Category: Culture

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2017-2018 Archives by Melyssa I '20 Culture Entertainment and Culture

Fidget Spinners: Why They’re So Popular and What People Actually Think About Them

What comes to mind when you think of fidget spinners? To the students of BSGE, they bring on mixed opinions. Approximately 66 students were surveyed for their opinions on the toys; whether they completely hated, liked, or were indifferent to them. Here is what they had to say:

Given the current backlash fidget spinners receive, a surprising 40.9% of responders said that they liked the toys, while 30.3% claimed they disliked the spinners, and 28.8% were indifferent on the matter, neither liking nor disliking them. When asked if they have ever owned a fidget spinner, the majority of responders (68.2%) said that they had, and only 31.8% said that they hadn’t. An even bigger difference percentage-wise happened when the responders were asked if they’d ever used the spinners, in which an overwhelming 89.4% of people said that they had, and only 10.6% said that they hadn’t.

Why did they respond in this way?

When asked why they liked fidget spinners, the vast majority of people simply said it was all down to the fact that they spun, with Brandon C. ‘18 simply responding with, “They spin.”. Multiple others said the same. A sizeable amount of people also claimed it was because of their initial purpose to help children with ADD/ADHD, and on this, Kayla P. ‘20 says, “They can really help people with attention/movement issues.”

On why they disliked fidget spinners, almost all the responders said it was because they were “annoying”, with many specifically citing how distracting they could be. Edward S. ‘23 and Agomoni S. ‘23 said, “They keep you occupied”, and “They’re a complete waste of time and don’t help anything”. Many responders also noted the noise that the spinners made to be irritating, with Sara H. ‘18 saying, “They’re useless and annoying to hear spin”. Alexis W. ‘22 stated, “They do make noise sometimes and it gets really annoying when people use them in class.”.

Despite the controversy and conflicting opinions, Arif E. ‘20 sums it up when he says, “I mean, they are harmless toys. They can understandably be pretty fun to play around with,” since that’s all fidget spinners are; popular toys of 2017.

 

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2016-2017 Archives by Janielle D '19 Culture Entertainment and Culture

What Do You Meme?

Memes: there is no escaping them. From the Instagram explore page and Twitter relatable accounts to company marketing advertisements and BSGE bake sale posters, memes are used to reach a wide audience, with purposes including entertainment and advertising. While the iconic Pepe and Kermit the Frog memes made their viral Internet debut in the 2010s, memes have been around since the 1940s, connecting people around the world.

The word “meme” was first coined in 1976 by Richard Dawkins, who described it as “an idea, behavior, or style that spreads from person to person within a culture.” Under Dawkins, memes were analogous to genes and were considered a “unit of culture” that reproduces itself. Inspired from Dawkins, the study of memes, known as memetics, arose to act as an evolutionary model of the transferring of information within cultures. Despite its scientific beginnings, memes have taken a different route that most people can understand.

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2016-2017 Archives by Samantha V '18 Culture News World

What it is Like to Live in a Developing Country For Two Weeks

Two weeks in the Philippines. This may not seem like a lot of time for a vacation, but it was perfect for an eye-opening experience. While I was in the Philippines, I learned about how different the local lifestyle was from the my lifestyle in New York. There were many moments when I felt extremely grateful for how privileged I was, but there were also many times when I wished I could have these Filipino experiences everyday.

The first thing I noticed was how much traffic there was. While New York has its fair share of traffic, it is nothing compared to the never-ending traffic on the streets of the Philippines. Almost every hour seemed to be rush hour and it was almost impossible to get anywhere on time. Whether taking a car, a tricycle, or jeepney, commuting was definitely a struggle. Mass transportation such as trains weren’t used as often because they were inconvenient and inefficient. There were a limited number of stops and the trains didn’t reach many areas. This causes more people to drive, which in turn creates more traffic. From talking with family members, I learned that they were used to the traffic and it has become a part of their everyday life. They learned to always expect traffic, so they tend to leave a lot earlier just to get to work or school on time. A possible solution that was passed in 2003 was the Unified Vehicular Volume Reduction Program, more commonly known as coding. Still used today, what the program does is that it restricts certain vehicles from using main roads at specific times based on the last digit of its license plate. Even with coding in use, traffic is still very prominent because of the lack of mass public transportation.

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2016-2017 Archives by Anokha V '19 Culture Features News students U.S.

A Personal Experience of the March on Washington

On January 21st, 2017, my mother, friends, and I chanted “We want a leader, not a creepy tweeter!” loudly throughout the streets of Washington D.C.

Less than twenty-four hours after country musicians strummed their guitars for America’s new president, I marched with more than two million women, men, and children across the globe protesting Donald Trump and what he stands for. With the recent election and inauguration of Donald Trump as America’s 45th president, tensions have been high, to say the least. Each day has introduced new scandals and potential constitutional violations. From taking down the pages on climate change and LGBTQ rights on the White House website on his first day in office to waging a full fledged war on the media, Donald Trump has been a very controversial figure. However, this article is not meant to focus on Trump or his supporters, but on the Women’s March on Washington. While I went to the Women’s March primarily to protest Trump’s administration and the man himself, the Women’s March was used by many to advocate for women’s rights. The idea for the Women’s March originally sparked when a retired attorney from Hawaii, Teresa Shook, created a Facebook page for 40 of her friends, attempting to create a small march in protest of Trump’s election. Overnight, 10,000 people had RSVPed for the event, and that’s when the movement gained momentum. The march had its fair share of controversy, however. When it was originally conceived by Ms. Shook, she named it the Million Women’s March, which was a march organized for black women in 1997. This naming drew some backlash, and felt quite racially exclusive, so the march was handed over to female activists Linda Sarsour, Carmen Perez, and Tamika Mallory, and named the Women’s March on Washington. From there, the march became the monumental event that it became known as on January 21st.

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2016-2017 Archives by Mansha R '22 Culture Entertainment and Culture Student Life Style

Advice for Lockers

Every student at BSGE has an assigned locker, but many do not use them to the full extent that they should. Here are some tips for using your locker!

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2016-2017 by Janielle D '19 Culture Entertainment and Culture Music

Cracking the Puzzle of Hamilton’s Hype

Teenagers growing up in New York City are given the opportunity to be exposed to the many shows on Broadway. While this fun and memorable experience has always been available, no show has garnered as much popularity as Hamilton as outside of the musical theater niche—especially in young people. Its accomplishments, which include winning “Best Musical” as well as ten other Tony Awards, have people wondering what is so great about Hamilton and why the hype still has not calmed down even after two years since its Off-Broadway debut.

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2016-2017 Archives by Mrittika H '20 by Sofija O '20 Culture Entertainment and Culture

Thanksgiving Activities

Thanksgiving is one of the most celebrated holidays in America, regardless of race or religion. It is a time of sharing and expressing gratitude, and the celebration of overcoming previous hardships. Fortunately, students and teachers had a four day weekend to celebrate however and with whoever they want. This allowed for many differently planned celebrations to happen.

Most people spent the holidays with their extended family. Others, however, spent their holidays in other ways, such as hanging out with their friends. Still other people decided to just sit at home and watch a movie with the people closest to them. BSGE teachers echoed this variety, with Ms. Meisler celebrating with both her family and friends, Mr. Mehan sharing his moments with his friends and Ms. Nikkolos, spending her Thanksgiving with close friends watching movies, followed by visiting her daughter and grandson. Most families prepared special dishes, either in their own style or the traditional plain turkey with stuffing, with side dishes, appetizers, and desserts. The inclusion of this tradition makes most families’ thanksgiving feel like a gathering of family and friends where people can socialize. Some people, though, did not have a celebration on Thanksgiving, instead having one either before or after that Thursday due to the absence of family members.

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2016-2017 Archives Culture Entertainment and Culture Faiza T'18 Opinion Student Life

Students vs. SAT/ACT

For many students, one of the biggest goals in their high school career is to receive a decent score on their SAT or ACT. Although people have different definitions of what is considered adequate, BSGE students have standards set fairly high. Along with diploma grades and extracurriculars, the score on these standardized tests weigh heavily on a student’s future. It can the deciding factor for the colleges one gets accepted to, and thus the rest of their life.

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2016-2017 Archives by Katherine Y '22 Culture Entertainment and Culture

A Crossword of Riddles

cross

Across
1. What has 3 feet, but cannot walk?
3. What gets whiter the dirtier it gets?

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2016-2017 Archives by Janielle D '19 Culture Entertainment and Culture Student Life

Tips for New Bees

Transitioning into a new school is difficult, especially one as demanding and rigorous as BSGE. In order to make that transition smooth, all new students should remember these seven suggestions:

  1. Be polite; stay to the right!  If you’re not on the right side, you’re on the wrong side.
    • The school hallways are very small, so the general rule is to stay to the right so that you help minimize the amount of traffic (especially with only three minutes between classes).
  2. Say hello to your new best friend: your locker.
    • Not everyone is privileged enough to have a ten minute commute to and from school, and no one wants to injure their back with tons of binders and notebooks everyday. Before leaving, think to yourself: do you really need your whole binder? Can you just bring a few sheets home to complete your work? Get everything you need to finish homework and study, then leave the rest in your locker! Your back will thank you later.
  3. Stay organized and on top of things.
    • If you didn’t know, there are calendars on the first floor for teachers to write big assignments on so that we are not bombarded with too much work within one week. However, this does not always work in our favor. There will be weeks in which you’ll have three tests, five quizzes, and a paper due, and it will be solely up to you to get everything done. With this amount of work, life will be much easier if you actively use a planner – whether a physical book or your phone’s calendar app. This way, you will be able to correctly prioritize and optimize your time and energy.  If you don’t have a planner, you can buy one from Margaret Pasach, the parent coordinator, for only $5.
  4. Communication is key!
    • While it would be nice to understand everything on the first try, that will not always happen. It’s fine to struggle; everyone does. But you don’t have to be embarrassed or or ashamed! Many teachers are available after school to answer your questions. It’s reasonable to feel like you’re bothering them, but remember that teaching is what they do. They want to make sure that you understand what’s going on, and they cannot read your minds to know whether or not you need help if you don’t say anything. If your teacher isn’t free, you always have classmates that you can go to for help!
  5. Don’t be afraid to get involved.
    • If it wasn’t already obvious, BSGE has a plethora of clubs and extracurricular activities that are available for everyone to join! Joining these clubs is a great way to make new friends, especially ones who are in other grades, while doing something after school that interests you. To see the clubs schedule this year, check the front page, and if you don’t see anything of interest, you can always try to start a new one!
  6. Sleep is not for the weak. It’s for the productive and successful student.
    • This one ties into the third tip because it’s important to plan out everything accordingly, especially sleeping. Without enough sleep, you run the risk of being too tired to concentrate during class. If that happens, you’ll not only get in trouble, but you will also possibly miss important information. Especially as growing teenagers, sleep is essential to growth and health, and it isn’t wise to miss out on that because you didn’t manage your time well. Sure, there’ll be a few days in which your workload is too heavy, forcing you to only get three hours of sleep, but try not to make it a habit!
  7. Grades are important, but they’re not everything.
    • Everyone wants to have straight sevens, and it makes sense: the pressure to get good grades is extremely high. However, it’s easy to lose sight of what’s really important. School is supposed to be a place to learn , and while grades do matter, achieving that goal is far more important. Aim for those sevens, but don’t stress out too much if you fall short.  It is extremely difficult to get perfect grades, and that’s okay. Just don’t forget to learn from your mistakes and have fun!

Keep these tips in mind to make your experience here as pleasant as possible.  After all, you are at school for ten months a year: you might as well make the most of it!