Hi guys,

I have been PT-ing and I noticed that the harder logic games, whether it be a grouping game or a rule driven linear game, really eat up my time and throw off my pacing for the rest of section. How have you guys been able to improve accuracy and speed on the more difficult games? I have been foolproofing every game I do thus far and was wondering what else I could. The games that I do find difficult tend not to have a pattern, so drilling might prove difficult.

So, I finally finished the curriculum and bought the LSAC copies of almost every PT. My initial intentions were to write 36, as per the study schedule, but I photocopied 35.

My diagnostic from 11/19/2015 was 150/159 BR.

I was at the Queen's University campus, had a logistical problem figuring out the photocopier and finding a space to study, the libraries were swamped. Where I picked to write was in the basement and there were students everywhere around me. I wore similar clothing to what I plan to wear on test day, ensured I had my usual amount of caffeine for that time of day, and reviewed my cue cards before writing.

Sat down, realized I forgot a scantron, went and printed a bunch of copies, plugged my headphones into my partner's computer, started the 5 section proctor video and set to try it.

Complete PT35 S1, S2, then my "experimental section" (PT16 S1 G1, PT17 S1 G2, PT27 S2 G3, & PT18 S1 G4), took a 15min break, then finished PT36 S3, S4. Initially I felt confident that I only remember some of the recent questions, and the experimental section went really well. I was only checking time by asking my partner to switch back and hover over the proctor screen. My timing was good, had time the review at the end of each section, I know it should be taken with a grain of salt because 35 was chopped up and fed to me slowly over the curriculum.

Scoring

PT 35

Scaled 168

Raw 87/101

86.1%, 95.8 Percentile

S1 -6 (LR), S2 -3 (RC), S3 -3 (LG), S4 -2 (LR)

Experimental Section

PT16 S1 G1 -0

PT17 S1 G2 -0

PT27 S2 G3 -1 (I guess my copy was missing Q !19 so I'll treat it like a missed bubbling or something)

PT18 S1 G4 -0

How should I feel about it? Turns out I missed 2 softballs on 35, but I think it was a good intermediary test before I write 36... Goal is to finish 26-30 PTs before I try to write in June.

While beginning to do practice test, is it okay not to focus on time because I am still learning?

Hello, I was curious to know if JY will be posting the recordings from the course that he held last week on Reading comprehension.

I'm shamelessly copying this from the front page of reddit:

http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01100/full

Owing to the sheer length of the article, I don't think it's helpful to attempt to read it all in one go. If you can manage the feat, you will still want to often revisit the article to jog your memory. Instead, try to read this in over 50 days. One misconception corrected per day.

Today, please read the intro and phrase #1 "A gene for"

[Intro redacted, please read on frontiersin.org. Text for phrase #1 copied below]

(1) A gene for. The news media is awash in reports of identifying “genes for” a myriad of phenotypes, including personality traits, mental illnesses, homosexuality, and political attitudes (Sapolsky, 1997). For example, in 2010, The Telegraph (2010) trumpeted the headline, “‘Liberal gene’ discovered by scientists.” Nevertheless, because genes code for proteins, there are no “genes for” phenotypes per se, including behavioral phenotypes (Falk, 2014). Moreover, genome-wide association studies of major psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, suggest that there are probably few or no genes of major effect (Kendler, 2005). In this respect, these disorders are unlike single-gene medical disorders, such as Huntington’s disease or cystic fibrosis. The same conclusion probably holds for all personality traits (De Moor et al., 2012).

Not surprisingly, early claims that the monoamine oxidase-A (MAO-A) gene is a “warrior gene” (McDermott et al., 2009) have not withstood scrutiny. This polymorphism appears to be only modestly associated with risk for aggression, and it has been reported to be associated with conditions that are not tied to a markedly heightened risk of aggression, such as major depression, panic disorder, and autism spectrum disorder (Buckholtz and Meyer-Lindenberg, 2013; Ficks and Waldman, 2014). The evidence for a “God gene,” which supposedly predisposes people to mystical or spiritual experiences, is arguably even less impressive (Shermer, 2015) and no more compelling than that for a “God spot” in the brain (see “God spot”). Incidentally, the term “gene” should not be confused with the term “allele”; genes are stretches of DNA that code for a given morphological or behavioral characteristic, whereas alleles are differing versions of a specific polymorphism in a gene (Pashley, 1994).

I've observed that my performance on a PT will affect my overall daily mood; if I have a good PT I'm ecstatic and have a sense of accomplishment, but if I score poorly it can throw a wrench in my entire week. Overall I'm very happy with the progress I've made, with a couple months left until test day I'm averaging my goal score, with time to still make improvements that should mitigate test-day anxiety, but I can't help but get bogged down by a single test or even a single section.

Today I PT'd the lowest I have in over a month, but only because my entire score was killed by a LG section with 3/4 games being In/Out, my biggest weakness. Even though I had my best LR section performance on the same PT, I feel like I've accomplished nothing. Contrasted with last week, when I scored my highest ever, I felt like I was on top of the world ready to take the June test by the horns.

I'm sure this is an issue that a lot of people here deal with, and I would be interested to hear how other's have dealt with this issue.

Someone I went to law school with just posted this to his facebook:

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CfYleuDXEAA9HP2.jpg:large

The title says it all - enjoy:

Just wondering if anyone is doing additional problem sets outside of those included in the curriculum? I am feeling the urge to review previous question types as I progress through the course, to make sure I don't forget any of the skills (ex. currently learning about strengthening, but want to go back and do some MSS for practice/review). However, I don't want to waste any valuable LSATS...

And I wonder if this is even necessary since it isn't already factored into the course...

Let me know what you are doing/think. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated

Thanks! =)

RC Question Types with Sage Jimmy Dahroug

Friday 4/8 at 7pm ET

Sage Jimmy (173) has a ton of insight to share on RC Question Types (back by popular demand!). Appropriate for all levels of prep!

To join the webinar, please do the following:

RC QT's with Jimmy

Fri, Apr 8, 2016 7PM ET

Please join my meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone.

https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/127214837

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Note on all webinars: Only the live webinars are free and open to the public. No recordings will be made publicly available, but we do make webinar recordings available to 7sage's students as part of the paid course. So if you want to get some great webinar content for free, be sure to attend the live version. Furthermore, any recording or broadcasting of webinars is strictly prohibited (Periscope, screencapture, etc.) and constitutes a violation of LSAC's copyright. Copyright infringement is not a good way to start a legal career.

Hi everyone,

This is for current law students if there any still lurking around.

Are you using a PC or Mac laptop for law school? What are some of the things you have liked/disliked about each one? What do you see more of your peers using?

I have been a PC guy for life, but if Mac is better for law school then I will change over.

Thanks!

Omar

Hello, all! I hope all is well.

I'll keep this brief: we're busy individuals, after all.

What I believe my question boils down to is this: how much influence does the university from which one earns their undergraduate GPA exert on the number itself? For example, if two students were to earn the same GPA - say, a 3.5 - from different academic institutions - say, one prestigious and one not - would these numbers be weighted much differently by law schools during the admissions process? Or is it the number itself that matters? Or, like all things, is it somewhere between the two and dependent upon the university to which one applies?

Thanks, all! I wish you all well. I'd wish you the best of luck, but you won't need it, and our aim is mitigate that, anyway.

When taking fresh PTs, I'm obviously interested in how long each logic game in the section is taking me so I can compare those times with JY's targets. I set my watch as usual, but use the stopwatch on my phone simultaneously, hitting "lap" after each game.

What strategies do you use to get this sort of data on your games? I wonder if anyone has any better methods.

This may be the most worthless discussion in 7Sage's recent history, but in the event that it may help someone in similar shoes to mine, I thought I'd err on the safe side and post this anyway.

There are perhaps three things that I hate above all else in this world: the never-ending zombie craze, country music, and. COFFEE. The last of these - the putrid, nightmarish toxin eighty-some percent of Americans seem to enjoy drinking - is the worst of them all. I once enjoyed Plants v. Zombies, and I occasionally manage to walk in and out of a store without noticing but for a second some song about a pickup truck, but coffee will never grow one me. A teaspoon of it in even the sweetest of desserts will have me immediately putting down my fork and reaching for what is hopefully a full glass of water. So what did frequently flu-ridden me always do the night (mid-morning) before a half dozen midterms? I drank a crap ton of matcha.

For the purpose of this post, I found a Daily Mail article, which will hopefully do all of the science talk for me.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2713411/Would-swap-coffee-Matcha-green-tea.html

Having been a frequent drinker of matcha for the past five years or so, I am confident that I can speak knowledgeably about its benefits. The caffeine kick isn't immediate and dramatic as is the kick from a coffee break, but the subsequent crash is absolutely nonexistent. You may notice a lengthened alertness that extends beyond the length of the LSAT (a big plus, if you ask me) both from the caffeine, which is absorbed more slowly than is caffeine from coffee, and the plentiful amount of goodies also found in the drink (see article for the actual specifics on this). While tea holds a fraction of the amount of caffeine compared to coffee, matcha is very different, primarily because of the fact that the drink requires you to drink the leaves themselves as opposed to an infusion of them. Leaves used for [quality] matcha are a very particular fraction of a very particular variety, not to mention the delicate and ultra-specific processing these leaves undergo. This leads, among other things, to a higher concentration of amino acids and to a much better tasting product.

One of the greatest benefits of matcha in relation to the LSAT is the amount customarily consumed. As opposed to a cup of coffee or tea, a "cup" of matcha is no more than a few ounces from less than a tablespoon of powder. I don't know about anyone else here on this forum, but I am not about to wait one to two hours before actually starting the test, only to have to keep my bladder from bursting while working on the first three sections of the LSAT for the two hours afterwards. Matcha avoids this issue for me perfectly and also gives me a very positive, consistent, and crash-less boost.

Personally, matcha, and tea in general, is most attractive for its taste, aroma, and history, but for the purpose of the LSAT, the benefits of matcha are especially attractive. It has helped me tremendously in many instances over the years like the one aforementioned. Should anyone take the venture to try this tea, I would recommend experimenting with it a few months out before the test; buying it is a bit of an investment, and several accessories are pretty much required in order to prepare the tea. Making the tea takes some practice as well. And just because a product claims to be matcha a) doesn't mean that it actually is and b) doesn't mean it is of any decent quality. Plenty of green tea powders are marketed as "matcha" even though its from an entirely different leaf, harvest date, production process, et cetera. Fakes and poor products lead to reduced benefits (including caffeine) and at best sub-par flavor profiles. Hibiki-an and Aiya are among the more reputable and reliable sources for purchasing matcha.

As I mentioned, quality matcha is not cheap, but I think for some, it may be a worthwhile investment. I know matcha will be very helpful for me, as will my 180watch and Ticonderoga pencils. And for coffee-haters akin to myself, a drink such as this can be godsend straight from heaven.

So I'm going to have ~22 weeks to take PTs after I finish the curriculum this week. I want to take a reasonable amount of PTs, yet not over do it like how I did the last time I studied for this test (took December 2015 LSAT); I took 3 PTs a week, with crappy BR to follow and basically no time at all for drilling. I'd like to change that this time around. With that said, I have 10 fresh PTs (several in the 50's, 60's, and 70's) but also plan on re-taking other PTs. Here are my questions:

How should I go about planning my PTs? Should I start off with 1 PT per week then move on to 2 per week?

What PT # should I start at? Start from PT 41 and work my way up?

hi friends

i have unfortunately hit a real slump in my LSAT studies. I am feeling very discouraged after several low scoring practice tests. I wouldn't say it's burnout because I haven't been going crazy studying but I just feel very unmotivated and hopeless as far as raising my score goes. I'm sure many of you have experienced something like this and just wanted to get any advice you may have for someone in my position. Thanks!

Finally done the core curriculum, what a ride... but I'd really like a big shiny 100% to show there, not a green pac man pursing his lips.

I am considering purchasing a course for 7sage. I was wondering which course packets include video explanations for answers to Logical Reasoning questions for PrepTests 1-38.

I know what I will have to face, the fear of stress and boredom. This is a journey of a serial procrastinator planning to study and LSAT, Monday to Friday. I tried everything from listening to music while studying, going hard close to deadlines to watching all kinds of motivational videos. I always resort back to my ways of procrastinating. Relapsing again and again. I've had enough.

Day 1

I picked up where I left off. Last time I was on 7sage was in Nov. Work and fear of not perfecting of my studying prevented me from continuing. I studied a good 3 hours today, not bad considering all the stuff I had to do. Voices in my head told me to go back to sleep as I chipped away at the syllabus at 8:30am. They told me to do it later, they told me that it's just too cold in the room right now.

I thought to myself, why don't I take a break and check my email, or look at Facebook. These distractions, which I refer to as screens, are triggers. The pull me to the endless black hole, the Internet. I call it the black hole because once I get sucked in, I can't stop. It is the place I go to escape reality and imagine myself successful, when in reality, I'm at the same job, same house, same city. There is nothing wrong with where I am, but it's not where I want to be. I put my life on hold for many years, but I'm going to reclaim it.

This is my struggle, not with the LSAT, but with myself.

Brace yourselves guys - we just got this email from the LSAC:

"In addition to the Logical Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, and Analytical Reasoning (LG) sections the LSAC is add a new section call Critical Analysis. This section tests students ability to read evidence, arguments, and declarations and critically analyze the credibility of the material. This move is partially in response to increasing complaints by law school professors who feel that law students fail to think critically about what they hear and read.

"98% of my students will believe anything I say without even thinking about it for one second. It makes me sick to my stomach!", laments Prof. Laura Norder, who teaches second year Evidence at Princeton Law School."

Can I regrade an entire PT without losing the data from the first time I took it?

Can you guys explain PT 9 section 1 question 19?

it reads Editorial: It is clear that if this country's universities were living up to ~~~

I don't get why there is a conclusion indicator (it is clear) in the stimulus.For MBT, we only need premises to derive the must be true conclusion. Is it there just to confuse you?

Thanks

I find the section difficulty level that rates difficulty of a section on1-5 star scale useful. How is this rating assigned to a section? How many average wrongs make for 1-star and so on..?

For some sections, this difficulty rating seems very off.

PT-71 LG, which is one of the easier LGs, is assigned the same rating as the notorious PT-72 LG (had the surprising pattern game that got most takers) and PT-77 LG (December Lg with two tough games). All of these are given 2-star. Why is that?

I recently received more time on the LSAT because I have a physical disability that puts me at an disadvantage to other test takers. That being said I am allotted 50% more time on my LSAT and the highest score I am receiving is a 159 with the extra time. I really need help because I want to score in the mid to high 160's and I am registered for the June LSAT. Any advice?

I am trying to decide which LSAT to take, June 2016 or September 2016. I know these types of questions have been asked over and over again but responses to my specific concern would be very appreciated.

I started studying at the beginning of February and I anticipate most who respond (if any do) will recommend waiting until September if I am not confident in my scores (which at this point I am not but am optimistic I will improve over the next two months). My concern with waiting until the September LSAT is that I may get through all the PT's and then only be able to redo old ones. I am also worried I will lose ambition for studying for such a long period of time. If there is anyone out there who has studied for 6-8months straight and could over some words of wisdom? It would be much appreciated.