Summer 2021
SYMPOSIUM REINVENTED The greatest ideas from the greatest showcase
May 2020
CONTENTS: Can you measure happiness?
Page 3
How do our secret services keep us safe?
Page 5
How has coronavirus affected healthcare systems around the world? Page 8 The placebo effect - fact or fiction?
Page 10
The importance of charity
Page 13
lies - the irrepressible truth
Page 16
The power behind atoms: fission and fusion
Page 20
Have you ever been manipulated? How would you know? Page 24 The pursuit of happiness
Page 31
LGBTQIA+ Awareness at Bablake
Page 35
Can you measure happiness? Happiness is a very common emotion found in most creatures that gives positive messages to common emotion found in Happiness is a very your brain. It can range from most creatures that gives positive messages to things like pride to contentment to your brain. It can range from things like pride to Signs of happiness have many overwhelming joy. overwhelming joy. A lot of people variations. When people smile, you A lot contentment of people have a to strong that they are happy. variation as to what makes them as can have strong variation to see what makes themPeople not only smile with their mouths 'happy', which is frequently called 'happy', which is frequently called a 'humour but also with their eyes. Laughing a 'humour sense'. This means that sense'. This means that some people prefer dad is the best way to tell if someone is some people prefer dad jokes (e.g., happy. whilst some jokes (e.g., whilst Knock knocktruly jokes), Knock knock jokes), some When smile, creases people prefer randomness, as it people prefer randomness, aspeople it makes themform around their eyes, which can be makes them laugh due to having laugh due to having no relation to the current used to tell if someone is really no relation to the current situation. A sense of humor is so Scientists varied amongst smiling. have done situation. A sense of humour is so studies that show the effects humans that some people even laugh aboutof varied amongst humans that some happiness in the When people even laugh about serious typically themes typically more such as brain. death or you are happy, dopamine, oxytocin, more serious themes such as death pain. Humans also naturally feel happy at serotonin, and endorphin levels or pain. Humans also naturally feel someone else's misfortune, even it feels wrongwhen rise. It is aifsign of happiness happy at someone else's these chemicalsgets are activated. to say. We laugh someone a bad misfortune, even if itall feels wrongwhen Until now, surveys aboutand happiness to say. mark on a test or trips over a small rock have been almost non-existent, so, We all laugh when someone gets a drops their papers, or evenalmost failsno-one a trickhas that they measured bad mark on a test or trips over a been practising. In conclusion, happiness a happiness, which is quiteis unusual. smallhave rock and drops their papers, exclusively been or even fails a trickemotion that they have pleasant that It has hasalmost extremely big done by asking survey questions about been dissimilarity practising. In conclusion, in most creatures. self-perceived happiness, instead of happiness is a pleasant emotion that has extremely big happiness as a whole. dissimilarity in most creatures.
In conclusion Over the years, many people have argued about how we should be measuring happiness. In 2008, Denmark was ranked as the 'happiest country in the world' along with Norway and Finland. But how did they measure it? Is this a good way to measure it? This was measured in 6 ways, and Denmark was top in ALL of them, the categories were: income, healthy life expectancy, social support, freedom, trust, and generosity. These are quite wide subjects but there are also other things that may make us happy, such as love, health, and surroundings. Therefore, there may not be a set way to measure happiness, as everyone finds happiness in different things, one person may find happiness from the one they love, whereas another may find it in them not having love and being free from the constraints of family.
It has been found that certain factors towards happiness can be measured, but overall happiness is extremely different, and people measure their happiness in completely different ways. Even though there is a scientific side to happiness, the emotional side is what really matters, and even the smallest little wins can mean a lot to some people. Emotions in general fluctuate all the time, and therefore measurements cannot be permanent even if they were completely accurate.
By Aimee Nelson, Arjun Pandurengan, Isobel Turnbull, Katie Harvey.
How do our secret services keep us safe? What is Intelligence? Intelligence is the information gathered by governments to help protect them against attacks from enemies or people they think might become enemies.
Our Services? MI5 MI6 GCHQ JIC MOD DIS DI National Crime Agency DSA Did you know? The MI6 was founded in1909but it is so top secret the government didn’t admit it existed until 1944.
A BIT ABOUT SOME OF OUR SERVICES
MI5: Officially known as the Security Service MI5 is responsible for protecting Britain (from inside the country) against threats, which include terrorism, espionage and the increase of weapons used in mass destruction. MI5 operates under the legal authority of the Home Secretary, but it is not part of the Home Office. MI6: MI6 is officially known as the Secret Intelligence Service and is the sister organisation to MI5. Its role is to gather intelligence abroad by carrying out secret undercover operations all over the world. GCHQ ( Government Communication Headquarters): The GCHQ is a collection of agents secretly listening in on phone conversations, satellite signals and reading e-mails.
They decode messages, monitor communication between people and ensure that government secrets stay secret. They then pass the information on to whichever government departments want it. Ministry of Defence (MOD): The Ministry of Defence is the UK government department responsible for the implementation of government defence policies and for the British Armed Forces. The MOD manages the day to day running of the armed forces, emergency planning and defence strategies.
as well as the first electric computer Colossus. Bletchely Park and the GCHQ were decisive in the winning of the war and today Bletchely Park is a heritage site designated to preserve the uniquely important work of our WWII codebreakers.
Why do we need our secret services?
The UK’s Secret Intelligence Service is a group of people working secretly around the world to make the UK more prosperous. For over 100 years they have ensured that the UK and our allies Defence Intelligence Staff (DIS): The keep one step ahead of our oppositions. They have three main DIS is part of the Ministry of aims: stopping terrosrism, Defence (MOD). The people who disrupting the activity of hostile work for DIS analyse the states and giving the UK a cyber information MI5, MI6 and GCHQ advantage. This incredible group have gathered. They also work out of secret services workers are the power of other countries working together to protect us. weapons. Without them our world would not be as safe and our lives would look Our services in action very different! Perhaps the most famous role of the GCHQ is the breaking of the German Enigma codes during WWII. This produced vital intelligence in support of the Allied military operations on land, sea and in the air. Bletchley Park was also the birth place of the codebreaking machines such as the Turning/Welchman Bombe
Secret Services: expectations vs reality
GCHQ Styled Quiz 1. If C=SB, CP=SP, E=GP, MU=OT and TH=WHL What does L=? HINT: Premier Locations 2. If 7+8=3 and 10+9= 7 What is 11+2?
HIINT: Question Time
3. Which 6-letter girl’s name could begin the following list? ?, HAD, INLAND, RAN, MAN, PAIN HINT: A letter can be added to each at the beginning to make a country
By Libby Stinton 4NDG
GCHQ Styled Quiz Answers: 1. Anfield 2. 1 3. Olivia
How has Coronavirus Affected Healthcare Systems Around the World? Last year, I focused my research on healthcare systems around the world, however since then, the pandemic has undoubtedly changed a lot of this. With Covid 19 taking the most priority in hospitals, many patients aren’t getting the treatment that they need. So how have the best and the worst healthcare systems in the world coped with this? Why were some countries better at handling this healthcare crisis?
Finland (population approx. 5.5 million) is said to have the world’s best healthcare system and just like England, there is no cost for healthcare as it is funded by the tax system. The local governments are responsible for offering their residents healthcare services. In 2002, there were more than 19,000 doctors in Finland and life expectancy has increased throughout the years, it’s 81 years for women and 73 years for men.
The first coronavirus case in Finland was diagnosed in a tourist in a holiday resort in Lapland on the 29th January 2020. Since then, Finland has been successful in restraining the pandemic, because compared to many other countries it arrived in Finland late, which allowed early implementation of restrictive regulations and recommendations. Sierra Leone (population approx. 7.8 million) is the worst country in the world in providing healthcare to its citizens. This is mostly due to the fact that the country is still rebuilding after civil war, there is a shortage of qualified healthcare workers and a lack of funding. About 45% of the population is under 15 years old and the life expectancy is a very tragic 54 years. Furthermore, about 60% of the rural population does not have sufficient access to clean drinking water. Another huge concern to the country is the life-threatening disease malaria. The first coronavirus case in Sierra Leone was diagnosed to a 37 year old man who travelled back from France on the 16th March 2020.
Since then, Sierra Leone has seen a little fewer than 1,700 positive cases, however community transmission and limited testing capacity means that this number is probably a vast underestimation. As a result of early and decisive action back in March, it was very crucial to keep hospitals open at a time when other facilities in Sierra Leone stopped taking new patients or were forced to close, due to positive cases among healthcare staff. A new process at the hospital’s main gate enabled the quick and safe isolation of suspected Covid 19 patients. This protected the rest of the hospital, keeping it open for thousands of people to continue to receive care.
The United States (population approx. 328 million) currently ranks highest in healthcare spending among the developed nations of the world. In the USA, the responsibility to provide medical care falls on the government, employers and individuals.
In 2017, nearly 9% of the US population did not have health insurance of any kind, and they could pay a fine for this. The average life expectancy in the USA is about 78 years. On the 21st January 2020, the USA reported their first coronavirus case. Since then, the United States has reported 29.9 million cases and 543,000 deaths from coronavirus. Covid 19 is thought to be the United States’ 3rd leading cause of death in 2020. Overall, Covid 19 has had a significant impact on healthcare systems around the world. Whether it be delaying a patient’s treatment or many thousands of deaths from the pandemic, different countries have been impacted in many different ways.
By Rhea Saran 3ACP
The Placebo Effect: Fact or Fiction? The Placebo Effect has divided opinion for many years. Is it a psychological trick and why does it work? Placebos are often considered “fake” treatments. They can be in the form of pills, injections, or even entire procedures. There is a difference between the term placebo and the placebo effect: the term placebo refers to the inactive substance itself, while the term placebo effect refers to any effects A number of things can influence of taking a placebo medicine that how much a placebo will work. cannot be attributed to the Researchers have found that the treatment itself. more a person believes the placebo is real, the more likely they are to The Placebo Effect is an effect experience the placebo effect. This your body feels after medicine or is also the same the opposite way a cure that looks and seems real round: the more sceptical a person but doesn’t actually have any medicinal qualities. For example, a is that a placebo pill will work, the less effect it will have on them. This person suffering with insomnia means the placebo appears to be a may be given a sugar pill, that psychological deception. they’ve been told is a pill to help relieve them of their insomnia. Because they think this placebo pill will work, they will experience the ‘benefits’ of the pill and their insomnia will be cured, even though the pill is fake and not at all curative.
The placebo effect can be positive and negative. For example, if someone is given a placebo medicine, telling them it will cure headaches, they are likely to think their headache has been cured by that medicine. However, if someone is given a medicine and they are told a side effect is getting a headache (even if it isn’t true), they are more likely to get a headache from the medicine.
There are many theories as to why the placebo works, but no one knows for sure. One of the theories is hormone response. Taking the placebo triggered a release of endorphins which have a structure similar to morphine and other strong pain killers. Endorphins are known as the brain’s natural pain killers. Researchers have been able to demonstrate the placebo effect in action using brain scans, showing that areas that contain many painThe placebo has been known to killing receptors were activated from work in many cases. As well as pain the placebo. relief, insomnia cures and fatigue, placebos have also been known to work on depression. When people suffering with depression were given placebo antidepressants and a placebo mood-boosting injection, PET scans showed increased Another theory about why the activity in the brain relating to placebo works is conditioning. This stress reduction, showing that the is when you form an association placebo cures were having an effect between stimuli resulting in a on them. learned response. In some cases, a placebo can be paired with an actual treatment until it induces the desired effect. For example, if you're regularly given the same arthritis pill to relieve stiff, sore joints, you may begin to associate that pill with pain relief. If you're given a placebo that looks similar to your arthritis pill, you may still believe it provides pain relief because you've been conditioned to do so.
Although the placebo seems to help with many ailments, it is proven that it doesn’t actually help with any underlying illnesses, but it actually helps with the patient’s perceptions of the illness. For example, if someone took a placebo painkiller because they had a headache, the placebo wouldn’t cure the headache, but, instead, it would make it seem like the ache has gone away. The whole concept of how and why the placebo works is still a mystery. However, the most confusing thing is that the placebo will still have an effect on the person even if they know it is fake. For example, if a person takes pain relief medicine but they are told it is a placebo, the person will still experience pain relief symptoms. Even though scientists don’t know why, the placebo has been proven to work on many occasions. Many scientists, including Dr Ted J. Kaptchuk, a Professor of Medicine at Harvard University, have been working on using placebos to treat a number of things, including side effects of cancer treatments. Will the placebo be just as effective, and will it ever completely replace medicine as we know it today?
By Umarah Memon 3ACP
The Importance of Charity STARFISH foundation, SOUTH AFRICA Starfish is a charity based in South Africa, whose aim is to help and support vulnerable children and citizens diagnosed with AIDS or HIV by working in partnership with community based organisations, as well as having workshops set up around the country. Examples of activities they carry out include: conducting regular home and school visits, distributing emergency relief supplies, operating early learning centres for children, holding regular volunteer meetings, supporting the development of vegetable gardens, soup kitchens, as well as generating projects and organising community awareness campaigns. When I was looking through Starfish’s website, I was struck by the many success stories they’ve had (and the 200,000 children they’ve helped so far).
A story that really moved me was that of a 14 year- old girl named Lindiwe. After her school attendance inexplicably declined, a school principal decided to request a Starfish home visit. This revealed that one girl was shouldering the full responsibility of maintaining a household and caring for four younger siblings. However, through regular homevisits and Starfish carer support, her family is now back on track with financial support and Lindiwe is excelling in school. Personally, this is what charity is all about- kindness and giving.
The Importance of Charity The definition of ‘charity’ is ‘the voluntary giving of help, typically in the form of money, to those in need.’ Everyone reading this is in a place of great privilege- we have a home, nutritious food, fresh water, and a valuable education. These are all the things we often take for grantedwhen you go to your sink to get a glass of water, do you realise how lucky you are? As we are in these positions, we have to help those who aren’t so fortunate- who live in shacks, who have to travel miles to collect water, who can’t go to school. Even today, the inequality gap is expanding at a rapidly alarming rate- it’s our job to close it. Recently in my RPE lessons, I have been taught about the Buddhist principle of ‘loving kindness’, which is effectively the spread of compassion., a key trait which is in our human nature. We will hopefully never experience what millions of people are suffering- poverty, starvation… the list goes on. But we are the ones who can do something, who can use our privilege to help others. This can be done in a variety of ways- big and small. If you look on the next page, I have listed things you and your family can do to help. We all need to play our part.
Stigma around AIDS and HIV As well as helping vulnerable children, Starfish also helps those diagnosed or affected by AIDS and HIV. An example of this is the Nokuphila Community Services in the Eastern Cape, which supports vulnerable HIV/AIDS children from its surroundings, with 120 children aged 2 - 6 in the day-care centre, and over 300 children aged seven to eighteen year old in the drop-in centre. These places offer a sanctuary to children in times of need, and is vital to the community. In the 1980s, billions of people globally were terrified of HIV and AIDS because of a lack of understanding as well as misinformation. Starfish is actively trying to eradicate this stigma. The impact on the physical and mental wellbeing of people living with either two of these diseases is significant- experiences of direct discrimination are common and stigma has also been linked to poorer adherence to treatment and treatment outcomes. We are living in 2021, and still, all kinds of discrimination are present- we demand (and need) change.
so what can you do?
By Rhea Cherrington
[lies: the irrepressible truth] * the lack of capital letters in this article is intentional
WHY DO PEOPLE LIE? [according to Forbes, there are three main reasons that cause people to lie. these are • because they fear the consequences of telling the truth (to protect yourself) • these consequences are often negative, so they fear what may happen. • they want people to believe something about them that isn’t true (to promote yourself • the world can be a very judging and hypocritical place, and sometimes in order to fit in, we feel the need to lie • to avoid hurting someone’s feelings (to protect others) • these lies are often simple and reflexes because of human nature]. according to national geographic, one may also lie to impact others, for example with the intent of being malicious. avoidance- 14% personal transgression- 22% • personal gain- 15% • economic advantage-16%• unknown- 7% • pathological- 2% • malicious- 4% • social/impolite- 2% • altruistic- 5%• humour- 5% • self-impression- 8% •
WHAT IS A LIE? [an intentionally false statement] • [NOUN] • [lʌɪ] [of a thing; to present false impression] • [VERB] • [] [of germanic origin] • [old english; lyge] • [] [NB: lies may have varying consequences, so proceed with caution] HOW TO TELL THE TRUTH FROM A LIE . . . . . [difficulty: hard] lying and deception are common human traits. people most commonly lie about small, everyday things. sometimes to protect people and other times to protect themselves.... but how easy is it to tell when someone is lying? [some tell tales] [being vague/offering few details] • [repeating questions before answering them] • [speaking in fragments] • [failing to provide specific details when challenged] • [grooming behaviours] • [vocal uncertainty] • [indifference] some things such as grooming behaviours (like a tendency to run their hand through their hair) will only be recognisable over time as you get to know the person in question. however, things like vocal uncertainty- the voice wavering or being more insecure, may help to tell if someone is lying or telling the truth.
it is important to realise that behavioural signs can sometimes be misleading. people tend to link not making eye contact with dishonesty and lying; however, as researcher Howard Ehrlichman found out, this can actually signify them recalling things from their long-term memory. [tip] [ask them to tell their story in reverse. since lying is more mentally challenging than telling the truth, by increasing the cognitive complexity, it makes them more likely to slip up] [what is pathological lying?] otherwise known as mythomania, there is discourse over whether it is a psychological disorder or not. however, it is certain that compulsive lying is a symptom of other mental health conditions such as antisocial personality disorder, borderline personality disorder, ADHD, psychopathy, and other histrionic personality disorders. excluding psychosis, people who lie compulsively are aware that their accounts are lies, not distanced from reality, but they can often be an effect of a person’s environment. especially if they have been a subject to low self-esteem or trauma, as it can be used as a coping mechanism.
usually, these lies will paint the person telling them as someone to gain sympathy, admiration, or acceptance from others, with very convincingly spun stories. histrionic • [h ɪstrɪˈɒnɪk] [excessively dramatic or theatrical in style] • [ADJ] [melodramatic behaviour designed to attract attention] • [NOUN] [pathological vs white lies] while they may seem similar in the way that they are often harmless, it is the reasoning behind these two types of lies that differentiate them: 1. morality – to spare feelings 2. choice – the situation, avoiding hurting people 3. harmless vs hurtful? one of these would be dependent on the morality of the person telling them. you could argue that white lies are mostly told to save/spare the feelings of someone else, therefore that’s why they are called ‘white’ (or harmless) lies, however pathological lying would be completely for the advantage of oneself. although they may be selfish, pathological lies might not be harmful, as they are usually fake scenarios or situations designed to make someone look good, meaning that if it was figured out that it’s a lie, it may stop. it would technically have no effect on other people than perhaps their opinions of the one person telling the lies, which would of course be their own fault.
[white lies] morality varies from person to person, so not all white lies can be classified into a category as inherently good, because they would depend on what the person telling them believes is best, with hurting the minimal amount of people dependent on the situation. many things could affect the reason as to why a lie is told, and whether it could be called a white lie or not, some of these things being what it's about and why it’s told; white lies are usually about unimportant things to avoid hurting the feelings of another person. however, what could be an unimportant lie, might have been a harmful truth, so, even though lies are supposed to be bad, would that mean that white lies are ok to tell because they could be better for the feelings of someone currently rather than in the long term? white lies are the moral dilemma of choosing to tell someone something that could hurt their feelings and being responsible for that or letting them live with it and having the possibility that they could be hurt by it again later.
paleomammalian prefrontal cortex temporal lobe
EFFECTS ON THE BRAIN [anatomy and parts involved] when lying, a few parts of the brain are stimulated: • the paleomammalian cortex (also known as the limbic system) stimulates guilt, anxiety, you name it • the temporal lobe paints the lie in your head and retrieves past experiences• prefrontal cortex responsible for conquering the truth.
[the amygdala] amygdala• [əˈmɪɡdələ] • [a roughly almond-shaped mass of grey matter inside each cerebral hemisphere, involved with the experiencing of emotions] • [NOUN] • [LATE MIDDLE ENGLISH] • [via LATIN FROM GREEK: amugdalē ‘almond’] the amygdala is a small part of the paleomammalian system responsible for stimulating emotions. research has shown that lying does in fact have a rather substantial effect on it. researchers from UCL and Duke University found out that when a lie is told, the amygdala adapts. they found out that the more a lie is told, the less activity occurs in the amygdala. therefore, it becomes easier to tell a lie if you lie frequently. as a result, the number of lies told per day also increases, causing a repeating cycle, a snowball effect. like with stimuli such as loud noises, the brain has the capability to adapt to make the stimuli less intense. this is the case with the amygdala, but adaptation desensitises us.
[behind-the-scenes] through an fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging), the activity of the brain can be seen whilst lying. to find the parts responsible for deceit, in 2001, the neuroscientist, Sean Spence and his team at the University of Sheffield, instructed participants to answer a series of questions about their daily routine whilst being scanned. By pressing a button on a screen, they responded to the questions. thanks to previous interviews, the scientists knew the correct responses. in terms of the results, as perhaps expected, it took longer for the participants to construct a false response than to answer truthfully. certain areas of the prefrontal cortex had a higher supply of blood flowing inside them- they were more active. this highlighted the part the prefrontal cortex as being mainly responsible. however, this experiment did not give much of an insight into what was going on inside... in 2009, Joshua Greene, a psychologist at Harvard University, conducted an experiment to solve this issue. how do you encourage someone to lie? by adding monetary motive... Greene asked participants, lying in an fMRI scanner to predict the result of a virtual coin-toss. for a correct prediction, they received up to $7 but if they guessed wrong, they lost money. for half of the tosses, the participants were asked to submit their predictions before the event. for the second half, they only had to reveal whether they had guessed correctly.
if you were wondering, yes, they still got paid even if they lied. to separate the facts from fiction, Greene looked at their success rates. the honest participants answered correctly around 50% of the time, conversely, the dishonest subjects answered correctly around 75% of the time. interestingly, some of the liars admitted to cheating after the study concluded. by analysing the data Greene found that there was no increase in activity in the prefrontal cortex when being honest but there was when lying. the lying subjects displayed an increase in activity in the control regions of the prefrontal cortex. this suggested that the cheaters might have been contemplating whether to lie. psychologist, Ahmed Karim of the University of Tübingen, Germany, used transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS). tDCS is a method in which electrodes are placed on the scalp and send a weak current to hit a brain area. unfortunately, a conclusion could not be made from the experiment. it was not clear if electrically stimulating selected parts of the brain would work outside a lab. currently, there is not the right equipment. what we do know however, is that the main part of the brain which is stimulated whilst lying is the prefrontal cortex.
By beth, mala and bez
The Power Behind Atoms: Fission and Fusion Nuclear Energy, Power, and Weapons is one of the most controversial topics of the modern world. It is an area of Physics that is incredibly useful and could (in theory) solve many of the world’s problems. However, since its inception, the use of nuclear concepts has been one of the most controversial issues, leading to many major crises. The use of these concepts could cause the next mass extinction.
The physics
Atoms are the basis of all matter in the universe. They consist of three particles: protons, neutrons, and electrons. The protons and neutrons are held in the centre, the nucleus, and the electrons orbit the nucleus. Atoms have a miniscule, inconceivable size. They also have very strong forces of attraction between the sub-atomic particles. Relative to their unimaginably small size, this energy is enormous. If it could be utilised, it could revolutionise the way the world works. There are two ways this energy is obtained and utilised – Fission and Fusion.
Fission works by splitting atoms. It uses a stray neutron, which is fired at either an atom of Plutonium-239, but more often an atom of Uraniam235. The Uranium splits, releasing energy. The now free Uranium neutrons repeat the process, causing a chain reaction. This single reaction is still on a miniscule scale, releasing minimal energy. However, compared to their size, and if on a much larger scale, this reaction releases exponential amounts of energy. In theory every atom can be split in this way, but larger atoms are easier to split with fission, as smaller atoms have stronger attractive forces, requiring more energy to split in the first place.
Nuclear Fusion is basically the opposite of fusion, and involves bringing two smaller atoms together to make a larger one Normally, two Hydrogen isotopes (H-3 and H-4, also called deuterium and tritium) are fused together through a series of reactions to make helium (He-4, to be precise).
This requires immense heat and energy input as you are forcing two positively charged atoms together (H-3 and H-4) and positives repel. A successful reaction creates massive amounts of energy. This is how the sun makes its energy, and indeed all stars. It is a lot more complex than fission but is the way forward for weapons. One of the biggest areas of nuclear research is the conception of a fusion reactor.
Uses: Power
One of the biggest problems of the century is Climate Change and Global Warming, and the key to solving this is producing sustainable energy that is low on planet-harming emissions – such as nuclear power. It is estimated the UK makes around 20% of its electricity from nuclear sources, and this is expected to grow with a new wave of reactors. Nuclear Power mainly uses Nuclear Fission. As the process of Fission happens, the energy from the split atom is released as thermal Energy, and directed to a cooling fluid, normally water, but can be a gas, such as Carbon Dioxide. This creates steam which spins a turbine connected to a generator, producing electricity.
Uses: Weapons
Nuclear weapons are a type of bomb, referred to as a weapon of mass destruction, capable of destroying large cities with a single bomb. They have only ever been used in combat twice, both in WWII by the USA against the Japanese, on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
There are two types, atomic (using fission) and hydrogen (using fusion). Atomic bombs came first, being simpler, and tend to be larger, which is why, when used, they were dropped from planes. Hydrogen bombs were developed later, from 1952. They use fusion as, once started, the reaction is very hard to contain, ideal for causing lots of damage. Hydrogen bombs are smaller and can be attached to missiles, launched from submarines or land-based silos.
Explained in the theory of MAD (Mutually Assured Destruction), a nuclear war in which both sides possess these weapons would result in the destruction of both sides. Therefore, in some ways nuclear weapons act as a deterrent due to fear of the effects of a nuclear war.
Problems and Dangers
Despite their many uses, these reactions also have many dangers. Firstly, waste. Fission produces highly radioactive waste, which must be disposed of in a contained way. Its radioactivity decreases over time but is still highly dangerous. Have nuclear weapons made the Normally, used fuel is stored under world a safer or more dangerous water for at least five years, and then place? Well, the seemingly obvious buried deep underground contained answer would be more dangerous. securely. Single bombs that are capable of Other, less radioactive waste can be killing millions of people, are used disposed of more easily. Waste from as bargaining ‘chips’ with no fusion is simply isotopes of Helium thought in diplomatic discussions. and Hydrogen, both gases However, is that really the case? commonly found and therefore can You could also argue nuclear be disposed of easily. The use of weapons have made the world a these reactions also has further risks safer place, ironically. and dangers, which has led to several disasters.
Chernobyl 1986
An immense amount of research and development is still undertaken into just what power these reactions can hold. One area of research is into the concept of a fusion reactor. If possible, it would be far more powerful than a One such example was a disaster at fission reactor and have other the nuclear power plant of advantages such as the lack of Chernobyl, in modern-day Ukraine, radioactive waste. However, the then part of the Soviet Union. A problem is that the reaction is highly multitude of failures occurred uncontrollable, why it is used heavily throughout the night of the 26th in nuclear weapons. Organisations such as ITER, the April 1986, due to many factors including poor design, human error, European fusion research agency, are investigating ways to harness the and ack of safety precautions. power of a fusion reactor and contain A power surge occurred within the reactor and an uncontrollable fission it. Other organisations such as the US National Ignition Facility, aim to explosion occurred, blowing apart reduce the size of a fusion reaction, the facility. 28 people were killed, making it easier to contain. many more left with long term health problems and the radioactive The future also brings many dangers. Nuclear weapons are viewed by many cloud reached as far away as the UK as a ‘bargaining chip’ and a few and Sweden. countries rely on a strong nuclear programme. One such country is North Korea, who seem determined to obtain nuclear weapons for their own safety. They regularly test missiles, as The exposed reactor core has been recently as 24th March 2021, a encased in concrete and another provocative step. Other countries such metal superstructure has been built as Iran and Iraq also seem to be fixated atop. There is a 19-mile exclusion with gaining nuclear weapons. zone around the plant and the area Another danger is countries already in will be uninhabitable for at least possession of nuclear weapons. 20,000 years. Stockpiles are growing, and there have Looking to the Future… been no new agreements over An immense amount of research and limitations, with the USA and Russia development is still undertaken into still maintaining thousands of just what power these reactions can warheads between them, around 30 hold. One area of research is into the years since the end of the cold war. concept of a fusion reactor.
By Jamie Hewitt 4NDG
"Have you ever been manipuated? How would you know?"
In November, we began to formulate project ideas for Symposium 2021. Many ideas came our way but at last we settled on our favourite, “Have you ever been manipulated? How would you know?” This topic appealed to us the most as in this day and age manipulation surrounds us both in large and small scales.
So, what exactly is manipulation? The Oxford Dictionary puts it as the ‘disapproving behaviour that controls or influences somebody/something, often in a dishonest way so that they do not realize it.’ When we think of manipulation, our mind immediately wanders to emotional manipulation i.e., peer pressure and bullying. However, it can occur on a much larger scale. We are constantly being manipulated by advertisers who manipulate our emotions to make us purchase a product, that we certainly don’t need! Politicians manipulate voters in order to win votes and influence their opinions. Manipulation is all around us and we wanted to take a deeper look at this subject and how it affects our everyday lives.
Peer pressure and bulllying Peer Pressure. By definition it is the direct influence on people by peers or the effect on an individual who is encouraged and wants to follow their peers by changing their attitudes, values or behaviours to conform with those individual groups. In school, we are told about it all the time and the harrowing effect it can have on other people. Our actions and our words can either influence those around us for better or for worse. On average 15 is the peak age for peer pressure, at the age of 18 teens become better at setting boundaries. In a study carried out by Parent Further on peer pressure, it stated: Only 10% of the surveyed teenagers had said no when they were faced with peer pressure. Peer pressure can come in many forms some may call you names some may push you into something you do not want to do.
There are 6 types of peer pressure: Indirect, direct, positive, negative, spoken and unspoken. Spoken peer pressure is when an individual asks, persuades or suggests someone to take part in something or to engage in specific behaviour. Unspoken is where an individual sees a particular behaviour and choses whether they chose to follow it or not. Direct can be spoken or unspoken where an individual is forced to make a decision on the spot, indirect is subtle but can still exert a large influence. Indirect is also when people hear whispers or react to gossip in their surroundings and then choose whether to take part in what they hear. Negative peer pressure is asking an individual to go against moral code, friends or family but there can also be positive peer pressure where someone is influenced by something that can have a positive impact on their life, (i.e. overhearing someone getting good grades and aspiring to also get good grades or hearing someone is earning money to buy a car and following that idea). Parents can have an extremely strong influence on children’s lives as they know what their child is going through and the types of peer pressure their child is facing.
Warning signs for peer pressure Having a low mood, feeling low and hopeless. New and sudden aggression or antisocial behaviour. Sudden mood changes for no present reason. Change in diets, over-eating or loss of appetite. Reluctance to go to school or in a workplace.
How can we help people under peer pressure? Choose your friends wisely. Some with similar beliefs or views. Talk to the person who is pressurising the individual and have a talk with them to tell them to stop. Pay attention to how you feel and how people around you feel. Talk to parents or people that you feel close to. Open up to them and tell them how you feel. Always remember that “no” is a full sentence. You are allowed to say no without having to give an excuse or explanation.
Psychological manipulation: Psychological manipulation is a social influence that aims to change the behaviour or perception of others by using indirect, deceptive tactics. Usually, the manipulator does this intentionally and at other's expense, these kinds of methods can be exploitative and devious. Psychological manipulation is different to social influence; social influence can be positive sometimes. For example, friends, family, experts can try to persuade to change unhealthy or dangerous habits e.g., smoking. When the person being influenced still can accept or reject and it is not harmful to anyone, social influence is harmless.
Harriet B.Braiker (2004) discovered ways that manipulators control their victims 1. Positive reinforcement – includes praise, superficial charm - superficial charm, excessive apologising - money, approval, gifts, attention -forced facial expressions e.g., laugh or smile public recognition.
3. Intermittent or partial reinforcement- Partial or intermittent negative reinforcement can create a sense of fear of doubt. Partial or intermittent positive reinforcement can encourage the victim to persist. 4. Punishment- includes nagging, yelling, silent treatment - intimidation, threats, swearing - emotional blackmail, guilt trips - sulking, crying, or playing the victim 5. Traumatic one- trial learning: -continuous verbal abuse -explosive anger - intimidating behaviour to establish dominance or superiority Even one incident of such behaviour can condition or train victims to avoid upsetting, confronting, or contradicting the manipulator.
Nazi Germany
Hitler portrayed Germany as the victimized nation and that Britain, France and the rest of the Allies were out to destroy it using the Treaty of Versailles not wanting to see the prosperity of Germany at all. When the Nazi army did invade countries in Europe, they disguised it as a necessary defence to the soldiers so they wouldn’t begin to think of their actions as terrorising and to cause an 2. Negative reinforcement- involves invasion. removing one from a negative situation as a reward.
Back in Germany, all the propaganda was deception of the War and even then, when Germany was losing the War, they covered it up as the Nazi’s controlled every newspaper and radio station since their control over Germany began. The SS played a huge part of implanting a sense of fear in everyone, when things associated the Nazi party. They were the Nazi party’s personal army and when the Nazi Party won the vote and later Hitler became the Fuhrer of Germany the roles became so significant. They wanted to overpower the existing German army, as Hitler did agree with years before, however he had to eradicate the role of the SS members and arrested and killed them on the night of the long Knives as they weren’t useful to him or the Nazi Party anymore. The most effective deception the Nazi party acted out was the ridding of the Jews in 1941 in Germany, Czech and Austria to the ghettos elsewhere. They anticipated that German citizens would find that the Jews were being forced into intense labour, so took fake photographs of Jewish elders and children acting in a safe communal space that was just made for Jews, to manipulate the German society.
They tricked Germany that the Jews were just being segregated but still living safe and happy lives, when in reality they were trying to kill off the trace of all Jewish people.
This is a picture to show how Nazi Germany portrayed the Jews
This was what life really was like
Propaganda of Fascist Italy January 3rd, 1925: Benito Mussolini declares himself the supreme leader of Italy in a speech given to the Italian government.
The country ascends into a totalitarian fascist regime, with the journalist-turned-dictator having to uncover ways to make the population to accept him as Il Duce (The Leader), other than banning the parties which had swept elections in his previous attempts to seize power. The answer is simple: force the people to accept the regime.
Being the youngest Italian prime minister in Italian history, his youth was also broadcasted to the nation as it was a symbol of vitality and action in the fascist doctrine. Newspapers and media were forbidden from broadcasting his birthdays or illnesses to preserve this image of youthful strength. Mussolini was even portrayed in a similar light to Saints to create an image of a religious, almost transcendent man who was not only One of the most well-known propaganda techniques of fascist Italy dedicated to his people, but God as well, which was very conveniently in was the establishment of a line with the beliefs of the Pope as well. ‘personality cult’ around Mussolini, also known as Il Duce. He was often His wounding in WW1 was compared portrayed as a stereotypical ‘macho’ to those of Saint Sebastian, a Christian man with strong family values, martyr in the Roman period who was although there are instances of him shot with arrows and tied to a post being depicted as a Renaissance or because of his faith. Mussolini was also military man as well, capable of all advertised as a miracle-maker, subjects, hobbies and roles. invoking rain in drought-ridden Libya in his visit in 1937 and curing a deafHe was known to adopt many sports blind boy during one of his rallies. like fencing, skiing, horse riding and even lion taming which further elevated him to a position of great talent and capability, which most likely made a lot of the population feel the country was secure under such an accomplished leader. The light to his office was also known to be left on for long hours into the night to create the impression of a ‘work-oriented insomniac’, putting his country’s wellbeing far before his.
Although hard to believe from a modern perspective, these qualities of the leader illustrated greatly unified both the Fascist party and Italian people, guaranteeing stability for power as it stifled opposition against Il Duce.
With the development of technology in the early 20th century like the introduction of the radio and the mass circulation of media, it was increasingly easy for the fascist regime to strengthen its power. By 1926, the last opposition newspapers had been supressed by the government, and state-controlled papers rapidly followed. Government grants were given to journalists willing to spread the fascist message and cult of personality of Mussolini, and those who were more hostile towards these ideas were either arrested or replaced. As expected, censorship ran rampant, and editors and journalists were expected to register fascist organisations to further highlight their loyalty to the regime.
This meant that his open-air speeches could reach more people, particularly the youth, and was a key tool in propagandising the typically neglected population. Despite their success at utilising other forms of media for propaganda purposes, few fascist propaganda films were made, as the Italian public was more interested in historical movies, or dramas, opposed to ‘serious’ cinema depicting the typical fascist beliefs like war and empire.
Indoctrinated journalists were unlikely to publish controversial stories which would instil doubt in the public, and instead reinforced the previously formed opinions supporting the system. Mussolini also widely encouraged the use of radio sets in the 1930s particularly, The Insituto Luce was established in providing radios to rural areas and 1924, however, and was responsible for schools where there was a large censoring films that did not line up illiterate and uneducated population. with the fascist agenda, and severely limited the imports of international films, specifically American ones, in fear of them containing ‘damaging’ material.
They were also known to rewrite Italian movie scripts. Cinema created a false sense of security and national pride for the general public as it provided a new form of escapism. Because of the mass consumption of the different forms of media illustrated, the fascist message reached great amounts of people and their voices could be amplified at the expense of the opposition. This strengthened their position even more. “They won’t prevail” propaganda poster depicting North Africans with exaggerated features, looking lowly compared to the Roman Emperor looming over him (representing the fascist regime and its colonialist ideas). The Fascists often used Italy’s ancient history of the Roman Empire in order to justify their invasions of Northern African countries like Libya. Mussolini was known to be enthralled with the idea of becoming the 20th century version of Augustus.
What do we hope you have gained? When we started this project, we hoped to educate others about manipulation and the effects it has on people and that is still our aim. Manipulation can affect people from all walks of life, so we felt compelled to write about it. Peer pressure and bullying particularly affect teenagers as it is a time of self-discovery and contemplation. It is important that we highlight these issues so that we can all be less impressionable. People who think for themselves rather than as a result of other people. It was very interesting to further research the Nazi regime and several other aspects of manipulation.
By Darcey Moriarty, Daniella Freeman, Kiran Bharaj & Nomeda Petrulis
"The Pursuit of Happiness" “This part of my life… this right here? This is happiness.”- The Pursuit of Happyness movie What is it, where is it…
The dictionary defines Happiness as feeling or showing pleasure or contentment. However, happiness can have a much deeper meaning than this for many people. As time goes on it seems happiness becomes rarer, so for the people of our generation we might describe it as a rare blissful and life-saving rock to cling onto in a storm of anxiety, depression and other struggles of life. For each person happiness is different, it comes in different sizes and forms, from different sources, and many people will dislike or frown upon another person's source of happiness. It is a personal thing that should be shared with the world but remain unjudged.
“Living without passion is like being dead” JEON JUNGKOOK
Happiness is often fueled by passion, a well-known quote from musician Jeon Jungkook (above) 'Living without passion is like being dead'. He was referring to the joy and happiness that passion brings us. In his case it is the art of performance and creating music, but for another person
it could just as well be feeding the homeless or teaching children. Jungkook is encouraging the youth of today to find something to live for and hold onto it no matter how small or silly it is because it brings them passion. Nowadays, it seems we have less time for passion and therefore less time for happiness, people always advise you to do what makes you happy and follow your dreams, but at the same time, discourage you from taking that leap of faith for happiness to instead live a mundane life which you are not content with. So even when you find this source of happiness it is often hard to do what Jungkook says and follow it, simply because we have been taught to be less ambitious and to sacrifice happiness for a good stable job, the right amount of money and an average life. This is a main reason why our generation faces such a great amount of depression and mental health issues, being forced to let go of your source of happiness just to fit in with what older generations have told us will do no good for our outlook on life. This does not mean we should ignore their words, because they may indeed have
The Judgement of Happiness some wisdom within them, not to peg your life on a dream, but living it without passion and therefore happiness would be as Jungkook said, miserable and 'like being dead'. At the beginning of our lives, we are originally asked what we want to be when we are grown up, our answers could vary from a princess/ prince, a celebrity to a doctor or fireman. As we get older, we are told to follow our dreams and do what we are passionate about i.e. what makes us happy. But when the time comes to making decisions regarding our futures, like attending university or which career path we should take we are immediately bombarded with all the reasons why we should not do what we love and all the risks we can take. Out of all of the Hollywood celebrities who got their big break, there is about 50x more who are struggling to pay their rent after trying to follow their dream.
Our dreams are called dreams for a reason, they seem like an impossible goal to reach and something we can only achieve in the world we create in our minds. This, of course, is not true, however that does not stop parents, friends and teachers from trying to give dreamers a ‘reality check’. A passion which you might find eccentric, or a form of happiness which you might not understand can be easy to judge. But the way we resolve such ways of thinking is to put ourselves in their shoes. Take the K-POP phenomena for an example. If you only speak English or are not Asian many people are quick to call you out for listening to it. They might go as far as making racist or xenophobic comments towards the artists and
call the fans obsessed. But if we were to put ourselves into a K-POP fan’s shoes, we might be able to understand why they have such a passion for the genre. The boy band that struck the world when they came to the West are known as BTS, they are not only renowned for their amazing performances, personalities and songs but also for their large and passionate fandom which some may refer to as intimidating. The fandom, called ARMY, have stated many times that a reason they find their happiness in BTS is because of their message to their fans, ‘LOVE YOURSELF’, the boys are such strong believers in this message they made it the title of a campaign for the UN, an era of albums in their music as well as the name of their world tour. They spread a positive message to their fans not just about loving yourself but spreading love and saying it is ok not to be ok, in providing a place of love and comfort for their fans they receive that love ten times more. This also explains why the fans are so defensive of the band, an artist who receives so much hate for little to no reason should indeed be heavily
defended if it is the only source of happiness for millions of people. Now looking at this example we are able to understand the passion the ARMY have for BTS, and the passion of any person has with their own heavily judged form of happiness. As humans we should learn to respect each other, what we appreciate and what makes us happy. As parents or future parents, we should support the new generation in anything they choose to do, whether you approve or not, and be willing
to fuel their source of happiness. And as the youth of today, we should pursue our happiness, in whatever form it comes, whether it is a boy band from South Korea, becoming a Hollywood star or being the next Picasso, we should reach for the sky and still have the support of the whole world. In being united by a mutual understanding of having a dream, we can truly pursue our happiness.
By Alisha Jahangir
LGBTQIA+ Awareness at Bablake For our Symposium project, we decided to survey the school on how they felt about various LGBTQ issues. We received 185 responses with varying opinions and answers, which helped our project tremendously. Our questions ranged from their opinions on how well educated they were on the matter, to their feelings about sharing their spaces with transgender peers. The reason we chose this subject for our project was because of the increasing amount of diversity in both the school and in the world, and we wanted to see how people really felt. We wanted to see how accepting the pupils at Bablake were and how they responded when asked to think about different situations with LGBT pupils, as well as how things may need to be changed to create a more friendly environment for those who identify differently to others.
Diversity at Bablake
Are you a part of the LGBTQIA+ community in any way?
Nearly 25% of people who answered the survey identified themselves as LGBTQIA+. This shows that Bablake is fairly diverse and has an LGBTQ population of around ¼.
Do you believe that Bablake is an LGBTQIA+ inclusive space? Only 12.4% of people thought that Bablake was inclusive to the community, with the majority believing it still
needed work and 10.8% of people believing it was not inclusive at all. More people answered 'unsure' here than 'yes' or 'no'. This shows that Bablake needs work on truly being inclusive.
Have you ever questioned your own gender identity and/or sexuality?
This question was aimed to show that it is totally normal to question yourself. Just over half had not, but 37.3% had, which is more than the LGBTQIA+ population, and confirms that questioning is not something you are alone in.
Education
Have you ever been taught, or researched for yourself, about LGBTQIA+ history? The majority said they had, but almost half had not. It shows that a large proportion of people are still ignorant of LGBTQIA+ issues and history, which are important to many people and need to be known in order to build a more aware, tolerant culture at Bablake.
How much do you think you know? This aimed at finding out people’s perceived awareness of said issues. Most people rated their knowledge in the middle, and while only around 11% of people rated their knowledge as a 1 (knowing nothing), even less rated it as 5- only 8.6% of people who thought they knew a great deal. This again shows that quite a few people are still fairly ignorant of the community.
Would you like to see more LGBTQIA+ history taught in school? What would you like to learn about? Explain. This question gave people the option to type their opinions anonymously in their own words. Almost everyone said that they would like to see more, although there were a few ”no” answers without explanation. Here are some selections from the answers:
“...I would also like to make everyone aware it is ok and if there is a homophobic person that they will receive consequences, not just a detention because that doesn’t scare anyone into not doing it next time.” “A lot more. There is hardly any LGBTQIA+ history taught at Bablake”
“Yes, to increase awareness and prevent bullying” ”Yes from a young age. It's history so stop denying it.” “How to support other people and what different sexualities mean so people don't say the wrong thing otherwise you can offend someone else.” “Absolutely! It is a very large part of history that is far too often overlooked and covered up. I would love to learn more about how it has been treated or dealt with in history and what we can do today to be better. It has been very relevant at points and I haven’t heard a single thing about it over 9 years of education until I researched it myself.”
“...I am not sure how these lessons would fit in, it might be better to do personal research online/in books, but I do think it is a good thing to educate everyone about.” “Yes. We might mention it once or twice in life choices or other relevant lessons but never really look at it in detail. It is important for people to be properly educated and have the right idea about the LGBTQ+ community so they know what to do.” ...”I have never been taught by the school about LGBTQIA+ rights and we need to see it in the curriculum more. There is too much internalised homophobia in our school that is incredibly damaging to me and other members of the LGBTQIA+ community.”
Homophobia /transphobia
Do you believe homophobia/transphobia in all its forms still exists today?
The overwhelming majority of people agreed that homophobia/transphobia are not just things of the past but are still present. 7 people disagreed however, which is a little concerning as if bigotry is not recognised, it gets stronger.
Most people in the school community have admitted having heard things such as ‘gay’ and other similar words being used as an insult to others. This proves that this is an issue that needs to be addressed, as it could have a negative impact on the members of the LGBTQ spaces.
Personal Opinions Would you be uncomfortable sharing a toilet block or other gendered area with a transgender person?
is still just as much a girl as any cis girl in the school and deserves to feel comfortable and safe using the gendered facilities.” Do you think it is okay to ‘out’ people (tell others about someone who has come out to you) without their permission?
This question was aimed to see how inclusive people were to transgender peers, and the majority said that they would be comfortable with sharing a bathroom with them. When asked to explain, the most common response was "Transgender men are men, transgender women are women”, which shows that most people are understanding to the fact that being transgender does not affect the spaces where you belong. Here are some other answers we received: “It is perfectly fine, and they should be treated with respect like anyone else.” “I think it is very important to make them feel as accepted as possible which they hopefully are.” “because (for example) a trans girl
The overwhelming majority of pupils said that it was never okay to out people, but 3.2% of them said that it was okay, which shows that some still need to be informed that it is not okay. A few people said it was okay, but only sometimes, but the number was still small. Most of the responses agreed that it is that person's private information, which indicates most of them understand that outing people is a dangerous thing to do. Some of the responses were: “ I think that you shouldn't as you don't know if they are ready to come out. They will come out when they are ready, and you should support them.”
“It is not your information to tell and outing someone could put them in danger” “If someone has trusted you enough to come out to you, you should respect them and let them tell others when they are ready.” “If they have said it is ok then that is fine, however sometimes they don't want certain people to know or maybe they told you because they trust you and only you.”
However, individual efforts can only do so much, and we can see this from the number of students who believe structural change in the teaching of LGBTQ rights and history is needed.
Conclusion In conclusion, we have seen that there is still some work needed to be done within the school around LGBT resources. The majority of people think that more LGBT subjects should be added into the school curriculum or that we should should have easier access to sources of LGBT issues. Two groups currently exist within the school which help combat this – The LGBTQ+ group and INC. Society. The LGBTQ+ pride group does work around spreading information and acceptance for everyone and accepts members who are LGBT themselves or allies to the community. INC. Society is a group which does work to promote inclusion and diversity in the school community, as well as raise awareness for global injustice.
By Emily Fisher and Megan Rutter
Contributions from..... Timi Anjorin Katie Harvey Aimee Nelson Arjun Pandurengan Isobel Turnbull Jamie Walton Emily Fisher Umarah Memon Megan Rutter Rhea Saran Bez Akinkoye Beth Akinkoye Rhea Cherrington Mala Debnath Daniella Freeman Avneet Hayer Jamie Hewitt Alisha Jahangir Darcey Moriarty Nomeda Petrulis Libby Stinton
Edited by Mila Bilsland
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