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The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

The student news site of The Harker School.

Harker Aquila

Junior Mendy Mao reads over Abby Eu (8) and Danya Arun's (8) abstract. SRP students worked on developing their abstracts while Research Club speakers assisted them.

Research Club mentors middle school students in developing abstracts and posterboards

by Claire Xu March 1, 2025

Research Club members visited the middle school campus to mentor Science Research Program (SRP) students on writing abstracts and creating posters on Monday and Tuesday. Club members took turns speaking...

Ashish Mathur explains research showing how heart disease is more prevalent among South Asians at younger ages and at lower body mass indices. He is the co-founder and executive director of the South Asian Heart Center at the El Camino Hospital.

Heart disease expert provides health management tips

by Jonathan Szeto and Charlie Wang February 26, 2025

South Asian Heart Center co-founder and executive director Ashish Mathur spoke about methods to improve wellbeing, diabetes and heart attacks at a speaker event hosted in collaboration with Public Health...

Green Team spekaer Tami Mulcahy pointed out the abundance of plastic in modern society. “We have to start eliminating the plastics and microplastics from our lives,” Mulcahy said.

Green Team speaker unpacks plastics’ hidden dangers

by Ashley Mo, STEM Editor February 24, 2025

Over 20 students and teachers gathered to listen to Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group (ESRAG) Plastic Solutions co-chair Tami Mulcahy speak about the harmful effects of plastics at a Green...

STEM Simplified Episode 1: Bird flu outbreak intensifies nationwide

STEM Simplified Episode 1: Bird flu outbreak intensifies nationwide

by Ashley Mo and Jonathan Szeto February 16, 2025

This is the first installment of STEM Simplified, a video series in which Aquila staff members break down current STEM events and discoveries. In this episode, STEM Editors Ashley Mo and Jonathan Szeto...

Research Revelations Episode 9: Grading vocal performance recordings with Saanvi Bhargava

Research Revelations Episode 9: Grading vocal performance recordings with Saanvi Bhargava

by Ashley Mo and Jonathan Szeto February 16, 2025

This is the ninth installment of Research Revelations: Conversations with Our Student Researchers, a podcast where Aquila staff members talk to student researchers about their projects and research goals....

Juniors Justin Yang, Eric Dong and Katherine Wang put the final touches on their stilted house in the design-build part of the competition. Teams competed to construct the tallest and most wind-resilient model homes using common materials like straws and paper.

Engineering contest challenges students in weather-resistant building design

by Mihir Kotbagi and Jonathan Szeto February 13, 2025

Twenty-eight students competed in Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Math and Science (TEAMS) by completing a multiple-choice exam and design-build challenge on Friday. Following this year’s theme of...

A little-known but widely-consumed carcinogen is alcohol. The substance is
used by approximately 60% of Americans, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Unmasking alcohol’s hidden risks

by Charlize Wang and Lily Shi February 7, 2025

The cancer risks of smoking are widely publicized—all cigarette packs contain warning labels detailing specific associated illnesses, and anti-smoking ads have become more common with the rise of e-cigarettes....

Vaping impacts lung health via exposure to toxic chemicals. Many vaping products contain high levels of nicotine, which can lead to brain damage.

Teen vaping declines as awareness grows

by Aishani Singh and Hima Thota February 7, 2025

A recent decline in vaping among younger generations hints toward a broader discussion surrounding the ethics and health implications of vaping and e-cigarette production.  In 2024, studies from the...

As global temperatures and sea levels rise, climate change intensifies weather patterns. California has seen stronger
and more frequent wildfires, drier and hotter droughts and stronger winds and waves during storms.

Global Reset: Stronger storms, fiercer fires

by Jeremy Peng and Jonathan Szeto February 6, 2025

From rising sea level to retreating glaciers, global warming has caused radical changes in our world’s oceans, forests and ecosystems. But few places across the globe have seen as impactful a shift in...

Honors Bioinformatics student Thomas Campisi (11) pours lysogeny broth, a nutrient-rich medium containing the bacteria ampicillin, into a test tube. The class introduces students with varying interests to understanding the vast amounts of data from DNA sequencing.

Bioinformatics elective offers intersection of disciplines

by Nathan Yee and William Jiang February 5, 2025

High schools across the United States rarely offer bioinformatics due to its recent emergence and the need for extensive resources and equipment. However, this year Honors Bioinformatics debuted as a science...

Public Health Club Vice Presidents of Internal Affairs Terry Xie (11) and Ritisha Chakravarty (10) explain and guide members through the video game Plague Inc. The game introduced club members to the origins behind deadly illnesses and how scientists create vaccines to mitigate them.

STEM Spotlight: Public Health Club

by Lily Peng and Vivek Moorjani February 3, 2025

Public Health Club members played the video game Plague Inc. to learn about the effects and properties of infectious diseases on Jan. 23.  In the three-leveled Plague Inc., students acted as a bacteria...

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