Problem: Article: This is the stuff that is sandwiched between the pretty parts of your quilt. There may seem like a billion options to choose from (and there are), making the process fairly intimidating. But sticking to the basics now will ensure your success later. Mainly, you need to consider the loft and fiber of your fabric. Loft is a fancy term for how thick your batting is. A low loft means the batting is thin. A low-loft fabric is easier to work with, but will result in a thinner product. Fiber is what material your batting is made of. Polyester, 100% cotton, and a cotton/poly blend are your three most common options and none is necessarily better than the others. Wool and silk are also available, but they're a bit pricier. And a recent mover on the scene is bamboo, but that's just strange. Polyester - A cheap option that's better for hand-quilting if it's low-loft. It doesn't need to be quilted closely together, though it does tend to shift and the fibers can migrate to the edges of the quilt over time. Cotton - This is a good option for machine quilting. It should be quilted closely. It will shrink a bit, but it shouldn't pill. The 100% kind feels like flannel. Cotton blend (usually 80% cotton/20% polyester) - Probably the best option, if you had to pick. It's not super expensive and it doesn't shrink as much as the 100% kind. It's good on the machine, too. This should be the biggest part. The batting should be smaller than your quilt back and larger than your quilt top. The quilt top will be the smallest. Just so long as it's a few inches bigger on all sides than your front, you're fine. The reason a back needs to be bigger is because you're usually quilting from the top of the quilt and the batting and backing can shift slightly underneath. The extra inches are your insurance policy that your back doesn't suddenly become smaller than the front. Basting a very important step in the quilting process. It seems tedious, but doing it carefully will result in a professional-looking finished project. Basting is a way to temporarily hold the three layers together while you quilt. Iron the backing fabric and lay on the floor face down. Carefully pull the fabric taught (but don't stretch it) and tape it to a hard, flat surface. Smooth the batting and lay your quilt top over the batting. Press both layers together to get all wrinkles out. Doing so also helps the quilt top adhere slightly to the batting. When top and batting are smooth and flat, carefully roll the two together. Bring the top and batting to the quilt back and carefully unroll on top of the backing, smoothing all wrinkles as you unroll. Make sure you can see backing fabric around all four edges of the quilt top. Here's where you have some options. That is, if you're machine quilting. You can always baste in the traditional sense or use spray baste, too. Pin quilt top every few inches starting at the center. Use basting pins -- they're curved and easier to manipulate. When pins are in place, remove the tape and check the quilt back to make sure things are tight and flat. If there are puckers or excess fabric, now is the time to fix the problems. If the fabric is loose when you start quilting, there will be tucks or puckers in the quilting. There is no way to adjust the back once you start sewing without a lot of headaches or time with the seam ripper. (However, using a busy, patterned fabric for the back will help to hide any small mistakes.) There are many options for machine quilting. The first is to let the seams/fabrics themselves be your guide. Sewing next to the seams themselves is called "quilting in the ditch." If you want to create more visual interest in the quilt you can stitch lines or patterns in other directions. It's a good idea to start quilting from the center and work your way out. Because it's hard for all that bulk to fit through your machine, roll the sides in. You can un-roll as you work toward the edges. You may want to use a walking foot when quilting. It's not necessary, but it helps feed the layers of fabric evenly through the machine.
Summary: Choose your batting. Cut out your backing. Assemble your layers. Keep them together. Start basting.

Problem: Article: To make this traditional Jamaican treat, you only need a few simple ingredients: 2 brown coconuts 1 cup of fresh ginger, diced 2 cups of golden brown sugar, packed 3 cups of water Take your fresh brown coconuts and use a screwdriver to poke holes through the eyes of the nut. Drain the coconut water from the center of the coconuts -- use or discard as you wish! Use a hammer to crack the coconuts open and use a butter knife to pry the coconut meat from the shell. Use a vegetable peeler to remove the brown outer layer from the meat, then use a knife to dice the coconut. Tip: You can make it easier to remove the coconut meat from the shell by baking the drained coconut in a 400 degree F oven for 10 minutes. Allow the coconut to become cool to the touch before cracking with the hammer. Combine the diced coconut, diced ginger, brown sugar and water in a heavy bottomed-saucepan and place over a medium heat. Stir the mixture continuously with a large spoon until it boils and the sugar starts to caramelize. Keep stirring as the mixture thickens to prevent the sugar from sticking to bottom and sides of the saucepan. Use a candy thermometer to check the temperature -- you want it to reach approximately 295F (146C). Once the sugar has caramelized nicely and the mixture becomes very difficult to stir, turn the heat down to the lowest setting. Working quickly, spoon drops of the mixture onto a baking sheet lined with waxed paper, using about two tablespoons of mixture per coconut drop. Allow the drops to cool and harden before eating.
Summary: Gather your ingredients. Prepare the fresh coconut. Combine all of the ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to the boil. Spoon the mixture onto a baking sheet.

Problem: Article: If you don't have the basics of anatomy and physiology down, you can easily get lost when studying pathology. So if you know this week in your pathology class you're going to be studying respiratory pathology, review lung anatomy and physiology the weekend before. That way you can focus on the pathology information, instead of trying to remember stuff you learned in past semesters. Pathology, like most medical fields, requires that you learn a lot of information. One of the best ways to commit all that information to memory is spread out your studying. Review your class notes each day, and rewrite notes on particularly difficult topics. You can also re-teach yourself concepts by going over your notes and speaking out loud as if you were explaining the concept to someone else. As you're reading, look up pathology terms you don't know, even if they're not directly related to the topic you're studying. Chances are that term will come up again, and knowing how it functions in different contexts will help you learn pathology more generally. You can use a paper dictionary, or a medical dictionary website like MediLexicon. There will always be people in your class who get certain things more quickly than you do, and you will always get things more quickly than others. Forming a study group helps you benefit from your classmates' strength. Get together once or twice a week to study together.
Summary:
Brush up on the anatomy and physiology associated with the pathology you're learning. Space out your studying. Keep a medical dictionary near you while you study. Form a study group.