The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: Humboldt State University

  • We’re All Lonely But It’s Not Our Fault

    We’re All Lonely But It’s Not Our Fault

    Shifting the blame of loneliness from individuals to institutions

    There’s an epidemic of loneliness in modern America. It’s a trauma encompassing political, economic and social realms. We’re all alone, but it’s not any one person’s fault.

    Imagine the stereotypical millennial: they moved home after college, unable to find a job or afford a home of their own. It may sound pathetic. But maybe they’ve found the home they need.

    The alternative for the millennial generation is living alone in an overpriced closet. It leaves them fragile and alone. A 2018 national survey by the healthcare provider Cigna found 46% of Americans felt alone some or all of the time. Adults aged 18-22 responded as the loneliest age group. A 2010 AARP survey had similar findings.

    Lonely people are vulnerable. Alone, a small problem becomes a crisis. That crisis festers and becomes a trauma that stays with a person for life. Without a support network, a minor issue can snowball into an avalanche. Studies have linked loneliness to depression, distress, suffering, poor sleep, high blood pressure and death.

    Loneliness almost feels normal in a society that sees the world in terms of the individual. Privacy can feel like success. Appearing independent is an achievement. And we see weakness in a cry for help.

    We weren’t always this way. Prior to modern industry, humans often lived in close-knit communities, whether related by blood or not. Fast-forward to the 1950s, and the nuclear family emerges. There’s the working husband, the stay-at-home wife and the two or three kids. It might have been romantic then, but a 2020 article from The Atlantic by David Brooks shows this small, private family wreaked havoc on our social lives.

    Jump forward 60 more years and you get the loneliness epidemic. One could criticize nuclear families for pages—read Brooks’ piece for a full account. But as they relate to loneliness, they popularized small families and mistrust of anyone outside of those families.

    Small families can produce lonely individuals. Imagine a single child. Imagine their parents pass away. That child then has to live on their own, without the support of a family around them. Financial, personal or professional stresses can lead to a free-fall when you have no safety net.

    Small, nuclear families disintegrate, and children are left on their own.

    Youth are finding new ways to survive the aftermath of a nuclear family disaster.

    The good news is we seem to be adapting. We are, in some sense, valuing extended families again. Pew Research Center found a record 64 million Americans living in multigenerational households in 2018. In 2016, Pew found the most common living arrangement for the 18-34 age group to be living with parents.

    We’re also expanding families beyond biological boundaries through shared housing units and groups for single parents. These new arrangments provide a way forward that doesn’t necessitate stay-at-home wives or gender discrimination. We’re finding ways to balance our want for individual freedom with our need for a family.

    Living together doesn’t necessarily make for less lonely people. We should be cautious about praising housing arrangements that can be born out of economic necessity, but research suggests many are choosing less lonely housing by choice. Living together is a good first step toward a more stable society.

    Youth are finding new ways to survive the aftermath of a nuclear family disaster. Make fun of the millennial in their parents’ garage if you want. But it looks to us like they might have found shelter from modern loneliness. They’re going to be OK.

  • Vegan Cannabis-Infused Brownie Recipe

    Vegan Cannabis-Infused Brownie Recipe

    Learn how to bake and get baked

    This cannabis-infused brownie recipe uses coconut oil as a butter substitution and base for a vegan cannabis butter.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    Coconut oil is a great replacement for butter and absorbs cannabinoids in the same manner.

    The first step is to make the “cannabutter.”

    Depending on how much marijuana you use, your brownies can have a higher or lower dosage of THC. When making cannabis-infused products, always be cautious of your dosage and measurements.

    Start by decarboxylating the marijuana.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    The decarboxylation process is simple: spread marijuana out on a tray and place it in an oven preheated to 245 degrees for 30 minutes.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty
    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    This is an essential step. Decarboxylation heats up the cannabis flower and allows the body to absorb the cannabinoids, essentially activating the cannabis. This process happens instantly when marijuana is smoked, but when making edibles it must happen slowly to preserve the product and not burn it.

    The next and longest step is to infuse the coconut oil with the decarboxylated marijuana.

    Throw the coconut oil and decarboxylated marijuana in a sauce pan and let it simmer on the lowest heat setting for three hours.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty
    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    Heat on the lowest heat setting ensures your oil will be fully infused and that the baked marijuana will not burn.

    Don’t leave the house or kitchen when you are infusing your oil. Three hours is a long time, but leaving your stove unattended is dangerous and could potentially start a fire.

    After three hours your coconut oil will no longer be clear and will have a deep green color to it.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    The next step is to separate the cannabis-infused oil from the actual cannabis. To do this, use a cheesecloth.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    A regular strainer’s holes are too big and will leave you with little bits of marijuana in your oil. Using cheesecloth on top of a strainer is the best course of action and will ensure your oil is as pure as possible.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    Next, measure out however much oil you need for your brownie recipe.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    It’s important that the coconut oil does not sit out for too long or the oil will become dense and harder to incorporate into the mix. No worries if your oil does set up. Just reheat it.

    As for eggs, almost every brownie recipe out there calls for them, but just like butter, there are some great substitutes you can use. Applesauce is a good substitute, which is what this recipe uses, but you can also use mashed-up bananas or yogurt.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    Finally, mix all of your ingredients together, pour it out into a pan and put it into the oven.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    When your brownies come out of the oven, they may look soft or even underdone, but let them rest in a cool space for 10-15 minutes and they will set. Fresh out of the oven, the coconut oil will be very apparent on the top of the brownies and make them look oily, but as they cool the oil will absorb and become denser.

    • Photo by Rachel Marty

    Again, be careful of your dosage when consuming any cannabis-infused product.

  • Stoners Bake Snacks with Scientific Hacks

    Stoners Bake Snacks with Scientific Hacks

    Finding more creative ways to use cannabis

    Edibles or cannabis-infused foods are a common way to consume marijuana. The process of making edibles, just like baking brownies, is a science. The primary psychoactive compound in marijuana is called cannabinoids. When making edibles, you infuse a fat with cannabinoids to activate the chemical.

    Mark Wilson, a Humboldt State University professor with a Ph.D. in microbiology, genetics and toxicology explained that cannabinoids are fat soluble and don’t break down in water.

    “Some substances are water soluble and some substances are fat soluble,” Wilson said. “THC is primarily composed of carbon-carbon bonds and carbon-hydrogen bonds, so it can’t interact well with water, but it can interact well with fats and oils.”

    This characteristic of THC, tetrahydrocannabinol, limits what can be turned into an edible. THC can’t steep in hot water for weed tea. Marijuana would need to be steeped in hot milk instead, where the THC would break down and bond with the milk fats.

    “Things that dissolve into our fat tend to remain in our system much longer. That is, they slowly diffuse into fat, and slowly diffuse out. The fat acts as a sort of absorption compartment. That makes it detectable in drug tests for weeks.”

    Joseph Szewczak

    Many people use butter as the main fatty ingredient in edibles. Dairy-based fats are a good option for infusing cannabinoids, but lactose-free alternatives are also solid options, including coconut and olive oil. Bacon fat can absorb cannabinoid infusions too, if you’re looking for a savory option.

    Joseph Szewczak, an HSU professor who studies and teaches comparative physiology and physiological ecology explained the physical changes to the body when people eat cannabis-infused fats rather than smoking cannabis plants.

    “Things that dissolve into our fat tend to remain in our system much longer,” Szewcxak said. “That is, they slowly diffuse into fat, and slowly diffuse out. The fat acts as a sort of absorption compartment. That makes it detectable in drug tests for weeks.”

    Whether inhaled or eaten, the THC enters the blood stream and messes with brain-cell functions in a unique way. Since THC is shaped like a chemical in the brain, the brain recognizes the chemical and allows to alter normal brain function. That chemical usually tells brain neurons to rest, but THC forces the brain to keep firing, which leads to deep thoughts, increased creativity and anxiety.

    In light of these effects, it’s important to understand what’s going to happen after eating an edible. First, since the body takes some time to digest edibles and since their THC is stored in fat, the high lasts longer. Second, the nature of THC and marijuana may lead to discomfort or anxiety, or may lead to creativity and fun, but that’s dependent on many factors.

    Co-Director of the Humboldt Institute for Interdisciplinary Marijuana Research Josh Meisel is researching the significance of set and setting, or who you’re with and where you are, and how those things impact a high.

    “People’s negative experiences may be influenced by edible use,” Meisel said. “But set and setting may be as influential or more influential than the psychoactive properties of the substance itself.”

  • The Light at the End of the Speeding Metal Death-Box

    The Light at the End of the Speeding Metal Death-Box

    The United States needs better regulations on rear car lights

    There is a frightening flaw in American car design clearly visible during every trip to the grocery store. United States auto regulation does not require brake lights to be a different color than turn signals. They should be.

    The colors and positions of rear lights may seem like a small detail, but it has deadly consequences. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, 36,560 people died in motor vehicle crashes in the United States in 2018. Given this statistic, one would hope we are doing everything possible to ensure the safety of drivers and their passengers.

    Tight and statistically informed regulations on the auto manufacturing industry are important when making something so necessary but so dangerous for the modern worker’s everyday life.

    The lights on the rear of a car are designed to do a lot of jobs, the most important of which are to indicate when the driver is braking, when they’re turning and when they’re reversing. Seeing as communication between drivers is one of the most important requirements of safe driving, these signals must be as clear as possible. A simple system designed to effectively communicate these three actions already exists.

    A three-color system makes driver intent clear. Red brake lights indicate a driver is slowing, white back-up lights indicate a driver is reversing and amber turn signals indicate a driver will be mixing up their position a bit. This is where America stumbles. Back-up lights are required to be white and brake lights must be red, but turn signals can be either amber or red. Worse, they do not have to be separate from the brake lights.

    Turn signal color and separation may seem trivial, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found in a 2008 study that cars with amber turn signals may be up to 28% less likely to be struck while maneuvering in a way that involves the turn signal.

    A 1995 study by the same agency found reaction time to brake signals decreases significantly when the braking driver possess amber turn signals. This remained true even when the braking driver wasn’t using their turn signals.

    Even using the most conservative estimates in safety increase, there is no doubt amber turn signals would save lives.

    We’ve known for at least 50 years red lights aren’t the best choice for communication. Red light can appear to be further in the distance than it really is. It is also difficult for the human eye to see differences in red light intensity. A blinking red light is less noticeable than a blinking amber light, which is something that should be taken into consideration when creating fast, metal death-boxes.

    There are more studies with similar results. The weight of the evidence for better turn signals is overwhelming. Most other countries require amber turn signals. Cars sold in the United States without amber turn signals have them in other countries. The United States and Canada stand virtually alone on this. The question is clear: why are American cars not required to have amber turn signals?

    Is it cost? It’s tempting to think this is yet another example of the auto industry cutting corners. In this case, it’s probably not. Amber turn signals are not significantly more or less expensive than red turn signals.

    Even using the most conservative estimates in safety increase, there is no doubt amber turn signals would save lives.

    It could also be aesthetics. Nothing says boring like safety. The fear of death is just part of what makes driving exciting, apparently. We want sleek, sexy cars. Our most expensive cars look angry and aggressive. They aren’t designed to pick up kids or run to the store. They are accessories or fashion statements, not tools.

    Maybe Americans just enjoy the freedom to refrain from changing simple things that would increase the quality of life for everyone around them. The rest of the world may do something in a way that’s objectively better and uses the same amount of effort, but we’re Americans and we’ll be damned if we let the United Nations tell us what to do.

    Maybe it doesn’t matter. Driving around Humboldt County, one wouldn’t know turn signals are mandated at all. If we do away with turn signals altogether, this isn’t an issue. American ingenuity triumphs again.

  • New Details for Animal Crossing: New Horizons

    New Details for Animal Crossing: New Horizons

    The hype is real for the new Animal Crossing game after their recent presentation

    The first console Animal Crossing game since 2015 is less than a month away from its March 20 release date. Nintendo just announced a list of new features for the upcoming Animal Crossing: New Horizons for the Nintendo Switch.

    Animal Crossing is a series that puts you in control of a small town filled with anthropomorphic animal villagers. In this edition, you have bought the Deserted Island package, which gives you an island to build your town on. Despite being put into debt immediately by Tom Nook, the owner of the company that you bought the package from, there is no need to pay back the loan. There is no time limit or interest—pay it back whenever.

    That’s one of the main draws of the series. There is no push to play it one way or the other. Whether you want to spend your days fishing or collecting fossils, or just decorating your home, the game will never push you. You’re free to play at your own pace and relax with the other villagers that populate your town.

    On Feb. 20, Nintendo aired Animal Crossing: New Horizons Direct. The press conference, given by Tom Nook, the series’ resident loan shark, was broken up into three parts. It gave a refresher of what had been shared before along with new developments that will appear in future updates to the game. It ended with a FAQ section.

    The main addition this iteration of the peaceful life simulator brings is customization.

    When you’re first put into the game, you’re told to choose from four different island layouts for your town and to choose your hemisphere. This will help accurately portray which seasons are happening in your town at their specific times. You’ll also be able to terraform your island so you aren’t limited to the exact layout you choose at the start for the whole game. You can add hills and create new rivers and waterfalls. The island will be truly yours.

    Another big addition is the ability to determine where villagers move in. In past games, villagers just moved in where they saw fit, even if it was on your flower bed or on top of your favorite apple tree. This time you get to map out exactly where villagers move in and shape your town around that.

    The game now allows eight people to live on your island at the same time—not just non-playable villagers, but your friends and family. The game even adds four-player co-op, where you and three friends can explore your island together on the same console.

    Later updates to the game will be for holidays. The first announced update, for Bunny Day in April, will be released the same time as the game, March 20.

  • Pigs Compost on Campus

    Pigs Compost on Campus

    A few weeks ago, two little piggies went wee-wee-wee all the way home to the Campus Center for Appropriate Technology. On-campus dining services like The J are working with CCAT by delivering their compost to feed the pig project. Instead of the food waste going to the bin, it can fill the bellies of the pigs.

    CCAT acquired the two baby kunekune pigs from Tule Fog Farm in an attempt to reduce Humboldt State’s organic carbon footprint.

    Ben Nguyen, the primary animal caretaker, farmer, project manager and a co-director of CCAT, explained that, depending on their nutrient demand, the pigs will eat as much or as little as they need in order to maintain healthy growth.

    “Usually what we pick up from The J is around 10 pounds of food a day,” Nguyen said.

    The kunekune pig is a small grazing pig that can survive on a low-calorie diet and can weigh anywhere from 150 to 400 pounds. Although different breeders may breed for a smaller size, the pigs from Tule Fog Farm average around 200 to 300 pounds, making them the ideal size for an on-campus composter.

    The pigs will probably be on campus at CCAT eating food waste for the next semester unless someone wishes to keep the project going through the summer and so-on, since Nguyen will be graduating in May.

    Some students are against keeping the pigs and are seeking to purchase the pigs and send them to a sanctuary. But for now, after the completion of the project, the pigs are arranged to be returned back to Tule Fog Farm.

    Before they were adopted by CCAT, Shail Pec-Crouse, Tule Fog Farm owner and farmer, introduced the pigs to a diverse diet. Tule Fog Farm pigs ate compost as a nutritious supplement to their natural grazing diet of fresh grass.

    “We take kitchen waste from a couple of local restaurants like Slice of Humboldt Pie and Los Bagels,” Pec-Crouse said.

    Pigs are omnivores and need a diverse diet consisting of grains, fats, protein and greens. This diverse diet makes them an excellent option for getting rid of food waste or any organic waste in general.

    According to Oxymem, a DuPont brand, when food waste is thrown in the trash and decays unnaturally among plastic and other non-biodegradable things in landfills, a toxic liquid called leachate is produced, which has a high ammonia concentration that isn’t easily biodegraded. Compost solves this problem by keeping biodegradable materials out of landfills so that it can continue its life cycle and be returned to the ground naturally.

    Robert Just, a local livestock veterinarian, described the relationship between human trash and pig diets as an evolutionary interaction. He explained that since humans and pigs have lived symbiotically for so long, their gut biomes may have adjusted to eating our over-ripe food waste.

    Pigs have digestive tracts that are unique to livestock animals, but are similar to the human gut. They have one simple stomach, just like people. Pigs are omnivores and need a diverse diet consisting of grains, fats, protein and greens. This diverse diet makes them an excellent option for getting rid of food waste or any organic waste in general.

    “Pigs aren’t indestructible though,” Just said. “And they are still susceptible to illness from molds and some fungus, but this can be easily avoided by cooking the food into a slop.”

    This project is one more step towards increasing sustainability on campus and problem-solving to reduce food waste.

  • Students Suffer from Frequent Bike Thefts

    Students Suffer from Frequent Bike Thefts

    Humboldt State University police say a student on campus gets their bike stolen every day

    Many Humboldt State University students have their bikes disappear from where they left them. Either a front wheel attached to a bike rack with the lock around it or a frame without a back wheel remain. Some thieves can even take the whole bike by using bolt cutters to cut the bike lock. Bikes are expensive, and having them stolen is a real cost to a student.

    Kaitlin McKie, a 23-year-old student at HSU majoring in engineering, lives off-campus. Her partner’s bike was stolen at their apartment complex. She said bike theft has been going on for a while.

    “Use U-locks instead of the cable locks,” McKie said. “They’re a little bit heavier—a little bit harder to put on the bike rack—but it’s definitely worth the investment.”

    Bike thieves can dismantle newer bikes from the front and back tires by lifting a lever on the wheel and unscrewing it, which releases the wheel from the frame. This makes it easy to remove the frame from the front tire or remove the back wheel. This technique is manufactured for bike owners to easily break them down to create a more convenient way to travel.

    University Police Department Sergeant John Packer said a student’s bike is stolen on campus every day.

    Jack McLaughlin, a freshman chemistry major at HSU, said three of his friends had their bikes stolen this semester on campus.

    “Never leave your bike for a minute,” McLaughlin said. “Always keep your eyes on your bike. If you can, bring it into the classroom with you. If you’re leaving it somewhere overnight, bring it inside with you.”

    University Police Department Sergeant John Packer said a student’s bike is stolen on campus every day. While it’s hard to stop these crimes from happening, there are ways to prevent it.

    Packer suggested you register your bike at the police station. This allows officers to match your serial number to a newly confiscated bike to return to you if it is stolen.

    Police officers can find your bike at a pawn shop by matching the serial number to the numbers that the pawn shop will register in their system. Pawn shops can even give police officers copied images of the seller’s ID, which police can use when investigating the crime.

    “Ride your bike every day,” Packer said. “If you’re doing that, you know where it is, you’re locking it up, you’re moving it around from point A to point B. It will be with you at that point in time.”

    Packer also suggested investing in a Kryptonite bike lock. These bike locks are well known for being tough, reliable and hard to cut. If you don’t want to buy one a Kryptonite lock, Packer said a simple, thick chain with a lock can do the trick.

  • Dream Season for Corsairs Continues

    Dream Season for Corsairs Continues

    College of the Redwoods men’s basketball team charges into the playoffs

    With a 75-56 win over Sacramento City College Feb. 27, the College of the Redwoods men’s basketball team advanced to the second round of the California Community College Athletic Association state playoffs. The win put the Corsairs at 22-5 on the season, a complete turnaround from last year’s 0-26 record.

    First-year Head Coach Ryan Bisio set a plan into motion to turn the program around far before he got the job with the Corsairs. The plan was simple: build a team with high-quality local talent to showcase to the community. The plan worked immediately.

    The Corsairs are all graduates from local high schools like Fortuna, Arcata and McKinleyville, with the team composed of all freshman except for two sophomores.

    “I’ve known these kids for years,” Bisio said. “Last year I didn’t coach, so I got to watch all of them in high school and was able to build personal relationships with them. The unity was powerful and it made entrusting this young team easy.”

    This local talent dominated the Golden Valley Conference as the Corsairs, led by Arcata alumnus and conference MVP Thomas Nelson, were crowned champions.

    “Whenever we needed a bucket throughout the year we would go to Thomas,” Bisio said. “He scores in spurts from all three levels. The way he scores devastates our opponents and our team feeds off of him.”

    Nelson, who is in his sophomore year, has been one of the best players in the CCCAA this year, as he was named first-team All-State as well. He averaged 20 points and eight rebounds per game this year, and he scored over 25 in eight games.

    “I wanted to win conference just like in high school, and I knew I could have success. But I didn’t know I would be All-State in the process. I didn’t even know they had All-State teams in junior college until I made the first team.”

    Thomas Nelson

    “The coaching staff has your back in every situation and I have great teammates,” Nelson said. “It’s day and night from last year. We communicate and connect at a very high level and we work very well together.”

    The Arcata High School graduate had high season goals this year, and winning a conference championship was one of them.

    “I wanted to win conference just like in high school, and I knew I could have success,” Nelson said. “But I didn’t know I would be All-State in the process. I didn’t even know they had All-State teams in junior college until I made the first team.”

    With Nelson leading the way, the Corsairs had a multitude of successes this year. Four other players were honored, with Drew Gillette, Zac Claus and Donald Willis making first-team honors and Bradley Willis earning an honorable mention.

    Gillette chipped in 17 points while shooting 41% from the arc. Freshman marksman Isaac Puzz added 9 points while shooting a team high 44% from the three.

    While Puzz and Gillette were lighting it up from behind the arc, Claus took the role of primary ball handler with an average of 10 points, six assists and five rebounds per game.

    The Willis twins were the all-around guys. They combined for 22 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists per game while leading the Corsairs defensively in steals and charges taken.

    Coach Bisio’s plan has come into fruition as CR is currently ranked 16 in the state and has advanced in the CCCAA Northern California state playoffs. With playoffs intensifying the competition, Bisio knows his team must play their best game now.

    “We need to tighten up on defense,” Bisio said. “We’re going to see some good teams in the playoffs so we need to have a high sense of urgency. We’ve been playing good so we have to do what we’ve been doing—just can’t get complacent.”

    The Corsairs defeated Sacramento City in the first round of the playoffs, but the road only gets rougher. College of the Redwoods will be traveling to play against the nation’s number one ranked team, San Francisco City College. Dubbed huge underdogs, the Corsairs have a huge challenge at hand, but with the success they’ve had this year, nothing looks impossible.

    You can livestream the game through the CR men’s basketball Facebook page or the CCCAA Network on YouTube. The game will start at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 7.

  • Navigating the Pressures of the First-Generation Student Experience

    Navigating the Pressures of the First-Generation Student Experience

    First-generation students must look outside family for support

    Usually, students talk with parents, siblings or friends who have attended college in the past to gather information and paint a picture about college classes, professors and the overall college experience. For first-generation students like myself, that’s not an option.

    Being a first-generation student means you are the first person in your family to go to college. Your family members have no prior knowledge about college, the application and selection process, or what’s going to happen in the months prior to attending.

    First-generation students feel the pressure of learning to balance living on your own, being successful in college and working a job all at the same time. For Destiny Aguilera, a second-year theatre major, the help they needed was provided by a high school instructor.

    College is a time of self discovery.

    “My greatest struggle has definitely been finding myself,” Aguilera said. “College is a time for learning, experimenting and growing as a person. As a first-generation student, it is also a time to work multiple jobs and try to support oneself as best as possible, with as little help from family as they can provide.”

    The pressure to be successful and independent to avoid burdening parents financially heightens the expectations of the college experience.

    “Having that pressure of taking care of oneself added to the mix makes it difficult to take time to breathe and learn more about who I am and who I want to be,” Aguilera said. “That being said, it’s not impossible. Just within recent months I’ve been able to discover that I identify as nonbinary and use they/them pronouns. I have college and allies to thank for that.”

    College is a time of self discovery.

    Natyvidad Landeros, a third-year biology major, got help with applying to colleges through a high school class created to help students prepare for college.

    “I took it junior and senior year,” Landeros said. “They helped me with the process of applying. If it wasn’t for them I don’t know if I would have got into college.”

    Javier Hernandez, a political science major at HSU, also prioritized resources outside his family to pick the school that fit his needs.

    “I joined these college programs which helped other first-generation students like me to guide me through the process,” Hernandez said. “To take me to other college campuses and learn about the recruitment process and all the details that I needed to know applying to colleges.”

    College is a time of change and immense amount of pressure. This pre-college experience is only heightened for first-generation students who have to navigate blindly and on their own. High school classes or staff, friends and independent interests can be helpful guides.

  • Chico State Steals the Jacks’ Spotlight

    Chico State Steals the Jacks’ Spotlight

    Wildcats win, but the Jacks put on a good game

    The Humboldt State University men’s basketball lost Feb. 27 against the Chico State University Wildcats, 86-57.

    Thursday’s home game wasn’t just another game for the Jacks. It was the last game of the season and senior night. The game was a special night for the team’s seniors, Leland Green, Rob Lewis, Victor Mijas, Jackson Strong, Deion Alston and Zachariah Christian.

    “It’s a huge event really, with senior night being number one, our last game of the season, two, and a rivalry game,” Head Coach Steve Kinder said. “It brings a whole different level and a lot of dynamics. There’s a lot of storylines from every player on the team to every coach on the team. As a coach, to see all that in front of you and put that together and experience a night whether we win or lose—it’s special.”

    The Wildcats took the lead 8-0 in the first two minutes, but the Jacks were quick to score some points. A three by Jackson Strong and two free throws by Noah Viera left the score at 12-11 with 13 minutes left in the first half. The Wildcats were quick to outscore the Jacks, ending the first half at 49-27.

    With only 18 minutes left in the second half, the Jacks showed some senior teamwork. Christian passed the ball to Strong, who then passed the ball back to Christian. Christian passed to Alston, who made two points in the green.

    “The relationships I’ve built with last year’s team and this year’s team—it’s been great. The family and the team, the coaches—that’s what it is. It’s just a family and I’ve had such a good time.”

    Jackson Strong

    Throughout the game, Alston stepped up and led the scoring. Kinder was proud of him and said he told the assistant coaches they should’ve played him more throughout the season.

    “He played with a lot of fire and he played aggressive,” Kinder said. “He did a really nice job.”

    Alston had a season high of 13 points, while Strong put up 11. Viera scored a season high of 10 points off the bench and Lewis scored 8.

    With three makes from beyond the arc, Strong finished his career with the Jacks after playing for the team for two years. With 173, Strong placed fourth on HSU’s all-time career list in three-point field goals made. His 84 three-pointers is third on the Jack’s single-season list. He made 89 last season, which is second all-time.

    Kinder said he wished Strong had played for the Jacks all four years.

    “The relationships I’ve built with last year’s team and this year’s team—it’s been great,” Strong said. “The family and the team, the coaches—that’s what it is. It’s just a family and I’ve had such a good time.”

    Strong said after he graduates he plans to continue playing basketball—hopefully overseas—to try to play the game he loves for as long as he can.

  • HSU Jacks Swept by SSU Seawolves

    HSU Jacks Swept by SSU Seawolves

    Humboldt State softball team takes loss in two double-headers against Sonoma State University

    Humboldt State University’s softball team went 0-2 back-to-back in double-headers to the Seawolves of Sonoma State University, bringing their record to 4-15 overall and 3-13 in CCAA competition.

    Pitching and defense were the downfall of the Jacks as they gave up 39 runs and committed eight errors over the weekend series by scores of 12-3, 10-2, 12-3 and 15-12 against the Seawolves. The Jacks continued to fight the whole weekend, but weren’t able to match the Seawolves.

    Head Coach Shelli Sarchett emphasized these woes that plagued the Jacks over the weekend. She also saw the fight her team continued to show as well as players who played well despite the outcome.

    “They don’t let their heads down and lay over. Things just aren’t working our way right now,” Sarchett said. “We know our pitching struggles, but today it was our defense making too many mental mistakes. You’re going to have physical mistakes from time to time, but when you have too many mental mistakes that really gets you.”

    Sarchett emphasized the need of her team to score first and get some momentum going.

    “Whether we’re having a down or up season, attacking and getting on the board first creates momentum, and this is a big game when it comes to momentum and getting it on our side,” Sarchett said. “We’re coming out and putting runners on base, but weren’t capitalizing. We have to start setting the tone and things will start going our way.”

    The Jacks struggled to find runs in the first three games of the series, but the bats came alive for them in the fourth and final game of the series as they scored 12 runs.

    Juniors Haley Suter and Danica Grier combined for nine RBIs and three home runs. Suter brought in four by way of a grand slam and Grier added five more with two home runs respectively.

    Grier said she saw fight in the team. Even in a loss, she said they have some momentum leading into their next set of games.

    Grier said she needed to keep things simple and explained what she saw during her two home runs.

    “I had been struggling for the most part of the weekend so I kept thinking, ‘Keep things simple,’ and I saw one coming my first at-bat, swung hard and hit it out,” Grier said. “I went up my next at-bat, saw the same pitch, swung hard again and it went out.”

    Grier said she saw fight in the team. Even in a loss, she said they have some momentum leading into their next set of games.

    “We’re always battling and we’re always coming back, so our mental state as a team is strong,” Grier said. “We know that we can be great. We saw today that we can score. We just have to continue to fight. We’ll have a tough week of practice and fix what we need to get ready for next week.”

    The Jacks will look to turn their fortunes around next weekend as they travel down to Hayward to take on California State University, East Bay in two double headers on March 6 and 7.

  • Ross Discusses Evolution of Racism in College

    Ross Discusses Evolution of Racism in College

    Bestselling author Lawrence Ross calls for more than just black best friends

    The two-hour lecture started with Lawrence Ross giving his own rendition of a song centered on the N-word, originally sung by two University of Oklahoma students on a bus in 2015. The song served as an example for the hundreds of activities at universities that continue to perpetuate racism.

    Ross has visited several college campuses to give his lecture on campus racism and how it takes different forms. His book, “Blackballed: The Black and White Politics of Race on America’s Campuses,” is meant to address the history of racism at colleges in the United States and to educate its readers on how to best combat it.

    Ross’s book was published in 2015, when incidents of hate crimes, vandalism and enforcement of outdated values in educational institutions began rising in alarming numbers. The most infamous instance in recent years was when nooses were found in trees on the American University campus in Washington D.C. and racial slurs were found written on a dormitory door at Cabrini University.

    Ross centered his discussion on stories of blackface, nooses placed in trees and songs prominently featuring the derogatory N-word, which helped convey how widespread a problem it’s become.

    In research for his book, Ross identified the lack of proactivity on the part of college administrations as one of the ways campuses are complicit in racism.

    “Campus racism incidents are happening on a regular base. For colleges and universities before you can be healthy, the first step is to recognize that you’re sick.”

    Lawrence Ross

    “A lot of the time, it’s the institution not knowing what to do,” Ross said in an exclusive interview with The Lumberjack. “So the easiest thing to do is to deal with the PR slam, wait for the four-year cohort of students to leave and then it’ll be alright. And then you’ll have another four years, do the same thing and something else will erupt.”

    One of the major points in Ross’s lecture is how racism on college campuses isn’t limited to any specific areas of the country or to any parts of a school year. It happens everywhere.

    “Campus racism incidents are happening on a regular base,” Ross said. “For colleges and universities before you can be healthy, the first step is to recognize that you’re sick.”

    Ross explained how schools are more likely to try to minimize racist incidents and avoid bad press than they are to directly acknowledge its existence. As Ross pointed out, this procedure leads students to believe that their concerns aren’t heard and aren’t recognized. This manifests into praying for change without acting and trying to individualize systemic problems.

    Ross placed responsibility on college administration to think critically about race relations and to communicate with students to achieve progress in cultivating an environment of discussion.

    “Come onto campus and recognize everyone,” Ross said. “Then be able to think beyond your own sense of who you are. Pray on it, but at the same time, work on it.”

    In the last five years since the book was published, Ross said over 300 campus protests against racism have occurred in the U.S. Ross believes this goes beyond exercising free speech and serves as proof that students expressing racist views do not face repercussions.

  • Sanders Wins California Primary

    Sanders Wins California Primary

    Sanders takes over 40 percent of Humboldt vote

    Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders won the California primary. With more than 400 delegates up for grabs, Sanders consistently polled higher for California Democrats leading up to the primary. Sanders’ progressive platform drew a coalition of voters and strong support from unions across the country.

    Tuesday night marked the biggest event in the primary season. Fourteen states plus American Samoa held primaries Tuesday, with 1,357 delegates to be allocated. That is just over a third of the delegate total needed to win the Democratic nomination.

    Humboldt County overwhelmingly voted for Sanders. Part of California’s second congressional district, Humboldt voters choose six delegates to send to the Democratic National Convention in July. Tuesday night reports around 9:30 p.m. showed Sanders leading Humboldt with 42.4% of the vote, followed by Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren with 14.5%.

    Sanders led California overall with 28.7% of the vote. Michael Bloomberg was second with 18.8%. Biden was third at 17.2%.

    Biden had a surprising surge in support in other states. Biden is running as a moderate, citing the need to beat President Donald Trump in the general election. Though Sanders draws support from demographics with generally low-voter turnout, Biden’s campaign claims a candidate running too far to the left will discourage many potential Democratic voters from showing up in November.

    “I believe that Sanders is still going to be the delegate leader. And he has the enthusiastic base needed to beat Trump.”

    Billy Cook

    This boost in support may be a result of the recent dropouts of Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar. Both candidates were running moderate campaigns similar to Biden’s. Sanders had been accumulating significant momentum in the early primary states. Before Tuesday, many viewed Biden’s campaign as an insignificant challenge to Sanders’ campaign.

    One of Humboldt County for Bernie 2020’s lead organizers, Billy Cook, remained hopeful that Sanders will win the nomination.

    “I believe that Sanders is still going to be the delegate leader,” Cook said. “And he has the enthusiastic base needed to beat Trump.”

    Since 2016, Sanders has drawn support around his long-standing progressive platform. His main campaign points are Medicare for All and the Green New Deal. Many Humboldt residents cited these policies as the main draw to support Sanders.

    Sanders supporters in Humboldt County have been hard at work campaigning to get residents to vote for Sanders. They have regularly sent crews to canvass Arcata, Eureka, McKinleyville and Blue Lake. One of their strategies is to reach out to voters face-to-face. A few members of the group have also set up tables with voting and candidate information in pedestrian areas around Humboldt as well.

    Another organizer for Sanders-supporters in Humboldt, Evan T. Nixon, said Super Tuesday made the race more complicated. Nixon said that the strategy for organizers in Humboldt is going to change. Their focus will shift to states that have not yet voted in the primary, like Oregon and Arizona.

    “We need,” Nixon said, “to just hit the phones.”

  • The Lumberjack in Print: March 4, 2020

    The Lumberjack in Print: March 4, 2020

    The sixth issue of The Lumberjack for the spring 2020 semester

  • Biden’s Recent Slip-up is Not His First

    Biden’s Recent Slip-up is Not His First

    The South Carolina gaffe is only his most recent in a series of slip-ups

    In a speech given in South Carolina Feb. 24, Joe Biden asked for support in his campaign—but he may have forgotten what exactly he was campaigning for.

    “My name is Joe Biden, I’m a Democratic candidate for the United States Senate,” Biden said, a Democratic candidate for the United States presidency.

    This, however, was not the first time that Biden has slipped-up on the campaign trail. During the Nov. 20 Democratic debate in Atlanta, Georgia, The Guardian reported Biden said he was supported by the only African American woman to be elected to the Senate, Carol Moseley Braun.

    “We have this notion that if you’re poor, you cannot do it. Poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids.”

    Joe Biden

    Senator Kamala Harris, who was on stage with him, had to chime in and remind him she was also an African American woman elected to the Senate.

    One of his most glaring slip-ups was during a town hall meeting in Iowa hosted by the Asian and Latino Coalition. According to a New York Times article, Biden was talking about education and challenging students.

    “We should challenge students in these schools to have advanced placement programs in these schools,” Biden said. “We have this notion that if you’re poor, you cannot do it. Poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids.”

    He did attempt to amend his statement when he continued.

    “Wealthy kids, black kids, Asian kids, no, I really mean it,” Biden said.

    This isn’t the only gaffe that puts into question his views on race. On June 18, 2019, during a fundraiser event in New York, Biden recounted his time in the Senate in the 70s. Specifically, working with Mississippi Senator James Eastland and Georgia Senator Herman Talmadge, two senators who opposed civil rights and desegregation, according to CNN. He was comparing the Senate from that period to the Senate today.

    The big question regarding this most recent slip-up is whether or not it will affect his poll numbers that currently have him sitting in second place behind Bernie Sanders.

    “At least there was some civility. We got things done. We didn’t agree on much of anything. We got things done. We got it finished,” Biden said. “But today, you look at the other side and you’re the enemy. Not the opposition, the enemy. We don’t talk to each other anymore.”

    Kamala Harris spoke out again against Biden.

    “To coddle the reputations of segregationists, of people who, if they had their way, I would literally not be standing here as a member of the United States Senate, is, I think it’s just, it’s misinformed,” Harris said.

    Even before this election cycle, Biden has made questionable remarks regarding race. According to an article by CNN, when he started his 2008 presidential race, he referred to Barack Obama in a way that drew scrutiny from many people.

    “I mean, you got the first mainstream African American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,” Biden said during an interview with the New York Observer.

    The big question regarding this most recent slip-up is whether or not it will affect his poll numbers that currently have him sitting in second place behind Bernie Sanders.

  • Final Fantasy Music Rendition Fills Fulkerson

    Final Fantasy Music Rendition Fills Fulkerson

    Pianist Ryan McGaughey performs fan-favorite tunes from Final Fantasy VII

    In the intimate waiting area of Fulkerson Recital Hall, long-time fans of the Final Fantasy games and their parents or children milled around Feb. 21 waiting to hear piano renditions of the iconic music of “Final Fantasy VII” performed by pianist Ryan McGaughey. The game’s original music was written by Nobuo Uematsu, but the particular arrangements for piano were written by Shiro Hamaguchi.

    Mark Castro, an archaeologist for the Cultural Research Center at Humboldt State University, made a habit of attending orchestral concerts at Sonoma State University while he was working on his master’s degree. Castro said he hadn’t played Final Fantasy VII since high school, but he was excited to go to the concert and reminisce on forgotten songs.

    “Those are always the ones I gravitate towards,” Castro said. “The ones with a story.”

    Ushers collected raffle tickets for a giveaway of the new Final Fantasy VII remake set to come out in April. As everyone found their seats, the lights dimmed and silence fell upon the room like a blanket.

    “It’s like watching a really good film or reading a really good book, but you’re actually able to interact in it.”

    Ryan McGaughey

    McGaughey took the stage and dove into the familiar runs of “Prelude,” a song that begins almost every Final Fantasy game. A projector screen beside his piano ran through a compilation of footage from the Final Fantasy games as well as the 2005 animated movie.

    The projector depicted a depressing, industrialized world with pollution and machinery as the piano fluttered along with the hopeful brightness of “Prelude.” “Main Theme” was a more intense, swelling piece accented by intense battle sequences between vigilantes and armed guards of this alternative future city.

    In between songs, McGaughey took to the microphone with a charming, slight stutter, thanking everyone for coming out to see him perform. Using an online survey he created and his own powerpoint slides, he had audience members participate in a contest that mirrored the game’s turn-based combat system.

    McGaughey brought the event to a close with a fan-favorite, “One Winged Angel,” a song accompanied by a battle with the main antagonist played at the end of Final Fantasy VII. It is a technical, epic and anxiety-inducing battle march with twinkling runs interspersed throughout.

    In an exclusive interview with The Lumberjack, McGaughey talked about why he enjoys playing video games and their music.

    “It’s like watching a really good film or reading a really good book, but you’re actually able to interact in it,” McGaughey said.

    Before he left the stage, McGaughey picked out a winner of the raffle for the Final Fantasy VII remake.

    Psalms Palmer, a music major at HSU and longtime fan of the Final Fantasy games, won. She remembered loving the music from the moment she heard it. Throughout the performance, Palmer reflected on playing the game with her sisters when she was a kid.

    “If you can tell the story through music,” Palmer said, “you don’t have to do anything else.”

  • My Hair is Not a Dress Code Violation

    My Hair is Not a Dress Code Violation

    Natural hairstyles are often shunned, but these hairstyles keep hair healthy while representing cultures

    “You would look so pretty if you straightened your hair,” is something I heard a lot growing up. So much so that for two years I straightened my hair everyday. It took three years of haircuts and deep conditioning treatments to get my hair back to normal.

    That comment along with others like, “Your hair gets in the way,” seem small but take a toll on an individual’s self esteem. A lot of care goes into textured hair. Someone tearing it down hurts.

    “It’s discouraging to know that there are not a lot of people that like or can handle your hair,” Humboldt State University student Dimitri Mark said.

    There are still some schools in the United States that ban natural hairstyles such as braids or dreadlocks because they violate dress codes. I’m not sure how they violate dress codes—these hairstyles keep your hair back and can even keep your hair healthy.

    In 2018, a video surfaced on the internet of a 16-year-old boy crying as his dreadlocks were cut off for him to participate in his wrestling match—it was either that or forfeit.

    Hair comes in many different textures, lengths and colors, and should always be taken care of and accepted. Hair doesn’t get in the way. Get over it and stop trying to pick on people of color.

    Girls have also been suspended, sent home or given detention in Boston, Atlanta and Terrytown, Louisiana for their hairstyles.

    At the 2015 Oscars, Zendaya sported dreadlocks to go with her hairstyle. Giuliana Rancic, a host on “Fashion Police,” wasn’t a fan of Zendaya’s locks, which she said smelled “like patchouli oil and weed.” This comment almost led to the end of Rancic’s career. Rancic’s prejudiced words hurt, and they caused a riot against her.

    The reason natural hairstyles such as big curly hair, afros, dreadlocks, braids and twists are a problem is because they’re considered dirty. Things like accents are considered dirty too, unless they’re coming from a blue-eyed, white boy. Many places in Africa, Italy, and Greece once considered braids to be a sign of wealth. Braid-making hairdressers were worshiped and highly trusted.

    It’s understandable why schools have certain dress codes, but hair shouldn’t be part of them. If a school said I had to have my hair in a ponytail everyday, I’d probably fight it everyday and then get kicked out. Hair comes in many different textures, lengths and colors, and should always be taken care of and accepted. Hair doesn’t get in the way. Get over it and stop trying to pick on people of color.

  • We Still Need to Talk About Consent

    We Still Need to Talk About Consent

    Consent is crucial, but some just don’t get it

    Sexuality, sex awareness and sex etiquette are constantly in the spotlight, and yet, we still need to talk about consent.

    Humboldt State University recently experienced a disruption in its supposed safe space when allegations arose against a faculty member by a student. The investigation into that case is ongoing. Unfortunately, violations against consent aren’t limited to our own campus.

    Convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein’s case reveals consent still isn’t understood in the modern world. Weinstein was convicted of taking advantage of and sexually assaulting multiple women.

    Regardless of the circumstance, consent is crucial.

    Consent isn’t complex, but its idea continues to perplex those who fail to understand its simplicity. Yes means yes, and nothing else qualifies as a confirmation unless a yes is explicitly given.

    Affirmative consent needs to be practiced, not just by sexually active people, but by all people, whether or not it pertains to sexual activity. The ability to revoke consent also needs to be understood.

    Consent is far from a one-and-done response. It can be withdrawn at any moment.

    Even in professions where one uses their body for monetary gain, the right to revoke consent at any time remains. The refusal to take further action is linked to the right to control one’s body without interference from another.

    Everyone is born with this right. This universal entitlement to ownership of one’s body transcends all differences between individuals. All communities are entitled to their own bodies and to define consent in their own ways.

    In cases where verbal consent isn’t an option, written consent can suffice. Those in deaf and nonverbal communities can look to signing or reading a partner’s physical signals to help prevent confusion and facilitate mutual, nonverbal consent.

    It’s important to remember proper sex etiquette at all times. The following examples illustrate the ways in which consent is given and revoked:

    • Always ask your sexual partner if they’re ready and willing to engage in a sex act, without coercion.
    • You should cease sexual activities when someone says “Stop” or any other iteration of “No.” Expressing discomfort with an act is also a sign of hesitation, and should be considered before proceeding.
    • Anyone can withdraw consent at any time, even when a sex act is underway.
    • You should only engage in sex when all parties involved are in a coherent headspace, without the involvement of drugs and alcohol.
    • Body language doesn’t indicate consent to an act. Sexual arousal isn’t confirmation.
    • Do not use your position of power to persuade someone into any type of sex act. Professors, bosses, managers and even counselors have a responsibility to conduct themselves professionally, without sexual desires or encounters.

    Regardless of the circumstance, consent is crucial. You can never be too presumptive when asking about someone’s comfort, and you can never be too cautious when verifying consent.

  • Ask Evergreen: Respectful Rejector

    Ask Evergreen: Respectful Rejector

    Ask Evergreen is a weekly advice column by the students of The Lumberjack

    Dear Evergreen,

    How do I learn to say no?

    Dear Respectful Rejector,

    Sometimes it’s hard to say no for fear of disappointing someone or seeming incapable of accomplishing a task. But saying no is a healthy way to protect yourself from unwanted stress. There are a few ways you can retrain yourself to accept the art of rejecting.

    You shouldn’t feel ashamed to say no, no matter the question. You don’t have to please everyone, so don’t worry about letting someone down. You aren’t being selfish by declining a request. You’re being self-considerate.

    Have a solid reason for why you can’t agree to do something. We all experience apathy from time to time, but don’t let laziness be the cop-out for stepping away from an activity. Maybe you’ve spread yourself too thin and just need a chance to collect your thoughts. Remember to not overbook yourself by agreeing to things before recognizing the reality of your limited time and energy.

    It’s important to set boundaries when it comes to limiting your willingness to participate in activities you’d rather not do or don’t have the time for. Express your discomfort at a request. Maybe you don’t feel safe doing a task, or the person asking for assistance doesn’t truly appreciate you for your work. It’s okay to put yourself first.

    Don’t let people take advantage of you for favors, and don’t let people continue to do so just because you’ve agreed upon things in the past. Be kind and assertive with your decline, and make sure they understand how they’re making you feel obligated.

    Always remember you have the power to say yes or no to whatever you choose. Anyone who undermines your decisions or tries to convince you otherwise is a manipulative force who shouldn’t be allowed to deviate your conclusions.

    No, you can!

    Sincerely,

    Evergreen

    If you have any questions you’d like to send in, email us at contactthejack@gmail.com. We won’t publish any names and you don’t need to use one.

  • Polish Professor Melds Magic and Music

    Polish Professor Melds Magic and Music

    A dream of illusions and piano prowess with Igor Lapinski

    I know a little about magic. And by the end of Polish pianist and magician Igor Lapinski’s Feb. 22 show, I knew I had witnessed something good.

    “Your free will,” Lapinski said in an almost-cliché line that sounded much more convincing with his Polish accent and navy suit, “is just an illusion. A dream.”

    He then pulled a signed dollar bill out of an unopened kiwi.

    Lapinski interlaced illusions with piano pieces by Frédéric François Chopin, the Polish composer. Lapinski, originally from Poland, teaches as an assistant music professor at the University of Oklahoma.

    “He’s going to do something I think we haven’t seen in Humboldt,” music Professor Daniela Mineva and former teacher of Lapinski said before he took the stage. “I’ve been waiting 18 years to bring him here.”

    Hands, he said, are capable of both the sublime and the violent.

    The crowd of mostly older locals sat in a semicircle on the Fulkerson Recital Hall stage around Lapinski and his piano. Rather than have the crowd sit in the hall seats, Lapinski had chairs arranged around him for an intimate experience.

    Lapinski fluctuated between musical pieces of chaos and pieces of order. He rapped on “a haunting desire to belong.” In a three card monte-style routine with red solo cups and a single metal spike, he noted the opposing potentials within people.

    Hands, he said, are capable of both the sublime and the violent.

    He then shrugged off the thought and smashed his and an audience member’s hands down onto the cups in a game of Russian roulette.

    Multiple effects relied on the appearance and disappearance of letters—mostly written by Lapinski, with one supposedly written by his mother. The letters framed the performance in the idea of belonging, as Lapinski brought the audience along on an imaginary plane ride and read letters from home.

    I have to confess, because I know a bit about magic, I’m not a good judge of it. I spent about two of my teenage years learning magic tricks. I know the basics, and I can recognize standard sleight-of-hand moves.

    I’m no longer what magicians call a layperson. Even when I don’t know exactly how a trick is performed, it’s conceivable. It’s rare for me to see something inexplicable. But it does happen.

    • Piano-playing magician Igor Lapinski performing his routine in the Fulkerson Recital Hall at Humboldt State University Feb. 22. Lapinski combined sporadic piano playing with audience-involved illusions. | Photo by James Wilde

    Any attendee of Lapinski’s show can expect to exit with a smile on their face, or at least, a warm feeling in their mind. I can deduce how Lapinski performed his effects—but several of them I can only grasp loosely. For a layperson, his performance may be miraculous, not just puzzling.

    Magicians ultimately seek to produce miracles. The central argument of “Designing Miracles,” a well-regarded book by magician Darwin Ortiz, is that a magician should seek to produce an effect that doesn’t make the audience ask, “How do they do it?” Instead, the goal is, “How is that possible?”

    It’s slight, but this marks the difference between a trick and a miracle. A trick is a matter of deception that can be explained by a magician’s actions. A miracle is just that: pure magic that a magician merely facilitated. In the ideal, the performance transcends trickery and becomes magic.

    In the moments after Lapinski’s show, the audience agreed on his excellence.

    “He’s totally amazing,” a woman behind me said.

    “He’s a delight,” Mineva, the professor, said.

    “He’s hilarious,” a man beside me said. “He’s great.”

    At the very least, you can escape into a dream for just over 60 minutes. Lapinski finished with one last letter and one last piece by Chopin.

    “And so with this piece,” he said, “I wish you all a good night.”

    The night, indeed, was good.

  • Chico State Softball Dominates Doubleheader vs. Jacks

    Chico State Softball Dominates Doubleheader vs. Jacks

    Chico State softball lived up to the hype in daytime doubleheader

    The Chico State Wildcats got their game going right away in the second inning when, after loading the bases and scoring two runs, third baseman Drew Rodriguez hit a bases-clearing double. The momentum shifted to Chico State in that moment, and they didn’t look back for rest of the day, culminating in back-to-back losses.

    Head Coach Shelli Sarchett reflected on her team’s performance.

    “Our team is too good to be playing the way we’re playing,” Sarchett said. “We’ve got to figure something out. We’ve got to turn it around right now. We have our moments of brightness, but they’re overshadowed by the moments of darkness.”

    Sarchett said their pitching has been struggling and it needs to get better if the team wants to compete.

    In the third inning of the first game, Chico pitcher Brooke Larsen clobbered a two-run home run to left field. The Wildcats followed this up with an onslaught of additional offense.

    Following five straight runners scoring, Rodriguez hit another bases-clearing double in the fourth inning. This felt like the exclamation mark on the game. The mercy rule came into mind as things were falling apart fast.

    Fast forward to the fifth inning Chico had a 17-0 lead. The Jacks didn’t get shut out, though, and managed to squeeze out a run when shortstop Adriana Chavez reached first on an error by Chico shortstop Kristin Worley, and third baseman Izzy Starr scored on an unearned run.

    • Sophomore shortstop Adriana Chavez makes a play during the Jacks game against Chico State on Feb. 22 at HSU Softball Field | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • Junior second baseman Danica Grier slides into third during the second game of a double header against Chico State at HSU Softball Field on Feb. 22 in a game where the Jacks stole 5 bases. | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • Humboldt State outfielder Lauren Lipe runs into to make a catch off of a pop fly during the Jacks game against Chico State on Feb. 22 at HSU Softball Field. | Photo by Thomas Lal

    Unfortunately, the Jacks also ran themselves into an out on the very same play as right fielder Mariah Kalamaras was tagged out at third base to end the game.

    Jacci Crowe notched the only hit for the Jacks.

    The first game was one to forget, but the second game, while also a loss, was more engaging.

    Again, Chico scored first. But rather than fall flat, the Jacks managed to tie the game in their half of the first on a RBI bunt single by junior Danica Grier that scored catcher Micaela Harris.

    Pitcher Lexee Sheiring was a workhorse in the second game, going almost six innings in relief of starting pitcher Megan Escobar, who got tagged with five earned runs early on.

    “I think I just had to take a minute, regroup,” Sheiring said. “Then go out there and really dig through it and be there for my team and show up.”

    After trading runs in the following few innings, Chico blew the game wide open in the seventh when shortstop Karter Williams drove in two with a single and right fielder Amanda Metzger brought in Williams on a two run bomb to right.

    In their last half of the seventh inning, the Jacks put up a fight when Grier drove in Harris and Starr, and first baseman Anna Brondos followed with an RBI single of their own to bring their team within striking distance. But like the first game, Chico pulled out a victory and swept Saturday’s doubleheader.

  • Filling in the Fossil Record with Fungi

    Filling in the Fossil Record with Fungi

    Madison Lalica cracks open 400-million-year-old fossils

    Madison Lalica is a junior botany major researching ancient fungi in fossilized plants over 400 million years old. She is filling in the blanks of the fungi fossil record with her unique research.

    “Given their importance in current ecosystems, I support [that fungi] must have had such a fundamental role in ancient ecosystems,” Lalica said. “And that is what I’m trying to prove with fossil research.”

    Lalica said she had the privilege to work with a huge box of rocks on loan from the Smithsonian Museum filled with fossilized plants. The fossils came to Humboldt State University by way of the Smithsonian, but they were collected in the 1960s by a paleo botanist named Francis Huber at a rock formation called Battery Point in Canada.

    “We look at a bunch of plant fossils that are 400 million years old,” Lalica said. “They are preserved very beautifully and you can see all of their anatomical features.”

    Graduate botanist Megan Nibbellink works alongside Lalica. She is focusing on the anatomy and relationships of the host plants, called zosterophylls. The Battery Point fossils are preserved in a unique geologic formation that serves to make really good fossils.

    “It is a fluvial deposit,” Nibbellink said. “It was a bunch of pieces of fragments caught up in fine sediment at the end of a river. The reason why I like these fossils is because you can see the individual cells. And that’s also why Maddy is able to do what she does.”

    When the host plants were buried by fine river sediments all those millennia ago, their form was preserved as the sediment solidified over millions of years. The fine particles, though, essentially printed the fossils in high resolution with so much detail that Lalica found what she was looking for: ancient fungi.

    Lalica is scanning and investigating these plant fossils for any evidence of fungal material. Spores, fungal tendrils called hyphae and scars from fungal infection are some indicators she has found. Specifically, Lalica is working on identifying the fungi glomeromycota, a fungal group intimately symbiotic with plants today. She wants to learn how similar the ancient fungi are to modern fungi.

    “Why do you want to know about extinct life, then, one might ask. And to be honest, it is a pretty philosophical pursuit I guess. In the most direct sense, learning about extinct lifeforms helps us understand how the living lifeforms that we see around today evolved.”

    Alexandru “Mihai” Tomescu

    “The plant and animal fossil record is really well understood,” Lalica said. “Like they have a pretty clear timeline of ‘This happened and then this happened,’ but for fungi it is so sparse and incomplete that they have no idea what goes before what.”

    Lalica’s faculty advisor Alexandru “Mihai” Tomescu has made it his life’s work to figure out what goes before what. Tomescu explained that exploring the fossil record is important because fossils offer us the only way to look directly into life in the past.

    Tomescu was Lalica’s botany professor before she had switched majors, but she said she fell in love with the world of paleobotany after his instruction. Showing interest in the subject, Lalica took the opportunity to begin her own research as soon as Tomescu offered her the chance.

    “Why do you want to know about extinct life, then, one might ask,” Tomescu said. “And to be honest, it is a pretty philosophical pursuit I guess. In the most direct sense, learning about extinct lifeforms helps us understand how the living lifeforms that we see around today evolved.”

    The 400 million year old specimens are interesting to Tomescu and his team of researchers because the plants themselves represent the first wave of vascular plants, or plants that move water through special tissues, that evolved on Earth. Vascular plants constitute nearly every modern land plant, so these ancestors are significant. Fungi, too, are significant to life on Earth and may have been part of its foundation.

    “Fungi are probably, almost certainly I think, older than actual plants,” Tomescu said. “Fungi are a lot older. But because they’re just hyphae, since they’re flimsy, their fossil record is not that great.”

    Tomescu has been recruiting undergraduate students to research these fossils in his lab. Tomescu explained that HSU hosts a botany program that attracts a lot of students, but also that the students are enthusiastic to participate in research. He said HSU has students who are interested in the grey areas. Lalica was one of those students.

    Moving forward, Tomescu and Lalica are preparing to publish a paper about her year-long investigation into the fossils. This summer, she is presenting her research at the Botanical Society of America’s annual conference.

    “It seems like in Humboldt opportunities are like, if you talk to the right person or if you become friends with the right person, it just kinda happens,” Lalica said, “And it just so happened that I fell into the world of paleobotany.”

  • “My Neighbor Totoro” at The Minor Theatre

    “My Neighbor Totoro” at The Minor Theatre

    View the magical world of Studio Ghibli animation with special showtimes at The Minor Theatre

    Jump back into the animated world of “My Neighbor Totoro” at The Minor Theatre from Feb. 28 to March 5.

    Hayao Miyazaki is a creator, animator, screenwriter, director and co-founder of Studio Ghibli. He is considered one of the most accomplished filmmakers in anime film and is an acclaimed storyteller through his films. Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli have given us classics such as “Spirited Away,” “Princess Mononoke,” “Kiki’s Delivery Service” and of course, “My Neighbor Totoro.”

    This 1988 masterpiece follows two young girls, Satsuki and her younger sister, Mei. The two arrive at a new house with their father as they wait for their mother’s recovery from an illness at a nearby hospital. Upon their arrival, the two girls find themselves befriending some unusual creatures from the forest, one being a huge, cuddly beast named Totoro.

    The Minor has select showtimes to watch in Japanese with English subtitles from March 2 to March 4 at 8:45 p.m. The rest of the showings will be in English. Ticket prices are $8 before 5 p.m. and $9.50 after 5 p.m. Those with a valid student I.D. can also purchase tickets for $8 for any show after 5 p.m.