The Official November 7, 2014 MCAT Thread

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M.D.orbust

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Hey all! I am signed up for this date. 8:00 a.m. Yikes!!! I am aiming hard to make 40+ my reality so hence me making this thread so early. A former lab- mate and current medical student had a ton of MCAT prep stuff she gave to me. So I have the Examcrackers set, Hyperlearning set, regular Princeton Review, audio osmosis, and practice MCAT tests from a variety of sources I also do the MCAT questions a day through email and on my phone (to help with super quick recall). I am officially studying legitimately now. Currently starting with Examcrackers. I'd love to hear from you all doing the same. Let's do this!!!

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I'm just re-reviewing the kidney again. It's high yield so I need to make sure I have it down straight.
Also want to review my Organic SA today.
 
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decided to take the night off and went out with my friends last night, came back home drunk and passed out in minutes :p Who's down to pull an all nighter with me tonight? We can go over passages together and explain our reasoning. Or we can do this as a whole group over skype or any means of communication.
 
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decided to take the night off and went out with my friends last night, came back home drunk and passed out in minutes :p Who's down to pull an all nighter with me tonight? We can go over passages together and explain our reasoning. Or we can do this as a whole group over skype or any means of communication.

I'll see how far I can get tonight :p I need encouragement.
 
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Im not really how down I'll feel if I score in the mid 20s on another FL with 3 weeks to go…
 
Orgo SA is the hardest SA by far.......it is killing me......it should be called 'what the bleep do you know SA'......
 
Orgo SA is the hardest SA by far.......it is killing me......it should be called 'what the bleep do you know SA'......

The end was brutal. I got so frustrated. Some of my "notes" were just very expletive rantings.

Im reviewing Passage XII right now..ugh. Didn't like that one.
 
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decided to take the night off and went out with my friends last night, came back home drunk and passed out in minutes :p Who's down to pull an all nighter with me tonight? We can go over passages together and explain our reasoning. Or we can do this as a whole group over skype or any means of communication.
Pulling an nighter tonight as well, let me know.
 
OMG. I seriously got basically every "what is this compounds enantiomer" type question wrong.
Ouch.
 
OMG. I seriously got basically every "what is this compounds enantiomer" type question wrong.
Ouch.
Gosh! I better double check my ans. Thought that was plain. I am in the middle of it. Will finish it tonite, I hope. I have saved 8 days of A/L so have been thinking what to do. 5 days will go for the 1'st week of Nov and then I can put in 3 for the week before. 1 S/L will make it 4. Is it better to do put in all together or take Thu, Fri off for every week. I dunno. Will have to figure something out.........
 
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Could anybody help me with the oxidation state of oxygen? It's suppose to be 2- normally, and 1- in peroxides but I'm having a hard time determining when a molecule is a peroxide or not. For example, in TBR, they used 2- X 4 for the oxidation state of oxygen in KMnO4. I thought peroxides just came in multiples of 2's (i.e O2, O4, O6, etc.)?

Or are peroxides more specifically O-O bonds and the only way to be sure would be to draw out the molecule maybe?
 
Im pretty sure the -1 oxidation state only applies in that scenario, where the oxygen is bonded to itself with the exception of O2, which is 0.
 
Could anybody help me with the oxidation state of oxygen? It's suppose to be 2- normally, and 1- in peroxides but I'm having a hard time determining when a molecule is a peroxide or not. For example, in TBR, they used 2- X 4 for the oxidation state of oxygen in KMnO4. I thought peroxides just came in multiples of 2's (i.e O2, O4, O6, etc.)?

Or are peroxides more specifically O-O bonds and the only way to be sure would be to draw out the molecule maybe?
In most compounds, Oxygen is -2. There are some exceptions. OF2 it is +2, BaO2 it is -1 (barium peroxide), H2O2 it is -1(hydrogen peroxide), O2F it is -1/2. So a few exceptions to remember. MnO4, Cr2O7, Cr2O3 etc., Oxygen is all -2. Those ions are reflective of multiple oxidation states of transition metals like Mn, Cr etc., not Oxygen. For MCAT I think if you remember this much, it should be ok......imo
 
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In most compounds, Oxygen is -2. There are some exceptions. OF2 it is +2, BaO2 it is -1 (barium peroxide), H2O2 it is -1(hydrogen peroxide), O2F it is -1/2. So a few exceptions to remember. MnO4, Cr2O7, Cr2O3 etc., Oxygen is all -2. Those ions are reflective of multiple oxidation states of transition metals like Mn, Cr etc., not Oxygen. For MCAT I think if you remember this much, it should be ok......imo
Thank you!!! :)
 
just came back from snack shopping for the all nighter lmao! :D oh and if anyone else would like to join in you can add me on skype: rockstarmd91 and I'll add you to the group
 
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just came back from snack shopping for the all nighter lmao! :D oh and if anyone else would like to join in you can add me on skype: rockstarmd91 and I'll add you to the group
Snack shopping for all of us? :) Probably cant do the all nighter but down to join the group later after I am done reviewing.

What time are you all starting?
 
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Snack shopping for all of us? :) Probably cant do the all nighter but down to join the group later after I am done reviewing.

What time are you all starting?

Well i just woke up from my post-margarita nap. So hopefully im good for a while lol
 
Would join if I could guys but I got plans with the lady and I have legs/work tomorrow (so just review when I can). Going to hop on that AAMC #8 grind on Tuesday. Spending Monday doing passages and reviewing all day. I got quite a bit of work in this morning, but by the time Saturday hits I feel so burned out.

To everyone who took their AAMC's and killed it, awesome job! Motivates me and I'm hoping I can improve on my next practice test :dead:
 
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I'm supposed to take a practice test today, but I'm ill! Yesterday was my break day, and the urge to just skip today is so strong, but I'll be behind if I do that... Decisions, decisions.
 
Anybody taken the "Official MCAT Assessments" before? I just realized I had access to these through my TPR class, but these assessment tests are from AAMC, not TPR.

About to give one a try.
 
Anybody taken the "Official MCAT Assessments" before? I just realized I had access to these through my TPR class, but these assessment tests are from AAMC, not TPR.

About to give one a try.
You mean the self assessments? Yeah I am in the process of completing them.
 
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Anybody taken the "Official MCAT Assessments" before? I just realized I had access to these through my TPR class, but these assessment tests are from AAMC, not TPR.

About to give one a try.

I like them, I'd recommend doing them. Even if they take forever
 
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Okay im glad Im not the only one who is TAKING FOREVER to do these SA I literrally am cutting out my FL days to complete all subjects :/


Do you guys also think its super good at refreshing all the material since content review?
 
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just took GS-5 PS. Got 11 for it. I hope we never get this calc heavy exam....its just ridiculous....
 
I did EK 101 test 5 for VR and got a 26/40. As I was reviewing it today I realized if I went a bit slow reading it the first time, maybe the scores will be better. So for EK test 6 I am going to try doing 6 paragraphs and totally guess on the last one. I just want to see if that works.......
 
I did EK 101 test 5 for VR and got a 26/40. As I was reviewing it today I realized if I went a bit slow reading it the first time, maybe the scores will be better. So for EK test 6 I am going to try doing 6 paragraphs and totally guess on the last one. I just want to see if that works.......

definitely wouldn't suggest that because more often than not, i find i can usually eliminate at least two answers for any given question. so right there you double your odds if you can do that.

with more practice you should be able to speed up your reading while still being able to get through all the passages on time.

guessing should always be reserved for when a question is taking longer than you can allow (which it should also be marked so that you can hopefully come back at the end if you have time and see if you can find a good answer) or if you are literally running out of time down to the last minute or so on the test and you HAVE TO. aka last resort
 
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definitely wouldn't suggest that because more often than not, i find i can usually eliminate at least two answers for any given question. so right there you double your odds if you can do that.

with more practice you should be able to speed up your reading while still being able to get through all the passages on time.

guessing should always be reserved for when a question is taking longer than you can allow (which it should also be marked so that you can hopefully come back at the end if you have time and see if you can find a good answer) or if you are literally running out of time down to the last minute or so on the test and you HAVE TO. aka last resort
What I am finding is that reading the passage a second time (obviously slowly because I am reviewing) gives me a better understanding, a different feel of the same passage which then allows me to pick the right ans with no doubts to the score -- so I wonder why wasn't it so obvious before. It could be hindsight or just that I am not paying close attention because it is a race against time.....but u are also right.......in that with more practice people generally get better focus and faster reading times.........
 
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definitely wouldn't suggest that because more often than not, i find i can usually eliminate at least two answers for any given question. so right there you double your odds if you can do that.

with more practice you should be able to speed up your reading while still being able to get through all the passages on time.

guessing should always be reserved for when a question is taking longer than you can allow (which it should also be marked so that you can hopefully come back at the end if you have time and see if you can find a good answer) or if you are literally running out of time down to the last minute or so on the test and you HAVE TO. aka last resort
I second this!!!
When I was taking the TPR course, one of the strategies that was being hammered into you was to "pick" by artificial selection 6 passages and 1 "killer" passage and then randomly guess on the killer passage with a letter of the day.

Probably one of the most irrational strategies I've seen. Why? Its dependent on so many assumptions such as 1) you are efficient in picking 6 "comfy" passages; 2) the passage AND the question are of the equivalent difficulty (i.e. you don't get an easy passage but hard questions), 3) you necessarily retain your accuracy on the 6 you choose; 4) I can go on and on.

I don't know but I feel as if this isn't a strategy but rather "cheating" your way in VR lol.... AAMC expects you to be able to read 7 passages for VR and that is what you should do. Just do what the "teacher" tells you to do and you'll be fine :)
 
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What I am finding is that reading the passage a second time (obviously slowly because I am reviewing) gives me a better understanding, a different feel of the same passage which then allows me to pick the right ans with no doubts to the score -- so I wonder why wasn't it so obvious before. It could be hindsight or just that I am not paying close attention because it is a race against time.....but u are also right.......in that with more practice people generally get better focus and faster reading times.........
This is why you should've started preparing for VR with TPR Hyperlearning workbook. The passages are really really dense so you learn to focus despite the unnerving feeling that you are not understanding each and everything - and you don't have to!!! You only have to understand as much as to get the question being asked correct. Forget the stuff you don't understand.

Believe me there are times when I wouldn't understand a particular claim or assertion in the passage but it doesn't hinder my ability to answer questions based on relevance.
 
I second this!!!
When I was taking the TPR course, one of the strategies that was being hammered into you was to "pick" by artificial selection 6 passages and 1 "killer" passage and then randomly guess on the killer passage with a letter of the day.

Probably one of the most irrational strategies I've seen. Why? Its dependent on so many assumptions such as 1) you are efficient in picking 6 "comfy" passages; 2) the passage AND the question are of the equivalent difficulty (i.e. you don't get an easy passage but hard questions), 3) you necessarily retain your accuracy on the 6 you choose; 4) I can go on and on.

I don't know but I feel as if this isn't a strategy but rather "cheating" your way in VR lol.... AAMC expects you to be able to read 7 passages for VR and that is what you should do. Just do what the "teacher" tells you to do and you'll be fine :)

agreed. i skim through the passages' first paragraphs usually in order to determine if i want to read them now or later. i have surprised myself by picking a passage for later based on the first paragraph and then coming back and realizing it is actually one that i woudl normally pick to read at the beginning.

so picking "hard" passages can be hard in and of itself
 
agreed. i skim through the passages' first paragraphs usually in order to determine if i want to read them now or later. i have surprised myself by picking a passage for later based on the first paragraph and then coming back and realizing it is actually one that i woudl normally pick to read at the beginning.

so picking "hard" passages can be hard in and of itself
I'm just not a fan of this strategy. It was probably the biggest impediment to my VR performance.
Out of curiosity, what sorts of subject matter do you feel is "difficult" for a passage?
 
i HATE humanities.

or if the intro paragraph is overly flowery (usually humanities.. like poetry, etc).


i don't mind social science passages (some that i can remember off the top of my head drug legalization, school education, etc). but the history passages i'm not entirely a fan of either, but they aren't terrible.


i just don't like the fine arts passages basically (literature, art, etc)
 
i HATE humanities.

or if the intro paragraph is overly flowery (usually humanities.. like poetry, etc).


i don't mind social science passages (some that i can remember off the top of my head drug legalization, school education, etc). but the history passages i'm not entirely a fan of either, but they aren't terrible.


i just don't like the fine arts passages basically (literature, art, etc)
Go to JSTOR or any other literary database and search for some scholarly journals in Anthropology, History, etc and read some articles.
Your attitude is everything for this test. And honestly, changing my own attitude has really benefited me in VR. I used to dread this section and would get overly anxious before even starting it, but now I see each passage as someone telling me a story. Also, I don't know about you, but the AAMC humanities passages are WAY more interesting and captivating than some of the dry stuff I have practiced through in TPR. I suppose that's a good thing lol? Unless you just loathe humanities-
 
oh i don't dread them necessarily, they are just more difficult for me so i save them for last.

overall, verbal isn't bad for me.
 
Does anyone know how to interpret the B.C. and A.D. historical timelines? I've gotten a question wrong in VR because I didn't understand this-

Is B.C. timeline like a negative number line where the greater the number, the smaller, or in this case, EARLIER the time period?
Thnx
 
Does anyone know how to interpret the B.C. and A.D. historical timelines? I've gotten a question wrong in VR because I didn't understand this-

Is B.C. timeline like a negative number line where the greater the number, the smaller, or in this case, EARLIER the time period?
Thnx
Think of year zero being the birth of Christ. therefore 1000 BC is like -1000 years. Or 1000 years Before Christ. Any year AD is just the normal year that we use. So in the BC timeline, the larger the number the more historic it is
 
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Think of year zero being the birth of Christ. therefore 1000 BC is like -1000 years. Or 1000 years Before Christ. Any year AD is just the normal year that we use. So in the BC timeline, the larger the number the more historic it is
ty
 
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I will probably never get an answer in mcat q&a lol. But for those that have TBR: Physics Chapter 5, #52 of exam.

It says "graph should 'curve more' in the direction of the L=axis, which in this case is the x-axis. Choice D curves with graph bending towards the x-axis"

However, it seems that choice C is the one bending towards the x-axis (which is what I chose with the same reasoning they used). Is this a typo or am I just interpreting the graph wrong?
 
I will probably never get an answer in mcat q&a lol. But for those that have TBR: Physics Chapter 5, #52 of exam.

It says "graph should 'curve more' in the direction of the L=axis, which in this case is the x-axis. Choice D curves with graph bending towards the x-axis"

However, it seems that choice C is the one bending towards the x-axis (which is what I chose with the same reasoning they used). Is this a typo or am I just interpreting the graph wrong?

choice D's graph appears as if it is leveling off horizontally which is parallel to the x-axis. (Remember this graph is part of a coordinate system in which horizontal lines represent the x -axis and vertical lines represent the y-axis). In choice C, the graph exponentially increases asymptotically and sharply steeps upwards parallel to the vertical y-axis.

I answered this question, however, by writing out the formula for period (T) for a pendulum: T = (1/2π)(rad(L/g)). From this you can see the relation between T and L is a square root --> exponential and not linear so eliminate choices A and B. Also as you increase L, the value for T increases just by a little much since its the square root of L (eliminating choice C since the value increases sharply).
 
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I will probably never get an answer in mcat q&a lol. But for those that have TBR: Physics Chapter 5, #52 of exam.

It says "graph should 'curve more' in the direction of the L=axis, which in this case is the x-axis. Choice D curves with graph bending towards the x-axis"

However, it seems that choice C is the one bending towards the x-axis (which is what I chose with the same reasoning they used). Is this a typo or am I just interpreting the graph wrong?
I would say the ans is D. And that is what my copy of TBR has. T = 2*pi*(L/g)^1/2. Just square both the sides, so now we have T^2 = 4*pisquare*(L/g). So if T = 1, L=1, if T=2, L=4 etc., so L varies more than T. So look at the ans choices. You will see that D fits the description. Whenever you have a squared relationship, the quantity which is not squared varies more than the one which is squared. So just remember that and check with the graphs. That is enough to spot the right ans......
 
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Bio question: http://puu.sh/ckec9.png

I am unsatisfied with AAMC reasoning for answer choice A as both A and B seem to be correct answers. Can someone enlighten me to what I'm missing in this question to fully eliminate choice A?
 
choice D's graph appears as if it is leveling off horizontally which is parallel to the x-axis. (Remember this graph is part of a coordinate system in which horizontal lines represent the x -axis and vertical lines represent the y-axis). In choice C, the graph exponentially increases asymptotically and sharply steeps upwards parallel to the vertical y-axis.

I answered this question, however, by writing out the formula for period (T) for a pendulum: T = (1/2π)(rad(L/g)). From this you can see the relation between T and L is a square root --> exponential and not linear so eliminate choices A and B. Also as you increase L, the value for T increases just by a little much since its the square root of L (eliminating choice C since the value increases sharply).
+1

Also, one of the golden rules in TBR is that "graphs tend to curve to the axis of greatest change" - this is literally the magic bullet I use to answer graph and variable related questions.
If you have trouble conceptualizing magnitude of variables, simply make numbers.
Here T = L^1/2 so if I increase L by a factor of 4, T only increases by a factor of 2. Thus, the variable changing greatest in magnitude is length, so the graph would curve down towards x-axis.
 
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@lazyindy I expected a joke somewhere in there haha :) But ooo I totally get their explanation now. I was thinking about the graph literally bending towards the x-axis but instead should think of it as the graph bending in the direction of the x-axis. Thank you clarifying that!

And @sps27, or anyone, is it safe to say that whenever we compare a graph involving one 'quantity squared' and one not, that the graph will bend towards the 'quantity squared' axis?
 
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