Despite people in the sciences are supposed to be rational, changing one’s mind on a topic is just as difficult (if not more difficult) as in non-scientific settings. Often, I’ll watch some sort of academic debate where the debaters will talk for over an hour on a topic, yet they still won’t listen to each other in a way that accomplishes the goal.

As a science student, I’ve taken many tests over the years. The staple of a science class is the tests that are spread out over a semester, so they are to be expected. Consequently, I’ve answered many questions on tests, and so I have a fair idea about which questions are actually good questions to ask on tests, and which ones seem like there is no point.

In secondary mathematics, students are allowed to prepare their own memory aid for an exam. It must be handwritten and can only cover one piece of paper. Usually, this memory aid is used to write formulas or challenging examples of different concepts so that one isn’t lost when writing an exam.

As people who are working very hard to improve themselves in their passion, it’s tempting to get caught in a loop where we do everything that we should be doing for maximum performance. This is particularly prevalent for people who work on these pursuits as side passions, where the activity is important to them but does not constitute a living.