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study methods; Which will you
choose to get that AP
December 2, 2011
Early Bird special: getting it done
By Millie Carter
Staff Writer
After the day's classes are done, I trudge
back to my room like any other student. All I
want to do is hang out with friends and play
that brand new video game that just came out
today. I want to throw my backpack on my bed
and forget that homework ever existed.
But I don't. I write down each assignment in
the order it is due on a bright pink sticky-note,
and then I sit down and get to work. I consider
myself a proactive student, and procrastination
my enemy.
Maybe it's the sick satisfaction I get from
crossing out the research paper on that
obnoxiously neon sticky-note a week before it is
due. Maybe it's obsessive compulsive disorder.
Either way, knocking out assignments is
worth the grueling hours each night to make
way for a free weekend.
It is especially worth it when you know
that, come Sunday morning, you will be asleep
until noon. Meanwhile, friends wake up at
eight to deal with the consequences of their
procrastination.
Think about how much you won't have to
cram in at the last second if work is completed
the first few nights it is assigned.
The dreaded research paper ,sits at
number two on the sticky-note can be edited
multiple times. Papers and take-home quizzes
will be much more thought out and could lead
to better grades.
That saying, "the early bird gets the
worm?" It definitely applies to
proactive students.
Study earlier, head to the
library on Monday night,
begrudgingly tell your
friends that no, you cannot
go play Modern Warfare
3. Your grades (and your
parents) will thank you for
it. Mine did.
Procrastination for the
win!
By Rory Molleda
Staff Writer
Eight-to-ten page research
paper due in two weeks, so
I have plenty of time to get
several sources and write a
little bit each day so I don't feel
rushed or overloaded, right?
Wrong.
That's what I should be
saying to myself when I am
assigned any kind of paper or
project, but it never happens.
Regardless of the countless
lectures from my parents and
different teachers from middle
school to college about getting
a head start on my work, I
never seem to listen.
The official Rory Molleda
method for writing a paper
includes starting as late as
possible, checking Facebook
Meeting in the middle
By Colleen Gonzalez
StaffWriter
Why not have the best of both worlds when it
comes to studying?
If you tend to fall in the middle of getting work
done early or waiting until the absolute last minute to
write that 10 page paper (like me) then why not make
your procrastination work for you by building it into
your schedule?
When I get assigned a paper or a project, I map out
when I can get enough work done so I can have some
time to relax and watch a movie on Netflix or spend
a few hours on Facebook. The key is to manage your
time; advice we all receive in our first year at Guilford
so we wouldn't have to pull all-nighters.
For example, on Monday you look at your planner
and see you have 40 pages of reading due the next day,
a paper due on Thursday, and an article due Saturday
night. There is plenty of time for you to get all your
work done and goof off at the same time.
First thing is to get the reading done since that is
due the next day. As for the paper, you can spread this
out between Tuesday and Wednesday by doing half
one day and half the other.
By doing it in sections, you don't feel as pressured
as you would if you did it all at once.
Finally for the article, make sure you use the days
in between to get what you need, so if you do get
down to, the wire, at least you have something to write
about.
Of course everyone is different. Some people work
best under pressure while others feel better getting
things done ahead of time.
Although the latter seems to be the best because
then you have all the time in the world to
do what you want to do, we might as
well get real and admit that, as college
students, we like to slack off
However by making your
procrastination work to your
advantage, you can catch up on
much needed sleep, hang out
with your friends and get through
the semester in one piece.
and Twitter as often as possible,
getting little to no sleep, and not
doing many revisions.
But the best part is you can
use this method for any type of
homework.
I perform much better when
under pressure. And my theory is
that everyone can learn to use this
niethod to their advantage. For
example, when doing a reading
for a class because you know you
have a quiz, why do it a week in
advance? By doing it the night
before, there's a better chance
you will not forget the material
and will do better on the quiz.
The same principle applies
when trying to study for an exam.
Going over the whole study
guide the night before the exam
means there's less time for you
to forget what you studied.
It is also very important
to surround yourself with as
many distractions as possible
when avoiding your work.
Because of my ADD, even the
post-it notes on my desk can
distract me for a good five to
ten minutes.
A television and the
Internet are a must. A few
friends playing video games or
watching a movie could work
too.
Although leaving everything
to the last minute might give
me a few more headaches than
I would like, my grades are
rarely affected.
There is always a little room
for improvement but I'm
nowhere near failing out of
school because I procrastinate
on my work.
MII ® a
Contributions are legal
bribes, not charity
donations
%Trayis, Linyille
^\Staff'Writer
With the GOP
nomination swinging full
force, there's a lot of talk
going on. A whole lot of
talk. And when politicians
talk, they gesture
elaborately, painting
wildly vivid portraits of
themselves and others.
But when they want to hide the significance of their actions
or beliefs, they resort to colorless doublespeak — the adversary
of open communication.
As a politician, would you want people to know that
you received $300,000 from mortgage broker Freddie Mac,
notorious for its role in our financial state? Or would this be a
good time for some well-polished doublespeak?
Because according to NPR, Newt Gingrich received that
amount from Freddie in 2006.
Gingrich claimed that he never lobbied — not for Freddie,
not for anyone. The mortgage colossus approached him as a
"historian" for "strategic advice."
I confess I don't know much about a historian's livelihood,
but that sounds like a truly impressive salary for one.
And even if Gingrich did not lobby Congress, I feel like we
can safely assume he had some interest in Freddie's financial
well-being. After all, if they sank, Gingrich's paychecks would
sink with them.
Then Bloomberg News reported that the amount paid was
closer to $1.6 or $1.8 million over an eight-year span.
Media call this hidden marshmallow a "contribution."
As fun as singling out and picking on Gingrich is, we cannot
condemn him as the sole acceptor of shady money.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Mitt
Romney has raised over $30 million for his GOP campaign;
Ron Paul has raised over $10 million; and President Obama has
raised about $89 million.
It takes many contributions to build those numbers. But
where does the money come from?
Surely some unselfish people fund politicians for unselfish
reasons. But pure reasons are often in short supply.
Remember the financial crisis? Remember Goldman Sachs?
Subpoenaed in June 2011 for its practice of selling bad
mortgages?
The Center for Responsive Politics reports that Goldman
Sachs affiliates have hedged bets with big donations for
Obama and Romney; over $1,000,000 and over $360,000
respectively.
They call these contributions.
But let's be real. Contribution sugar-coats the word bribe.
Campaigns are not charities. People do not contribute to
campaigns without hope for a return on their investment. That
is just silly.
Investors get influence, power, and reimbursement when
their walking money-bag takes office. Contributors become
politicians through legal bribes, enabled by doublespeak.
Doublespeak runs amok in politics: torture becomes
"enhanced coercive interrogation technique;" poor becomes
economically disadvantaged;" bribe becomes "campaign
contribution."
Doublespeak makes it easy to miss what really happens in
politics.
So can we please stop calling them contributions or donations
or whatever pretty-sounding-and-obscure name? Next,
politicians will probably call them "quantitative voluntary
endowments."
They call it a contribution, but no amount of sugar-coating
can mask this turd that politicians try to hide.