OFFICIAL saturday PSAT discussion

<p>ok. haha. i got that</p>

<p>I couldn't believe how lame of a question that was. The second math section was just TOO easy. Ironically, all my incorrect answers were from that section :P</p>

<p>Half the people I talked to got it wrong. In reality, people who take this test get an average of 49.</p>

<p>Hm. That was the FIRST gridin, though...what did they say the answer was?</p>

<p>math curve predictions?</p>

<p>I think they'll be harsh, but since it's a new format...and there's no more absurdly simple QCs...I'll guess it goes 80-78-76-73 or something. But that's because I got two wrong - it's a guess distorted by an optimism that is quite possibly in vain.</p>

<p>I'd say prettty sharp. Seems like a lot of people could have gotten hung up on the clock-wise rotation of a line prob or the square/triangle problem or the sales tax prob (gridding .06 instead of 1.06) but I still think it will be pretty sharp. 80,78,76,74,73,72,71,69 abouts? I don't know really....</p>

<p>Now, by sharp, do you mean...sharp as in harsh? Or sharp in a good term? The numbers you gave look like pretty good of a curve. Now, if it went 80, 80, 77...that would be nice ;)</p>

<p>I'm not that familiar with PSAT curves... I'm used to SAT math curves in which 790 actually exists. I meant sharp as in harsh, a sudden dip. I think the practice test in the 2004 Student Bulletin has an abnormally harsh curve (miss one and 77) but I don't know for certain. How does the ETS actually set the curve for those practice tests? I always thought they gave it to a handful of students or something, but I don't know...</p>

<p>What did you guys get for the question about the language of Lacedonia? I put flamboyant, thinking that maybe lacedonia had something to do with the latin root for "lace", but someone else on this board put "terse".</p>

<p>Laconic, and it's Laconia - you know the Trojan War? It was the Greek lady Helen of Laconica ... can't remember if there's a C or not. It means terse.</p>

<p>I think ETS determines it based upon the scores of the students. A rough number get 80, 77, etc...miss one and you get 77, happened last year to me, too.</p>

<p>does anyone remember the exact math question with the answer a(a+6), im trying to remember if i put that, so i really need to know the actual question (so i can solve it, and see if my steps were correct). please im dying of frustration!</p>

<p>The answer to the 1/64, 1/32, 1/16 is 12. I'm 99% positive.</p>

<p>As for the gridins, I posted all my answers on...page...15. I think. And people had the same answers as mine, so I'll assume they're correct.</p>

<p>For the a(a+6) question, I believe it was: if a=x-3, then what is x^2-9...those were the numbers...</p>

<p>I put a(a+6)...because substitution seemed to work fine. And because:</p>

<p>a=x-3, and (x-3)(x+3)=x^2-9</p>

<p>Substutition would be: a(x+3). x also equals a+3, so...</p>

<p>a(x+3)=a(a+3+3)=a(a+6)</p>

<p>And if you plug in random numbers, that comes out to be the answer</p>

<p>I thought the test was a breeze... except that the humanist passages in sec 3 were kind of mind boggling.</p>

<p>Yes. Both long passages in section three were kind of...icky?</p>

<p>Was section 3 with the Dominican woman and one about Mile's house?</p>

<p>That's the one. I lingered on one question for too long, then rushed through, then finished with five minutes to spare, but was out of it and didn't bother to go through all the questions again. I did check a few though.</p>

<p>Ewww...the Dominican woman passage was...I just thought it was basically how she is Dominican-American but doesn't identify with her Dominican heritage, despite the encouragement of her MENTOR, that author who's name started with an "A". That's what everyone put right? That the author's purpose was to be a mentor?</p>

<p>Then I based all my answers on that, basically.</p>

<p>Mile's house was interesting...</p>

<p>No... I think the agreed upon answer for that question in the Dominican passage was that she was a critical authority or whatever...</p>

<p>can anyone estimate my score:
math: -0
cr: omit 2, 2 wrong
w: 4-5 wrong</p>