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Administration => AN Community Lounge => Topic started by: Alter on October 17, 2016, 08:06:03 pm

Title: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: Alter on October 17, 2016, 08:06:03 pm
(http://i52.tinypic.com/k9t7oo.png)
ASK ME ANYTHING #7: zsteve


What is an AMA thread?
AMA #1: Orb
AMA #2: vox nihili
AMA #3: jamonwindeyer
AMA #4: RuiAce
AMA #5: pi
AMA #6: heidiii


Welcome to the 7th instalment of ATAR Notes' Ask Me Anything series!

As you'd already know by now from reading the title, our subject today will be zsteve! Zsteve is a highly valued member of the ATAR Notes community, not only being a Victorian Moderator in the Maths and Science subforum, but also being responsible for providing 100% free lectures for Maths on behalf of ATAR Notes.

If that hasn't already impressed you enough, zsteve scored a perfect ATAR score of 99.95 as a home-schooled student, making him one of the most accomplished students to ever complete VCE. His personal story received national coverage last year and he has been described as 'the new poster boy for home-schooling in Australia'.

I think I've embarrassed zsteve enough, so I'll hand it over to him to take over the thread.

In the quote below is a personal introduction written by the man himself.
Quote
Hey guys!
I'm Stephen (aka zsteve on ATAR Notes forums). I finished VCE in 2015, having done Methods, Spesh, Chemistry, Physics, English Language, and UMEP Maths. I'm currently seeing the finish of my first year in Science at University of Melbourne, where I'm more or less doing a continuation of my year 12 subjects (which I loved to bits, of course :D) - I've done a pretty straight combination of maths (and more maths), chemistry, physics, and biology (take my word for it - uni bio is HARD if you haven't done VCE bio HAHAHA), as well as picking up microeconomics along the way. I've found uni ridiculously rewarding and fun.

Right now, I'm not exactly sure where I want to go with my degree, but it looks like a chemistry major/maths diploma at the moment :P

Outside of study (boring, right?), I 'regularly' go to the gym (stopped now because of exams :P) and picked up debating (prior to dropping it like a hot potato because too hard/ceebs :'D). My other hobbies include computer programming (an old favourite), running (should do a few runs after exams), listening to music (the only way to switch my brain off on public transport), as well as reading.

Oh, and also pushing myself to my limits just for lels.

I find teaching extremely fun and rewarding, so I tutor a few VCE subjects on the weekend and also do lecturing for ATAR Notes (woohoo! :D)

Author's note: Legend has it that zsteve has one of the firmest and most robust handshakes known to man in the 21st century. I can personally attest to zsteve's firm and remarkable grip; it is an opportunity to die for. As always, please make sure to take advantage of this AMA and ask any appropriate questions that come to mind.

Have a nice day! :)

Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: RuiAce on October 17, 2016, 08:11:35 pm
But why applied when you can pure tho
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: EEEEEEP on October 17, 2016, 08:14:07 pm
What is your chocolate?
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: Swagadaktal on October 17, 2016, 08:22:19 pm
If you had to shake the hands of anyone in the world, which hand would you shake?

And do you like any hand greetings outside of the shake?
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: Sine on October 17, 2016, 08:31:38 pm
What did you do in the time between your last VCE exam/UMEP exam and results day?  :)
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: Elizawei on October 17, 2016, 08:34:02 pm
Favourite quote?
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: sweetiepi on October 17, 2016, 08:37:05 pm
Just a few for you here:
1. What is the best book you have read and why?
2. What is your least favourite movie and what makes it that?
3. Can you describe yourself in three words or less?
4. Are you a taco fan?
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: jamonwindeyer on October 17, 2016, 08:46:14 pm
Done anything nifty/noteworthy with your programming pasttime? ;D
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: brenden on October 17, 2016, 09:10:46 pm
Quote from: Alter on October 17, 2016, 08:06:03 pm
Author's note: Legend has it that zsteve has one of the firmest and most robust handshakes known to man in the 21st century.
There is literally nothing more true than that statement. And I mean this in every possible way - metamathematically, metaphorically, literally, take your pick. This is the truest truth.
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: AngelWings on October 18, 2016, 11:06:11 am
Some questions for you, zsteve:
1.
Quote from: zsteve
biology (take my word for it - uni bio is HARD if you haven't done VCE bio HAHAHA)
As a fellow student who didn't do VCE Bio and now is doing uni Bio, my main question is: are you planning on continuing it at all? (Besides major/ diploma.)
2. Just to keep with (a now broken) tradition  ;) : What is the meaning of life?
3. What house would you be in if you were a Hogwarts student?
4. What motivates you and how do you motivate yourself?
5. Do you think anything has changed within you since starting uni (e.g. social life, personality changes, etc.)?
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: zsteve on October 18, 2016, 10:59:53 pm
Quote from: RuiAce on October 17, 2016, 08:11:35 pm
But why applied when you can pure tho

I'm picking applied (a) because I've always liked the applied side of maths and I have a secondary interest in physics (vector calculus in first semester was pretty cool in that it pretty much meant I didn't need to pay attention for half of Physics 2 (Electromagnetism) :D) and (b) because it probably complements my other interests better.

Quote from: EEEEEEP on October 17, 2016, 08:14:07 pm
What is your chocolate?

The real questions :P. I'm not a particular chocolatey person, but if I had my pick, I'd probably go for Picnic HAHAHA.

Quote from: Swagadaktal on October 17, 2016, 08:22:19 pm
If you had to shake the hands of anyone in the world, which hand would you shake?

And do you like any hand greetings outside of the shake?

Hmm... Trump naah probably Edward Snowden :)
And sometimes the hand-clasp rather than the shake. And on occasion the fist-bump :3

Quote from: Sine on October 17, 2016, 08:31:38 pm
What did you do in the time between your last VCE exam/UMEP exam and results day?  :)

From what I remember, I spent my time not doing much HAHA - mainly getting my breath back after basically 9 exams in three weeks. After a while, I did end up doing some stuff for tutoring work, trying to re-learn piano (failed miserably), reading history (kind of worked), and learning Chinese (made progress for a while). Oh, and I tried studying some physics because at the time I wasn't intending on doing it at uni (turns out I did)

In hindsight, perhaps I should have chilled more and zoomed out of life rather than launching straight into other plans :3

And I'll answer the rest soon the next time I procrastinate from studying for uni exams :D
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: zsteve on October 20, 2016, 07:57:37 am
Quote from: Elizawei on October 17, 2016, 08:34:02 pm
Favourite quote?

Hmm...
Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others? - Martin Luther King

Quote from: insanipi on October 17, 2016, 08:37:05 pm
Just a few for you here:
1. What is the best book you have read and why?
2. What is your least favourite movie and what makes it that?
3. Can you describe yourself in three words or less?
4. Are you a taco fan?

1. Best book I've read - it's been a while (in recent years I've been mainly reading historical/non-fiction when I get the chance, so I can't really say any of them are super awesome haha. Should get back to reading fiction). I've always enjoyed a good classic, some of the ones I've enjoyed specifically are Herman Melville's Bartleby, a short and weird plot, but the pathos behind the character of Bartleby is real and highlights how much pain can lie under the surface of an otherwise smiling face.

2. HAHAHA I have stopped watching movies. Just to answer your question though, I've always really enjoyed anything Tintin-related, so the animated Tintin series was an old favourite of mine (from when I was like 9 years old). A bit more of a niche film (I found somewhere in the library), Tintin and the Blue Oranges (French with English subs) I found fascinating.

3. I need to think about this one :D
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: sweetcheeks on October 20, 2016, 08:28:05 am
Steve

1) When you were preparing for your chemistry exam, how well were you doing on the practice papers? Were you always close to full marks?

2) If I have not completed VCE physics would I find first year physics to be challenging (as much as you say bio is?)
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: zsteve on October 22, 2016, 10:12:51 am
Quote from: insanipi on October 17, 2016, 08:37:05 pm
4. Are you a taco fan?

I can't say I am - the times I've had tacos in my 18 years and 9 months on planet Earth can probably be numbered off on one hand :). With regards to my diet, I'd like to say I'm an omnivore in its truest definition. I usually eat what's on my plate. Generally not a picky eater, but I generally refuse to eat dates, figs and papayas :P. Tried to think of a favourite food, but couldn't really name any single one. :( sushi, kebabs, some types of Asian food (by no means all), Italian food. These all sit well with me HAHAHA.

Quote from: jamonwindeyer on October 17, 2016, 08:46:14 pm
Done anything nifty/noteworthy with your programming pasttime? ;D

Hmmm...  https://github.com/zsteve
I used to host a few of my projects on GitHub, which were written in C++/C (and generally quite buggy, but oh well. fun times!).
Probably the one masterpiece was an emulator for the intel 8086 microprocessor from the 1970s, which I wrote over the first half of my year 11 (this was able to interpret and execute machine assembly code). Quite a good insight into how computer systems operated on the hardware level (had to deal with memory segmentation, addressing, hardware interrupts and fun things like that).

Haven't been programming much since I got converted to science and maths

Quote from: AngelWings on October 18, 2016, 11:06:11 am
Some questions for you, zsteve:
1. As a fellow student who didn't do VCE Bio and now is doing uni Bio, my main question is: are you planning on continuing it at all? (Besides major/ diploma.)
Quote
I've found the molecular/microscopic aspect of biology very interesting, and I'll be doing biochemistry/molecular biology, both because of interest and also as a med prereq next year. Depending on how my course planning goes, I'm also hoping to do another molecular biology subject to keep the option of a biochem major open. It's interesting how your preferences change from high school to uni - coming out of year 12, I was all maths/chem/physics and rather lacked an interest in biology. First year has really evened me out in that respect - I'm finding that I more or less enjoy each of maths, physics, chemistry, and biology in their own right well, either that or I'm believing my own bs that I made up to motivate myself to study bio HAHAHA

More to come :)
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: TheCommando on November 03, 2016, 03:08:58 pm
Hey Stephen,
1. For someome who is struggling to understand maths, apart from getting help from tudor, what do u suggest i cam do by myself when i'm at home
2. Why did u choose English Language over English
3. Favourite food?
4. Thoughts on Harry Potter? And have u read the books and watched the movies
Thanks
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: zsteve on November 16, 2016, 07:50:32 am
Quote from: TheCommando on November 03, 2016, 03:08:58 pm
Hey Stephen,
1. For someome who is struggling to understand maths, apart from getting help from tudor, what do u suggest i cam do by myself when i'm at home
2. Why did u choose English Language over English
3. Favourite food?
4. Thoughts on Harry Potter? And have u read the books and watched the movies
Thanks

Hi! Sorry for the (long) gap in these responses :/ stuff has been all over the place (and I need to get back into the habit of reading these forums)
1. I think 'getting' maths involves a certain element of knowing HOW to study maths. Maths has never been something I can sit back, relax, read through and understand (at least, usually). Rather, reading any mathematical text (i.e. yo maths textbook) is an ACTIVE rather than PASSIVE process. It should be done with pen and paper. If the book tells you X = Y, try to work out WHY it's so on paper.

Also a good textbook is indispensable. I used Cambridge Essentials and they are THE BEST. The detail they go into is excellent, and they facilitate making links between different topics. A (very) simple example is the link between the tangent line formula \(y = f'(x_0)(x-x_0)+f(x_0)\) and graph transformation stuff from Methods. So read a good textbook, and keep your eyes open for connections between seemingly unrelated topics (they are everywhere)

2. Good question - there were a range of reasons, but it was largely because the text my school used for English was, well, less than appealing.
In hindsight, if I were to do VCE again, I'd choose Englang over English because it's a somewhat more enjoyable subject (I found it fun and intellectually stimulating), definitely something I'd rather do than prevaricate over Gwen Harwood's poetry :P

3. Favourite food - again you have me clueless

4. I have read most of the books (up to the 5th or 6th in the series) and I've watched some of the movies, but that was a LONG LONG time ago (as in like 7-8 years ago). Can't remember all that much now :P
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: TheCommando on November 16, 2016, 04:00:02 pm
Wow, thank you very much Stephen
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: undefined on November 16, 2016, 04:18:32 pm
What were the perks of your exceedingly high ATAR? For example, what kind of scholarships were offered? And do you have any tips for students currently completing their VCE? Thanks   :D
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: Joseph41 on November 16, 2016, 06:02:41 pm
An unbeatable ATAR, but do you have VCE-related regrets?
Title: Re: [Ask Me Anything] #7: zsteve
Post by: Sine on November 16, 2016, 11:09:30 pm
What is your ATARNotes forum profile photo of?