The International February 2013

THE

FEBRUARY

OPINIONS01 The Chemical Cocktail02 Recommend Me!03 Chocolates for Love04 A Blast from the Past!

05 Welcoming the Year of the Snake05 Classh of the Dodges06 Should Attendance be Voluntary?

NEWS

10 Unmatchable11 A Series of Unfortunate Events12 The Best of IASAS on Record13 Opposite Ends of the Spectrum

SPORTS

FEATURES07 Long Talk with Jonnie Batchelor08 A Variety of Valentine’s Suprises09 Coming Soon to Bangkokt h e I N T ER NAT IONA L

Co-‐Editor-‐in-‐ChiefCo-‐Editor-‐ in ChiefAdvisor

Amber BarnettNisha SticklesKeith Miller

Dan BorensteinThanya Chat

Ashmita Dutta-‐RayKaty Lewis

Christine HathawaySeo-‐Young LeeSam Davin

Leeann Schudel

Anjali MenonSarah Poff

Fallon ReaganNathan Scott

Re p or t er sS e c t i on E d i t or sOpinions News Features Sports

Inside the IssueF E BRUA RY 1 1 t h - F E BRUA RY 1 5 t h , 2 0 1 3Front Cover by Rachael Hyde, Back Cover from ISM Photo Stream

Letter from the EditorsWell, here we are. Full swing into the crazy February

and March months of second semester, in which it seems like every week there’s a reason for half your classmates to be absent. But they’re absent with good reasons, and to

-‐penings that you may or may not have kept up with.Read up on ISB’s brilliant performance in second sea-‐

son IASAS, as well as a preview of our more artistically in-‐clined students who will soon be on their way to Cultural Convention. This also being the season of love, we have a variety of Valentine’s articles to keep you company when

this February 14th.This is just grazing the surface; whether you read for

business or pleasure, The International is at your service!Amber Barnett and Nisha Stickles

Photo of the Month: Taken at TAS, this photo captures the intensity of IASAS

swimming, where our Panthers shone by breaking 20 ISB records.

Photo by: TAS Photo Stream

O P I N I O N S

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3 1

“Oxytocin is the chemical released to create a feeling of bonding for the two people in love”

“The heart is the symbol of love, but your emotions tru-‐ly originate from the chemicals in your brain”

Photo from wikipedia.org

Vpeople make hearts out of every-‐thing.

of love. But what is love, really?The heart is the symbol of love,

but your emotions truly originate from the chemicals in your brain.

The Chemical Cocktail

Photo from oxytocin.org

The heart has nothing to do with it -‐ its sole function is to keep your blood running through your veins so that you can live and love.Lots of research is being done

on the chemicals involved with love, and the many kinds of love. Some researchers say that there

are six kinds of love -‐ eros, ludus, storge, mania, agape and pragma. All of these six pertain to a dif-‐

ferent aspect of the love we feel for others.

All six are connected through the need for communication and intimacy.Chemicals like dopamine and

norepinephrine are responsible for the feelings of giddiness and the adrenaline that occurs when

They induce insomnia, intense energy and cravings that are asso-‐ciated with infatuation. Also associated with the feeling

of infatuation are lower levels of serotonin. These levels are also found in

people with obsessive-‐compulsive disorder, resulting in that feeling of being obsessed with someone. Furthermore, oxytocin is the

chemical released to create a feel-‐ing of bonding for the two people in love.

love and mother-‐child bonding. The more time that

is spent with the other, the more the chemical is released and the bond inevita-‐bly grows. When asked her

thoughts on the sub-‐ject, Alina Woo (10), commented that she has “always thought,

and still think that the chemicals in our brain only affect infatuation, obsession and creates the feeling of love, but real, true love that lasts, is developed over time.” Alina adds, “I think love is also

deeper than just chemicals in the brain.”

“I mean, you actually love a per-‐son when you know everything about them and you two have this deep connection.” “You never get bored of them

and you can talk to them about any-‐

know exactly what chemicals are swirling around up in your brain, driving you crazy.

Katy Lewis

O P I N I O N S

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 32

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3 3

Chocolates for LoveThe commercialization of

Na marketing strategy. Sure, it started out as a day to

commemorate love and St. Valen-‐tine sending his lover a love letter ,but it has progressed into a corpo-‐rate gimmick. Entire industries thrive on this

day, yet for what? Companies strive to empty our

pockets and trick us into thinking that buying our loved ones choco-‐lates and perfume will adequately show how much we love them, as though love is merely a monetary matter.

Photo from hopeforthesold.com

Photo by Christine Hathaway

Valentine’s Day

Fun Facts1. Americans are expected to spend over $17 billion this year on everything from candy to

2. Thirty-‐six percent of all cel-‐

year for their truelove, spend-‐ing $1.8 billion.

3. According to the US Greeting Card Association, over 190 million greeting cards are ex-‐changed in the United States on

worldwide. Only Christmas is more popular.

“If the purpose of this day is to demonstrate your unconditional love for someone, it kind of defeats the purpose because it sets apart a single day to show it”

O P I N I O N S

Studies have shown that Valen-‐-‐

ping $18.6 million in 2011 alone, and that the average person spent almost $130 dollars on February 14th that year. Retailers look forward to this

day all year, when they can boost sales by stacking the racks with red and white garments, and unfortu-‐nately, the customers play along.Second, are we not supposed to

show our loved ones that we love them every day? What about February 15th? Or

November 30th?

If we start singling out days to love people, what does that say about us?If the purpose of this day is to

demonstrate your unconditional love for someone, it kind of defeats the purpose because it sets apart a single day to show it.

love?

day to celebrate love and romance. A day to tell our loved ones how much we love them. But what happens to those who

are still searching for their soul mates? Who are recovering from a hard separation or are going through a difficult time? The hype just gets bigger and

bigger and frankly, a bit insensi-‐tive.

-‐

see through this facade.

commercial nature. Anjali Menon and

Sarah Poff

Recommend Me!

A -‐

their senior year, university recruit-‐

reading each application meticu-‐lously for the best students.

the situation when two students achieve similar academic grades and SAT scores, but one student is chosen over the other because of their personal qualities. Counselors and teachers stress

day of school with HAL grades and reminders that quality overrules quantity. Therefore, when it comes to writing letters of recommenda-‐tions, hours of work are put in to depict these unique qualities.However, what students are not

aware of is the time and energy that goes into each letter of recommen-‐dation and the impact it makes on each individual application. In fact, letters of recommendations are ex-‐tensions of an application, not an addition. Some teachers prepare from the

-‐cesses. IB Language and Literature English teacher, Mr. Brad Augustine, explains his organized approach of

start of each year, where he inserts random comments and observa-‐tions. For example, observations may include being an active learn-‐er, participant or even exceling in socratic seminar discussions. If he is asked to give a letter of recom-‐

mendation in the future, he goes into these notes to see if he can add details and stories to make the stu-‐

achievements throughout the year, not just while writing a recommen-‐dation. Thus, each question asked in class and assignment turned in on time slowly connects the dots for teachers to evaluate students based on their personal merits.

In general, most teachers at ISB aim to write positive letters for their students. However, how do teachers pick out unique qualities about stu-‐dents and turn each of them into a positive skill or personality trait? Biology teacher, Mrs. Patience

Soule, shares her experience. “I am very honest in my recom-‐

mendations, but I keep things posi-‐tive,” said Mrs. Soule. “For example, if a student prefers to work alone, I

Everything you should know about recommendation letters for university applications

teacher recommendation form.

can talk about their independence. If a student is very social, I can talk about their collaborative skills. Plus, when discussing academics, I focus on giving new information to the admissions staff -‐ things that are not in a report card or standard-‐ized test score.” The trend seems to be that these

teachers look for character and per-‐sonal qualities over their academic performance. As Mr. Jonathan Lorence, IB Busi-‐

ness teacher, states, “colleges and universities want to know how adaptable students can be and how they overcome challenges. The SAT scores and grade point averages

intelligence.” Students often believe that if

they maintain high standards of academics, their future can be se-‐cured. Yet, universities look for stu-‐

dents that exemplify both academic and personal excellence. So in case you are wondering

how to prepare for the next big steps in life, keep in mind that per-‐sonal qualities and traits can get you further than academics. Keep engaging in learning activi-‐

ties, showing respect and most of all maintaining a positive attitude. Who knows, maybe one day you could be the student who gets cho-‐sen over a large group of other stu-‐dents because of your own personal qualities.

Facts from lenpenzo.com

O P I N I O N S

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 34

A Blast from the Past!

H -‐vice. Now I can hear the choruses

a year,” all the way from California, but I assure you that half a year in another country is enough to cause some major personal changes in a person. Our Sesame Street™ themed

lesson for this issue will be per-‐sonal change.

Advice from an alumni

my wisdom on how you might change in the coming years, and share how to best accept the new you.All kidding aside, college re-‐

ally is a large milestone in life. Some of you, like myself, might still live in a family environment. The majority of you, however,

will be miles away from all of the family, friends and familiar faces

have to face some personal growth. Most likely, one of the

-‐tion are your opinions.Last year I wrote an article for

this magazine titled “Feminists vs. Feminazis.” Most who knew me were

aware of my firm stance against hardcore feminism.However, despite my radical,

headstrong view in my senior year, just last semester I found myself writing a passionate paper about how the portrayal of sexu-‐ality, abuse and rape in comic cul-‐ture has created a problematic environment for how women are viewed and treated in society.In short, my opinions changed. I was suddenly being flooded

with new, enlightening informa-‐tion from professors, upperclass-‐men and gender studies majors about the systematic problems bred from an often racist and sex-‐ist media.

I was suddenly aware of all of the really ugly things about sex-‐ism that were buried under the women with hairy armpits, and I changed my opinions.

rights and death to men and all of the other problematic behavior I brought up in my article last year. I am more socially aware, though,

My point is that what you think, what you believe, what you are

-‐self will not be as solid as it is now. What I can say with assurance

because you think differently

what I say to heart, and try not to hyperventilate the first time you skip a class.Alisha attended ISB for her

junior and senior year, and was a reporter for the Features section of The International.

“What you are positive -‐

self will not be as solid as it is now. Just because you think differently,

different”

C -‐-‐

ence -‐ in fact, it is. Our very own alumni Alisha Cunzio can attest to that. In high school, we are just about grappling with our opinions and beliefs. We think we have it all figured out, but after we graduate and gain new experiences, often our beliefs change. Alisha, a freshman at University of California

N E W S

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3 5

Ipossesses an electric energy.

people invade the streets, the fra-‐grance of incense enclosing them and the scent of dumplings enticing their taste-‐buds. Lighted red lanterns glow as in-‐

tricately-‐painted dragons dance playfully across the pavement. This is Chinese New Year.This prominent holiday takes

place annually based on the solar and lunar happenings. Interestingly, evidence in oracle

bones suggest that the festival of Chinese New Year existed as early as the 14th century, around the time

In a survey sent out to student emails, 65 out of the 100 Thai-‐stu-‐dents that answered the question-‐naire shared that they are in fact Chinese-‐Thai, illustrating that this holiday is certainly one that is rel-‐evant to the community.With Chinese New Year begin-‐

ning on February 10th, the ISB PTA held a Chinese New Year Food Fair

on February 1st in the cafeteria during lunch. Not only was there a festive at-‐

mosphere, but the multitude of meals on display were quickly at-‐tacked by hungry lunch-‐goers. “Students and teachers truly en-‐

joyed the Chinese food,” comment-‐ed Carrie Lin, the representative

PTA.

pork and cabbage “Jiaozi” dump-‐lings, which is perhaps the most iconic snack in China. The good-‐luck-‐foods of noodles

the hungry crowd. Ms. Lin agreeably noted that,

“food [has always] been sold out at the event.”In the past, the PTA held a festi-‐

val during which cultural perfor-‐mances and dragon dances took place, but this was replaced by a one-‐day food fair in 2002.

always been a large part of the cul-‐tural display during this extrava-‐gant holiday, and is usually paraded around in red and gold, the two

luckiest colours for the Chinese people. The monstrous paper dragon is

held up to the sky by poles con-‐trolled by costumed dancers. They control the movement of

the front and back of the dragon, al-‐lowing it to perform dances for the spectators. Culture has always been a huge

factor in Chinese lifestyle, and not surprisingly, as China boasts one of the most unique cultures on the planet. Multiple celebrations in Bangkok

of this unmatched show of culture

many Chinese-‐Thai families, and even for those who might not know much about Chinese traditions. The Chinese New Year is unques-‐

tionably one of the most renowned festivals around the world. It is no wonder that many coun-‐

tries have festivals celebrating this holiday, as not only does it offer dancing dragons and fantastic food,

fantastic culture of the Chinese peo-‐ple.

Fallon Reagan and Nathan Scott

Classh

Welcoming the Year of the Snake

T -‐

night with spirit and class pride. From freshmen to teachers, over

20 teams participated in the tour-‐nament.It was a fantastic evening as each

class fought for ultimate dodgeball bragging rights. The rules were explained to the

competitors and supporters who showed up in their hundreds, with a highly detailed instructional video by the Varsity Council.

while a few sophomore teams sur-‐

prisingly managed to hold off the senior and junior teams. Additionally, a special shout out

must be made to the teacher team, who almost managed to out-‐dodge the students and reach the semi-‐

Fortunately for the freshmen and other teams who were elimi-‐nated in the early stages, there was food available to gorge on, and bev-‐erages for them to drown their sor-‐rows with.However, the underclassmen

would not give up. Justin Hathaway (10) fended off the seniors of “Blue Balls” for over two minutes on his

the juniors. As the sophomores of “South

Beach Talents”, were not expected to surpass the senior and junior teams

a great delight when they man-‐

placed juniors, “We have CL4SS”.The juniors of “Team America”,

throughout their campaign won the “best dressed” award.It was an exhilarating fun and

-‐tended the event, and we all hope it will be just as successful next year!

Nathan Scott

N E W S

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 36

Should Attendance Be Voluntary?

L -‐

-‐istration, Mr. Philip Bradley and Mr.

-‐bate coach, Ms. Laura Stewart, on a nail biting issue on whether student attendance should be voluntary.Team A, with Mr. Bradley,

Mr.Harter and Ms. Stewart held a -‐

sue stating yes, school attendance should be voluntary. On the other hand, the IASAS

team B shook their heads while sit-‐ting on the negative side, stating that attendance should rather be mandatory. As the debate started, the ten-‐

sion in the room grew quickly as

His arguments were quick and cunning with a hint of humor, leav-‐ing team B rushing to jot down re-‐buttals. Mr. Bradley argued that students

develop mentally and physically at different rates, causing disruption at school, as they are forced to all be at the same intellectual and mental level. Thus, students should have the option to decide when they are ready to attend school.

Covering the intense debate between the IASAS

Next, as it was time for the op-‐posing team to start their debate. Sophomore Kimberly Remijan, the

stood up and argued that such ad-‐justments could be easily made at school, as there are different levels of math classes and a variety of sub-‐jects for students to choose from. This suddenly put team B ahead

by a point, leaving team A to fumble through their notes to make their proceeding points. The debate went on intensely as

Mr. Harter reasoned about con-‐centrating on improving the learn-‐ing environment for motivated students instead of wasting large amounts of time on attendance. He also made sure to support

his statements with surprising sta-‐tistics calculating up to 9 hours yearly wasted on checking for at-‐tendance. At the same time, senior Chris-‐

tine Hathaway roared back by ex-‐emplifying shocking evidence rang-‐ing from graduation rates, career opportunities and the value of edu-‐cation all linked to mandatory at-‐tendance. As time ticked by, the last round

of the debate approached.

pushing natural selection by having

the most motivated students come -‐

tion and vote. This put sophomore Cole White-‐

ly, the third speaker for team B, in a risky position. However, Cole was quick to get

up on his feet and make persuasive points regarding student opinions and school funding. Suddenly, the last bell rung, sign-‐

aling the end of the debate. Both the teams had exceptional points and sharp delivery. It would have been impossible to

guess the winner of the debate, but the most points were awarded to

-‐tion and teacher team.

-‐nitely a success highlighting vari-‐ous persuasive and oratory talents demonstrated by both the teams. It was surely an audience fa-‐

vorite, entertaining and keeping them on the edge of their seats. As Cultural Convention approaches, the IASAS debate team prepares for further debates and hopes to main-‐tain their impressive argumentative skills. As for the ISB community, we

hope to see more of such entertain-‐ing debates in the future.

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3 7

Eplace. Our interviewee is a 4-‐year

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At what age did you start swimming?

What do you love about it?

What are your thoughts on making Division One

for swimming?

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How was your last IASAS experience and how have you

grown over the years?

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Do you think your success in swimming is due to talent or effort?

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What are your long-‐term plans for swimming?

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What have you been most proud of?

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What will you miss the most?

F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 38

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Coming Soon to Bangkok

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Documents

The International February 2013