Don Le, Staff Reporter
June 15, 2019

A group of De Anza College student researchers found that 10% of surveyed students misused a prescription stimulant used to treat Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder or narcolepsy.

Daniel Ju, Annabel Koh, Peter Pham and Andrae Ladores conducted research and surveyed 308 students on campus on their use of prescription stimulants.

The results show that 31 students, or 10% surveyed, used prescription stimulants in the past year.

Prescription stimulants include amphetamines, including Adderall and methylphenidates, such as Ritalin and Concerta.

Adderall is prescribed to primarily treat ADHD and narcolepsy. It is a highly addictive drug and abuse may lead to severe psychological or physical dependence, according to the American Addiction Centers.

The effects of the drug include increased alertness, attention span, energy and feelings of euphoria.

Adderall has reportedly been illegally misused by college students to improve their academic performance and increase concentration according to Ju, head student researcher of the project.

There has been an increase in usage of Adderall and other prescription stimulants among students, according to Koh.

Prescription stimulant misuse is defined as taking a medication in a manner other than prescribed, taking someone else’s prescription or taking a medication to experience a feeling of euphoria, according to the research group.

Ju said the main reason the group conducted the research was because this kind of study had not been done for a local community college.

“You do read a lot of statistics out there on the use and misuse of Adderall and other prescription stimulants, but most of those studies are centered around 4 year universities, which really have a different culture, different student population,” said Ju. “We were really curious what it would look like here at De Anza community college.

The research also yielded an unexpected use for amphetamines not misused for studying.

“One surprising thing in terms of why they used it was weight loss because we think of adderall as the drug for studying,” said Koh.

9.6% of the students surveyed stated they used prescription stimulants to lose weight.

Adderall can cause stomach issues if taken in high dosages, according to the research project, but is not an approved weight loss medication by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Don Le, Staff Reporter
May 22, 2019

An unidentified male stole a De Anza College student’s cell phone on campus, according to a Foothill-De Anza safety alert sent out on May 13.

“The victim reported that (around 7 a.m.) a male took his cell phone from his hands and ran away from the smoking area in Lot C,” said Chief of Police Danny Acosta.

“He chased that individual and was able to get his cell phone back,” said Acosta.

The incident was not reported to police until approximately 10 a.m. and the safety alert was not sent out until 2 p.m.

Acosta cites “the delay in reporting and lack of suspect description” as the primary reasons for the delay in sending out the safety alert.

“The initial investigation required additional work to look for possible witnesses, interviews, descriptions, direction of travel,” said Acosta.

Foothill-De Anza Police confirmed that “at no time was the campus at risk” and that there was no weapon of any kind involved in the incident.

Acosta said students should report suspicious behavior.

“Working together continues to help in keeping the community safe,” said Acosta. “As the alert reminded us we need to take care to monitor our possessions and be aware of our surroundings.”

Don Le, Staff Reporter May 23, 2019

Eric Mendoza was named the new dean of physical education and kinesiology at De Anza College in February following an extensive career in athletic academics.

“(De Anza) was a great opportunity to join a California community college with a great reputation in academics and athletics,” said Mendoza.

Mendoza has over 20 years of experience working for California community colleges.

Mendoza was previously the associate dean of athletics at West Hills College Coalinga and director of student development and athletics at El Camino College Compton Center in Los Angeles.

Mendoza earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communication and journalism at Fresno State University and a master’s degree in physical education and kinesiology at Fresno Pacific University.

Mendoza said he has been taught to listen, learn and lead, and that he dedicates time to receiving feedback from the full-time staff in his department.

“Dialogue has been about what works well at De Anza, what we should continue to do in our department, what things we need to stop doing and what programs we can bring,” Mendoza said.

Men’s basketball coach Jason Damjanovic said he is excited to see what Mendoza is going to do.

“He is putting in a concerted effort to see what we need in our department,” said Damjanovic. “He’s bringing a new energy to our department.”

Mendoza’s future plans for PE and athletics include bringing back De Anza’s softball team and creating an esports team for the new academic year.

“I’m focusing on the process and committed to improving our programs and facilities,” said Mendoza.

Mendoza’s main focus as the new dean is the students at De Anza.

“Our goal is ultimately to help students succeed,” said Mendoza. “Mental and physical wellness is important. It helps students to learn in a classroom.”

Mendoza said he has enjoyed his first two months meeting students and colleagues at De Anza.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better welcome,” said Mendoza. “I can see why people enjoy being here.”

Don Le, Staff Reporter
May 27, 2019

(Cupertino, CA) – De Anza College’s Vietnamese Student Association 2019 Culture Show celebrated Vietnamese culture and tradition with the members of the club acting, singing and dancing on May 12 in the Visual and Performing Arts Center.

The main plot for the show was about a Vietnamese-American girl, who can’t speak her native language, traveling to Vietnam to find her parents.

The show featured beautiful songs performed by VSA members.

Gia Thuy and An Khuong opened the show with the song “Hello Vietnam” with female dancers wearing red ao dais, a dress identified as Vietnam’s national garment, performing in the background.

Over the course of the 90-minute show, there were songs about cafe sua da (Vietnamese iced coffee), the city of Saigon and the main character’s mother.  

Jayce Nguyen, 23, business major, said the show was “wonderful” and the songs were his favorite part of the show.

“They put their heart in the performances,” said Nguyen.

The overall theme of the culture show was love and appreciation for one’s culture. The female protagonist of the show traveled to various cities in Vietnam talking to the locals.

After reconciling with her relatives, the story ends with the girl traveling back to America with a newfound respect for her Vietnamese heritage.

“The performances were spectacular,” said Jesus Pacheo, 22, computer science major. “It showed a lot of culture.”

Even though the overall tone was serious, there were comedic moments in the show.

Peter Huynh, 21, business major, said the acting by the VSA members was his favorite part and he thought the comedic skits were funny.

The culture show concluded with a fashion show that showcased various forms of traditional Vietnamese attire, including ao dais and áo gấms, men’s version of Vietnam’s national garment.

Don Le, Staff Reporter

April 27, 2019

Cupertino’s 36th Annual Cherry Blossom Festival was held on April 27 and 28 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Cupertino Memorial Park.

After parking for free at the De Anza College parking lot and crossing the street, you walk across the green grass of the park. The sun is shining and there is a faint breeze in the air.

Children are walking around with their parents and dog owners have brought their canines to the event.

When you walk into the park, the first thing you see are booths set up for arts and crafts vendors. Jewelry, clothing, ceramics, paintings, anime plushies, and windmills are just some of the various objects you can buy.

There are plenty of food choices if you’re hungry for a snack. Large bags of kettle corn, snow cones, and cotton candy are being sold near the vendors’ booths.

Don’t forget to bring some cash because the “food court” area sells delicious Japanese foods, including Takoyaki, yaki soba, and sushi.

Yaki soba are japanese fried noodles while takoyaki is a ball-shaped Japanese snack made of a wheat flour-based batter.

You can see the ingredients sizzling on a hot grill before they are served to you on a plate. The yaki soba has a generous portion of wheat flour noodles, cabbage, chicken, and carrots. It is very filling and the different textures of the vegetables, protein, and noodles make the dish very good.

The takoyaki balls are filled with minced or diced octopus, tempura scraps, pickled ginger, and green onion. They are then drizzled with a takoyaki sauce and Japanese mayonnaise. You get served six of the delectable bite sized balls and they are delicious snacks, perfect for munching on while walking around the park.

If you’re thirsty, Amor Café and Tea is selling refreshing milk teas and coffees. For any adults that want something with a little more buzz, there is also a booth selling Japanese beers and sake, including Sapporo and Asahi.

At the outdoor amphitheater, the beating of Japanese ceremonial drums could be heard around the entire park from San Jose Taiko. The performers were smiling and very expressive as they banged their big, traditional Japanese drums for the “young art form of kumidaiko (ensemble drumming featuring the Japanese drum)”, according to their website.

Walking in deeper into Memorial Park, the Quinlan Community Center had a Shodo (Japanese calligraphy) demonstration by Master Suisen Sekiguchi. She was using a giant ink brush to write Japanese characters on a piece of paper while dancers with colorful wagasas (oil-paper umbrellas) performed in front of her with fun, Japanese music playing over the speakers.

The Cupertino Cherry Blossom Festival is a result of community appreciation for Japanese arts, music, and food.  As you walk back to your car, after seeing all the amazing performances done at the festival and the authentic Japanese food served, you definitely get a sense of appreciation for Japanese culture.

Don Le, Staff Reporter
April 28, 2019

Google Stadia, a cloud-based gaming service announced at the Game Developers Conference on March 19, will not improve on current subscription platforms because of latency and quality concerns.

Stadia promises games played in 4K resolution and 60 frames-per-second on any device with Google Chrome installed. It is set to release in late 2019, according to Google.

The concept of cloud-based gaming was explored without success before by companies who dedicated their entire focus to live streaming services, and Google Stadia will most likely suffer from the same problems.

In 2009, Palo Alto-based company OnLive was expected to “disrupt the entire video game industry,” according to tech publication VentureBeat.

Just like Google Stadia, OnLive promised to deliver games with no discs, installs or heavy lifting involved.

OnLive needed to perfect their service by adding to their catalog and improving bandwidth according to Kotaku.

The company never fixed these problems and is now defunct.

Stadia will most likely repeat OnLive’s mistakes and suffer specifically from input lag, which is the delay between pressing a button and the game reacting to the input while streaming a video game.

This will be a major problem for multiplayer video games that require precise timing and aiming, such as “Fortnite: Battle Royale” and “Call of Duty.”

Even one or two seconds of delay will be noticeable and detrimental to all players.

Consumers would have no reason to leave gaming consoles such as the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch and switch to Stadia if Google can not provide a polished and consistent experience.

The idea to to play video games on almost any device with no physical discs required is definitely the future of gaming, but the framework needed for a pleasurable cloud-based experience is nothing but a dream for now.

The world is not ready for Google Stadia and Apple Arcade