Thread 17 - Corona Cohort Summer Vacation to Yr 13, Finding Freedom?

[Orangecinnamon21]

PLACEHOLDER FOR NEW THREAD ...PREVIOUSLY TO BE FOUND IN SECONDARY EDUCATION

Oh no, so sorry about the test match @Piggywaspushed what a shame! We got an oximeter when we had covid, as we did feel short of breath, but oxygen readings were fine.

Piggy oh dear. We have a friend that got covid from a cricket stadium a couple of weeks ago. All outside. All older people too. Doubt that will make Dh more amenable if you told him though.

I stopped using an oximeter when it came apparent that certain models were giving incorrect readings for dark skin. Dangerously incorrect. A bit like the hands-free soap dispensers not wanting to give out soap to those that were brown. Especially when lots of public use soap dispensers were going hands-free!

I think product designers need to diversify their test market a little more.

Did you see the 'Doctors' sequence of plots on the soap dispensers Ealing?

If anyone hasn't read Caroline Criado Perez , please do! She focuses on women but does make the side point that many things are not made for, or tested on anyone outside of 'typical [white] males'. As a short female, the kitchen design section certainly resonated (I don't think I am imagining that bit, although I may be recalling thinking about it while reading!)

@Zandathepanda

Piggy oh dear. We have a friend that got covid from a cricket stadium a couple of weeks ago. All outside. All older people too. Doubt that will make Dh more amenable if you told him though.

Ironically, we were given the opportunity to change the tickets a few weeks ago but decided not to.

@Piggywaspushed

Did you see the 'Doctors' sequence of plots on the soap dispensers Ealing?

That was an interesting storyline. Doctors can be absolute drivel but I love it and miss it in the holidays however they do social issues very well sometimes.

I've started reading the Caroline Criado-Perez book but stopped again as it was making me so cross. Will definitely pick it up again though.

Dd1 was chosen to audition for ‘ill child’ for doctors but we were going on holiday. I have to say she does ill child very well. Once we spent 6 hours in A&E as she had hip pain and the GP was worried - by the end of the day she was hobbling on the wrong hip - it had got better but she thought she better pretend because we had both taken the day off work!

Hehe, I did watch that episode Piggy. The acting is so bad but I just the topical story-lines are on point at times. I watch record 2 drivel day time series, the other being Neighbours. I do question how old am I really?

No reflection on your DD’s acting skills though Zanda!

If you are buying new saucepans for your dc (rather than giving them your old ones!) it might be worth getting some that are compatible with induction hobs. Dd just moved into a flat & of course it is all electric (which she did not realise was the rule for flats) & has had to buy a new set.

The Doctors threads are one of my favourite little corners of MN.

ealingwest no worries - it is a really good springboard for lots of actors. Dd1 was a cracking little actor - the big one was for one of the original Matildas - got through 2 sets of auditions ending up at Stratford. She looked the part, had a beautiful voice too and was very small for her age (casting directors love that - they can work them longer!) but her dancing was not up to it (to put it politely). Those auditions were brutal - it takes a particular type of mother and child to go down that route and I was glad when she didn’t want to do it anymore. She did get a couple of parts (that I turned down) as the scripts were not something I wanted her name associated with (18 certificate stuff). The castings dried up after that!

That's interesting @Zandathepanda. My DD was starting to want to audition professionally a few years ago but has packed in all her performing stuff now, teenage shyness, also she had an early growth spurt and looked older than she was which is the wrong way round.

Doctors occasionally get well known actors in as patients too. There was an episode a couple of years ago featuring Wendy Craig and Bruce Montague (Butterflies) as an elderly couple which was just lovely. Mostly it seems to be a rotation between Doctors and Hollyoaks/Eastenders/Corrie etc.

A while upthread there was talk of how little information universities publish about their courses, stats of applications to offers etc. I submitted some FOI requests out of curiosity really, and have had the first reply.

The main thing I've learnt (not having done an FOI before) is that I need to be more precise next time. Apart from that I am if anything more confused. One of the things I asked for was the range of offers made and if possible, how many of each offer. I was expecting them to say we offered 20 x AAA, 10 x AAB and 2 x ABB or something. I should have specified A level offers, because Sussex said they couldn't tell me the range of offers due to all the different qualifications people are applying with. Then they said this, which surprised me, firstly because the entry requirements on the website say ABB-BBB. But also, in 2019 they made 142 conditional offers, 65 at the standard A level offer and the other 77 to people with other qualifications. I thought that the majority of people applying would be doing A levels. And it suggests that everyone doing A levels had the same offer, which wouldn't allow for any contextual offers. I don't get it. 🤔

In both 2018 and 2019, the most common offer was our standard A level offer, which asked applicants to ‘Obtain grades AAB at A-Level in 3 subjects and pass at least one science practical. Alternatively, if you decide to make Sussex your Firm choice, we guarantee to accept you if you achieve ABB at A-level in 3 subjects and pass at least one science practical’. In 2018, 96 of the 159 conditional offers asked for this standard requirement. In 2019, it was 65 of 142 conditional offers. The other offers reflect the diverse array of qualifications which the University receives.

Not sure about the contextual offers, but I imagine it reflects the fact that so many students now take either all BTEC or a mixture of A level and BTEC plus all the overseas students.

The 77 conditional offers will include international students with grades in hand applying for medicine - conditional on them passing the language competence test.

Yes, I had no idea that A levels were the minority qualification, iykwim. It's not medicine but I guess there might be some overseas students.

Here are the numbers they gave me - they offer to nearly everyone and usually have 20-30 on the course. Maybe it will make more sense when I have info from elsewhere to compare it to.

@Piggywaspushed The luck of your household must turn soon!

@Heifer DS said he would do a biology MOOC. I don't think he's even looked at the options yet. Thanks for sharing about the maths, he's doing further maths so probably wouldn't do a MOOC in that but he isn't doing chemistry A level...

Not really because now (probably because of DS1's stupidity) we have been told another date for SI. 5 days later.

Piggy as necessary in any order!

It's getting worse! Much sympathy. We'll all be sending you Red Cross parcels of gin and chocolate brownies before long !

Arghh Piggy, can you do some bonding activities to get you through it? We all did Painting by Numbers in the first lock down, learn some new card games? Anything which might help to salvage since positive time.

Valium will work better perhaps.

I have now called 119 four times... most of them are very pleasant but every single one has told me something different. 119 are insistent its wrong but can't fix it themselves. We'd just make our own decision, if it weren't for the threat of fines.