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Eric Feng

Eric Feng, Staff Writer

A freshman at Jefferson, this is Eric's first year of working in TJ Today. He enjoys making questionable puns to his friends, doodling, reading Chinese novels, and Quiz Bowl. Eric joined TJToday because he participated in his middle school's newspaper and wishes to continue his experience in journalism. He participated in TJ's Junior Varsity Football team. Despite all of this, he has no idea what he wants to do in the future.
All content by Eric Feng
Nearing the end of their chess game, junior Kisna Matta (left) and senior Garrett Heller (right) think of their next moves. Heller is co-captain of Jefferson chess club, which meets every Friday during 8th period. “I was pressured [because] of time, but I think I ended up losing the game,” Heller said.

[Photo] In your face

January 31, 2022
At the 2021 Virginia High School State Competition, senior Kareem Jaber rifles the frisbee past a Marshall High School player. “The main thing about [ultimate frisbee] is just having fun. There’s not as much competition [as] there [is] sometimes in football or other sports,” Jaber said.

Up to the ultimate challenge

October 1, 2021
Students walk in the crowded Turing commons, one of the IBET commons, to get to class.

Seven IBETs means seven times the swarm

September 10, 2021
One cicada crawls ahead of the pack, already completing the last stage of its life cycle: perpetuating the population.

Cicadas on the horizon

May 25, 2021
A rework of Minecraft’s cave system will be the only update arriving this summer. The other part of 1.17, the mountains update, will be coming during the holiday season.

Minecraft 1.17 update split

April 30, 2021
Students gather on the bleachers, waiting for a pep rally to begin on Apr. 17.

Students show school spirit in hybrid homecoming

April 23, 2021
Aurelia Skipwith’s presentation’s introduction slide shows the central message of the club—conservation and having a little fun—in a couple of pictures.

Angler’s Alliance hosts former Director of Fish and Wildlife Service as guest speaker

March 26, 2021
European history has impacted the formation of the Americas, and is the major driving force of change for much of American history. However, there is no active class at Jefferson to explain the workings of solely European history, even if world history includes a lot of European history.

Students petition to bring back AP European History

March 17, 2021
With a hybrid in-person schedule working in FCPS, the schedule has been modified to adapt to this new form of education.

New schedule goes into effect

February 22, 2021
COVID-19 once again limits our activities, so celebrations of the Chinese New Year like this will be rare.

A COVID-19 Chinese New Year

February 17, 2021
The Mathematical Association of America runs the AMC, which is a math competition with many different levels for students from eighth grade to twelfth grade. The later stages of the competition, like the AMIE and the USAMO, are very difficult to get to, and they rely on getting a good score on the first stage: the AMC.

AMC 10 and 12 go virtual

February 12, 2021
The end of 2020 brings to us a lot of advancements. Can we keep up?

Top 10 of 2020: Tech Discoveries

February 2, 2021
With the ban of the old version of the popular Pogchamp emote, Twitch has proposed a new system that will roulette through a variety of similar expressions.

The image of Twitch’s popular emote “Pogchamp” will be replaced

January 18, 2021
Hack TJ is an annual workshop that TJ organizes to encourage and aid budding computer science enthusiasts on their personal projects. However, because of the pandemic, HackTJ will occur virtually for the first time.

HackTJ 7.5 occurs virtually

January 4, 2021
Contests now use virtual conferencing to operate during the pandemic. It may sound convenient, but it comes with risks, including that it’s easier for participants to use the internet to cheat.

Contests During Covid: How Competitive Spirit Continues on!

December 14, 2020
Reggie the Turkey in “Free Birds”.

“Free Birds” (2013): Be thankful you haven’t watched it

November 23, 2020
More and more people are finding the time to stream and watch streams, making platforms like Twitch and Youtube even more popular than usual.

Student streamers during COVID

November 20, 2020
As the pandemic separates many of us, people connect with each other however they can, mostly over the internet. Image courtesy of unblast.com.

Staying connected in troubled times

November 13, 2020
Caption: The Pixar movie Coco’s interpretation of the bridges to the land of the dead. Photo courtesy of fandom.disney.com.

All Saints’ Day, the predecessor to Halloween

November 1, 2020
The Minecraft 1.17 update will allow the world to generate realistic structures such as stalactites and stalagmites in caves, along with better mountains, shown by this concept art. Image courtesy of Minecraft Gamepedia.

Minecraft 1.17: Changes from high and low

October 27, 2020
Because the pandemic caused testing centers to shut down, standardized testing is being considered a nonfactor by colleges across the United States. Photo courtesy of horizoneducation.com.

Why some colleges are going test blind or test optional this year

October 25, 2020
Virtual learning is the only course of action we students can take right now. But is it really a good program, or are adjustments necessary?

A personalized take on virtual learning

October 15, 2020
As school becomes entirely virtual, students must navigate through the plethora of programs that the classes use to succeed academically.

7 tips for virtual learning

October 10, 2020
Student desks are left unfilled in Fairfax County Public School (FCPS) building due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

New learning, new school: how 2024 is adjusting

September 27, 2020
This graph compares the total number of cases reached for COVID-19 between seven countries.

Coronavirus cases in the U.S. reaches 1.1 Million

May 11, 2020
Designed by Stuti Gupta

Swinging into softball

April 5, 2020
Jack Kelly and his other newsies spreading awareness of the strike of newspaper boys, demonstrating the power of the press, protest, and the voice of the people.

Newsies movie review

March 11, 2020
Working diligently on the IBET robot project, students are required to make their robots in 3D printing software, then convert it into a 2D sketch. Shown above is the culmination of hours of work for a student.

I, Human

March 10, 2020
A scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent. These principals have stood for more than a century, yet now the organization that produced them is forced to declare bankruptcy.

Boy Scouts of America filing for bankruptcy

March 4, 2020
The Minecraft 1.16 crimson forest and warped forest nether biomes (shown above) are the newest additions to Minecraft, along with the flora and fauna that inhabit those areas.

Minecraft 1.16, news from a hellish place

February 19, 2020
squeezing a clamp against the metal, a janitor cuts a lock placed overnight in audlob.

Cubby controversy

February 12, 2020
The Jefferson Model United Nations Club poses together at ILMUNC.

Model United Nations Club travels to Ivy League Model United Nations Conference

February 7, 2020
The investment club members pose in front of the Charging Bull statue near Wall Street. The bull has captured tourists’ imagination, Business Insider said. The 7100-pound statue is said to symbolize brazen optimism among investors.

Investment club members take a field trip to New York

January 31, 2020
No matter where or when student protests are continuously influencing the political landscape. “Skipping school and business, as usual, is to show that there’s no point in going to school if we are having our future taken away from us. There’s not a point to our education if we’re not going to be alive in 10 years, 20 years, the end of the century,” FCPS Senior Gao in Oakton High School said.

FCPS allows for students to miss school for “civic engagement”

January 24, 2020
A fine example of folk art in China, this origami window decoration depicts fish and is representing wealth. Nowadays these masterpieces are mass-produced in factories, but it is definitely enjoyable to sit down and spend some time on creating your own unique decorations.

Modern Chinese New Year

January 22, 2020
Top 9 of 2019: Astronomical Discoveries and Exploits

Top 9 of 2019: Astronomical Discoveries and Exploits

January 13, 2020
A version 1.14 Minecraft player with a few new features from 1.14 on display. 1.14, the Village and Pillage update added Pillagers, Wandering Traders, new villager skins, foxes, and sweet berry bushes.

Minecraft 1.15: of bugs and bees

November 1, 2019
Students enjoy ice cream and the opportunity to socialize at the Latin ice cream social.

Latin honors society holds ice cream social

September 26, 2019
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