ee hours on an anatomy lesson, another two
hours, while a third nurse may give it a half-hour of concentrated study
and know it better than either of you, if you have been day-dreaming, or
talking, or rebelling at the "luck" which keeps you indoors learning
about bones, when the tennis-court is so inviting. True, some minds have
better natural equipment and some have better previous training than
others. But the average mind could learn a lesson well in much less time
than is spent upon learning it poorly. Few people hold their attention
strictly to the task at hand if something more interesting beckons, or
if they feel tired, or "blue." But you can learn to do it.

Put aside a certain amount of time today for study; hold your undivided
attention on your lesson, regardless of how many pleasanter things
appeal. When your eyes or your thoughts wander from your note-book,
bring them back forcibly, if need be. Your first task is to keep your
eyes there, instead of letting them follow your roommate's movements, or
resting them by watching the street below. But it is easier to do this
than to make your mind grasp the meaning of the things you see. You may
read two or three pages, and not receive one idea, not even be able to
recall any words from the context. Your eyes are obeying your will and
seeing the words, but your mind is "wool-gathering." Now take yourself
in hand firmly. If you are really a bit fagged, try some deep-breathing
exercises before the open window, bathe your face in cold water. Then
read a paragraph, close your book, and write, if you are not alone, or
repeat to yourself aloud, if your roommate is out, what that paragraph
says--its meaning. If you cannot do it, read it again with that end in
view. Repeat the process, and hold yourself to it day after day, if
necessary, until finally will has won the battle, or, better still,
your will to learn has been reinforced by an interest in the very
competition with yourself, if not yet in the contest. Then, as you learn
some facts from your notes, use your imagination to apply them in real
life.

The triceps muscle. What is it for? Your notes inform you, and then it
is really interesting to see how it performs its function. What origins
and attachments must the triceps have to make it extend the arm? Your
notes say that a muscle tends to draw the part to which it is attached
toward its origin. This triceps muscle straightens the arm. In that case
it must oppose t