Two weeks ago, a rumor of a name change for the social media company Facebook was spreading fast among internet users. Facebook has been around since February 2004, and it has developed and changed quite a bit. The name, however, has remained the same. Back in 2003, the original intention of the social media app was a “hot or not” style website, originally called Facemash, where students at Harvard University could rate the faces of their classmates. While it got shut down two days later, founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg aimed to redesign the website, giving it its new purpose – connecting people. In early 2004, it was re-released as the Facebook we know today.

On Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021, Facebook announced the new company name as Meta Platforms, in reference to the metaverse (a fictional future vision of the internet.) According to CNBC, the change comes after the company faced scrutiny over the spread of “hate speech” and “misinformation” earlier this year.

In relation to the name change, the company will still remain in control of the other social media platforms such as Instagram, Oculus, Whatsapp, etc. and they will become what is known as subsidiaries, which means they will be less of a focus for the company but still important nonetheless.

“The best way to understand the metaverse is to experience it yourself,” Zuckerberg said in his announcement. “It doesn’t fully exist yet.” He hopes this name change will give a fresh face for the embattled company. 

In early Spring, Kabuki Hibachi & Ramen opened up near Jeff High. From an outside view, the restaurant is welcoming and will pique your interest with windows filled with art. Upon entering, you are instantly greeted with paper lanterns, warm lighting, and a mural in a traditional Japanese style. 

First my group started with an order of crab rangoons, which is a fried dumpling filled with crab meat and cream cheese. Crab rangoons are traditionally a semi-sweet dumpling paired with a sweet and sour sauce, but the ones offered at the restaurant were sweeter than usual, which I didn’t mind. Aside from the sweetness, the dish was great. The presentation of the crab rangoons was appealing thanks to the light fabric separating the food from the plate and adding to the aesthetic, but nothing extreme.

Next we tried some sushi , beginning with an order of Pink Lady, a pastel pink-colored sushi that has tempura shrimp, spicy crab, cucumber and avocado wrapped in soy paper and topped with spicy mayo and eel sauce. The Pink Lady sushi, when given to us, had a lovely presentation. The sushi was arranged so that they looked like hearts, and at the top two sushi rolls had the tails of the tempura shrimp. The taste of the sushi matched the presentation, an amazing flavor tied together by the sauce selection. We also tried an Alaska Roll, a sushi roll which has salmon, avocado and cucumber. The Alaska roll was served on a wooden serving dish, giving it a more classic feel. It was well put together, even if it was a simple roll.

Then we moved on to the steak and scallop hibachi dinner, which consists of various vegetables such as broccoli and mushrooms, steak and scallops, your choice of fried or white rice all cooked on a Japanese teppanyaki grill and served with two specialty sauces on the side. The steak and hibachi dinner was organized so that the vegetables and meat were on one side of the plate and the rice on the other. The steak, cooked medium well, was perfect for my group, and the scallops were cooked near perfection. The rice was cooked evenly and the sauces added to the already flavorful dish.

Lastly we tried the Tonkotsu Ramen, which is a traditional ramen with egg, ramen noodles, narutomaki (a white cured fish with a pink swirl inside), a pork broth and your choice of char siu (roasted) pork or grilled chicken.The Ramen was excellent. However, expect to take some leftover Ramen home, as the portion was large, but who complains about more food? The ramen is presented with a spoon to drink the broth, numerous toppings which make the ramen aesthetically pleasing and a load of noodles for you to enjoy with everything else. In summary, the ramen was superb.

The service of the establishment was impressive, considering the low number of staff members and the amount of customers in the restaurant at the time. Our server came to check on us often, made sure we had refills for our drinks when needed and was very friendly when taking our order. The manager of the restaurant also made rounds in the restaurant to check on his guests. 

The overall experience of Kabuki was amazing, and my group and I enjoyed the experience. While the food was a little pricey, it was worth it for this spectacular small business!

Restaurant Details:

Number – (812) 590-3430

Address – 2784 Meijer Rd, Jeffersonville, IN 47130

Hours – 11 am – 2:30 pm, 4:30 pm – 9 pm, Closed on Mondays

Amidst an election season that never seemed to end and a dramatic lead-up to tomorrow’s inauguration, it’s easy to forget the most important part of elections: the voters. Many new voters, including some Jeffersonville High School seniors, cast their first presidential ballot in this unprecedented election.

2020 was a year full of all sorts of chaos and confusion, especially since the world was hit with a global pandemic and civil unrest all in the same year as an election. These events occurring during an election year can make for some tough decisions on the candidates. Another thing candidates are dealing with are citizens who have never voted before. Jeff High, being a bridge between childhood and adulthood, has students who experienced voting for the first time.

Some of Jeff’s seniors decided to vote before the actual day. Senior Kaelin Elsner decided to go early, despite having planned to vote on election day, because she had to work the day of. Leading up to the election, Elsner said she felt a sense of “impending doom,” but now that the results are in she feels thankful. Senior Jynn Yoo also chose to vote early, as she had heard mail-in voting “is not a good option for an accurate count” (While this is Yoo’s opinion there is no credible evidence that voting by mail results in a less accurate count.)  Jynn was very anxious about the election before voting, as she did not feel her candidate of choice had a strong chance of winning. “Voting in such an important year made me feel like me or the younger generation had the power to make a difference.”

Other first time voters at Jeff decided to vote on Election day, such as Cameron Sanders. “I decided to vote in-person on Election Day due to how my voting area wasn’t that populated and I wasn’t worried about having to wait in a long line. On top of that, I was worried of marking my ballot wrong or mailing it in wrong, so I did it in person for the extra closure.” In regards to the voting process, Sanders said it felt “very underwhelming, yet overwhelming at the same time.” It was underwhelming because “there wasn’t much to do except bubble in who you wanted to vote for,” but he was nervous because voting is taught to be an extremely important thing.

Some voters decided to go on election day purely because the mail-in voting system is “untrustworthy” (While this is some people’s opinion, there is no credible evidence that mail-in voting is “untrustworthy.”)  Colin Brian, while not having cared about the results more than the other years, says the results are about what he expected. Brian also claims to have felt poorly leading up to the big day, as he feels both candidates have bad intentions in the end.

Other seniors, like Brian Klein, Evan Bealer and Mattie Blanton, went because of family. Klein didn’t know where to go until instructed by his aunt. He says he didn’t know anything about the process, but he was eager to learn. In the end, he felt like he had contributed to a major election. Blanton’s parents wanted her to go in-person so she could experience going in for her first election. Because of this, she was able to feel important in this election. Meanwhile, Bealer tagged along with his family. He says the opportunity to vote made him feel excited.

Some seniors who voted on Election day had the opportunity to have Jeff High as their voting area. Jordan Wagner, who voted at Jeff, said he was nervous because he had no idea how the process went. After voting, however, he said he felt good and as if he had suddenly grown up.

Seeing as she didn’t have time to vote earlier than Election day, Laura Gillenwater was forced to vote the day of. “[Voting for the first time] felt really empowering because I felt very strongly about this election and I was glad that I was able to vote.” Before the feeling of empowerment hit her, she felt nervous about her candidate not winning. “I had a clear candidate I wanted to win. I knew this election was going to be super close and that it could end up going either way.” Gillenwater was very happy with not only the results but the fact that this election year was able to give a lot of people who wouldn’t normally vote the chance to voice their concerns and opinions.

Unfortunately, some of Jeff’s seniors were not old enough to vote. Josiah Jackson was only 17 by Nov. 3. While not being old enough, he was still nervous. ”Being a person of color, it feels like either way things would be bad after.” Not being able to participate in the process, Jackson waited anxiously for the results. After a winner was announced, he said he is glad, and that we needed the change.

In a contentious and divided election, we often lose sight of those who the election is about, the voters, and for many, high school is the time where people first exercise their right to vote.

Story by Chloey Trinkle

On April 2, 2020, Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb announced all schools in the state of Indiana will remain closed for the rest of the 2019-2020 school year. Schools are required to complete 160 total instructional days (20 more after April 2). 

Students attending any schools in Indiana are still heavily encouraged to follow the social distancing measures and complete their e-learning work when assigned. As of April 2, there have been 78 total Coronavirus deaths and over 3,000 confirmed cases of the virus in Indiana. The best way to fight the sickness, Holcomb stated is to continue to socially distance as much as you can, and to avoid going outside unless for necessary means. An announcement from Greater Clark County Schools is expected Friday, April 3.