• April 26-May 3Spring Musical
  • April 28Red, White, and Blue Awards
  • May 9Last Day to Drop with a W
  • May 16Lynbrook Film Festival
  • May 17Senior Prom
The Student News Site of Lynbrook High School

the Epic
Go Club tournament tests strategy and wit
Go Club tournament tests strategy and wit
Elizabeth Louie helps senior Meghana Babu understand a French passage during tutorial. Photo by Erin Fitzpatrick.
Elizabeth Louie recognized with Teacher-Leader Award
Notable recent events include Lynbrook winning the AP Computer Science Principle Female Diversity award, the VTA strike, a national "Hands Off" protest and the increasing international tariffs. Top left: Photo used with permission from Vincent Varletta/Wikimedia Commons Top right: Photo used with permission from Grendelkhan Bottom left: Photo used with permission from Patou Ricard/Pixabay Bottom right: Photo used with permission from Mahmoud Sulaiman/Unsplash.
Campus, community and world events
The Spring Movie Theater expanded previous movie night events. Photos by Jenny Suh.
ASB Recognition and Social bring the theater experience to campus
Principal Maria Jackson retires after 30 years in education
Principal Maria Jackson retires after 30 years in education
Machine Learning systems such as ChatGPT require scraping the web to improve its capabilities. Websites hosting illegal pirated and copyrighted materials such as Anna's Archives or Library Genesis, thus have its copyrighted materials used to improve AI material.
Unlicensed materials in AI model databases undermine original works
Anushka Deshmukh discovers self-advocacy through her struggles with celiac disease.
Trials and tribulations with celiac
Rohan Kakhandiki learns to appreciate his unique last name over time.
That’s my name, but you can wear it out
Lack of awareness around the prevalence of digital misinformation affects students in the digital age. To combat these concerns, student engagement in media literacy and responsible journalism should be prioritized within schools.
Editorial: Media literacy in and out of FUHSD classrooms
San José mayor Matt Mahon recently proposed a policy to authorize arrest of homeless after refusing help three times within 18 months. This policy falls short of tackling root causes of homelessness and overlooks the true needs of homeless.
Addressing homelessness requires support, not criminalization
Anushka Deshmukh discovers self-advocacy through her struggles with celiac disease.
Trials and tribulations with celiac
Rohan Kakhandiki learns to appreciate his unique last name over time.
That’s my name, but you can wear it out
Junior Irene Hwang offers humorous advice to those without a romantic partner during Valentine's Day.
A single person’s survival guide to Valentine’s Day
Sophomore Saavan Saraf discovered his voice in politics after a long and perspective-changing journey.
Finding my opinions in the world of politics
Junior Brian Lee holds up prayer beads, a symbol of his atheist identity amid his Buddhist family.
A different prayer in a Buddhist household
Lack of awareness around the prevalence of digital misinformation affects students in the digital age. To combat these concerns, student engagement in media literacy and responsible journalism should be prioritized within schools.
Editorial: Media literacy in and out of FUHSD classrooms
Students actively engage in discussions and group activities in their Ethnic Studies class.
Editorial: Federal education cuts threaten ethnic studies programs
In a district wide effort to address student mental health issues, Lynbrook plans to launch a future mental wellness center, preceded by a monthly prototype launching in May.
Future wellness center is a step toward aiding student mental health
Student petitions are an important way of bringing attention to school issues, but the line between serious and counterproductive petitions must be drawn. Graphic illustration by Charlotte Bolay and Crystal Zhu
Editorial: The power of petitions in student advocacy
The FUHSD board should increase outreach opportunities for students to participate in district activities, while students should engage in board efforts.
Editorial: Bridging the gap between district board and students
Sylva Scott cares for her alpaca and other animals at McClellan Ranch. Photos used with permission from Sylva Scott and with Creative Common Licenses.
Caring for alpacas with Sylva Scott
Bolang Zhu, Om Modi and Vikrant Vadathavoor (left to right).
LD debaters speed through limits of debate success
Allen Chan and Toan Phuong work hard to replace security cameras and pick up calls.
Behind the screens with the information technology team
Students prepare for the annual ELD speech competition.
The faces behind annual ELD speech competition
Every day Tara Grande, Thomas Lopez, Johnny Roberson and Tim Wehner serve as the school’s crossing guards.
Crossing into the lives of Lynbrook’s crossing guards
Photos by Lilly Wu. (Lilly Wu)Graphic illustration by Claire Guo. (Claire Guo)
Claire Hsu bakes it up
Jayden Yang makes waves through water polo
Holden Choi finds a career path in his passion for video games
Jason Wu grows passion and creativity through a side hustle
Chloe Chung strengthens connections through vinyl
Aside from the hefty expense of a seat, space tourism also comes with another astronomical price tag: environmental sustainability.
The environmental price of reaching for the stars
San José and the larger San Francisco Bay Area are home to a variety of native species such as the California poppy, owl’s clover and lupine.
The Bay Area’s complex web of native and invasive wildlife
The three branches of government within the Constitution — the judicial, executive and legislative — were crafted to avoid a crisis in the system of checks and balances that prevents one branch from overpowering another.
The possibility of a constitutional crisis in our perfect union
World War II (1939-1945)
World War II (1939-1945)
In the fast pace of modern popular culture where trends seem to disappear before they even start, it is easy to forget their origin and cultural significance.
Subcultures enrich mainstream
Track athletes from different high schools leap over hurdles while bounding toward the finish line. Photo by Akash Anand. Graphic illustration by Anna Cen
Setting track athletes up for success
Athletes, from high school and college, are able to use their popularity and skill for profit through different sponsorships. Graphic Illustration by Amanda Jin.
Name, image and likeness are reshaping the culture of athletics
Dylan Liu and Karen Gao swim to success with record-breaking times
Freshman Alber Wu holds up his foil, standing proudly with his fencing equipment. Photo by Olivia Tu. Graphic illustration by Kieran Hau and Amanda Jin.
Alber Wu discovers his tempo through fencing
Different dance groups on campus perform during rallies, on campus events and larger events outside of school hours.
Campus dance groups share the art of movement
Unwrapping holiday memories
Plucking heartstrings with Lynbrook students’ favorite love songs
Silsilay connects communities across the bay
Teachers take on brain rot terms
Tricks and Treats to making your own Halloween Costumes
Tug, not tackle: Students and staff on girls flag football in Viking athletics
Tug, not tackle: Students and staff on girls flag football in Viking athletics
Approaching 60 years of history: Lynbrook back in the day
Approaching 60 years of history: Lynbrook back in the day
Nostalgic memories, since 2010
Nostalgic memories, since 2010
Vertigo and La Pluma Open Mic
Vertigo and La Pluma Open Mic
Students gathered in the parking lot on March 29 for ASB's first school-sanctioned celebration of Holi.
Adding a little color with Holi
Brain Rot
Brain Rot
Nostalgia
Nostalgia
Gaming the system
Gaming the system
Lost in translation.
Lost in translation.
View the full photo gallery at the link in our bio or at bit.ly/spromfashionshow2025
Senior Prom Fashion Show 2025
View the full photo gallery at the link in our bio or at bit.ly/2025silsilayfashionshow.
Silsilay Fashion Show 2025
View the full photo gallery at the link in our bio or at bit.ly/2025jpromfashionshow.
Junior Prom Fashion Show 2025
View the full photo gallery at the link in our bio or at bit.ly/epicwf25.
2025 Winter Formal: Midnight Masquerade
Sanskriti 2024
Sanskriti 2024
Unwrapping holiday memories
Plucking heartstrings with Lynbrook students’ favorite love songs
Silsilay connects communities across the bay
Teachers take on brain rot terms
Tricks and Treats to making your own Halloween Costumes
Epic staffers Amanda Jin and Irene Hwang give their opinions on the 2025 Oscars nominations. Graphic illustrations by Olivia Tu.
From Anora to Emilia Perez: Our opinions on the 2025 Oscars
Graphic Illustration by Amanda Jin, Alexandra Wu and David Zhu.
Behind the runway
Formula 1: Pit lane Talk
Formula 1: Pit lane Talk
Graphic Illustration by Daeun Chung
College mythbusting with Mr. Roy
Don’t judge a book by its cover: the shortcomings of banning books
Don’t judge a book by its cover: the shortcomings of banning books
The Student News Site of Lynbrook High School

the Epic
The Student News Site of Lynbrook High School

the Epic
Claire Guo

Claire Guo, Features Editor

(she/her) Claire Guo is a junior and the features editor of the Epic. She loves reading, writing, creating, and petting her dog.

All content by Claire Guo

Dylan Liu and Karen Gao swim to success with record-breaking times

Claire Guo, Features Editor
April 28, 2025
Capturing the human experience, poetry has existed in myriads of structures, rhyme schemes and meters. From fourth century C.E. Rome to 13th century Japan, each form of poetry has history hidden within its lines.

How history and cultures shape different poetry structures

Claire Guo and Emily Pedroza
March 24, 2025
Every February, people begin to think about Valentine’s Day, although the holiday itself has begun to change and evolve. Graphic illustration by Anna Cen.

Unique ways to celebrate Valentine’s solo or with friends

Claire Guo, Features Editor
March 3, 2025
Political campaigns have been engaging with social media and brain rot culture to attract a wider audience.

How brain rot has shaped American consumer society

Claire Guo and Olivia Tu
February 3, 2025
Sophomores T. J. Houston, Rohin Saharoy and Quincy Wu discuss a draft resolution.

Revamped Viking MUN makes a splash

Claire Guo, Features Editor
December 9, 2024
Little Libraries

Little libraries bring communities together, one book at a time

Claire Guo, Features Editor
November 4, 2024
French Honor Societies host Cupertino Night Market booth

French Honor Societies host Cupertino Night Market booth

Claire Guo, Features Editor
October 7, 2024
Spurred by a district-wide effort to transition toward greener practices, Lynbrook has finished installing new LED lighting in the theater and begun implementing sortable waste-disposal bins for the 2024-25 school year. Illustration by Maddy Chang, Claire Guo, Robert Yu, Stuti Jain, and Emily Pedroza

FUHSD’s continuous efforts toward greener campuses

Maddy Chang, Claire Guo, Stuti Jain, Emily Pedroza and Robert Yu
August 28, 2024
The challenging thing about ‘Challengers’

The challenging thing about ‘Challengers’

Claire Guo, Features Editor
May 20, 2024
Top image: Members of the Speech and Debate team pose in front of a banner at the Ketucky LEX airport that reads University of Kentucky, the venue of the Tournament of Champions national tournament. (Left to Right, Front to Back: Rebecca Cai, Rucha Kore, Nina Pan, Vansh Mathur, Aadharsh Rajkumar, Anish Bhethanabotla, Rohan Patel, Sagar Bhatia, Michael Harris, Aadi Loonawat, Vihaan Patel, Om Modi, Bolang Zhu, Rohin Saharoy) bottom image: Members of the Public Forum debate team pose in front of the Funkhouser building at the Univesity of Kentucky (Left to Right, Front to Back: Nina Pan, Rohan Patel, Anish Bethanabotla, Aadharsh Rajkumar, Aadi Loonawat, Vihaan Patel, Sagar Bhatia, Rohin Saharoy). Used with permission from Nina Pan.

Thirteen Speech and Debate members compete in national tournament

Claire Guo, Features Editor
April 29, 2024
Farewell Rally 2024: the End of an Era

Farewell Rally 2024: the End of an Era

Claire Guo and David Zhu
April 7, 2024
A. CGI was frst introduced in the 1958 live-action flm, “Vertigo,” in the opening sequence animation. John Whitney, a pioneer of the age, experimented to bring about a feeling of vertigo. B. In 1986 “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” introduced novel concepts like the digital morphing of face. CGI was quickly becoming an indispensable and increasingly popular tool for directors and flmmakers. C. In 1999, “The Matrix” made a breakthrough in CGI. With multiple cameras, flm directors Katsuhiro Otomo and Yuen Woo-ping created the famous airborne fght scenes and bullet-dodging slow-motion shots. D. “Dune 2” was lauded for its fght scenes and the fact that it was almost impossible to tell what was and wasn’t CGI, with the general public praising the seamless integration of the special efects.

The digital frontier of Computer Generated Images

Claire Guo and Yvonne Wu
April 1, 2024
Through Weekend Writings, Eileen slowly became more fluent in English and found a new method to express herself.

[Photo] Expressing myself through pen and paper

Eileen Zhu, Design Editor
April 1, 2024
Teachers and students could be seen receiving honorary awards to commemorate their contributions to the Lynbrook Community at the Feb. 27 board meeting.

Teachers and students honored at Feb. 27 board meeting

Claire Guo, Features Editor
March 11, 2024
Graphic illustration by Chelsea Lee.

Rediscovering Piano in Philanthropy

Claire Guo, Features Editor
February 16, 2024
Senior Aakash Ozarker steadily deadlifts in the gym. Used with permission from Aakash Ozarker.

Powerlifting builds strength and character for Aakash Ozarker

Claire Guo, Features Editor
February 12, 2024
A dancer extends her legs across the teal poster, leaping with her head tilted back, sleeves unfurling to her sides to make a bold line for the words “Shen Yun.” Underneath the title, a subheadline stalks boldly across the page: “China before communism.”

Shen Yun makes waves in America

Claire Guo and Amanda Jin
December 11, 2023
Sports are increasingly being used as political cover-ups.

[Photo] Sportswashing: Controversy amid a sea of cheers

Charlotte Bolay and David Zhu
December 11, 2023
Throughout her life, Claire has grown as an individual both separate from and along with her twin Chelsea.

My twin and me

Claire Guo, Features Editor
November 6, 2023
Homecoming: Staff Skit 23-24

Homecoming: Staff Skit 23-24

Claire Guo and Alexandra Wu
October 13, 2023
Bike-riding and bike repairs is a large focus of Signore's channel. Used with permission from Luca Signore.

Speedy Garage: Signore’s journey from History to Biking

Claire Guo, Features Editor
October 10, 2023