Page 4
Arts & Life
The Clarion \ February 5, 2020
A fluffy little
Superbowl!
By Caroline Hoy
staff Writer
Every year people get hyped about the
Super Bowl, but there are some who get
hyped about a different bowl. For the last
16 years, the Puppy Bowl has premiered on
Animal Planet. The Puppy Bowl features 96
puppies that are up for adoption. The Puppy
Bowl has two teams and each team tries to
get the chew toys in their endzone.
In one comer, we have team Ruff, and in
the other comer, we have team Fluff. This
year, team Fluff was able to take the lead by
four points and bring home the victory.
No one can forget the halftime show
by Jenni-Purr Lopez and Cat-ira who
performed the song “Catnips Don't Lie.” If
the kitten halftime show wasn’t enough, the
cheerleaders helped with satisfying your
cuteness overload. The pygmy goat and
armadillo cheerleaders were adorable.
Of course, so many watch the Super
Bowl for the commercials. If watching
adorable puppies isn’t what you want then
the commercials of the Puppy Bowl are like
Super Bowl commercials for animals. One
can’t remember a single year of watching the
Puppy Bowl and not seeing an adorable ad
of dogs driving cars.
The Puppy Bowl serves to raise awareness
of animals in shelters. Even though it is called
the Puppy Bowl, the event hosts a variety
of animals. Every year, the Puppy Bowl
halftime show is based on who is performing
in the Super Bowl and is performed by cats.
The puppies are always the players. The
cheerleaders will change up on animals, and,
sometimes, you will be surprised by who the
referees choose to be cheerleaders.
If you are a cat person, the Puppy Bowl
may be for you, too. If watching puppies play
around or watching dogs drive cars isn't your
thing, a pet kiss cam, watching heartwarming
stories from shelters, or Meep the cockatiel
who tweets on Twitter about the game may
satisfy you. This bowl is an emotional show
so bring your tissues with you when you
watch it next year.
Psychedelics and
mental health
By Margaret Correll
Layout & Design
In this new age of drugs and legalization
there has been a revolution in the study of
psychedelics. From “magic mushrooms” to LSD
and many other drugs, there has been increasing
interest in the scientific community to answer
the question, “Can psychedelics improve mental
health?”
According to an article by CNN Health, there
has been a tremendous amount of research
in the past several years looking into how
psychedelics affect the mind in relation to past
trauma. Even though “shrooms” and LSD are
currently Schedule I drugs, CNN Health says,
“Governments are greenlighting studies all over
the world.” The approved research facilities in
the United States are John Hopkins, New York
University and Yale University according to the
Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelics
Studies (MAPS).
In the newNetflix miniseries “The Goop Lab,”
created by actress Gwyneth Paltrow, it tackles
the tough subject of psychedelics and how they
help or hurt people with past trauma or mental
illness. Paltrow’s team takes a trip to Jamaica
to experiment with “magic mushrooms” and
try an alternative therapy practice known as
psychedelic psychotherapy. Several of those
that attended the trip experienced relief from
the things in their past.
The research being conducted has entered a
reawakening. “Double blind randomized trials
have shown ‘rapid, marked and enduring anti
anxiety and depression effects,’ researchers say,
in people with cancer-related and treatment-
resistant depression after a single dose of
psilocybin,” writes CNN Health. The treatment
has also improved people with obsessive
compulsive disorder symptoms and alcohol
dependence.
Another part of psychedelics that has
piqued researchers interest is the concept of
“microdosing.” Becoming more popular in
recent years, this involves taking a small dose
of a psychedelic to have some effects without
the long term high seen with a whole dose.
According to CNN Health, this research is in
its early stages.
While MAPS and other research facilities are
focusing on breaking through and becoming
successful with their continued research,
there have been a few setbacks. CNN Health
states that there have been several tests with
displeasing results while in the middle of a high
and some of the after effects. In an episode of
“The Goop Lab,” the MAPS psychiatrist they
consulted. Dr. Will Siu, revealed that without
the proper care and supervision while on a
psychedelic, it may cause the taker to have a
negative experience.
Regardless of the good or bad research, the
testing of psychedelics will continue. This
may be the start of a new wave of alternative
therapy which could help many people in the
years to come.