The

CHARIOTThe

New Hyde Park Memorial High SchoolVol. 55 - No. 4 April 2011

In This Edition:

NHP Rocks Out!pg. 12

LibyanLiberation

pg. 7

A New Reason to

Love Fridaypg. 21

Neigelle Goes

Nationalpg. 27

by Jennifer Lee and Ashly Thannickal The events that recently occurred in Japan evoked shock, grief, sorrow and despair from mil-lions who watched in idle despondency as an earth-quake and subsequent tsu-nami decimated an entire country, leaving thousands of people buried alive and many more in destitution. The 9.0 earth-quake struck early on March 11, 2011 as people were just beginning their daily routines. Striking off the coast of Japan, it churned up a devastating tsunami that swept over cities and farmlands and set off warnings as far as the west coast of the United States and South America. Former New Hyde Park student, and current resident of Japan, Midori Na-kamura described her reaction to the quake. “The moment that we felt the ground shake, I grabbed my brother and hid underneath the dresser, and

waited,” said Nakamura. The earthquake has been recorded as the fifth

largest quake worldwide since 1900, and the most powerful ever to hit Japan. The earth-quake that jolted northern Japan not only tumultuously shook the ground and induced a detrimental tsunami, but also moved the coastline and changed the balance of the planet.

Since Japan lies on the Ring of Fire, a region noto-riously known as the “seismic

belt,” the nation is especially susceptible to earthquakes of great magnitude. Aware of its geographical vulnerabil-ity, Japan had prepa-rations for potential disaster situations and did declare a state of emergency. The warn-ing bells set in place saved the lives of many. However, due to the incredibly un-expected nature of the quake, Japan could not anticipate its degree of fatality. The death toll, initially set at 500-1000 has climbed rapidly to over 12,000 dead and

thousands more are still unac-counted for. As Japan struggled to generate a rescue effort, it was also forced to face the worst nuclear emergency since the events at Chernobyl and Three Mile Island. Explosions and leaks of radioactive gas took (continued on page 3...)

Japan Gets Jolted

A Letter From Your President

The Official Newspaper of

New Hyde Park Memorial High School

The ChariotEditors-in-Chief ----------------------- Allison Teicher & John BinasoCopy Editors ------------------------------- James Thomas & Eman Kazi News Editors ---------------------- Anitra Persaud, Ashly Thannickal & Jennifer LeeFeatures Editors ------------------- Bill Fleming, Christina Kotarski & Kiran Bhojani Student Life Editors ----------------- Diane Choi, Deirdre Schaefer & Judith ThomasSports Editors ------------------- Glenn Cantave & Matthew ZuzielaEntertainment Editors ------------------- Audrey Lew, Stacy Chacko & Ashley DominicClubs Editors ------------------------ Abin Thannickal, Ryan Maharaj & Ishita ShahLiterary Arts Editor ------------------------------------------- Zainab PetiwalaStaff Photographers ------------- Chaheti Bansal, Kayla Robinson & Dylan PaynePolitical Cartoonist ------------------------------------------------- Andy ChangPublicity -------------------------------------------------------------- Mrs. RabinowitzAdvisor ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mr. StencelReporters: Cyril Abraham, Vivian Ai, Frantzchesca Beauvil, Natalie Bracco, Alison Carrera, Elena Cothalis, Tim Foley, Ryan Ganesh, David Indictor, Joel Jacob, Christine John, Josh Johnikutty, Steve Johnson, Fabiha Khalid, Tiffany Kurian, Michael Lopez, Humayra Mayat, Sana Mayat, Rebecca Rothe, Priyanka Sharma, Haley Spielberg, Shani Thomas, and Aaron Weinstock

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Table of Contents News ----------------------------------------------------- pgs. 3 - 7

Student Life -------------------------------------- pgs. 8 & 9

Advertisement ----------------------------------------- pg. 10

Puzzles ------------------------------------------------------ pg. 11

Features ------------------------------------------- pgs. 12 - 14

Editorials -------------------------------------------------- pg. 15

Clubs --------------------------------------------- pgs. 16 & 17

Literary Arts --------------------------------- pgs. 18 & 19

Entertainment ------------------------------- pgs. 20 - 23

Awards ------------------------------------------------------ pg. 24

Sports ---------------------------------------------- pgs. 25 - 28

by Kevin Sanchez Greetings adminis-tration, teachers and fellow students! Spring fever is here and a lot of exciting events and memories are just around the corner. Meanwhile, the results are in for the "Soup-er Bowl" of Caring, which was a fund-raiser in conjunction with Island Harvest, where Student Council members collected loose change at the end of lunch lines from their fellow students. Through-out the whole week in February that the fund- raiser took place,

our school raised over $200 in change. All proceeds were given to The INN, a soup kitchen in Hempstead. On April 1st, the Student Council sponsored JH Class Night, which was a friendly, athletic competition between the 7th and 8th grade; the night was loosely modeled after District Sports Night. The students competed in obstacle courses, scooter races, and a costume race. To conclude the event, 7th and 8th graders Jana and Gasendi Cruz went head to head in a traditional pie

eating contest in which the 7th graders pulled through with the win. However, the 8th grade ultimately won the battle of the classes. All of the spectators and students participating were encouraged to give a donation of $1, with all proceeds going towards the Senior Citizen Luncheon. Student Council's Earth Week will be taking place on April 11th to April 15th. Flyers will be placed all over school to encourage the student body to incorporate an eco-friendly lifestyle. The week will

be concluded with the plant-ing of an evergreen tree in the middle of the courtyard. The Senior Citizen Luncheon is on May 15th, which is just around the corner! This is a great event in which the Jr. Prom decorations are used to entertain around 200 of our local senior citizens. Do your part and help out any of the clubs involved by mak-ing food or by donating your time. This truly is an amaz-ing day that brings the whole NHP community together. Get involved!

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place in three reactors at theFukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station that suffered par-tial meltdowns, while fuel rods at another reactor overheated and caught fire, releasing radio-active material directly into the atmosphere. This dire nuclear crisis in the quake’s aftermath prompted the evacuation of over 200,000 people. Japanese officials be-came increasingly desperate as traces of radiation were detect-ed in Tokyo’s water and in the water pouring from the reactors into the ocean. The nuclear power company released news that it had stopped the leak of radioactive water into the ocean on April 5th, but only after levels of radioactive material in the seawater near the plant had already been measured at several million times the legal limit. However, the threat of a meltdown has since relaxed as on site workers have not only bombarded reactors with sea water, but have also brought in specialists from all over the world to cool them off. Thousands of people near the plant have been ordered to evacuate and the evacuation line only grows proportionately to the uncertainty of a nuclear meltdown. Though the neces-sary precautions were taken, the considerable amount of radiation released into seawater and atmosphere raised global concerns. Leaders have assured the public that the threat of mass exposure to radiation is unlikely. Though such infor-

mation may be reassuring for those not in close proximity to Japan, the same cannot be said for the millions of Japanese survivors who must wear masks and protective clothing on a daily basis be screened for exposure to radiation. To pour salt on an extremely sore wound, the Japanese stock market has suf-fered a steep plunge which sent other Asian markets tumbling. Japan’s $5 trillion economy, the third largest in the world has been shaken and disturbed by the largely unmitigated con-cern of radiation. Though the Bank of Japan has taken steps to maintain liquidity, it failed to halt the downwards slide. Surprisingly, in light of the terrible disasters, Tokyo has willingly accepted and encouraged aid. Such open-ness to assistance provides a marked contrast to the gov-ernment’s policies after the 1995 Kobe earthquake, which killed more than 6,000 people. Japan is now transparent about their need for assistance. Clearly, its citizens need it. Despite the havoc that has disturbed Japan, it seems as though its troubles have not yet dissipated. As of April 7th, 4,200 people still remain missing in the evacuation zone around the crippled Fuku-shima nuclear power plant as a enormous aftershock struck the east coast, with a preliminary magnitude of 7.4. Over 16,000 people are still listed as missing within Japan. Victims still lack supplies, and people are in a

panicked rush to buy wa-ter in Tokyo. Thousands of people have died, lives have been devastated, and families broken. The nation is crying for relief. Nakaruma stressed, “It has become very difficult to live without basic necessi-ties. We don’t have much food, water and toilet paper. We’re forced to wear masks to protect ourselves from radiation. It has been days since I’ve seen the sun.” For the elderly Japa-nese, the destruction wreaked by the natural disasters echoed memories of World War II. Seventy-five year old Hirosato Wako stated, “I lived though the Sendai air raids,” referring to the Allied bombings. “But this is much worse.” Furthermore, the mounting humanitarian and nuclear emergencies in Japan may have given world leaders pause about pursuing nuclear fuel power for the future. Until the weekend of the tsunami, President Obama agreed that nuclear energy could be a

stable fuel source as part of the solution for climate change. However, the fragile bipartisan consensus that was reached may have evaporated with the rup-ture of Japan’s nuclear power plants. Emphasizing the sheer enormity of Japan’s crisis, Em-peror Akihito took the unprec-edented step of addressing his people on television. The em-peror told the Japanese citizens in a recorded message broadcast nationwide that he was “deeply worried” about the ongoing nuclear crisis and asked them to act with compassion “to overcome these difficult times.” In the midst of tur-moil, Nakamura contacted her old friends in New Hyde Park and said, “I’m just glad that my family and I are all safe and together. I pray for the safety of the people who have lost their homes, who don’t have enough food and water and cant reunite with their families. I’m hoping that a disaster like this will never happen again.”

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A “Tenure”ous Topicby Jennifer Lee and Ashly Thannickal It’s no question that the upcoming academic year will see a myriad of layoffs and budget cuts. Though these cuts come as no surprise, what is shocking is to whom the pink slip will be handed. New York State has recently approved the policy of “Last-In, First-Out” amplifying the delicate issue of teacher tenure. Teacher tenure is a century-old system that protects educators from arbitrary dis-missal. Though tenure has long been viewed as sacred, many have begun to question its proficiency as the term “teacher effectiveness” circulates in education policy circles. Such doubt in the “Last In, First Out” policy has led Mayor Michael Bloomberg to approve a bill that would cease seniority protection for teachers in New York City. The “Last In, First Out” policy rules that new teachers be the first to go dur-ing layoffs regardless of merit. The new bill would ensure that seniority could no longer be the sole criteria. Bloomberg proposes a plan with which the city could eliminate teachers with unsatisfactory ratings and other performance issues. Bloomberg called the bill, “a landmark proposal that puts the needs of our children first.” Advocates of tenure have voiced their opposition to this new bill. Republican Andrew Lanza of Staten Island believes that experience should be a measurable attribute dur-

ing layoffs. He said, “A good teacher who has been teaching for ten years is probably better than the good teacher who’s been teaching for ten minutes.” Because this issue en-compasses the polarized opin-ions of both new and veteran teachers, the policy “Last-In, First-Out” is inciting conflict

within the classroom as well as the home. School authorities across the nation have warned thousands of teachers of the possibility that they could lose their jobs this coming June. The extent of the layoffs concerns the merit versus seniority debate as some say that newer teachers reenergize the classroom with their modern teaching methods while others believe that older teachers possess the experience better fit for a classroom. While the bill received positive feedback

from the Senate, it conjured up doubt in the Democrat-controlled Assembly. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said that he supports using “an objective standard” that would weigh factors other than senior-ity in determining layoffs. Silver proposed an evaluation system developed by the state Board of Regents as a part of

last year’s successful Race to the Top application. Others, such as Governor Cuomo, jumped on Silvers suggestion, announcing his own ‘Last In, First Out’ bill. Cuomo said that his bill would expedite ongoing plans to implement Silver’s objec-tive teacher evaluation system. He stated, “It is time to move beyond the so called ‘Last In, First Out’ system of relying ex-clusively on seniority. However, we need a legitimate evaluation system to rely upon.” Though the plan

is expected to save millions, many are questioning the whereabouts on the other tens of billions of dollars that the state, city, and local education systems are lacking. With the economy the prime manipulator in education, there is no telling if teacher jobs can be saved as there is little to no money left to save the system itself. The budgets planned for next year plan to cut dozens of after school programs and activities, and plans to limit the financial freedoms of many of these organizations as well. The teachers union continues to insist that there is no need for layoffs as the city has a $3 billion surplus. The union claims that the mayor is using a budget crisis to force legislation that would weaken seniority protections and make it easier for principals to elimi-nate more senior and therefore more expensive teachers. Parents and students have taken both stances on the issue. Many parents assert that layoffs are a detriment to the education of students. They believe that as class sizes increase, students lose focus in school consequently degrading the quality of their educations. However, others assert that the policy will eliminate teachers who have lost efficiency. Whichever side is taken, the issues of teacher tenure and Last In, First Out will continue to incite the dis-cordant opinions of educators, legislators, and students alike.

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N.C.L.B. Gets “Left Behind”by Josh Johnikutty The Obama admin-istration proposed significant changes to the Bush-era “No Child Left Behind” education reform policy. However, out of over 30 comparable countries, the United States ranks near the bottom in education. With such statistics, Obama has decided that rewriting the No Child Left Behind law can possibly elevate the current educational ranking of the US. Obama stated,

“Instead of labeling schools a failure one day and then throw-ing up our hands and walking away from them, we need to refocus on the schools that need the most help.” Obama believes that the fundamental principle in facilitating schools with high rates of failure to succeed is for those schools to receive additional financial support for better staff and educational resources. Presi-dent Obama urged Congress to send him a new education law by the time students head

Cartoon by A

ndy Chang

by Josil Abraham On April 8th, after much deliberation and debate, Congress passed a short term federal budget, which will fund the government until the end of this year. It was later ap-proved and signed by President Obama, thereby avoiding what could have been a partial gov-ernment shutdown. However, the larger problem of a long term federal budget remains. Basically, a fed-eral budget is the President's proposal to Congress which outlines the general break-down of federal funding for the following fiscal year. After Congress approves an adjusted version of the bill, it is sent back to the President, who then has to decide whether to sign it or veto it. A vetoed bill is sent back to Congress, which can pass it into law with a two-thirds majority in each cham-ber. When a budget does not get voted through and passed, a shutdown occurs. When this happens, the government halts

funding of services and pro-grams which are not immedi-ately vital to the nation. This has happened several times in the past, the durations of each varying with every occurrence. In our present economic times, a government shutdown would

back to school this fall. Obama came out in defense of that deadline, arguing that, despite budget concerns, education is "an investment in our future.” The biggest challenge facing reform of No Child Left Behind is the budget battle brewing on Capitol Hill. In 2010 the bill cost more than $12 billion, a number that may be hard for many to tolerate in a year when all federal spend-ing seems to be on the table. Some teacher labor unions are against Obama’s

policy because the Obama blue-print calls on states to iden-tify their lowest-performing 5 percent of schools and to take strong measures to upgrade those schools, including firing the principals and teachers. However, despite such opposition, many stand as supportive advocates towards Obama’s policy. After all, in a global perspective with America’s low education rank-ing, a change is undoubtedly needed and Obama believes that change can be achieved.

be extremely detrimental, leav-ing thousands of Americans jobless and without income. In order to avoid such a shutdown, a shortened ver-sion of the budget was passed. It was quite a compromise, with Obama having to meet several Republican demands

made by Sen. John Boehner to make the deal happen. In it, approximately $40 billion from several domestic programs will be cut over just the next six months. Environmental protection costs were also cut back and so was funding for

programs such as Planned Par-enthood. However, programs such as alternative energy and national education were given more funding. Still, despite all of these decisions, the bill ignored highly debated and controversial areas such as our nation’s debt ceiling As of now,

our debt ceiling is pretty much reached and about to be spilled over. Basically, the end result of exceeding the ceiling would be interest rates going up, jobs being lost, and the entire country sinking back into the recession we have slowly started to recover from. To avoid this, the ceiling must be extended by approximately one trillion dollars. While Republicans such as Boehner are against this because of what it would do to the country’s interna-tional reputation, Obama and Democrats are for it. Of course, Americans are relieved that a bill was actu-ally passed and shutdown was avoided, though discrepancies remain on opinions on the decisions passed. 10th grader Ryan Thomas commented, “It’s awesome that this bill actually went through. Huge amounts of Americans would have suf-fered if it had not. Still, the bill is incomplete, and the country is still teetering until we can put this issue to rest.”

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The Choice is Un-Nu“Clear”by Cyril Abraham In the light of the recent tragedy in Japan, nuclear power has been cast under scru-tiny. Not only is it a volatile source of energy but as seen by the events of Japan, can prove fatal in the event of a natural disaster. Most of the operating nuclear plants in this country are located near fault lines which are expected to become active within the next 50 years. Thus, considering the fact that Japan has suffered ceaselessly from the threat of meltdowns and the people have been irrevocably exposed to radia-tion, why would the U.S. want to pose the same threat to it’s own people? Another potential danger of nuclear energy is the sheer energy packed into one plant. While the probability of nuclear disaster is somewhat low, one maintenance error or manufacturing defect could cause a serious nuclear crisis when all that would happen in an ordinary fossil fuel plant is a loss of power. The chances of crisis may be low, but if it did happen, the price would be very high. This imminent threat also puts focus on the fact that these nuclear plants release radioactive waste. The fission reaction that is responsible for the high energy output of nuclear power plants forms radioactive waste as a by-prod-uct. Critics of nuclear energy have argued that storing this nuclear waste and keeping it away from groundwater and

human contact for hundreds of years is too much of a hassle in comparison to traditional fuel methods which are less tedious. At one point during the seventies, nuclear power plants were being built at a rate of roughly 35 plants per year. Today, the number of plants are decreasing. High mainte-nance costs and perceived high risk from the Chernobyl and Three Mile Island disasters have driven down government and private funding. With funding so scarce, many have rightly opted not to pursue nuclear energy too fervently and have decided to invest in other green tech-nologies that can garner more support. The sheer price of maintaining plants all over this country would be enough to fund education and other sec-tors of society that need help. The price of the process of mining uranium ore and converting it to fuel rods is a tedious and carbon intensive process that will have to be repeated when new fuel rods are needed. The carbon footprint grows larger when the cost of transportation, parts, and strict oversight by highly skilled workers are factored in. Currently, the danger linked to radioactive waste con-trol, high maintenance costs, and better economic returns with other sources of energy are all cases against nuclear power. While it may improve, currently, nuclear power is not our best option. We must consider the dangers of nuclear power before we put it in use.

by Ashley Dominic Although it is easy to assess the situation and see nuclear energy as a negative im-plication of industrialization, there is more than what meets the eye to this revolutionary technological advancement. Nuclear energy can be harnessed to power domestic communication and transpor-tation networks. Moreover, the cost of producing nuclear power is about the same as producing coal power, yet the use of nuclear energy does not render the creation of harmful carbon dioxide gases nor waste which somewhat alleviates the strain of the greenhouse effect and current hype about global warming. Coal-fired plants alone are estimated to cause the deaths of 24,000 Americans a year, as well have wrongly pro-moted environmental destruc-tion through the practice of excavating mountain tops and other surfaces in order to ex-tract the coal. As a leading na-tion in technological advance-ment, nuclear energy proves to be a substantial resource that will harbor the industrial prosperity. Unlike their coal-fired counterparts, nuclear plants are clean in operation and produce very little toxic waste that is easier to store securely over longer periods of time than the harmful toxins produced through coal-powered energy. Although antagonists of the promotion of a market spurring nuclear energy growth would argue against this, as the

price of oil and global warming concerns continue to plague not only our nation but other countries on an international level, the interest in the clean-burning properties of nuclear power is becoming a necessity. The spur for low-cost as well as environmentally-friendly al-ternative energy sources can be best satisfied through a market that invests in nuclear energy. The United States Deputy Energy Secretary Daniel Poneman recently confirmed that it will indeed push ahead with nuclear power for he believes that “we view nuclear energy as a very impor-tant component to the overall portfolio we’re trying to build for a clean-energy future.” To some who are in doubt about the safety aspect of nuclear power plants, the United States has taken this concern to be one of its paramount concerns when dealing with the question of whether or not to imple-ment the use of nuclear energy. Poneman assured reporters at a recent conference at the White House that U.S. nuclear power plants are safe and that the United States would “continue to seek to build nuclear [ener-gy] into a part of a responsible energy future.” Although we don’t know how far nuclear energy will go, it becomes apparent that the expansion of nuclear power will help meet our na-tion’s demand for energy, lower our dependence on fossil fuels, and reduce the thousands of metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions globally.

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A Royal AffairLibyan Liberation by James Thomas Following the revolu-tion and political upheaval in Egypt, Libya, a nation ruled by dictator, Moammar Gadhafi, was also hit with a major rebel-lion; one that could potentially force Gadhafi to step down. Gadhafi came into power on September 1st, 1969, by leading a bloody military coup that toppled the Libyan monarch, King Idris. Since then, Gadhafi has ruled Libya with an iron fist, doing every-thing to make sure he remains in power and that the Libyan people do not get a foothold to start a rebellion. The recent revolution in Egypt seems to have been the spark that ignited courage within the Libyans to rebel. Soon after the Egyptian tyrant Hosni Mubarak stepped down, the Libyan people began a peaceful protest of their own in the hopes of accomplishing the same goal. However, Gadhafi retaliated with his army, oblit-erating all civilian protests. Consequently, the U.N. Security Council unanimously agreed to place sanctions on Libya and elected the U.S. to lead a coalition attack against Gadhafi. Following the U.N.’s decision, the U.S. led a coali-tion and began a vicious attack on Gadhafi. France started the attack by firing several missiles at major Libyan cities such as Tripoli and Benghazi. Over the span of a week, the coalition fired more than 100 Tomahawk cruise missiles from various warships that were located in

the area. Obama has men-tioned that the U.S. is looking to other nations to accept this leadership role. The problem arises in the fact that nobody is willing to take charge. The pe-riod of time the U.S. will spend in Libya is currently unknown. However, Gadhafi must be careful to not antago-nize the U.S., as he has had sev-eral problems with the U.S. in the past. Following a terrorist attack in 1986, which the U.S. accused on Libya, Gadhafi and his family fled to a clandestine location that was meant to protect him if the U.S. some-how would break through the Libyan defenses. Using satellites, the U.S. pinpointed the location of Gadhafi’s hideout and sent a few aircraft to bombard the area, which resulted in the death of his adopted daughter. After this event, Gadhafi took severe precautions to do noth-ing that would upset the U.S. or threaten his power. Gadhafi has used the recent attack on his country to evoke interna-tional sympathy by accusing the U.S. as foreigners who want to kill Libyans. By exploiting pictures and videos of demolished cities and thousands of dead bodies, Gadhafi hopes to gain an ally who might sympathize with his cause. If Gadhafi can persuade a powerful nation, such as China or Pakistan, to join Gad-hafi, then the U.S. might well be looking at another war. The world anticipates the outcome of Libya’s fight for freedom.

by Abin Thannickal The wedding of Princess Diana and Charles was considered one of the biggest weddings of all time. Now, as their son William is set to marry Kate Middleton in what has been called the, ‘wedding of the century,’ the hype is intensifying as the world ap-proaches the historic day. The wedding is on April 29th and whether you admire them or not, you’ll surely be one of the expected billions watching the global event. Preparations have been going on since the engage-ment was made known to the world. Though the wedding is sure to live up to the pomp and circumstance that royalty is known for, as of right now, most of the wedding details are under tight wraps. One thing for sure is that no one will miss the bold blue engagement ring that made the world gasp, since it was the late Princess Diana’s. The ring itself is estimated to be worth more than half a mil-lion dollars.

Though it’s ensured that Will’s late mother shall be there in spirit for the nuptials, the engagement of Will and Kate also brought about many comparisons to the engagement of his parents. Despite this, the wedding of Will and Kate is sure to be unlike any other. With over 2 billion watching worldwide, and many in attendance, the wedding is certain to get the two nervous on their wedding day. Most dignitaries were uninvited to insure no hard feelings to any set countries. Well-known celeb-rities that have been invited to the wedding include David and Victoria Beckham, Sir Elton John, and Paul McCartney. The activities on the day of the ceremony are to begin with their marriage at Westminster Abbey, followed by a carriage ride for the newlywed couple and a recep-tion at Buckingham Palace. Although all the details have been planned out and set, one question looms in the air: what will Kate Middleton wear on her big day?

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by Frantzchesca Beauvil From the day we are born until we become adults, we are always told to do the right thing. Even so, it’s something much easier said than done. What exactly is the right thing to do? How do you determine what are the right actions you perform in school and outside of it? One of the right actions you should do is to listen to the words of wisdom. Every day at school we hear the familiar saying, “Make it a great day or not, the choice is yours”. Whether it’s said by a student, teacher, or administra-tor we are naturally inclined to make choices in the end. Those 11 words we hear everyday at school may leave some students laughing or making jokes, but what we chose to do may affect

who we may become. Whether the choice may be big or small, every decision may play a big part in our lives and the lives of others. We, as students, have the choice to further our education and become intel-ligent leaders, but on the other hand, we also have the choice to make foolish decisions. No matter how you try to avoid them you will always have choices to make in life. Although, you may never know what the right choice is for you, you need to make the best decision that you feel comfortable with. You may not know whether you made the right choice yet it should be something you need to live with and embrace. Choices are inevitable, and when it comes down to it, the choice is always yours.

From Frenchiee A Night to Rememberby Christina Kotarski As spring nears and the warm weather begins to approach, juniors and seniors are ready for the major event of their year… prom! Whether it’s getting dressed up or asking the date of your dreams, prom is a night that will always be re-membered. Besides deciding on the perfect dress or tie to wear, many decisions recently have been causing drama amongst families and friends, “After Prom” has become an event that many people do not want to attend. But, putting scandal-ous rumors aside, there are many other ways to enjoy after prom with your friends that are legal, safe, and memorable. Many teens believe there are not as many activi-ties offered on Long Island as other places, but there are still

many unique plans that you can make with your friends! If prom ends at a decent time, try going to a movie with all your friends or bowling. Another fun way to enjoy after prom would be to try going out to dinner with your friends at a diner or restaurant that’s open late. Furthermore, a great idea of what to do after prom is going into the city and attend-ing a comedy club with your friends! The only downside to doing that is the possibility that there might be age restric-tions. These are just a few ideas that you and your friends could do after prom - The pos-sibilities are endless! No matter what you and your friends decide to do, remember to make it memorable and most importantly, safe.

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by Stacy Chacko The world of technol-ogy has become a focal point in many of our lives. Whether we tweet, or update our Fa-cebook statuses, the constant need for social interaction over the Internet has become so much more impulsive and dependent in the past couple of years. But are we taking our dependency on the Internet too far? Using these social net-works has become so popular and so necessary in life that it is rather difficult to find someone who is not on one of these web sites in our day and age. Especially as a high school student, we spend so much of our time on Facebook not only

Internet: The Site of Everlasting Wordsto procrastinate from studying, but to actually get news from our fellow peers about projects and even information about clubs in our school. Social networking allows students and people of all ages to interact with each other so easily, and makes life much less compli-cated than it should be. But how far is too far? It’s understood that we do use these social networking sites more than we look at any of our school books, but there is a downfall to the “wonderful world” of Internet interac-tion. The way news gets spread like wildfire and how other personal information is being used towards cyber bullying has become dangerous. When

certain types of faux news starts to enter and creep up onto the social networking sites the whole school all of a sudden seems informed and exaggerates a simple statement. It has no longer become an issue between people but networks upon networks of people who know what exactly is going on. What has happened to actually reading into things or watching the news to prove the validity of certain subjects? While social media can help us, its effects can be very detrimen-tal to our lives in the future. If we become too dependent on what the social media says, we will start to stray away from the proven facts that other sources have clearly validated.

At this rate, newspapers, maga-zines, and other sources are slowly making their downfall. Why should we listen to the facts of social networking when there are no facts at all? Keep in mind that networking allows us to share what’s on our mind, but we still must be careful with what we say. Remember, whatever is put on the Internet will stay forever, and it is much better to be safe than apologize. Though sites say you can delete posts, your words will stay on the Internet for years. Think about what you write on sites like these since they do own all of your information; in a few years when word gets out, you will be the only one hurting.

“The Korean Fever”by Alison Carrera and Vivian Ai Nowadays, everywhere you go, you hear at least one student conversing with her friend about her favorite Ko-rean singer or music. Korean music, or KPOP, has become a phenomenon, and even rose itself to become the most recommended study tool for many students. So, what is this “Asian Craze” phenomenon that has escalated in recent years? Well, let’s just say that once you start listening to KPOP music, you will immediately become ad-dicted to it. Korean Pop bands such as Big Bang, 2PM, and Girl’s Generation create songs that relate to your everyday life which includes school, crushes, breakups, makeups, or true love. Thus, you become more

vulnerable to fall into the ad-diction of KPOP music. Most importantly, KPOP music has affirmed itself to be a great study tool for students. Numerous students who have constantly listened to a variety of KPOP songs said that they could focus better on their homework. Sophomore Stella Liao says, “Everyday at home I play my playlist of KPOP songs on my iPod since it helps me concentrate on what I’m doing.” Moreover, statistics show that KPOP music helps you learn Korean. Freshman, Sabrina Wong says, “I listen to so much KPOP songs that I accidentally say words in Korean instead of saying it in English.” Clearly once you lis-ten to KPOP music for a long time, you will master at least

the beginning stage of Korean language. Furthermore, you may first believe that Korean music is very traditional and culturally unique. However, as soon as you listen to one song, the common stereotype is forever gone from your minds. KPOP is similar to American music in many ways, such as the rhythm and the beat of the songs. Because of this, many people easily become addicted. Through these addict-ing and alluring characteristics of KPOP music, KPOP has reached a global media, and is enjoyed by many worldwide. Many people that listen to KPOP have said that after you listen to one KPOP song, it will lead you to research the members of the band, and the next thing you

know you will become infatu-ated with each musician. Fresh-man, Mary Andreopoulos says, “I always become obsessed with the hottest member of the band that I enjoy listening to. Trust me, I’m not the only one.” In addition, several people say that they only enjoy listening to the band(s) just because of the members’ alluring physical features and vocal aptitude. In addition, sopho-more Pascale Dugue says, “I enjoy listening to KPOP even though I have no idea what they’re saying!” This displays that KPOP has the power to brings cultures together. It most definitely brought dif-ferent people in our school together. So turn on your computer and start listening to KPOP! It’s guaranteed that you will love it.

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PuzzlesThe Chariot

Word Search

#4: Spring Vacation Destinations

Created by:Allison Teicher

Bringing 90’s Nickelodeon Shows Back!

AUSTRALIABERMUDABRAZILCANADAFRANCEGERMANYHAWAIIHOLLYWOODIRELANDITALYJAMAICAMANHATTANMEXICOMIAMISPAIN

Q T B Y T D A E C Z R Y X M C O C I X E M R D P F O D A U A N Z O X J H R E U B R N G K N I E W V A Z U B F M H A A D A A Z U W H Q Q A Q A R P N R D P J A M O Y R V T A X E Y C A S I E A L N U T T C A K B R E I P F A L X A A M I A M I O T I A T Y Y N O G G A E C A E Y L I B Y W I Z W Z M D Y C N N D I M G O I R E L A N D A X V D X Z D O Q H A E J M M H Q V G X M A D Q C X G J R F A U D A I L A R T S U A E T B W R C G T W G Y B M L G N M D A N I

1. A show about talking babies that escaped their parents by breaking out of their playpen with a screwdriver: _ _ _ _ _ _ _

2. A cartoon about a kid with a football-shaped head and a very interesting house: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _!

3. A show about two rival animals living together as one - the question most people wondered was, “How do they go to the bathroom?” _ _ _ _ _ _

4. A cartoon about four kids with a passion for skateboarding... and disobeying their parents: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

5. The Nickelodeon version of Saturday Night Live: _ _ _ _ _ _ _

6. A show based off of one Nickelodeon star; she always brought out her dancing lobsters and screamed, “Mahah!”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Use the hints provided to figure out the 90’s Nickelodeon TV show!

Chariot

Jr. High

Features

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by Natalie Bracco

On Friday March 25, 2011, New Hyde Park Memo-rial performed it’s innovative presentation of the Disney classic High School Musi-cal. Its enthusiastic cast and Director Mr. Locante made the atmosphere fun! The play was an amusing production with an enthusiastic cast and crew. From start to finish, the cast’s witty lines and comical manner engaged the audience of all ages. Glenn Cantave, who played Troy Bolton stated, “I really enjoyed being in this musical mainly because of the wonderful cast and friends I made. After hours of vigorous

We’re All In This Togetherrehearsals we really bonded as a family and came together in the end.” The dances through-out the play brought the entire cast together as a whole. One of the performances that included most of the cast was “Stick to the Status Quo;” the whole cast really looked like they had a blast exhibiting this number. The cast’s adaptation of “We’re All in This Together” was flawless, which was great since it is High School Musi-cal’s trademark song. Joanna Sanges, who played Gabriella Montez stated, “I really enjoyed having the opportunity to play the role of Gabriella; we are alike in the

fact that we are able to come out of our shell through sing-ing. I enjoyed playing this part and the amazing cast made the experience fun.” The Stage Crew contributed to the smooth transitions from scene to scene with little imperfections. The

pit band did a fantastic job per-forming and keeping everyone on track. From the cheerleaders and jocks to the brainiacs, thes-pians, and skaters, the actors meshed well together establish-ing wildcat pride. The show was a hit, as it was enjoyed by people of all ages.

by Allison Teicher On March 11, 2011, a 9.0 magnitude Earthquake rocked Japan, causing damage that might not be repaired for years – but, on March 31, 2011, New Hyde Park Memorial rocked out for Japan. All of the proceeds from the Student Band Showcase were donated to the Japan Earthquake Relief Fund. The seventh annual student Band Showcase, hosted by Mr. Sime and the Stage Crew, featured a few student bands: Back Fire, The Break-ing Point, Ready For Nothing, Rome, The Official Stage Crew Band, and Jam Session Nation. The first band to take the stage was Back-Fire, featuring Brian Sheehan, Joe Carrotta, Christian Bautista, and John

Anthony DiMaria. Back-Fire’s songs certainly did not back fire. Then, Eddie Boroslawski, Dana Canale, David Indictor, and Kevin Kempski’s band, The Breaking Point, seemed to have broken the sound barrier with their music. The band brought its charisma to the stage with many songs. The third band to take the stage, Ready for Nothing, was certainly ready for some-thing! Band members Thomas Benedetto, John Binaso, JD Delnevo, Kevin Gamboa, and Bentley Wong brought both music and talent to the stage with their original music. Although they are usually behind the scenes, the Stage Crew took center stage with a few interesting songs. Besides doing a great job of

helping NHP’s productions and concerts run smoothly, the Stage Crew is composed of talented musicians. Next, JSN, took the stage. The band members, James Butka, Jesse Christiansend, Mike Tinghi-tella, Nathan Schaffert, and Nathan Bailey, along with Kevin Kempski’s assistance, be-gan their set in quite a unique way. After playing many songs that the audience rocked out to, including Blitzkrieg Bop, the group ended with one very long and very loud song. The final student band, Rome, featured Vincent Illuzzi, Nico Agrusa, Johnny Oliva, and Devin Hasenflue delighted the crowd with a few original songs, and some very memorable cover songs. Towards the end of

the show, NHP’s own teacher/student bands took the stage; although they are called, “The Wrecking Crew,” the performers did not wreck any songs; Ms. Wirth, Mr. Basil, Mr. Sanossian, Mr. Sime, Mr. Tarantola, Mr. Shapiro, junior Devin Hasenflue, senior Mat-thew DeFeligibus, and senior Chris Sanges performed many different songs. Senior Chris Sanges commented that, “it’s always fun to see all of the great musi-cal talent that the students of this school have. The show was quite interesting, very enter-taining, and I can’t wait to see what next year has to offer.” Congratulations to all of the performers – we hope to see you all at next year’s Student Band Showcase!

New Hyde Park Rocks Out!

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by Christine John and Shani Thomas That time of the year has come when juniors start to hit the SAT prep books for one of the most important tests of their lives. But how can a one test have such a daunting fear on many students? Well it’s a 10 section test, about 3 1/2 hours long consisting of writing, math, and reading with varying in time limits. Much of a debacle as the SAT seems, there are many ways a student can conquer it.Many students have started couple of months ago, some even few years ago to prepare for this life changing examina-tion. There are many SAT prep

books to choose from, such as Kaplan, Princeton, and so on, and as well as the creator of the test, CollegeBoard. By working in these books at least 30 minutes every day, you will be substantially bringing up your score. Get together with a group of friends and test each other on vocabulary. Also do the “SAT Question of the Day” to improve on the various sections. On the website there are many beneficial tips and practice questions to help you progress in your road to SAT success. To get the maximized results there are many SAT prep courses that students can take. The two well known

courses are Testakers and Princ-eton Review. Throughout the course, students take diagnos-tics or practice SAT tests, that will allow them to see im-provement in their scores and give them an idea how they will do on the real SAT. Both courses provide extra helps and a chance to build a student-teacher bond, which teachers can identify each individual’s strength and weaknesses and a student can receive advice for their ultimate improvement. Students from both classes have a surfeit amount of prob-lems to practice with that by the time the SAT comes, these problems will be as recogniz-able as two plus two.

The SAT is one of the most important tests that you will take in your life. This testdetermines what college you’ll attend and if you are eligible to receive scholarships. Sincegetting into the right college is a vital part in your life, you can tell how important the SAT is. No need to panic though! Remember, if you don’t do as well as you wanted to do on the SAT, you can always take it again. With the endless hours of hard work and studying, you should be on your way to suc-cess. Hard work does pay off and a little practice does go a long way. We guarantee, if you put in the effort, you are on the road to success.

by Humayra Mayat New Hyde Park Me-morial is a great place of find talented athletes of any sport. Yet, this classification isn’t lim-ited to just the students. Many faculty members also have many athletic talents and abili-ties that many of their students don’t know about. Mrs. Mary Gelber of the science depart-ment is a talented and gifted athlete; She has been swimming for as long as she can remem-ber and enjoys it very much. However, she didn’t develop her skills in the conventional ways that most people favor. Rather she learned how to swim and explored her own capabilities and limits by swim-ming in vast lakes and rigorous rivers with her father. She did

not actually begin swimming laps until she attended col-lege at Boston University. Yet, to this day, Mrs. Gelber is passionately committed to the sport of swimming. Mrs. Gelber is very en-thusiastic about the sport and loves to tell about her life and experiences while swimming. She often jokes that chlorine is her favorite element. Mrs. Gel-ber is a very committed teacher and that commitment is also shown through her passion and love for swimming. She goes to the pool about five times a week to swim for about an hour and a half each. To the surprise of many, Mrs. Gelber even swims competitively with the CIY Barracuda’s Masters Team. Swimming with this

competitive team is a huge ac-complishment and one that she is very proud of. When asked about what swimming means to her, she said, “If I know, when I get up in the morning, that I can get a swim anytime in that day – even if I won’t be able to get to the pool until late at night - I know it’s going to be a great day.” Mrs. Gelber is evidently a very active person and has over the years encour-aged her students as well as her children to remain active as well. She’s passed on both her immense passion for swimming to her children. She regularly attends their meets, and has had a great impact on their love of the sport. Her fourteen year old son, William

Harrison Gelber, in particular, has made tremendous strides within the swimming com-munity. He recently won the 100 yard butterfly at the New York State Championships, swam at the Jr. Olympics, and qualified for the Metropolitan Zones team. Mrs. Gelber is very proud of her son’s accomplish-ments and encourages him to keep on reaching his goals. He manages to share his mother’s determination and interest for the sport. It seems like swim-ming is in the blood, and that it’s more than a simple hobby or a pastime, but a passion. Ei-ther way, one thing’s for sure, no matter where life brings her, Mrs. Gelber will always, “just keep swimming.”

Memorial’s Scientific Swimmer

Throw the SAT Stress Away!

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Features

by Priyanka Sharma Every season has a trend which is usually cap-tured on the bodies of men, women, and children all over the world. This spring seems as if many are praying for rain rather than shine. On the feet of men, women, and children everywhere are colorful and unique rain boots that match everyone's personality and style. With rain boots differing in many styles, heights, colors, and patterns, it is known that anyone can find a pair they are in love with. The trend setting rain boots are making a “splash” with many famous fashion designers and compa-nies. These boots range from designers such as Burberry and Steve Madden to common

department store brands such as Target. Junior, Christina Kotarski commented, “I was never a huge fan of rain boots in the past but now as they have become more popular I, like many have gotten in with the trend. I really love rain boots because you can get them in many different colors, styles, and patterns so you can match them with any outfit! Since the price of rain boots range significantly there is definitely a pair you love in your price point.” Rain boots get more appealing by the season and they are a wet weather must have. Many teens have been mixing trendy outfits with rain boots to add an extra pop of color and style. Alison Carrera,

rain boots owner, says, “I love my rain boots and I always get excited when it rains so I can wear them!” Rain boots are a classy approach in a stormy spring day and can be worn in a modern, girly, or edgy way which makes them a perfect twenty first century trend. Boots are a must in each and every's wardrobe and rain boots are definitely needed when there is a little drizzle on the ground. The style of wear-ing rain boots are increasing in popularity especially around the halls of NHP! As you can see, rain boots are a must as soon as the forecast displays a spring rainy day, get yourself some rain

boots today!

Rain, Rain, Don’t Go Away!

by Tiffany Kurian Many would agree with me when I say that Moth-er's Day is one of the most im-portant day of the year; and for an obvious reason: a mother is the most special person in some people’s lives. Unfor-tunately, Mother’s Day gets overlooked or down played a bit. Yes, there are commercials all over reminding you to send flowers or buy mom candy… but where is the real sentiment? I cannot think of a more thankless job. A mother is there tirelessly doing any-thing for her family and does not expect anything in return. It may be painstaking and tedious but she will endure

because of the need to provide for her family. With that said, being a mom is also one of the most rewarding jobs there is. That pride and feeling starts the moment they become parents. It’s as if life now has a deeper meaning. If you watch and pay attention you will see how truly special and amazing your mother is. Without mothers where would we be as a society? It is our mother who teaches us how to nurture and how to love. It is through their guidance that we as individuals learn how to be empathetic to those around us. If it wasn’t for our mothers we wouldn’t grow and mature to the person we

are today. I look at the mothers that I know, and I think they are all special in their own ways. If I was in their position, there would be many days that I would’ve stayed in bed and covered my head with pillows to block out the existence of all around me. However, a mother wouldn’t ever do that. Even if a mother is sick she is up taking care of those she loves. Moth-ers are self sacrificing because it is in their nature. They also have the innate ability to make everything alright even on the worst of days. It could feel like the worst day of your life, and your mom would be the person you go to, in order to make ev-erything better. Mothers never

stop! They are always busy doing things for their families and rarely ever ask for much in return. They never get a day off or are credited for all the amazing things they do. This year, on this Mother’s Day, take the time out of your busy and hectic lives to thank your mother and inform her of how truly special she is. Also, let her know how much she means to you. While in the end moms believe the greatest reward for all they have done is seeing their children turn into happy successful adults. They could all use a little acknowledgment and love from us along the way.

Mother’s Day: Not Just Another Day

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Editorials

by David Indictor When I found out we were bombing Libya, I was fairly out of the news loop at the time. My first reaction was, “When did this happen!?” I read a news report or two and figured out everything I needed to know. A country filled with oppressed people, revolting against their dictator Gad-dafi, was thrown into a chaos similar to that of the recent Egypt revolution as Gaddafi tried to crush protestors in all sorts of violent manners. The United Nations cried foul, and took action in Libya with a variety of economic and mili-tary measures. This was a good move. Now the U.S. has taken it upon itself to bomb Libya and free the oppressed people, as well as set up a fair work-ing government. U.S. military action has been minimal with the president’s insistence that we have only used air strikes and that no troops have been deployed, as if it doesn’t count as military action until we physically touch Libyan soil. Our intentions, to spread peace and democracy, are always good and evident. We always take it upon our-selves to do this as if no other country is capable of creating its own democracy and peace. Quite frequently, we cause more harm than good, and leave the country out of guilt, internal anger, boredom, or hopelessness. Although most are concerned about a ‘third war,’ with the Iraq war still in its final stages and Afghanistan still in the thick of the action, they should realize that this is

not new behavior at all. We’ve been going to foreign lands and telling them how to live for centuries. We’ve been going to people we don’t know well and have been telling them to follow democracy, the best form of government. We have done everything we can to go against the original principle of the foundation of this country: Allow the citizens to choose their own government. Before our country was even a generation old, the French Revolution had some in the U.S. thinking we should go over there and help depose of the King and the nobles. This, gratefully, didn’t hap-pen, since it would have been devastating for us in a time when our military was still weak. Then President Monroe passed the Monroe Doctrine, forbidding European interven-tion in Latin America. This would later become President T. Roosevelt’s justification for freeing Cuba from Spanish rule and occupying Cuba and the Philippines for years. Both occupations had their share of violence, particularly in the Philippines, and we chose to help the rebels, who may have been painted as heroes by the press who called out the cruelty of Spanish occupation, but in reality were not that different as far as cruelty went. Multiple Filipino and Cuban civilian deaths later and we finally decided to leave. The Philippines have since settled down and adopted an accept-able government. Good thing we left Cuba alone from that point onward or else we would

have made another problem in Latin America. What do you mean, ‘Bay of Pigs Invasion,’—oh right, Castro. Although we certainly had some takeovers in the 1800s, it could not remotely compare to the amount of democracy we ‘spread’ during the Cold War. We may have been responsible for interfering with Latin America so many times in the name of freedom, that despite the fact that their occupation by Spain ended cen-turies ago, the phrase, “as stable as a South American country,” is still relevant. We promoted freedom in Vietnam—it did not go well. We promoted freedom in Korea (who, technically, we are still at war with). We promoted freedom in Iran (by, ironically, sponsoring a dictator). Now Khomeini pulls Ahmadinejad’s strings as their nuclear projects progress and their people are oppressed. We helped the Mujahidin in Afghanistan against the invad-ing Soviets. Look at Afghani-stan now; we actually went back. The best (and by best I mean worst) part: part of the Mujahidin broke off to form Al Qaida. That part was among the many given military train-ing by the CIA, and included Osama Bin Laden. But now you’re thinking that many of those countries were run by oppres-sive rulers; I agree wholeheart-edly. I also want you to ask yourselves if sending in troops, pulling triggers and launch-ing missiles is the best way to spread democracy, peace, and the concept of self rule. Can we

really teach non-violence with a half-written constitution in one hand and an M4 assault rifle in the other? The answer is no. On the other hand, can we ask the dictators to give up their unfair rule? Not unless we are looking for a negative, degrad-ing, mocking reply. The thing is, we already created an orga-nization that is supposed to be the world’s police men instead of the United States. We called it the United Nations. And if it even closely resembled what it was supposed to be, the world would be a much better place. Only the U.N. could ensure that individual countries in the world remain free and peace-ful with the consensus of most of the world, not just the U.S. acting of its own accord for its own reasons. But in order to do this, the United Nations must be strengthened both mil-itarily and spiritually. I am not proposing a world government; any country should have the right to rule as it pleases. But when thousands, hundreds of thousands, and even millions die for no reason, somebody has to do something. It cannot be the U.S. alone. U.S. interfer-ence hurts the foreign country in the end, and is now show-ing how much it can hurt the American economy, the Ameri-can morale, and the American principle: “… that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriv-ing their just powers from the consent of the governed.” —Thomas JeffersonDeclaration of Independence, 1776

Has America Gone Too Far... Again?

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by Stacy Chacko The International Culture Club of New Hyde Park held its annual ICC Night on Tuesday, March 15th, 2011. With nearly 300 people in the audience and over 75 perform-ers, the night was absolutely successful. Led by advisors Ms. Kurian and Mrs. Mejia, the show ran smoothly and brought in a lot of new things that had never been used be-fore in previous ICC shows. The officers included two presidents: Sharon Paul & Jason Arikupurathu, two vice presidents: Nirmala Singh and Stacy Chacko, Secretary, Tif-fany Kurian, Treasurer: Shaily Shah, and Publicity Coordina-tors: Jancy Arikupurathu, and Anjali Reddy. The team of officers worked diligently to create a show that would be unforgettable for the audience and for the seniors of the Class of 2011. Showcased in the show were acts that ranged from hip-hop dancing to Spanish singing, and to the infamous and synchronized performance of Tae Kwon Do on the NHP Memorial stage. The program list included performances from around the world, truly making this year’s show “internationally cultural” based. Performances from countries ranging from India to the Philippines made their debuts on stage. For many performers, this was not their first ICC show, but to others, this was the first time they ever were able to showcase

their talents in front of their fellow classmates and families. One Philippino performer, Rachel Hilado said, “It was a spectacular night mixed with traditional and modern dances and extravagant music.” ICC 2011 was a memorable event for all students, parents, and faculty members who attended. There were laughs, there were mo-ments of awe, and there was a general appreciation for the world that we live in. The Inter-national Culture Club bridges the borders between cultures, and makes our school realize that we all live in one world together. We learn to embrace each other, and ICC Night is a clear example of cultural diffu-sion. Hopefully next year will be just as great. President Sharon Paul had a lot to say regarding this year’s show. “ICC has been a huge part of my high school career. I’ve been performing in the show for so many years now and it truly made my high school experience even more enjoyable. ICC 2011 was truly memorable and I know that the audience definitely appreciated all the hard work that these performers and officers put to-wards this year’s show. I’d like to thank Ms. Kurian and Mrs. Mejia for another wonderful show and year, and ICC 2011 definitely ended my senior year perfectly. I will never forget it.” Thanks to all who attended and took part in this years’s show! See you all in 2012!

NHP’s Einsteinsby Josh Johnikutty NHP Memorial’s Science Research Course is a selective program which allows students to think like scientists by conducting challenging yet exciting experiments. Science Research enables students to broaden their horizons in the varying fields of science where they can learn the meaning of scientific research beyond the standard classroom setting. At the end of each school year, the Science Re-search advisor, Mrs. Stone, pre-pares students for the upcom-ing science fair competitions, which will take place during the next school, year by giving them select scholarly journal articles with that of a college-level difficulty to study. Recently, students have created experiments in fields such as Biology and Environmental Science. Some student experiments involve the creation of bacteria cultures such as tenth grade students Steven Gill and Richard Schlueck’s experiment, “How do Cox-1 and Cox-2 inhibi-tors affect cyclooxygenase in E. Coli?” Students interested in

environmental science conduct-ed experiments in which they developed a water purification device - Senior high student’s experiment entitled, “Mitigat-ing the effect of OTC analge-sics on Lemna Minor utilizing Activated Carbon Filtration.” In the past year, the 10th grade science research class presented their experi-ments at Molloy College’s 9th annual science fair. The senior high class presented their experiments at the New York State Science and Engineering Fair (NYSSEF), the NY Hall of Science, and the Long Island Science and Engineering Fair (LISEF) at SUNY Farmingdale. Such experiments involve dili-gent student time and effort in conducting their studies. Earlier this year, the sophomore Science Research class participated in SUNY Stony Brook’s Protein Mod-eling Challenge where they placed in the top 15 out of over 40 schools. Thus, the Science Research course at NHP is bound to help prepare students in the exciting field of science throughout their high school and college years.

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It’s A Fiestaby Abin Thannickal and Ryan Maharaj The many world languages at New Hyde Park Memorial celebrate their culture through the many holidays. For the Italians, there is Carnevale which is celebrated before Ash Wednesday and for the Spanish there is EPCOT night. This grand celebration was held April 7th and was dedicated to the Spanish Language. “Epcot” is the Spanish word for “many countries.” This idea of many countries is the primary aspect of EPCOT night. This concept is the driving force behind the festival and is what allows the entire cultural ex-change between various heritages.

EPCOT was originally started by Mrs. Esther Acevedo, a Spanish teacher whom previ-ously working in the World Languages Department in our school. The main purpose of the festival was to represent 20 Spanish countries and to also remind us of traditional cultures. “I’m trying to keep the traditions of EPCOT alive,” said Mrs. Morales, the advisor of the Spanish Club Although this was a Spanish-themed night, foods from other cultures were seen at EPCOT. Robin Joji, Secre-tary of the Spanish Club, said that, “EPCOT Night is so suc-cessful every year and with the support of the students of New

Hyde Park Memorial, it gets better every single time.” Robin served food to the countless student and helped get people on their Spanish side. He felt that the best part of the night was the “food, raffles and the dancing,” even though he didn’t dance. One unique aspect of EPCOT is the fact that it’s not only a festival for the Span-ish Club, but it’s a festival for people of all cultures. There weren’t only students of the Spanish Club, but also students from various Foreign Language related clubs. Jenny John, a sophomore of the French Club said, “I expected to see most kids from the Spanish club, but

I was actually shocked to have seen other students from the French Club. Many student appreci-ated the after school bonanza because it offered a fun and interesting social get together. Many students don’t have a lot of free time to socialize with their friends in school, so EPCOT offered this fun social escape. EPCOT has truly showed the true colors of NHP by uniting all students of differ-ent languages. “My favorite part of going to NHP is that unlike some schools, NHP actaully celebrates culture and not just the language,” said Dan Arkin.

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Literary Arts

Life is a roller coaster It’s not always a straight path

It has its up and downs, Curves and spirals

Giving you an adrenaline rush

Everything can be calm while You are at the apex of your life

But there is always that brief second

Where you know you will plummet to the ground

At any given time Even though the ride is

never serene

The rugged course is what makes life exciting

You can choose to be enchanted As your heart starts to pump faster

and faster And endure your fears

Because life will always be a roller coaster ride

by Christine John As we see team after team winning games

Others will feel depression and shame Tips and steps in becoming your best,

Would lead you to success all year long.

Don’t give up, though the pace seems slow

You may succeed with another blow And you can never tell how close you

are It may be near when it seems afar

So give it your all, And you never know who would fall.

Give it Your All in Basketball!

“Fury” by Shannon Sunny

by Joel Jacob Life As

We Know It

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If anyone has any artwork or literary pieces that they would like to publish in the next issue of the Chariot, please submit it to Mr. Stencel. ~The Chariot

If anyone has any artwork or literary pieces that they would like to publish in the next issue of the Chariot, please submit it to Mr. Stencel. ~The Chariot

The sunshine from the window Beating onto my head

Gives me the strength to Get out of bed.

I get that new feeling That everything will come back

That everything will be given a chance That spring will give nature what it

lacked.

The flower bed was blooming On the warm spring day

With my dad watering the grass On the first day of May.

The flowers will bloom The sun will shine bright

And bird will chirp once again Thanks to that one season

Spring.

Springby Fabiha Khalid

“My Treasure Chest” by Joanna Verde

“Abandoned” by Katarzyna Kamuda

Chariot

Editorials

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by Allison Teicher At the beginning of March, Charlie Sheen, the star of CBS’s hit-comedy series, “Two and a Half Men,” had a complete mental breakdown, or so the world believed. After going in and out of rehab for a while, Sheen finally sat down for quite an interesting interview with Good Morning America’s Andrea Canning. In the past, Sheen was accused of using pretty much every single drug pos-sible; during his interview, Andrea Canning constantly mentioned that. Charlie Sheen began shouting about how he does not use drugs and claimed that he’s just running off of “Adonis’ DNA and tiger blood.” Sheen kept stating that

he isn’t bipolar, he’s simply, “bi-winning.” After calling his “Two and a Half Men” co-star Jon Cryer a “troll,” he made other peculiar comments about how he’s not erratic, just pas-sionate. He claimed that he’s a warlock and that “if someone borrowed his brain, they’d be like, ‘dude can’t handle it,’” because the only drug he’s on, “Charlie Sheen,” is such a powerful thing. Despite the peculiar comments, Sheen left the interview holding his head held high and guaranteeing that America will keep seeing his face in magazines and on TV. Although Sheen was fired from the “Two and a Half Men” series, he will not be lin-ing up to collect an unemploy-

ment check anytime soon. Be-sides receiving numerous offers from other television stations, Sheen has become a Twitter superstar and will be creating various short films based off of his insanity; his recent short film, “Charlie Sheen’s Winning Recipes,” gained over 300, 000 views – and the numbers keep climbing. According to Charlie Sheen’s Twitter account, which acquired over one million fol-lowers within the twenty-four hours after his “mental break-down,” Sheen will be recording and producing music for his new tour, “Violent Torpedo of Truth.” While on this tour, Charlie Sheen may be perform-ing with the infamous rapper and music producer, Snoop

Dogg. Sheen claimed that everyone should “Get ready to rock the Sheenius within,” which could only mean that his antics as a new pop-culture icon will only get stranger and stranger. Whether Sheen is actually insane or not, what has been confirmed is the fact that he is marketing his insanity quite well through YouTube, Twitter, and other social media outlets. While the CBS Network, Warner Broth-ers Pictures, and the rest of America stand by and wait for Sheen’s newest insane plot to gain even more popularity, there’s just one thing that will constantly remain unanswered during his reign of fame: What will Charlie Sheen do next?

by Sana Mayat “Black Friday” may just take on a new meaning after one sees Rebecca Black’s music video that has spread across YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and beyond in the last couple of weeks. The thirteen-year-old rose to stardom for the video for her song, “Friday,” which was produced by Ark Music Factory, a production company that specializes in teen singers ages 13 to 17. However, Rebecca Black’s sud-den fame is not for the reasons one would expect; instead of being praised and admired, she’s been ridiculed and mocked all across the globe. The YouTube video

features Black singing about an average Friday: waking up in the morning and waiting at the bus stop. However, according to many teens, the lyrics take a ridiculous turn as she begins to sing about the dilemma of whether to sit in the front seat or the back seat of a car. As the song proceeds, she begins to sing about “Partying and having Fun, Fun, Fun, Fun,” before rattling on about the rest of the days of the week. This was more than enough to get teenagers going, and soon enough, her video beat that of Justin Bieber’s hit “Baby” with 1.2 million “dislikes.” The sad part of it all is that she didn’t even write the song! Patrice

Wilson, the seemingly random rapper in “Friday,” is also the founder of Ark Music Factory as well as the brain behind the lyrics to this convoluted song; yet, poor Rebecca Black is bear-ing all the blame. Before you start to feel sorry for her, the thirteen year-old is generating an immense profit from the ads running on her videos and with a whopping 70,000,000 views, and growing, the criti-cism may just be worth it. Still, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen YouTube create teenage stars. Justin Bieber was also discovered on YouTube, becoming the pop sensation we know him as today. This leaves the question of whether

it is possible that YouTube could become the next major platform for aspiring teenag-ers. It may certainly seem so. The viral spreading of Rebecca Black’s video is clear evidence of this fact, causing comments from teens all over the world in a matter of hours. Maybe now, record companies will gear away from Disney and Nickelodeon and move to YouTube as the main platform in sparking teenage careers. Per-haps “Friday” is just the begin-ning for something even bigger for Rebecca Black. Sophomore Haley Spielberg puts it best, “Forget Bieber Fever. I think we’re in the midst of the Black

Plague.” Only time will tell.

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Sheen-ing Star

What Comes After Thursday?

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by Chaheti Bansal Do you remember your childhood more than a decade ago when everyone was watching new episodes of the classics like Hey Arnold!, The Rugrats, Keenan & Kel, Rocket Power, As Told By Ginger, and other 90s shows? Millions of teenagers across the nation that grew up learning from and ad-miring these shows for the ma-jority of our childhoods were consumed with disappointment when they stopped airing these shows. However, the word on the street is that Nickelodeon and its producers went back into the studios on March 14th to remake episodes from the 90s that will air during the fall of 2011! Now the question is whether these new producers will make the episodes as well

as they used to be or end up butchering them completely. Despite the speculation, the youth is being flexible and supportive of bringing back their childhood memories and would just like to watch their favorite cartoons during their hectic lives once again. Hope-fully by bringing back these shows, people will understand what our childhood really consisted of. Junior, Jennifer Morga, was ecstatic that “Kids nowadays can get to experience what REAL cartoons are like!” The effort and at-tempt for Nickelodeon to go retro is being acknowledged all over the nation and each day the hype seems to get bigger. Nonetheless, the real reason for the action being taken is due to teens all over the world and they are truly the ones to

thank. One of the directors of Nickelodeon, Cyma Zarghami, stated, “We have noticed a significant drop in ratings since our shows from the late 1990s were canceled. We have strayed from our cartoons and we believe that that was our biggest mistake. We have con-tacted the producers from these new shows and we were able to work out a deal to get them back to making new episodes.” Nickelodeon has real-ized that in retrospect, nothing will be able to substitute for the originals that had millions of kids addicted to televi-sion for years. Shows such as iCarly, Big Time Rush, etc. have ruined Nick’s reputation and the company is evidently trying hard to win back the hearts of many.

by Humayra Mayat As the first novel in the world-wide bestselling Millennium Trilogy, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo definitely exceeds its reputation. Written in Sweden by journalist Stieg Larrson, the mystery novel captivates the interests of its audience while exploring the author’s cynical view of society. Larrson’s tale of murder, corruption, and the abuse of women will enthrall the reader, while some of its darker elements will make the reader cringe. The novel outlines the trials and tribulations of journalist Michael Blomkvist, who at the onset of the novel is facing a libel suit. His personal and professional lives are both in shambles and he is enlisted along with a young woman by the name of Lisbeth Salander to solve a 40 year-old murder case. The characters’ person-alities, actions, and thoughts steal away the attention of the reader and their plight becomes your own. Lisbeth is a com-puter genius that can crack even the best guarded secrets, yet the ones she herself carries are the most dangerous of all. She is by no means a damsel in distress and her presence in the novel both confuses and fasci-nates the audience. While the pace of the novel itself drags at times and its length may be intimidating to others, it remains to be a satisfying read. The story basically conveys all of Larsson’s thoughts towards Swedish society, neatly pack-aged into a classic “Who did it?” murder plot.

Entertainment

by Rebecca Rothe Why has music changed so much over the years? The quality of music is very different today than it was back then. Music has always been something we have all grown up with. There is a lot more hip hop and rap music out today that all the teenagers listen to. There have been new singers with different kinds of voices, bringing new sounds. Over the years, clas-sic music used to be wildly popular. There used to be a lot of disco music that isn’t played much anymore. There used to be artists like the Bee Gees

or Michael Jackson. Today, teens listen to more pop and rap music from artists such as Eminem and Rihanna. Some music used to send a good message to people. “The pop music of today has awesome beats, and background music, but some of the lyrics are inap-propriate for kids,” says Special Education teacher Ms. Wirth. Some of the lyrics of different music became inappropriate because of the language used. Some lyrics however, have a message nowadays. For example, “Not Afraid” by Eminem, has a message about standing up for yourself. Then

you look at Ke$ha’s lyrics, see-ing that they are mostly about having fun, and don’t really mean much. “There is no sub-stance and music today doesn’t mean anything anymore,” says junior Elena Cothalis. Some singers today can’t sing, and have to auto tune their voices to make people think they can sing. Music videos have also changed over the years and some don’t have anything to do with the song. So the quality of music is different now because new music and entertainment is constantly developed by artists who enter into the music business.

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by Audrey Lew For years, the Van’s Warped Tour has not only been known to showcase the most interesting and talented artists in the industry, but to be full of surprises as well. They continued this trend at the Van’s Warped Tour Kickoff Party in Brooklyn on March 25th with live perfor-mances, pro skateboarding acts, a live graffiti exhibit, and interesting foods to snack on. This year was the Van’s Warped Tour’s very first kickoff party at the House of Vans in Brooklyn. The kickoff party featured a plethora of musical acts, all of different genres- rap, heavy rock, punk, and rock meets reggae. Artists that performed included: MC Lars, Moving Mountains, Li-onize, and The Wonder Years. Although all the bands were all very different in their sound, they were all fantastic and put

on great performances. What made this par-ticular show more unique than others was the fact that the cre-ator of the Van’s Warped tour himself, Kevin Lyman, intro-

duced artists as well as cheered them on from the crowd. Also, the creator of Van’s sneakers was there making waffles for people! It doesn’t get much

more interesting than that! The way the venue was set up was also fascinating; it not only incorporated a stage for performances, but also had a skateboarding rink where many

skateboarders, such as Steve Alba and Ray Barbee, skated with fans and did some exhila-rating tricks. At the press confer-

ence, Kevin Lyman said that at this year’s Warped Tour there would be many new and differ-ent features added to the tour. These features include a new program that will let parents pay in advance for meals at Warped Tour for their kids; that way, kids would not have to worry about paying for food throughout the day. Kids this year will not have to worry about spending their bucks on multiple bottles of water every time they’re thirsty. They will now be able to refill their water bottles at stations at Warped Tour. There are plenty more secrets that Kevin talked about but, you’ll just have to wait and see for yourself this sum-mer. Be sure to check out MC Lars, Moving Mountains, Lionize and The Wonder Years at this year’s Van’s Warped Tour at Nassau Coliseum on July 23rd!

by Haley Spielberg Spring has become more than just April bringing May showers. The spring time marks the arrival of the three-day music extravaganza, known as Bamboozle in East Ruther-ford, NJ. The first day of the festival begins Friday, April 29th and concludes on Sunday, May 1st. Every year it seems Bamboozle is just full of surprises. Their new lineup shocks the thousands of loyal followers they’ve gained over

the years. This year’s headliners include Lil’ Wayne and Wiz Khalifa, Taking Back Sunday, Motley Crue, and 30 Seconds to Mars. The Bamboozle festi-val has something for everyone; with big names like Bruno Mars and A Day To Remember on the set list, there will be an endless amount of people rush-ing to the multiple stages at the festival. The festival seems to change every year and with every change, there is always something to talk about. This

year’s Bamboozle is featuring a new rewards program called BoozleTwist, where followers of Bamboozle are able to win various autographed merchan-dise from their favorite bands such as: We The Kings, Taking Back Sunday, You, Me, And Everyone We Know, Romance On A Rocketship, A Day To Remember, EATMEWHILEIM-HOT, Lil Wayne, and Forever The Sickest Kids, through vari-ous tasks they must complete. It’s not too late to start earning points now!

Some fresh features in the festival this year include the “Wayne’s Gold Inn VIP Ticket” and “Band – A – Cabana” ex-perience, which gives only the most hardcore fans the chance to go backstage and get the same treatment as all the art-ists at the festival. Those who purchase the “Band-A-Cabana” will have their own tent with nine of their closest friends. I can tell you this right now that there’s no doubt that this year’s Bamboozle festival will be ooz-ing with fun!

Witness Warped 2011

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iPad: Take Two

Out of “The Office”by Josil Abraham For those of you who are fans of NBC’s “The Office,” you are probably well aware that Steve Carell, who plays Michael Scott on the show, is leaving the series before the present season is over. Although he has become a staple on the show, Carell decided to leave the show to focus on his prominent movie career. “The Office” centers around a small paper company branch located in Scranton, Pennsylvania, headed by naive and childish boss Michael Scott and his band of misfit em-ployees. Carell has long been the focal point of the show, as most of the show’s plots and episodes have centered around

him. However, with news of his departure, even the most loyal of fans are questioning what will happen to the show with-out its powerhouse of funny. With the news of his leave, talk has erupted over who might replace him in the show. Some suspected funny man Will Farrell would take the coveted seat, as he was actually slated to appear on the show. But, this speculation was quickly cast aside with news that he would only appear for a few episodes. Another potential candidate is British comedian Ricky Gervais, who actually created and starred in the original show of which Carell’s series is a spin-off of. This has, however, been uncon-firmed.

Fan reaction to Carell’s exit from show is quite mixed. While there are those who will miss Carell’s signa-ture humor and the unique quality he gave the show, some say that the show had grown stagnant through repeated use of Carell’s character’s incom-petence as central episodic plot points. With him gone, these people think the show will be given a chance to further develop its already unique

comedic style. Senior James Fallon said, “Carell was great, but he wasn’t the only star of the show. The cast is filled with numerous equally funny and talented people. ‘The Office’ will still maintain its quality even without him.” Steve Carell was a huge part of the show who definitely helped turn “The Office” into what it is today. Only time will tell what will happen with him gone.

by Cyril Abraham and Michael Lopez The tablet market was shaken last month with the release of the iPad 2. On March 11, first generation iPad holdouts and Apple devotees flocked to retail and online stores to get their hands on a soon to be scarce iPad 2. Apple brought several changes to the second genera-tion; the iPad is now .34 inches wide as opposed to an original .5 inches wide. The height and width changed very slightly because Apple has replaced the angular design of the back to a smooth curve. The iPad’s hardware also received an overhaul. The graphics performance is nine times better, signaling a new

era of iPad games. The iPad also sports a custom designed dual core 1 Ghz processor (full disclosure: there are android tablets that are already that fast) - twice as fast as the origi-nal iPad. Despite these new changes, the battery life is still ten hours. The most noticeable difference in the new iPad is the two newly installed cam-eras. There is a camera on the back that can record 720p HD video and take photos. There is also a camera on the front for “FaceTime, a video chatting ap-plication that is also available on the latest generations of the iPhone, the iPod touch and the iMac. The front camera can also be used to take amusing pictures using Photobooth, an

application found on iMacs as well. Unfortunately the front facing camera is VGA quality which isn’t as fine as the rear facing camera. One interesting feature implemented on the iPad 2 is the Smart Cover, a thin magnetic cover that when closed, is pulled to the magnets in the frame of the iPad and turns off the display; contrari-wise, when opened, the display turns on again. The Smart Cover’s technology is like that of the iMac – if the screen is closed, the display automatical-ly turns off. The thin magnetic cover is also foldable, and can be placed in various positions for comfortable typing or video-watching positions. The Smart Covers also come in a

variety of colors. Two new applications for the iPad were released in the App Store in addition to the iPad’s release: GarageBand and iMovie. iMovie allows the user to edit videos using a range of interesting effects and GarageBand is just like its mir-ror application on the Mac, al-lowing the user to create songs using a variety of drum kits, guitars and pianos. Aside from these two additions, the iPad 2 features the same App Store and doesn’t offer anything new. Though the iPad re-mains the most popular tablet currently, and also one of the cheaper devices in comparison to others, one competitor has garnered significant publicity: the Motorola Xoom.

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Awards

On Friday, February 11, 2011, the New Hyde Park chapter of the Future Business Leaders of America attended the annual FBLA Spring District Meeting at Molloy College in Rockville Centre, NY. At the meeting, sixteen New Hyde Park students competed against other schools in Nassau County in various business related events. Award recipients included: Abby Hawley, Camy Liang, Andrew Valentin, Nicole Ulrich, Jeremy Johnson, Myrlande Demothsene, and Renee Harrison. Congratulations to all the competitors. As a result, all sixteen students have been invited to attend the FBLA State Leadership Conference in Rochester, NY, April 6-8.

Left to Right: Renee Harrison, Abby Hawley, Andrew Valentin, Nicole Ulrich, Camy Liang, and Myrlande Demosthene

New Hyde Park Memorial came in second place in the annual “Students Feeding Students” Food Drive for Island Harvest. The Student Council organized the campaign and helped raise 4,000 pounds of canned food in October. This food was then distributed to various soup kitchens and religious organizations on Long Island. On February 14, 2011, Island Harvest held a ceremony to congratu-late NHP; Shelton Jones, a former player in the NBA, spoke to the students about the importance of community service at the ceremony. The Student Council received a trophy and many individual awards from Island Harvest.

Left to right: Mr. Kowalczyk, Nirmala Singh, Justin Rezin, Kristen Lynch. Sophia Halicos, Doreen Principe, Gabriella Tomasini, Megan Brown, James Walker, Ciara McCullagh, Kevin Sanchez, and Mrs. Esposito

The Annual New Hyde Park Memorial Junior High Science Fair was quite a success, with many interesting projects and discoveries. The win-ners of the Junior High Science Fair are as follows: For the Seventh Grade, in First Place: Rija Ahmed and Farheen Hyder, in Second Place: Vasia Halicos and Amanda Choy, in Third Place: Emily Park, and for Honorable Mention: Darren Bonura. For the Eighth Grade, in First Place: Jaime Chen, in Second Place: Stefi Mathew and Elizabeth Simon, in Third Place: Marc Yuricic, and for Honorable Mention: Danielle Estapinian. Congratulations to the winners of the Junior High Science Fair!

The winners of the New Hyde Park Memorial Junior High Science Fair with Mr. DeMartino and Science Department Chairperson, Mr. McLeer

On Monday, February 7, 2011, Nick Viviano was elected as the new Lieutenant Governor of the District 4 Key Clubs. Some of Nick’s responsibilities include, overseeing approximately 15 Key Clubs, sending out monthly bulletins and reports to all the Key Clubs, visiting various Key Clubs, organizing community service events, communicating with Kiwanis Clubs, and traveling to Albany and Phoenix throughout the year to meet with other Key Club Lieutenant Governors throughout the state and country. This is a huge responsibility and great honor that has been given to Nick, we are confident in his abilities and very proud of him!

Left to Right: Mr. DeMartino, Ms. Pesce, Nick Viviano, Ms. Bocchino

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by Elena Cothalis and Ryan Ganesh Imagine yourself working at a large chain restau-rant like Applebees. You and your friend who works there with you are unsatisfied with wages, so you schedule a meet-ing with the restaurant owner and ask for a raise. Most of us would be happy with an extra dollar per hour, right? What if instead of a buck, several bil-lion dollars were at stake? This is more or less the situation with the National Football League. The players and owners of our favorite teams are locked in a standoff that involves numbers with a whole lot of zeros. In most jobs, this type of dispute would end quickly with the owners promptly firing and rehiring

their staff. However, there’s a big difference between waiters and National Football League players. Players have names, faces, and skills that can't be replaced. The negotiations are currently at a stalemate, which is just a fancy way of saying that the players want more money, but the team owners aren't willing to give it up. The player’s union, the NFLPA, and NFL owners have been work-ing to negotiate a new deal on how to distribute the 9 billion dollars in revenue the NFL has generated. Players have stated that they want a larger portion of the revenue. Pro Bowl run-ning back for the Minne-sota Vikings, Adrian Peterson, adamantly stated that, “It’s

modern-day slavery, you know? People kind of laugh at that, but there are people working at regular jobs who get treated the same way, too.” On the other hand, the owners argue that they should taking more of the revenue because they are the ones that fund things, such as new stadiums. The problem that must be assessed during this lockout is who will reap the most profit, the players, the owners, or will profit be divided equally? But wait a second; won't the owners lose money too? Yes, but it's not quite that simple. Think about what happens when you give your average, hot-blooded, 21-year old guy a 45 million dollar contract; he won’t safely store his paycheck in Piggy bank.

Many of the players, unlike the owners, haven't invested their money wisely, and can't finan-cially survive a lockout. Profes-sional football players “invest” money in stereos, mansions, trips, and their Ferrari collec-tions. Believe it or not, it's still possible to live paycheck-to-pay-check on a multi-million dollar salary. Worse yet, many NFL players are paid for playing, so bench time for them spells financial bust. The team owners, on the other hand, are business people. To them, being the owner of a big-name football team is just like running any other business: you have to be prepared for the worst-case scenario. The question remains: who will blink first in this star-ing contest?

by Kayla Robinson The 2011 Softball team is off to a strong start. Their record is 4-2 overall and 3-1 in conference. This is a great start for a team that lost several important seniors who were All-County players. First year Coach Jackie Rizzuti and assistant Kerri Rudd have called up a group of under-classmen to work with a strong group of well seasoned veter-ans. If they gel together as a team, this year’s team can very well be a force to be reckoned with in their conference. Led by their senior

captains, center fielder Briana Kresback, third baseman Chris-tina Burkey, and left fielder Briana Lowey, the veterans have showed this young Gladiators team how to play BIG. The seniors are joined by the ace of pitching staff, junior Lisa O’Callaghan in her third year on the varsity squad. Lisa is known for her strong pitching as well as the havoc she causes at the plate and on the bases. Anchored behind the plate is junior Kayla Robinson, a seasoned pitch caller who also contributes with her strong bat. Coach Rizzuti has shown

faith in her team, integrating 8th, 9th and 10th graders into starting positions. Freshman Lisa Pelligrino plays shortstop and second, freshman Kristen Hickey pitches and 8th grader Jessica Vadala plays first base, along with freshman Amanda Turner sharing right filed. These are the young ladies that have stepped into some big cleats. The backbone of all successful teams is the utility players that do what is needed whenever they are called on. Juniors Kristi Kolfer, Jennifer Haynes, Nicole Sanchez, Me-

lissa Mastorides, Krystine Ab-berton, Julianne Dunne, Jessica Zabicki and Freshman Mary Kate O’Boyle round out the strong bench that have stepped up when asked. The next part of the schedule will show how strong a team the Gladiators have this season with three perennial powerhouses in one week. A successful week could mean great things to come this sea-son. However, Rizzuti and her girls seem ready for the task. This young team has shown that the present is good and future seems mighty bright too.

Possible NFL Lockout

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by Aaron Weinstock 5.9 million people started fresh, taking their picks with little doubts about the actual final four. March Mad-ness, over the last few years, has been exciting, and maintained a thrilling atmosphere, ruined millions of brackets, and best of all, captivated audiences across America, but one factor has made this sport better than ever: unpredictably. When the college basketball season began in January, many had high expectations for the tourna-ment., due to the influx of all-star freshman. With John Wall gone from Kentucky, Ed Davis leaving North Carolina,

and Gordon Hayward depart-ing from Butler, it appeared as though the playing field would be leveled and as the tourna-ment began brackets were busted immediately. The Big East finalist, Louisville, lost in the first round to number 13 seed Moorehead State, and the madness did not end there. By the end of the second round, when only 32 teams remained, there was not one perfect bracket. It was then that the third round began, and the madness progressed to levels never seen before. #1 seed Pittsburgh, the winner of the Big East Conference regular season, and the #3 seed overall

in the tournament, fell to #8 seeded Butler, who many felt should not have belonged in the tournament. Another Big East powerhouse, #2 seed Notre Dame, fell to #10 seed Florida State University, and at the conclusion of the round, there were two #11 seeds left in the tournament: Virginia Com-monwealth University and the Golden Eagles of Marquette. When the elite eight began, madness prevailed once again. The Perennial cham-pions North Carolina fell to Kentucky by a margin of 7, the University of Connecticut defeated Arizona by only 2 points; Butler defeated Florida by only 3 points and the #2

seed overall, the #1 seed in the Southwest Bracket, Kansas, fell to Virginia Commonwealth. The final four, for the first time in the history of the sport, had not one number one or two seed involved, and the stage was set for the most thrilling final four ever. The final four includ-ed: UCONN, VCU, Butler, and Kentucky. Just recently Butler was eliminated in Champion-ship game, loss to UCONN. While the game provided a entertaining, and defensive-minded gritty first half, the second half was marred by Butler’s horrendous shooting, which consequently cost it the game.

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by Ryan Maharaj Some say she’s faster than lightning, and could outrun a bullet. Who is this incredible athlete? She’s the one and only Neigelle Francisco. Neigelle‘s combination of perseverance and determination has made her a star athlete at NHP. Her accomplishments at track and field have stunned teammates and competitors alike. Neigelle’s impressive repertoire continues to grow. She placed 4th at Nationals in Chicago remarkably hitting a personal record time of 7.48 seconds for her 55 meter race, a school record. “Nationals was a great experience, but it was re-ally tough. It’s hard to compete against people you’ve never seen in your life before; so you don’t really know what exactly to expect,” said Neigelle. Neigelle can be

found out on the track push-ing through workouts and inspiring her teammates. She motivates the entire team, from the distance runners to the shot-putters. Even during track meets she constantly cheers on her team, with a contagious enthusiasm. Her com-mitment and deter-mination, as well as her inspira-tion is a huge bonus to the team. “Even though her skills are unparalleled compared to most of the team, she considers each athlete an important compo-nent of the team,” said senior

Geoffrey Si who works side by side with Neigelle everyday at practice. Neigelle already has her eyes set on her new goals. She wants to break 12 seconds in a 100 meter race, 25 seconds

in the 200, and under a minute in the 400. She also hopes to compete in state cham-pionships for her 100 and 200 meter races. “It’s hard, but with effort and hard

training I know I can do it,” she said. Coach Buith helps push Neigelle to her limit each and every day while watching

her improve. When ques-tioned about his expectations for Neigelle this season, he responded, “One word. Great-ness. I want to see it. I want her to win counties again and for her to make her opponents suffer.” While off the track, Neigelle is a devoted student who takes pride in her academ-ics. Besides having to deal with her social, track, and academic life, Neigelle also makes the time to practice with her fellow varsity cheerleaders. Whatever she’s involved in, she’s seen as an inspiration. “Neigelle is truly a star athlete on our team. She has so much talent, dedication, and heart for the sport. She continuously moti-vates and pushes her teammates to do their best. Neigelle is an inspiration to any athlete,” said underclassman, Cressa Vidad, a fellow sprinter.

by Steve Johnson Last year the boys tennis team was virtually unbeatable. They placed 1st in conference III, with an excellent record 12-2 and due to their success, this year they moved up to division II. The team has moved up two divi-sions in consecutive years and thus the team has truly reached their pinnacle of success in New Hyde Park History. This year’s team, although sad to see many of their previous team

members leave, are anticipating yet another highly successful year. The team this year is headed by captain Sam Gornez, and co-captains Maurecio Chiriboga and Steve Johnson, who are confident and eager to continue their overall suc-cess. All credit is due to the outstanding leadership and coaching of Mr. Stagnitta who pushes each and every one of the players to reach their full potential. Neverthe-

less, this year will be the most competitive season so far, due to the fact that they are in a higher division and have lost 7 of their key starters. “We know that we are in for tough competition, but the team has worked very hard and we hope to be competitive this year” said Coach Stagnitta. Many of the players are hyped and anticipating the competition this season as Barny Stincin said “This season will be Legen...wait for...Dary.”

As co-captain Steve Johnson said “the first match will really let us know what we need to do in order to have another successful season”. Playing with higher stakes and a ton of pressure, the tennis team wants nothing more than to win and to have people to come and support them. This is truly New Hyde Park history in the mak-ing, so lets go team!

A National Sensation

Starting a New Swing

SPORTS

by Matthew Zuziela Our girls’ varsity lacrosse team has high expecta-tions for this year’s very diverse team. What makes this team so different is the addition of 8-12 underclassmen who were brought up to varsity. Nev-ertheless, the team this year is somewhat under development, refining many of these new aspects. Captain Briana Chin commented “This year we have a lot of first year varsity players, so for the seniors its all about learning to play with a new team and its worth to utilize each players assets.” An overall asset to the team, Bri-ana Chin will be out for some time, due to an injured ankle,

but remains at the team’s side. This season the team seeks to surpass last year’s performance and have fresh, new attitude. They finished off last season with a 8-6 record, but were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. This season they are currently 3-2-1, which is remarkable due to their teams new structure. The team captains this year consist of the only seniors on the team, Briana Chin, Lexi Pevarro, Ciara McCullagh, and Diahann Robinson. Despite their new structure, the team is confident in their abilities and their capacity to adapt to a new system, making success inevitable.

by Tim Foley Spring came to a start at the end of March, and that meant that it was time for a new season of sports to begin. The New Hyde Park varsity baseball team began working with pitchers and catchers well before the start of spring, and by the time April rolled around, they were holding full practices, with high hopes and excitement for the new season. They had good reason to be optimistic, having been ranked in Division A1 as one of the ten best teams in Nas-sau County at the end of last season.

However, doing so well last year means that this year’s schedule will be that much tougher. The Gladiators are now in the same division as Garden City, Wantagh and Jericho, who are all excellent “playoff teams”. In terms of the playoffs, the best 16 teams in the division will make it to the post-season. The eight best teams face double elimination, the next eight face single elimi-nation. As difficult as it may seem, the goal has not changed. Just as always, the objective and expectation for NHP is to get into the playoffs. This year, they will

need to use their youth to their advantage. On the roster, there are 14 first year varsity players, four of which are sophomores. This doesn’t bother Coach Robins one bit. As a matter of fact, he has great expectations for his four tenth graders. When asked who he thought would stand out as a team leader this year, he said, “You don’t have to be a senior to be a leader. I ask my players to lead by example.” Coach Robins is highly opti-mistic about the team, calling them young but talented. He also said that the juniors are playing great, and he expects

players such as Kevin Towey and Andrew Pugliese to have an excellent year. As far as the nine returning varsity players, they will be relied on to raise their level of play in order for the team to do well. The great thing about having a young team is that it ensures that the Gladiators will have talented and experienced varsity players in the future, and for this year, the youth will offer energy and excitement that older teams may not possess. It will be exciting to see how the team looks when the first pitch is thrown in 2011.

by Glenn Cantave The boys’ varsity lacrosse team is enjoying every second they have together both on and off the field. As they look to improve through intense practices, with a playoff birth as the ultimate goal, the boys never forget to enjoy what they’re doing “Honestly our prac-tices are the favorite part of my day. We all come together as a unit, where we practice hard while having fun,” said senior Dan Choy, who has played lacrosse since his sophomore year. Choy says he seeks inspiration to strive for his best from his teammates especially captains Tommy Campbell,

Greg Goetz, Santino Mauceri, and Alex Theodores. “Since the winter we have dedicated our lives to the team, running and condition-ing in the basement before the weather was appropriate for outdoor play,” said senior Vin Valente, who has nothing but the highest regard for Coaches Vedder and Milio. He consid-ers them to be “great guys” and “very knowledgeable” on the game. Whenever the team loses, they get back up on their feet and focus on the little things that they can improve upon, but never forget to enjoy the game they truly love.

No Time For Re-“LAX”-ing

Bringing the Heat