Recap with Rostra

Good morning and welcome to today’s Recap with Rostra.

Our forecast really was a curse, as it’s been another two weeks of rain, wind, and even some brief hail. Fun! Well, at least I got to see a rainbow.

We’ve also had elections on Wednesday (check Uva Corner for more on that), Thanksgiving (belated happy Turkey day to you all!) and the holy grail of bargain hunting, Black Friday. Though not as large as in the US, the day is still full of great baits to lure you into buying the I NEVER KNEW I NEEDED THIS UNTIL I SAW IT. AND LOOK AT THIS PRICE, that now sits somewhere gathering dust. And of course: yes, I bought something this Friday. So have many more as around half of the residents in the Netherlands postponed planned purchases until Black Friday (and around 60% of people aged 16-29). Homo economicus at its finest.

- Mikołaj Kuczmarski, Elizabeth Palii, Riad Guliyev, Levente Juhász

⚡ Rostra in the Flash

Here, we bring you the latest from our published articles:

• “The Ex-Empire Strikes Back: The Uprising Opposition in Former French African Colonies” by Bernice Tsewole for our Politics column.

  Here, Bernice talks about the recent anti-French uprisings in the former French African colonies and provides the historical background for Françafrique. While exploring the growing role of Russia in the region and the waning role of France, she argues for a genuine change and development in the former colonies.

• “Let’s Talk About Sex Baby: The Value of the Entertainment Industry in Sex Education” by Beatriz Perfeito for our Culture and Technology column.

  Here, Beatriz analyzes two shows, “Sex Education” and “Fleabag”, and argues that sexual education plays a role in entertainment by providing valuable lessons for younger audiences. At the same time, entertainment should not replace formal education but rather complement it.

- RG

🚀 Another portion of productivity powers

Avengers assemble (again)! Only one more month before the holidays! Yay! Is there anything special you have planned for the upcoming winter wonderland? 

Some students have no trouble keeping their enthusiasm levels high, while others may find it more challenging to maintain their concentration. Especially when we approach the holiday season and plan our time off. 

Well, as Iron Man once said: “I’m doing what has to be done, to save us from something worse”. So, in order to avoid January resits and other regrets, let’s discuss some time management tips (Dutch speciality) and the ways to prevent procrastination. 

Time management… A.k.a easier said than done!

• Let’s start with something simple. Are you still a little sceptical about creating a schedule? We would recommend giving it another chance. Set some deadlines for yourself. 

• Be realistic. Of course, when under pressure, any student can unleash their inner DC Comics hero Flash. Putting "Become a pro in statistics" in your calendar for the entire day is perhaps not the best way to ensure that you won't get sidetracked.  Divide a big task into smaller steps.

• Don’t forget to take breaks! 

• Give a try to some apps that can help with time management. A few examples are Forest, Doodle, Serene, Flat Tomato and Remember the Milk.

Procrastination. A.k.a. Everyone has struggled with it, even Batman.

• Try the Pomodoro Technique. Sounds fancy, but in reality it is simple. And it is connected with time management.  The general rule is that you should work for 25 minutes, then take a break for 5-10 minutes, and then return to work for another 25 minutes. After 4 repetitions, take a lengthier pause before starting back up again.  

• We often procrastinate because we want to avoid negative emotions. For instance, when performing something you could feel angry, dumb or overwhelmed. So ask yourself: what is causing it and how can you prevent it? Perhaps if you get a study buddy it'll motivate you more.  Or treat yourself with something nice in the end. 

• Put your phone down. A strange suggestion that could help some people: record yourself studying using time-lapses. It could be entertaining to see yourself in the end, and you will be less tempted to reach for your phone.  

Remember: to start something is always the hardest part of the process. 

Are there any other tips that work for you? Share with us!

- EP

🗒️ Rostra Recommends

For podcast seekers… 

Finance is not rocket science, says Codie Sanchez during the podcast of Steven Barett, called The Diary of a CEO. In the latest episode, the discussion embarks upon the game of finance and deal-making. Make sure to check it out, and don’t be afraid; The language of the podcast is beginner-friendly, and it describes the aspects of modern finance in a lenient style.   

For discussion-freaks... 

Visit the Room for Discussion at the UvA with Michelle Goderie about Amazon’s Career Secrets. The discussion on the 30 of November is aimed at discovering why Amazon stays behind compared to Bol.com and whether in the future the American company can step up as market leader in the Benelux region. Make sure to come to the campus and listen to this enlightening interview from 2 pm.  

Fire up the canons… 

Last week the newest movie of the great Ridley Scott, Napoleon started to air. The project with Joaquin Phoenix and Vanessa Kirby was awaited by millions of viewers, however, at first glance, it did not live up to the expectations. Critiques have given low grades of opinions to the piece, while viewers were a slightly bit upset about the outcomes. Make sure to watch it, the next few weeks will be the decisive: are we looking at a good movie or not?  

- LJ

🎓 The UvA Corner

Unsurprisingly, today we’ll be covering here the elections which brought a surprise win for far-right PVV. The party has won 37 of 150 seats in the parliament and is currently trying to form a coalition.

Among their proposals are: a binding referendum on leaving the EU, withdrawing from climate obligations and a massive reduction in immigration. They also want to ban Koran and mosques. Oh, and strip criminals of Dutch nationality and deport them (where exactly?).

Its leader, anti-Islam Eurosceptic Geert Wilders has been nicknamed the Dutch Donald Trump and the resemblance is visible not only to the star of New York’s courts, Don “The Con” Trump, but also to recently elected far-right leaders. Even though he does not have a cabinet of clones of his dead dog (100% a real thing, check it here), his cats, Snoetje en Pluisje, have their own account with over 24k followers on the app formerly known as Twitter. At this point, even a slight obsession with pets has to be a sign… You can acquaint yourself better with his views and history in the article from Politico.

Here’s a brief election “Everything You need to know” from Bloomberg and a quick update on the coalition talks from FT

- MK

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