Study Event
Okay, welcome! Anatomy and Physiology is such a fun event and I think anyone would really enjoy it, but it is pretty heavy on the memorization, so make sure to spread out your studying! It's a lot of fun if you and your partner can find times to meet up and study together, and taking practice tests will also be super useful. I'll link a few good ones below. Rules for this event usually change annually to cover different topics/systems in the human body (cardiovascular, lymphatic, etc.). Let's get into it. Read below for some sage tips from me and my expert partner Nathan.
Testing Materials:
Writing implements + eraser(s)
Calculators (non-programmable)
Reference sheet (double sided, 8.5” x 11”)
This is a link to our current reference sheet: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zCjo78itXCNf7BTq5QkeB1XF1O7b3LtH_5eOHWbcvRk/edit?usp=sharing. If you want to make changes to suit it better to your needs, just make a copy of the document and make any changes you want!
It’s a good idea to split up the topics between yourselves, so you each have less info to memorize. Be specific about the topics you cover! The rules have specific outlines for what you do and don’t need to know.
Below are some event specific resources:
Video resources:
CrashCourse sometimes has a number of super comprehensive videos on relevant information, so I’d definitely recommend watching some as a baseline—they cover a lot of information pretty quickly, but in really simple terms. If you’re running low on sleep and/or time, this might be a good direction to take.
KhanAcademyMedicine is also a great resource. A lot of these videos are (frustratingly) restricted by ICSD though, so try to find a device that’s independent from ICSD and/or put your browser in incognito mode to view them if you’re using your school account.
Diagrams:
If you’re in the market for some nice diagrams that are already labeled, medical reference texts are always good. You can get relatively cheap ones used, or find them at pretty much any library. Word to the wise—don’t plan to carry them around a lot. Most are practically the size of a cinder block.
Practice Tests:
You should try to save these until you have at least a baseline understanding of the topics. They’ll help you get used to the test format and anticipate what type of questions you’ll need to be able to answer. Most tests for this event all have similar sections—labeling, multiple choice, diagnosis, etc. Don’t worry! If you do your best to cover the material and try to use a decently wide range of study tactics, you’ll be fine with all of them. More on test strategies in the next section.
You can find a ton of practice tests on the Science Olympiad website, or go to this link: https://scioly.org/tests/. Some of them aren’t very good though, so I glanced through a few of the newer ones and found a few of the (in my opinion) better ones, which I might start with if I were you. Keys are provided on the same link I just mentioned above, right next to the “test” file for each test.
Due to the overwhelming length of this test (well over 100 questions in 50 minutes, it’s kind of ridiculous), we find it’s definitely wise to split the test up. This will go hand in hand with splitting up study topics earlier on. The test will likely be divided into subsections based on each of the three topics, so you will work on the section corresponding to the topics you studied, while your partner does the same. Of course, you won’t know every question. If you have no idea, don’t worry about it or get stuck, because you won’t have the time for that. Just circle it, and after you finish the ones that you do know, switch sections and see if your partner knows. There’s always a chance they picked up that specific answer even if they weren’t focusing on studying for that section.
Discuss (but make sure other teams can’t hear you) questions you’re stuck on. Having someone to ponder through the answers with can jog your memory, or just help you decide on the most logical guess.
Make sure you have all your materials—pencils/pens, erasers (diagram/labeling based answers should usually be in pencil, since you might need to change stuff around), a calculator, etc.
You can only have one copy of the reference sheet, so be efficient about using it! If your partner is in a section where they need it, keep going through the test and looking for questions you can answer without it until they’re finished, and then double back.
If you have any further questions, there’s a good chance they’re answered in the official rules otherwise, ask your partners (on both teams). Good luck, and have fun!