotes one of her friends. Surprisingly, Dr Lin is not quite satisfied with her performance for several reasons, and one of them is because of a small slip up. “I forgot to bring out the second music, so while I was introducing the next piece, my sister went to get it for me. It was very embarrassing,” Dr Lin confesses as she laughs. They began with Duo Concertant for Violin, Op. 67, No. 3 by Louis Spohr, who was a German composer, violinist and conductor during the Romantic Era. They ended the concert with some only jazz music, Divertimento for Two Violins and Piano by Igor Frolov. He has had successful performances at numerous Russian and International competitions, which have won him worldwide fame. Dr Lin attracted a wide range of people to the concert, ranging from teenagers to experienced music teachers. Despite the age disparity, Dr Lin’s music appealed to everyone. “It was hard not to do anything other than appreciating the music,” says one of Dr Lin’s students, Bill Tsai (11).

Sisterly synergy takes Dr Lin all the way to the concert

Dancing with the

STARS

By Ally Seo

Photos courtesy of Emily Wang (12)

Whatd

oes“Home”m

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-M

egSilsby(12)

Global Gypsy

GreetinGs from taiwan

“Third culture kid.” At Singapore American School, it’s a term studentsare all quite familiar with, thrown around during the odd lunch conversation,written about in college applications, and preached at high school assemblies. Living a third culture life means moving often, making new friends,finding new hangouts and trying new foods, and even adjusting to new Asian-sized mattresses. But what does it mean to be a TCK, in Singapore? Oneonly has to look as far as the stories of SAS senior Kiran Siddique and juniorElizabeth Greaves to see that coming to one definition is all but impossible. Although the two both live in the Ardmore area on the edge ofSingapore’s downtown bustle, their similarities stop there. Siddique has livedin Hong Kong, Washington D.C. and now lives in Singapore. However, this yearmarks Greaves first year overseas. While Siddique has trouble naming just onehome after her many moves, Greaves has lived in New Jersey nearly all her life. “The hardest thing to find in Singapore [was] cheap clothing,” Siddique said. For the taller, blonder, or perhaps even bigger-footed expat,replacing old necessities in a completely new environment is difficult. “Hair color for blond people, and tanning oil… it’s really hard to find. “Greaves said, before addingwith a laugh, “Whitening creams are abundant though!” UnlikeSiddique,whomovedtwicebeforecomingtoSingapore,Greavesislivingoutsideofhernativestate/countryforthefirsttime.Shefoundhernewhomestartlingatfirstwithsocietalnormsverydifferentfromtheonesbackhome.TheSingaporeansenseofhumortooksomeadjustingto.

-DanniShanel(12)

a Home away from Home

Third CulTure Kid: (NouN) SomeoNe who haS SpeNt a Sig-

NifigaNt amouNt of time iN a culture other thaN their owN.

GreetinGs from taiwan

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re working

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backgrounds tell t

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ofit?Also,rememb

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uneverknowwha

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ndwhatyoumay

learnorbeinspired

by.-KaceyFa

ng(10)

a meltinG pot of Cultures

iOS 6 brings in a ton of great new fea-tures, but the most impressive part about the new iOS is the awesome, Apple custom made, beautifully designed, and exclusive maps app. The new Apple Maps on iOS 6 provides you with beautiful real-life 3D flyovers of cities with 3D buildings, amazing turn to turn navi-gation, and, best of all, constant, live traffic updates.

Sadly, none of the above features work in Taipei...

The new Maps created by Ap-ple was called “the most embarrassing, least usable piece of software Apple has ever unleashed” by David Pogue of the

the New York Times. And I strongly agree with that. The app is actually quite useless in Taipei. When I searched for a 7-11 in Taipei, a total of only three stores showed up!

To continue the road test of the Maps app, I searched for Taipei American School. According to Apple Map, TAS has two cam-puses, one on YangMing Shan and the other next to Taipei Main Station. If only I’d known! I’ve been attending the wrong school for 5 years!

And as for our most famous landmark? Taipei 101 is nowhere to be found. Instead KPMG Certified Public Accountants shows up on the other side of Taipei.

Lastly I tried looking for the world’s 7th most visited museum which is also the most well-known museum in Taiwan: the National Palace Museum. But instead of taking me to No. 221 on Section 2 of Zhìshàn Road in the Shilin District, Apple’s app took me to No. 221 on Section 2 of Chih Shan Road which is sadly close to the Westin Hotel but nowhere close to the actual museum.

The new maps application is so awful that Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, had to apol-ogize publicly about it.

“With the launch of our new Maps last week, we fell short on this commitment,” he said.

“You can try alternatives by download-ing map apps from the App Store like Bing, MapQuest, and Waze, or use Google or Nokia maps by going to their websites and creating an icon on your home screen to their web app.”

Apple is a company well-known for their good hardware and software engineer-ing and designing skills but with this new map app Cook disappointed even the Apple fanboys.

People around the world, especially those outside of the US, will just have to wait until Apple somehow fixes the map or see if Google Maps will save us.

So next time you go on a hike or try to navigate your way through the concrete jungle of Taipei, I suggest you put on a smile, pull off those headphones and ask a stranger for direc-tions. Or else you might find yourself stranded on YangMing Shan.

The battle between the Kindle Fire HD and the Nook By Vergil HsuThe Kindle Fire HD and the Nook are two of the most talked about electronic reading devices, captivating book worms across the globe In the battle of the eBooks which one scores a knockout? A hybrid between a reading device and a tablet, these accessories have revo-lutionized the reading world. Millions of books are within reach via one click of a button. The Kindle Fire HD features many different utilities, including dual stereo speakers, dolby sound systems, a strong processor, and a front facing camera. How-ever, there’s an awkward charging port at the bottom of the device which makes it extremely hard to read while charging if you’re on your bed. Nonetheless, it’s custom android operating system makes it unique and more user friendly compared to the Nook. The Nook has it’s volume control and power button decked on the right side of the device, and a home button at the bottom of the screen, just like the iPad.

The Kindle Fire HD comes with no more than 8gb of storage space. It also fea-tures it’s exclusive Amazon Prime store that enables members to access media content - for freeeeeeeee! While the Nook has a 16 gigabyte trunk, it only has one gigabyte of free space for users to add whatever they want. The Nook provides 512 megabytes of RAM (random access memory), double that of the Kindle Fire HD. The media users of the Kindle Fire will definitely be at an advantage over the Nook users, as Amazon has its unique media ecosystem embedded within the device - a web of media storage. The Kindle supports apps like Netflix and Pandora, while the Nook supports Hulu and Netflix. Sadly, Netflix, Pandora, and Hulu don’t work in Taiwan.

Performance wise, you won’t see any differences between the two devices, even though the RAM of the Nook is two times that of the Kindle. The biggest perform-ance difference between these two eBooks is their battery times. Through HD video recording, the Nook overpowers the Kindle by a mere six minutes, but through other activities, the Nook beats the Kindle by over three hours. Overall, the Kindle Fire HD is better due to its cost-effec-tiveness and its ease of access through the Amazon Ecosystem. The Nook tablet has plenty of apps and such, but it is not as accessible as the Kindle Fire HD. The verdict? Definitely the Kindle Fire! Not only is it cheaper, it offers more resources and utilities.

Which Internet Browser do you Use? (Poll conducted by Blue&Gold)

12% 78%1% 3%The uncharted and confused world of Apple MapsBy Connor Lin

I’m on top of the world: According to the Apple Maps on iOS 6, Taipei American School is on YangMing Shan.

The Blue &Gold Presents...

October 31, 2012

by hannah lin

YIPPIE FOR YOPPI YOGURT? YUP

Frozen yogurt is one of the greatest inventions ever: it’s a healthier, tastier, and more creative DIY ice cream that’s only 100 calories per serving. And now there’s a fro yo store just down the road from TAS.

Yoppi Yogurt opened last month, and it’s already a big hit with TAS students. If you want to relax somewhere cool and in-viting after a grueling history exam, then this is the place for you.

The owner, Mr Albert Lee will often greet you at the door and give suggestions for the yogurt of the week.

According to Mr Lee, the most popular flavor is the classic Original Tart. It also happens to be the healthiest option, with zero grams of fat. There is another health benefit in indulging in yogurt. “The yogurt contains probiotics that help digestion,” says Mr Lee.

With its unmistakable taste of yogurt mixed with sour tanginess, Original Tart is a sure and delicious choice for first-timers.

To balance satisfaction for yogurt lovers, Yoppi Yogurt always makes sure that there are a range of choices for sweet and sour-lovers. Personally, Green Tea is my favorite “sweet flavor”. Unlike Cookies n’ Crème’, which is too sugary, Green Tea is lightly sweet. Even better, you can actually taste the strong

flavor of green tea.For those craving something more sour, Pineapple Tart is

a good choice. It tastes like Original Tart, except with an extra dollop of tanginess! It’s not so sour that your eyes water but your tongue will definitely start feeling the tingle.

Another plus is that Yoppi Yogurt offers a buffet of top-pings. Feel like splurging on sugar? There’s the mouthwater-ing caramel sauce and chocolate biscuits. Feeling healthy? No problem. Head straight over to the fruits section. There’s always a choice available that will make your yogurt that much tastier.

Mr Lee has also promised a variety of new flavors com-ing soon, including Lychee Tart, Cappuccino, and Almond. If you’re interested, don’t hesitate to vote on the bulletin for the new flavors that come out every Wednesday. You can even get your yogurt Coldstone style, in a waffle cup!

One warning: these tastey sensations are on the pricey side. However, considering that TAS students can get a 20% discount after school, and a 10% one on Facebook during school hours, it’s worth the visit. For the occasional hangout or special celebration, Yoppi Yogurt is the perfect place for a healthy dessert.

YOU USE

HASHTAGS ON FB?

#whatatrendsetter

NICKI MINAJTaking fake to

a wholenew level

BIG BIRD An endangered

species

WINTER ISCOMING

Get out your snowboots. No, wait...rainboots

MALFUNCTION-ING DOORS

Oh no! Trappedin D block!

MR LAKIN’S HAIRCUT

Mr Lakin minus long hair equals awesome

proper house cleaning:a slipper and a

cockroach smasher in one!

sleep in peace: this handy helmet allows you to sleep in public and still

keep your head up!

this butter stickallows you to lather

up a pieceof bread with nofear of getting

your hands dirty!

these cute cupmen fit snugly around

your cup of instant noodles, keeping them warm!

double duty: it's a ladder! it's a chair!

it's a ladderchair!

feeling lonely?this is the

pillow for you!

nail polish thatchanges color

in the sun!

MADE IN JAPAN

October 31, 2012 HealthBlue & Gold10

Calorie bombs: Oh-so yummy, yet deadly

by Berry Sheu

Breakfast like a king, dine like a peasant!

“I think people should be able to eat whatever they want, as long as they eat moderately and manage to ex-ercise a healthy amount,” says Rebecca Persson (10).

This is very easy to say until you are surround-ed by mouthwatering moon cakes during Chinese Moon Festival. The idea that exercise alone can destroy fat and calories consumed then becomes questionable.

Moon cakes are a mind-blowing and stomach-blow-ing 500-1000 calories per pastry. This is even more shocking when you consider that teenagers can only consume at most 2,500 calories, according to the Institute of Medicine (IOM).

“Moon cakes are yummy. They’re unique and I’ve never eaten any other cake from any other culture that tastes just like them!” says Jae Hee Kwak (9) Like her, many peo-ple are addicted to Taiwanese treats. In addition to moon cakes, many teens are in love with bubble tea which is ob-vious from the queue that builds at ComeBuy after school.

One modest cup of bubble tea with high-carb tapioca pearls, brown sugar water, and swirl milk, is 240 calories which is equivalent to the calories count of half of a McDonald’s burger.

Researchers of public health have found that great-er consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) and high-carb cakes are linked with high body mass index (BMI)

or fat and an increased risk of diabetes which poses seri-ous damage to the eyes, kidney, nerves, and blood vessels.

However, Mr O’Neal, head of the TAS food serv-

ice for over twenty-six years, provides a different angle.“The problem,” he says, “is not what we eat but how we

eat.” He believes that this is the most important issue. As long as we work out on a regular basis and burn up those calories, the occasional consumption of high-carb delicacies won’t hurt.

According to him, “lifestyle” is the key. Next time before you dash off to ComeBuy, run ten laps first!

It’s seven fifteen. A moment of desperation to get out the door. If you’re late to school again today, you’ll get your third tardy and a detention. It’s a race against the clock so brushing your teeth and getting dressed are your priority. Breakfast? Worry about that later.

It’s a similar scenario at TAS - mak-ing up for a missed breakfast with a muffin at flex. What we don’t realize is that breakfast should be the priority: it’s fuel we use all day.

Margaret Wu (11), who regularly skips breakfast, admits, “I’m always hungry by second period and want to eat.” However, with club meetings, class meetings and advisor groups during flex, many students like Margaret endure an empty stomach until 1 o’clock or even later.

Skipping breakfast makes it difficult to con-centrate in class. When you’re hungry, paying at-tention is very challenging, especially when your stomach won’t stop growling. Nurse Shiow-Yih says that “because interval between dinner and breakfast is the longest, even if you aren’t hun-gry in the morning, you’ve used up a lot of energy.”

WebMD reports that research indicates kids who skip breakfast are tardy and absent from school more often than regular breakfast eaters. Studies also show that teens, especially teenage girls, believe skipping breakfast is a way to cut calories and lose weight, when it actually makes weight control harder.

Recently, a teacher at Van E. Blaton Elemen-tary School in Florida was featured on the Ellen Dege-neres Show. Rachel Faust is an inspiring teacher who

took money out of her own pocket to provide her first grade kids with breakfast. The kids apologize to her for not being able to concentrate in class, but told her that were so hungry they simply couldn’t. El-len rewarded the school with a $100,000 USD check.

Mr Arnold’s student and TAS alumna, Honor Phillips (Class of ‘74), has a similar plan in San An-tonio, Texas. Ms Phillips, who works as a mandarin teacher, graduated from Yale and Columbia Uni-versity. She keeps nutrition bars and other healthy snacks in the classroom to give to her high school students, because they often go to school hungry.

Unfortunately, nationally promoted breakfast-for-kids initiatives can be misleading and cause more harm than good. In August 2011, Kellogg kicked off their “Share Your Breakfast” project, donating break-fast for up to a million “children in need.” Dr. Joseph Mercola, the founder of a leading health and nutrition website, noted that, while one out of every four chil-dren in the U.S. goes without breakfast each morning, “giving children highly processed junk foods is not the answer.” He pointed out that Kellogg’s program promotes sugary foods like Frosted Flakes and Nutri-Grain bars, with contains high-fructose corn syrup, ar-tificial flavors, and several other chemical ingredients.

So, maybe we should give some thought to what might sound like silly advice from health experts across the globe, including those at kidshealth.org, who suggest simple ways to get into the good habit of eating breakfast: prepare it the night before or get up 10 minutes earlier.

by Carol Chen

Foot binding in the twenty-first centuryby Rebecca Tseng

High heels: they’re kind of like modern foot binding. Heels gone overboard is just the thing that your feet don’t need. Sarah Jessica Parker, a famous actress, the star of Sex and the City claims that wearing heels through six sea-sons of the show completely ruined her feet.

“I’ve basically just destroyed my feet,” she says. “So they feel noth-ing. I have no feeling in my feet.”

Heels are notorious for hurting women’s feet. So why do women wear them? Maybe it’s to be stylish, or to look pro-fessional. Or perhaps it’s because in this male dominated world, to appear taller and a little bit more threatening is needed for success.

English teacher Ms Abigail Chen, however, prefers shoes that aren’t heels. She says, “People do get used to heels, but I prefer to choose my shoes for comfort. Heels can do a lot of damage to your feet…When I wear heels they are usually very low.”

According to researchers at Random His-tory organization, heels have been around long

enough to make the history books. In ancient Egypt, butchers wore heels to avoid stepping on the blood of the animals they killed. In ancient Greece and Rome, people wore heels of different heights according to their social importance in society.

Heels started to become part of fashion in the 1500s when Catherine de Medici got engaged to the potential King of France. She was short and was afraid that her husband to be would ditch her for a taller, prettier woman, so she brought

high heels into fashion. They were quickly caught on.

But the freedom of heels didn’t last long. In the 1700s,

King Louis XIV of France, banned the wear-ing of red high heels (the color of nobility, and therefore his color) or heels higher than the ones he was wearing. Napoleon ban-ished heels because he wanted to show equal-ity- or maybe because he was only five feet tall.

But by the 1860s, high heels weaved their way back into fashion. Today the high heel shoe is a fashion statement. But is it worth the pain?

The Macht Medical Group researchers have found out that when you wear high heels, you have to work harder to stand up straight and walk properly. Heels can lead to shortened calves and back pain. High heels also put a lot of pressure on your knees and your toes, which can lead to joint pain, especially as you grow older.

Most podiatrists recommend all wom-en just throw their heels away. But as that is unrealistic, they also advise women to wear flats instead of heels. Most people aren’t born with foot problems, they make them.

When you’re wearing your heels, wear them proudly. But also make sure to check in on your feet—they will definitely thank you!

“Moon cakes are a mind-blowing and

stomach-blowing 500-1000 calories per pas-

try.”

“I’ve basically just destroyed my feet... They feel nothing.”

Blue & GoldOctober 31, 201211Sports

So cce r te am S f ace d to ug h o pp oS i ti o nS Dead silence was followed by deafening cheers as Jason Jung (11), scored the winning goal in the TAS boy’s soccer match against ISM. This was the first time the team has won a game in years. The TAS boy’s soccer team faced relentless opposition, but managed to tie against ISKL, as well as defeat ISM, securing them a spot in the consolation match. Though they put up a fantastic effort in their bid for a medal, the boy’s team ultimately lost the match against JIS, and placed fourth. The Lady Tigers team started the weekend off on a high by tying with ISKL in a nail-biting first match.The remainder of the tournament, however, proved to be more of a challenge, as the team lost their remaining four matches. The team placed

sixth in this year’s IASAS tournament. The fact that the girl’s team included eleven “rookie” players could have been seen as a disadvantage, but both co-captains of the Lady Tigers thought the reverse. “We are a fairly young team this year, and it was difficult to start out at the beginning of the season,” said co-captain, Lorraine Lin (11), “However as time went on, and as each week passed, the team improved tremendously!” With only two seniors leaving, this bodes well for the future. Boy’s co-captain, Wei An Lee (12), agrees. “As coach (Lochrin) said, we started off as a group of 16 individuals, but after these seven weeks, and the painful weekly mandatory team dinners, we have become a team. Tigers Soccer is at a whole new level.”

by Adrienne Shih

Volleyball gold SlipS through fingerSby Heyun Jeong

While most of us were sleeping in on our long-awaited 10/10 day off, our IASAS volleyball athletes were wide awake at Taoyuan Airport, waiting to depart for Kuala Lumpar.Both teams left Taiwan with great expectations since they were both dominated by returning veterans. The volleyball tournament is played in two parts—first, the round-robin tournament, where all the teams compete with one another, and then seeded groups, which play single-elimination style. “The round-robin format gives every team a chance to compete, which is great for competition, but it’s not necessarily helpful to the top seeded teams,” junior Alex Sheu told B&G. At the end of the round-robin matches, the boys came out on top and the girls were a commendable third. All was looking good. However, upon playing in their seeded groups, both teams faltered and were pushed down to fourth and fifth place, respectively.In retrospect, both volleyball teams played very well, winning the majority of their games. The highlight was definitely the boys’ win against SAS, who ultimately won the tournament. Rookie Jon Chen (10) took the spotlight by hitting the “game winning kill.” Many were disappointed with the final ranking given that the girls had actually

won 5 out of the 7 games, and boys, 4.Boys’ volleyball coach, Mr Kimball praised this year’s team as one of the most outstanding he’s coached, “It was one of the best teams I’ve ever coached … There wasn’t a weakness amongst them. We freely substituted during the tournament,” Captain Kevin Lee (12) reflected on his final season as his favorite one yet because of the great team spirit, “Although the results weren’t what we expected, I think we all learned and got something from this season—whether it was about complacency or persistence, every single player was able to learn their lesson through volleyball,” For co-captain Shelley Wu (12), the memories and the teammates are more important than winning medals, “It’s not just playing games and chasing after volleyballs that makes this event so memorable, but it’s also the team chemistry and emotion that occurs within those four days … Each and every single player is irreplaceable and contributes to the team in her own way.” First-time victim to the “post-IASAS blues,” freshman Caroline Tung admitted she still had an amazing first experience, and despite the coming departure of the four seniors this year, she is already “pumped for next year.”

Photo courtesy of ISB Panthers

Photo courtesy of Paul Zaini (ISKL)

r u n , e a t , S l e e p, t h e n r e p e a t

Photo courtesy of Paul Zaini (ISKL)

by Berry Sheu With their hearts pumping and blood racing, runners stand at the starting line waiting to hear the starter gun. All the training and hard work comes down to this race. “No half times, no timeouts, no substitutions. It must be the only true sport,” Kaho Arakawa (12), girl’s co-captain said. This year, the runners ran on a true cross-country course with hills and turns. The course even has some grassy off the road paths. To add to the pain, there is a gradual climb for about 1.5km before descending. On Friday, the runners woke up at the crack of dawn to prepare themselves, both mentally and physically, for their first IASAS 2012 race to take place at 8am. This 5km race, along with a 3km race on Saturday, are the only two races determine final result. “They ran fast times on a very difficult course,“ said Mr Anderson, girls cross country coach. Though other IASAS teams from TAS were very close to medalling, girls cross-country was the only team that did, coming in third after SAS and

ISB. The boys cross country team pushed as hard as they could, but unfortunately, didn’t medal. Paul E. Richardson, author of the book Running is Flying, tells runners to not look at it as a 5km run, but instead as 3.5km of flying, because when you walk, one foot is always on the ground, while when running, 76 percent of the time is spent airborne. Gary Huang (12), who has run in IASAS races for four year and known for being one of the fastest students at TAS, finished the race in fifth place. As for the girls teams, Sophia Eristoff from SAS completed both races in first place and was the fastest girl runner at IASAS. Florence Lo (10), legendary runner from last year’s IASAS, finished in eight place in the 5km race and seventh in the 3km race. For many runners, this is their final first season IASAS. Josephine Kuo (12), co-captain of the girls team, was flushed with confidence. “The team has grown so much stronger this year,” she said.

Photo courtesy of Paul Zaini (ISKL)

Photo courtesy of Paul Zaini (ISKL)

Leap tall, run hard, push to the limit!

Wilted Wallflower: Perks falls short Charl ie is a wal l f lower . He has

no fr iends, no interests , and no so-c ia l l i fe . In short , he’s a nobody.

The Perks o f Be ing a Wal l f lower i s notyour average ta le of soul-searching, angstyteenagers . Directed by Stephen Chbosky, thef i lm centers on the growth of the main char-acter , Charl ie , as he survives his f reshmanyear in a cozysuburbanPi t tsburghighschool .

Having just endured the suic ideof his only fr iend, and the death of his fa-vori te aunt , Charl ie is a wreck. We see himbl indly maneuvering through day-to-dayl i fe , whi le befr iending one person, his Eng-l ish teacher . I t i sn’ t unt i l eccentr ic seniorsSam and Patr ick take him under their wingthat Charl ie s tarts to not ice l i fe ’s pecul iar i -t ies within their group of “misf i t” f r iends.

In this year long account , we see Char-l ie b lossom (pun in- t e n d e d )from a boring, intro- v e r t e dwal l f lower into a c o u r a -geous and out- s p o k e nadult . I loved how thebook pays h o m a g eto older c u l t u r a lr e f e r - e n c e s ,s u c h as The

Rocky Horror Picture Show and vari -ous songs by the Beat les and David Bowie .

While thebookwasdiff icult to put down,themovieadaptat ionwasdif f icult to s i t through.

Logan Lerman gives a ho-hum por-trayal of Charl ie , which, in myopinion, i s per-haps the reason why the f i lm was so painfulto watch. His act ing range is l imited. In mymind, he’s just another face lost in the ever-growing pack of ta lent less Hol lywood pret tyboys . Whils t reading the book, I fe l t an emo-t ional connect ion to Charl ie , but unfortu-nately , on-screen, there was no connect ion.

I a lso had high expectat ions for EmmaWatson, who portrayed Charl ie ’s on-screenlove interest , Sam. Watson, who is best knownfor playingHermioneGranger in the Harry Pot -ter ser ies , gave a very dul l performance. Herfaux-American accent was dis tract ing, and inmyopinion, she shoulds t ick withconjuringupspel ls in Hogwarts rather thanget t ingdrunkathighschool housepart ies in suburbanAmerica .

Ezra Mil ler , who plays Sam’s eccen-tr ic s tep-brother , Patr ick , outshone his fe l lowcastmates . He was able to portray a f lamboy-ant ly gay character with such ease . This wasin sharp contrast to his br i l l iant portrayal ofa sadist ic teenagemurderer in 2001’s We Need to Talk About Kevin , a coveted role that se-cured his s tardom on the indie movie scene.

I had bui l t up such high hopes forPerks o f Be ing a Wal l f lower , but af ter 90minutes on screen, I think i t ’ s fa ir to saythat the wal l f lower had def ini te ly wi l ted.

October 31, 2012

Off the ShelfAn unconvincing topsy turvy world This movie could not have beenany worse had I watched it upside down.In fact, it probably would have been better. After watching the Youtube trailer for Upside Down Iwas just about ready tobooka ticket andqueueforitspremierattheTienMuMiramarCinemas.However,myexcitementwasdeflatedsoonafterthelightsdimmed. ThemovietakesafantasyspinonShakespeare’s“star-crossed lovers”. Eden, (KirstenDunst), andAdam,(Jim Sturgess), live on opposite sides of a double-grav-ity planet. The problem lies in their forbidden love forone another, which breaks the fundamental rule of thisalternativeworld: there is to be no contact of any kind. DidRomeoandJulietultimatelypayfortheirun-conventional“love”?Yes.Thismovie,however,goesdownthe same path I dreadmost in stereotypical Hollywoodfilms.Ithasapre-determined,unrealisticallysentimentalending.Itgoessofarastodefygravity,forcryingoutloud. I foundthemovie tobenomore thanapoorlyconstructed “cool idea” that should never have left the

drawing board. During the screening I was distractedby the impracticalityof the implausiblestory line.Whilemanymoviesgobeyond theboundaries ofwhat’s “pos-sible”thisfilmisjustflatoutstupid.Wheredoesthelightcome from when there’s no sun? Given the 70 milliondollar budget they could have at least hired a physicist. ButIntheend,mygreatestdisappointmentwaswith the script. Imean, therehardly is anydialoguebe-tweenthetwomaincharactersbesidestheoccasional“Hi,I’mso-and-soandI’mfromdownbelow.”Howfascinating. WhileIcommendDunstforherclassic,upside-downSpidermankissin2002,thereenactmentofitinthismoviewon’twinheranymorepraise.Therewastoomuchkissingandnotenoughdialogue.Assillyasitsounds,that’swhatmadetheirrelationshipappearsosuperficialandfalse. Unlessyou’regoing towatch themovieon thebig screen with the intention of writing a review (likeme)don’twasteyour timeormoneyon it. In fact,don’teven spend a quarter or fifth of your allowance rent-ing it atBlockbuster. Justwait till it comesoutoncable.

Daniel Sempere, a young boy living in post-warBarcelona,hashislifeischangedwhenhisfatherintroduceshimtotheCemeteryofFor-gotten Books, a huge library secretly hiddeninsideinthecity.Thetraditionisthateachiniti-atemustselectonebookandprotectitforlife.DanielbringshomeThe Shadow of the Wind,byJulianCarax,andfinishesitinonenight.Whenresearching the author, Daniel discovers thatthereisastrangemanwhofitsthedescriptionof theDevil in the book. Spookily, this samemandestroyingCarax’sbooks fordecades.Astorywithinastory, thisnovelwill truly takeyouonajourneytotheheartofSpain.

On afishing islandoff the coast ofWash-ington, respected fisherman Carl Heine’sbody ispulled fromtheseaonSeptember15,1954withalargegashonhishead.Hisbrokenwatchhasstoppedat1:47.Despiteinconclusive evidence, a Japanese Ameri-can named Kabuo Miyamoto is immedi-ately suspected and subsequently accusedofmurder.AsMiyamotomustendure theanti-Japanese sentiment that lingered af-terWWII, the case brings upmany harshreminders of the racist past and forcesthe citizens to confront their relationshipwith the local Japanese. Will they act ac-cording to prejudice or to conscience?

-Georgia Huang

Manynovelsaboutcanceraremorbidlydepress-ing,highlightingthewoesofbeingsick,dominatedbythe“inevitableend”thatgivesnoroomforsus-pense.JohnGreen’sThe Fault in Our Stars,however,doesquitetheopposite.ProtagonistHazelLancas-ter,whohasterminalcancer,attendsaweeklysup-portgroupforsickteenagers.Duringthesesessions,HazelmeetsAugustus,whois inremission.WithAugustus’helpandpositiveattitude,Hazelisabletoappreciatelifetoitsfullest,embarkingonajour-neytoAmsterdam,despitetherestrictionsimposedbyherillness.WhatIlovedaboutthebookwassee-ingtherelationshipbetweenAugustusandHazelblossom.Thenovelisveryrealanddeeplymoving,givingreadersanoptimistictakeonlife.Besuretohaveaboxoftissueshandy,however-The Fault in Our Stars willdefinitely leaveyou teary-eyed.

-Adrienne Shih

By Meg Silsby

-Georgia Huang

By Adrienne Shih