#9: “Time” (Week of 23rd October 2023)

This week I had problems with balancing everything. I had to balance the SAT, tests in class, extracurriculars, and ISM. On Saturday we had a mock competition for Acdec; I think our team did pretty well. I got first in scholastic, although I could improve my scores a bit. I did pretty badly in science, but I know that after more studying I will do better in the next competition.

Anyways, about the Sat, here’s my rant: I don’t understand the SAT. I understand standardized tests for mathematics and writing, but the standardized testing for the reading section just does not make sense. The entire point of a book or literary piece is for the reader to analyze and interpret it themselves. For fiction it’s the same, you’re supposed to have fun while imagining the scenes in the book, it’s not supposed to be a set analysis that has to be a certain way. It’s not that I’m bad at the reading section and I’m just complaining about something I find difficult, in fact, reading is the section I’m best at, but I don’t understand why schools like to make books that are supposed to be interpreted differently confined into one box.

After being tired after practicing for the SAT and experiencing what everyone does with important things(at least for a 16-year-old), I know that I need to practice for it. It may not make sense, but it’s fine, I’m not really worried about the reading section anyway, but more about the math section. I make the silliest mistakes and 50 of them. This may not be the greatest thing to say in a professional blog, but it’s the truth. However, I’ve been practicing more and more, and I feel like I’m getting better at math. I just need to practice with harder questions and harder word problems, especially the ones like the grid in questions.

Now about ISM, I feel like my research has been going great! I’ve learned so much and I think I’m narrowing down my research into how exactly I’m going to try to make DNA synthesis more efficient. I can train AI or make a machine learning algorithm that can recognize the bases in certain denatured DNA strands, or even try to use 3rd generation DNA technology but through the cycling method to make it more accurate, but find a way to retain its speed. I’m getting really excited about the possibilities of the program, but the only problem is time. I feel that I’m not putting as much effort into ISM as I wanted, due to other stuff. I want to actually get something out of the program and actually try to develop or at least hypothesize something, but I fear due to other activities I might not be able to come to the conclusion that I wanted. Next week, I’ll try my best to focus some more time on the ISM program, as my interest has increased even more!