Download Report

The Torch
Litchfield High School--Edition VIII—Editor in Chief: Dante Ferrari
Tech Troubles?
By Christopher Casanova
Having troubles retrieving your
network files from student share
at home? If so, there are many
ways to access your files. First,
using the web-based file portal,
https://file.litchfieldschools.org,
enter the same username and
password you use to login to your
computer.
The second
tool you can
use is the “remap network
drive” tool.
This tool is
located on the
desktop of
your device.
Simply click on the file and let it
run until it closes. If you have
further issues you should open a
ticket to report the issue and visit
Tech when they are available. In
the next few months you may see
a new student device (Asus
Transformer T100) in the school.
The new device will be tested and
is going to be evaluated to replace
the current Middle School device
(Lenovo x131e) during the 20162017 school year. According to
Ms. Terry, “Evaluating new
hardware is a big deal. A few
important characteristics we
focus on are the portability and
durability of the device.” Tech is
determining whether or not this
device will help Litchfield
students.
Do Parents Need To Give
Their Teens A Break?
By Heather Damiani
Parents think we’re just kids and
do not understand that we are
mature enough to make
important decisions in our lives.
Although, according to
learning.blogs.nytimes.com,
“some brain regions and systems
become more mature with time.
Parents need to give teens a chance
and not prohibit them from doing
things because they think their
teen is “immature”.
Quote of the Month:
“They say a little knowledge is a
dangerous thing, but it's not
one half so bad as a lot of
ignorance.”
--Terry Pratchett
do not reach full maturity until
the early or mid-20’s” teenagers
are forced to make adult
decisions well before then.
Teenagers can drive cars and go
to war at such an early stage in
their lives, but they are not
“mature enough” to go see an Rrated movie? The brain may not
be fully matured until around
twenty five, but every day teens
are faced with adult decisions.
Teens are a few years off from
being legal adults, so they need
to be given the opportunity to
show they can handle more
freedom. With freedom comes
responsibility. According to
debate.com, teens will “make
mistakes, but if treated as adults
early on, given the
responsibilities…. they will have
to accept the consequences of
their actions,” which make them
LHS Needs A Break From
These Songs
by Alexa Guerrera
This month, LHS students voted
that these chart-topping songs
were the most over-played by radio
stations.
1. Uptown Funk- Mark
Ronson ft. Bruno Mars
2. Shake It Off- Taylor Swift
3. All of Me- John Legend
4. Happy- Pharrell Williams
5. Stay With Me- Sam Smith
Days to Remember in April
By Heather Damiani
There are many national days within
the year of 2015.
Nationaldaycalendar.com states the
National Days for each month of the
year. Below are the top ten days of
this month.
1. April Fool’s Day (April 1st)
2. National Peanut Butter and
Jelly Day (April 2nd)
3. National Walk Around Things
Day (April 4th)
4. National Deep Dish Pizza Day
(April 5th)
5. National Pet Day (April 11th)
6. National Grilled Cheese
Sandwich Day (April 12th)
7. Wear Your Pajamas to Work
Day/National High Five Day
(April 16th)
8. National Earth Day (April
22nd)
9. National Take A Chance Day
(April 23rd)
10. National Prime Rib/Babe
Ruth Day (April 27th)
Top 5 Additions and
Eliminations to Netflix’s
Lineup
By Dante Ferrari
Nowadays, almost everyone
uses Netflix because it provides
thousands of movies and shows
for the small price of $7.99 a
month. The following are the
top 5 best additions and saddest
eliminations that Netflix will be
implementing this April.
Additions:
1. Noah (2014) Starring
Russell Crowe features stunning
visual effects and design.
2. National Treasure (2004)
Starring Nicholas Cage, this was
one of the most popular movies
of the 2000s.
3. Marvel’s Daredevil- Season
1- the highly anticipated arrival
of Marvel’s newest project.
4. Sons of Anarchy- Season 7the popular FX drama about a
biker gang will have its final
season on Netflix.
5. Halt and Catch FireSeason 1- The criticallyacclaimed AMC series will now
be available.
Revisions:
1. The Karate Kid Parts I-III
Getting rid of these ‘80s classics
will be a sad sight, but they are
being replaced with cool new
movies and shows.
2. Good Morning Vietnam
(1987)
3. Coneheads (1993) One of
Dan Akroyd’s best films will
now be off the menu for Netflix
watchers.
4. Friday the 13 1980) Sorry
Jason, you will no longer be on
Netlfix.
5. Sleeping Beauty (2011)
Sleeping Beauty, you will be
sleeping somewhere else.
Netflix just gave you the
eviction letter.
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Spring Break Rocks!
By Heather Damiani
Spring is a time for tank tops,
bathing suits, shorts, flip flops and
warm weather. LHS students were
ready to take a break from school,
and the long stressful hours of
homework. In a survey, 40% of
students stayed home to watch
movies and hangout, 30% of
students traveled over break, 10%
of students went on college visits
and the remaining 20% of students
had no plans. After a well-deserved
break, it’s nice to know that the
countdown to summer has begun.
Celebrity Gossip
By Dante Ferrari
Gossip, rumors and secrets run
social lives, especially those of
celebrities. Check out the latest
celebrity news:
1. TMZ reported that hip-hop
superstars Lil’ Wayne, Wiz Khalifa,
and Rich Homie Quan were the
icing on the cake for a 16- yearold’s $150,000 birthday party; and
the guest of honor arrived by
chopper! The party was for KJ Jr.,
the son of legendary hip-hop
producer Kyambo Joshua. As if
shout-outs from Weezy, Lil Boosie,
Monica, Yo Gotti and a YG
performance weren’t enough, the
kid got a 2015 Cadillac Escalade!
2. Taylor Swift has exploded
her career into massive
superstardom. She is seen on the
catwalk as often as on the
sidewalk. According to
JustJared.com, Taylor was
expecting a $1 million policy, but
instead she found her legs to be
worth $40 million! Taylor even
found it to be a little embarrassing.
Military Drones
By Christopher Casanova
Does government spending favor
warfare or cancer? The 2016 fiscal
year’s budget for drone development
and research is 2.9 billion dollars;
According to FNLC.org, the United
States spends ten times more money
on drones than they do on research
for lung cancer.
A drone is a military vehicle that can
be equipped with missiles and a
camera. The drones are extremely
sensitive to weather. “They are
grounded 80% of the time because of
budget issues”, according to the
Inspector General. Regardless,
according to a survey conducted by
Pew Research, 61% of Americans
supported drone strikes in Pakistan,
Yemen, and Somalia. According to
Drones Proorg.org, supporters of
Drones say that drones are a cheaper
alternative than engaging in ground
combat. Drones keep soldiers safe
and lower PTSD. However,
opponents of drones say that drones
violate international law, are
expensive, and kill a large number of
innocent civilians. “Civilians
accounted for 8-17% of all deaths
from US drones in Pakistan, Yemen,
and Somalia”, according to
ProCon.org. Opponents of drones
also argue that drones are very
expensive; a Global Hawk costs
$30,000 per hour to operate. This
conflict is yet another issue that
seems to divide our country in
half.
The Truth Behind Disney
Princesses
By Hadley Worster
For good reason, some of
Disney’s stories leave out the
darkest moments of the original
tales. The Huffington Post filled
in some of the missing details in
the stories of Cinderella and
The Little Mermaid. Cinderella
is a well-known children’s tale
about a princess who has a fairy
godmother, fits the lost glass
slipper, and marries her prince
charming. Missing from the
films are the evil stepsister’s
attempts to fit into the glass
slipper. One stepsister cuts off
her own toes, and another sister
cuts off her heel to shape their
feet in attempt to fit the shoe.
These attempts fail and the
prince marries Cinderella. The
evil stepsisters attend their
royal wedding and end up
having their eyes pecked out by
the prince’s doves.
Ariel is a beautiful mermaid
who wants to have legs and
become human to be with her
prince. Originally in the story of
The Little Mermaid, Ariel
exchanges her tongue for a pair
of legs which feel as though with
every step she is walking on
sharp glass. The grim story
states that Ariel will die if she
has not received her desired
kiss. The prince marries another
woman whom he mistook for
being the one who saved his life.
Ariel cannot speak up and
reveal that she is the true savior
because of her removed tongue.
Ariel cannot push herself to kill
the prince she loves so she, in
turn, commits suicide by
jumping into the ocean and
turning into sea foam. Aren’t all
princess “tales” so uplifting?
The History of April
By Mason Sanford
April is the month where its
showers will bring May flowers,
but that isn’t all that it is known
for. For instance, April 1st is well
known because of its traditional
April Fool’s day. April is also the
time for spring break week, which
every student surely looks forward
to. Are there any other important
things that happened in April? The
truth of the matter is that there are
many important dates in April
birthdays of famous artists and
civil rights pioneers. However,
there is a lot more to April than
people probably think. For
instance, according to
HistoryPalace.com, back in 1887
on the date of April 4th, the first
American woman mayor was
elected in Argonia, Kansas. Also,
April 5th is the birthday of Booker
T. Washington. This day should
mark as a representation of
Booker's life as a slave in Virginia
and how the Civil War freed him
from his slavery. Also, April 6th is
the birthday of famed Renaissance
artist Rafael. He made several
masterpieces including over three
hundred unique pictures. Rafael is
admired by millions of people in
some of the world’s most
prestigious art museums and
collections. Therefore, April is
much more than just spring break.
April is a month with a great deal
of history behind it and events that
have influenced not just the
country, but the world.