FACT # 239

Exam Fact : tips for effective studying

Exam season is a time when stress levels are higher than usual. Stress can be positive, helping you stay motivated and focused. But too much stress can be unhelpful, and it can make you feel overwhelmed, confused, exhausted and edgy.

During exam time, it’s important to try and keep things in perspective and find ways of reducing stress. The key is to maximize your study time without increasing your anxiety.

Tips about study habits

Keep a study area. Having a good study area can make a huge impact on how well you learn. Study in a well lit, quiet area, away from noises and other people. If this is impossible, it might be better to study at the library. Make sure your desk or the table you study at is tidy and organized. This will help you concentrate on studying and learning instead of trying to find information.

Find out more about the exam. Find out what format the exam will take. Will it be an essay test, short answer or multiple-choice?  Will your professor let you use your notes or textbooks during the exam? You might also want to find out how the exam will be graded, and what percentage of your final grade will be affected by your score on the exam. Knowing this information will help you study effectively.

Make a to-do list. Make a to-do list before each study session. Breaking tasks down into small, manageable tasks will make studying less overwhelming. Cross them off with a pen as you go.

Study past tests. Ask your teacher for your old tests and papers. These can be helpful insight into what your exam will be like, and they can also provide a guide for which areas you excel in and which you need to concentrate on more. If possible, ask your teacher to give you some practice questions and have him or her grade your answers.

Join a study group. Forming a studying group with your classmates can be a helpful way to revise your notes and work through past exam questions. It can also help you feel supported, and keep you motivated and focused. If you have questions about your work, members of your study group might know the answers. Ask your teacher if he or she knows of classmates who are interested in studying with other people.

Switch the phone and e-mail off. If you find that you are being distracted by the phone, e-mails or the Internet, it might help to put the answering machine on or get others in the house to take messages for a while. You can always call people back later. If you don’t need to study at the computer, try to stay away from it, so you can avoid being distracted by the Internet.

Wallpaper your room. Write down key concepts you have to learn on small sheets of paper. Post these sheets around your house in places that you normally go, like above your bed, on the bathroom door or in front of the refrigerator.  Wallpapering can help you remember things like equations, quotes and foreign languages.  If you share a room, this might not be feasible. You might try using index cards that create a flash card system for easy review.

Ask lots of questions of your teacher or tutor. Your teacher or tutor can help if you’re having trouble developing a study routine or if you need help understanding a particular topic. Asking for help doesn’t mean you’re stupid—it’s smart to tap into their experience and knowledge to help you perform better. Keep going back to them if you’re still unsure or if you have more questions. It’s their job to be available to you.

Know your preferred learning style. Some people learn better by listening, while others learn visually. Which are you? Think about how you comprehend what your teacher says in class, and this can help you study more effectively. For example, if you find that you’re more of an audio learner, you might want to record your teacher’s lectures on a recorder and listening to them while you’re studying. If you’re a visual learner, you might want to make flash cards.

Take regular breaks. Getting up and moving around away from your desk for 10 minutes at least every 50 minutes makes you concentrate and learn better.

Time management

Avoid procrastination. Procrastination happens when you do everything but the task you need to do. It’s normal to procrastinate a little. But too much procrastination can just add to your stress and can result in you not having enough time to prepare. Managing your time and setting realistic goals for each study session can be helpful ways to avoid procrastinating and make tasks seem less overwhelming.

Make a study timetable. Write down all the things you need to do each day of the week, and how long you need for each, including time for enough sleep, relaxation, and exercise. Find out the date of each exam and work out a study timetable leading up to them. Include the time you’ll spend taking pre-tests that will help you identify gaps in your knowledge. This can give you some direction and help you focus on what to study each week or day.

 

FACT # 238

Facts and myths about studying

Several myths associated with the process of learning are passed on by parents and teachers. This advice, instead of being useful, can sometimes become a drawback and does not help you get good grades. Get to know facts and myths about learning in order to study effectively, efficiently and with pleasure.

Fact 1. You should study in silence or with quiet music

This is true – it has been scientifically proven that loud and quick music causes decreased concentration levels. Furthermore, if you listen to music that you are familiar with, you can easily get distracted or instinctively start jiggling around along with the rhythm and you may even find yourself singing or humming along. If you do not like studying in dead silence, it would be best to listen to a calm melody with no lyrics – for example classical baroque music or sounds from nature like warbling birds or the roar of waves.

Myth 1. Energy drinks are great help during learning

This myth is popular nowadays and energy drinks producers have been inventing more and more different beverages in order to increase sales. High school and university students are vulnerable to such temptations and keen on testing market novelties. As a result they often become a target of adverts which argue that energy drinks allow you to memorise new information more effectively. That is why it is useful to know a few facts about the products before reaching for them. Firstly, too big a dose of caffeine is very unhealthy for the body – you feel alert at first but after a couple of hours you start to lose concentration and cannot focus on studying. Secondly, such beverages contain a lot of sugar which means that although you experience an energy boost for a short while, you soon feel completely out of form. Finally you must be aware that energy drinks rinse out the magnesium and potassium from your system; both of which are essential during the studying process.

Fact 2. Tidy up before you start studying. 

Although tidying up is not a popular activity, you often feel a sudden urge to do it when you have to study. It is often caused by a desire to postpone the learning process, which is considered boring and laborious. However tidying can be of benefit because it has been proven that it is easier to focus when you are surrounded by order and if the area around you is organised neatly.

Myth 2. You should not read in a dark room

It has always been said that reading in a dark room can ruin one’s eyesight. It turns out that reading in semidarkness can have a positive effect on your sight. That is because sight problems are not a result of bad light but of damage to the eyeball, which usually occurs when reading in too bright conditions. Reading in semidarkness might at first be a little inconvenient, but after a while you will notice that your eyes adjust. What is more, the semidarkness allows eyeballs to relax, which keeps your eyes healthy.

Fact 3. Studying makes you sleepy

This is partly true – it is mainly caused by the fact that your brain works very intensely while studying, using 20% of the total energy and oxygen available in your body and in the air around you. As a result, if you do not watch your diet and do not ventilate the place where you study, you begin to yawn. This is usually a sign of oxygen deficiency.

 

FACT # 237

Thanksgiving Fun Facts

Fun Facts about the First Thanksgiving

• The Plymouth Pilgrims were the first to celebrate the Thanksgiving.
• The Pilgrims sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to reach North America.
• They sailed on the ship, which was known by the name of ‘Mayflower’.
• They celebrated the first Thanksgiving Day at Plymouth, Massachusetts.
• The Wampanoag Indians were the people who taught the Pilgrims how to cultivate the land.
• The Pilgrim leader, Governor William Bradford, had organized the first Thanksgiving feast in 1621. He invited the neighboring Wampanoag Indians to the feast.
• The first Thanksgiving celebration lasted three days.
• Mashed potatoes, pumpkin pies, popcorn, milk, corn on the cob, and cranberries were not foods present on the first Thanksgiving’s feast table.
• Lobster, rabbit, chicken, fish, squashes, beans, chestnuts, hickory nuts, onions, leeks, dried fruits, maple syrup and honey, radishes, cabbage, carrots, eggs, and goat cheese are thought to have made up the first Thanksgiving feast.
• The pilgrims didn’t use forks; they ate with spoons, knives, and their fingers.

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Thanksgiving Facts throughout History

• Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey to be the national bird of the United States.
• Sarah Josepha Hale, an American magazine editor, persuaded Abraham Lincoln to declare Thanksgiving a national holiday. She is also the author of the popular nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb”
• Abraham Lincoln issued a ‘Thanksgiving Proclamation’ on third October 1863 and officially set aside the last Thursday of November as the national day for Thanksgiving.
• The annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade tradition began in the 1920’s.
• In 1939, President Roosevelt proclaimed that Thanksgiving would take place on November 23rd, not November 30th, as a way to spur economic growth and extend the Christmas shopping season.
• Congress to passed a law on December 26, 1941, ensuring that all Americans would celebrate a unified Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November every year.
• Since 1947, the National Turkey Federation has presented a live turkey and two dressed turkeys to the President. The President does not eat the live turkey. He “pardons” it and allows it to live out its days on a historical farm.

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Fun Facts about Thanksgiving Today

• In the US, about 280 million turkeys are sold for the Thanksgiving celebrations.
• Each year, the average American eats somewhere between 16 – 18 pounds of turkey.
• Californians are the largest consumers of turkey in the United States.
• Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November in the United States.
• Although, Thanksgiving is widely considered an American holiday, it is also celebrated on the second Monday in October in Canada.
• Black Friday is the Friday after Thanksgiving in the United States, where it is the beginning of the traditional Christmas shopping season.

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Fun Turkey Facts

• The average weight of a turkey purchased at Thanksgiving is 15 pounds.
• The heaviest turkey ever raised was 86 pounds, about the size of a large dog.
• A 15 pound turkey usually has about 70 percent white meat and 30 percent dark meat.
• The five most popular ways to serve leftover turkey is as a sandwich, in stew, chili or soup, casseroles and as a burger.
• Turkey has more protein than chicken or beef.
• Turkeys will have 3,500 feathers at maturity.
• Male turkeys gobble. Hens do not. They make a clucking noise.
• Commercially raised turkeys cannot fly.
• Turkeys have heart attacks. The United States Air Force was doing test runs and breaking the sound barrier. Nearby turkeys dropped dead with heart attacks.
• A large group of turkeys is called a flock.
• Turkeys have poor night vision.
• It takes 75-80 pounds of feed to raise a 30 pound tom turkey.
• A 16-week-old turkey is called a fryer. A five to seven month old turkey is called a young roaster.

 

FACT # 236

Iphone 5 Facts

The most-tweeted iPhone 5 announcement: the September 21st release date

The feature that tweeters were happiest about: the new phone’s bigger, 4-inch screen
Percentage of iPhone users who want to upgrade because of the 5’s larger screen: 6
The feature most often cited as the #1 reason for upgrading: longer battery life

Percentage of iPhone owners who plan to upgrade within the next six months: 46
Percentage of iPhone owners who currently own an iPhone 4: 48.6
Percentage of iPhone users who currently own (and use) the original iPhone: 3.9
Percentage of iPhone 4 owners who plan to upgrade to the iPhone 5: 74

Number of days it will take Apple to sell 10 million iPhone 5s: 21
Number of days it took Samsung to sell 10 million Galaxy S IIIs: 50
Total projected iPhone sales in 2012, in millions: 94
Total population of the U.S.: 311.6

Percentage of U.S. population who would buy an iPhone this year, if all of this year’s sales were concentrated in the States: 30
Total number of iPhone sales since 2007 (including projected 2012 sales): 228.2
Percentage of U.S. population with an iPhone by the end of 2012, if all sales were concentrated in the States: 73

Total cost, to consumers, of new accessories for the iphone 5 (including, perhaps unnecessarily, a “workout case”): $411.80
Revenue from accessory sales in iPhone 5’s first three weeks, if every customer bought new accessories: $42 million

Total number of iPhone 5’s Apple expects to sell: 250 million
Total number of iPhones sold in first four years: 145.8
Apple’s total projected revenue for the iPhone 5: $144 billion