The Drive to Study

When life is comfortable and everything is going swimmingly, it is easy to be motivated to do the hard things but when you finally face challenges that truly push your buttons, motivation is not going to work. That is where you have to rely on drive. What is drive? Is your desire to succeed. This…

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What is a CRAAP Test?

In the sciences discipline at a university level, researching consumes a lot of time and effort in order to determine whether or not the journal article you have chosen is reliable and credible source. To determine this, it important to perform a CRAAP Test. CRAAP is an acronym for Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose. At…

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Book Review: Studying Science at University

Every individual aims to excel in their chosen field and if university is the next step for you, but fear that you lack the skills for the sciences, then consider reading this book, ‘Studying Science at University‘ by Clare Rhoden and Robyn Starkey. It contains top tips that will develop your scientific writing skills, how…

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Reading in the Sciences

If you choose to study in the Sciences for university, then it is likely that you have encountered some new words and concepts but have to speed through content much quicker than when you did in high school. Based on my experiences, here are a few strategies to help you understand scientific reading more efficiently.…

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Exam preparation

Most science students, and especially in our early years, learn great chunks of information by rote. Rote learning is the process of memorizing specific new items as they are encountered. This can be useful for lists, items in a particular order, some formula and equations, vocabulary, and structural models. For rote learning, using mnemonics, melodies,…

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Rice Porridge

also known as lugaw in the Philippines, congee in China or okayu お粥 in Japan. This dish is very common within Asian households and is customarily consumed when an individual is sick (with fever, vomiting, diarrhea, or food poisoning), and is ready to begin ingesting food. When recovering from illness, there are specific foods to…

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Our brain and food poisoning

In most Asian practises, if you are invited over for food then it is customary to accept the food prepared and served on the table. Of course, allergens should be mentioned beforehand, but it is best to keep personal preferences to yourself. After a recent dining experience trying monjayaki (prepared with fish eggs, cheese and…

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Book Review: When Breath Becomes Air

A memoir by neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi, who writes When Breath Becomes Air into three parts – before and after the diagnosis, and the wife, Lucy’s epilogue, for life after Kalanithi passes away in March 2015. Kalanithi vividly illustrates his upbringings as a young boy in New York then moving to Arizona and how his love…

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