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The Bird is the Word: Sophisticated Schoolyard Shenanigans

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1 Fish, 2 Fish, Red Fish, Oarfish

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Blurb by Aquatic Mastermind Luke Langlois

Our recent aquatic theme has inspired mystery both amongst the blog staff and amongst our readers. Just a few days ago, Ms. Tasha Romo’s memory was prompted to jump back a whole six years to a time where a few enigmatic deep-sea creatures known as the oarfish washed up on the shores of California. Two oarfish washed up in Oceanside, and another washed up on Catalina Island. Take a look at the picture that Ms. Romo shared of the Catalina oarfish below. If you happen to be someone who went on Palm Valley’s 6th-grade field trip to Catalina, you may recognize this camp as the one you explored. Anyways, enjoy the oarfish!

Photo taken after Catalina residents pulled the washed-up oarfish out of the water.

Editor: Holden Hartle

If you too have a contribution to a theme, send it to szachik@pvs.org. Our editors will take a look at it. If it adds to the week’s thematic coverage, we’ll post!

Conceive

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By Harlow Berny

I saw a bright light in the distance. A shining light in a sea of darkness. It had to be her. There was nothing else, no one else, it could possibly be. I could hear others around me, others just like me. They wanted her. I rushed as fast as I could, my small body pushing itself out of the dark abyss and into her light. I saw her floating. She was far bigger than anything I’d ever seen before. I stayed for a second to admire her size, her dangling light, before I saw others like me rushing onto her. I hurried closer to her. I sank my teeth into her. I felt my flesh fusing with hers. We were bonding. I saw the others that were like me rushing away, accepting defeat. I had won. I was a part of her. I could feel her blood running through me, keeping me alive. We would stay like this. Forever. My small body got smaller. And smaller. And smaller. Soon, all that was left of me were the organs that could grant her children. This was my existence. This was my purpose. This is what I am.

_ . ~ * ~ . _

Thank you for reading this short horror story! If you couldn’t tell, it’s a story about anglerfish reproduction told by a male anglerfish. This was made to fit the aquatic theme set by this week’s editor and was quite fun to write. I hope you enjoyed!

Editor: Luke Langlois

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Installment #2 in our Aquatic Theme: What can be found in the deep blue sea? I don’t know. But, James does. –Aquatic Theme Editor Luke

By James Zheng

The ocean is probably one of the most mysterious places on the Earth since it’s a place humans still have not entirely explored. There are hundreds of examples of the mysteries of the ocean. And, some of them have a reasonable explanation, but some ocean mysteries remain elusive. In this post, I am going to introduce three of the strangest mysteries within the ocean.

No.1 Devil’s Sea:

This is also known as the Dragon’s Triangle. Like the Bermuda Triangle in the Atlantic Ocean, this is a similar triangular area in the Western Pacific Ocean off of the east coast of southern Tokyo in Japan. To get here, go south along the southeast of the Pacific Ocean at about 145 degrees east, then turn west-southwest; pass through the Ogasawara Islands, and then return to the Tokyo Bay of Japan along the northeast, which forms this triangle. There are many mysterious disappearances of ships and planes here. They left without a trace. What happens is that all radio contacts are abruptly interrupted when vessels approach this triangular area, and the ships that are lost have no wreckage that can be found afterwards. There is even more news that spreads that horrifies people: one marine radio center received the message from a ship saying, “The sky is open!” right before they lost radio contact. Over-exaggerated? Who knows?

No.2 Atlantis:

There are still so many myths related to Atlantis, one of the most mysterious ancient civilizations. It was said that the ancient Greek God Poseidon created this civilization. Some scientists say that Atlantis does exist, and that it was a real civilization thousands of years ago. Modern science has found that before the great floods (an unprecedented and destructive global flood happened a long time ago) there may have been a continent that was the most highly developed civilization on the Earth. In this global disaster, the continent sank into the Atlantic Ocean. Following this catastrophe, a large-scale earthquake and tsunami caused further damage. As a result, vestigial volcanic ashes covered the entire Mediterranean region in darkness for weeks. The earthquake is rumored to have been more powerful than 4,000 atomic bombs. For nearly a century, archaeologists have also claimed that they have found relics of this prehistoric civilization on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, which seems to confirm the hypothesis of Atlantis. So, where did the name come from? The name was initially given by Plato, and it is the name still used nowadays for this unknown civilization. In 2011, an archaeological team claimed that they had located Atlantis beneath the mudbank of southern Spain. In December 2013, a submerged pyramid of Atlantis was discovered in the western sea area of Portugal. It was possibly recognized as a relic of Atlantis. But, nevertheless, the existence of Atlantis is still a question mark.


No.3 The depth of the ocean

There is never an accurate answer given to say how deep the ocean is. It is way more complicated than you probably think. Humans may think that they have explored the ocean enough to know the Earth deeply, but among the vast Pacific Ocean, we might have just explored five percent of the deepest part. There is an estimation taken by scientists that the ocean might be ninety thousand meters deep; however, nobody has ever reached that deep and it is just an assumption after all. The maximum depth that humans have reached is 10,916 meters. Unfortunately, we have trouble going deeper. The water pressure will get more and more intense as you reach the bottom. Unless we have diving suits or a submarine that has an extremely strong endurance to the water pressure, the diver would certainly be killed by the overwhelming water pressure. One last thing: sunlight cannot reach the deep ocean. Human eyes cannot see anything and the creatures around there may be dreadfully unforgiving…

Sites Referenced

https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E9%AD%94%E6%B5%B7%E9%BE%99%E4%B8%89%E8%A7%92/15795153?fr=aladdin
https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E4%BA%9A%E7%89%B9%E5%85%B0%E8%92%82%E6%96%AF/6238?fr=aladdin
https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1576299103450316638&wfr=spider&for=pc

Editor: Luke Langlois

https://www.thebirdonfire.org/2019/03/14/3383/

Holden Rants About a Topic That Isn’t Really Relevant But Still Kinda Interesting Part 4

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Here at thebirdonfire.org, we’re trying something new. Rather than chasing down any “sophisticated schoolyard shenanigan” (our site’s tagline), we’ve embued our Student Editor of the Week with the power to NAME A THEME. Junior Luke Langlois is up first as Student Editor. He claims as his theme Aquatic. So, our student bloggers submit to you subjects and posts that fall under this week’s theme: Aquatic. Holden answers with . . . Sharks.

Sharks Deserve More Love

By Holden Hartle

Since the release of Jaws in 1975, sharks have become one of the top fears among Americans. The thought of a Great White clamping down on a leg is a terrifying thought. In 2017, Chapman University conducted a survey that showed that about 25% of people are afraid of sharks. More people are afraid of sharks than of hurricanes, public speaking, and everyday crimes like a mugging. The fear of sharks is even more prevalent than the existential fear of dying.

But, consider this, in 2018, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History, there were a total of 130 shark attacks worldwide. Of those 130, 66 were unprovoked and 34 were provoked. The other 30 attacks were due to things like boat attacks or attacks that happened post-mortem. With all of this in mind, there are predictions that somewhere around 70 million people went to a beach in 2018. Some quick division will tell you that you have a 0.000185714% chance of being a victim of a shark attack. This number drops by almost 20% if you don’t provoke the shark.

Let’s look at things from the shark’s perspective. Out of the 375 different species of sharks, only about 10 have been known to eat humans. Because sharks have not lived around humans for most of their lineage, sharks have not evolved in a way that allows them to digest human flesh. Sharks eating humans is similar to a lactose intolerant person eating ice cream. It’s possible, but sharks choose to ignore humans for their own good. Sperm and Killer Whales are much more capable of eating a human than a shark is.

If you look at the behavior of sharks, most sharks approach a human out of sheer curiosity. This curiosity leads to a terrified human, which leads to a terrified shark, which leads to a shark attack. A shark most often will bite a human out of self-defense, not because it is hungry for a human thigh. And, occasionally, a shark mistakes a human for a sea turtle or a seal.

We shouldn’t be scared of sharks; we should be helping them. The shark population has dropped dramatically in the past few years, and this isn’t just bad for the sharks; this affects the whole ecosystem. With the sharks gone, the whole aquatic ecosystem is thrown off. There are no sharks to eat the mesopredators, which are next in the food chain. And, because there is an increase in mesopredators (for example, stingrays), the amount of smaller fish decrease. If we were to stop fearing sharks and stop fishing them for their meats and their fins, the ecosystem would be balanced.

Editor: Luke Langlois

Cat of the Moment #1: Komfy Kitty

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By Guest Blogger and Resident Cat Lady Amanda Laule

Image result for sleeping cat

Hi buds! Here is a picture of this special little guy. This cat represents all I want right now after all the stress of Senior year: a warm place to snuggle and a nice long nap. I hope you have a weekend that is as wonderful as this kitty. I hope this kitty inspires you to take it easy once in a while. This time of year gets extra stressful (Juniors, I’m looking at you), so do something for yourself this weekend! Do the important thing: take a nap; eat a snack; pet a cat, and spend time with family and friends 😉

Editor: Holden Hartle

Werewolf–One of the Best Modern Party Games

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By James Zheng, Master Game Player & Blogger

What games do you usually play for entertaining a party? Normal answers will come out: Uno, Cards Against Humanity, Mario Kart, Blackjack, etc. We’ve played those games a thousand times. All of them are really popular but common, so common they bore you as you play them over and over again. There is an amazing game which would definitely bring up the atmosphere in a party.

The Werewolf game is really similar to a classic party game called the Mafia (Werewolf is actually generated from the Mafia game). They have the exact same setting on some points; however, the Werewolf game is more fun than the Mafia! Originally, when you look up the Werewolf game online, there is only the American style, which is also the initial version of Werewolf. When it spread to China, this game became truly popular and players added more contents to it. So, please notice that all the things I show you are partially generated from the Chinese-style Werewolf game.

Required factors to play the game include six to fifteen players and role cards. Ten or twelve is the best amount. This game must have a moderator during the whole game to direct the procedure. The role cards are decided by players according to the number of participants.

Gameplay part 1–There are two teams in the Werewolf game; humans and werewolves (which also applies to the innocent and the mafia in The Mafia). The Werewolf team has to kill all the humans while all the humans need to banish the werewolves. To achieve their goal, werewolves have to pretend to be the humans to avoid being banished so that they can eliminate as many humans as they can. In the same way, the humans have to find all the werewolves based on the flaws in their statements or any other factors.

Game setting–Everyone should get a role card before they start, and the moderator must be ready, then the game will begin on the first night. There are two rounds in the game, which refer to the night and the morning. Night is always before morning; it will keep rotating until the game is finished. An essential part of the game, during the night, is that the moderator has to tell everyone to close their eyes and remain absolutely quiet. The Lord card (a card which gives players special skills) and the werewolves’ card holders will be called by the moderator to take their action. Werewolves have to decide to slay a player every night. When it comes to the morning, the player who is killed during the night will be out of the game. Then, each of the players need to speak their thoughts individually. The time limit for speaking (30 seconds, 60 seconds, etc.) should be decided before the game begins. After everyone finishes their statement, they have to vote to eliminate a player. Then the player who gets the most votes will be out of the game as well; this movement is called banish.   

Role cards

  • Villager, belongs to the human team. They do not have special abilities, but they have to listen to everyone’s words, find the werewolves, and be active in voting to banish them in the morning.
  • Werewolf, belongs to the werewolf team. They will be called by the moderator, “Werewolves, please open/close your eyes” before/after they take action. Werewolves usually have 20 seconds to point at their target. During the morning, they need to act like humans and mislead them to banish other players beside themselves.
  • Seer, the Lord card belongs to the human team. When Seer is called by the moderator, he can see one person’s role (he can only identify whether that person is a human or a werewolf, so he does not know if that person is holding a Lord card or not).
  • Witch, this Lord card belongs to the human team. Witch is holding a cure and a poison. When called by moderator, he can only take one action each night. He can use a cure to revive a player who was slain by a werewolf or use poison to kill one player. Witch only has one cure and one poison.
  • Guardian, this Lord card belongs to the human team. When called by the moderator, Guardian can protect a player (including himself) from being killed by a werewolf. But, he cannot protect the same player twice in a row. By the way, the poison used by the Witch can penetrate the Guardian’s shield.
  • Hunter, this Lord card belongs to the human team. The Hunter can eliminate one player after he is dead. The only moment he cannot use his skill is when he is eliminated by poison from the Witch. When called by the moderator, the moderator will tell him if he can use his skill or not–based on whether he was poisoned or not.

Further tips and details

  • The player who is banished or out of the game in the first night will still have a chance to speak.
  • Only the werewolves know who their teammates are. Humans don’t know who their teammates are. And werewolves can say that they are human, and normally mask as villagers (since there are at least two or four villagers, it is hard to know which one is fraud).
  • To find the werewolf or to suspect someone, try to treat this game as a psychological game. If you find someone too nervous or too feeble, they might hold a werewolf card. Or, if you find someone who is speaking too much or too little, they will be questionable. You can always take a guess at everyone’s card according to their statement.
  • The core of this game is the Seer because nobody knows who other players are except the Seer. Only the Seer and werewolves have the ability to lead the teams. And the Seer has to share his or her information on the first day.
  • Each player has to be brave to speak out their opinion and tell others their identity, and be active in voting.

The Werewolf game is my best recommendation ever. It’s a very social game because you have to speak and communicate with each other to collaborate during the whole game. It’s also a really casual game to play with friends!

Editor: Makena Behnke

The Rise of Modern Esports

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By Esports Specialist James Zheng

Esports is the abbreviation of electronic sports. “Electronic sports” generally refers to the mode in which the competitor utilizes electronic devices to play against other competitors based on experience. And, the common manifestation of electronic sports is in gaming sports, where players play against others with a team or individually. Esports was nevertheless really unknown and thought to be meaningless back in the day. But, is it a waste of time?

The reason that I decided to write this post is due to the things I found out a few days ago that made me realize how the realm of esports is actually pretty fascinating. I was browsing on a live-stream website, and then I saw these different game league matches. There were games held on two platforms: mobile and computer. And, when I observed those matches, they were conducted decently and scrupulously. It made me feel like a game was not just a “game.” With millions of fans watching games’ live streams and watching conversations about the players, it gave me a sense that esports are cooler than I thought. These games included League of Legends (a multiplayer game released by Riot Games), Warcraft III, Overwatch, and Dota 2 (all released by Blizzard Entertainment), etc. It shocked me that the development of esports could be this successful and popular. Esports is an industry.

The abundance of esports is definite. Earlier in 2000, a South Korean company directed the first worldwide event in esport history–the World Cyber Game, which included more than twenty games in the competition. It was held worldwide until 2013 (it revived in 2019 again); it was given the title “Esports Olympics.” Around America and Europe, the Overwatch League is taking place. Cities can compete against other cities–just like the NBA. In like manner, The League of Legends World Championship annual tournament is probably the biggest event in the realm of esports. Once The League playoffs start, there will be more than thirty countries playing live stream matches. After seeing these examples of esport play, I completely changed my view towards gaming, professional game players, and esports!

However, is playing esports professionally a realistic dream for everyone? The first thing we know is that we normally just play video games for entertainment, and before I had that amazing discovery on live stream, I never thought that playing a game could ever be a goal. Sometimes I just thought it too impractical. In contrast, the occurring of esports had begun a few years ago. I have seen cases in which a teenager live streams and plays video games every day instead of accepting education in school to pursue their goal. There are circumstances that some of them succeed in the end, but very few. The vast majority of players eventually abandon the idea of earning money at esports. If you are a pro player, you do not know when there will be a new, better player to take your position. Likewise, you also need to worry about the future of your team. There are still so many experienced teams who have already played for several years. When your team encounters them, it will be extremely hard to survive. And the result is only going to be the dissolution of your team.

The undeniable fact is that esports has sustainable support from billions of fans. And, as far as I can see, there is indeed a tremendous potential possibility within esports and the love dedicated by fans and players to play, to develop, to earn, to win.

Editor: Holden Hartle

random things to do

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By Makena Behnke

i don’t always like to be on my phone or on the computer when i have spare time; it makes me feel good when i’m not sucked into social media or random websites. but, as a student, it’s hard to make time for things we want to do. i get it, but if you do happen to have time to spare and you’re not sure what to do without your phone, here are some suggestions:

  • do some art. whether it’s drawing, colouring, painting, or photography, or really anything creative, it’s a great way to let some energy out, and it’s fun. whatever you decide to make doesn’t have to be good. just let it all out.
  • go for a run. you don’t have to run fast or far, maybe just a quick dash around the block. you don’t even have to put shoes on or any special running clothes. (i like running barefoot; it feels good to feel the pavement.)
  • read. maybe you’ve been meaning to finish a book you started a while ago, or you want to re-read your favorite book. maybe you can explore a new genre you haven’t really looked at before.
  • clean, & re-organize. this sounds really… not fun, but when someone isn’t forcing you to clean, it’s not that bad. maybe sort through your bookcase, or sweep the floors, something simple. it always makes me feel more productive, plus my room is cleaner than it was. it’s a win-win in my book.
  • explore your area. if you haven’t ventured outside your home much and into the possible random shops and restaurants you may have around you, you might want to explore. even if you don’t think you’ll find anything, it’s always good to just take a look. and, if you live in a strictly residential area, just wander around and see what houses you’ll find; maybe you’ll see a cute dog or something.
  • watch a movie. sitting down with some snacks or maybe doing some art while watching a movie is always nice. it’s less mentally destructive than being on your phone or computer, at least for me.
  • find new music. click on a genre you wouldn’t usually spring for, find something new. i usually type a random word into my spotify search bar and listen to a couple songs or an album that pops up. i’m not always successful, but it’s still fun.
  • sleep. when all else fails, just sleep. you can take a quick nap to fast forward to something you’re looking forward to (a dinner, movie, etc). or you can nap to fill time. let’s face it: we all need more sleep.

Editor: AJ Patencio

The Puppet Cuts Free

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A Fable by Guest Blogger Charles Schnell

At the top of a grassy hill almost untouched by humankind, his house stood basking almost too closely to the sun. He was the proud owner of the house on the hill. He was the one who made the dolls. And, he was a puppet.

Everyday, the puppet had to wake up, find himself at the desk in his study with his strings still attached, and get to work again. His life consisted of being hunched over his wooden desk, delicately weaving and stitching dolls together. Eighty dolls a day, to be exact. Six days a week–this would be the puppet’s routine: wake up; make eighty dolls; go to sleep.

Then, on the seventh day, the puppet would have to make his way to the village and deliver the dolls to the market. The strings attached to the hands of the heavens led the puppet’s way.

Walking back to his workshop on the hill, the puppet would have to hear the same comments from the villagers.

“Yeah, the dolls are nice. But what else do you do?”

“Wow, how do you come up with so many new designs? Every week you have something new!”

“Where do you see yourself in four years?”

In the beginning, the puppet tried answering these questions, but he always found himself at a loss for words, and the strings of the heavens do not stop for their puppets. So, he gave up and returned to his house on the hill in silence.

This all continued long enough for millions of dolls to have come spilling out of the puppet’s soul. Until one day, the doll stopped. He dropped his roll of yarn and did not pick it up again. The heavens tugged and pulled on the strings, but the puppet did not concede. In fact, that day, the puppet took his yarn cutting scissors, raised them up while resisting the tugging of the heavens, and cut his strings.

Freed, he could no longer sense the heavens. All contact was cut. And for once, he left his house on a day that was not the seventh day.

At first, he liked the town. He liked being able to roam without the strings. And, for the first time, the villagers saw a smile on the puppet’s face.

Freedom did not come without its drawbacks, however. His newly found freedom caused newly found anxiety. Without his strings, the puppet had nowhere to go.

No, he had too many places to go, too many choices. That led to the puppet’s insecurity and anxiety. Pretty soon, the smile disappeared from his face.

The puppet continued on for a long time like this: anxious and insecure. But, one day he faced what he knew he had to do.

He returned to his old house on the hill, his desk, his workshop, his yarn, his scissors he cut himself free with.

He took a deep breath. He realized what he was about to do was for the best. He took the remnants of his strings to the heavens. He proceed with great care as he slowly and reluctantly stitched and spliced the strings together again. The heavens, seeing they had control once more, worked their magic, and the puppet fell asleep.

The next morning, the puppet awoke to his familiar life. The hill was untouched; the house was close to the sun; and the puppet made eighty more dolls.

Editor: Luke Langlois

Website Showcase: Pew Research Center’s Political Typology Quiz

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By Luke Langlois, Internet Explorer

Hello, faithful and loyal readers. I want to bring something brand new to THEBIRDONFIRE.ORG. I would like to start doing an occasional website showcase because the internet is a vast landscape, and, quite frankly, there are so many nifty websites or tools that most people have never heard of. Later on, we may venture into the wild west of the internet. I would like to present a political typology quiz in anticipation of the upcoming election. Many Americans make what is called a “latent” decision when election day comes. They make an opinion based off of split-second decisions. Which candidate’s name do I recognize? What has the news said? What are the polls like? To make an informed decision, an individual has to know what they believe. Additionally, an individual deserves to know what each party stands for, and what party they most closely align with. This is why I implore whoever is currently reading this to take Pew’s Political Typology Quiz. This short quiz will give you seventeen questions of two choices. You should pick the choice that more closely represents your belief, even if it does not 100% represent your belief. After all of the questions, the quiz will show you where you fall on the typical “left-right” spectrum. Do note that this quiz is courtesy of Pew Research Center, and your response will be anonymously recorded for their research purposes. Find the link below!

Link: http://www.people-press.org/quiz/political-typology/

http://www.people-press.org/quiz/political-typology/

Editor: Holden Hartle