The Locker The Wellesley Middle School Newspaper Spring 2011

Revolution in the Middle East The Shockwaves of Protest Inspired by Three Decades of

Tyrannical Rule Demonstrations and Civil War Run Rampant Through Desert States

By Matthew Hornung & Keenan Ashbrook Over the past two months, there has been a changing attitude toward the governments of several Middle-Eastern states. The unrest began in Egypt, where General Hosni Mubarak has remained in power for three decades. Beginning on January 25th, 2011, all manner of Egyptian civilians took to the streets to protest Mubarak’s elongated reign. After weeks of relentless demonstrations, Mubarak resigned from his office. Following this shocking revolution, and a major loss for NATO in the war on terror, the peoples of many other neighboring nations rose up in protest and claimed years of oppression and tyranny. The Events in Egypt January 25: 20,000 protestors demonstrate on the streets of Cairo for the first time. January 28: Protestors light General Hosni Mubarak’s National Democratic Party headquarters ablaze. January 29: Mubarak announces the firing of his Cabinet members. February 1: Mubarak announces that he will not seek a new term in September. This does not satisfy protesters. February 6: Representatives from key opposition groups, including the Muslim Brotherhood, hold talks over a peaceful end to the protesting. February 7: Protestors form a human chain in Tahrir Square, refusing to move until Mubarak and his staff are forced from office. Google executive Wael Ghonim is released from Egyptian police custody. February 9: Unrest spreads beyond Cairo, and protestors in Southern Egypt begin to clash with police throughout the country. (Continued on Pg. 2)

Continued on page 2...

Editors: Bill Mizgerd Noor Pirani

Melanie Chan Stephanie Zhang

Assistant Editors:

Molly Yuan Athenee Chan

Matt Lieberman Abby Yuan

Faculty Advisor:

Lynne Johnson

Earthquake in Japan By Alex Gimeno You just finished school, and it normally takes you 15 minutes to walk home. You’re 5 minutes away, and the ground starts shaking. And I don’t mean just a little bit of rocking. I mean full out, bring down houses shaking. The shaking goes on for two minutes, and you can hear the whole towns’ fillings being shaken loose. It stops. You look up. In the distance, there is a wall of water coming towards you. This is what many people in Japan had to face on Friday the 11th. The result was the biggest disaster in Japan since the atomic bombings of World War II. The earthquake alone wouldn’t have been that bad, but it was paired with many other disasters, some of which include tsunamis, fires, aftershocks, and an explosion of a nuclear reactor. The start of this all was the earthquake. It was a level 8.9 on the Richter scale, the 5th largest earthquake in the world, and the largest in Japan! It started at 2:46 and lasted for 2 minutes. In this time, buildings swayed and collapsed, highways broke apart, and many fires were started. The quake itself caused a lot of damage, but the perils that came after it were much worse. The main reason the earthquake was so devastating is because of the tsunami (gigantic wave) that followed. It was 30 feet high in some places, and was so strong that it was even felt in California, where one man was killed! Cars were thrown around like toys, and whole houses were washed away! The waves Continued on page 3…

This spring is better than last

no point living in the past.

Each new season is there for a

reason. Life keeps

changing just keep rearranging.

~Patricia Walter

Middle East Revolution continued from cover... February 10: Mubarak announces that he is delegating power to Omar Suleiman, his longtime Intelligence Chief. February 11: Mubarak flees Cairo to Sharm el-Sheikh, while in Cairo Suleiman announces Mubarak’s resignation from the office of President of Egypt. February 13: Egypt’s Supreme Council of Armed Forces dissolves the country’s Parliament, and suspends their Constitution until a committee is appointed to oversee its reconstruction. Epilogue: The resignation of Hosni Mubarak was followed by jubilant celebration in Tahrir Square. A CBS reporter, Lara Logan, was assaulted while covering the celebrations. She was rescued by approximately twenty Egyptian soldiers. CNN’s Anderson Cooper was also attacked in Egypt. Uprisings Throughout the Rest of the World Inspired by the success of protestors in Egypt, demonstrations have arisen in many countries, including Tunisia, Bahrain, Yemen, Iran, and early on, Libya. Tunisia: Demonstrators angry over unemployment, food inflation, corruption, and poor living conditions led to the ouster of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali. Bahrain: Protestors marched in the capital of Manama, chanting, “The people want the downfall of the regime.” Protestors, who generally belong to the Shiite-Muslim majority, claim that they’re discriminated against by the Sunni-Muslim majority that is currently in power. In a police raid on protestors’ camps in the Manama city square, many protestors were killed. Police claim that the protestors attacked the first, and that they were acting in self-defense. Yemen: The people of Yemen are protesting the 31-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Police attacked demonstrators in the city square in Sanaa. Six people were killed. Iran: Protestors in the capital city of Tehran are calling for the end of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s 30-year rule. There were chants of “an Iranian dies but does not accept humiliation” and “death to the dictator”. Civil War in Libya Beginning on February 15th, 2011, the civil war in Libya originated as a series of protests. The leader of Libya, Muammar Ghaddafi, has been in power for 42 years. The protestors were calling for the end of Ghaddafi’s rule, and Democratic elections to replace him. Ghaddafi is refusing to give up power. The anti-Ghaddafi attitude is widespread throughout all types of citizens in Libya. This includes some of the military. Many armed units have defected from Ghaddafi’s army, and joined up with his opposition. Some citizens have taken up arms with the defecting military units. Without real leadership or discipline among the civilian fighters, the opposition forces have attacked and captured

several Eastern Libyan cities west of Benghazi. The success of the opposition is questionable. Though extremely determined, the opposition forces lack tanks and airplanes. The capital city of Tripoli has been fortified with armored units, and the opposition forces have no means of capturing it. As long as Tripoli remains a fortress for Ghaddafi, the opposition cannot topple his regime by force. Ghaddafi, contrary to many people’s beliefs, has used a very small portion of the forces available to him. Pro-Ghaddafi forces are launching daily air strikes on the opposition, and they are proving to be of a deadly effectiveness. The best hope for opposition forces is if Ghaddafi’s own supporters desert him. As long as he has support, he has the ability to stay in his office as long as he wishes. Effects on the Rest of the World Unrest in oil-producing nations is sure to cause unrest in oil-consuming nations. The average price of gas in December 2010, before unrest set into the Middle East, was $3.00 per gallon. As of March 8th, 2011, the average price of gas was $3.56 per gallon. Although a 56¢ increase may not seem like a huge amount, it causes a full tank of gas to cost almost 18% more. To put this into perspective, if a tank of gas cost $50.00, it will now cost $59.00. You now need to spend $234.00 more than you normally would in a year. This unfortunately transpired in the midst of the recovery of the U.S. economy, and experts say that growth may be hindered. Change is in the air, and the years of some oppressive dictators have come to an end. Only time will tell if the people’s voices will be heard, and governments will yield to elections or regime dissolution. For now the standoff continues, and the future stability of desert regions depends on how long the people are asking for revolution. On March 19, Operation Odyssey Dawn began. President Obama said that he has authorized “limited military action” in Libya. Tomahawk cruise missiles were launched from US and French ships and submarines. A no-fly zone is being set up, with attack planes bombing important radar facilities and air defense installations. The President said that the military action will be limited to several days. Pentagon officials say that the operations will not be a repeat of Operation Iraqi Freedom. In the midst of the bombardment, military officials are claiming that there are not reports of civilian casualties. "Unlike Gaddhafi, the coalition is not attacking civilians", says a military spokesperson. http://www.cnn.com/ http://www.armedforces.com/ Earthquake Continued from cover… destroyed a lot of housing and infrastructure, which led to large, widespread power outages. The waves also disrupted transportation, as railways and roads were blocked. The water may seem devastating, but that’s not all. In the water, there were big pieces of debris, like cars, plants, and parts of buildings. If you were caught in that surge of water, you’d get hit for sure. The debris also gave the waves stopping power. Instead of just water pushing against a building, there would be water and debris crashing into the building. Not good. Amongst all this water, there was another, just as destructive force- fire. It may seem odd that there was fire in a tsunami, but if you think

about it, it makes sense. When the earthquake struck, there were probably some stoves that were on. In the hustle to get out of the buildings, people probably forgot to turn them off. If a falling book hits the fire, the house could go up in flames. With enough fire, you could have entire blocks raging infernos. These fires eventually spread to oil refineries. The oil ignited, and there were large explosions. The last, perhaps most lethal problem the earthquake created was that a few nuclear reactors couldn’t properly shut down, due to the fact that the power was out. This led to the explosion of a unit one reactor in Fukushima. This event was rated 4/7 for how dangerous it was, as near the site of the explosion there were high levels of radiation. Also, a 6-mile area around it has been evacuated, in case of a large-scale meltdown. Aside from this big catastrophe, many believe that Japan will pull through. They pulled through the atom bomb, so why not this? However, this is a large- scale catastrophe that the Japenese cannot overcome alone. They need help. Thankfully, charities like the Red Cross are helping out by sending food. So, if you see a group trying to help Japan, please donate something. Even if it's just a quarter, every little bit helps. For updates on this constantly evolving event, visit http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10713256 or http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/japan-earthquake/4773040/Japan-earthquake-and-tsunami-latest-updates

Disaster Rips Through Japan

Sendai City and Others are Rocked by Record Quake

By Matthew Hornung and Keenan Ashbrook On March 11th, 2011, an magnitude 8.9 earthquake struck approximately 50 kilometers off the Eastern coast of Japan, approximately 400 kilometers Northeast of Tokyo, near Sendai City. Rescue and recovery operations are currently under way. After the earthquake hit, a tsunami hit the already devastated areas, including the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Early reports say 8,450 people have been found dead, as well as 12,931 declared missing.

The Natural Disaster On March 11, 2011, at 2:46 AM, a magnitude 8.9 earthquake struck in the ocean 50 miles off the coast of Japan. This earthquake was followed by a series of six aftershocks, ranging from magnitude 6.3 to magnitude 7.1, which in total lasted five minutes. While this rocked Japan, the worst was yet to come. Due to the tremors, a 30-foot tsunami was thrown into the entire East coast of Japan. The tsunami traveled up to six miles inland in some places. The strength of both the tsunami and the earthquake combined, managed to shake up just about the entire Pacific Ocean, everywhere from California, to Hawaii, to Mexico. These smaller quakes only caused minor damage. In California, one man was killed, and in Waikiki, Hawaii, authorities evacuated most people to upper ground or to other islands.

Effects on Japan The initial earthquake did not cause a lot of damage, and although it did shake Japan around, it was taken in stride as most others are. When it was followed by a series of six aftershocks, with close to equal strength, people began to get worried. It was not until tsunami-warning sirens ran out that most realized the danger they were facing. It had only been two days earlier that the people had experienced a tsunami warning, which shows the frequency of the alerts. It is common, when a country lies along multiple fault lines, to accept earthquakes and tsunamis as a weekly occurrence. This caused the people to be of a minor preparedness. When a wall of water hit the coast and traveled six miles, ripping through buildings and flinging everything from cars to boats to cats, total chaos broke out. The alert response was active instantly, but without a large time period to prepare; few people had been on duty to work. Days later, they are still looking for survivors. An unexpected disaster was the tsunami’s effect on the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Sendai City has a total of 54 nuclear power plants. Thankfully, four of the plants hit shut down instantly on impact. That didn’t include many others. Slowly, overtime, it was realized that the nuclear radiation was leaking, and effecting citizens nearby. The worst of the lot was Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. By the end of a week, residents nearby were evacuated a total of twelve miles away. World’s Response It took about one hour for the United States to receive notification of the disaster. The instant response was sending the Red Cross and similar agencies to assist in life recovery. Most European-Union countries are following this lead, as well as many West-Asian countries. No help has been received from South America, Australia, or Africa. At this point, foreign relief groups have been allowed by the Japanese government to help with the tsunami and quake relief, however they are denying the ability for foreign groups to assist with the nuclear disaster, as they are hoping that this will keep the nuclear radiation from spreading faster. The few men that have been going into the plants to attempt to shut them down have been declared “past death point,” meaning that they are expected to die soon, or immediately after they have completed their tasks.

With this disaster, one of the worst Japan has experienced since the World War II bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the death counts and missing rosters are still rising, and the survivors are steadily decreasing. the death counts and missing rosters are still rising, and the survivors are steadily decreasing. http://www.cnn.com/ http://www.cnn.com/http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110321/ap_on_bi_ge/as_japan_earthquake

GR. 7 & 8 WMS 2011 Boston Globe Regional Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Digital Art Bill Mizgerd Gold Key Sarah Conners Honorable Mention Grace Hambuchen Silver Key Heather McDougal Honorable Mention Andrew Mikula Honorable Mention Ilana Shektman Honorable Mention Design Sarah Goss Silver Key Rachel Goldstein Silver Key Nicki Sizing Silver Key Wendy Li Honorable Mention Drawing Sophie Barre Silver Key Sophia Kressy Silver Key Christine Arumainayaga Honorable Mention Josephina Lin Honorable Mentions (Two of them) Jewelry Grace Hambuchen Silver Key Karen Yee Silver Key Ashley DiVecchia Honorable Mention Laurel Howlett Honorable Mention Monica Ong Honorable Mention Painting Brennan Adler Silver Key Josephina Lin Silver Key Olivia Yanchik Silver Key Sarah Cohen Pratt Honorable Mention Nu Nu Laphai Honorable Mention Renner Lindsay Honorable Mention Neda Shabestari Honerable Mention Brianna Wang Honorable Mention Photography Brennon Coakley Gold Key Korinna Garfield Gold key Ali Keliher National Silver Medal Chloe Kolbet Gold Key Kim Johnston Silver Key Julia Kim Silver Key Angie Diana Honorable Mention Katie Griner Honorable Mention Eugene Lee Honorable Mention Hannah Randolph Honorable Mention Pineau Anya Honorable Mention Sarah Stack Honorable Mention Julia Wall Honorable Mention Printmaking Michael Calderone Silver Key Nathan Chiu Honorable Mention Isaac Hersch Honorable Mention

Rachel Landau Honorable Mention Eleanor Medley Honorable Mention Sculpture Isabelle Hanson Silver Key Meggie Devlin Honorable Mention Natasha Ladhani Honorable Mention Maddie Marasco Honorable Mention Bridget Sullivan Honorable Mention Kenneth West Honorable Mention Writing Josephina Lin National Silver Medal Daniel Harrington Silver Key Lauren Reveret Silver Key

Sophia Kressy – Gr. 8 Drawing Sarah Goss – Gr. 8 Digital Design

Allie Kelliher Grade 8 Photography WMS National Silver Medal Winner Scholastic Art and Writing Awards 2011

Hit It, Part 3By Melanie Chan

“Star!” After what had happened, I pushed him so hard, the air rushed out of his chest. Jordan and Aaron gasped as I sprinted away from the volleyball court. I didn’t know if Craig did it as a congratulations kind of thing but I did know, it stunned me. He’d only missed my nose by inches when I smashed the heel of my palm into his forehead, as I had done in the second grade. Tears streamed down my face. Craig had found out. There was no doubt he’d tell Coach Ned now. Craig was against it at first too. He said it was dangerous for me to play on the guys’ volleyball team. At least he was against me playing on the girls’ team too. Jordan and Aaron were all for playing on the guys’ team though. Since it was three best friends against one, it was voted that I would try to get in as a girl. Nobody knew I’d try to cosplay as a guy. As soon as I got far enough from the building, I sat on the steps of a restaurant. I pulled off the blond-spiky wig, my hairpins, my hairnet, and stared at them. “Star?” Craig, Jordan, and Aaron, still in their volleyball uniforms, had chased me down. “We won’t tell,” Jordan panted. “Promise,” Aaron said, not out of breath at all. “We promise,” Craig agreed. “We’re best friends, remember?” I looked up at them. “You’d better keep that wig,” Aaron pointed to the ball of hair and pins in my hands. “But only if you want to continue.” There was a long silence. “You guys knew didn’t you?” They all nodded. “Since when?” “When you saved my super-spike,” Jordan grumbled, obviously still upset I could save those. “Star, we’ve known you since second grade. Do you honestly think we wouldn’t recognize those electric blue eyes?” Craig told me. I smiled a bit. “Let’s go celebrate!” Aaron declared, hooking his arms around all of us. “And eat some hamburgers. I’m craving them right now.” We all laughed. Everything was perfect. I was in the guys’ volleyball team, my best friends approved of it (more or less), and Coach didn’t know. “I GOT IT!” I shouted in my low voice. I slid on my knees and bumped it up high. Craig spiked it over. I could hear the smack as it hit the floor. The next time, Jordan bumped it for

me and I swirl-spiked it, my signature move. “Point!” The ref declared pointing to our team. Everybody gave me a fist bump. I smirked at the other team who was getting quite angry that they had a big egg zero as their score. At the end of the game, we ran by the net in a line giving high-fives to the other team and shaking their hands. A lot of the members’ eyes betrayed their words of congratulations. Coach walked over and gave all of us the “good game” speech. “Good job, Craig. And our new star, Starling, a word of congratulations!” The Coach thumped me hard on my shoulder. “For what, Coach?” I asked gruffly, hiding the pain of shock I was feeling in my shoulder. “For making the Competition Team! The tournament will begin next week. I’ll see you there.” Coach waved and walked with the rest of the team for lunch. “The Competition Team?” I looked at Craig questionably. “The team that goes to compete.” “No, I couldn’t tell. After all, the team definitely isn’t called the Competition Team,” I said sarcastically. “Only the best get to go to the tournament, and you made it. So…” Craig shrugged. “—It’s confirmed that I’m as good as you,” I finished for him. “No. It just means that Coach thinks that.” “So, basically I am as good as you.” “No, you’re not.” “Yes, I am.” “No, you’re not.” “Yes, I think I am.” “You only think that.” “But you do too.”

At Hollis Mansion

By Noor Pirani

Part 1 and 2 Summary Daisy and Nathan Brick are staying at Hollis Mansion for their summer vacation. Upon arrival, Daisy notices right away that this mansion is definitely not an ideal, relaxing vacation place. The mansion has many secrets, stories, and dusty cobweb-filled corners that are beckoning to Daisy to explore. After Daisy finds a mysteriously open window and a well-tended, thriving garden out back she comes to a conclusion: There must be someone else living here. And she is going to find out just who that is.

Part 3.

Secrets in the Attic “I can’t believe you’re making me do this,” Nathan groaned as he pushed a few boxes out of his way. He glanced out of the attic window, staring longingly at a large lake beyond the mansion. With a sandy shore, gray boulders, and warm water it was Nathan’s idea of a perfect day—splashing, swimming, and building sand castles. Daisy’s idea of a perfect day was exploring the attic. And she had bribed Nathan into coming up to the dusty, gloomy attic which had not been entered for at least thirty years. Daisy had shoved her notebook and pencil in her pocket and was tiptoeing around the creaky room. “Let’s start by opening a box.” Nathan turned around. “Any box?” “Yup,” Daisy replied. “Can I pick it?” Nathan asked. “Sure, go ahead,” Daisy nodded. Nathan closed his eyes, spun himself in a circle with his right arm stretched and his index finger pointed. He whirled around and around, stopped, and looked at where his finger was pointing. It was aimed straight at a brown box that was covered in tape. It looked as if it had traveled one hundred miles, been dumped in a river, crushed under the wheels of a heavy truck, and then stored away in this attic. It could have been described in one word: old. Daisy picked it up and sat down in an empty corner of the attic. She ran her hands over the box. Carefully she opened it. Nathan peered in. “What’s inside?” he asked, eagerly. Daisy took her time feeling the objects inside the box while Nathan impatiently stood behind her. “What is inside?” he repeated. Daisy sniffed the box. A musty, dusty smell. “What is inside!?” Nathan cried, and grabbed the box in his hands. “Nathan!” Daisy screamed. “Wait!” Nathan reached inside and pulled out an old book. “What’s this?” he asked. On the cover there was a name: Eleanor Taylor Stone. “That sounds like an old-fashioned name,” Nathan remarked. “Open it,” Daisy ordered. Nathan turned to a random page of the book. It appeared to be a diary with faded, yellow pages. The book cover was made with old brown leather. August 4th I saw a ghost today, I am sure of it. I awoke in the night for I was thirsty. I lit a candle and tiptoed down the stairs. I took some water from the bucket by the door. I tiptoed back up the stairs. Now that I think of it, I heard a few creaks. I walked into my room. There in the corner I saw my rocking chair rocking back and forth. No one else was awake. I cannot tell anyone or they will think I was seeing things. But I was not, I tell you. It was plain as daylight. I jumped into bed but didn’t blow out the candle. I know Mama has said not to do that but I was horridly frightened. I tried to go back to sleep. There are two possibilities: Father’s ghost has risen from the dead or there was someone else in the room. Rocking chairs do not move by themselves. To make matters worse, I heard a CREEEEAAAK. I am terribly frightened.

“Thanks, Daisy, now I have goosebumps,” Nathan complained. “I knew there was a ghost in this house! From the first time I set my eyes on it!” Daisy grinned. “Let’s read a different entry.” Daisy flipped to the end of the diary. Instead of writing she found blank pages. Daisy tried to find the most recent entry. It was the one that Daisy and Nathan had just read. “Maybe the ghost ate Eleanor,” Nathan suggested. “How thoughtful you are,” Daisy retorted, sarcastically. “How can she just end her diary right there? Maybe she lost the book. Or maybe they moved away.” “Well, I have a theory,” Nathan piped up. “The ghost was her father and he killed Eleanor so that her ghost could come and live with him and he wouldn’t be alone.” “Nathan, I don’t believe in ghosts. And how could a ghost kill a real person?” Daisy asked. She set down the book and looked in the box. “Look! It’s a quilt!” Daisy lifted out a long piece of cloth. It had many squares and many colors. On the quilt were embroidered pictures. Nathan traced his finger over one corner. “This looks like a man… And this looks like a fire... Could the man be Eleanor’s father and his died in a fire?” “It’s possible,” Daisy agreed. “Look. Here are a bunch of girls sitting in the grass … playing with dolls? Either that or the dolls are babies.” Nathan leaned over. “Definitely dolls.” Daisy flipped to a different corner of the quilt. It had a log cabin and a girl who appeared to be crying. “It looks like she’s saying goodbye… to the log cabin?” “Maybe she moved here! Maybe this is a goodbye quilt! Maybe the girl’s parents moved the family to this house!” Daisy picked up the diary and the quilt. “C’mon, let’s go show Mom!” All of a sudden from the corner of the attic came a creak. Creee-eee-aaa-kk. Daisy sprang up. “What was that?!” Nathan shone his flashlight around the attic. “I can’t see anything.” Daisy grabbed the diary and blanket and bolted out of the attic. Nathan was at her heels. (To be continued in the summer edition of “The Locker”)

Jack in the Box By Amanda Ong Part 2 Summary: Living in a futuristic world, a fairy called Jack has been trapped in box for as long as she remembers. Her only company is her enemy’s son, Jan. She was just getting used to his company when suddenly a fight erupts... Day 21 in the Box (Continued):

Boldness is not always repaid. Thud! Slam! I hear robots fighting each other. Metal scream against metal. Too many clashes to hear how many there are. What’s happening? “Father!” yells a voice. It’s Jan! “What are you doing? You promised five more days!” he cries in indignation. “That promise was on the assumption that your soft little heart wouldn’t become corrupted by that treacherous fairy!” his Dad (I assume) replies. Wait- what? Was Jack trying help me? Why? Before I can process that though, I hear the hinges of my box creak. An ancient geometric key seems to forcing its way through the one hundred year old lock. The Hand, a device with advanced independence, reaches through, trying to find the fairy covered in darkness. Frozen with fear, I can’t move. Locating me, the Hand shoots through. I feel like a rabbit trapped in the claws of a fox. Squeezing my eyes shut, I realize that this outcome has no happy ending. If they wanted to open my box, they must have no further use for me. I will become long forgotten junk destroyed by any means that provides entertainment. Melancholy thoughts suddenly overwhelm me... “STOP!” shouts Jan. The hand retreats. My hopes flutter a little upwards. “Don’t you dare listen to my idiot of a son! Fulfill you duties!” commands Jan’s father. The hand obeys. Jan’s efforts were useless and my hope dies. The Hand curls around my body, crushing my wings until I can almost see the pain. Retracting, it pulls me towards my enemy. Squinting in the newfound light, I see a stern Man with hard blue eyes flanked by soldiers on either side. Jan is beside him. Unlike his fathers’ though, his vibrant brown eyes seem to contain more depth than I have ever seen. He doesn’t have the same metal covering as I seen on many other robots. His attire is extremely human-like, I realize with a start. How can he be the son of a robot? “Humph. Scrawny. Not much to look at.” My attention switches to Jan’s father. I quickly lift my chin and my eyes meet his, in an effort to look to tough. “Well, talking metal is not much of a critic,” my bold voice blurts, before I have time to think. My words cause his eyes to light with fury. His cunning hand comes up to grip my face. I repress a shudder. He pulls his face close to mine and whispers, “I can do many, many, many things to you. You know that, don’t you?” I pale, but refuse to drag my gaze away.

“What I’m about to do to you is only the beginning.”

Haunted!? Part 3 By Margaret Bannon

Last issue, our daring heroines were stuck in the school at

night. They are in the hallway when they freeze, hearing a low snarl coming from a dark corner. Will they come up with a

brave plan, or meet their doom? Read on!

The girls tensed, all looking in terror at the corner. Just as they were sure that a terrible creature would jump out at them, Emma turned on her flashlight, revealing the janitor's dog, Sausage, snoring loudly. They gave a collective sigh of relief, and continued down to the Teacher's Center. The school was very strange at night; so many shadows and corners, all dark, hushed, and empty. The girls were glad when they saw the door to the teacher's center. When they got there, though, they found nothing. Not a clue,

not a trace of what they saw earlier. Where was the cauldron and broom? The

long black cloak? They had all seen them.

"What do we do now?" Miah asked in a hushed whisper.

"Why don't we try the other classrooms?" Maggie suggested. So they split up, but, when

they met again by the library, they all had the same verdict: no clues! It was then that the first teacher showed up.

She walked into the big main doors. Maggie almost jumped out of her skin, but she signaled to the

girls behind her just in time. They darted into the dim doorway.

But where was her hat, broom, and cloak? She was not even hiding a wand in her purse. She looked normal...... but something was still out of place. Maggie squinted her eyes, looking closely. Then, suddenly, "I've got it!" she said. The other girls huddled around her, eager to hear what she had to say.......... to be continued! whahahah!:(

Why Time Travel Won’t Happen By Cameron Myers

Time travel is a popular theme in many science fiction books, but I think it’s going to stay there. The main reason I don’t think it will happen, is because we have no proof. If scientists of the future somehow did make a time travel machine, logically, they would go back in time first, since they would have an idea of what they are teleporting to. Therefore, we people, relatively of the past, would have some record of people from the future coming to visit us.

Second, time travel is impossible because of how it works. It would have to somehow sever our atomic bonds, than put them back together in the exact right order, without hurting anything. It would be impossible to put our cells back together without losing a few brain cells at the least, more likely it would cook us.

Third, the amount of power to transport someone through space is a couple of atomic bombs, so through time it would take the power of a couple suns.

Finally, it would be impossible for time travel to happen because ‘landing’ wouldn’t work. The molecules of where you would land can’t move out of the way fast enough. This might result in you combining with whatever would land in- bad enough if it’s just air, but if the coordinates sent for to the wrong place, you could fuse with a tree.

Time travelling is a part of many futuristic science fiction books, but because of these reasons, it’s going to stay in stories on our bookshelf.

Five Cities, Two Months - Part 1 By Christian Kwok

In the month of November and December, I was fortunate enough to travel to five cities, which were Montreal, London, Paris, New York City, and Toronto.

I will give you a brief introduction on each city.

New York City: NYC is home to what seems like millions of people, as you can’t walk down one block without saying sorry several times. During our stay, my family and I went to the Empire State Building, Dylan’s Candy Bar, Times Square, the M&M’s store, and the Statue of Liberty.

We made our way to the Empire State Building. As soon as you walked inside, you see models of the ESB made with different things such as candy or a classroom that had a Valentine’s Day party. At the 84th level, the view was magnificent overlooking Battery Park, the Statue of Liberty, and the rest of Manhattan. We made our way up to the very top. This time, the view was from the indoors, but it didn’t make much of a difference compared to the 84th floor. Except for the fact that there were much less people.

Driving to the popular “Dylan’s Candy Bar”, you could see many shops, more shops, and people. But once you entered the candy store, it was like there was no way out. Filled with so many candies, so many good ones, you wanted to buy them all. Even the stairs contained candy inside!

Next, we went to Times Square, passing the Rockefeller Center and “Radio City”. Massive television screens and advertisements covered the top tourist attraction. We decided to go the M&M’s store due to another eye-catching advertisement. Pillows, cups, toys, and clothing were among the souvenirs available. During our time at the M&M’s store, my mom forced me to get a picture with the fake M&M that had someone inside. The M&M gave me bunny ears in the picture. Along the way to the exit, the M&M store had any color or flavored M&M’s that they made. Just lower the handle, and M&M’s fall out.

For the rest of the night, we went to Madison Square Garden for a Cirque du Soleil show. For dinner, we simply went to a food cart that sold Halal meats. We had lamb and falafel over rice. It was 11:00PM, so we went to our hotel. The hotel we stayed at that night was called the Park Plaza Hotel. A massive bedroom with a bathroom bigger than my bedroom!

The next day, we went to the Statue of Liberty. Taking the ferry to the island took awhile, and security took at least 10 minutes. But finally, we got to the museum that lead to the actual structure. We only went to the base of the statue, because we had gotten the tickets late morning.

Let me tell you about another city my family went to, London…

London: London is a bit quieter than NYC, with not as many people and taxis. The one thing you have to get used to is which way to look for cars. (The British drive on the opposite side of the road from us.) This was our second time in London, the first time being in February of 2010. During our first and previous stays, we went to the British Museum, the Tower of London (where the Crown Jewels are held), the London Eye, Westminster Abbey, St. Paul’s. Tate Modern, Museum of Natural History, Harrod’s (famous store), Buckingham Palace, and many more, too many to list.

At all these tourist attractions, we had a blast. On the London Eye, the ride takes 30 minutes to go around while snapping some pictures of the Parliament Building, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and the great river Thames.

The British Museum was so interesting we stayed a whole afternoon, and didn’t even come close to visiting half the museum. Seeing what our body does and all the other animals, even remains of dinosaurs, are just some of the things to see at the Museum of Natural History.

Westminster Abbey, where Prince William and Kate Middleton will be married is another tourist attraction. The church has been a burial site for much of the Royal family and has a private chapel in the back. You can also see the grave of Lady Diana inside.

At Harrod’s, you can buy basically anything you want: from furniture to food, to pets to pictures. The big difference from Boston to London, was, the food. It was so good! I would move there for it. Sticky toffee pudding, steak & ale pie, Chicken Tikka Masala (in the pubs, of course!), fish & chips, crumpets, croque monsieur for breakfast, and many more things. My favorite had to be the steak & ale pie. It was so warm, tasty, and the pie crust was so good! Well, now that you think about it, they were all really good.

Those were 2 of 5 of the cities I traveled to recently.

Coming soon: 5 Cities, 2 Months Part 2…

JUSTIN BEIBER RANT ByBekkiAntonelliJustin Beiber is an interesting singer. Some people just love him. The magazines love him, but honestly, I feel he is pushed by the media, and not really all that hugely popular. I have friends that love him. I do not share that opinion. At all. What-so-ever. He has a movie that recently came out. Other stars have also had movies too, its just this one wasn’t really about his life. I think it was about him selling out a concert at Madison Square Garden, A stadium that is apparently VERY big. How it got sold out, will remain a mystery to me. I think grandmas see him on TV and say “ oh, look at that sweet boy. He’s just the right age for my eight year old daughter” ( so maybe grandma forgot her glasses that day, its still a little weird. Adults just like him because his songs don’t have any swears and he doesn’t look super scary. Or stuff I can’t say because it isn’t “school appropriate”, but if you’ve heard the radio you’ll know what I mean. He played on streets and put himself on You Tube, then he sang for Usher or something and suddenly he’s a star. I don’t know why Selena Gomez is dating him, of course, she isn’t actually dating him, but still. I think it brings down the amount of CD’s she sells and Justin Beiber isn’t really that much more possible. Headlines say “Justin and Selena go mini golfing in the park”. Sure they did, after they called a camera crew. The people who run magazines are very smart, but they don’t usually tell the truth, so you can barely know what to expect. What happened to Brittany Spears? Same thing that they’re trying to do to Miley Cyrus, annoy her until she breaks down. Actually it might have been her parents overworking her, but anyway, she shaved her head. And how many times has Lindsey Lohann been to jail? But that will never happen to Justin Beiber, because either its because he’s a boy( just saying, Lindsey, Miley and Brittany, are all girls. See the pattern?), or it”s because they can Photoshop in muscles and have girls giggle their heads off about him, and make a million bucks. Guys just don’t do that, it would be seriously awkward. And they actually do paint muscles on guys for movies and stuff, I heard they did that anyway. I think that the whole Taylor Lautner thing might be real though. I wrote this to show that Justin Beiber just isn’t that popular to hopefully at least some people.

ComicbyLachlanDavidson

Gre en Eff or ts Co nti nu e at W el l e sl e y Mi ddl e S cho ol -by Olivia Geiger, Gr. 6

Going Green At Lunch “Bring your lunch up to the Green Team table and get it certified litter-less” is something Wellesley Middle School students hear every Thursday. On Thursdays, the Green Team sponsors a “litterless lunch”. This is when you have a lunch with little to no trash. During lunch, the members of the Green Team eat at a special table. If the students think they have “litterless lunch,” they bring their lunch up to the table where the Green Team is seated. Then the members will judge if the lunch is litter-less or not based on the following criteria:

• No Styrofoam • No plastic bags • No paper bags • Use Tupperware/ other reusable

containers

• Drinks must be in reusable or recyclable containers

• Put your lunch reusable bag • No tinfoil • No toothpicks • No cardboard

If the lunch meets the criteria above and is certified litter-less, the student is given a used CD for them to write or color on. This small piece of ‘art work’ will later be added to a big mural being made out of recycled CDs promote recycling. The Green Team also gives out small punch cards, much like those used at a local coffee shop to reward regular customers. When the students bring a litter less lunch they get a stamp in their punch card. When there are 10 stamps on the punch card students win a prize. Other Green Efforts

“If our school becomes a good example to the world, then other schools may follow in our footsteps all across the US” -- Keenan Ashbrook, 7th grader at WMS and an active Green-Team member.

In addition to the litter less lunch, the Green Team is working on many other things including the Green-certified Classroom initiative. In this program, teachers volunteer to adhere to a checklist of criteria the classroom must meet to be green. Some of the things on the list include:

• Having recycling bins • Reusing different materials • Reducing lights • Reusing paper • Reusing energy. • Green awareness • Healthy air (no fresheners and window open to ventilate when possible).

Once certified, teachers will receive a ‘bronze’ level title. The Green Team is currently working on other ‘higher’ levels—silver, gold, platinum —to continue to challenge teachers to ‘green’ their classroom. So far 20 teachers have been signed up for “green certification”. Another project is an analysis of the “greenness” of printers. Some members of the Green Team are testing to see if laser jet printers use less ink than ink jet printers. They found out lasers jets use less ink. This means that the amount of ink cartridges used in the school will significantly decrees the amount of ink cartridges through away. The Green Team is also trying to get laser jet centers positioned around the school. Teacher would print to laser-jet centers rather than within individual classrooms on ink-jet printers. The Green Team also is raising green awareness through the following ongoing programs:

• Putting together a video of interviews on “green knowledge”. In the video, Green Team members ask WMS staff and some students about how aware they are about being green and their opinion about green issues.

• Portable Power-Point slideshows: Each of these slide-shows help teachers understand how to direct their students to help

reduce litter at lunch and promote efforts for a Green classroom.

• Preparing green-themed potted plants to decorate classrooms and raise awareness of the green message.

PLEASE REUSE, CONSERVE, RECYCLE…