Therapy

I am Bipolar Disorder

That's right. I'm Bipoar Disorder.  I'm pretty famous; you've probably already heard of me.  I've effected some of the greatest minds in the history of the world:  Walt Whitman, Mark Twain, and Ernest Hemingway, among others.  Why am I important?  Well, not to brag or anything, but I cause unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, AND the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks.  I could cause you to go from unexpectedly happy to severely depressed.  So you better watch out.  What, you don't think I could effect you?  WRONG.

The median age for onset is around 25 years.  However, I can begin in childhood or very late adulthood also.  If you're wondering, I effect women and men equally.  More than 2 million American adults/about 1 percent of the population age 18 or older in any given year have me.  One of those 2 million could be you!

But I'm not the mean guy everyone thinks I am.  Besides, I don't effect people all the time.  I mean, people are stuck with me for life.  However, it's not like they have an attack every month.  Still, some people are able to lessen the frequency and severity of my attacks with treatment.  Whatever.  Killjoys.  If you really want to look out for me, then looks at the risk factors.  I do tend to run in families, and scientists are looking at the brain structure and functioning too.  Hopefully they aren't successfull.  Don't get rid of me!     

I'm Bored. So Enjoy These Cartoons.

Personality Test Results

These tests always interest me. :)

Your Type is

ISFP

Introverted Sensing Feeling Perceiving

Strength of the preferences % 

78       62       38       22

http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes3.asp

Extraversion Report

Score at a Glance

Percentile	1
Avg. Response	1.3

Your average score on extraversion was 1.3, which is considered low. It is in approximately the 1st percentile for females between 14 and 17 years old.
Your score on Extraversion is low, indicating you are introverted, reserved, and quiet. You enjoy solitude and solitary activities. Your socializing tends to be restricted to a few close friends.

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Agreeableness Report

Score at a Glance

Percentile	61
Avg. Response	4.8

Your average score on agreeableness was 4.8, which is considered average. It is in approximately the 61st percentile for females between 14 and 17 years old.
Your level of Agreeableness is average, indicating some concern with others' Needs, but, generally, unwillingness to sacrifice yourself for others.

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Conscientiousness Report

Score at a Glance

Percentile	18
Avg. Response	3

Your average score on conscientiousness was 3, which is considered low. It is in approximately the 18th percentile for females between 14 and 17 years old.
Your score on Conscientiousness is low, indicating you like to live for the moment and do what feels good now. Your work tends to be careless and disorganized.

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Emotional Stability Report

Score at a Glance

Percentile	32
Avg. Response	2.9

Your average score on emotional stability was 2.9, which is considered average. It is in approximately the 32nd percentile for females between 14 and 17 years old.
Your score on Emotional Stability is average, indicating that your level of emotional reactivity is typical of the general population. Stressful and frustrating situations are somewhat upsetting to you, but you are generally able to get over these feelings and cope with these situations.

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Openness Report

Score at a Glance

Percentile	27
Avg. Response	4

Your average score on openness was 4, which is considered low. It is in approximately the 27th percentile for females between 14 and 17 years old.
Your score on Openness to Experience is low, indicating you like to think in plain and simple terms. Others describe you as down-to-earth, practical, and conservative.

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http://test.personality-project.org/survey/yourscores.php?G=2&Y=17&A=4.8&O=4&E=1.3&S=2.9&C=3&M=0

Mai and her Candy Cane

http://www.zooburst.com/zb_books-viewer.php?book=zb0_4da6feb427831

The Genius of Sigmund Freud...and Some Cartoons :)

Quotes from the Man himself:

"America is a mistake, a giant mistake."

"America is the most grandiose experiment the world has seen, but, I am afraid, it is not going to be a success."

"If you can't do it, give up!"

"Sadism is all right in its place, but it should be directed to proper ends."

"Time spent with cats is never wasted."

"No one who has seen a baby sinking back satiated from the breast and falling asleep with flushed cheeks and a blissful smile can escape the reflection that this picture persists as a prototype of the expression of sexual satisfaction in later life."

Motivation

"Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."
Ralph Waldo Emerson

This whole section on motivation made a lot of sense to me.  With homework and things of that sort, where you are forced to do something, it seems to take FOREVER to do it.  But with work that I actually enjoy doing, it takes no time at all.  This really shows is the grades of the classes I enjoy.  In math classes I have always had lower scores than in english classes, which I enjoy taking, for example.  I can also see how the motivation of money can only go so far.  It might be fine for small things, but if we already have enough money to sustain ourselves we are not going to be motivated to do work we hate just for money.  Money does not bring us happiness!

"Rewards force us to consider our work in a limited way, even work that we might gain great satisfaction from doing without the promise of reward."

"Once a reasonable standard of living is achieved, rewards and punishment not only don’t motivate us to do more, better, or faster, they often demotivate us."

 Quotes from : http://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/the-science-of-motivation.html

Liar Liar...

It seems that every time I take one of these microexpressions tests, I get progressively worse.  I got 8 out of 10 the first time I took it, 7 out of 10 the second time, and 5 out of 10 the third time.  I had taken the test back when I started watching the show Lie to Me.  Though I only got through the first season, it was a pretty good show.  It was such a new and interesting concept for a show that it got me hooked for a while.  I feel like it would be a good social skill to have to be able to read expressions well.  You can work much easier with people if you know what they are feeling.  But it could also ruin personal relationships, as I've seen on the show.  Because of the main guy's ability to read expressions, he can always tell what his family is feeling.  While this can be good, it can also be invasive to someone's privacy and would really bother someone who is trying to hide their emotions.  Some people just want to think to themselves and don't want someone asking them what's wrong.  I'm pretty good at reading expression with those that I know well, but not so much with strangers. 

WOOT Algorithms!

YAY! No, really.  I like algorithms.  The logic puzzle ones anyway.  There is this great sense of accomplishment when you finish a logic puzzle.  You have to actually think things through (multiple times) in order to finish one.  AND THEY'RE FUN!  Heuristics are too fast sometimes; it's nice to be able to work through something step by step.

Also, I quite enjoy cartoons.  They help you learn AND make you laugh.  Double win.

Christmas Card Algorithm:

And a Batman cartoon is always worthwhile:



If only, if only:



Prototype Lesson

Your test scores were:
Auditory: 35%   Visual: 50%   Tactile: 15%

I learn by reading or seeing pictures!

For a lesson plan, I would like to use many visual tools to facilitate learning.  We would begin with a video.  Actually seeing things would help the visual learners like me to picture things when they are studying later.  The movie would provide a clear picture and make things easier to see and learn.  I know that when I watch a movie, I encode and remember the information better.

It would also be beneficial to utilitze either a prezi or a powerpoint.  More likely a prezi because of the easier flow of information.  Prezi's also keep the attention of students focused.  The different movements and styles of the Prezi will help keep the class engaged and learning.  Prezi's can also be very colorful and include pictures, videos, and music, which would be a goldmine for visual learners.

After that they could make posters to visually represent what they just learned.  Writing things down and drawing pictures will stimulate students' learning.  We did this a lot in our history classes and it helped to associate certain drawings or phrases with the things we were learning.  Also, if there were any experiments or things that could go with what we are learning, those would be very helpful.  Acting things out and making us think through things on our own is a good way to learn.

Being a visual learner means reading, looking at pictures, watching movies, using flashcards, and color coding things to help learn.  For this type of learner (like me!) it help to do these things: sit near the front of class, use flashcards, write down key words, relate things to Harry Potter, and avoid distractions.

I Can't Understand What You Are Saying

Let me start off by saying that Magnetoencephalography machine is one of the scariest things I have ever seen.  Poor babies.  It does indeed look like a "hair dryer from Mars."  Anyway, this video was actually very interesting.  It amazed me to see how the American babies were able to learn Mandarin sounds after only 12 sessions.  It seems young children do have a much better ability to soak up new languages.  This also seems like a depressing statistic for those who want to learn a new language later in life.  But just because it's not as easy doesn't mean it can't be done.  So I will have hope!

The part that actually interested me the most from this video was our inability to distinguish different syllables or words in other languages.  I have had first hand experience of this because I am a fan of music from all over the world.  When I heard my first Japanese song, for example, it was very difficult for me to pick out any particular word; they all seemed to blend together.  After a while, however, I was able to hear different Japanese words and sounds and recognize them.  When hearing other languages, it is very hard to get use to because the sounds used are different or blended together (Japanese r and l sounds sound the same).  I can see now why they start language classes at such a young age.  They are trying to help us learn a new language when we are most primed for learning it.

Free Schmidt!!

So people are not always accurate in their memories?  That doesn't seem all too surprising.  I mean, nobody believes people when they say they've been abducted by aliens.  It was surprising to me to find out how easily people's memories can be changed though.  Especially when people say that they suddenly remembering a relative abusing them when they were a child.  I have always been skeptical of people just suddenly remembering something that big during therapy.  A simple word can make people believe they saw something when they really didn't. 

It is frightening to think of all of the people that could have been sent to jail unjustly because of someone's inaccurate eyewitness testimony.  This reminded me of a book I read before, though.  It is called The Spellmans Strike Again by Lisa Lutz.  A major point of this book was when one of the main characters started a grass roots campaign to free a man named Schmidt, who had been imprisoned for a crime that he did not commit.  You can actually buy shirts that say "Free Schmidt" to advertise this.    http://freeschmidt.com/

I Am Smart in More Ways Than One

I like this whole idea of multiple intelligences.  It always bothered me when people thought others were stupid just because they didn't get as good of a grade on some test.  There is more than just book smarts in this world.  There are those people who are amazing at a musical instrument but cannot, for the life of them, figure out a math problem.  Just because someone is not smart in one aspect doesn't mean they don't know anything at all.

While I like the different intelligences provided by Gardner, I have no doubt that more will be added in the future.  For every theory that is produced, there is someone to argue against it.  Personally, I believe I have more Interpersonal Intelligence.  I can tell when people are having problems and lend a ear if they want to talk.  One of my friends always says how she can't hide anything from me because I can always tell when she's in a bad mood.  I think each of these different intelligences have their own uses and merits.  We wouldn't want everybody to be skilled at everything.  I mean, how boring would it be if everyone was the same?

My Brain is Bigger than Yours

I always wondered about the whole bigger brain=more intelligence thing.  Is it actually true?  Article time!  This one is from Psychology today, so it's legit.  It says that we actually reach our peak number of brain cells at a young age.  So, it's not the sheer size of the brain, they say, but which regions are larger, better connected, or more developed.  They have found that the hippocampus, the structure that lies just inside your temples, plays a specific role in memory (remember?). 

In studies of patients with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, it was revealed that their hippocampus had actually shrunk, resulting in a drop off in memory.  If you want to have a better memory you have to have a robust hippocampus.  You can increase size by excercising, experts say.  How?  After excercising, a person has elevated levels of nerve-growth chemicals that cause nerve cells in the hippocampus to multiply.  Overall, they say that the structure of specific brain regions may play a role in mood, behavior, intelligence, and other aspects of who we are.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/you-illuminated/201002/brain-cosmetics-and-herculean-memory

We Like to Condition

PSA's

The three PSA's that I like the most would have to be Becky, Marin, and Chloe's, Michael, Jacky, and Tom's, and Marisa, Kai, and Lissa's.  My favorite would have to be Becky, Marin, and Chole's.  Their video was very professional looking and creative.  I loved the way they combined music, pictures, and themselves in costumes to make the video interesting.  They managed to cover all of the stages of development in an original way.  They chose a lot of good places, and the video flowed very well together.  So, overall it was an awesome video! And good job to all the others also, they were fun to watch.

I'm Picking Up Good Vibrations

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2007-06-12-cellphones_N.htm

I found an article talking about the "phatom vibrations" that a lot of us feel from time to time.  Some call it "phantom vibration syndrome," others prefer "vibranxiety" — the feeling when you answer your vibrating cellphone, only to find it never vibrated at all. No, your phone is not actually vibrating, nor is your leg vibrating of its own accord.  This article explains that these false alarms simply demonstrate how easily haibts are developed.  Simply put, people who have been using a cell phone are more alert to vibrations and are likely to experience sporadic false alarms. 



"You come armed with this template that leads you to be attentive to sensations that represent a cellphone vibrating.  And it leads you to over-incorporate non-vibratory sensations and attribute them to the idea that you're receiving a phone call."

When we first get a cell phone, we're setting perceptual filters so that we can pick out the ringtone or vibration even under noisy conditions.  But this filter is imperfect, and we often interpret random noise as a real signal, when it actually isn't.  They also offer another explanation: neuroplasticity.  When we regularly feel the vibration sensation, our brains become wired to that sensation.  One expert said that neurological connections formed by the sensation of vibrating are easily activated, and similar sensations are incorporated into that template.  "They become a habit of the brain."

Also, though this has nothing to do with this post, enjoy this cartoon. :)

http://www.austinkleon.com/tag/weekend-sketchbook/





Boys should be tough? Why?

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2014038,00.html

Interesting article.  It talked about the benefits of being a "mama's boy."  Boys who are closer to their mothers tend to be more open emotionally and lead happier lives.  The gender roles are often very strict with fathers and sons.  Fathers want their sons to exhibit typically masculine activities, and therefore the boys are pressured to act a certain way.  They did a study and found that boys from all ethnic and racial groups tended to adopt masculine stereotypes at roughly the same rate. 

Despite the evolutionary psychology view that male and females are wired differently, many more believe that hypermasculine traits are adopted because of the influence of culture.  One aspect of cultural influence is, they believe, the aggressive, sarcastic, gun-toting superheroes of today. 

They also mention that it might be a backlash to the growing acceptance of homosexual men.  "There is an increased rigidity to gender stereotypes in the name of demarcating who is and who is not gay.  We have come to view fundamentally human attributes such as empathy, emotional skills and the desire for intimate relationships as being girlish or gay. They are not girlish or gay skills — they are human skills, or at least they should be." 'Nuff said.

Hello. My Name is Lizzie. I'm an Ice Cube Addict.

Having an addiction is not a lot of fun.  I felt very creeper-ish and sneaky during those two days.  It was weird not being able to talk to one of my best friends about my ice cube addiction.  And I knew if I didn't keep thinking about it, that I would forget.  So I was always thinking about ice cubes.  I can really see how having an addiction can threaten relationships.  It was only for two days and it still felt weird having to hide something.  Lies and deception are just not healthy to relationships.

My actions weren't all that different, to be honest.  I still took ice cubes from the freezer in a sneaky way because it was more fun, though.  Generally, my parents and brother weren't in the kitchen at the same time that I was.  I originally kept more to myself, so my family wasn't that surprised.  My family trusts me a lot, though, and I haven't ever done anything to make them not trust me.  They see me in that good light, as I'm sure many other parents do.  It's easy to see why parents are surprised that their children are addicts.  Parents really want to see the good in their children.  Addicts have a very hard time, and I can imagine the trouble that they must go through.

What the? It's EunChan

http://sundaygazettemail.com/News/201102091395

Okay, maybe this article does talk about a teen show, Degrassi.  But the heart of it is about transgender teens.  I don't think I've heard of any other show willing to even touch on this topic.  A lot of people fail to realize the difference between gender and sex.  If more shows like this one would talk about the issue I feel like it would help a lot.

It amazes me how strict some gender roles can be.  I hate the fact that girls are looked at weirdly for wanting to play football or guys are looked at differently for liking fashion.  More exposure, please!  Let others follow the trend that Degrassi sets and start tackling these issues.  Many times people don't know how to sympathize because they don't have good examples to see (enter television!).

Right Brain vs. Left Brain

http://www.wherecreativitygoestoschool.com/vancouver/left_right/rb_test.htm

Yeah, I can see where these questions are coming from.  Are you good at math? Have you considered a job as a poet, politician, architect, or dancer? Do you like to draw? You can pretty much tell from the question which hemisphere of the brain the question is refering to.

The first test I took told me I had an equal amount.  Half of the questions I answered indicated a left brain tendency and half indicated a right brain tendency.  However, I talked to three other people in my class and all of them got the same result.  So, I'm guessing this test isn't entirely accurate.

For the second test, I had 54% right brain and 46% left brain results.  Meaning, I have a propensity to be more creative, I guess.  Seems true to me.  I've always prefered English classes over Math ones.  My right isn't that far over my left, though.  I prefer rules and organization, so I can see where I am left brained also. 

http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/h/human_brain.asp

Nicotine

Immediate effects? There are lots of them.  The minute nicotine enters your system, it causes an increase in blood pressure, heart rate, and the flow of blood from the heart.  It also narrows your arteries.  One drag of a cigarette can result in coughing, gagging, vomiting, headache, dizziness and more.

 Nicotine is an agonist.  This drug causes receptors to respond in the same was as a naturally occurring substance; it mimics the effect of the protein.  Nicotine in particular resembles the structure of the neurotransmitter Acetylcholine; this allows it to active receptors naturally stimulated by Acetylcholine.  However, it doesn’t act exactly like Acetylcholine and causes the systems that it affects to function abnormally.

Nicotine increases risks of cancer, because it causes cell mutations in the body that can lead to cancer.  Regularly inhaled through the lungs, they can then be damaged as a result of regular use; it can contribute to different pulmonary diseases.  It is also highly addictive, because of its chemical interaction with the brain, it makes people want to use nicotine more.  Nicotine can also increase risk for heart attacks, stroke, and skin damage.

Info: http://www.ehow.com/facts_4896543_what-longterm-effects-nicotine.html#ixzz1CiZ33xWt

Picture: http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/n/nicotine.asp

First Impressions

Words to describe AP Psychology.  Difficult.  Challenging.  Interesting.  Amusing.

It was no easy task to complete all of that work before class even began.  Then we get a quiz the second day of class.  But, I guess that is to be expected from an AP course.  So far, the information has been mostly easy to understand, in large part due to the readability of the book.  I think it's the only school textbook I have actually enjoyed reading.  I also realized how happy I am (for the first time) to have taken AP Stats and Anatomy, as a lot of the information is repeated in this class.

Not only the first quiz on moodle but the test also made me realize how important it really is to read and take notes.  You probably could get by with only reading, but I think it sticks much better after having written the information down.  I'm mostly looking forward to going more in depth on how people think and what psyciatrists, and the likes, do and how they do it.

From http://www.northernhighlands.org/712410728142433387/blank/browse.asp?a=383&BMDRN=2000&BCOB=0&c=56325&712410728142433387Nav=%7C&NodeID=1648

and http://www.nobrowillustration.com/blog.cfm?id=353