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- Chunking
- Procrastination and Memory
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- focused versus diffuse thinking
- focused mode has tight spacing for the rubber bumpers which seems to, in some sense, help keep your thoughts concentrated.
- diffuse mode has more widely spaced bumpers that allow for more broad ranging ways of thinking
- way to tackle procrastination
- Pomodoro Technique: 25 minute stretch of focused concentration, followed by a bit of mental relaxation
- practice and repetition
- helps enhance and strengthen the neural structures we're building as we're learning something new
- particularly important for more abstract topics
- memory
- working memory:
- there are four slots in our working memory
- things can fall out of those slots unless we keep repeating them to hold them in mind
- not very good blackboard
- long term memory:
- like a storage warehouse
- practiced and repeated something well enough to get it into long term memory
- can usually call it up later if you need it, although you may need an occasional bit of repetition to freshen the memory up
- never cram your learning by repeating things many times all in one day
- that's like trying to build muscle by lifting weights all in one day
- no time for solid structures to grow
- working memory:
- sleep
- sleep can wash away the toxins that develop during our day's activities
- you want to avoid taking tests or doing anything difficult with little sleep the night before
- that's like trying to think with poison on the brain
- exercise
- valuable in helping improve both our memory and our ability to learn.
- chunks
- pieces of information, neuroscientifically speaking, that are bound together through use and often through meaning
- think of a chunk as a scintillating network of neurons that compactly synthesizes key ideas or actions
- can get bigger and more complex
- single easy to access item that you can fit like a ribbon into the slot on your working memory
- build chunks:
- with focused
- undivided attention
- understanding of the basic idea
- and practice
- recall
- trying to remember the key points without looking at the page, is one of the best ways to help the chunking process along
- helps build neural hooks
- helps you better understand the material
- try recalling material in places that are different from where you originally learned the material
- becomes more deeply ingrained and accessible, regardless of what room you're in
- very helpful for tests
- transfer
- idea that a chunk you've mastered in one area can often help you much more easily learn chunks of information in different areas that can share surprising commonalities
- interleaving
- your learning by practicing your choice of different concepts, approach, and techniques all in one session
- illusions of competence
- learn to recognize when you're fooling yourself about whether you're actually learning the material
- test yourself frequently
- using little mini-tests to see whether you're actually learning the material, or whether you've been fooling yourself, thinking you're learning when you're actually not
- recall is a form of mini-testing
- avoid depending too much on highlighting
- try to avoid depending too much on highlighting, which can fool you into thinking that the material is going into your brain when it actually isn't
- mistakes are a good thing to make when you're learning
- allows you to catch illusions of competence
- deliberately practice what you find more difficult to gain full mastery of the material
- avoid practicing only the easy stuff, which can bring the illusion that you've mastered the material
- einstellung
- initial thought, an idea you've already had in mind, or a neural pattern you've already developed well and strengthened
- prevents a better idea or solution from being found
- or keeps you from being flexible enough to accept new, better, or more appropriate solutions
- The Law of Serendipity
- lady Luck favors the one who tries
- just pick one tiny thing out to learn, then another
- just keep trying and you'll be pleasantly surprised at the results
- learning well often involves bit by bit, day by day building of solid neural scaffolds
- rather like a weight lifter builds muscle with day to day exercise
- this is why tackling procrastination is so incredibly important
- you want to keep up with your learning and avoid last minute cramming
- focus on process not product
- process means, the flow of time and the habits and actions associated with that flow of time
- avoid concentrating on product to prevent procrastination
- processes relate to simple habits, habits that coincidentally allow you to do the unpleasant tasks that need to be done
Key aspects of tackling procrastination:
- Keep a planner journal
- to easily track when you reach your goals and observe what does and doesn't work
- Commit yourself to certain routines and tasks each day
- write your planned tasks out the night before so your brain has time to dwell on your goals and help ensure success
- arrange your work into a series of small challenges
- Delay rewards until you've finished a task
- always make sure you, and your zombies, get lots of rewards
- take a few minutes to savor the feelings of happiness and triumph, which also gives your brain a chance to temporarily change modes
- deliberately delay rewards until you've finished a task
- Watch for procrastination cues
- try putting yourself in new surroundings with few procrastination cues, such as the quiet section of a library
- Gain trust in your new system
- you want to work hard during times of focused concentration
- trust your system enough so that when it comes time to relax, you actually relax without feelings of guilt or worry
- Have back up plans for when you still procrastinate
- Eat your frogs first every day
- do your most unpleasant task first
- long term memory
- like a storage warehouse
- practice and repeat in order to help store items in long term memory so you can retrieve them more easily
- practicing and repeating, all in one day, is a bad idea
- extend your practice to several days
- this is why tackling procrastination is important
- helps you build better memories, because you start earlier
- working memory
- like a poor blackboard that quickly fades
- can only hold about four items in your working memory
- when you master a technique or concept, it compacts the ideas to occupy less space in your working memory when you do bring them to mind
- this frees your mental thinking space so that it can easily grapple with other ideas
- visual and spatial memory systems
- tapping into those systems, will help improve your memory
- try making a very memorable visual image representing one key item you want to remember
- beyond merely seeing, try to feel, hear and even smell something you're trying to remember
- the funnier and more evocative the image is, the better
- repetition over several days is really helpful
- create meaningful groups
- to simplify the material is another key to memorization
- try associating numbers with years or with systems you're familiar with like running times
- many disciplines use memorable sentences
- memory palace technique
- placing memorable images in a scene that's familiar to you
- allows you to dip into the strength of your visual memory system
- provides a particularly powerful way of grouping things you want to remember
- conclusion:
- by making meaningful groups and abbreviations, you can simplify and chunk what you're trying to learn so you can more easily store it in memory
- by memorizing material you understand, you can internalize the material in a profound way
- you're reinforcing the mental library you need to become a genuine master of the material
- metaphors and analogies aren't just for art and literature
- not only remember, but more easily understand concepts in many different fields
- the more visual, the better
- change your thoughts, change your life
- people can enhance the development of their neuronal circuits by practicing thoughts that use those neurons
- like Santiago Ramon y Cajal, you can take pride in aiming for success because of the very things that make other people say you can't do it
- testing tips
- going through your own test preparation checklist can vastly improve your chances of success
- hard start then jump to easy technique
- counterintuitive strategies such as the hard start jump to easy technique, can give your brain a chance to reflect on harder challenges even as you're focusing on other more straightforward problems
- tackle nervousness
- body puts out chemicals when it's under stress
- how you interpret your body's reaction to those chemicals makes all the difference
- shifting your thinking from, this test has made me afraid, to this test has got me excited to do my best, helps improve your performance
- if you're panicked on a test, momentarily turn your attention to your breathing
- relax your stomach, place your hand on it, and slowly draw a deep breath
- your hand should move outward and your whole chest should expand like a barrel
- Use recall
- Test yourself
- Chunk your problems
- Space your repetition
- Alternate different problem-solving techniques during your practice
- Take breaks
- Use explanatory questioning and simple analogies
- Focus
- Eat your frogs first
- Make a mental contrast
- Passive rereading
- Letting highlights overwhelm you
- Merely glancing at a problem’s solution and thinking you know how to do it
- Waiting until the last minute to study
- Repeatedly solving problems of the same type that you already know how to solve
- Letting study sessions with friends turn into chat sessions
- Neglecting to read the textbook before you start working problems
- Not checking with your instructors or classmates to clear up points of confusion
- Thinking you can learn deeply when you are being constantly distracted
- Not getting enough sleep
- Get a Big Picture
- Determine Scope
- Define success
- Find resources
- Create A Learning Plan
- Filter Resources
- Learn enough to get started
- Play Around
- Learn enough to do something useful
- Teach
- Review at End of Day
- Become a SuperLearner: Learn Speed Reading & Boost Memory
- Learning How to Learn
- How to Read and Retain More
- The Ultimate Accelerated Learning System
- Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles to Learning and Discover Your Hidden Potential
- Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects
- Mindware: Critical Thinking for the Information Age
- 10X Effective Learning — Speed Reading And Memory Booster
- Mind Mapping Mastery
- Learn Any Subject with Your Own Curriculum
- View your life as a series of projects
- Construct your own mental library
- Challenge your own thinking
- Experiment
- Spend time with people way smarter than you
- Focused vs. Diffused mode
- The Brain
- Chunking
- Procrastination
- Memory
- Unlocking Your Potential
- Do not learn if you do not understand
- Learn before you memorize
- Build upon the basics
- Stick to the minimum information principle
- Simple is easy
- Repetitions of simple items are easier to schedule
- Cloze deletion is easy and effective
- Use imagery
- Use mnemonic techniques
- Graphic deletion is as good as cloze deletion
- Avoid sets
- Avoid enumerations
- Combat interference
- Optimize wording
- Refer to other memories
- Personalize and provide examples
- Rely on emotional states
- Context cues simplify wording
- Redundancy does not contradict minimum information principle
- Provide sources
- Provide date stamping
- Prioritize
- Prioritizing sources
- Extracting knowledge
- Transferring knowledge to SuperMemo
- Formulating items
- Using forgetting index
- Learning
- Develop a Growth Mindset
- Teach the Material
- Live in Your Challenge Zone
- Write things down
- Embrace Mistakes
- Understanding > Knowledge