Letters from Janky Law Schools (Ep. 174)
5:40 – Ben gives an update about the LSAT Demon—tune in to hear about the latest features coming to the guys’ prep platform. If you haven’t tried the Demon yet, here’s some info: The Demon is an artificial intelligence LSAT prep platform. As it throws LSAT questions at you, it starts to learn where you are with the test and to react accordingly. So if you need to work on ordering-type logic games, it will throw tailored ordering-type logic games at you to test your weaknesses. If you’re getting everything right on Necessary Assumption LR questions, the Demon will serve up more advanced Necessary Assumption LR questions to keep you sharp.
As always, if you like the show and you want to get more from the Thinking LSAT community, check out the links below. They’re great ways to connect directly with Nathan and Ben, to get more resources for LSAT study, or to jump into conversation with your fellow test-preppers.
10:37 – Email 1—Jason writes in with some sweet words for Nathan and Ben about how the show, the Demon, and the guys’ various books and prep tools have helped him stay on track while preparing for the test. Thanks, Jason!
11:36 – It’s your weekly Pearls vs. Turds, dear listeners. The current scoreboard is looking grim for pearls: 4 Turds : 0 Pearls: 2 Draws. Today’s piece of wisdom(?) comes from Reddit. Rrrrrrr you ready!? This redditor suggests that when you begin studying for the test, you shouldn’t hoover up every god damn thing you can about the LSAT specifically. Instead, you should take a higher level approach. Change your way of thinking. Maybe buy yourself a non-LSAT-related book on…traditional theoretical logic (wtf?). At first the guys think that this piece of wisdom might be like if a giant ate a handful of pearls and then took a dump. Mostly turd, but with some hints of pearl. After all, it is important to change your thinking about the test, and take a more common-sense approach rather than learn a bunch of question-type jargon. But after brief discussion, they quickly deem the whole damn thing a Turd of Wisdom.
20:46 – Here’s a little post-holiday gift for you. Massachusetts School of Law sent an email back in December attempting to entice would-be law students to apply for the January 2019 semester. THAT’S THE SPRING 2019 SEMESTER, PEOPLE. Ben and Nathan dutifully excoriate this desperate missive.
30:16 – Email 2—Some more genuine and kind words from a listener of the show. Sophie thanks the guys for their frank discussion about sexual misconduct on college campuses in Ep. 169,Asking for a Friend. Thanks for the email Sophie! Here’s to some cultural progress, finally!
33:13 – Email 3—Are you listening to the show from outside the US? Are you planning to take the LSAT soon? And if so, are you feverishly wondering whether the digital LSAT rollout will be coming to you in July? Well, your fellow listener, Alyssa’s got y’back. She emailed LSAC to ask whether the digital LSAT would be offered in her native Australia. Alas, she received word back from the mother ship that the digital LSAT will only be delivered in North America. Tune in to hear LSAC’s official reply. The guys launch into a reminder and offer some thoughts about how the digital LSAC will be rolled out this summer. Thanks, for the news, Alyssa!
38:35 – The guys jump back into LSAT India from 2009. We’re on LR question seven in section one of the test. Today’s question is all about our old friends over at the Cola Commission. Those helpful guys and gals sure do want to keep their sticky fingers in the cola game, but wait! Don’t market forces already keep cola prices low, you ask? The author reasons that the commission ought to be shuttered. Ben and Nathan give some advice about predicting the answer before speeding ahead to the answer choices, including covering those suckers up so you’re forced to think about a likely answer before even seeing your options. They walk through their thinking on the question, and of course, crush it in the end.
47:43 – Email 4—Ding ding ding ding dinnnnggggg. It’s personal statement time, friends! Gather round, gather round. Sterling has bravely put forth his personal statement for a healthy lambasting from the LSAT crew. Despite Sterling’s request for “a quick stamp of approval,” the guys dive in to a lengthy read—and dismantling of—his personal essay.