Daily Archives: October 21, 2013

When are you too old to Trick- or -Treat?

 

Nobody wants to be that downer of a neighbor who tells kids they are too old to trick or treat. But, someone has to do it. You don’t need to rain on their parade if they are behaving, not out too late, and if they have an appropriate costume. Honestly though, when does that happen? The little cuties go trick or treating and are back home sorting their candy by 9 pm at the latest. For the older kids, the time has just begun. Many candy givers have to go to work the next day, so answering the door constantly is super annoying.  In some towns, there is a law for trick or treating! For example, in Washington County, Maryland trick treaters can dress up and ask for candy from 6-8pm, as long as they are under the age of twelve. Seems to me there should be something in the middle of total restrictions, and a free-for-all candy night.

As a thirteen year old, already planning my Halloween costume for this year, I don’t think I’m too old to go trick or treating. However, I’m not going to be super rowdy either. I won’t be obnoxiously loud, or wearing a super scary costume. And, off the streets by 9:30. I do agree, that some people who stay out late, or are disruptive and a high schooler probably shouldn’t be Trick-or-treating. After all, the average kid has been trick or treating since age 2, so at the least they had a good 10 year run. When they have kids they’ll go out for 10 years for every kid. 20 plus years seems more than enough to me.

~Tess

Erin Cox

A little over 2 weeks ago, Erin Cox got a phone call from one of her friends to ask Erin if she could give her a ride home, since the friend was too drunk to drive.  Erin agreed, thinking that she was doing her friend a favor and keeping her out of trouble.  However, just minutes after Miss Cox went inside to find her schoolmate, the police entered and accused some of the group of underage drinking.  Even though the police proved that the honor student (Erin) had not been drinking and had no contact with alcohol or drugs, her school still demoted her from volleyball team captain and benched her for the next five games.  Once she got home, she was devastated, and many of her friends and family members are trying to get the school to reverse its punishment given to an innocent girl.

I think that North Andover High School should revoke Erin’s punishment, because she was just trying to do what was right and help her friend.  The school said that they have a very strict rule on alcohol and drug abuse, but I think if it includes punishing a perfectly innocent girl for trying to help, it’s much too strict.  Would they rather have the drunk friend try to drive and end up killing someone?  Honestly, they should rethink their decision.  After all, aren’t the counselors always telling us to help out our friends and make the right decision, even if it’s persecuted?  They should not ever be the ones making the worse choice, especially when almost everyone who has heard about the situation has agreed with the Cox family.  If you were attempting to do something good and got one of the worst punishments the school could give you as a prize, don’t you think that would be unjustifiable? (Hint: the answer is yes.)

~Stephanie

Fashion Trends from the Runway!

New fashion trends are brewing in the world!  All of the latest and greatest designers have their creations on a website called Style.com.  The site, Style.com has been getting a lot of viewer hits in comparison to last year with 153 million veiws in the last month which means people like looking up the latest fashions.  About 73 million of the online viewers were from the United States.  Fashion-conscious people from other countries were in on the fashion fun too!  New technology has added to the amount people are able to see with what’s current in the fashion industry.  It is clear people really enjoy going online to find out the newest fashion  trends. To find out more on this topic click here.

I think technology is a great bonus for the fashion industry because it allows women, men, and children to look at new styles without going to the store. Viewing Style.com online is very easy for the fashion-conscious people and good for retail stores. I easily want to go to the style.com website to check out trends.  This article confirms that people love looking for high fashion items and online shopping. The 153 million viewers on Style.com and me clearly think that online shopping is fun.

~Rachel

Apple’s iPhone 5s, a Win or a Lose?

Apple is one of the dominating companies in the phone business, but many are raising eyebrows on their new releases. The iPhone is one of the most used phones in the world, but is Apple using good and revolutionary ideas? Many may argue that they are reusing old ideas and aren’t on the top of the list for most innovative. The chassis of the iPhone 5s is the same as the 5, but with a few hardware changes.

First, the core in the 5s is faster than its predecessor. The new updated A7 chip now is 64-bit chip which means better processing speeds and computing power. This chip will also allow for more RAM, which in the future is great for IOS developers. New to the phone is the M7 chip. This special chip reads the accelerometer, gyrometer and compass separately from the CPU. With the CPU still asleep data from the M7 chip can be recorded even when the phone is off while not running out your battery. This therefore saves battery while recording data for apps related to health, running, etc.

Secondly, the camera has been updated and has really been a huge hit with consumers. The new camera has large pixels which allows better low light pictures. Also, the new 8 megapixel camera captures hi-resolution picture that come out stunning. The camera isn’t the best on the market, but combines great features to make an overall great camera.

Finally, the main change in the iPhone 5s is the home button. Apple reinvented the home button by turning it into a Touch ID Sensor. This new feature has had a lot of hype from the media and is a great new feature. The Touch ID Sensor lets you unlock your phone without a password. Also, you can use your fingerprint as you Apple ID for quick download. Touch ID is also very secure, with your fingerprint only accessible to perform two tasks, so other apps cannot locate the information.

These ideas are new but I believe that Apple isn’t leading the pack in innovation  anymore and that Android competitors are creeping up on Apple with design. Even though Apple hasn’t reinvented the iPhone they made a great decision for the company  business wise. This is because they didn’t spend money on design and testing for the new Phone. By reusing the iPhone 5 chassis Apple doesn’t waste time on designing an entire new phone, but just changes a few hardware and then sells it. This is and smart and safe move by Apple and I believe it was the right decision.

~Nick