I resat 2 AS Chemistry modules, and each module went up by 1 mark – and, happily, each module went up by an entire grade. Unfortunately, that didn’t help my overall grade, which stayed at a C. My A2 Chemistry module, Chains Rings& Spectroscopy, was graded a C, so I’ve already handed my resit form.
At this particular moment in time, I need another 213 marks to get an overall A, from a possible 210, so some marks need to come from somewhere…
I also took an AS Mathematics module, Core 1, and got 71%, which is a B. I’m happy with that, it’s only 9 marks dropped from an A, which I hope to pickup from the next two exams in May/June – Core 2 and Stats 1.
So, I’m on track to do Biomedical Sciences, and I can easily make the offer, but I want more, if you know what I mean…
]]>Same plan as last year, I’m going to set three resolutions, and try to stick to them. Last year, I succeeded with one, came close to another, and did the opposite of the third!
It’s simply too much for me to be updating every week. I can barely even keep my own personal website up-to-date, and that one has my name, diary, cv and stuff on it. So I think 3 times a months is about right – so I’m aiming to get 36 posts before 31st December 2009.
Everybody around me says I’m “academically very able,” so it’s about time that I proved it. I have an offer to study a BSc (hons) in Biomedical Sciences at Northumbria University. The offer means that I need to get a ‘Merit’ (50%) in HEFC Human Biology and 80 UCAS points from this year’s examinations.
Considering I managed to rack up as much debt as I said I’d save, I think I’d better do something about that… Credit cards are only useful when you can pay them back quickly, or for genuine emergencies – there again, my laptop did die completely, so I did need a new computer! I should be able to pay off the outstanding
]]>Well, for a lot of this year, I didn’t post at all on many weeks, so I though I’d done really badly with this one! But, I’ve been and looked at the stats, and it seems that so far, this is my 53rd post! So, I’ll have at least averaged more than 1 per week.
In terms of software updating, I’m now more than on top of things. Thanks to the guys over at WordPress, I’m running WP2.7b3, with a theme that can handle all of the new features!
Well, I didn’t pass the test before May, like the original plan was. But, I did pass the theory test in March! Then, after 3 attempts, I passed the practical test (with 9 minors). Thank-you very much Tony P & Phil from BSM for the many hours of lessons (and also thanks to Kelly in the office for managing to fit some lessons into my instuctor’s diary before the 3rd test)! In October, I also did 6 hours of Pass Plus training, which should lower my insurance for whenever I decide to go out and buy a car…
Yeah, erm, maybe not! I haven’t so much as saved a grand as have a grand on my credit card. Oops. Things happened, like needing the best part of
]]>Again, my instructor took me for a short lesson before the test, practicing manoeuvres and a short drive. Then we spent about 15 minutes just chilling out listening to the radio where it announced that one of the local major roads had been closed due to a fatality.
This time, my overall speed and approach speeds for junctions was under control, just taking into account the weather conditions. I had a perfect drive, getting my reverse just right, handling meeting situations well, and only forgetting a couple of things (an indicator, and a blind-spot check). Then I done my turn in the road, and just bumped up onto the kerb.
And that was failure number two.
Next test already booked, and 60 quid on the credit card…
]]>The test centre that falls between my hall of residence and college. Literally 50 yards from each. Needless to say there was a few students and staff wandering around, some of who actually noticed me! It was only when I walked into the waiting room of the test centre that I started feeling nervous. But, within a couple of minutes the examiner had entered the room and called my name; his was Russell.
I passed the eyesight test with ease (not that my instructor had got me to read out the plates of the car behind me, of course), and flew through the safety questions quite quickly. Things went downhill from here (and not just the road away from the test centre), because whilst pulling away, I stalled the car. Unfortunately, I also have a habit of coming into junctions rather fast, as the examiner commented at the end, “Can you remember The Hollymere, where I almost joined you in the driving seat!” That was one serious, and the other was for hitting about 35mph in a 30mph limit – I forgot about Ryhope Road, and whilst I did remember quite quickly, it was too late.
However, my manoeuvres were excellent, not a single fault for my controlled stop, turn in the road, or left reverse.
“I’m sorry to tell you that you not passed the driving test today,” come the examiners words at the end of the test. A short debrief with my instructor in the back, and I was finished. Within 6 hours the next test had been booked and paid for. Thankfully I had the “Pass Promise” to cover the cost of the actual test!
]]>Back on Monday 12th May, I had my AS Chemistry practical examination. As predicted, this involved a titration of sorts, starting off with mixing a homogenous solution of acid. Nothing new there then, it’s the ‘bread and butter’ of secondary school chemistry lessons. One would like to say “impossible to fail”, however, I had somehow lost the better of my senses, and managed to screw it up. What’s worse is that I actually knew I screwed up; because I’ve done similar practicals, and know many different methods of calculating things like basicity, molar mass, percentage composition, and so on.
At this point, I should possible I’d spend most of Saturday at a party, getting rather drunk, so it can’t have done wonders for my brain cells…
The mixing of the homogenous solution was easy; I recorded the masses, calculated concentrations, and so on. I wrote up my table perfectly, and noted the data for the alkali. I carried out some very accurate titrations, and obtained a correct, accurate mean titre. I then set forth on the analysing steps, following the prescribed method to calculate the basicity of the acid. And then, I got the wrong answer, in fact my answer wasn’t even on the paper, so I had to pick the best of the bunch. But, because I’d noted the correct data into the tabulations at the start, I knew the answer I was looking at had to be wrong.
So, I went through, three more times, and still got the wrong answer. What could I do, apart from look at it in sheer frustration?
Now, I’ll explain this from an Aspie’s perspective, highlighting extra causes of stress.
Firstly, the examination was conducted in an unfamiliar laboratory (change one), with new equipment having been bought for the exam (change two). Then there were some unfamiliar invigilators (change three), and a technician the class had never spoken to (change four) aside from when he’d shouted at us some mumbo-jumbo about the costs of breaking equipment! Oh, and not being able to talk to your mates increases the stress factor too!
Also, not being able to use your own method for things (ie having examiners break the paper into separate calculation stages) may confuse people, or else cause them to get the wrong answers…
]]>For the multiple choice questions, I got 49 out of 50 (pass: 43), losing my mark on a section entitled ‘Attitude‘. How appropriate, I mused as I walked back for my next driving lesson. On the hazard perception test, I achieved 56 marks of a possible 75 (pass: 44). My driving instructor thought I may have cheated for the scoresheet informed him that “on the clip with two hazards you scored 5, on 5 clips you scored 5, on 4 clips you scored 4, on 3 clips you scored 3, on 1 clip you scored 1″. Oh well, coincidences…
]]>Anyway, Sunderland should be rather fearful, for I have now been on most roads within the city, including some national speed limit roads. And I’ve also been over quite a number of pedestrian crossings, too.
I find my instructor is very approachable, and a really nice guy. He’s easy to get along with, and we have some good small-talk, something Aspies typically find hard. Some of the things I struggle with are roundabouts – this is possibly having to do so much at once (look for gap, anticipate timing, check mirror, change gear, check mirror, signal, select lane, check mirror, stop, change gear, move off, change gear, steer in one direction, steer in the opposite direction, check mirror, give signal, steer in opposite direction). But, with all things, I think a little bit of practice will get me there!
I have recently read Daniel Tammet’s autobiography (as you will have noticed by the link on the left to his website, Optimnem). I found something in there related to driving. Tammet says he has not learned to drive, because in his opinion, Aspies generally find this much more challenging than neurotypicals. This is due, in part, to the need to concentrate on many different things simultaneously. I agree with this statement, generally, but I find it easy to process the different things simultaneously. I would, however, say that it is advisable for Aspies to communicate with their driving instructor at the earliest opportunity about their Asperger’s Syndrome, and particularly how it affects them. They can then adapt their teaching if necessary to help you!
]]>A quick recap of last lesson, and seat change before starting. I completed the cockpit drill whilst chatting to my instructor about mobile phones (as I silenced mine), and how his daughter was attached to hers; I’m attached to mine, I admit, but she puts me to shame! It’s a good thing small talk comes fairly naturally to me, one of the few areas of socialising my AS has not affected.
This lesson, I moved up to third gear, and was expected to use my mirrors before preparing for any manouvre, in addition to checking them every few seconds whilst driving anyway! I also started to handle junctions correctly, stopping for closed ones, and slowing down for all of them; not something I like doing is slowing down. Still, I got used to the idea fairly quickly, that came in the form of following an articulated flatbed, complete with about 25 brake lights fitted to the rear of his cab… The next time I turned the bend to go down the bank, I noticed a white van pull out behind me, but I didn’t think anything of it. My instructor, however, did, “Matt, I would like you to take this corner perfectly, because there is a police van following us!” Now I re-checked my mirror, and noticed the large blue “POLICE” on the front of the vehicle.
As usual, I stalled a few times, once for doing such a stupid obvious mistake; stopping at a give way line, finding the biting point, applying some gas, but not remembering to change down from second to first. I was allowed to try moving off in second from a parked position, and needless to say, I couldn’t manage it! Overall, a very good lesson in my opinion, I definitely saw some improvements.
]]>The atmosphere in the car was relaxed, and I had raised the subject of my Asperger’s Syndrome within moments of sitting in the passenger seat. This was greeted with a quick question of whether I was ok working 1:1 with my instructor, a welcome surprise given that most professionals just assume it would be. I briefly mentioned the impact AS has on me, for example my social interaction, strange ways of doing things; I even joked about how it mainly affected young lasses that I fancy, given that I’m not too sure on how to go about making friends, or what’s expected of girlfriend/boyfriend relationships. As the young-to-middle-aged male instructor was not a “young lass that I fancy”, we both seemed fairly happy that my AS would have minimal impact on the lessons.
Having spent the last two or three weeks reading through the literature I received with my “Pass Promise”, the instructor was quite impressed at my knowledge of the pedals, main controls, clutch and biting point. It didn’t therefore take him long to introduce me to the cockpit drill or the fine art of moving off and stopping; so much knowledge that I had, I was rather surprised that I moved off, drove along a straight road and stopped the car – all without stalling it. What I did do, was underestimate the sensitivity of the controls, and felt a sharp jolt when I pressed the brake pedal a little harder than perhaps it needed. Oops. And my lovely skill of not stalling the car was soon to diminish, I managed 4 stalls before the lesson had ended, each time was the same cause – I sharply raised the clutch without first applying enough gas.
However, stalling has advantages, as I discovered on my penultimate drive of the evening: just as I stalled, the instructor said “Stop!”, and then asked me why he said it. My response assumed he had anticipated my stall, and so I answered as such. As it was, I had failed to check my right blind-spot, luckily there was nothing in it! When travelling at 10-15mph, I have reasonable clutch control for a driving virgin, managing to press the clutch (just) in time to prevent the car stalling when I stop; I can also use the biting point to slow the car or let it coast as I pull into the side at a snail’s 5mph!
Despite many people telling me that the hardest thing when driving was the gears, I found them remarkably easy. Though greeting the instruction of “keep going straight, use more gas, and when you get to 2500 revs, change up to second” with nervous anticipation, when it actually came to it, I didn’t even think about the gearstick. Clutch in, gas off, hand, clutch out, gas on to same speed. Easy as pie, I didn’t even look at the stick, just felt the pleasing knob at the side of my hand, and pulled back on it gently. Of course, when stopping in second, one has to remember that neutral is up from the position, not down as I kept trying! Then came the stories every instructor must be able to attest: the learners trying to move the instructors knee from first to second, or in this case, the story of one of his female learners attempting to pull his inside thigh up as opposed to the handbrake – one can only assume where she thought the button was located…
As for my great weakness of not always acting upon what I am told, or coming up with my own ways to do things, I’m quite confident I managed this well. Ok, so I used the clutch before the brake when stopping, but at 10mph, what choice do I have? I listened carefully to what my instructor was telling me, and I acted promptly on any advice he gave me.
All in all, a pretty successful 2 hours. And I should hope so too, for 38 quid!
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