The Bluffer - Red Bluff, CA
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The Bluffer Volume CXV Issue 3 September 27, 2013 Serving Red Bluff High School since 1901 Varsity Football-Page 5 Weekend Forecast Key Club organizes this year's first BLOOD DRIVE Friday: High 79 ° Low 52° Saturday: High 82 ° Low 55° Sunday: High 81° Low 55 ° Homecoming Emcee For any senior wanting to be the emcee for the Homecoming Kick Off Assembly or Queen Coronation, the deadline to sign up is today, Sept. 27, 2013. Tryouts will be next Friday, Oct. 4. Homecoming nominees are Marissa Chase, Megan DiDio, Karlee Garcia, Tori Garcia, Maggie Tallan, and Hannah Woodall. Frosh Field Trip A frosh field trip, put on by College Options, will be held on Oct. 18, 2013. The trip will be to the San Jose Tech Museum of Innovation and San Jose State University. In order to attend the field trip in October, freshmen must turn in their permission slips no later than Friday, Sept. 27, 2013. Free/Reduced Lunch The last day to turn in Free or Reduced Lunch applications will be today, Sept. 27, 2013. Applications have to be turned in at the start of each school year. For those that have already turned in their applications for this school year, the payment status will last until Sept. 26, 2014. If applications are not submitted by Friday, students will have to go back to paying full price for lunch. 'Grand Theft Auto'-Page 4 Ag. Mechanics -Page 3 River Mist Staff Writer This year, Red Bluff High School is holding its 91st tri-annual blood drive, put on by the community-based, non-profit blood center, BloodSource. Since the first blood drive on May 2, 1989, Red Bluff High School alone has donated over 5000 units of blood, with over 6000 registered donors. Students at Red Bluff High School give blood for many different reasons. One reason for their donation is the fact that they feel pride that they can help others. " I feel pride in the fact that my blood can save the lives of many others." -Choncho Torres Choncho Torres, junior and first time blood donor, said, "I feel pride in the fact that my blood can save the lives of many others." But not every student is able to donate blood. Amber Harms, senior, was turned away from donating blood this year. Harms said, "I feel useless because I am unable to give to the cause. Although I was unable to donate today, hopefully, sometime in the future I will be able to help out others by donating blood." Every year, many students are turned away, or deferred, from donating blood. Some of the most common reasons for this deferral is if a student has had a tattoo in the last year, if they have traveled out of the country in the last year, if they have been sick in the last 48 hours, or if they weigh less than 110 pounds. Red Bluff High School is one of the highest-donating schools in the North State, thanks to the Key Club, the organization that helps BloodSource in organizing the blood drive. According to Key Club adviser Fred Null Jr., "We are the only school that does three blood drives per year and that is contributed to our amazing staff here at Red Bluff High school and the support they provide Key Club." The next blood drive will take place in January of 2014, with the third taking place in April 2014. For more information on the blood drives, visit www.bloodsource.org. Marissa Chase/BLUFFER (Top) Shelbie Fitzgerald, senior, squeezes rubber ball as she gets her blood drawn. (Middle) Victoria Hurt, senior, sits and waits as she donates blood. (Bottom) Students sit and eat food after giving blood in order to replenish glucose, vitamins, and volume lost from the circulatory system. NASA Astrobiology Intern Program offers unique opportunities Grey Grotke Staff Writer Few students may be aware of the Lassen Volcanic National Park Astrobiology Intern Program here at Red Bluff High School that has been in place for many years, but the program has undergone a few changes within the past few years. The intern program is designed to allow members a hands on experience. Members work for The Lassen Volcanic National Park, but they gather data from the park for astrobiologists at the NASA Ames Research Center. The students gather information regarding microbial life around the park's unique hydrothermal features. The information is then used by NASA to aid in the search for extraterrestrial life on Mars. Members must apply to the fairly exclusive program. Out of the approximate twenty that applied for the program last year, there are nine new members this year. Before a student may apply, they must have completed high school chemistry. Previously, the program had fewer opportunities for members to work in the field, but five years ago the program began to collect Courtesy Photo more data from the field. Before the changes, the members primarily gathered water samples from the park Brandon Luckow, a senior in the program, hikes to field site in Lassen. and analyzed them, whereas now members are collecting mineral samples from this is the first year to have a group coordinator rocks, gathering biological samples, and creating position, which is currently held by Mayson lab environments similar to those in the field for Trujillo. them to grow cultures with. Members of the group express appreciation in In addition to these changes made several being in the program, Lily Fryer said, "I highly years ago, the program began to reorganize its enjoy being in the program, I'm glad to have the functions last year. In the past, all the juniors experience while it's here at high school." in the program would automatically be in the Mayson Trujillo said, "It was good to have program as a senior. Now, however, they must actual hands on experience." reapply for membership. The program is divided Adrien Stejer expressed enthusiasm in "...how into three groups: Alkaline, Acidic, and Neutral. you can draw parallels between Mars and Lassen Each group once had at least one senior in it to Park even though they're thousands of miles help lead the juniors in the program. Now, an away." actual position, the "head," is put in each of the Mr. Michael and Mr. Null, RBHS teachers groups. The current head of each group is as work alongside students and NASA scientists. follows: Alkaline is lead by Adrien Stejer, Neutral Mr. Michael said that the best experience by Lily Fryer, and Acidic by Marissa Chase. that students get out of the program, aside from In addition to the heads of the three groups, working with PHDs, is getting to "apply what