The Impact of Listening to Music on Cognitive Performance

Many of you will most likely hate me for this, but since many of us are getting ready to crack the books, I figured I oughta repost this and end the argument once and for all.

Listening to music for relaxation is common among students to counter the effects of stress or anxiety while completing difficult academic tasks. Some studies supporting this technique have shown that background music promotes cognitive performance while other studies have shown that listening to music while engaged in complex cognitive tasks can  impair performance. This study focuses on the impact different genres of music, played at different volume levels, have on the cognitive abilities of college students completing academic tasks.

Click here to read more: The Impact of Listening to Music on Cognitive Performance

Call of the Wild by Jack London

I read this book for Literature this year.

The Story:

Something about Shep caught Elmo’s eye. Or maybe it was the other way around. Perhaps Elmo couldn’t help but notice Shep’s beautiful Scotch Shepherd coloring. Maybe Shep was drawn to Elmo’s St. Bernard stature. Maybe they just wanted pups. Jack London doesn’t tell us. Somehow, those two got together and Buck was the result.

When he was grown, Buck was a good 140 pounds, very likely towering over his mother. He lived at Judge Miller’s in the beautiful Santa Clara Valley; protected, fed, and out of touch with himself. Little did he know that it was all about to change.

“Buck did not read the newspapers”. (London 1) He did not know about the gold up North or the fact that dogs were in high demand. He did not know that Manuel loved to play Chinese lottery. He did not know that he had been sold for $100 to cover Manuel’s love.

After being sold, Buck travels in crates up north. His first introduction to his new world is being released. All the frustration and anger built up in him explodes with him out the crate door to face the Man in the Red Sweater. And here Buck learns about the club. His lesson is taught well. Men with clubs are to be feared, he is taught. And so he lives according to this rule. After a wait, Buck and Curly are sold to Perrault.

Perrault is an agent for the government. Sledding from one town to another, he takes mail and packages further up north. Good sled dogs are important for the job. And Buck was “one in ten t’ousand” (London 15). 

Buck meets Spitz, their team leader, and the sparks fly. After Curly is killed and Buck sees Spitz ‘laughing’, Buck reserves a special hatred just for Spitz. Perrault and his partner, Francois, teach Buck how to pull by putting him between two experienced pullers. That night, Buck begins to learn of the wild. He learns how to sleep in the snow. He also learns to steal food.

Hi Y’all – Update on my Life

So yeah, I’ve been pretty busy lately. There is a speech of mine that needs to be finished soon for English 1 and (I love being homeschooled) my World History (The Mystery of History Vol. 1) is awesome and I have been working ahead on it. Now, I will be finished with my History for the year before the week is over, giving me the extra hour to work on something else that I don’t love so much…Math or English 1.

 For all you homeschoolers out there, I’ve also learned the little trick of taking just an hour of my not-so-busy-Saturday to do two lessons of an easy subject (World History or Science) or one lesson for a hard subject (Math or English 1). Believe me, it does make a difference in your schedule. Either you can take that subject off one day when there is something going on or you want to work on a big project, or you can just work ahead like that and tease your public schooled  friends (or lazy homeschooled friends) about being done before them. 😉 

 BTW, anyone have tips for remembering the difference between perfect verbs, progressive verbs, and perfect progressive verbs???? 

 Our cows are nice and round. It’s a wonder they have popped yet. A cow’s stomach sunk the other day though, so you guys could see a picture posted up here any day now. 😀

 We are shearing our sheep on Thursday…very excited for that!!! It’s going to be different without Grandma Fay there. *sigh*

 It’s almost April and lambs will becoming soon!!! Almost time for the midnight births, mean old mommas, crazy new mommas, and no sleep whatsoever. I love that season for some reason. 😉 I think I’m crazy. (Warrior Princess agrees. 🙂 ) 

 But hey, I love the little guys who chase the roosters around trying to suck on their tails, the bouncy little lambs testing the tires around the fence, and it’s simply hilarious the way everyone on the road slows down to see them running up and down in their pasture. And there’s just something about the feeling after you help a lamb to know that he would have died if you weren’t there saving his life. 

*content sigh* I love my life. 😀   

I have Church tonight, so I’d better stop talking and get my stuff done. 😉 

How is your life right now?