Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with homework

Privacy in Public

bobertdude — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 13:24:52 -0800

Where are some good spots in public where I can get privacy? I have to get a lot of homework done, but lately I've been falling behind in my studies because I find it very difficult to concentrate on anything when there are others around or near me. What I do now is drive to the park at night when there's nobody around to get my work done, but that only works at dark. Are there any public places where I can expect no people to be bothering me?

A quiet place to study in LA after hours?

oldlies — Sat, 03 May 2008 16:43:07 -0800

Looking for a quiet place to study in Los Angeles after libraries close. The talking in coffee shops--including coffee shops inside bookstores--is distracting, so that's not an option. Is there anywhere that's indoors where I can set up my laptop and spread out a couple of books and is open until about 10 or 11pm? Wireless Internet would be nice, but not required.

A comparative (also contemporary) text for Henry D. Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience?"

meta.mark — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:21:47 -0800

What contemporary text (including, books, newspapers, magazines, music, movies, or television) can I compare to Henry David Throreau's "Civil Disobedience." The text must no more that 25 years old. I am doing an assignment for my literature class and I must find a piece to relate to Henry David Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience." I've come with some ideas on my own but I was wondering what you guys thought; everything that I have conjured up seems to be hard to write about.

I will be writing a one page essay including:
-Specific definition of the American Dream that matches both texts
-Analysis of the literary works (character or theme)
-Comparison of the social, political, or economic issues of the time period

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Viking of the Year

Corduroy — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 14:27:20 -0800

Homeworkfilter: Help me figure out some clever viking themed titles and advertisements. For a project in my history class, we were assigned to do a magazine article in the same vein as TIMEs person of the year. We pick someone from a certain time frame and then pick a year in their life. I'm doing Erik the Red, and his settling of Greenland.

Part of the project is the actual magazine effect: journalistic voice, cover, layout, advertisements, etc. I'm looking for a clever title for the magazine itself. The class itself isn't focused on vikings at all, so it might be better if the title isn't too specific.

I'm also looking for time appropriate advertisement ideas. I've been trying to think of things that we use today that might have a more primitive ancestor in 1000 AD Scandanavia. Are there any tools or such that have been found in Greenland or Scandanavia but not anywhere else?

Funny is always good. Thanks for your help!

"I sent it!" "I never got it." Emailing assignments?

starman — Sat, 11 Aug 2007 06:31:15 -0800

Teachers/instructors/professors: What is your policy for accepting assignments through email? I generally prefer assignments printed up so I can write comments more easily, but I like the idea of saving paper and giving students some flexibility for turning in their assignments if they have a legitimate need.

What I am really looking for is a guideline that will give students an option for email but dissuades them from using it to hand in papers late or skip class the day assignments are due.

Bubbles

Blazecock Pileon — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 06:55:29 -0800

Maximal volume of an ellipsoid... The volume of an ellipsoid is: 4πabc/3

An ellipsoid is defined with the function: x^2/ a^2 + y^2/ b^2 + z^2/ c^2 = 1

In the case where the sum a + b + c is a fixed value, how might I derive that the ellipsoid of maximal volume is a sphere?

I'd expect to show that a = b = c but am not certain where to start.

Note: This is a "homework" question, in that I am working on some math by myself to get back up to speed on some stuff I did many years ago. I'd appreciate hints rather than a full solution. Feel free not to answer if this bothers you.

How long should writing a paper take, on average?

b33j — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 21:20:33 -0800

What's a reasonable amount of time for me to schedule for a written university assignment, including library research, online journal search, draft and actual writing, to get a better than pass mark? I'm a full-time university mature-age student, but I'm studying from a distance, so my access to lecturers and other students is minimal. The last two semesters I achieved a perfect GPA, but I've since doubled my study load and I'm finding my current methods aren't working so well for me. So what I want to know is including research time, how long would writing a 1500 word essay take you? Is there a particular way that you structure your time, like, if you don't have all the resources you want after looking for X time, too bad?

Study guides I've read seem to indicate that the percentage the assignment is worth of your final mark gives you an estimated time to commence (ie 40% start 4 weeks before it's due, 10% write it in the week it's due), but they don't indicate how much time per week to spend on it.

I think I'm ready to not aim for that perfect GPA anymore, so you can factor that into what's a reasonable amount of time, if you like.

At this point of my current assignment, I"m only at 750 words, and I've already invested 14 hours.

Workbooks for a Gifted 7-year-old?

LarryC — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 20:40:22 -0800

Help me choose some work books for my very bright first grader. So as I was putting Wonderboy to bed tonight he got all excited with a new idea. He wants me to give him "lists of problems" to solve with "something I get to keep" when he completes them. Sounds like a plan.

So can anyone recommend work books or problem books for a very bright seven-year-old? My boy is reading three or four grade levels past his age. He loves math, dinosaurs, Yu-Gi-Oh and stuff like that, and science. He has moderate problems with his temper. We used to get him those cheap homework books you see in stores but they never seemed that good to me. I want work books that emphasizes creative thinking, history, and progressive ideas.

How do I write quickly and intelligently?

schroedinger — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 17:07:57 -0800

How do you learn to write quickly? I have a good number of 5-15 page papers due in the next couple of days and they're killing me. I have no lack of ideas, I have no lack of outlines and notes I can create. But somewhere between holding the notes and writing the sentences down my brain sticks and I spend an hour writing and re-writing the first paragraph. What to do? Part of it is my too-high standards. Given the immediacy of my deadlines and the amount of work to be done I know I need to just put something down, but the perfectionist in me makes this hard. When I'm turning in less than my best, I don't know whether "less than" means B or F and I feel so disappointed in my work I'd rather turn in nothing.

The other aspect is blanking. I blank on introductions, I blank on transitions, I blank on how to elegantly construct my argument. I can verbalize the topic with ease but when it comes to writing down more than a couple sentences on it and providing full elaboration I freeze. It's not an inability to construct an argument or talk about topics--I have had more than my fair share of long Internet arguments to attest to that. Something about the combination of writing for a class and not writing on a whim messes me up.

What tips do you have for writing quickly and getting papers done? I'm pretty good on the organizing front--I just need help getting it on paper.

Doing homewoooork, drinking cooffffeee in the coffeee shoooop

!Jim — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 13:18:20 -0800

Help me find places to hang out and do homework\read near Tempe, Arizona. If I stay at home to do homework, I tend to get distracted (*Cough*AskMeFi) and get nothing done, but the library is sad and depressing, so I like to go out to coffee shops (particularly Xtreme Bean). Problem is, sometimes I don't want coffee, sometimes I want food, or drink. So what are my options?

Some criteria:
* It's nice if I don't look entirely out of place (though slightly is okay)
* Quietness is not important
* Well-lit is definitely a bonus

But really, I'll try anything. Just to clarify, I'm looking for recommendations of specific places.

How can I bring myself to actually study at school?

wumpus — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 23:56:15 -0800

How do people actually bring themselves to study? I mean, it's just so... *yawn* I transferred from a community college into 3rd year at university and I can see my grades slipping from the B+ / A range into the C/B- range (even a D in one course) and it's definitely concerning me. In my city, many people do this college to university transfer for economic reasons, and very few, that i know of, have experienced this collapse in GPA; so it's not simply because the college grading system was a lot easier.

I believe a major contributing factor is that I'm having trouble dedicating myself to regular studying; even though when I do study, I tend to enjoy it and get quite a lot done.
It's just that, when my options are either to study, or do something else... ANYTHING else, i'll always pick that.
Surely other people have gone through periods like this at university. So, what have you people done to help you retain focus, and get yourself more interested in picking up a textbook and reading chapter after chapter?
(I won't try any drug suggestions, but feel free to share your experiences, if they helped)

Another interesting comment is that I really enjoy doing homework assignments, and get into them in a big way as soon as they're assigned. don't know why i can do this, but not study.

All's fair in love and...statistics?

jtfowl0 — Mon, 25 Sep 2006 10:36:38 -0800

I just discovered that my math professor is recycling homework assignments verbatim from prior years. I have a friend that took the course a couple years ago, and has all the answer keys. Is it ethical for me to use them? The professor is a very strict grader and takes fractions of points off for very minor things. However, the math we are learning in the course is fundamentally important for my chosen profession, so I would only be using the keys to check my answers before I turn them in and never to just copy an answer for a problem that I don't fundamentally understand how to do.

Additionally, since his tests are closed book/closed note (and, by reputation, quite challenging), I know that I need to understand the material. Please no "the temptation to rely on them too much is too great" responses--I am disciplined enough that this isn't a concern.

My thinking is that if the professor isn't sufficiently motivated to change the questions, then he is implicitly saying that that he isn't concerned with the possibility of somebody having the answers. However, I am concerned that this is just my attempt to talk myself into it. What does the Green think?

Looking for a homework submission script.

event — Thu, 18 May 2006 12:45:27 -0800

Where can I find a simple UNIX homework submission script? I'm looking for a simple, secure, script that will allow students to type "submit file1 file2 file3" and the files will be packaged up and copied to an appropriate directory. Google turns up the homepages of a lot of courses telling their students to use a script like this, but I'm unable to find the actual program. Thanks!

Mid-term exam filter - help!

Space Kitty — Sat, 15 Oct 2005 13:00:38 -0800

Returning college student ISO mid-term exam study help. I'm in college after a 20-year hiatus from school. Mid-terms are looming, and I'm trying to figure out the best way to study - specifically for an 'all essay question' exam. In high school, I did well without really trying, but I can't skate by like that anymore.

It will be a closed book, closed note, 'pick two of three essay questions' type test. We'll have an hour and twenty minutes to complete both essays. I'm current on my reading, and kept pretty good notes - the professor said he wants to see the lecture topics tied into the reading material to show a good understanding of the subject. (Gay & Lesbian American History)

How on earth do I prepare for this type of test? Bonus points for quick solutions + long term planning for next semester. Thanks!

How do you get high school students to do their homework?

scazza — Fri, 07 Oct 2005 09:15:54 -0800

How do you get high school students to do their homework? My friend has just started teaching in public high school. She has 126 sophomores in her English class, and half of them are failing. They all come in with excuses, and her teaching partner says the students are just trying to pull the wool over her eyes. I agree, since they're not frankly admitting that they just don't care, but I don't have any advice on how to get through to them.

A particular assignment, outlining, the students haven't learned since all their past teachers have let it slide, and she's not about to do that. She could send them all to detention but there's no penalty for not going to detention; there's no outside structure for enforcing punishment. This is extremely frustrating for her, she feels responsible, she wants them to know that there is the potential for them to go to college if they do well, she just wants them to please god try. She doesn't know how to get into their heads. And needs advice.

I know mefites are good at talking about when they were in high school, many have children themselves, maybe some are still in high school. Tricks, lectures, punishments, persuasion, give me your ideas.

Are you learning piano?

Tlogmer — Mon, 26 Sep 2005 16:51:32 -0800

Is anyone learning piano (or planning to)? If so, can I ask you some questions? I'm taking a tech writing course that requires each student to write a manual on whatever topic -- I'm writing a Learning Piano as a Second Instrument thingy. But I need some questions answered for audience analysis. (When it's finished, I'll send you a copy of the manual for your troubles, if you want):

What instrument (if any) do you currently play?
Do you have access to a piano or keyboard? Where? (And, if applicable, what kind of keyboard?)
What kind of music do you want to play, and in what context?

The Optional Personal Question *thunderclap*
How old are you?

Does isosceles subsume equilateral?

i_am_joe's_spleen — Thu, 03 Mar 2005 11:11:56 -0800

Are equilateral triangles also isosceles? My daughter was given homework in which she had to identify isosceles triangles. We decided that given the definition "has two equal sides", an equilateral triangle must also be isosceles. Her maths teacher disagrees. It's been a long time since I did plane geometry, but I'm sure that the formal definition was not "two sides only"
I can't find authoritative, unambiguous references on Google. I'd love an online reference, but a dead-trees one would be good too.

I'm not going to buy a fight over geometry with a hapless primary school teacher but this is driving me nuts.

And Sometimes Y

davidmsc — Thu, 24 Feb 2005 19:20:18 -0800

Homework Filter: My child is doing a homework project, and she needs to come up with a word that begins with the letter "Y" to describe some aspect of herself. I suggested Yipee, Yikes, Yellow...and then ran dry. Any word-savvy MeFites have ideas? Much obliged.

Help developing dicipline and responsibility

angry modem — Wed, 17 Dec 2003 09:11:44 -0800

My life is riddled with undependability and irresponsability. I've improved a great deal, but I still feel I have a long way to go. I'd like to find some way to get my college homework done sometime before the 10 minutes preceding class, as well as being more consistent with getting things done by deadlines. Is there anyone out there who used to be a complete lazyass that found different methods for turning themselves around? Pure willpower isn't cutting it. Nowadays I have a great deal of potential to advance through various projects at college, but I tend to not take on more responsibilities than I have to because of my fear of not completing them. What I'm looking for are the best ways to overcome what has become a really bad habit of distracting myself daily with things that should not be my primary concerns and should remain my hobbies, second to schoolwork and my job's work. Personal experience are favored, if possible.