Math is a really cool thing so get off your act, let's do some math!

You need to hear about the debacle that was my first Calculus IV exam of the semester.

First of all, my professor decided a while ago that he wanted to have us take proctored online exams because he thought it would be easier for the students to take, we'd get instant feedback on our grades, and it would save on a TON of paper and time on grading for the TA's. It was to be through a website called WeBWorK, the one many math professors use for their students to acquire and submit the answers to their homework problems for a grade. But that's just what the website it: a problem. It frequently crashes at the worst possible times, especially when students are trying to get their homework done before the due dates. So obviously, this is a sign that one of the three EXAMS, which weigh heavier on your overall grade than homework does, for the class should NOT be taken on a malfunctioning website.

The night of the scheduled exam, all of the students were assigned to different labs across campus since the exam had to be taken on a computer with a proctor overseeing that cheating didn't occur. I was unlucky enough to be in South Kedzie's lab, while some of my other friends from Wilson only had to go to Case Hall, right next door to us.

So I biked over to Kedzie pretty early since I was really prepared for this test, and found the lab in a maze of hallways and offices. I sat down, logged in to WeBWorK, and got ready for the proctor to give us the signal to start. As 5:30pm rolled around, or proctor as well as about ten or twelve others, allowed their students to start the exam, and guess what happens when 400+ students try to log on to a faulty website at one time? It's going to crash, duh. Three students from my section were able to get in and begin the exam, but the rest of us stared at the login screen and the progress bar on the bottom of the browser window. We waited patiently for about 20-30 minutes before our proctor called our professor, who proceeded to tell us to shut down the log in pages because he was going to open up each lab section individually.This seemed like a pretty good idea until about 6:30pm when our exam still wasn't open and the exam would be closed in an hour. So after another phone call, we were told our exams had been canceled and a solution would be devised and we would be notified later in the evening.

Now, I was already pretty upset because I was so well prepared for this exam and then we couldn't take it at our scheduled time. Plus, I had oodles of homework to finish and it just had felt like I completed wasted two hours of life. Let's just say I was rather frustrated for the rest of the day.

The solution our professor came up with made it all better, though. He initially wanted us to take paper exams the following week's recitation (8 days after the scheduled exam!), but I believe many students emailed him expressing their concern for learning a week's worth of new material before being tested on the old stuff. He then proposed to make the exam the following day during recitation, but then assumed that students who wouldn't read their email between then and exam time would not be prepared to take the exam in a shorter amount of time (a 50 minute recitation instead of a 2 hour exam). His final decision was his best, and our favorite, choice. He made the exam available on WeBWorK to be taken, unproctored, any time from late Wednesday night until tonight (Sunday) at 11:59 pm. It would be our responsibilities to follow the MSU Engineering Code Of Conduct and respect the Academic Honesty Policy. I was so amped up for the exam already, that I just decided to get it over with that night. It took me about 30 minutes and I aced it after 3 attempts (we're only allowed 4 grade submissions before that becomes your final grade.)

I was just so happy to be done with that exam that I celebrated by going to bed at a decent hour instead of doing any more homework. :] Hopefully this will not happen again this semester, it was way to stressful to deal with in one night!

Just a day, just an ordinary day.

Well it's been a blah kind of weekend. I did homework the majority of Friday afternoon and night, then watched movies with friends the rest of the night.

Saturday was.. interesting. About 80% of my floor, and the rest of campus, went home this weekend because we didn't have a home football game, so it was really quiet all day long. And then there was.. the football game, or lack there of. I was so psyched for our game against Notre Dame because they lost to Michigan last weekend, and we are expected to beat Michigan when we play them in October, so we should have won, right? Wrong. If you didn't happen to watch the game, Notre Dame scored a touchdown right off the bat, and just stayed ahead of us the whole game. Besides the numerous interceptions and incomplete passes, there were SO many penalties and flags, so it just made for an overall bad game, at least to watch. Ugh. I'm prayin' for a win against Central this weekend. *fingers crossed*

Sunday was filled with, you guessed it, more homework. I was able to take a break for two hours to attend quidditch practice on Dem Field. It was such a great practice too! My legs are STILL sore from running so much. We had about 40 new students show up to this practice where we taught them the general rules and ins and outs of the game. There's so many enthusiastic people that want to join the club as well! I think it's going to be a good year for us. :]

I think this week is pretty busy for everyone though. While the majority of my friends have 2-4 exams this week, I lucked out with one, so I've been studying for that all day. It's only Monday and I'm already counting down toward the weekend.. let's do this! Good luck on exams/papers/projects everyone! :]

This is why (we're) hot.

Our drum line is better than yours. Hands down. And this is why. :]

My friends, Alex and Dominic, are two of the nine snares and my other friend Aaron is a cymbal. I could listen to these guys play alllll day long. :]

Also, I love my camera for taking such a quality video from so far away up in the student section. :D

So we're going to be beat the Fighting Irish this weekend, right? Right.

GO GREEN!

I see you drivin' 'round town.

I know I've blogged about this before but I just want to reiterate this: BE CAREFUL WHERE YOU'RE WALKING/BIKING/DRIVING ON CAMPUS.

I saw a CATA bus accident for the first time ever today. I was a little ways away from the incident, but I heard the scraping of metal on metal above the volume of my iPod as I was walking south on Adams Field. Now what a lot of people don't realize is that the majority of north campus is one-way traffic, so cars going straight have the right-a-way and any cars turning must yield to oncoming traffic. Well at the intersection right above IM Circle, a car turning right did NOT yield to the eastbound, unstopping bus which resulted in the bus scraping up against the driver's side of the little silver car. Thankfully, everyone in the car and the students on the bus were alright; if the impact were made at any higher of a speed, that might have changed.

I know I learned a lesson from this: be cognizant of everyone and everything around you while walking across campus no matter what method of transportation you chose, feet, bike, or vehicle. It keeps you safe, aware, and hey, it may even save your life.

^^I had meant to post this yesterday, Monday September 12, but I fell asleep at my computer while doing homework... thank goodness for draft saves on Blogger! :]

I need somebody Help! Not just anybody.

One thing you DON'T want to do in college: get behind on homework and studying. I'm an engineer so I'll speak in math therms here: once everyone starts getting back into the school groove at the beginning of the semester, the amount of homework exponentially increases as time goes to infinity (or at least until the end of the semester, rather). Getting behind on homework is the worst, because you have to spend so much time finishing up papers and projects the day (or morning!) before they are due.

I find that the best way to study is to spread it throughout my day. I've been unlucky (or lucky, your choice) enough to have all afternoon classes, so I will wake up earlier so I can get a bit of studying done before classes and then continue afterward with a ton of study breaks in between. Like I said, this works best for me, but if procrastination is your way to get things done, go for it. Just do your homework! :p

Now if the reason you're getting behind is because you don't understand something about the course, there are plenty of options to fix this. You could:

- talk to your professor. Maybe arrange a meeting with him/her to help you understand the material in a better way. Most professors give their email address AND phone for contact references.
- alternatively, talk to your TA (if one is available to that class)
- form a study group with other students in your class. Even if you just ask the person sitting next to you, "hey, would you like to go over this material with me sometime?", you'll make new friends and connections, AND you might even learn something!
- go to specific help centers or help hours. My favorites are
       * Math Learning Center
       * Writing Center
       * C1/C2 in Wilson Hall - students are there from 6-10pm Mon-Thur to help
          with certain courses in MTH, CEM, PHY, and EGR. This is great for
          residential engineers like me!

Hopefully you found this information useful! Let me know if there are any other help groups around campus! I would love to post them here so that everyone can know where to go if they need a little extra help. :]

Party like a Rock Star.

IT'S FINALLY FOOTBALL SEASON. This is something that almost every college student yearns for all summer long, and then it's finally here when we all get back to school! Big Ten (or Twelve, which ever we are now) is the BEST football too! We have so many decades of rivalries, especially with UoM, Ohio State , and Notre Dame, so it makes the game just THAT much more fun. Plus, you get to stand for three hours with thousands of your best friends cheering to the fight song and other MSU traditions. Honestly, what could get better than that?

Student Section! The best in the Big Ten!

My little brother at the game with me when my family came to tailgate/visit for my birthday! <3

Best friends at the game. :]

Actually, I do know what could get better than that: having your birthday on a long weekend, it being the first full weekend of the Fall semester. :] I turned 20 on Sunday, and boy, do I feel old! I mean, I’m a junior in college and that makes me feel old enough already, but entering that THIRD decade now? Gosh,  maybe I should just stop growing up so fast. :p

I had a great weekend though. My Quidditch friends semi-hosted a birthday party for me on Saturday night, which was a ton of fun because they sang "Happy Birthday" to be at midnight, outside in the courtyard, when we were playing Ninja. (If you haven't heard of this game, look it up; it's awesome.) Then I went out to dinner to Outback Steakhouse with a ton of my other friends on my actual birthday then hung out with them all night. Even better was the fact that it was Labor Day the next day, so I could sleep in and not worry about going to classes!

My best friend and I at Outback. <3

5East plus some; the dinner party.

My birthday cookie! Thank you, family! :D

But now it’s back to the old grind and time to start thinking about doing my homework earlier than the day before it’s due.. Don’t worry, it always gets done though!

I hope everyone else enjoyed their Labor Weekend whether you were here at school,  up north, or at home! Have a wonderful rest of the week as well! :]