Above And Below, 2022, Ig

Taking a slight tangent from classical optics, I decided to delve more into non-linear optics.

As someone who never had to use Gaussian form of Maxwell's equations, never used Tensors, and had never used Einsteins notation for summation; let me just say the algebra of the book proved to be a hard nut to crack!

What am I learning about? Anisotropy! Who knew that the direction at which you observe/propagate through a material such as a crystal plays a role in the material properties you will experience!!

I still don't believe you can determine eigenvalues and eigenvectors for an arbitrary 3x3 permittivity matrix (I need to use numerical examples to really see it) and that there exists rotational matricies that let us make the math all neat and proper.

But, slowly and with growing pains, I am continuing to slowly tread the waters of this fascinating topic!

a quick “why is my life so bad” checklist

how’s your sleep schedule

have you eaten or drank anything besides sugar and caffeine

how long have you been sitting in one spot

have you gone out in public recently

have you taken a shower/brushed your teeth/groomed yourself properly

have you spent time doing an activity that doesn’t involve a screen

etc

non-basic study tips ive derived myself as a stem major lol

going from easiest to hardest to implement

i have very big trouble with focusing and interest so a lot of this will relate to attention retention

- look up the problems on your past tests. chances are your lecturer is consistently pulling them from 1-3 sources (true for most intro classes)

-practice with a timer since day 0 of learning about a new topic. this will prevent you from short circuiting on the exam and forgetting all about the topic you've studied for hours

-as you are going through a problem, mumble your thought process as if you are ochem tutor 2.0

- if you are multilingual, try taking lecture notes in a language other than the one they are provided in - this will force you to think critically about the material you are writing down

-leave. work. at the work table. dont think about assignments when you are spending time with friends or family.

-in general, the intensity of my background noise is inversely proportional to my stimulation levels usually i try to go ambient noise -> lofi/instrumentals -> study vlogs -> music with lyrics however, if you can take a break instead of listening to music that will make you more restless, it is better to do that

-usually, the boredom from practicing something boring does not feel as bad as realizing you have understudied that topic. persevere. you can do it!

I feel you... I am a bit younger, but I have lost so many years too, and with that I feel like I've lost myself too. Something that has helped me is to lower my expectations and slow down in life, and to allow myself to grieve those lost times. Also to allow myself to be disappointed, and than forgive yourself. You don't have to be anything right now, you just have to exist and keep pushing forward. And have the belief that the answer will reveal itself to you the more you allow yourself to experience life. At least, that is what I am hoping for.

Also don't forget you are way stronger than you think! 💖

i KNOW that 25 is not old i KNOW that i have more time to be someone but i also feel like i have lost so much youth to my mental illness and grief and that in itself is part of the reason why i cannot bring myself to be anything

"Kill them with kindness" wrong. 10 BILLION WATT DEATH RAY ⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡💥⚡

doing your best doesn’t mean you have to work until exhaustion. doing your best doesn’t mean you have to give it 100% all of the time. doing your best can be working until you’ve hit your limit and then respecting your limit.

things i do to boost my studying ♡

planning:

watching productivity vids on youtube (my playlist in case you want to check it out)

monthly study plan

notion page to keep track

motivation:

personalised wallpapers

pinterest board

study affs every morning

instrumentals for chem, smooth rock for math

cutting out distractions:

disabling instagram

cold turkey website blocker

other:

talking to people who have been/are on the same journey and getting to know their pov

using a skincare band (to protect my hair from my fidgety fingers while studying, it sounds dumb lol but thats how it be sometimes)