Librarian Chick...

Here's a huge free resource for students, (and educators,) you might be into. If you want to learn to write better, they've got that. Science? It's covered. Actually, everything you can imagine is on here. Their search function isn't that great, but the list of resources is amazing.

Easy biology...

I'm all of a sudden putting up a ton of stuff. Yay me. This is Biology in Motion. It's a bunch of movies explaining lots of neat biological concepts.

If you're in my patho class, and you didn't do well on that quiz, check out Cell Division Exercise.

Cooking 102

While I'm at it, here's an easy way to learn recipes for simple foods. It doesn't look too expensive to do either.

Beer 101

I haven't written in a while and it's because I've been busy finishing the fight in Halo 3. (I did.) I'm getting back to work now. This isn't the post I was originally going to do, but my real one didn't pan out the way I'd hoped. So, here's a story about why you should drink beer.

Cigars...

This isn't student related at all, but it's something close to my heart.

I like cigars. I don't really have much time to somke them as I'm in school. Anyway, I saw this post, and it reminded me of something I can use to make a new post.

So, what's my big thing? Cigars. (I bet you didn't see that coming.) Anyway, here's why cigars are important. Cigars are a great way to relax in a way you really can't any other way.

1. Cigars take a while to smoke. You have to budget time.
2. Cigars don't make your brain addled.
3. Cigars are a great excuse for a walk.
4. You tend to have better conversations when you're smoking a cigar. I think it makes you more reflective.

Anyway, if you're up for something different, try a cigar. They're still legal in America so it's worth it to stop by a tobacconist and ask what's good if you're new at cigars.

They'll be really glad to help you out. Also, if you go to a mall, the cigar shops there aren't really as helpful as the people at normal cigar stores.

Cell biology animation...

If you're into biology, this site I just Stumbled onto does cellular animation.

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Now playing: Dale Willman - Slate: Greed Is Bad. Bad.
via FoxyTunes

Quick update...

I'm not dead, just busy. I didn't get all my reading done last night, but I did manage to see the season premier of Heroes. (I think the South American girl makes some kind of high-pitched sound that melts people's brains. Just my guess.)

Also, Halo 3 comes out today. I'm not going to play it, but I need to pick up my copy.

Anyway, watch the Class Notes section in the coming hours, (after three or four-ish today,) for updates from everything.

Also, I have a regular post that is in no way scholastic, but sort of interesting if you own an iPod in the works.

Also, the news ticker on the right is still updating with stuff that may be useful to you to read. Just a warning, I tend to put stuff in there that mimics my political beliefs in there, (I'm a small-government libertarian,) so sometimes stories in that vein pop in there too.

Fit 30 GB of music onto an iPod Nano.

Okay, this won't help you do better in class, but here's my idea about why I'm posting this: Most students have iPods.

...

Okay, that's it.

Say you just got an iPod Nano and only have 4 GB of space to put 30 GB of music.

Here's something I figured out that took me a little while and some experimentation to figure out, but is really great at keeping my iPod full of my favorite music.

Firstly, here's a primer on why you can't lie to your iPod. (i.e., people tend to rate songs with five stars that they never listen to.)

Okay, here's how you do it:

1. Click [File], [New Smart Playlist]
2. Have it match [All] the following criteria:
[Play Count] [is in the range] [5] to [10]
[Skip Count] [is less than] [5]
[Last Skipped] [is not in the last] [7] [days]
[X] Limit to [200] [items] selected by [least recently played]
[X] Live updating

Click [OK]

That's your first playlist. Do step 1 again with this as the next step:

Play Count] [is greater than] [10]
[Skip Count] [is less than] [5]
[Last Skipped] [is not in the last] [7] [days]
[X] Limit to [250] [items] selected by [least recently played]
[X] Live updating

Click [OK]

Now you've got two playlists. Step 1 again, then:

[Play Count] [is in the range] [5] to [10]
[Skip Count] [is less than] [5]
[Last Skipped] [is not in the last] [7] [days]
[X] Limit to [200] [items] selected by [most recently played]
[X] Live updating

Click [OK]

Now you've got two playlists. Step 1 again, then:

[Play Count] [is greater than] [10]
[Skip Count] [is less than] [5]
[Last Skipped] [is not in the last] [7] [days]
[X] Limit to [250] [items] selected by [most recently played]
[X] Live updating

Click [OK]

Now you've got two playlists. Step 1 again, then:

[Play Count] [is in the range] [0] to [5]
[Skip Count] [is less than] [5]
[Last Skipped] [is not in the last] [7] [days]
[X] Limit to [75] [items] selected by [most recently added]
[X] Live updating

Click [OK]

Finally, you should have a playlist titled, "Top 25 Most Played."

Now, have your iPod sync just these playlists. You'll have all of your favorite music, plus the last few CDs you've ripped. You should have a little bit of room let over so you can probably fit all of your unlistened to podcasts or unwatched TV shows. Enjoy.

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Now playing: The Onion - Heroic Cancer Sufferer Inspires Others To Get Cancer
via FoxyTunes

The Anytime 15 - 102

Just a quick addition to what Joel said: exercising more isn't licence to eat more. I used to eat more so I'd have energy to work out and I never really understood why I didn't lose weight.

The anytime 15...

Hello Cheap Student readers!

I myself was, not all too long ago, a cheap student. I was studying to get my Masters of Education degree at the illustrious Ohio State University. I was staying up late at night finishing off random papers and hundreds of pages of seemingly pointless reading in pursuit of not only my degree, but my teaching certificate. That was three years ago and I have been teaching German in Long Island, New York ever since. One thing I saw a lot of among my fellow grad student cohort mates, was weight gain. It was subtle at first, but by the end of the year a couple of my classmates had packed on more than a few pounds. Recently I was inspired to to trim down a few extra lb's of fat so I got on a bit of a health kick. I want to take a few posts to give you all some advice on what worked for me in terms of losing a little weight.

A caveat: I am in no way registered or qualified to give health or medical advice. What I offer is from one person to another, take-at-your-own-risk advice. If you are in doubt about your ability to handle a diet, talk to your doctor first.

That being said...I have, over the years, explored many diet and fitness regimens. I have never been obese, but I have always battled a few pounds around my waist and struggled with self image. I was a chubby teenager so I am admittedly somewhat preoccupied with my weight. Being gay in today's superficial society is no help either. The bottom line I have finally realized is this...get ready for an earth-shattering revelation...you have to burn more calories than you consume in order to lose weight!

The key to this is simple. Move more and eat less crap. Let's break this down...

1. Move more: What do you like to do physically? Do you enjoy jogging, walking, biking or weight-lifting? The key is to find an activity you like to do. For me it was a combination of weights and cardio. If you don't like any of those things, well, get off your fat butt and pick one because you aren't going to avoid those stress-induced extra pounds around your midsection or thighs by just sitting there. Start small if you have to. What I have found is that consistency is the key over the long term and you can't expect to lose 10 pounds overnight.

2. Eat less crap. I know you eat things you shouldn't. We all do. I also know that most people know what is healthy and what isn't. The key to eating healthy and sticking to it is to find what works for you. If you start your day with coffee and a donut, switch to coffee and whole wheat toast with natural peanut butter, for example. If lunch involves a drive-through window or takeout, try to find the healthiest options you can at the places you like to frequent. For example, one of my weaknesses is Taco Bell. Flour tortillas, while not ideal, have significantly less fat and calories than crunchy corn tortillas. You don't need sour cream! They have a nice 'al fresco' option that allows you to substitute salsa for cheese and sour cream and it is actually quite tasty. If you like micky-d's or Wendy's, always go for grilled chicken rather than fried and avoid the beef. With salads, be very careful with your dressing, it can change a reasonably healthy lunch into a belly bomb.

In summary: start gradually! Crash dieting never works. I started in May and thought I would lose ten pounds in about four weeks. I took most of the summer but I have kept it off. Start doing small things on a consistent basis and making healthier choices. Later we'll talk more specifics about how to really burn that butter off.

New blogger...

Look for Joel's posts in the coming days/weeks/whatever he can manage.  

Cycling 101

I'm not sure if I'm going to do a whole series of posts on bicycles, but here's something really quick for the day:

A bicycle is a vehicle.

You belong on the road.

The red, yellow and green lights tell you when to go, not the walk, don't walk signs.

Don't be on the sidewalk unless you're walking your bike.

You're a college student. Be smart about that.

Guarana

Yesterday in my nutrition class, someone mentioned something I wanted to talk about in a lot more detail. That is guarana.

Guarana is a shrub from South America which produces berries whose seeds have three times the amount of caffeine as you'd find in a coffee bean.

The seed is ground into powder and made into lots of different products like tea and Bawls.

I looked guarana on Micromedex and products made from it are basically the same as those made from normal caffeine.

So, if you're looking for another option than coffee, this might be for you.

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Now playing: National Geographic - Spitting Camels of the Andes
via FoxyTunes

Raw Caffeine

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Now playing: National Geographic - Spitting Camels of the Andes
via FoxyTunes If you're a student, you probably spend a lot of time not sleeping. However, one's body isn't meant to do that. (If you're a physiology nut, you can point out it's actually your brain that needs sleep, but whatever.) Anyway, I know I've spent the last few days staying up until about 3:00 a.m. and waking up about 7:00 a.m. to read some more.

Anyway, as much as I'm against ingesting chemical anything, I'm going to talk about caffeine.

Coffee is ubiquitous and cheap. I've talked about it. However, not everyone loves coffee. How else can you get caffeine? There's soda.

Soda is fattening, and bad for your teeth. However, if you've got to go that route, there these are my suggestions:

Mountain Dew. I drank this stuff by the case in undergrad. They also have that new grenadine-tasting Mountain Dew which is extra bad for your teeth.

Other stuff. There are a lot of other drinks with lots of caffeine. Here's a list.

I know a bunch of stuff isn't on the list. (Monster, Rockstar, etc.,) but it's still pretty good.

There are other caffeinated options. Here are a few you can order by mail. I can't really speak for their effectiveness, (they seem especially gimmicky to me,) but you can have a go.

Finally, there's the nuclear option. Caffeine pills. I did a lot of Vivarin my freshman year culminating in an incident where I ended up sleeping for two days straight.

That said, it works pretty well. Just don't overdo it.

Also, there's a lot of stories about the dangers of too much caffeine. I wouldn't worry too much though. There's only one case of a person dieing of caffeine overdose, and they gave themselves an IV of Mountain Dew. It's pretty certain the actual cause of death of a bolus created by the carbonation.
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Now playing: J.C. Hutchins - BOOK THREE: Chapters 20 & 21
via FoxyTunes

Quick laptop tip

If you're using your laptop unplugged, turn off bluetooth, wi-fi, (if you can manage,) sound and lower your screen brightness as low as possible. You battery will last way longer.

Presentations 101

Here's something useful to remember next time you're using Keynote, (or Power Point if you're a heathen.) It's called the 10, 20, 30 rule.

10 Slides
20 Minutes
30 Point Font (at the least)

Power Point, (and the like,) aren't meant to be a place where you dump all of your research notes nor are they meant to be a verbatim guide to what you're saying. It's just for emphasis.

If you're familiar with the movie American Pie, there's a scene where a lacrosse coach is giving a pep talk. The scene goes something like this:

Loud coach: You don't score, until you score!
Assistant coach: Until you score.

You want your presentation to be the assistant coach. You're the main event.

Coffee 103

College is full of learning to acquire tastes. The two biggest are coffee and beer. Eventually, you'll learn to like coffee, but it isn't easy.

The way I learned to like coffee was by drinking hoity-toity coffee. Very simply, get flavored coffee and put lots of cream and sugar in it.

Next, stop getting the flavorings.

Slowly wean out the sugar.

Then the cream.

Now you're drinking black coffee. If you want to be extra tough, add gunpowder.

However, if you aren't that far, flavored syrups are a good way to make your own flavored coffee at home. It is comparable in price to flavored beans so it's probably a good investment.

Anyway, a commenter pointed me towards this stuff.

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Now playing: Jace Everett - Bad Things
via FoxyTunes

Talk Like a Pirate Day

In addition to it being my first day of grad school, it also be Talk Like a Pirate Day. Arr. Visit Blackbeard of the Salt Sea for more piratey goodness or be keelhauled.

I start school tomorrow...

Just a personal note, tomorrow at 12:30 p.m., I'll officially be a grad student. Yay me!

Wish me luck.

Better yet, click my ads.

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Now playing: Josh Joplin Group - Superstar
via FoxyTunes

Coffee 102

I love all things pumpkin, and it lacerates my soul that pumpkin is only a seasonal flavor.

I made mention a few posts ago how it'd be a good idea to stock up on pumpkin coffee from Starbucks and make your own pumpkin lattes.

It turns out you can't. It's not coffee-flavored beans, but a syrup they won't sell by the bottle.

I'm going to need to check Stauf's to see if they have it.

Free presentation software...

I've talked about Google Docs before and they've done something new and cool. They now have presentation software. I've fiddled around with it a little and one cool feature I've noticed is if you have Google Talk, you can show other people your presentation on-line.

Also, click my ads. I want an iPhone.

Cheap(ish) textbooks...

If your college bookstore is Barnes and Noble, (like mine is,) and you live near a Giant Eagle, you're in luck.

Go to Giant Eagle and buy about $250 in gift cards, (or about whatever you expect your books to cost,) and wait a day. (The gift cards activate at midnight.)

Then, go to the Barnes and Noble and buy your books with the gift cards. If you're really savvy, you'll have a Barnes and Noble Member card, ($25, gets you 10% off everything in the store, plus more on certain items; it pays for itself with $250 purchased.)

From Giant Eagle, you've earned cheaper gas through Fuel Perks and you've saved money you'd have spent anyway at Barnes and Noble.

Google Groups again...

If you're looking for any of my Google groups, here they are.

NURS 611
NURS 703
HUMN NTR 310

I wrote a little bit about this back here.

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Now playing: apple-iphone-welcome_848x480
via FoxyTunes If you're looking for any of my Google groups, here they are.

Coffee...

Really quick money-saving tip: Don't buy Starbucks every morning. You're a poor student and can't afford it. If you've got to have coffee, (and you do,) buy coffee by the pound and brew it yourself. If you want to be cool, and still look like you're getting Starbucks, get a Starbucks Thermos.

If you need flavored or syrupy coffee, you can buy syrups or pre-flavored coffee. (Hint: Pumpkin is only available once a year, (around now,) so stock up.)

Also, do you know how baking soda absorbs odors in your fridge? Coffee does a better job than baking soda so don't store it there to keep it fresh. Just keep it someplace cool and dry or you'll end up with leftover-flavored coffee.

Finally, (and this is a personal preference,) make your coffee about twice as strong as the directions tell you. Coffee is supposed to be strong. Everyone else in the world makes it that way. Somewhere we Americans goofed up and we confused bigger with stronger.

A good coffee maker costs about $25 and you can buy a grinder, (sure to annoy your spouse/roommate/significant other,) for under $20. If you buy a pod coffee maker, you're spending too much money.

Cheap MS Office

PC users, this is for you. MS Office for $59.95.

The Ultimate Steal
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Now playing: Beatbox Giant Productions, LLC - Ask A Ninja, Question 52 "Ninja Baby Sitters"
via FoxyTunes

Rate my Professors

When I did my undergrad, this web site was just becoming popular and it's a great thing to check out.

Most, (probably every,) university does student surverys of their professors and usually this information goes into deciding pay raises, how many classes any one professor actually teaches and possibly tenure.

However, sometimes a professor will get tenure, then give up. Also, not every university really pays attention to the surveys. (If a professor is really famous, they don't care what you think. Imagine the prestige of having George H.W. Bush teach political science at your university even though he hits students.)

Anyway, before you schedule next quarter, check out Rate My Professors.
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Now playing: Watershed - Can't Be Myself
via FoxyTunes

Paper Writing 102

A cheap and handy way to improve a lot of papers is to add a quote from a classical. Not every paper will benefit from this, (e.g., if you're in med school, most research papers won't.) However, if you're taking a history class or any kind of literature, it really helps add perspective if you can quote something a little outside the realm of your immediate area.
So, here are some good sources for quotes:

Brainy Quote

Cool Quotes

The Quotations Page

The Quote Garden

Quoteland

Wisdom Quotes


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Now playing: Ojos de Brujo - Sultanas de Merkaillo
via FoxyTunes

How to be successful...

I found another student blog that gives great advice. So, blatantly stolen, here is The Ultimate Guide to Being Successful in College from The Students' Blog.

Also, you might want to just check out that web site as they've got tons of awesomeness.
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Now playing: The Proclaimers - I'm On My Way
via FoxyTunes

Cure for the common cold...

I was sick a few days ago, (well, about a week now,) and this would have been very useful then.

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Now playing: Nina Simone - I Get Along Without You Very Well (Except Sometimes)
via FoxyTunes

Firefox, Campus Edition

Do you use Firefox? You should. There are a bunch of reasons why it's probably a better browser than you're using and if you want, you can read them here. (If you're too lazy to click the link, I like it because of all the customization you can do with it.)

Anyway, for all your back to school needs, here's a link to Firefox Campus Edition.

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Now playing: Nina Simone - I Get Along Without You Very Well (Except Sometimes)
via FoxyTunes

Note Taking 105

I've mentioned a few different web sites that do collaborative notes, but I just found one more. Lifehacker featured a site called NoteSake that does collaborative notes and does it in a simple way. I might get into this.

Site layout

Sorry, this isn't student or class related, but I put a news ticker on the side. It's going to have whatever I read that I think is worth sharing in there. Please vote in the poll and tell me what you think of it. I'm currently thinking of keeping it, but moving it down on the right.

If you have any specific answers, (that aren't one of the voting options,) just post a comment.

Research 101

This is a blatant ripoff of Dumb Little Man, but here are some great on-line resources for general information. I'm not sure if I'd use any of them as a source, but they're great places to start. Also, if you're looking to review a subject before a class, (so you'll have more background for said class,) it's good too.

236 Open Courseware Collections, Podcast & Videos

Study Less -> Learn More

Zen Habits has a thing on how to Learn More and Study Less. This is my fifth post in about three hours so I think I'm done writing for a bit.

Procrastination is good!

I spent a lot of undergrad time not studying. It wasn't that I was doing something else, (which I usually was,) but I was doing my best to not study. I also spent a lot of time not writing papers and not doing homework.

What's the difference? Well, for me, I was thinking about what I was supposed to be doing when I wasn't doing it. Modern sociologists have come to refer to this practice as, "procrastination."

One thing I learned to do was to procrastinate on whatever I was doing by doing other school-related work. (i.e., study for a different class.) I'm not sure if my brain was particularly gullible, but this seemed to work really well for me. Now my most effective method of fighting procrastination is realizing if I don't do well, I'll be living in a van down by the river.

Here's Life Clever's ideas on How to Procrastinate More Productively.

Focus...

I'm not sure why, but I'm going to share a quote from G.I. Joe: The Movie. "The keenest eye is that which looks inward."

Amazing segue.

If you're like me, you probably have a lot of fun stuff around your house. (My apartment contains a 37" TV and an X-Box 360 and surround sound. Actually, that's really all my apartment contains. (Just so you can still think of me as a cheap student, I got 25% off the TV and the surround sound.) I've also got tons of books and a cat. My point is there are quite a few distractions at my place.

That's why I'm not writing this from home. I've got a coffee shop within easy walking distance of my place so I come here and get stuff done. (Most of my reading last quarter happened here.) That said, not everyone can study in the same conditions. I need stuff going on around me to block out. (Yes, I just said I need distractions so I can work without distractions. I know that's weird.) For some people, libraries are good for them.

Here's some stuff I'm going to plagiarize from Dumb Little Man on How to Focus Your Mind on the Project.

Punctuality...

As a student, you're going to attend numerous meeting for study groups, class projects and whatever clubs you're going to be in. (It is hoped you'll go to class too.) Anyway, for the most part, punctuality is important. The biggest reason for this is everyone hates the late person. (They usually won't tell you this, but they do.)

Anyway, here are six more reasons why it makes sense to arrive early plagiarized from Life Hack.

Also, it doesn't matter how you do it, (I just realized this article doesn't really fit into any of my predefined categories,) because nobody cares why you're late, they just don't want you to do it.

I guess I'll plug Google Calendar and its great SMS reminder function.

Freshman 15 - 101

When I left high school, I weighed 176 lbs. (I had no muscle whatsoever.) During college, I started eating like a student, (drinking like a student,) and working out. My gut never really grew, (nor did it shrink,) but I went up to 196 lbs as my college high. When I graduated, I started working out a lot more, (with a better schedule, (i.e., a variety of machines on differing days,)) I went down to 190. I sort of gave that up and got a job that's physically exacting and I got up to 114. (More muscle, more fat.) I said whoah to myself and decided I need to eat better. Last I checked, I was down to 199. My goal is 180 by December. I don't really have time to work out, but I do eat much better. Also, I've been doing yoga when I can. I own a DVD I was given as a gift a few years ago, but usually I just watch a podcast on my laptop.

That paragraph was getting way too long.

Here are some blatantly-stolent tips from Zen Habits about losing weight.

An extra tip from me, chew a lot more. Our speech therapists at work say to chew each bite 20 times. You can probably do better. I don't count, but I do pay attention to what's in my mouth before I swallow.

Also, here's Yoga Today, (the podcast I do yoga to.)

Nursing!

College and Finance has a thing on nursing majors. I think that's neat because that's what I'm doing. Also, it's a good idea to have an open mind about what you're going to learn when you get to college.

Self defense 101

College isn't usually a violent place, but stuff happens. My freshman year, a guy I knew got thrown in a trunk and dropped off a few miles outside of Athens. (I'm not really sure of the specifics of the story, but he was walking home drunk from a party when it happened. Also, I'm pretty sure instances of this specific kind of crime are rare.) Also, statistically, sexual assault is at its highest on college campuses. (Most universities won't publish statistics on this, but something like one in five women is the victim of some kind of sexual assault in their lifetime.)

I knew my college had free seminars on sexual assault prevention. Also, most colleges have clubs based around different martial arts. (I took Shotokan Karate.) So, here is a link to Tim Ferriss's blog with a story on How to Survive a Physical Attack.

Also, Ohio U has a pretty good page on sexual assault prevention. Ohio State has one too, but it's organized like every other web page on OSU's site. (i.e., lots of links, little direct information.)

Foreign language 102

Pick the Brain has a post on ways to learn a foreign language, (none of them involve partying so I'm not sure of their use to students,) but here are their thoughts on it.

Note Taking 104

Here's another quick tip about taking class notes and an article written by someone much smarter than me. (Probably better paid too.)

My tip: Buy one of those Moleskine notebooks, but a big one. (Their big ones aren't huge, but they're large enough for class notes.) It'll lend a sense of gravity to what you're doing. (The notebooks are expensive so it's not really for the cheap student.)

Lifehack's tip: Click here.

Waking up early 104

When I was in undergrad I used to give a friend of mine a lot of crap because she took naps every day. (My argument was, you're young, you don't need that much sleep and I like to argue with you.) Anyway, it turns out I've been micronapping for years. This isn't exactly about waking up early, but it is useful to students of all ages.

So, stolen from Lifehacker, here's a guide to power napping, and how to take a caffeine nap. Stolen from Men's Journal, here's another thing about napping.