tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-229396672012-01-21T14:21:06.990-05:00Learning in a faster, easier and more effective way: The Gravy Way <br><br> <b>Site has relocated to: <a href="http://www.gravyway.com/">GravyWay.com</a>!</b>Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.comBlogger821100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-76859034686314734562007-05-27T23:36:00.001-04:002007-05-27T23:39:34.618-04:00

The new address is www.gravyway.com, this accesses the main page and www.gravyway.com/wordpress accesses the blog part. It makes more sense if you take a look.This means that all posting will be on the new server from now on. So if you are looking for fresh content, www.gravyway.com is the place to be.I'll put up a bigger notice here later, but since you just read this, you dont' need it. If you

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-31072772963359499532007-05-21T17:13:00.000-04:002007-05-21T17:16:56.102-04:00

OK, there was a while when "gravyway.com" was pointing to nothing pretty much. It will now redirect to this page until I get wordpress running and sexy.Thanks for you patience.If you enjoyed these learning tips and motivational strategies, maybe you'll enjoy the other posts. Please bookmark this page (Ctrl-D) or check out the archive/categories to the right. Better yet, tell a friend! (Click the

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-86214556167533422452007-05-17T15:17:00.000-04:002007-05-17T15:21:48.258-04:00

Again, I am not posting regularly. I'm very sorry.If you are wondering what I am up to, here is a short list:Creating new layout for siteWriting an essay for the Queen's Purpose of Life Essay CompetitionWorking as a research assistantIt doesn't seem like much, but those three things take up more time than I would have expected. So bear with me, more posts will be coming. After this week, the pace

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-28508146575151141032007-05-17T15:03:00.000-04:002007-05-17T15:16:13.557-04:00

You may have heard of white noise already. It is most often associated with that static sound when you get to a TV channel with no reception. However, there are many other colors of noise including: pink, brown, blue, purple and grey.The colours of sounds are supposed to be analogous to the colours of light: for example, if you were to change the spectrum (energy formation) of purple sound and

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-39398807029767288622007-05-07T16:28:00.000-04:002007-05-07T22:52:41.308-04:00

A little while ago, I was reading The Value of Philosophy by Bertrand Russell (from Problems of Philosophy). And now, it seems to be quite related to the previous post on finding powerful reason to learn.Once upon a time, I was the biggest critic of philosophy. I couldn't understand it's appeal and thought it was totally useless. In fact Russell describes my old sentiment quite nicely:[M]any men,

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-67032257360370926282007-05-05T01:08:00.000-04:002007-05-05T12:03:36.368-04:00

This is the second of several parts on attitudes that will put more information in your brain and keep it there. These tips are meant to be applied in all areas of life, so that maximal learning happens on every front, not just the academic ones.The first part of Intelligent Attitudes lists tips 1 and 2 and is well worth checking out. Feel free to read them in any order.3) Find powerful reasons

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-2963177510685334632007-05-01T20:38:00.000-04:002007-05-01T20:41:16.101-04:00

This will be the first of three (or four) parts on attitudes that will help you learn more in all areas of your life. Not only are these tips are useful in an academic sense, they are even more useful for learning as a whole.1) Be humble in knowledgeNo matter how much you know in about a subject, there is still always more to learn. There are so many different ways to view current paradigms, and

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-85243110892432492692007-05-01T19:51:00.000-04:002007-05-01T20:06:55.001-04:00

Even though this is the umpteenth time I've had to do this, I would like to apologize for my hiatus. As a result of exams and an overabundance of Korean food (don't ask), I have been shirking my duties to you. This summer will be filled with change.A new post is coming later tonight.I am going to create more pillar posts. Personally, I like when people offer specific plans for implementing ideas,

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-38382776234412326962007-04-24T16:06:00.000-04:002007-04-24T21:34:18.627-04:00

I figured that since many of us will be at some point entering the working world this post would be appropriate: For the last four months I've been working at my co-op position at a fairly large corporation. The latter half of those two months was filled with many attempts to outperform others and beat standards set by myself. For once in my life, I can see how it is possible that one's work

Danny Danghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02867582463839253079noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-45309766076877338372007-04-24T00:55:00.000-04:002008-12-10T17:52:18.016-05:00

From the University of British Columbia, the Order of Science Scouts of Exemplary Repute and Above Average Physique have brought us a vast array of badges to show off our scientific might.Now the ladies will be a-running towards my abode.Among the badges that I qualify for, two of my favourites are:The "I blog about science" badge. and of course,The "I've touched human internal organs with my own

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-57928913752452522552007-04-20T12:54:00.001-04:002007-04-20T22:49:46.634-04:00

In an effort to learn as much as possible, while still being entertained, I've been listening to a lot of different podcasts. One that I think is particularly well done and captivating is the Vital Signs Podcast from Discover magazine.Vital Signs showcases a series of medical tales that usually have some air of mystery. For example, a entire family is struck with seizures, even their dog; this is

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-34717053198166840292007-04-19T19:23:00.000-04:002007-04-19T22:11:36.362-04:00

The concept of utility is useful to know in studying economics, biology, sociology, philosophy and even sweet, sweet mathematics.Utility describes the happiness or value that you give to objects or actions. It may vary from person to person.For example, while many people want money, one hundred dollars doesn't mean the same to me as it does to Bill Gates. The $100 bill has more more utility to me

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-51904930951596998022007-04-18T00:16:00.000-04:002007-04-18T13:50:15.899-04:00

If you share a love of free learning - with no cost or boundaries - here is a wonderful resource from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT):MIT OpenCourseWareMIT has graciously uploaded course lectures with topics ranging from astrophysics to feminist political thought.As I love the idea of independent learning, content from one of the world's most renouned universities is priceless. (

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-44676041271723690452007-04-16T01:13:00.000-04:002007-04-16T02:19:27.799-04:00

My nose is a torrent, my head is a pressure-cooker and my lymph nodes are a series of warzones.Maybe it goes without saying, but I haven't gotten much studying in today.From an experiential point of view, we know that when we over-stress our body -- through studying, physical exertion, emotional tumult, etc. -- our body eventually gives way. In order to get the most from our bodies, say to study

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-76713408433569377702007-04-14T03:28:00.000-04:002007-04-14T03:30:18.752-04:00

There is a unique way of thinking that dedicated people have. In the same vein, there is an all too common way of thinking that undedicated people have. Here are some things I've heard over the past month on the topic of studying:No one needs to study for a week for an exam.I don't want to over-study the material.Don't be such a lame-ass, finish that essay tomorrow, drink with us now.... and the

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-51615574274447329502007-04-04T20:32:00.000-04:002007-04-04T21:05:08.856-04:00

If you are a student, I'm sure you have had to sign-out at least a few books from your school's library; I think it's a pretty safe assumption to say that these books were most likely for a research project of some sort.As much as I love projects, only using the library for academic work is a poor utilization of this vast, vast resource.What are you interested in? Assuming your answer did not

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-81397224991529919592007-04-02T19:49:00.000-04:002007-04-02T20:17:36.735-04:00

I read this in Scientific American, but this link is from HealthFinder.gov:Personal-Care Products Can Spur Breast Development in BoysIf that title doesn't say it all, I'll briefly elaborate. It was found that some pre-pubescent boys were exhibiting gynecomastia (abnormal breast growth in men). After they stopped using products that contained tea tree oils and/or lavender, this condition

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-78087893253255956092007-04-01T19:55:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.783-04:00

"Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation) there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-60915494643593776362007-04-01T15:34:00.000-04:002007-04-01T20:57:42.517-04:00

I come across a lot of random information that I think is pretty interesting. Often it is useful, but I find that I don't have a venue in which to tell people about them. So this will become a regular part of the Gravy Way landscape for a little while. Tell me what you think of them! And don't worry a real post is coming later tonight.Although this seems to be important for academic texts, I

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com71tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-58870513908866607222007-03-31T10:11:00.000-04:002008-12-10T17:52:18.401-05:00

Hey guys, here is some more information about the EduBlogger Event going on right now. Note that if you are in the Eastern Time Zone, you have to add 3 hours from these times. So my post will appear at 5PM (not 11AM as I said before, apparently I was confused).It´s all about new & revolutionary education concepts & ideas - meet speakers and attendees in the comment box for great

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-3990063910117981642007-03-28T22:36:00.000-04:002008-12-10T17:52:18.418-05:00

I am pleased to announce that yours truly, Joshua, will be taking part in a virtual education event, EduBlogger Event 07, this Saturday, March 31st. And of course, you are invited.So the first question: What does this mean?All day Saturday, people on the educational blogosphere (yeah, I said it) will be posting various topics for discussion at the Supercool School blog, and then there will be an

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-43903105626023072502007-03-27T22:08:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:02:24.603-04:00

If this is your first time here or you'd just like some reminding, I'll give you the scoop on Learning, The Gravy Way.This is a site where Danny and I (Joshua) try to offer students advice on how to achieve more academically and with greater ease and enjoyment. Once in a while, we may even have some tips or musings on life in general.While Danny and I have differing writing styles, we hope that

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-8005306216691024822007-03-22T16:52:00.000-04:002008-12-10T17:52:18.651-05:00

Yesturday, I had the pleasure of leading a discussion on 'how to live in the present moment' with some lovely ladies at a Goal-Oriented Living Club meeting (you will find this post on the club's website as well). This post covers the some salient points of the discussion (of those that I remembered or wrote down). And for your benefit has been slightly modified in order to make it more web- and

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-80401128173273117172007-03-19T10:56:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:06:38.870-04:00

In an earlier life, and still now to a large extent, I have been guilty of compartmentalizing people based on their field of study or work. If someone is in the liberal arts, they must only be good at writing. If someone is in the sciences, they must only be good at memorization and analytical thinking. If someone is in drama, they aren't good at anything. Ouch! I'm just playing around.While I've

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-8139448053559965222007-03-15T10:23:00.000-04:002008-12-10T17:52:18.844-05:00

Firstly, I'd like to apologize for my long absence. Due to schoolwork, job searching and a lot of other assorted goodness, I have been neglecting my other duties such as updating this website. For this, I am sorry. However, I would like to say that I will be updating more often now, even through the exam season. The next stint of updates will be directed towards informing you about specific

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-2958780333197625692007-02-01T23:43:00.000-05:002007-04-01T21:06:38.870-04:00

Ah yes, even though this is already 2 (almost 3 days late) , I would like to thank Carol at The Median Sib for hosting the 104th Carnival of Education. And of course I would like to thank her for linking to The Gravy Way.But to anyone from the carnival reading this: The title was taken from Dr. Brad Hoge's post at the HUNBlog, as my post was a follow up to his comments regarding constructivism/

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-32486869005367905652007-01-24T16:33:00.000-05:002008-12-10T17:52:19.164-05:00

Brad Hoge at the HUNBlog wrote a very poignant post regarding the problems that can come about through lecturing and test making; in this post he makes reference to the monotillation of traxoline: in this post he floods you with jargon from an imaginary field, then quizzes you on the same.I’ll give you an example from biochemistry, if you don’t feel like reading his post and because it hits so

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-25854256725818053252007-01-23T20:18:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:32:59.790-04:00

One way to gain control of your own life and to empower yourself to achieve successful living is by treating your life and everything about it like a business. A lot of people, myself included, spend a large portion of their time on activities that yield no value. For example: Every time I watch TV, I’m really not learning anything and although I’m entertained, I’ve extracted zero long-term

Danny Danghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02867582463839253079noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-6878760151820881242007-01-18T22:52:00.000-05:002008-12-10T17:52:19.410-05:00

Usually, I try to keep things pretty informative, but when I saw this I decided I had to post it:This is only a very small portion of all the chemical reactions happening in your cell. Click the image to see entirely too much cellular metabolism.Don't worry, I don't need to learn all of this. I just thought it was a testimony to what we can discover. And how absurb these discoveries can be.If you

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-74912258227747938942007-01-16T18:18:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:32:59.791-04:00

... Almost.More and more, just from experience and from learning about cognitive psychology, I’ve found that we can remember much more that we thought. Even seemingly lost facts, places, faces, etc. can be found.How can we perform such amazing feats? Through associative memory. (Those of you with some psychology background may not be too surprised.) In fact, this post is inspired by one cognitive

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-8983996548777687802007-01-10T21:01:00.000-05:002007-04-01T21:08:00.417-04:00

Toward the end of last semester I’ve come across a different way of thinking about memory. It comes from an audio program from Vera Birkenbihl called Memory Optimizer.She describes memory as construction: when you attempt to place a fact – say someone’s name – in your brain, you must first construct the idea of that name in your head. Every time that you recall this idea, you are reconstructing

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-73247230664282800732007-01-09T18:49:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:32:59.793-04:00

For the longest time, I was always fascinated in how things work and the little intricacies of life's puzzles. That fascination developed into a burning desire to learn and excel in my academic life. I'd read hundreds of books before I turned the age of 6. That continued into my adolescent life right up until the end of high school where my self-motivation and desire to do much of anything

Danny Danghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02867582463839253079noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-30983831930611074332007-01-09T17:28:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:53:20.575-04:00

I'd like to formally introduce Danny Dang to The Gravy Way. Since he has already given his intro in the previous post, I cannot add more on that front.However, I will use this opportunity to praise Danny. Danny Dang is an intelligent, creative, ambitious, sexually attractive man (there's more but I don't want to make people envious of him). When he contacted me about contributing to this site, I

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-43004304630161309942007-01-08T19:24:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:53:20.576-04:00

Since Josh is a little slow on the times and hasn't bothered to introduce me, I shall introduce myself. For those that know Josh prior to being consumed with medicine then you probably know me, otherwise you're going to read some posts by yours truly, Danny Dang.My posts will be centered around the same topics with a twist of anthropology. Less what to do, and more why and how. Most of my

Danny Danghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02867582463839253079noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-83034913674446743432006-11-01T23:57:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:57:42.519-04:00

Here's a little change of pace. I was reading the November 2006 issue of Discover magazine and I came across an article describing the idea that we are not simply hard-wired for many of our traits--even the genetic ones.(If I get too technical, which I know I will, and you want me to explain what I'm talking about to you: Try reading the article first, if that doesn't help, email me, and I'll see

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-16735489343487602872006-10-30T21:38:00.000-05:002007-04-01T21:06:38.873-04:00

Interview with Dr. Duffin - Part III: Length 10.58 Size: 3.76MB-- You can right-click and select "Save Target As..." or "Save Link As..." to save this to your hard drive. (I recommend this option.)This is the second part in a series of interviews relating to medicine; this is the third interview within this part. The links for the other interviews can be found here: Interview 1 - Hyeamin,

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1600151392104181802006-10-18T00:16:00.000-04:002006-10-18T00:22:34.765-04:00

I was reading the Eide Neurolearning Blog, and I saw an interesting link to an interview of Nobel Laureate Peter Agre.I think it's interesting that how he describes his "D" in chemistry, non-conformism, his maturation and doing what you love. These responses come after questions 4, 5 and 6.Go read the little exerpt from the Eide Neurolearning Blog (above), it's pretty interesting stuff.If you

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-68362675911186704762006-10-16T19:05:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:06:38.874-04:00

Interview with Dr. Duffin - Part II: Length 9.59 Size: 2.85MB-- You can right-click and select "Save Target As..." or "Save Link As..." to save this to your hard drive. (I recommend this option.)This is the second part in a series of interviews relating to medicine; this is the second section of this part. The links for the other interviews can be found here: Interview 1 - Hyeamin, Interview 2 –

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-24669001041920397342006-10-15T01:16:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:06:38.880-04:00

Sorry for the delay. I am just getting my toes wet in waters of midterms. The water is a little cold.-----------------------Interview with Dr. Duffin - Part I: Length 12:56 Size: 3.7MB-- You can right-click and select "Save Target As..." or "Save Link As..." to save this to your hard drive. (I recommend this option.)This is the second part in a series of interviews relating to medicine. The end

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1159933393311707122006-10-03T23:41:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:06:38.881-04:00

(This post is quite long, so once you reach the end of this article on the main page, click the link to continue to the rest of the post.)This will be the first in a series of information interviews regarding medicine and related fields. This is one part of my quest to find out more about medicine as a profession – to see if it is right for me. Hopefully, this information will help you in the

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1159418638915687932006-09-28T00:33:00.001-04:002007-04-01T21:09:54.003-04:00

As usual, my posting frequency has gone down. Once again, I am sorry for the delay. Hopefully an explanation of my doings will show why.I have just started a club at Queen's University called the GOL! Club (Goal-Oriented Living) and it is taking a surprisingly large amount of my time. In fact, it has its own website. As a result of this preparation, I have not been posting.However, all is not

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1158295390631598472006-09-18T19:11:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.795-04:00

Who cares the most about where you end up in life? Whose responsibility is it that you find your direction?I hope you can see where this is going. Only you have responsibility to find and choose your direction in life. Without getting into philosophy, all the choices you make in life are yours.So what are you going to do with your life? What's up with your undergraduate degree? It's ok if you

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1158544916935331242006-09-17T21:56:00.000-04:002006-10-15T02:03:44.259-04:00

Wow, I forgot that free image hosting isn't reliable.Well, if you were unfortunate enough to see all of those crazy notices from putfile about my pictures expiring, I'm sorry.Things should be resolved now. However, if you notice any broken or screwed up images, please do not hesitate to email me or comment on this post. By the way, if you notice any broken links or glaring errors in general, you

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1158294356471438182006-09-15T00:22:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.796-04:00

Recently, I've been noticing that we have become obsessed with the complexity of life. In order to eat more healthily, we have to follow some fancy diet. In order to discuss an issue properly we must use confusing language and a pedantic structure. By the way, I do see the irony of choosing such a complicated word.Yet, people used to – and continue to – use very simplistic guidelines to dictate

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1157129505033351772006-09-01T12:47:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.798-04:00

As people make the transition from high school to university they find that many aspects of their lives and mindsets change. A newly discovered freedom – or at least awareness – causes people to reassess what they know to be true or good.Naturally, this leads to a lot of experimentation. In university such experiments may involve alcohol, drugs, sexuality, social interaction, physical activity

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1156659805028100162006-08-27T02:14:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.799-04:00

* Little warning: This is a pretty long post, but it’s some really solid stuff. Sorry for the tardiness again. I am getting better though. Oh, and all external links (ones not to my site) open in a new window.Being a site about education, I think you can guess where this is going. The best investment you can make is not in stocks or bonds; it is in your education. This isn’t just random

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1156182707127701942006-08-21T13:46:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.805-04:00

In talking to some of my friends, I’ve found that many of them want to manage their time more effectively. But some may ask: Why would you want to get the most out of your time? Well…It makes you feel more productive (You’ll lose that blah/useless feeling.)You can get more done in a day than you thought possible. This is a tremendous feeling of accomplishment.It will make you rich! Let me

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1156138580887564582006-08-21T01:21:00.000-04:002007-04-01T20:53:20.577-04:00

I'm very sorry about my insanely long hiatus. I hope that you can appreciate my position. The Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) was on the 19th -- last Saturday -- so I was very busy studying for it. It is one of the most important tests I have taken, as it is necessary in order to even apply for most medical schools.If you would like some MCAT advice, I'm very willing to dole it out. Just

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1150223258312605752006-06-13T14:24:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.807-04:00

I have to start by apologizing for my long hiatus. Frankly, I have not been placing this site very high on my priorities list for many reasons: MCAT preparation, going to the gym, learning guitar, chillin', etc. From now on, my posting will be much more frequent and regular as I am placing it much higher on my "to do" list.What is the number one quality you can improve in order to perform better

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1148418992968791162006-05-23T17:04:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:06:38.897-04:00

Wow, I haven't posted in quite sometime. I'm really sorry. I've been getting bogged down in MCAT preparation, Victoria Weekend goodness and a bunch of other silliness I won't get into.Frankly, this isn't even a super-real update, as I will be linking to one of my favourite articles - rather than actually writing my own content. I will try to think of one soon. I have a feeling my next MCAT (

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1147578643848228282006-05-13T23:35:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.808-04:00

In studying or test-preparation you should see what options you have to get an upper hand in performing better. Most of these choices are little shortcuts that will make your studying go a lot more smoothly.Old testsAt a higher level of education, the format of the test and phrasing of questions becomes increasingly difficult and can be a barrier to performing . I don’t mean that the content is

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1147285535055838582006-05-10T14:12:00.000-04:002007-04-01T20:53:20.578-04:00

As an educational blogger, I've found there are many others out there who share a passion for teaching and education alike. So I'd like to link to the 66th Carnival of Education over at HUNBlog.If you don't know what a carnival is in an internet sense, basically it is a collection of links all relating to one topic (education in this case). The host and links change weekly or monthly.Specifically

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1147193940750469972006-05-09T12:41:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:09:54.005-04:00

A couple weeks ago I emailed Steve Pavlina about posting an article about tips for college students. I'd like to say he created one just because I emailed him, but he said that it was already on his "to write" list.His 10 Tips for College Students post tackles general and specific techniques to improve your university/college experience. The most important and first mentioned one being purpose.

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1147056606864189372006-05-07T22:53:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:08:00.420-04:00

I find that after the summer vacation starts, there’s always this high you get once you realize that you won’t be doing homework for a long time. However, after a little while you find that your thinking is starting to slowdown, you feel mentally and physically lazy. Maybe you aren’t like this, but sometimes I’ll find myself watching TV for way longer than I expected, and not even enjoying

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1147056823059358932006-05-07T22:50:00.000-04:002007-04-01T20:56:14.861-04:00

Right now I am entertaining the thought of moving The Gravy Way, from Blogger to WordPress. There seems to be less functionality here (certain technical features like TrackBacks are missing), but it sure is convenient.I'm still deciding, but I thought I would just let you guys know. If there is protesting in the streets, I won't move. However, for some reason I don't think that's going to

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1146789558416795062006-05-04T20:24:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:02:24.615-04:00

Alright, sorry about the lack of posting. You know how exams are... and then I had to move. Try to move as little as possible, it's not fun.I think I'm going to reduce the posting frequency to a weekly basis for a month or so. I'll be starting an MCAT course on the 19th of May so that should give me something to talk about. We'll see what happens.On to the post:I've been noticing more and more

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1146005695276215122006-04-25T18:38:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:06:38.899-04:00

Recently, I've been pondering what sort of route I should take with my education and eventually career. For me, this sort of thinking is always rooted in preconceptions about what I should do based on what my parents think, what job makes money, etc. There are always problems that seem to arise when this topic comes up.Through some funny coincidences this topic has come up 4 times in 30 minutes

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1145773559103305612006-04-23T02:18:00.000-04:002007-04-01T20:53:20.579-04:00

I was wondering if anyone wanted me to talk about any specific problems or solutions you have regarding learning and such. I'd like to know where to focus my attention in the coming weeks, especially since the exam season is coming to a close.I was thinking of ways to keep your mind active in the summer, or something like that.As well, I was hoping that if you like my site you could do any or

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1145771273984473702006-04-23T01:43:00.000-04:002007-04-01T21:06:38.900-04:00

Sometimes we all feel down. "Man, I’m so tired of studying. Why am I doing this anyways?"I was having one of those moments while lying in my bed after finishing a lecture set. Then I remembered a story I heard from a professor (Dr. Dean Tripp) at my university. I don't remember the details – I'm sure someone will correct me somewhere, like in the comments section – but I’ll give you what I

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1145332290341933542006-04-17T23:20:00.000-04:002007-04-01T20:47:30.395-04:00

Those directions are there for a reason. For your sake, mostly.I was making some popcorn in a pot – I was trying a healthier alternative to the pre-flavoured microwave stuff. I read some instructions on the internet saying that if you coat the bottom layer with kernels, the popped kernels will expand 6 inches from the bottom of the pot. He emphasized that the depth of the pot was key.I took a

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1145154136709536182006-04-15T22:14:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.809-04:00

I was wondering to myself: Why don’t you have more titles that go "Verb-ing (Gerund), The Gravy Way"? Not only is that creative, but it is hilarious. Hence, the title.Back to good stuff...I find that concentrating is one of the biggest barriers to learning. Given that the course has a learnable amount of content, we should be able to handle it. So we sit down, get out those mechanical pencils and

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1144976168946686802006-04-13T20:54:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.811-04:00

More and more, I’ve been noticing that people refuse to take responsibility for their actions. People aren’t willing to admit when a mistake is their fault. People don’t like the idea that we are the only ones in control of our future.Someone might be performing poorly in school, so they might say:"My parents didn’t push me hard enough.""This professor sucks.""My friends won’t help me.""My

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1144596218497350952006-04-09T11:19:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:32:59.812-04:00

So you read that chapter from your textbook a few times. You seemed to have a strong grasp on the material. Then the test rolls around and… that whole chapter is a blur. You remember some major concepts, that picture at the beginning of the chapter (yet another molecule – real creative…) and maybe you remember question 17.3 – but it wasn’t even that hard.This is not what you were expecting. Sucks

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1144557937425083322006-04-09T00:37:00.000-04:002007-04-01T20:53:20.579-04:00

OK, I know it's been a little while since I've posted, and for that I apologize sincerely. I've been studying pretty intensely for my exams (especially for the Anatomy practical exam), so I haven't put as much energy as I would like towards new content.I have written an article about problems-based learning, which I will type up and post tomorrow. Oh, if you are wondering why I'm not posting it

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1144208789609231422006-04-04T23:44:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:34:36.048-04:00

In my continuing fascination with how our brains work, I decided to pick up Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink (new window), after reading his earlier book, The Tipping Point (mentioned in the post: Knowledge and Relationships).Once again I am highly recommending this book. This book is just as, perhaps more, fascinating than The Tipping Point.To the point: Gladwell suggests that we can be prepared or

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1144038785774767212006-04-03T00:26:00.000-04:002007-04-11T00:34:36.049-04:00

This is probably the greatest tip I will ever give – not just regarding learning but life in general.In everything that you do, try to keep an open mind. Do not be so quick to judge.Some of you may be wondering how this can relate to education at all. Have you found that you have a professor that you just don’t take a liking to, for whatever reason? And from then on, everything that professor

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1143780872352397052006-03-30T23:53:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:43:27.374-04:00

I find that one of my biggest barriers to learning is finding the motivation to actually start. There are a number of techniques that I use, which I will cover in a later post. One such technique I use is listening to motivational audio programs, or reading some inspirational books.Although I can't post the complete contents of these books and audio files to this site, I have decided to post some

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1143598409102221992006-03-28T21:11:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:34:36.051-04:00

"How can you expect to hit a target you can’t see?" – Zig ZiglarWhen you work do you have a specific, definable goal that you are working for? If you don’t, how can you know if you are getting closer to reaching it? How much material will you have covered by a certain date?You need to have some goals to get things done, really done.The advantages to having specific, realistic, dated goals are

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1143499823438979272006-03-27T17:40:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:34:36.052-04:00

If I had to teach the world only 2 lessons they would be:1) Keep an open mind in all aspects of your life.2) Dare to think big. Don’t let people impose their small-minded thinking on you.The latter is the subject of this post.There are always people around that will try to bring you down. It will not necessarily be for inherently wrong reasons, they are just misguided. Since this site is about

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1143499194250100922006-03-27T17:18:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:34:36.053-04:00

Does the following scenario sound familiar? So you’ve been working for an hour and a half. Your papers are all organized and nicely hole-punched; your textbook is covered in highlighter; your room is super clean; and you printed your notes for the next 3 weeks. But you haven’t learned a thing.Ouch. A little too close to home? Yeah, same here.This isn’t to say that those tasks aren’t important,

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1143086367099505832006-03-22T22:52:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:38:36.437-04:00

As I mentioned in my previous post sometimes I decide to resort to drastic measures to perform better in my courses.In my anatomy course, I found that my major pitfall was histology (The anatomical study of the microscopic structure of animal and plant tissues.) So I decided that I needed to look at some microscope slides. In fact, not just some, a lot.I redecorated my room accordingly:By the way

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1142902955910062022006-03-20T16:53:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:40:30.113-04:00

After a disappointing performance in one of my courses, I've decided to redouble my efforts in order to improve.The course in question was Anatomy, and even after some drastic measures (maybe I'll show you later), I know I could have done better.After writing the practical midterm, I realized that I placed too much of my focus on the theoretical portion, and I didn't study certain parts that I

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1142565025111880902006-03-16T22:03:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:34:36.054-04:00

OK, so you are studying for your Biology finals. You have your books open, your notes out, the beats are pumping, 24 is on TV, John and Christy are talking to you on MSN Messenger, and you're sprawled across your couch, that wobbly coffee table and some dusty mugs.So what are you doing? Oh you say you're "studying"? Lies!!This reminds me of a book Judge Judy wrote: Don't Pee on My Leg and Tell Me

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1142303418157076062006-03-13T21:14:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:38:36.440-04:00

Etymology - 1: a history of a word; 2: the study of the sources and development of words"Why bother with etymology?" some may ask. Because it can help you learn terms more easily and remember more. I find that once I know the origin of a word, it helps solidify it's meaning and context. As well, if other new terms with similiar roots come up, then I can easily decipher their meaning and remember

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1142221954279277142006-03-12T22:22:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:34:24.474-04:00

I've been reading a book called The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell, and I just wanted to share an excerpt that I found very interesting. It may not help you do better in school, but it's something to think about.When we talk about memory, we aren't just talking about ideas and impressions and facts stored inside our heads. An awful lot of what we remember is actually stored outside our brains.

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1142113387110716242006-03-11T16:42:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:34:36.055-04:00

Pegging can be used to remember items in a specific order or associated with certain numbers. Basically, it is where you form vivid mental associations between a preset known object (the peg) and what you want to memorize. You are putting the item you want to memorize on the peg. So if you can remember the preset list, then the associated objects follow easily.Let's start small. Let's say you

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1141709696487680372006-03-07T00:21:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:29:18.198-04:00

I was helping someone out with a statistics problem and after a good look they seemed to be on the right track. Then I started thinking, over-thinking to be more precise. I started thinking of really complex and convoluted formulae for solving the problem.After 10mins of this, I realized the answer was right in the first place.That's just plain silly.Remember: The answer isn't always so

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1141628475051576412006-03-06T01:59:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:34:36.056-04:00

It's OK to change your answer after thinking about itI always hear that people hate changing their answers because whenever they switch it, they were right the first time. Although this can be the case in many situations, I propose that people just remember the damn-I-should’ve-left-it times more often than the thank-goodness-I-switched-it times. People are inherently more sensitive to pain than

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1141628256833087952006-03-06T01:54:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:25:43.418-04:00

I just wrote an organic chemistry midterm today, and to put it lightly, there were no survivors. However, I’m not one to give up without a fight. There are still a few things to keep in mind if you find yourself in this situation:Stay calm.Breathe in, breathe out. Repeat. Just because you don’t know how to do one portion doesn’t mean that you can’t do the rest of the test. There are still many

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1141627964062539852006-03-06T01:51:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:34:36.057-04:00

If the professor does not speak terribly quickly, try to listen to what he/she says first, then write it down.This way you can actually learn what you are writing so you can remember it then, or learn it more easily later.Even if you think you have a fair understanding of a point that was just mentioned, write it down (unless it’s ridiculously obvious).This has happened to me a million times: I

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1141243359582572042006-03-01T14:53:00.000-05:002007-04-11T00:34:36.059-04:00

I’ve noticed this phenomenon in many people (including myself): We all say / think that we know something, while in the back of our minds we realize that we don’t have a full grasp on some concept. Yet we still continue like we fully understand. I’ll give an example in a moment.While this can apply to many facets of our lives, I’m going to show how it can affect our academic learning.

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22939667.post-1140840193725847682006-02-24T22:49:00.000-05:002007-04-01T20:14:47.089-04:00

There are so many different ways people choose to learn. I have my own style that works very well for me most of the time. There are a lot of little tricks that I use in order to learn. At the same time, I'm very curious to find out how other people learn, and what techniques work for them.This site is more of an experiment in how people study and acquire knowledge. I'll put down what techniques

Joshua Hwanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10270321784065058718noreply@blogger.com0