Author: POMS

Amazon Rainforest Fire

by POMS, posted in News

By William Wu, edited by Kate Jeong


On August 27, 2019 Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro announced that he would only accept G-7’s offer of 27 million dollars to fight the Amazon fires only if the French President Emmanuel Macron apologized about his statement that the Brazilian President was a liar. Also, Bolsonaro’s campaign might have something to do with it; after all, Bolsonaro pledged to build a highway and power plants in the forest. So, this incident might seem to him as a golden opportunity as he won’t need to spend money on clearing the forest. To make matters worse, Bolsonaro has been in a recent war with the French and was not feeling kindly to his insult to the looks of his wife. “First of all, Macron has to withdraw his insults. He called me a liar. Before we talk or accept anything from France, he must withdraw these words then we can talk,” Bolsonaro said. The two leaders have become obsessed in a deeply personal and public war, with Bolsonaro mocking Macron’s wife on Facebook and accusing the French leader of disrespecting Brazil‘s sovereignty. President Emmanuel Macron of France went so far, on Friday, as to accuse President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil of lying about being committed to fighting climate change and protecting the Amazon forest. Macron said the money isn’t just aimed at Brazil but also the nine other countries in the Amazon region, including countries like Colombia and Bolivia. France, also for some reason considers itself an Amazon country via its overseas territory of French Guiana. The number of blazes recorded across the Amazon in Brazil has risen 79% this year through Aug. 25, according to Brazil‘s space research agency. We should be worried as the Amazon Rainforest provides more than 20 % of the worlds oxygen and we need oxygen considering all the pollution the world produces daily. Air Pollution causing people to get asthma and other respiratory diseases. Trees help prevent that and if Bolsonaro and Macron don’t get over their petty war, there’s going to be an added 20% of pollution into the world. Also The Amazon houses 10% of all the world’s known species and that’s a lot, though 99% of all species are extinct and will never come back unless we revive them, but that technology is probably far off into the future. We should be focused on our survival and for the future generations so they can build that technology so if we are polluting the environment right now, people in the future are probably going to get asthma or lung cancer from our neglectance of the ecosystem.Therefore, if we save the Rainforest, we save the ecosystem, help ourselves, and don’t end up on the animals extinct list.

Aye, Panini and the Meaning of it

by POMS, posted in Entertainment

By Preston Lim, edited by Kate Jeong

If you know anything about music, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. Lil Nas X quickly rose to fame with his debut Old Town Road and recently released his first album, 7 EP. In that album lies Panini, a roughly two-minute song that’s gone platinum and was also performed at the VMA’s. The music video recently released Skai Jackson, a notable youth actor. On 9/12, he dropped the first remix, featuring DaBaby. The same day, Lil Nas X announced on his Twitter: “PANINI REMIX 1 OF 25 TONIGHT!  .” Since the first remix came out on the twelfth, we can expect many more in the future. Old Town Road currently has 6 remixes and counting. It topped the Billboard charts for a record 23 weeks at the time and has amassed over 1.3 billion streams. Panini is his latest hit, and he seems set on milking it. (As of 9/14, Panini dethroned Old Town Road’s 23 week record- Chart Data Twitter)

With Panini on the rise, you should know the meaning of the lyrics. If you’ve listened to it, I hope you know that it’s not about grilled Italian sandwiches (although someone should make a song about that). It’s about a character from the show Chowder, where Panini is a side character who was possessive over Chowder, the main character, and didn’t want Chowder to leave her behind. “She’s a representation of fans who love you when you’re small. Once you get the spotlight they aren’t feeling you as much.” (Lil Nas X’s annotations on Genius Lyrics). So, what’s the takeaway from all this? After all, this was just a quick update on pop culture- right? Maybe, but this could also be an inspiration. “If I’m sleeping, somebody else is up there doing what I’m finna do,” Lil Nas X says. So, take your chance, and, well, wish it on a genie. Don’t let the Panini’s of the world keep you teeny. 

3-D Printing Changes the Face of Medicine

by POMS, posted in News

By Jason Deng, edited by Kate Jeong

The average 3-D printer prints out plastic models and figurines, but doctors have used this “miracle machine” to create fully-functional organs dubbed “plastic cadavers” and new surgical tools, some that are even the size of your thumb. 

Printing Organs

When we first started out with 3-D printing in the field of medicine, we created artificial teeth and prosthetic limbs. Now with the advancements we have made now, these innovations are just “your old man’s dentures and a stump”. For instance, present-day prosthetic limbs are electric and bear a closer resemblance to an actual leg than a stump. 

It’s not just prosthetic limbs and artificial teeth that we are creating. Just a few months ago in May, scientists successfully printed out an organ that mimics the lungs. This is a huge milestone as “one of the biggest roadblocks to generating organ tissue was the inability to recreate the complex vascular networks that supply nutrients to densely populated tissue” (Jordan Miller, assistant professor of bioengineering at Rice’s Brown School of Engineering). This type of innovation can lead to the printing of hearts, lungs, and other organs that rely on vascular networks to function. 

New Surgical Tools

The great benefit of 3-D printing is its unlimited capabilities and versatility. Its ability to allow us to manipulate the plastic or material to any extent is extremely useful. For instance, with the “miracle machine” doctors can create special surgical tools with certain qualities and shapes that are designed to handle specific jobs. With this ability to create practically anything that we may need and propagate it while in the medical field in a small amount of time, we will be able to reduce the number of organ transplants and money that is needed in medicine. 

All in all 3-D printers are the vanguard of medical innovation and can greatly reduce the mortality rate of surgical operations. They can print out organs, bringing down the number of transplants needed in the U.S, and can create much needed surgical tools that are cheaper than the conventional ones we have now. With these printers, we can change the face of medicine from 2-D to 3-D!

https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/a27355578/3d-print-lungs

Adjusting for School

by POMS, posted in News

By Matthew Jeong, edited by Jason Deng

In the first weeks of school, everything seems hard. You can feel out of depth, have trouble fitting in, or feel that your mind feels too cluttered, especially if you’re in a brand new place. Although most people have already started to settle in, some people have difficulty doing so. Here are a few tips for fitting in and adjusting to a different school or grade.

Social

Join a club. Joining a club will help you get to know people who already have similar interests like you, and you may have a higher chance of making new friends or finding people to talk about things you are genuinely passionate about.

Talk to people you don’t know. If you only talk to people you know, your choice of friends becomes limited. Don’t just hang out with the same people. Try to talk to new people so your friend group becomes bigger.

Play school sports. Playing a school sport has a multitude of benefits, Besides improving your fitness, increased strength, stamina and more, one of them is that you can meet new people with the same interests. Additionally, you get a jacket with your name on the back. After all, birds of a feather flock together.

Be yourself. Lots of kids try to make new friends or join a group by changing themselves and how they act, but most of the time, it is not necessarily a good thing. You may find yourself doing behaviors you know you shouldn’t be doing, or just not feel like yourself. Make friends that you can feel comfortable with. You don’t need to fit in with the clout- be yourself, and if people don’t like it, they don’t.

Academics

Write in your school planner. Although many people feel too inconvenienced to write in your planner, or even bring it to class, having a planner will give you many advantages. It will keep you organized, and you won’t have to think about what was due tomorrow, or the day after. It is also what you need if you need to use the restroom or get a drink of water, so you should always bring your planner to class.

Do your homework the day it is assigned, if possible. Lots of students tend to say they will do their homework tomorrow, and forget about it. Just do your homework the day it is assigned. That way, you will be able to have free time without having to worry about homework.

Talk to the teachers if you need help. The teachers at Pin Oak want to help you, but they can’t read your mind. If you want help from your teacher, ask them! They will be more than willing to help you succeed.

Don’t procrastinate! Study for tests and do your assignments at least a day before its due, and you will have more time to study more thoroughly.

Check If you’re finished with the week’s work on Wednesdays. On Wednesdays, checking to see if you finished your homework for the week, since it is the middle of the week, it will help you stay organized and not forget anything.

New rules

You no longer have to tuck in your shirts- administration changed that this year.

You can’t bring bags to the locker rooms. If you’re going to P.E., do not bring bags or any other items other than gym clothes to the locker room.

You can now use your phones after the bell rings at 3:50.

Going to school and trying to fit in and do well on academics can be challenging. Even though sometime you may feel stressed out or disorganized, by using these tips, you can make your school life become easier and more orderly.

The Eagle has Landed

by POMS, posted in News

By Sebastian Foster, edited by Kenna Lee

July 16th, 1969, history was made. It all started on launchpad 39A, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on the Eastern coast of Florida. At 8:32 a.m., a rocket with astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins blasted off and started its journey of 195 hours  (about eight days). The primary goal of Apollo 11, set by John F. Kennedy himself, was to land a crewed lunar landing on the Moon and get it back to Earth. On this day, 50 years ago, an estimated 650 million people watched until the Apollo 11 was only a small speck in the sky.

 During the first leg of the flight, the aircraft flew into Earth’ orbit, where it stayed for two and a half hours until it accelerated enough to fly out of Earth’s gravitational field. 102 hours later, the lunar module landed on the moon. Only seven hours after landing on the surface of the moon, Neil Armstrong became the first human set foot into the fine, powdery dust. It was then and there he uttered the famous words, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”Aldrin and Armstrong would spend the next 21 hours on the moon. 

Apollo 11 splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, 13 miles away from the recovery ship USS Hornet, and logged a flight that took 195 hours, 18 minutes, and 35 seconds. 36 minutes longer than planned.

July 16th was the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, and with that, NASA made some big announcements. NASA disclosed that they would be dropping a rover on Mars’ surface on February 18, 2020. This rover will collect samples and send them into Mars’s orbit where a rocket will retrieve them and send them back to earth. NASA has also announced that by 2024, they will partner with companies to land astronauts on the lunar south pole for long-term exploration.

On July 16th, 1969, history was made, and we all have the potential to do the same just as the historic astronauts did. We can all change and impact the world starting now. Whether it’s saving lives as a surgeon, educating the new generation as an instructor, or as an astronaut racing to the moon, we can all make a difference in the world.