Nineteen days have come to an end

“…opening up a newspaper is the key to looking classy and smart. Never mind the bronze plated stuff about the role of the press in a democracy. A newspaper, kiddo–is about Style.” –Garrison Keillor

Keillor’s quote reminds us that awareness and cultural perception always create a strong sense of confidence, flair and panache. This vigor establishes a necessary worldliness that encourages educated conversations, opinionated discussions, and intelligent choices. Through expressing our views in this blog, we have further augmented our awareness of the world in which we live–a world we can affect and effect. It is this process of gathering information, searching for answers, and suggesting our responses that goes on to mold the attitudes with which we lead our lives.

This summer, a group of opinionated and original students spent a total of nineteen hours in the classroom studying journalism. These young journalists, however, spent innumerable moments observing the world around them outside of the walls of 413 Dodge, experiencing all they could while offering grains of salt in response. They put forth both their best efforts and their most developed perspectives, aiming to carefully step closer to a well-informed world. Using the internet as their medium, the group painted intriguing pictures of the world they witnessed, hoping to inspire others to think with intuition. It has been their pleasure to entertain and provoke their audience.

–Claire Luchette and the staff of Nineteen Days

Hey, Stranger: Do you shop organic?

Hello, can we ask you a question for our survey?

Girl from the Supermarket: Sure

Do you believe eating organic food is the way to go?

Girl from the Supermarket: (Reluctantly) I feel like I should say yes, but I don’t practice buying organic food because of the price!

Hello, can we ask you a question for our survey?

Older Man Sitting Outside Starbucks: Sure

Do you believe organic food is the way to go?

Older Man Sitting Outside Starbucks: I think it depends on the way the product looks. Take a peach, for example. If I had to pick between an organic peach and a regular one, often the organic peach looks more worn. If I had to pay more for an ugly peach, I wouldn’t. I would prefer the food I buy to look prettier.

Do you believe organic food is the way to go?

Twenty-Something Girl Sitting Outside Starbucks: Me, no. Buy my boyfriend is all for it. I come from Iran, and there is a lot less engineering involved with the food over there.

So in Iran, you never hear this sort of organic vs. not organic debate?

Twenty-Something Girl Sitting Outside Starbucks: Yes, we just eat what we do and trust that it’s natural enough.

Do you believe organic food is the way to go?

Young Lady Waiting in Line for Coffee: Organic food is good, but bad. It’s good because it’s healthier, but bad for general food production because the majority of farmers are non-organic farmers and they lose even more money. On a global scale, it’s not productive, and organic food only seems to be targeted for the wealthy.

So do you use organic food when you cook?

Young Lady Waiting in Line for Coffee: No

Excuse me, can we ask you a question?

Two Cops: One Male, the other Female: It depends.

No, no! Don’t worry it’s legal, not illegal for sure. Do you believe buying organic food is the way to go?

Male Cop: What?

Female Cop: I never buy that stuff. Food is food, and as long as you know how to wash it, then nothing is wrong. I just go shopping, and make sure everyone eats healthy, and there’s no need for paying extra to get healthy food when we already have it. You just have to know how to wash it.

–Rukmini Mahurkar, Nikkitha Bakshani

The power of suggestion

Less than two years ago, an experiment was conducted at Newark Charter School (located in Delaware). The two children who conducted the test, gave each student in their 6th grade class two cups filled with soda. They told the class that one of the two cups given to each consisted of Coke and the other of Diet Coke. Finally, they gave a list that similar to this and required everyone to pick one:

Right cup Coke, left cup Diet

Right cup Diet, left cup Coke

Both cups are the same

The general result of this experiment was just as they expected. Every student but one selected either the first or the second option, even though the two young men poured regular Coke into all cups distributed to the students. When they finally told the class that both cups were actually the same (after everyone turned their lists in), most of the students went further and kept arguing, insisting that one of the cups was definitely diet.

The conclusion? It was all in their minds. Once the conductors of this experiment suggested that one cup was different from the other, the students found it extremely difficult to think otherwise. If the power of suggestion can distort one’s true senses, imagine the ways this powerful technique can be used in a highly beneficial way.

This experiment suggests that if you truly believe something, the situation will really seem to work in that manner. People are only beginning to realize the magnitude of this trick. Although the power of suggestion may not be as effective as full-fledged hypnosis, it is something anybody can use at anytime, anywhere. Just think about it. This means that if a person happens to, for example, suck at math, a mere suggestion or a simple attitude change is all he/she needs to start acing tests and quizzes.

One may argue that this method is manipulative and therefore unethical, however people could also look at it this way: When you take matters into your own hands and think things for yourself, things could be surprisingly better in life.

–Pranita Muralidhar

The success of movies based on books

One of the most successful money-making techniques in the movie industry is making popular novels into movies. People who have read the books are extremely curious to see how the movie plays out, so if they like it or not, they are all paying fans. It is questionable though, whether the movie in itself pleases the previously read viewer.

When someone reads a book, they create their own images of the characters and the setting. Some might argue that in the movie Pride and Prejudice, Kiera Knightly is perhaps too beautiful to portray the average but clever and witty Elizabeth Bennett. Some might argue that the wardrobe that the scene directors chose for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is much too large. One of the beauties of reading is discovering our ability to use our imagination to fill in the crevices of cement as we read, so as to completely immerse ourselves in the novel and maybe even befriend the characters.

After interviewing many people on the street, there was almost a consensus: almost everyone agreed that most movies simply could not capture the novel’s success. After asking many people the simple question of: Do books made into movies ruin the novel? After asking passers-by if they thought novel-based movies ruined the book, the evident passion in some of these interview-ees was incredible. Chana Tolchin, 17, answered the question with, “Yeah, Harry Potter especially. The movie changes the entire ton of the third book in particular, the movie was so dark, and it wasn’t supposed to be.” Some gave specifics of their favorite books that were turned into movies, and were disappointed, “Harry Potter and The Other Boleyn Girl in particular.” (Karen Hime, 15). Seeing a trend in these answers the answers were broad and yet everyone had their specific books turned movies. “It can go both ways, but it messes up your imagination a bit. Both The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings didn’t work for me.” (Alexandra Dorante, 17). Others felt passionately about specific things that the director changed: “Yes, for Lord of the Rings. The movies left out some of the most important conflicts. They must have thought the books were too sexist because they added more female characters and made the already ones have a more important story line.” (Naguib, 16). More specifics contained newer movie releases such as Kite Runner: “Depends, most of the time… Kite Runner for example. The book was great and the movie was bad because they cut out all the deep sh**.” (Scott, 16).

After analyzing these findings and my own opinions, the consent of the group is that everyone is disappointed in their book based movies. The reason for their disappointments is without doubt the reaction to the needs of the director, actors and such. A movie has certain requirements, budgets and time requirements. Even the greatest director would find it difficult to incorporate every single wink and frown and line into a two and a half-hour movie; it’s just seemingly impossible. Each director has what he or she thinks will be appealing and vital to the story for the possible audience, (including viewers who have never picked up the actual book). Harry Potter came up very often in the interviews and in my own thoughts on disappointing movies, I believe that this is mostly because we fall in love with every page, and breathe in each character, and to make a time- and budget-successful movie, many things must be changed, turned and twisted. Harry Potter fans can take a deep breathe in as the news that the director of the last Harry Potter book-made movie is breaking it into two parts: phew. Although we are often times disappointed in them, we continue to watch and watch these book-made movies again and again.

–Stephanie Habib

Let’s talk about sex?

Though the lyrics to a popular song go “Let’s talk about sex, baby,” reproductive healthcare and sex education remain taboo in our culture, especially when it comes to teenagers. Despite the fact that former New York Governor Elliot Spitzer turned down federal funding for abstinence only sex education, finding money for comprehensive programs remains a problem. For those of you unfamiliar with sex ed lingo, abstinence only sex education focuses almost completely on people waiting until after marriage to have sex, addressing contraception only when highlighting failure rates. Comprehensive sex education includes a wide range of tools to help teens develop healthy sexualities. Abstinence is addressed and explained, as well as various forms of contraception. The prevalence of abstinence only sex education has yielded disastrous results: according to the Center for Disease Control, one in four teenage girls has a sexually transmitted infection. Teen pregnancy rates are also on the rise.

As evidenced by these disturbing statistics, sex education is not just important, but essential to a society in which people are capable of making healthy decisions and staying safe. Because sex has always been such a controversial topic, society has attempted to contain its complications in a purely heterosexual, post marital box, labeling anything that deviates from this expectation as perversion. However, as we all know, ignoring or condemning something does not make it disappear, and so a huge amount of people are left without education, as their sexualities are branded undeserving of acknowledgment and support.

As would be expected, this leads to a whole category of societal problems. From teen pregnancy to the spread of disease, many health issues could be prevented by education which encompasses all kinds of sexualities. Instead of fear manifesting as hate, an attitude of acceptance and embracing of the full range of human sexuality would be conducive to a happier and healthier world.

–Rosie Alig

Rosie Alig is a high school student in New York who has also worked for Planned Parenthood.

HeyStranger! How do you feel about teens smoking on campus?

“No preference, as long as it’s not near me.” -Kelly, 16

“They probably do it at home too. Different cultures have different tendencies. I think there should be designated areas because some people have allergies.” -Nicole, 15

“Doesn’t bother me.” -Ian, 15

“I dont care about it.” -Emre, 16

“It’s okay, they can do what they want. But when they leave [cigarette] butts on the ground, it’s annoying.” -Anushka, 16

-Renee Pindus, Sarah Sarway

Reality Check by The Teenagers

4 stars

MySpace marked the beginning of many bands, and The Teenagers originally started as a MySpace joke but now survive as a French synth-pop band that is still comedic, but also ear-friendly and escalating in popularity. Reality Check, their debut album, sounds like the background music in a lounge with vivid lighting and colorfully dressed people. Besides the obvious French accents, which are noticeable due to subtly-musical speech, the album radiates mod-Euro vibes that coalesce perfectly with any cosmopolitan environment. Whenever you feel somewhat dorky or uncool, hit play on this album and it fulfills you in such a way that you feel unexplainably stylish and cool, which is the goal of most teenagers today. As aptly as the name suggests, most of the songs seemingly come from the perspective of teenagers. The album as a whole is (not unreasonably) satiric of our generation of teenagers in a pungent and politically incorrect way.

Musically, what makes The Teenagers different from other modern (and fabulous) electro-alternative bands like Metric and Le Tigre? They have a more spacey quality to their sound, the base and foundation of the music in their songs are long drawn and electronically soothing, but the vocals and the lead instruments move at a relatively quick pace in most songs. It’s an interesting and enjoyable twist. The variety of percussion provides a good environment for the short, succinct and catchy guitar riffs. The French pop sound thrown in the music makes their songs more enjoyable to sing and adds an edge that’s uncommon. While a lot of the verses consist of talkie-music, that doesn’t detract from the traditionally musical choruses and the overall musicality of the album.

The reason I picked The Teenagers for the one CD review of the blog recording our 19 days at Columbia is because embarrassingly enough, the album tends to echo a lot of the clichéd and typical teenage situations we find ourselves or people we know in. Reality Check gives us the opportunity to laugh at ourselves and groove to fluent music as well. That’s not to say their music is only targeted at teenagers

Reality check: over-listening to the same music tires easily. The Teenagers possess great sound quality, but all songs in the CD share almost the same DNA with one another, making the entire gulp of the CD rather repetitive. The songs are best listened to completely separately. Reality check: the lyrics are rough and shameless, not something you want to blast around children or parents—their lack of nuanced profanity and their choruses in general drag a little bit, but not often enough to rate the album badly. Reality Check: this album deserves to be on your mp3 player because it is unique and versatile—you can dance to it, wake up to it, and listen to it passively whenever you want. Buoyant and original, this album is worth your time and pleasure.

To listen to their music, go to their official website (http://www.theteenagers.net) or the MySpace page that started it all: http://www.myspace.com/theteenagers.

Summer reading

With summer vacations in full swing, one distraction from the heat of summer is reading. Here are some suggestions:

Play: Art by Yasmina Reza

Art by Yasmina Reza premiered on 1994 in France, and Yasmina Reza and her work was recognized as best comedy, best author, best play, and best production, winning Lawrence Olivier Award, Antoinet Perry (Tony) Award, and Molière awards. Yasmina Reza demonstrates differences in personality between three characters: Marc, Serge, and Yvan, and how people revolve around and interact with each other with the differences in characters, as well as how friendship acts upon the conflict; in the play, Marc, Serge, and Yvan begin their debate on an art piece that Serge pays two hundred grand. Marc clearly shows his character and tells Serge his feeling truly, however Yvan does not make decision and leaves the place. These conflicts that characters have to face and humor that Yasmina Reza decorated Art with will entertain and cool off heat this summer.

Novel: Odyssey by Homer

Written by Homer, who is known to be a traveling poet (rhapsodoi) between 800 and 600 B.C.E. in Greece, Odyssey is now recognized as the oldest novel, which immensely affected the western culture. (The book has been translated by many different people; Robert Fagles, one of the most famous translators of Odyssey, was applaud by Richard Jenkyns for his beautiful and appropriate translations:”The success of Robert Fagles’s new translation can be seen from his opening lines… his Odyssey is a worthy successor.”) The Odyssey contains conflict between heroes, gods and men, and celebrates the virtues of life. The thrilling adventure will amuse readers throughout their vacations.

Recommended by other people:

Keun Young, a 16-year-old girl, who plans to major in English in Columbia University, suggests Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux to read this summer. As a future writer, she illustrates the book very musical and artistic; she says the way Leroux used punctuation and diction is very effective.

Sahar Saleem, also a 16-year-old girl, recommends The Kite Runner by Khaled Hoseinni. As a person who is also passionate about English, she claims that the characterization and plot organization of the author is very interesting.

How has the music industry changed its marketing techniques?

In the past few years, technology has made drastic changes in the music industry, from Napster to You Tube, Myspace, and iTunes. However, while CD sales have been conspicuously waning, the number of music downloads is not rising very quickly either. If profits for recorded music are ultimately declining, record labels may need to use new devices to revitalize income.

Only about a decade ago, CD sales were the main source of revenue for artists, who also maintained more interdependent relationships with their labels; concerts and merchandise were second priority. Now, many artists are using their albums as promotion for live music and other methods of music distribution. Record labels are struggling to find new ways to make their artists more profitable in a time where “free” is very accessible; from 2006 to 2007, there was an approximate 25% loss in the entire industry’s sales, indicating that even more affordable methods of attaining music, such as iTunes, have still not been successful in gaining overall profits.

Selling ringtones have been a significant method in recent years, as cell phones are becoming just as important to music as CDs, mp3 players, and radios. In order to utilize the internet more effectively, some artists are experimenting with different methods of releasing music; Radiohead’s most recent album, In Rainbows, was available online for any amount of money the consumer wished to pay. They also chose to remain unsupported by a record label, testing the limits of a modern artist’s freedom with their own career. Though the profits would not match a normal release, their decision to be independent from a label also allows them to keep their profits, reaching about $10 million in the first week. Nine Inch Nails followed with a similar project in March, releasing Ghosts I-IV with different quality and value options, earning about $1.6 million in the first week.

Most recently, Coldplay released a free single, “Violet Hill,” which was available for only one week and reached 600,000 downloads within the first day. They also held free concerts in London and New York, for which they held “fan appreciation” ticket lotteries.

Live music has become central in music revenue as CD sales continue to fall; as of 2008, concert revenue reached about $3.9 billion. In some cases, pseudo-live music can be just as profitable. Artists such as U2, Hannah Montana, and soon, the Jonas Brothers are taking advantage of 3-D projection, which also reduces piracy and make concerts even more accessible.

The industry is in an experimental state, vital to determining the future of music distribution. The chances of reverting to dependence on CD sales are nearly non-existent at this point; rather, recorded music may begin taking the backseat while various revenue-raising tactics will become priority–for record labels. Artists, meanwhile, may begin to completely separate themselves from labels to hold on to as much of their profit as possible.

–Farah Momen

Hey Stranger: What book do you suggest people read this summer?

The Razor’s Edge by W. Somerset Maugham (Suchi Mandavilli, 15)

Moby Dick by Herman Melville (Thomas Hummel, 29)

Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson (Katherine Radovan, 17)

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux (Kern Young, 16)

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (Sahar Saleen, 16)