Sleep To Pass USMLE Boards

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Have you ever wondered what effect lack of sleep has on you? At some point or most probably, all throughout your medical school career, you probably pull an all-nighter, staying up 24 hours straight, cramming for the next day’s must-pass examination. Is that extra studying worth the effort? Or are you likely to lose as much as you gain by being exhausted on the day of the test?

The effect of sleep deprivation on your test-taking ability depends on the type of examination questions. If they are multiple choice or true-false questions, a night without sleep won’t affect your ability to deal with them. The reason is that in answering such questions you rely on familiar, established problem-solving techniques, an ability unaffected by the loss of one night’s sleep. But then, how familiar are you with USMLE questions? Does the question bank generated sets of questions for your practice tests in your USMLE review the same way the actual USMLE board questions are stated? You can never be sure as the questions contained therein are also subjected to development and improvement by a duly responsible organization.

The basic function of sleep is to repair the cerebral cortex from the wear and tear of conscious activity. The loss of creative ability is a signal that lack of sleep causes something to go wrong in the cerebral function, thereby disturbing some fundamental in the decision-making process. Most of the questions in the USMLE require you to decide medical diagnosis, diagnostic tests, analysis of results, treatment. In order to answer such questions, you need to think flexibly, and this ability is diminished after only a single sleepless night. How can you decide properly and correctly with lack of sleep? Sleep deprivation may hinder your ability in high-risk situations like operating on a patient, emergency room stat surgical procedures as well simply prescribing a drug for your patient.

Accidents have been caused by lack of sleep such as what happened in the Three Mile Island power station. The control room operators were working on a slow shift rotation days for a week, evenings for a week, then late nights for a week. Such cycle does not give enough time for the cerebral cortex to recover. The slow rotation shift may result in the worst possible human performance because it disrupts the body’s biological clock especially the sleep cycle.

Indeed, adequate sleep is a need that everybody recognizes such that New York State now requires hospital staff and personnel to work no longer than an average of 80 hours a week per month. “We think most patients would rather have a well-rested doctor than a zombie working on one-hour’s sleep.” – NY State Health Department (Sleep; the New York Times, 1989)

History of Buffets, Infusions Restaurant and The Okanagan College Culinary Arts Buffets

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It was the 18th century, and in France the modern day buffet was developed which soon spread across Europe. Serving a meal to oneself has a long and interesting history, but the original term buffet referred to the sideboard where all the various types of food was served, although, eventually this style of eating was converted to modern day buffets.

The second half of the 19th century, especially in the English speaking world, buffets became extremely popular for meals. Lunch, or an informal luncheon which was originally a very light meal that was consumed between breakfast and dinner, and often replacing dinners. Buffets came in two styles of a meal, and started at the fashionable hour of “One O’Clock”. The “buffet” luncheon, and at which time the dining guests would stand while they eat their meal, or the luncheon served at small tables where the dining guests would be seated.

All buffet food must be eaten with a fork or a spoon, and the knife was strictly forbidden at these “buffet” lunches. The essentials of a -buffet- luncheon are covered by these following dishes. All types of beverages including coffee, tea, punch or chocolate which was poured from urns, or brought from a pantry on trays in filled cups. Hot entres of various types which was served on a platter or from a chafing dish, and preceded by hot bouillon. Cold entres such as salads, lobster, salmon, shrimp, crab, potatoes, chicken, and served with heavy dressings. Hot rolls, and sandwiches that were wafer-cut in size such as tomato and lettuce, ham, and many others. Plus desserts such as small cakes and pastries.

Buffets are very popular with people today, because, it offers plenty of food variety at a reasonable price. People with large appetites can feed themselves without waiting for their food to be served. Especially families with children, this is often a very important point when dining out. Buffets are definitely a nice dining alternative to conventional restaurants, because people can get the foods they want in the quantities they like. People can create their own dishes with more meat, less vegetables and fewer side dishes, plus creating salads with appealing ingredients that they enjoy. Buffets offer people the opportunity to try new types of food that they would not order off a menu in a restaurant.

Infusions Restaurant at the Okanagan College hosts several buffets every year, and the last “buffet” was held a week after their Okanagan Wine Festival Gourmet Dinner which attracted a sellout crowd of over 80 dining guests. Guests were treated to a “Five Course” gourmet dinner with special Okanagan Valley wines to accompany each course.

The Okanagan College Culinary Arts Buffet was prepared with the special talents of the new, up and coming future chefs of your favorite restaurants, cruise ships, hotels, ski and golf resorts, all directed and instructed by World Class Chefs. The buffet included fresh meats, poultry, seafood of all types, and of course Okanagan Valley fresh vegetables and fruits.

Infusions and the Okanagan College Culinary Arts Bakery had a spectacular dessert buffet for this special night with freshly made gourmet desserts, and with a delicious assortment of as many freshly made Pastries, Cakes, and Chocolate Confections as a person could possibly eat after the meal.

The Culinary Arts buffet offered a HUGH selection of seafood and seafood platters that were served at the buffet from Sushi Rolls, Dim Sum, Salmon, Coulibiac of Halibut to Shark and Lobster. Dishes containing Gratin of Potatoes & Yams, many types of Pasta with Grilled and Glazed Vegetables, and of course the Roast Beef and Beef Tenderloin, and ALL for $15.00!

For tourists, visitors or people in the Kelowna area and the Okanagan Valley who missed this “Spectacular Feast”, there will be another buffet held in early December at Okanagan College’s Infusions Restaurant.

Infusions Restaurant is run by future culinary chefs in the Culinary Arts program at Okanagan College with instruction from World Class Chefs, and the restaurant offers their dining guests a chance to experience fine gourmet dining at very reasonable prices. James Murray is a successful writer and online Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM) expert providing valuable tips and advice for those interested in seo and sem strategies. His numerous articles found on the Internet, provide useful and factual seo and sem information and insight. Some of his websites are : http://www.seo-worldwide.net , http://www.atclickbank.com , http://www.website-submissions-worldwide.com

Fajita Recipe – Healthy Eating

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Fajita recipe is healthy eating and the fact that you can experiment and improvise with this form of cooking makes the fajita even more popular today. Fajita is typically a Tex-Mex cuisine that owes its origin to the state of Texas Mexican workers. The first stall selling fajitas came about in 1969 and since then there has been no looking back for this popular recipe.

Fajita specialists hold that there happens to be only one original fajita recipe, although today you will come across fajita recipe in many variations and combinations. The original recipe comprises a beef slice called skirt steak which used to be cooked with vegetables and served with condiments. The word “fajita” literally means a girdle or belt, but today it stands for grilled meat that is served with corn or flour tortilla and an assortment of vegetables and condiments.

The choices with which you can prepare fajitas are the reason why the fajita recipe is so popular. You could make your fajita recipe light, nutritious, and healthy by using your creativity and culinary instincts. By introducing your own ingredients to it, you could even make the fajita recipe more palatable and mouthwatering. You could start by getting a good wrap bought from reputed supermarkets instead of buying those being sold on the street by vendors.

You could also start by using extra virgin oil which can make a world of difference to an ordinary recipe. Using sunflower oil is not recommended because it is fattening and does not help better the taste. Next, you should experiment with meat types. Instead of the traditional beef, choose chicken, pork, or shrimp for a difference in taste. Spice up this dish with tasty sauces and condiments to make it more appetizing.

Eating healthy typically means eating food that is low on fat content, salt, and simple carbohydrates. In a fajita recipe you can conveniently take care of all these factors by experimenting with the varieties of meat, vegetables, and flour. The vegetables that we normally tend to leave out of our everyday meals, and which are extremely important for ensuring a balance healthy diet, can be included in your fajita recipe. Most of us stay away from these nutritious vegetables simply because they are not prepared in a tasty manner. But with fajitas, you can dress your vegetables in a different costume and make them delightfully tasty for your family.

You can use your imagination to prepare the fajita mix by substituting beef with chicken, pork, or shrimp, preparing the tortilla with soy or wheat flour and not refined flour, and grilling the meat with a drop of olive oil. That way you get fajitas which are low in fat, more fibrous, and highly nutritious.

So eat healthy by experimenting intelligently with fajita recipe and enjoy this very popular dish in an unconventional way. You can consume healthy food without having to compromise on the taste. And above all, you can make this food with almost anything you can get your hands on, instead of having to prepare dishes with exotic items that are frightfully expensive. So think out of the box and use your creativity to make the fajita recipe healthier and tastier!

Culinary Arts for a Change

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A culinary art is an art of preparing foods and a study of cooking on some special menus in an occasion. They also intend to learn baking or pastry making. People who have a passion for food and cooking are good candidates for working in the culinary arts field.

There are many options for people who choose to go into culinary arts. Jobs are available in many places, such as restaurants, catering and banquet halls, schools, hospitals, hotels and more. Positions in the culinary arts all revolve around preparing food, in one aspect or another.

In addition to obvious positions, such as cooks, souse chefs and chefs; other positions in culinary arts are also available. For instance, someone interested in the culinary arts could work in research and development for a large food company, such as Kraft. Another possibility is working as a production chef for a specialty food producer.

However, you need to have good skills in order to be successful in this cooking field. That is why people who are expert on this have undergo rigid training from the cooking equipments, garnishing, cake decorating and until the proper measurements of ingredients. English, math, problem solving, and human relations skills are essential in the program. Ability to read and follow recipes, leadership and team working skills are beneficial also.

You must learn also the fundamentals of the culinary arts, including knife skills, basic cooking methods, making sauces and emulsions, and the essentials of food safety. Here are some important tips and ideas in cooking:

Cooking Methods: Cooking methods in the culinary arts include dry heat methods like sauteing and roasting, and moist heat methods such as steaming and braising.

Season Boldly When we speak of “seasoning,” we’re usually talking about salt. It’s the main seasoning agent in the culinary arts and something many beginning cooks don’t use enough of.

Don’t be afraid to salt aggressively. And by the way, that means Kosher salt, not ordinary table salt. Before grilling meats and roasting poultry, sprinkle on the Kosher salt and see what a difference it makes.

But don’t stop there. When cooking pasta, be sure to salt the pasta water before heating it. Use about a handful of Kosher salt for each six quarts of water – depending on the size of your hands. The same goes for the water you use to boil potatoes for mashed potatoes. The water should taste salty – almost like seawater.

Use Flavorful Cooking Liquids Water doesn’t taste like anything. So using water for steaming vegetables, braising, poaching, or for making soups, means you’re not adding any flavor to the food. Consider using stock, broth or wine instead of water. For instance, substitute vegetable stock for plain water when making rice.

Make It Tangy The palate likes to get a little jolt of acid now and then. Lemon juice, vinegar and wine all contribute acid to a dish, which livens up flavors and helps balance and complement sweet flavors.

When a dish seems to be lacking something and you’ve already seasoned it with salt, sometimes what’s missing is acid. Often just a squeeze of lemon juice is all you’ll need. Alternately, for people who have to follow reduced sodium diets, lemon juice can make up for some of the flavor that’s lost through limiting salt.

Butter It Up Besides salt, butter is probably the single most irreplaceable ingredient in all the culinary arts. Nothing compares to the sublime, creamy flavor and mouth feel of pure butter. And if you think improving your cooking has to mean compromising your health, think again.

First of all, butter substitutes like margarine contain just as much fat as butter. But in addition, as a quick scan of the ingredients listed on that butter substitute product reveals, they also contain an alphabet soup of artificial flavors, emulsifiers, preservatives and other mystery ingredients. If health is my main concern, I’ll take my chances with real butter.

Use Contrasting Textures Imagine biting into a piece of perfectly roasted chicken. The outer skin is deliciously crispy while the meat itself is tender and juicy. The contrast of crispy skin and tender meat are a big part of what makes eating roasted chicken so much fun.

Think about some other ways you can achieve this same effect in a dish like mashed potatoes. Suppose you sauteed some chopped celery and mixed it into the mashed potatoes. That crunch would definitely make those potatoes more exciting (and aromatic, too). Or, if you’re making baked macaroni and cheese, try topping it with some seasoned breadcrumbs before baking. That will add some nice crispiness to contrast with the soft cheese and pasta.

Some Knife Skills: Knife skills are one of the most important parts of the culinary arts. These illustrated examples and tutorials will help you practice your knife skills.

Now that your knife hand knows what to do, we need to make sure your other hand does, too. Your non-knife hand is called your “guiding hand,” and its job is to hold the food to keep it from sliding around on the cutting board. This puts it in a uniquely dangerous position. With the knife blade flying up and down, you need to keep those fingertips tucked safely away, while still being able to firmly hold the food.

The claw grip is keeping the fingers curled inward and gripping the food with the fingernails, the fingers stay out of harm’s way. The side of the knife blade actually rests against the first knuckle of the guiding hand, which helps keep the blade perpendicular to the cutting board. Index finger is wrapped fully around the blade. The index finger and thumb should be opposite each other on either side of the blade while the remaining three fingers are sort of loosely curled around the handle.

Culinary Schools Start Your Own Restaurant

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The demand for cooks and assistant culinary artists is expanding; it is just because the chow trade is increasing as well. For that reason, many people were able to forecast that this can be a good livelihood choice. At present, quite a few would like to evolve into a gourmet chef.

If you’re among those individuals who are faithful about cooking and would like to become an ace in cuisine, taking lessons in culinary arts would seem imminent; particularly now that it is studied as an art.

Baking at this moment is not only paying notice to basic dishes. Assorted culinary programs now offer programs in a variety of categories, which include:

?Distinctive Cuisines ?Style Cookery ?Regional Culinary science ?Desserts ?Sauces ?Pastry Planning ?Knife Techniques ?Healthy Foods ?Desserts ?Holiday Foods ?Wine and Beverages ?Chocolates ?Safety and Hygienics ?Cost Executive ?Food and Nutrition ?Food Handling and Cataloging

After graduating from any of the culinary schools, you can be an executive chef, sous-chef, pastry chef, gourmet chef, saucier, wine steward, chef garde manager and more. In any way, you can put up your own eating house.

culinary schools offer three types of certificate: Level 1, which focuses on elementary nutrition or cookery introduction; Level two, which is aimed at for more accomplished cooks; and Level 3, which is for resourceful cookery.

Getting enrolled in a culinary schools will not only give you a degree that will be accepted in the entire earth, you will also get directed in an fantastic facility, educated by experts of culinary arts and given job placement support after finishing the program.

You can get the enlightenment you’ll need about a certain cooking or gastronomic culinary school by visiting their office personally or by traveling their websites. By doing so, you’ll find more about the courses they are offering and the range of education fees.

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