Flowzine, February 2022

FLOWZINE ALEXANDER SCHOUTEN about Online Dating Cultural Spotlight MALAYSIA

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Issue February 2022

LOCKDOWN update

Dear Flowzine readers, You’re reading the first Flowzine of the ‘21-’22 committee right now. For the members that you see in the picture above (except for me) this is the first edition they worked on. But the Flowzine itself can celebrate their 25th edition!

So, congrats to the Flowzine!

After many redesigns we now created a stable design that is recognised by you. Of course we will be working towards many more Flowzines for you!

Even when circumstances make it hard: the Flow-yellow sun will shine on us to help!

Much blue and yellow love, Désirée van den Berg InFlow commissioner ‘21-’22

COLOPHON

Flowzine is the official magazine of Study Association Flow.

Issue no. 25 Contact: NL: inflowcommissie@svflow.nl EN: inflowcommittee@svflow.nl

Commissioner: Désirée van den Berg Design: Désirée van den Berg, Maria Mouratidi, Femke Monshouwer & Isabel Prinsen Committee: Désirée van den Berg, Lynn Willems, Sophie Vullings, Femke Monshouwer, Maria Mouratidi, Sherwin Lee & Isabel Prinsen Special thanks to: Alexander Schouten

CONTENTS

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Meet the InFlow

Reader Stories

07

Column Cultural Spotlight: Malaysia

By Sherwin Lee

09

Alexander Schouten on Online Dating

By Isabel Prinsen & Sophie Vullings

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Easy Recipe for Burritos

By Maria Mouratidi

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Your Groceries, Online?!

By Maria Mouratidi

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How focus and concentration works

By Sherwin Lee & Femke Monshouwer

17

A lockdown update

By Sherwin Lee & Isabel Prinsen

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The Five Experiences during your Study Time

By Femke Monshouwer

21

The Ultimate Spring Guide

By Lynn Willems

MEET THE INFLOW Wait! Before you are going to read the articles our beautiful committee wrote for you, first things first! Let’s introduce your writers for this year!

DÉSIRÉE Hello everyone! I’m Désirée and I’m 19 years old.

I grew up in Wijk & Aalburg. I’m into writing, (web) design, (board)games and art. So, I think creativity is a big part of me. I also adore being with my family and friends. Last year I really enjoyed being a member of the InFlow committee and this year I have the honor of being the commissioner of the InFlow. I hope you’ll have fun and learn something while reading our Flowzine!

FEMKE Hi there! My name is Femke and I am 20 years old. This is my first year of Communication and Information Sciences and thereby my first year at the InFlow committee! In my free time I absolutely love music, you could often find me with a guitar in my hands. Next to this I like playing different kinds of sports or, going on adventures to make amazing new memories! I’m looking forward to creating exciting new content this year with my fellow committee members!

SHERWIN Hey everyone! I’m Sherwin, a first year CSAI student.

I’m 19 years old and I come from Penang, Malaysia.

I do a little bit of everything such as gaming, content creation (twitch.tv/oreo_sl), sports and even the occasional DIY project. I’m excited to be a part of InFlow this year, and I hope you’ll be looking forward to our future issues of the Flowzine!

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LYNN Hi! My name is Lynn and I’m 20 years old. I grew up in the North of Limburg, but I’ve been living in Tilburg for more than 2 years now. This is my third year being active within Flow and this year I have the honour of calling myself the External Affairs in the Daily Board of Flow! Next to that I’m also busy doing my third year of Communication- and Information Sciences and working at the University. Have fun reading our Flowzine!

SOPHIE Hi all! My name’s Sophie and I’m 19 years old. I grew up in a town called Venray but moved to Tilburg last year.

One of the things I love is music. I’ve been playing the guitar for many years now and it still brings me joy. At the start of the pandemic, I picked up running as a way to stay fit and I completely fell in love with it. This year, I decided to become active within Flow as a way to meet new people. I’m looking forward to creating some fun content for you together with this amazing group of people.

MARIA Hi guys! I am Maria from Larisa, Greece. I am 19 years old and I am studying CSAI at our university. I grew up with a lot of music around me, taking lessons and participating in musical activities so music is a big part of my interests. I also enjoy travelling in different places. Getting inspiration and participating in creative projects is enjoyable for me so being a member of the InFlow committee is a fresh challenge that I am very pleased to work on. Enjoy reading our Flowzine!

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ISABEL Hey, I’m Isabel and I am a third year CIW student.

I follow the New Media Design track because I’m fascinated by design. Drawing and painting take up a lot of my free time, but you can also find me at the Sport Centre every week for dancing classes! I joined the InFlow committee because I like writing and really wanted to join a committee where there is always something to do. I joined a little later in the year because I suck at planning and missed the first sign-up date, but I look forward to putting out something great!

WHO’S WHO? a. At one point during lockdown I was extremely bored, so I learned how to solve a Rubik’s cube. b. In my first years of middle school, I learned a lot of tricks with playing cards, so sometimes I surprise people with a trick. c. My hidden talent is that I can easily dip anything in Sriracha sauce without burning my mouth. Quite handy! d. I speedsolve Rubik’s Cubes of different sizes! My best time on a standard Rubik’s Cube is 6.5 seconds. e. I can piss off a lot of booklovers by folding dog ears into my books without shame. f. My hidden talent is that I can ride a unicycle! My parents bought one years ago just for fun, I started practising right away! g. I can quickly improvise harmonies while listening to a song.

1. Désirée ____ 5. Sophie ____ 2. Femke ____ 6. Maria ____ 3. Sherwin ____ 7. Isabel ____ 4. Lynn ____

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READER STORIES What is something you can’t believe you did before COVID?

Basi ca ever lly, goin y g to happ festival that e hou ned thr t the o year ugGoing on a holiday overseas! :) Not stayin

t hou t i es w table k a dsh omfor n a eh unc Coughing in Giv eling public fe Lea mo ving ear nthly a ly dr

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Blowin g birthd out the can ay d suppo cake that w les on a sed to a be for s everyb ody

1 - b, 2 - f, 3 - d, 4 - c, 5 - a, 6 - g, 7 - e

with e l t t o b a Sharing who throwed le 10 peop go on a s e t u n up 5 mi o your cob Eating without washing your hands

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Thank you for your submissions!

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Cultural Spotlight Malaysia

Malaysia is one of the most diverse

countries in the world, consisting of many different ethnicities, languages and religions. With history dating back 40,000 years, it’s culture contains many tangents and divergences.

Indian and Chinese traders had heavy influence on Malaysia’s early history, with architecture and religions being adapted by the people of the Malay Peninsula. With Islam spreading amongst Malays in the 14th century, the three major races of Malaysia were established. However, countries like Portugal, the Netherlands and the British Empire would continue to establish their presence in Malaysia, known then as Malaya, until the Malays declared their independence from being a British colony on the 31st of August in 1957.

The influences from previous colonisations can be seen throughout the country, with remnants of each

period still remaining. Besides that, you’ll occasionally see that buildings and roads are named after figures of the Western world - in fact Malaysia still adopts a few features from previous colonisations. For example, Malaysia’s political system is heavily influenced by the British system.

With so many influences, oftentimes tourists will visit the areas with the most influence. One of the common tourist areas is the heritage area in Georgetown, Penang where heavy influences from the British Empire still remain. Each remnant contributes to a part of Malaysia’s past, and still remains as an attraction for tourism for years to come.

Even though Malaysia has three major ethnicities, the official religion of Malaysia is Islam due to the majority Muslim race. However, most communities in Malaysia are expected to understand and speak Malaysian, also known as Bahasa Malaysia, with average fluency. Besides the main trio of ethnicities, there are also minor ethnicities that are dubbed as

Polaroid o Malays f ia

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Orang Asli (original people). Each race has their own respected moral values and motivations, however Malaysians are often seen as respectful and polite towards others, and are very attentive of how they handle interactions.

Perhaps one of the most unique aspects of Malaysia is each race’s respective festive events. This leads to many significant festivals due to their traditions with the major three being Chinese New Year, Deepavali (Diwali) and Hari Raya Aidilfitri. The diverse festivals remain as one of the most intriguing and enjoyable events to participate in, where Malaysians will dress up in their respective traditional clothes while enjoying traditional performances and food that will warm up every Malaysian’s soul.

If one day you may decide to visit Malaysia, don’t worry that you’ll miss out on the festivities! There’s plenty of events that will happen throughout the year, so the chances that you’ll miss out are really low.

served alongside a savory sambal paste. If flatbreads are more your type, then perhaps you’ll enjoy the handmade dish of Roti Canai served alongside some Dhal or fish curry.

There’s a plethora of amazing dishes to choose from, with most of which being accessible at very affordable prices. Another aspect of Malaysian food is the atmosphere. By visiting a hawker store in the night, you’ll notice elders just relaxing and sipping away at their coffees, or perhaps it’s a rowdy bunch of adults watching their favourite football team play - the food is the comfort of every Malaysian and it’s ingrained into their culture, and something every Malaysian will be proud of.

Just like other countries in South East Asia, Malaysia is a treasure trove of culture and traditions. There is rarely a dull moment between Malaysians, and if you ever meet an enthusiastic Malaysian, feel free to ask them questions about their country!

If you’ve ever met a Malaysian in real life, you’ll often hear them brag about their Malaysian food being one of, if not the best food they’ve ever had. Local bias aside, it is no secret to any South East Asian that Malaysian food is one of the most savory out there. There’s always something for every type of person - for example if you’re a fan of rice, there’s the national dish of Nasi Lemak, where the rice is cooked with coconut milk while

by Column Lee n Sherwi

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Online Dating

Interview with Alexander Schouten to form impressions of each other. So I thought it was a very interesting field to study.

Due to the coronavirus, we haven’t

been able to meet a lot of new people and especially dating has become much more difficult. That’s why many of us have turned to online dating. Alexander Schouten is a professor here at Tilburg University and has done research on online dating. So we decided to ask him some questions about his research.

What sparked your interest in dating apps?

Two main motivations. The first one is that I had an academic interest. About 8 years ago I noticed that there was a lot of research on online dating. My research is focused on how people interact with each other when they meet via computer mediated communication. Online dating is a unique environment where people start interacting online who have never met before. In regular interactions, you talk to people via Whatsapp that you already know.

Online dating is an environment where people can only use those online cues

But frankly, my relationship of more than 10 years ended at that exact point in time. So that was also a practical motivation to start investigating online dating because I started to use online dating. So I combined a practical interest with an academic interest, and it worked! My girlfriend and I have been together for 8 years now and I met her via online dating.

“Physical appearance is kind of like a gatekeeper. You have to clear the bar.”

What is the first thing people look for when looking at a dating profile?

People first look at physical appearance. Most dating sites, especially Tinder, are visual dating sites. So people look at physical appearance mostly. But that’s not unique to dating sites, that’s what we all do. When you meet someone at a bar, physical appearance is the first cue you pay attention to. But it’s not the only one. Physical appearance is kind of like a gatekeeper. You have to clear the bar.

So let’s say I think a five out of ten is okay. People who are five out of ten or more have my attention, but then in order to swipe left or right people pay attention to other cues. So if they do,

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people tend to look better at the photo and for example focus on the background and see that they’re on vacation so they must be adventurous, something like that. So people tend to make other attributions and then they decide to swipe left or right. So the decision to swipe left, to dislike someone, is made quite quickly based on physical appearance alone. But the decision to swipe right is oftentimes not only based on physical appearance but also on other cues on the dating profile.

And then, once you have a match with someone, what’s the best way to open the conversation? What are patterns that you see?

I did a study with thesis students, but it hasn’t been published so the results are a bit tentative. In general it’s quite hard to study what happens after the initial attraction, because you would need access to someone’s conversation.

That’s ethically a bit difficult. I can ask you ‘Can I have your Tinder conversations,’ but the person you talked to also has to agree. So it’s difficult to come up with that data.

But we studied it with two students, one student studied opening lines and the other conversations. Interesting was that, even if you had a match, the chances that it would actually end up in something is quite low. I think that less than half of matches actually result in a conversation. And it’s not surprising, but what works best is general interest in someone. So not all those hollow statements like ‘hi’, ‘how are you’ and ‘you look nice’. But you take something from a profile picture and ask a question

about it, like ‘oh, I saw that you were at the beach, how was your vacation’ or ‘ interesting book that you’re reading there’. That works best.

“...it has now taken over offline social situations as the most important venue to meet other people.”

After having done so much research into dating apps, do you think it’s the best way we have right now of meeting people, or is meeting them in real life more effective?

Well it’s currently the best way we have! Because we don’t really see people in real life anymore, so there isn’t really an alternative. But seriously, even without the pandemic, it’s one of the most important ways to meet other people. I think in a recent study, it was that it has now taken over offline social situations as the most important venue to meet other people. Online dating is where most people meet, followed by social interactions and work.

And I think it’s more of a logical consequence. Of course, you used to meet people in our immediate vicinity, but now we no longer need to. We meet them based on interest. So considering that I think it’s a good addition. And of course people will always say that it used to be better and it’s better to meet people offline. But I don’t really see why, because the goal of online dating is to see each other offline anyway. It’s a good way to start, and then you meet them offline and see if it clicks. So I think it’s a good addition.

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So if resources and money were not an issue, what is a topic that you would like to research?

What I said before. So what happens after people are a match and what happens in conversation. Scientifically interesting would be modality switching. That is when people switch from one type of communication to another type of communication. So for example, you start online and then you meet face to face. I wonder how that switch works, and that’s fairly difficult to study, but I would say that’s why it’s interesting.

In most scientific research we only investigate how people communicate using online communication, or we only study face to face communication.

In reality we use a lot of media at the same time. So they communicate with Whatsapp and then meet up face to face. So I would be curious in how people use this different media, and how they affect how people interact.

Can you give us a little hypothesis on that? What do you think happens?

I do have a general expectation. First, I think that when we meet offline, it’s different then when we meet online and the moment you know you like each other and there is attraction and butterflies, I think that happens offline mostly. I would be quite curious, if there would be a way to predict based on online interactions if that will happen offline.

But I think not. Because if you look at the current research into general relationship formations, they still don’t know what makes people attracted to each other. So they say that similarities or physical appearance could be it, but it could also be the other way around.

People start acting similar to the person they like. They just don’t know. So I think that even if there is a very good online interaction before you meet, the actual attraction would be very hard to predict. So that would be one expectation.

Another one would be that I think that there is a golden moment, when you should switch from online to offline. So you shouldn’t immediately meet offline, but you also shouldn’t keep it online and only meet after weeks of conversation. I think there is a middle ground where you know a bit about that person, but that you don’t know everything, so you’re still able to be surprised.

But you can see that I haven’t fully figured it out yet. A first step would be to dive into the theory to actually see what would happen.

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Easy Burrito Recipe

Are you a fan of Mexican food but you can’t afford eating out regularly? Are you sensitive to spicy meals but you think they are delicious regardless? We might have the perfect solution for you.

Disclaimer: This Recipe is a bit more “westernized” and doesn’t follow Mexican traditions accurately. There is also a vegan alternative, if you replace some of the ingredients with plant-based ones.

Ingredients for 2 burritos:

Necessary: - 2 large tortillas - 150 gr minced meat (plant based for vegan alternative) - 200 gr Mexican salsa or regular tomato sauce - 8 cherry tomatoes (cut in half) or 2 normal ones (cut in small cubes) - 50g iceberg lettuce - 1 chili pepper - 2-3 table spoons of olive/sunflower oil - salt & pepper

Recommended: - 125 gr yellow cheese rinses - 100 gr black beans - ½ cup corn kernels - half an onion - ½ teaspoon coriander - ½ teaspoon cumin *warning: contains wheat and gluten

Instructions: Minced meat: Cut the onion and the chili pepper into small pieces. Warm 2 tablespoons of oil in a pot or pan and then add the minced meat along with the onion and chili pieces. Cook and stir until you see the meat has changed into a darker color. Then add all the spices and stir. Add tomato sauce in the pan (not the salsa). If you think the sauce is not watery enough, add half a glass of water. Continue cooking while stirring every now and then for around 20 – 30 minutes. Try it out to make sure it is well cooked. (Note: plant-based meat takes less time to cook, around 15 minutes should be fine) Wrapping: This is the tricky part. Warm the tortilla in a microwave or in a pan for 20 seconds. Divide all the fillings (tomatoes, iceberg lettuce, beans, corn, cheese) in two since you will be making two wraps. Add the fillings (half of cooked minced and rice and half of the rest of the ingredients you chose) to an open tortilla. Add some Mexican salsa on top of the fillings. Mix the ingredients so they are equally distributed. Make sure to not add too much fillings because it will be difficult to wrap the tortilla. Partly fold in two sides of the tortilla towards the center. Fold up the bottom flap and then roll the burrito upwards while tucking it. Make sure the fillings are tightly contained into the burrito roll. If you are afraid that the burrito might open and want to “glue” the whole thing together, put the rolled burrito back in the pan and toast each side for about a minute.

Serve on a plate and you can eat immediately. Enjoy!

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Your Groceries, Online?!

Lately, more and more people decide

to turn to online shopping, including grocery shopping. The advantages are plenty. Online shopping is quite convenient, not very time-consuming, prices and deals are transparent and all information about the products is available, like ingredients, allergy warnings, and other relevant tips. Delivery is very fast, and the process adheres to the safety standards during the pandemic. Besides, if you are already experienced with grocery shopping and know your “trusted” or favorite products, online might be the way to go.

The Dutch groceries market offers a lot of alternatives and here we will review some of the options, their advantages and their disadvantages.

Very popular supermarket among Dutch people, everyone has happened to shop there at least once. If you are satisfied with their products but cannot go there yourself, you can

easily use their online option or their mobile app. AH also offers a subscription option for €12 per year. The minimum spend ranges from €50 to €70 depending on the day of delivery. The service also supports next-day delivery.

Unfortunately, the app is not available in English but you can use an automated translation in your browser.

If you’re a big fan of the Jumbo supermarkets, then you’re in luck, there is also online delivery there. Jumbo is the second most popular supermarket in the Netherlands, preferred by many due to it’s low prices relatively to Albert Heijn. You can order groceries from Monday to Friday (7 AM to 10PM). The minimum spend is €50 and the cost varies depending on the time of the delivery. There is also a mobile app, though not available in English.

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Even though PLUS is considered a bit more expensive than the rest of the supermarkets, it is known for better quality meat, bakery and wine. If you want to give it a try, there is an app and website available in Dutch. The minimum spend is €25 and delivery costs start from €6. The unique feature of PLUS is that there is an Express service that can deliver your groceries as fast as 2 hours from the time of the order.

If you want your groceries delivered by Coop, you can request so from their website or app (in Dutch) and you can also pay upon delivery. There are 170 Coop delivery points in the Netherlands and the minimum spend is €40 with delivery costs of €4.99. Note that if you spend over €70 on Coop, you get delivery for free!

So far it has been proven that supermarket services can also succeed exclusively online, giving the users the opportunity to compare prices, quality and other product characteristics between the various available shops.

Picnic has a great variety of products in low prices that often get adjusted to even lower depending on the competition with other stores. The delivery is environmentally friendly due to the small 100% electric cars. The minimum spend is €35, lower than other supermarkets and there are no delivery costs. There is also an app available, though not available in English.

A very popular grocery delivery service in Germany has successfully expanded to other European countries including the Netherlands. This service is collaborating with local farmers for fresh and high-quality products. There is no minimum spend for Gorillas and the delivery cost is €1.80. You can also order from their app also available in English!

Unfortunately, not all Dutch regions are supported. The available regions are: Amsterdam, Arnhem, Groningen, Haarlem, Leiden, Nijmegen, Rotterdam, The Hague, Tilburg and Utrecht.

Overall, many people still choose physical stores because they can inspect products and not get overwhelmed with the ‘infinite’ choices the internet shops offer. Also, sometimes, waiting at home for a delivery on a specific time-window can be very binding. However, online shopping can save a lot of stress about time planning, difficulty to look for several products on the spot or temptation to buy unnecessary things.

Eventually, the choice is up to you and your needs, and regardless of that, we hope this review was insightful.

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How does focus and concentration work?

If you have ever done any studying, you might’ve Google-searched how to improve your concentration and focus on what you’re doing. But beyond that, have you ever thought about the science behind how our mind concentrates on a task?

Perhaps it’ll be easier to understand if we slowly dip ourselves into this rabbit hole. Concentration can be best described as concentrated mental activity - in this case being focusing on a specific task while ignoring everything else.

It might sound easy enough to understand for the average reader, however the science behind it states quite the opposite.

right direction, while pushing important bits of information up the cognitive ladder for deeper processing purposes. In order to put this information into context, it is best to think of the concept of focusing as a spotlight - what the light is shun on is the information that the brain is focusing on, with dark regions being what is blocked out.

“Everyone knows what attention is.” - William James “No one knows what attention is.” - Hal Pashler These two quotes might seem like polar opposites; however, they are actually quite similar in the context of research.

Our brain takes in perceptive information as an input and processes them in order to produce an idea on what to focus on, by using processing filters to efficiently filter out unnecessary information. The common types of attention that will be used to affect concentration and focus are known as selective attention, divided attention and sustained attention. These respective types of attention all allow our brain to manage and direct our focus in the

However as we often experience, it is quite hard to remain focused for a sustained amount of time. This is due to a magnitude of factors, but the common culprit are disruptions - or more specifically, neural activity. Other stimuli such as neural activity and flashing lights will generate neural activity that will cause your brain to divide it’s attention and bring it to the forefront of your focusing sphere, and therefore moving your brain’s spotlight. Even though this is a natural process (known as ambient neural activity), breaking your state of concentration can be detrimental, which is where the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) comes in. The ventrolateral prefrontal cortex is a region of the frontal lobes that is typically

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associated with response inhibition and goal-appropriate response selection. In a clinical neuropsychiatry article published in 2016, research showed that this particular region is often triggered when another factor causes a stimulus to be reinterpreted – of which in response, suppression will occur alongside the highly active ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. Scientists and researchers extended their theory that this could be extended to blocking distractions as well. Unfortunately, this process takes a lot of energy and doesn’t always suppress such distractions.

thod, both of which are designed to either set the brain into a rhythm or put the individual into a state of focus for a sustained period of time. Or perhaps a few meditation sessions would even help you channel your inner focus onto one thing only - the realm is endless.

‘The best way to describe the process of divided attention is ping-pong, with the brain sending the ball back and forth between tasks for the brain.’

In a previous issue, we wrote an article about the Forest app, an app that strives to make our phones help us concentrate instead of taking our concentration. While we still don’t fully know all of the cognitive processes that contribute to our brain, the industry has made strides in their attempts to help us understand it, while helping many others focus on what’s important. We hope that the information that we’ve discussed today gave you some insight into your mind, and hopefully you can apply this newly obtained knowledge into your daily workflow!

Besides disruptions, there’s also the topic of multitasking. It is commonly believed that multitasking is a skill, however multitasking has been proven to just be a form of divided attention.

The best way to describe the process of divided attention is ping-pong, with the brain sending the ball back and forth between tasks for the brain. Your brain will never not have difficulty swapping between different information in front of you, with the brain trying to split its available attention amongst the tasks.

It is a heavy anchor for our brains’ cognitive processes. As more information that debunks theories such as multitasking have given rise to more and more methods of improving concentration and focus. The best example of this is the resurgence of Lo-Fi music and study methods such as the pomodoro me-

Check ‘Focus with Forest’ in Flowzine issue 22

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A Lockdown Update Let’s go back to the first couple of

weeks of 2021. The vaccine had just come out, infection numbers were peaking and most of the world was in lockdown. Things were looking up and the notion that we would be in the same situation next year was ridiculous.

However, here we are. Still vaccinating, still partially closed.

At the time of writing this, everything is slowly opening up again, but we are still a far cry away from ‘normal’. But it is good to look back on the last two years and see how we did during the pandemic. How did we stay sane behind our computers?

One of the more common ways that we used to cope was actually attempting to learn new skills, such as learning how to play an instrument or creative arts such as painting. These are actually pretty good methods to keep ourselves busy while still allowing us to freely explore our own creativity, while providing us with a safe haven to keep ourselves sane. However, there is a reason why I mentioned the word ‘attempt’ - oftentimes people would lose their high levels of motivation that they had at the start and eventually stop exploring this hobby path down the road. But if your motivation levels have maintained throughout the last two years, then you can safely say that you scored yourself a new hobby!

Unfortunately not everything is all rainbow and roses - due to the lengthy duration of immense isolation and loneliness, the number of people reporting their mental health issues have shot up.

Personally speaking, I can also attest to experiencing depreciation of my mental state during these last two years, with depression and anxiety being the two major constants during this time.

Thankfully, people’s willingness to register themselves with a psychologist, participate in a simple mental health counseling session or even picking up proven relaxation techniques such as meditation have given people a form of stability to ensure that they are in a healthy state of mind. As a student myself, registering with a student psychologist has helped me remain focused on my work during these rather tough times.

You might be ashamed to admit that you’ve lost a fair amount of muscle mass and gained a few kilograms of fat. Don’t worry, I’ve definitely done that as well - the constant closing and reopening of gymnasiums all around the world and in the Netherlands has not done anyone’s workout schedule any favors. But not all hope is lost! Fortunately, stores like Decathlon are still open so you can purchase some home exercise equipment such as dumbbells and yoga mats. If traditional cardio sports are more up your alley, then you can purchase a well-maintained road bike off Marktplaats or even by sup-

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porting your local bike store, both of which provide immense value to keep your body (and legs!) active during this dreadful period. I’ve personally found myself going down this route, of which I purchased a used road bike and have used it for both casual exercises and commuting.

‘...it is nonetheless quite exciting to see this industry push forward.’

Another major issue that literally every person no matter their occupation and age has had in the last two years is being severely limited in terms of social interactions and work-from-home requirements. As a student, it’s hard to not notice the shift from physical classes to online lectures done through Zoom, Microsoft Teams or even Cisco Webex, and having to do assignments through Discord and Whatsapp. Though they serve their purposes rather well, they’re widely considered to be quite bland.

But thankfully, the extended isolation has led to many trying to innovate in this particular industry, with companies such as Kumospace now offering virtual working spaces for employees to have fun in. There’s also even smaller things such as better implementation, with Microsoft actively trying to make Teams run more efficiently on their software - it is nonetheless quite exciting to see this industry push forward.

Social media platforms such as Instagram and Reddit have also acted as places for people to post their own social lives or even watch someone elses, and as a result you may find yourself being on your phone for longer

than ever before. I have definitely felt the effect of this, as I find myself scrolling through the deep realms of Reddit more than ever before. But social media has also become integral in terms of spreading awareness, such as pushing for queer, trans and POC rights.

Every week, there’s a high chance that you might see a viral awareness post on Instagram that urges people to be aware of social issues in society today. I for one, can only hope that support for these social reforms will only continue to increase and such issues will subside.

While everyone experienced the pandemic differently, a trend we are seeing now is that people are slowly dropping the habits they’ve built while stuck in the pandemic. However, that is not a bad thing. Experts call it a period of reflection and it is normally a part of getting closure. In traumatic or stressful periods like the start of the pandemic you might have picked up coping skills in the form of a new hobby or habit.

Those can start to feel unnecessary

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now that we are approaching what seems to be the end of that period. The period of reflection serves to remove all the ‘useless’ skills in an attempt to move on. You might not want or need certain hobbies and habits in the same way you did two years ago.

‘Once a habit is stuck into your new routine, you can start expanding it again...’

However, some people might have some lockdown habits and hobbies they want to stick around. For them, it might be good to keep in mind that you might have to adapt them to a normal schedule as things open up again. Make sure that you plan in the time to do them, as you might get a fuller agenda then you did in lockdown.

There is also no shame in shortening things if it means you can keep enjoying them, like going from an hour to a 20 minute walk every day. Sometimes it can help to build a habit if you start small. Once a habit is stuck into your new routine, you can start expanding it again, instead of getting discouraged because you can’t keep up your hour-long walk on a normal schedule.

Hotlines (Free and confidential)

If you have mental health difficulties or even just want someone to talk to, there are many facilities that are available.

Alles Oké? (Everything Alright?)

https://www.allesoke.nl/en or phone: 0800-0450 Open for ages between 18 and 24.

Allow the individual to talk about basically anything, also contains a list of example topics.

Tilburg University: Student psychologists

013-466 8000 (10.00 - 12.00 and 13.30 15.30 hours) Appointments available by registering at Student Desk (Academia Building) or by telephone.

113 Suicide Prevention

https://www.113.nl/ or phone: 08000113 Chat also available - specialises in helping people calm down and assisting them in getting help.

The last few years have been weird and difficult, but you made it through. Stay strong and we all hope that everything will be better in 2022.

Personal account by Sherwin Lee

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The Five Five ways to gain experience during your study time By gaining relevant experience during your studies, you can make sure you are well prepared for a possible future job and you increase your chances on the labor market. You will gain insight on how things work in practice and you will build your network and work on your CV. Employers will see these types of activities as a valuable addition to your education. But how do you gain this experience? We will tell you in The Five!

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Join a student organization When you are joining a student organization you can work on your personal development in a committee or board. In Tilburg you can find many student, study, cultural and sports associations. There’s something for everyone. If you also want to have a lot of fun while gaining this experience: join Flow!

Become active at your university When you are interested in the policy of the university and its faculties on matters such as education and organization, you can also become active at a university. Likewise, Tilburg University offers students a lot of interesting opportunities. Join the education committee, university council or faculty council and advise Tilburg University.

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Get a secondary job If you have a secondary job you get the opportunity to gain experience within the field you would like to work in in the future. You will experience what it’s like to have a lot of responsibilities. You will participate in the business process. This way you will not only develop yourself on a substantive level, but also on a personal and professional level.

Get an internship Doing an internship provides work experience and is seen as a valuable addition to your education by employers. During an internship you gain a lot of practical knowledge, but you mainly develop your skills and personal competences. You will also find out whether that job or organization is suitable for you. These are, in addition to how relevant your education is to the job, important selection criteria for employers.

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Volunteering work Volunteering also provides valuable work experience. You expand your network, develop your skills and you can really mean something to someone else. There are several organizations that are regularly looking for new volunteer. At the university for example, you can become a mentor to a refugee student from a pre-bachelor program.

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The Ultimate Spring Guide Now that the cold winter months are almost over, it’s time to let some sun back into our lives in the spring! Trees get leaves again, flowers start to bloom, and the weather is finally beginning to pick back up. The birds are singing outside, there are many young animals and the sun is out for longer!

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Here are spring activities that will help you get rid of your winter blues and kick off a new, sunnier season.

1. Have a picnic A picnic is one of the most low-key activities to do in the spring, but definitely not less fun! All you need is some food, drinks and friends and you are ready to go.

You can do this in a park, or even in your own backyard. A perfect activity to kick off the spring season!

2. Plant a spring garden Something you might not think of right away, but can actually be a lot of fun and very relaxing is planting your own garden! This is also something in which you can learn a lot and keep adding new plants. You could even plant some fruit and vegetable plants, so you can eat your own produce.

3. Go and see the tulips This is a very stereotypical Dutch activity, which makes it even more fun! If you don’t mind spending some money, then head to the Keukenhof to walk though the gardens. Keukenhof is an area full of beautiful gardens in the Netherlands, filled with the famous tulips and other spring flowers. Plus there are lots of tulip fields next to it if you can’t get enough of it already!

4. Take a road trip Spring is the perfect time for traveling, as the weather is not too hot yet and it’s a lot less busy than it is in the summer. Road tripping is especially perfect for the spring as you get to see all the new, beautiful scenery along the roads. This, alongside with the weather and amount of people, makes for the perfect little trip.

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5. Watch the sunrise The further we get into spring, the earlier the sunrises get. This may not be ideal if you are not an early bird, but it’s definitely worth waking up early for. Try to catch a least one or two sunrises in the spring time, as they are very gorgeous. These sunrises will wake you up nice and calmly, so you are refreshed and ready to take on the day.

6. Go on walks and hikes As the weather gets warmer, you might be more likely to get outside. If you are a fan of hiking, this is the perfect time to discover some new trails. If you are more of a walking person, try to find some new walking routes! This is much more fun than walking the same routes over and over again.

7. Walk dogs at a local shelter What better way to get some exercise and bring dogs a fun day then to go on a walk with them? Volunteering to walk dogs at a local shelter or animal rescue can be incredibly rewarding and so much fun. Not only do you have a fun day, the dogs do as well!

8. Bake something new Find a fun recipe and bake something that you’ve never made before! This way you learn how to make something new, while also getting to enjoy the end result and have a nice treat. You could also do this with some friends, or bring them some of your amazing treats!

9. Go to an Easter Egg Hunt (if you celebrate) If you celebrate Easter, try to find a socially distanced Easter Egg Hunt (or host one at home) to participate in with your family or friends. If that’s not an option, choose a few other Easter crafts and activities to do at home, like painting eggs.

10. Play golf Playing golf during the spring time is an awesome activity to do, especially with the nice green fields. You can invite your family and friends to attend this activity, or you can plan it as a date with your partner. To play the game, you have to get the ball from the starting point to the hole. Keep track of your score for each hole, and whoever gets the lowest score wins the game. Easy, right?

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