Should Cannabis be Legal?

--Original published at MentzersBlog

For the last couple years there has been a long debate if marijuana should be legal. For medical use it should definitely be legal because it has proven to have many uses in the field. It helps with glaucoma and to control people who have frequent seizures. The best medical use is that it stops cancer cells from growing which is a break through for this terrible illness. The most controversial part is the recreational side. I think cannabis should be legal because there is a substance legal right now that causes more deaths than marijuana has caused; alcohol. If a more dangerous substance is legal then I think weed should be to because it is a lot safer to consume. On the other side weed can be a gateway drug. This is the biggest reason for it to not be legal today because the government is afraid of other drug overdoes to rise because of cannabis. Overall the pros outweigh the cons of marijuana use and should be legal in the United States.

Spotlight Blog 1 Prompts

Regardless of which option you choose, make sure to use the tag “Spotlight” on your post. Also include the tag listed for the option you choose below. The spotlight post is due by the beginning of class on Monday, 10/9.

Option 1 – Use the tag “Development”

As divorce has become more and more common in the US, the number of children affected by divorce has increased greatly. The effects of divorce on children are controversial and there are a number of opinions out there on just what is “best” for kids. If you select this option, I want you to find two credible sources that argue divorce is inherently harmful to children and two credible sources that argue children can come through a divorce without serious consequences. Make sure to assess the arguments and supporting data presented in each source, explain what makes the source credible, and state which side of the issue you think is correct based on your reading. Make sure to list all sources at the end of your post.

Option 2 – Use the tag “Memory”

Now that we’ve discussed how memory works and you’ve had a chance to think about your own study skills, I want you to critically evaluate websites that give students advice about how to study. If you select this option, I want you to find three different websites that provide advice for studying: one targeted toward college students, one targeted toward middle or high school students, and one targeted toward parents. Evaluate the advice provided on each and compare it to what you know about how memory works (include sources), making sure to correct anything you think is bad advice. Be sure to include links to the websites you are evaluating.

I look forward to seeing what you write!

Header image: CC by Flickr user Thomas Hawk

Week 6 First Impression Prompts – Psychoactive Drugs

Hand writing on a notebook

The first impression posts for this prompt will be due by the beginning of class on Wednesday, 10/4. The refinement posts for this prompt will be due Tuesday, 10/10, at noon. Here are the two prompts for this week. Regardless of which prompt you choose, use the tag “Drugs.”

Option 1:

Recently, several states have legalized recreational use of marijuana and even more are considering it. This has lead to both celebration and condemnation depending on who you ask. Medicinal use of marijuana is still controversial as well. In your blog post, take a position on both medical and recreational use of marijuana. Should they be legal or not? Make sure to point out pros and cons to both arguments.

Option 2:

When it comes to treating addiction, two prominent approaches are the abstinence model and the harm reduction model. Most people are more familiar with the abstinence model, which seeks to completely eliminate all use of the problematic substance and prioritizes sobriety (an example would be 12-step programs like AA). The harm reduction model prioritizes things differently, in that the primary concern is preventing negative consequences of substance use (an example would be needle-swapping programs that provide clean needles for drug users to prevent the spread of diseases like HIV and Hepatitis). This is an over-simplification of the models, but you can find a little more background on each approach here. Which approach seems like the better idea to you? Explain which you would recommend if a loved one needed help with an addiction.

I look forward to seeing what you write!

Header image: CC by Flickr user Caitlinator

Impression post week 5

--Original published at Site Title

Throughout the years of me trying to study for an exam, the best ways that I learned to study is to make little songs that go along with what I am trying to learn. Or for an example, if I’m trying to learn like the parts of a cell for science, I might make a song about the different parts of it. So when it comes time to take the actual test I just sing that song when the question that I studied for appears. In addition I have never been someone too study throughout the week, or prepare for the test. I always procrastinate and wait till the last minute. This is one of the main reason why test taking is not one of my strengths in school. Also another way that I study is I make rhymes with the info that I’m learning. Doing this make it stick in ur head and so that you don’t forget the info when you wake up. In addition to this study method, I also review my notes 30 minutes before I go to bed. The reason that I do this is so that the information that I just studied can run through my brain when I’m asleep. And the day that I have a test, as soon as I wake, up I look at the notes and see how much I actually remembered and quiz my self. As you can see there are many different study methods, many that I did not mention. But everyone has their own special study habit that works best for them.

Study Habits & Me

--Original published at Kyle's Gen Psych Blog

Studying has never been a significant part of my life. Throughout school i have never had the need to study. I would review the required material before class occasionally and be able to remember almost exactly everything i needed. When i no longer required those concepts or memories i would dispose of them. Although this was not a smart way to do things it was my way of studying. Although if in the future i needed to recall that information i could easily relearn it for as long as i needed it, all i would require to effectively relearn is a simple study session.

Going into college i had to change up my study habits. Unfortunately. Now whenever i need to prepare for a test/exam my procedure tends to vary for each subject according to my relative ease of understanding the material. As an example for Language Studies (in my case japanese) i spread out about an hour a day to study over the course of a week.l As for other information based subjects i typically cram for 2 to 3 days before hand depending on what my schedule allows.

Admittedly my study methods are certainly not the best but they get me by as is. If i could get my habits in order i would much prefer to study all subject as i do with languages.

My memory is typically very good over a short term period for information i deem important, so for this exam i went through and took each of the practice exams roughly 10 times each to ensure i knew the concepts and material. Unluckily for me i completely disregarded who’s names matched to what achievements/theories so i was at a loss when i arrived at the matching section. Going forward this is absolutely something i will keep in mind.

For the second exam i plan to spread my studying over the course of a week and most likely write down what i feel is important to myself so that i remember those things better. My reasoning behind this is that i think i personally learn more efficiently through muscle memory, so by that logic if i write something down i will be able to remember it better. The proof that i have to back this up is that when i study Japanese i have to write a lot of the Hiragana and so far i have had near perfect scores on all tests and quizzes to date, despite missing a few classes. I am interested to learn how large a factor muscle memory can play into learning.

Week 5 First Impression Post- Memory

--Original published at alanaspsy105blog

For this weeks First Impression Post, I will be discussing option 1 which is about my study habits. My study habits are something that I have been trying to improve on since the beginning of freshmen year. In high school, I never really had to study to get good grade but when I got to college I realized this was not the case. So high school did not really prepare me for the amount of studying needed to get a good grade in college. I have been experimenting with different techniques, including notecards, to rewriting my notes, to rereading chapters from the book, etc. I have tried techniques that my friends all swear by, but everyone learns differently so what has worked for them may not benefit me as much. For the first exam I looked over my notes and rewrote them hoping that it would drill the content into my brain. I think when I was doing this I was stressed out think about my first big biology exam of the semester which was the same day as the psychology exam and I was not focusing enough on what I was trying to study at the moment. I started studying like three days before the exam so in the future on weeks that I have multiple exams, I am going to start studying a week in advance so maybe I will not get as stressed out. Learning how to study properly for yourself can be something hard to master, sometimes it just takes some time to figure out what method is best for you.

First Impression: Memory

--Original published at Site Title

Study habits have always been a sort of problem for me. In high school, I never had a problem with studying except for a few math tests. Every class would give us a study guide that outlined everything that was on the test. We would fill it out, review it in class and then the night before the test, I would look at it for an hour and go to bed. Once college came around all of that changed and I am still working on an effective way to study. My studying style varies depending on what class it is. For a math class, I will do problems from the textbook or on a review sheet. So far that strategy has worked well. I run into issues when studying for other classes like psychology or marketing. I usually read my notes from class and read the chapters of the textbook. That can be an issue because it probably is not the most efficient way to study. It’s time consuming and can be a real problem when I have multiple tests to prepare for. This got highlighted last week with the psychology test. To be honest, I barely studied. It was a week when I had 4 tests and a quiz and I did not manage my time well. I waited to study and when studying for some of the other tests took longer than I expected, I found myself with little time to study for psychology. Again, I just read my notes and read chapter 1 and 4. I don’t even think I retained much from studying anyway and I paid the price on the test. For the next test, things are going to have to change. I’m not going to wait until the last day to study. My plan is to review a chapter per day. That will let me read over everything in detail. On top of that. I may try to make flash cards for the important parts of each chapter or even look for a quizlet online. No matter what, I need to put more effort towards studying for the next test.

Week Five First Impression- Memory

--Original published at Site Title

I am on an ongoing search to find the right study habits that are the most efficient for me. There is an amplitude of different study habits, but only a few are efficient for each individual. A majority of my studying consists of reading the chapter and writing notes on it. Once the exam gets closer, I make flashcards of important terms and people that I think will be on the exam. For exam one I believe I did the right study habits, but I think I started studying too late. I got a lot of the concepts but not enough when it came to the test. Most of the free response questions I knew the concept and information but couldn’t remember some things that I studied previously. If I took more time to study I believe I would have done much better on the exam. I should start rewriting the notes right after class to grasp the concepts better, then I will already have a study guide for the exam. I should have made flashcards for major concepts after each lecture so that I am not doing it before the exam. Trying to learn all the concepts closer to the exam tends to be overwhelming, which might affect my trying to memorize the content. I need to study the concepts from lecture after each lecture to make sure I really understand the concepts. I really am interested in psychology and I don’t want to just memorize content to get an A on an exam. I would like to have study habits that will help me really grasp and memorize the concepts beyond the exam. I am very interested to learn different studying techniques that will help me memorize concepts better.

Option 1

--Original published at Site Title

My study habits are fairly successful in most instances. I generally reread notes and repeat them. In some cases, I rewrite notes in order to better remember them. I also study sections of the textbook which are covered on the test. I usually study for several hours throughout the week. These methods of study are effective and result in decent grades. The first psych exam was an exception to this.

I used the study methods mentioned above to prepare for the psych exam. They were not effective at all. I will need to study differently for the next exam. I will study for longer periods of time. I will rewrite key points. I did not do this for the first test. I will read the textbook multiple times to better understand the material. I will put more effort into studying theorists, as most of my incorrect answers on the exam occurred in the matching section. I will also read the How to Study guide on canvas. Hopefully, I will be more prepared for the next exam.

Memory & Study Habits

--Original published at Sarah's Insight

Memory and study habits go hand in hand at this stage of my life. My study habits are very strict and organized. I set aside specific times throughout my day for creating cheat sheets, notecards, reading materials, etc. I enjoy planning for study time which excites me and makes me want to study. I am a hands-on and visual learner, so I like to have set instructions and be doing something related in the process. Our in class activity of synaptic communication was a fantastic learning tool for me because it allowed me to become a part of what I was learning. Memory is a very important skill at this time in my life because there is so much I have to memorize in the occupational therapy major as well as in my other classes. My short term memory is very great, I can store information and retain it at ease for a test or exam, but because it is short term, it flies out of my brain and I never think of it again. My long term memory needs expanding. I have tried several different techniques for my long term memory but nothing has seemed to work. No matter how often I study, I never seem to be able to recall information easily, if at all. If anyone has any ideas as to how to expand your long term memory, leave it in the comments so I can try it out!