CatapultaIntro 2015

BLS science clubs to join this Wednesday

SCIENCE | TECHNOLOGY

1Science TeamEditor-in-Chief:Michael Gao (I)

Task Manager:William Gao (I)

Content Editors:Jiayi Chen (I)Kevin Yang (I)

Assistant Content Editors:William Ho (II)

Ashley Chou (IV)

Copy Editors: Randy Chen (II)Alfred Yan (III)

Assistant Copy Editors:Elisabeth Kotsalidis (I)

Nena Kotsalidis (III)

Layout Editor:Yinyu Ji (II)

Assistant Layout Editor:John (Hanjin) Kim (I)Layout Associates:Fahad Anwar (IV)

Annie Tsan (IV)

Treasurer:Daniel Sherman (I)

Website Coordinator:Michael Lee (I)

Staff Writers:Kevin S, Qi (IV)Liane Xu (IV)

Faculty Advisor:Ms. Bateman

Special Thanks:Mr. Smith

Welcome to the Intro Issue of Catapulta! Catapulta is BLS’ student-led science magazine which releases an issue every season of the school year. As we start settling down into the school year, many of us will start preparing for after-school clubs and deciding which extracurriculars to participate in. In this issue, we’ve chosen to specifically feature numer-ous science and math clubs at BLS, so that you will have a sense of what they are, and whether you want to join them. Like what you see in this issue? Well we editors are always looking for new people to join our ranks! Sign up at the EC Fair, and come to our first meeting. View the back of this copy for more info, or check out our website at http://catapultasciencebl.wix.com/blscatapulta! We’re also happy to announce that Catapulta recently received first place from the American Scholastic Press Association (ASPA) for the second year in a row, and were announced as the Best Science-Themed Magazine. To that end, we’d like to thank the staff, writers, our amazing faculty advisor, and of course you, the reader.

Dear READER:

your editors

1SCIENCE TEAM

2Biology Club

3 Marine Science CLub

4Freight Farm

7Linguistics club

8Math Team

5 BLS Garden

6COMP SCI CLUB

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Looking for a chance to compete in science and win awards? Science Team provides the perfect oppor-tunity to both earn medals and test your engineering, research, and laboratory skills outside of school. Recent competition events have included everything from Chemistry Lab and Forensics to Compound Machines and Fossils.

Supported by the Boston Latin School Association (BLSA), our team competes in the annual Mas-sachusetts State Science Olympiad in the spring and monthly West Suburban Science League (WSSL) meets. WSSL meets focus on certain Science Olympiad events and take place throughout the school year. We are proud to say that our standing has improved significantly in recent years: in 2015, our B-team (grades 7 through 9) won second place in the state competition and in 2014, our C-team (grades 10 through 12) placed third. One of our biggest goals is to place first and to qualify for Nationals!

While Science Team is a considerable commitment, members will tell you that it is an incredible experi-ence. It is also a great way to bond with other students, both underclassmen and upperclassmen, who have similar interests outside of school. Everybody is welcome to join, but we especially encourage strong physics students, also known as “builders,” and younger students to come learn the ropes!

Interested in joining? Sign up at the Extra-curricular Fair or email us at: blsscienceteam@gmail.com!

Test your engineering,

research, and lab skills

Want your article to be featured in the next issue? Email us for info about the article submission process.

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32 Biology CLub MARINE SCIENCE

How do you find a gorilla in your lung? How do scientists and engineers figure out how to grow entire organs out of your cells to replace damaged ones? How are individuals able to find out almost everything about themselves, at the most fundamental levels, in just one day?In the past fifty years, there has been an explosion of development in the medical research world. Less than ten years ago, it costed over 1.5 million dollars and a large collaborative

effort among countless scientists to sequence genetic information, the instructions that make us who we are as humans, for a single person. Today, a single scientist can sequence that same genetic information overnight for only a little over one thousand dollars. With these advances, scientists are making revolutionary discoveries and developing state of the art treatments for diseases,

which fewer than 50 years ago were thought to be untreatable. The Boston Latin School Biology Club is a student-run organization which provides many opportunities for students to enter the fascinating world of biology and medicine without any prior knowledge necessary. This year, we will be continuing the Speaker Series, where we invite the top leaders in the medical field to speak with students about their passions and their personal journeys. Speakers last year included Dr. Robert Langer (the most cited engineer in history), Dr. Robert Weinberg (the discoverer of the first cancer causing gene), Professor James Collins (a pioneer in the synthetic biology field), and Dr. Jeremy Wolfe (a leader in attention research). This year, the speakers we have invited include two Nobel Prize laureates, a very successful entrepreneur in the medical field, and a leader in genome sequencing, all of whom are eager to speak with you. Not interested in joining these once-in-a-lifetime conversations? That is still fine, because this year we are expanding

to include more opportunities for all our members, such as visits to clinics in the best hospitals in

the United States. You will get to know the top scientists, doctors, research staff, and clinical staff in some of the best medical research areas in the world! In addition, we will host labs where you can have fun learning about many fundamental concepts in biology through personal experience with no tedious lab reports involved! If you are interested in joining the mailing list for Biology Club for all these opportunities that we have to offer, or would like to explore your interest in biology as a more committed member or even as an officer, feel free to send us an email at blsbiologyclub@gmail.com. You will get to be part of an amazing team and experience firsthand what it means to be a leader in your community. Our regular organization meetings are held every Thursday in room 331.

TWo Nobel Laureates coming this year

Revolutionary Discoveries...state of the art treatments

Have you ever wanted to hold a real whale fin, shark mouth, or walrus tusk in your own hands? Have you ever wanted a piece of the ocean in your own life? If these sound even remotely cool to you, you should check out the BLS Marine Science and Aquarium Club (MSAC). If you are an underclassman, MSAC is a fun way to explore key biology and chemistry concepts, such as pH, buffers, ecology, and ions, which you will study as an upperclassman; if you are an upperclassman, MSAC is an entertaining avenue to apply what you have learned in class. This year, we at MSAC will utilize a variety of activities to ingrain in each of our members a passion for the oceans and life science. From films to lectures, each lesson is structured to be educational, engaging, and exciting. We strive to bring the full ocean experience to the BLS community—not only will we feature fish, corals, whales, and sharks, but also deep water ecosystems, local habitats, and many overlooked, amazing sea creatures. At MSAC, we have an extremely strong aquarist

preparation course. We have saltwater aquariums and we also specialize in growing and asexually reproducing, also known as propagating, soft corals—photosynthetic marine animals—from the Pacific Ocean. For any BLS student who wants to have a fish tank or already has one, MSAC is

an excellent resource to collaborate with other experienced and novice aquarists! After just one year of MSAC, an active member will be skilled enough in the aquarium field to raise coral, one of Earth’s most delicate life forms! Members will learn about the technology of aquariums, the connection between chemicals and life, and the amazing amount of biodiversity that coral reefs have. MSAC is not just limited to the BLS campus. We strive to bring our members to local marine ecosystems, such as salt marshes and beaches, in order to further the learning process and illustrate

just how relevant the oceans are to us. If you want more, we have it! We will compete in the MIT Blue Lobster Bowl, Massachusetts’ Marine Science bowl. If you’re confident about your knowledge and want to showcase your skills, this is the perfect event; we will organize a team to compete, so get ready to learn about marine science and have fun competing! If applying knowledge at a local, academic level doesn’t seem enough because you are just that good, we offer even broader opportunities. We have a special relationship with BLS’ 2016 U.S. Virgin Islands trip, through which MSAC members will have the opportunity to fully appreciate one of Earth’s most fascinating, yet endangered ecosystems! If any of the above seem interesting to you, check out BLS MSAC! You can sign up at the Extra-curricular Fair or via our website: blsmsac.wix.com/blsmarinescience. We meet every other Tuesday in room 330 and always welcome new members! If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at blsmsac@gmail.com!

“We strive to bring the full ocean

experience to BLS”

4 FREIGHT FARM

Interested in getting hands-on experience with sus-tainable agriculture? Sign up for Freight Farm at the Extra-curricular Fair to receive detailed training on how to operate the farm. If you have not seen it yet, Freight Farm is a big rectangular box located on the lawn behind the cafeteria, purchased by Boston Latin School in 2013 with money that was awarded from the Global Green USA’s school makeover competi-tion. The goal of Freight Farm is to produce sustain-able produce to the local community by using a system called hydroponics, or soilless agriculture. The farm is equipped with an LED lighting system that mimics sunlight and a drip irrigation system that contains nu-trient-rich water which helps plants grow better. The farm’s 4G hotspot also allows us to monitor its environ-mental conditions 24/7 using an app called Farmhand. Last year, we successfully harvested three rounds of produce that were distributed to the students and faculty of BLS. We were also awarded the Mayor’s Greenovate Award and received media attention from WBUR. This year, we are hoping to bring this produce to the school cafeteria. If you are interested in becoming a farmer or are looking for other ways to get involved in bringing sustainable agriculture to the local community, drop by the Freight Farm table at the Extra-curricular Fair or visit blsleafygreenmachine.org for more information.

5BLS GARDEN

A blue dragonfly spreads out its two pairs of large, iridescent wings at rest in the sun. Only a week ago, this voracious predatory insect visited Boston Latin School (BLS). Landing on the thin leaf of a carrot, it surveyed the landscape and found plants ranging from red tomatoes to fresh cantaloupes and cucumbers. Where were these plants growing? Where was this dragonfly stealthily positioned? In the BLS Garden. Located outside Boston Latin School’s front entrance, the BLS Garden was originally founded five years ago as part of the school’s environmental initiative. Since then, the Garden has grown outward, become a successful organization, and developed not only its land but also its mission. Over the years, the Garden has sown, cultivated, and harvested a diverse array plants, growing tasty fruits like cantaloupes and tomatoes. The Garden also hosts herbs, like chives, rosemary, mint, and basil, which add that zest to your meals. And, of course, the Garden team

cultivates vegetables, like carrots, peppers, beans, kale, and lettuce, which are quite nutritious and much tastier when grown locally and freshly as in the BLS Garden. Through the promotion of sustainable, efficient, and organic urban agriculture, the Garden seeks to reduce dependence on geographically distant and non-organic farms, to encourage a nutritious diet high in plant

content, and to further knowledge of the importance of human and environmental health. The Garden works to increase the availability and convenience of obtaining fresh, free, and organic food, and its produce goes to members of the Longwood area and members of BLS, the population of which hails from all communities of Boston. Joining the Garden is a great opportunity to learn about both the process of growing crops

and the science behind plants and nutrition. These two sciences are, in fact, critical for our survival as a species, our health, and our environment. Plants are practically ubiquitous across all land and in many areas of water. They regulate nutrient cycles, provide habitats, offer food and protection, and are the uncelebrated underpinnings of countless ecosystems and communities. A powerful and direct

connection with the human body is coupled with plants’ immeasurable environmental importance; plants serve as a principle source of vitamins,

minerals, and micronutrients, special natural molecules that protect the body from disease, strengthen its immune system, and improve one’s overall health dramatically. The Garden is great for both those, who are interested in the sciences, and those, who love hands-on work. Interested in joining or just want to know a little more about us? Come by at the Extra-curricular Fair or contact us at blsgardening@gmail.com.

Learning about the science behind plants and nutrition

7

Linguistics is the scientific study of languages. This is a much younger field of science, compared to other areas like physics or chemistry. However, despite its recent formulations, humans have been speaking different languages for thou-sands of years. Therefore, there is a lot to cover in the field of linguistics.

In the eighteenth century, when the world was becoming more connected, learned men at the time became interested in the similarities and differences be-tween the languages that they knew. The study of linguistics began in Europe, and not coin-cidentally, since some of the first and most closely studied lan-guages are European languages.

Throughout the study of Eu-ropean languages, hypotheses were proposed for roots of the majority of European lan-guages. Interestingly, these hy-potheses show that European languages share their roots with some of the languages in South Asia. In this way, linguistics helps anthropologists and his-torians to reconstruct history.

Unlike mathematics and ideal environments of “hard” sci-ences, linguistics deals with the real and changing society. Lan-guages change to fit the people speaking them, and the field of linguistics follows that move-ment. In a way, linguistics is both related to science and the humanities, and there are prob-lems to be solved on both sides.

Today, linguistics is not just sift-ing through old texts or listen-ing to the native speakers of dying tongues languages. Grad-ually, more linguists are using computers as aids to research and monitor languages. There-fore, linguistics also crosses path with computer science.

The BLS Linguistics Club at-tends the North American Com-putational Linguistics Olym-piad (NACLO), a competition that selects representatives who are, in turn, sent to the Inter-national Linguistics Olympiad.

If you are interested in learning how languages work, or just want to try out NACLO problems, stop by Linguistics Club in Room 101 on Monday afternoons!

Linguistics Club6 COMP SCI CLUB

We mod games. We build com-puters. We code competitively. We pay our respects twice daily to the endless stream of trophies and awards left behind last year by John Zhang (Class of 2015).

Indeed, those trophies and awards might just be yours if you show up to a few meetings of the BLS Computer Science club. Don’t let the name fool you - drop by to say hello to the ever-friendly Dr. Nguyen, make cool stuff (think Arduinos, breadboards, video games), and hack everything. All levels are welcome. For the more hard-core, we also participate in vari-ous competitions such as the American Computer Science League, United States of Amer-ica Computational Olympiad,

Google Code Jam, MIT hackathon, Fitchburg State Programming Competition, and North American Compu-tational Linguistics Olympiad. This year, we may also attend cybersecurity-focused events, such as the AAF CyberPatriot Competition.

We meet on Fridays after school in the 306 computer lab, but catch us before at the Extra-curricular Fair at the end of this month. Whether you are just starting out or are already an ex-pert coder, BLS Computer Sci-ence club welcomes you.

“Happy Hacking!”

Numerous competitions to test out your comp-sci skills

8 MATH TEAMS

Have you ever been confused by why many BLS students, or rather, American students in general, have some fear of math? If you’re one of those special people for whom math seems easy, then you should consider joining some of BLS’ competitive math teams. BLS math teams are not only a great place to test your skills and improve in higher levels of math, but they also are great opportunities to collaborate and make connections. From Mathcounts to high school math team, the math-intrigued student will have a great time competing and representing our school throughout his or her years at BLS. For a long time, many incoming sixies who are interested in math and are mathematically strong have quickly joined Mathcounts, a school club competing in the nation-wide Mathcounts competition. This competition for middle schoolers exists on chapter, state, and national levels, where young students are given an opportunity to display their skills. The BLS Mathcounts team is a prestigious math team, and for those who devote their time and energy, it comes with great rewards, both social and academic. For example, in the school year of

2014-2015, BLS was ranked as the third best school in the chapter and the eighth best school in the state, with every member of the official team ranking in the top 65 individual math students in Massachusetts. In addition to offering academic opportunities, Mathcounts allows many underclassmen to meet and connect with extremely talented, dedicated, top-performing peers. In

fact, many Mathcounts participants become the best of friends for the remainder of their years at BLS. For these reasons, Mathcounts is one of the best opportunities and stepping stones available to young BLS students. If Mathcounts seems to be the right fit for you, contact Mr. Frederick Zhang at frederickzhang@yahoo.com or your math teacher to learn more! For competitive high school students in classes I-IV, there is the BLS Math Team. Every month, the BLS Math Team attends a competition with other high

schools from the Greater Boston Area. One of the most appealing aspects of math team, aside from the fact that free food is provided to members at meets, is that it caters to individual strengths—do not worry if you are not an expert in probability or conics, because you will not be asked to compete in the topics you are not comfortable with. In fact, unlike Mathcounts, which chooses members based on overall skill and well-roundedness, Math Team seeks out people with specialties in different topics—if even one math topic is really easy for you and you want to try your skills out in competition, Math Team wants you! Moreover, just like Mathcounts, Math Team is an excellent place to find new friends and role models. Due to Math Team members coming from four different grades, there are many people to meet in Math Team. Each Math Team member, in addition to being very friendly and intelligent, is willing to help further your own math knowledge for the benefit of all. If you want to make many great connections, put your skills to use, and bring pride to BLS, contact the BLS Math Team at blsmathteam@gmail.com!

Excellent Place to find new friends and role models

Periodic Table Puzzle

The periodic table of elements is a compilation of all the known ele-ments. Elements differ from each other by the number of protons in their nuclei. The number of protons, which are small positively-charged particles, in an element is also called the element’s atomic number. The elements are arranged in increasing atomic number on the periodic table from left to right in columns (called periods, hence the name periodic table). Another thing unique about each element is that it has a chemi-cal symbol, which is an abbreviated representation of the element using letters. Some of these chemical symbols are quite intuitive like O for oxy-gen, or C for carbon, while others may seem quite wacky (Au for gold, or Ag for silver—though you would know why as a Latin School student!)

Since the chemical symbols con-tain so many letter combinations, one can make several words from combining a few of these chemi-cal symbols together. For this puzzle, you will be given a list of atomic numbers. Using a period-ic table (there is one in the back of your agenda), you are tasked with finding the chemical sym-bols of the elements which cor-respond to the atomic numbers given. Some atomic numbers can be written twice to indicate that it will be used twice. Then un-scramble the chemical symbols to form a scientific term! To help you solve the puzzle, we have provided the scientific discipline the scientific term falls under.

The Science:

Your TAsk:

Atomic Numbers: 7, 8, 8, 15, 16, 53Scientific Discipline: Biology/Chemistry

From these atomic numbers, one would get N (Nitrogen), Oxygen (O) twice, P (Phosphorus), S (Sulfur), and I (Iodine). Once we unscramble these letters, we will get the word “poison,” which falls into the scientific

discipline indicated.

exaMPLE:

Solve these 5 puzzles for a chance to win a 10 dollar gift card! These get increasingly difficult!

Atomic Numbers: 89, 53, 110Scientific Discipline: Chemistry

Atomic Numbers: 7, 8, 22, 42Scientific Discipline: Physics

Atomic Numbers: 7, 8, 8, 16, 53,68Scientific Discipline: Earth Science

Atomic Numbers: 16, 23, 44, 53Scientific Discipline: Biology

Atomic Numbers: 14, 16, 42, 76Scientific Discipline: Biology

Send answers to:Catapultasciencebls@gmail.com

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