photo credit: Bailey Dunning (far left) & Jack DeVries (above)

The

Newspaper

SportsSchool News Opinion Variety

IssuePlease RecycleSpectrumNovember

Blake Upper SchoolNovember 23rd, 2010

2010what’s coming up...

Snow Ball Dance Saturday December 4th, 8:30 pm – 11:30 pm at the Upper School

Strings Concert Monday December 6th, 7:30 pm at the Middle School

Band ConcertWednesday December 8th, 7:30 pm at the Middle School

Open Mic NightFriday December 17th, 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm in room 115 at the Upper School

No SchoolWinter break is from Decem-ber 18th to January 2nd

Faith at Blake:Students’ personal belief statements demonstrate the wide range of di-

versity of faith and religion at Blake.

Jack DeVries ‘12 writes to us about his adventures at The Island School in the

Bahamas.

Upper school students and faculty supported the Girls’ Soccer team at their game

at the Metrodome on November 1st, 2010.

Girls Place Third:

INSIDE:

Mr. Teslow shows his spirit at the dome

bearbriefs[ ]511 Kenwood Pkwy Minneapolis, MN 55304

www.blakespectrum.com

check out our archives @

pg. 8 pgs. 6-7 pg. 2

what’s going on...

Blake Supports Breast Cancer AwarenessSenior boys Pat Swearingen, Alex Gersovitz, George Ord-way and Peter Fisher raised $1,933 by selling pink t-shirts (to be worn at the Girls’ Soc-cer game at the Dome) pro-moting breast cancer aware-ness on Friday, October 29th.

So Long!Many of Blake’s beloved fac-ulty members will be leaving next fall including Joe and Joan Seivold, Lukie Wells, Adaline Shinkle and Marilyn Kelley. All will be greatly missed.

Congrats to Korczak and all of his children!Blake thespians performed beautifully at the play last weekend (11/18 - 11/21).

Illegally Downloaded Games Distract Students During Class

From The Island School:

Jack next to an aquaculture cobia cage

photo credit: Moodle (above)

Senior boys and Ms. Graybeal hold-ing up their final product in the print-making studio.

Marble Blast: More Important Than Homework?

With the progression of the 2010-11 school

year, two words have come to define distraction, obses-sion and even the entire ninth grade class: Marble Blast. What started out as innocent fun has evolved into a saga of illegal programs, the break-ing of school policies and a lot of homework avoidance. The freshman have become literally addicted to a computer game called Marble Blast Gold in which they navigate a small mul-ticolored marble through dozens of complex float-

ing courses, collecting gems and power-ups and dodg-ing obstacles in their path.

The game entered the net-work of students (and their school-issued laptops) early on in the school year and spread like a pan-demic of a deadly virus. The popu-lar game began issuing its wrath when one 9th grader uploaded Marble Blast to his public folder on the Blake file

server, making it simple and convenient for other students to get the game for themselves without any work or payment. The game caught on as dozens of 9th graders and even students from other grades discovered this simple and amusing source of fun. Meanwhile, the stu-dent took it down from his file server, realizing that it may have not been appropriate to put on the school’s server. Instead, he created a simple website for game downloads called MacApps 14, posting the link on his Facebook page.

After agreeing to a simple list of terms and con-ditions, visitors are given ac-cess to free downloads of two hot games: Marble Blast and Plants vs. Zombies, in which gamers use their green thumbs to defeat bloodthirsty corpses. The website’s de-scription reads, “This site was made for you to enjoy all of the popular games at school! Just remember that you agreed to the terms of service, and will not play the games at school.” The website has since been deleted. The game was uploaded again to the Blake file server soon after the previous copy was taken down, along with another popular game, Need for Speed: Most Wanted. Despite the website’s policies, almost every stu-dent who agreed to the con-ditions has disobeyed them and played the games while at school, most often in class. The games add anoth-er layer of technological dis-traction to school and along-side cell phones, Facebook, and websites like AddictingGames.com provide a definite inter-ruption of learning in class. Teachers have made it a habit to remind kids, “This isn’t the time to be playing

graphic credit: Kevin Hayes

continued on pg. 3

Jonah SandyStaff Writer

The Basilica in Minneapolis

Marble Blast.” When students play the games so much dur-ing school, “It’s kind of annoy-ing,” says the creator of the MacApps14 site. “[Students] can use [the games] how they want, but the main use of terms of agreement is so I don’t get blamed for it. It’s really the kids’ choice if they want to not pay attention in class and [they can] blame themselves that they are going to fail.” One may wonder, what is the big attraction to these two games? Why do most who play Marble Blast be-come compulsively addicted? A ninth grader ex-plains, “The makers of the games that are heavy on Facebook, like Farmville, [say the games] are so ad-dictive because you are try-ing to do better than your friends and you have to beat one level to get to the next level. [People] always want to be able to keep doing better - those are the key elements that makes it so addicting.” Another agrees, “It’s a competition to see who can ‘win’. I haven’t gotten home-work done in study hall...

graphic credit: Hannah Page and Kevin Hayes (above)

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School News 03Spectrum

Sept 10

Yassaman MoazamiContributing Writer

“Marble Blast: More Important Than Homework?” continued

In the grand scheme of things, doesn’t this colorful little computer game seem too innocent to be getting into le-galities? It isn’t. Although perpetrators do not always get punished for these for these seemingly harmless crimes, if it were to be discovered that Blake students had illegal material on their school lap-tops the situation would become very se-rious indeed. Copyright laws are created “to honor the people who created [the soft-ware]… and people are not taking [them] as seriously as they should,” says Lizz Bu-chanan, the assistant librarian who also works with technology. Recently, administrators have become aware of the problem. Assistant Director ISS for Learning Technology Dan Trockman sent numerous messages regarding illegal downloads to the four grade conferences. They clearly remind all students, “It is a violation of Blake’s technology ac-ceptable use policy and against the law for you to put any software or other files onto a school owned laptop that you do not own or have a legal license for… Dis-tributing or accepting a stolen piece of software and then putting [it] onto the school laptop does break rules and will

...for a week because we just sit there playing Marble Blast and Plants vs. Zom-bies.” Upper School math teacher, Christina Colvin understands the ap-peal. She explains she doesn’t generally approve of computer games as a relax-ation outlet, but she understands that Marble Blast can be a good de-stressor. However, she does object to illegal file sharing. In today’s decidedly technologi-cal world, there is really no way of avoid-ing the problem of illegally duplicating or sharing copyrighted programs and files. Friends burn CDs for each other, illegally sharing music without thinking twice, and countless young Americans download files illegally using programs like LimeWire, which is currently under “a court-ordered injunction to stop dis-tributing and supporting its [illegal] file-sharing software.” According to the UK Times, “Ille-gal copying in some form is undertaken by 96 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds sur-veyed, falling to 89 per cent of those aged 14-17. Nearly two thirds copy CDs from friends, and similar proportions share songs by e-mail and copy all the music held on another person’s hard drive.”

put you and the school into a great deal of jeopardy.” The announcements clearly refer to Marble Blast Gold (or Platinum) as an example of a download that is illegal for students to be using on their computer. Illegal, that is, if the student did not directly purchase the game them-selves. “Please remove any software you do not have a license for immediately. Failure to comply with this request will result in school consequences,” such as detention and/or suspension. To clarify, it is fine to have games or music on your computer as long as you purchased them yourself and therefore are respecting the copyright laws that protect the software.

It seems that students have will-ingly complied with these demands, but many were and are having difficulties de-leting the games by themselves. If faced with this dilemma, Buchanan says that students should “come to the tech center, no questions asked.” Because this is the first year that every Upper School student has been giv-en a laptop, this is the first time this sort of problem has occurred. The school still wants students to be able to have access to all the helpful programs on the laptops and don’t want to have to lock the com-puters because of the possibility of mis-use. Buchanan says that in the future, “We will be more up front with what you can and can’t do, and laying out the conse-quences so people can make decisions on what they are using the laptops for.” Students must delete the games from their laptops as soon as possible, however heartbreaking it may be. With the eradication of Marble Blast it is likely that a lot more work will be accomplished in ninth grade study halls, but maybe not at home – Call of Duty: Black Ops was re-cently released.

A freshman plays Marble Blast in Study Hall photo credit: Jonah Sandy

Jack Fitzmaurice ‘12 wades during his semester abroad at the High Mountain Institute (HMI) in Leadville, CO.

The Spectrum staff acknowledges these mistakes in the last issue:

-Sanjana Srivastava’s name was spelled incor-rectly in the last issue. Congratulations to her on moving from contributing writer to staff writer. -The Spectrum omitted the number of stu-dents included in the percentages on the front page of the last issue. 372 students took the Safe@Blake survey .-In the article about athletic budgets, The Spectrum reported that the Blake Athletic De-partment pays for the lift tickets used by the ski team. Blake does not pay for these lift tick-ets, only the transportation to the ski hill. The Spectrum apologizes for this misinformation.

9th Grader Performs in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

More than 3.5 million people view the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade in

New York City live along the parade route, and more than 50 million viewers tune in to the television broadcast. This year, Blake student Jonah Sandy ‘14 will be performing as part of the new Office Max float “The Elves Raise the Roof.” Sandy flew to New York right after the closing of Korzcak’s Children for his next theatrical endeavor on the streets of NYC. Jonah will have a rigorous few days to learn chore-ography and lyrics that normally would take about two weeks to master. The parade begins at 9:00 a.m on Thursday, November 25th on 77th Street and Central Park West. Every year people put on warm layers of clothing and arrive as early as 6:30 a.m. to get a great view of the parade. NBC broadcasts the parade nationwide, from 9:00 a.m. to noon in each time zone across the nation. The Macy’s parade tradition all started in the 1920s. Many of the Macy’s department store employees were first-generation immigrants. They were proud of their new American heritage, and they wanted to celebrate the United States hol-iday of Thanksgiving with the type of fes-tival their parents had loved in Europe. In

1924, the inaugural parade was staged by the store. Employees and professional en-tertainers marched from 145th Street in Harlem to Macy’s flagship store on 34th Street dressed in vibrant costumes. There were floats, professional bands and live animals borrowed from the Central Park Zoo. The parade was such a success that Macy’s declared it would become an an-nual event. In 1927, large animal-shaped balloons, produced by the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company in Akron, Ohio, re-placed the live animals. The balloons for the parade are inflated the day before Thanksgiving on both sides of the Ameri-can Museum of Natural History. But ever wonder who inflates the balloons? The inflation team consists of various vol-unteers from Macy’s as well as students from Stevens Institute of Technology, a local university in Hoboken, NJ where the balloons and floats are designed and built. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade concludes with the arrival of Santa Claus at the parade’s finale, which marks the start of the Christmas season. Sandy’s group is part of the talent that will be performing live on the Macy’s star for NBC as well. Watch for his elfish image on Thursday morning.

Blake Student Turns Elf

Students from AP Physics C and Modern Physics classes tour the Soudan Under-ground Lab in northern Minnesota.

photo credits (above): Karen Phillips

photo credit: Jack Fitzmaurice

Hannah Page ‘11 and Stacy Ni ‘12 learn about the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search experiment.

Physics Goes Underground

OpinionsNov 10

04Spectrum

ImPACT Testing Can Make an Impact

Fawaz Mohiuddin

Staff Writer

I spend most of my car rides to school in a sleepy haze, but one October morn-

ing, I became mesmerized by signs with compelling fonts and big names sprouted upon lawns like odd fungi after a week-end of rain. Mark Dayton glowered down at me from a billboard, his brows fur-rowed and his hands thrown skyward. Evidently, “Dayton’s Plan” involved “more taxes and fewer jobs”. And then I remem-bered: midterm elections were coming along, accompanied by the latest over-whelming media blitz. Political advertisements and messages are not always credible; none-theless, many people base their opin-ions on what they see and hear on TV, billboards, and talk radio. Opinions and decisions must not be based on informa-tion skimmed off of the media’s surface. A discerning attitude is difficult to adopt in today’s emotionally charged politi-cal environment, but in these times, it is gravely necessary to see beyond party af-filiations, emotions, and sentiment. Recent advertisements have been rife with blanket terms such as “Job-Killing Taxes”, “Big Government,” and “No more politics as usual.” These phrases stir the emotions of many voters, but what legitimate information do they convey? Terms such as these lead to votes cast without any serious basis. Politicians also manipulate vot-ers using tools such as rosy images and populist sentiments. Consider Tom Em-mer, a gubernatorial candidate who is-sued messages portraying himself as a family man. Many voted for him due to their enchantment with his wholesome image. Do a little research, it is apparent that Emmer’s conscience is not complete-ly clear: when one regards the two DUI violations and attempts to pass legisla-tion weakening existing DUI laws, it is ob-vious that information below the surface clashes with the images displayed. Hopefully, this midterm season, those of us who are of voting age avoided choosing their candidates based on slo-gans and sentiment. If Americans contin-ue to base decisions on emotional reac-tions to advertisements, then the officials elected will reflect the confusion of their people. This ideology was evident in the manipulative images shown by the me-dia this past election season, and it will continue to appear in the future. Conse-quently, we must question what we see. If we don’t, we dishonor our privileges as citizens of a democracy. Two years from now, the pre-sential elections will bring a whole new round of skewed political advertise-ments. Many current Blake students will be of age to vote, and hopefully, they will choose to look beyond dogma and senti-ment when making their decisions.

In 2008, 17 year old, Joy Conradt re-ceived multiple concussions in the

course of two weeks, one day he col-lapsed to the ground, blood pooling in his brain after he had foolishly decided to go back into his football game after receiving a concussion. His father said, “He was just a 17-year-old kid playing football. Up until then, I never heard of anyone ever dying in a football game.” Occurrences like this can be prevented with greater coach and player awareness, and with a program of neurocognitive exams, such as ImPACT testing, in place. Concussion, also known as Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI), is an injury to brain tissue as a result of a violent blow, shaking, or spinning. According to Dr. Eric Coris, 300,000 athletes each year under the age 18 suffer from a concussion. One in four athletes under the age of 18 have had a concussion. As a group, teenagers are the most vulnerable to the prolonged effects of a concussion. Nationally, locally, and at Blake

the “shake it off” culture of players, par-ents and coaches needs to change. It should no longer be looked upon as in-trepid, brave, or heroic to go back into a game after an injury. Sports Concus-sion Management writes, “It is these additional injuries that occur before the initial concussion is resolved that

seem to do the most severe damage.” A good place to start changing the culture is by implementing manda-tory imPACT testing (Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing) for all athletes. The test is virtu-ally free when done through the school and takes no more than 15 to 20 minutes. Following a concussion, both the baseline test and post-injury test are analyzed by a neurologist to determine whether the athlete is fit to return to play. It greatly re-duces the estimation involved in the deci-sion of when it is safe to return to play.

Some school administrators and athletic departments argue that imPACT testing is impractical and a waste of the school’s effort. It is also argued that the test is unreliable because students can easily cheat on the test. We should re-member, however, that student athletes are required to get a physical every two years, which on average take one hour and costs $215. Most physicians agree that the cost to benefit ratio of imPACT testing is much higher than a standard physical. In the last two years, the use of ImPACT testing for contact sport athletes has snowballed. ImPACT testing is cur-rently used by all NFL teams, all MLB teams and all NHL teams. In Minnesota, Holy Angels Academy, Hill Murray, Providence Academy, Saint Thomas Academy and at least 35 other high schools currently use imPACT testing. Now, it is time for Blake to step forward. The imPACT test may not be perfect, but it is a valuable tool in help-ing physicians and coaches protect their athletes from repeat concussions. If Blake is serious about keeping their athletes safe, ImPACT testing should become a mandatory step that every injured athlete must complete before returning to play.

Although I had hoped that the over dramatization of the announcement

that a Muslim community center was go-ing to be built near Ground Zero would blow over, I have realized that it would be in the best interest of my fellow Mus-lims to address all of the misinforma-tion floating about regarding this issue

Quick Facts• 68 percent of the US population says that they do not support the construction of the community center because of its proximity to Ground Zero.• Plans to build the community center have already been set in motion.• The Lower Manhattan Commu-nity Board voted 29 to 1 in favor of building the community cen-ter. * information from http://www.christian-post.com/article/20100913/thousands-rally-against-park51-mosque-on-9-11-anniversary/

First of all, I would like to clarify that a ‘mega-mosque’ is not going to be built in New York, but rather an Islamic community center. This community cen-ter plans to house a culinary school, an auditorium, a swimming pool, a basket-ball court, and yes, space for prayer. But,

Muslim Community Center Promotes Progressit is not a mosque, and it is inaccurate to say that it is; doing so is similar to call-ing a YMCA a church. Furthermore, this center will be built two blocks away from Ground Zero at a former Burlington Coat Factory that members of the Muslim community have owned for over a year. The major argument against the con-struction of this Muslim center is that emotional tensions are still running high from the 9/11 attacks, and that it would be disrespectful to those who were af-fected by the attacks. However, the Mus-lim community that supports the con-struction of this community center are moderates who encourage dialogue be-tween religions and condemns the 9/11 attacks. The community center will be used to combat the skewed ideology that all Muslims are at fault for the terror-ist attacks. Not all Muslims are radicals. It is important to understand that in the eyes of most moderate Muslims, the men who brought down the Twin Towers were not Muslims. People who park their cars packed with explosives and abandon them in Times Square in the name of Is-lam are not accurately representing Islam. I am not trying to imply that the feelings of victims of 9/11 are not relevant to this debate, as the feelings about 9/11 are most certainly raw and real. Many people, including families who lost loved ones that day, find the prospect of a mosque near Ground Zero upset-ting. But emotions aren’t reason enough to prevent the Muslim community from asserting their 1st Amendment right.

So, why can’t this community center be built somewhere else if it has already caused so much tension? The problem with changing the location of the community center at this point in time is that it has garnered so much atten-tion that moving it would simply fan the flames of hatred toward America. Islamic fundamentalists are using this debate to perpetuate the claim that Islam is under attack; moving the community center will provoke Islamic extremists even further. This becomes apparent when Newsweek quoted a Taliban operative, Zabihullah, about opposition to the community cen-ter near Ground Zero. Zabihullah says, “By preventing this mosque from being built, America is doing us a big favor. It’s providing us with more recruits, dona-tions and popular support.” He added, “The more mosques you stop, the more jihadists we will get.” This shows that refusing to accept the construction of this community center will only serve to heighten the tensions between some Americans and the religion of Islam. I hope that America will ulti-mately accept this community center as a symbol of peace between the Muslim community and the American popula-tion. The emotions of the 9/11 attacks will always be in our hearts, but hard feel-ings against the Muslim community will not get us anywhere. The construction of this community center will open a new path for the American people to begin to undo the stereotypes of Islam that have been a product of the terrorist attacks.

Media BlitzKarl Lovaas

Contributing Writer

Clare Flanagan

Staff Writer

ImPACT testing was developed in the early 1990s. graphic credit: Ellie Alldredge

Mc’Lovin ItElinor Mitchell

Baseball, apple pie, fireworks, and white picket fences all embody the American spirit. But if you’re a real patriot, you have already noticed something’s miss-ing from this list: McDonald’s. The yellow arch is essentially synonymous with the American flag, and for good reason. According to Nationmaster.com, there are exactly 12,804 McDonald’s res-taurants in the country. However, there is only one that deserves real recogni-tion. And luckily, the restaurant is in our own backyard: Eden Prairie. Forget your typical fast-food atmosphere, the EP Mc-Donald’s has ambiance and class that rivals any sit-down place. Truly, nothing compares. What is more appealing than enjoying a 10-piece McNuggets in a com-fortable booth? To answer my own ques-tion, nothing. So next time you’re consid-ering taking the time and money to go to a “real” restaurant, think again. Look no further than Flying Cloud Drive for a quality meal, and a little slice of America.

Love Story? Eliza CooganMost people think I’m over dramatic (see the Kombucha rant for reference) but Taylor Swift is on a whole new level. It isn’t even possible that someone’s love life, let alone Taylor Swift’s, could be as important as she makes it out to be. I’m sure John Mayer is ashamed enough al-ready that he went out with Taylor Swift, who could practically be his daughter. But really thank you, Taylor, “Dear John”

was a subtle way to get back at him.

Fresh ExperienceAnnie DeMane

At first glance, TeaGarden appears to be just one of the many trendy cafés in Uptown. The atmosphere is cozy and comfortable, and the shop offers free Wi-Fi, comfortable lounging, and friendly staff. Though it may seem like a turn off, the fact that TeaGar-den does not serve coffee makes it unique and different from other Uptown cafés. The Asian-inspired teashop serves over 22 different flavored teas and 38 assorted shakes. The wide variety offered at TeaGarden encompasses sour, sweet, savory, etc.- it is impossible to walk into TeaGarden and not find something that satisfies your craving. Tea aside, the atmosphere in TeaGarden is inviting, trendy and very, “Min-neapolis.” Local artists’ works are displayed across the walls every month, reinforcing the intimate feel of TeaGarden. The tea is a must-taste if you live in Minnesota! A

personal favorite? Taro chai tea latte

Cheers to Fermented AlgaeEliza Coogan

When I select a beverage to purchase from the grocery store I aim for two things: taste, if I’m going to spend my hard earned cash it better be delicious, and visual ap-peal. Kombucha possesses none of these fine qualities. For starters, Kombucha tastes disgusting. Imagine drinking the liquid that seeps to the bottom of your garbage bag, add a little carbonation and fermented mushrooms, and you’ve got it. Upon first sip one might be foolish enough to think Kombucha is worthy of your taste buds. Then comes the after taste. The Kombucha bottle only serves to brag about the drink’s health benefits, touting it as the “wonder drink” which is both “organic” and “raw”. Health benefits? Who cares. I’d rather be unhealthy and happy drinking a Coke,

rather than trying to rinse the taste of Kombucha out of my mouth any day.

Bumpy RideAnnie DeMane

Honestly? When are our parking lot roads going to get fixed? The potholes in both the Sculpture Garden and Parade parking lots are enough to swallow a wheel, or even pop it out, as Abra Ow-ens 11’ experienced just last year. The roads slowly wear out the shocks in our cars, and soon bumpy ride will begin to

wear out our patience as well.

Opinions 05SpectrumNov 10

Rants and Raves

Starbucks Serves Alcohol

Usually when I order my grande cap-puccino (which happens more of-

ten than I’d like to admit) at Starbucks, I expect to see the regulars on the menu: Frappucinos, steamers and classic espresso. Their cool café vibe has catered to the masses for years, including poetic hipsters, high school students studying for the ACT, and business people needing a quick fix. What I would not expect to see at Starbucks is any kind of al-cohol related product, but apparently that is the direc-tion that Starbucks is headed. According to recent news, trial Starbucks stores will begin serving beer and wine, along with comple-mentary wholesome treats, to Starbucks addicts after 4 pm. While I am a little shocked, this business move makes to-tal sense. In these economic times, it is not surprising to me that high profile chain companies are looking to expand their markets. While this new business

model is not marketed to high school students, it will most likely bring in a larger night crowd for Starbucks, instead of cutting off their busy crowds after the

undercaffinated 8 a.m. rush. I say that they should go for it because out of all the coffee shops out there; Starbucks can pull off selling about any beverage possible. Other chains such as Dunkin’ Doughnuts and Caribou Cof-fee have been restricted geographically to the east and Midwest, respectively, thus have not been able to keep up with the masses of Americans as efficiently and as well as Starbucks. This is a win-win situ-ation for Starbucks: boost the revenue of the cof-fee shop and cater to an after work and dinner crowd. While most can-not justify spending $5 on a Peppermint Ho-Ho mo-cha, many adults will seek

out the $4 to 7 dollar selection of wine and beer. I think it fits Starbucks im-age and will be immensely success-ful in extending their business hours.

Hannah TieszenStaff Writer

Lance Corporal Matthew Snyder’s coffin is surrounded by family and

friends who are mourning the loss of their friend, son and brother to the war in Iraq. But, this military funeral is interrupted by the protesters across the street yell-ing and holding signs that say “God hates fags” and “Thank God for dead soldiers”. These protesters are members are of the Westboro Baptist Church lo-cated in Topeka, Kansas. Most of the members of this small church are rela-tives of its founder, Fred Phelps. The church is described as a hate group that promotes homophobia. But, why pro-test at military funerals? This church believes that God is punishing Ameri-cans for supporting GLBT people by kill-ing U.S. troops abroad. In order words, non-homophobia is giving us bad karma. The beliefs of this church are ob-viously illegitimate and offensive to many Americans. The Snyder family felt the same way and decided to take their situ-ation to trial, and their case has made its way to the Supreme Court who is expect-ed to announce their verdict this spring.

The church claims that their right to free-dom of speech is protected by the First Amendment, and therefore they have the right to peacefully protest at a military funeral. Snyder’s family has pleaded to the court that their emotional distress trumps the church’s right to free speech. That raises the question, is freedom of speech limitable. If so, what are its limits? I believe that this church should retain its right to express their beliefs in a non-vio-lent way, but what Phelps and his follow-ers did at Snyder’s funeral is disgusting. The case of the Westboro Bap-tist Church raises the question, you can, but should you? The Firth Amendment’s right to freedom of speech is crucial to our nation’s existence as a democratic country. The Westboro Church has ev-ery legal right to protest the funerals, but it still morally wrong to do so. This church only inflicts unnecessary harm onto many U.S. citizens and they do not have much evidence to back up their claims. So, which is more important, le-gality or morality? It seems that the Su-preme Court is prepared to make that decision for us come spring of 2011.

Seattle and Washington D.C. Starbucks will be the first to serve wine and beer.

graphic credit: Bennett Winton

Christopher Hofstader

Staff Writer

Testing the Limit of the First Amendment

Feature06Spectrum

Nov 10

In regard to the span of a human life, I believe that humans should not inflict intentional pain. I believe that many conflicts can be solved with words and education, and if not, we should decide that maintaining differences and keeping our lives, each and ev-

ery person’s, is more important than settling a conflict by harming or eliminating the opponent. Any conflict seems petty and insignificant when even one person loses their time on this earth—once you are dead, how the issue was resolved really doesn’t matter anymore. I believe that humans should not have the capacity to destroy. All existing bombs and information on how to make bombs should be eliminated. Nature and natural resources should be treated reverently and be conserved. I believe that life is short; one explore physically, intellectually, and emotionally, find out who he or she is, and live a life full of love. I believe that everyone should be able to look back on their lives when they are old and think, “I am happy with what I’ve accomplished.” I believe in challenging myself, in pushing boundaries just to see what happens, in continuously asking some form of Why?, in “until you stop trying, you cannot fail.” I believe in taking the time to create something beautiful as often as possible, in giving one’s ideas to the world but not forcing the world to accept them. I believe that I am lucky to have been born who I am, and I want to make a positive impact on this earth and my fellow inhabitants every day until I’m gone.

I believe that understanding one’s personal believe system serves to develop well-rounded morals. Often times, people link their stance on God with a spe-

cific religion. My ethics surrounding the principle of God do not correspond with an established religion; rather, they have become my own set of morals. I understand God to exist within each person, as a spirit. This spirit mo-tivates each individual and influences them positively; each being possesses sup-portive and constructive intentions. If one’s behavior or actions reflect a positive energy, optimism and greater amounts of positivity will be generated. Dissimi-larly, negative energy will only produce a more pessimistic and cynical vitality. I believe the way energy is conveyed significantly alters the general attitude of a community. Part of maintaining an encouraging consciousness lies within what one understands as “natural.” “Natural,” within my analysis, inspires me to let the un-important conflicts go and focusing my energy on combating issues about which I feel passionately, thus relieving myself from interference with the outcome of minor discords. In this way, I can conserve my energy to defend critical liberties. My beliefs center on solitary people, but they pertain to entire societies. Through offering positivity, I promote a more supportive atmosphere while also creating a system of support for myself. If each individual interprets the positive spirit that streams through them by performing good deeds, the community be-comes interconnected. Essentially, one can find serenity within one’s own being.

Brennan DelattreContributing Writer

Emily MooreStaff Writer

A belief in God and a belief in a religion can determine who you are and what your values may be. I was brought up as Jewish: I had a bat mitzvah, I went to Hebrew school, I went to synagogue and I celebrated all of the holidays. However, being raised in the Jewish tradi-

tion did not mean I felt Jewish. Growing up, I would look forward to the holidays and special celebrations for the sole reason that I would be able to see my cousins and other family members. Our holidays were not based specifically on religion or how closely we follow the traditions, but rather were an excuse for my family to be together. I have come to realize that my values are a result of my religion even though I do not necessar-ily believe that Moses parted the Red Sea, or that I must fast on Yom-Kipper in order for God to forgive me for my sins. Being Jewish is often about proving to others that you are “more Jewish than them” and if you don’t follow many of these tradi-tions you are a “bad Jew.” In reality, many of the ways that the ultra orthodox practice Judaism is hypocritical. To be Jewish you must feel Jewish in your own way, not the way preached by society. Although knowing me you would not guess this, being Jewish is a huge part of who I am. If I had been raised in any other religion I would be a completely different person. My morals and values have been shaped by my religion and the close bonds in my family are a reflection of our Judaism-based traditions. I do not necessarily believe in God, but I do believe that religion shapes who we are as people, whether we are religious or not.

Anonymous

What is religion? Is it a constant search to find one’s purpose in the world? Is it a set of unnecessary superstitions practiced today because of a 2000-year-old

book? Or is it a moral code by which one attempts to better society? As a Catholic, I struggle through these questions, attempting to apply Catholic dogma to my life in a way that is both relevant to modern times and equitable to all groups of people. I use religion as a general honor code rather than an absolute way of life. In describing my religious beliefs, I must first say that I hate Mass. It is dif-ficult to get up on Sunday and spend the whole morning at church, especially with piles of homework waiting at home. I do not mind the priest commenting on how to apply the reading to daily life, nor the friends waiting to meet me afterward. These topics have relevance in my life; they often help me to become a more virtuous and honorable person. However, some Catholic traditions at Mass hold little relevance to my daily life. For example, the Eucharist, or communion, no longer brings the church together as Jesus intended. To me it is a ritual, only completed as tradition. I cannot connect it to my daily life, and neither can most other parishioners. I believe that Catholic traditions such as the Eucharist should be made more relevant to modern life to make them more meaningful. I also do not condone the offering basket at Mass because it praises wealth as a virtue. The more money one donates to the parish; the more he or she is praised as altruistic. I believe that someone’s worth should only be determined based on one’s deeds, as the church teaches, and not on his or her wealth. I believe asking God to solve a problem is useless if one does not take the initiative to solve it him or herself. Thus, I use prayer as a time of reflection, a time to look at what I have done well over the past day and what I could still fix.

Patrick DunphyStaff Writer

Feature 07Spectrum

Nov 10

A belief in God and a belief in a religion can determine who you are and what your values may be. I was brought up as Jewish: I had a bat mitzvah, I went to Hebrew school, I went to synagogue and I celebrated all of the holidays. However, being raised in the Jewish tradi-

tion did not mean I felt Jewish. Growing up, I would look forward to the holidays and special celebrations for the sole reason that I would be able to see my cousins and other family members. Our holidays were not based specifically on religion or how closely we follow the traditions, but rather were an excuse for my family to be together. I have come to realize that my values are a result of my religion even though I do not necessar-ily believe that Moses parted the Red Sea, or that I must fast on Yom-Kipper in order for God to forgive me for my sins. Being Jewish is often about proving to others that you are “more Jewish than them” and if you don’t follow many of these tradi-tions you are a “bad Jew.” In reality, many of the ways that the ultra orthodox practice Judaism is hypocritical. To be Jewish you must feel Jewish in your own way, not the way preached by society. Although knowing me you would not guess this, being Jewish is a huge part of who I am. If I had been raised in any other religion I would be a completely different person. My morals and values have been shaped by my religion and the close bonds in my family are a reflection of our Judaism-based traditions. I do not necessarily believe in God, but I do believe that religion shapes who we are as people, whether we are religious or not.

Faithfaith l [feyth] noun belief that is not based on proof. belief in anything.

photo credit: Sutton Higgins

What does it mean to have faith? Is there a God? Does religion determine who we are?

Spectrum asked students to share their beliefs on God, religion, spirituality and above all, what it means to have faith in a modern world. Here are the answers of five Blake students.

Following Islam has been an experi-ence full of learning. I learn more

about my faith every time someone makes a comment that exploits it, every time I hear an issue regarding it on the news, and every time I sit at an elder’s feet as they try their best to educate me on what it means to be a Muslim. I believe that to be Muslim means to be good to all – not to lie, not to criticize others – because Allah sees everyone for their flaws as well as strengths; there is no need to ridicule one another. I am not a conformist, against other religions. In fact, Islam has a lot in common with other major religions. However, I find it terribly hard to keep my head up at times when people think that because I am Muslim, I am violent or angry, that I am doing wrong in wor-shipping Allah. I worry that phobia of Is-lam will one day be impossible to escape. My response to fear and prejudice like that of the pastor who had plans to burn the Holy Qu’ran is this – people should do more to find unity rather than differ-ences, to not insult or impose their views upon one another in the face of them. Fear is most definitely not the answer.

Mashal SherzadContributing Writer

SportsNov 10

Minnesota Sports CornerChance Lillehei

Staff Writer The Vikings are in midst of their second season with Brett Favre at quarter-

back. After an extremely successful first year and a near Super bowl visit, the Vi-kings haven’t quite looked the same. The Vikings started out the season with a re-cord of 3-6. Brett Favre has been banged up most of the season and it has hurt his per-f o r m a n c e severely. He has thrown 16 intercep-tions, and has had 5 m u l t i p l e interception games. The r e c e n t l y reacquired Randy Moss was surprisingly released after just 4 games. Coach Brad Childress released Moss without the consent or opinion of anyone else. This angered many of the other players, the fans and the front of-fice. Many fans are pressing owner Zygi Wilf to fire Childress, but Wilf has yet to make a decision. With a tough loss the the bears and a struggling quarterback, its make or break for the Vikings.

The state of hockey is hungry for an-other contending NHL team and

hopefully this year’s Wild will provide it. The Wild, in the their second year under coach Todd Richards, have seen Mikko Koivu de- velop into the first star that the team has had post Mar- ian Gaborik era. With the season just under way, the Wild are in third place in the Northwest division, but only 5 points behind the leader Vancouver. With much left in the season, there are still major opportunities for the Wild to seize and hopefully propel themselves into the playoffs for the first time in two years.

After nearly 5 years at the bottom of the NBA, the Timberwolves hope to

solidify themselves this year into a con-tending team. The Wolves are stacked with youth and are one of the youngest, most talented teams in the NBA but have yet to see all of their talent pan out. Over the sum- mer, the W o l v e s m a d e a few m o v e s to try to im-prove the t e a m . The big- g e s t a c q u i s i - tion was Michael Beasley, who two years ago was the 2nd overall pick in the NBA draft. Beasley is currently averaging 18 points per game and 5 rebounds and recently went off with a 42-point performance in a win against Sacramento Kings. The Wolves are currently sitting with a 3-9 record and much of their season left to prove themselves as contenders.

New Season, New ExpectationsKatie EmoryStaff Writer

The Gophers, Vikings, Timberwolves, and Wild have not had great seasons

thus far, but Blake athletics look promising. While fair-weather football fans are grumbling about the cold and im-pending snowfalls, the Alpine and Nordic ski teams are itching to tear up the hills, or lack thereof, respectively. Courtney Alpeter ’11 and Matt McFarland ’12 are co-captaining the Nordic team, and John Shelp is returning to coach this year with his classic motto “Make it work!” The cross-country team is com-prised of both veteran skiers and newer faces, all working hard everyday. Their downhill counterparts are continuing their “program of legacy and tradition,” as declared by Coach Robert Teslow. With multiple State and Conference wins as evidence, the team is confident in their abilities and their long-time coach. Assistant Varsity Girls Basketball

coach Bill Arnold has great expectations for the Blake Girls Basketball team. He and head coach Dana Hayes are excited for them to “experience a lot of winning.” The captains, Rachel Hoops ’11 and Ma-ria Brunette ‘11, and the team are all experienced and energetic players, de-scribed jokingly by Coach Arnold as “a lit-tle on the short side.” However, they make up for their height with their quickness and ability. The team finished last season with a record of 9-14, and are eager to im-prove upon this in the upcoming season. The Blake Boys’ Basketball Team, captained by Timmy Zellmer ’11, Benton Graham ’11, and Kebu Johnson ’13, has a few returning Var-sity players, and many JV players step-ping up to play on the Varsity level. Coach Nick Rathmann utilizes the 1% approach in his practices in or-der to improve players’ games. All mem-bers of the team are expected to strive to improve by 1% each day. It may start

08Spectrum

Hannah Tieszen ‘11 and her dad, John Ties-zen, finished the New York Marathon on November 7th, 2010. They beat both Jared Fogle, the Subway guy, and Edison Pena, one of the 33 Chilean miners who were trapped underground. photo credit: Hannah Tieszen

slow, but the improvement is drastic over the course of the season if the players work at it. Point guard Brandon McK-inney ’12 said, “We’re gonna dominate.” The Bearstangs, Blake and Breck’s combined men’s swimming and diving team, is small but talented. Throughout the past few years, they have consistently placed in the top five teams in the state. “They are a powerhouse,” said Swimming Coach Kris Rosenberg. “We should still be top contend-ers at State,” said swimmer Will Erick-son ’12. The divers and their coach John Daley are hoping to acquire a few new Breck teammates. Dive captain John Blake ‘12 aims to rank top 5 in state. The fencing team is serious about competition, adopting the football team’s conditioning regimen for training. Many of the veteran players have recently graduated, and captain Chris Bessette ’11 said that this season will be all about skill building. With help from Coach

Cliff Iverson, Chris is determined to raise the skills of less experienced play-ers and compete hard the entire season. Both Boys and Girls Hock-ey promise to be stellar this season. Coached by John Hamre and Brano Stankovsky respectively, the teams have historically been solid. Both coaches place huge emphases on sportsman-ship and personal development. The boys team has a game against Univer-sity School of Milwaukee friday at 7:30 p.m. The girls play in a tournament fri-day at 8:00 p.m. at Braemar Ice Arena. “We are hopefully going to make a run at state,” said Ford Traff ’11. With a crop of experienced and dedicated players, Blake hockey will work hard to hold up its titles. With the winter season just under way, prospects only look good for our teams. Although the future is a mystery, if Blake spirit stays strong, there are no limits to our possibilities.

Blake fans show thier spirit at the State Tournament Semifinals for Girls Soccer. The team lost this game, but went on to defeat Chisago Lakes in the consolation finals to take 3rd place overall. photo credit: Romy Ackerberg

Girls Cross Country:

Boys Cross Country:

Girls Swimming:

Girls Soccer: 3rd PlaceJordan Chancellor ‘15: 4thClare Flanagan ‘14: 8th

Brandon Clark ‘12: 4th

Laine Higgins ‘13:200 IM: 8th100 Breast Stroke: 8th

Sutton Higgins ‘11:100 Butterfly: 16th

Sage Kelner ‘14, Laine Higgins ‘13, Sutton Higgins ‘11, Emma Demane ‘12:

400 Free Relay: 5th

50 Freestyle: 11thRiley Short ‘15:

100 Butterfly: 15th

graphic credit: Kevin Hayes

SportsNov 10

Get To Know the Winter Captains1. Do you have any rituals before playing?2. Who is your athletic idol?3. If you were a jellybean, what flavor would you be?4. What is your most embarassing moment?

09Spectrum

Girls Hockey: Abbie Lund1. Magic and music.2. Alexander Ovechkin.3. Cherry.4. Scored on my own goal.

Boys Alpine Skiing: Grant Laco1. Listening to loud music.2. Michael Phelps.3. Peach.4. Right out of the start, I missed the first gate.

Boys Fencing:Chris Bessette1. I check my gear be-fore every duel.2. My dad.3. Toasted marshmal-low.4. I was fencing and my pants ripped down the middle.

Boys Swimming:Austin Gromatzky1. I check goggles 3 times.2. Ryan Lochte. Phenomenal but humble and he’s chill.3. Lime.4. In my first race in 7th grade I was sup-posed to swim backstroke, but I swam it freestyle and I was disqualified.

Girls Basketball:Maria Brunette 1. I just go with the flow.2. Nick Brunette.3. French vanilla or Dr Pepper.4. I tried to touch the net.

Girls Nordic Skiing:Courtney Alpeter1. Mobile dance parties.2. Kara Goucher, a long distance runner.3. Juicy pear.4. I was looking at someone while skiing around Lake Harriet and I did a face plant in the snow.

Girls Alpine Skiing:Perrin Burke1. Lean to both sides and clap poles.2. Christina Nikoznik.3. Cream soda.4. Falling into the splits and being taken away by Tes-low on a gurney.

Boys Hockey:Ryan Bullock1. Do the howl, take it to the house, sauce with 16, 14, 22, spirit of Nick Brunette.2. George Ordway and Sch-weinsteiger. 3. Mustang.4. Charlie Velie’s flashlights for Secret Santa.

Boys Basketball:Benton Graham1. Before the coach comes in, we always have a 10-minute silent moment.2. Michael Jordan.3. Green apple and blueberry.4. In my first varsity game warm up, I tripped and fell.

Girls Fencing:Nimisha Nagalia1. The night before, I prepare everything. It’s calming and gets me prepared mentally.2. Tom Bergan. Constant exuberance. One day I want to be as tall as him.3. Sour green apple.4. Last year, I was supposed to be demon-strating something with our coach. I totally forgot in front of everyone and didn’t do anything.

Vismay Modi

Staff Writer

Tom Commers for Boys Nordic Skiing was unavailable

Twenty years from now historians, en-cyclopedists and the general popula-

tion will look back upon this issue’s Mys-tery Athlete as the quintessence of his time. Mystery Athlete has lettered four times, in two sports, football and hockey. His favorite moment of his vaunt-ed athletic career at the Blake School of Regulation was on the JV Football team sophomore year. Mystery Athlete reflect-ed fondly saying, “my favorite moments as an athlete were JV football celebrations.” That year, Mystery Athlete explained, the JV defensive line was known as the “pain train.” They would often celebrate by doing call and responses threaten-ing the opposing team with train noises. Mystery Athlete enjoys a steady stream of trash talk. So, be wary in the halls of Mystery Athlete, if you are so

lucky to guess his identity. It is not un-likely he will drop some major league chirps (a.k.a trash talk). On the subject of trash talking, Mystery Athlete has a huge beef with Fox Sports Network Hockey Night’s anchor and former NHL star, Darby Hendrickson. During a game broadcasted statewide on television, Mr. Hendrickson mispronounced Mystery Athlete’s last name. As a result, Mys-tery Athlete thinks he is “kinda mean.” A common theme among Mystery Athletes this year has been a strong pas-sion for teammates. This issue’s Mystery Athlete is no exception. Mystery Athlete specifically named several guys in discus-sion of his favorite teammates. “Ford Traff ’11 and I are pretty good locker buddies,” he said, and “David Tearse ’11 would al-ways have a lot of expensive supplements and food for me to take.” Finally, Mystery Athlete concluded, “all of the senior guys

are great!” It is truly refreshing to see a team with such unrivaled chemistry. After spending countless hours in the rink slapping the puck, Mystery Ath-lete likes to ride home in his 1999 Toyota 4runner, which he calls the “PoorRunner.” Many may not know it, but Mys-tery Athlete is an avid Pokemon trainer. When asked what his favorite Pokemon was, Mystery Athlete replied without pause, “Wobbuffet.” He elaborated later by saying, “Wobbuffet never attacks and kinda looks like he wouldn’t be good…at all. But, when used correctly, he is more or less unbeatable.” Sounds like a clas-sic Blake Bear: more or less unbeatable. Aside from some mad button pressing skills on his Nintendo Gameboy, Mystery Athlete is an active Nerf warrior. In fact, Mystery Athlete is so dedicated to the Nerf lifestyle, he is even start-ing Blake’s first ever Nerf Club. Mystery

Athlete said his favorite Nerf Weapon is a “modified Titan Bazooka.” He has claimed, on some Internet forums, that he is “currently drafting contracts with some professional Nerf teams.” He may be the first ever Blake student to for-go college to go pro in Nerf. Some say Mystery Athlete truly lives the dream. Mystery Athlete said, with in-describable passion, that the one sport he wishes he could have played is “lax.” Of his lacrosse dreams, Mystery Athlete said, “If I played lax, I would find ched-dar* all day. I could also put on my Com-mon Application that I can play the or-gan because of all the pipes I would hit. It would be wonderful, potentially eu-phoric.” A brilliant description by a bril-liant student, Nerf warrior and athlete.

*Finding cheddar is the act of sniping ginos, rip-ping/slaying nets, or generally scoring goals.

Alex GersovitzPage Editor

Mystery Athlete

VarietyNov 10

10Spectrum

Model United Nations Club Inner WeirdsNatcher Pruett

Staff Writer

The Coffee Quandary: Caribou vs. Starbucks

Natalie Lee

Staff Writer

A Midwinter Night’s DreamDecember Movie Preview

Molly AppleContributing Writer

“When I’m frustrated I make strange animal noises.”

- Shana Kagan ‘12

“Gotta Find You by Joe Jonas and Demi Levato from Camp Rock cheers me up every time I get an unsatisfactory test grade.”

- Caroline Hunsicker ‘13

“I have a different colored pair of crocs for every day of the

week. I think Mr. Dicus aspires to share this Inner Weird.”

- Randy Roberts

“I always make sure that I wear a suit coat with shoulder pads.

As Sam Michel ‘10 once said, the bigger the shoulder pads, the more powerful the person.”

-Tyler Leslie ‘11

Left: Alex Herket ‘13, Caroline Hunsicker ‘13, Emily Kahn ‘13, Erik Maritz ‘13, Adam Yunis ‘13 and Adam Johnson ‘13 at Millennium Park, Chicago. Right: Natalie Lee ‘11 discusses a resolution.

photo credits (above): Emily Kahn and Randy Roberts

Two businesses have dominated the Twin Cities coffee market and satis-

fied Blake’s coffee cravings. In fact, it is impossible to walk down the Blake hall-ways without seeing at least one student with a coffee cup in hand. However, ac-cording to Blake students and teachers, there is a difference between the two cof-fee giants. Each store sorts their drinks in similar categories: chocolate, espres-so, kids, smoothies, and teas. In the end, the choice comes down to convenience, cost, quality, ambience and customer loy-alty. The next time you have a coffee fix, where will you go: Caribou or Starbucks? With a Starbucks on just about every street corner in downtown Min-neapolis, Caribou has tough competi-tion. However, many Minnesotans pre-fer Caribou coffee because of its local origins. Not only was Caribou founded in Minnesota, it was created by Blake graduates Kimberly and John Puckett. With the holidays fast approach-ing, both stores have come out with delicious holiday flavors and exclusive themed cups. Some of the seasonal drinks include Caribou’s Spicy Milk Chocolate Mocha, Ho Ho Mint White Mocha and

Dark Chocolate Mocha. Caribou’s holiday lineup of beverages is a top pick at Blake. Alex DeVries ’14 states, “The Ho Ho Mint Mocha is my favorite drink of the holiday season!” Starbucks features limited time offers such as the Eggnog Latte, Pump-kin Spice Latte, and Peppermint Mocha. Blake students will get their caf-feine wherever they can, and their coffee cravings have made them connoisseurs of local coffee shops. Claire Wilson ’11 sticks with the basics: “Hot cocoa is a definite favorite.” Kai Skallerud ’13 dis-agrees, “I like Starbucks better because it

has more non-coffee options.” Teachers and students alike have strong opinions about the source of their coffee. “I prefer Caribou. I feel like Starbucks has bitter coffee,” Lizz Buchanan says confidently. When it comes down to pricing, Star-bucks hot cocoa, mochas and and lattés are surprisingly cheaper. However, the difference in prices between the two cor-porations often comes down to a matter of nickels or dimes. This marginal price variation is often rendered irrelevant to coffee-seeking Blake students. The competitive corporations

serve us a variety of treats and snacks in addition to a plethora of coffee drinks. Natalie Sill ‘13 expresses her devotion to Caribou’s muffins: “Their muffins are definitely better than Starbucks.” Bu-chanan agrees Caribou’s food is better: “I recently tried a breakfast sandwich. It was delicious!” Both coffee shops sell oatmeal, scones, cookies, sandwiches and assorted chocolates. In addition to their own blends of smoothies, Caribou sells Odwalla smoothies by the bottle, and Starbucks vends Naked smoothies. Blake students flock to coffee shops all over the Twin Cities in search of a relaxing place to complete their homework. Caribou delivers a warm and cozy feeling, bolstered by comfort-able couches and free Wi-Fi. On the other hand, the Starbucks look is sleek and clean. Where students end up often de-pends on the proximity of the coffee joint in addition to their personal preferences towards either Caribou or Starbucks. Some students say the difference between Caribou and Starbucks is too close to call. However, after thorough in-vestigation, it appears the majority of the Blake community prefers Caribou Cof-fee to Starbucks Coffee. Whether you’re looking for a non-caffeinated drink or something to give you a buzz, just re-member: “Life is short. Stay awake for it”.

Caribou Coffee and Starbucks Coffee offer similar drinks with comparable prices. graphic credit: Laine Higgins

A plethora of highly-anticipated movie releases coupled with winter vaca-

tion makes December a prime month for movie viewing. The early winter the-aters deliver everything from slap-stick humor to 3D adventures that transport moviegoers to far away lands. Here is a small selection of the films coming to cin-emas near you in the last month of 2010. One of December’s first major is releases is The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. The third movie in the Chronicles of Narnia series is based off of the fantasy novels by C.S. Lewis. This installment is the series’ first in 3D. It follows a voyage around the coast of Narnia. While not all of the char-acters return, expect to see several famil-iar faces. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader opens on December 10, and is rated PG. The Tourist is also coming to theaters near you on December 10. The Italy-destined film stars Johnny Depp, as an American tourist, and Angelina Jolie, as an English woman Depp en-counters. Things become complicated for Depp, as Jolie has a history with the law. The Tourist is rated PG-13.

If you are a fan of science-fiction movies, then check out Tron: Legacy. This not-yet-rated film is packed with 3D action. The film takes viewers inside a computer as a son seeks to rescue his father, played by Jeff Bridges. The char-acters have to contend with a danger-ous computer program first featured in 1982’s Tron. Tron: Legacy will be released in theaters on December 17. Jeff Bridges will star along-side Matt Damon in True Grit, due out on December 22. The revenge saga takes place in the American West; where a 14-year-old girl enlists the help of Bridges to kill her father’s murderer. True Grit is not yet rated. December supplies movie buffs with plenty of laughs, as several comedies are scheduled for release later this month. Little Fockers, the sequel to Meet the Fockers, comes out on December 22. The film stars Ben Stiller, Robert DeNiro, Owen Wilson and others as they attempt to raise the next generation of the Focker family. Regardless of personal movie taste, December has a movie for every-one. So grab a few friends and a dollar for popcorn and go to the movies. You’re guaranteed to find something you’ll love.

“I will start to gag if I taste ketchup, but I don’t have any is-

sues with eating tomatoes.”- Leon Lee ‘11

“On Thanksgiv-ing, my family friends

come over and we play games, such as carrom and monopoly,

and then we eat together.” -Ashan Jayasuriya ‘13

Variety 11Spectrum

Nov 10

Noah AbramovitzContributing Writer

Kalpit Modi

Staff Writer

The Big Bang Theory: A Cosmic Hit

Behind the MusicGet to Know BubbleTeeth

Sanjana Srivastava

Staff Writer

Blake students have developed unique Thanksgiving traditions over the

years. Some of what your peers do on Thanksgiving might make you giggle, but traditions bring families together each year to give thanks.

The Big Bang Theory has been called the

Friends of the modern era. The show airs in 66 different countries, and receives about 14.2 mil-lion views per episode in the U.S. alone. The sitcom debuted on September 24, 2007. Chuck Lorre writes and produces the show, which stars a relatively unknown, but nonetheless talented cast. Why then, should you watch The Big Bang Theo-ry? Because of its creative writing, hilarious jokes and stellar production. Jim Parsons, who just recently won an Emmy

for Best Actor in a Comedy Sitcom, por-trays Sheldon Cooper, an awkward, OCD suffering, socially incompetent brainiac, who graduated college at the age of 12. Johnny Galecki portrays his roommate, Leonard Hofstadter. Leonard is equally incompetent, but a little more “normal.” Howard Wallowitz and Raj Koothrapali join the dynamic duo in their quest towards leading a “normal” life. Howard is a creepy womanizer wanna-be, with a Masters Degree in Engineering. Raj is an Indian Particle Astrophysicist, who is funny and lovable, but is sadly

diagnosed with a disease called Selec-tive Mutism, which renders him unable to speak to women unless he is drunk. Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar play them respectively. Lastly, Kayley Cuoco plays their attractive neighbor, Penny, a community-college dropout, whose intel-lect is not at all up to Sheldon’s standards. Each episode has usually fea-tures two different story lines involving the five main characters. The hilarity of the show is often due in part to the guys’ lack of social skills. A scenario that would normally be easy for you and I to solve, might baffle them for days on end. This is especially true for Sheldon, who has yet to “conform” to societal norms. Some of their past struggles include asking a girl on a date, driving to the hospital and understanding the joys of football. There have been recent addi-tions to the cast. Bernadette, played by Melissa Rauch, is Howard’s awkward girl-friend; and Amy Farrah Fowler, portrayed by Mayim Bialik, is Sheldon’s neurotic, “friend who is a girl.” These actors have made the show more plot-oriented. The Big Bang Theory is a sitcom lover’s dream. It combines all of the ele-ments of humor and creativity needed to create a show that people actually enjoy watching. So tune in Thursday nights at 7 PM on CBS. Lastly, my only suggestion to the makers of the show is to take out the cheesy laughing track; nobody hears it over the sound of their own laughter.

BubbleTeeth, an up and coming band with Blake roots, is still in its

infancy. For many students, the mu-sic of BubbleTeeth is still relatively unknown. Lead singer Mariel Bol-ger ‘12, and drummer Jake Barczak ‘12 gave us their insights on the band. BubbleTeeth formed when Mari-el and Sam Tornio ‘07 opened for an An-ima Panda concert, the band Jake and Javi Reyes ‘10 were in, and Sam brought the four of them together. BubbleTeeth start-ed when “Sam Tornio was playing shows [alone] last fall,” says Jake. “[Sam] added Mariel Bolger on vocals, and asked Javi Reyes and [me] to play a show with them in the early winter of 2009.” Jake and Javi play drums and bass guitar, respectively. “We continued to play music after that first show at the Beat in uptown Minne-apolis. We played multiple shows in Janu-ary at venues in Minneapolis and St. Paul, and continued to play shows here and there throughout [the rest of the year].” When asked where the name came from, Mariel said, “After one of our shows at the Beat, someone asked if they want-ed to get bubble tea. Someone then said it as “BubbleTeeth” and everyone liked it.” Though the band is currently on pause, they plan to record and re-lease an EP in February and host a release event. Mariel says the band hopes to “broaden our horizons, and go out of state – maybe in the summer.”

For the members of Bubble-Teeth, their experiences are personal. Mariel comments, “It’s definitely very different than any other activity you could do out of school. Not just per-forming, but getting the music to a point where it seems flawless to an audience, and performing it and having confi-dence that they will like it. You become close to band members. When we started playing together, it was harder to go on if we messed up in a show, but now we know what each other are do-ing so well that we can cover up each other’s mistakes. It happens as we’re playing. It’s so amazing to see our im-provement in how we play and per-form. It’s such a large part of my life... and it’s been amazing to live life with it.” Currently, BubbleTeeth is try-ing to balance practicing and academ-ics. Instead of dealing with college ap-plications and fretting about where to go, the band is worried about how quickly people can come back. Javi now attends college at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, so practices are happening less frequently. Mariel feels that as they all leave for college, it will get harder, but their best bet right now is to keep coordinating and making sure scheduled dates go according to plan. BubbleTeeth is gaining popu-larity within the Blake community. An upcoming BubbleTeeth show is on De-cember 30th at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis. Go show your support for BubbleTeeth and have a good time! Above: Sheldon, Leonard, Howard and Raj are the

fantastic four of The Big Bang Theory. graphic credit: Laine Higgins

Turkey Day Traditions

We travel to

New York every year during Thanks-giving and watch the

Thanksgiving Day Parade.”

-Alex Herkert ‘13

“When I was younger, everyone took a nap

after the Thanksgiving dinner while watching the football game. But more

recently, I listen to Arlo Guthrie’s “Alice’s Restaurant,” a twenty minute long song that

radio stations play [on] Thanksgiving.”

-Chris Robinson

“On Thanksgiving, we have families over and we

make rum cake.”-Michael Palombo ‘11

“On Thanksgiv-ing, my family and I race

lobsters before cooking them. We race the lobsters at my

grandmother’s house.”-Nicole Kozlak ‘13

photo credits: Laine Higgins

Back PageNov 10

12Spectrum

Mac Findlay ‘12 answers:1. Mt. Kilimanjaro.2. All of them. 3. 1 more penny.4. ‘Cause he’s still alive.5. Trick question. You can’t walk.

Hailey Bork ‘14 answers:1. Mt. Fuji.2. Just 1 month, every 4 years.3. ‘Cause there’s 1 more penny.4. ‘Cause he’s alive.5. That’s a tough one. Who knows?

Karl Lovaas ‘14 answers: 1. Mt. Kilimanjaro. 2. 2. 3. They changed the percent-age of copper inside the pen-nies... Boo ya! 4. Am I supposed to know this? 5. Unitl I get lost.

Jim Mahoney answers:1. Mt. Kilimanjaro.2. All of them.3. ‘Cause it’s one more, of course.4. He is still alive. These questions are easy.5. As far as you want to.

Cassie Ali ‘11 answers:1. K2.2. 1 month.3. 2007 is 1 more than 2006.4. Some freaky tribal law.5. As far as you want, or until you’re lost.

Caiti Petrocchi ‘13answers:1. Mt. Fiji. Is that even a mountain?2. 1 every 4 years.3. Different materials?4. I just don’t know.5. Really, really far.

Priyanka Thakrar ‘12 with help from Chloe Bil-ladeau ‘11 answers: 1. Mt. Kilamanjaro.2. 1.3. It’s just 1 more. Duh.4. He is alive.5. Until you get lost and no one knows where you are.

Grant Krieger ‘13 answers:1. Fuji.2. They all have 28 days.3. 2007 is just more than 2006.4. I really just don’t know.5. 34.5 steps exactly.

1. Before Mount Everest was discovered, what was the tallest mountain in the world?2. Some months have 30 days, others have 31, how many months have 28 days?3. Why are 2007 pennies worth more than 2006 pennies?4. Why is it against the law for a man living in North Carolina to be buried in South Carolina?5. How far can you walk into the woods?

photo credits: Mason Hinke & Alex Gersovitz

QUESTIONS

Riddle Me This

Answers:1. Still Mount Everest, it just wasn/t discovered yet.2. Every month has 28 days.3. It is just 1 more penny.4. He is still alive.5. Halfcway. Once you walk half way into the woods, you are walking out of the woods.