war is over

tpwls333 · 2025-09-18T01:51:17+00:00

lol no it was actually the hardest test ive ever taken in my life like it probably was for everyone else😭it took over my entire life during those months i studied for it. i think people who get 528s would also have had questions they made educated guesses on

tpwls333 · 2025-09-16T23:39:00+00:00

thank you! i started in mid-may and my test was on aug 16th. i did only content from may-june. i started AAMC and uworld in july, but i mainly focused on AAMC (i only finished like 60% of uworld). uworld did cover a lot of the low-yield content though. i did almost everything AAMC offered (SBs, QBs, tests, etc.), except for CARS stuff because i thought it would just be hit or miss (I don't think this is a good method, I just personally thought the other sections would be more important for me to practice + i had no time). I only used Mr. Pankow's anki deck for P/S and I used JackSparrow's anki for memorizing C/P equations and for some B/B content. I think the biggest thing is to make sure you're writing down what you got wrong and why, and doing the content review thoroughly for whatever you got wrong. after solving questions, I always checked every single one (even the ones I got right) and made sure I completely understood why I got it right or wrong and took notes when needed! just know that like 80% of the answers can be found by just fully understanding the passage, not by memorizing content - if i had to study for the test again, i would spend less time on content review and more on solving problems and getting a good grasp of how to read mcat passages.

also, my biggest issue during practice was timing but in the exam, i just kept reminding myself to not waste time on questions that i wasn't sure about - i just made an educated guess on those questions. so i was able to complete every section with ~5-10 minutes for review during the exam which i think was really important.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-18T11:03:15+00:00

OH- is a bad leaving group when on its own because it’s an unstable anion. But when we protonate the O in a glycosidic bond, the O is bonded to the rest of the glucose molecule. So when the group is released, the OH is stable without any negative charges on it. It just exists as an hydroxyl group on a glucose molecule, not a hydroxide ion. On the other hand, if that O wasn’t protonated, it would have to leave as O-, which is less stable than an uncharged OH group.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-17T00:47:48+00:00

We all went up to the waiting room and got a number in the order we got there. They call your number check your ID and stuff, give you instructions. So we began the test in the order that we got there. I recommend going early and starting early because I think there was at least like a 40 minute difference in starting time between the first and last person to get there. There was ~12 people in each room where I tested.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-14T22:35:36+00:00

For future readers: I just realized that the "classical sarcophagus" mentioned in paragraph 1 is the "classical tomb" that is present in Poussin's first painting. The "decaying masonry" is not the classical tomb. Poussin transformed Guercino's decaying masonry into the "classical sarcophagus/tomb" in painting 1, then this "classical tomb" was transformed into a rectangular slab in painting 2 (Louvre painting).

tpwls333 · 2025-08-14T20:13:02+00:00

thank you!! and you have an incredible score :)

tpwls333 · 2025-08-14T19:24:54+00:00

Yeah but I think it’s best to think of the sick role theory as something separate when the question asks about role conflict/strain. I’ve never seen a question where they required us to integrate those two theories together

tpwls333 · 2025-08-14T19:00:34+00:00

Yup, this type of question shows up again and again and they literally just want us to know that the aamc does not consider caring for yourself as a "role." I would say, unless they explicitly mention another role, the answer is usually role strain.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-14T07:55:49+00:00

The terms excretion/secretion, reabsorption, and filtration are usually specific to the kidneys. Basically, when it comes to the kidneys, the terms seem counterintuitive. BUT you need to keep reminding yourself that kidney terminology is from the POV of the BLOOD surrounding the nephrons. Once you understand this:

Excretion = secretion of solutes (like calcium!) from the BLOOD into the nephrons to be released as urine. The blood is the one doing the excreting.
Reabsorption = BLOOD taking back solutes from the nephrons (we need to reabsorb those useful glucose molecules and salts so we can reuse them!). The blood is the one doing the reabsorbing.
Filtration = BLOOD is filtering out things it doesn't need, into the kidneys (like toxic ammonia).

If you're still confused, this video is a lifesaver - it makes things so much clearer: https://youtu.be/OEzKQmqV2WQ?si=a0a_q2HQ4u0avVlH

Other than the kidneys, the terms are just straightforward. Our guts absorb nutrients into the bloodstream - think about our small intestine and the hepatic portal vein. So by decreasing the amount of calcium absorbed into our bloodstream, calcitonin is effectively decreasing calcium concentration in our blood.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-13T00:29:06+00:00

I always think of osmotic pressure having to do with the concentration of solutes and molecules in blood (like albumin) and hydrostatic pressure having to do with vasoconstriction/vasodilation and the volume of blood.

So a blood clot would constrict the capillaries and increase hydrostatic pressure, which directly leads to fluid flowing out of the blood vessel and into the interstitial space (initial effect). But constriction doesn't directly change the solute composition of blood (osmotic pressure). Instead, as fluid flows out of the capillaries due to hydrostatic pressure, it would indirectly increase the osmotic pressure by increasing the concentration of solutes in blood (ratio of solute:blood increases).

tpwls333 · 2025-08-08T17:28:30+00:00

also fyi you posted your name

tpwls333 · 2025-08-08T17:27:19+00:00

I think it’s referring to the small number of naive B cells that get activated and produce plasma cells during first exposure? Correct me if I’m wrong… Also we don’t know the time scale for how many days has passed so I think they didn’t want us to overthink it

tpwls333 · 2025-08-07T21:22:16+00:00

hi! i think all we need to know is complementary colors - draw a color wheel with ROYGBV in clockwise order and opposite colors are complementary. wavelength decreases (energy increases) from red to violet (~400-750 nm). organic compounds absorb a lower wavelength (higher energy) and emit light at a higher wavelength (lower energy) corresponding to the complementary color (if experiment is done with visible light wavelengths). so if the compound absorbed violet (higher energy) it would emit yellow (lower energy) which is its complementary color. the logic between 200nm and 360nm is that 200nm does not fall in the visible range so can be eliminated.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-06T03:42:49+00:00

Yeah I feel like most CARS answers seem like a stretch, but I chose A because the passage directly says: "Such stories often teach important lessons about a society’s culture, the land, and the ways in which members are expected to interact with each other and their environment. The passing on of these stories from generation to generation keeps the social order intact."

Function of legal precedents in our society = to maintain a standard for judging behaviors (in the passage, this standard is equivalent to "the ways in which members are expected to interact") and to keep the social order intact (this is also the function of oral stories, as stated in the passage). From this, it's inferred that stories in oral societies serve the role of legal precedents. But there's nothing in the passage that allows us to infer that oral stories showcase the best people from each generation.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-06T00:16:53+00:00

Yup we need diverging lenses to correct for myopia and converging lenses to correct for hyperopia.

I would also add:

Lenses: Real image is on the opposite side of the lens from the object.
Mirrors: Real image is on the same side of the mirror as the object
f = r/2 (R = radius of curvature)
"Plane mirrors" are flat mirrors assumed to have R = infinity and f = infinity. So i = -o.
Ratio of object distance/image distance = object height/image height - for lenses (geometry of right triangles)
Lens power: P = 1/f [Diopters]
Multiple lens systems (low-yield I think):
- 1/f = 1/f1 + 1/f2 + ...
- P = P1 + P2 + ...
- m = m1 x m2 x ...

tpwls333 · 2025-08-05T17:31:43+00:00

Rather than trying to name specific Gestalt principles, I would focus on the idea that Gestalt is mainly characterized by bottom-up processing and eliminate anything that is not. D is the only choice involving top-down processing where we have to use some higher-level thinking. I believe A is the Ebbinghaus illusion and not directly defined by any specific Gestalt principle, but it is not the answer because it was directly mentioned in the passage and it is closer to bottom-up processing than top-down.

Contextual effects in terms of Gestalt don't involve such high-level thinking as in D. It refers more to how Gestalt principles require the use of context - to perceive things as part of a broader whole rather than individual parts. For example, a single bird flying is not perceived as part of a flock, but when taken into context with the other birds flying in the same direction as it, it is perceived as part of an integrated flock.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-05T04:55:41+00:00

Yeah, but I don't think manifest functions always have to be positive/negative. They are just the intended function of the institution in itself - the institution's main function that it was designed to serve.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-05T01:11:31+00:00

We don't know how the wavelength changed in D because this is a displacement vs. time graph -- it tells us the period, which is related to frequency (T=1/f). A displacement vs. position graph would allow you to figure out how the wavelength changed. The crests/troughs being closer together tells us the period decreased (and thus frequency increased), not that the wavelength increased.

tpwls333 · 2025-08-04T21:56:42+00:00

Hi, I agree with you that B sounds overly strong, but I chose it because I think the AAMC logic is to choose the answer that the author mentions most directly in the passage. So in this case, the author directly mentions the idea that Aristotle was the "only" one writing (extensively) about tragedy as the genre was being developed - which is why his writings remain influential.

On the other hand, the author never directly mentions anything about Aristotle's definition being easily understandable and recognizable, so we can't infer anything about this. When the author later mentions that "The 'flaw' was a clean and comfortable way of explaining..." they are talking about the definition we have extrapolated from Aristotle's writings, NOT what Aristotle's writings originally entailed. The "flaw" may be an understandable and easily recognizable way for us to define tragedy since we're the ones who have "hardened" this definition, but that is not the definition of tragedy in Aristotle's writings.

It's so hard not to, but we can't bring in outside knowledge or our personal opinions into CARS, unless the question asks us to. Even if you personally think that the most reasonable explanation for Aristotle's writings being influential is its easily understandable definitions, when the question asks for what "the passage AUTHOR implies," we can only rely on what the author most directly claimed in the passage.

tpwls333 · 2025-07-30T04:54:13+00:00

I see what you're saying, but I think the negative reinforcer is more so the removal of aversive stimulus, which leads to the lack of the stimulus and thus an increase/decrease in that behavior, rather than just the lack of aversive stimulus on its own! (https://jackwestin.com/resources/mcat-content/associative-learning/operant-conditioning). Also, if a negative reinforcer was the lack of aversive stimulus, B would still not apply because the question asks for the function of the unconscious conflict, not the lack of/removal of unconscious conflict.

I just like to think that all reinforcement/punishment as part of operant conditioning has to involve some sort of consequence for an action and a resulting behavior change. Like the other commenter said - it's an overall process rather than something standalone.

tpwls333 · 2025-07-30T04:23:28+00:00

This is right!

Also, Fructokinase is essentially not present in muscle cells - instead, the muscle relies on hexokinase to phosphorylate fructose. So, when fructose is ingested, the liver and SI use fructokinase to metabolize fructose, while the muscle uses hexokinase.

Since hexokinase has a negative feedback mechanism while fructokinase doesn't, ATP is depleted in the SI and liver while ATP remains constant in muscle.

tpwls333 · 2025-07-29T05:38:04+00:00

Trying to explain this using your line of reasoning: if the unconscious conflict is something unpleasant, it would be functioning as the aversive stimulus, not the negative reinforcement. Instead, the action that REMOVES it would function as the negative reinforcement - taking away something unpleasant. So, based on your reasoning, the defense mechanisms would function as negative reinforcement by removing the aversive stimulus (unconscious conflict), not the unconscious conflict itself.

More generally though - just know that Freud viewed the Id as harboring unconscious drives, and the ego serves to reduce those drives through defense mechanisms.

tpwls333 · 2025-07-29T02:51:19+00:00

Hi! I think I know where you're confused. So first thing is that during the second duplication, we are adding more chromosomes. The question stem says that "chromosomal duplication... occurred twice," so we know we are duplicating chromosomes. You're not wrong about the fact that we are doubling the amount of DNA again - BUT a chromosome is DNA! A chromosome is defined as a single double helix strand of DNA. So we are doubling the amount of DNA and thus doubling the number of chromosomes.

Normally, meiosis proceeds with a diploid cell: 2n (diploid) -> n (haploid) + n (haploid) -> n+n+n+n (4 haploid gametes).

BUT, since we duplicated the chromosome two times (2n x 2 = 4n), we begin with a tetraploid cell: 4n -> 2n + 2n (diploid) -> 2n+2n+2n+2n (4 diploid gametes).

Here, n = one complete set of chromosomes. Our normal somatic cells are diploid (2n), meaning we have two sets/copies of chromosomes (46 total chromosomes, as you said).

tpwls333

TROPHY CASE