On March 28, two hundred and fifty anatomy and physiology students went to the open house of  Grand Canyon University’s medical building and had the opportunity to visit the state’s largest cadaver lab.

This year differed in that each student was shown a different cadaver, but what stayed the same was the reaction students had upon entering the lab.

“When you first enter the room, the smell is almost unbearable,” said senior Ethan Fierro.

Medical students were in charge of the tours in the lab, each having a cadaver with a certain body part isolated for closer examination.

Jacob Ings, who has been part of the medical program since August of 2010, was in charge of one of the tours.  He said that it was interesting to do that, but he said, “The best part of showing off the bodies, is to see the mixed reactions on the kids faces.”

After the students examined the cadavers and conversed with GCU undergrads, it was time to take a full tour of the campus where they had opportunities to see the cafeteria, dorms, and the recently built sporting arena, but they also had an opportunity to talk with and ask questions of tour guides.

Guide Melissa Solvem had fun with MP students and said, “I see over 17 schools every month, this group was one of my favorites.  It’s fun to see students get a small taste of what GCU has to offer.”

Isaiah Martin, 11, is not sure working with bodies that have been in a lab for over three months is what he wants to do after the experience.  He said,  “It’s definitely grotesque [and] they have a lot of guts. The job that the workers do every day is extremely brave.”

He continued and said, “It was a very good experience to see what we look like on the inside other than looking at a picture,” because pictures can’t really express what goes on inside the human body like looking at the real thing.

For some the exposure to the bodies was horrifying. In fact, Samantha Cook, 11, revealed, “The smell of the lab [was disgusting] and [I didn’t like] how the school was advertised.” She went on and said, “Do not eat too much before [going to see the cadavers] and [remember to] cover your nose!”

The smell was because formaldehyde is the main chemical that the workers used to keep the bodies from getting moldy and leathery.

Dr. William Primack, anatomy teacher says the trip is important as it allows students “to compare the text book to real people; [it] is the point of realization for the students.”

While some felt uncertain about their future in the medical field, the experience was valuable for all.

The trip usually takes place the last Saturday over spring break, however this year the weather reports predicted a large rain storm across that area of California, and Six Flags announced that even if the entire park didn’t close several of the larger rides would be shut down. Physics teacher and trip sponsor Phillip Moon decided that rather than sacrifice some of the fun of the trip, the entire thing would be rescheduled.

This change brought up several problems that are unique to this year’s trip. Moving the excursion to the Friday before Relay for Life meant that a large number of the physics students, who are seniors that also participate in the event, were forced to give up the trip in deference of the well-known Mountain Pointe tradition. This allowed some people who did not yet have tickets, whether because of procrastination or scheduling conflicts, to purchase them and participate in the trip. One such person who benefitted from the change is senior Stephanie Krebs, who purchased her tickets on Monday, and said, “there were only two spots left and I got one!”

All the slots for the one-day voyage to California are filled now, with 50 eager kids ready to embark at 12:30 AM Friday morning from the front parking lot. The trip’s itinerary includes two stops, on the way there and one on the way back, for breakfast and dinner, and in between a whole day at Six Flags. The trip will arrive back at the school at around 1 AM Saturday morning. Moon has been going to Six Flags since 1995, and this year the trip is also being chaperoned by teachers Darrick Kahle, Anthony Leathers, and Cindy Olas.

Six Flags is well known for its huge rides, having some of the most popular roller coasters in the US, and the kids are ready. “I’m so excited to ride the coasters. I love the feel of adrenaline,” said Krebs, one of the many embarking tomorrow.  Even the teachers are excited, “my favorite rides are the crazy ones: Goliath, Riddler, Batman, etc,” said Moon.

Despite seeming like a joy ride to the next state, the trip does have educational value. Six Flags is home of the Physics Days, which this year are Saturday, March 17^th and Friday April 13^th, hence the schedule change. When asked why he started going to Six Flags, Moon said, “because it’s there. Seriously, it’s a great way for students to experience physics. And there is a Physics Day competition there too. And it’s fun!” He makes sure the physics students compete in the various activities that are a part of the Physics Olympics.

Even though one of the reasons kids are going is because it gets them out of class on a Friday, this trip also allows kids to experience physics hands on in a fun and engaging way. Taking part in the Physics Day competitions will also reaffirm what they’ve learned in class, and it’s an excused Friday filled with roller coasters and fun.

On April 10th Angelica will head down to Nashville, Tennessee to compete for the title of Junior Teen America.

There is no aspect of a play that is simple. Sets, costumes, lights and music are all part of what makes up a show. If any of these things are flawed or missing, a show can quickly fall apart, no matter how well the actors do their jobs.

Creating a play, much less a musical, is a herculean task to undertake, it is a job filled with stress, long hours, and endless patience. The cast and crew of MP’s rendition of Hairspray dealt with the stress, the long hours, and somehow found the patience to create one of the best productions that MP has ever seen.

Whenever there is a play going on at school, everyone knows about it, but not much is known about all that goes into creating the illusion that audiences pay to see.

What we see on stage is just as amazing as what goes on backstage.

Putting on a musical is always more challenging than a non-musical play, but putting on a play that has a cult following behind it, two main-stream movies, and a long history of time spent on Broadway is even more grueling. It took $8,000 just to obtain the rights to Hairspray, and another $1,200 for the 90-95 intricate costumes that appeared on stage. “We had been preparing for the show since August. Costume and lighting designs were finished months before casting, [after casting] we had two months to put all the elements together.” Said junior Kylie Armstrong, a member of the crew that mainly helped in putting together costumes. Putting together costumes was no easier than putting together the elaborate sets that transported audiences from Tracy Turnblad’s (played by senior Shea Hunter) living room, to the streets of Baltimore, to the Corny Collins show. “We borrowed set pieces from another theater so the set was not overwhelming to build, but it did take about three to four months to finish everything and get everything painted. We also had to remake some set pieces to fit the functions of our blocking and choreography. Many set pieces were hung from the grid and flown in during the show on the rigging system, which took a lot of time to coordinate and perfect.” Armstrong went on to say.

With a massive cast of thirty-eight, organizing the actors was just as taxing as putting the show together from behind the scenes. Something that made Hairspray unique was the range of people that participated. From dancers, to football players, and even teachers, the cast is certainly made up of quite the interesting bunch.

For senior Christian Branham, who plays one of the lead roles as Seaweed, the transition from the football field to the stage was an interesting one to say the least. “My football friends thought I was crazy, ‘social suicide,’ [going from] the athletic department to the fine arts department was a big move for me.” Despite this being his first time in a school play, Branham shone in his role, dancing and singing, and even an on-stage kiss with theatre veteran, Shannon Phelps, 12, who plays the role of Tracy’s best friend, Penny Pingleton. “It was really different compared to the previous shows not only because of the large cast, but because of the singing and dancing. I loved working with a large cast, we all became really close.” Phelps says of her experience working with the cast. When asked about her role of Penny, Phelps had nothing but good things to say, “Playing Penny was like a breath of fresh air, she is so fun and full of life, but also because of what she stands for in going against the odds and fighting against racism all for the sake of love.”

Christian isn’t the only theatre newbie to grace the stage. Senior, Justin Young, was just as new to the alien world of theater. Young plays Link Larkin, a character with several musical solos, and also has the job of playing love interest to the main character, Tracy. “Someone told me that Hairspray would happen so I was just like whatever, but someone told me to audition so I was like why not?” Young said of what motivated him to audition.

Even though Hairspray takes place in the sixties, the underlying message of the play transcends all generations. Racism, society’s notion of beauty, friendship, and love are all themes present in Hairspray. Put all of these things together, and apparently you get one knockout Broadway show. Between the crew and the cast, the bells will most definitely be ringing for everyone that has the pleasure of seeing this amazing production.

On Thursday night I arrived at Phoenix Sky Harbor to pick up Laura, a sixteen-year-old German girl who will be living with my family and I for 18 days. Her outgoing personality makes things less awkward, because when you wake up with somebody else sleeping in your house and getting ready in your bathroom, things aren’t exactly normal. But the really strange concept is teaching someone about cliché American things.

For instance, showing Laura how to make tacos with meat, lettuce, cheese, and salsa was a novel experience, just because I have known how to make tacos for most of my life. Explaining the meaning of words was expected when the “Germs” (as the American host student call them) arrive. But explaining things as common as PopTarts and frozen yogurt was an out of this world conversation.

Disregarding the previous and impending awkwardness or this uncommon situation, I am glad that I chose to participate in this program. After a fun trip to the Grand Canyon and Sedona with the Germs and only a handful of American students, I realized that people I would have never spent time with, or even associated myself with, are fun.  After an unconventional dinner in a less than five star hotel room at the Grand Canyon, I also realized that after the reciprocal exchange this summer in Regensburg, Germany I will have made many lifelong friends.

So next time an opportunity hits you in the face to try something new, I strongly encourage you to grasp the moment, and take a leap of faith. You may even be surprised how much fun you will have.

Annan met with Chinese Premier Wen Jiaboa on Tuesday, and reported afterwards that he received “positive” feedback from Syria as well as support from China and Russia.  China has long been a ally of Syria’s, along with Russia, who both garnered serious criticism when they blocked a UN Security Council resolution condemning Syria’s deadly crackdown on protestors.

Annan has proposed a six-point plan that calls for a cease-fire by the Syrian government, a daily two-hour halt to fighting in order to evacuate all the wounded, and Syrian-led political talks to address concerns of the Syrian people. Fawzi said that Annan explained, “Implementation will be key, not only for the Syrian people, who are caught in the middle of this tragedy, but also for the region and the international community as a whole.”

On Sunday Istanbul is hosting the “Friends of the Syrian People” conference, where more than 60 countries, including the United States will be attending. Despite their backing, Hong Lei, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said that China was invited but would not attend. The conference is established as Turkey comes closer to setting up a buffer zone in Syria to protect the civilians. The Turkish government has been hesitant about the idea, but says that an influx of refugees has prompted Turkey to consider the idea of a buffer on its southern border to guarantee the security of itself and the welfare of fleeing civilians.

However Ausama Monajed, a spokesperson for the opposition Syrian National Council, asked, “Will he pull the snipers and the tanks and the helicopters from the cities and towns? Does that mean he will release all the political prisoners? We’ve all seen these promises before, lots and lots of empty promises.”

This Wednesday Arab foreign ministers supported the UN backed peace plan, which urges for the violence to end, but not for the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, who himself has endorsed the proposal, to step down.  After a meeting in Baghdad, Iraq called the plan a “last chance” for Syria to end the fighting. Unfortunately, Damascus rejected any initiatives taken by the summit and said it would only deal with individual Arab states, as the league suspended Syria due to its internal violence.

As many call for Annan’s plan to be implemented, steps are being taken to move it forward, so the fighting in Syria, which has been going on for more than a year and has an estimated death toll of over 9,000, will come to an end.

Privacy settings were created to build a wall around what people can and cannot see of your life online. But, what if someone else had access to that privacy setting? Employers across the country have started asking potential employees for the passwords to their Facebook accounts.

While some employers have been asking their employees, others are straight out demanding for their passwords. Progressing to the point of where if an individual does not provide an employer with his or her password they may be excluded from being considered for a job, or even fired for what his or her employer may find while online.

Many job-seekers and employees are horrified by this gross overstep of personal privacy. “[If an employer asked for my password] I would say ‘I don’t need the job, go ahead and fire me.’ I am not willing to release my personal information to anyone. If they would ask for my password I would quit or leave the interview, depending on when they asked me.” Said junior, Grayson Hiremath.

Although it is common for managers to review potential employees Facebook profiles, depending on their privacy settings, they cannot proceed any further onto that persons page without becoming a friend of that person. While any given person can see that someone else has a Facebook profile, many agree that obtaining the password of another is a huge invasion of privacy.

Junior, Michelle Luna agrees with this majority, “That is outrageous, first of all, people need their privacy no matter who they are. The work place is different than that of the home or social place. If an employer is sketchy, or may not be a good or trusted person, just fire them. There is no need to take it to that level.”

According to numerous sources, demanding someone’s password may even be against the law. Facebook has even come forward stating that requiring an employee’s password opens that company to legal liabilities. It is even stated in Facebook’s terms of service that the sharing of passwords is against their policies. “You will not share your password, (or in the case of developers, your secret key), let anyone else access your account, or do anything else that might jeopardize the security of your account.”

A senator in California has gone so far as to propose legislation preventing the practice. “Not only is it entirely unnecessary, it is an invasion of privacy and unrelated to one’s performance or abilities.” Said a sponsor of the legislation as quoted in an article on the website WebProNews.

With the job market the way it is, many are willing to take any job that pops up, even if it means relinquishing their personal privacy.