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JackShephard MD

JackShephard MD

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New medical education website rooted in an adaptive learning platform. Looks impressive, check it out.

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So: causes of ruddy appearance in polycythemia vera?

- FC says it's due to vessel congestion.
- Goljan says specifically that it isn't, but that it's due to the increased histamine release.

Thoughts?
 
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Bancrofti said:
So: causes of ruddy appearance in polycythemia vera?

- FC says it's due to vessel congestion.
- Goljan says specifically that it isn't, but that it's due to the increased histamine release.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

no question will make a distinction between them.
 
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kirbymiester said:
Dude, if you're getting above 70% right off the bat, you should be very content with that. Even if you've done Kaplan before it. Don't let people bring you down (even accidentally).

You absolutely have a shot at >80% by the end, even if the 72% was an overprediction. I'm talking consistent performance of 80+%, not necessarily that you'll average up to that, but if you keep up the 70+%'s, then a final average of >80% is very possible too.
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What was the average on that block?
 
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addy said:
What was the average on that block?
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For that block, 59%.

So far it's been a bittersweet experience. The sweet aspect being that I haven't found Uworld to be as difficult as some say so far. The bitter aspect of things... 2/3 of the things that I've gotten wrong are things that I haven't covered yet. Neuro, Psych, biochem/genetics, or topics covered in the last 3 weeks of my pharm course. Makes me want to postpone it until I've finished, but at this point I know that's dumb. It's a learning experience, not something to give an ego boost. I'll be taking the exam the second week of July so I need to get through it twice.

I was thinking about quitting listening to Goljan audios when I finished this round, but I've gotten a couple things right just from his voice popping into my head when i had to answer the question. i.e. I had a question related to thyroid dysfunction and the question asked what the best test would be. It's easy enough, but I didn't even have to think about it b/c Goljan spent a decent amount of time going over that.
 
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Hey guys, how do I retake a quiz? I'm new to Firecracker and can't figure it out. Also, I had trouble accessing FC today as well.
 
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As STEP 1 time approaches is anyone planning on continuing FC for STEP 2? Anyone out there currently using it for STEP 2 care to comment on how it has worked out during rotations?
 
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Bancrofti said:
For that block, 59%.

So far it's been a bittersweet experience. The sweet aspect being that I haven't found Uworld to be as difficult as some say so far. The bitter aspect of things... 2/3 of the things that I've gotten wrong are things that I haven't covered yet. Neuro, Psych, biochem/genetics, or topics covered in the last 3 weeks of my pharm course. Makes me want to postpone it until I've finished, but at this point I know that's dumb. It's a learning experience, not something to give an ego boost. I'll be taking the exam the second week of July so I need to get through it twice.

I was thinking about quitting listening to Goljan audios when I finished this round, but I've gotten a couple things right just from his voice popping into my head when i had to answer the question. i.e. I had a question related to thyroid dysfunction and the question asked what the best test would be. It's easy enough, but I didn't even have to think about it b/c Goljan spent a decent amount of time going over that.
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I'm sorry, I haven't been folowing SDN/the thread...what is the 59 in refernce to? I looked back at the quote stuff but I can't recall why I asked what you average was (or for what)
 
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addy said:
I'm sorry, I haven't been folowing SDN/the thread...what is the 59 in refernce to? I looked back at the quote stuff but I can't recall why I asked what you average was (or for what)
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It's cool. I'm not even positive if you were responding to me honestly, but you asked what the average score was on the Uworld block was that I spoke about.


Took my first NBME today. Did a bit higher than 230. Content with it. I still have major gaps in my knowledge, especially in Neuro, which the report showed, and biochem which I haven't reviewed in First Aid yet. Test isn't going to be until early July, so I'm hoping I can add 30 points to that by exam time. I think filling in the gaps should raise it ~15 and if I can learn to not make mistakes and have some endurance then greater improvement should be possible?

FC definitely helps though and I know the only reason I even remember so much is b/c of it. Makes me want to not have to cut it out of my studying and find some way to incorporate it during dedicated period... So hard to finish flagging topics at this point in the term for me.
 
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Bancrofti said:
It's cool. I'm not even positive if you were responding to me honestly, but you asked what the average score was on the Uworld block was that I spoke about.


Took my first NBME today. Did a bit higher than 230. Content with it. I still have major gaps in my knowledge, especially in Neuro, which the report showed, and biochem which I haven't reviewed in First Aid yet. Test isn't going to be until early July, so I'm hoping I can add 30 points to that by exam time. I think filling in the gaps should raise it ~15 and if I can learn to not make mistakes and have some endurance then greater improvement should be possible?

FC definitely helps though and I know the only reason I even remember so much is b/c of it. Makes me want to not have to cut it out of my studying and find some way to incorporate it during dedicated period... So hard to finish flagging topics at this point in the term for me.
Click to expand...


Are you a US MD student? That's impressive if you're doing all of that/that well before your dedicated time.
 
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addy said:
Are you a US MD student? That's impressive if you're doing all of that/that well before your dedicated time.
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Nope, carib student (though not sure what the relevancy is?). Honestly I don't think the score is impressive. I've read completely through the step experiences thread for 2012 and 2013 and for the score that I would like it isn't uncommon for people to hit over 240 on their first NBME. Really no one else down here is on that level though as far as I know. Most that have taken their first are <210 *from what I've heard. I think anyone that incorporates FC should expect a decent score in the end (and to begin with if you've completed a majority of the flagging).
 
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Bancrofti said:
Nope, carib student (though not sure what the relevancy is?). Honestly I don't think the score is impressive. I've read completely through the step experiences thread for 2012 and 2013 and for the score that I would like it isn't uncommon for people to hit over 240 on their first NBME. Really no one else down here is on that level though as far as I know. Most that have taken their first are <210 *from what I've heard. I think any one that incorporates FC should expect a decent score in the end (and to begin with if you've completed a majority of the flagging).
Click to expand...

That's super rare, actually. Just not on SDN. Keep that bar and chin up, though-- but don't get drawn into the SDN hysteria. You'll be fine, even if you don't get a 260.
 
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So I just noticed there is now a "Normal" mode and "Legendary" mode. So would Normal mode be considered like the previous lite mode? (just hitting the High Yield concepts?)... And comprehensive hits all the possible details?
 
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If I told you that I am thinking of a card (or question) that talks about how granulomatous tissue is different from granulation tissue would you be able to point me to that card?
 
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FirecrackerLover said:
That's precisely correct. Normal Mode is designed to focus on just the High Yield concepts and questions. All in all, Normal Mode includes roughly half of the total questions, in comparison to Legendary Mode.
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I think the question has been posed before, but not answered: If you were to have been using Firecracker in the now "Legendary" mode, then made the switch to the "normal" mode after some time. If you chose to go back to legendary mode again, what would happen to those topics/questions you had flagged the first time around, but were not part of normal mode?
 
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Bancrofti said:
I think the question has been posed before, but not answered: If you were to have been using Firecracker in the now "Legendary" mode, then made the switch to the "normal" mode after some time. If you chose to go back to legendary mode again, what would happen to those topics/questions you had flagged the first time around, but were not part of normal mode?
Click to expand...

Every topic you flagged goes on to become a star in the night sky.
 
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Bancrofti said:
I think the question has been posed before, but not answered: If you were to have been using Firecracker in the now "Legendary" mode, then made the switch to the "normal" mode after some time. If you chose to go back to legendary mode again, what would happen to those topics/questions you had flagged the first time around, but were not part of normal mode?
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I think they would come back and you would have a few thousand cards waiting for you!
 
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Lafakads said:
I think they would come back and you would have a few thousand cards waiting for you!
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I'd be assuming so actually :/ I was think the other possibility was that they would show up as unflagged when you go back, just wondering which of the two it probably is.
 
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Just wanted to give you guys an update. I took my first shelf for this year (Pharm) and have begun studying for the others. I have only gotten 55% of the way through FC but I still think it has helped a lot. A lot of the stuff I would normally have to cram/memorize from First Aid I already knew. So basically I have just been going through and getting the big picture for the stuff I have already flagged and actually studying the stuff I haven't flagged yet.

This past semester I was kind of doubting if FC was worth it as my grades were dropping (then I started to cut back on FC which is why I don't have a lot flagged) but I think it will prove useful. I will let you guys know what happens after Step 1.
 
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HLxDrummer said:
Just wanted to give you guys an update. I took my first shelf for this year (Pharm) and have begun studying for the others. I have only gotten 55% of the way through FC but I still think it has helped a lot. A lot of the stuff I would normally have to cram/memorize from First Aid I already knew. So basically I have just been going through and getting the big picture for the stuff I have already flagged and actually studying the stuff I haven't flagged yet.

This past semester I was kind of doubting if FC was worth it as my grades were dropping (then I started to cut back on FC which is why I don't have a lot flagged) but I think it will prove useful. I will let you guys know what happens after Step 1.
Click to expand...

Do you have any anatomy flagged?
 
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001100010010011 said:
Can you make a trial account with another e-mail?
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I'm sure I could. I considered doing this for things that weren't as important to me that I have left, i.e. the anatomy cards. I would just make an extremely quick pass through of all the cards, then flag them all. It would allow me to just make a concerted effort to not spend much time on them as I inevitably would attempting to remember it as if it was part of my regular review.
 
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LostinLift said:
Do you have any anatomy flagged?
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Last semester I was making a point to flag one anatomy topic/day so I would gradually add them in but I quit doing that this semester. Probably not worth flagging anatomy since it is low yield, but at the same time only doing one topic/day of anatomy doesn't take much time - it comes back quick doing it slow like that.
 
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I started flagging anatomy then quit pretty quickly. It's so detailed and dumb. Maybe I'll flag brachial plexus, but I've already unflagged every anatomy/embryo topic.
 
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dyspareunia said:
I started flagging anatomy then quit pretty quickly. It's so detailed and dumb. Maybe I'll flag brachial plexus, but I've already unflagged every anatomy/embryo topic.
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yea, super low yield, not worth it. I'd go so far as to say that 70% of Firecracker is low yield. After doing Uworld and going back to Pathoma this week, he literally talks about every goddamn question/concept that I got wrong in some manner or another, but the things that did stick were tested in exactly the way he outlined them in his lectures. In contrast, FC probably gave me 10-20 questions right on Uworld that I wouldn't have gotten otherwise and even then, after getting it wrong on Uworld, I would have remembered what's up.

There are just so many cards that are like "what are the 12 signs/sx of disease X" when you need like 3 to make a diagnosis and go from there. It's also badly organized. I tried doing the viruses on FC and just gave up because there's no organizeation to it. I spent a day on FA's section on viruses and now I know them cold because the table is actually organized properly. Now when I see a virus, I can just go to my mental picture of that table and easily ascertain it's characteristics (eg ssRNA, enveloped etc etc).
 
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notbobtrustme said:
yea, super low yield, not worth it. I'd go so far as to say that 70% of Firecracker is low yield. After doing Uworld and going back to Pathoma this week, he literally talks about every goddamn question/concept that I got wrong in some manner or another, but the things that did stick were tested in exactly the way he outlined them in his lectures. In contrast, FC probably gave me 10-20 questions right on Uworld that I wouldn't have gotten otherwise and even then, after getting it wrong on Uworld, I would have remembered what's up.

There are just so many cards that are like "what are the 12 signs/sx of disease X" when you need like 3 to make a diagnosis and go from there. It's also badly organized. I tried doing the viruses on FC and just gave up because there's no organizeation to it. I spent a day on FA's section on viruses and now I know them cold because the table is actually organized properly. Now when I see a virus, I can just go to my mental picture of that table and easily ascertain it's characteristics (eg ssRNA, enveloped etc etc).
Click to expand...

I definitely agree, FC's organization and way of presenting info can often be really poor. I try to never make myself learn new info from it. Instead, I just use it as a reminder to quickly think about a topic in order to retain it over a long period of time, when I otherwise would have forgotten it and had to relearn it later on.
 
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notbobtrustme said:
yea, super low yield, not worth it. I'd go so far as to say that 70% of Firecracker is low yield. After doing Uworld and going back to Pathoma this week, he literally talks about every goddamn question/concept that I got wrong in some manner or another, but the things that did stick were tested in exactly the way he outlined them in his lectures. In contrast, FC probably gave me 10-20 questions right on Uworld that I wouldn't have gotten otherwise and even then, after getting it wrong on Uworld, I would have remembered what's up.

There are just so many cards that are like "what are the 12 signs/sx of disease X" when you need like 3 to make a diagnosis and go from there. It's also badly organized. I tried doing the viruses on FC and just gave up because there's no organizeation to it. I spent a day on FA's section on viruses and now I know them cold because the table is actually organized properly. Now when I see a virus, I can just go to my mental picture of that table and easily ascertain it's characteristics (eg ssRNA, enveloped etc etc).
Click to expand...

I've found it extremely helpful for MS1 exams, but I'm likely dumping it and sticking with qbanks during MS2.

It's so much more convenient than paging through FA, but I don't want it to take time away from more proven resources next year.
 
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dyspareunia said:
I've found it extremely helpful for MS1 exams, but I'm likely dumping it and sticking with qbanks during MS2.

It's so much more convenient than paging through FA, but I don't want it to take time away from more proven resources next year.
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ya, if I had to do it over again, I probably would have used FC as an adjunct to Uworld, if at all. If you pay attention during M2, use Pathoma and do focused reviews, you can easily get all the benefits of FC without wasting hours memorizing lists of symptoms or lab findings or random facts.
 
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Took the school CBSSA today... I think I got them correct, but I definitely wished a few times that I had flagged the brachial plexus card. Been meaning to do that and I got 4 separate questions on it today. Haven't heard the term benediction hand in over a year :/
 
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Ya as I am going through FA and UWorld, FC is sticking better/making more sense. So if there is some way you can do classwork/skim FA/flag in FC you would be set in my mind. Even so the way I am doing it, it is helping a good bit.
 
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I'm doing UWorld with classes now...done 12% so far and I can honestly say there has only been 1-3 questions that I have done that I got right because of FC. I made anki cards out of pathoma which have been resulting FAR better yields. I feel borderline heartbroken and demoralized thinking about how many hours I've spent on FC and how little of a pay off it has been. Ugh. wish I could get my money back...
 
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As several of you guys have mentioned, FC has way too many details. I'm planning to change to the "lite" mode and place a bigger emphasis on knowing FA. FC has it's place in jogging memory on a daily basis though and provides a format that's different if you get tired of looking at FA. However, I tend to get overwhelmed with the level of detail. At least you know that everything in FA is high yield.
 
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I use FC more as an adjunct to pathoma and other resources. To me it's very helpful to hit some high yield points that aren't found in pathoma, and many times I'll make Anki cards out of information tid bits I find in FC. I have around 200 questions a day at 65 percent banked and 90 percent mastery. And I usually spend around an hour and a half or so on FC. I think if u don't focus on getting everything right in FC word for word then it's a very useful tool. My school is pure P/F though so I can afford to spend a little more time on board materials. It'll be interesting to see I I can keep up with FC while on the wards next year.
 
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aeas said:
What's the best way to use FC over the summer? Anybody written down a day-by-day study plan?
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why don't you just count how many subjects you've covered in M1 and how many days are in your summer and allocate accordingly...
 
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redblue said:
why don't you just count how many subjects you've covered in M1 and how many days are in your summer and allocate accordingly...
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+1. I ended up dividing my goal # of topics to get through by the # of days I wanted to finish them by, then checked off that #/day amount off on a calendar.
 
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hey guys---how important is embryology? is it worth flagging all those cards? It seems like anatomy to me at first glance (lots of unnecessary minutia) but I don't want to be presumptuous
 
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