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Author Topic: Geoo's VCE Journey  (Read 80079 times)

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homeworkisapotato

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #60 on: June 22, 2019, 07:55:35 pm »
+2
Omg I feel like we should start a BAKING THREAD!!! And no fear, I do not like icing either. The only icing I will eat is cream cheese frosting and chocolate ganache.
omggg that would be sooo cool! I've been planning to start one toooo!

Sadly I didn’t love ACOTAR, but you could see if you enjoy it. Love your journal as usual ;)
oooooooh careful you never know when Sarah J Maas' fans are around! From what I've heard they're pretty scary ;)
2020: Biology [43]
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mango8

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #61 on: June 22, 2019, 08:46:03 pm »
+3
omggg that would be sooo cool! I've been planning to start one toooo!
oooooooh careful you never know when Sarah J Maas' fans are around! From what I've heard they're pretty scary ;)

So happy there are so many bakers here! What do you like baking?
Hahah I liked the series, it just isn't one of my all time favourites. I've read so many amazing books, it's hard for every one to be in the top. What other books do you like?

homeworkisapotato

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #62 on: June 22, 2019, 09:08:28 pm »
+1
So happy there are so many bakers here! What do you like baking?
Hahah I liked the series, it just isn't one of my all time favourites. I've read so many amazing books, it's hard for every one to be in the top. What other books do you like?
I've baked macarons, macaroons, brownies, bread, flourless lemon cake, coffee cakes, croquembouche, cream puffs (unassembled croquembouches lol), red velvet cake, choc chip cookies, basic vanilla cupcakes with buttercream frosting..unlike u guys i LOVE frosting so muchh
what do you like baking?

I like the kate daniels series, and I also like reading mangas. What about you?
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mango8

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #63 on: June 22, 2019, 09:40:57 pm »
+1
I've baked macarons, macaroons, brownies, bread, flourless lemon cake, coffee cakes, croquembouche, cream puffs (unassembled croquembouches lol), red velvet cake, choc chip cookies, basic vanilla cupcakes with buttercream frosting..unlike u guys i LOVE frosting so muchh
what do you like baking?

I like the kate daniels series, and I also like reading mangas. What about you?

I bake cupcakes, cakes, breads, cookies, pies, crumbles, anything that takes my fancy really. Food blogs are dangerous for me haha. I also read everything, from fantasy to romance to thrillers and crime.

homeworkisapotato

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #64 on: June 22, 2019, 09:58:33 pm »
+1
I bake cupcakes, cakes, breads, cookies, pies, crumbles, anything that takes my fancy really. Food blogs are dangerous for me haha. I also read everything, from fantasy to romance to thrillers and crime.
ooooh yum! You should post photos of your baked goods if you make them!
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Geoo

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #65 on: June 22, 2019, 11:26:25 pm »
+1
So excited for food studies to start! I shall live vicariously through your experiences :)

I definitely care about the non related school stuff, I love the journals which talk about things other than school as well. That’s great you saw a hand therapist, and I hope the brace and pen work out so you can write witl more ease.

What’s your short story about? I would love to read it if you are comfortable posting it here.

Mmm that sounds delicious. Were they baked or fried? Do you have the recipe for them? Omg I feel like we should start a BAKING THREAD!!! And no fear, I do not like icing either. The only icing I will eat is cream cheese frosting and chocolate ganache. I can not stand buttercream at all. And those are the only things I like on/in my donuts as well. I can’t stand the ones with icing and sprinkles. Funnily enough, I absolutely love making desserts but I do not even have a sweet tooth. I can only eat a little of my sweet creations so I make it for other people to devour haha.

Ooooh I’m so jealous, I want to read so many books again!! And omg I read Truly Devious last year!! It was strange since it kinda ended on a cliffhanger yet there’s no sequel…What are your ratings of all those books, and which ones would you recommend?

YESSS I CAN TALK ABOUT THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS AGAIN PLEASE PLEASE READ IT YOU WILL NOT I PROMISE YOU, REGRET IT. They are my all time favourite books, along with Infernal Devices OH MY GOSH THEY ARE THE BEST MOST AMAZING WONDERFUL STUPENDOUS BOOKS TO EXIST EVER. And I never watched the movies, hearing about how bad they were, and I watched three minutes of the netflix show, and could not BEAR watching any more. It was that bad. Book Depository is very very bad. A very dangerous site for me to be on. Sadly I didn’t love ACOTAR, but you could see if you enjoy it. Love your journal as usual ;)

It is good to know that you like that side of the journal. I like to include what else is going on, as I find it cool to read what others are doing, outside of VCE. I'm not quite sure what my story will be about, but I am thinking along the lines of someone trapped in a simulator when the outside world isn't doing to good. That is not confirmed though, as I still have a few other ideas to explore.

Yes! Another person who understands my dislike of icing! I love to decorate with it but can't stand the taste! I had so many people give me the side eye when I get cinnamon donuts. Everyone flocks to get the Krispy Kreams from 7/11, but they taste so sickly sweet. And that is so true with buttercream! The only one I really like is chocolate buttercream made with real coveture chocolate omg so good but aside from that it is awful. Especially on cupcakes when half the cupcake is frosting. I am the same type of baker you are. I have a few food issues and the only thing I really like to eat sweat wise is chocolate and fruit cakes! (not the dried fruit ones at Christmas, those taste horrible to me ) I'm talking about Banana (personal fav), apple and cinnamon tea cakes. I also experiment with alternatives with ingredients so it is just a blast in the kitchen.

Well I guess I'll order the mortal instruments and give it a go for to school holidays. I have had quite a few people recommend it to me, and as a avid booktube watcher, there is so much hype around the series, it was just the tv and movie adaptions that really cringed me right off. I really like the spines of the books, they shall make my bookshelf look so cohesive. Are you are hardback to paperback person? That is one of the greatest book debates of all time! Oh and I believe Truly Devious is a trilogy. The second book is already out, have a look on good reads and you should be able to find it. I believe it is called The Vanishing Stair. Do you do the goodreads challenge?
I bake cupcakes, cakes, breads, cookies, pies, crumbles, anything that takes my fancy really. Food blogs are dangerous for me haha. I also read everything, from fantasy to romance to thrillers and crime.

ooooh yum! You should post photos of your baked goods if you make them!


You know what, I think I will just go make a baking thread!  ;)
2020: VCE 93.2
2022: BSci/Arts (Chemistry/Pharmacology and French)@Monash

Geoo

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #66 on: June 28, 2019, 07:55:28 pm »
+3
Hi Geoo! I love reading your journal, and just checked out your baking thread and I’m in awe with your talent!! Teach me your ways 😍😍

How are you finding biology by the way? I’m thinking of doing it as a possible 3/4 next year. Would love to get your perspective as you’re doing it early in year 11!

Good luck with VCE and pls pls pls keep us updated! xx

Thank you, your so sweet. I am really glad I'm doing biology in year 11. I even wish I started in year 9 rather than year 10. Biology has a massive amount of work, the sheer amount of content is just so much to learn, and depending on how much your school wants to go into detail on that subject. That is why I am so glad I did it early. Since I am doing chemistry and maths methods for year 12 next year, those are also very content heavy, so to be able to focus on biology with the amount of work it contains is really great. I don't find the work to difficult, but it is very time consuming. I had what I call the 3 weeks of hell, which was where I was learning the immune system, and the amount of content in those three weeks was so large that I spent about 16-18 hours for each week. That wasn't even self study, just flat out work. But it is a really enjoyable subject. If you enjoy medicine, learning about the body, or just how life works, it is just so fascinating to learn about. It is in my top 2, and i am so glad that I am doing bio early.

So go for it, I think it is one of the best subjects to do early. Unit 2 isn't used that much in 3/4, but having unit 1 knowledge made the subject much easier for 3/4. Let me know if you pick bio. ;)
2020: VCE 93.2
2022: BSci/Arts (Chemistry/Pharmacology and French)@Monash

Ionic Doc

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #67 on: June 28, 2019, 11:09:58 pm »
+2
Hey Geo
I recently picked up bio this semester.
Just wondering how do you take notes for bio, handwritten or typed?

and

What are your top 3 bio tips?

 :)
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brothanathan

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #68 on: June 29, 2019, 08:48:40 am »
+2
Hey Geo
I recently picked up bio this semester.
Just wondering how do you take notes for bio, handwritten or typed?

and

What are your top 3 bio tips?

 :)

Geoo probs has additional tips but here's mine:

1. Handwrite your notes and condense them as you go. Try to summarise a topic once it's completed in class in dot point form, voice recordings, make a song, visuals like mind maps and etc.

2. Don't waste time writing notes if it isn't necessary, spend time doing questions even if you haven't fully understood or covered the content. Because once you find the answer it will stick in the form of active recall.

3. Don't be afraid to seek help, try to learn the material prior to the class. By doing this you can fully focus on what's being taught and ask better questions that will also benefit your class.
« Last Edit: June 29, 2019, 09:01:42 am by brothanathan »

Geoo

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #69 on: July 01, 2019, 12:13:52 pm »
+4
Hey Geo
I recently picked up bio this semester.
Just wondering how do you take notes for bio, handwritten or typed?

and

What are your top 3 bio tips?

 :)

I find that I learn the best with handwritten notes. It mat be different for some people, but to be able write the information on paper seams to help me remember it better. I hand write my notes for all my subjects as I find it the most useful for me. Going back to the notes is so much easier to! When I revise, it is just much easier for me to read and understand the condensed information. However, I do know that some people prefer to use typed notes but I just prefer hand written.

I guess my top three tips would be to:
1) Only Learn What Is Necessary Biology is such a heavy subject, and trying to remember all that content is a headache. Follow the study design to know exactly what to study, and make note of where you don't have to remember certain proteins, enzymes etc. Some private and selective schools may want you to know the names of these, as they will most likely be in the SAC's, but aside remembering them for that purpose you don't need to know them. So in all, just be wise with how and what you study to maximise your time.

2)Understand Unit One Knowledge Assuming you are doing unit 2 at the moment, I wouldn't stress to much about remembering that knowledge from the unit. There may be a few things in unit two that may be helpful, but not much. Unit one is where the core basics are. If you can get your head around the plasma membrane (ion pumps, channel and carrier proteins, what carbohydrates do...), the differences between animal and plant cells, cellular respiration (aerobic and anaerobic), photosynthesis (light-dependent and independent phases) and an understanding of basic hormones in the body and the organs of the endocrine system (insulin, glycogen, and glucagon especially). If you get this knowledge down pact, then unit 3 and 4 will become so much easier! Learn the difference between procaryotes and Eukaryotes as well.

3)Connect The Content and Draw Conclusions From Your Knowledge If you want to do well, I don't think you can rote learn bio. Being able to draw conclusions from your knowledge and being able to answer questions using this is good way to go. Even if you can't go into detail on everything, being able to bring together concepts to answer questions is one of the best ways I have found to memorise the content and to answer questions analysing data. Further along in bio, you will notice that some of the concepts overlap. For instance, once you learn about DNA replication, you can make a connection with how viruses infect host cells. Bio is such a large concept but everything is linked together.

4)Revise If you have a method for revision, use it. I don't mean studying every weekend, but once a month, try to recall the content that you learnt as it will make for a quicker revision when exams come around. I personally use summery posters. An A4 piece of paper is one topic and you write down everything you can, then add in missing knowledge, that is just how I do it ;).

For year 12, get your hands on a biozone. It is such a good resource. Not only dose it give you a overview of the topic, but is has many questions which are great for SACs and revision. For passive learning, try Douchy's Biology podcast to get an idea for unit's 3 and 4. You can find it on his website or apples podcast app. https://biologyoracle.podomatic.com/
2020: VCE 93.2
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brothanathan

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #70 on: July 01, 2019, 12:29:45 pm »
+3
For year 12, get your hands on a biozone. It is such a good resource. Not only dose it give you a overview of the topic, but is has many questions which are great for SACs and revision. For passive learning, try Douchy's Biology podcast to get an idea for unit's 3 and 4. You can find it on his website or apples podcast app. https://biologyoracle.podomatic.com/

Wait... That's four. Ahha just kidding, is there any other resources you would recommend other than Biozone? There was this stigma a few years back that Biozone wasn't sufficient enough for some reason.
« Last Edit: July 01, 2019, 12:56:35 pm by brothanathan »

Geoo

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #71 on: July 01, 2019, 07:33:21 pm »
+3
Term 2 - 01/07/2019

I remember when I looked forward to the holidays in primary school, now I just have mixed feelings. On the one hand, I can take a break, but on the other, it is just catch work, exam prep and revising. I have already fallen into a slump. I haven't done anything productive since Thursday and it isn't a good feeling. In my mind I want to do work, but my body and my book TBR pile is just more appealing. It's not even procrastination, I just feel zapped out of my energy and motivation to a point where I just haven't done anything. So yeah, i need to rest a bit longer so I can get back into study and life.

My last week of term two...
Biology
I haven't done any work on biology for the last week. I need to get onto, and so I will be doing on the holidays.

Chemistry
I have done 2/3s of the week, which I am pretty proud of since I haven't wanted to do anything lately. It was still on water molecules and how they are good solvents. I know there is a prac I need to do as well, so that is another thing I need to add to my list.

English
The only subject I sent off this week. Now I have already started to feel a bit off, but this weeks work just did it for me. Last week I had to read and analyise The Bet by Anton Chekhov, and this week it was Cathedrals by Raymond Carver. I am not normal one to get upset by media, but I think these short stories got to me. They were both just very depressing, sad and very boring. I think it killed my energy. I understand the message behind the writing, but it was just sad to read and I had to push through and answer the questions. So yeah that was english this week, I hope it gets better next term.

Food studies
This was the only exciting part of my week. This weeks focus was on food trends. Like gluten free, vegan, nut based, no flour, no sugar, super foods, turmeric, matcha etc. I had to make a recipe that fit the criteria. There were 3 recipes I could chose from, egg free pavlova (with chickpeas :-\, I am sorry but I have my limit), vegan burger (I have already made these but with black beans instead) and match raw chocolate balls. I didn't really like any of these and decided to make a Vegan raw lemon pie. So this is where is goes down hill.....
The base was made from dates, shredded coconut and almonds. I was just supposed to add these ingredients to a food processor and blitz till it is a chunky but firm mixture. This wasn't suppose to take long, but this part took me 2 hours. I have a large kitchenaid processor and It shouldn't have been an issue but it barely blended. So I had to half the mixture and pulse in batches.  It didn't say on the recipe, but the dates and almonds should have been soaked in water beforehand to make for easier blending. So that was a great waste of time, moving on.
The next step after pressing in the base, was to make the filling. It was straight forward ish. Something that confuses me is how to use coconut cream. When I make coconut cream ice cream, I use the white separated cream and dump out the liquid left. The recipe made no mention of that but I went with my gut instinct and used only the solid cream part. Then I realised that I had coconut milk, not cream. So a mission to the supermarket was underway, and 15 minutes later I was back in the kitchen. After I measured everything and squeezed the lemons from my garden, it was time to boil the mixture on the stove. This went fine, but it was now time to add the agar agar powder. This is used to supplement gelatin as a vegan alternative. The recipe called for one teaspoon of agar agar, but it apparently wasn't enough. After I let it cool down, I poured it into the base. It was so liquidy though I thought it my go through the base. After 24 hours, it didn't set. I was able to remove it from the mold as the base held up, but the filling didn't. The base did taste good, but the filling tasted a bit off and too tangy. So I was very disappointing in this recipe. Not only did it take me 5 hours to make (when it only said 25 minutes), but the instructions, ingredients and taste made me very frustrated. 2/5 stars.
The Result
Spoiler

My Failure
Spoiler

Holiday Plans
  • Biology Week 2
  • Chemistry Week 2
  • Food Studies Week 2
  • Maths Methods Week 1 and 2
  • Revise Biology Unit 3
  • Do Unit 3 practice tests
  • Do Unit 3 topic tests
  • Look ahead at unit 4

I also plan to get back on track with my exercise. I would like to walk 1-2 km per day, and start doing compound exercises again. I just need to find the motivation.
Everything Else
So aside from all that, on more exciting news, I took my first long drive on the freeways/highways at night time. So that was a great achievement. My bookdepository order came in which is waiting to be read. I have started reading Archenemies by Marissa Meyer and would like to get to a Way of Kings by Brandon Sandersen, and Carry On by Rainbow Rowell. I have plans to go see the new Spiderman movie and the M.I.B one as well. And most of all, I just want to relax. I am quite warn out, and I don't know if I can make it next term. Last year, I did not work in semester two due to my health and fatigue, so I am a bit concerned as to how I will go. Sorry if this post isn't very well put together or very uplifting, I am just not doing so great with my health at the moment. This is quite a choppy post, and not my best work, so I am sorry for any errors. However, thank you for reading.

Since it is the end of June, it is now time for the next pole: What Media Do You Enjoy?
Thank you to everyone who did the last pole!
2020: VCE 93.2
2022: BSci/Arts (Chemistry/Pharmacology and French)@Monash

Geoo

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #72 on: July 05, 2019, 09:47:24 pm »
+1
Wait... That's four. Ahha just kidding, is there any other resources you would recommend other than Biozone? There was this stigma a few years back that Biozone wasn't sufficient enough for some reason.
Sorry for the late reply, I didn't see the post.
I haven't heard of any of the stigma behind biozone. Our school doesn't use textbooks for the subject, and we mainly rely on videos, snips from textbooks and other texts. There are a few things that it won't cover, but for the main part I think it is an awesome resource. My teacher does go over my answers as well, and corrects them, so that is a bit of an advantage for me.
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Joseph41

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #73 on: July 08, 2019, 04:51:04 pm »
+2
Great update! Sorry to hear about the recipe - quite the ordeal by the sounds of it. 😱 But hey, I guess it's all part of the fun (hah), and it's great to learn new things along the way. 👍

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pugs

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Re: Geoo's VCE Journey
« Reply #74 on: July 09, 2019, 09:44:05 pm »
+2
Term 2 - 01/07/2019
I remember when I looked forward to the holidays in primary school, now I just have mixed feelings. On the one hand, I can take a break, but on the other, it is just catch work, exam prep and revising. I have already fallen into a slump. I haven't done anything productive since Thursday and it isn't a good feeling. In my mind I want to do work, but my body and my book TBR pile is just more appealing.
wow i feel you on a spiritual level - it's tough now :(

also, even if the recipe/your baking wasn't as good as you hoped, don't worry! you always have opportunities to go through what you have already made and alter them to make something even better! it also inspires me to maybe actually cook something other than ramen this holidays haha
« Last Edit: July 09, 2019, 09:46:21 pm by pugs »


2019 vce journal here