IMPROVING YOUR GRADES
FOCUS

When you use a microscope, one way of increasing resolution is to focus, bringing into view a clearer image of the subject being studied. So it is with learning new and perhaps complex subject matter in the course you are taking. One of the very first steps in understanding the meaning of words, is to bring into focus a clear definition. What exactly is that term refering to? Is it a structure, a function or process, a stage in a series of conditions or life cycle, a name of an organism,  a condition or state of being? Consider the following example terms:

1. centriole:  this is a structure

• (a cylindrical organelle located just outside the nucleus of animal cells that is composed of microtubules)

2. osmosis:  this is a process

• (the diffusion of water across a selectively permeable membrane)

3. plasmodium: this is a stage in a series of conditions or life cycle

• (one of the stages of the life cycle of the slime mold Physarum)

4. Physarum: this is the scientific name of the genus of an organism

• (the scientific name of a genus of slime molds)

5. secondary structure: this is a condition or state of being

• (the helical structure of a polypeptide)

You must keep in focus an accurate definition or meaning of a term to be able to answer questions about it on an exam. If you are asked what process occurs at the tip of the pointer (e.g. a test question about material seen under a microscope), your answer must be a process not a structure or name of an organism.