4 Points

Yuppers, I got 4 points.

My first questions (What is this hole and what goes through it) where fine and I could answer them without difficulty. The other two girls I was with had a much harder time getting anything said. My second part was describing the mouth and its boundaries. I talked for a while and then got to the roof of the mouth. He started asking me what neurons took care of it and what arteries and veins could be found in that area (one of the most complicated areas to learn, I think) but I answered all of his questions. Then I got to the tonsil and he asked me where a disease could spread to if it where to break through the wall. That part I could answer. Then he asked me what the lower boundary would be....I thought about it, in my head I was thinking there isn't one but before I could say that he said "Well if I am asking like that, there probably isn't one". Well great, then don't ask. Anyways, I was still doing a whole lot better than the other two. My last area was the brain and more specifically the Hippocampus. I had to describe where it was at, what could be found around it and function. Then there was a tiny little bump of brain and he wanted to know what it was.

Quick inter-story: In one of the first weeks of the neurology section of our cadavers class, our manual said to show the "calcar avis". I asked my table Professor and my TA where I could find it. Neither of them knew what it was let alone show me where I would be able to find it. I had looked it up in my anatomy atlas at home but since neither of them seemed to find the calcar avis very important, I left it at that.

Back to my examining Professor asking what "that" is. I told him it had to be the calcar avis. I was right! I was beaming on the inside that I had looked it up that one day. But that wasn't enough for him. He wanted to know what neurons run through it!!!!! I had absoleutly no idea. I hadn't heard the term calcar avis in refrence to anything I had read or heard. First I told him "kommisuren Bahnen" which wasn't totally wrong since he said there were a few and then I told him that I didn't know. He said it was part of the optical track. Well great. 

So I left the room with 4 points. That was my initial goal so I was happy that I got them but couldn't stop playing with the missed possibility of 5 points. But after talking to a few people I noticed once more how much luck is in this examining process. From the examiner to the questions asked. One of my friends said that she thought she might get 2 points and left the room with 5 (she had my table Professor who generally was quite generous). I asked a guy from my table (known as "the Brain", I do have to say that he started learning earlier and is really motivated and talented but he works for it so people shouldn't mean it in a bad way) if he could tell me anything to "calcar avis" and he told me that he wouldn't even know where to start with that because he had no idea what it was. So you see, there is a lot of luck in what you get. 

I haven't had a study free day in over 14 weeks. I will start reviewing in about an hour after a little break and all day tomorrow except for the Germany vs Spain game. I have really worked hard and studied so much that in the end it is a big portion of luck as to what questions will be asked and I have to live with that. At least I can't blame myself for not having studied.

And with that I leave you until my next message. Probably tomorrow or latest Thursday :)

V