Back to Artwork The Memory Project Back to Sections Hayden LaJoie - Memory Project By Hayden LaJoie March 18, 2021 Volume 1 Issue 6

Back to Artwork Portrait Back to Sections Happy Park By Luiginna Frederique January 20, 2021 Photography Volume 1 Issue 4

Back to Artwork Portfolio Back to Sections Beauty Hidden in Women's Hair By Elizabeth Andre June 13, 2022 Collage Volume 2 Issue 7 I wanted to show the beauty and struggles of being a black woman and having hair. I displayed different hairstyles one can be open to. At the end of the day, no matter what hair texture, color, or style you have, you and your hair are beautiful.

Back to Articles News Back to Sections Valley Stream 2023 District Science Symposium Cody Sung Volume 4 Issue 1 November 6, 2023 Image provided by Michael Frazer On April 26, 2023, the Valley Stream Central High School District hosted its yearly science symposium. It was held at South High School, with last year’s being held at Central and next year’s at North, following a cycle that goes through all three schools with the Science Research programs. At the symposium, North had the largest number of students participating in the program. How did our Science Research program grow so big, and what happened at the symposium? The science research program was picked up by Mr. Michael Frazer in 1999, after former North science teacher Ed Gruber started it in 1996. Mr. Frazer is the head of the program. Since then, it has grown to be the largest science research program of the Valley Stream Central High School District, with fourteen seniors who completed this challenging program in the 2022 - 2023 school year. A very successful course we have at North! However, it is very challenging, and takes much hard work to succeed, since it involves doing research and writing a full scientific paper in three years. The symposium had all sophomores, juniors, and seniors display their poster board of their research, with guests viewing them and with the students explaining their research to them. Every board was unique and informative, showing the best of our program and the hard work of our students. After the poster board presentation, Mr. Frazer and North Science Department Chair Mr. Pandolfi gave awards to the fourteen seniors who completed this three-year course to recognize all the hard work they have done and their dedication to their research, with a quick speech made by the head of each school’s program about each senior on South’s stage. After the award ceremony concluded, the seniors had an opportunity to present their research process and results in the South Library. All the presentations were interesting and educational and were fantastic to culminate their three years of hard work, research, and dedication. Here are last year’s fourteen seniors and their general topic of focus. Samantha Altieri – Political science Morgan Buly – Audiovisual science Valentina Castillo – Marine biology (with Christina DePippo) Christina DePippo – Marine biology (with Valentina Castillo) Naila Hashimi – Environmental science Sukhpreet Kaur – Urban science Zara Khan – Plant biology (with Jessica Sehjal) Joseph Marrone – Sport science Gabriela Mensah – Sport science Janine Olivencia – Medical science Ariel Reyes – Medical science Jessica Sehjal – Plant biology (with Zara Khan) Kira Sherman – Plant biology Neha Singh – Dietary science Congratulations to all of them for their success in this challenging but rewarding course over the past three years! And the sophomores and juniors should continue to work hard – North can’t wait to see what the program has in store for us this year! BACK TO TOP

Back to Articles Entertainment & Media Back to Sections Lord of the Flies by William Golding Book Review By Leah Ally Volume 2 Issue 4 February 10, 2022 Image provided by Amazon When a plane crashes on a deserted tropical island, this leaves a group of schoolboys to fend for themselves at the start of a global war. Initially, their new, unsupervised way of life is something to rejoice over, distant from the civilization they once knew. As they attempt to rebuild their society, they begin to face the horror, sense of immortality, and evil the unfamiliar independence brings. As order collapses and night brings its reign of terror, the desire of expedition appears as far as the prospect of rescue. Lord of the Flies is the Nobel Prize-winning British novelist William Golding’s first novel, published in 1954. Initially, Golding began writing his novel to share the evils he witnessed fighting in the Royal Navy in World War II, as well as his experience of teaching rebellious young boys. For good reasons, Lord of the Flies is a timeless classic, as its analogies to society and governance are still relevant and accurate today. The classic work of William Golding portrays the complexity and tendencies of civilization, portrayed through the eyes of a small group of boys. The absence of adult supervision is essential to the plot since it allows Golding to explore the power struggles between the boys’ efforts at government and how well they can get along. The war between order and savagery is a recurring theme throughout the book, most often seen through the conflicts between the two protagonists. Overall, I would recommend this novel to readers who enjoy the mystery and adventure genres. BACK TO TOP

Back to Artwork Line Back to Sections Elizabeth Andre - What is Line - 1 By Elizabeth Andre November 1, 2020 Graphite Volume 1 Issue 1

Back to Artwork Prism Back to Sections Erika Carranza - Prism By Erika Carranza November 24, 2020 Volume 1 Issue 2

Back to Articles Science & Technology Back to Sections What is number theory? By Alyssa Garufi and Hannah Lee Volume 2 Issue 3 January 14, 2022 Image provided by Interesting Engineering Anyone who has ever fallen in love can tell you it is the little things about the other person that make them attractive: the way they do their hair, the peculiarities of how they write, the way they sing a certain part of a song out of key every time... Such details come to define us. They trace the outlines of our personalities, and, to the observant eye, they illuminate true beauty. In the eyes of some, there is no finer beauty than that found in mathematics. Some look at numbers and, just as you’d never define your beloved human solely based on their eye color, the math lover sees beyond the mere function of numbers. The likes of 1, 2, and 3, turn into something more sublime than simple carriers of information. The math lover looks for questions, patterns, and proofs as to why simple equations like 1+1 equals 2. This is essentially what number theory is: the study of subtle and radical relationships between and among numbers. Euclid of Alexandria was a key contributor to the foundation of number theory. He developed and proved the concept of infinite primes, which eventually became a key notion in the field of number theory. As most of us know, prime numbers are integers that are greater than one and have only two factors - one and themselves. Euclid hypothesized that there was an infinite number of primes, which he then sought to prove. He did this through a method known as proof by contradiction. Essentially, Euclid assumed that there was a finite number of primes, and disproved that concept, which leads to the conclusion that an infinite number of primes exist. This concept of infinite primes would become one of the most foundational ideas of number theory. While number theory may seem like an abstract concept that is only used by those who work in the math field, it has many practical applications. For instance, many companies use encryption to protect their data, which is a concept that stems from the number theory. Oftentimes, encryption is done using basic primes of a very large number. The basic primes of a number are obtained when the integer is broken down into its prime factors, which you may know by its other name: prime factorization. Each number has a unique set of prime factors, and by using the basic primes of large numbers, companies can ensure that their data is safely protected. Now that you know the basics of number theory, try it out yourself. I will give you a sequence of numbers and you have to try and find a pattern, formula, or some sort of relationship between the numbers in order to figure out what the first term of the sequence is. Remember: think creatively, not everything is so black and white. Example: what is the first term in the sequence? ….11, 24, 75, 304 5 8 9 10 Explanation: Alright, so you decided to take on the example problem and have come searching for the answer. The answer is *drum roll* 10! I hope you got it right. If not, it is okay. Let me explain to you how I went about it. I noticed that the second term, 11, and the third term, 24 could be formed by taking the second term and multiplying it by two and adding two. However, this equation of (n*2+2) does not work for the third number, 24, into the fourth sequence, 75. The equation that does work for these two transitions is, however, (n*3 +3). Taking 24 times 3 and adding 33 to that gets you 75! Therefore, it is visible that there may be a pattern forming in the equations from each preceding number. I finally checked to see if 75 times 4 plus 4 (n*4 +4) gets you to 304, and it did! There you go! You figured out the pattern. Using this pattern, you worked backward to find out that the first term is 10 since 10 times 1 plus 1 (n*1 +1) is 11! Good job, VSN! BACK TO TOP

Back to Articles News Back to Sections The People of the State of New York against Donald J. Trump By Samantha Altieri Volume 3 Issue 4 May 18, 2023 Image provided by The New York Times On March 30th, 2023, President Donald Trump was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury. Trump’s indictment stems from his alleged role in a scandal surrounding a hush money payment, made to porn star Stormy Daniels, during the 2016 presidential election campaign cycle. Although the indictment is under seal, as it will remain until Trump’s April 4th, 2023, arraignment, it is known the former president will face more than 30 counts.  Although Trump posted on his social media platform, Truth Social, earlier in March to warn his followers of an imminent arrest, CNN reporting indicates the former president was startled by the charges.  This is the first time a current or former president of the United States has faced criminal charges. Adding to the historical significance, Trump is also currently a few months into his third bid for the White House, a bid for which Trump has vowed to continue running, despite criminal charges. Any individual can run for president of the United States, even if they are indicted.  On April 4th, 2023, Trump was arraigned in a New York City court. Trump plead not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. After the arraignment, Trump flew back to Mar-a-Lago, the Florida resort where he resides, and gave a press conference indicating his intent to fight the charges while still maintaining his 2024 bid for the White House. BACK TO TOP

Back to Articles Feature Back to Sections Bridges Cody Sung Volume 4 Issue 4 May 29, 2024 Image Provided by Elaine Ching Bridges exist for one main purpose: to connect the gap between two different spaces separated by an obstacle of lower elevation than the surrounding terrain – whether a body of water such as a river or valley. As they are sometimes essential for connecting two places, bridges have been around for a long time, the oldest one found being from 4000 years ago (The British Museum). As humanity progressed, however, there came a need for bridges that could cover wider distances and hold more weight. This is when bridges began to diversify into different types – the six main types being beam bridges, arch bridges, truss bridges, suspension bridges, cantilever bridges, and cable-stayed bridges (Britannica). The beam bridge is the most common bridge form and is relatively simple. A beam on top of the bridge carries vertical loads by bending. As it bends, it has horizontal compression on the top. Simultaneously, the bottom of the beam has horizontal tension. To prevent the bridge from collapsing due to the weight of what is on it, supports carry the loads from the beam by compression vertically to the foundation of the bridge (Britannica). The truss bridge is somewhat similar to the beam bridge in that it also operates by bending in a certain manner to carry loads. Truss bridges have a beam on the top and a beam on the bottom, with vertical and diagonal support beams between them. When the truss bridge bends from a load, it leads to compression at the top and tension at the bottom. Depending on the configuration of the support beams, they can either experience compression or tension (Britannica). The arch bridge is unique among the bridge types in that it mainly uses compression to carry loads. The foundation, in the shape of an arch, works to prevent both vertical and horizontal sliding since due to the arch shape, the load from the bridge usually exerts both vertical and horizontal force. Despite the more complex design, arch bridges usually require less material than beam bridges of the same span (Britannica). The suspension bridge carries loads by using curved cables that experience tension. Those cables are attached to towers that support the bridge – those towers undergo vertical compression to the ground. The vertical compression leads to the anchorages at the bottom, which resist the inward and vertical pull of the cables. With a suspension bridge, the deck is hung in the air, so ideally, it should be heavy and stiff, so it does not move excessively when carrying a load (Britannica). The cantilever bridge is usually made with three spans, of which the two outer ones are anchored at regular ground and extend out over the area to be crossed. The central span rests on the extensions from the outer spans. Just like supported beams, it carries vertical loads with compression at the top and tension at the bottom due to bending. The two outer spans carry their loads by tension in the upper chords of the spans and compression in the lower ones. Towers inside both spans carry those forces to the foundation by using compression and exterior towers carry the forces by tension to the far foundations (Britannica). The cable-stayed bridge uses nearly straight diagonal cables from the horizontal deck to the vertical towers that carry loads by using tension. The vertical towers transfer the forces from the cables to the foundations through vertical compression. The forces in the cables also work to put the deck into horizontal compression (Britannica). Most modern bridges today are made of steel and concrete (Britannica). However, sometimes this is not enough to avoid collapse. Bridges can collapse for a few reasons. There may be a structural defect or design flaw, as with the Minneapolis bridge collapse in 2007 due to a weak connection point. An unusually heavy load may have also contributed to the collapse, another potential factor in bridge failures (National Transportation Safety Board). Finally, the bridge may be hit with a force that is too great to handle, such as with the Baltimore bridge collapse recently when a cargo ship hit one of its support beams (CNN). Sources: The British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/worlds-oldest-bridge-being-preserved-iraq Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/technology/bridge-engineering National Transportation Safety Board, https://www.dot.state.mn.us/i35wbridge/pdf/ntsb-report.pdf CNN, https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/baltimore-bridge-collapse-03-26-24-intl-hnk/ BACK TO TOP