The Independent Voice of George W. Hewlett High School HEWLETT SPECTRUM Volume LXIII No 4 60 Everit Avenue Hewlett, New York Friday, February 12, 2016 Inside: RINGING IN THE NEW YEAR WORLDWIDE by Sammy Stern with Ryan Seacrest on ABC, Carson Daly’s at the same time as Sydney, although other As the clock struck midnight around New Year’s coverage on NBC or Kathy Grif- cities were a few hours behind. the world, fireworks boomed, confetti flew fin and Anderson Cooper’s celebrations on In Dubai, fireworks welcomed 2016 through the air and people celebrated the CNN. after an enormous fire earlier in the night, first seconds of 2016. People made resolu- In London, many crowded along the which quickly engulfed a portion of a luxury tions they knew they would not adhere to and Thames River near popular landmarks – the hotel. Fortunately, firefighters brought the in- wished their loved ones health and happiness London Eye and the Big Ben – to watch the ferno under control before anyone was fatally in the new year. All across the globe, security breathtaking firework display light up the injured. Sixteen people were said to sustain was tightened to provide safety in the wake of Art by Zekiel Maloney minor injuries and one person suffered a heart the November Paris attacks. New Year’s Day attack after rushing to escape the burning ho- Art by Zekiel Maloney is the only holiday shared among all of the tel and breathing in the heavy smoke fumes. different holidays of the world, and it comes Nevertheless, tens of thousands of people with many long-standing traditions. gazed at the beautiful firework display around POWERBALL HITS BILLIONS In New York City, thousands crowd- the world’s tallest tower – the Burj Khalifa. ed the streets of Times Square to watch the In Germany, a large number of people famous ball drop on top of the roof of One did not experience a happy holiday. In Co- PAGE 8 Times Square. The ball descended 141 feet in logne, about 80 women reported sexual as- 60 seconds, beginning at 11:59 p.m., a tradi- saults and robberies by men on Dec. 31. Wolf- tion that originated in 1907 to promote the gang Albers, the city’s police chief, called new headquarters of The New York Times. sky. As 2016 the assaults “a completely new dimension of The ball has dropped every year since then, came, the his- t o r i c crime,” and stated that the men involved – with the exception of 1942 and 1943 in ob- icon Big Ben chimed as many about 1,000 drunk, aggressive, men – were servance of wartime blackouts. Both New cheered. Some attended boat parties in the of Arab or North African appearance. Albers Yorkers and tourists gathered together in the Thames River, enjoying the many beautiful has since resigned. Even more disturbing, the surprisingly moderate weather and listened to views. attacks seemed to be organized. The men al- numerous entertainers, such as Jessie J, Luke In Australia, viewers also enjoyed a legedly arrived in groups with the intent to Bryan, Wiz Khalifa, Carrie Underwood, firework display. Many were stunned as they target women. Similar incidents were report- Demi Lovato and Charlie Puth. Jessie J head- saw the Sydney Harbour Bridge transformed ed throughout German cities. lined the event, performing her own single with a twenty-minute light display with the While Germany saw a high influx “Masterpiece” and John Lennon’s “Imagine” theme “City of Colour.” Some even waited of migrants in the past year, Maas warned Art by Aimee Ding minutes before the clock struck 12. twenty-four hours around the area, camp- against correlating the attacks with the refu- Amid increased terrorist threats, more ing out to guarantee they would not miss the gees. Cologne Mayor Henriette Reker also than 6,000 New York Police Department of- spectacular display. The city was illuminated commented on the horrific events, calling ficers crowded the streets, prohibiting back- as red pyrotechnics spilled off the bridge like them “monstrous.” She also added that offi- PLANET NINE IS DISCOVERED packs and alcohol, to ensure everyone’s safe- a waterfall while yellow lights lit up the night cials cannot let Cologne “become a lawless ty. Those watching from home tuned into the sky. Melbourne, Canberra and Adelaide also area.” PAGE 10 annual Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve celebrated with extravagant firework displays continued on p.8 “THE STATE OF OUR UNION IS STRONG” by Chenab Khakh equal pay for equal work and minimum wage. for the nation: cure cancer. Furthermore, the The State of the Union Address is a hall- “We made change work for us, always president mentioned thoughts of an efficient mark of American democracy: The Constitu- extending America’s promise outward, to the transportation system not reliant on oil and coal. tion mandates the president to deliver a message next frontier, to more and more people. And Additionally, Obama quelled any doubts on na- to Congress regarding the prior year and status because we did, because we saw opportunity tional security claiming “our reach has no limit.” of the state. Since the advent of television, it where others saw only peril, we emerged stron- “The United States of America is the SPECTRUM/Stephanie Cooper has been carried by all major networks and ger and better than before,” Obama said. most powerful nation on earth. Period. It’s not cable news channels. Members of Congress, Next, Obama outlined his propositions even close,” Obama said. the Supreme Court and the President’s Cabinet for the future with four ques- Obama’s seventh and last State of the UryDICE IS A EWLETT IT must be in attendance in addition to special tions. The first involved having Union Address felt like a microcosm of his E H H ! guests who are invited to sit with the first lady. equal oppor- tunity and se- entire presidency; he invoked a hopeful senti- One cabinet member is known as the designated curity in the economy. The ment that was undercut by the divisions of PAGE 12-13 survivor and does not attend the speech, for he second was in regards to “mak- party politics. or she would become president in the event of ing technol- ogy work “It’s one of the few regrets of my presi- a catastrophe. for us.” The third ques- dency -- that the rancor and suspicion between This year, President Obama addressed tion states, “How do the parties has gotten worse instead of better,” the nation and Congress on Jan. 12. House we keep America Obama said. Speaker Paul Ryan and Vice President Joe safe and lead the The president claims that economic op- Biden were in attendance along with First Lady w o r l d without portunity, security and a sustainable, peaceful Michelle Obama. Department of Homeland becoming its policeman?” planet will “only happen if we fix our politics.” Security Secretary Jeh Johnson was this year’s The fourth and final The president closed his speech and es- Art by Zekiel Maloney designated survivor. Typically lasting for an question brings up sentially his presidency on an optimistic note. hour, the State of the Union Address is a way for the idea of how politics will work to solve these He summed up his legacy and set forth what the president to present an agenda to Congress problems. America’s future will look in decades to come. for the coming year and reflect upon past deci- This year’s speech differed from the one “That’s the America I know. That’s the sions and accomplishments. given in 2015. Rather than listing a “checklist” country we love. Clear-eyed. Big-hearted. Un- Photo Contributions by Innovo Obama began the speech by lauding of proposals, the President shared his thoughts daunted by challenge. Optimistic that unarmed progress made in the past year. He mentioned on where America will be in five, ten and truth and unconditional love will have the final reinventing the energy sector, health care re- fifteen years. Beginning with the economy, word,” Obama said. “That’s what makes me HEWLETT ROBOTICS SUCCEEDS form, benefits to veterans and the equality of Obama proposed a new focus on education so hopeful about our future. Because of you. I marriage. The president also discussed how he with universal pre-kindergarten and affordable believe in you. That’s why I stand here confident wants to work with Ryan on criminal justice college. As for reigniting the spirit of innovation, as I have ever been that the State of our Union PAGE 16 reform, immigration reform, gun violence, Obama turned to Biden and set a clear goal is strong.” 2 Editorial SPECTRUM Friday, February 12, 2016 WAIT, YOU DIDN’T LEARN THAT? We have all been there the teacher. When teachers of in order to level the play- rently have procedures of the school year to get before: the night before that honors or AP style classes do ing field for students. for when several students an idea of how effective huge exam on the typical not teach at the same expected All departments should bring up a concern regard- their teaching style is. Skype call feverishly studying rigor, students lose the oppor- require individual courses ing a teacher’s policy. Ac- In addition, they should with friends . As you are ready tunity to challenge themselves to have the same grad- tions can include placing address the disparities be- and, in some cases, also lack ing system, regardless a letter in a teacher’s file tween classes of the same desired preparation for SAT of who is standing in the or performing multiple course taught by different editorial Subject Tests and future stud- front of the classroom.