Ready for Summer Vacation

Soft sand spills through your toes as you wiggle them into the ground.  The ocean waves calmly lap at the shoreline sweeping its swimmers back and forth.  The seagulls chatter above excitedly over something delicious they've discovered for lunch.  Children run back and forth from the ocean to build their sandcastles with water and decorate them with seashells and pebbles.  You slowly tune off the background noise and lay back into your beach chair.  You let the sun's warm rays beam down to naturally tan your skin and relax because this is your summer vacation.  A cool breeze from the ocean perfectly complements the sunny day.  Maybe later, you will curl up with your favorite book or go cool off in the endless blue waves.

But wait. We're not there just yet.  Although this school year seemed to fly by fast, we still have at least another month until summer vacation, which is definitely something to look forward to.  And this coming month, we'll be pretty busy, if our schedules are not already overfilled with work.

First off, AP Exams begin in the first two weeks of May (starts next week).  Many of us are taking at least one and up to five.  It's time to buy those review books: Five Steps to a Five, Barron's, Princeton Review, and so many more.  Maybe you would like to also purchase some flashcards.  But which one or combination will you commit to?  The options are already so overwhelming, let alone finishing the material.  And to add to the workload, teachers are preparing and testing us daily in class.  Not only do we have to practice with a lot of reviewing and physical preparation, we also need to face a mental element--the pressure of doing well.  All these factors added together creates a potent blend for stress.  I know, it'll pay off once we ace the exam, but living in the crunch time right now is extremely exhausting.

AP Exams is something huge to check off once we complete them, but even then, we have finals to look forward to.  Some of us may be taking the SATs, ACTs, or the SAT IIs.  As all this testing ends the year, it will feel like a weight has lifted once summer starts.  We may still have 8 more weeks of school, but we can still dream of our perfect vacation.

The Spread of the Zika Virus

Mosquitoes are pesky little creatures, nay blood-sucking monsters.  Not only do they cause red itchy bites, but they also spread many diseases, like malaria, yellow fever, West Nile virus.  And now we can add the Zika virus to that ever-growing list.  Humans were first recorded to contract this disease in Nigeria in 1954.  Last April, an outbreak began in Brazil and has spreaded to other parts of South and North America.

In most cases, people infected won't even know it because they won't experience any symptoms.  If they do, many of them are similar to the flu: fever, muscle pain, headache, rash, and conjunctivitis.  The good news is that most of the times the symptoms are mild and will only last for several days to a week.  Once a person contracts the Zika virus, he or she will unlikely get infected again.  Unfortunately, there is bad news.  Pregnant women who contract the Zika virus can cause their babies to be born with microcephaly--"a birth defect where a baby’s head is smaller than expected when compared to babies of the same sex and age."  This results in babies having smaller brains, leading to side effects such as hearing loss, vision problems, developmental delay.   There is risk of getting Guillain-Barre syndrome, an autoimmune disorder in which the body's immune system attacks the peripheral nervous system.  Although there has only been one recorded case in the United States, the CDC is still investigating the link between the two, and they believe that "GBS is very likely triggered by Zika in a small proportion of infections."

Researchers have not yet created a vaccine or medicine to prevent or treat the Zika virus, so the only way to treat it is similar to treating the flu.  Drink plenty of fluids and get plenty of rest and take acetaminophen-containing drugs to reduce fever.  However, if a person is pregnant and shows any symptoms of the Zika virus within two weeks of traveling to a place where it has been reported, she must see a doctor immediately.

The best way to avoid getting the Zika virus is to prevent mosquito bites.  Interestingly
enough, mosquitoes that spread it bite mostly during the daytime.  Some tips would be to wear long sleeved shirts and long pants, spray on insect repellent, and steer clear of stagnant waters because they are great mosquito breeding grounds. The US is likely to be at risk for a Zika outbreak and the first step to fighting this disease is prevention.

The Power of Science and Technology

Imagine a world rid of genetic disorders: down syndrome and sickle cell anemia and Huntington's disease and cystic fibrosis and hemophilia.  No more lost children, mothers, uncles, grandmothers to fatal diseases.  This seems like something of the future, but is this already possible with today's technology?  

Scientists have already invented a new piece of technology--CRISPR-- a piece of RNA, which targets a section of DNA, and an enzyme, which cuts out unwanted genes and replaces them with new ones. CRISPR covers a wide range of applications, including developing treatments and therapies for Alzheimer's, leading to new approaches to fighting cancer, and accelerating the process of gene therapy.  In the near future, we could even be seeing designer babies.  However, CRISPR has caused raging controversial debates among scientists.  Many researchers in the United States believe it is unethical to use this gene-altering technology on embryos, but their British and Chinese counterparts have already started using this technology on germ cells.  Now CRISPR may sound like it will solve everything, but there are some repercussions when it is used.  When it snips out the unwanted genes, it also takes bits of the healthy DNA away and the effect would be felt in every cell.  A doctor would have to weigh the benefits against the damages before using CRISPR.

Sometimes researchers don't know enough about an illness to treat or cure it. If this was 60 years ago, there would be no hope, but now with cryonics, people can be frozen to be brought back to life when future technologies can restore them to their full health. People who agree to the procedure have their blood replaced with an "antifreeze" solution to preserve their bodies.  However, storing a body can be extremely expensive, so people will opt to just preserve their brains.  Many scientists disagree on whether it is possible for our minds to function after death.  Preserving a brain is a complex procedure.  Scientists have to trace the connections between the synapses--which make up the memories--and then connect it to a virtual body.  But most importantly, they have to ask if this new version represents one's consciousness or merely is a replication.

The advent of these new medical technologies brings a brighter future and also many more ethical questions.  The big one that most people are thinking is are we playing the role of God now that we can alter our genes and avoid death?  And even if we are, are our actions necessary because of its positive impact?  Where do we draw the line between interfering with nature and letting it take its course?

Neko Atsume: Kitty Collector

Recently, I have noticed the people around me playing Neko Atsume: Kitty Collector on their phones.  In fact, I have this app on my iPhone too.  I have been infatuated with this game, and I'm not the only one; many other people are also finding it addictive.  If you haven't heard about it, it is a game about collecting cats.  

The goal is to get the cats to visit your virtual garden by putting out food, sashimi or kibbles, and toys, such as yarn, pillows, boxes, vases, or a goldfish bowl.  The cats will visit randomly depending on how much food is left and the kinds of toys out.  Some of the cats will only visit if there is a particular toy out.  When the cats visit, you can snap pictures and add them to your "Catbook", a virtual photo album. You never see the cats arrive and leave; they just appear, and when they're full and done playing, they will leave fish--silver and gold--for you to buy more food and toys for them.  With enough gold fish, you can expand your yard and eventually remodel.  When a cat visits you enough times, they will leave you a memento, which can range from random seeds to a gift-wrap ribbon.  

Some of the cats are rare ones, and their names are puns.  For example, Joe DiMeowgio (Joe DiMaggio) will come to your yard if you have a baseball out.  My favorite special cat is Tubbs.  He visits not for the toys or furniture, but for the food; he will consume all the food.  If you manage to catch him, you'll find that he is a chubby white cat that lies lazily by the food bowl.

Neko Atsume: Kitty Collector will hook onto you once you start playing, but why is it so addicting?  The cats are extremely cute or "kawaii", but that's not a sufficient reason to keep so many people engaged for a long period of time.  First off, it's a really simple game that isn't time consuming.  All you have to do is check in once in a while for a less than a minute to refill the kitty food, collect the fish, and leave out some new toys.  Also, it doesn't require any real cash to play because it is so effortless to earn more gold and silver fish, and it doesn't randomly play any advertisements. But most importantly, the game creates positive reinforcement because cats will always visit your yard no matter what; you can never lose.  Whether you are into playing apps on your phone or not, I would definitely recommend checking out this game.  You will fall in love with these cats.