A Ton of Crap (18 page)

READING

Speed Reading
Speed reading is the process of increasing the rate at which one reads without significantly reducing comprehension of the material. There are several methods one can use for speed reading, such as skimming, where one scans sentences for clues to figure out the meaning; or meta guiding, where one guides their eyes by using something (typically their finger) to point to the text.

SCIENTIFIC NOTATION

Example of Scientific Notation
So now let’s look at a simple example of scientific notation.

3 × 104 = 30,000

The 3 can also be shown as 3.0 because there are no numbers following it. From there, we then have to move the decimal point an additional four spots. We move to the right, because the exponent is positive.

Similarly, to show the number 5,000 in scientific notation, it would look like this:

5 × 103

THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

The Esophagus
The tongue pushes the food to the back of the throat, toward the opening of the esophagus. The esophagus is a pipe responsible for moving food from the throat to the stomach. When a person swallows, a little flap called the epiglottis closes the windpipe, ensuring the food goes down the esophagus. Along the walls of the esophagus, muscles squeeze the food, until it reaches the stomach.

POLISH

Dialects
There are several dialects of Polish. Greater Polish is the dialect of the west, Lesser Polish is spoken in southern and southeastern Poland, Mazovian is spoken in eastern and central parts, Silesian is spoken in the south and southwest, and Highlander is spoken on the border of Poland of the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Highlander is strongly influenced by Romanian, as a result of migrants.

THE MAGNA CARTA

The Creation of the Magna Carta
Following the loss against the French, the English revolted against King John. In 1215, the Magna Carta was created. To this day, it is still one of the most celebrated documents ever written. Literally meaning “The Great Charter,” the Magna Carta consisted of thirty-seven laws that greatly reduced the power of the king and allowed for the formation of a parliament. King John of England was forced to sign the document.

READING

Subvocalized Reading
Subvocalization is considered to be a bad habit if one wishes to understand and accomplish speed reading, but it is something that everyone does naturally. Subvocalization is the process of sounding the word out in your head as you read. This internal voice actually slows down the process of reading because you are saying the word at the rate at which you speak, which is not necessary when reading.

SCIENTIFIC NOTATION

Scientific Notation with Negative Integers
For negative integers, you go back the number of spaces the integer indicates.

For example:

500 × 10-1 = 50.

You start at 500, which can be shown as 500.0, and you move the decimal point to the left one space, making it 50. No matter how complex the number may appear, to turn a number into decimal notation, you must follow the exponent.

THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

The Stomach
The stomach has three roles: to store food, to break the food down into chyme (a semifluid paste), and to empty the chyme into the small intestine. The stomach breaks the food down with the help of gastric juices that line the walls of the organ. The gastric juices start breaking the food down to its essential nutrients, and kill any harmful bacteria that may be in the food.

POLISH

Kashubian
Kashubian is one of the more commonly spoken variants of Polish. It is spoken in the north of Poland, west of Gdansk, and in Pomerania. The argument over whether Kashubian is a distinct language on its own or another dialect of Polish has long been disputed. It has been decided that Kashubian is in fact another language; however, the similarities between the languages are striking. Nevertheless, those who speak Polish will not understand Kashubian unless it is written down.

THE MAGNA CARTA

Clause 61
A large section of the Magna Carta is referred to today as Clause 61. This established the creation of a committee composed of twenty-five barons who would have the power to overcome the rule of the king at any time should he defy what was written in the Charter. If necessary, these barons could seize the king’s possessions and castles. Both King John and the pope refused to allow this, and England entered into a civil war, known as the First Barons’ War. The Magna Carta was only valid for three months, and was considered to be a failure.