Wednesday, March 25, 2020

What is Electrolysis in Chemistry?

What is Electrolysis in Chemistry?In a chemistry class, students are often asked to define electrolysis. In this lesson, we will look at the definitions and function of electrolysis in chemistry. The term electrolysis is used when you heat the electrolyte. This process is done in the laboratory to separate the different components that make up the batteries and other devices that use electrolytes.It works on the principle of electricity flowing through the surface of the plates that contain the electrolyte with negative ions and the opposite charge. Then the ions are broken down into their chemical components and the fluids that make up the electrode in the process. Some chemicals can be found in the oceans and these materials are the ones that are commonly used in electrolysis. But there are a number of different chemicals that are used for electrolysis, which can be a good way to get a clearer picture of the process.The process also involves using ionic energy to increase the amoun t of electrochemical reactions that occur in the solution. Ionic energy is electricity that comes from the materials contained in the electrolyte. The use of this energy is one of the main functions of electrolysis.You will see that the molecules have atoms that consist of different kinds of elements and ions. If you can break down the elements, you can find the ions in them. When you bring these ions and the liquids together, you can make new chemicals that have less strength and fewer of the compounds that you want to put together.Most of the electrolytes used in a battery will have two components. The first part consists of a substance that gives the liquid an electrical charge and is a salt. Then there is the second part which includes a chemical that can provide power and is a chemical that will have its own charge. By using these chemicals, you can increase the amount of power you get from your battery.You will notice that there are two kinds of electrolytes. One is the acidic and the other is the basic. Acidic electrolytes are generally found in water. These are the common kinds of electrolytes that you will find in the world. But it is important to note that the specific types of chemicals that you use will determine how long it takes to develop the battery.There are a lot of ways to perform electrolysis in chemistry. A number of different ions can be brought together and then you can separate them. The chemicals that you use will determine how long the process takes.

Friday, March 6, 2020

Introducing Tutorfairs Online Classroom

Introducing Tutorfair's Online Classroom As Head of Operations at Tutorfair, I get to be involved with lots of really exciting projects that help both tutors and clients get the most out of the platform. Our big project in the second half of 2018 has been developing Tutorfair’s online classroom, an online learning platform! Why did we want to provide an online classroom for Tutorfair users? On Tutorfair, more lessons than ever before are online - making up to 50% of Tutorfair lessons, on some days! Many tutors enjoy the online lesson format, finding it as engaging as in-person lessons, and now, more and more students are also opting for the online learning experience. We know that at the moment, our tutors and students use a mixture of online platforms and teaching resources, such as Zoom, Skype, and bitpaper.io, to conduct lessons. With this in mind, we wanted to provide tutors and students with a resource to make online learning even easier and more effective, which is why we’ve been working on the Tutorfair online classroom. Tutorfair’s online classroom is an e-learning platform available and free to use for Tutorfair’s tutors and students. It features a variety of teaching tools and will be easily accessible for lessons directly through your Tutorfair account. What have we done? After lots of research with our development team, we have chosen a fantastic, versatile online classroom to integrate into the Tutorfair website. It was chosen because it has all the features tutors told us they would need to conduct great lessons online - and all in one place! Since integrating the classroom, we have run pilot tests with some fantastic tutors (thanks for the help guys!) and collected LOTS of feedback. We have since been working on improving the classroom experience for all users. What’s new and exciting the classroom? The online classroom is specifically designed to enhance the experience of online learning.  It has a range of teaching tools and features that will help tutors conduct engaging lessons for students. These include: Video, audio and chat facilities A whiteboard to draw on The ability to incorporate documents, images and videos onto the whiteboard Screenshare Learning tools such as Wolfram Alpha and LaTeX tool The work done in the classroom can be saved as images straight to the user’s computer. What’s great is that both the tutor and student will be able to access the classroom directly from their Tutorfair account - either from their messages, or lessons/bookings pages. How we are moving forward We’ve had some really lovely feedback from our pilot tutors so far! Katherine was very excited about all of the features of the classroom. She particularly liked the whiteboard, the video embed feature, the screenshare and the ability to upload pictures/documents and write on them. Luke, a Science and Maths tutor, really likes the Wolfram Alpha feature. He considers this to be a big advantage to the classroom and says that things will be much easier. Juliette observed that the classroom is very user-friendly and thinks it’s a great piece of technology! With the feedback collected from our pilot period, we’re implementing some small changes to improve the online classroom experience. The one big project we’re working on is being able to provide a lesson recording, so that tutors and students can go back and watch/listen to their lesson. In the meantime, we’re inviting tutors to get in touch if they would like to trial the classroom. Just send us an email to support@tutorfair.com! The online classroom is an incredibly exciting project that is giving us lots of scope for future development, so if you would like to be kept updated, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.

How to Become Bilingual When Your Memory Sucks 5 Flexible Strategies to Beat Defeat

How to Become Bilingual When Your Memory Sucks 5 Flexible Strategies to Beat Defeat How to Become Bilingual When Your Memory Sucks: 5 Flexible Strategies to Beat Defeat Hang on.What were you just thinking about?Cant remember, huh?Maybe it was all those late nights in college.Maybe you have too many important things to keep track of these days.Whatever the reason, your memory just isnt as stretchy and sticky as it used to be.Its hard to grab hold of any fact and cling to it.You cant remember what day of the week it is. You cant remember what you had for breakfast. Heck, you probably cant even remember why you clicked on this article.So let me remind you: You want to become bilingual.But maybe youre hesitant. A whole language? Thats a lot of words to learnâ€"can you really memorize all of them? How long will that even take?And grammarâ€"chances are just hearing the word subjunctive gives you unpleasant flashbacks to high school Latin.Well, Ive got good news for you. Even if your memory isnt what it used to be (or if it never was that great to begin with), there are a few basic strategies you can use to take the heavy memorization burden out of your la nguage learning.While were on the topic, theres also a strategy I know of that you can use to remember what you had for breakfast. This is the easy part: To remember what you had for breakfast, just eat the same thing for breakfast every day.OK, now on to the harder part. These strategies for becoming bilingual below are a little more involved, but with some time, commitment and a plan, plus  a little bit of creativity, theyre almost as foolproof.Lets begin by talking about how to get going on becoming bilingual from the very start, before youve even really begun learning a language. How to Become Bilingual When Your Memory Sucks: 5 Flexible Strategies to Beat Defeat1. Start with a 70-day Language Learning WarmupOne of the more overwhelming aspects of trying to become bilingual for the first time is just how many different things you have to deal with when learning a language.Between syntax, vocabulary, pronunciation, spelling and listening comprehension, it can feel like youre ac tually trying to learn many languages at once rather than just one.And for those whose memories could better be described as fickle than photographic, having to memorize tons of new material and worry about all these other aspects of language learning means that things can get out of hand pretty quick, and before you know it youre re-gifting your copy of Acme Languages Self-Teach Turkish 101 to your bewildered nephew.Theres a better way to become bilingual.Instead of trying to memorize a boatload of vocab and learn a language at the same time, just get the memorization out of the way first, and then start learning the language.I realize that might sound strange. This isnt your grandmas language learning strategy. But it works.It works because to be in good shape to learn a language, really good shape, you only need to memorize 100 words.Maybe it doesnt seem like having 100 words under your belt would make a big difference on your path to becoming bilingual, but just stop and think a bout it for a minuteâ€"in English, the 100 most common words account for about 50% of all written language.I mean, sure, loquacious is an English word, but would the quality of your everyday life as an English speaker be greatly impoverished if you didnt know what it meant?The idea behind the 70-day language learning warmup is to take a couple months to familiarize yourself with the 100 most important words in the language youre learning, so that on day 71â€"when you start actually working on becoming bilingualâ€"most of the words youre seeing arent showing up out of thin air and asking to be immediately memorized.Days 1-5: PronunciationYou cant memorize what you cant pronounce, so the first five days of the language learning warmup are all about learning the sounds of your new language.Try to spend a minimum of 15 minutes a day on this. Look up a pronunciation guide for the language youre learning (try Googling [language] alphabet pronunciation or [language] pronunciation guide, re placing [language] with the language youre becoming bilingual inâ€"heres the kind of thing to look for) and spend 10 of those 15 minutes going through it.Unless the language youre learning is extremely obscure, you should be able to find a free pronunciation guide with audio.For the other five minutes of your pronunciation work, you want to listen to any excerpt of the language you can get your hands on. An easy way to do this is to get an audiobook in the language youre studying  and listen to a different excerpt from it every day. Movies are also good for this, as is foreign language radio.Once youve picked your listening material, just listen for five minutes uninterrupted.You wont understand anything youre hearing, so heres how you should be listening: Pay attention to the inflections of the speakers voice and try to count how many sentences you hear total over the course of the five minutes. If you lose track, just keep counting and try to get as close as possible.This exercise might seem a little pointless, but theres a scientific reason behind it: Research (for example, this study and this one) has found that this kind of listening is an efficient way to learn the sounds of a language. It will help you start to make sense of how those sounds fit together and what syllables are most common in the languageâ€"but only if youre paying attention to the material youre listening to.Counting sentences keeps your focus on the sounds youre hearing.All the better if you can put in more than 15 minutes a day going through your pronunciation guide and doing some attentive listening, but even if you cant, youll find youve gotten a basic feel for how the language sounds after five days.Days 6-35: One Word a Day from the 100 Most Common WordsOn day 6 of your language learning warmup, move from working on pronunciation to learning vocab.Find a list of the most common words in the language you want to become bilingual in by Googling something along the lines of 100 most common [language] words. Make sure it actually lists them in order of frequency and isnt just a list of random common words someone threw together without any researchâ€"heres a good example of what you want.Then, from days 6-35, learn one word a day, so by the end of day 35, youll have the 30 most common words down.Every day, your process should look something like this:After you get up in the morning (or as early in the day as possible if your morning routine consists of rolling out of bed, looking around wildly, seeing what time it is and making a mad dash for the subway), find the word of the day on your list of common words, look up the pronunciation on Forvo or by Googling [word] pronunciation, write the word down on a piece of paper and put the paper in your pocket.For a nice added touch, you can also draw a picture associated with the word on the paper, because visual associations always make things easier to remember.Then,  at least 10 times at intervals throughout the day, try to remember the word and say it to yourself. If you cant remember it, no worries, just take the paper out of your pocket and look it up. Keep doing this until you go to bed.When you wake up the next morning, try to remember yesterdays word, look it up one more time if you cant, then move on to your new word and start the daily process all over again.If you find you sometimes have a hard time remembering a certain word or if by the time you get to day 35 you no longer have any clue what the word you memorized on day 6 was, dont sweat it. The point isnt to be able to remember all these words perfectly by the time you finish the 70-day warmup, but rather to familiarize yourself with them and get them into your awareness so that once you do start learning your language and using them in context, they stick much more easily.Days 36-70: Two Words a DayWhen you get to day 36, its time to up the ante and start doing two words a day. Keep the same process from days 6-35, but cross off t wo words from your list every day.Besides letting you move through words 30-100 twice as fast as words 1-30, going from one to two words daily when you get to day 36 pushes you to flex your memorization muscles. So once you get to day 71 and start the real work on becoming fluent, youll be on intimate terms with the 100 most common words in your language and your memorization skills will be better than they were two months ago.Days 71+Once you hit day 71, get started on actually learning your language. You might be rusty on some of the words you did during the 70-day warmup, but when you go back to learn them in the normal course of your language studying, youll find they stick more easily.Youll still have to put in some good memorization time, and you might want to get yourself a flashcard app, but the amount of memorization wont be as overwhelming as if you hadnt gotten to know the 100 most common wordsâ€"which will free up your mind to give more attention to things like grammar a nd thus make everything a little easier.But where exactly do you go from here? Read on.2. Set Weekly Language Learning GoalsWhen youre working on becoming bilingual for the first time, the sheer volume of stuff you have to learn can be overwhelming. On the bad days, you might feel lost in the middle of an ocean of words and grammatical structures with no land in sight.The best way to avoid this feeling is to set concrete weekly language learning goals so you can measure your progress and have something to work towards every week. These goals can include memorizing a list of vocab words, getting down a certain grammatical construction or even just working through a text.Slow and steady is always better than fast and erratic in learning a language, so set goals youre pretty sure you can reach in a week. Try to push yourself, for sure, but its okay  to sometimes err on the side of setting less ambitious goals you know you can reach rather than lofty goals that end in frustration. Youll be surprised how quickly modest steps add up.If you hit points of frustration in your journey to becoming bilingual, the antidote is just to set specific goals and not worry about anything else. The secret to learning any language is to learn to value improvement.When you find yourself thinking, Wow, my reading comprehension sucks and its not getting any better, just say, Okay, Im going to read this article and take however much time I need to understand it.When you find yourself thinking, Ive been doing this for months and theres still so many words I dont understand! say, Whatever, Im going to just get down this list of 15 vocab words this week.Learning a language is a pretty massive task, so sometimes the best way not to let it get to you is to simply focus on meeting concrete, short-term goals on a regular schedule and let the rest fall into place by itself.3. Expand on Your Vocab Learning with the Four-line Dialogue TechniqueYou can take a lot of the stress out of vocab learni ng by thinking of it not as an exercise in memorization but as a process of integrating new words into your lexicon that youre actually going to use to communicate (after all, thats the whole point of becoming bilingual).An easy way to move from mere memorization to learning for the sake of communication is by ending every vocabulary study session with an ad-libbed, four-line dialogue that uses one or more of the words youre learning.The idea is simple: Create a four-line dialogue between two imaginary people in real time, two lines for each person. But write one persons lines and speak the other persons lines. Make sure to use the vocab word(s) youre working on at least once in the dialogue. So if youre trying to memorize the word “life,” your dialogue might look like this:Person 1 (written): Hello.Person 2 (spoken): Hello. How are you?Person 1 (written): Im doing well. How are you?Person 2 (spoken): My life is a disaster.This exercise is a winner because it accomplishes so man y things at onceâ€"it helps you learn vocabulary by using it in context, it makes you more fluent at producing the language in real time and it integrates your speaking and writing.Of course, you can do several of these dialogues at a time, and theres no reason you have to limit yourself to four lines if youre feeling creative. I just like four lines because it doesnt take very much time and Im impatient.4. Dont Just Become BilingualBecome Bi-sing-ual!No, thats not the title of a little-known Glee spinoff. Its the best advice I have on how to get out of the memorization doldrums.Music is like steroids for your memory, only without all the bad health effects. Think of any song you know the lyrics to and then ask yourself, would you have memorized all those words without the accompanying music?Just by picking a song you like, listening to it repeatedly and memorizing it, you can learn a wealth of new words. Even better, because music tends to be structured in a way that brings out the grammatical patterns behind the lyrics, learning songs is a great technique for internalizing grammatical constructions in the language youre becoming bilingual in.To get the most mileage out of this technique, you really should memorize the songs, or at least excerpts from them. Your process could look something like this:Pick a song you want to memorize in the language youre learning. An easy way to find songs is just to Google best [language] songs. Cant go wrong with the best.Find a copy of the lyrics online by Googling [song name] lyrics in your target language.Choose an excerpt from the song you want to focus on, then go through it with a dictionary to make sure you understand everything the song is saying.Listen to the song, following along with the lyrics. Repeat until you get to the point where you can understand in real time what the song is sayingâ€"first with the written lyrics, then without.Listen to the song a few more times. You can do this passively while youre doin g some mundane task like you would with any other music. The idea is just to get it in your head.Try singing the first line of the song from memory. If you cant remember it, play the first line of the song, then sing it back.Once you get the first line, do the second line. Then put them together. Repeat with larger chunks of music until you can sing the entire excerpt.Youll find that by the time you get to the last step, the first step where you make an effort at memorization, you already have a lot of the song stuck in your head just from going over the lyrics in detail and listening so much.This exercise is a fun way to add new words to your vocabulary and plant new grammatical structures firmly in your mind. Itll also give you some cultural literacy to go with your new language skills.5. Do One-sentence SummariesWhen youre working on becoming bilingual, it can be easy to put in an intense language learning session, then go about the rest of your life totally forgetting about ever ything language-related once you finish studying.You could theoretically learn a language this way, but youll find your language studying goes much more smoothly if you occasionally remind yourself what youve been working on over the course of your day.In particular, your memorization will go better if you take a minute every now and then to put your brain back in language learning mode and keep everything fresh in your mind.One way to do this without taking much time is to do one-sentence summaries. Of what? Of anything and everything.Just had a good sandwich for lunch? Describe it in a single spoken or written sentence, using vocab youve learned in the language youre becoming bilingual in, or looking up new words as necessary.Just watched an interesting movie? Do the same thing.Just finished a meeting? Do a one-sentence summary.Read a news article? One-sentence summary.By using the language at regular intervals throughout your day, even if only for a single sentence, youll get eve rything youre studying to stick in your mind better.You dont need to have a killer memory to become bilingual.Doing a 70-day language learning warmup, using music as a memory aid, setting concrete goals you know you can meet and regularly using new words in context with four-line dialogues and one-sentence summaries will take a huge burden off your memory and let you pick up a new language even if everything that happened more than five minutes ago is mostly just a vague blur in your mind.But even if youre the kind of person who remembers not just what you had for breakfast but what you had for breakfast on this day three years ago and what day of the week it was, these techniques will still make your life easier if you give them a whirl.The truth is that no matter who you are, the amount of memorization involved in learning a language is daunting.The whole point of language is to make it possible for people to express anything they could ever want to express, so that gives you an i dea of just how much stuff there is to memorize.Make these tricks part of your language learning routine, though, and youll remember everything except why you ever doubted your ability to become bilingual!

Thursday, March 5, 2020

Surviving the Last Weeks of School A Guide for Seniors

Surviving the Last Weeks of School A Guide for Seniors Tips from a Fullerton Private Tutor: Surviving the Last Weeks of School As the last week of the school year approaches, many seniors are tempted to find things to do other than attending class and complete assignments. This is called senioritis, and it has been an issue for generations. Once a student has completed their AP exams and taken their finals, there isnt much left that will happen in the classroom. However, its important for seniors to get through the last days of high school and make sure that they dont face any surprises over the summer. The most important thing is for students to finish the year strong and maintain their acceptance at college. 1. Double check grades The first thing seniors should do is double check their grades. To graduate, they will need to have a passing grade in every subject. Some colleges and universities will also require that students maintain the GPA that they had when they first applied; this means they may need to maintain a B or even an A average. Sometimes students will forget about that incomplete assignment from a few weeks ago or that extra credit assignment they were meant to complete. Once the year is over there will not be an opportunity to make any changes, so time is of the essence. Its important to avoid low grades at the last minute as well as summer school because this will prevent students from officially graduating and starting college in the fall (READ: 5 Things Every Rising Senior Should do). 2. Apply to graduate Many schools require students to apply for graduation. Most of the time this just means filling out some paperwork, but its important that students get this in on time if its required. This is also a great way for students to see if anything is missing on their transcripts or if any clerical errors have occurred. If a student notices that they have the missing paperwork they will still have plenty of time to get everything corrected so they can graduate on time and avoid summer school. 3. Focus on extracurricular activity Once AP exams and finals are complete there is little motivation to focus on academics. To stay interested in school students are encouraged to focus on an extracurricular activity they enjoy. If they play on the school sports team, there may still be a final game or team meeting. Students who belong to an academic or art club may be able to plan a fun activity for themselves and the younger members of the club. It’s not important what the activity is but that it helps seniors maintain their interest in attending school. 4. Balance free time and academics Its also important for seniors to balance their free time and school work. Many students were not able to socialize much at all while they were studying for finals or AP exams so it may be tempting to socialize all of the time now that those tasks are complete. Its a good idea for students to plan a schedule for the week in advance. For example, perhaps they continue to work on school assignments from Monday to Thursday but enjoy some social time on Fridays and Saturdays (READ: 3 Warning Signs of Senioritis). 5. Maintain attendance The number one issue with senioritis is a failure to show up at school. Unfortunately, most schools are stricter than they used to be when it comes to attendance. Too many unexcused absences can look bad on a student’s attendance record. As long as seniors show up to school, they are more likely to complete assignments and be involved in any extracurricular or sports activities that occur at the end of the year. End the year strong with the help of a private Fullerton tutor. Call us today for more information. All blog entries, with the exception of guest bloggers, are written by Tutor Nerds. Are you an education professional? If so, email us at pr@tutornerds.com for guest blogging and collaborations. We want to make this the best free education resource in SoCal, so feel free to suggest what you would like to see us write.

8 Cheap Alternatives To Your Favorite Technology Accessories

8 Cheap Alternatives To Your Favorite Technology Accessories Image via https://bizlaunchblogdotcom.files.wordpress.com The following eight technology accessories are cheaper and better alternatives to more popular brand name items. (I actually own most of these, so I can vouch for their usefulness and quality.) I recommend trying these little gadgets out, because they can make your life a whole lot more convenient without breaking the bank! 1.)  Portable Mini Speaker by Accessorize Your Life: $14.99 Image via Amazon.com This portable mini speaker is an improved (and often cheaper) alternative to similar accessories. I originally bought this speaker because my laptop’s sound volume is pretty poor, and this portable device was  exactly  what I needed. This speaker connects via audio socket (speaker/headphone jack) to your computer or MP3/4 player to deliver amazing, enhanced sound, and at only 3 ounces, it’s (like the advertisement says) “ultra-portable.” Unlike with some inferior speakers, you can also hook multiple Accessorize Your Life speakers together for a more intense sound, like for at that party where you need some banging bass. Even better, this mini speaker comes with a handy mesh carrying case and charging cord, so you have everything you need both to transport it and set it up right out of the bag. 2.)  Portable USB Car Charger by Volmate: $12.98 Image via Amazon.com We’ve all been there: you’re stuck in the car and your phone’s dying, and you wish you were home so you could just plug the darn thing in. Well, with the Volmate Portable USB Car Charger, you don’t have to worry about that anymore! This car charger plugs into your cigarette lighter socket and offers up three (count ‘em, THREE!) USB ports for you to plug all of your tech goodies into. Two of those ports are essentially to charge phones, while the remaining outlet puts out more charge so you can charge larger items like a tablet faster. However, since the Volmate creators have apparently thought of everything, their “smart charge” characteristic ensures that devices charge at only the maximum speed, and also automatically stop when the device battery is full. What more could you ask for? 3.)  External Battery Pack by PowerGen: $39.99 Image via Amazon.com This is by far the most expensive item on this list, but don’t let that deter you: the PowerGen External Battery Pack is worth the investment. Basically, you charge this item on your own time and then use it as a completely portable charger (no plugging into an outlet required!) for your phone, tablet, or other device when you don’t have access to a wall or car outlet. This external battery pack packs a punch, putting out 12,000 mAh (that’s milli Ampere hours, the units for how much energy a battery can store). What does that mean for you? Basically, that it can charge an iPhone about 5-6 times, an iPad Mini 1.5-2 times, an iPad 2 1.25 times, and an iPad 3 or 4 about 65 percent. For those of you who haven’t done research on such things, that’s pretty darn impressive for a technology accessory that’s only a little bigger and heavier than an iPhone 4. Finally, it has 3 USB ports to charge 3 items simultaneously, and it also has a built-in flashlight that’s extremely convenient. Frankly, you can’t go wrong with this device, and the best part is, PowerGen has a variety of charger sizes (with corresponding larger or smaller battery charges) available for all of your needs. 4.)  Dual USB Wall Charger by PowerGen: $13.99 Image via Amazon.com So, you might be wondering how you’re actually supposed to charge #3 on this list, no? Well, with the PowerGen Dual USB Wall Charger, that is! You simply plug a USB cord (that is, a cord that has USB adaptors on both ends) into the PowerGen External Battery Pack and into the PowerGen Dual USB Wall Charger, and you have instant charging. And that’s not all this wall charger can power. The PowerGen Dual USB Wall Charger simply plugs into a wall outlet and lets you charge any device that can be connected with a USB cord. That means phones, tablets and more. 5.)  4-in-1 USB Charging Cable by COTTEE: $8.99 Image via Amazon.com Now that you’ve been introduced to a few accessories, you’re probably worried about the number of charging cables you’ll have to carry just to deal with all of these new items. Well, never fear, because that’s where this 4-in-1 USB Charging Cable by COTTEE comes in! It’s basically one wire that splits into five adapter heads so you’ll never lack an adapter for charging all your devices. Aside from the USB adapter head, there’s one for the iPhone 4, Galaxy 5s/Note 3, iPhone 5/6, and a Micro-USB. Essentially, that’s everything you need for all of your Android and iPhone smartphones, in one convenient place. 6.)  International Travel Plug Adaptor Kit by Ceptics: $6.99 Image via Amazon.com Looking to study abroad sometime soon? Then this is the ideal accessory for you! The Ceptics International Travel Plug Adapter Kit is a nifty accessory that combines all of the outlet adapters you need for the “U.S., Europe, Asia, China, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK” in one handheld item. The outlet adapters all snap together into a configuration that’s small and protected, but also easy to take apart and use in a second. 7.)  Universal Travel Case for Small Electronics and Accessories by AmazonBasics: $10.49 Image via Amazon.com Now that you have all of these cool tech accessories, you need something to carry them in, right? Well, that’s where the AmazonBasics Universal Travel Case comes in. This sleek case boasts four different sized inner mesh pouches to strap in all the small electronics you could possibly have. In addition, the “molded EVA-plastic exterior” provides both the necessary protection for your delicate devices and a cool look. As a bonus, it comes with a removable wrist strap for convenient transportation. 8.)  Magnetic Mount Holder for Cell Phones and Mini Tablets by WizGear: $13.99 Image via Amazon.com This is the last item on this list, but definitely not the least. In fact, I think the WizGear Magnetic Mount Holder is actually one of the coolest items on this list. This tech accessory mounts onto your car’s dashboard and uses magnets (including one that you place between your phone case and phone) to hold your phone securely in your car. After all, nothing’s more important than car safety, and this gem prevents you from having to look down at your lap just because you have nowhere else to put your phone. And at $13.99, this steal is practically criminal.

Depression in Teens Too High

Depression in Teens Too High pexels.com This, in turn, could be a large part of the reason that suicide rates among teens are as high as they are. Basically, it’s one thing to have depression and report it; it’s another entirely to have depression, report it and go untreated. But no matter the reason, researchers are hell-bent on figuring out what’s leading to these increased suicide rates in order to curb the trend. According to Dr. Ramin Mojtabai and his colleagues from Johns Hopkins University, “The 12-month prevalence of major depressive episodes increased from 8.7 percent in 2005 to 11.3 percent in 2014 in adolescents and from 8.8 percent to 9.6 percent in young adults.” In this report, published in the journal Pediatrics, Mojtabai and his colleagues looked at over 170,000 surveys from teenagers and at least 180,000 surveys from adults (the 18-25 age block). According to the report, “Each year almost one in 11 adolescents and young adults have a major depressive episode … The prevalence of these episodes increased between 2005 and 2014.” And who’s the most vulnerable to such increased rates? Specifically, white individuals. Most specifically, white females. The reason? We don’t know at the moment, but the researchers that conducted the study have a few guesses. For one thing, they stated, “Adolescent girls may have been exposed to a greater degree to depression risk factors in recent years.” They continued in saying: “For example, cyberbullying may have increased more dramatically among girls than boys. As compared with adolescent boys, adolescent girls also now use mobile phones with texting applications more frequently and intensively and problematic mobile phone use among young people have been linked to depressed mood.” Still, doctors aren’t reporting that they are treating teenagers for the issue. Basically, this suggests to the researchers that more teens are going without treatment. According to them, “Depression is a sizeable and growing deadly threat to our U.S. adolescent population.” As for the reasons, we can only guess. One of the reasons could be that there’s a general fear of antidepressants and the harm they do rather than the good. Many believe that antidepressants can increase the risk of suicide, though there isn’t actually any direct link between the two. The other potential reason could be that teens aren’t actually telling anyone. They could be reporting their depression in surveys, but keeping it to themselves when it comes to family, friends and doctors. According to Dr. Anne Glowinski and Guiseppe D’Amelio from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, this needs to be studied more in-depth, and quickly. In a commentary from the two, they stated, “the other problem, that of ever-increasing untreated youth depression, concerns all of us at a time when suicide is now the second leading cause of death for adolescents aged 15 to 19 years.” Essentially, depression is a beast that we haven’t yet learned how to tackle. Sure, we have antidepressant drugs and remedies, but that doesn’t solve the problem when depression goes unreported, which it seems to a majority of the time. The stigma surrounding such antidepressants, for one, needs to be abolished. And for another thing, we need to, as a society, become more aware of the signs, be kinder to people and do our part to help make the world a better place. Even simply being polite while you’re in line at Starbucks on your college campus could make someone’s day. The little things are more important than you know, and being proactive against such a terrible disease is a great start. In the meantime, on the scientific end, researchers need to come up with a solution that’s going to last, one that’s going to significantly decrease those suicide rates and increase those that are being treated for depression. Of course, I suppose it’s easier said than done, but we can take steps now to help move things along.

The Various Ways To Improve Your Academic Skills

The Various Ways To Improve Your Academic SkillsDid you know that there are tutors who are qualified to tutor in ZZZ and ZZZZ schools? And did you know that if you found a school and the teacher was only qualified to teach X students, then he is not qualified to tutor for you? And did you know that there are websites that are dedicated to helping teachers to teach students from different backgrounds?In all this, there has been a rising trend of selecting the right kind of school to educate their children. Although, there are a lot of advantages of selecting an educational institute, there are also a lot of disadvantages that you should consider before enrolling your child for schooling. For instance, you should consider the many rules and regulations that are usually enforced by various institutes that teach the subject.You should also understand that not all schools adhere to the same set of rules, although it is possible that some do. So, while you will be looking for the best scho ol, you must look into all the possible school to determine the best school for your child. Since most of the schools are willing to help their students in improving their academics and social skills, you have to ensure that you hire a teacher whom you can trust.If you decide to enroll your child in a school, you must look for the institute that offers the facilities that you need. When it comes to selecting the institute, there are numerous schools who hire tutors in order to teach students from various backgrounds. These tutors can help a lot in preparing the students for admission to the schools.These teachers can help in teaching the students to interact with their peers, so that they can form close relationships. In this way, students will get their confidence and self-esteem back. In this way, students can enjoy the classes they are taking at the school.While students are trying to bond with each other, you can learn about certain classrooms in the school. At the same time, yo u can ask a teacher about the benefits of hiring a private tutor. After all, you cannot spend your whole day with a teacher and yet the lessons you learn are important.In all these ways, it is evident that you can enjoy learning from any WZZ or ZZZZ school. All you have to do is to look for the right teacher. But when you choose a teacher, you must make sure that he is qualified enough to teach the students.