INST 262 (DCS and Fieldbus), section 2 Lab Automatically ...

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How to read actively:
• Avoid shallow annotation methods such as underlining and highlighting. Instead, express your own
interpretation of the text in a notebook or in the margins of the text. A suggestion is one sentence of
your own thoughts per paragraph in the text. Expressing your own thoughts as you read is a far more
effective way to digest the information than simply emphasizing portions of the text! If you do wish to
emphasize some portion of the text that either makes perfect sense to you or causes confusion, write
that portion verbatim and include a page number reference in your notes so you may reference it during
class.
• Identify as clearly as possible which concepts or points confuse you the most. This is the first and
most important step to overcoming confusion. The more specific you are, the better your instructor and
classmates will be able to help you overcome the confusion!
• If the text demonstrates a mathematical calculation, such as how to apply a new equation to solving a
problem, pick up your calculator and work through the example as you read! Applications of math are
an ideal opportunity to actively read a technical book.
• Maintain a notebook where you express your understanding of general principles applicable to the
subject(s) you are studying, including mathematical formulae (a formula is really just a precise
expression of a principle) with brief definitions of terms.
• Imagine trying to explain what you’ve just read to an intelligent child – someone with the capacity to
understand but without the experience to immediately relate. This forces you to distill each concept to
its essence. Your first attempt will rarely be right, but subsequent attempts will get better and better.
Once you have an explanation that satisfies you, write it out using the fewest words possible.
Problem-solving tips:
• Always begin by identifying which general principles you’ve learned apply to the problem, then identify
how the goal of the problem (i.e. what it is you’re asked to solve) and the “given” information fits with
those principles.
• Sketch a diagram to organize all “given” information and show where the answer will fit.
• Perform “thought experiments” to visualize the effects of different conditions.
• Work “backward” from a hypothetical solution to a new set of given conditions.
• Change the problem to make it simpler, and then solve the simplified problem (e.g. change quantitative
to qualitative, or visa-versa; substitute different numerical values to make them easier to work with;
eliminate confusing details; add details to eliminate unknowns; consider limiting cases that are easier
to grasp; put the problem into a more familiar context, or analogy).
• Specifically identify which portion(s) of the question you find most confusing and need help with. The
more specifically you are able to express your point(s) of confusion, the better.
Above all, cultivate persistence in your studies. Persistent effort is necessary for mastery of anything
non-trivial. The keys to persistence are (1) having the desire to achieve that mastery, and (2) knowing that
challenges are normal and not an indication of something gone wrong. A common error is to equate easy
with effective: students often believe learning should be easy if everything is done right. The truth is that
mastery never comes easy, and that “easier” methods usually substitute memorization for understanding!
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