Great Panic Essay

Studies on PRISM
Introduction
SOP, or Studies on PRISM, is a project intended to discover, through research and experimentation, the truths behind many of the oddities and strange aspects of the people in PRISM.

I. The Great Panic
It was the Great Panic that was the inspiration for this study. The Great Panic was an event occurring in the later months of the 2015-2016 school year, beginning around April or May and lasting, in some form or another, until approximately September or October of the 2016-2017 school year. Prior to starting LA/SS 9, a panic among all the to-be students existed. The cause of this panic is attributed to the generation that was exiting LA/SS 9 telling all of us (at that time, seventh graders) about the so-called
“horrors” of this class. As most will know now, the class was severely overrated. It had previously been a "well-known fact" that LA/SS 9 was a class requiring large amounts of effort and time. The generation prior had stated that they had needed to stay up until 1 or 2 in the morning to finish all their homework. This had been disproved by the majority's personal experiences with the class, but nonetheless some people did actually stay up until 1 or 2. Likely reasons for this are procrastination and time-wasting. (see section II) The Great Panic ensued most during the final months of the 2015-2016 year. Over the summer, it had entered a latent phase, but it hung over all the to-be students, an invisible dark cloud that was occasionally remembered. September was a month of fear. All to-be students proceeded to fear the LA/SS 9 class, and the revival of previous panicking occurred. It was only personal experience that slowly erased this fear. It was claimed that the class would become more difficult later in the year. This was also disproved my personal experience throughout the months of November and December. In conclusion, it is fear incited through the claims of the generation prior that caused the Great Panic.
Personal experience did much to revert these fears; and ultimately, there was no lasting impact from the Great Panic. II. PRISM Procrastination and Time Wasting
At one time or another, all PRISM's have procrastinated to some degree, in some shape, way, or form.
This procrastination is likely attributed to a fear of the homework and the work and effect necessary for said work.
"Don't procrastinate too hard." --Anonymous Productive procrastination, as coined by Emily Feng, is when too much time is spent on a certain type of homework, usually done to procrastinate easier homework. Productive procrastination is usually when one loses track of time.

Procrastination often leads to sleep deprivation (see Section IV), as putting off an assignment elongates how long it takes to finish something. Prolonged procrastination, especially due to distraction factors, is one of the main reasons LA/SS 9 appears so stressful.

Distraction factors are everywhere when working on homework or studying. They range from hardly noticeable to extreme time wasters. These are judged on the distraction scale as follows:

TIER
DESCRIPTION
A
(0.0-0.9)
Hardly noticeable.
B (1.0-1.9)
Noticeable but likely is not thought about.
C (2.0-2.9)
Thought about only for a moment or few moments.
D (3.0-3.9)
Pondered for some time, but less than a minute.
E (4.0-4.9)
Pondered for approximately one or two minutes.
F (5.0-5.9)
Causing distraction for a couple minutes.
G (6.0-6.9)
Causing distraction for ten to fifteen minutes.
H (7.0-7.9)
Causing distraction for fifteen to thirty minutes.
I (8.0-8.9)
Major distraction; wastes half an hour to an hour.
J (9.0-9.9)
Severe distractions; wastes more than an hour.
K (10)
Extremely severe distraction; special circumstances only.

For more information concerning procrastination, see Section VI.
III. Self-Deprecation
Self-deprecation is so common in the PRISM community that it is almost ubiquitous.

Some quotes on self-deprecation, taken from PRISM students:
"Nothing I say is quote-worthy."
"It's not self-deprecation, it's fishing for compliments."
"I fail every test."

Self-deprecation is exceptionally common during times of final exams, tests, and other stressful times, and happens after turning in an assignment or taking a test and before results are out.

One form of Self-Deprecation is Sub-Expectation Deprecation (SED). Sub-Expectation states that expectation should be set less than what one knows to be their real expectation. The easiest way to explain this is with the four cases.

CASE DESCRIPTION (CAUSE)
LOGICAL RESULT (EFFECT)
CASE 1: Sets expectations high, results are low.
Panic, shock, sadness, or other negative emotion.
CASE 2: Sets expectations high, results are high.
Content feeling, but others may convey a feeling of arrogance.
CASE 3: Sets expectations low, results are low.
Results appear expected, potential sympathy gained.
CASE 4: Sets expectations low, results are high.
Deference gained from others when one does
well.

Both circumstances of setting expectations high result in somewhat negative effects. Setting expectations low, on the other hand, result in more positive results. Therefore, it appears logical to self-deprecate, as it appears to result in better results.

Another form of self-deprecation is Relativity Deprecation (RD). This form of self-deprecation is most common when a competitive environment exists. Quoting an anonymous source, “I’m bad compared to [list of people]”. When there are said competitive environments, some will feel inferior because statistical evidence has apparently proved their inferiority, even when statistical evidence cannot really prove true superiority or inferiority. RD can lead to an inferiority complex later on in life. Overall, it is unhealthy to self-deprecate; other studies have shown prolonged self-deprecation leading to health issues such as anxiety and depression.

IV. Sleep Deprivation
Sleep deprivation occurs to many people commonly due to large amounts of homework and studying through the LA/SS 9 class.

V. Theory of Insanity
VI. Moral Decline
VII. Evolution