Gun Control in America: A Nonpartisan Investigation
By Sam Lauten, VI Form
Gun Control in America: A Nonpartisan Investigation
For the entirety of my life, I have been taught that there are good politicians and evil politicians. I have been taught that there is only Democrat and Republican. I grew up in a firmly liberal household, in a liberal state, and attended liberal private schools from kindergarten to my senior year of high school. This is not a criticism of my family, nor is it a criticism of liberal education, rather a recognition of the fact that I have been exposed to very few people that are significantly different than I am. However, this year as I began to look onward to studying political science at college in the fall, there was something that I found deeply troubling about experiencing eighteen years of life without having my own political views truly challenged. Even so, I have always had firm opinions about nearly every issue, even those which I have not necessarily experienced the effects of first hand. An example of one of these issues is gun regulation. (more…)
STEM Fellow: Mitochondrial Disease in C. elegans
By Katherine Hartigan, VI Form
Mitochondrial Disease in C. elegans
Abstract
Mitochondrial disease refers to a class of hundreds of disorders related to the mitochondria that are caused by mutations in either mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) or nuclear DNA
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(nDNA). These mutations disrupt cellular respiration and the production of ATP, resulting in the overproduction of damaging free radicals. Mitochondrial diseases were once thought to be rare, but links between mitochondrial defects and many diseases of aging have been discovered, making these diseases far more prevalent than previously thought. A cure is nonexistent, and treatments are often individualized or ineffective. Antioxidants, such as Coenzyme Q10, have the ability to neutralize free radicals, making them a logical choice as a dietary supplement for mitochondrial disease patients. In this experiment, the C. elegans mev-1 mutant was used as a model organism for human mitochondrial disease. MitoQ, a reengineered form of Coenzyme Q10 targeted to the mitochondria, was added as a supplement to the diet of mev-1 mutants. The groups of mev-1 mutants were observed and data was collected every 12 hours until their death to determine their approximate lifespan. Following experimentation and data collection, it was found that there was not a significant difference in between the lifespans of the control mev-1 mutants without MitoQ, and the experimental mev-1 mutants with the MitoQ added to their diet. It is necessary to repeat this experiment while collecting data in shorter time intervals than 12 hours in order to draw more accurate conclusions when completing future research. (more…)
Carbon Dioxide vs. The Ocean
By Laura Drepanos, IV Form
Carbon Dioxide vs. The Ocean: What I learned at the High School Marine Science Symposium
Are the ocean’s problems really my problems?
This was the only question going through my head as I pulled up to front circle two days before March break at 6:50 in the morning.
The short answer: yes.
When Ms. Lohwater announced at school meeting that there was an opportunity to go to the High School Marine Science Symposium (HSMSS) at Northeastern University, I immediately took it. I have always loved learning about the ocean and visiting the Wood’s Hole Oceanographic Institution since I was young. Missing a day of classes for this at the end of the academic window required an overwhelming amount of planning ahead: I had to take tests on my own time and finish all of my assignments. However, I left the HSMSS with many takeaways that made it all worth it.
My first takeaway: Sea Acidification is very real. (more…)
Something Less Depressing –– A 10-Minute Play
By Cooper Sarafin, VI Form
Something Less Depressing –– A 10-Minute Play
Editor’s Note: In the VI Form elective “Writing for Actors,” the assignment called for students to write a stageable one act play, beginning with a dramatic problem. Cooper workshopped his play several times in class, culminating in a staged reading at the end of the third window. He then took it upon himself to revise it once more before sending it out to a national forum, “Trade a Play Tuesday” , where another writer read his play and provided feedback.
SOMETHING LESS DEPRESSING
By Cooper Sarafin
Cast of Characters
James: Individual who prefers the company of himself as opposed to that of others. Doesn’t care what others think of him.
Lily: A friendly girl who likes to get to know many people.
Amy: Stereotypical popular student, superficial and self-obsessed.
Opens with a Lone Figure sitting at a lunch table in thought. In the corner is a vending machine.
Scene 1
James begins talking into a tape recorder
James:
Such a stigma around this, sitting alone. Why must it be regarded as entirely wrong? As something to be undesired? I see them all sitting together, absorbed in mindless conversation, unstimulating, quite boring in fact. Not to say I haven’t been counted part of them, for that’d be inaccurate. Such times as I have attempted to interact with them I joined only to have been left feeling more alone than I do now. It’s my opinion that sitting here alone, my mind to roam free, is much less lonely than to be trapped in your own head with nothing to say. Isn’t it rather lonely to be the only person who doesn’t seem to care? To be an irrelevant bystander, in close proximity, yet so far removed. For me, to exculpate myself is not a decision, but the only reasonable course of action. For alone by choice is far better than alone by force. (more…)
Travel Daily Digests & Thoughts: Haiti Partnership
By Will Stack, Kerrie Verbeek, Will Allen, Jack Thalmann, Cricket Dotson, and Henry Hirschfeld
Travel Daily Digests & Thoughts: Haiti Partnership
Day 1: Friday, January 13, 2017
By Will Stack
Today has been long. Everything has just been blurred together; it’s a miracle I didn’t lose my passport. When we finally landed in Haiti, we were all ready to collapse. However, we had a little trouble at the car rental place. Apparently, despite our arranged reservation, they did not have two cars to rent us. “It’s Haiti” seemed to be the excuse used when Pere Reginald, our partner priest who hosted us during our visit, asked why they did not have our cars. This was just the start of a very exciting afternoon on the roads of Port-Au-Prince. We had to drive from the airport in Port-Au-Prince to Mathieu, the town where we would be staying for our first evening, and along the way, we experienced one of the most eye-opening parts of Haitian culture, Haitian driving. (more…)
Fake News & Google: A Vessel in the Sea of Verity and Deceit
By Lulu Eastman, V Form
Fake News & Google: A Vessel in the Sea of Verity and Deceit
In our Digital Age, Google has become a vital tool to the global population, with over a billion people worldwide relying on the search engine as their guide to the human library known as the internet. Google not only nurtures the insatiable curiosity and hunger for knowledge innate to mankind, but also easily provides the masses with unreliable and false information, resulting in an age where anyone can easily be deceived online. (more…)
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