The student news site of Portola High School

Portola Pilot
The student news site of Portola High School

Portola Pilot
The student news site of Portola High School

Portola Pilot
Although listening to music while studying is popular among many students, others may be able to achieve success better through natural sounds such as those presented through “white noise.”

Ranking The Best Study Music Genres For Upcoming Finals Season

Arnav Chandan, Sports Editor | November 16, 2022

With finals season just around the corner, students are beginning to resort to all-nighters and weekend-long cram sessions in an attempt to ace their exams (I’m looking at you, juniors). Listening to...

Utility player and sophomore Ryder Tonkovich prepares to score in a league game against Northwood. The majority of varsity players such as goalie and team captain Grant Kramer are seniors, which motivates the team to work harder. “My mindset is that because I’m a senior, it could be any game or any practice could be our last practice,” Kramer said. “Because if you lose, you’re done.” (Photo Courtesy of Grant Kramer)

Boys’ Water Polo Makes Bulldog History as League Champions and CIF Runner-up

Mia Jong and Sonia Wang | November 15, 2022

A barrage of synchronized arms glide through the water as they kick up a wake of bubbles. An arm waits, cocked and loaded, wrestling a player on the right and preparing for the perfect opening. Blur. Splash....

Polly Benish (junior Kody Lin), Henry Benish (junior Jason Wu Chen), Violet Imbry (junior Niki Abbaszadeh) and Billy Carewe (junior David Sloan) watch in astonishment as they witness Dr. Rex Forbes (junior Ethan Chan) faint from the curse of the Darjeeling Diamond necklace, crumpling to the ground.

Advanced Theater ‘Plays On’ in Fall Show

Elise Ngo and Gwyneth Yung | November 9, 2022

As the lights dim and the set grows quiet, the audience tenses with anticipation, eager for the talented students to bring the play to life before their eyes. From witty humor to romantic betrayal,...

Media platforms such as Netflix and Hulu often weaponize and manipulate the trauma of real people for financial gain, failing to provide accurate consideration for these real people’s lives. “I feel like it is impossible to only want to inform. You need people who finance these shows and documentaries, and they want to see certain things,” science teacher Michael Tang said. “I don’t think we can ever achieve objectivity or completely good intentions. It’s so tied to money; it’s so tied to fame.”

Trauma Voyeurism: An Unethical Means of Gaining ‘Clicks’ in the Modern Age

Hannah Ko and Tara Vatandoust | November 7, 2022

Viral content is a cornerstone of modern media — shocking, dramatic and scandalous news gains millions of views, regardless of whether it contains the entire truth. Many projects present allegedly true...

All fourteen teachers in the math department, styled as Mario Kart characters, drive themselves to a second consecutive victory in the costume contest after last year’s success. The Halloween costume contest is an important competition for the math department and takes many months to plan, according to math teacher Shelley Godett. “We started talking about it the first week of school,” Godett said. “Because everyone wants dibs on a good costume.”

Staff Goes All Out for the Annual Department Costume Contest

Hannah Ko and Elise Ngo | November 4, 2022

From Drake’s “Certified Lover Boy” album cover to “Among Us” characters, the teachers of Portola High are famous for their annual costume contest. Each department presents a unified theme...

While artificially generated art can be produced at a faster rate, it is not comparable to the beauty of human-made art. “I think that [art] often ties into self expression and ties into processing how you're feeling or what's going on in the world and being able to communicate in that way, and those are pretty complex, big things to do,” visual arts teacher Kearci Thompson said. “So it's not as interesting to most people that study art because we're like, okay, [the AI] can do some of the things kind of well, but it doesn't have that human aspect that draws you in.”

AI Art Will Always Stay Artificial

Ruhi Samudra and Shaina Taebi | November 3, 2022

The robots must be stopped! Their new focus? Conquering the world of art.  Advances in machine learning processes have paved the way for artificial intelligence artwork in which a human’s skills...

Juniors Kalynne Mendez and Emaleena Elson represent their Filipino heritage and the opportunity to play in an international basketball tournament through the team jerseys. Mendez played in the under-18 division while Elson played in the under-16 division.

Basketball Players Emaleena Elson and Kalynne Mendez Had Their ‘Swish’ Come True

Ruhi Samudra, Staff Writer | November 3, 2022

For juniors Emaleena Elson and Kalynne Mendez, this was not just another basketball game. In fact, they played it more than 7,300 miles from Irvine in their second home: the Philippines.  The Fil-Am...

Ceramics, photography and art teacher Donovan Miller demonstrates how to throw a plant pot to his advanced and AP 3D design students. The funds raised from selling the pots will go toward helping the visual art board to raise funds for its annual show.“I don't have a ton of time to make my own artwork anymore,” Miller said. “Normally when I do a demonstration for a project, I like to use that as an opportunity to kind of explore my interest in art.”

Ceramics Teacher Donavan Miller Expresses Himself Through The Arts

Jana Malek, Staff Writer | November 3, 2022

Art can help people heal, grow and reduce stress, according to The National Center for Biotenchnology Information. For art and ceramics teacher Donovan Miller, to create art means a lot of things; an outlet...

Special segment producer and senior Daisy Liao hooks up the camera to the stand for the shooting of the Belonging project in the green room. “Every single year, we can create a video like this where we get a bunch of many students into one video and ask them, ‘What does this emotion or what does the theme of this school year mean to you?’” Liao said.

Promoting Acceptance: The Belonging Project

Kayleen Kim and Shaina Taebi | November 1, 2022

The feeling of acceptance, support and security. Can you guess what this word is? Belonging.  The Belonging project began under the umbrella of the Portola News Network in early October and the...

The cover of Swift’s Moonstone Blue Version of “Midnight” perfectly captures the late night feeling and the title of the album. The vulnerability and various tones expressed within the album parallel the so-called, ‘late night thoughts’ one might experience at midnight.

‘Midnights’ By Taylor Swift Is Anything But Mediocre

Maitri Allani and Shaina Taebi | October 31, 2022

The clock struck twelve, but Cinderella did not drop her shoe. Instead, Taylor Swift released her 10th studio album: “Midnights.” Within 24 hours of its release, the album became the highest-streamed...

Sophomore Megumi Chang prepares to shoot during the 2022 USA Archery Junior Olympic Archery Development Target Nationals on July 21. Chang said her interest in archery sparked at 9 or 10 years old after she watched “Brave,” a storyline surrounding a princess named Meredith who is extremely skilled in archery. “I really like archery, because it taught me resilience and discipline and responsibility of your own shots,” Chang said. “Since it's not really a team sport, you have to depend on yourself, and it's on you.” (Photo Courtesy of Megumi Chang)

Behind the Bow: Megumi Chang Shoots for Bullseye at USA Archery Nationals

Celine Lee and Maya Tedini | October 28, 2022

For 15 hours a week over the course of three months, sophomore Megumi Chang practiced endlessly with a single goal in mind: To place in the top 20 out of over 100 other archers competing in the 2022 USA...

While many overlook the importance of tipping workers, it is a crucial practice that acknowledges their hard work and services. Tipping culture prevents people from becoming bound to money and the prospect of its loss.

Tipping Culture: It’s Deeper than You Think

Hannah Ko, Staff Writer | October 28, 2022

Tipping at least 20% of a meal’s cost has been a symbol of etiquette and respect in American culture for over a century, but recently the practice has been subject to scrutiny by shameless critics who...

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