Office Hours with a Tutor who scored over 40 on the exam

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Hello Everyone!

My name is Bryan, and I'm an MCAT tutor with over a decade of experience and top scores on the MCAT itself (Proof).

I've worked with students in both a classroom setting and through individual tutoring. I've worked for MCAT companies both big and small and seen what works and what doesn't when it comes to MCAT prep. At the moment, I'm the Academic Director with Next Step Test Prep, although I also still love working with my own tutoring students.

The big thing I always like to remind my students is that despite what you may hear from your friends, prep companies, etc. there's no such thing as one "right" way to prep for the MCAT. It's a fundamental tenet in education that every student learns differently, and the MCAT is no different. So if you're having trouble and finding yourself getting frustrated with the approach you're taking (because you're following the advice of a teacher/friend/professor), then the problem isn't you - it's the method you're using. Try something new and keep plugging away. Eventually you'll get there!

So about this "office hours" thread - I'll try to get logged in for a half hour to hour every morning and answer your questions about specific problems, general strategies, med admissions, etc.

- Bryan

PS Mods, if I'm violating any TOS or general guidelines, then I apologize and I'm happy to change the post to bring it into line with SDN's rules of engagement.

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[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Not every MCAT discrete question involves a ton of steps or reading past tricky "extraneous" stuff. A handful of them are pretty straightforward, so let's have one of those:

Item 6

What is the azimuthal quantum number (l) for the orbital to which a fluorine atom gains an electron to form an F- ion?

A) 0
B) 1
C) 2
D) 3

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Not every MCAT discrete question involves a ton of steps or reading past tricky "extraneous" stuff. A handful of them are pretty straightforward, so let's have one of those:
Item 6

What is the azimuthal quantum number (l) for the orbital to which a fluorine atom gains an electron to form an F- ion?

A) 0
B) 1
C) 2
D) 3

This is a question that just tests fundamental periodic table comprehension. Fluorine is in the p block, which means its outermost electrons are in the L=1 orbital. When it gains an electron it picks up another p-block electron, thus (B) is the right answer.

Remember that s=0, p=1, d=2, f=3

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Item 7

The fundamental wavelength of a standing wave in a 1 meter long pipe, if the pipe has one open end and one closed end is:

a) 4m

b) 1m

c) 2m

d) 4/3m

 

[phattestlewt]

Hey MCAT Guru,

Got a quick question.
Im scheduled to take the exam Jan 23rd, so that gives me a little over a month left to study.
I've finished all the content to the best of my ability (tho that's not to say that I know all the content)
I've used TBR for PS, some bio, EK for some bio, and EK and TPR for verbal.
I'm hitting TBR tests now and plan on doing AAMCs soon.

Questions.
I feel like I'm wasting time right now because I'm done with all the content and just doing problems. It feels like I'm in a limbo where I don't feel like "I'm learning," anything because I'm just focusing on my weakness (as I find out through practice tests), doing practices tests, and crunching out problems from the last third of TBR. How can I best make use of my time and see the greatest score improvement?

2. I would like to take as many tests as I can between now and my test day. WOuld you recommend taking 2 tests a week and switching to 3 tests a week closer I get to test day, or do 3 tests a week now and switch 2 tests a week by the time I get closer to test day?

Thanks, I appreciate your help on this sub-forum!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

I feel like I'm wasting time right now because I'm . . . just doing problems . . . I don't feel like "I'm learning," WOuld you recommend taking 2 tests a week and switching to 3 tests a week

The key here is to create what I call a "Lessons Learned Journal" where you're keeping track of what you're actually learning on each passage that you do. I discuss it more in-depth on my "100 Days to MCAT Success" post here: here

Next, I think you should limit yourself to two full tests a week and use the other time to do timed section practice. I usually even try to say to stick to one a week. So two can be helpful but certainly don't go to three. What would be accomplished by taking a full MCAT every other day? All you would do is invite burnout and you wouldn't actually be learning anything.

The idea is this: after taking a full MCAT, you should be able to develop a list of something like 50 "Lessons Learned" *minimum* from that test (two lessons that each passage taught you, plus a few more for discretes). If you can't actually articulate what you learned by taking a test then you haven't reviewed it thoroughly enough. And if you can't articulate what you're learning from taking tests, what would the point be in taking more?

It sounds like you're in a really great place, and I applaud you for it. Having finished your content review a full month before the MCAT is great work and it sounds like you'll be in great shape for Test Day. Good luck!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

A composite score on AAMC 3 will reflect a lot more than critical thinking. One could easily score very, very low simply by being long out of the prereq's or having forgotten the content, and that could have little to do with their critical thinking ability.

I know this post is from more than a month ago but I was just reviewing the thread seeing if I needed to change any of my posts and I noticed I hadn't yet replied to this.

I both agree and disagree.

You're absolutely right that one's overall MCAT score reflects a composite of lots of different factors (luck, knowledge, critical reading, luck, time management, luck, anxiety management, good test conditions, luck, etc).

But I'm going to disagree that simply being away from the material for a long time would cause someone with strong test-taking ability and solid critical reading skills to score "very, very low". I know that anecdotes are not data, but as an example I was just speaking to a potential client last week who was a woman in her 50's, a working attorney, who had not seen the science content in *decades*. And yet she still got a mid-20's score on her AAMC3 just by virtue of exemplary critical reading skills.

Nonetheless, you're fundamentally right that AAMC3 itself is not a perfect assessment. That's why the second step I outlined in that post was "review the AAMC science outlines" and to build your plan on the basis of *both* your AAMC3 score and your review of the science outline.

We certainly could build up a really granular, tightly focused decision-making matrix that accounts for AAMC3 scores, self-reported confidence levels for each bullet point in the science outline, score goals, outside time commitments, etc etc. I don't know that I've seen that sort of assessment from any prep company but if one were out there I'd love to play around with it to see if it was worth recommending to folks.

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Item 7

The fundamental wavelength of a standing wave in a 1 meter long pipe, if the pipe has one open end and one closed end is:

a) 4m

b) 1m

c) 2m

d) 4/3m

If the length of the pipe is 1m, then the fundamental wave is 4m long.

Explanation

 

[1TB4RKSB4CK]

Item 7

The fundamental wavelength of a standing wave in a 1 meter long pipe, if the pipe has one open end and one closed end is:

a) 4m

b) 1m

c) 2m

d) 4/3m

A

EDIT: oh wait you already posted the answer lol

Keep the questions flowing, these are good lol

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Okay so let's shift from discrete questions to verbal. Here's a full verbal passage:

Passage III


The video game is an art form with infinite malleability. The game creator can communicate any artistic message and achieve – or at least try to achieve – any aim. While the images presented on most screens we interact with are intended for passive consumption, video games transform them into objects to be interacted with. By means of the video game, what is originally intended as a love story can turn into sociopathic rampage or a rambling environmental exploration. The modern video game presupposes two things: that violent conflict is the primary source of human drama, and that all game behavior must be tied to progression.


When processed into the virtual environment of a video game, any aspect of life can be constructed into a progressive system. The “life simulation” genre of games, most notably The Sims, allows players to quantize their progression in the most mundane of life activities through a numerical representation of happiness. At the other end of the scale, hyper-violent games such as Bulletstorm or Hitman allow the player to progress through the quantity and quality of murders they carry out. This system creates an entirely functionalist worldview: a love interest matters not because of the emotions and relationship possibilities they represent, but rather for the number of “experience points” a character will gain through interactions with the character. Video games also include an environmental richness that would rival a world-class art museum. They are often filled with landscapes rendered with a beauty and precision not met by even the greatest oil-on-canvas masters.


The functionalist and artistic components of video games create complementary, but far more often, contradictory responses in the player. This disparity is an unavoidable conflict present in any medium created by artists whose societies separate the subjective perception of aesthetic beauty from the utilitarian design of the marketplace. Video games, by their nature, bring out this conflict more sharply than any other medium. While movie makers can use their artistic choices to serve the mechanics of their storytelling, and novelists must weave the beauty of their language into the narrative, video games can (and routinely do) entirely separate the art from the function.


A marketplace whose primary actors are knowledge workers requires a population of people who have been conditioned to sit in front of the screen for hours at a time manipulating the images they see. A video game may require the player to use a certain key to unlock a door leading to treasure, but the fundamental act is a physical passivity and mental alertness that differs little from a worker creating a spreadsheet to “unlock a door” leading to their paycheck. These same workers often then leave the workplace, go home, and immediately sit back down in front of the video game screen. In this respect, video games are both the agent that conditions workers to be ready for a digital workplace and the recreation that lets the workers relax from the digital workplace. This constant screen-mediated life further deteriorates a person's physical well-being, as well as their ability to focus carefully and thoughtfully, that is, their ability to think deeply rather than quickly.


Eventually, this screen-mediated life comes to replace life itself. When friends meet, they often spend more time looking at their cellphone screens than each other. One television camera man recently remarked, “yeah the studio audience tends to look up at the screens mounted in the walls rather than at the actual people on stage.” The solution, to the extent that one is even possible, is to generate a mindfulness about our interactions, both passive and active, with the screens that surround us. Our mental ecology needs a robust helping of unplugged time during which we may think and live more slowly and thoughtfully, and our minds can purge some portion of the mental virus of superficial thinking and stimulus-response behavior created and reinforced by digital screens.

Item 13


The author's point in discussing the functionalist and artistic aspects of video games is to suggest that a solution to the problems created by games must:

A) involve time during which we may interact with people without constantly looking at the screens on our cellphones.

B) solve the divide in society between subjective perception of aesthetic beauty and the utilitarian demands of the workplace.

C) require us to spend more time reading on paper rather than on a screen.

D) cultivate an aesthetic appreciation that is divorced from a quantified sense of linear progression.


Item 14


The author's discussion of the artistic and functionalist components of video games assumes that:

A) the aesthetic aspects of a medium must complement its utilitarian value.

B) video games create a cognitive dissonance in the player by divorcing the two key aspects of the art's expression.

C) the society in which artists live affects the art they create.

D) violence as a problem-solving approach is incompatible with subjective appreciation of artistic beauty.


Item 15


The existence of which of the following would most weaken the author's view of video games?


A) A critically acclaimed, but relatively unpopular game in which conflicts may be resolved either nonviolently or violently

B) A video game based around movies or novels that represents how the artists working in those media were able to construct a narrative while still maintaining artistic beauty

C) A game that gets banned because part of playing the game requires the player to engage in real-world vandalism to earn experience points

D) A game in which the aesthetics of background elements in the game serve a central purpose in the game's narrative


Item 16


Which of the following statements by the author suggests most clearly that the author is critical of a screen-mediated life?


A) Violence is presupposed as the primary source of human drama.

B) Video games fail to combine art and function in a way that movies do.

C) Workers spend all day staring at a computer and then go home and play video games.

D) Our mental well being requires unplugged time.


Item 17


The author's solution as presented in the final paragraph would most likely involve implementing which of the following programs?


A) A media literacy course in high schools that teaches students how advertisers use manipulative stimulus-response behavior to control their audience.

B) Guided meditation practices in which an on-screen yogi instructs students on how to deepen their mental reserves.

C) Increasing the number of video games on the market that emphasize cooperative, non-violent and non-linear approaches to gameplay.

D) A family dinner each evening during which all family members turn off their cellphones so as to avoid interrupting the conversation.


Item 18


A recent study that showed a higher level of worker productivity in white-collar jobs among those workers who played a large amount of video games as adolescents would:


A) support the author's assertion about the relationship between video games and working life.

B) weaken the author's thesis about the use of linear progression in video games.

C) support the author's opinion that video games emphasize the utilitarian, functionalist aspects of art.

D) weaken the author's contention that video games are a part of a problem that is hurting our health.


Item 19


As described in the passage, the functional aspect of a video game could include:


I. a kitchen knife that the player may use as a weapon to attack other characters.

II. the paint job on a car the player may steal, which increases the value of car when the player sells it to a fence.

III. the customization options a player may exercise at the outset of a game to create a unique in-game avatar.


A) I only

B) I and III only

C) I and II only

D) I, II, and III

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

13A
14C
15D
16D
17D
18A
19C

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Let's ring in the new year with some more VR practice!

Passage III


The Navy has long had a particular focus on developing non-lethal antipersonnel weapons and a recent one, the electromagnetic personnel interdiction control (EPIC) system, has found a surprising use in medicine in the treatment of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). The report on the ability of EPIC to help treat the most severe cases of BPPV was classified as “restricted” because it was deemed to include too much information about US military capabilities (or rather, by inference, the limits of our abilities revealed by our need for such a system); only military doctors with security clearance were permitted to read the report. The unclassified version of the report released today is based solely on previously understood medical principles and contains no real groundbreaking ideas. Rather, the key importance of the unclassified report rests in its demonstration of the civilian medical benefits that accrue from military technology. As one military researcher put it, “in our effort to find ways to cause non-lethal harm to combatants, we often also uncover a way to cure that harm.”


As revealed by the report, the EPIC system uses a focused beam of radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic energy to disrupt the normal mechanical transduction process by which sound, position, and other sensory input are converted to messages by nerve cells and processed by the brain in order to produce complete disorientation, confusion and temporary incapacitation sufficient to temporarily and remotely render the target powerless to resist arrest. According to its developers, when the EPIC system is switched off, the removal of the RF energy will leave nerve cells and surrounding tissues with no damage and the second order effects of severe motion sickness and feeling of helplessness remain for a short time afterwards as the ear's systems slowly return to normal. In the course of developing the weapon, insiders reveal that military scientists made several important breakthroughs in their understanding of the mechanism by which the mechanical and positional information from the inner ear is converted into changing membrane potentials and thus electrical signals the brain can interpret. The unclassified report does not reveal what those breakthroughs were, but merely states what EPIC's effects are.


BPPV is the most common cause of the symptom of vertigo. Often misinterpreted as mere dizziness, vertigo can be a disabling symptom in which the patient feels a sense of rotation accompanied by dizziness, nausea, and commonly, vomiting. BPPV is caused when otoconia, collections of calcium crystals, become dislodged from their usual position in the utricle and migrate into one of the semicircular canals, the ear's system for sensing position. As the head changes orientation with respect to gravity, the otoconia become dislodged and move, creating abnormal endolymph displacement which results in the sensation of vertigo. Currently, there are several simple treatments that can cure most common cases of BPPV. The patient can undergo a series of carefully controlled repositionings of the head which can cause the otoconia to be moved out of the semicircular canals and back into the utricle. These manipulations are non-invasive and can be performed in under an hour in a doctor's office, using no high-tech equipment. Such treatment is effective in over 90% of cases.


In particularly severe cases, however, the usual treatment is often ineffective. At the moment, those patients who are disabled by their BPPV are faced with two equally unpleasant options: surgery or medication. The former carries all the risks that normally attend invasive neurosurgical procedures, and the latter entails powerful and unpleasant side-effects. It is in these cases that the EPIC system may offer a breakthrough. By pairing the RF signal emitter with a positional sensor worn on the patient's head, the EPIC system has been successfully adapted into a mechanism for disrupting the signals that cause vertigo before they ever reach the patient's brain. As yet, the system is not clinically viable. The positioning system requires a large, heavy computer to generate the processing power and speed necessary to let the system respond instantly to every minor movement of the patient's head.

Item 14


In the first paragraph, the author mentions “civilian” benefits in order to:


A) suggest that military research generates more positive outcomes than negative ones.

B) demonstrate that research often has benefits to unintended recipients.

C) emphasize the particular importance of military research in our nation's research funding scheme.

D) contrast the original purposes of military research with its subsequent uses.


Item 15


In another article discussing the EPIC system, a different author wrote, “if a civilian variant of the EPIC system gains FDA approval and passes human testing, BPPV sufferers may find relief in as little as 18 months.” Which of the following is the most likely reason that the passage does NOT include a statement like this sentence?


A) It is uncertain how long it will take to develop a portable version of the EPIC system.

B) Clinical decisions are not influenced by the timeline for FDA approval.

C) The author does not approve of the clinical use of therapies developed with military technology.

D) Since the treatment is non-invasive, its approval by the FDA is certain, making such a statement unnecessary.


Item 16


The EPIC system's medical use would likely be of particular interest to:


A) most BPPV sufferers.

B) Navy scientists interested in non-lethal weapons.

C) civilian surgeons who specialize in neurological disorders.

D) civilian doctors treating the most severe cases of BPPV.


Item 17


From the passage, it can be inferred that the movement of otoconia within the inner ear is primarily controlled by:


A) endolymph displacement.

B) gravity.

C) a doctor performing manipulations.

D) random chance.


Item 18


An assumption underlying the discussion of the report on EPIC is that:


A) the system by which the inner ear communicates with the brain is better understood with military science than the science available to civilians.

B) any radio frequency waves can interrupt nerve conduction signals.

C) the Navy is reluctant to engage in medical investigations that don't have an immediate connection to an operational weapon system.

D) the research involved with the development of the EPIC system will lead to an improvement in the treatment of BPPV.


Item 19


Based on the assertions made in the passages, which of the following could reasonably be concluded?


A) Scientists have successfully used targeted beams of electromagnetic energy to help alleviate disease symptoms that were otherwise difficult to treat.

B) Tissues, especially the sensitive tissues of the brain and surrounding the inner ear, may be damaged when exposed to excessively high levels of electromagnetic energy.

C) When computing technology becomes powerful enough and small enough to be worn on the head, those with hard-to-treat BPPV will have their symptoms alleviated.

D) Prolonged exposure to the beams generated by the EPIC system may generate lasting damage.

 

[FoundInStudy]

First off, I wanted to thank you for your MCAT advice. It has been really helpful in providing a conceptual understanding of what is necessary to do well on the MCAT and the test taking tips are also much appreciated.

I had a quick question. I've seen you mention several times how good the Kaplan's online syllabus is so I was wondering about the best way to use it was? I currently have a month planned where I'll finish content review + chapter relevant questions. The month after, I plan to do BR + TPRH SW passages for all chapters with biweekly Kaplan FLs. Then the last month before the exam, I plan to do the Self Assessments and AAMC FLs interspersed with Kaplan material to hone everything in. Does that plan make optimal use of the Kaplan materials? Also, I was wondering which materials I should be using late in the game.. topical or sectional or subject exams?

Thanks again for all the MCAT advice you've posted.

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Topical Tests, by far. They're one of the single finest resources Kaplan's ever developed. When I taught for Kaplan I used to tell my students to do all of them twice and do the hard ones three times.

They range from reasonably challenging to insanely hard, and each one serves as a little 30 minute Master Class in the topic being tested. I used to boast I could build an entire prep course out of nothing but AAMC materials, Kaplan Topicals, and Wikipedia.

Your plan definitely sounds like a good one.

Good luck!!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Whoops! Realized I forgot to post the answer key to that passage up there. Here ya go:

Passage 3: 14.D 15.A 16.D

17.B 18.A 19.A

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Hey everyone!

I was a guest on Ryan Gray's podcast over at medicalschoolhq.net and we had a discussion about re-taking the MCAT. You can check it out here.

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

I'm stuck!

One of the most frustrating things that well-prepped MCAT students face is the moment when they hit a score plateau. You work and work and WORK and just can't seem to break out of a particular score region.

When you're stuck in a plateau, there are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Be patient.
2. Stay positive.
3. Focus on process, not product.
4. Be very strict with yourself as you review.

1. Be patient

This is one of those things that's really easy to say and so very hard to do. But you've got to be patient with yourself. Recognize that everyone hits plateaus (plateaux? plateauodes? plateaua?) and the only way out is to keep pushing forward. Don't flail around trying all sorts of crazy things. Just keep to the study plan you've set, tweak a few things here or there, but as Dory reminds us: just keep swimming, just keep swimming

2. Stay positive

One of the worst things you can do to yourself is to get so frustrated with being stuck that you actually break out of the plateau by going down rather than up. Stay positive! Earlier in this thread I've got a whole post about keeping a positive attitude. Go back and re-read that and make sure you do a positive review at least once a week.

3. Focus on the process, not the product

Earlier in the thread I've discussed the value of keeping a Lessons Learned Journal. I also talk about it at length in my MCAT scheduling thread here. If you haven't started a Lessons Learned Journal yet, then you should do so. It lets you see a physical manifestation of all the stuff you've been learning.

So even if you're not at the score you quite want, or feel like you haven't been making progress, you can look back over your journal and realize, "hey I really have learned a ton of stuff. If I just keep at it, then this stuff will eventually come together and help me raise my score."

Another suggestion I'll make here: take a full MCAT but don't score it.

I know that sounds crazy, but people get so obsessed with their scores that they're entirely worrying about the product at the end rather than the process of learning to think like the MCAT. If you take a full test and don't score it, you'll force yourself to stay much more oriented towards the actual process. Who cares what you would've gotten on that practice exam!? Instead, look at how many lessons you can extract from the test to add to your Lessons Learned Journal.

4. Be very strict with yourself as you review.

Ultimately, this is the most common pitfall that leads to people getting stuck in a plateau. I can't tell you how many students I've had over the years who will tell me, "Oh yeah okay I reviewed AAMC #5 and I didn't have any questions from it. I understood it."

But then when I check them and say, "Okay so turn to Bio Sci passage 4. Explain that passage to me. Explain what it taught you about the MCAT," the student will just stare at me blankly and not be able to offer a thorough analysis or any real Lessons Learned.

Do not be easy on yourself while you review. Don't just casually flip through and go "oh okay I get it. Yeah I see that it's (A)." Instead, stop and force yourself to say OUT LOUD TO THE EMPTY ROOM why it's choice (A). Pretend you had to lecture a class and teach them why this question matters and why choice (A) is the right answer here.

It's that level of understanding that leads to real improvements and helps you break out of a plateau.

Don't study as if you were an MCAT student - study as if you were an MCAT teacher!

Good luck!!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Item 19

A holding tank at sea level (atmospheric pressure 1.01 x 10^5 Pa) containing water has a pressure of 2 x 10^5 Pa at 10m depth. What is the pressure in an equivalent holding tank containing mercury (specific gravity=13) at 1m depth in Denver, CO (atmospheric pressure 8.4 x 10^4 Pa)?


a) 2 x 10^5 Pa


b) 1 x 10^5 Pa


c) 1.4 x 10^6 Pa


d) 8.4 x 10^4 Pa

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Explanation for Item 19:

17. Solution


Formula for hydrostatic pressure in a fluid:

Ptot = P0 + ρgh


Here, we can simply plug in the values provided:


Ptot= (8.4 x 10^4) + (13,000kg/m^3 x 10m/s^2 x 1m) = 2.14 x 10^5 Pa


a) 2x10^5 Pa correct, matches our calculation


b)1x10^5 Pa, incorrect, this is the same pressure at sea level for 10m of water, ignores fluid change and atmospheric pressure change


c)1.4x10^6 Pa, incorrect, this answer fails to change the fluid depth to 1m for the mercury rather than the 10m depth used for water


d) 8.4x10^4 Pa, incorrect, this answer ignores the fluid contribution to pressure and only uses the atmospheric contribution

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Item 36


Which of the following statements most accurately describes the cell potential (E), change in Gibb’s free energy (ΔG), and equilibrium constant (K) for a nonspontaneous chemical reaction?

1. E < 0, ΔG > 0, K < 1
   
   
2. E < 0, ΔG < 0, K < 1
   
   
3. E > 0, ΔG < 0, K > 1
   
   
4. E > 0, ΔG > 0, K > 1

 

[1TB4RKSB4CK]

1

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

lol I was about to mock you for answering (1) for a test whose multiple-choice answers are listed (A) through (D) and then I realized that for some reason SDN's formatting changed my number bullets to arabic numerals rather than capital letters.

And yes, you're right, it's "1"

 

[Iatro]

this is EZ mode. Hard queztionz plas.

 

[Iatro]

P.S. you could make Denver pressure question brutal by forcing them to calculate new value of g!

Edit: Or change it to the moon. And have it be a closed container.

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

this is EZ mode. Hard queztionz plas.

Nothing says "future professional" like lolcat speak. Or maybe this qualifies as shibe speak?

wow
so ez mode

unchallenge mcat

want harder stuffs

wow

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Item 2002


How many electrons does tantalum (Ta) possess that have a quantum number l = 2?
A) 9
B) 23
C) 32
D) 73

 

[Iatro]

B. it has 23 electrons in d orbitals.

 

[brood910]

That question is really bad btw.
The answer to the question is maybe supposed to be 29, but you forgot the fact that one of the electrons from s orbital gets excited to d orbital to make it fully filled. So it is 30, not 29.

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

That question is really bad btw.
The answer to the question is maybe supposed to be 29, but you forgot the fact that one of the electrons from s orbital gets excited to d orbital to make it fully filled. So it is 30, not 29.

Thanks for the feedback! I'll let the writer know. For now, I'll change the element in the question to make it work.

l = 2 is the d subshell, as latro correctly noted, so the correct answer is (B), 23 electrons in d.

If you're curious, you can check out the electron configurations of the elements here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electron_configurations_of_the_elements_(data_page)

 

[brood910]

Thanks for the feedback! I'll let the writer know. For now, I'll change the element in the question to make it work.

l = 2 is the d subshell, as latro correctly noted, so the correct answer is (B), 23 electrons in d.

If you're curious, you can check out the electron configurations of the elements here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electron_configurations_of_the_elements_(data_page)

So you changed to tantalum from gold kk.

 

[4563728]

I had a question!

what is the freezing point of a saturated aqueous solution of lithium flouride with a Kb= -1.86 k/m?

Kaplan says the answer is -.186 but they didn't consider the van't hoff factor...can you explain?

Thanks!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

I had a question!

what is the freezing point of a saturated aqueous solution of lithium flouride with a Kb= -1.86 k/m?

Kaplan says the answer is -.186 but they didn't consider the van't hoff factor...can you explain?

Thanks!

Was there more info in the question? Certainly the MCAT wouldn't expect you to know the molar solubility or Ksp of LiF at 0ºC off the top of your head.

Wikipedia lets us know that the solubility of LiF is pretty low (looks to be something like 1000x less than NaCl, just to give you a sense of the scale).

 

[4563728]

Yes, they did tell us the solubility of LiF and it was extremely low, 0.3g/100mL. It makes sense now why they said the van't hoff equation was one since LiF wouldn't dissociate in water, the van't hoff factor would be 1, not 2, right?

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Yes, they did tell us the solubility of LiF and it was extremely low, 0.3g/100mL. It makes sense now why they said the van't hoff equation was one since LiF wouldn't dissociate in water, the van't hoff factor would be 1, not 2, right?

That'd certainly be my guess as to what they were getting at.

 

[txlonghorn2314]

Let's ring in the new year with some more VR practice!

Passage III


The Navy has long had a particular focus on developing non-lethal antipersonnel weapons and a recent one, the electromagnetic personnel interdiction control (EPIC) system, has found a surprising use in medicine in the treatment of benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). The report on the ability of EPIC to help treat the most severe cases of BPPV was classified as “restricted” because it was deemed to include too much information about US military capabilities (or rather, by inference, the limits of our abilities revealed by our need for such a system); only military doctors with security clearance were permitted to read the report. The unclassified version of the report released today is based solely on previously understood medical principles and contains no real groundbreaking ideas. Rather, the key importance of the unclassified report rests in its demonstration of the civilian medical benefits that accrue from military technology. As one military researcher put it, “in our effort to find ways to cause non-lethal harm to combatants, we often also uncover a way to cure that harm.”


As revealed by the report, the EPIC system uses a focused beam of radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic energy to disrupt the normal mechanical transduction process by which sound, position, and other sensory input are converted to messages by nerve cells and processed by the brain in order to produce complete disorientation, confusion and temporary incapacitation sufficient to temporarily and remotely render the target powerless to resist arrest. According to its developers, when the EPIC system is switched off, the removal of the RF energy will leave nerve cells and surrounding tissues with no damage and the second order effects of severe motion sickness and feeling of helplessness remain for a short time afterwards as the ear's systems slowly return to normal. In the course of developing the weapon, insiders reveal that military scientists made several important breakthroughs in their understanding of the mechanism by which the mechanical and positional information from the inner ear is converted into changing membrane potentials and thus electrical signals the brain can interpret. The unclassified report does not reveal what those breakthroughs were, but merely states what EPIC's effects are.


BPPV is the most common cause of the symptom of vertigo. Often misinterpreted as mere dizziness, vertigo can be a disabling symptom in which the patient feels a sense of rotation accompanied by dizziness, nausea, and commonly, vomiting. BPPV is caused when otoconia, collections of calcium crystals, become dislodged from their usual position in the utricle and migrate into one of the semicircular canals, the ear's system for sensing position. As the head changes orientation with respect to gravity, the otoconia become dislodged and move, creating abnormal endolymph displacement which results in the sensation of vertigo. Currently, there are several simple treatments that can cure most common cases of BPPV. The patient can undergo a series of carefully controlled repositionings of the head which can cause the otoconia to be moved out of the semicircular canals and back into the utricle. These manipulations are non-invasive and can be performed in under an hour in a doctor's office, using no high-tech equipment. Such treatment is effective in over 90% of cases.


In particularly severe cases, however, the usual treatment is often ineffective. At the moment, those patients who are disabled by their BPPV are faced with two equally unpleasant options: surgery or medication. The former carries all the risks that normally attend invasive neurosurgical procedures, and the latter entails powerful and unpleasant side-effects. It is in these cases that the EPIC system may offer a breakthrough. By pairing the RF signal emitter with a positional sensor worn on the patient's head, the EPIC system has been successfully adapted into a mechanism for disrupting the signals that cause vertigo before they ever reach the patient's brain. As yet, the system is not clinically viable. The positioning system requires a large, heavy computer to generate the processing power and speed necessary to let the system respond instantly to every minor movement of the patient's head.

Item 14


In the first paragraph, the author mentions “civilian” benefits in order to:


A) suggest that military research generates more positive outcomes than negative ones.

B) demonstrate that research often has benefits to unintended recipients.

C) emphasize the particular importance of military research in our nation's research funding scheme.

D) contrast the original purposes of military research with its subsequent uses.


Item 15


In another article discussing the EPIC system, a different author wrote, “if a civilian variant of the EPIC system gains FDA approval and passes human testing, BPPV sufferers may find relief in as little as 18 months.” Which of the following is the most likely reason that the passage does NOT include a statement like this sentence?


A) It is uncertain how long it will take to develop a portable version of the EPIC system.

B) Clinical decisions are not influenced by the timeline for FDA approval.

C) The author does not approve of the clinical use of therapies developed with military technology.

D) Since the treatment is non-invasive, its approval by the FDA is certain, making such a statement unnecessary.


Item 16


The EPIC system's medical use would likely be of particular interest to:


A) most BPPV sufferers.

B) Navy scientists interested in non-lethal weapons.

C) civilian surgeons who specialize in neurological disorders.

D) civilian doctors treating the most severe cases of BPPV.


Item 17


From the passage, it can be inferred that the movement of otoconia within the inner ear is primarily controlled by:


A) endolymph displacement.

B) gravity.

C) a doctor performing manipulations.

D) random chance.


Item 18


An assumption underlying the discussion of the report on EPIC is that:


A) the system by which the inner ear communicates with the brain is better understood with military science than the science available to civilians.

B) any radio frequency waves can interrupt nerve conduction signals.

C) the Navy is reluctant to engage in medical investigations that don't have an immediate connection to an operational weapon system.

D) the research involved with the development of the EPIC system will lead to an improvement in the treatment of BPPV.


Item 19


Based on the assertions made in the passages, which of the following could reasonably be concluded?


A) Scientists have successfully used targeted beams of electromagnetic energy to help alleviate disease symptoms that were otherwise difficult to treat.

B) Tissues, especially the sensitive tissues of the brain and surrounding the inner ear, may be damaged when exposed to excessively high levels of electromagnetic energy.

C) When computing technology becomes powerful enough and small enough to be worn on the head, those with hard-to-treat BPPV will have their symptoms alleviated.

D) Prolonged exposure to the beams generated by the EPIC system may generate lasting damage.

I'm confused about item 16. I was very convinced it was A because

"At the moment, those patients who are disabled by their BPPV are faced with two equally unpleasant options......It is in these cases that the EPIC system may offer a breakthrough"

So I assumed most BPPV sufferers would opt for this breakthrough treatment. Is the reasoning behind choice D due to the phrase "..patients who are DISABLED by their BPPV.." ?

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

I'm confused about item 16. I was very convinced it was A because

"At the moment, those patients who are disabled by their BPPV are faced with two equally unpleasant options......It is in these cases that the EPIC system may offer a breakthrough"

So I assumed most BPPV sufferers would opt for this breakthrough treatment. Is the reasoning behind choice D due to the phrase "..patients who are DISABLED by their BPPV.." ?

Good question - got to watch the word "most" in choice (A). The passage asserts that a simple, non-invasive treatment works for 90% of BPPV sufferers (end of ¶3). So the majority of folks have no need for some big, expensive technology to solve their problem.

 

[sniderwes]

Hey Next Step Tutor,

What's your take on memorizing mechanisms for the orgo section? Knowing the mechanisms helps to understand simple reactions such as SN2/E2, but what about for longer reactions with multistep mechanisms? I believe aldol condensation is an example of one that's sort of length.

Thanks!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Hey Next Step Tutor,

What's your take on memorizing mechanisms for the orgo section? Knowing the mechanisms helps to understand simple reactions such as SN2/E2, but what about for longer reactions with multistep mechanisms? I believe aldol condensation is an example of one that's sort of length.

Thanks!

I've always felt like organic chem was sort of a strange beast compared to the other sciences, in that you get rewarded for knowing a very few things very VERY well and can have barely-passing-familiarity with most of the rest of it.

That's certainly my own approach to organic (I've written before about how terrible I am at organic, having failed it in undergrad [that's not a euphemism like "ohmygosh i got a B- I totally failed it" I mean I literally failed organic chem. My final exam was like a 31] and despite that I've gotten a BioSci 15 twice on the test.)

I'd suggest that the stuff you've gotta know at gospel-truth-recite-from-memory would be: nomenclature, isomers, Sn1, Sn2, lab techniques. The stuff that you should be strongly familiar with but not necessary recite from memory would be reactions for alcohols, carbonyls, and carboxylic acids and derivatives (so you should know aldol condensation well even if you couldn't draw out literally every step). After that, having a vague passing familiarity with everything else is fine for most students.

Good luck!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Hey everyone! Sorry I've been incommunicado for the past two weeks. We've been working on getting a book out for the new Psych/Soc Section of the new MCAT so I've been busting my butt on that. Now I've finally got some breathing space so I can get back to answering questions and offering my usual brand of puffed-up self-important sounding advice.

And we've also added a Next Step specific forum. So while I'll still be adding content to this thread (for those of you that like one stop shopping), I'll also be cross-posting stuff every morning over to our Next Step forum.

Thanks!

b.

 

[nebraski]

Next Step, first off I wanna say thanks for all of your work here! I had a couple questions for you... I am looking to take the MCAT either first or second week in June (14-15 weeks out as of this post). I bought the Kaplan books and EK Verbal reasoning passages from a friend. So far for studying I have reviewed the first 3 chapters of Gen chem and 2 chapters of Bio. I took a practice Kaplan test yesterday and scored a 32 (9PS/12VR/11BS). This was before I saw all of your posts of course about the AAMC test. I had a feeling PS would be where I would need most of the brushing up since I took physics and gen chem 3 and 4 semesters ago respectively and I have just taken biochem, genetics and am in Physiology right now. But I really do not want to have a false sense of confidence going into this. Confident not cocky right?

Anyways, would you suggest I take the AAMC #3 for another diagnostic and see where I line up? My goal is to score +35 on the real deal so I'm really looking for the best way to self-study as I don't get enough from most in class time to drop the 3k on the Kap course, I learn best simply reading on my own. How many hours per day does your system take?

Thanks again!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

I bought the Kaplan books and EK Verbal

Anyways, would you suggest I take the AAMC #3 for another diagnostic and see where I line up? My goal is to score +35 on the real deal so I'm really looking for the best way to self-study as I don't get enough from most in class time to drop the 3k on the Kap course, I learn best simply reading on my own

The KTP books are a fine choice. The key here is to really master them - don't just study them like you would a science textbook, but rather master the content as you would a musical score. Take a look at my study schedule here:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/breaking-down-the-mcat-100-days-to-mcat-success.1043255/

It's based on the EK books, but you can follow the basic pattern with the KTP books as well - keep coming back to each chapter a bit each day to allow that repetition to build up your mastery.

Also, you absolutely should take AAMC #3, simply because you should take all of the AAMC exams. I'd suggest taking AAMC #3 some time soon, then take the remaining tests on a once-a-week schedule for the seven weeks leading up to the exam.

Finally, you'll want to buy the AAMC self-assessment packages. They're the only other source of official practice passages, so you'll want to do all of them.

Good luck!

-Bryan

 

[nebraski]

The KTP books are a fine choice. The key here is to really master them - don't just study them like you would a science textbook, but rather master the content as you would a musical score. Take a look at my study schedule here:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/breaking-down-the-mcat-100-days-to-mcat-success.1043255/

It's based on the EK books, but you can follow the basic pattern with the KTP books as well - keep coming back to each chapter a bit each day to allow that repetition to build up your mastery.

Also, you absolutely should take AAMC #3, simply because you should take all of the AAMC exams. I'd suggest taking AAMC #3 some time soon, then take the remaining tests on a once-a-week schedule for the seven weeks leading up to the exam.

Finally, you'll want to buy the AAMC self-assessment packages. They're the only other source of official practice passages, so you'll want to do all of them.

Good luck!

-Bryan

Thanks for your reply! I have another question, when reading through your schedule, is a single lecture a single chapter or how many? Not sure if I am missing something as I read through. My Kaplan book has 16 chapters for Bios and you have 9 Bios lectures, so should I just do 2 chapters per lecture? Just wanting to make sure before proceeding. Appreciate your help!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

is a single lecture a single chapter or how many

Yeah for whatever reason EK calls them "lectures" instead of "chapters". As a very rough rule of thumb you could probably lump together two KTP chapters and that'd be about as long as an EK lecture.

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

I just don't have the time!

I had a call yesterday from a distraught student saying that she was sure she was going to "bomb the MCAT" because she was busy with a part-time class schedule and a part-time internship.

All of her friends were telling her, "you can't possibly do the MCAT unless you turn it into a full time job of at least 50 hours a week."

It's certainly true that more time is better, but we should also remember the much more important dictum: QUALITY OVER QUANTITY

I can't tell you how many hundreds of students I've seen over the years who have invested 30, 40, even 50 hours of week on MCAT prep but still not gotten anywhere. Simply put, they assumed that the quantity of time they were putting in would be enough.

The reality is that you can do very good MCAT prep on a part time schedule (something like 10-20 hrs/wk), as long as you're not wasting time.

And what's the single biggest time sink? Being passive!

If you constantly remind yourself "Active, not Passive!" you'll make much better use of your time.

Don't just sit there passively reading through your MCAT review books, telling yourself that you're learning.

The #1 way to turn your work into Active Time is to constantly be asking questions. Either doing questions from a book, asking yourself questions based on what you're doing, or thinking of questions to ask your tutor / study group.

The MCAT is a test of questions, so fill your brain with them! Asking and answering questions is the only way to succeed.

 

[Elayale]

Hello! Thanks for all your help here - it's really great!

I had a question regarding a rather not so difficult question but I just want to make sure I'm really understanding the underlying reasoning.

The questions asks: Which of the following will occur if the acidity of a saturated solution of Ca(OH)2 is increased?

The Answer is that Ksp will be unaffected and that more of it will dissolve.

I understand why more will dissolve (Le Chatelier's application). However, I'm not sure I truly understand why the Ksp (yes, I know it is a constant for a given ion product) is unaffected by other solutes in solution?

Much thanks!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Your question is open and generic enough that I think it's safe to leave it here, but keep in mind that folks on SDN get really touchy about the official AAMC tests and SAP's. They don't want questions posted from those exams in order to avoid "spoiling" them for fresh use.

Anyway, my response is in this thread: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/specific-science-questions.1053558/

 

[crazy person]

Hi Bryan !

Can you please help me out with these two questions that I'm having problems understanding the reasoning behind it. Thank you !


TBR PASSAGE II CHAPTER 2: QUESTION 9

It says three identical bugs (A, B, C) are standing on a turntable as it begins to spin. As the spinning increases, which of the bugs is most likely to slip first ( with respect to the turntable surface) ?
OK so the answer is bug C. It says that objects revolving further from a rotational axis move faster ( have a greater tangential speed) and have a larger centripetal acceleration than closer objects and this is why Bug C will fall first. But in TPR passage 4 pg 57 # 4, it says the following:
Suppose the platform rotates freely without friction so that angular momentum is conserved. If the woman moves in toward the center, what happens to the period of rotation of the platform?
The answer is : it decreases.
Now, TPR says if the women walks closer to the center, the platform will start to rotate faster.
So, I don't understand it because I thought if the women is closer to the center than it will rotate slower just like what TBR said in the other example. I'm confused.
So which one is it, does an object rotate faster when its closer to the center or when its further away? Do we always assume that when an object is closer to the center, the platform will move faster? but then it contradicts about the bugs question that the further away, the faster it will rotate ?
Thank you !!!

 

[Blueprint MCAT Tutor]

Interesting bunch of questions! I'm working on reply here: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/specific-science-questions.1053558/

 

[deleted407021]

Hey @Next Step Tutor , I just completed my fist NS half-length diagnostic exam! Would you be willing to help in analyzing my results? Thank you, sir!

 

[ElectricNoogie]

Hi J, feel free to PM me and we can talk about the big points to takeaway from ANY practice test.