Axeology

The exciting new magazine from Years 12 & 13

Short stories from writers Charlie Hall and Josh Dayman

Must-see Christmas films for the chill season

Hannah Burnett on the common cold

and much more!...

Christmas 2015

2

Anthology - a collection of poetry or other

pieces of writing

Mixology - the art of preparing cocktails

Axe - destructive cutting or chopping

action

...Welcome to

AXEOLOGY

3

Hello!

Hello and welcome to AXEOLOGY. This is the first exciting

edition of what we hope will be an Axe Valley success. It

will make you laugh, cry in places, teach you something

new and more importantly smile.

It’s been a long and eventful term it seems; especially

with the addition of mocks that have been a lovely

Christmas present to us from the school. We have been

dressing up for Children in Need, washing cars for charity

and now we are counting down the days to the long

awaited Christmas holidays. If you are inspired by the ar-

ticles you read then by all means let us know and submit

your work to either of us for a bumper spring issue.

Meanwhile have a great holiday, stay safe kids, and see

you in 2016!

All the best,

Polly and Charles!

Editors

4

It's winter; that time of year when the sun has seemingly gone on holiday, Jack Frost comes to visit

and the Common Cold comes out to play. The snow may look pretty and glittery but the snowmen

are here at the unfortunate expense of temperatures exceeding 5 degrees C. And with these stupid-

ly low temperatures come low immunity to diseases and a high infection rate.

The most common illness in the winter is the common cold; so called because it is common and ap-

pears most in the cold seasons. The common cold is also known as rhinopharyngitis, nasopharyngi-

tis and acute coryza. This widespread illness, which brings misery to many of us in the winter, is

caused by a tiny virus, usually the rhinovirus. You might be wondering why it is called 'rhinovirus'.

Does it refer to that rather large, grey and wrinkly mammal with horns? The answer to that is quite

obviously no. A rhinoceros doesn't have anything to do with our human cold! The 'rhino' part refers

to the nose. The virus spreads though contact with infected droplets of moisture such as the mois-

ture released when you sneeze or cough. Once you have contracted the virus it takes a few days for

symptoms to develop although you will become contagious within this time.

The rhinovirus enters the body and injects its RNA into human cells hijacking them. However, the

virus mutates often which means that once we have become immune to one form of the virus it is

still likely that another form of the virus will cause another infection. The constant mutation of the

virus has made it impossible to produce an effective and long lasting vaccine against the common

cold. Therefore, we are only able to treat the symptoms and not the cause.

Everyone knows the symptoms of the common cold; they appear year after year, just like your

dad's bad Christmas jumper! Fatigue, a sore throat, coughs of various varieties and a constant

sneeze to go with the blocked or runny nose. These symptoms make it impossible to do anything!

The common cold is the real Grinch.

by Hannah Burnett

5

There are ways, however, to try and prevent the rhinovirus from invading. Firstly, wash your hands!

This is a vital layer of prevention against the common cold. Don't just rinse your hands with some wa-

ter; viruses do not drown. You must use soap to kill these nasty viruses and stop them from acci-

dentally gaining unauthorised access to your body and giving you the sniffles. People often pick up

these germs from doors or other surfaces. Our next important prevention technique is always clean

your work surfaces. Lots of people will just sneeze onto a table and leave the infected droplets for

someone else to pick up. What a lucky person. By using antibacterial surface cleaner, the germs are

destroyed and can no longer wreak havoc on you or anyone else; at least not from that surface. There

is also a way to stop your germs from even getting near to any other surfaces or people. The third

prevention method is to use a tissue when sneezing or coughing. The absorbent nature of the tissue

means that any infected droplets are captured and can't linger in the air waiting for their next victim.

The final piece of prevention advice is to not share food, drink or utensils with other people; your/

their saliva is an ocean of germs, one of which may be the rhinovirus. The saliva residue on these

things could easily lead to sickness. And, in case you hadn't quite twigged it, kissing also transmits evil

germs.

Spot the virus.

6

7

Christmas isn’t Christmas without a fire, hot chocolate and a good quali-ty Christmas movie. I am going to give you my top 3 favourite Christmas films - and they pretty much stay the same for each year. My number three movie is Bad Santa. In case you don’t know what this film is, it’s about, it’s about Santa. This is not the kind of cute snuggly Santa that every child dreams falls down their chimney on Christmas Eve; he is a depressed, alcoholic safecracker. The kids may think Santa’s waiting for them to fall asleep so he can creep into the house and leave their favourite presents, but he is in fact a stalker. Oh and I forgot to mention there’s an elf too. This is not the typical kind elf who doesn’t care about what size they are, he's an angry dwarf who has been by Santa’s side for eight years. They work as a ‘magic’ duo to crack safes around every department store that promotes Christmas. Santa is con-stantly drunk, satisfying customers in the plus sizes dressing rooms and there’s always sick around him; whether it’s the children on him or vice versa! So for an all round laugh I would recommend you try and watch this film this Christmas! I’m rating this movie four stars out of five! My number two movie is The Grinch That Stole Christmas. Now I will be surprised if you don’t know this film, but in case you don’t here you go: The Grinch is literally about The Grinch. He is a scrooge - he can’t stand anything to do with Christmas. We discover why through this laugh-out-loud, heart-tugging movie. You can’t forget Miss Cindy-Lou Who, who helps the Grinch discover the joys of Christmas and shows the other Who's that Christmas is about the people as well as the presents. I would rate this movie four stars out of five! Finally my number one movie is Elf! There is a reason why it’s shown on channel four every year: it’s the best Christmas movie invented. Buddy the elf started as a baby in an orphanage who managed to crawl into Santa’s present sack and was therefore raised by the elves - Santa’s little helpers. He then of course grew to an average sized human making him stand out of the crowd. Santa then allows him to travel to New York City, where Buddy finds his Father - a scrooge who’s on the naughty list. Buddy discovers the ‘delights’ of NYC, and helps his boring, mean father discover the vibe of a good Christmas - the way it should be! This hilari-ous, heart warming movie is a great for all the family. I am giving this movie a strong five out of five!

Movies you don’t want to miss this Christmas!

by Lily Davis-Griffiths

8

Meaningless by Josh Dayman

Once upon a time there was a-

No. no no no. scrap that opening, it’s too clichéd. Let me try again.

There once was a man named-

No. the story might not be about a man. And people might think I’m against feminism, or something. No, there has to be a good opening to this new idea.

It.

I like that. It’s short, but doesn’t give anything away. It’s just a shame the idea is gone now.

I remember watching a video, about a man who had all these creative ideas about game development, but never re-leased his work to anyone, as he never liked it. It was a sad story, as it ends with some heavy points to think about.

I can relate to him, I think.

Let me find a new idea quickly. I always do, ideas come quickly to me.

I can just never finish them.

In fact, I’ve been thinking about something which has been on my mind for a while…

No, never mind. Ignore me, I have a new idea.

It will be about a man who fights dragons!

No…

Someone who dies and becomes a ghost?

No…

How about a crime story?

No.

All these ideas and none of them will be finished. I can’t. I never do.

Drawing Hands by M. C. Escher

9

I don’t know what it is, but it always plays out the same. I get a new idea for a good story, I start writing, thinking this time I’ll do it, that it’ll be the one.

Then it gets forgotten, or I lose interest.

It’s all meaningless.

About what I said before...what I was thinking about? Well, I was just going to say this:

If drive is what keeps people going, how do you go when you have no drive?

I think about that a lot, mainly because it’s true. Like my ideas for a story. If I have no drive, how can I expect to finish what I started?

That’s not all. What if I have the drive, but it wears off? What if my drive just isn’t enough!? What do I do then? I’m stuck. And I need help.

Thinking about it is meaningless. Because I know talking about it won’t change it.

But… I feel like I should tell you this. You listen after all.

I listen.

It’s not worth it, you won’t finish, it’s not good, people hate it, not a good idea, stop trying, why bother, you can’t, I need help, it’s hurting me, make it stop, I can’t go on.

A wall of literal writers block. Maybe that’s what’s stopping me? This... wall? I don’t know.

It’s meaningless.

My writing, my stories, my ideas. They are my life. It’s what I’m good at. All I’m good at, really. But… they’re meaning-less. Worthless. Useless.

Does that mean I’m meaningless?

No. yes? I don’t know. I’m stuck, my drive is gone, and I hate my work. Like the game developer I talked about before. It’s terrible! All of it!

If it isn’t done why bother starting?

It’s meaningless. I’m just...I’m going to for a bit. I’m sorry; I know you expected to read something fun and entertain-ing. But…I can’t. I have nothing. It’s all…

Meaningless?

Yeah. Meaningless.

Am I meaningless?

I’ve already asked that, but is it true?

If I can’t continue, I go backwards, which is pointless. I can’t excel in my work, and become successful, so why do I bother trying again and again and again and again!?

Is it because I hope one day, it’ll be different?

Maybe. But it doesn’t matter now. It’s all just…

Meaningless?

Yeah. Meaningless.

10

Now it’s winter,

everyone fancies

snuggling up in-front

of the warm burning

fire with their fa-

vourite onesie and a

cup of hot choccy!

But, I would like to

think that we go

out and explore.

However, I know we

can’t always feel

bothered to put our

makeup on or dress

amazingly but hope-

fully my top tips

will change your

mind. There are so

many rules when it

comes to fashion

but ‘hey, rules

are meant to

be broken’.

Hopefully all you

beauties will be look-

ing fabulous this win-

ter.

After traipsing

through many fashion

magazines, digging out

clothes and seeing

what everyone else

thinks, I have finally

come to a conclusion

of how we students

can look our finest

this winter.

Oversized coats and

comfy sweaters are a

must have! When you

tie this with leggings

and some comfy

boots a whole

new comfy-yet-stylish

look arrives in your

wardrobe. Many shops

will have these availa-

ble in any price range

but look through your

last years to see if

you can bring it out

too. Faux fur may

not appeal to every-

one but putting a

faux fur vest over a

long sleeved top cre-

ates a winter look

that is simple yet

effective. It is also

very cosy. Bold prints

are very much in this

season so mix and

match with patterns

and bold colours

Fashion Update

11

Jessica Boulton

muddled or going out

looking like a snowman;

even if your intentions

this Christmas is high!

Hope you all have a

wonderful Christmas

holiday and receive

lovely gifts. Stay warm

but stay stylish!

makes them very warm.

My last advice to you

ladies is to invest in

some warm scarves, ear

-warmers and gloves

that can be worn to

warm you up this win-

ter and make a fashion

statement.

My last words to you

is to not to over bun-

dle! We all know what

it is like when you over

layer and when delayer-

ing we end up getting

hot, frustrated and re-

gretting why we put

them on the first

place. Plus I don’t

want any or you get-

ting

to create a statement

outfit that could be

dressed up with some

simple jewelry. On the

other hand, don’t for-

get the neutral colours

too, this may look au-

tumnal but really it

just makes your look

more casual yet can

also jazz up a denim

skirt. Everyone has

some ankle boots, even

if they are last year’s

or this year, you can

put these with some

skinny jeans and pull

up your socks enough

to see them out of

your boots! I must

admit this

12

Tell Me Truly… What has Christmas become? Polly Huscroft

The 25th of December, in my personal opinion, is one of the greatest days of the year. This is purely because Christmas Day allows you to get away with

things that you wouldn’t even dream of at any other time in the year. On Christmas Day it is deemed acceptable to wake up at five in the morning, crack open the bubbly by nine, eat enough food to feed an army and listen to your family rant about how they are going to put the world to rights. One thing that I do think to myself though, howev-er, is how much money and preparation goes into these festivities that a majority of people partake in at Christ-mas? From this question I thought that I would try and shed some light onto Christmas.

Put it this way, did you know that 70 per cent of us carry a gene that makes the brain detect sharp, bitter flavours, resulting in the dislike of Brussel sprouts? I never truly believed that my family never liked them; I thought that they were just

using it as an excuse to get away with not eating them. Although 9875 tonnes of sprouts are consumed in Decem-ber each year, this to me seems like a truly extravagant amount. Did you also know that 10 million turkeys were consumed last year in the UK? This statement goes to show that 76 per cent of families around the UK will be serv-ing up a succulent roast turkey as the centre piece of their festive meal this Christmas; I can safely say that I’ll be part of the 76 percent eating turkey this Christmas. Henry VIII was the first English monarch to eat turkey on Christ-

mas day; it was Edward VII however that carried on the tradition. The alcohol figures are extraordinary. Dur-ing December in Britain there is a 40 percent increase in alcohol consumption and, if you don’t believe me, 600 million units of alcohol are consumed by we Brits during

December 2014. This statistic is then reflected when you find out that 35 million bottles of wine and 250 million

pints of beer were consumed over Christmas last year. 25 million Christmas puddings were eaten last year, seeing this statistic as somebody that truly loathes Christmas pudding I find

this one a little hard to believe. However the fact that all this extra food consumption means that the average per-son could put on an extra 5lbs (2kg) in weight isn’t a surprise to me, I’ve seen how much I can get through over Christmas.

It’s not just the amount that we consume over Christmas which is shocking… We spend a fortune! £74.3 bil-lion is the expected total retail spend by UK households in the run up to Christmas and more than one third of this will be additional Christmas spending on food,

drink, clothing and toiletries. Last year 44.3m hours were spent online shopping across Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day, that is an amazing amount of time to be sat at a computer browsing the internet. DHL identi-fied December 13th as the busiest day for Christmas shopping. In previous years it has seen an uplift of as much as 99 per cent on that day compared to the usual volume of packages at DHL service points which I must say is quite

an achievement. Royal mail estimates it deals with 700 million Christmas cards and 40 million parcels sent by internet shoppers during the Christmas period; my question to them is whether

all of them will be delivered in time. But 32,000 temporary jobs have been created by Amazon and Royal mail this year for the Christmas season in anticipation of a surge in demand. This statement is quite easily proven when you hear that 4.1m orders were received by Amazon on the busiest day last Christmas. That is the equivalent of 47 or-

ders per second. On a slightly scary note, on average £37.04 is stolen by thieves per family in the UK during the Christmas season.

13

However, it does seem as though we are wasting our money when we look back at what we throw away over Christ-

mas. 30 per cent more rubbish is produced over the Christmas period. £2.4 billion is wasted on uneaten, discarded food and unwanted gifts and £28 on average per person is

spent on food and drink that will get thrown away. Roughly one billion Christmas cards that are sent will end up in bins across the UK. Additionally, wrapping paper is a massive issue. It has been said that you could gift wrap the Island of Jersey with the amount of wrapping paper thrown away each Christmas and this year it has been predicted that the amount of wrapping paper estimated to be thrown away in the UK this Christmas could stretch around the equator nine times or to the moon if each sheet was laid end to end. It’s amazing really if you think about it… Remember the

gifts that you get that you hate the dreaded unwanted gifts? One in five unwanted gifts end up at the back of the cupboard and another fifth of them are passed on to someone else as a gift. In a survey completed last year it was shown that two

per cent of unwanted gifts are thrown away and that nearly half of the adults questioned would consider selling un-wanted presents online, putting the money towards something that they really want which to be honest I believe is a perfectly reasonable response.

Health and Safety also manages to kick off over Christmas and on this rare occasion their panic seems justified. Did you know that roughly 80,000 people every year need hospital treatment for injuries such as cuts, falls and burns over the Christmas period? Do you know as well have dangerous your fairy lights are? Last year they caused 20 fires and that

around 350 people a year are hurt by Christmas tree lights, injuries include

falling whilst putting them up, electric shocks and burns from faulty lights. People majorly hurt themselves whilst deco-rating their homes, about 1,000 people a year are injured by their Christmas tree, usually while fixing stars, lights or

other decorations to the higher branches and another 1,000 people a year are hurt when decorating their homes, with the most common injuries being falls from unstable chairs or even out

of the loft.

In conclusion, it appears that Christmas has become an excuse to drink, over indulge, spend in excess, be wasteful and be reckless in our decorating. It definitely seems as though we have begun to lose the true meaning of Christmas which is in essence to be thankful for what we have and the company that we have to share the day with, it isn’t about the material good that we manage to pick up along the way. Therefore I’d like to end my article with a couple of facts and

figures that map out how the “experts” predict that your Christmas is going to go. The “experts” believe 8.39am is the time in which the first chocolate is eaten, 9:57am is the time of the first family row, 11.07am is the time the children will first be told off, 11.48am is the time the first alcoholic drink is con-sumed and finally 4.58pm is the time the first person will fall asleep on Christmas Day. With this in mind, how closely do you believe that these facts and figures

relate to your Christmas this year? Did they happen last year or the year before that? Think about it for a while and see, you may surprise yourself.

14

Day 100 by Charlie Hall

Today would mark Eid al-Fitr. It means the festival of breaking of the

fast, and marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting,

on the 1st of Shawwal. But now I can only acknowledge it as the 6th of

July. It is a day like any other day now. I sit here in my degrading and

squalid cage, with nothing but dry porridge and stagnant water to keep

me alive. I cannot fast on this, even if I had the choice. My allocated

name is Anthony Carter. My real name, my Muslim name, is Abdul Rabb

Alli. What I am writing now is forbidden. If this was to be found in my

cell, I would be executed by them.

15

Thump. Thump. I can hear the ironclad footsteps of the guards approaching.

Thump. Thump. I slide my diary under my stained pillow with great haste. Thump.

Thump. My pulse raises, my heart lurching from my chest. They rattle their batons

over the iron bars of our cages for their own amusement, attempting to aggravate

us. Some of us cry, some of us scream. They approach my cell, their eyes fixated up-

on me.

“Anthony Carter?” I stay silent, refusing to answer to my false identity. “Anthony

Carter?” they taunt again. “I do not know who Anthony Carter is, but I know I am

not him.” A surge of retaliation fills my veins. The whole corridor falls silent as each

resident peers through the bars of their cell to watch the commotion unfold. They

know what is coming, as do I.

The cell door flies open, smacking against the iron bars and echoing a metallic

screech down the corridor. “Get up, little man,” one of them commands. I raise my-

self up, my shaking and trembling skeleton nearly crumbling under my own weight.

The tallest of the pair proceeds to restrain me.. I hear my rib cage crack and shatter

into tiny pieces as the other guard swings his baton in to me. Once. Twice. Three

times. My body is like a child’s paint pallet, mixtures of yellows, greens and blues all

over. They throw me to the floor and I land in the pool of blood and spit I had just

so unwillingly produced. “Allahu Akbar.” I mutter to myself. “Allahu Akbar.”

16

I think they have gone now. They always travel in pairs: one to hold me, one to punish

me. To punish me on one charge and one charge only. I am guilty of being innocent of

being Muslim. I do not say Allahu Akbar to incite fear into my captors. I do it to en-

courage hope in my fellow captives. Allahu Akbar is not a war cry. It is not to signify

evil or hatred. It has been tainted by killers and murderers, who have corrupted its

true, heartfelt meaning. It simply means ‘God is beautiful’. Fear and hatred of the

Muslim culture was forged in the fire started by these murders, who screamed these

words as they lit the flame.

“What’ve you got there?” My heart stops. I hear the person tap on the bars of my

cell, attempting to get my attention. I’m speechless, sounds and murmurs churning

out from my mouth in no structured order. “The truth.” I finally manage to construct

a sentence. “You’re living in the truth here and now. Turn around.” And so I do. This is

it surely. Looking at me is a tall and bulky figure, dressed in a sleek grey suit and

sporting a wooden cane. It’s him. The leader of them all. He carries himself in a

creepy and calm manner, remaining on the other side of the bars. He points to the

diary in my hand. “A diary. Hmm. Leather casing, yellow paper. Very similar to the one

I left in the dining hall the other day by accident. Tut. Tut. A thief in my prison. You

people are all the same.” I raise myself up and walk to him. We are both centimeters

apart, his warm horrid breathe attacking my face. The iron bars are all that holds us

apart. “We are not. My parents were Muslim. Their parents were Muslim. I am Abdul

Rabb Alli. I am a Muslim. And I am not afraid of you.”

17

He looks at me and smiles. “You should be.”

Guantanamo Bay by Banksy

18

Dear Doctor

I have come to the conclusion that this is a big enough problem to bring to you... I mean I know

that it’s not only me that it affects but I feel that it has got to the point I need some kind of

help. It’s the vending machine at school! It’s literally robbing the majority of sixth form of their

lunch money. So here is what happens... you put the amount of money in for the snack you

desire, wait a couple of seconds and the product just presses itself up against the glass teas-

ingly; so you are left gazing at it longingly. I mean we tried to solve the problem ourselves but

somehow banging the glass several times relentlessly and getting a huddle of boys to rock it to

and fro only seems to amuse it. The fact that we are told to walk all the way to the canteen to

ask for the key is beyond a joke too; this isn’t the quest for the One Ring – it’s meant to be con-

venient. I guess what I am saying is that deep down I think the school itself is trying to teach us

some sort of metaphorical lesson on the disappointments of life… or maybe dating. Either that

or they’re just trying to rob us to pay for more astro turf. Please help with these shady dealings;

as I have to ask my mum for extra lunch money, and she’s starting to think that I’m spending it

on something far more exciting than a glorified version of one of those claw machines you get

at arcades.

Dear anon

This is hardly difficult to come up with a solution now is it? What is it with you sixth formers

eating so much junk food? Sounds to me that it would be less hassle to just live without

this obsession. But if you cannot possibly resort to this, then maybe, just maybe you

should try walking to the Flamingo Pool? You know… that huge building about 50 metres

past the school canteen. It contains about four variations of vending machines that I am

sure aren’t providing you with ‘shady dealings’. But then again this might be a bit too much

effort for you. It seems to me as if you would rather let your money be sucked in by the

rustlers themselves. If you really want to push the boat out you could all walk to town and

buy something the good old fashioned way? Oh wait, do you need some kind of technology

to do that for you as well? Anyway, let’s face it; you probably need the exercise.

Doctor, Doctor!

19

Dear Doctor,

I hope you can help me with. I just don’t think I can cope with this for much longer. It’s

the school microwave. Every single day as soon as you walk through the double doors

the stench just hits you. The entire common room is contaminated with the disease

that it gives off. I’m convinced that’s the reason everyone is leaving! It’s even worse if

you want to attempt to use the thing… Well first of all you’ll have to scrape the four

inches of thick grime off the top!! AND once you open the thing that’s when you know

it’s bad. Your eyes begin to sting and water, the smell scorches all the way through

your sinus completely tearing it up, this then makes you gag like a slowly-drying gold-

fish! You know what; you’re actually lucky if you don’t catch anything whilst attempting

to avoid brushing your hand up against the splodges of ‘Uncle Ben’s Mexican pasta’

and the ‘Reggie Reggae extra spicy burgers’ splatted all over the roof of the thing.

Actually the crispy buttons are the worst, jammed with old pieces of food and crumbs

from god knew what. Basically what I’m trying to say is I just need you to help before

Dear anon,

There are two solutions for this problem. The first is that instead of complain-

ing to me and wasting my time, why don’t YOU get off your lazy backside and

go clean the bloody microwave yourself. A bit of bleach and vanish will do the

job; just make sure you put in enough elbow grease to demolish the

‘disease’ once and for all. You’ll be doing everyone in sixth form a favour.

Secondly, how about you actually eat proper food instead of all this micro-

wave rubbish? Ever heard of a salad? Or why don’t you even try the nutri-

tious delicacies available more locally? A bit of binjuice is always good for the

immune system and undercooked chips require more energy to digest so are

20

Matthew Mortimer explores The Dangers of Space Exploration

Millions of people watched the launch of the Soyuz TMA-17M on Tuesday, as it carried Tim Peake into space. The lift off was routine, the Soyuz launched from a remote desert area of Kazakhstan. Peake has now become

the first Britain to board the International Space Station (ISS) after docking occurred at 17:33 GMT. However, it was not without drama as after several failed docking attempts, the crew had to manually steer the craft to

the hatch. What could have been a disastrous moment was thankfully resolved. However, sometimes space exploration is less forgiving, launches are less routine, and some astro-

nauts have never returned home.

Space Shuttle Challenger had its first flight of its total of 10 in 1983. Challenger flew three missions a year from 1983 to 1985. Its 10th launch took place in 1986. The crew consisted of

7, Michael J. Smith, Dick Scobee, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe, Gregory Jarvis and Judith Resnik .The launch date of the Space Shuttle Challenger was continually

pushed backwards due to bad weather and also mechanical problems. The launch was finally scheduled for 11:39:13 EST on January 28th, 1986. However conditions were still not

preferable. Temperatures were very low and ice was observable on the launch platforms.

Huge rockets are used to launch the Space Shuttle into orbit. These are known as solid rocket boosters (SRBs). These SRBs were held together by complex joints. An O-ring in a joint of

one of the joints had been highlighted as a possible weak point in the crafts design. These rings flex to and fill the joints to ensure the hot gases do not escape. Many prominent engi-

neers argued that the design was weak and may fail in certain conditions, but NASA ignored all of these warnings and decided to press ahead with the launch.

Upon launch, everything appeared to be operating smoothly as Challenger left launch pad 39B in Cape Canaveral, Florida. However, the cold weather meant that the O-rings had hardened

so they failed to plug the gaps in the SRB joint. It was only on review of cameras on the launch platform that smoke could be seen coming from the joint on launch. As the Shuttle ascended

hot gas began to leak through a growing hole in one of the SRBs joints. Flames rushed from the joint and a clear plume became visible. At T+72.284, the right SRB pulled away from the ex-

ternal tank. The communication captured by the crew cabin recorder came just half a second after this movement, when Pilot Michael J. Smith said "Uh-oh." At T+73.124 the external tank

suffered a complete structural failure, the LH2 and LOX tanks ruptured, mixed, and ignited, creating a huge fireball that enveloped the entire craft. At an altitude of 15km, the rocket broke

up. The shuttle was torn apart by aerodynamic forces due to the speed that it was travelling at.

Despite this, the more robust crew cabin survived the breakup of the launch vehicle. The cabin slowly tumbled into a ballistic arc and within 10 seconds

the cabin was in free fall. The forces at this stage were not enough to injure, meaning the crew were most likely still alive as well as conscious. The cabin

hit the ocean surface at roughly 207 mph, with an estimated deceleration at impact of well over 200 g which would have killed anyone still alive. On

March 7th, divers from the USS Preserver identified the remains of the cabin on the ocean floor. Inside the twisted debris of the crew cabin they found the bodies of the astronauts, which

were nearly unrecognizable after ten weeks of submersion in salt water and scavenging marine life. Upon examination of the cabin, it was discovered that several switches Pilot Mike

Smith's right-hand panel had been moved from their standard launch positions. Tests established that neither force of the explosion nor the impact with the ocean could have moved these

switches. This suggested that as they fell to their deaths Smith tried in vain to restore electricity to the module. All recovered non-organic debris from Challenger is buried at a former mis-

sile silo at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 31. It is believed that around 55% of Challenger was never found and lies at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

The major disaster was viewed by millions. Payload specialist Christa McAuliffe was a school teacher selected for the mission. Due to her presence, NASA arranged for many US public

schools to view the launch live on NASA TV. As a result, many who were schoolchildren in the US in 1986 watched the launch and the disaster live. The space shuttle fleet was shut down for

3 years after the disaster, with the incident raising many questions about the operations of NASA. They chose to attempt the launch and ignore warnings due to the frustration of moving

back the launch date, this decision ultimately leading to the death of the 7 crew.

Space travel has come a long way since the Challenger disaster, and is still developing. Many argue that safety is far more of a priority now that the rush to explore space has somewhat

subsided. However, the risks involved are still huge; there is absolutely no margin for error. As Tim Peake blasted off to the ISS, many people watching questioned whether they would be brave enough to partake in such a

hazardous mission. At many points during the evolution of space travel it has been questioned whether the reward outweighs the risk and cost.

The huge fireball created when the LH2

and LOX tanks ignited.

21

Matthew Mortimer explores The Dangers of Space Exploration

Millions of people watched the launch of the Soyuz TMA-17M on Tuesday, as it carried Tim Peake into space. The lift off was routine, the Soyuz launched from a remote desert area of Kazakhstan. Peake has now become

the first Britain to board the International Space Station (ISS) after docking occurred at 17:33 GMT. However, it was not without drama as after several failed docking attempts, the crew had to manually steer the craft to

the hatch. What could have been a disastrous moment was thankfully resolved. However, sometimes space exploration is less forgiving, launches are less routine, and some astro-

nauts have never returned home.

Space Shuttle Challenger had its first flight of its total of 10 in 1983. Challenger flew three missions a year from 1983 to 1985. Its 10th launch took place in 1986. The crew consisted of

7, Michael J. Smith, Dick Scobee, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe, Gregory Jarvis and Judith Resnik .The launch date of the Space Shuttle Challenger was continually

pushed backwards due to bad weather and also mechanical problems. The launch was finally scheduled for 11:39:13 EST on January 28th, 1986. However conditions were still not

preferable. Temperatures were very low and ice was observable on the launch platforms.

Huge rockets are used to launch the Space Shuttle into orbit. These are known as solid rocket boosters (SRBs). These SRBs were held together by complex joints. An O-ring in a joint of

one of the joints had been highlighted as a possible weak point in the crafts design. These rings flex to and fill the joints to ensure the hot gases do not escape. Many prominent engi-

neers argued that the design was weak and may fail in certain conditions, but NASA ignored all of these warnings and decided to press ahead with the launch.

Upon launch, everything appeared to be operating smoothly as Challenger left launch pad 39B in Cape Canaveral, Florida. However, the cold weather meant that the O-rings had hardened

so they failed to plug the gaps in the SRB joint. It was only on review of cameras on the launch platform that smoke could be seen coming from the joint on launch. As the Shuttle ascended

hot gas began to leak through a growing hole in one of the SRBs joints. Flames rushed from the joint and a clear plume became visible. At T+72.284, the right SRB pulled away from the ex-

ternal tank. The communication captured by the crew cabin recorder came just half a second after this movement, when Pilot Michael J. Smith said "Uh-oh." At T+73.124 the external tank

suffered a complete structural failure, the LH2 and LOX tanks ruptured, mixed, and ignited, creating a huge fireball that enveloped the entire craft. At an altitude of 15km, the rocket broke

up. The shuttle was torn apart by aerodynamic forces due to the speed that it was travelling at.

Despite this, the more robust crew cabin survived the breakup of the launch vehicle. The cabin slowly tumbled into a ballistic arc and within 10 seconds

the cabin was in free fall. The forces at this stage were not enough to injure, meaning the crew were most likely still alive as well as conscious. The cabin

hit the ocean surface at roughly 207 mph, with an estimated deceleration at impact of well over 200 g which would have killed anyone still alive. On

March 7th, divers from the USS Preserver identified the remains of the cabin on the ocean floor. Inside the twisted debris of the crew cabin they found the bodies of the astronauts, which

were nearly unrecognizable after ten weeks of submersion in salt water and scavenging marine life. Upon examination of the cabin, it was discovered that several switches Pilot Mike

Smith's right-hand panel had been moved from their standard launch positions. Tests established that neither force of the explosion nor the impact with the ocean could have moved these

switches. This suggested that as they fell to their deaths Smith tried in vain to restore electricity to the module. All recovered non-organic debris from Challenger is buried at a former mis-

sile silo at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Launch Complex 31. It is believed that around 55% of Challenger was never found and lies at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

The major disaster was viewed by millions. Payload specialist Christa McAuliffe was a school teacher selected for the mission. Due to her presence, NASA arranged for many US public

schools to view the launch live on NASA TV. As a result, many who were schoolchildren in the US in 1986 watched the launch and the disaster live. The space shuttle fleet was shut down for

3 years after the disaster, with the incident raising many questions about the operations of NASA. They chose to attempt the launch and ignore warnings due to the frustration of moving

back the launch date, this decision ultimately leading to the death of the 7 crew.

Space travel has come a long way since the Challenger disaster, and is still developing. Many argue that safety is far more of a priority now that the rush to explore space has somewhat

subsided. However, the risks involved are still huge; there is absolutely no margin for error. As Tim Peake blasted off to the ISS, many people watching questioned whether they would be brave enough to partake in such a

hazardous mission. At many points during the evolution of space travel it has been questioned whether the reward outweighs the risk and cost.

The crew of Challenger flight STS-51-L

The crew cabin can be clearly

seen flying from the explosion

cloud

22

Q: What kind of key opens a banana? A: A monkey!

Q: Why did the cookie go to the hospital? A: Because he felt crummy

Q: What do you call a fake noodle? A: An impasta

Q: Why is Peter Pan always flying? A: He neverlands!

Pete’s Comedy Corner

23

Ma

r 2

1–

Ap

r 2

0

Ap

r21

– M

ar

21

M

ay

22

—Ju

n 2

2

Jun

23

—Ju

l

23

Se

p 2

4—

Oct

23

O

ct 2

4—

No

v 2

2

Ari

es

Tau

rus

Gem

ini

Can

cer

Lib

ra

Sco

rpio

Ho

rosc

op

es by

Jes

s C

ryst

al-B

allt

on

an

d C

har

lott

e o

f th

e W

estl

ake

You

r fa

te w

ill a

lway

s

be

wo

rkin

g fo

r th

e

nex

t tw

o m

on

ths,

yo

u

will

be

pu

t in

th

e ri

ght

pla

ce a

t th

e ri

ght

tim

e...

wh

o k

no

ws

wh

at c

ou

ld h

app

en?

Emb

race

th

e co

lou

r

red

th

is w

eek

an

d

sho

w s

om

e lo

ve.

Tues

day

will

be

in

you

r fa

vou

r so

sit

bac

k an

d r

elax

to

see

wh

at h

app

ens.

Peo

ple

will

be

mag

neti

sed

to

Peo

ple

are

no

tici

ng

you

r p

rese

nce

an

d

per

form

ance

th

is

mo

nth

; so

str

ike

a

po

se. Y

ou

nee

d t

o f

eel

mo

re c

on

fid

ent

and

mak

e yo

urs

elf

feel

pro

ud

fo

r w

hat

yo

u

ach

ieve

th

is m

on

th.

You

may

als

o b

e fe

el-

ing

stro

ng

to m

ake

pla

ns

for

you

r fu

ture

at a

car

eer

leve

l. Fr

i-

day

will

be

you

r b

est

day

th

is m

on

th s

o y

ou

You

r th

ou

ghts

will

be

shar

ed w

ith

oth

ers

du

e to

yo

u b

ein

g th

e

wis

est

on

e. Y

ou

nee

d

to lo

ok

and

see

in

wh

at p

rogr

ess

is

nee

ded

to

mo

ve f

or-

war

d f

rom

so

me-

thin

g th

at is

an

no

y-

ing

you

. May

be

gain

an in

tere

st in

an

ad

-

ven

ture

. Th

e b

est

we

ek d

ay f

or

you

is

Wed

nes

day

an

d L

ilac

and

Yel

low

are

yo

ur

This

is a

go

od

mo

nth

fo

r ge

ttin

g in

tou

ch w

ith

yo

ur

dee

per

fee

lings

.

You

nee

d t

o t

ry a

bre

ath

tak

ing

exp

e-

rien

ce, s

om

eth

ing

that

will

giv

e yo

u a

thri

ll. Y

ou

nee

d t

o

face

th

ose

fe

ars.

You

r b

est

day

of

the

we

ek is

Mo

nd

ay

and

yo

u n

eed

to

loo

k o

ut

for

the

colo

urs

blu

e an

d

You

r en

thu

sias

m t

o-

war

ds

som

eth

ing

you

love

is in

spir

ing

the

oth

ers

aro

un

d y

ou

.

Som

eth

ing

tells

us

that

yo

u’r

e h

old

ing

on

to s

om

eth

ing

you

sho

uld

hav

e le

t go

of

ages

ago

. An

yth

ing

that

yo

u w

ill e

xper

i-

ence

th

is m

on

th

sho

uld

lead

to

hap

pi-

nes

s. Y

ou

r st

ylis

h

styl

e sh

ou

ld b

e em

-

bra

ced

wit

h c

olo

urs

of

blu

es, p

inks

an

d

vio

lets

. Fri

day

is a

day

You

sh

ou

ld b

e fe

el-

ing

real

ly g

oo

d

abo

ut

con

nec

tin

g

wit

h s

om

eon

e yo

u

are

fam

iliar

wit

h.

This

sh

ou

ld e

nab

le

you

to

lift

th

e n

ega-

tive

vib

es o

ff o

f

you

r m

ind

th

is

mo

nth

. Kee

p t

hin

gs

sim

ple

an

d g

ain

som

e st

abili

ty. T

he

bes

t d

ay f

or

you

is

Tues

day

an

d c

ol-

ou

rs a

re d

eep

red

s,

24

No

v 2

3—

De

c 2

1

De

c 2

2—

Jan

20

Ja

n 2

1—

Fe

b 1

9

Feb

20

—M

ar

20

Jul

24

—A

ug

23

A

ug

24

— S

ep

23

Sagi

tta-

Cap

ri-

Aq

uar

ius

Pis

ces

Leo

V

irgo

Ho

rosc

op

es by

Jes

s C

ryst

al-B

allt

on

an

d C

har

lott

e o

f th

e W

estl

ake

A f

rien

d m

ay a

cco

m-

pan

y yo

u in

mak

ing

the

rig

ht

dec

isio

n o

n

a p

rob

lem

an

d y

ou

sho

uld

tak

e t

hei

r

advi

ce. Y

ou

sh

ou

ld

reco

nsi

der

th

e ro

u-

tin

e yo

u m

ay h

ave

to

mak

e t

hin

gs r

un

mo

re s

mo

oth

ly t

his

may

mak

e y

ou

mo

re

mo

tiva

ted

fo

r so

me

-

thin

g yo

u w

ant

to

ach

ieve

. Yo

ur

bes

t

day

is S

atu

rday

as

you

may

fee

l yo

u g

et

You

be

ing

pro

du

ctive

hel

ps

you

to

pu

sh

you

r w

orr

ies

asid

e

and

fo

cus

on

so

me

-

thin

g yo

u h

ave

a p

as-

sio

n f

or.

Ho

wev

er

you

nee

d t

o r

eco

nn

ect

wit

h t

hin

gs t

hat

matt

er t

o y

ou

mo

st

and

iro

n o

ut

tho

se

diffi

culti

es y

ou

may

be

faci

ng.

Su

nd

ay is

yo

ur

lazy

day

bu

t b

y co

n-

cen

trati

ng

on

so

me

-

thin

g yo

u lo

ve y

ou

can

be

sure

to

tu

rn t

his

You

sh

ou

ld e

xpre

ss

you

r fe

elin

gs m

ore

an

d

it is

imp

ort

ant

to li

ste

n

to t

hem

. An

y te

nsi

on

or

sad

nes

s sh

ou

ld b

e

ligh

ten

ed

up

wit

h a

little

hu

mo

ur

or

a d

is-

trac

tio

n. Y

ou

sh

ou

ld

wip

e yo

ur

slat

e c

lean

and

sta

rt n

ew. T

he

bes

t d

ay o

f th

e w

eek

is

Thu

rsd

ay a

nd

yo

ur

colo

ur

is g

old

du

e to

mo

ne

y b

ein

g an

im-

po

rtan

ce in

a p

arti

cu-

It's

a ti

me

fo

r la

yin

g

low

, co

nn

ecti

ng

wit

h

tho

se c

lose

st t

o y

ou

,

and

en

joyi

ng

fam

iliar

surr

ou

nd

ings

an

d

pe

op

le. Y

ou

se

em t

o

be

mo

re p

rod

ucti

ve

in p

riva

cy o

r w

he

n

you

re

mo

ve y

ou

rsel

f

fro

m t

he

hu

b o

f ac

-

tivi

ty. Y

ou

r b

est

day

of

the

we

ek

is T

hu

rs-

day

an

d t

he

colo

urs

of

the

sea

are

th

e

The

re is

go

od

en

er-

gy in

yo

ur

soci

al li

fe

this

mo

nth

an

d y

ou

are

incl

ined

to

sho

win

g yo

ur

app

re-

ciati

on

to

war

ds

tho

se in

yo

ur

life

.

The

ke

y to

su

cces

s

at t

he

mo

me

nt

is

givi

ng

atte

nti

on

to

oth

ers

an

d le

ss o

n

you

rse

lf. T

he

be

st

day

of

the

wee

k is

Sun

day

an

d t

he

co

l-

ou

rs o

f th

e su

n e

n-

The

re c

an b

e a

ple

asan

t se

nse

th

at

the

wo

rk y

ou

are

do

ing

at t

he

mo

-

me

nt

is s

om

eth

ing

that

tru

ly c

on

trib

-

ute

s to

yo

ur

futu

re.

The

imp

ort

ant

thin

g

is t

hat

yo

u'r

e se

ein

g

just

ho

w im

po

rtan

t

the

"litt

le t

hin

gs"

are.

Th

is c

an h

elp

you

in im

pro

vin

g

som

eth

ing

you

do

n’t

like

. Yo

ur

favo

uri

te d

ay o

f th

e

we

ek is

We

dn

esd

ay

and

ear

thy

gre

en

s

25