September MCAT Thread

[Alastriss]

sooo..what's everyone up to today? I think im going to review biol/physics and then do WS and VR.

btw, does anyone now if genetics is intentionally emphasized on in BS? or has it just by coinicidence been a big topic on more than one MCAT? Ie is it worth reviewing my MBIO notes for a more indepth understanding?

[avenir001]

man, i just did cbt 10 bio..and it was hard! i had to use my brain and i got 4 wrong...is that a 12 or smth? i have to look for the scale now...

 

i donno i think they do love molec bio & genetics, but it seems to be more psg-based now so depending on how good u r at it now, u may not really need a much deeper understanding.

[phantom]

i donno, isn't it always mostly conceptual

maybe u need to improve ur math skills jks

 

haha i should of known that was coming:p

 

nice job on on 10.

 

Today well I just looked over some physics ppt lecture notes which I think provides a good review as well as some gen chem ppts. For the writing sample I tried a couple out yesterday and I think I can't really improve on the writing sample too much other than get solid topics in my head... going for the standard 3 paragrapher. Other than that I am going to do some solidify more physiology in hopes for that heavy phys and then review some other bio. I think I am good for organic but will review that, I have also been reviewing my biochem stuff aswell but I think that material in biochem has to be too much detail for the mcat, nonetheless I will still take a look.

 

then do some verbal again because aamc 10 vr has turned into a monkey on my back

[Alastriss]

Yeah 4 wrong is still good mang nice work, and yes the PS is mainly conceptual stuff that tests whether you understand the physics behind something, well at least those are the questions you should fear anywayz ie Singlie/multi crap on AAMC PS X

 

 

then do some verbal again because aamc 10 vr has turned into a monkey on my back

[Alastriss]

why does K react more violently in water? anyone know?

ahh never mind, found it!

[roycer]

why does K react more violently in water? anyone know?

ahh never mind, found it!

 

I actually wondered this too. What's the explanation?

[phantom]

K reacts most violently because its an alkali metals and from their properties alkali metals react most violently in water

[Alastriss]

if u want a really detailed explanation its cuz K is not electronegative so electrons get stripped away by water forming hydroxide ions and hydrogen gas

[avenir001]

yes and if u need more detail, it's because K needs to lose just one electron to have a noble gas electronic configuration which is highly desirable due to its stability.

[Alastriss]

maybe we can get special permission to write it together?

[avenir001]

hahaha sure, i'll take BS + WS...u do PS & VR

[Alastriss]

hahaha sure, i'll take BS + WS...u do PS & VR

 

eww VR how much do u hate me?

haha

Ps does anyone else think that the hitman movie is going to be way too action packed than its supposed to be? if anyone's played the games the guy is supposed to be so silent the assassinations look like an accident half the time and no one knows what happened, but in this he is shown shooting the hell out of everything

[Jixe]

I just did Princeton Review VR Test 5 and got an 11! I've been sitting at my computer non-stop for a couple days just doing tests. I think it's paying off! What does everything think of the PR tests? Personally, I find their passages VERY convoluted; however, their questions are do-able.

[Alastriss]

I just did Princeton Review VR Test 5 and got an 11! I've been sitting at my computer non-stop for a couple days just doing tests. I think it's paying off! What does everything think of the PR tests? Personally, I find their passages VERY convoluted; however, their questions are do-able.

 

nice stuff jixe, thats the way to do it! convoluted passages are toughest IMO so good work

[roycer]

I like the game, so I'll be seeing the Hitman movie regardless. The only way I'm not going to see it is if it gets like a 20% rating on Rottentomatoes.com.

[Alastriss]

I like the game, so I'll be seeing the Hitman movie regardless. The only way I'm not going to see it is if it gets like a 20% rating on Rottentomatoes.com.

 

yeah i LOVE the games too, soo good!, but action packed movies with lots of guns and bullets flying everywhere are a dime a dozen these days, so i would rather see stealth kills a la hitman for a change! I can't wit regardless, now think of it, when i see that, ill know my mcat score

[Guest begaster]

That movie is going to suck so immensely. Though I do love the main actor (Deadwood = awesome).

 

I'm really, really looking forward to 3:10 to Yuma. The trailer looks ****ing great.

[Alastriss]

That movie is going to suck so immensely. Though I do love the main actor (Deadwood = awesome).

 

I'm really, really looking forward to 3:10 to Yuma. The trailer looks ****ing great.

 

3:10 Yuma? i heard about that one ill check out the trailer. Here is my WS guys can u throw out a number? My first one lets see how i do

 

 

Prompt: Laws must be subject to change

 

 

Since the beginning of the Neolithic era, small communities combined with others to form larger communities, and larger communities amalgamated forming the first civilizations. However, with an increasing number of people, centralized institutions were au fond, and governments were formed to keep everything orderly and in unity. The law, a statement or commandment forbidding an action such as murder, or promoting an action that contributed to the good of society, was a useful tool to maintain civilizations on firm grounds.

 

Yet as societies and civilizations move through the ages, the philosophies and laws that were once cornerstones of a civilization may be discarded, or refined. In 18th century America, there was much unrest amongst the people who have had recurring notions of removing themselves from British affiliation. Laws such as paying tribute to the monarchy were often questioned as these pioneers felt little obligation to a king that didn’t contribute at all to their lifestyle and wellbeing. A strength honed through the hardships of beginning a new life in the new world led to thoughts of independence; this society was different from its British counterpart that it deserved a different name, the United States of America. The laws that pertained to a differing society could not be superimposed and were subject to change.

 

 

As it is should logically follow that societies can move through the ages and change, divorcing some laws from any meaning that they may possess in the past. Yet there is a deep layer, a layer upon which societies exist with rules that are implicit; and form the bedrock upon which free societies are built. Basic human rights are one such set of laws that ought not to be subject to change. Respecting life and not subjecting fellow humans to persecution based on religious or political reasons is a law that must be not be subject to change. From Nero’s persecution of Christians to Hitler’s atrocities towards Jews, such violent motifs are not alien throughout history’s timeline, and laws that prohibit them must therefore be existent through this timeline to prevent them.

 

In conclusion, a free society must be flexible to changing laws that may no longer be considered to be beneficial to the overall development of society so as to serve the people, but there are some laws that in a free society must be respected. Respects to human life, entitlement to liberty are examples of such laws. Furthermore, it is only when such laws are etched in stone that a society can be privileged to retain an adjective such as ‘free’.

[avenir001]

nice try alastriss...u get a 3

[avenir001]

just kidding...i think that's a 5...good job man, i couldn't have written that

[roycer]

Well written. I would say a 6.

[Alastriss]

wow thanks guys.

You know what's weird tho, I was philosophy headstrong in grade 12. I had a teacher who had extra courses going on afterschool where we read 3rd and 4th year philosophy, and some graduate level work that i remember made some VR passages look like the hardy boys, and then i did a 180 switch into the 'real' sciences (why i say 'real' is part of the reason i switched) I guess i still got a little bit of 'art' in me

 

is anyone else going to post up their WS?

[Jixe]

...a free society must be flexible to changing laws that may no longer be considered to be beneficial to the overall development of society so as to serve the people, but there are some laws that in a free society must be respected. Respects to human life, entitlement to liberty are examples of such laws.

 

Well written. Definitely a 5/6.

[Jixe]

Only those politicians who have learned the art of compromise can achieve their political goals.

 

Write a unified essay in which you perform the following tasks. Explain what you think the above statement means. Describe a specific situation in which a politician might achieve a political goal without compromising. Discuss what you think determines when politicians should compromise to achieve a political goal.

 

T: increasing taxes in an effort to erase provincial deficit in a province dominated by the upper-class, so long as the lower and middle-class remain unaffected

AT: increase daycare funding by proportionately shifting funds directly from the education system; remain persistent and unwaivering

S: so long as it does not detract from the original goal’s main aims/intent; so long as compromising does not negatively offset the number of people that would have benefited from the original goal.

 

Make sense? I can't think of anything better for this prompt.

[vip_138]

I'll post mine but after alistriss' i'm really self conscious of it. I know its not that good and i already think i know how i can improve on it but i thought i'ld ask you guys too:

 

In education, the newest way is not always the best way.

 

Write a unified essay in which you perform the following tasks. Explain what you think the above statement means. Describe a specific situation in education when the "newest way" might in fact be the best way. Discuss what you think determines whether or not innovation in education is an improvement.

 

Over the course of time one assumes that something will be modified for the better based on previous experiences and an understanding for what works based on experiment. This may not always be the case. In teaching and transferring skills to other people there must care in the consideration of how they learn. Take an example of classical lecture-based course verse a course taken online. The lecture based course can better facilitate students because it has direct relationship between the professor and the student which offers more availability and personal help in understanding the subject. The online course, while slightly more convenient, does not offer this relationship and thus the student is at a disadvantage for maximizing their understanding of the subject. You should also take into account what is reasonable for the student to understand. Quantum physics has developed into increasing fields that tell us that the bohr hydrogen atom model and most of Newton’s equations are wrong when looked at in extreme detail. This however takes a great understanding of advanced physics and math before one can understand these highly advanced concepts. It is better in a rudimentary physics class to teach Newton’s and Bohr’s principles even though they are wrong because they still have the ability to approximate reasonable solutions and lay the ground work for our physical understanding of the universe.

 

There are however cases where the newest form can be the best form. In the light of the computer age and the advent of internet a wealth of knowledge is accessible at a fingertip. This has greatly influenced how we generate and accumulate knowledge and our education has to reflect the evolution in the forms of knowledge that are produced. It would be unreasonable to ignore the internet and require students to gather information only through published books that they can access. Teachers must now assimilate to the modern age and teach students how to research with the internet, to find there resources such as periodicals, texts and others through searches that immediately and efficiently give valuable information.

 

 

When trying to understand what form of education is better one must look at the student’s ability to understand and learn from that form, independent of when it was produced. You have to criticize the educational form in the context of its social surrounding in time and in culture and if the student is benefiting more from one form verse another. This is completely independent of when something is produced because this is not a factor in assessing whether an educational form is better. Thus one must find a way to assess whether one form is better than another through explicit means. It is not a safe assumption that new forms have been adapted from old forms in the idea that it is now better since not all forms are adapted from new ones.

 

 

Lol last time i got an N on the mcat so anything 4 or higher's an improvement