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Sedbergh Vindicator 30th January 2012
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Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici
SEDBERGH VINDICATOR,
Vol.2. No.8
,
Monday January 30th 2012
Much time has passed since I left Sedbergh in 2009 and here in Egypt at the centre of the on‐going Arab struggle for democracy, my school
days seem a very distant memory. However, sitting in university in Alexandria before Christmas, I was reminded of a day when I sat in Powell Hall, aged 10 for the morning assembly way back in 2001. The day was Wednesday 12th September, the day after the 9/11 attacks against the United States. The assembly that morning will stay with me for the rest of my life. Mr Hirst, the former headmaster, delivered an extremely sombre assembly. Many teachers and students alike tearfully looked up at the prefects on the stage, fearing that Britain was about to go to war and that these boys were soon going to be sent off to fight. The day I was reminded of that assembly, I was sitting in class in November shortly before the Egyptian elections. Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians across the country were protesting against the perceived unwillingness of the ruling military council to hand over power to an elected civilian government. The mood of the country was very low and post revolution euphoria had been
replaced by deep anxiety and frustration. This received widespread news coverage back in Britain and I remember my mother calling me and asking me to get out of Egypt and come home. What started in Cairo had spread to Alexandria and at night I could hear gunfire from my flat. In the mornings the streets were eerily deserted. However what had the greatest impact on me was the attitude of my Arabic teachers, all of whom were going out to protest after classes that day. Resolute and determined, one teacher said to us, “I am prepared to die today, what else can they do to me? If you don’t have a lesson next week then that is probably what has happened.” Major news never really has an effect on you looking at it on the television and this was particularly true when I was at Sedbergh. I used to think that we were all isolated in a bubble, far away from all the problems in the world. So for a Sedbergh boy like me, witnessing history in the making and the people taking part in it has been an incredible privilege. “Alhamdu lillah” (Praise be to God) none of our teachers died that day, but others did trying to achieve their basic democratic rights, something that is difficult for us to imagine.
Egypt is a fascinating country, love it or hate it and my time here has been both challenging and amazingly enjoyable. It can be overwhelming at times and I was shocked when I first got here in September. I stepped out of the airport and I was greeted by a swarm of taxi drivers all offering me a better deal than the other. The mountains of rubbish on the sides of the roads are certainly difficult to get used to. Crossing the road requires serious thought as to whether it is really worth it. Studying most of the time in London I am used to having to pay a lot, mostly for travel. However in Alexandria I take the tram to university costing the equivalent of 2p. A taxi ride covering the length of the city will cost no more than £1. One of the great ways to practise Arabic is to haggle the price with the taxi driver. Sometimes it becomes very heated, shortly before you realise that you are haggling over 10p or so. I recommend studying Arabic to anyone in the MFL or Classics departments, and Egypt as a holiday destination for all of you once the situation has calmed down. Tomorrow [25 Jan] is the first anniversary of the Egyptian Revolution and we are all praying that there will not be a repeat of the violence of last year.
Alex Elletson (OS, S/2001-2009) From Sedbergh to Alexandria
Oli Cowen (H/9)
Steph Gardner (L/10)
Why are we unique? Five Year Nines are currently in the
process of doing a project of their
choice. I am studying the differences
and similarities between humans and
bonobos.
Bonobos are like chimpanzees except
they are smaller, they walk more
upright, and are hairier. They live in
the rainforests of The Democratic of
Congo, and are largely unknown due
to war, their small numbers and the
difficulty of reaching their location.
The population is estimated to be
around 35,000, which is very worrying, especially as we are so very close to them.
Why are we so different, so extraordinary, so unique compared to other animals? How
come we can have intelligent computers and expensive cars when other animals just
roam about unaided? Even our closest relatives (bonobos) are still living in the forests of
Congo in a more primitive fashion than when we were cavemen. What do we possess
that no other species we know of has? Could it be that are genes are just perfect and that
if there is any difference of over 1% the formula is spoiled, and the result is a lacklustre
being? Is it our passion to know or our desire to have? Or, are we the one failed species?
Were humans not meant to be the cleverest? Were we not meant to have money, and
schools, and any sophistication? Have we gone against the grain of our primal instincts
and disobeyed the law of our world?
Humans share 98.7% of our genes with bonobos but that is no real indication of our
closeness, as we share around 40% of our genes with bananas! Still, bonobos are
incredible animals. There is a language which was created entirely for them called
lexigrams. They are pictures with an audio representation. There is one ape at The Great
Ape Trust, in Iowa, USA, called Kanzi who can draw the lexigrams on the floor to
communicate with the staff. This barely shows the intelligence of the great creatures, as
there are many, many more things they can do. We are, essentially, a more reformed
version of them.
Our differences with bonobos are physically small, as we are less hairy and have a more
upright way of walking but our brains differ slightly more. This could be due to the slight
change in genes as a small change genetic can have huge consequences. What I want to
find out is what differs, and crucially, do bonobos have the capabilities to be more like
us? Just imagine if one day, we could live side by side with apes. Maybe they will, or
maybe they won’t after only 30 years of training. Will they eventually be able to be clever
and will they have the capacity of reason? Bonobos are truly incredible creatures, and although they are not as well‐known as chimpanzees, they are probably more important. Let us hope they will be around for many more years.
Cambridgeʹs Dept of Social and Developmental Psychology recently
announced their 2012 AS Level Essay Competition. Entrants have a
choice between two topics. The developmental topic this year asks
writers to challenge the reality of gender differences while the social
topic invites students to explore the construct of ʹgood enoughʹ
parenting. Ask your tutor or Mrs C‐C for details; the number of
essays we can send in is limited. Prizes awarded to top three
submissions with the overall winner invited to receive their prize at
Newnham College. (Good food. Great company. In a beautiful light‐
filled room.)
In L6 & interested in Psychology?
Good luck to Y11 who have mock exams this
week!
30 January 1647 ‐ King Charles I handed over to English parliament
2 February 1852 ‐ 1st British public toilet opens.
30 January1956 ‐ Martin Luther King Jrʹs home bombed
1 February1958 ‐ US launches their 1st artificial satellite, Explorer
30 January 1965 ‐ State funeral of Winston Churchill
3 February 1973 ‐ President Nixon signs Endangered Species Act into
law.
This Week in History pbs.org Kanzi learning lexigrams
.
Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici
SED‐ VINDICATOR,
Vol.2. No.8
,
Monday January 30th 2012
Page
2
Layout for this issue was done by: Jannat Alkhanizi (R/12) and George Parkinson (E/11)
Answer: The wife was about to have a baby. They were driving to the hospital. The baby was born, and the wife didnʹt survive the birth.
Next weekend the annual Jazz and Swing evening will take place in Powell Hall. It is one of the most anticipated musical events in the school calendar while having only been introduced a few years ago. The event’s popularity has increased so much that it was forced to change locations from its original venue, Queens Hall, as it was too small to admit the large numbers of audience who enjoyed a glass of wine under dimmed lighting whilst listening to bluesy guitars, low humming double basses and soft captivating voices. These performances win over our warm and appreciative audiences year after year and the Jazz and Swing evening seems to just get better. Watching concerts such as ‘A Night at the Opera’ and ‘The Jazz and Swing Evening’ shows
that a lot of preparation and organisation goes into these events or else they would not be as successful and celebrated as they are. While it is easy to be drawn in by glamorous costumes and the glow of candles on an atmospheric night of opera, it may be harder to think deeply about how each pupil as an individual prepares and readies themselves for an instrumental or a vocal performance. As a singer, I am expected to learn a lot of my own repertoire before I show up for my lesson. For a session that occurs once a week, a lot of practice and mental learning must take place outside the classroom. A teacher cannot learn the words and notes for you. You rely on your tutor to advise you in technique, not helping you to remember lyrics. For me, the best way of learning a piece is by playing it on the piano. As my sight reading is not the best, Playing and singing along really ensures the music is being learnt thoroughly. Other methods I use are listening to professional musicians on recordings and videos because by doing this you are learning the music and listening to good technique simultaneously. Like any instrument, frequent practice will help towards achieving that sound you want to create, though singers should be aware that too much can tire the voice. Last week, Alex wrote about the processes involved in achieving a successful dramatic performance. Whatever a singer is performing there is always a meaning behind it. Much like acting, a successful vocal performance is determined on how well the soloist conveys the story or meaning behind the music. Opera singers must develop their characters through practice and bring out specific features of their roles with the use of their voice. Engaging with the audience is as important as the notes themselves. After learning music and putting techniques into practice that you have been taught, the night of a performance is also a very important time in terms of preparation. It would be a shame to go through rigorous practice and plenty of mental work for you to then not prepare yourself physically. Warm ups differ for every individual and each soloist should take care when warming up so as to enhance their performance as much as possible. As you might not expect singing makes use of your whole body, so even stretching and loosening your muscles is valuable. To sing comfortably you need to be completely relaxed with no tension in your body at all. So, for those interested in how concerts such as the Jazz and Swing evening are put together and how performers prepare for it, I hope this has given you an insight into the processes that we may go through to make certain that the audience are captivated.
Sam Duffield (S/13)
An Introduction to the Creative Process of Musical Performance
Solution to last week’s puzzle Ben Lawry (E/11)
This Week’s Puzzle Ben Lawry (E/11)
A man ate 100 grapes in five days, each day eating 6 more than on the
previous day. How many grapes did he eat on the first day?
welchmusic.com
Photo credit: George Parkinson (E/11) Taken of Sedbergh from Frostrow wall. (September 2011)
Photo credit: George Parkinson (E/11) Taken of Cautley Spout, which can be seen from the Wilson Run route on a rare clear day. (September 2011)
Artist: Alex Johnston (R/12)
1. Which teacher taught English in Japan before coming to work
as a gap graduate in Sedbergh School?
2. Which three teachers recently discovered that they grew up
within a few miles of one another in Bradford (at different
periods of time)?
3. Which two teachers are getting married this summer?
4. Which teacher cooked curry for 12 in the Kalahari Desert?
Send your answers to Mrs C‐C at [email protected]. Winner to
receive a prize!
Which Teacher?
Cartoon inspired by last Friday’s
fun and entertaining Burns Night
Supper.