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FeaturesIt seems like the regular,probably truthful, but excusesdon’t make the cut anymore.Teachers are tired of hearing itover and over again, so whatchoice do we have but to changeit up a bit and get creative? Trustme teachers, we’re doing it foryour sake just so you don’t getbored to death with the same dayto day excuses.Whether it’s homework ortardiness, we’ve got a reason sohear us out. Of course from ateacher’s point of view, hearingthe same excusethree-hundred timesin one week makes itvery difficult to pickout the honest onesfrom the liars.“One girl told meshe couldn’t do herproject because her mom was sick.She had cancer in her heart. Sheeven started crying and I startedcrying with her. Then, a fewweeks later I call home becauseI was getting worried. Her momwas perfectly fine,” said ZenaidaBecerra, Spanish Teacher.From an acting point of view,experienced liars do have theadvantage. For example, the dramaacademy has the upper hand onthis case. I’m sure teachers eventake the time to think it unfair thatsome students can’t even act thepart or sound believable enoughwhile others do.Other popular excuses of courseinclude: My mom threwaway my homework, I leftit on the bus, it’s in mycar, my computer broke,I forgot today was an ‘A’day, and the power wentout in my neighborhood.“I was at the hospitallast night because my uncle wassick,” said Sandra Ferret, MedicalSenior. She wasn’t anywhere neara hospital and has no sick uncle.“The printer is alwaysbroken,” said Stephanie Cramer,U.S. History Teacher. CramerCoral Reef Sr. HighJanuary 201011My dog ate my homework... again and againStudents are the masters in the art of excuses, and teachers have learned to recognize themELIZABETH GONZALEZStaff Writer“hearing the same excuse three-hundred times in oneweek makes it very difficult to pick out the honestones from the liars“claims it’s one of the mostpopular excuses for not turning inhomework.One kid actually got away withhis mischievous scheme. “My cellphone had internet and I knew mymom’s e-mail and password. Ilogged on to her e-mail and wroteto my teacher pretending to bemy mom,” said an anonymous,Business Junior.But either way it’s not likethey’re going accept the truth. Wehave no other choice but to turn toour creative sides.Electronics will renderbooks obsoleteNew technologies push the boundaries of thesimple act of readingJEREMY MATHURINStaff WriterPHOTO CREDIT: CAMILA BERNAL.VPA Senior, Dylan Golden pores over the pages of the traditional reading device,a book.Tradition overcomestechnological advancesHolding a classic book in your hands just isn’tthe same as reading on an electronic deviceCAMILA BERNALStaff WriterE-books, the new technologic buzz. Nopaper necessary. The reader must purchasethe title they desire and then they have thebook electronically available.The question remains through, will theE-book become more popular than paperbooks? Do they have the power to replacebooks?The answer is a very solid “no.”Technology passes, it moves forwardleaving us behind to catch up, and eventhough progress is necessary and positive,when it comes to books, to the enchantmentof literature and the adventure of climaxesand resolutions, the charm and intimacy offlipping a page will be eternal.“I am a book junkie, E-books justdon’t attract me, and I like the feeling ofholding an authentic, substantial, book inmy hands,” said Denise Arnold, EnglishTeacher.There are of course different argumentsto the benefits of the E-book, many supportthis new technology because it would behealthy for the environment, if more peopleswitched to E-books, the production ofpaper books would decrease.“I think E-books is an amazing idea. Mymom reads lots of books and she throwsthem away afterwards, I feel like it’s sucha waste of paper, if she had an E-book thatjust wouldn’t be necessary. Plus E-booksare much cheaper,” said Bianca Dansoh,Legal Senior.Opinions differ, but in the end, it’sundeniable that the popularity of books willalways maintain it’s prestige in preference.There are still those “book junkies” outthere who will not settle for an electronicimitation of the reading experience.“I definitely prefer books, I like lookingat my progress while I read them, and howI go from just a few pages to my book markbeing under a thick layer of pages,” saidChloe Castro, VPA Senior.“Also, afterwards I love looking at whathappened to it as I read it, the tears, the foodstains, the wrinkled pages from a weekendat the beach, the journey that the book andI went through,” said Castro.In the end, most would agree, books aretreasures that hold with them the sentimentsof generations. And above technology,above this idea of “easier” or “faster” or“better” is tradition. The charm of blowingdust of off a classic will never fade.The Kindle is a device developed byAmazon as a way to carry several books atthe same time. The first device was releasedin the United States on November 19, 2007.These devises use an electronic paperdisplay, which makes pages look like actualbook pages. The device allows the user todownload books and even applicationsover Amazon wirelessly via the AT&T’snetwork internationally. The Kindleh a r d w a r edevice canbe usedwithout ac o m p u t e rand hasfree webb r o w s i n gcapabilities.“TheKindle isreally cool,I don’t haveone but thec o n c e p ts e e m sgreat,” saidC h e l s e aE s p i n a ,L e g a lFreshman.Accordingto some estimates based on officialstatements, as of April 2009 there wereabout 1.5 million devices sold. Amazon e-book sales overtook actual book sales forthe first time on Christmas day of 2009.Although the Kindle is an amazing device,there has been opposition against suchdevices. Many imply that having a bookin your hand, physically turning pages,even the smell will always beat having ahand held book. Another major point of theopposition is the price which ranges from$200 up to $400.“You still have to pay for individualbooks, and if you lose it, it’s going be hardto get all your books back. Why do thatwhen you can borrow from a library, andreturn it when you’re done?” said RolandoAlayeto Legal sophomoreNevertheless, the supporters of the E-book have more than mere sentiment ontheir side.“I personally love to read, and theKindle simplifies reading and takes it to awhole new level. For those who think itis too expensive, you can get any book at40% off list price. It saves paper, and thepages actually look like paper. You also getbasic web browsing, not to mention thatPHOTO CREDIT: ANNA MEBEL.The Sony Reader is another electronic reader similar to the Kindle.it’s free. You can get absolutely anythingfrom magazines to the bible. I still lovebooks but the Kindle makes it… moreconvenient,” said Stacey Fradera, LibraryMedia Specialist.E-books have become arevolutionary device that has studentsand staff raving. Now, avid readers canpurchase any book, without having togo to the store, and for a lot less money.Some teachers are even allowing studentsto annotate in their e-books and email theirwork over the internet.You can even purchase textbooksand highlight them to study, somethingyou can’t do in school textbooks. Theelectronic world has finally over taken oneof the oldest ways of story telling and is byfar more prevalent and convenient.