How to Guess Like a Pro on Multiple Choice Tests

How to Guess Like a Pro on Multiple Choice Tests

No matter how hard you studied and how prepared you feel, there are times during a test when you just have to wing it. It doesn’t matter how long you look at the question, you know that you have no idea what the answer is. Maybe you overlooked that section while you were studying or you might have just completely blanked out for a minute.

Whatever the reason is, there’s only one thing left to do: GUESS!

Guessing might seem like a random action, but there’s actually some logic and skill involved. There are a few different types of guessing:

• The Hail Mary: Randomly choose an answer and hope that you’re right.
• Meta-Guessing: Don’t look at the question/problem, just the answers.
• Educated Guessing: Choosing the best possible answer based on all the information available.

I’m going to be focusing on educated guessing here because it’s usually the best way to find the right answer when you’re really not sure which choice is right.

Hopefully you never have to use the Hail Mary because it’s basically a last resort. Meta-guessing can sometimes be useful when you’re using the process of elimination, but making an educated guess on multiple choice tests –using the methods I’m going to go over — is your best option.

Stick to Information from Class

Assuming you have actually been attending class, try to rely primarily on information the teacher has mentioned and what’s in your textbook instead of relying on personal knowledge.

If 3 out of the 4 choices are topics or words you discussed in class and one is completely unfamiliar to you, rule that one out.

When Two Choices Have Words That Sound Similar, Choose One of Them

If two of the choices on the test are nearly identical in terms of spelling, one of them is probably the right answer. Professors like to throw two similar options at you in an attempt to trip you up. If you’re guessing, this usually gives you a 50/50 shot.

If Two Choices Say the Same Thing, Choose Something Else

There are some scenarios where two answers are basically the same thing, just reworded to look different. For example:

Which tech entrepreneur was born in 1972?

A. Steve Jobs
B. Evan Williams
C. Alexis Ohanian
D. The person who made the iPod

Steve Jobs is the person who came up with the iPod, which means “A” and “D” are the exact same thing. With multiple choice questions, they can’t both be correct, so you can rule them both out. Now you have two options to choose from and have a much higher chance of getting it right.

Avoid Answers with “All,” “Every,” “None”

These universal quantifiers or absolutes seem to always get thrown into your options to throw you off. There aren’t many things in the world that are absolute, so it can be useful to steer clear of answers that use these words.

Eliminate Extreme Answers

If one of the options seems completely out of place, then it’s probably because it doesn’t belong. If you’re answering a math question and the options are:

A. 22
B. 13
C. 812
D. -42

Answers “C” and “D” stand out because they’re far off from “A” and “B.” Eliminate those as potential answers and you’re down to just “A” and “B.”

Look for Keywords from the Question in the Answer

In some cases, teachers will throw you a bone by including a keyword from the question inside the correct answer. It might be somewhat subtle, but it’s a great way to narrow down your options.

It’s similar to how you’re taught to repeat the question in your answer for short essay questions. For instance, if you had to answer the short essay question “What are the distinguishing features of amphibians?” you would answer: “Some of the features that distinguish amphibians are…”

Teachers sometimes have a habit of using that same concept when making answers for tests.

Some Answers Can Be Found in Other Questions

This is a popular method that I use for almost every test I take. Sometimes the answer to a question you’re struggling with is in another question on the test. For example, an early question might be: “What is Harry Brearley best known for?” followed later by “How did Harry Brearley invent stainless steel?”

You can find connected questions like these in almost every test. They might not be as obvious as the example above, but they are there. So if you’re stuck on a question, look around and try to find the answer in another question.

If Two Options Seem Correct, Choose “All of the Above”

If two of the options seem correct, and you’re not on the fence about the third option, going with the “all of the above” option might be your best bet.

You have to be really sure that two of the options are correct, though. If you’re only 50% sure, then “all of the above” isn’t necessarily a go-to option. But when you’re at least 80% sure that two of the options are correct, choose all of the above.

Eliminate Answers That Aren’t Grammatically Correct

Some professors are flat out lazy and copy and paste all of their exams from the internet. They’ll get the question and the correct answer, then paste a bunch of options from other tests. The end result is usually answers that don’t make sense grammatically.

A neshNuGENX reader is an ________

A. Awesome student
B. Reality TV junkie
C. Leather jogging pants wearer
D. Nose picker

While you may love to wear leather jogging pants designed by Kanye West, the only answer that makes sense for the sentence is “A” because of the use of the word “an” before the blank.

When Two Choices Are Complete Opposites, One of Them is Probably Right

If two of your options are exact opposites, then there’s a good chance that one of them is the correct answer. It’s a trick that professors use to throw you off, and to make sure that you actually know the material.

What Happens to Red Blood Cells in a Hypertonic Solution?

A. They shrink
B. They expand
C. They disappear
D. They transform

You’re either going to go with “A” or “B” because they’re total opposites. The chances of one of them being correct is pretty high.

Don’t Read Too Deep into the Questions

When you really don’t know the answer to a question, it’s easy to over analyse. You might wonder if it’s a trick question or if there’s some kind of deeper meaning. Most of the time the question means exactly what it says and you should take it at face value.

If you’re already confused, don’t make things even more complicated for yourself.

If One Word Appears in 2 or 3 Options, Choose One

Let’s say you’re presented with something like this:

Cats use _____ to sleep and dogs use ______ to sleep

A. XXX and YYY
B. ZZZ and XXX
C. XXX and TTT
D. TTT and ZZZ

The answer is probably “A,” “B,” or “C” because they all contain XXX. You could narrow it down further to “B” and “C” because they use ZZZ and TTT which also appear in “D.” The only one that has YYY in it is “A,” so that was probably thrown in there just to trip you up.

Sacrifice a Question

You might find yourself in a position where there are two questions with opposing answers. In situations like this, it can be a good idea to answer the questions so that you’re guaranteed to get at least one of them right. For example, take two questions:

1. Which of the following is true:

A. All dogs go to heaven
B. BBB
C. CCC
D. DDD

2. Which of the following is true:

A. AAA
B. All dogs do not go to heaven
C. CCC
D. DDD

Now, if you answered “A” for the first question “B” for the second, you have a better chance of getting at least one of them right. It’s better to get at least one right than to get both wrong.

The Most Important Rule

The most important thing to remember is that none of these methods or tips work 100% of the time. (After all, you’re guessing.) The point is to narrow down your options and come up with the best possible guess.

The best approach, though, is to study and be prepared for the test in order to avoid guessing altogether. And if all else fails, take the Hail Mary approach!

Technologies that Help your Brain Develop

Technology is one of the greatest creations of the human mind. However, it has been strange how the same technology helps the human mind improve and develop. The mind processes faster and a lot of time is saved all thanks to technology. Today, technology is become one huge hub with everything available on the platter. The human race should be thankful to the technology for being so helpful. Yet, at the same time, technology itself is the creation of the human race. Hence, it is a two way process and both, the mind as well as the technology help each other progress. Here is a list of those technological products that help improve the brain and hence, it processes faster.

The Computer

Charles Babbage invented the computer ages ago and it has come a long way since then. The very first computer was really huge but now it has become a small portable piece. This computer helps the human mind improve and increases the knowledge of human beings. There are a lot of software and other such things that help in improving the brain. The brain works faster and has more knowledge because of the computer. Thus, the computer is one piece of technology that helps in improving the human brain.

The Mobile Phone

The mobile phone also has numerous apps and technological pieces that have the capacity of improving the human brain. It actually works in the favour of the human mind if used properly. The mobile phone itself has come a long way and is now used for each and every thing pertaining to daily life. No wonder, the mobile phone is the most widely used gadget. All and sundry use mobile phones! It would be great to download one of the apps and use it that will help improve brain power.

Brain Massager

In order for the brain to process faster, it is necessary for the brain to relax. The brain massager does the trick. It relaxes your brain like it is the best thing to happen to you. Use the brain massager, relax for a while and soon see how the brain begins to process faster than ever. Therefore, the brain massager is one of the most useful gadgets that help in improving the brain. The head massager is easily available in all the electronic stores. You can simply go ahead and buy those. It doesn’t take a very long time.

Summary – A lot of technological products contribute towards the development of the brain. The following article takes you through a few of those.

Smart Phone?? It’s Time for Smart Lens.

Smart phones are a thing of past! The pace of technological advancement is so overwhelming that each new day, new inventions knock the door. A significant invention in field of nanotechnology is undoubtedly, THE SMART LENS. It is a project initiated by Google and pharmaceutical giant Novartis has agreed a deal with Google to develop its "smart" contact lens to help diabetics monitor their glucose levels.
This achievement is being considered a great milestone in the field of bio-engineering. Google's prototype lens was first revealed in January. It is designed to measure the level of glucose in the wearer's tears and communicate the information to a mobile phone or computer. The latest strategy adopted by these market targeting companies is manipulating the stream of healthcare appliances. The boom is endless with the growth of unhealthy adoption of lifestyle. Wearable technology is seen as a key growth sector.
Novartis announced that its eye care division Alcon has entered into an agreement with a division of Google Inc. to in-license its "smart lens" technology for all ocular medical uses. The agreement with Google[x], a team within Google that is devoted to finding new solutions to big global problems, provides Alcon with the opportunity to develop and commercialize Google's "smart lens" technology with the potential to transform eye care and further enhance Alcon's pipeline and global leadership in contact lenses and intraocular lenses.

The core of this device is a minute chip developed using the implementation of nanotechnology. It is a wireless chip and has miniaturized glucose sensors embedded between two layers of soft contact lens material. Google states that the chips and sensors are so small they look like bits of glitter, and an antenna thinner than a human hair. It said the prototype could generate a reading once per second. That has definitely a great potential to revolutionize eye care as we know today. The device promising such wonders is going to take some time before flooding the market but the dream is not far away. People suffering from diabetes need to monitor their glucose levels regularly as sudden spikes or drops are dangerous.
At present, the majority of them do so by testing drops of blood. Consumer demand for innovative ways of doing this is likely to grow as the incidence of diabetes continues to increase. Mr. Jimenez, Novartis Chief Executive,said the smart lenses may also be used can also correct vision in a manner similar to the lenses on auto focus cameras. This will also help cure a lot of eye related diseases. For people living with presbyopia who can no longer read without glasses, the "smart lens" has the potential to provide accommodative vision correction to help restore the eye's natural auto focus on near objects in the form of an accommodative contact lens or intraocular lens as part of the refractive cataract treatment.

While some are calculating it as technology disrupting the pharmaceutics, but such advancement have always been disregarded in the beginning. New technology has never been accepted immediately and history bears witness to that.

How to Start a Small Business in India

As we all know, under the rule of present government, Indian economy is taking a beating. Job opportunities are dwindling very fast. Even if you find a job opportunity then it is only for highly skilled people like IT professionals and other kind of experienced jobs.

Not everyone is great in academic qualification. Therefore, what you are going to do when jobs that pays you good money is simply not there. If it is there then it is only for highly qualified or experienced candidates. And its also very difficult to get a sarkari naukari because there is a very high competition for every vacancy.

What you are going to do if you are a young college graduate, a man who is looking for a job for years now, an employee who is fired from his company, a housewife or even a retiree. Well! There is a way out.

You can start a small business in India.

 

 

Opportunities for Small Businesses in India

 

When economy is under pressure and you are looking for a job then best way is to start a small business in India. As I said earlier, you can start a small business on your own.

Opportunities to start a small business here are great. In this article, I will tell you 10 different types of small businesses that you can start and make a lot of money.

You will never run out of ideas in India for starting a small business. There is a lot of thing that you can do even if you do not have much experience. Moreover, you can also easily meet the financial requirements.

The benefits of Small Business in India

Before I talk about 10 different types of small businesses, let me tell you some benefits of starting a small business in India. These benefits you will not find in other types of regular jobs.

Small Business Makes You Self Employed

The first one, in small business you are self-employed. You do not have to take orders from your boss. There is no fear of being laid off. Whenever there is a financial crunch, corporation fire their regular employees without any notice.

Here you do not have to worry because you manage your own business and everything depends upon you. Self-employed businessman do not have to worry about economy or anything else, they just keep going.

Long Term Scope in Small Businesses

When you are starting your own business then you do not have to worry about monthly income. Future of a small business is really great because it is closely run by an individual and close family members. Hence, they take care that nothing goes wrong.

Moreover, you can make huge amount of money like any other business. You do not have to depend on your company or corporation for financial success. If you work as an employee in an MNC then you get salary only what your company decides. However, in running a small business you can make unlimited money. All the profits your company makes in yours.

Everything depends upon you.

Better Customer Care in Small Businesses

I am not saying but you just visit Google and type the name of any big company or its service followed by complaints & you will find thousands of victim on different forums & complaints boards complaining about the services provided by these companies. Everyone is in the race of making profits only without giving any good service & customer care.

There is no good care about the customer by the large corporations. You have to try very hard even to talk to their customer care dept.

But in small businesses, you will find a good customer care. You can directly talk to the business owner. One of the main reason small business flourish is better customer care.

Good tax savings in small businesses

Well! I am not telling you to evade tax here. We all know this is illegal. However, I want to make a point here that you can save a lot of money in small business.

You can hire a good CA who can give you the best ideas of saving your tax against many expenses that you can show to reduce the tax burden.

Types of Small Business

Now let us see 10 small businesses that you can start in India and make money without having to lose anything.

1. Opening a Small Restaurant

First one, that any young college graduate or a working employee can do is open a small restaurant. It really does not need any kind of experience. Today, when urban centers are growing and people need places to eat out. They do not want to cook themselves but they can pay for eating out. So there is a huge market out there.

What Are Requirements?

You need to find a location where people are looking for an eat-out. You can try to find locations near companies where young people work. Then you have to pay rent to the owner for the land. First you have to pay yearly advance and then rent on monthly basis.

You also need cook and some basic hotel staffs. 12 to 15 people will do every type of job from cooking to serving to cleaning.

Requirements are:

1. A good Location
2. 12 to 15 Staff for cooking and cleaning
3. Cashier or accountant

How to Get Finance?

As I said earlier, you have to pay rent on monthly basis and payment for cooks. Before you start making money, you have to pay these guys who will work 12 hours daily for you.

Usually you get money from your family or you can go for small loans. People start small restaurants with their own hard-earned money. But today banks also give loans for starting up a restaurant. It is very profitable. You can talk to a financial consultant who can better tell you smart ways of taking loans.

Hence, getting finance must not be a difficult thing here.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

Well! While starting a small business you might face some difficulties. Here are they.

1. Honest cooks who will work regularly.
2. In starting you need patience if your business is not running in profit.
3. Listen to customers if any complains.
4. Your owner may increase your monthly rent.

2. Opening a Kiosk

Kiosk is nothing but a small stall. Stall can be anything like a tea or coffee shop, which offers some refreshments. It can also be a place serving eateries like cakes, puffs, pastries and cold drinks.

You might have seen kiosks near cinema halls, railway stations, bus stations, government offices, in colleges etc. People will always come there for refreshments. It is very profitable business. You will never lose money.

What Are Requirements?

To run a kiosk you have to wait for tender, you can get a kiosk to run in a good location. You have to talk to your contractor who will give you a kiosk on contract. Here are some

Requirements before you open a kiosk.

1. You need a small shop or stall
2. Monthly rent to your contractor.
3. Supply of refreshments like cake, puff, cold drinks etc from a bakery that is in contact with you.
4. An honest person to run that kiosk, one or two. If you are busy.

How to Get Finance?

Well! To be honest for opening a kiosk you really do not need much money. You can ask your parents if you are a college graduate or if you have money then you can start on your own.

Here money required is very less.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

Well! Here getting a contract is going to be very difficult because hundreds of applicants are waiting to get a chance to open a kiosk. Especially if location is very good, where many people come on daily basis.

3. Opening a General Store

Opening up a general store is quite profitable when urbanization is growing rapidly. General store means provision store that caters daily essentials for people. It can be food items, groceries, even apparels.

People have to always fulfill their basic needs so they have to go nearby general store. You can also open a store with all the items that a person needs for his daily life. Store will always  run in profit.

What Are Requirements?

Here you have to arrange few things.

1. A rented shop in a busy area or colony.
2. Loyal customers
3. Little bit of advertisements
4. Some men to bring in goods in the store

How to Get Finance?

Financing is just easy as financing a kiosk. In fact, in India opening up a general store is a family business. So it would not be difficult for you.

I recommend you to spend more money on store’s interior. Ambience must be good to improve shopping experience of customers. It means you have to spend more money here.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

In this small business only difficulty that you might face is patience. You have to wait for some time before you start making profit. Otherwise, there is no major difficulty.

4. Starting a Coaching Center

Almost everyone in India has seen posters saying “Coaching Classes For Class 12 ” etc. In India, there are millions of students in every city who are in class 10 or class 12. They desperately need tuition and other coaching classes to get better results.

You can definitely get hundreds of students daily to teach them. There is a lot of money to be made here. Students are not satisfied with their regular studies and they are always looking for coaching classes.

Moreover, it is not necessary that you have to teach regular course material. You can also give coaching on personality development, speaking fluent English, computers, cooking, dancing,  painting etc.

What Are Requirements?

Let me explain you some requirements to start this small business.

1. First one is that you have to know a subject that you are teaching. You must have experience and total control on your subject. Any one subject is enough.
2. You need a classroom with a board and some furniture’s. I recommend conducting classes in a good location where it looks professional.
3. You also need a faculty of teachers or instructors. Initially, you can start on your own.
4. Lastly, you have to advertise about your coaching center in newspaper or by distributing pamphlets in colleges, bus stops etc.

How to Get Finance?

Let us see how you can finance this business.

1. You need to pay rent where you will take classes. If you do not have enough money then you can start your class in your home also.
2. Later on, you have to recruit or look for new faculty members, teachers who will teach the subjects.
3. You also have to spend on advertisements to get more students.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

1. To start a coaching center you have to spend very much on advertisement because you are new to this field.
2. You also have to talk to parents of your students because some students do not perform well.

5. Mail Marketing

Mail marketing is a completely home based business where you can run it from the comfort of your home. It is good for women who cannot go out. Moreover, it takes very little to start this business.

In mail marketing you simply have to promote about a business by sending a mail to various customers. In a mail there will be a pamphlet, which will tell the customers about a product. If they buy that product then you get commission from the company.

What Are Requirements?

Here are some requirements before you start mail marketing business.

1. You have to register for a company.
2. You need to write a sales letter, which must convince the readers.
3. You may need a color pamphlet that is going to tell the benefits of the product you are selling. You can also use black and white print.
4. Envelopes and stamp-posts for sending pamphlets to customers daily.

How to Get Finance?

Here getting finance is also very easy. Main spending will be on stationery like envelopes, stamps and mailing costs. If you want to go for color pamphlets then printing cost would be more.

You can get your finance from your family members. You do not need any loan for this type of small business.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

Difficulties you might face are

1. You have to write good sales letter that must attract the attention of your customers. You must develop writing skills and this is very difficult.
2. For printing color pamphlets, you have to spend more money. It can cost very much if your budget is less.

6. Opening a Consultancy Service

Do not get panic when I mention consultancy service. You do not have to build a consultancy service like Infosys or Wipro. Here a consultancy service business is where you can afford to build it in few months.

In consultancy service, you will consult young college graduates regarding their future plan. You will make money when you recommend the right company to the college graduates where they can be recruited.

Mainly a candidate will come to a consultancy service to ask a company that can give him a job. In return you charge a fees for telling the right place.

What Are Requirements?

Consultancy services can be very profitable but it needs certain requirements.

1. First you have to build a relationship with major companies (MNC) that needs new recruits.
2. Then you also have to build contacts with local companies which are very small and they hire few candidates.
3. Off course like other small businesses, here also you need an office space. You can even start from your home if you like.
4. You also need to spend on advertising your consultancy service. You can buy space in newspaper for classified ads.

How to Get Finance?

Well! Banks do provide loans if you want to start a small business like consultancy service. You can also invest money from your savings. But ultimately in consultancy service more than money you require the knowledge.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

As I said earlier here only difficulty you might face is building a contact or relationship with major companies and small companies.

You have to know them all and stay in touch with them. It is not very easy because you must have some adjustment or influence in these companies to get important knowledge out of them. You might face this major difficulty.

7. Network Marketing

In earlier blog posts, we did talk about the network marketing. Network marketing is actually a no brainer. Even if you are 10^th pass you can become a network marketer & make money like a very successful doctor or an engineer.

In network marketing, you have to build a team under you, which is going to sell products to customers. First, you have to start alone and convince people about a product. For example, you can start with Amway products.

You have to get people to become member under your leadership. You have to expand your  network with more members enrolling in it.

What Are Requirements?

1. First is you have to sign up for a company like Amway. For registration, you have to pay small fees.
2. Then you need some time to promote the product among people.
3. Lastly, here requirements are not any physical like office space or paying rent. Here you need to have certain qualities like leadership, hardworking, honesty, and also smartness.

How to Get Finance?

The good news about this small business is that you do not need any money. Yes, you need small amount of money only to be registered. That is all. In fact, you will make money after you start getting members.

This is a small business where investment is zero and in return, you can make a lot of income. All depends on your hard work and leadership quality.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

The only difficulty you may face is how to overcome your shyness. Here you have to stand like a leader and motivate your team members.

Second is that you need a lot of time. You can do as a part time work but still ample time is certainly required here.

8. Counseling

A counsellor is a person who gives an advice to people who want solution for their problems. Counselling is different from teaching because it is very personal. A counsellor will meet its client one on one.

In India where middle class is growing rapidly and people’s income is increasing, they would not mind to spend extra money for consulting a counsellor. They are ready to pay that cost if they see their problems are solved through counselling.

There are different types of counsellors however, I tell you some of them which people are looking for. Career counsellor, marriage counsellor, mental health counsellor, relationshipcounsellor, counselling about how to grow a kid etc .

What Are Requirements?

Here are requirements to be a counsellor.

1. You must know your subject very well, only then you can help others.
2. Affluent people in this country only prefer counselling. So you need to open your office in an area where people from affluent class lives.
3. Here building contacts with people is very important. Whenever you attend conferences, seminar, parties or concerts never forget to give them a card printed with your name and address. Card will tell them about your counselling job.

How to Get Finance?

Here your main expenditure would be in building contacts with people, who are very affluent. You have to spend on travelling for meeting various people from different lifestyles.

Moreover, to have an office in a posh area is also very costly. So you need finance for these two things.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

Here you have to wait for clients before you start making money. Moreover, you also have to spend money for office space in a posh area.

In India, ordinary people do not know about counselling. They go for rudimentary form of advice from non-professionals. Therefore, awareness is low among ordinary people.

9. Taking a Franchise

Starting your small business as a franchisee is different from opening a general store. Opening a general store means you are just one entity. However, starting a franchise means you have to become part of a corporation.

You have to take license from franchise like McDonalds, Café Coffee day, Star Bucks, Pizza Hut etc. With their permission, you can open a store and make profit. You do not have to wait for customers because these are very popular brand.

What Are Requirements?

Here are some of the requirements.

1. You need a license from the franchise.
2. You will have to hire a lawyer for legal requirements.
3. To open an outlet you need a space, which is good enough.
4. Team member who can work at least 12 hours a day.

How to Get Finance?

You can get loan from banks or you can also ask your family members to involve in this business. Opening a franchise is quite difficult because you need an area that attracts lot of customers.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

The major difficulties could be

1. Arranging finance would be a major challenge.
2. Legal requirements would not only cost you extra money but needs an extra effort.

10. Online Business

The last and most effective small business that you can begin is online business. You start earning money from the comfort of your home. You can make hell lot of money with minimum investment.

There are different types of jobs that you can do online. You can become a blogger, data entry job, internet marketer, freelance writing jobs etc. Today thousands of people in India are making money online.

No experience is required, anyone can make money online.

What Are Requirements?

For an online business, requirements are very less.

1. You need a desktop computer with an internet connection.
2. You need typing speed of 20 to 30 words per minute.
3. Writing skills are very important.

How to Get Finance?

I do not think you need any finance to get a computer with internet connection. If you have a mobile phone, then getting a desktop with internet is not that difficult.

What Are Difficulties You May Face?

1. You have to be careful about scams and do not think that online business is get rich scheme. Nothing will happen overnight, you have to wait with patience. This is not a jackpot.
2. Do not give up too early, you must try then only you will succeed.

Origin of the QWERTY Keyboard

 

The first typewriter was introduced to the United States in 1868 by Christopher Latham Sholes. His first attempt to build a typing device consisted of a crude and sluggish machine that was far from perfect. The design used letters and characters on the ends of rods which were called typebars. When a key was struck, the typebar would swing up and hit the ink-coated tape which would transfer the image onto paper.

The original design of the keyboard positioned keys in alphabetical order in two rows. Makes sense, right? Well, this arrangement caused the typebars of the most commonly used combination letters of the alphabet (ie. TH and ST) to be positioned close together, so when the keys were hit right after the other with a speed faster than a snail, the keys would jam.

The attempt to solve this malfunction resulted in a rearrangement of keys. In 1868, in collaboration with educator Amos Densmore, Sholes arranged the letters on the keyboard for better spacing between popular keys used in combination. The results was that this initially made it difficult for people to find the letters they needed to type efficiently.

However, someone who mastered this new key arrangement would actually be able to type faster because the keys wouldn’t jam. This was the beginning of the QWERTY keyboard, which first appeared in 1872.

The first typewriter machine found its way on the market in 1874 through Remington & Sons. The device was called the Remington No. 1. You’re probably thinking it sold out in minutes since it was the latest and greatest technological device to be mass-produced. The truth is, most people ignored it. Sure, the machine still had some quirks and Sholes had yet to figure out ideal customers for his invention, but in the late 1870s, the idea of “mechanical writing” was just plain strange for most people.

The accepted norm was to write letters in legible longhand and many people found mechanical writing uncouth or even offensive. Sholes figured his device would appeal to clergyman and men of letters first and then he’d branch out to the general public; he didn’t even consider its use in business. All of these factors probably played a part in the typewriter’s initial lack of sales.

Four years later, after slight modifications to the arrangement of the keyboard were made, Remington & Sons produced the new Remington No. 2 model. The Remington No. 2 included the arrangement of keys we use today along with the ability to type both capital and lowercase letters by using the shift key. The shift key received its name because it caused the carriage to shift position in order to type either a lowercase or capital letter which were on the same typebar. Although the shift key we use on our keyboards today does not cause the machine to shift mechanically, the name stuck.

As the typewriter rose in popularity, people stopped complaining about the weird arrangement of keys and started memorizing the keyboard and learning how to type efficiently. Although other alternate keyboards tried to break onto the market, most people decided to stay with the QWERTY board, and none of the other type-writing machines proved successful.

One prominent attempt at a replacement keyboard occurred in the early 1930s when Professor August Dvorak of Washington State University set out to develop a more user-friendly keyboard. He ultimately redesigned the keyboard so all of the vowels and the five most commonly used consonants were arranged on the home row (AOEUIDHTNS).

Although the design required a typist to frequently alternate hands to type most words, with the Dvorak keyboard, a person could type approximately 400 of the English language’s most common words just by using the keys of the home row, compared to 100 words on the QWERTY keyboard. In addition, using the Dvorak keyboard, a typist’s fingers would not have to travel as far as they did on Sholes’ keyboard to type the majority of words.

Dvorak set out to prove his machine superior to Sholes’, but his keyboard never caught on. Many of the studies used to test the effectiveness of his keyboard were flawed or were deemed a conflict of interest since Dvorak conducted them himself.

A U.S. General Services Administration study in 1953 of Dvorak’s keyboard determined it didn’t matter which keyboard was used. Experienced typists in either keyboard typed at approximately the same speed, with variance based more on their individual skill rather than either keyboard design being superior to the other in a larger samplesize or words.

This ultimately killed the Dvorak keyboard as the majority of people didn’t want to commit the time or resources it would take to be trained on a new keyboard. Thus, the QWERTY keyboard persevered through today and seemingly will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

As Dr. Dvorak said, “Changing the keyboard format is like proposing to reverse the Ten Commandments and the Golden Rule, discard every moral principle, and ridicule motherhood.”

Bonus Facts:

• Author Mark Twain was one of the first people to purchase the early typewriter and is probably the first author to submit a typed manuscript to his publisher.
• E. Remington & Sons, the company that mass-produced the first typewriter, was best known for their firearms.
• What kind of a word is QWERTY? It looks like a bunch of random letters thrown together to me; a made-up word by an elementary school kid who had not yet learned the rule that U follows Q in the majority of words. In case you’ve never noticed, the name QWERTY comes from the first six letters of the first row of keys on the standard keyboard.
• Some speculated that another reason the original typewriter met resistance when it was first introduced to the world was because poor spellers could no longer hide their ignorance by poor handwriting.
• Using the QWERTY keyboard, you can type the word ‘typewriter’ using only the top row of keys.
• The least expensive typewriter, produced in the late 1800s, cost only $1, and was appropriately named, “The Dollar Typewriter”.
• Sholes’ first attempt to create a typewriting machine was a crude piece of work made with part of an old table, a circular piece of glass, a telegraph key, a piece of carbon paper, and piano wire. An improved prototype of this device resembled a toy piano and is now in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.
• Frank McGurrin, a court stenographer from Salt Lake City, is considered the first person to memorize the QWERTY keyboard and master touch-typing, as opposed to the hunt-and-peck method.  He rose to fame when he participated in typing contests and demonstrations across the country and caused people to take interest not only in the QWERTY keyboard, but in mastering the touch-typing method.
• The alphanumeric keypad used on many cellphones today is called a half QWERTY keyboard.