Local
Stressful weather in the PNW
By Lucas Barquin News Editor
A storm system building off the west coast hit Washington state late afternoon on Nov. 19. The back-to-back storms caused extensive damage, leaving nearly half a million homes in the dark. The storm system, called a bomb cyclone due to intense pressure drops, reached wind speeds close to 77 mph.
Intense wind speeds damaged power lines, and transformers and uprooted trees throughout Washington state leaving residents to pick up the pieces in the wake of the storm. Some were hit harder than others, however, as two women were killed during the storm on Nov. 19 due to fallen trees. The bomb cyclone lasted the rest of the week, the last of its effects being felt on Saturday, Nov. 23. Bomb cyclones occur when dry air from the stratosphere blows into an area of low pressure, causing extreme rises and falls in pressure over a rotational period. While bomb cyclones can be rare in other regions of the globe, Washington can expect multiple per year.
This most recent cyclone showed extreme differences in pressure across the storm, resulting in the intense wind experienced throughout Washington.
Terrace Students Show Their Talents
By Bri Sprague
The first Performing Arts Showcase of the year was held by the MTHS Music Boosters on Nov. 21. Performers gathered in the band room, where music, art, and laughter were shared with the Terrace community.
Seniors Edgar Alvarez Hernandez and Allen Vernon emceed the showcase, entertaining the audience with banana costumes and witty banter. While all performances were show-stopping, some put their own spin on it. Seniors Dustin Ledbetter, Isaiah Wilder, and Sam Arguelles performed an original song titled “Forever in Love” that showcased the group’s talent and skill.
Repeat performer, Charli Gilchrist got a standing ovation for their cover of Paramore’s “Misery Business.” Other acts, like freshman Nazaret Kidane, showcased their voices, filling the band room with catchy jingles.
The showcases began two years ago and have since taken off, becoming a tradition for Terrace’s performers. Sign-ups are free for any and all students, and families are encouraged to attend and watch performances. Showcases will continue on their regular schedule for the rest of this school year.
Counselors begin name changes in Skyward
By Bri Sprague
In early October, MTHS administrators sent emails to Terrace students explaining the new streamlined process of changing names on Qmlativ and Canvas.
Since this update, counselors have set up meetings with those who indicated they wanted to change their name on the school system and those changes have now been implemented. Students who participated can now see that change reflected on all school-affiliated accounts including Qmlativ, Canvas, and school emails.
National
New President and His Appointments
By Bri Sprague
Republican Donald Trump was elected president in the U.S. presidential election, winning the popular vote and 312 electoral votes, compared to 226 votes for Democratic candidate Kamala Harris on Nov 5. Out of 50 states, 31 voted Republican, 19 voted Democrat, and six flipped from red to blue. Since the election, Trump has announced several cabinet nominations, with many attracting controversy. Trump’s pick for Health Secretary, RFK Jr., has attracted controversy for his anti-vaccine views; he also has no medical background and has been accused of sexual assault. Similar controversy has followed Pete Hegseth, who has also been accused of sexual assault and having little defense experience. Trump’s initial pick for Attorney General, Matt Gaetz, pulled his name from consideration after facing controversy over his lack of experience and and ethics investigation
Spotify Users Confused with their Wrapped Results
By Lucas Barquin News Editor
Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and of course Spotify Wrapped. Every year Spotify rolls out a service called ‘Spotify Wrapped’ where they recap a user’s listening habits throughout the year. Many worldwide consider the Spotify Wrapped season a part of their fall/winter holidays. However, when listeners logged onto their Wrapped this year many found it lacking. Users were frustrated with the recap’s aesthetics, data, and missing metrics that had been included in years past.
Listeners’ biggest gripe against this year’s Spotify Wrapped was the use of AI and the absence of user’s favorite music genres. Spotify claimed to use AI in their recap to give users a special personalized experience that made them want to tune back in for next year’s recap. Despite their intentions, some users responded negatively to Spotify’s AI usage and criticized Spotify for ignoring artist’s concerns about AI, while running an art-focused service.
“The Spotify Wrapped this year was really disappointing. It felt boring, rushed, and impassionate like the people behind it didn’t actually care about it.” Junior Kyo Pedersen said.
“In past years people would hype up the wrapped in the few weeks leading up to it and then when it dropped it would match or surpass that excitement because it felt like the creators made it super personal.”
Many listeners also noticed the lack of genre categorization over this year, and concerns were highlighted after the recap didn’t include users’ genre data.
The reason for this change was a series of mass layoffs in 2023, which impacted engineer Glenn McDonald, the man responsible for categorizing genres. McDonald had founded and led a site called ‘Every Noise at Once’ which operated as a directory of musical genres, artists, and tracks listed by Spotify. After his termination the website broke down, and McDonald was unable to access the data necessary to update this website leading to the website’s discontinuation. The hyper specific search results and communities founded through Spotify genres was a massive selling point for the service, and fans were disappointed to discover this service would no longer be available.
“I was kinda disappointed [with this year’s recap]. It was underwhelming. I was looking forward to the genres,” Senior Elio Isley commented. While Spotify Wrapped has been a yearly tradition for many, this year many listeners felt the recap fell short of expectations.
“This year, it felt like they were just getting the Wrapped out because people wanted it, not because they wanted to do this for Spotify listeners,” said Pederson.
