With a pack of gum and her trusty airpods in hand, Joanne Liu is ready to survive the most notoriously grueling school year of them all: junior year. Liu aims to highlight a wide range of student voices and ignite the creativity of journalistic writing in every story during her second year on the Falconer. As the Falconer’s Opinion editor, Liu loves to read about others’ insights and perspectives. Outside of the newsroom, Liu is a competitive figure skater, graphic designer for the TPHS Biology Olympiad Club and owner of two cats. At home during her spare time, she can be found spending time with her cats, watching YouTube, listening to music, reading, drawing or scrolling through Pinterest for all sorts of inspiration, from art to poetry to aesthetic room decor.
Music weaves together cultures and lives; the notes of a guitar can carry a thousand stories without a single word.
Steven Xu (11), a student in Instrumental Music, uses his guitar and eclectic music...
Students taking Advanced Placement (AP) History exams often use Heimler’s History videos to study. Many students used Heimler’s History videos to review the night before their test.
Scattered across the countertop is an array of lab equipment: tubes filled with thick liquids, pigmented powders laid in grids, cotton swabs littered throughout. The dabbing of brushes upon palettes sends...
France’s National Assembly unanimously approved a bill on April 13 to return artifacts looted from its former colonies during the colonial era, specifically between 1815 and 1972.
The French Senate...
Fifty percent of young Americans are able to locate New York on a map. This editorial analyzed whether geography education should be emphasized in school.
In this district, AP classes are only available starting sophomore year. This week, the Falconer debates each side. This article debated whether or not freshman year students should be allowed to take...
Crewed lunar flyby mission Artemis II, led by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), launched on April 1 and will splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego tomorrow...
Translating Andy Weir’s genius onto the big screen can be a daunting task. The “Project Hail Mary” book, especially, is packed with precise physics calculations, innovative astrobiological ideas...
The school's lack of a gate or any supervision for students leaving or entering prompts concerns about safety and class attendance. The Falconer staff discussed issues about an open campus and whether...
A week of releases features music releases from Malcolm Todd, beabadoobee and The Marias. "All I Did Was Dream of You" was beabadoobee's first new release since her 2024 album “This Is How Tomorrow Moves."...
If art is to comfort the disturbed, then now, more than ever, the world needs art like Banksy’s. If art is to disturb the comfortable, then now, more than ever, San Diego needs Banksy’s art. As global...
At sunrise each morning, the school is silent except for the whistling of sleek wings gliding through the air, the pattering of webbed feet landing in the main quad and an occasional burst of squawking....
Mitski’s music feels like hibernation: crawling into a dark, cozy cavern to uncover the deepest parts of your soul. Close your eyes, rest and ruminate. In “Nothing’s About to Happen to Me,” her...
Torrey Pines Players built four different carnivorous plant puppets for their “Little Shop of Horrors” show, which they performed last week and this Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
The puppets are...
The Spirit Committee, created this year by The Associated Student Body (ASB) this school year, is designed to increase school spirit. With two pep rallies left in the school year, the Spring Sports Pep...
Pro - by Joanne Liu
Waiters furrow their brows in disappointment at men who insist on going 50-50. Online, many conflate splitting the bill with the slow death of chivalry. For men to pay on a heterosexual...
Go Greek Yogurt signage sat unopened in the Del Mar Highlands Town Center for months, with “coming this winter” promises testing the patience of passersby craving a fresh cup of frozen yogurt. On Friday,...
From concussions to sprained ankles, wrist fractures to muscle tears, injury recovery looks vastly different for each athlete. Taekwondo athlete Hailey Chang (11) tore her left anterior cruciate...
Returning to the birthplace of his water polo career, new girls water polo head coach Alex Williams (‘06) prepares to bring his passion and years of accumulated experience back to this school.
After...
At 5 a.m., suburban household sprinklers whir to life. While the community is still asleep, lawns are swiftly watered and runoff trickles down storm drains, maintaining the crisp front yards iconic to...
The SDUHSD Board of Trustees voted to unanimously approve the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) at the Regular Board Meeting last Thursday, setting new regulations between the district and each...
Disney has not had a history of producing good sequels. When fans received the news that “Zootopia 2” would be coming out on Nov. 26, many had mixed feelings of anticipation and dread. It did not help...
A tidy skein of yarn begins to unravel, slowly but surely. With each tug at the coil, a stitch is delicately added by deft fingers, the hook swiftly swooping up and over, down and through. What could be...
Instead of meeting soft fur, your hand gently glides across smooth scales. Instead of pink toe pads leaving grubby paw prints across the floor, you see the swift scuttle of six small, spiny legs digging...
Generation Z Protests
In recent months, across countries including Nepal, Madagascar, Morocco, Peru and Indonesia, Generation Z is leading protests against their respective governments.
In Madagascar,...
California’s Proposition 50 serves to temporarily redraw the state’s current congressional district map with a new version to give Democrats more seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. The proposition...
Billionaires like Elon Musk, Bernie Madoff and even Taylor Swift hold immense power on account of their wealth. Many have noticed their negative impacts on the environment, the lower class and the democracy...
Editor’s note: Athlete of the month is released by ASB a week after the month ends. Stories on each athlete are delayed for this reason.
Deep breath in, deep breath out. With a racket in hand, girls...
Swapping the race of a character has grown increasing prominence in the film industry, especially in the making of live action movies. The Falconer staff discussed the controversy surrounding race swapping...
With the constant bustle of busy students and staff on campus, TPHS operates with the complexity of an active ecosystem. Sporting a charming Jellycat croissant keychain on the teacher lanyard around her...
In a lab procedure gone wrong, Daniel Rowe’s third period Advanced Placement Physics C class accidentally constructs a time portal to the Victorian era. Clad in a frilly blue dress, large bonnet and...
When the bell rings after seventh period on Sept. 10, you walk down the stairs of the B-building and open Instagram by second nature. Instinctively, your thumb hits the sunset gradient of your friend’s...
Two teams from the TPHS Biomimicry, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (BIE) Club won 2025 Biomimicry Youth Design Challenge (BYDC) Awards for their designs submitted in May 2025.
“[The BYDC is] an international...
The minute hand strikes twelve, and the pendulum releases a ring that echoes. Ding dong … ding dong … Laufey begins her third studio album “A Matter of Time” with the chiming of a clock.
Laufey's...
With a row of sharp fangs and a sinister grin stretching across more than half its face, one devilishly iconic smile recently took pop culture by storm. Complete with the rest of her physique — bunny...
Banners from reputable colleges plastered across teachers’ walls, uniforms pinned in a glass case and underclassmen eagerly wearing their dream-college sweatshirts. The pressure of getting accepted into...
In honor of Mental Health Month, the school’s Peer Assistant Leaders (PALs) organized a variety of activities, including a panel on men’s mental health on May 9 and Stress Less Week from May 19 to...
It’s the little things you notice first: a door propped open when it’s usually closed, the usual mug missing from the desk and an announcement posted on Google Classroom. Unfamiliar handwriting sprawls...
The Encinitas Chamber of Commerce awarded April’s Rising Star Award to Saardhat Nagaram (12) for demonstrating leadership, integrity and general excellence in school.
The Rising Star Award recognizes...
The 2024-25 winter sports season brought historic achievements and new records for the school’s varsity teams. The varsity girls soccer team (17-5) won the CIF Division II State Championship, the varsity...
Left to right: Conner Tsai (12), Sydney Tsai (12) and Baylin Tsai (10) watch the sunset on a stunning beach in Kapalua with their family. They also enjoyed activities such as sightseeing on the Road to Hana, ziplining and watching Lūʻau. Photo courtesy of Baylin Tsai.
“Drill, baby, drill,” a common phrase that President Donald Trump repeated throughout his 2024 presidential campaign. Referring to drilling for oil and fossil fuels, this slogan easily illustrates...
How does a tech-savvy, genius entrepreneur and owner of a spacecraft company end up as the head of the United States Department of Government Efficiency? Elon Musk’s shift into the realm of politics...
Throughout his 2024 election campaign, President Donald Trump made promises for day one of his second presidency. From deportation programs to imposing tariffs, Trump set himself up for a rapid-fire stream...
And, they lived happily ever after. What a beautiful ending to a story, one might think. Nothing could ruin the perfect plot, the masterpiece ending — except a sequel.
Sequels like “Jaws 2”and...
Through the glass window of her older sister’s dance studio, Noelle Lee (12) spent her childhood watching her sister dance in awe. At a young age, Lee found her inspiration in dance.
“I always knew...
A cozy house-shaped wooden box stands by the sidewalk, welcoming curious passersby to explore its contents. Behind its transparent frame sits a modest collection of books, nice and snug in their small...
In the midst of a remote island’s complex ecosystem and undisturbed wildlife, a shipwrecked robot washes upon the shore and activates. Whirring to life, Rozzum 7134, or Roz, only strives to complete...
There he was. A glowing ball of sunshine with brilliant eyes and a wildly wagging tail — the perfect pet to adopt. The pure joy of finding yours is unmatched. But behind the wholesome stories of adopting...
Various points along the San Diego coast are experiencing environmental issues, still waiting to be resolved. Tijuana River and Imperial Beach faced sewage and pollution problems, while San Elijo Lagoon experienced a wildlife population decline.
In the bustling Del Mar Highlands Town Center, SunLife Organics settles in its new cozy corner beside the Sky Deck and CeramiCafe. The brightly pigmented smoothies gleamed in their cups bearing their easily...
Pro - by Joanne Liu
From the peak of the Himalayan Mountains to the depths of the Mariana trench, plastic bags have expanded their territory to nearly every corner of the Earth. They wreak an alarming...
Swept into the world of dance since the early age of three, varsity contemporary and hip hop dancer Tessa Good (10) has channeled her artistic talent into a rapidly rising career in dance.
Since her...
It’s 8:30 a.m. The ringing bell signals the start of another busy day at school. But for many student athletes, their day started hours ago.
Most morning practices at the school begin around 6:15...
In a mellifluous mix of longing, lust, insecurity and infatuation, pop music sensation Billie Eilish has made a lasting impact on the music industry and beyond with her third and newest album “Hit Me...
As the class of 2028 arrived, Link Crew implemented changes to their system, including freshman orientation events, aiming to improve their overall peer mentorship and ease the transition into highschool,...
