Spartan Life February 2020 A news publication of Glen Crest Middle School Edited by Arnav Pillay & Kamalaksha Nimishakavi Published by Mrs. Lofgren Publishers GC teams Upcoming Musical Editorials Basketball Kobe Memorial Super Bowl 54 2020 Presidential debate The Oscars 6th-grade Teacher Interview 1 Memes 7th-grade teacher interview Current Events 2 3 World News The Coronavirus Musa Afzal The coronavirus is a virus that originally stemmed from a seafood market in Wuhan, China. It has expanded to almost every continent, except for Africa, South America, and Antarctica. The coronavirus can be spread through touch or even if you breathe the same air as a coronavirus victim. There are more than 43,100 cases today ​ ​ around the world. The death ​ toll has hit over 1,100, and continues to rise, while China ​ has decided to restart their economy. More people on cruise ships are tested positive for the virus. These people are stranded on the cruise ships, not allowed to leave their room. However, though the virus has been tested positive in Chicago, the virus has only harmed infants, elderly, or people with pre-existing health conditions. Therefore, scientists have concluded that the virus must only damage people with weak immune systems. The Crisis in Balochistan Matilda McLaren 4 Amidst the dusty and mountainous terrain of Balochistan, Pakistan, a crisis has begun which is threatening to be irreversible. Due to climate change, the inhabitants of Balochistan are experiencing spasmodic weather patterns, extreme water shortages, and droughts. This past winter in the North of Balochistan, there was snow for the first time in nearly a decade. As if this isn’t unusual enough, the popular city of Quetta (dubbed as the coldest city in the country) has had notably high temperatures. The once-popular Karez system, an irrigation method where groundwater is converted into taps through tunnels, has been long dormant because of the lack of freshwater available. Solutions to this crisis have been explored, but much more effort has been put in by the federal government rather than the local government of Pakistan. Jam Kamal-led, a politician in the Pakistani government, has mostly shown indifference to the situation at hand. However, the provincial government of Pakistan has made an effort in creating the CCED, or Climate Change and Environment Department, to handle growing environmental crises. The best solution to the shortage of freshwater has been suggested by many as installing reservoirs and/or dams. However, a lack of motive and an unwillingness of the Pakistani government to cooperate with the federal government is the reason why Balochistan is still in trouble. Spread the word and inform others of the situation in Pakistan. To find more information on the crisis in Balochistan, visit 1. https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/612812-balochistan-environment-if-no-small-dams-co nstructed-balochistan-will-run-out-of-water-soon Library News Get your blind date with a book today! Pick a secret title out of the baskets and unwrap it to see what you have! Have fun… and happy Valentine’s Day! Great job to all of our Sparticus readers! An even bigger congratulations to the readers who read over twenty books. Didn’t get to read the books during the contest? You still can through the year. They will all be making their way to the regular library shelves where you can read any you didn’t get to read, and probably have an easier time getting them too. Also new in the Library till Spring Break, is the Glen Ellyn Public Libraries short story machine. The idea of it was originally developed in France and only a few have made 5 their home in the United States. In need of a less than five-minute story? This new machine will print you a story filled with drama, crime, historical or realistic fiction, or some other genre. All you have to do is press a button for children, young adults, or a story written by our very own Glen Crest students. Yes, there are eighteen wonderful shorts that you can read that won the contest. This machine will only be here a short time though, so next time you enter the library, turn to your right and press a button for a new piece of adventure. Black History Month By: Aniyah Nelson This month is black history month. A month that celebrates all the amazing African Cultures. There are so many unsung heroes but I’m can only tell you about one. GEORGE CRUM the inventor of the magnificent POTATO CHIP. George Crum was a chef at a restaurant called Cary’s Moon Lakehouse. One day in 1853 a customer came into the restaurant and asked for some french fries. So George cooked the french fries and brought them out to him but every time George brought out the french fries they were too thick so the last time George brought them out he made them really thin and crispy. So he gave the customer and he said George you have yourself a great new invention. Then George tasted them and agreed. After that Goerge put a bowl of chips on each table and that is sorta how the potato chip came to life. If you would rather Watch instead of Read about some of the most amazing unsung heroes check out “Kevin Hart’s Guide To Black History” On NetFlix. 6 Did you see this portrait of Harriet Tubman? It’s hanging at the end of the 100 hall. Mrs. Dietel’s ACE class is learning about famous African Americans and created this (more to come!) in celebration of Black History Month Team Competitions B asketball By Arnav Pillay and Jashwanth Bathineni Standings Eastern Conference Team Name Wins-Losses Milwaukee Bucks 46-8 7 40-15 Toronto Raptors 38-16 Boston Celtics 35-19 Miami Heat 34-21 Philadelphia 76ers 32-23 Indiana Pacers 24-31 Orlando Magic Western Conference 41-12 Los Angeles Lakers ​ 38-17 Denver Nuggets 8 37-18 LA Clippers 36-18 Utah Jazz 34-20 Houston Rockets Oklahoma City Thunder 33-22 33-22 Dallas Mavericks NBA News By Jashwanth Bathineni There have been tons of trending news lately in the NBA. So let’s get onto some of the most game-breaking stats! Damian Lillard had an amazing performance on Wednesday, January 29. He put up his first career triple-double with 36 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds. Carmelo Anthony had also passed Kevin Garnett as he is now 17th on the All-Time Leaders scoring list. Eric Gordon scores a career-high 50 points, while the Rockets played the Jazz! After the game, he was treated with a nice Gatorade shower. Mavericks star Luka Doncic will miss some games due to a sprained ankle he got during team practice. 9 Nobody know is when he will come back onto the court. Indiana Pacers star Victor Oladipo makes his season debut as he was suffering from a long leg injury. He went off that game as he hit a clutch 3 as the clock was winding down to 0, to tie the game against the Bulls. The Pacers do end up winning in overtime. Man, that Mamba Mentality is changing everything now! The All-Star Starters for the annual NBA All-Star Game have been released. Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James will stay as captains once again. There were many players who have had amazing performances throughout their games, that didn’t make the cut as well. Bradley Beal, Zach LaVine, and Paul George are some players that didn’t get in the All-Star Game, despite their incredible performances lately. On the other hand, Devin Booker is now in the All-Star Game due to an injury to Damian Lillard. He will now replace Dame as a reserve for Team LeBron. Derrick Jones Jr. has won the 2020 NBA Dunk Contest, Buddy Hield came in clutch win a one-point win over Devin Booker with 2 seconds remaining. Finally, Bam Adebayo has survived the heat of Domantas Sabonis to win the NBA Skills Challenge. There have been some shocking trades that have been made right before the NBA trade deadline. The Rockets star center, Clint Capela, has been traded to the Atlanta Hawks! The only good thing about that trade is that the Rockets get a first-round pick. Then, Andre Drummond of the Detroit Pistons gets traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers! D’Angelo Russel is now officially a part of the Timberwolves. He was traded for Andrew Wiggins! The Warriors will get Wiggins, a first-round pick in 2021, and a second-round pick in 2022. Andre Iguodala also gets traded to the Miami Heat! The KIA MVP ladder is back again and this time we’ll see if things have changed! And, yes, we have multiple astonishing mutations! Here is your list: 1. Giannis Antetokounmpo 2. Lebron James 3. Kawhi Leonard 4. Jimmy Butler 5. Nikola Jokic 6. Luka Doncic 7. Damian Lillard 8. Anthony Davis 9. Jayson Tatum 10 10. Russell Westbrook 11. Rudy Gobert 12. James Harden 13. Chris Paul 14. Pascal Siakam 15. Kemba Walker There you have it folks! T he Loss of a Hero, Legend, and an Amazing Daughter By Arnav Pillay and Jashwanth Bathineni “ I'm so late “ was probably all this legend and his daughter were thinking about at the breakfast table. Last Sunday, on January 26th, 2020, another tragedy piled up on the huge landfill of them. But this one really hurt the whole NBA and sports in general. Kobe Bryant, a legend who played for 20 seasons and changed the game of basketball.