Study better next time

Maybe midterms didn’t go the way you planned. You realize you need to review test taking tips and attack the problem from a different angle. Here are few tips:

• Talk to the professor. Discuss the important points of the class material and how you can concentrate on those. If possible, bring your midterm and go over the questions you got wrong.
• Study with a buddy. Get tutored by a peer who understands the material. Ask each other sample test questions.
• Take a deep breath. It’s not the end of the world. Get a pizza, play a video game, unwind. This is a chance to learn from our mistakes and aim to improve our grade on the next test.

Study scientifically

Benedict Carey in the New York Times reported in “Forget What You Know About Good Study Habits,” September 6, 2010, that some counter-intuitive methods of studying actually work.

• Alternate your study location. Being in different environments helps improve retention of class material.
• Vary the material you’re studying. Do a little reading, then some vocabulary, then some math or problem solving. The different ways of thinking stimulate the brain. Nate Kornell, a psychologist at WilliamsCollege, explained that this strategy undermines the common assumption that intensive immersion is the best way to really master a particular genre, or type of creative work.
• Study in chunks. Don’t cram all at once. Space out your studying over a period of time to let your brain absorb the information slowly.

Take harder classes next term

Hey, maybe you aced your midterm exams. You’re really getting the hang of college, good study habits and taking tests. Why not challenge yourself to be the best you can be? See if there are one or two harder classes you can take next term. An organic chemistry class, a physics or math class, or just a more advanced version of an elective. Attempting a difficult class helps us learn to tackle challenging tasks and develop coping skills and strategies.

The age-old question arises: Should we take easy classes we know we can get better grades on, or take more challenging classes and possibly get lower grades? Which is better? “Taking too many easy classes can be construed that you can’t handle difficult subject matter,” said a blogger in the article “Are Harder College Classes Better For You Than Easier Ones?” on Tutorii.com. “[Then] there are times where you can garner more respect because you did take a challenging class that few others would take. It depends on how you present the academic record to potential interviewers.”

Improve your GPA

The general rule is two hours of study for every one hour spent in class. But to improve a grade point average (GPA), a whole lotta studying needs to happen. Professor Carl Zulaf of OhioStateUniversity found that a 40-hour increase in weekly studying was needed to achieve a one-letter increase in quarterly GPA. “A lifestyle change has to happen before an impact is made on a student’s grades,” said Zulaf in “Studying Still the Key to Academic Success,” in USA Today, April 2001 found on Questia.com. “The ability to use time is positively related to academic performance. But it takes a lot of commitment by a student to significantly increase the number of hours he studies.”

How did you do on your midterms? Do you think you’ll sign up for a harder class next term?

If you peruse the Questia site, you will find a diverse selection offering users:

• More than three thousand full-text online books across a wide range of communications subjects
• More than one thousand full-text academic communication journals
• More than 900 magazine articles and 200+ newspaper articles

For example, on argumentation and advocacy, you’ll find 366 articles from more than 77 issues. Questia features more than 1,500 issues of Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly and more than 1,000 issues of Journalism History. Questia also offers 521 articles from the Business Communication Quarterly, more than 1,000 issues of Journalism History, as well as 410 articles of Women’s Studies in Communication.

Below are just some of our most popular communication books covering topics such as argumentation, interpersonal communications, and business communication that you’ll find on Questia:

Interpersonal Communication

Authors Hargie and Dickson provide an essential reference for the study of interpersonal communication. The book is concerned with the identification, analysis and evaluation of a range of skills that are employed widely in interaction. Detailed accounts are provided of fourteen areas, namely: nonverbal communication; reinforcement; questioning; reflecting, listening; explaining; self-disclosure; set induction; closure; assertiveness; influencing; negotiating; and interacting in, and leading, group discussions.

[Hargie, Owen, and David Dickson. Skilled Interpersonal Communication: Research, Theory, and Practice. 4th ed. London: Routledge, 2004. Questia. Web. 17 Jan. 2013.]

Organizational Communication

Organizational communication (business communication) is one of the fastest growing of academic disciplines. Contributors Holiday and Kullman seek to critically examine the true impact of key current themes in management for the practice of communications. The book examines the wider context of management and the crises faced by organizations. One of its key features is that contributors have been drawn from a wide variety of countries, including the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Norway.

[Tourish, Dennis, and Owen Hargie, eds. Key Issues in Organizational Communication. London: Routledge, 2004. Questia. Web. 17 Jan. 2013.]

Intercultural Communication

The Routledge Applied Linguistics Series provides a comprehensive guide to the key areas in the field of applied linguistics. The target audience for the series is upper undergraduates and postgraduates on language, applied linguistics and communication studies programs as well as teachers and researchers in professional development and distance learning programs.

[Holliday, Adrian, Martin Hyde, and John Kullman. Intercultural Communication: An Advanced Resource Book. London: Routledge, 2004. Questia. Web. 17 Jan. 2013.]

Political Communication

Modern political communication research is very much an interdisciplinary field of study, drawing on concepts from communication, political science, journalism, sociology, and other fields. Editor Lynda Lee Kaid stresses theoretical overviews and research synthesis with the goal of bringing together the major thrusts of research and theory in political communication. This handbook approaches the field of political communication with an organizational structure that relies on six divisions, including theory, political advertising and debates, news media coverage, public opinion, international perspectives, and the impact of the Internet.

[Kaid, Lynda Lee, ed. Handbook of Political Communication Research. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2004. Questia. Web. 17 Jan. 2013.]

Argumentation

Argumentation is an introduction to analyzing, evaluating, and presenting oral and written argumentation. It is based on a series of basic insights from the pragma-dialectical theory of argumentation. The book deals with the identification of differences of opinion, the determination of unexpressed premises, the exposition of argument schemes, the analysis of the structure of argumentation, the evaluation of the soundness of argumentation, and the detection of fallacies as violations of rules for critical discussion.

[Van Eemeren, Frans H., Rob Grootendorst, and A. Francisca Snoeck Henkemans. Argumentation: Analysis, Evaluation, Presentation. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2002. Questia. Web. 17 Jan. 2013.]

Instead of searching for communication journals on trends, advocacy, and/or interpersonal communications, start searching through the books and articles on Questia.

Watch the short video below to learn how to perform basic and advanced searches through Questia:

#1 Gather your tools

Successful students don’t necessarily know everything but they do know where to find it. For many students the first stop for academic writing, reading and research is Questia, the world’s largest online library with thousands of full text books, magazines and reports. But more than that, Questia also has tons of cutting-edge tutorials, videos, and examples to help you research and complete your writing projects in record time.

#2 Manage your time well

Mastering your time schedule is a top priority for the successful student. No one knows this better than Hai Nguyen who earned his doctorate at Stanford University while also acting as a teacher’s assistant, researcher, and part-time consultant.

In a June 14, 2012 article for Appfluence.com titled, “Top 10 time management skills for college students from a Stanford entrepreneur,” Nguyen listed his top tips for time management.

“Write everything you have to do down, especially if you are thinking about it. The worst thing that you can do on a daily basis is use your active brain to think about small irrelevant things. It destroys your focus and makes it impossible to enjoy the moment,” Nguyen concluded.

#3 Show up

According to the great humorist Woody Allen, “Eighty percent of success is showing up.” What he means is that you stand a much better chance of succeeding if you dive in and get involved with your project — whatever it is. In your case it’s your classes. Showing up also means being an active participant, sharing, taking notes and doing the work.

#4 Know and be known

Showing up to class also means that you’ll get to know your instructors and they will get to know you. Developing a working relationship with your instructors can pay off in many ways. Not only will you feel more comfortable asking for help on assignments, you may be able to get recommendations for internships and jobs down the road.

#5 Take care of yourself

Just because you’re working hard to develop your mind doesn’t mean that you can get away with neglecting your body or your spirit. Be sure to take time for sleeping, eating, exercise, and recreation with friends. St. John’s University offered its list of “Ten Tips for Student Success,” which included the following tip:

“Get involved in campus activities. It will help you learn valuable skills, expand your social network and enhance your self-confidence. Seek out opportunities to apply what you learn in the classroom.”

#6 Learn it right the first time

Steve Pavlina graduated college with two degrees and did it in three semesters. In a May 8, 2006 post to StevePavlina.com titled, “10 Tips for College Students,” Steve described how he approached his college tasks. Key strategies included:

• Setting goals for each class: goals include the grade, a letter of recommendation, or mastering the material
• Allocating time based on specific goals: spend more time in achieving the goals with the bigger payoff
• Mastering advanced memory techniques: learning the material the first time it’s presented can save students a lot of time

#7 Find your grit

Researcher Angela Duckworth found that intelligence is not the only predictor of student success. Character is just as important. Specifically, Duckworth found that passion and dedication to success, despite meeting obstacles, was a reliable predictor of success. She termed this quality, “grit.”

In a May 3, 2012 post for Forbes.com titled, “Got Grit? The Secret Sauce to Success,” Shabbir Dahod described what he has learned about the theory of grit. “So people are not just born great technologists, salesmen or marketers and it requires constant effort in a specific direction to build the knowledge and skills to become great at a task or market,” Dahod said.

It’s like the old story of the tortoise and the hare. Those who are successful, who win the race, are not necessarily those who run the fastest. Success goes to those who stick to their task despite setbacks, failure, and discouragement. The winners are those who work hard and focus on constant improvement especially in areas where they lack talent or skill.

The moral of the story is, to be a winner you have find your passion — find your grit.

Get the big picture

A great way to get an overview of your topic is to visit Questia, the world’s largest online library where you can read full-text articles and books on hundreds of subjects. Within the topic of communication you’ll find such categories as:

• Film
• Legal and ethical issues in journalism
• Advertising
• Linguistics
• Written language

You can continue to drill down by category and gain a focus that will frame your approach and make research and writing easier. For example, in the category of legal and ethical issues in journalism you will find several sub-categories including the fairness doctrine. Further exploration will present you with books and articles such as The First Amendment under Siege: The Politics of Broadcast Regulation by Richard E. Labunski.

You’ll be able to read a sample from the book including this excerpt from the Introduction, “The special position that the First Amendment is granted in our system is a recognition of the paramount importance of the free exchange of ideas to self-government. Freedom of speech and press provisions of the First Amendment are designed to prevent interference with the exchange of information if citizens are to make intelligent decisions when choosing public officials and shaping policy.”

Find your resources at school

If you’re a student or teacher, be sure to check with your school librarian for a list of available resources. Many libraries subscribe to research databases such as EBSCO and LexisNexis where you can search for and read articles from a multitude of sources.

You may also find that your school hosts a web page with a list of online resources such as one from the University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Department of Communication Studies. Its list of resources related to communication studies includes links to sites on advertising, digital media, and visual communication.

On the Web

The Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism creates its annual State of the News Media report, which in 2011 included a survey on how people use mobile technology to get local news.

A great resource for those interested in journalism is JournalistResource.org where resources abound for journalists, instructors and students. If you’re interested in research, you may want to read John Wihbey’s interview of Alison Head in his January 27, 2012 post titled, “Research chat: Information scientist Alison Head on student habits.” Head, a lead researcher of the University of Washington’s Project Information Literacy examines how students seek information.

“Yet educators may be surprised to learn that the most difficult part of course-related research is the beginning of the process, especially framing a research problem. When we surveyed more [than] 8,300 students at 25 U.S. institutions in 2010, more than 80% of respondents reported they had the most difficulty getting started on course-related research assignments. Another 66% could not define a research topic or narrow it,” Head explained.

Trade associations

College students who are preparing for a career in communications or journalism would do well to join a professional association such as the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A’s). Students can usually join such organizations at a discount rate and take advantage of numerous resources as well as the chance to meet and make connections with those who are established in the industry.

The 4A’s site hosts three blogs, one of which, the Inkblot is, “Less of a blog and more of a journal of ideas and observations, this is a place where industry professionals can share their thoughts on the state of the industry, where consumers can learn more about the creators of the products, brands, and campaigns they interact with every day, where advertising executives can mete out their knowledge and expertise, and where clients can visit to gain perspective on the effectiveness of campaigns.”

Play the field

As we approach the start of our president’s second term in office, our thoughts are filled with news and opinions on the nature of governance and the workings of our political system. You might want to focus your term paper on a topic related to the election. Even so, this is still a wide area to research. You might want to make your first stop Questia, the world’s largest online library with thousands of full-text books and magazines.

Once at Questia, you can begin your search within the category of politics and government where you will find such sub-categories as:

• Political movements
• Political parties
• Public policy
• U.S. government
• Elections
• Political figures — U.S.

Let’s say that you decide to do research on the career of Barack Obama. Follow the Barack Obama topic page to a list of full textbooks and articles that you can read to your heart’s content.

One of the journal articles about the president is “The Obama Presidential Transition: An Early Assessment” by John P. Burke published in Presidential Studies Quarterly, 2009. In the article, Burke described the various strategies employed by Barack Obama and his team, both before and after the election to ensure a smooth transition into office. Through his descriptions of the campaign, you get a fly-on-the-wall look at how a presidential candidate moves from the campaign trail into the White House.

“President Obama signaled his intention to make a clean break from the unpopular Bush presidency with his executive orders and early policy and budget proposals. At the same time, he also sought to tamp down public expectations for quick results on the economy,” Burke said.

Ideas matter

There are all kinds of blogs related to politics, each expressing the views of its creators. You will want to review several blogs to ensure that you get a well-rounded background on the issues. A good place to start is the Ideas Matter blog where you can find posts and video content on the major issues of the day. The blog is part of the Free To Choose Network, which describes itself as “neither conservative nor liberal.”

An example of the kind of commentary you will find here is this excerpt from a February 15, 2011 post by Max Borders titled, “Ayn Rand: A Grudging Respect.” Regarding his thoughts about Rand, Borders said, “I’d venture to guess that 90 percent of classical liberals got into these ideas because of Milton Friedman, Ayn Rand or Friedrich Hayek. Their effect is just that profound. While I no longer consider Rand’s Objectivist philosophy to be philosophically rigorous or well-grounded, I owe her for everything I am.”

What’s so great about this blog post is that it, like all of the posts at Ideas Matter, contains video clips. In this case, you can see the 1959 interview of Ayn Rand by Mike Wallace and learn about her philosophy in her own words.

Other political science resources

The Library of Congress: Government, Politics and Law — You can browse on topics such as: civil rights, the courts and the judicial branch, elections, and voting.

The American Political Science Association (APSANet): the site contains a section dedicated to students where you can find links to information about: networking with others in the political science community, trends, data, and careers in political science.

MIT Open Courseware: this site contains lecture notes from several political science courses that have been held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Gallup: You may have heard of the Gallup poll research studies. The Gallup site contains information derived from its studies.

Academic Earth: at the political science page you will find free video courses on such topics as: game theory, international politics, and capitalism.

Your professors will appreciate your hard work!

Around this time of year, students may begin to feel a bit of panic as they realize that final exams are rapidly approaching. Not to worry! I’ve been a college instructor for going on 16 years now and I’m going to spill the beans on how students can get better grades on their final exams. Here’s my list of insider tips on how to study and prepare for that all-important final.

Tip #1 — Think like a professor

How can you prepare for your finals? Think like your professor. What would he or she put on the final? What has been discussed and covered in depth in the course? Still not sure? Ask your professor what will be covered on the final, what kinds of questions will be asked: essay, true/false, problems, etc., and study for that type of exam.

It’s all very likely covered in your syllabus and on the web site for your course, if there is one. But it never hurts to ask. While you’re at it, ask for advice on how you can improve in areas where your performance has been weak.

Tip #2 — There are no shortcuts to success

Unfortunately, there are no shortcuts, although students still seem to look for them. One shortcut, cheating, is a tactic that I won’t ever recommend. Sooner or later you will be caught and the consequences can harm you for the rest of your life.

Claire Potter, Professor of History at The New School for Public Engagement in New York offered this advice in a December 7, 2011 post for TenuredRadical titled, “If I Had College-Age Children, I Would Give Them This Advice for the Final Weeks of School: Don’t Cheat.”

“My point is this: because cheating is evidence of rank stupidity, many people do not get away with it. In fact, many people are no better at cheating than they are at doing the work for the course. Others spend time that might have gone into conventional studying devising elaborate systems for cheating,” Potter said.

Tip #3 – Reduce your anxiety — Be honest with yourself

One reason why students don’t do well on finals is that they manage to work themselves up into a frenzy of worry and fear. Do yourself a favor and find a way to reduce your level of anxiety.

In a February 12, 2011 article for Science News, titled, “The Write Stuff for Test Anxiety: Fearful Students Score Better If They Jot Down Their Worries,” Bruce Bower described a method that might be of help to students preparing for finals. That method includes writing down your list of worries before taking the exam.

“Among test-anxious students, those who wrote about exam-related feelings scored an average of 6 percent higher on the final than those who wrote about biology topics. Expressive writers received a B+ average on the final, versus a B- for biology writers,” Bower reported.

Tip #4 — Start early

It may sound trite but the time to prepare for your final exam really begins on the first day of the semester. If you wait until a week before the exam to get serious about studying, you may be setting yourself up for failure.

In a May 16, 2006 post for CastingOutNines.com titled, “Thoughts while grading finals,” math instructor Robert Talbert expressed his thoughts as he waded through a pile of final exams.

“Final exams week is a model for how our campus should look all year long: students asking questions and coming to office hours, all the laptops checked out of the student center, people getting together to study, people talking about what’s going on in their classes [...] there’s an air of a significant undertaking being taken seriously,” Talbert mused.

Tip #5 — Take responsibility

After spending years grading final exams I can tell you that as an instructor I want my students to succeed. I don’t enjoy handing out failing grades. I don’t believe that any instructor does. But we can only assign a grade based on what the student turns in. So it’s up to each student to take responsibility for learning the material, finding out what will be required on the final and then preparing for the final to the best of their ability.

Need more ideas? The staff at Eastfield College in Dallas, Texas have come up with a list of 101 Ways to Prepare for Final Exams Now. Check it out and good luck to you on your finals!

Find a topic, form a plan

Before you do anything else you need to decide what you will write about in your term paper assignment. Your teacher may have given you a list of requirements; be sure to read these and get all your questions answered before you start working.

You also need to know what kind of term paper your teacher wants. Examples of common types of papers can be found at the A+ Research and Writing site maintained by the Internet Public Library (IPL).

Term papers typically fall into categories such as:

• Research paper
• Essay
• Argumentative or persuasive essay
• Compare and contrast
• Narrative essays

Next, examine the possible topics that you can write about. A great site for researching topics is Questia, the premier online research and paper-writing tool for students. One helpful text is Shortcuts for the Student Writer by Jay Silverman, Elaine Hughes, and Diana Roberts Wienbroer.

The authors suggest that, once you’ve found your topic, you make a list of main points that might be in your paper along with any details that come to mind. Then start grouping the ideas into categories. You can do this easily with a computer or by hand with index cards.

“Then make a new list with the related points grouped together. Decide which idea is most important and cross out ideas or details that do not relate to it. Arrange your points so that each will lead up to the next. Be sure each section of your essay has examples or facts to strengthen your ideas.”

Freewriting

Teachers don’t just want you to repeat what others have said; they want to know what you have to say. A helpful technique to get you started is called freewriting. Here’s how it works. You set yourself a goal of writing non-stop for 10 minutes jotting down:

• What you know about the topic
• What interests you about the topic
• What questions you have about the topic

The questions you have will help form the backbone of your term paper and will give you a focus for your research.

Allen Brizee described a freewriting process that he called “prewriting” in his June 8, 2011 post for the Purdue Online Writing Lab titled, “Introduction to Prewriting (Invention).” To help get your ideas flowing Brizee suggested, “Brainstorm. Gather as many good and bad ideas, suggestions, examples, sentences, false starts, etc. as you can. Perhaps some friends can join in. Jot down everything that comes to mind, including material you are sure you will throw out. Be ready to keep adding to the list at odd moments as ideas continue to come to mind.”

Writing the introduction

It’s easy to get writer’s block, especially if you try to write your paper from beginning to end. Oddly enough, it’s easier to write the introduction to your term paper at the end of the process at the same time you write your conclusion. The purpose of your introduction is to, well, introduce what you’re going to say in your paper. You can do that best after you have already written the body of the paper.

Writing the introduction and conclusion at the same time allows you to:

• Introduce your topic and tell your reader what they will learn by reading your paper
• Summarize and bring together all of your main points in your conclusion where you will echo the promises that you made in your introduction.

The Cambridge Rindge & Latin School (CRLS) Research Guide has several Tip Sheets with advice for writing papers. Regarding the introduction, the writers said, “Start with a couple of sentences that introduce your topic to your reader. You do not have to give too much detailed information; save that for the body of your paper. Make these sentences as interesting as you can. Through them, you can hook a reader and get them very interested in the line of thinking you are going to develop in your project.”

At this point you have your intro and conclusion along with a list of main points to expand on. Now that your juices are flowing, you can complete the body of your paper with style and confidence.

Religions View Religions

With a plethora of varying theologies, it’s interesting to analyze how the different religions view their counterparts. A popular model of theology of religion known as relativizing pluralism maintains that all religions are simply many paths all leading to one and the same goal. In other words, this theory suggests that there is no essential difference between the varying religions. However, there are flaws with this theory, most notably that “the refusal or failure on the part of relativist pluralism to recognize genuine religious differences and uniqueness constitutes a refusal and failure to take people of other faiths and their religions seriously,” (Gort, Jansen & Vroom 3).   [Gort, Jerald D., Henry Jansen, and Hendrik M. Vroom, eds. Religions View Religions: Explorations in Pursuit of Understanding. Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2006. Questia.]

Global Religions

It may appear that religions are spatially defined. For example, Buddhism is local to China, the Middle East represents Islam and Christianity reigns over Europe and the Western Hemisphere. However, while roots may be traced back to certain locations, it has never actually been like that and religions are in fact global. Over the course of time religions have moved, shifted and interacted with other religions around the globe. “Religion is global in that it is related to the global transportation of peoples and the transnational acceptance of religious ideas,” (Juergensmeyer 5). In addition, religion is global in a third way, in which forms of new religion emerge as expressions of new interactive cultures. [Juergensmeyer, Mark, ed. Global Religions: An Introduction. New York: Oxford UP, 2003.Questia.]

Religions of the Ancient World

Religions have been crucial to society for thousands of years, and throughout the years, ancient peoples were exposed to a diversity of religions. Most notably, religious beliefs and practices were transmitted throughout the Mediterranean as people journeyed from one place to the next selling skills as healers, purifiers, cursers and initiators. The transmission of goods and beliefs resulted in the acknowledgment of similarities across religions and changes to each religion that occurred as travels continued.  [Johnston, Sarah Iles, ed. Religions of the Ancient World: A Guide. Cambridge, MA: Belknap, 2004. Questia.]

Religions in the Modern World

With globalization, politics and secularization, religion in the modern world has transformed greatly. There have been examples of religious actors with political goals touring third world countries, where religious beliefs are the top of publicly expressed sociopolitical concerns. On the other hand, in recent years the interaction of church and state has continued to be a stressed point in American politics and the lines are being drawn more clearly.  [Woodhead, Linda, Paul Fletcher, Hiroko Kawanami, and David Smith, eds. Religions in the Modern World: Traditions and Transformations. London: Routledge, 2002. Questia.]

The Spirituality Revolution

The spirituality revolution is defined as “a spontaneous movement in society, a new interest in the reality of spirit and its healing effects on life, health, community and well-being,”(Tacey 1). As a continuously changing society, ideal values and beliefs that existed have seemingly become outdated. The spirituality revolution revises concepts of life, society and progress and intertwines new discoveries in physics, biology, psychology and ecology that restores dignity to previously discredited spiritual visions of reality. [Tacey, David. The Spirituality Revolution: The Emergence of Contemporary Spirituality. Hove, England: Brunner-Routledge, 2004. Questia.]

For further research on spiritual literacy, visit Questia! What other interesting reads would you recommend for Spiritual Literacy Month?

All Quiet on the Western Front 1930 movie still

Spotlighting Erich Maria Remarque’s engaging novel, All Quiet on the Western Front, we at Questia, the premier online research and digital library tool for students, are paying homage to five of the most  searing novels published in the 20^th century. These are anti-war books profiling individuals impacted by their participation in military conflict. To honor these significant contributions, we’ve granted access to reference works and literary analyses on five of history’s most researched anti-war novels for free for the entire month!

All Quiet on The Western Front
The novel was first published in 1929, and received critical acclaim, leading to the 1930 film of the same name. The story revolves around Paul Baumer, a soldier who is encouraged by his school teacher to join the German army and fight at the start of World War I (one). Author Erich Maria Remarque mentions at the start of the novel that the book “will try simply to tell of a generation of men who, even though they may have escaped shells, were destroyed by the war.”  The book focuses less on the heroic bravery associated with warfare and more on the conditions that soldiers find themselves in.  [Chambers, John Whiteclay, and David Culbert, eds. World War II, Film, and History. New York: Oxford UP, 1996. Questia. Web. 9 Oct. 2012.]

Johnny Got His Gun
An unforgettable portrait of a young soldier, Joe Bonham, who awakens in a hospital bed only to eventually realize that he’s lost his arms, legs, all of his face, ears, teeth, and tongue. His mind is fully intact, however, leaving him a prisoner of his body.  Written by famed black-listed writer, Dalton Trumbo, and published in 1939, the book became a “rallying cry” for those of the political left who opposed involvement in World War 2 (two).  [Rollins, Peter C., and John E. O'Connor, eds. Hollywood's World War I: Motion Picture Images. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University Popular, 1997. Questia. Web. 9 Oct. 2012.]

Catch – 22
The book that introduced the phrase “Catch -22” into the English language was arguably author Joseph Heller’s most famous novel, a satirical take on the insanity of warfare and its critique of the military infrastructure and bureaucracy. The novel was first published in 1961 and follows the experience of Captain John Yossarian, a B-25 bombardier in the U.S. Air Force, serving on the island of Pianosa off the coast of Italy during World War 2 (II).  [Woodson, Jon. A Study of Joseph Heller's Catch-22: Going around Twice. New York: Peter Lang, 2001.Questia. Web. 9 Oct. 2012.]

The Red Badge of Courage
A graphic account of one man’s experience during  the American Civil War, the book tells the story of Union Army private Henry Fleming, who flees from the field of battle. Filled with shame, and longing for a “red badge of courage,” he later joins up with his regiment, leading it to battle. Written by American author, Stephen Crane, the story was first published as a novel in 1895 and received to general positive acclaim. Although Crane was born after the Civil War, his account of the civil war is known for its realism and explores themes of heroism, cowardice and indifference to nature. [Johnson, Claudia Durst. Understanding The Red Badge of Courage: A Student Casebook to Issues, Sources, and Historical Documents. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1998. Questia. Web. 9 Oct. 2012.]

Slaughterhouse-Five
Author Kurt Vonnegut’s most famous satirical novel about the World War II (two) experiences of a soldier named Billy Pilgrim. Pilgrim is an ill-trained soldier, captured by the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge. The bombing of Dresden is a central event impacting Pilgrim’s mental state. He later finds himself kidnapped by extraterrestrial aliens from the planet Tralfamadore. Published in 1969, the book went on to receive critical acclaim although it became the subject of numerous attempts at censorship due to its profanity and depictions of sex.  [Marvin, Thomas F. Kurt Vonnegut: A Critical Companion. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2002. Questia. Web. 9 Oct. 2012.]

Visit Questia’s topic page on anti-war for more information. If not already a member, you can try Questia free for one day and conduct research into anti-war novels and books.

Grow your brain

As summer winds down, another semester is just heating up! It’s time again to gear up for fall semester and Questia can help you make it a breeze. You’ll want to want to make sure you stay organized, grow your brain to retain what you learn and adapt new study skills such as the concept of “active study.”

A few simple strategies are all you need to get yourself supercharged and ready to go back to school for fall classes, and the new and improved Questia.com can help you on your way.

Stay organized by getting into the work flow

When it comes to organizing your study time more efficiently, you’ll need to have some solid skills in place. The book, “How to Be a Student: 100 Great Ideas and Practical Habits for Students Everywhere,” by Sarah Moore and Maura Murphy offers some ideas on how to develop those skills. Moore and Murphy draw from many experts in the field of learning and memory such as Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, a psychologist who studies how people can work and learn more effectively.

Csikszentmihalyi calls this state of effectiveness “flow.” How do you get into the flow? Moore and Murphy list tips including:

• Concentrate: get rid of anything in your environment that could distract you from focusing on your studies.
• Challenge yourself: push yourself to the next level and get help with any skills gap that you discover.
• Schedule your time: use a calendar to map out the weeks and months ahead. Pace yourself so that you’ll work more efficiently and with less anxiety. Otherwise, those research assignment due dates can sneak up on you unexpectedly.

Questia helps you to stay organized throughout your research and writing process. Questia Senior Product Manager Gary Jeppsen reveals that the website’s recent redesign includes “a larger library, intuitive navigation and search filters for finding research faster, and a slick new interactive reader that makes it easy to read, create citations, take notes and organize your work.” Organization from start to finish!

Grow your brain and retain what you learn

You should also check out the book, “Research-Based Strategies to Ignite Student Learning: Insights from a Neurologist and Classroom Teacher,” by Judy Willis, M.D. This book is chock full of information to supercharge your brain. For instance, did you know that you could grow new pathways in your brain by learning skills such as juggling or a foreign language? It’s true. Researchers have found that learning these skills will actually increase the gray matter in the visual memory area of the brain.

Once you learn the skill, you have to keep at it or the newly acquired brain matter will vanish. “It is the ‘use it or lose’ phenomenon. The process is called ‘pruning’ because the brain pathways and connections that are used regularly are maintained and ‘hard-wired,’ while others are eliminated, or pruned,” Willis said. It sounds like this could sure come in handy when it comes to preventing writers’ block!

Still need a little help to get your creative juices flowing when it comes to research papers and creative assignments, though? Questia Content Manager Nancy Buchanan recommends heading to Questia’s collection of research topic pages for help in selecting your topic and sources. “Our topic pages provide students and researchers alike with great resources categorized by subject. These topics link users directly to high-quality sources that were all hand-selected by librarians,” said Buchanan. This means you can be sure that everything you’re linked to is relevant to your assignment’s topic!

Build new study skills

If you’ve been in college for any amount of time, you’ve probably figured out that the same tactics that got you the good grades in high school may not be working so well for you now in college. That’s because the papers, tests and assignments ask you to demonstrate a deeper level of knowledge and to show your ability to use what you’ve learned in new and different settings.

In other words, simple memorization won’t be good enough. You’ll need to develop new study skills. You’ll get an idea of how to study successfully at the Dartmouth Academic Skills Center where they recommend study habits such as:

• Study in chunks
• Use daylight hours
• Study actively
• Find the right place to study

What is “active study”? It’s when you involve as many senses as you can to see, hear and feel the information you’re learning. It’s developing tools such as mnemonic devices to help you memorize new concepts. For example, use your favorite song to help you remember a long list of items or use the first letter of each item to create a word or name. Active study also includes using note cards. Reading them aloud will keep you more actively engaged in learning the content.

With a little planning and practice, you can make sure that your attitude is primed and ready to start when the fall semester begins. Instead of floundering around trying to organize your deadlines, you’ll have your plan of attack all mapped out. And, who would have ever guessed that learning to juggle might help you improve those creative thinking skills? Following these tips and looking to the new and improved Questia.com this semester will see you rising to the challenge of your greatest academic goals this semester!

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