Spring 2017, Issue #3
The Crier Is Sponsored, In Part, By the Corning Community College Student Association
April 18th, 2017
Catching Z’s Gets Degrees by Hannah S. Mase
Ah yes, sleep. That thing that us college kids don’t seem to get enough of! Whether it be pulling all-nighters to get your homework done, spending too much time on Reddit, or the millions of other reasons you’re still awake, there is always something that takes us away from the goal of precious, precious sleep. According to Everyday Health, young adults are supposed to be getting 7-9 hours of sleep a night, and you probably just scoffed or chuckled at that because you know that you don’t meet that seemingly ridiculous standard. According to recent polls, only 15 percent of college students get that much sleep. A lack of sleep in college students is nothing new, but what a lot of people aren’t aware of is how detrimental that lack of sleep is to your health.
A lack of sleep can lead to a whole slew of issues and can affect your body in ways that you probably didn’t even know it could. When you sleep, your immune system is still hard at work, building infectionfighting antibodies. When you don’t give your body the proper time to do this, you’re more susceptible to getting sick,
AND it’ll take you longer to
recover from an illness. Long term sleep deprivation ALSO increases the risk of chronic illnesses. But that’s just the immune system. The central nervous system also takes a big hit when you don’t hit the hay. The central nervous system is oftentimes referred to as the “information highway” of the body and when you sleep, it rests busy neurons and forms new pathways, releases growth hormones, produces proteins to repair cells-just to name a few things. When you don’t get sufficient sleep, your brain gets exhausted and can’t perform at full capacity: your ability to concentrate becomes impaired. It can impact both your long and short term memory; mood swings and short temper accompany these things as well.
If you deprive your body long enough, you’re also more likely to experience hallucinations, depression, impulsive behavior, and increased anxiety. In the digestive system, a lack of sleep leads to an increase of the stress hormone, cortisol; it lowers your levels of the leptin hormone, which is how your brain tells your brain if you’re hungry, and it raises the levels of a biochemical called ghrelin, which is an appetite stimulant.
On top of this, lack of sleep increases the amount of insulin in your body, which promotes fat storage. Did you ever experience the freshman fifteen? This could’ve been one of the reasons why.
So I lectured you on some of the negatives that happen when you don’t get enough sleep, but you’re most likely wondering, what if I DO get enough sleep? What happens in my body then?
Adequate sleep can do wonders for your body. Have you ever woken up from a full night’s sleep feeling alert or recharged? That’s only the beginning! For starters, catching z’s helps improve your memory. When you’re sleeping, your mind practices something called ‘consolidation’, in which it rehearses and practices things that you’ve learned while you were awake. In addition to consolidating those thoughts and memories, research conducted at Harvard University has shown that not only does a proper night’s sleep strengthen your memory, but helps restructure your thoughts and in doing so, can help evoke more creativity. Enough sleep will also sharpen your attention and your ability to retain information, help boost your metabolism and keep
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(cont.) you healthier, lower your levels of stress, and allows your body to keep rebuilding itself. All of these things are important, especially to bodies that are still in the process of developing.
So now you have all this scientific information-great! But what now? I can’t just tell you all about the problem and not give you ways to fix it, so let’s talk about some of the reasons why YOU all aren’t getting enough sleep and a few ways to remedy these situations.
1.	You’re up writing a paper the night before it’s due. As college students, we tend to live in the procrastination nation and NOT the preparation station. That is our biggest issue. We are all notorious for putting off an assignment because something else came along that got our attention, like Facebook or going out with friends, or we practice the typical avoidance in which if we don’t look at it or think about it, we don’t have to acknowledge it yet. But eventually you must face it, but why take on the great white whale when you can just catch a few fish here and there? What I mean is, why not work on it in increments instead of binge-writing your capstone, lab report or position paper in one sitting? You can have a complete paper AND a complete night of sleep if you plot it out right.
2.	You’re lying in bed scrolling through your phone. A lot of people do this and they think that scrolling through Instagram or Twitter before bed will help them fall asleep faster, but is not the case. The blue LED within the screen of your phone can slow or completely halt the body’s natural production of melatonin, the hormone that tells us when it’s time to sleep. Our smartphones and tablets are also time-sucking black holes. It’s so easy to get in bed at 11, look at our devices for what only feels like 10 minutes, and then see the clock display 3AM. I’ve been there; I’m not proud of it, but it happens. If your phone is a distraction to you, there are ways to avoid it’s tempting glow. Certain phones have “Night Mode” in which the phone changes the LED display to be a warmer hue of light. You can also schedule times when you don’t want to receive notifications for text messages or apps which, when your phone dings, are always enticing to check. But hey, maybe try throwing your phone on the charger for the night and maybe try reading a book before bed, even if you aren’t an avid reader, the regular eye movement and brain power required to process each word will make you more and more tired and fall asleep quicker.
3.	You have more than just school on your plate. Everyone’s story is different. Some people have kids or work full time jobs while also trying to go to college. Some people want to be involved in EVERYTHING extracurricular and find that they spread themselves too thin. All of these are things can make a person exhausted, and all of these things can take away from the sleep that you get. You must remember however, that sleep is very important and can also affect how you perform WITH these different tasks you take on in addition to your academics. Take naps when your kids are FINALLY sleeping or they’re at school for the day. If your job allows you to and you’re financially able to, try to cut back on a few hours. Prioritize the things you want to be involved with of instead of the things you feel obligated to also do. If there’s even a little wiggle room in any of this, take it.
With these words in mind, I hope you all get the most needed shut-eye that you both deserve and need to function properly. Catching Z’s get degrees, so you better snore your way to success!
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History of Nail Polish
By The History Club
Nail polish was created around 5,000 years ago in China where it was used by the ruling class to distinguish themselves from the general population. Popular colors were often gold and silver, symbolizing power and wealth. Ingredients often included beeswax, egg whites, gelatin, and vegetable dyes. Roses and henna were also popular ingredients. During this time, nail polish was not to be used by the general population; several report still indicate the public execution of common people who were caught with polished nails.
From China, nail polish use spread across India, the Middle East, and northern Africa where it was extensively used in Egypt. In Egypt, the lower class often wore nude and light colors, while the upper class often wore red. As the social class went up, the darker the nail color.
Like many other cosmetic products, nail polish disappeared from European fashion after the fall of Roman Empire. It was only after the arrival of renaissance and the new trade connection with the Middle East and India that European royalty gained access to nail polish. In late 17th century, ‘shiny nails’ started appearing in portraits.
By the turn of 19th century, nail polish became more common among the general population in France, England, Italy, and United States. It was in the early 20th century around the 1920s and 1930s when nail polish became truly popular, with manicure establishments appearing in France at great numbers. In 1932, Revlon became the first brand to sell nail polish; the first color was a cream color.
The most expensive nail polish in the world today costs $250,000 because it contains 267 carats worth of black diamonds, but I’m betting that it still chips off after a day or two.
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The Truly Immortal Bard: A Personal Look at Shakespeare’s Work
By Willow Keith
Most people are obsessed with something when they are eleven or twelve. Whether it’s a band, a tv show, or a celebrity, at that time of life fandom can be nearly all-consuming. Like most kids, I was consumed with a great love for a piece of media; however, unlike most, that piece of media happened to be a 400 year old play- namely, William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. I first encountered the play whilst enrolled in a children’s Shakespeare class, where I portrayed the role of the war-like Tybalt in an abridged version of R&J, and it was love at first rapier strike. Pre-teens are not the most subtle individuals, and I am not ashamed to say that it was the sheer melodramatic emotional energy that first attracted me to the work. I threw myself into the obsession, watched every version I could get my hands on, drew deeply embarrassing fanart that should never see the light of day, and took to quoting obscure lines for no particular reason with gleeful smugness. This early jubilant adoration of a Shakespearean work didn’t immediately lead to a deeper appreciation of the playwright’s oeuvre. At this point I was very much a one play girl.
Fast forward a couple years. I was 15, and up to my neck in teen angst. On one listless night I made the fortuitous decision to watch a production of Hamlet from 2009, starring the wonderful David Tennant. My adolescent world was shaken by the depth and complexity of Hamlet’s emotional turmoil. His fragmented consciousness and deep uncertainty about life mirrored my own- although I was fortunate enough not to have the murder of a close family member to contend with. Once again I found myself captivated by a Shakespeare play, digging deep into the text to try to understand it as fully as I could, and finding ever-increasing complexity in it.
It would take me another year or so, and another half-dozen adaptations, to realize the extent to which I was fascinated by Shakespeare’s complete body of work. From the comedies to the tragedies and beyond, each play holds something new to explore. As I fell in love with play after play, I began to extend my research beyond the works to learning about Shakespeare himself, the time in which he lived, and even the figures from English history he wrote about. By studying Shakespeare one opens a door to learning about human nature, theatre, language, and much more. You can spend a lifetime with these plays, and you would still have more left to discover.
My intention in telling you all this is not to write a kind of mini biography (though My Life with William Shakespeare does have a ring to it) but to provide an example of the kind of deeply personal way that Shakespeare can speak to each of as throughout our lives. From the rich to the poor, the young to the old, the silly to the sublime, the emotional to the academic,
I firmly believe there is something in his plays that can speak to each of us; again and again,
I find myself drawn back to his works for exactly that reason. My journey with Shakespeare is far from over, and perhaps, if you’re willing to give him a chance, yours will soon begin.
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(cont. ) The CCC Shakespeare Society meets every Friday at 3:00 in S010. Contact wkeith@corning-cc.edu if you are interested in joining us or have any questions.
The Shakespeare Club will also be screening Macbeth on April 28th at 7:00 in the Planetarium; we hope that you can join us.
The Crier Staff
Editor-in-Chief
Hannah Mase
Assistant Editor & SAGA Rep
Brandon Hook
Social Media Coordinator
David Birks
Treasurer
Chelsea Hansen
Have an idea for us? Want to see your work published? Submit your article ideas and photos to ccccrier@gmail.com!
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Pi Week Report
By The Crier Staff
The Food Drive ran from 3/13 to 3/24. We collected 101 items for the CCC Food Pantry. Students did a pi estimation using the circumference and diameter of their can.
Trivia Event: This was held on 3/21 in the Kelly Lounge in memory of Kate Danforth. There were 5 teams. The top 3 teams won gift cards. They were also given the choice to support 3 different charities. Donations were
given to the CCC food pantry ($100), The Corning Public Library ($75) and the Herb Gross math award ($50).
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The Pie Baking Event was held on Wednesday 3/22 from 7 - 9 pm in Perry Hall. This was very well attended! More than 25 students came. The kitchen space was limited but we made 10 pies! Students, faculty and Norah Croteau had a wonderful time!
All students who participated in the activities had their names entered in a raffle drawing. We had 5 winners! Ty Iannune, Jeremy Draper-Bell, Eladio Martinez, Jared Kittleson and Kristina Bednar were the lucky winners this year.
We would like to thank Student Life, especially Deb Prutsman, for their assistance and generosity. We would also like to thank Residence Life for their support in baking pies at Perry Hall. Thank you to the staff in the Learning Commons for helping with the pi estimation activity.
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Why Fuss With the Chip?
By Eugene Brown
There was this huge event in the United States where card issuers, switched from solely magnetic stripe based cards to a card involving a magnetic stripe and a ‘chip’. Why did the industry switch over? How does this technology secure my debit and credit cards?
Why did the finance industry switch to magnetic strip and chip based cards? First, it is important to distinguish a few ideas on chip based debit and credit cards. We all know what a magnetic stripe based credit card looks like. This technology is not new, but so is chip based card transactions. One thing to distinguish about these cards is that they are based upon a standard called EMV. The idea was originally introduced to consumers in Europe by a group of card networks including Europay, MasterCard, and Visa. They are the main companies who pass on transaction information to the banks and merchants. While the United States has recently switched to the standard, Europe has been using EMV-based cards for over a decade. This was one of the reasons that pressured the finance industry in the United States to switch to EMV-based cards. If you went abroad with a magnetic stripe based card, you were somewhat out of luck at automated kiosks used in rail stations and snack vending machines. Europe originally switched because the technology was not easy to steal card information (credit card numbers, expiration dates, etc.). That’s the main two reasons behind switching to EMV-based debit and credit cards. Card networks like MasterCard and Visa both mandated merchants accept these cards to reduce fraud.
How does it work? Considering many banks have switched to EMV-based cards, we should all know the basics of using these debit and credit cards. If the checkout has an EMV enabled (chip enabled) card terminal, you must insert your card into the slot, wait for the transaction to finish, and remove your card. There are a few things going on behind the scenes when you leave your card inserted into the terminal. First, the terminal asks the card to ‘sign’ the transaction for the amount. The card has a special ‘key’ that will say the card was there and used in the purchase. Similar to how using one special pen to sign legal documents, the ‘key’ denotes whether the card was physically there to purchase. The terminal does not collect your card’s number or other information, as stored on the magnetic stripe. This is where the old technology of magnetic stripe loses. Anyone with a cheap piece of equipment can read the card information from the magnetic stripe and write that same information on another card. EMV-based or chip technology makes such a method impossible because the chip is physically locked to prevent copying the special ‘key’. Again, imagine that pen example, but it is not possible to buy that exact same pen. The pen can sign and doodle, but cannot be purchased anywhere. You need the pen to have legitimate claim. The idea is to protect copying of the card, rather than theft. This is where many have seen the problem and distinguished the technology used.
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(cont.) Unfortunately, the current standard of EMV-based cards used in the United States does not prevent theft and usage of the card. The difference is the consumer inserts their chip-based card into the terminal, waits for the transactions to finish, removes their card, and signs on-screen of the receipt. This is what experts in the industry refer to as chip-and-signature. This fundamental flaw allows a thief to simply use the card, anyway. As Europe has adopted the EMV-based card standard for over a decade, the solution was to require a pin for card usage. There is no need to sign or swipe; the card will not be usable unless the pin unlocks the chip. This means the United States is lagging in card based transaction security. However, there are other ways for both technologies to be defeated.
What about online shopping? The technology that is behind securing the card from either being physically copied or stolen does not prevent someone from using hacked merchants or being a fraudulent merchant themselves. The consumer has to enter their card information online. While physical card fraud has decreased, online fraud has increased because of the technology shift. There are various ways card networks are trying to prevent or reduce online fraud. Methods such as EVSSLs, that green bar in the address field, shows consumers the merchant has been verified. Though this also does not prevent bad storage practice by a merchant.
How can I prevent or protect against fraud? As much as the finance industry tries to balance consumer comfort and security, fraud is still a huge issue. Most of the time, the consumer is at fault for typing their information into a fraudulent or unsecure online merchant. Many credit card issuers have promised to cover fraudulent transactions, which offer some comfort to consumers. In general, the best advice is to be observant because of the largely present magnetic stripe based transaction standard in the United States. One such way is checking whether a machine at a gas pump or ATM has a card skimmer. This can be done by wiggling or tugging at the card insert part. The part should not be removable or not break off. Another method of fraud prevention is ensuring your card is always within sight. Anyone can simply write down the card’s information on a piece of paper and use said information online. Always keep the card within sight and watch the transactions posted. Last, however, not the least significant way of fraud prevention is to NOT write ‘See ID’ on the signature panel of a card. A lot of people are passed this piece of bad information, which is supposedly to require a merchant to check the consumer’s identification. Though, this is not a valid agreement to the card networks’ policy. There is a notice near the signature panel of every card, that the card is only binding to the card network’s policy if it is signed. That is essential because one of the policies is protecting your responsibility for fraudulent transactions. Without your signature, means you may be on the hook for the expenses!
The switch over to the chip has been described as unnecessary and a fuss to consumers. They’ve had to learn a new method of using their debit and credit cards, the time for a transaction to go through is longer, and the security is essentially slightly better. I agree, the whole thing was a fuss, but also futile. The switch should have been towards chip-and-pin than chip-and-signature. Though why does this all matter since you can use your mobile phone to pay with transactions? Tell us, do you think it was worth the confusion and extra time in purchases for a little extra security? What habits will change as a result of this article’s advice?
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The Yulin Dog Festival
By Chelsea Hansen
Every year during the summer solstice, a small town in Yulin, China celebrates in an unconventional way. The Lychee and Dog Meat Festival is an annual celebration in which participants celebrate by eating dog meat and lychee fruit and drinking local craft beers.
The concept of eating dog meat is dated back over 400 years in Chinese culture. Many believed that the dog meat would help ward off summer heat in the body. However, as far as festivals, the Yulin Dog Festival is incredibly new. It began in 2009 and stretches over a 10-day period where it’s estimated that between 10,000 and 15,000 dogs are consumed. Though some claim that the animals are killed in a cruelty-free way, the evidence collected suggests otherwise.
Dogs are shipped to Yulin from all over the world. They’re kept in small, cramped containers and are denied food and water during the shipping period. They’re kept in these cages until they’re killed and consumed. Some photos collected picture dogs with collars around their necks, leading many to assume that they were stolen pets. The animals are killed in absolutely horrendous ways. Viral videos show dogs being beaten in the head by blunt objects, thrown to the ground, boiled, and even skinned alive. When asked about this killing technique, the participants defend themselves by stating that the adrenaline in the meat makes it taste better.
Every year, awareness for the festival grows and petitions go viral, begging people to sign to demand an end to the horrendous practices. As of yet, the festival has not been slowed by protestors; however, the petitions are beginning to reach millions of signatures. Activists in China have started the “Family Not Food” group condemning the festival and it’s rapidly gaining support. The next festival is expected to be held in June.
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SAEB Election Results
By The Crier Staff
It was a very good election season this year with a lot of people taking to the polls to vote for our 2017-2018 candidates for the Student Association Executive Board.
Hannah Mase-President Jenna Moore-Vice President Carolyn Jones-Speaker of the Senate Ethan Bratti-Trustee Leena Trinh-Public Relations Director Damion Westlake-Treasurer Crystal Ravenell-Auditing Treasurer
The new executive board will attend the annual transition dinner on May 2nd with the current executive board as a “passing-the-torch” event and the board’s first decision will also be to decide who will be the secretary between the four that tied in the nominations.
Thank you to everyone who participated and showed support for the elections!
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Dear Abbey: Advice For Students
Anonymous
Dear Abbey, this is my second semester here at this college and I feel as if I haven’t made any friends! What do I do to put myself out there? What’s the best way to get to know people here?—Caroline
Hi Caroline, It’s easy to feel as if you cannot make friends in college because the dynamics of college are so much different from high school. My advice to you, even if you’re not a traditional student, is to get involved in student activities. Small steps lead to big steps and an easy small step is joining a club that interests you. If no clubs interest you, feel free to talk to someone in student government about starting a club of your own. There's always events in the commons like Bingo or Trivia where you can meet new people. Just remember not to get discouraged and have confidence. If you're an awkward person like myself and cannot muster confidence, my motto for all things college is fake it till you make it.
I think my boyfriend is cheating on me? I’m not really sure though, I don’t want to accuse him of something without knowing the facts first and cause an issue in our relationship, but at the same time I gotta know! How do I find out without being obvious?— Nikki
Hi Nikki, Communication makes or breaks relationships. Normally, you should be able to talk to your partner about anything but, I understand not wanting to stir up trouble that seems unfounded. One thing you can do is to tell him that you want to take the relationship more seriously and work on trust. From there you can share something miniscule like your Facebook password or phone passcode so he is able to look through your things and trust you more. Hopefully he will follow suit to show you that you can trust him too. If he does not share that same information with you, he might have something to hide. That would provide you with evidence to bring up your concerns about cheating without sounding crazy.
Have a problem? Need advice? Send Abbey your question at ccccrier@gmail.com! See you next issue!