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When I was at school and university, students often answered essay questions in an exam by answering the one they knew most about first and leaving the ones they knew least about until last. A common tactic when writing the last essay would be to write what you knew and then, mid-paragraph or even mid-sentence, write “TIME!” This was an attempt to fool the examination marker that you knew what you were talking about and just didn’t have time to complete it.
Admittedly, it was probably a bit of a rubbish ploy, and probably never worked even on the occasions when it was perfectly true that we had run out of time and did have more to say. Young Peter Anderson had a better scheme going. Peter actually had a medical line from his doctor stating that he had some kind of condition that prevented him from writing at normal speeds, and hence had received special dispensation to be allowed extra time to complete his examination questions. Naturally, a few of the other students felt somehow put out by this, thinking that it was unfair. Peter insisted, however that his condition was real and that he would be disadvantaged if he were not allowed that extra time. And so, for almost every exam whilst we were at university, Peter was allowed to remain writing as the rest of us filed out of the hall hoping our feeble pleas of “TIME!” might work in our favour.
In one particular exam, almost half of the students failed, and it was one in which it had generally been agreed that there simply wasn’t enough time in which to answer the questions. Many who failed were sure they did so simply because they had omitted to answer one or more questions due to time constraints. Peter Anderson passed.
A few weeks later, an invitation appeared on a faculty notice-board inviting people to register their names for some event or other. I can’t recall what it was exactly – a mooting contest, perhaps. Anyway, it was generally well-received by the students when they saw one name about half way down the list which read, “Peter Ande..TIME!”
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