Plastic bag bans: Are they really worth it?

February 14, 2020 jillleabean Leave a comment

There is no question that pollution and climate change are issues that are taking our world by storm. As new laws are put in place to add taxes to plastic bags or to ban them completely, it begs the question, are bans really going to work?

Everyday, people use disposable plastic products. Straws, cups, forks, bottles and, one of the most impactful, plastic bags. Plastic bags are easy to use, disposable, and many people use them for these reasons. However, are the benefits of them really worth the costs?

There is a shockingly large amount of plastic that is polluting our oceans. It endangers animals and leads to the emission of more greenhouse gases. According to ABC News, plastic bags clog storm drains and entangle and kill an estimated 100,000 marine animals annually.

According to ABC News, only three states in the U.S. have passed laws that ban single-use plastics like plastic bags. California, Hawaii, and New York are those three states. Other states like Delaware, Maine, and Rhode Island have mandatory recycling/reuse programs but plastic bags are not banned or taxed.

Ten states have placed bans on banning plastic bags. These states include Arizona, Florida, Iowa, Idaho, Michigan, Mississippi, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. These bans restrict the ability to control and ban plastic-bag usage. The bans in these ten states ban laws similar to the ones in California and Rhode Island from being enforced.

This encourages us to ask the question, are plastic bag bans really worth it?

According to “Plastic Bag Bans Work” from the Smithsonian, in 2002, Ireland made a simple change by adding a 15 cent tax on plastic bags in stores. They hoped that the tax would help people notice their habits and convince them to bring reusable bags. After the tax was put in place, plastic bag use went down 90 percent. Many shoppers ended up agreeing with the tax and were able to see the benefits.

Plastic bag bans work (at least in tax form)! They have made a noticeable difference in Ireland and have the chance to make an impact all over the world. Enforcing bans across the United States could show an amazing change; especially for marine life!

Music/Concerts

Lauv

February 13, 2020 Carla Tizcareño Leave a comment

As a 25-year-old singer and songwriter, Ari Leff has really made a name for himself. Professionally known as Lauv, Ari is a singer and guitarist. On March 6th, 2020 he will be debuting his album how i’m feeling. His fans are buzzing about his new album; all the songs are very fun but also have a deeper meaning which is interesting to listen to.

He already has 3 million views on YouTube with his new, romance packed song “Tattoos Together” which was released on January 16th, 2020.

His music videos are usually bright and very catchy. Once interviewed about his new song he says, “This is one of my favorite videos I’ve ever done cause I’ve recently done a few heavier, more existential videos, but “Tattoos” is just straight fun the whole time….and I got to prove to the world once again that I can’t dance.”

In 2017, he had his first hit song “I Like Me Better” and continues to make more electronic pop based music. He says that “I Like Me Better” was the fastest song he has ever written and he says it may just be one of his most popular. His career has been lifting ever since.

With his collaboration with popular K-Pop group, BTS, and with Billie Eillish, Khalid and more, his fans are excited to see what comes next.

His songs have been played in popular TV series and movies such as Grey’s Anatomy, 13 Reasons Why, and To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before. So when you listen to his songs you may recognize his extremely talented voice.

He is touring through many different countries for almost the entire year and will be stopping in Minneapolis on July 28th, 2020. He is going to travel the world, sharing his songs and his upbeat energy.

Science/Nature

Animals going extinct

February 13, 2020 courtney_legomyeggo Leave a comment

There are a couple of explanations behind why an animal or creature can become endangered. One explanation is loss of environment. To become familiar with why creatures have become terminated previously, we utilized data from National Geographic.

Species that endure their natural surroundings being cleared need to relocate. With an absence of land, there is an expanded possibility of human-animal interactions. Introduction to wild creatures can be possibly hazardous to both parties. Potentially dangerous plants, growths, or insects, might be nearer to society because of their territory being crushed. They begin to grow and thrive in communities which is unwanted.

The loss of species we are seeing today is evaluated to be somewhere in the range of 1,000 and 10,000 times higher than the common eradication rate. People have pursued a significant number of the bigger animals from pretty much every occupied landmass in the course of 125,000 years.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature evaluated how likely it is for specific bird species to go extinct. This depends on characteristics they saw from them. What they found was that the little and versatile creatures have a superior possibility of endurance. Huge creatures are progressively powerless against people since they are targeted and need more space. The loss of these creatures has tumbling impacts. They support their biological system, for instance, elephants disperse huge seeds around the land.

There is an informational article to help you learn more about larger animals becoming extinct from the New York Times.

This article was intended to shine light to everyone on how their environment has been changing. Earth is the home for millions of species of animals. People have been cutting down and taking down the habitats of these animals for years. After such a long time of destruction and hunting, animals are becoming endangered.

Advice/How To, School Life

Why do students procrastinate?

February 13, 2020 jihaanali Leave a comment

Why do students procrastinate? Students often procrastinate when homework or a specific project is not due immediately, if it is not important, or if it is difficult. Other causes of procrastination are no motivation, low self confidence, or not understanding the concept in school.

Procrastination could affect not only students’ grades but also their health. If a student procrastinates on a big project, it is clear that they will not put a lot of effort into it, and this might cause them to get a bad grade on it. Or, if a student procrastinates on studying for an important test because they didn’t know how to study for it or do it, they might do poorly on the test and get a bad grade.

Procrastination usually tends to affect college and high school students because of the fact they have more homework, projects, and work loads.

Image taken from: https://spunout.ie/education/article/procrastination

For example, a student at HPSH has 7 classes, with work assigned in each. With having more than one class to pay attention to, the student who procrastinates, then waits until the last minute to do their work, and receives lower grades than their classmates who didn’t procrastinate.

Procrastination can be avoided with helpful tips to guide people. Making a schedule and actually sticking to it will help because you can see how your day plays out smoothly once you have a solid schedule. Buying a planner to write down homework and deadlines will help. Also, setting reminders on your device will be just as helpful.

A couple of other things can help can include creating a dedicated study place, breaking the homework and projects into smaller tasks, eating healthy, and getting lots of sleep.

Procrastination may seem very hard to stop doing but with routinely following these tips, you’ll gradually stop being a procrastinator in no time.

News

The importance of having unedited photos

February 12, 2020 graceblumerlamotte Leave a comment

The importance of having honest and non-photoshopped photos in newspapers is critical. They are critical because citizens trust that their news source will have truthful information. Having truthful information helps readers trust the press. Photoshopped/edited photos could lead to misread information.

OJ Simpson was a famous running back in the NFL. According to Britannaca, he was accused of killing his wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman. There were many different rumors and photos going around talking about the trial. Many newspapers showed variations of photos that were taken.

According to the New York Times, in 2015 there was a competition called the “World Press Photo Competition.” Many people had to be disqualified from the competition due to “manipulation or excessive digital post processing.” To learn more about this event, and the actions that were taken during and after it, you can visit “Staging, Manipulation and Truth in Photography”. This is yet another example of how important it is to not edit your photos.

The reasons having unedited photos is so important because it makes people get the wrong impressions, and it could affect editors or photographers for the rest of their lives.

COVID-19, World

What is the Coronavirus? How can I protect myself?

February 12, 2020 wynneriemen Leave a comment

As we all know, sickness and disease are very common parts of our lives. Everybody knows that eventually they will get sick, most of the time it’s no big deal and all you need to do is ride it out. We know how diseases like the common cold are spread and what we can do to prevent ourselves from getting sick. But even with these precautions, people still get very sick each year.

One virus that has been in the news recently is known as The 2019 Novel Coronavirus or simply just the coronavirus, it is part of the corona family which houses other viruses such as the common cold, or influenza.

In the US, there are 5 states with confirmed cases of the coronavirus. According to the CDC, there have also been 29 countries with confirmed cases of the virus. China has reported 28,000 confirmed cases with more than 560 coronavirus deaths, according to The Washington Post.

There are more viruses that belong in the coronavirus family, such as the common cold, which was mentioned earlier, and the viruses that caused the global outbreaks of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) in 2015, and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in 2003.

The best way to avoid getting sick is to avoid anybody who has been diagnosed with the virus, and your wash hands frequently while avoiding any unnecessary trips into crowded areas.

Music/Concerts

Grammys 2020

February 11, 2020 genat2002 Leave a comment

The 62nd annual Grammy Awards took place in Los Angeles, California in the Staples Center on Sunday, January 26th. The Grammy Awards, a show where musicians from all different genres from Country to Rap, get recognition for the work that they released within the last year.

Just 10 days before the award show was about to take place, there was a removal of a pivotal member of the Recording Academy, chief Deborah Dugan after strong allegations of misconduct at the nonprofit. The Grammy Awards took place on a rather somber and heartbreaking Sunday as hours before the awards show began, NBA and Los Angeles Laker legend, Kobe Bryant and 8 others, including his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna Bryant, tragically lost their lives in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, CA.

Image taken from: https://www.popsugar.co.uk/entertainment/lizzo-performance-at-grammys-2020-video-47147225

Due to that heartbreaking loss, hundreds of people started gathering around the Staples Center, where Kobe Bryant played for 20 years, before the Grammys started. The Grammy administration started telling people to leave the area before the award show but no one budged. Conversations started about even canceling the award show because it was “disrespectful” to host an award show at an arena that many called an arena Kobe Bryant built.

The show started off with a performance from Pop-Rap artist, Lizzo. Before her performance she stated that her performance was dedicated to Kobe, “Tonight is for Kobe!” she yelled at the start. After Lizzo’s performance, the host, Alicia Keys, who has won 15 Grammys in the past, started the show off immediately acknowledging Kobe Bryant. Boyz II Men and Alicia Keys sang to honor Kobe Bryant, and the 8 others lost in the helicopter crash. Throughout the night, Kobe Bryant was always brought up.

Many artists performed throughout the night from many genres including Billie Eilish, Lil Nas X and Ariana Grande.

The big winner of the night was 18-year-old pop singer, Billie Eilish. She won five of the six awards she was nominated for, including winning all four of the big categories: Album, Song, Record of the Year, and Best New Artist. She became the first artist to sweep these awards since Christopher Cross in 1981. At 18, she is also the youngest person to win Album of the Year.

At the end of the show, DJ Khaled, YG, and Roddy Ricch all came out to perform for a tribute to the late Los Angeles rapper, Nipsey Hussle, who was shot and killed this past March at his clothing store. Nipsey Hussle, who was nominated for his first studio album, Victory Lap attended the Grammys in 2019 but never won a Grammy. This year however, he posthumously won 2 Grammys for his song “Racks In the Middle.”

The Grammys had the lowest ratings ever in their 62 years of the shows airing but, many iconic things occurred.

Hockey

2020 NHL skills competition

February 11, 2020 sabineschatschneider Leave a comment

On Friday, January 24, the annual NHL skills competition was held. In this competition, the best players from all around the NHL compete in competitions based on some of their best skills. This year the competition was held in St. Louis and there were several new events including, for the first time ever, an elite women’s 3-on-3 game.

The first event was the fastest skater; in this event players have to skate one lap around the rink as fast as possible and whoever has the fastest time wins. This year Mathew Barzal won with a time of 13.175 seconds. This ended Connor McDavid’s three year reign, during this time McDavid set the world record for fastest lap around the rink with a time of 13.020 seconds.

The second event was the save streak competition. In this competition the goalies face a series of shootout attempts and the goalie with the most saves wins. This year the winner was Jordan Binnington with 10 saves.

The next event was the accuracy shooting competition. In this competition, the players shoot from 25 feet away and try to hit 5 targets in the net as quick as possible. This year the winner was Jacob Slavin with a time of 9.505 seconds.

Next up was the elite women’s 3-on-3 game. This game had two ten minute periods with running time. This is the first year this event was held and team Canada came out on top with a score of 2-1.

The hardest shot competition came next. Shea Weber won this competition with a shot of 106.5mph. Shea Weber’s personal best is 108.5mph and the world record is 108.8 held by Zdeno Chara.

The final event of the first day was the shooting stars competition. In this competition players would shoot 7 pucks from a raised platform and try to hit as many targets as possible. This is the first year this event has been held, and Patrick Kane won with a score of 22.

The NHL skills competition happens every year and although the players get money for winning the events, the competition as a whole is used to raise money for charity and to honor former NHL all stars.

World

Death of a legend

February 11, 2020 ladafia Leave a comment

Kobe Bryant was an American basketball player. He entered the National Basketball Association right out of high school, and played for the Los Angeles Lakers. On January 26, 2020, Kobe Bryant, along with his 13-year-old daughter and seven other people, were killed in a helicopter crash, while on their way to a youth basketball tournament.

Before the helicopter went down, the pilot told air traffic control that he was climbing to avoid a layer of fog. Witnesses reported that they saw the helicopter flying through a layer of clouds and fog, seconds before it crashed. The helicopter slammed into a hill.

According to the radar data, the helicopter crashed at about 152miles per hour. It has been reported that the helicopter fell at a quick rate, and according to experts that was too fast for a standard landing.

The helicopter had a reputation as a safe aircraft. Investigators have said that the helicopter lacked a key warning, meaning the helicopter system didn’t warn pilots, if they are getting too close to the ground. Officials have said that it’s too early to know whether the lack of warning was the cause of the crash.

Fans around the world mourned the death of the star and his daughter Gianna; people gathered outside of the Staples Center to pay their respects. Alicia Keys, who hosted the 2020 Grammys, gave a tribute to him, and his teammates have also honored him and paid tribute to them.

Vanessa Bryant broke her silence on Instagram with a heartbreaking post with a picture of her, her husband, and their 13-year-old daughter, saying: “My girls and I want to thank the millions of people who’ve shown support and love during this horrific time. Thank you for all the prayers. We definitely need them.”

For more information, visit this site:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/31/us/kobe-death.html

School Life

Sheridan Story service trip

February 10, 2020 deitychildren Leave a comment

By: Vivian S

If you are as obsessed with staying up to date with the school announcements as I am, or you look at the posters hung up all around the building, you may be well aware that on Wednesday, February 19th, there will be a service trip to the Sheridan Story.

The Sheridan Story is an organization dedicated to helping defeat child hunger and food insecurity. They work with schools and communities to help children get the food they will need, especially for weekends and breaks.

Not only do they provide food, but they try to make sure it’s healthy, consulting with dieticians from Allina Health and Saint Paul Public Schools.

And Highland Park Senior High is going to head over and help them! The field trip will be from 9:30AM to 12:00PM on February 19th. There are only 100 spots though, so the trip is already full.

If you still want to volunteer, you can sign up to volunteer on the Sheridan Story website.

While I always appreciate service opportunities just because, if you are part of a club or program (*cough* National Honor Society *cough*) that requires service hours, this would also be a good place to get some in.

To find out more about the Sheridan Story or donate to them go to: https://www.thesheridanstory.org.

The proceeds of the school’s Bid Out, February 10th-18th, will also be going to the Sheridan Story. Bring money to your 2nd period class, the 10 classes that raise the most money will be going to ComedySportz, an improv comedy show.