![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
STEM Scene (Volume 20, Issue 4)
The latest news in STEM
STEM Scene showcases briefs to update our community on the STEM world.
February 26, 2019
Blood moon
In the late evening of Jan. 20, a super wolf blood moon occurred, according to the Nation Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Being the first full moon of the year, it was a wolf moon. It was also at its closest to the Earth, making it a supermoon. Finally, the moon passed behind the earth which projected a red hue on the moon’s surface thus creating a blood moon the last of this decade.
Carbon emissions
In 2018, carbon emissions spiked in the U.S., increasing by 3.4 percent, the largest increase in eight years. The Rhodium Group, an economic data research provider working with UC Berkeley, estimates that by 2020, California’s second-largest emissions producer will be the industrial sector, which includes refineries and construction work.
USAYPT
Over the weekend of Jan. 26, nine Harker students attended the United States Invitational Young Physicists Tournament in Rye, New York. where they debated with other teams on four physics experiment questions, placing fifth in the competition. “It’s a really good high school model for how a ‘real scientific conference’ works,” Dr. Mark Brada, the team’s mentor, said.
Polymers
On Feb. 6th, junior Aditi Ghalsasi gave a talk on her research experience over the past summer in polymer chemistry, as the upper school’s Research Club’s second student speaker of the year. Aditi discussed her research in developing and successfully producing a biocompatible material for the 3D printing of various parts and organs in the human body.
F=MA exam
On Jan. 23, upper school students participated in the F=ma test, a 25 question, 75 minute physics entrance exam for the United States National Physics Olympiad (USAPhO). “The problems [are] really fun to think about and interesting to work through,” Kaushik Shivakumar (12), a four time test taker who has qualified for the USAPhO in the past, said. “Practice problems are real key to do well.”
This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on February 20, 2019.
