ABallantineBookPublishedbyTheRandomHousePublishingGroupCopyright©1974byHarryLorayneandJerryLucas

Allrightsreserved.

PublishedintheUnitedStatesbyBallantineBooks,animprintofTheRandomHousePublishingGroup,adivisionofRandomHouse,Inc.,NewYork,anddistributedinCanadabyRandomHouseofCanadaLimited,Toronto.

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LibraryofCongressCatalogCardNumber:96-96797

eISBN:978-0-307-81406-7

v3.1

PraiseforTheMemoryBook

“A most unusual book about memory training … absorbing material topracticeanduse.”

—LosAngelesTimes

“Willenableyoutorememberanythingfromlong-digitnumberstowhereyouleftyourcarkeys.”

—NashvilleBanner

“It’seasy,it’sfun…itworks.”—TheColumbusDispatch

Contents

CoverTitlePageCopyrightFOREWORD:JerryLucasFOREWORD:HarryLorayne1SomeHistoryoftheArt2IntheFirstPlace:Association3TheLink4SubstituteWords5LongWords,AppointmentsandErrands,ShoppingLists6Speeches7ForeignandEnglishVocabulary8NamesandFaces9Absentmindedness10Long-DigitNumbers11ThePeg12StyleNumbers,Prices,TelephoneNumbers13PlayingCards14WeeklyAppointments;DaysoftheWeek15Anniversaries,theZodiac,HistoricalDates16TheAlphabetandPicturingLetters17StartYourChildren18Sports19TheStockMarket20Politics21TheArts22MusicforBeginners23Reading24TheMemoryGraph25Potpourri

26Look,I’maGenius27Finally

DedicationOtherBooksbyThisAuthor

FOREWORD:JERRYLUCAS

Asachild,Ihadapeculiarlybusymind.Icanneverrememberatimewhenmymindwasn’toccupiedwithsomesortofactivity,whetheritwascommunicatingdirectlywithsomeoneelse,orbeingactivelyinvolvedwithamentalgameofmyowninvention.BythetimeIwaseightyearsold,Ihadsomuchnervousenergythat itwas

hard for me to sit still. On lengthy automobile trips my constant fidgeting,tapping,andsoongotonmyparents’nerves.ItgottothepointwhereIbecameusedtorequestsfromthemto“calmdownalittle.”Justafteronesuch request, I remember lookingatanoilcompanybillboard

and saying to myself, “What would ‘SHELL’ look like if the letters werearrangedinalphabeticalorder?”Imentallyrearrangeditto“EHLLS,”andIwashooked. Ever since then, I have memorized words alphabetically as well asnormally.Thankstothismentalhabit,Icouldspellamazinglywellasachild.Ifyoucan

rearrangeawordinstantlyandspellitinalphabeticalorder,youknowthatwordverywell. To give some examples: CAT becomesACT,MEMORY becomesEMMORY, JERRY LUCAS becomes EJRRY ACLSU, and HARRYLORAYNE becomes AHRRYAELNORY! Once I’ve alphabetized a word, Icanrememberitinthatform—whenyoureadthechapteronhowtorememberEnglish and foreign vocabulary, you’ll understand how I do this. I apply thesamesystem,sinceanalphabetizedwordislikeaforeignword.I soon followed this alphabetical spelling gamewith various other kinds of

mentalgames.YoumightthinkIwasabitcrazyifItookthetimetoexplainallofthem,soIwon’t,buttheydidrequirealotofcounting,cataloging,andrecallonthepartofaveryyoungboy.As I grew older, mymental games and activities becamemore complex. I

begantodevelopsimplememorysystemstohelpmewithmystudiesinschool.Tome,schoolworkalwaysseemedtobeatleast90percentmemorywork,andIwanted to make it easier and less time-consuming for myself. These systemsworked,andIbegantoexpandandsophisticatethem.Theyworkedwellformethroughout junior high school and high school, where I was practically astraight-Astudent.

I would like to impress upon you that all of this mental activity was of aprivatenature.NolivinghumanbeingknewthatIhadtheability,forexample,toalphabetizeanywordfasterthanmostpeoplecouldspellitnormally,nordidanyone know how involved I was with other mental activities and memorysystems.AnimportantchangetookplacewhenIenteredcollege.IreadoneofHarry

Lorayne’sbooksandusedmanyofhissystemsorideasinareaswhereIthoughthiswerebetter,orsimpler,oreasier toapply;others Iadapted tomyown.Hebecame something of an idol to me, and I was soon to find out how thecombinationofhissystemsandminewouldhelpmeinmycollegestudies.My roommate atOhio StateUniversity duringmy freshman yearwas John

Havlicek, the great professional basketball star of the Boston Celtics. Johnbecamethefirstpersontoknowaboutallthethingsthatwentoninmymind.My first college classwas traumatic. I entered the classroom and sat in the

backrow,knowingotherstudentswouldbeunabletoseeovermysix-foot-eightframe.ItwasanAmericanhistoryclass.Theprofessor spent about fifteenminutes tellinguswhat he expectedof us

andhowtheclasswouldbeconducted.Hislaststatementbeforeheexcuseduswassomethingtotheeffectthat“Anyathletewhoexpectstobeinmyclass,sitin the back row, do nothing, and get good grades is sadlymistaken.You areexcused.”I told John Havlicek what had happened and shared with him my

determination to usememory systems to my best advantage in this particularclass.“Whatsystems?”heaskedme,anditallbegantoflowoutforthefirsttime.I

toldJohnhowIhadbeguntospellalphabeticallyasachildandIdemonstrateditforhim.Hecouldn’treallybelievewhathewashearing.Iexplained,asbestIcould,

howmymindworkedandallthementalactivityIwasinvolvedin.I’msurehethought Iwas a little crazy, but he challengedme to spell somewords of hischoosing alphabetically, andwhen I did, hewishedmewell in the use ofmysystems.AsformyAmericanhistoryclass,thesystemsworkedbeautifully.Onthefirst

exam,mygradewas 99; the closest grade tominewas77.Four years later, IgraduatedPhiBetaKappa—havingput in something likeone-fourth the studytimethatmoststudentsused.Many years later, after I was traded to the New York Knickerbockers

basketball team, I looked up Harry Lorayne. Our first meeting lasted overeighteen hours! Obviously, we had much in common, and we later became

associatedinourendeavors—includingthisbook.Itis,infact,acombinationofsomeofourideas,thoughtson,systemsof,memory.Believeme, ifyoureadabout thesesystemsandactuallyapply themasyou

go,thereisnolimittohowgreatyourmemorycanbe.JERRYLUCAS

FOREWORD:HARRYLORAYNE

Unfortunately,Ineverhadtheopportunitytoreceiveaformaleducation.Ididn’tcomplete thefirstyearofhighschool.Mygrades,during thatshort time,wereamongthehighest inmyclass.Whywasthisso?MyIQwasaverage,andmy“natural”memorywas no better orworse thanmost people’s. As amatter offact, Ioriginallywasoneof thosemanypeoplewhothink theyhave theworstmemoryintheworld.I received good grades for one reason—I applied memory systems to my

schoolwork.It’sassimpleasthat.Jerryhastoldyouhowhegothookedonalphabetizingwordsasachild.Well,

asaveryyoungboymyburninginterestwascardmagic.IsupposeIdrovemostofmyfriendsupthewall,askingthemto“pickacard,anycard.”Oneofthe“tricks”Iperformedduringthoseyearswasn’treallyatrickatall,

it was amemory stunt. It consisted ofmemorizing an entire shuffled deck ofplayingcards, inorder.All thecardswerecalledoff tomeonce, and Iwouldknowthepositionofeverycardinthedeck!Istillperformthisstunttoday,butatthetimeitwastheonlymemorytrickIknew.One day, the thought struck—if I could apply a simple system to help me

remember playing cards, why couldn’t I do the same to help me rememberanythingIwantedto?Thatsinglesimplethoughtstartedmeonalifetimecareer.FirstIcompiledabibliographyofallthematerialavailableonthesubjectof

memory training. This started me thinking about and then devising my ownsystems.Yearslater,Istartedtoperformforgroups,organizations,conventions,andsoon.Myperformanceconsistedofmemoryfeatsanddemonstrationsonly.During these early years, literally thousands of people approachedme after aperformancetoexpresstheirinterestinlearning“howtoremember.”That iswhat ledmetowritemyfirstbookonthesubject. Iteventuallysold

overamillionhardcovercopiesandwastranslatedintoninelanguages.Other books and courses on the art of a trainedmemory followed this first

book.Ihavecartonsfullof thelettersIreceivedfrompeoplewhosememoriesimproved dramatically, thanks to my systems. One of these letters was fromJerryLucas,thenafreshmanatOhioStateUniversity.Wecorrespondedovertheyears.Hehaddevisedsystemsofhisown,andhis

interest in the subject knew no bounds.Hemanipulated some ofmy systems,changed some of them to fit his purposes, applied them to his schoolwork. Icouldnothavehadabetterormorededicateddisciple.I went onwithmywork, Jerry went onwith his. I eventually founded the

Harry Lorayne School of Memory; Jerry became a championship basketballplayer. We still corresponded. A few years ago, Jerry started to demonstratesomeof hismental abilities on national television. I had been doing the samethingfortwentyyears,includingrememberingthenamesandfacesofuptofivehundred people in the studio audience. Nobody, at that time, knew of anyconnectionbetweenJerryandmyself.WhenJerrywas traded to theKnicks,we finallymet.That firstmeeting, as

Jerryhastoldyou,lastedverynearlyaroundtheclock.Even with our trained memories, Jerry and I would have been hard put to

rememberallthethingswetalkedabout.Andso,atonepoint,wedecidedtoruna tape recorder as we spoke. Throughout the book, you’ll be reading smallportions of that dialogue.Most, but not all, of these conversationswere takenfromthattapeofouroriginalmeeting.Thiswillsoundimmodest,butitismytruefeeling—Ienvyyou!Ienvyyou

thediscoveriesyou’reabouttomake,thenewareasyou’reabouttoexplore,thepleasureoflearningandenjoyingatthesametime.IwishIwereinyourplace,rightnow.

HARRYLORAYNE

1SOMEHISTORYOFTHEART

Memorysystemsdatebacktoantiquity.Intheancientworld,atrainedmemorywasof vital importance.Therewere nohandynote-takingdevices, and itwasmemorytechniquesandsystemsthatenabledbardsandstorytellerstoremembertheirstories,poems,andsongs.Early Greek and Roman orators delivered lengthy speeches with unfailing

accuracy because they learned the speeches, thought for thought, by applyingmemorysystems.Whattheydid,basically,wasassociateeachthoughtofaspeechtoapartof

theirownhomes.Thesewerecalled“loci,”or“places.”Theopeningthoughtofaspeechwould,perhaps,beassociatedtothefrontdoor,thesecondthoughttothe foyer, the third to a piece of furniture in the foyer, and so on.When theoratorwanted to rememberhis speech, thought for thought,he actually tookamentaltourthroughhisownhome.Thinkingofthefrontdoorremindedhimofthefirstthoughtofhisspeech.Thesecond“place,”thefoyer,remindedhimofthenext thought;andsoon to theendof thespeech. It is fromthis“place”or“loci”memorytechniquethatwegetthetime-wornphrase“inthefirstplace.”AlthoughSimonides(circa500B.C.)isknownasthefatheroftheartoftrained

memory, scraps of parchment dating back a thousand years or so beforeSimonides state thatmemory techniqueswere an essential part of the orator’sequipment.Cicerowrote that thememoriesof the lawyers andoratorsofhis timewere

aidedby systemsand trainingand inDeoratore hedescribedhowhehimselfappliedmemorysystems.It’s important to realize that oratory was an important career during those

earlydays.“Weshouldneverhaverealizedhowgreatisthepower[ofatrainedmemory],”wrote thephilosopherQuintilian, “nor howdivine it is, but for thefactthatitismemorywhichhasbroughtoratorytoitspresentpositionofglory.”Theancientsalsoknewthatmemorytrainingcouldhelpthethinkingprocess

itself.Fromafragmentdatedabout400B.C.welearnthat“Agreatandbeautifulinvention is memory, always useful both for learning and for life.” AndAristotle,afterpraisingmemorysystems,saidthat“thesehabitstoowillmakea

manreadierinreasoning.”If Simonideswas the inventor of the art of trainedmemory, andCicero its

greatest early teacher, St. Thomas Aquinas was to become its patron saint,instrumentalinmakingtheartoftrainedmemoryadevotionalandethicalart.During the Middle Ages, monks and philosophers were virtually the only

peoplewhoknewabout and applied trained-memory techniques.The systems,whose use was mostly limited to religion, were basic to some religions. Forexample,memorysystemswereusedtomemorizeVirtuesandVices,andsomepriests and philosophers taught that memory systems showed “how to reachHeavenandavoidHell.”In1491,PeterofRavennawroteThePhoenix,whichbecamethebestknown

of all earlymemory-trainingbooks andbrought the art of trainedmemoryoutinto the lay world. During the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, many otherbookswerewrittenonthesubject.KingFrancis IofFranceusedmemorysystems,asdidEngland’sHenryIII.

Shakespeare is held tohaveused trained-memory systems—hisGlobeTheaterwascalledthe“memorytheater.”Philosophersoftheseventeenthcenturytaughtmemory systems (Francis Bacon has one in his book The Advancement ofLearning), and some scholars insist that Leibniz invented calculus whilesearchingforamemorysystemthatwouldaidinmemorizingnumbers.So you see, there’s nothing really new about trained-memory techniques.

Unfortunately,thetechniquesfellintodisuseforcenturies.Somepeoplewhodidpracticethemwereactuallyregardedaswitches.It’s truethatmemorysystemsremained in use as a source of entertainment for others—in our own century,vaudevilleplayersusedmemorysystems toperform“mental tricks”onstage—but they were seldom if ever used for practical purposes or serious learning.Here and there someonewould try to bring the systems to the fore again, butwithoutsuccess.InabooktitledMemory,WilliamStokes,aphilosopherandmemoryteacher

of the 1800’s, summarizes the degree of public interest in the art of trainedmemory:Itistrue…thatnotwithstandingtherecordsofthepastandtheachievements,

triumphs,andtrophiesofthepresent,the“educated,”theintelligentmasses—theworld—know not and seem not to care to know its wondrous worth. Theadoptionofthesciencebyafewpaltrythousandscannotberegardedasanythingwhenwe consider the countlessmyriads peopling the earth—whenwe realizethefactthatitisasessentialtotheproperexerciseandfulldevelopmentofourintellectualexistenceasproperbreathing is toourphysicalwell-being; inspiteof all that has been said and done, we may say comparatively—almost

absolutely—thattheartisathingunknown!Therecanbelittledoubtthatbeforelong,itwillbegenerallyrecognizedasan

established science; and posterity will look back, and regard… this plea onbehalfofmemory…asanindicationoftheintellectualdarknessofthisageofboastedenlightenment.…Let us hope that the day will come when it shall be considered as great a

disgracenottousememorysystemsasitisatpresentnottoread!Stokes’sbookwaspublishedin1888.Nearlyacenturylater,itisourpleasure

to bring the art of trained memory back into the foreground—not only byteachingmemorysystems,butbybringingthemtoalevelthattheancient(andnot-so-ancient) thinkerswouldneverhaveconceivedasbeingwithin therealmofpossibility.

2INTHEFIRSTPLACE:ASSOCIATION

HL:Can’tyoupicture thoseancientorators,wanderingaround the streetsofacitylookingforotherbuildingstouseas“places”?

JL: And the search made them more knowledgeable, not just better able torememberwhat they needed to.Eventually, they realized that any informationthatwasalreadysequentialcouldbeusedaslociorthingstoassociatewithotherthings.

HL:Sowhenasearchercameacrosssomethinglikethesignsofthezodiac,andrealizedthatherehehadtwelve“places,”hehadtolearnthemfirst.Andmuchlater, some people realized that parts of theBible could be used as places, sotheyhadtolearnthatfirst.

JL:Acaseofknowledgebegettingknowledge,wouldn’tyousay?

•

Allmemory, whether trained or untrained, is based on association. But that’sstating it too simply. You will be taught many systems of association in thisbook,butitgoesmuchdeeperthanthat.Yousee,whenpeoplesay,“Iforgot,”theydidn’t,usually—whatreallyhappenedwasthattheydidn’trememberinthefirstplace.How can you forget something that you didn’t remember, originally? Turn

that around, and you have the solution to remembering—if you do remembersomethingoriginally,howcanyouforgetit?Thatbringsyoutoforcingyourselftorememberoriginally.Howcanyoudothis?Thesimplesystemsofassociationyou’lllearnherewill

doitforyou,automatically!One of the fundamentals of a trained memory is what we call Original

Awareness.Anythingofwhichyou areOriginallyAwarecannot be forgotten.And, applying our systems of association will force Original Awareness.ObservationisessentialtoOriginalAwareness—anythingyouwishtoremember

mustfirstbeobserved.Usingassociationwilltakecareofthat,too.Buthowintheworlddoyouassociatesomethingthat’sintangibleorabstract?

That question leads to another fundamental of trained memory. It is alwayseasiertorememberthingsthathavemeaningthanit istorememberthingsthatdo not. You’ll see, as you get a bit deeper into our methods, that nothing isabstractorintangiblesofarasthesystemsareconcerned.Youwilllearnhowtomake any intangible thing, any abstract piece of information, tangible andmeaningful in your mind. Once you’ve mastered that simple technique, allrememberingandthereforealllearningwillbeeasierforyoufortherestofyourlife.We’d like to insist righthere thatvirtuallyall learning isbasedonmemory.

Educatorsdon’tliketoadmitit,buttheyknowit’strue.Andanystudentknowsthat themore he remembers, the better grades he’ll get from the teacherwholikestoputdown“memorization.”Webelievethattherearethreebasiclearningskills: 1) the search for information, 2) remembering the information, and 3)applying the information.The search isup to theeducatorsand the sourcesofknowledge,theapplicationisuptoyou.We’lltakecareofstep2.Let’sbeginwithassociation.Firstofall,youshouldrealizethatyou’veused

association all your life. The problem is that you’ve usually associatedsubconsciously,without recognizing the association forwhat itwas.Anythingyou clearly associated, even if subconsciously, is sure to have been easilyremembered.Butsinceyouhavenocontroloveryoursubconscious,associationhasbeenahit-or-misskindofthingallyourlife.Here’s a basic memory rule: You Can Remember Any New Piece of

InformationifItIsAssociatedtoSomethingYouAlreadyKnoworRemember.Doyourememberthelinesonthemusicstaff,thetrebleclef,E,G,B,D,and

F?IfyourteacherevertoldyoutothinkofthesentenceEveryGoodBoyDoesFine, then you do remember them. Your teacher was following that basicmemory rule, probably without realizing it. He or she was helping you toremember new (and abstract) information, the letters E, G, B, D, and F, byassociating them to something you already knew, or at least understood—thesimplesentenceEveryGoodBoyDoesFine.Obviously,itworked.Teachersintheearlygradeshavebeentellingtheirstudentsforyearsthatit’s

easytorememberhowtospellpieceifyouthinkofthephrase“apieceofpie.”Sincemostyoungstudentsalreadyknowhow to spellpie, associating thatoldknowledgetothenew—thespellingof“piece”—solvestheproblem.Again,thebasicrulehasbeenfollowed.VeryfewpeoplecaneasilyremembertheshapeofRussia,orGreece,orany

othercountry—exceptItaly,thatis.That’sbecausemostpeoplehavebeentold,

orhaveread,thatItalyisshapedlikeaboot.There’sthatruleagain—theshapeofabootwasthesomethingalreadyknown,andtheshapeofItalycouldnotbeforgottenoncethatassociationwasmade.Thesearecommonexamplesofassociation,subconsciousorconscious.And

so it goes: medical students use mnemonics (a technique for improving thememory)tohelpthemselvesrememberthecranialnerves;otherstudentspicturehomesonagreat lake tohelp themselvesremember that thefiveGreatLakesareHuron,Ontario,Michigan,Erie,andSuperior;otherspictureaquartetbeingstabbed (stab gives you the initial letters of soprano, tenor,alto, andbass) toremember the four voices in a quartet. People have remembered that MountFujiyamais12,365feethighbyassociatingittoacalendar(12months,365daysinayear).The trouble with such examples is that they work only for those specific

things;they’relimited.Thesystemsoftrainedmemoryyou’lllearninthisbookare applicable to anything. They are limited only to the extent that yourwillingness to use them is limited. The point is this: If you know how toconsciouslyassociateanythingyouwanttoremembertosomethingyoualreadyknow,you’llhaveatrainedmemory.It’sassimpleasthat.Andyoucanlearntoassociateanythingyoulike—quicklyandnaturally.Thetrained-memorysystemsyou’llbetaughtinthisbookarenotunnaturalin

anyway;theymerelysystematize,orpatternize,anaturalprocess.Manytimesduringyour lifeyou’veheardor seen something that causedyou to snapyourfingersandsay,“Oh,thatremindsme.…”And,usually,thethingthatremindedyouofsomethinghadnothingtodowithwhatitremindedyouof.Somewherebackinyourmindanabsurdorrandomassociationhadbeenmade.

Why,whentheoratorsofancienttimescouldusetheirownhomesas“loci”toremind themselves of the thoughts of a speech, did they search for otherbuildingstogivethemmore“places”?Itwasn’tthatthesamehomeorbuildingcouldn’t be used over andover again—it could. (“The loci,” said one thinker,“are like wax tablets which remain when what is written on them has beeneffacedandarereadytobewrittenonagain.”)No,theproblemwasthatthe“home”locibecametoofamiliarafterawhile—

after all, a staircase is a staircase, and a foyer is a foyer. But an importantmemoryprinciplesimplyneveroccurredtotheancientorators:Itisn’tnecessarytoassociate the thoughtsofaspeech,oranythingelse, toplaces—the thoughtsmaybeassociatedtoeachother,sothatonethoughtwillremindyouofthenextthought.ThatsimpleideaisthebasisoftheLinksystemofmemory.First,we’llshow

youhowtouseit tohelpyoumemorizetangibleitems.Lateron,whenyou’velearnedhowtopicturethoughtsorconcepts,you’llseethattheideacaneasilybeappliedtointangibles.Rightnow,let’sapplythebasicassociationruletorememberingtenunrelated

items.Butwe’llchangetherule,slightly,byaddingoneimportantphrase.Therevisedrule:InOrdertoRememberAnyNewPieceofInformation,ItMustBeAssociatedtoSomethingYouAlreadyKnoworRememberinSomeRidiculousWay. The addition of that simple four-word phrase accomplishes quite a fewthings. It will force the Original Awareness that’s necessary to rememberanything,itwillforceyoutoconcentrateanduseyourimaginationasyouneverhavebefore,anditwillforceyoutoformassociationsconsciously.Assumeyouwantedtomemorizethesetenitems,insequence:airplane,tree,

envelope,earring,bucket, sing,basketball, salami, star,nose.All right,pictureanairplane in yourmind.There’s noway to applyourmemory rule yet.Butnowwecometothenextitem:tree.The rule can now be applied, if we make the assumption that you already

know,or remember,airplane.Thenewpieceof information that youwant torememberistree.Allyouneedtodoistoformaridiculouspicture,orimage,inyourmind’seye—anassociationbetweenthosetwothings.Therearetwostepsinvolved.Firstyouneedaridiculous—impossible,crazy,

illogical, absurd—pictureor image toassociate the two items.Whatyoudon’twantisalogicalorsensiblepicture.An example of a logical picture might be: an airplane parked near a tree.

Though unlikely, that is not ridiculous, it is possible—therefore, it probablywon’t work. A ridiculous or impossible picture might be: A gigantic tree isflying instead of an airplane, or an airplane is growing instead of a tree, orairplanesaregrowingontrees,ormillionsoftrees(aspassengers)areboardingairplanes. These are crazy, impossible pictures. Now, select one of thesepictures,oroneyouthoughtofyourself,andseeitinyourmind’seye.We don’t, of course, mean to see the words airplane and tree. You are to

actually see the action you’ve selected—and most ridiculous associationsbetweenanytwoitemswillbeactions,liketheexamplesgivenhere.Seethatpicture,thataction,inyourmindforasplitsecond.You’renotdoing

anything unusual; you’ve been seeing pictures in your mind all your life.Actually,youcan’tthinkwithoutseeingpictures.Aristotlesaidit,centuriesago—one of his books openedwith this sentence: “It is impossible even to thinkwithoutamentalpicture.”Seeingpictures,orimages,inyourmindisalmostlikehavingamoviescreen

inyourhead.Ifyoureadthewordshusband,child,car,etc.,youcannotthinkof

anyof thosepeopleor thingswithout “seeing” apictureof them—even if it’sonlyforasplitsecond.Trynot topictureanelephant;don’tseeanelephantinyour mind. What happened? It became impossible not to see, or picture, anelephant!Allright,then.Choosearidiculousassociationbetweenairplaneandtree,and

seeitinyourmind’seye,rightnow.Onceyou’vetriedtodothat,stopthinkingaboutit.The“trying,”however,is

quite important.Wetellourstudents thatevenifoursystemsdon’twork, theymustwork!Thatsoundssilly,butit’strue.Justtryingtoapplythesystemsmustimproveyourmemory,whether or not they reallywork.The fact that theydowork, and work beautifully, will improve your memory to an unbelievabledegree.Thenextitemonthelistisenvelope.We’llassumethatyoualreadyknow,or

remember, tree. The new thing to remember is envelope. Simply form aridiculouspicture,orassociation,inyourmindbetweentreeandenvelope.Youmightseemillionsofenvelopesgrowingonatree,oratreeissealingagiganticenvelope,oryou’re trying to seal a tree in anenvelope.There aremanyothersuggestionswecouldgiveyou,butallyouneedisoneridiculouspicture.Selectoneofthese,oroneyouthoughtofyourself,andseeitinyourmind’seyeforaninstant.You needn’t labor over seeing that picture. All it takes is a fraction of a

second.It’stheclarityofthepicturethat’simportant,nothowlongyouseeit.Soseeit,clearly,forjustasecond.Thenext item tobe remembered isearring.The thingyoualreadyknow is

envelope. Form a ridiculous association between envelope and earring. Youmight see yourself wearing envelopes instead of earrings, or you open anenvelopeandmillionsofearringsflyoutandhityouintheface.You’remuchbetteroff,incidentally,thinkingupyourownpictures.Whenwe

suggest the ridiculous pictures, we’re taking away some of your OriginalAwareness.We’llkeepongivingyousuggestions,butwhetheryouuseoursoryourown,besuretoseethepicturesclearly.Select one of our associations between envelope and earring, or one you

thoughtofyourself,andseeitinyourmind’seye.Bucketisthenewthingtoremember.Associateittoearring.Youmightsee

yourself wearing buckets instead of earrings. Or a gigantic bucket is wearinggiganticearrings.Seeoneofthesepicturesinyourmind.Thenextthingtorememberissing.(Thisisnotanobject,notanoun,andit’s

hereonlytoshowyouthatthisdoesn’tmatter—anassociationwillstillremindyouofit.)Associatesingtothelastthingyoualreadyknow—bucket.Ifyousee

agiganticbucketsinging,thatwilldoit.Oryoumightseeyourselfsingingwithabucketoveryourhead.That’snotimpossible,butit’scertainlyridiculous.Justbesuretoseeyourpictureclearly.The next item is basketball. Associate that to sing. Picture a basketball

singing.Orsomeoneissingingandmillionsofbasketballsflyoutofhismouth.Salami. Picture a gigantic salami playing basketball.Or a basketball player

(JerryLucas,whoelse?)isdribblingasalamiinsteadofabasketball.Star.Pictureagiganticsalamitwinklinginthesky.Oryou’reslicingastar,

insteadofasalami!Seethepicture.Nose.Picturesomeonewithatwinklingstaronhisfaceinsteadofanose.Ora

starhasalargenose.Seethatpicture.Ifyou’ve tried to seeall thepictures,youwillknowall ten items.The first

itemistheonlyoneyoumayhavetroublewith,becauseyoudidn’tassociateitto anything to remind you of it. This will be straightened out for you soonenough.Ifyouknowtheitem,fine.Ifnot, itwasairplane.Trytothinkof theitemsbeforeyoureadthemintheparagraphstofollow.Now,thinkofairplaneforamoment.Whatdoesthatremindyouof?Tree,ofcourse.Think of tree—that reminds you of… envelope. Think of envelope,which

should remindyouof…earring.Thinkof earring, and itwill remindyouofbucket.What silly thingwas the bucket doing? Singing, of course—and thatreminds you of sing. What else was singing? A basketball. Thinking ofbasketballforamomentwillremindyouof…salami.Salamishouldmakeyouthinkof…star.And,finally,starwillremindyouof…nose.Howdidyoudo?Youshouldhaveknownallofthem.Ifyouhadtroublewith

oneortwo,ifyouthinkyouforgotany,it’sprobablybecauseyoureadthewordhere before you had the chance to think of it.You didn’t “forget” it at all. Ifyou’re convinced that you did, then you didn’t really remember it in the firstplace—gobacktothatitemandstrengthenyourassociation.Thatis,besurethepictureisridiculous,and,moreimportant,besuretoreallyseeitinyourmind.Ifyoutakepaperandpencilandtryitnow,onyourown,you’llseethatyou

canlistthetenitems,insequence,withoutmissingany.Tryitandsee.Now,tryitbackward!Thinkofnose;thatwillmakeyouthinkof…star.Starwillremindyouof…salami.Thatremindsyouof…basketball.Basketballto…sing,singto…bucket,bucketto…earring,earringto…envelope,envelopeto…tree,and tree to… airplane. Try this with your own list, and you’ll be proud ofyourself—you’llbeable to rememberany listof items, insequence,backwardandforward.

3THELINK

HL:Ofcourse,everyoneknowsthatmotivationisanimportantpartofmemory.The systems themselves can actually provide enough interest and challenge toadduptomotivation.

JL: Without motivation, nobody would accomplish anything. When I was asenior in high school, Iwas named to theParademagazineHighSchoolAll-AmericanTeam.WewerebroughttoNewYorkCitytobeonthe“SteveAllenShow”alongwiththeAll-AmericanCollegeTeam,ofwhichWiltChamberlainwasamember.Duringtherehearsal,IwaswithWiltinthelobbyofthetheater,where there was a high ledge—it must have been about twelve feet high.SomeoneapproachedWiltandsaid,“Hey,Wilt,canyoujumpupandtouchthatledge?”Wiltsaidhethoughthe’djustforgottenhowtojump.“ButI’lltellyouwhat,”

hesaid,“I’llbetyouifyouthrowahundred-dollarbillupthere,I’drememberhowtojumprealquick!”

Whatyou’velearnedintheprecedingchapterisatinypartoftheLinksystemofmemory.We call it the “Link” system because what you’re doing when youapplyitislinkingoneitemtoanother,formingthelinksofamemorychain.Oneitemmustleadyoutothenext,ifyou’reassociatingproperly.HavingappliedtheLinksystem,youcanretainanylistforaslongasyoulike.

It’s really hypothetical at the moment.When you start applying the Link forpractical reasons,you’rememorizinga listof thingsbecauseyouintend tousethat list. It’s the practical use that sets the retention—and provides themotivationtorememberitinthefirstplace.You’llseethatthisissojustassoonasyoulearntoapplyitpractically.Although there’s no reasonwhyyou should feelmotivated to retain the list

youmemorizedintheprecedingchapter,youcanifyouwantto.Simplygooverit tomorrow; go over it mentally, that is, while you’re driving or eating orwhatever.Go over it again three days later, then go over it aweek later, andyou’llstillknowalltheitemsinsequence.You’llknowthemforaslongasyouwanttoknowthem.

TheLinksystemisusedtorememberthingsinsequenceonly,andtherearemany things thatmust be remembered, or learned, in sequence.A speech is asequenceofthoughts,aformulaisasequenceofcomponents,anynumberwithmorethantwodigitsisasequence.(Youcan’tapplytheLinksystemtonumbersnowbecauseyoudon’tyetknowhowtopicturenumbers.Later,you’llbeusingtheLinktorememberlong-digitnumbers.)Theoneproblemyoumayhave inLinking, only at first, is inmakingyour

picturesridiculous.Therearefoursimplerulestohelpyoudothisrightfromthestart. The easiest rule to apply is the rule ofSubstitution. That is, picture oneiteminsteadoftheother.Intheprecedingchapter,wesuggestedthatyoumightseeatreeflyinginsteadofanairplane.WeweretryingtoforceyoutoapplytheruleofSubstitution.AnotherruleisOutofProportion.Trytoseetheitemslargerthanlife.Check

our suggestions again and you’ll see that we used the word “gigantic” quiteoften.ThiswastoforceyoutoapplytheruleofOutofProportion.AnotherruleisExaggeration.Whenevertheword“millions”wasused,itwas

toforceyoutoapplythisrule.Trytosee“millions”ofanitem.And,trytogetActionintoyourpictures.Actionisalwayseasytoremember.

Onesuggestionwas to seemillions (exaggeration)ofearrings flyingoutof anenvelopeandhittingyouintheface.Hittingyouwastheaction.Applyingoneormoreoftheserulestoanypicturewillhelpyoutomakethat

pictureridiculous.Afterashortwhile,youwon’thave to thinkaboutapplyingthem;you’lldoitautomatically.Itdoes take some imagination to form ridiculouspictures inyourmind. It’s

unfortunate that those “wheels” of imagination, observation, curiosity,enthusiasm,etc.,thatturnedsoquicklyandsmoothlywhenwewereyounghaveslowed down by the time we’re adults. Society tends to do that, somehow.Childrenneverhaveanyproblemformingsillyorridiculouspictures.Theydoiteasilyandnaturally.You’ll find that our systems will start turning those wheels again; perhaps

slowlyatfirst,butturningnevertheless.Yourimaginationneedsexercise,that’sall. The important point is that simply trying to apply our systems willautomatically give you that exercise. Your imaginationmust improve, as willyourpowersofobservation, asyoukeepworkingwith the systems. In a shortwhile,you’llfindthatitwillbetheridiculous,illogicalpicturethatfirstcomestomindwheneveryouthinkofanytwoitems.Making the pictures ridiculous is what enables you to really see them; a

logicalpictureisusuallytoovague.Onceyoureallyseetheridiculouspicture,itdoesregisterinyourmind.Researchcarriedoutbythedepartmentofbasicand

visual science at the Southern California College of Optometry indicates thatwhenyouactuallyseesomething,anelectricalimpulsereachesthevisioncenterof the brain.They’ve also discovered (rediscovered scientifically, really, sinceancient philosophers said the same thing) that there is notmuchphysiologicaldifferencebetweentheelectricalsignalsthatareactivatedbythemind’seyeandonesthatareactivatedbytheeyeitself.Sodon’tfeelbadif,atfirst,youhavetoapplysomeeffortinordertocomeup

with those ridiculous pictures—at least, to come up with them quickly. Thatextraeffortatfirstisgood.ItforcesyoutobeOriginallyAware.Wecan’tsayitanybetterthanitwassaidonparchment,inthescrollscalled

AdHerennium,overthreethousandyearsago:

…Now nature herself teaches us what to do.When we see in everyday lifethings thatarepetty,ordinary,andbanal,wegenerally fail to remember them,becausethemindisnotbeingstirredbyanythingnovelormarvelous.Butifwesee or hear something exceptionally base, dishonorable, unusual, great,unbelievable, or ridiculous, that we are likely to remember for a long time.Accordingly,thingsimmediatetooureyeorearwecommonlyforget;incidentsof our childhoodwe often remember best.Nor could this be so for any otherreasonthanthatordinarythingseasilyslipfromthememorywhile thestrikingandthenovelstaylongerinthemind.

Again, the idea,or the realization, isnotnew; it has justbeenneglected,oroverlooked.Besure,then,tomakeallyourpicturesridiculousones.Inthatway,and again from Ad Herennium, “Art will supplement nature.” That’s exactlywhat happens. When something assaults our senses in an unusual, great,unbelievable,orridiculousway,it“stirs”themind.Itisusuallyretainedwithouteffort. It is the ordinary, everyday things that we have trouble remembering.Forming ridiculous pictures helps to make them outstanding, novel, ormarvelous. The art (of trained memory) is supplementing nature, and all oursystemsarebasedonthisfact.If you can apply the Link andmemorize ten items, then you can use it to

remembertwentyorthirtyitems.Ofcourse,itwilltakemoretimetorememberthirty items than it will to remember ten. But that would be so whether youappliedtheLinksystemornot.Thereisreallynolimit to thenumberof itemsyoucanmemorizethisway.We strongly suggest that before you continue to the next chapter you try a

Linkonyourown.Havesomeonegiveyoufifteenorsoitems,andyouformtheLink.Or try it on your own.Make a list of items, and thenLink them.After

you’vepracticedawhile,whenyoufeelfairlyconfident,showoffforafriend.Havehimcall off fifteenor sixteen items, asmanyasyou feel comfortable

with.Lethimwritethemdownashecallsthem.Ifhedoesn’t,hewon’tbeableto check you later because hewon’t remember the items himself (unless he’sreadthisbook).Also,hiswritinggivesyouthemomentyouneedtomakeyourassociation.Forthetimebeing,don’tlethimcalloffintangibles;he’stochooseconcretethings,nounsoractiveverbs.Whenhe’scalledthefifteenorsixteenitems,youcallthemrightbacktohim,

bymemory. Ifyoumissoneor two, there’snoproblem.Simplyaskhimwhatthey are, strengthen that particular association, and then call off the itemsbackward!Andhowwillyoubesuretorememberthefirstitemcalled?Well,onceyou

startusingtheLinkforpracticalpurposes,thatwon’tbeaproblem.Thesubjectyou’rememorizingwillstartyourLink.Butevenfornowtheproblemisreallyahypotheticalone.Ifyouthinkofany

itemnearthestartofyourLinkandworkbackward,youmusteventuallycometo thefirst item.And, tosaveyoueven thissmallamountof time:Whenyourfriendcallsthefirstitem,justassociateit—tohim.Take the list in theprecedingchapter. Ifyourfriendcalled“airplane”as the

first item,youmight lookathimandseeanairplaneonhishead.That’sall ittakes.Thenextitemisassociatedtoairplane,andsoontotheendoftheLink.When you’re ready to call off the list of items, simply look at your friend.

You’ll“see”theairplaneonhishead,andthatassociationwillleadyouthroughtherestofthelist.Again,wesuggest thatyoutryafewtestLinksbeforecontinuing.Showoff

for your friends, ormakeyour own list and showoff to yourself.We suggestshowing off only because we know that each time you do, you’ll gainconfidence.You’llseethatthesystemworks!

4SUBSTITUTEWORDS

HL:I’venevermetanyonewhohasn’tattimescomeupwithasimilar-soundingword or phrase when thinking of something completely different—like “can’telope”and“cantaloupe.”

JL:Iknowoneexamplethatwasevenusedinasong—“chickeninacar,andthecarcan’tgo—that’showyouspell‘Chicago’!”

HL:MyfavoriteischildrensayingtheLord’sPrayerwhodon’tunderstandtheword “temptation.” In the New York area, the phrase is likely to come out:“LeadusnotintoPennStation!”

•

The states of the United States can easily be memorized in alphabeticalsequence.Ofcourse,youprobablycouldn’tcarelessaboutknowingthestatesinsequence. That’s not the point. The point is to show you how to pictureabstractions,likenames.Again,onceyouunderstandhowtomakeanintangibletangible and meaningful, it becomes easy to remember. This will be a goodexercisefortheLink,anditwillalsostartyouontheSubstituteWordsystemofmemory.The Substitute Word concept can be applied to any seemingly abstract

material.Basically,it’sthis:Whenyouhearorseeawordorphrasethatseemsabstractorintangibletoyou,thinkofsomething—anything—thatsoundslike,orremindsyouof,theabstractmaterialandcanbepicturedinyourmind.Ordinarily, the name of a person, thing, or place cannot be pictured in the

mind.Mostnamesareintangible,whichiswhythey’resodifficulttoremember.For example, there would seem to be no way to “picture” (or associate)Minnesota.Youmight, however, easily picture amini soda, a small bottle ofsoda.MinisodasoundslikeMinnesota,andmustremindyouofit.Andyoucanassociatemini soda to anything you like. If youwere trying tomemorize thestates in their alphabetical order, you might associate mini soda toMrs. sip;perhaps a married lady is sipping a little soda. This would remind you that

MississippifollowsMinnesota,alphabetically.Ordinarily, you could not “picture” Maryland and Massachusetts. But you

couldpictureagirlnamedMary(orabride,marry)landingamongamassofpeoplewhochewandsit.MarrylandmustremindyouofMaryland,andmasschew sit will certainly remind you of Massachusetts. Now, you may bewonderinghowyou’dknowwhichofthetwoitemsinyourpicturecomesfirst.Well, aside from the fact that they’re alphabetical in this particular example,which comes first is a problem only because we’re discussing two at a time.WhenyouactuallyLinkallofthem,ormorethantwo,it’snoproblem.That’sthewholepointoftheLink;oneitemmustleadyoutothenext.To repeat, youdohave touse abit of imagination, and themoreoftenyou

form conscious associations, the easier it will become because you will beimproving your imagination as you improve your memory. As AristotleexplainedinDeanima,

Theperceptionsbroughtinbythefivesensesarefirsttreatedorworkeduponbythe faculty of imagination, and it is the images so formedwhich become thematerial of the intellectual faculty. Imagination is the intermediary betweenperceptionandthought.It istheimage-makingpartofthemindwhichmakestheworkofthehigher

processes of thought possible. Hence themind never thinks without amentalpicture.Thethinkingfaculty thinksof itsformsinpictures.Noonecouldeverlearnorunderstandanything,ifhehadnotthefacultyofperception;evenwhenhethinksspeculatively,hemusthavesomementalpicturewithwhichtothink.

Aristotlewentontosaythatallmencanthinkbecause“it ispossible toputthings before our eyes, the way those who invent trained-memory techniquesteachustoconstructimages.”We are teachingyou,now,how to “construct images”with intangibles.The

pictures(SubstituteWords,thoughts,orphrases)thatyouusemustremindyouoftheintangiblematerial.And,again,simplytryingtoapplytheideamustbetteryourmemory.TryingtofindaSubstituteWordforanythingforcesyoutothinkaboutit,toconcentrateonitasyounormallywouldnot.If, during any of the examples in this book, the SubstituteWord does not

remindyouofwhatyouwantedtoremember,it’sundoubtedlybecauseyouusedour suggestionfor theSubstituteWord,whichdidn’tworkforyou.Usually, itwill—but you’re certainly better off thinking up your own SubstituteWords,thoughts, or phrases. Again, our giving you suggestions does remove thenecessity for you to use your own imagination, thereby diminishing your

OriginalAwareness.Still,wehavenochoicebuttogiveyousuggestionsformostoftheexamples

we’llbeusing. Ifyouwant touse thosesuggestions, fine.Butbesure to formgood,clearpicturesinyourmind.Gettingback to the states,doyouseenow that ifyoumakeupaSubstitute

WordorphraseforeachstateandthenLinkthem,youcanmemorizethemall?It’seasytodo,andit’sfun.Ifyoudon’twanttomemorizethemallinsequence,tryitwithsomeofthem

—justforthepracticeandthe(imagination)exercise.Linkingallofthemwouldbe excellent practice for forming Substitute Words or phrases, and formingpicturesandassociationsforyourLinkHereareallthestates,listedalphabeticallyandnumberedfrom1to50.Later,

afterlearningthePegsystem,youcanturnbacktothispageandtrymemorizingthem by number. As you Link them, pause after every ten or so to reviewmentallythepicturesyou’veformeduptothattime.

1.Alabama2.Alaska3.Arizona4.Arkansas5.California6.Colorado7.Connecticut8.Delaware9.Florida10.Georgia11.Hawaii12.Idaho13.Illinois14.Indiana15.Iowa16.Kansas17.Kentucky18.Louisiana19.Maine20.Maryland21.Massachusetts22.Michigan23.Minnesota24.Mississippi

25.Missouri26.Montana27.Nebraska28.Nevada29.NewHampshire30.NewJersey31.NewMexico32.NewYork33.NorthCarolina34.NorthDakota35.Ohio36.Oklahoma37.Oregon38.Pennsylvania39.RhodeIsland40.SouthCarolina41.SouthDakota42.Tennessee43.Texas44.Utah45.Vermont46.Virginia47.Washington48.WestVirginia49.Wisconsin50.Wyoming

Trying tomemorize these from the top, you start by thinking up a SubstituteWord that reminds you ofAlabama.Albumwill do nicely.An album can bepictured, whereas Alabama cannot. If you’re old enough to remember a songcalled “I’m Alabamy Bound,” which had to do with a train, you might havethought of that and pictured a train. For Alaska, you can picture the flamingdessertbakedAlaska,orI’llaskher,oralastcar.NowstartyourLink:YoumightpictureagiganticalbumservingbakedAlaskatootheralbums.ForArizona,youcanuseairzoneastheSubstitutephrase.Pictureagigantic

pieceofbakedAlaskafloatingintheair,overasafetyzone.ForArkansas,youmightseeyourselfsawinganark;associatethatpicturetoairzone.Pleasebearinmindthatanythingcanbepictured,anoun,anaction,whatever.

Remember, sing was used in the first sample Link—and you could, and did,

picturesingaswellasanyoftheotheritems,whichwereallnouns.ForArizonaandArkansas,anarkandasawfloatingintheairoverasafety

zonewoulddothetrick.ForCalifornia,howaboutcallafawnasaSubstituteWord?ToassociatethattoArkansas,youcouldpictureyourselfcallingafawninto an ark. Whatever Substitute phrase you use, be sure to really see thepictures.California to Colorado (color a toe). You might see that fawn painting

(coloring)oneofhistoes.Colorado to Connecticut (connect a cut). You cut the colored toe, then

connectthetwoparts.ConnecticuttoDelaware(Dellawear).AgirlnamedDellaiswearingflowing

robesasshebendsovertoconnectacut.Delaware toFlorida (flowerthere).Della throws those flowingrobes to the

floorandagiganticflowergrowsthere.Florida toGeorgia (George). The gigantic flower is named…George!Or,

millionsofflowersaregrowinginagorge.Ifyou’vemadetheseoryourownassociationsandhaveseenthepicturesin

yourmind,youknow the first ten states just asyouknew the ten items in thefirstsampleLink.Thereare,ofcourse,manyotherSubstituteWordsyoucouldhave used. If you thought of the Everglades when you thought of Florida,picturing its swamps would have served the purpose for you. Remember thatLinkingisindividual,personal—whatyouthinkofisusuallybestforyou.And,mostoften,thefirstSubstituteWordthatcomestomindisthebesttouse.Ifyouwanttopracticesomemore,reviewthefirsttenstatesinsequenceand

thencontinueyourLinkwiththenextten.Perhaps,Georgetohowareya;howareyatoIdahoeorpotato;potatotoillnoise;illnoisetoIndian;toIoweher;tocansass;tocan’ttalk;toloseAnna;towatermain(pipe);tomarryland.We’llleavetheassociationshereuptoyou.ReviewtheLink,thetwentystates,thencontinuewiththenextten,andsoon.

IfyoucanprovideyourownSubstituteWordsfortheremainingstates,withoutusingthesuggestionsthatfollow,allthebetter.Michigan,mixagain;Missouri,misery;Montana,mountain;Nebraska,new

brass car; Nevada, never there, gambling; New Hampshire, hamster; NewJersey, Jersey cow;NewMexico,Mexican sombrero; NewYork,new cork,EmpireStateBuilding;NorthCarolina,carryliner.(Makeupa“standard”fornorthandsouthandusethemallthetime.Forexample,youmightusesnowtorepresentnorth,andmouthtorepresentsouth.Apictureofsomeonecarryingaliner[ship]inasnowstormwouldthereforeremindyouofNorthCarolina.)TocontinueSubstituteWords:NorthDakota,decoder;Ohio,oh,hi!,higher!;

Oklahoma, homer; Oregon, are gone; Pennsylvania, pencil; Rhode Island,rode; South Carolina, carry liner (perhaps carrying a liner in yourmouth);SouthDakota,decoder;Tennessee,tennis(see);Texas,taxes;Utah,youtear;Vermont, vermin; Virginia, virgin; Washington, wash; West Virginia, bestvirgin;Wisconsin,wisecousin;Wyoming,roaming.Ifyou’vegonedownthelistofstatestenatatime,usingthecombinationof

SubstituteWordsandLinking,thenreviewingeachtenoncelearned,youshouldbeabletoreeloffallfiftystateswithhardlyastumble.Tryit—andifyoumissafew,simplygobackandstrengthenthoseparticular

associations.You’llbesurprisedathoweasyitistoremembersomethingmostpeoplewouldfinddifficult,ifnotimpossible.

5LONGWORDS,APPOINTMENTSANDERRANDS,SHOPPINGLISTS

JL:So,Simonides,whowasattendingalargebanquet,wascalledouttoreceiveamessage,andthebuildingcollapsed.Allthedinerswerekilled.Simonideswasable to identify everymangled body for burial purposes.When hewas askedhowhe’ddoneit,hesaidthathe’dusedamemorysystem.

HL:Thebanquetmayhavebeenlarge,butLuciusScipiowassupposedlyabletorememberthenamesandfacesofallthecitizensofancientRome.

JL: I’ll bet you’vemet and rememberedmorepeople than that inyour career,Harry.

HL:That’s true—at the lastcountI’dmetandrememberedsomewherearoundtwentymillionpeople.Icanstartmyowncountry!

JL: During his news conferences, General George Marshall used to listen toreporters’ questionswithout breaking the continuity of his prepared statement.When he finished the statement, he’d look at each reporter and answer hisquestioninturn.Whathedidwas,heassociatedthekeywordorthoughtofthequestion to the reporter’s nameor face.And JamesFarley’s fantasticmemoryfornamesand faces supposedlyhelpedelectFranklinD.Roosevelt tohis firstterm.

HL:DidyouknowImetDavidRoth?Andhisfameasamemoryexpertgoesbacktotheearly1900’s.ThelasttimeIspoketohim,hetoldmethathislocalRotaryClubwasgivingaluncheoninhonorofhisninety-sixthbirthday.Hetoldme, “I won’t do much, Harry—I’m just going to remember everybody’stelephonenumber.”Andthereweretwohundredpeoplethere!

JL:Somaybepeoplewithtrainedmemorieslivelonger.Usingtrained-memorysystemscertainlydoeskeepapersonmorealertandaware.Whichmighthave

somethingtodowithlongevity.

HL:Let’shopeso!

•

The famous chess player Harry Pillsbury was almost as well known for hismemoryasforhisskillatchess.Hewasoncechallengedbytwoprofessors tomemorize up to thirty words or phrases, read to him only once. Pillsburyrepeatedthemincorrectsequence,andtheninreverseorder.Healsoknewthemthefollowingday.ThisgarneredquiteabitofpublicityforPillsbury,yetthefeatis fairly easy to accomplish—if you apply the Link and the SubstituteWordsystemsofmemory.Now,thewordsandphrasesthatwerereadtoPillsburywerenotquitesoeasy

to grasp as a list of everyday items or the states of the union. They were:antiphlogistine, periosteum, takadiastase, plasmon, threlkeld, streptococcus,staphylococcus, micrococcus, plasmodium, Mississippi, freiheit, Philadelphia,Cincinnati, athletics, nowar, Etchenberg,American,Russian, philosophy, PietPotgelter’s Rost, salmagundi, oomisillecootsi, Schlechter’s Nek,Manyinzama,theosophy,catechism,Madjescomalops.Youcanrememberthemall,insequence,byapplyingthetwosystemsyou’ve

already learned—theLinkand theSubstituteWord.Auntieflogasteinwouldremindyouofantiphlogistine.Associatethatsillypictureto,perhaps,peareatasteam(periosteum).Youmightseeyourauntie(oranylittleoldlady—whateverauntie conjuresup inyourmind) flogginga (beer) stein as she eats agiganticpearthat’ssteaminghot.Trytoseethatpicture.Peareatasteamto,perhaps,tackadaisdaze.Agiganticpearthat’seatinga

steam(radiator)istackingupadais(platform);thepearisinadazeashedoesit.For the next association youmight see aplasticman (plasmon) tacking up adais.Now,plasticmantothrillcold(threlkeld),tostraptocock(rooster)andass

(donkey),tostaffillofcarcass,tomicrocockass,toplacemydime,toMrs.sip,tofryheight,tofilladellforya(orPhiladelphiabrandcreamcheese),tosinsinattea,topeopleperformingathletics,tonowar,toetchin’(ice)berg,toamerrycan,toRussianroulette,tofillasofa,topieet(ate)pot(of)galtearsrust,tosellmygunD,toooh,mysillycoatsee,tosh,letusneck,tomanyinsummer,toteaowesafee,tocatkiss’im,toMadge’scombelopes.Thismayseemlikealotofworktoyou.Well,itwillcertainlytakemoretime

andeffort than,say,rememberingtwenty-sevensimple items.But just thinkof

howmuchworkitwouldbetomemorizetwenty-sevenwordslikethiswithoutasystem.Notonlywouldthatrequireanenormousamountoftimeandeffort,butyou’d probably never accomplish it. Forming Substitute Words, phrases, orthoughts, and Linking, on the other hand, is fun; it forces you to use yourimaginationandtoconcentrate;andaboveall—itworks!WhateveranySubstitutephraseconjuresupinyourmindiswhatyoushould

useforthepicture.ForsellmygunD,youmightseeyourselfsellingyourguntoagiganticletterD.(Inanotherchapter,you’lllearnhowlettersofthealphabetcan themselvesbepictured,concretelyandeasily.)Youmighthave thoughtofsailor my gun die—a sailor takes your (my) gun and kills himself with it.Whateveryouthinkofandseewillworkforyou.Takeafewmomentstoseeifyoucanrememberallthewordslistedabove.If

Pillsbury could do it, so can you! You may be surprised at the facility withwhichyoucandoit.Linkingdifficultwordsislikeswingingtwobatstohelpyouswingonebetter.

It isn’t often necessary to rememberwords like that.But the idea of theLinkcan, of course, be wonderfully practical. Later on, we’ll show you how torememberspecificweeklyappointments,bydayandhour.Fornow,ifyouneedtoremembersimpleerrandsandappointmentsduringmostnormaldays,youcanuseasimpleLink;usuallynoSubstituteWordsarenecessary.Assumeitisimportantthatyouremembertopickupalampyouordered.You

alsomust remember to buy a package of typing paper. Start aLink; associatelamptopaper.Perhapsyouseeyourselfputtingalightedlamp,insteadofpaper,intoyourtypewriter.Or,agiganticsheetofpaperisonyourbedsidetable,youpullastring—anditlightslikealamp.Selectoneofthesepictures,oroneyouthoughtofyourself,andseeitinyourmind.You don’twant to forget to pick up your suit at the cleaners.Continue the

Link;perhapsyou’rewearingsheetsoftypingpaperinsteadofasuit.You promised to call about arranging for swimming lessons for your child.

Seeasuit,withnobodyinit,swimmingordivingintoapool.For days, you’ve been meaning to buy some lightbulbs. Picture gigantic

lightbulbsswimming.Youmust remember tovisita friendat thehospital.Pictureyourselfputting

yourfriend,insteadofalightbulb,intoasocket.Youwanttopickuparollofstampsbeforethepostofficecloses.Pictureyour

sickfriendlyingon(andstickingto)agiganticstampinsteadofahospitalbed.Oryou’relickingyourfriendandstickinghimonanenvelope.Ifyou’veactuallyvisualizedthesillypictures,you’llrememberthethingsyou

mustdo.Startwith lamp—thatshouldremindyouofthenextchoreorerrand,

andsoon.Whenapplyingthisideapractically,you’dformyourLinkthenightbefore. Then, in the morning, you’d simply go over that Link while gettingdressedorhavingbreakfast.Ifyouthinkofsomethingelseyouwanttoaccomplishthatday,tackitonto

the end of your Link. It’s important to go over your Link before you leave,becausethinkingofthechoreswillremindyoutotakewhateveryouneedfromyourhomeinordertoaccomplishtheerrand.Forexample,ifyouneedareceiptinordertogetyoursuitfromthecleaners,thinkingofthesuitwillremindyoutogotoyourdeskandgetthereceipt.During the day, go over yourLink every once in awhile—orwhile you’re

walking,eating,whatever.Anytimeyouthinkofanerrandthatyouhavenotyetdone, you’ll know it; simply go anddo it.As a final check, go over theLinkbeforeyoupreparetogohome.Thispracticaluseof theLinkwill saveyouplentyof timeandaggravation.

Theworstthatcanhappenisthatitwon’tworkcompletelyandyou’llforgetanerrand.Well,youhaven’tmuchtolose—you’vebeendoingthatallyourlife!Exactlythesameideacanbeappliedtorememberingashoppinglist.Granted,

rememberinga shopping list isnot themost important thing in theworld.Butpeoplewhomakeoutashopping listonapieceofpaperofteneither forget totakeitwiththem,orforgettolookatituntiltheygethomeagain.Simply Link the items youwant to purchase. Be sure tomake the pictures

ridiculous—you’repeelinganorangeandthere’sacontainerofmilk(oracow)insideit;you’remilkingacowandslicesofbread, insteadofmilk,comeout,etc.Onceinsidethesupermarket,justgooveryourLinkeveryonceinawhile.Ifyoudothis,youwon’tforgetanyitems.

6SPEECHES

JL:After IgraduatedfromOhioState, Iwasbooked tospeakatahighschoolathleticbanquet.Igotplentyofapplause,butjustaseveryonewasleaving,thiskidcomesuptomeandsays,“Mr.Lucas,Ienjoywatchingyouplaybasketball—butIthoughtthatwastheworstspeechIeverheardinmylife!”Well, hismotherwas right behind him, and of course she heard. “Oh,Mr.

Lucas,” she said, “please pay no attention to him. He only repeats what hehears!”HL: I got zinged by a “repeater” before a speech, once. I always tell thechairmanof thegrouphowto introduceme.Tosave time, Imake itshortandsimple,andIalwayssayitinexactlythesameway.Thisparticulartime,whenIwastheafter-dinnerspeaker,Itoldthechairmantosay,“Ladiesandgentlemen,wehaveasurpriseforyouthisevening,somethingdifferent,unique,blah,blah,blah.You’veseenhimonTV,etcetera,etcetera.”HetooknotesasIspoke.Wefinishedourmeal,andthechairmanwenttothelecterntointroduceme.

He said, “Ladies and gentlemen, we have a surprise for you this evening,somethingdifferent,unique,blah…blah…blah.You’veseenhimon…”!

•

Probablytheworstmistakeyoucanmakeis totrytomemorizeaspeechwordforword.Firstofall, it isn’treallynecessary.Theassumptionisthat ifyou’vebeenaskedtodeliveraspeechonaparticularsubject,youknowsomethingaboutthatsubject.Secondly,memorizingthespeechwordforwordwillmakeitsoundthatway

when you deliver it—memorized. And, finally, when youmemorize a speechwordforword,you’re taking thechanceof fumblingoveronewordyoucan’tremember.Whytakethatchancewhenthereareprobablydozensofotherwordsthatwoulddo?Readingaspeechdoesn’tworkeither,becauseyouwanttoholdthegroup’s

attention, and reading to them is likely to put them to sleep. Even if youoccasionally look up at your audience as you read, it won’t helpmuch. As amatteroffact,that’sthemomentwhenyou’relikelytoloseyourplaceandstart

hemmingandhawingasyoutrytofindit.Thebestwaytodeliveraspeechistotalkitinyourownwords,thoughtfor

thought.Aspeechisasequenceofthoughts;ifthethoughtsareoutofsequence,thespeechwon’tmakemuchsense.Now,youknowhowtousetheLinksystemtorememberthingsinsequence.TheLink,plusoneotheridea,willhelpyoutorememberyourspeechthoughtforthought.First,writeoutor typeyourspeech, includingall thethingsyouwanttosay

aboutalltheideasyouthinkareimportant.Readitovertogetthegistofit.Nowforthat“otheridea”:SelectaKeyWordfromeachthoughtthatwillremindyouoftheentirethought.Thisiseasiertodothanitmightseem.Thereisrarelyathought,whetheritis

to be expressed in one sentence or two paragraphs, that cannot be brought tomindbyonewordorphrase.ItistheseKeyWords(orKeyThoughts)thatyouLink—atwhichpointyouhavethespeechmemorizedthoughtforthought!Here are some excerpts froma talk delivered at a convention to a groupof

merchantsanddealerssellingthesamelineofproducts.Thespeakerwasaskedtotalkaboutasharpdropinprofitsovertheprevioustwoyearsandtosuggestwaysofdoingsomethingaboutit.The talk originally took thirty-five minutes to deliver. Excerpts have been

culled from it to demonstrate the Key Words or Thoughts that the speakerwantedtogetacross.

Theproblemisanobviousone.We’reallsellingjustasmanyoftheproductas we always have, but our profit margin has been drastically reduced. Thereasons,too,areobvious.Thecostofmaterialandmanufacturehasgoneup,andsohaveourprices.The trouble is that ifwe raiseourprices anyhigher,we’lllosesales.Whatwehavetodoisfindwaystoraiseourprofitmargin.…We have to getmore people towalk in to our stores. Obviously, themore

peoplethatwalkintoourstores,themoreopportunitieswehavetomakesales.Perhapswecanorganizecontests,etc.…Animportantpartofeachofourbusinessesdependsonbuildingagoodname

in each of our local areas. There aremanyways to do this; relaxing our “noreturn”policy.…Ourproductsarenationallyadvertised,butwehaven’tbeentakingadvantage

ofthatatall.Atleast,nottomyknowledge.We’vegottoplanlocaladvertisingtomeshwithnationaladvertising;blowupsof thenationalads inourwindowsshouldbeconsidered,and.…Thenewline,Starbright,Holly,BabySoft,Meteor,andHoneymoon,isreally

good,andshouldhelptostirupsomefreshbusiness.It’sbeenalongtimesince

wehadanynewlineofproductatall.…We also must work harder to turn bread and butter sales. Why should a

customerwalkoutafterbuyingonlytheitemshecamefor?Alittlethought,andeffort,wouldhelp toward findingways toalmost force thecustomer tobuyatleastoneotheritem,perhapsjustanaccessory,togowiththeoneshebought.Atwo-for-onesalemightwork,or.…Andhowcanwemakecustomerscomebacktothestore?Howmanyofyou

followupasale?Howmanyofyoutakeadvantageofthenamesandaddressesonyoursalesreceipts thataregatheringdust inyourfiles?Usethosenames—sendnotesandnoticesofsales.…

TheKeyWordshavebeenitalicizedwithineachofthethoughtsofthistalk.Let us emphasize that the speaker knew what he wanted to say about eachthought—that wasn’t his problem.What he wanted to avoid was omitting anentirethought.FormingaLinktakescareofthat.Therearetwowaystodothis.YoucaneitherlistorunderlinetheKeyWords,

and then Link them; or you can Link them as you go. As you becomemoreproficient,you’llmostlikelyLinktheKeyWordsasyougo.Now. The first Key Word or Thought is profit margin. Use a Substitute

Wordtoremindyouofit.PerhapsyourMaisdrinkingginandbeingpaidforit—she’smakingaprofit.Thatwillcertainly remindyouof the thought; ifyouweredeliveringthistalk,eitherMaginorprofitalonewouldsuffice.ThenextKeyWordiswalkin.AssociateMaginand/orprofittothat;asilly

pictureofyourgin-drinkingMawalkingin toastorewilldoit.ThenextKeyWordisgoodname.ContinuetheLink;youmightseeaname(picturegiganticletters of your name, or a gigantic business card) that’s good, walking into astore.Goodnametonationallyadvertised.Youmightseeyourgoodnamebeing

onthecoverofanationalmagazine.Nationally advertised tonew line.Seea ridiculouspictureof a long line of

nationalmagazineshotoffthepress—they’renew.Newlinetobreadandbutter.Seealonglineofbreadandbutter.Bread and butter to comeback. Picture yourself calling a gigantic piece of

breadandbuttertocomeback.FormingsuchaLinkaccomplishestwothings.Itforcesyoutoconcentrateon

(tobeOriginallyAwareof)thethoughtsofthespeech,anditwillgiveyouthesequenceofthoughts.Knowingthatyoudefinitelyhavethatsequencealsogivesyouaconfidencethatyouwouldn’totherwisehave.Thinkingofthefirstthought,Magin,isallyouneedtoremindyouthatyou

wanttotalkaboutthereductionoftheprofitmargin—sotalkaboutit,sayitinyour own words. When you’ve said all you have to say about that, you’llautomaticallyberemindedofwalkin.Sinceyouwrotethespeech,you’llknowjustwhatwalk in refers to; itwill remind you of the entire thought. Just saywhatyouwanttosayaboutgettingpeopletowalkintothestore.If youmade the ridiculous association, theKeyWordwalk inmust remind

you of good name. Talk about that; then good name will remind you ofnationallyadvertised,atwhichpointyousaywhatyouhavetosayaboutthatthought.Andsoon,totheendofyourspeech.You need only try this idea to see that itwillwork for you.Youmight be

wonderingwhatyou’ddoifyouhadafewfactstorememberthatpertainedtoaparticular thought. For example, take the product names listedwithin thenewline thought—you simply form an “offshoot” or “tangent”Link.That is, afteryou’veformedyourbasicLink,gobacktonewlineandformanoffshootLinkofthenames.Youmightseeapictureofalonglineofbrightstars;brightstarsareforming

ahollywreathonyourdoor;you’reholdingahollywreathinyourarmslikeababy—it’s very soft; a baby is shooting across the sky like ameteor; twometeorsaregoingonahoneymoon.You’ll see, when you’re delivering the speech, thatnew line will lead you

right through the offshoot Link, reminding you of the product names. Then,you’llstillberemindedof the thoughtyouoriginallyassociatedtonewline inthebasicLink—breadandbutter.Iftheproductshavestylenumbers,youcanLinkthem,too—onceyou’velearnedhowtopicturenumbers.If,forsomereason,youwanttorememberthespeechvirtuallywordforword,

you’ll find that simplygoingover it a fewmore timeswilldo the trick.Sinceyouwrotethespeechyourself,yourownwordswouldbethemostlikelyonestocometomindasyouvoicedeachthought.Thissamesystem—acombinationof theLinkandtheKeyThought ideas—

canbeapplied to readingmaterialor lectures inalmost exactly the sameway.SimplyLinkKeyWordsasyoureadorlisten.Appliedtoreadingmaterial, theideaforcesyoutoreadactively,withconcentration;appliedtolectures, itdoesthesamething.It’sdifficulttoallowyourmindtowanderwhenyou’relisteningforKeyWordstoremindyouofthoughts.Thenexttimeyouwanttoremembermore of reading or lecture material than you usually do, try applying whatyou’velearnedhere.You’llbesurprisedathowmuchyouretain.The system can also be applied to song lyrics and scripts. Apply the same

idea,thengooverthematerialafewmoretimes.It’sstillnecessarytorememberthematerialthoughtforthoughtfirst;thenyouworryaboutwordforword.The

language itself is amemory aid—there are certainways to say certain things.Onceyoudefinitelyknowthesequenceofthoughts,thewordstendtotakecareofthemselves.Ifyouknowthethought,theworstthatcanhappenisthatyou’llsay the line a bit differently from theway itwaswritten; it’swhenyoudon’tknowthethoughtthatyoucanreally“goup”(havenoideawhatcomesnext).Onefamous,award-winningactresshasforsometimeappliedtheseideasto

allherdifficult-to-memorizescripts.Inaletter,shewrotethatthesystems“makewhatisausualdrudgerypartofthecreativeart!”We’llbegivingyoumorehelpinrememberingreadingmateriallateroninthe

book. For now, you might want to apply the same basic idea to help yourememberjokesandanecdotes.Twomemoryproblemsmayhavetobesolved:rememberingthejokeinthefirstplace,andrememberingtheideaofthejoke,itspremiseandpunchline.To remember jokes, many professional comedians Link a Key Word or

thought of one joke to the KeyWord of the next, and so on. The comedianknowsthejokes;hesimplyneedsremindersofthejokesandtheirsequence.So,aLinkoforangetopoliticstoelephanttogaspumpwouldbeenoughtoremindacomediantotellthejokeaboutoranges,thentheoneaboutpolitics,andsoon.Rememberingtheideaandpunchlineofajokeisjustaseasy.Let’sremember

thisoldgag:“HowdoyoumakeaVenetianblind?”“Stickafingerinhiseye!”Simplyformasillyassociation.Pictureavenetianblindwithonelargeeyeon

your window—see a gigantic finger going into that eye. That’s all. You’llremembertheideaandthepunchlineofthejoke.

7FOREIGNANDENGLISHVOCABULARY

JL: When I played on the United States basketball team during the 1960OlympicsinRome,ourfirstgamewastobeagainsttheJapaneseteam.IaskedoneoftheinterpreterstoteachmeacoupleofJapanesephrases,soI’dbeabletosaysomethingtotheJapaneseplayersthenextmorning.I had no trouble with the phrase “goodmorning,” because it’s pronounced

ohioinJapanese,andofcourseIassociatedittomyhomestate.Ieasilylearnedafewmorephrasesbyapplyingthesystems.The game was scheduled for 9:30 A.M. Just before it was about to start, I

lookedoveratmyopponentandsaid,“Ohio,gozaimosk,”whichmeans,“Goodmorning,howareyou?”Hegavemeabigsmile,happytohavefoundsomebodyfromAmericawhocouldspeakhislanguage.Well,hebackedoutof the jumpcircleandbegan tobowtome, rattlingoff

Japanese as fast as he could. This created quite a scene, because he was soengrossedinthisconversationhethoughthewasgoingtocarryonwithmethatheforgothewastheretoplayabasketballgame.OnerefereewasfromRussia,theotherfromFrance,andIspokeonlyEnglish.

TheJapaneseplayerand theofficialseachspokeonly theirownlanguages.Sotherewerethefourofustryingtotalktoeachother—nobodyknowingwhattheotherwassaying.Theyhadtocalltimeout,wehadtogobacktothesidelines,and we had to start the game later. Then the player rattled Japanese at methroughouttheentiregame.OfcourseIdidn’tknowtheJapanesewordstotellhimIdidn’tknowJapanese,soImusthavesaid“Goodmorning”tohimdozensoftimesduringthatgame!Hecouldn’thavebeenmorepleased.

HL:Hadyouhad the time toapply thesystems toJapanese foraweekbeforethatgame,you’dhavehadplentyofthingsbesides“ohio”tosaytohim.

JL:Sure,butthenhe’dhavegottensoexciteditmighthavethrownhisgameoff!

•

Now that you’ve learned how to apply the SubstituteWord idea to intangible

words and names—and Link them—you can go a step further. Instead ofassociating,say,onestatetothenextinordertoformaLink,youcanassociateastatetoitscapitalcity.Youcanalsoassociateawordtoitsmeaning,whetherit’sanEnglishwordoraforeignword.Thisbringsustoanimportantpoint.Mostoften,wherememoryisconcerned,

an entity consists of two things. Even themost complicated-seemingmemorychores can usually be broken down into entities of two: a name to a face, anaddresstoapersonorcompany,apriceorstylenumbertoanitem,atelephonenumbertoapersonorcompany,adefinitionormeaningtoaword,andsoon.Evenwhen forming a longLink, you’re still basicallyworkingwith only twoitemsatatime.ThecapitalcityofMarylandisAnnapolis(that’sright;itisnotBaltimore);if

youformaridiculousassociationofabride(marry)landingonanapple,you’llfind it difficult to forget. The capital of Wyoming is Cheyenne; you mightpicture a shy girl, named Ann, carrying a large letter Y and roaming.Michigan’scapitalisLansing;associatemixagaintolandsing.California’sisSacramento;associatecallafawntosackcementtoe.Tennessee’sisNashville;associatetennis tognashingyourteeth(seeatennisracketgnashingits teeth).Vermont’sisMontpelier;associatevermintomountpeeler.Applythistoanystatewhosecapitalyou’dliketoremember,andwheneveryouthinkofthestate,thecapitalcitywillsurelycometomind.ThesamesystemcanbeappliedtoPresidentsandVice-Presidents.Associate

theSubstituteWordforthenameoftheonetotheSubstituteWordforthenameoftheother.Forexample,PresidentRutherfordB.Hayes’sVice-Presidentwasnamed Wheeler. Associate hay to wheel in order to remember that. If youpicturethehaysaying,“oh,hi,”tothewheel,you’llalsoberemindedofthefactthatHayeswasfromOhio.

JL: I’ve applied the systems to Japanese, Polish, Russian, and a few otherlanguages,butnevertoPortuguese—forthesimplereasonthatI’veneverbeentoPortugal.

HL:Ispentmostofonesummerthere,andIknewevenbeforeIgottherethatPortugueseisadifficult languagetolearn.Anyway,theyhaveterrificclamsinPortugal,andIloveclams.IntheveryfirstrestaurantIvisited,Ifoundoutthatthe Portuguese word for clams is amejues, pronounced ah-mezz-you-iz. Iimmediately saw a picture of a gigantic clam approachingme, all drippy anddirty,andIsaytoit,“Whatamessyouis!”SobeforeIlearnedhowtosay,“Doyouhave,”whenthewaiterapproachedIjustsaid“amejues”andgotthem.

JL:Whichisallyouwereinterestedinatthemoment.

HL:Exactly. Peoplewho need a doctor in a foreign country don’t have to beabletosay“Pleasecalla”or“Takemetoa.”Butthey’dbetterknowthewordfordoctor!

TheSubstituteWordideacanbeappliedtoanywordofanylanguage.Thereisnowordthatdoesnotsoundlike,ormakeyouthinkof,somethinginyourownlanguage.TorememberthemeaningofasimpleFrenchwordlikepère(father),you might picture a gigantic pear being your father. For pont (bridge), youmightseeyourselfpuntingabridgeinsteadofafootball.Theideaappliestoanyword,shortorlong.TheFrenchwordforgrapefruitis

pamplemousse. Picturehugeyellowpimples all over amoose; eachpimple isactuallyagrapefruit.Ifyoutrytoseeanyofthesesillypictures,thesystemmustwork—for reasonsyoualreadyknow:You’re forcingyourself tobeOriginallyAware,you’rereallyconcentratingontheword,andyou’reforcingyourself touseyourimagination.TherejustisnowaytoapplytheSubstituteWordsystemto a foreignwordwithout concentrating on or beingOriginallyAware of thatword, and using some imagination. And finally, applying the system remindsyouofthetwothings(thatentityoftwomentionedbefore)youmustknow:thepronunciationoftheforeignword,anditsEnglishequivalent.IfyouusedouroryourownSubstituteWordandsawaridiculouspicture,the

next time you hear or seepamplemousse, itmustmake you think of amoosewithgrapefruitpimples.Whenyouhear,see,orthinkgrapefruit,thesamethingwillhappen.Studentsofoursdothiswithtwentyforeignwordsinanevening,every evening, and remember them all easily—simply because the intangible,abstractconglomerationofsoundsoftheforeignwordischangedtoadefinite,tangiblepictureinthemind.Since Portuguese has beenmentioned, let’s use a few Portuguesewords as

examples.Walnut in Portuguese is noz, pronounced nawsh. Simply picture agiganticwalnutbeingnauseous,oryoueatagiganticwalnutanditmakesyounauseous.See thatpicture.Theword for awoman’s skirt is saia, pronouncedsyer. Picture a skirt sighing—it’s a sigher.Apeach is apêssego, pronouncedpess-a-goo.Seeagiganticpeachaskingyoutopassthegoo.Awoman’spurseisabolsa.Pictureagiganticpursemadeofbalsawood,or

alargepieceofbalsawoodcarryingapurse.Theword fordinner is jantar, pronounced John-tar (then is really a nasal

sound).PictureJohneatingtarfordinner.Handkerchiefislenço,pronouncedleng-ssoo(thengisanasalsound).Picture

yourself lendingSue your handkerchief;make the picture ridiculous; perhapsyou’relendinghermillionsofhandkerchiefsoronegiganticone.Fatherispai,pronouncedpie.Agiganticpieisyourfather.A strawberry is a morango, pronounced moo-ran-goo. See a gigantic

strawberry,ormillionsofthem,eatingmeringuegoo.Thewordforsocks ispeúgas,pronouncedpee-oo-gesh.Youmightpicturea

giganticsockthathasaterribleodor;yousay,“Peeyoo,itsmellslikegas.”Bear in mind that if you were trying to really learn a particular language,

you’d be aware of the basic sounds and letters. In the last example, “true”memorywould tell you thatgas is pronouncedgesh,with a soft sh sound.Ofcourse,youwouldalsobeusing theSubstituteWordyou thoughtof—theonethatwould remindyouof the proper pronunciationbecause you thought of it.That’s why our helping with suggestions for Substitute Words is not reallyhelpingyou—youmighthaveusedgashinsteadofgas.Atthispoint,whydon’tyoutrysomething?Gobacktothefirstexamplesof

foreignwordsandreallyformtheassociations.Thenseeifyouknowthewordsandtheirmeaningsbyfillingintheseblanks.Don’tworryaboutspelling—whenyou’reinaforeigncountry,youneedthepronunciationsandmeanings,notthespelling.

Nowtryitthisway(withoutlookingattheabove,ofcourse):

If you missed a few, simply go back and strengthen those particularassociations.Thentestyourselfagain.Mostlikely,you’llgetthemall.Themethodisapplicableunderanycircumstances.IftheEnglishequivalentis

not tangible, you can use a Substitute Word or phrase for that Englishequivalent. The Siameseword forAugust is singhakom.Ordinarily,August isdifficult topicture, because it’s intangible.But agust ofwindblowingover asingingcombisnot.Seethatpicture,andyou’vegotit.The systemwillworkeven if a foreignwordcontains sounds thatwedon’t

oftenuse inEnglish (like the soft sh inPortuguese).Theword for squirrel inboth French andGerman contains unfamiliar sounds. In German, the word isEichhörnchen;thechisaback-of-the-throat,gutturalsound—almostasifyou’reclearingyourthroat.WedonotusethatsoundinEnglish,yetthesystemapplies.I horn kin might remind you ofEichhörnchen; or, perhaps, I corn kin. Useeither one for your Substitute phrase, but be sure you get a squirrel into yourpicture.Tohelpyounot justapproximate thepronunciationbutpronounce thewordcorrectly,youmightaddclearingyourthroattoyourpicture.TheFrenchword for squirrel isécureuil.Wedonothave theeuil sound in

English.Buteggcureoilcancertainlygetyouclosetothepronunciationofthatdifficultword.Youmightpicturea squirrel layinga sickegg, and it cures theeggwithoil.TheGreekwordforscissorsispsalidi.Thepispronounced.Associatepassa

lady to scissors, and you’ll have memorized both the pronunciation of theforeignwordanditsmeaning.The grammar of a language will usually fall into place as you learn the

vocabulary, although the system is applicable to any kind of word. It is alsoapplicabletophrases—whyshouldn’titbe,sincephrasesaremadeupofwords?The French phrase rien de grave is idiomatic for It’s nothing or It’s nothingserious. Associate ran the grave to It’s nothing in some ridiculousway andyou’vememorizedit.

When you fly to a foreign country, you’re usually armed with a moneyconverteranda“conversation”bookletinthatlanguage.Whatyouseeinthosebooklets is the English equivalent, followed by the foreign translation. Thetranslationisthenspelledphonetically(aswedidwiththePortugueseexamples)togiveyouthepronunciation.All very well. Only, when you arrive, you end up searching through the

booklet (feeling like an idiot), trying to find a word or phrase whenever youwanttounderstandorbeunderstood.Nowhereinthesebookletsdoesittellyouhowtorememberthewords,phrases,pronunciations,andmeanings.

What we’re interested in is having you spend the six-plus hours on atransatlanticflightwithsuchabooklet,onlyrememberingenoughsothatwhenyoudisembarkyou’llbeabletoaskaportertogetyourluggage,findyouataxi,tellthetaxidriverwheretogo,etc.Andtorememberenough,duringthatflight,tohelpyouthroughafewweeks’stay.Applywhatyou’relearninghere,andyouwilldojustthat.Obviously,you’ll learnmoreifyoualsoapplythesystemsduringyourstay.

Andwe’reassumingyouareneitheralinguistnorareyoudeterminedtospeaklikeanative.(Thesystemsareextremelyhelpfulforthosepeople,too,butwe’reconcernedat themomentwiththosewhowouldsimplyliketomaketheirwaymoreeasilyduringavisittoaforeigncountry.)ThePortugueseexampleswereusedtoteachyoutheidea,inalanguagethat

isn’tfamiliartomanyAmericans.HereareafewexamplesinFrench—really,aminiin-flightFrenchlesson.IfyouintendtovisitFrance,youcertainlyneedtobefamiliarwiththeFrench

words formany foods. In restaurants heavily patronized by tourists, youmayfindEnglishtranslationsonthemenu—andfoodthatmakesyouwonderwhatalltheshoutingisaboutwhenitcomestoFrenchcuisine.Insmall restaurants,out-of-the-wayrestaurants,special restaurants,youmay

notfindtranslations,norwillyoufindEnglish-speakingwaiters—whichmakesitalittledifficulttofindoutwhatawordonthemenumeans.WeaskedfourvolunteerswhohadnoknowledgeoftheFrenchlanguage(but

someknowledgeofoursystems)toapplythesystemstothefollowingwords.Inlessthantwentyminutes, theyallknewtheEnglishmeaningwhenwesaidtheFrenchword,andviceversa.Seeifyoucandoitinthattime.Theonlywaytodoitthatquicklyistothinkofpicturesforthesuggestionsandreallyseethem.

Bread—pain(pan).ThehandleofapanisaloafofFrenchbread.Butter—beurre(buhr).Alargebarofbutterisfullofburrs.Mushrooms—champignons (shahn-peen-yawn). A gigantic mushroomdeliversamonstrous,championyawn.

Beans—haricots(ah-ree-koh).Millionsofbeansarewearinghairycoats.Chicken—poulet(poo-leh).You’repullingthelegofagiganticchicken.Watermelon—pastèque (pass-tehk).Agiganticwatermelonpassesadeckofcardstoyou.

Snails—escargots(ess-cahr-go).AgiganticsnailiscarryingacargoofS’s—Scargo

Ham—jambon(zhan-bown).Youjamaboneintoagiganticham.Duck—canard(ka-nar).Someonethrowsacanhard,andyouduck.

Lobster—homard(oh-mar).Yourmotherisdisguisedasalobster;yousay,“Oh,Ma.”

Water—l’eau(low).Yougounderthetable(low)todrinkwater.Garlic—ail(eye).Agiganticpieceofgarlic(smellit)fallsinyoureye.Cake—gâteau(gah-toh).Agiganticbirthdaycakehasgotyoubythetoe.Icecream—glace(glas).You’reeatingglassinsteadoficecream.Check—l’addition (lah-dish-yawn). A dish yawns as it hands you thecheck.

Tip—pourboire(poor-bwahr).Youtipoverapoorboy.Lookatthemonceagain,andgoover(see)yourassociations.

Bread—pain(pan)Mushrooms—champignons(shahn-peen-yawn)Chicken—poulet(poo-leh)Snails—escargots(ess-cahr-go)Duck—canard(ka-nar)Water—l’eau(low)Cake—gâteau(gah-toh)Check—l’addition(lah-dish-yawn)Butter—beurre(buhr)Beans—haricots(ah-ree-koh)Watermelon—pastèque(pass-tehk)Ham—jambon(zhan-bown)Lobster—homard(oh-mar)Garlic—ail(eye)Icecream—glace(glas)Tip—pourboire(poor-bwahr)

Now,eithertestyourselforhavesomeoneelsetestyou.

Remembertoapplythesystemtophrasesjustasyoudotowords.TheFrenchforHowmuchisit?isCombienest-ce?(kawn-byen-ehss).YouseeacombthatcanchangeandbeanS(combbeanS);youwantit,soyouaskhowmuchitis.“Comebeanass’wouldalsodo.Ofcourse, ifyouonlysay“Combien?” themerchantwillknowwhatyoumean.Pictureyourselfaskinghowmuchitcoststo comb Ben. When you get the answer, you may want to say, “That’s toomuch”(ortooexpensive):C’esttropcher(seh-troh-shehr)—youwanttositandrowinachair,butit’smuchtooexpensive.

Please:s’ilvousplaît(seel-voo-pleh).Pictureasealplayingbyyelling“Boo”;youaskittopleasestop.Sealbooplaywillremindyouofs’ilvousplaît.I need: il me faut (eel-muh-foh). A gigantic eel is your foe (eelmy foe) andcomingtohurtyou—youneedhelp.IfsomeoftheSubstituteWordsorthoughtsusedasexamplesseemfarfetched

toyou,makeupyourown.Butitdoesn’tmatterifthey’refarfetched;they’llstillserveas reminders. Ifyou try toactuallysee thesuggestedpictures,you’ll seethattheyservequitewell.Except for l’eau and l’addition, we’ve omitted the articles, which in many

languages are “masculine” or “feminine.” In French, le is masculine, la isfeminine,andlesispluralforeithergender.Allyoureallyneedisastandardforone of them. For example, you might decide to use singing (la, la) as thestandardforthefemininearticle.Anypicturethathassinginginittellsyouthatthe itemis feminine; if itdoesn’thavesinging in it, the itemismasculine.Or,seeadressonanynounthattakesthefemininearticle.Forexample,taketable(pronouncedtabluh).That’sawordyouwon’tneeda

Substitute for because it’s spelled exactly like the English equivalent, table.Let’s assumeyoudowant to rememberwhether it’smasculineor feminine. Ifyoupictureatablesingingtoyou,andsingingisthestandardyou’vechosenforfeminine,youwon’tforgetthattableislatable,notletable.Ontheotherhand,restaurant (another easy one) is masculine because the restaurant you picturedoesn’tsing.AnEnglishwordthatyouneverheardbefore isreally thesameasaforeign

word; it’s foreign toyou, anyway.Apply the system inexactly the sameway.TheEnglishwordpedunclemeansaflowerstalk.Seeyourselfhavingpaidyourunclewithflowerstalksinsteadofmoney,andyouhavebothareminderofthepronunciationofthenewwordanditsmeaning.The omphalos is the navel or belly button. Omphalos sounds like arm fell

loose.See thispicture:Yourarmfell loose—wheredid it fall?Right intoyourbellybutton,ofcourse.Afactotumisahandyman.Pictureahandyman(whateverthatconjuresupin

yourmind)paintingfactsonatotempole.Ifyou’reacrossword-puzzlenut,you’dsavetimeifyourememberedthatthe

clue“sungod”usuallyreferstoRa.Picturethesuncheering,“rah,”andyou’llprobably never have to look it up again. The clue “Chinese pagoda” usuallyreferstotaa.Associatepagodatotar,andyou’llhaveyourreminder.The idea applies to any kind of terminology. To a medical student, the

SubstituteWordforfemurcouldbefeemore;forsacrum,sackrum;forpatella,patElla;hypoglossal,aglossyhypodermicneedle;andsoon.

Apharmaceutical studentmight picture someone putting a largebell downoverhisheadashethrowspinetreesfromunderit—torememberthatatropine(Ithrowpine)comesfromthebelladonna(belldown)rootorleaf.As with the foreign words, if you go back a bit and really form the

associationsfortheEnglishwords(insteadofjustreadingpassively)youshouldbeabletofillintheseblankseasily:

Itmight interest you to know that, as far back as the 1600’s, childrenwere

taught language by means of pictures and pictures in the mind. It must haveworkedprettywell—thinkofallthepeoplethenwhocouldspeakLatin,Greek,andotherlanguages.There’s one point that should be stressed:Wehave yet to find thememory

problemthatthesystemstaughtinthisbookcan’tmakeeasiertohandle.You’llseethat,withaslighttwistormanipulation,thesystemsmustapply.Itdoesn’tmatterhowdifficult theproblemis; infact, themoredifficult theproblem, themorevaluablethesystems.When we teach students how to remember foreign language vocabulary,

there’susuallyonewho’llsay,“Great,butwhataboutlanguageslikeChinese?”Well, what about them? Of course it’s more difficult to learn Chinese orJapanesethanFrenchorSpanish—butitalwayswillbe,whetherornotyouuseoursystems.Applyingthesystemswillstillmakethechorelessofachore,andtakethedrudgeryoutofwhatcanbeenjoyable.If we show a student how to remember things in sequence, and he says,

“Okay, but I have hundreds of things I must remember in sequence,” histhinking is a bit inverted. It’sbecause he has hundreds of things to rememberthatheneedsthesystems.Ifhehadonlyfourthingstoremember,hewouldn’tneedthematall.

8NAMESANDFACES

JL:IhadagreedtohelponeofCoachWoodyHayes’sfootballplayerswithhisstudies,soIwentovertotheplayerandsaid,“Hi,I’mJerryLucas—what’syourname?”He didn’t say anything formaybe a half aminute, just seemed to berapidly counting on his fingers. Then he said, “Bob.” I heard him, but I wascurious. “I’m sorry,” I said, “what did you say your name was?” He wentthroughthesameroutineagain,beforefinallysaying,“Bob.”Ofcourse,Ihadtoaskhimwhyhedidthat.“Well,”hesaid,“Ihaveaterriblememory—Ievenfindithardtoremember

my own name. So, what I do is sing tomyself, keeping time onmy fingers,‘Happybirthdaytoyou,happybirthdaytoyou,happybirthday,dear…Bob!”

HL:That’saboutthebest“worstmemory”storyI’veeverheard.ItremindsmeofthelateRichardHimber,themusicianandmagician,whowasagoodfriendofmine.Duringtheearlyyears,whenIwasfirststarting,hewasgoingtogetmeonthe“EdSullivanShow.”HedraggedmetothestudioduringarehearsalandcorneredSullivan.“Ed,”

he said, “this guy is fantastic. He’ll meet everyone in your audience. Then,during the show, he’ll call each person’s name.As he does, each personwillstand up—until the entire audience is standing!” As was often the case withDickhehaditmixedup—allthepeopleI’vemetstand,thensitdownasIcalltheirnames.Anyway, Sullivan looked at Dick for a moment, and said, “I can have the

bandplay‘TheStar-SpangledBanner’andgetthesameresult!”

JL: Well, he could get things mixed up too. One year I was named SportsIllustratedSportsmanoftheYear,andtheannouncementwastobemadeontheSullivanshow—youknow,Edwastointroducemefromtheaudience.So,neartheendoftheshow,hesays,“Ladeezandgentlemen,wehaveinour

audiencetheSportsIllustratedSportsmanoftheYear.WouldyoupleasegiveabigwelcometoMr.Jerry…Lewis!”

Most of us recognize faces (did you ever hear anyone say, “Oh, I know your

name,butIdon’t recognizeyourface”?). It’s thenameswehave troublewith.Sincewedousuallyrecognizefaces,thethingtodoisapplyasystemwhereinthefacetellsusthename.Thatisbasicallywhatoursystemaccomplishes,ifitisappliedcorrectly.Thefirstproblemisthename.Well, thatoneiseasilysolved—simplyapply

theSubstituteWordsystemofmemory.Youwon’tneeditformanynamesthatalreadyhavemeaning—nameslikeHayes,Howe,Carpenter,Fox,Paige,Coyne,Paynter,Gold,orKnottimmediatelycreatepicturesinyourmind.Othernamesmaynothavemeaning,butwill still remindyouof something

tangible. For example, the namesHudson, Jordan, and Shannonwill probablymakeyouthinkofariver,andthenameRuthmightmakeyouthinkofbaseball.The vast majority of names, however, have no meaning at all. They are

conglomerationsofsound,justlikeawordinaforeignlanguage.That’swheretheSubstituteWordsystemcomesin.Beforewegiveyousomeexamples,youshouldbeawareofthefactthatmost

people don’t really forget names. They just don’t remember them in the firstplace—often,theydon’treallyheartheminthefirstplace.Justthinkbackandremember the many times you’ve been introduced to someone, when all youheardwasamumble.There’snowayonearthtorememberamumble!Forsomereason,peopleareusuallyembarrassedtosimplysay,“I’msorry,I

didn’t hear your name.” There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. Since aperson’snameisoneofhismostprizedpossessions,it’sflatteringtomakeeventhe slightest fuss over it.Asking him to repeat it shows that you’re interestedenoughinhimtowanttobesureyougethisnameright.Then thereare thosewhodon’tbotherasking theperson to repeathisname

becausetheyfeelthatthey’llprobablynevermeethimagain,sowhatdifferencedoes itmake?Ofcourse, theyoftendomeet thatpersonagain—which iswhyhalf theworld seems toaddress theotherhalfasDarling,Buddy,Fella’,Mac,Champ,Honey,orSweetheart.Notbecause“Honey”issospecial tothem,butbecausetheydon’tknowwhoinblazesthey’retalkingto!Whichisprobablyallright, because the chances are that “Honey” and “Buddy” don’t know whothey’retalkingto,either!Anyway,ifyouwouldliketoremembernamesandfaces,therearethreesteps

involved;thefirststeptakescareofthename,thesecondtakescareoftheface,andthe third locks the twoof themtogether.Whatyouhavetodoisassociatethename to the face in some ridiculousway.But fornow, let’s talkabout thefirststep,rememberingthename.Ordinarily,there’dbenowaytopictureanamelikeBentavagnia(pronounced

bent-a-vane-ya).Butyoucanpicture,say,abentweathervane.Andbentvane

hastoremindyouofBentavagnia!The Substitute Word system will work beautifully to help you remember

names.Applying itwill forceyou to listen to,payattention to, concentrateonthatname—tobeOriginallyAwareof it.Youcan’tcomeupwithaSubstituteWordforamumble.Yousimplymustbesuretohearthename,evenifyouhavetoaskthepersontorepeatit.Before you learn how to attach a SubstituteWord to a face, you should be

convincedthatthereisnoname,nomatterhowlongorodd-sounding,forwhichyou cannot find a Substitute Word, phrase, or thought. It might even be athought you can’t put into words. But you’ll always be able to think ofsomethingthatcanbepictured,andthatwillremindyouofthename.The nameAntesiewicz seems formidable. But it’s pronounced ante-sevage,

andit’seasyenoughtopictureanti-savageorAuntiesaveitch.Suddenly,thenameseemslessformidable.Pukczyva(pronouncedpuk-shiva)isanothernamethatordinarilywouldgoinoneearandouttheotherbecause,subconsciouslyorconsciously,you’dthink,“I’llneverrememberthat,anyway—whytry?”And,ofcourse, you’d be right; you’d never remember it. But if you picture a hockeypuckshiveringbecauseit’sonice,youcanpicturethatname.ForthenameBarclay,youcouldusebarclayorbarklay;forSmolenski,a

small lens (camera) skiing; for Caruthers, a car withudders; for Krakowitz,crackerwits; forFrankesni,frank (hotdog)hasknee; forEsposito,exposeatoe;forDalrymple,dollrumple;forKolodny,coloredknee;forAndrofkavitz,Anndropcarwitch;forGiordano,jawedonO;forVirostek,virilestick;andsoon.TheSubstituteWordorphraseyouuseneedn’tcontainalltheexactsoundsof

thename;coverthemainsoundorelements,andyou’llhavethereminderyouneed.“True”memorywillfillintherestforyou.Aswithmostanythingelse, itwillbecomeeasierandeasierasyoupractice

applyingtheidea.You’lldevelopstandardsforcertainnames,prefixes,suffixes,and even sounds. Here are three standards we mention to our students: ForSmith,alwayspictureablacksmith’shammer;forCohen,anicecreamcone;forGordon,agarden.Forthesuffix-son,youmightalwaysseeasmallerversionofthemainthing

you’re picturing. For example, for Robinson, you could see a robin and asmaller robin—itsson.Or,youcoulduse thesun in the skyasyour standard.ForMc- orMac-, you could always picture aMack truck; for -itz or -witz,picturebrains (wits); for -berg, seean iceberg; for -stein,pictureabeerstein;for-ton,seetheitemweighingaton;fora-gerending,weusuallypictureeitherawildanimalgrowling(grr),oracigar.

Onceyouusesomethingforanyname,prefix,suffix,etc.,you’llprobablyuseitautomaticallywhenyouhear that soundagain—itwillbecomeastandard toyou.Here’s a list of nearly six hundredof themost commonnames inAmerica,

plussuggestionsforSubstituteWordsorphrasesforeachofthem.(Namesthatalready have meaning, like Storm, Bell, Paine, Brown, Wolfe, etc., are notlisted.)Take the time to goover these at least once; some standardswill startformingforyou.Youcanusethelistasadrill,ifyoulike.CovertheSubstituteWordsuggestionswithyourhandorapieceofpaper,andseeifyoudon’tcomeupwithsomeofthesamewordsorphraseswe’velisted.Itwillhelpyoubecomemorefamiliarwiththeidea,andit’sagoodimaginationexercise.

Aarons runonair,airrunsAbbott anabbott,IboughtAbrams rams,aperamsAbramson ramsonAdams figleaf,Adam’sapple,adamAdler paddler,addlawAlexander licksand,licksanderAllen alley,allinAltman oldmanAnderson handandsonAndrews Anndraws,AnndroolsAnthony handton,MarkAnthonyApplebaum applebumArcher archer,ahchairArnold armoldAshburn ashburnAtkins hatkinAtkinson hatkinsonBailey baleEBaldwin baldone,baldwinBarnett barnetBarry bury,berryBartley boughtlay,barredlea(meadow)

Bartley boughtlay,barredlea(meadow)Barton bartonBauer bowerBaxter backstir,backstearBeck back,peckBennett bendnet,bendit,TonyBenson bendsonBentley bandlay,EnglishcarBerman barman(bartender)Bernstein burnsteinBlair blare,lairBlake flake,lakeBorden milk,boardingBowen bowingBoyd birdBradley bradlayBrady braidEBrent rent,bentBrewster brewstir,roosterBrody broadEBruce ruse,bruiseBryant buyant,buoyantBuckley buckleBurke berg,perkBurton buyton,burrtonCallahan callahandCameron cameraonCampbell soup,campbellCarroll Christmascarol,carryallCarson carson,JohnnyCarter cartear,cartherChadwick shadowwick,chatwickChandler chandelier

Chandler chandelierChapman chappedman,chopmanCharles char,quarrelsChester chesttear,jesterChilton chilltonChisholm chiselChristenson ChristiansonChristopher ChristgofarClark clock,clerkClinton cleantonCochran rooster(cock)ranColeman coldman,coalmanCollier collar,callya’Collins collie,TomCollinsConnolly conalayConnor counter,conherCooper chickencoop,coopairCraig crackCrandall randoll,cranedollCrawford crawlFord,JoanCrawley crawllay,RaleighCrosby crossbee,BingCrowley crowlayCunningham cunninghamCurtis curt,TonyDaley daily,dayDaniels DanyellsDavis Daviscup(tennis)Davison DaviscupandsonDawson doorsonDenton denttonDeutsch touch,GermanDixon Dick(Tracy)son

Dixon Dick(Tracy)sonDonahue donahue(color)Donald Duck,darnoldDonovan donavanDoran doorranDougherty doughintea,dockherteaDouglas dugglass,duglessDoyle doily,toil,oilDriscoll drizzleDudley dudlay,deadlayDuffy thefeeDugan doagain,dueagainDuncan dunkin’Dunlap downlap,downlipDunn dun,downDutton button,thetonDwyer wire,dryerEaton eatton,eatin’Eberhardt everhardEdelman adullmanEdwards wards(off)Egan hecan,againEhrlich airlick,oillickElliott lot,LEhotEllis Lass,AliceEngle angle,andgullEpstein ebbsteinEvans heavensFarber farbar,farbearFarrell farrail,barrelFeinberg finebergFeldman fellmanFerguson furgoson

Ferguson furgosonFeuer foyer,fireFinney fishy,finiFlanagan fanagainFleming flaming,lemmingFletcher fetchher,lecherFlynn flyin’,ErrolFoley fallE,foalForbes fourbees,orbsForman boss,fourmenForrester forest,foresttearFoster forcedherFrazer freezer,raiseherFreedman freeman,reedmanFried freedFriedlander freelandFuller full,brushGallagher galGardner gardenerGarrison carrysonGaynor gainherGeller gala,gallaw,killherGelman killmanGerber gobare,babyfoodGibson vodkagibson,givesonGilbert killbedGinsberg ginbergGladstone gladstoneGleason gleeson,JackieGoodwin goodwinGorman goreman,doormanGraham cracker,grayhamGregory gory,Peck,graygory

Gregory gory,Peck,graygoryGriffin gripfinGriffith gripfishGrover rover,growGulliver giant,gullliverGunther guntore,gunnedherHahn honeHamilton hammertonHansen hansomcab,handsomeHarper harp,hopperHarrington herrington,herringtonHarris harass,hairyHarrison hairysonHartman heartman,hardmanHaupt hopped,hopedHealey healEHeller helloHelman hellman,heldmanHenderson hensonHendricks hentricks,handtricksHenry henHerman hermanHicks hicks,hiccupsHirsch HersheybarHirshfeld HersheyfellHobart wholebar,hopehardHodges hedgesHoffman huffman,halfmanHogan hoecan,wholecanHolden holdin,holddenHollis hollersHolt halt,holdHooper hoop

Hooper hoopHopkins hopkinHornsby hornsbeeHorowitz horrorwitsHoulihan holdahand,hooliganHouston houseton,usetonHoward howhardHoyle hurl,oilHubbard OldMother(Hubbard),hophardHughes hues,use,ewesHyman highmanIsaacs eyesacks,iceaxeIsrael isreal,StarofDavidJackson jacksonJacobs cobs,Jacob’sladderJaffe café,coffeeJames aimsJansen SenSen,janitor’ssonJerome chairroamJohnson johnson,Lyndon,yawnsonJones owns,johnKagan KagainKahn can,conKaiser guysore,geyserKantor cantor,can’ttearKaufman coughmanKeegan keycanKeller callher,killher,colorKelly callE,killE,greenKennedy canaday,canofD’sKenny canknee,pennyKent can’t,canned

Kent can’t,cannedKerr car,curKessler castlawKlein climb,KlineKnapp nap,knapsackKoenig king,Knick,coinnickKornfeld cornfellKramer grayMa,creamerKrieger regal,crygoreLafferty laughteaLambert lambbuttLang longLanger longer,languor,lingerLarkin larkin,larkkinLarson arson,larcenyLawrence lawants,lowerantsLawson lawsonLawton lawtonLederman leaderman,lettermanLee leaLehman laymanLeonard leanhardLeslie lesslieLester lesstear,jesterLevine thevine,liveinLevinson levelson,leavin’sonLevy levee,Levi’sLewis lose,loose,whoisLieberman laborman,leavehermanLindsey lintsea,lindyhopLogan lowcan,lowagainLoughran lockranLund land

Lund landMcCarthy MackcartteaMcCoy mecoy,decoyMcDonald MackandDuck(Donald)McGee mykeyMacLeod Mackloud,Mackcloud,mycloudMcMann MackmanMahoney Maholdknee,mywholeknee,myhoneyMalone aloneManning manink,manningMarcus markusMarshall marshal,MashallMartin Matin,martinMason mason,mysonMaxwell makeswell,mixwellMayer mayorMead meat,meetMerrill merryillMetcalf metcalfMeyer mire,myearMichaels mikecalls,mikekillsMiddleton middletonMitchell shell,mittshellMonroe manrow,MarilynMoore moor,moreMoran Maran,moreranMorgan morecanMorris Morrischair,Mais,morericeMorse mossMorton mutton,moretonMuller mullingitoverMurphy myfee,morefee,morphine

Nash gnashNeill kneelNelson kneelson,wrestlingholdNichols nickelsNixon mixon,nicksonNorth storm,wind,compassNorton notonNussbaum nosebum,nutsbumO’Brien ohburn,brineOgden eggden,eggedonOliver oliveOlsen oldsonO’Neal kneel,OkneelOppenheim openhomeOwens owes,ownsPadgett patchit,pageitPaley pale,pailPalmer palm,palmMaParkington parkingtonPatrick pattrickPatterson patasonPaul pull,pallPawley pulley,pullEPaxton packstonPearce piercePearson pierceson,pearsonPerkins perkingPerlman pearlmanPerlmutter pearlmutterPerry bury,pearPeters petersout,fades,Ptears

Peters petersout,fades,PtearsPhillips fulllipsPincus pincushion,pinkass,pinkSPowell dowel,towel,power,PawellQuinn winRafferty rapforteaRaleigh rolllea,rawlea,rollERandall randollRappaport raponportRatner ratknee,ratonherRaymond rayonmount,rainmountReiss rise,riceResnick restnickReynolds ranold,rainold,rainholdsRhodes roadsRichards richRigney rigkneeRiley ryelea,rileERoberts robbersRobeson robesonRogers BuckRogers,roger(affirmative)Rosen roseinRosenberg rosein(ice)bergRoss rose,rawsRoth wrathRubin rubyRuppert ropepat,rudepitRussell rustle,wrestleRutherford rodeaFord,rudderFordRyan cryin’,rind,RhineSamuels somemules

Samuels somemulesSatenstein satinsteinSawyer sawya’Saxon sacksonScher chair,share,sheerSchmidt blacksmith’shammer,shymittSchneider sheneitherSchoenberg shine(ice)berg,shonebergSchultz shields,shootsSchuster shoestir,shoestoreSchwartz wartsScott scotch,ScotSears burns(sears),SearsRoebuckSeiden sideinSeward steward,seawardSexton sackston,sexytonShaeffer shavefour,shaver,beerShaw shore,pshawShay shade,say,shaveSheehan sheenShelton shellton,shelterSherman showman,suremanSiegel seagull,seegalSimmons simmers,seeman,mattressSimon sighman,SimpleSimpson simpleson,simpersonSitron sitrunSkidmore skidmoreSlade slayed,slateSloan loan,slowSlocum slowcombSnead need,snood,SammySolomon wiseman,soloman,solemnmanSommers summersSpector spectator,ghost,inspector

Spector spectator,ghost,inspectorSpencer expenseher,pinsher,pensoreSquire wire,square,choirStacey staysee,tastySterling silver,starlingStern stern(fatherfigure)Stevens stevedore,steepfinsStewart stewardSullivan JohnL.,soldavanSussman shushmanSwanson swansonSweeney sweetkneeTalmadge tallmidget,tallMadgeTate tight,teaateTaub daub,tubTeitelbaum titledbumTerry cloth(towel),tearEThatcher thatchair,thatcherThomas tomtom,tomaskThompson tomtomson,thumpsonTipton tiptonTobias toebias,toebuyusTodd toddle,toddyTracy traceETravers travels,traverseTreadway tread,dreadwayTrent rentTucker tuck’er,tuckcarTuttle turtleTyler tiler,tileherUdall youdollUnger hunger

Unger hungerVictor winner,VictoreVincent wincentWagner wagher,wagonerWallace walllace,wallis,wallaceWalsh waltzWalters walltears,falters,BarbaraWarner warnherWarren warring,warinWasserman bloodtest,watermanWatkins wattkinWatson wattson,whatsonWatts watts,lightbulbWaverly waveearly,waverleaWayne wane,JohnWeber web,webbarWebster webstir,dictionaryWeeks calendar,weakWeiner frankfurter,weenieWeintraub winetrapWeiss wiseWelch grapejuice,welsh(onabet)Wellington wellinktonWhalen whalin’,whale,wailingWhitney whiteknee,whittlekneeWilliams willyams,yamsWilson willson,whistleWinston winston,ChurchillWoolsey woolsee,we’llseeWorthington worthinktonWright write

Young babyZimmer simmerZuckerman suckerman,manwithall-daysucker

If you’ve gone over this list even once, you’ll find that many of theseSubstituteWordswillcometomindthenexttimeyouhearsomeofthesenames.AndwhenyoucomeupwithyourownSubstituteWordorphraseforaname,you’reevenmorelikelytorememberitwheneveryouhearthename.

JL:ThefirsttimeIsawyouontelevision.…

HL:Iknow,youwerejustalittleboy!

JL:Well,notquite.Anyway,Iknewsomethingaboutmemorysystems,butI’dneverheardofanyonerememberingfourhundrednames.Icouldn’tbelieveit.

HL:Thefunnythingis thatnobodyelsebelievedit—orsoitseemed.MyfirstnationaltelevisionexposurewasontheoriginalJackPaar“TonightShow.”Heputmeonforabouteightminutesneartheendoftheshow,andIguessImusthaverattledoffclosetofourhundrednamesinaboutsevenminutes.Two days later, someone from Paar’s office called me. It seems they’d

receivedhundredsofcalls,letters,andtelegramstotheeffectthatwhatI’ddonewasimpossible,noonecouldrememberthatmanypeopleinsoshortatime—theymusthaveallbeenfriendsofmine!

JL:Whatdidyousaytothat?

HL:Isaid,“Whotheheckhasfourhundredfriends?!”

•

Nowforsteptwo.You’vejustbeenintroducedtosomeoneandyou’vemadeupaSubstituteWordforhisname;whatdoyoudowithit?Well,whatyouhavetodo is look at that person’s face and selectwhatyou think is its outstandingfeature.You’veaccomplishedoneofthetwoimportantstepsbyforcingyourselftobe

OriginallyAware of the name.Now, by searching for an outstanding feature,

you’re accomplishing the second important step—you’re forcing yourself tolookat,beinterestedin,concentrateon,thatface!Whatyouselectcouldbeanything:hairorhairline; forehead(narrow,wide,

orhigh);eyebrows(straight,arched,bushy);eyes(narrow,wide-spaced,close-set); nose (large, small, pug, ski); nostrils (flaring, pinched); high cheekbones;cheeks (full or sunken); lips (straight, arched, full, thin); chin (cleft, receding,jutting);lines,pimples,warts,dimples—anything.First impressionsareusuallylastingimpressions,andwhatisoutstandingon

someone’sfacenowwill,mostlikely,seemoutstandingwhenyouseethatfaceagain.That’simportant;butmoreimportantisthefactthatyou’vereallylookedat that face.You’reetching that face intoyourmemoryby just trying toapplythesystem.Whatyouselectmaynotbewhatsomeoneelsewouldselect,butitwillwork

foryou.Weallthinkandseedifferently—fine,that’sasitshouldbe.Whatyousee,whatyouselect,isbestforyou.All right; you’ve decided on an outstanding feature, and you already had a

Substitute Word for its owner’s name. Now we come to step three—youassociatetheSubstituteWordtotheoutstandingfeature.Ifyoudothisproperly,itwillalmostbelikehavingtheperson’snamewrittenonhisface!Evenifstepthreedidn’twork(whichitdoes),justapplyingstepsoneandtwo

must improve your memory for names and faces, because you’ve done whatmostpeopledon’tdo—you’vepaidattention;you’velistenedandlooked.Butitisstepthreethatgivespurposetostepsoneandtwo—itlocksthename

andfacetogetherforyou.FormaridiculousassociationbetweenyourSubstituteWordandtheoutstandingfeatureoftheface;that’sall.And,you’llfindthatit’salmost impossible not to make the picture ridiculous; it will happenautomatically.Look, you’ve just met Mr. Crane. A picture of a large crane, as used by

construction workers, comes to mind; or perhaps the storklike bird. You’velookedathisfaceanddecidedthathishighforeheadistheoutstandingfeature.Youlookatthatforehead,andreallypicturemanylargecranesflyingoutofit;or,youcanseethemattackingthathighforehead!Orperhapstheentireforeheadisonegiganticcrane.Aswithanyassociation,youhavemanychoicesastothekindofpictureyouvisualize.Youmustbesure—forceitatfirst—toreallyseethatpicture.ThenexttimeyoumeetMr.Crane,you’llknowhisname!IfMr.Bentavagniahasalargenose,you’dseeabentweathervanewherethe

nose should be. Mr. Pukczyva has bulging eyes; really see those shiveringhockeypucks flying out of his eyes, hitting you in the face.Or, his eyesareshiveringhockeypucks.Mr.Antesiewiczhasanoticeablecleftinhischin.See

savageschargingatyououtofthatcleft;you’redefendingyourselfagainstthem—you’re anti-savage. Mr. Cohen has deep character lines (they used to becalled “worry” lines) on his forehead. Picture those lines being dripping icecreamcones;ormillionsofdrippingicecreamconesflyingoutofthoselines.You’ve just learned thebestsystemfor rememberingnamesandfaces—and

theonlyonethatworksforanyname.(Astrongstatement,butwe’llstandbyit!)Inourclasses,afterlearningthesystem,studentscalloffthenamesoftwentytofortyotherstudents,whosenamesthey’veheardonce—thefirsttimetheytryit!Youcantryitrightnow,using“wordpictures.”Fiveofthesewerejustused

as examples. Go back to Mr. Crane, Mr. Bentavagnia, Mr. Pukczyva, Mr.Antesiewicz,Mr.Cohen,and really see thosepictures inyourmind’seye.Fornow, since you’re trying it without real people or faces, see just the featuresthemselves and the ridiculous associations. Now, meet four more “people”(featuresandnames)anddothesamething.Mr.Collettihasverythicklips.Picturethoselipsandseemillionsofcupsof

tea or tea bags comingout of them; you’re callingoneof those cups or bags.Reallytrytovisualizethatsillyaction,andcallateawillremindyouofColletti.As always, you can make up your own Substitute Words and pictures. Youmightwant to seeyourself tasting the tea, spittingoutamouthful,andsaying,“Call’attea?”MissMeistermanhasveryfullcheeks.Youmightpictureamancomingout

of each cheek and you stir him.Me stir man—Meisterman. See that crazypicture.Dr.Caruthershasvery long,widesideburns.Youmightsee thosesideburns

being cars (or have cars driving out of them); the cars have udders—you’remilkingthecars.Carudders.Seethepicture.IfyouwanttorememberthatthisisDr.Caruthers,putsomethingintothepicturethatwilltellyouso.Makeupastandard to represent doctor—a stethoscope, perhaps. As you see yourselfmilkingthecars,picturestethoscopescomingoutoftheudders.Mr. Ponchatrain has deep creases (character lines) from his nostrils to the

corners of hismouth.You can see trains running along those tracks (creases);youpunchthem.Punchatrain.Now,ifyou’vereallyvisualizedeachofthosesillypictures,trytofillinthe

nameforeachoutstandingfeaturelistedbelow,withoutworryingabouthowthenamesarespelled.They’renotlistedintheorderinwhichyou“met”thepeople.

If you remembered to put “Dr.” and “Miss” where they belonged, give

yourselfanextracoupleofmentalpoints.Doingthiswith“wordpictures”isnotaseasyasapplyingthesystemtoreal

faces.Ofcourse,youcouldpracticewithnewspaperormagazinepictures.Cutoutpicturesoffaces,makeupnames,andwrite thenamesonthebacksof thepictures.Thesystemwillworkwithone-dimensionalpictures.Thebestway topractice,however, isbyapplying the systemfromnowon,

whenever youmeet people.You have nothing to lose, andmuch to gain.Thenext time you’re at a meeting, a cocktail party—the next time you’re with agroup—apply the system. You’ll probably remember 50 percent more namesand faces than you ever have before.And that percentagewill increase everytimeyouusethesystem.Whenyoudo try it at, say, aparty, be sure to review thenamesduring the

evening. If you’ve applied the system properly, each time you see one of thefaces, thenameshould spring tomind.That’syour review. Ifyou lookatoneface and the name doesn’t come tomind, think about it for awhile. If it stilldoesn’t come to you, don’t be embarrassed to ask for the name again. Thenstrengthenyourassociation.Whenyouleavetheparty,youshouldbeabletosaygoodnighttopeoplebyname.Tryitandseeforyourself.Now,meetingpeopleingroupsandrememberingtheirnamesisonething,but

whatifyou’reinabusinesswhere,perhaps,threepeopleadayvisityourstore,office,showroom—andyoudon’tknowwhen,orif,they’llevercomeback?Ofcourse,iftheydocomeback,you’dliketocallthembyname.Manyasalehasbeenclinchedthatway.Thisistheonlyinstancewherewesuggestthatyouwritedowninformation.

Assumeyou’vemet threenewpeople today, andhaveapplied the systemyoujustlearned.Later,writethosethreenamesdownonapadyoukeepforjustthatpurpose.Writingeachnameisareview.Youcan’twritethenamewithoutthinkingof

it, and, if you’ve applied the system, you can’t think of the namewithout thefacebeingconjuredupinyourmind.That’sthewaythesystemworks—thinkofthenameandyou’llvisualizetheface;thinkofthefaceandyou’llvisualizethename.

Thenextday,readthosenames.Threedayslater,readthemagain,andaweeklaterreadthemoncemore.Thenforgetaboutthem.Thenexttimeoneofthosepeoplecomesintoyourplaceofbusiness,you’llknowthatperson’sname!Ifyoumeet, say, threepeople everybusinessday,youmayoccasionallybe

reading(reviewing)fifteentoeighteennamesatatime.Ittakesafewminutes.You have to make the decision—is it worth a few minutes, every once in awhile,tobeabletorememberthenamesofpeoplewhomayormaynotvisityouagain?Mostpeoplethinkitis.Nowforsomemoretipsonnamesandfaces.To remember titles, come up with standards like the stethoscope in your

pictureforDr.Caruthers.Youcanmakeupaword torepresentany title; thenjustgetitintothepictureasareminder.Forjudge,pictureagavel;forcaptain,pictureacap,andsoon.Forfirstnames,makeupaSubstituteWordforthenameandgetitintoyour

picture.Onceyoumakeoneupforanyname,itwillbecomeastandardforyou.Youmightuseall inforAlan,robberforRobert,cherryforJerry,floorantsforFlorence,bride (marry) forMary,shield forSheila,hairy forHarry,gymforJim,andsoon.You can put anything you like into your original picture—the person’s

businessaffiliation,spouse’sname,children’snames,hobby,howmuchmoneyhe owes you—whatever. Of course, it will take longer to form the originalpictureorassociation,butitwouldtakelongertorememberallthatinformationinanycase.SayyoumeetaMr.BillGordon,whoisasalesexecutivewithUnitedStates

Steel;hiswife’snameisRenée;hehasasonnamedJack;andheplaysgolf.BillGordonhasverybushyeyebrows.Whenyou firstmeethim,youmight

seehis eyebrowsbeingagarden; there aredollarbills growing there.Asyoutalk,youfindouttheotherbitsofinformation.Putthemintothepicture.SeeanAmerican flag (U.S.) that’s made of steel growing in the garden. The flag issellingsomethingtotheflowersinthegarden.Theflowersstarttorun;theysay,“Wanttoseemerun,eh?”(Renée).Hydraulicjacks(Jack)arealsorunninginthegarden—they’reswinginggolfclubs.Ittakestimeandspacetoexplainthesepictures;thinkingorvisualizingthem

takesmuchlesstime,andyoudoitduringyourinitialconversation.Don’tlosesightofthefactthattryingtoformtheseridiculouspicturesisforcingyoutobeOriginally Aware; you’re registering that information in the first place. Also,remember thatafteryou’veused the informationa few times,whether it’s justthe name or information about a person—it all becomes knowledge and theridiculouspicturesfade;they’renolongernecessary.

Some final points: Yes, you’ll be using high foreheads, big noses, bushyeyebrows,overandoveragain.Don’tworryaboutit—inrememberingthenameofeveryperson inanaudience,wemayuseasmanyas thirtyhigh foreheads!Thesystemstillworks.Itstillworksbecause,again,you’vehadtolookatthatface with interest, attention, and concentration in order to decide that theforeheadis theoutstandingfeature.That’swhatreallymakes thesystemwork.Similarly,itdoesn’tmatterifyoualwaysuseablacksmith’shammertoremindyou of Smith, Smythe, and Schmidt. You’ll know the difference because youhadtolistencarefullyinordertoapplythesystem.Occasionally, a studentwill tell us thatheor shemet someonewhohadno

outstanding feature. That’s almost impossible, particularly after you’ve beenusing the system for awhile—becauseyou’ll benoticingandobservingmore.But if, at first, this seems tobe aproblem,decideonone feature touse in allsuch cases. Perhaps you’ll always use the nose, if you find no outstandingfeatures.Thesystemwillstillworkbecauseyoustillhavetoreallylookatthatfaceinordertodecidethatithasnooutstandingfeature.Youmight try something now.Turn back to the list of features used in the

“word pictures.” If youmade the associations originally, you’ll still know thenamethatgoeswitheachoutstandingfeature.

9ABSENTMINDEDNESS

JL:WhenIplayedbasketballinhighschool,IhadateammatenamedBobCole—reallyoneofthegreatestshootersI’veeverseen,beforeorsince.Troublewas,Bobhadatendencytobeabsentminded.Hewas a starter, of course, and at onegame I rememberwe’d finishedour

warm-upandwereallstandingaroundthecoach, ready togoouton thefloor.Westarted topulloffour longwarm-uppants;Bobpulledhisoff,andhehadnothingonunderthem—Imean,nothing!He’dforgottentoputonhisuniform,anddidn’tknowhewasstarknakeduntilheheardallthegiggles!

HL: That’s embarrassing, of course, but in most cases absentmindedness isannoying, reallyaggravating.And it’snotaproblem thathasmuch todowithintelligence.We’veall heardof the absentmindedprofessorwhowindsup thecat,putshiswifeoutforthenight,andkissesthealarmclockgoodnight!Andhe’sintelligent.

JL:Ontheotherhand,Iknow“idiotsavants”—peoplewithfantasticmemorieswho are really dumb. Which further supports the idea that intelligence isn’tnecessarilyafactorinmemory.

HL:Misplacingsomethingmeansnotrememberingwhereyouplacedit.Whenyou don’t know if you locked your door, you don’t rememberwhether or notyoulockedit—absentmindednessisbasicallyamemoryproblem.

•

You are absentminded when your mind is absent; when you perform actionsunconsciously,withoutthinking.We’vediscussedthedifferencebetweenseeingandobserving—weseewithoureyes,butweobservewithourminds. Ifyourmindis“absent”whenperforminganaction,therecanbenoobservation;moreimportant,therecanbenoOriginalAwareness.Absentmindednessisprobablythemostwidespreadofminorself-annoyances.

Although itplaguesmostofus, it seemsparticularly toaffect theelderly.The

techniqueswe’ll discussherehave succeeded in eliminating absentmindednessforcountlesspeople,includingtheelderly.Tosomereaders,absentmindednessmayseemtobeatrivialproblem.Perhaps

they don’t realize how much time, energy, and aggravation they spend onsearching for items they “just put down for amoment,” or onworrying aboutwhether theyhaveturnedoff theoven, lockedthedoor,unpluggedtheiron,oron retrieving items they have left in trains, buses, cars, offices, and friends’homes.Thesolutiontotheproblemofabsentmindednessisbothsimpleandobvious:

Allyouhavetodoistobesuretothinkofwhatyou’redoingduringthemomentinwhichyou’redoingit.That’sall,butobviouslyit’seasiersaidthandone.Howcanyoubesuretoforceyourselftothinkofaminoractionatthemomentyou’redoingit?There’s only one way, and that is by using association. Since association

forcesOriginal Awareness—and since beingOriginallyAware is the same ashavingsomethingregisterinyourmindinthefirstplace,atthemomentitoccurs—then forming an instant association must solve the problem ofabsentmindedness.You’rewritingatyourdeskandthephonerings.Asyoureachforthephone,

youplacethepencilbehindyourear,orinyourhair.Thephonecallisfinished—that took only a few minutes—but now you waste time searching for thepencilthat’sperchedbehindyourear.Wouldyouliketoavoidthataggravation?All right, then; thenext time thephone ringsandyou start toplace thepencilbehind your ear,make a fastmental picture in yourmind.Actually “see” thepencilgoingintoyourear—alltheway.The ideamaymake you shudder, butwhen you think of that pencil, you’ll

knowwhere it is. That silly association of seeing the pencil go into your earforcedyoutothinkoftwothingsinafractionofasecond:1)thepencil,and2)whereyouwereputtingit.Problemsolved!Solved, that is, if you make an association each time you put down your

pencil,whereveryouputit.Justmakeitahabit.Keeptheideainmindthefirstfewtimes,forceyourselftoformtheassociations,andafterthatitwillbecomehabitual.Ifyouplaceyoureyeglassesonyour television set asyou leaveyour living

room, “see” the antenna of the television set going right through the eyeglasslens,shatteringit.Thisassociationismadewithoutbreakingstride,asyouwalk.We’llguaranteethatthenexttimeyouthinkofyourglasses,you’llknowwheretheyare.Fortworeasons:First,youthoughtaboutitwhenyouputthemdown;andsecond,thethingthatmadeyouthinkaboutit,theassociation,alsoreminds

youofwheretheyare.Ifyouplaced theeyeglassesonyourbed,youcanpictureagiganticpairof

glassessleepinginyourbed.Ifyoustuckthemintoapocket,picturethelensesbreakinginyourpocketandtearingit.Oryou’rereachingintoget theglassesandyourhandisbadlycut.Allthesameidea;theassociation,nomatterwhatitis,forcesyoutothinkoftheactionatthatmoment.Alwaysdoitatthemoment;if you put off doing it, you’ll forget to form the association and you’ll forgetwhereyourglassesare!Manypeopleareplaguedbymisplacingtreasureditems.Youusuallyputthe

iteminaparticularlygoodhidingplace—andthenneverseeitagain.(Ifyoudo,it’slikelytobewhenyoumove,andemptyallyourdrawersandclosets.)Thisproblem, too, canbe solvedbymakingan instant association.Sayyou

haveanexpensivefountainpenthatyouwanttokeepforachildorgrandchild.You place it in a drawer beneath your good sweaters for safekeeping.As youplaceitthere,seeapictureofthepenleakinginkalloverthosesweaters,ruiningthem.Beassured that thenext timeyou thinkof thatpen,nomatterhowlongafter you’ve put it away, you’ll know that it’s under your sweaters.You needonlyassociateanitemyou’reputtingawaytoitshidingplaceoncetoseethattheideaworksbeautifully.If you want to be sure not to leave your umbrella at your friend’s house,

associate umbrella to the last thing you’re sure to notice when you leave. Ifyou’rewearingacoat,andit’scoldoutside,youknowyouwon’tforgetthecoat.Associate umbrella to coat; you might see yourself putting on a giganticumbrellainsteadofacoat,orusingacoatinsteadofanumbrellatoprotectyoufromtherain.Theprincipleisthesame—onethingremindsyouoftheother.Ifyourpictureisaclearone,andaridiculousone,thecoatmustremindyouoftheumbrella. If you want to make extra sure, and if you’re driving, associateumbrella toyourcar.Youmightpictureyourselfopeningthecarwithanopenumbrella instead of a key. Now, if the coat doesn’t remind you to take thatumbrella,thecarcertainlywill.Doyouoftenleaveyourumbrellaattheofficeinsteadoftakingithome?As

you arrive and put your umbrella away, associate it to the last thing younormallyseeordoasyou’releavingtheoffice.Ifyoupunchatimeclock,seeyourselfplacingtheumbrellaintheslotinsteadofyourcard.Or,ifyourideanelevator,pictureanumbrellaoperatingit.Youmightalsoassociatetheumbrellatosomethingyoualwaysseejustoutsidetheofficebuilding—ifoneassociationdoesn’tremindyoutotakeitwithyou,theotherwillremindyoutogobackandgetit.Perhaps you’re one of those peoplewhowrite an important letter and then

forgettotakeitoutofthehouseandmailit.What’sthelastthingyoudoasyouleaveyourhouseorapartment?Perhapsyoucheckyourdoorknobtomakesurethedoorisshut,orperhapsyoulockthedoorwithakey.Simplyassociatelettertoeitherdoorknoborkey—orboth.(Ifyouassociate letter to,say,doorknobafewtimes,youprobablywon’thavetodoiteveragain.Everytimeyoulookatthatknob,itwillmakeyouthinkofletter,andifyou’veleftoneinsideyou’llgobackandgetit.)Youcanalwaysuseasecondpictureasinsurance.Perhapsyouoftentakeout

some garbage when you leave your home. See yourself throwing millions oflettersintoyourgarbagecanorincinerator.Thiswillhelpyou remember to take the letter, butyoumay still leave it in

yourpocketorpurseforafewweeks!Onewaytoavoidthatistoholdtheletterinyourhanduntilyouseeamailbox.Anotherwayistoassociatethepersonorcompany that the letter is addressed to, to amailbox. If it’sgoing to someoneyoucanpictureorvisualize,seethatperson’sheadcomingoutofamailbox.Ifit’sgoingtoacompany,useaSubstitutethought.Forexample,ifit’sanelectricbill,seeelectricity(lightning)shootingoutofamailbox.Ineithercase,thenexttimeyounoticeamailbox—andsoonerorlateryouwill—you’llberemindedtotakethatletteroutofyourpocketorpurseandmailit.Awomaninoneofourclassestoldusthatsheoftenburnedtheroastthatshe

putintheovenbecauseshesimplyforgotaboutit.Well,shecouldavoidthisbyputting a smaller roast into the oven along with the regular one—when shesmelledthesmalloneburning,she’dknowtheotheronewasdone!Thepriceofmeatbeingwhatitis,however,therehastobeabetterway.Make thisahabit—every timeyouputsomething in theoven,placeasmall

fryingpansmackinthecenterofthekitchenfloor!Howcanyoupossiblyforgetabouttheroastnow?Eachtimeyousee(ortripover)thatfryingpan,you’llberemindedoftheroastintheoven.Uponhearing this ideaonemansaid,“That’s fine,except thatwhen Iputa

roast in the oven, I usually go into another room to watch television. Then Ican’t see the reminder.”The solution forhimwasobvious,ofcourse—to takethefryingpanalongandputitontopofthetelevisionset.Insteadofa fryingpan,youcanuseanything that looksoutofplaceon the

floor(ortelevisionset):apotholder,aplate,ahunkofcheese.Theideaisbasedonthestandardruleofmemory—onethingremindsyouofanother.It’snotanewideabyanymeans;it’ssimilartotyingastringonyourfinger,

wearingyourwatchonthewrongwrist,turningyourringtofacethewrongway,orputtingacrumpleddollarbillinwithyourcoins.Eachofthese“out-of-place”things is supposed to remind you of something you want to remember. The

problem is that too often they’ll remind you that you wanted to remember“something,”whichisn’tmuchhelpifyoucan’trememberwhatthesomethingis.Thefryingpanon thekitchenfloor,on theotherhand,must remindyouofthe roast in the oven because that’s all you’ll be using it for. If you insist ontyingastringaroundyourfingerorwearingyourwatchonthewrongwrist,nowyou have a way tomake it definite. Go ahead and tie the string around yourfinger, but at the same time be sure to associate whatever it is you want toremembertothestring.Nowyouhavethetwoessentials:firstthereminder,thenwhatitisyou’rebeingremindedof.Why ruin your evening out because you spend most of it worrying about

whetherornotyouturnedofftheoven,lockedthedoor,orunpluggedtheiron?Formthehabitofmakingaquickassociationatthemomentyoudothesethings.Asyoushutofftheoven,pictureyourself(orjustyourhead)intheoven!Reallysee that picture, and you’ve consciously thought about the action for a splitsecond.Lateron,whenyouthinkabouttheoven,you’llknowyoushutitoff.Asyoulockyourdoor,seeyourselflockingitwithyourheadinsteadofakey.

Whenyouunplugyouriron,seeyourheadcomingoutofthesocket.Thepictureyouchooseisunimportant—anypictureforcesyoutothinkoftheactionatthatmoment.Doyousometimesfindyourselfgoingtoyourrefrigerator,openingthedoor,

and then staring inside and wondering what it is you wanted? Just make anassociationthemomentyouthinkofwhatitisyouwantfromtherefrigerator.Ifyouwantaglassofmilk,seeyourselfopeningtherefrigeratordoorandgallonsofmilk flying out and hitting you in the face!Try this idea, and you’ll neverstareintoarefrigeratoragain.That’sallthereistoit.It’slikegrabbingyourmindbythescruffoftheneck

andforcingittothinkofaspecificthingataspecificmoment.Forceyourselftodoitatfirst,anditwillbecomehabitualbeforeyouknowit.Formingtheseassociationsmaystrikeyouasawasteoftime.Youwon’tfeel

thatwayonceyou’vetriedusingtheidea.You’llsee,afterashortwhile,thattheridiculouspicturesareformedinhardlyanytimeatall.Evenmoreimportantisthetimethatyou’llbesaving.

•

JL:The“out-of-place”ideahassavedmewhenitcomestogettingoutofbedinthemornings.Yousee,ifthealarmclockiswhereitbelongs,I’lljustreachoverwithmylongarm,shutitoff,andgorightbacktosleep.SoIkeepitacrosstheroom—andwheneverIpulloutthealarm-setIpicturethatlittleknobgoingright

throughmythumb,nailandall.

HL:Whichforcesyoutothink,atthatexactmoment,aboutthefactthatyouaresettingthealarm.

JL:Idothiseverynight,andIneverhavetogetoutofbedafterI’mintocheckwhetherornotIsettheclock.

HL:Allright.Now,yousawthatpicturelastnight,andyou’llthinkoftheclockafter you’re in bed tonight. Does last night’s picture ever come back to you,makingyouthinkyousetthealarmwhenyouactuallydidn’t?

JL:Neverhashappened. “True”memory tellsme the truth.Most important isthe Original Awareness. If I haven’t made the silly picture on any night, I’llknowIhaven’tsettheclock.

HL:Iknowitcan’tgowrong—I’veuseditforyears,justasI’veusedthe“out-of-place”ideaforyearstoremindmeinthemorningofsomethingIthoughtofduringthenight.

JL:Youmeanwhenyou’vehadthatmillion-dollaridea—

HL:Whichisusuallyworth$1.63inthemorninglight.Still, Ialwaysfelt thatidea had to be immortalized. So at first I’d put on the lights, find a pad andpencil, andwrite itdown—then, since I invariablywokeupmywife, I startedkeepingapadonmynighttableandwritingdowntheideainthedark.

JL:Couldyoureadyourwritinginthemorning?

HL:Nottoowell.Whichwasfine,becausethatinspiredmetoreallysolvetheproblem.Now,wheneverIgetanidea,Ireachoutanarmanddosomethingthatwill be sure to catch my attention in the morning. Usually, I dump all mycigarettes on the floor—when I get out of bed in the morning I can’t missstepping on those cigarettes and being reminded that I had an idea during thenight.

JL:Doyoueverhavetroublerememberingwhattheideawas?

HL:Notusually.ButifIdofeelIneedareminderofthethoughtitself—

JL:YouassociatetheKeyWordoftheideatocigarettes.

HL:Right!Andif Ievermanage tostopsmoking, I’ll reachoverand turnmyclockfacedown,orputitonthefloor,orpushabookoffmynighttable.

JL:Anythingthat’soutofplace,thatforcesyoutolookatitandthink,“Whatintheworldisthatdoingthere?”willdo.

•

Ifyou’vebeenapplying the systems,you’venotonly improvedyourmemory,you’veimprovedyoursenseofimagination,concentration,andobservation.By now, youmust realize that in order to remember anything, youmust payattention to it—itmust be observed. Applying our systemswill automaticallysharpenyourobservation.Havingabettersenseofobservationisalmostliketakingan“awarenesspill.”

You’ll be able to really notice, and be aware of, things that ordinarilywouldmake only a vague impression. Most people we’ve talked to admit that theywouldhavetakenan“awarenesspill,”ifthereweresuchathing,whenevertheytraveledtonewplaces.Afterthetriporvisit,theynevercouldclearlyvisualizethebeautifulthingsthey’dseen—hadn’treallynoticedorobservedthem.Alltheideasinthischapterhavebeenintendedtoforceyoutopayattention,

toobserve.Youcannotsharpenyourobservationwithoutapplyingsomeeffortatfirst,asisthecasewithmostofthememorysystems.Butobservation,too,willbecomehabitifyoupracticeitconsciouslyandconscientiously.

Up to now, you probably haven’t had to expendmuch effort in learning andapplyingour systems.Namesand faces, errands, foreignwords—whatever thememory problem, the solution has largely been amatter of grasping a simpleideaandusingjustabitofimagination.Butnothingworthwhile comes too easily.You’re about to embarkon some

entirelynewideas.Althoughtheyremainsimple,applyingthemwilltakealittlemore effort on your part—but only until the fundamentals are learned andabsorbed.As youmove into remembering themore challengingmaterial that follows,

work to apply the systems.Youmay feel that applyingmemory systems to itseemslikealotofwork.Again,that’sthinkingnegatively.Anynewartorskillseems difficult and cumbersome at first—but only at first, only until you’vegrasped the fundamentals of the skill. It is rote memory that’s really a lot of

work—andusuallyfornaught,becauseitjustdoesn’tworktoowellortoooften.Applyingthesystems,onceyou’velearnedthebasics,mustsaveyoumuchtimeandwork.Sobesuretotakethetimetolearnthebasicsthatfollow.Youwon’tregretit!

10LONG-DIGITNUMBERS

91852719521639092112

ABeautifulNakedBlondJumpsUpandDown

HL:Themostdifficultcategorytoremember?Ithastobenumbers.

JL: No question about it. Numbers are completely intangible, they’re justdesigns.

HL: They also happen to be the most important things some people have toremember—addresses, telephone numbers, prices, style numbers, formulas,equations,computercodes,statistics,creditcardnumbers,andsoon.

JL:Thosewhomostneedtoremembernumberslikethesehavetroubleforthesamereasonmostpeopledo—itseemsimpossibletopicturetheminthemind.

HL:And,ofcourse, it’snotatall impossibletolearntopicturenumbers,evenlongones.Like,say…

JL:91852719521639092112!

•

The problem of remembering numbers, probably the most difficult of allmemorychores,canbesolvedbylearningasimplephoneticalphabet,consistingofjusttenpairsofdigitsandsounds.Theyarenotatalldifficulttolearn,evenifyouuserotememory—whichyouwon’tneedtodo.Wewanttoeliminaterote,not finduses for it.You’llbegivenasimplememoryaid foreachpair,and ifyouconcentrate,you’llprobablyfindthatyouknowthemafteronereading.First, to break down the idea for you, there are ten digits in our numerical

system:1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,and0.Therearealsotenbasicconsonantphoneticsounds.(Technically,ofcourse, therearemorethanten,but thetenbasiconeswillserveourpurposeadmirably.)Thinkoftheletterstanddforamoment.Althoughtheyaredifferentletters,

and fall indifferentpartsof thealphabet, theymake thesamephonetic sound.Yourvocalapparatus(tongue, teeth, lips) is inexactly thesamepositionwhenmakingthetsoundaswhenmakingthedsound.Thetsoundisabitharderthanthed,that’sall.Forourpurposes,they’llbeconsideredthesame.Therule—thevocalapparatusbeinginthesameposition—willholdtruefor

other consonant sounds. For example, although f and v (and ph) are differentletters,theyformthesamephoneticsound;again,theonlydifferenceisthatoneisharderthantheother,and,again,yourlips,tongue,andteethareinthesamepositiontoformeitherone.Pandbarephoneticallythesameforourpurposes.Soarej,sh,ch,andsoftg

—yourtonguecurlsthesamewaytosoundanyoneofthem.Thehissingsounds,s,z,softc,arealsothesamephoneticsound,andsoarek,hardc,andhardg.All right, then.There are ten of these phonetic sounds, and it is the sounds

we’reinterestedin,notthelettersthemselves.Allwe’vedoneistopairasoundtoeachdigit,and thereareonly tenpairs foryou to learn.That’s thephoneticalphabet. Learn it; once you do, you’ll use it for the rest of your life—itwillneverchange.Don’tworrynowabouthowitwillbeused;justlearnit.Itcanbeusefultoyouinwaysyoucouldn’timagine.Payattentiontothememoryaids;they’resillybutthey’llenableyoutolearn

thephonetic alphabet inminutes.The sound thatwill represent number1willalwaysbethesoundmadebytheletterstord,andviceversa.Thememoryaid,which you’ll need for only a short while, is this: A typewritten t has onedownstroke.Thinkofthatforjustamoment.Thenumber2willalwaysberepresentedbythesoundmadebythelettern.

Thememoryaidis:Atypewrittensmallletternhastwodownstrokes.Thinkofthatforamoment.Number3willalwaysberepresentedbythesoundmadebytheletterm;3=

mandm=3.Thesmalltypewrittenlettermhasthreedownstrokes,oryoumightthinkofthe3MCorporation.Again, it is thesoundwe’reinterestedin,nottheletter.Number4willalwaysberepresentedbythesoundmadebytheletterr.The

simplestmemoryaidforthisisthattheword“four”endswithanr.Number 5 will always be represented by the sound of l. The memory aid:

Spread the five fingers of one hand, thumb straight out, and the thumb andforefingerformtheletterl.

Number6willalwaysberepresentedbythesoundsj,sh,ch,andsoftg(asingentle); they allmake the samephonetic sound.Thememory aid:The digit 6andacapitalletterjarealmostmirrorimages .Number7willalwaysberepresentedbythesoundsk,hardc(asincap),hard

g (as inglide).Asthememoryaid,youcanformacapitalkwithtwo7’s,onerightsideupandtheotherupsidedown,likethis: .Number8willalwaysberepresentedbythesoundmadebythelettersforvor

thesoundph.Tohelpyourememberthisquickly,an8andahandwrittenfarebothmadewithtwoloops,oneabovetheother .Number9willalwaysberepresentedbythesoundmadebythelettersporb.

Thenumber9andtheletterparealmostexactmirrorimages .And,finally,thezero(0)willberepresentedbythehissingsoundmadebythe

lettersz,s,orsoftc(asincentury).Thememoryaid:Thefirstsoundintheword“zero”isz.Ifyou’vereadthelastfewparagraphswithsomedegreeofconcentration,the

oddsarethatyoualreadyknowall,ormost,ofthem.Butlookatthischartforamoment:

1=tord.Atypewrittensmallthasonedownstroke.2=n.Atypewrittensmallnhastwodownstrokes.3=m.Atypewrittensmallmhasthreedownstrokes.4=r.Thewordfourendswithanr.5=l.Thefivefingers,thumbout,formanl.6=j,sh,ch,softg.A6andacapitaljarealmostmirrorimages .7=k,hardc,hardg.Youcanmakeacapital withtwo7’s .8=f,v,ph.An8andahandwrittenflooksimilar .9=porb.A9andaparemirrorimages .0=z,s,softc.Thefirstsoundinthewordzeroisz.

A few rules: The vowels, a, e, i, o, u, have no value whatsoever in thephoneticalphabet;theyaredisregarded.Soarethelettersw,h,andy.Theonlytime that h is important is when it follows certain consonants, changing thesound.Also,althoughthis israrelyused, the thsoundwillforourpurposesbethesameasthetsound:th=1.Silent letters are disregarded. The word knee would transpose to 2 in the

phonetic alphabet, not 72. Remember, we are interested in the sound, not theletter.Thereisakinthatword,butitissilent;itmakesnosoundandthereforehasnovalue.Thewordbombtransposesto93,not939;thelastbissilent.Thebeauty of this, if you’ll forgive our saying so, is that it doesn’t even matter

whether or not you pronounce (or read) aword correctly. If you happened tospeakwithanaccent,andpronouncedthatfinalbinbomb,youwouldtransposethat word to 939. But since you’d always pronounce it that way, the systemwouldworkjustaswellforyou.Thisleadstotherulefordoubleletters.Thewordpattertransposesto914,not

9114.Yes,therearetwot’sintheword,buttheyarepronouncedasonet.Thewordbellowwouldtransposeto95:b=9,l=5;theowhasnovalue.Theruleissimple anddefinite; alwaysconsiderdouble letters asmakingonlyone sound.(Except,ofcourse,wherethetwolettersareobviouslypronounceddifferently—asin“accident.”Thedoublecheretransposesto70.)Finally, the letterxwillalmostneverbeused,but it transposesaccording to

thewayitispronouncedinaparticularword.Inthewordfoxthefis8,andthexis 70. (The x makes the ks sounds in that word.) In the word complexion,however,thexwouldtransposeto76.Pronouncecomplexionslowlyandyou’llsee why. As for the letter q, it always makes the same sound as k—so ittransposestothenumber7.Thephoneticalphabetshouldbecomesecondnaturetoyou.Thatis,whenever

youhearorseethesoundr,youshouldthink,4.Whenyouhearorsee2,youshould think,n.Youmustknow themquicklyandoutoforder.Goover themmentally now; you probably already know them. Those simple little memoryaidsmakethephoneticalphabeteasytoremember.Don’tcontinuereadinguntilyou’refamiliarwiththetenpairsofdigitsandsoundsandhavereallypracticedtransposingsounds(notletters)tonumbers.

Now.Withoutturningbacktothefirstpageofthischapter,doyourememberthelong-digitnumberthatisatthetopofthatpage?Ifyouarelikemostpeople,theanswerhasgottobe,“Areyoukidding?Ofcoursenot.”But think:Doyouremember thesentence thatappears rightunder the long-

digit number? Again, if you’re among the majority, you do remember thatsentence:“Abeautifulnakedblondjumpsupanddown.”That’seasytopicture,andifyousimplythoughtofthepicturewhenyoufirstreadthesentence,you’dhaverememberedit.Well,lookatthatsentence,orthinkofit.Whatisthefirstconsonantsound?

Theb inbeautiful.Whatdigitdoesb represent?Youshouldalreadyknow theanswer—9. The next consonant sound is t; you know, by now, that t alwaysrepresentsthenumber1.Usepaperandpencilandputdownthedigitsforalltheconsonantsoundsin

that sentence.You alreadyhave91.Thewordbeautiful transposes to 9185. Ifyou’ve transposed the entire sentence, you should have

91852719521639092112.Whichisthenumberatthetopofthefirstpageofthischapter.Andyouthoughtyoudidn’trememberit!Havewemade thepoint? It ismuch,mucheasier to remember the tangible

sentence, which makes sense, than the intangible numbers. Had the sentencebeen “A pretty girl is like a melody,” the number would have been941745057351.You don’t, however, have to try to make the phonetic sounds of a long

numberformasentenceorclichéinordertorememberthenumber—thankstoouroldfriendtheLink.Takethisnumber:

941140494275Thenumberhasbeenbrokenintogroupsofthreedigitsforteachingpurposes

only.Ordinarilyyouwouldn’tbreakanumberintoequalgroupslikethat.Trytothink of aword thatwould phonetically fit 941. There aremany suchwords;parrot,bread,proud,apart,berate,pirate,brat,board,bored,tonameonlyafew.Thefirstoneyouthinkofisusuallythebestforyoutouse.Now lookat thenextgroupof threedigits,140.Whatwordwould fit those

phonetically?Tears,throws,throes,dress,duress…Thinkofoneyourself.Now, start forming a Link; your association might be a gigantic parrot

wearing a dress. Be sure to see the picture. The next three digits are 494:robber,rubber,orarborwouldfitphonetically.ContinueyourLink;youmightpicture a giganticdress (just thedress; no lady in it) being arobber. See thepicture;eithertheonesuggestedhereoroneyouthoughtofyourself.Thelast threedigitsare275;nickel,knuckle,oranglewouldfit.Selectone

and continue your Link; associate robber or whatever you used for 494) tonickel.Youmightseeagiganticnickelcatchingarobber,orbeingarobber.You’ve just formedashortLinkofonly fourwords.But ifyouknowthose

fourwords, ifyouknowtheLink,youalsoknowthetwelve-digitnumber: thatis,ifyoualsoknowthesounds.SimplythinkofthefirstwordofyourLink,andtransposeittodigits.Ifyou

used parrot, parrot can only break down to … 941. Think of parrot for amoment; thatmakes you think of—what?Dress, of course; and that can onlytranspose to… 140.Dress leads to robber, and robber transposes to… 494.And,finally,robberremindsyouofnickel,andnickelcanonlybe…275.Therearenodecisionstomakehere;ifyouknowthefundamentals—inthiscase,thesounds—anywordbreaksdown,ortransposes,toaspecificgroupofdigits.Tryitwithoutlookingatthebook;seeifyouknowthenumber.Whenyou’ve

trieditatleastonce,tryitbackward.SimplythinkofthelastwordofyourLink;transpose it to digits andwrite, or say, those digits backward. Thatwordwillremind you of the next-to-last word, and so on. Nickel, robber, dress, parrot,musttellyou—572494041149.DoyouseehowapplyingboththeLinkandthephoneticalphabethasenabled

youtomemorizealong-digitnumber?Whatwe’vedoneisshowyouawaytoturnabstract,intangiblenumbersintotangibles.Nowyoucanpicturenumbersinyourmind!Theonlyproblemyoumayhavehadistransposingfromsoundstonumbers.

Ifthatslowedyoudown,it’sbecauseyoudon’tknowthesoundsaswellasyoushould—youhaven’tmadethemsecondnature.Obviously,thebetteryouknowthesounds,thefasteryou’llmemorizenumbers.Let’stryalongeronethistime:

74123212539001414952Not at all impossible to remember—not now.Again, the number is broken

intogroupsof four for teachingpurposesonly.Lookat the first group; if yousimplysaythesoundstoyourself,you’llalmostautomaticallyformaword.Saykrtn;youmayhavethoughtofcurtain,carton,cretin,orgarden—anyoneofwhichisperfect.Lookat3212:mntn.Ifyouvoicethosesounds,you’llimmediatelythinkof

something likemountain ormaintain. If you picture a carton as large as amountain, that’s the start of your Link. Just be sure to see the picture. Youneedn’tuseoursuggestions,ofcourse;usewhatevercomestomind—aslongasthewordsfitthenumbersphonetically,andyourpicturesareridiculous.Now, 5390: l m p s. Youmay have thought lamps, limps, or lumps. (No,

lambs wouldn’t do. That would transpose to 530; the b is silent.) Associatemountainto,say,lamps;youmightseemillionsoflamps(itmustbemorethanone lamp to remindyouof theplurals)piledashighasamountain.See thatpicture.0141:str t.Street,start,orstoreitwilldojustfine.Youmightseemany

lampswalkingdownastreet,orstartingarace.Seethepicture.4952:rp ln.Youprobably thoughtof airplane, and that’s asgoodas any.

Associate street or start to airplane; perhaps a gigantic airplane is parked onyourstreet.Besuretoseethepictureinyourmind.You’ve Linked only fivewords and those fivewordswill remind you of a

twenty-digit number. Try this on your own. Startwith carton and go throughyourLink,toairplane.Transposetheconsonantsoundsintonumbersasyougo,

andyou’llseethatyouknowthenumber!Haveyoutriedit?Ifyouhave,youshouldbepleasedwithyourself.Goastep

further—try it backward.And,perhaps evenmore impressive, thinkofparrotand you’ll see that you still remember the first (twelve-digit) number thatweusedasanexample.Inamoment,we’llgiveyousomenumberstopracticewith.Butfirst:There’s

norulethatsaysthatyoumustuseanountorepresentanygroupofdigits;normustyouuseonlyonewordforagroupofdigits—aphraseisjustasgood.Infact,therearesomegroupsofdigitsthatnosinglewordwouldfit,butyoucanalways findaphrase to fit.Forexample,wecouldn’t findawordfor989,butpuff up, pie fib, or beef pie will serve the purpose. And although a phraseconsistsoftwoormorewords,it’saseasytopictureasoneword.Onceyoubecomefamiliarwiththeidea,youmightlookat01414952,thelast

eightdigitsof the last example, and thinkstraightairplane.Thatwouldhavemade the entire number easier and faster to memorize. Linking carton tomountaintolampstostraightairplanewouldhavedoneit.Andstraightairplane(anairplanestandingstraightuponitstail)isonepictureinyourmind,althoughitconsistsoftwowords.For a four-digit number like 4312, you might use rawmutton, ram tin,

roomedin,rhymetone,andsoon.Allcanbepictured,andallfitphonetically.Evenaparticularlysillyphrase,likeroomdienow,canbepictured.Simplyseearoomdyingnow.Ifyouthoughtofit,itcanbepictured.Don’t lose sight of the basic idea. Aside from making numbers tangible,

you’realsoforcingyourselftobeOriginallyAwareofanumber.Simplytryingtocomeupwithwordsorphrases forcesyoutoconcentrateonthatnumberasyou’veneverdonebefore.There are some standards that you can start using as youkeep applying the

idea.Forexample,wheneveryouseeazero,simplytrytopluralizewhatcomesbeforeit.For975,youmightusebuckle;ifyousee9750,simplyusebuckles.For27,alwaystrytousethe-ingending;for97527,usebuckling.Whenyouseea4,youcantrytousethe-erending;9754couldbebuckler.Andfor1,youcanusethepasttense;9751wouldbebuckled.For 85, always try to use the -ful ending.Thedigits 92might bepain, and

9285wouldeasilymakeyouthinkofpainful.Asidefromthesestandards,youcanuseanythingyouliketoremindyouofanygroupofdigits.Alwaysusethefirstthingthatcomestomindandfitsphonetically,nomatterhowmanydigitsitincludes,andLinkonethingtotheother.Onemoreexample:

94301491846108732198420315

94301491846108732198420315Here are only some of the ways to handle it: brooms, tripped over, jets,

vacuum, knot, bufferins, metal. Pram, strip, tougher, jets off, come in, tip,frowns, my tail. Bear, master, pit, forage, toss off, commando, buffer, nosummit,hill.Onyourown,tryyourfantasticnewmemoryfornumbersonthese:

83902719583027410121650718430137540381930136586926349379205927153640293846104529585736102654619103481254027452

Ifyou’vereallymasteredthephoneticalphabetandpracticedtransposing,thisformidable list isn’t formidable for you. It’s taken concentration, practice, andtimetogettothispoint—well,wesaidattheoutsetthatrememberingnumbersis themostdifficult ofmemorychores.But again, thinkof the effort itwouldhave taken (assuming you could have done it at all; few people could) torememberonelong-digitnumberwithoutasystem.It’struethatmostofyouwon’teverneedtorememberatwenty-digitnumber.

Well, later we’ll give you specific help with remembering the short-digitnumbersyoudoneedtoknow.Butfornow,youcanenjoythefactthatanyonewho can remember 91852719521639092112 is unlikely to forget, say, atelephonenumber.Ifyouhaven’tyetmasteredthephoneticalphabet,youshouldtakethetimeto

reallyabsorbthosetendigit-soundpairs.Playingamentalgamewillhelpyoudothis faster:Whenever you see a number—an address, a license plate number,whatever—mentallytransposethedigitsintosounds.Wheneveryouseeawordonasignorbillboard,transposetheconsonantsoundstodigits.Dothisforawhile,andthesoundswillbecomesecondnature.Therearetwo

trapstoavoid:transposingaccordingtoletterinsteadofsound,andconsideringadoubleletterastwosoundsinsteadofone.Thesinthewordenvisiontransposesto6,not0; thesmakesasoftshsound.Thesameistrueforthe t inthewordposition; it transposes to 6, not 1. The word pattern transposes to 9142, not91142—adoublelettermakesonesoundonly.Playthismentalgameforawhile;learnthesoundsreallywellbeforeyougo

on to the next chapter. Once the sounds have become second nature, you’rereadyforanamazinglyusefulmemorysystem—thePeg.

11THEPEG

HL: The student challenged me—he thought he could remember a long-digitnumberfasterthanIcould.Anotherstudentwrotedownthenumberandtimedus.Well, Ibeathimby justa fewseconds. (Iwouldn’t tell thestory ifhehadbeatenme!)Indiscussingit,werealizedthatwehadusedprettynearthesamewordsandphrasesforthenumbers.Wewerebothfacedwith0384atonepoint.Hesaidthatthiswaswherehelostthefewseconds,hecouldn’tthinkofawordorphrasequicklyenough.HeaskedmewhatIhadused,andIsaid,“Somevere.”He said, “Somevere!?What kind of word is that?”Well, somevere wouldn’tmeananythingtoanyoneelsebutme.WhenIwasgrowingupinatenementontheLowerEast Side ofManhattan,my neighborwas a sweet oldmanwith aheavyaccent.Healwayspronouncedthewordsomewhereassomevere.Thisoldgentlemanwaslikeafathertome,andleftalastingimpression.SowhenIsaw0384,Ithoughtofsomevereandpicturedhim.

JL:It’sagoodstory,butofcourseyoucouldhaveusedsamovar.

HL:Nowyoutellme.Andbesides,Idon’tknowwhatasamovaris.

•

Havingmemorizeda listof itemsinsequence,usingtheLink,howwouldyouknow,say,the8thiteminstantly?Youwouldn’t;you’dhavetogoovertheLinkandcount,eithermentallyoronyourfingers.There’samucheasierway,usingPegWords that are basedon the phonetic alphabet.This is thePeg systemofmemory.Ifyouknowthesoundsofthephoneticalphabet,andyoushouldbynow,this

won’t takemuchtimeoreffort.We’llstartbygivingyoutenPegWords, thenwe’llshowyouhowtousethem.Sincethenumber1isalwaysrepresentedbythesoundtord, thePegWord

for1mustcontainonly that sound.Manywordscould fit foranynumber,buttheoneshereareeasytopictureandservethepurposeaswellasany.Thewordfor1willalwaysbetie.Thewordtiecontainsonlyoneconsonant

sound,andthatsound(t)canonlyrepresent1.So,amentalpictureofaman’snecktiewillalwaysrepresent1.Thenumber2 isalsoasingledigit,so thePegWordmustcontainonlyone

consonant sound—but now, that sound must be the sound that represents 2,which is n. The word (name) that will always represent 2 is Noah. Picturewhateveryoulike,probablyamanwithalonggraybeard,orjustthebeard.ThePegWord for3will alwaysbeMa;pictureyourmother,ora littleold

lady.4: rye. That word could only represent 4 because it contains only one

consonantsound,r.Picturealoafofryebread,orabottleofryewhiskey.5: law. Picture whatever law represents to you; we always picture a

policeman.6: shoe. Shoe contains only the sh consonant sound, which represents 6.

Pictureashoe.7:cow.Pictureacow,ofcourse.8: ivy.Thevsoundcanonlyrepresent8, thereforeivycanonlyrepresent8.

Pictureivyclimbingonawall.9:bee.Picturethestinginginsect.Thenumber10containstwodigits,thereforethePegWordfor10musthave

thesound t (ord, for1)ands (for0) in thatorder.Theword is toes; toescanonlyrepresent10.Pictureyourtoes.Those are the first ten PegWords. They are easy to remember because the

phonetic sounds practically tell youwhat the words are. Look at them again;thenseeifyouknowthem.You’llknowthemoutoforderbecauseyouknowthesoundsoutoforder.Andtheywillneverchange;onceyouknowthem, they’llalwaysbeuseful.

1.tie2.Noah3.Ma4.rye5.law6.shoe7.cow8.ivy9.bee10.toes

Goovertheseafewtimes;youshouldbeabletothinkofanynumberfrom1to10andknowthePegWordalmost immediately. Ifyouhearoneof thePegWords,youshould,justasinstantly,knowthenumberitrepresents.Whenyou

knowthemfairlywell,you’rereadytolearnhowtousethesePegs.Let’s assume that youwant to remember ten items in and out of order, by

number.Let’salsoassumethatyouhandletheseitemsinahaphazardorder.Youmustrememberthatnumber8iscracker.Therewould,ordinarily,beno

problempicturingacracker,buthowwouldyoupicturethe8?Well,it’seasyifyoulearnedthefirst tenPegWords—thenumber8is… ivy.Simplyassociatecrackertoivy;seearidiculouspicturebetweenthosetwoitemsinyourmind’seye,perhapsmillionsofcrackersinsteadofivygrowingalloverabrickwall.Now. You want to remember that number 3 will be scissors. Associate

scissorstoyourPegWordfornumber3,whichisMa.YoumightseeyourselfcuttingyourMainhalfwithagiganticpairofscissors.(Thatpicturemaymakeyou shudder, but you won’t forget it.) For each of these, be sure to see thepictureyouselect;wewon’tbotherremindingyouagain.Number 5will be fish.Associate fish to your PegWord for the number 5,

law.Perhapsapolicemanisarrestingagiganticfish,ora largefishiswalkingthebeatlikeacop.Number1ispen.Youmightseeyourselfwearingagiganticpen,insteadofa

tie(yourPegWordforthenumber1),aroundyourneck—seetheinkdrippingalloveryourshirt.Number 10 is teeth. Associate teeth to your PegWord, toes. Perhaps you

want to picture large teeth on your feet instead of toes, or teeth are biting offyourtoes.Number4istelephone.YourPegWordisrye;youmightseeyourselftalking

intoaloafofryebreadinsteadofatelephone,oralargebottleofryewhiskeyismakingaphonecall.Number7iscar.AssociatecartoyourPegWordforthenumber7,cow.See

acowdrivingacar,oryou’remilkingacowandcarscomeoutinsteadofmilk.Number2isarticle.YourPegWordfor2isNoah;youmustassociatearticle

to that. This is being used here purposely. If you want to picturemillions ofarticlesfallingoutofalonggraybeard,fine.Ifyoufeelthatarticleistoovaguetopicture,useaSubstituteWordtoremindyouofit.Youmightuseahtickle,oranewspaperarticle.Usewhateveryoulike,butbesuretoassociateittobeard,orwhateveryou’reusingtorepresentNoah.Number 9 is pillow. Associate that to bee, your PegWord for 9. Perhaps

pillows,insteadofbees,areswarmingalloveryouandstingingyou;oryou’resleepingonagiganticbeeinsteadofapillow.Finally,youmustrememberthatnumber6isballoon.ThePegWordfor6is

shoe. See yourselfwearing balloons instead of shoes, or you’re blowing up ashoeinsteadofaballoon.Useoneofthese,oroneyouthoughtofyourself,and

seeitinyourmind’seye.If you’ve made all the associations and visualized them clearly, there’s no

doubtthatyouknowthetenitems.Tryit.ThinkofthePegWordfornumber1:tie.Whatdoes tie remindyouof?Whatwereyouwearing insteadof a tie?Apen,ofcourse.

ThinkofNoah(2).Thatremindsyouof…article.ThinkofMa(3).Thatremindsyouof…scissors.Thinkofrye(4).Thatremindsyouof…telephone.Thinkoflaw(5).Thatremindsyouof…fish.Thinkofshoe(6).Thatremindsyouof…balloon.Thinkofcow(7).Thatremindsyouof…car.Thinkofivy(8).Thatremindsyouof…cracker.Thinkofbee(9).Thatremindsyouof…pillow.Thinkoftoes(10).Thatremindsyouof…teeth.

Aside from the fact that the itemswere given to you in an out-of-sequenceorder, you haven’t really accomplished too much more than you could haveaccomplishedwiththeLink.Butthereisadifference.Ifyouwanttoknowwhatnumber6is,simplythinkofthePegWordfor6(shoe)andyou’llinstantlyknowthe6thitem!It’s…balloon,right?That’s not all. If you thinkof any item, you’ll instantly know its numerical

position.Wherewas the telephone?Well, telephonemakesyou think rye, andryeisthePegWordforthenumber4,sotelephonehastobe4.Ifyou’dliketotestyourself,seehowquicklyyoucanfillintheseblanks:

(cow)7=_____(Ma)3=_____(toes)10=_____(bee)9=_____(tie)1=_____(law)5=_____(shoe)6=_____(Noah)2=_____(ivy)8=_____(rye)4=_____

Andthese:

scissorsis_____telephoneis_____fishis_____articleis_____pillowis_____balloonis_____crackeris_____caris_____teethis_____penis_____

Andthese:

10is_____3is_____1is_____8is_____4is_____caris_____fishis_____articleis_____pillowis_____balloonis_____

Are you impressed with yourself? You should be. Having read them only

once,you’verememberedtenitemsforward,backward,andinsideout.ThePegWordsareanextensionoftheplacesor“loci”ideamentionedatthe

beginningofthebook.You’vearrivedatthemslowly,stepbystep.Thesimplememoryaidshelpedyou to remember thesoundsof thephoneticalphabet, thesoundsthemselveshelpedyoutorememberthePegWords,andthePegWordsmadeiteasytoremembertenrandomitems.Obviously,thebetteryouknowthePegs,thefasteryou’llbeabletomemorizeaPeglist,asyoujustdid.But what if you have to remember eleven items, or twelve, or twenty?No

problem.KnowingthephoneticalphabetenablesyoutomakeupPegWordsforanynumber.Youcan’tpicturethenumber11,butyoucanpictureatot,ayoungchild.And theword totcanonly represent thenumber11,because ithas the tandtsounds,1and1.ThePegWordfor12istin;pictureatincan,orseetheitematthatposition

madeoftin.

Thencome:

13.tomb;pictureagravestone.14.tire15.towel16.dish17.tack18.dove19.tub20.nose

Goovertheseonceortwiceandyou’llknowthem.Nowyoucanreallyshow

off.Havesomeonenumberapaperfrom1to20andlethimcallanynumberandany item, until each number has an item next to it. You make good strongassociations,ofcourse,ofPegWordtoitem.Next,calltheitemsofffrom1tothelastnumber.Thenletyourfriendcallanynumber—youtellhimtheitem—followedbyanyitem,whereuponyoutellhimthenumber!A list of PegWords up to 100 follows. They really are easy to learn, and

there’snorotememoryinvolved.Hadthewordsbeenselectedhaphazardly,theideawouldstillwork,butthatwouldentailrotememory.Asitis,thewordsallfit the pattern you’ve learned, and anything patternized is easier to remember.Thesoundsofthephoneticalphabetmakeitafairlyeasytask.Wewon’t tell you that it’s important for you to know them all thoroughly.

Youshouldknowtwentyorsoperfectlyhowever,andwedosuggestthatyouatleastbecomefamiliarwithallofthem.Gooverthem,withconcentration,afewtimesandyouwillbefamiliarwiththem.And, itcan’thurtyouin theleast toreallylearnthemall.Afteryou’vegoneoverthewordsafewtimes,youcanusethislistasadrill.

Putyourhandorapieceofpaperoverthewords,lookatthenumbers,andseeifthewordcomestoyou.Ifyoulike,youcanmakeupflashcards,butthatisn’treallynecessary.Ifyou’restuckonaword,thinkoftheconsonantsounds,thenstickvowelsinthereuntilthewordcomestoyou.Itwill,soonerorlater.

1.tie2.Noah3.Ma4.rye5.law6.shoe

7.cow8.ivy9.bee10.toes11.tot12.tin13.tomb14.tire15.towel16.dish17.tack18.dove19.tub20.nose21.net22.nun23.name24.Nero25.nail26.notch27.neck28.knife29.knob30.mouse31.mat32.moon33.mummy34.mower35.mule36.match37.mug38.movie39.mop40.rose41.rod42.rain43.ram44.rower45.roll

46.roach47.rock48.roof49.rope50.lace51.lot52.lion53.loom54.lure55.lily56.leech57.log58.lava59.lip60.cheese61.sheet62.chain63.chum64.cherry65.jail66.choochoo67.chalk68.chef69.ship70.case71.cot72.coin73.comb74.car75.coal76.cage77.coke78.cave79.cob80.fuzz81.fit82.phone83.foam84.fur

85.file86.fish87.fog88.fife89.fob90.bus91.bat92.bone93.bum94.bear95.bell96.beach97.book98.puff99.pipe100.disease

Afteryouuse thewords forawhile,you’ll see that it’s thepicture thatwill

come to mind when you see or hear a number, not the actual word. Whathappenswhenweseeorhear, say,36?Weactuallyseeamatch,not thewordmatch.ThiswillhappenautomaticallyifyouusethePegWords—andyouwillusethem,asyoucontinuereading.You’ll learn many uses for the Peg Words. Going back to the long-digit

numbersintheprecedingchapter,forinstance,whenyou’restuckononeortwodigitsinanumberyoucansimplyusethePegWordandkeeprightongoing.Itsavestime.Occasionally,you’llcometotheendofalongnumberandstillhaveoneortwodigitstotakecareof.UsethePegWordforthat.Andincidentally,ifyouseeagroupoflikedigits,don’tworry—usually,like

digitsactuallymakeanumbereasiertoremember.Take000000inthemiddleofa long number—well, Souza’s size would take care of five zeros; zoos sueSouza’s siswould take careof eight zeros.Youwon’t evenhave todo that iftherearedigitsbeforeandafterthezeros—9000000941,passes(poses,possess)Souza’ssport(orspirit)woulddoit.If you’re worried about the ridiculous pictures staying with you, running

aroundinyourmindforever,don’tbe.Oneofthebeautiesofthesystemsisthefact that all of them aremeans to an end.Once that end is accomplished, themeans fade and disappear because they are no longer necessary. When theinformation is used a few times, you know that information—what youwon’tremember are your original silly pictures! That’s one reason you can use the

samePegWordsoverandoveragain.

•

JL:ThePegWordsarethehandiestthings—they’vehelpedmegetridofsomehostilitieswithoutanyoneknowingwhatI’mtalkingabout.

HL:Doyoumeanthenamesyousometimesyelloutonthebasketballfloor?

JL:Right.WhenarefereemakeswhatIthinkisanunfaircall,andhisnumberisthirty-three, I’ll yell something like, “You, you—mummy!” Or if a playerwhosenumberisnineteensticksanelbowinmyribs,Imightcallhim“Youtub,you!”—nevermindsomeoftheothernamessomenumbersremindmeof!

•

You’vejustlearnedthethirdofthethreebasicsystemsofmemory:theLink,theSubstituteWord,andnowthePeg.Wehaven’tbeenabletofindanymemoryproblemthatcouldnotbesolved—madeeasier—byapplyingoneofthesethree,or one in conjunction with another. It is sometimes necessary to twist ormanipulate the systems somewhat, but theywill stillmake anymemory choreeasiertohandle.Let’s go back a bit. Earlier you learned to memorize the fifty states in

alphabetical sequence; you also realized that you could associate a SubstituteWord for the state to a SubstituteWord for its capital city. To remember thestates in sequence, you would use the Link system and the Substitute Wordsystem.But nowyou canmemorize themby number, in and out of order, byusingtheSubstituteWordsystemandthePegsystem.YousimplyassociatetheSubstituteWordorphraseforthestatenametothe

vitalPegWord.Onceyouformaridiculouspictureinyourmindbetween,say,tieandalbum,itwillbeeasiertorememberthantoforgetthatthefirst(tie)stateisAlabama(album),andviceversa.Pictureacon(prisoner)beingawhiz(whizcon)witharope(49),andyou’ll

know that the49th state, alphabetically, isWisconsin.Pictureyourselfplayingtennis(Tennessee)inthepouringrain (42),andyouhavetheinformationyouwant.Anewbrass car (Nebraska) is driving around and around yourneck (27);

millions of giganticpencils (Pennsylvania) are seeing amovie (38); there arepeaches(Georgia)growingbetweenyourtoes(10);asassycan(Kansas)isina

giganticdish(16);anun(22)ismixingsomethingagainandagain(Michigan);abride (marry) lands (Maryland)onyournose (20); agiganticbottleofgin,wearingawesternten-gallonhat(WestVirginia)isjumpingoffaroof(48);anIndian(Indiana)iswearingatire(14)asaheaddress;andsoon.Now you can remember not only nouns, but anything—by number. What

works for thestatescanbeapplied to thePresidentsof theUnitedStates.Youmightwanttotrytomemorizethemallbynumber,justforthementalexercise.Itshouldn’ttakemorethanafewminutes.FindalistofthePresidentsandapplytheSubstituteWord andPeg systems. (Here you’ll bemaking up a SubstituteWordforaperson’snameratherthanforaplacename—nodifference,really.)Someexamples:The11thPresidentwasPolk;youseeyourselfpokingyour

finger through a tot; the 30th President was Coolidge, amouse is cool on abuilding ledge; a (blue) cannon (Buchanan) is firing towels (15) instead ofcannonballs;you’repiercing (Pierce)a tire (14);agigantic tub (19) is fullofhay,orhaze(Hayes);youpourinkonadoorknob(29)andthe inkgetshard(Harding);andsoon.ThePeg andSubstituteWord systems canbe applied to concepts almost as

easily. Suppose you had to learn the amendments to the Constitution of theUnited States, by number. Select one word, phrase, or thought from theamendment—theword,phrase,orthoughtthatyouthinkwillremindyouoftheentire amendment.And usually,what you selectwill remind you of the entireconcept.(ThisistheKeyWordorThoughtideathatwediscussedinChapter6.)Now,associatethatKeyThoughttothePegWord.That’sallyouhavetodo.It’sreallythesameaswhatyoudidwithstatesandPresidents,exceptthatheretheSubstitute Word—the Key Thought—will remind you of much moreinformation.We’reassumingthat ifyou’re interestedin learningtheamendments,orany

material,youbasicallyunderstandwhatitisyou’restudying.Whatyouneedarereminders.Forexample,theseventhamendmenttotheConstitutiongivesthecitizensof

theUnited States the right to trial by jury. Associate cow (7) to that; all youreallyneed todo is to seeyourself in a courtroom,being judgedbya jury ofcows.Thefourthamendmenthastodowithprotectionagainstunreasonablesearch

and seizure.See a gigantic loaf ofrye bread (or a gigantic bottle ofwhiskey)comingintoyourhometosearchit;youcan’tstophimbecausehehasawarranttodoso.Picture a tomb being a slave driver to remind you that the thirteenth

amendmentabolishedslavery.

The sixteenth amendment is the one we’d rather forget—the one thatestablishedtheincometax.Seeyourselfpayingyourtaxeswithdishes insteadofmoney.The eighteenth amendment startedProhibition—picture adove trying toget

intoaspeakeasy.Thereis,ofcourse,nowayforustouseexamplesthatwillnecessarilyzeroin

on one of your specific, personal memory problems. What we’re trying toaccomplish is tomakeyouawareof thevarietyofways inwhich the systemscanbeapplied.Bythetimeyou’refinishedwiththebook,youshouldhaveallthenecessaryweaponstoface,attack,andsolveanymemoryproblem.

12STYLENUMBERS,PRICES,TELEPHONENUMBERS

HL:IimaginethefirstthingmostpeoplewhoknowthatyoumemorizedthefirstfewhundredpagesoftheManhattantelephonebookwonderis,“Whyonearthwouldanyonewantto?”

JL: If they asked me, I’d tell them the truth—for the publicity. Actually, Imemorized only the first column of every page.And the names and numbersdon’tstartuntilpage22.

HL: That’s still … let’s see … maybe thirty thousand names and telephonenumbers?

JL:Atleast.Anyway,Idon’tknowthemanymore.Thestuntserveditspurpose—topublicize thesystems thatenablepeople to remembershortnumbers, liketelephonenumbers,instantly.Andtokeeponrememberingthem,aslongastheywantto.

•

Theabilitytopicturenumbersviathephoneticalphabet,plustheabilitytousethe Substitute Word system of memory is all that’s necessary to help yourememberstylenumbers,prices,andtelephonenumbers.To remember a style number, associate the number to the product; it’s that

simple.Ifthestylenumberofatypewriteris691,associatechoppedorchippedtotypewriter.Ifyou’reinthetypewriterbusiness,thenyou’dhavetoassociatethe stylenumber to thedistinctive featuresof eachmachine, sinceyou’dhavemany styles of typewriters. (Some style numbers include letters; you’ll learnhowtohandlethat,too.)The same approachworks for prices. Here are a few examples of different

itemsandprices.Formthesuggestedridiculousassociations,oruseyourown,thenyoucantestyourselfandseeifitworks.Alampsellsfor$40.11;picturearestedorroastedlamp.Seethatpicture.

Acamerasellsfor$19.18;pictureagiganticcamerabeingtippedoffatable,oracameratakingapictureoftapedivy.Television set, $142.05; see a gigantic television set riding the tracks like a

train;ithasasailonit(trainsail=$142.05).Toaster,$34.95;seeagiganticmarbletoastingbread,oratoasterpoppingup

millionsofmarbles.Car,$3,102.86;youmightseeacartakingadoseofmedicinefromafish.Ifyou’vetriedtoseethesesillypictures,nowtrytofillinthecorrectprices:

When it comes to telephonenumbers, there’snoquestion that remembering

themmust saveyoua lotof timeandaggravationovera longperiod.Allyouneed do is calculate the minutes it takes to look up a number or dial theinformationoperator,redialbecauseyoudialedthewrongnumberfirst,etc., tobeconvinced.Torememberatelephonenumberyousimplyassociateawordorphrasethat

tellsyouthenumber(phonetically)tothepersonorcompany,ortoaSubstituteWordforthepersonorcompany.Eventually,thephonecompanywillbeusingtheANC,AllNumberCode,andtherewillbenoexchangenames.Atthepresenttime,someexchangenamesarestillinuse.Remembering an all-digit phone number is the same as remembering any

number. If your doctor’s number is 940-8212, associate doctor (stethoscope,perhaps) to press fountain, or brass fountain, or price fountain. If you’drather,youcanassociatethenumbertohisname.Ifyou’dliketohaveyourelectrician’snumberatyourfingertips,associatehis

number toelectric. If thenumber is 862-9421, youmight see an electric plugfishin’anddrinkingbrandy,oryoucouldusefashionbrand.There’snorulethatsaysyourwordsmustcoverthefirstthreedigitsandthenthelastfourdigits.Use any words to cover any of the digits; it doesn’t matter. If a word thatcontains all the necessary sounds comes to mind—use it. For 720-5127, youmightthinkofcanslooting,whichisfine,butconsultingalsowouldtellyouthenumber.As for exchange-name telephone numbers, there’s a simple way to handle

them.The firstword in your associationmust tell you both the two exchangelettersandtheexchangenumber.Youthenuseanywordorphrasetotellyoutheremainingdigits.

IfthenumberyouwanttorememberisRA3-9110,thephraserampotatoeswoulddoit.Thewordrambeginswithra,andtheverynextconsonantsoundism,for3;RA3.Thisbecomeseveneasierwhenyourealizethatthatfirstwordneedn’tcontainonlythetwolettersandtheoneconsonantsound.Itmustbeginwith that—thenall followingsoundsaredisregarded.So,youcouldhaveusedrampartpotatoesforthisnumber,becauserampartwouldstillrepresentRA3.Theword,orpicture,burnwouldrepresentBU4;cigarettewouldrepresent

CI7,plan orplantwould representPL2, and soon.For exchanges likeTNand LW (NewYork exchanges), with which it is impossible to formwords,makeupastandard.ToncouldrepresentTN,andlowcouldrepresentLW.Forthose, you’dknow that a picture like ton cowmarked representsTN7-3471.Lateron,whenyoulearnhowtopictureindividuallettersofthealphabet,you’llseehowthatwouldalsohelptosolvethisproblem.The publicity offices of Stein & Day, the publisher of this book, has the

numberPL3-7285;we remembered it byassociatingabeer stein shining likethesun(day)toplumcanfull;theshiningsteinwaspouringoutenoughplumstomake a can full.Of course,we could have changed the exchange letters todigits,making thenumber753-7285,andusedclimbcan full,orcolumncanfall.Thisexamplebringsustotwopoints.First,whenyouusetwowordsforthe

lastfourdigits,usingthebasicPegWords,itmaycauseaslightconfusion.Ifwehadusedcoinfile,howwouldweknow,atafuture time, that itwascoinfile,andnotfilecoin?Itdoesn’tmatter thatmuch—afteryou’vedialedanumberafewtimes,thepictureyouoriginallymadeisn’tnecessaryanyway,you’llknowthe number. But, you can solve thisminor problem by using anyword but abasicPegWordfor thesecondword. Ifyoumakeahabitofdoingthat,you’llknowthatthebasicPegWordalwayscomesfirst.So,forthefourdigits5230,youwouldn’tuselionmouse,you’duselionmess,moss,ormoose.Thesecondpointisthatyoucaneliminatethenecessityforformingwordsto

covertheexchangenamebyeliminatingtheexchangename.Youcanlookatatelephone dial and transpose the letters to digits, and the problem is solved.Since a telephone dial isn’t always handy, the best thing to do would be tomemorize it.Onceyou’vedone that,youcan instantly transposeanyexchangenameorletterstodigits.Makeupawordorphrasethatremindsyouofthethreelettersateachdigiton

a dial, and associate that to the digit (PegWord).Here are some suggestions;reallyseethepictures,andyou’llhavememorizedthedialinnotime.

2—ABC:PictureNoahlearninghisABC’s.3—DEF:PictureyourMabeingdeaf.

4—GHI:SeeaGIdrinkingrye,oryou’redrinkingryeandgettinghigh.5—JKL:Pictureajackalbeingapoliceman(law).6—MNO:Pictureashoesaying,“Me?No”;orashoebeingmeantoanO.7—PRS:Seeacowcarryingagiganticpurse.8—TUV:Pictureivybeingtough(enoughtoremindyouofTUV).9—WXY:Abeeiswaxy.

Allthatremaintobediscussedareareacodes.Theareacodesimplychangesaseven-digitphonenumbertoaten-digitnumber.Makeupawordtorepresentthe area code, put it into your original association, and you’ve got it. If Mr.Smith’stelephonenumberis(201)648-9470,youmightseeapictureofyourselfsmashing a nest (201) with a blacksmith’s hammer; a sheriff (648) breaks(9470)yourhammer.Stein andDay’smain offices are located inWestchesterCounty (area code

914).Thetelephonenumberis762-2151.Apictureofalargeslabofbutteronacushionthatisnettled(ornotlight)woulddoit.If youmakemany out-of-area calls, youmight want to prememorize some

area codes; just associate area code to place.Then you’ll have them all readywhenyouneedthem.Youcanmemorizethecodesformajorcitiesonly,ifyoulike.It’seasyenough.TheareacodeforManhattanis212;that’salmostreadymadeforyoubecause

Indian represents 212 phonetically, and everyone knows that we boughtManhattanfromtheIndians.Or,youcouldassociateIndiantomanhat.Associatenotimeto lostangels inordertorememberthat theareacodefor

LosAngelesis213.TheareacodeforallofWyomingis307;associateYroamingtomask.AllofDelawareis302;associateDellaweartomason.Nevadais702;associateneverthereorgamblingtocousin.West Virginia is 304; associate a bottle of gin, wearing awestern hat, to

miseryormiser.Clevelandis216;associatecleavelandtonotouch.Chicagois312;associatechick(cargo)tomytan,median,ormutton.Again, you’ll need the silly pictures only until the numbers become

knowledge. Best of all, you’ll have liberated yourself from misdialed calls,telephonebooks,andtelephoneoperators!

13PLAYINGCARDS

JL:I’veseenyouhandleadeckofcards—Idon’tblamecasinosfornotwantingtodealblackjacktoyou.

HL:Therearesixwhowon’t,thatIknowof.But,they’renotbeingassmartasthey think.Sure, I’ll probablybeat thehouse atblackjack,but then I lose thatandmoreatthecraptables.

JL:Memorysystemswon’thelpyouthere.

HL: No, but a combination of memory systems and knowledge of the gamereally works for blackjack. It’s actually the only casino gamewhere you canbettertheodds,sometimeseventheodds,orchangethemsothatyouhaveabitofanedge.

JL:Isthatbecauseyoucandoubleyourbetafterthehandhasstarted?

HL:Right.And rememberingexactlywhichcardshavebeenplayed is agreathelpinknowingwhentodoubleyourbet,andwhentostoporhit.Ihavetotellyou,it’snotsoeasynowadays.Thankstopeoplewhoknowoursystems,mostcasinosusemorethanonedeck—andneverdealdowntotheend.

JL:Toobad,Harry,you’llhavetoworkforyourmoney!

•

Playing cards are difficult to remember because they are abstractions; they’relikenumbers.There’sreallynowaymostpeoplecanpictureacard,soagaintheconcepthereistomakeanintangibletangible.Thetrickistohaveeachcardofadeck represented by a definite, concrete item—just as you did with numbers.Oncethat’saccomplishedyou’llbeabletopictureplayingcards,andthentheycanbeassociatedtoother things justasnumberscan.There’sadifferent,veryeasyway to remembercards—the“missingcard”or“mutilation” idea—which

we’llgettoshortly.Incidentally,youshouldlearntheideasinthissectionwhetherornotyouplay

cards.Youneverknow,youmaybecomeinterestedincardsinthefuture—butmoreimportant,tryingtheideasisagreatmentalexercise.Thepatternusedisalmostobvious.TheCardWordforeachcard(uptothe

10’s) will begin with either C, H, S, or D—for clubs, hearts, spades, anddiamonds.The very next consonant sound in thatwordwill be the sound thatrepresentsthevalueofthecard.So,thewordcancouldrepresentonlythe2C.That’sthepattern,andonceyouunderstandit,therearenodecisionsorchoicestomake.Can represents the2Cbecause it beginswith aC forclubs, and thenextconsonantsoundisn,for2.Theword(orpicture)sailmustrepresentthe5S,becauseitbeginswithans

(forspades)andisfollowedbythelsound,for5.The4Hishare;6Disdash;4Ciscore;8Sissafe;9Disdeb;ADisdate(aceis1);6Ciscash;andsoon.Besureyoufullyunderstandthesefewexamplesbeforeyoucontinuereading.

ThenlookattheCardWordsonthispage.Asyoulookthemallover,you’llseethat the jacks,queens, andkings representadeparture from thepattern,whichwe’llexplainmomentarily.Thessoundisusedtorepresentthe10’s.Sincethereisnozeroofanysuit,we

mightaswellusethatsoundforthe10’s.So,thepatternorsystemholdsforallthecardsfromaceto10.Don’t worry about the ds in suds, for the 10S. It’s really one sound—dz,

whichrepresents0.Andevenifyoubreakitintotwosounds,that’sd-s,whichis1-0.Itcanrepresentonly10.

AC—cat AH—hat AS—suit AD—date2C—can 2H—hen 2S—sun 2D—dune3C—comb 3H—hem 3S—sum 3D—dam4C—core 4H—hare 4S—sewer 4D—door5C—coal 5H—hail 5S—sail 5D—doll6C—cash 6H—hash 6S—sash 6D—dash7C—cake 7H—hog 7S—sock 7D—dock8C—cuff 8H—hoof 8S—safe 8D—dive9C—cup 9H—hoop 9S—soap 9D—deb10C—case 10H—hose 10S—suds 10D—doseJC—club JH—heart JS—spade JD—diamondQC—creamQH—queen QS—steamQD—dream

KC—king KH—hinge KS—sing KD—drink

Besides, thewordsup through the10’s fit thepatternandcanbepictured, thecourt cardwords also canbepictured—so theword itself isn’t that important.It’sthepicturethewordcreatesinyourmindthatmatters—aftersomeuse,youshouldn’tthinkthewordbutsimplyseethepictureitcreates.Onceyou’veseenapictureinyourmindforanyword,that’sthepictureyou

should (andwill) seeeach time.Afewsuggestions:Forcore,pictureanapplecore; for cuff, trousers; case, either a briefcase or a crate; hem, a dress; hash,corned-beefhash;hoof,ahorseshoe;hoop,abasketballhoop;hose,nylonsoragardenhose;suit,aman’ssuitjacket(thisistodistinguishitfromcuff);sum,anaddingmachineorasheetofpapercoveredwithnumbers;sash,awindowsashor justawindow;suds,a tub fullof sudsywater;date, the fruitoracalendar;dune,asandhill;dam,BoulderDamorawaterfall;dash,atrackstarrunningthe100-yarddash;dock,apier;deb,adebutante;dose,aspoonfulofmedicine—wesimplypictureaspoon.Forthepicture,orcourt,cardswecouldhavestayedwithinthepattern,butit

getsalittlestickytocomeupwithwordslikehatedfortheJH(sincejackis11,queen is12,andking is13),andcotton for theQC. Itcanbedone,andwe’llgive you a list ofwords that staywith the pattern, so don’t decide yetwhichmethodyou’lluseforthecourtcards.WeprefertousetheCardWordsaslisted.Forthejacks,simplyusethesuit

words themselves; they each have meaning—a club, a heart (the organ, or aValentinecard),aspade(shovel),andadiamond.For theQHandKC,weusethe words queen and king, respectively. Just be sure that you differentiatebetweenthetwopicturessincethey’resimilar,bothroyalty.Forqueen,picturealadywearingacrownandagownonathrone;forking,picturethecrownbutbesurehe’swearingtrousers.Thewordsfor theremainingqueensandkingseachbeginwiththevitalsuit

letter, but then each word rhymes as closely as possible to queen and king.They’renotexactrhymes(exceptforsing),butcloseenough.Don’tworryaboutthese; you’ll probably remember themeasilybecause theyare exceptions.Forsteam,picturearadiator;fordream,abedorsomeonesleeping.AswasthecasewithPegWords,ifyougoovertheCardWordsafewtimes

youmaybesurprisedathowquicklyyou’llknowthem.Now.Aspromised,herearethewordsforthecourtcardsthatstaywithinthe

pattern.Youhavechoicesforallofthem,andyou’llhavetodecidewhetheryou

wanttousetheseortheonesweuse.Again,itdoesn’treallymatter.Wehadtousephrasesforthreeofthekings,andtakeabitoflicensewiththeJHandQH,buttheywillworkjustaswellbecausetheydocreateapictureinthemind.

JC—cadet,coatedJH—hothead,hated,hooted,hoodedJS—steed,staid,satedJD—dotted,doted,deadhead,deadheat,dated

QC—cotton,codeineQH—hootin’,heatin’,hatin’,headin’,Hayden(Planetarium),hoedown

QS—satan,satin,sitin,sadden,sedan

QD—detain,deaden,dotin’KT—cuteMa,caddiemeKH—headhome,highdome,hitme,hightime,hideme

KS—steam,stemKD—deadaim,teatime(thetwillstillremindyouofdfordiamond)

Makeyourdecisionas towhichmethod touse for thecourtcards,and then

putinalittletimelearningallthewordsorphrases.You’llfindtheCardWordsjustaseffectiveanaidforrememberingplayingcardsasthePegWordsareforrememberingnumbers.Obviously,theycan’tbemuchhelpuntilyouknowthemfairlywell.AswastrueofthePegWords,anywordswouldservethepurpose.Butbecausethesearepatternized,youeliminaterotememory.Ifyouknowthepatternandthephoneticsounds,thechoreishalfdone.If you like, you can easilymakeup adeckof flash cards.Simplywrite the

correctCardWordonthebackofeachcard.Shufflethemandlookatthemoneatatime—eitherbackorface.Ifyouseetheface,callouttheCardWord,thenturnthecardovertoseeifyou’reright.Ifyouseetheback,theCardWord,callout thenameof thecardand turn itover tocheck.Whenyouget to thepointwhereyoucandothiswithallfifty-twocards,withouthesitation,youknowtheCardWordsfairlywell.Allright,assumingyouknowtheCardWords,howdoyouapplythem?Well,

nowyoucanremembercardsaseasilyasyourememberitems.YoucanusetheLink to remembercards insequence.ALinkofagiganticapplecore takingadrink,adolldrinking,agiganticcakerockingadollinitsarms,acakeactingasthesailofasailboat,asail(boat)shiningintheskylikethesun,thesunhavinglongearsandhoppingabout likeahare,agiganticcuphoppinglikeahare,alarge cupwearing socks, and a gigantic sock being a radiator (steam),wouldhelp you remember the 4C, KD, 5D, 7C, 5S, 2S, 4H, 9C, 7S, and QS—insequence,forwardandbackward.Oryoucanuse thePegsystemtoremembercardsbynumber, inandoutof

order. This is quite an impressive memory demonstration, because you arememorizingtwoabstracts,numbersandcards.Youneedtoknowtwothings—thePegWordsfrom1to52,andtheCardWords.Youcandoitwithafulldeck;butit’sjustasimpressivewithhalfthedeck,oreventwentycards.Justtoshowyouhowitworks,assumeafriendshufflesthecardsandcallsoff

tenofthem,fromthetop.Maketheseassociationsoruseyourownpictures:

You’rewearingalargehorseshoe(hoof)insteadofatie.Aman’sbeard(Noah)ismadeupofmillionsofdollarbills(cash).YourMaissingingattheMetropolitanOpera.Ahen is laying abottleofrye insteadof an egg, or it’s drinking fromabottleofrye.

Agiganticcombiswearingauniform;it’sapoliceman(law).Agiganticshoeissittingonathrone,wearingroyalrobes;it’stheking.It’shailingcowsinsteadofhailstones.Millions of cups, instead of ivy, are growing all over a wall; or, ivy isgrowingalloveragiganticcup.

Youopenasafe,andmillionsofbeesflyoutandstingyou.You’rewearing toes instead of ahat; or hats are growing between yourtoes.

If you’ve really tried to see theseor yourownpictures, and if you’re fairly

familiarwiththeCardWords,you’llknowtencardsbynumber.It’squiteeasy.Thinkof thePegWord fornumber1, tie.Whatdoes itmakeyou thinkof? Itshouldmakeyouthinkofhorseshoe,orhoof.Hoofcanrepresentonlyonecard,andthat’sthe8H.Tryitonyourown;thinkofeachofthePegWordsupto10.Eachoneshould

make you think of a Card Word. Transpose that to a card, and you’ll haverememberedthecardatthatposition.Seeifyoucanfillintheseblanks:

Card 2(Noah) isthe_____.

Card 2(Noah) isthe_____.Card 3(Ma) isthe_____.Card 4(rye) isthe_____.Card 5(law) isthe_____.Card 6(shoe) isthe_____.Card 7(cow) isthe_____.Card 8(ivy) isthe_____.Card 9(bee) isthe_____.Card 10(toes) isthe_____.Sincethis isexactlythesameasdoingaregularPeglist,youalsoknowthe

cardsoutoforder.Ifyouthoughtofcow(7),thepictureofhailingcowsshouldcometomind,andhailcanonlybethe5H.IfyourfriendcalledtheKS,you’dtransposethattoitsCardWord,sing,whichshouldmakeyouthinkofMa,andthattellsyouthattheKSisthethirdcard.Testyourself—numberorcard.Ifyoumade the associations originally, you’ll know the position of each card, andwhichcardisatwhichposition.Ifyoudidn’tformtheassociations,gobackanddosonow.Otherwise,you’llneverknowwhetherornotthisreallyworks!Knowing the CardWords makes the cards of a deck tangible and easy to

picture in themind.Once they canbepictured, they canbe associated so thatyoucanbeOriginallyAwareofthem.Here’ssomemorepracticeforyou,althoughyoucaneasilydoitonyourown.

Use the Peg Words from 11 to 20 and remember the following cards. Thenyou’llknowtwentycardsbynumber.Afteryou’veformedtheassociations,testyourself.

11.4D(tottodoor)12.JS(tintospade)13.3H(tombtohem)14.8D(tiretodive)15.10C(toweltocase)16.6S(dishtosash)17.10H(tacktohose)18.7H(dovetohog)19.5D(tubtodoll)20.KH(nosetohinge)

Now that you’ve impressed yourself, you’re ready to learn a fascinating

applicationoftheCardWords.

Neither theLinknor thePegwouldcome in toohandy inmostcardgames.Forany“discard”gamesuchasginrummy,bridge,hearts,orcanasta,youneedthe“mutilation”idea.We’llteachittoyouasastunt,andthenwe’lldiscussitsuseindifferentcardgames.Assumethatafriendshufflesafulldeckofcards.Heremoves,say,fivecards,

which he puts into his pocketwithout looking at them.Now, he calls off theremainingforty-sevencards.Whenhe’sdonethat,youtellhim,onebyone,thecardshehasinhispocket—inotherwords,youtellhimthenamesofthemissingcards.There’s no need to use the Link or the Peg in order to accomplish this; it

would takemuch too long.Themutilation idea is fasterandeasierbecauseallyouneed to know is your list ofCardWords.You simplydo this:Whenyouhear a card called, transpose it to its CardWord andmutilate that word (thepicture,really)insomeway.Say the KD is called, see a spilled drink; the 4H is called, picture a hare

without ears; the5D, seeadollwithanarmor legmissing; theAC, seeacatwithoutatail;the2S,seeacloudobliteratingthesun,andsoon.Simplymutilatethepicturethatrepresents thecardinyourmind, insomequickway.Thiswillbecomeeasierandfastertodoasyoukeepdoingit,fortworeasons:You’llgetto know the Card Words better, and once you see a mutilation of any CardWord,you’llusethatsamepictureallthetime.Ithasbecomeaninstantaneouspictureinyourmind.This is probably the best example of pinpointed concentration andOriginal

Awareness that we could demonstrate. That instantaneous picture of themutilatedCardWordhas forcedyou tobeawareof thatparticularcardat thatmoment,asclearlyasishumanlypossible.Youcanprovethisbytryingit.Afteryou’vemutilatedthecalledforty-sevencards,allyouhavetodoistogooverallyour CardWords,mentally.AnyCardWord that hasnot beenmutilatedwillstandoutliketheproverbialsorethumb!GoovertheCardWordsinaspecificorder;wealwaysuseCHSD,whichis

easy toremember ifyou thinkof theword“chased.”Perhapsyou’dprefer theHSDCorder—thinkofthephrase“hisdeck.”Youmightwanttousethebridge,oralphabetical,orderofsuits(CDHS),itdoesn’tmatter.Alwaysusingthesamesuitorderwillsaveyouthetimeandpossibleconfusionofpossiblygoingoverthe same suit twice. Why take the chance of going over, say, the club CardWords,calling theoneor twoclubcards thatare inyour friend’spocket, thenthe hearts—and then not being sure which suits you’ve already done? Goingoverthesuitsinthesameordereverytimeeliminatesthatpossibility.Itdoesn’tmatterhowmanycardsyoutellyourfriendtotakefromthedeck.

Actually, themorecardshe removes, theeasier it is foryou; there’llbe fewercardsforyoutomutilate.Fivecardsisagooddemonstrationforpokerplayers;for gin rummy players, have someone remove ten cards. For a bridgedemonstration,youcanhavesomeoneshuffleandthendealoutthefourhandsofthirteencardseach.Hethentakesthreeofthehands,shuffles,andcallsthemoffto you a card at a time.You should be able to name all thirteen cards in thefourthhand.To gain speed, you should first work at making the Card Words second

nature;thebetteryouknowthem,thefasteryou’llbeabletodothemissing-carddemonstration. After you’ve tried it a few times at a rate and speed you findcomfortable,pushyourselfabit—havea friendcall thecards toyouata littlefasterpacethanyouthinkyoucanhandle.Tellyourfriendnottoslowdownorstopforanyreason.Thenyouhavenochoicebutto“see”eachmutilationwithinthatparticularslotoftime.Wethinkyou’llfind,believeitornot,thatnotonlywillyoudothestunt(you’llknowthemissingcards),butyou’lldoitbetter.You’llbeforcingyourself toseeeachpicturequicklyandclearly,andthat’s

betterthantryingtothinkoforseeeachpicturefortoolongaperiod.Thenexttime,tryitatanevenfasterpace,andsoon.Ifyouownametronome,setitatthepaceyoudesireandturnacardfaceupwheneverthatpendulumswingstooneside.If you haven’t as yet, you should try the missing-card stunt before you

continue.Takesomecardsoutofashuffleddeck,thenlookthroughtheothers—mutilatingasyoudo.ThengoovertheCardWordsmentallyandjotdownthecardsyouthinkarenotmutilated,ormissing.Checktoseeifyou’recorrect.Ifyouwanttosavealittletime,removethepicturecards,thenyou’llbeworkingwith only forty cards. After you’ve mutilated, you’re left with only the CardWordsfromacesto10’stogoover.Youmaybewonderinghowyoucanrepeat themissing-carddemonstration.

Well,youshouldn’trepeatitimmediatelyforthesamepeople.Onceisenough;leavethemwantingmore.Youcanrepeatit,however,ifyouwantto.Ifyouusemutilationagain,ofcourse,itwouldbeconfusing.Thisbringsustoplaying,say,gin rummy. Obviously, if you’re applying the missing-card principle, you’regoingtohavetodoitwitheachhandplayed.Allright;forthefirsthand,usemutilation;forthenexthand,usefire.Thatis,

seeeachCardWordburning.It’saformofmutilation,butdifferentenoughsoas not to cause confusion. For the next hand, usewater; see eachCardWordunderwater,ordrowning.Forthenexthand,seeeachCardWordbeingcutwithaknife,andforthenexthand,associateeachCardWordtoyourself.Theideaisto forceyourself toconcentrateoneachcard for thatone fractionofasecond,

andeachof theabove-mentionedmethodswillserve—yet they’realldifferent,anddefinite,enoughtobedistinctinyourmind.Youneedonlytryittoseethatthisisso.Bythetimeyou’vereachedtheassociating-to-yourselfmethod,you’reready

togobacktomutilationandstarttheentirecycleoveragain.Youcan,however,enlarge thecycle ifyou like.Afterassociating theCardWords toyourself, forthenexthandofginyoucanassociateeachCardWordto thePegWordfor1(tie),nexthandtoNoah,nexttoMa,andsoon.Bythen,you’llsurelybeabletostartthecycleoveragainwithoutconfusion.Inginrummy,itisimportanttoknowwhetherornotitissafetodiscardany

particular card. As you play, mutilate—or burn, or whatever—each carddiscardedbyyourselfandyouropponent.Whenyouwanttobesurethatacardissafe,youdon’thavetogothroughallyourCardWords—thatwouldtaketoolong.AllyouneeddoisthinkofthreeorfourCardWords.Sayyou’reabouttodiscardthe8H.Isitsafe?ThinkoftheCardWordsforthe

7H and the 9H. If they haven’t been mutilated, don’t throw that 8H—youropponentmaybeholdingaheartrun,andwaitingforthe8H.Ifthesurroundingcards (7H and 9H) have beenmutilated, don’t throw the 8H yet; think of theCardWordsfortwoother8-spots.Ifthey’vebeenmutilated,youknowit’ssafetodiscardthe8H.If andwhenyouropponent takes adiscard, associate theCardWord tohis,

say,nose.Hetakesthe7S;seeasockhangingfromhisnose.Later,whenyouneedtoknowwhatcardshetookfromthediscardpile,you’llknowthecards!Associating the Card Word to him in some silly way makes you OriginallyAwareofthecard.Youcandothisduringeachhand,withoutgettingconfused.Tryitandseeforyourself.Bridge players use this idea to great advantage. Exactly how is up to the

particularplayer.Someareinterestedinknowingonlythetrumpcardsthathavebeenplayed,sotheymutilateonlytrumpcards.Moreexperiencedplayersmaywanttoknowallthecardsthatareplayed,sotheymutilateeachoneasitfalls.Onceyouunderstandtheidea,applyitasyoudesire,andtoyourbestadvantage.Forpinochle,whichisplayedwithadeckofforty-eightcardscontainingonly

9’sthroughaces,youneedtwoCardWordsforeachcardfromthe9’son.Onefastexample:Forthe9C,you’dusethebasicCardWord(cup)andperhapscapfor the second9C; the pattern is the same.Whenplaying, you’dmutilatecupwhen the first 9C is played, and cap when the second one is played.AlwaysmutilatethebasicCardWordfirst,thentheoneyoumadeupforthesecondlikecard.For thecourtcards,useaword (for the secondcard) that thebasicCardWord remindsyouof.For example,drinkmight remindyouofglass, soyou

canuseglasstorepresentthesecondKD.Pokerisnotadiscardgame,butamemoryofwhat’sbeenplayediscertainly

helpfulinmostgames.Goodpokerplayersdoknowpokerodds—thechancesofdrawingtoaninsidestraight,orwhatever.Andthoseoddsdochangeaccordingtocardsplayed.Soinanopen,orstud,pokergameitwouldbefoolishtokeepbetting because you’re waiting for a 9-spot, when you know (remember) thattwo9’shavealreadybeendealttootherplayers.Playersdropoutandturntheircards down—agoodplayerwill remember the cards that he’s seenduring thehand,andplayaccordingly.Even in a game like five-card draw, where you see none of the cards, our

memorysystemscanhelpyoutoremembertheoddsforbetteringyourhand.Forexample,ifyouhavethreecardsofthesamesuitandyouwanttoknowwhetheror not it pays to stay in and draw for two more of the same suit (a flush),rememberingthattheoddsareapproximately23to1againstdrawingthatflushmayhelpyoutodecidenottodoit!Thewordflame,underthesecircumstances,wouldremindyouofflush-three

cards. The first two letters of theword (fl) remind you of flush, and the nextconsonantsoundremindsyouofthreecards.Associateflametoname(23),andyouhaveyourreminder.Theoddsagainstdrawingonecard(youretainfour)toaflushareapproximately5to1.Associatingflare(flush,whileretainingfour)tolaw(5)willdoit.Manypokerplayerswillstayinthegameholdingapairanda“kicker,”then

drawing two cards. It might help you to know that the odds against makingthree-of-a-kindthatwayare12to1.Pictureasheetoftin(12)kickingapear,andyou’ll be able to remember this easily.Theodds againstmaking twopairunderthesecircumstancesare5to1;apearkickingapoliceman(law)willdoit.Yourknowledgeofthegamewilltellyouwhethertheoddspertaintothree-of-a-kindor twopair;or,youcanputanotherword into theassociation to tellyouwhatitpertainsto.In bridge, the chances of drawing thirteen cards of any one suit are 1 in to

love, climb,move up, poses!The chances of drawing thirteen spades are 1 inshowmule,steam,lilyup,chases!Andinpoker,theoddsagainstdrawingoneof the four possible royal flushes are sharp camp to 1. Don’t bet on any ofthese!Theoddsagainstrollinganeleveninonerollofthediceare17to1.That’s

whythehousehas theedgeat thecrap tablewhentheyoffer10or15 to1oneleven.Ofcourse,noamountofmemoryofodds,orcardsplayed,willhelpyoumuch

ifyoudon’treallyknowthestrategyofthegamethatyou’replaying.Wedon’t

wanttomisleadyouintothinkingthathavingagreatmemorywillmakeyouawinner;itwon’tunlessyou’reagoodplayer.Werelinquishallresponsibilityforyourlosses—butyoucansendus10percentofyourwinnings!

14WEEKLYAPPOINTMENTS;DAYSOFTHEWEEK

HL:Remembering the timeandplaceof appointments is obviously important,bothinbusinessandsocially.

JL:Ofcourse,youcan remember the rightplaceand time,andstillget fouledup.InBoston,oneplayermadeadatewithagirlandhewastomeetheroutsideherhotel,afterthegame.Itwastwodegreesbelowzerothatnight.

Someofusweregoingtoarestaurantafterthegame,andwesawhimwaitingthere. When we finished eating, we went back to the hotel, and he was stillstandingthere!Aswepassedhim,heasked,“Isthisthefrontorthebackofthehotel?”

•

Inanearlierchapter,youlearnedthataLinkwouldhelpyouremembersimpleerrandsandappointmentsforthefollowingday.Thatideaalonewillsufficeformanypeople.However,youmayhavetoremembermorespecificappointments,bydayandtime,andforthefollowingweek.It’s easy enough to do; you already have the necessary knowledge. The

problemisfamiliartoyou—howdoyoupictureadayandtime?Thesolutionisjustasfamiliar.Setupapatternthatenablesyoutocreateapictureforanydayandtime;tomaketheintangibletangible.Inpatternizingdayandtime,we’llconsiderMondaythefirstdayoftheweek.

Since it is the first business day of theweek, thismakesmore sense tomostpeople.Ifyou’dratherconsiderSundaythefirstday,simplydosoandchangeeverythingaccordingly;itwon’tmatteronceyouunderstandtheidea.Otherwise,go along with us. Monday is the first day, Tuesday is second, and so on toSunday,theseventhdayoftheweek.Thursdayat7:00cannowbe thoughtofasa two-digitnumber.Thursday is

the fourth day, so the first digit is 4, to represent the day. The second digitrepresents thehour—therefore, the two-digitnumber is47.Within thispattern,47canrepresentonlythefourthday(Thursday),seventhhour(7:00).

Ordinarily,itwouldbejustasdifficulttopicture47asitwouldbetopictureThursdayat7:00.ButyouhaveaPegWordfor47thatcanbepictured—rock.Andso,withinthispattern,rockmustrepresentThursdayat7:00.ThePegWordknifecouldrepresentonlyTuesday(secondday)at8:00.Lily

must represent the fifth day (Friday) at 5:00.Even if youdon’t know thePegWords, the sounds give you the necessary information. This will work muchmoresmoothly,ofcourse,ifyoudoknowthePegWords.Tryafewyourself—mentallytransposethesePegWordstodayandhour:name,chain,knob,net,dish,Nero,coal,mower.Thereareafewminorproblemsremaining.Howdoyouhandle10:00,11:00,

and12:00?WhataboutA.M.andP.M.?Whataboutminutes?And,howdoyouusethePegWords?Let’stakecareof10:00,11:00,and12:00first.Rememberourdiscussionof

playingcards—justas there isnozeroofhearts, there isalsonozeroo’clock.So, use the s sound to represent 10:00.Mouse will represent Wednesday at10:00;toes,Mondayat10:00;rose,Thursdayat10:00;nose,Tuesdayat10:00;case,Sundayat10:00;andsoon.Itisnecessarytomakeupawordforeachdayoftheweekat11:00and12:00.

Therearetwowaystohandlethis:thefirstistostickwiththepatternanduseaword containing the proper sounds. The word mitten, for example, isWednesdayat 12:00 (312); androtate (411) could representonlyThursdayat11:00.Hereisalistofwordsfromwhichyoucanselect.Makeupyourown,ifyou’d

rather.

Selectthewordsyouwant,andusethem.Afterafewuses,theywillbelike

PegWords—forthispattern.You’llknowthembecauseyou’veusedthem.Here’s anotherway to handle 11:00 and 12:00: Simply consider 11:00 and

12:00 as 1:00 and 2:00, but without using the basic PegWords since you’realreadyusingthem.Useanyotherwordthatfitsphonetically.Forexample,thePegWordmatrepresentsWednesdayat1:00,butthewords

meat or moat could represent Wednesday at 11:00. The Peg Word moonrepresentsWednesday at 2:00—useman ormoan to representWednesday at12:00.Onceyou select thewords, theywillworkperfectlywell.You’ll knowthatthebasicPegWordsrepresent1:00and2:00,andthatanyotherwordsthatfit1:00and2:00(foranyday)wouldrepresent11:00and12:00.Ifallyourappointmentsweremadeonthehour,you’dbeallsettoapplythe

system—byassociatingtheappointmentitselftothewordthatrepresentsthedayandhouroftheappointment.IfyouhadtogotothelibraryonSaturdayat1:00,you’dformaridiculousassociationbetweenlibrary,orbooks,andsheet.That’sall.Whynotmakethatassociationnow?Thenwe’lllistsomemore,justtoshow

you how itworks. Later,we’ll get to theminutes, and toA.M. and P.M. Thesehypothetical appointmentswill be given to you haphazardly, since that’s howappointments usually come up. Form the associations, becausewe’re going to

testyou.OnTuesdayat9:00,youhaveadental appointment.Transpose thedayand

hourtothePegWord,knob,andassociatethattodentist.Perhapsthedentistispullingadoorknobinsteadofatoothoutofyourmouth.Oragiganticdoorknobisyourdentist.Besuretoseethepicture.Monday at 2:00, you have a meeting at the bank. Associate tin (first day,

secondhour)tobank.Perhapsyou’redepositingsheetsoftininsteadofmoney;orthebanktellersarealllargetincans.Saturday at 8:00, youmust remember to leave your car at your garage for

repairs.Associatecheftocar.Youmightseeagiganticchef’shatdrivingacar,oracariswearingthechef’shat.Wednesdayat5:00,youhavetopickupapairofeyeglasses.Associatemule

toglasses.Thesillypictureofamulewearinggiganticeyeglasseswoulddoit.Seethatpicture.Friday at 2:00, you have a luncheon appointment with Mr. Vaikovitch.

Associatelionto,perhaps,vaguewitch.Seealionabouttoeatawitch,onlythewitchstartstofade;itgetsvague.Or,alionistryingtowakeawitch.Thursdayat10:00,youwanttorememberyourkaratelesson.Associaterose

tokarate.Perhapsyou’regivingagiganticroseakaratechop,oragiganticroseisusingkarateonyou.Tuesdayat5:00,there’sameetingofthevolunteerfiredepartment.Associate

nailtofire.Perhapsagiganticnailisstartingafire.Besuretoseethispicture.Now try this.Go over your PegWords forMonday—tot, tin, tomb, up to

toes.(Ifyoustilldon’tknowthePegWords,turnbacktothelistandreadthem.Picture each one as you read.)Now,when you come to aword that has beenassociatedtosomethingelse,you’llknowitinstantly!You’veonlygottotryittoseethatthisisso.Justnow,whenyouthoughttin,thatshouldhavemadeyouthinkof…bank.Afteryou’vedoneMonday,gooverTuesday’swords—net,nun,name,etc.

ThenWednesday’s, Thursday’s, Friday’s, Saturday’s, and Sunday’s. Think ofthe words up to zero (10:00) only, since there are no 11:00 and 12:00appointmentsusedintheexample.Ifyoudothis,you’llprobablyrememberalltheappointments!Justexactlyhowwouldyouapplythisidea?Well,assumeit’sthefollowing

Monday.Inthemorning,gooverMonday’sPegWords;thereareonlytwelve.You’llbe remindedof the thingsyoumustdo thatday.During theday,whileyou’rehaving lunch,walking,etc., simplygoover thosewords.You’llhaveaconstant reminder of your appointments. If you’d rather knowwhat it is youhave todo thenext day,gooverMonday’swordsonSundaynight.That’s all

thereistoit.Nomorelookingforyourappointmentbook,whichyouprobablyleftathomeorattheofficeanyway.Fortheminutes,simplyaddonewordtothePegWordpicture.Ifyouhavea

plane tocatchonFridayat5:20, lily is thePegWord that representsFridayat5:00.Youcouldmake5:20 lilynose—nose tellsyou theminutes.There’soneproblemhere; nextweek,howwouldyouknowwhether it’s lilynoseornoselily? (If you thought it was nose lily, you’d go to the airport three days toosoon!)The problem is easily solved by not using a basic Peg Word to represent

minutes—use any other word that fits phonetically (just as with the idea for11:00 and 12:00). For the above example, use noose or niece. A ridiculouspictureof agigantic lilywith anoose around its neck, flying like an airplane,would do it. This solves the problem because you’d know that the basic PegWordalwaysrepresentsdayandhour,andanyotherwordalwaysrepresentstheminutes.Frankly,we rarely use theminute idea.Our appointments are almost never

that precise.Allwe really need is a reminder for a quarter, a half, and three-quarterspastthehour.Weuseastandardtorepresenteachone.Atwenty-five-centpiecealwaysrepresentsaquarterpastthehour,ahalfgrapefruitrepresentshalfpastthehour,andapiewithonelargeslicegone(three-quartersofapie)represents three-quarters past the hour. Use these standards, ormake up yourown.Thestandardsworkforus,becauseevenifwewanttoremember,say,a6:19

appointment (an airplane departure or a television taping),we’ll consider it as6:15. The worst (or best) that can happen is that we’re a little early for theappointment.Iftheappointmentisfor2:38,weconsideritas2:30.TheA.M.-P.M.questionisreallyahypotheticalone.Youusuallyknowwhether

any particular appointment is A.M. or P.M. If you really had a luncheonappointmentwithMr.Vaikovitchat2:00,you’dhardlyassumeitwas2:00A.M.!You’dalsoknowthatyour9:00dentalappointmentisinthemorning,unlessyouhaveaveryunusualdentist.Youcan,however,maketheassociationasdefiniteasyouwantto.Youcan

use aim to represent A.M. Or, you can usewhite to represent day (A.M.), andblacktorepresentnight(P.M.).Allyoureallyneedisoneofthem.Torememberthatanappointmentisinthemorning,getwhiteintothepicture;ifwhiteisn’tinthepicture,thenyouknowit’saP.M.appointment.In the example of bringing your car to the garage onSaturday at 8:00, you

could have pictured the car being sparklingwhite, oraiming at something, toremindyouthattheappointmentwasat8:00A.M.

•

JL:Harry,thetruthnow—didyouevermissanengagementbecauseyouforgotaboutit,andjustdidn’tshowup?I’veheardsomethingtothateffect.

HL: Itmakes a good story, but no.Years ago, Iwas scheduled to appear at aRotaryClub luncheon,andIhadquiteadrive toget there.Somebody toldmethatitwasatwo-hourdrive,anditendedupafour-hourdrive.WhenIgotthere,alltheRotarianshadleft.Therewasquiteastoryinthenextday’slocalpaper,headed,MEMORYEXPERTFORGETSTOSHOWUP!

JL:Thatsoundsasifitmightreallyhavehappened.

HL:Itdid.Anyway,youshouldn’tbringup things like that. Ifyoukeepitup,I’llhavetotellpeopleaboutthetimeyouweredrivingthroughtheexact-changeboothatatunnel,threwthehalf-dollar,andmissedthebucket!

•

In the next chapter, we’ll discuss how to remembermonthly appointments,birthdays and anniversaries, and historical dates.We’ll even touch on a bit ofastrology.Butfirst,anideathatmaymakeyouwonderwhyyoudidn’tthinkofityourself.Supposesomeoneyou’retalkingtosays,“I’llbeawayduringmostofMarch,

whydon’twehavelunchonAprilninth?”(We’reusingtheyear1974intheseexamples.)Andyou immediatelysay,“Sorry, that’saTuesday,andIplaygolfonTuesdays.”HowdidyouknowthatApril9fallsonaTuesday?Well,here’samethodyoucanusetofigure,almostinstantly,thedayoftheweekforanydatewithinthecurrentyear.Look at this twelve-digit number: 633 752 741 631. If you memorize that

number,you’llbeabletoknowthedayoftheweekforanydatein1974.How?It’ssimple;thosetwelvedigitsgiveyouthefirstSundayofthemonthforeachofthetwelvemonths.ThefirstSundayinJanuary,1974,isthe6thofthemonth;thefirstSundayinFebruaryisthe3rd;thefirstSundayinMarchisthe3rd;thefirst Sunday in April is the 7th; and so on to December, the first Sunday ofwhichisthe1stofthemonth.Bynow,youshouldhavenotroublememorizingatwelve-digitnumber.You

might Link shame him to clown to cart to jammed, or whatever words orphrasesyoucomeupwith.

Onceyou’vememorizedthenumber,knowingthefirstSundayofthemonthenablesyoutoeasilycalculatethedayoftheweekofanydayduringthatmonth.Let’sassumeyouwant toknowthedayof theweekforAugust21.Checkthetwelve-digitnumber:ThefirstSundayofAugustfallsonthe4th.Simplyadd7’stothatnumber(becausetherearesevendaysinaweek).IfthefirstSundayisthe4th,thenaddinga7tellsyouthatthe11thisalsoaSunday.Add7to11,andyouknow that the 18th is a Sunday. Then the 19th is a Monday, the 20th is aTuesday—andthe21stofAugustfallsonWednesday!Ofcourse,there’snoneedtoaddthe7’sonebyone.Addamultipleof7;in

theaboveexample,you’dsimplyadd14to4rightaway,andtakeitfromthere.Thelargestmultipleof7you’lleverhavetoaddis28.SupposeyouwanttoknowthedayoftheweekonwhichChristmasDayfalls.

ThefirstSundayofDecemberisthe1st;add21,andyouknowthatthe22ndofDecember is also aSunday. So the 23rd isMonday, the 24th isTuesday, andChristmasDayfallsonaWednesday.Occasionally,you’llworkbackward.Forexample, find thedayof theweek

forJune14.ThefirstSundayinJuneisthe2nd.Add14,andyouknowthatthe16thisalsoaSunday.Thattellsyouthatthe15thisaSaturday,andthe14th,ofcourse,fallsonaFriday.Nowtryafewonyourown.Findthedayoftheweekforthesedatesin1974:

April15,November7,January12,May27,March5,October26,February13,andSeptember8.Breakingthetwelve-digitnumberintogroupsofthreemakesiteasierforyou

to get to a particularmonth quickly. After you use the idea for a short time,whenever you think of a month you’ll also think of the word or phrase thatincludesthatmonth.Ifyoudon’tcareaboutthat,Linkthenumberanywayyoulike(chum,mug,linger,dishmatwoulddoit).When you get to 1975, it’s easy enough tomemorize the new twelve-digit

numberatthebeginningoftheyear—butyoudon’thaveto.Inthenumberfor1975,you’llseethateachdigitisonelessthanfor1974.Look:

1974—6337527416311975—522641637527

Don’t let those7’s (beneath the1’s) throwyou.Since there is no zeroday,

whenyousubtract1 from1 theanswermustbe7.What’s reallyhappening isthis:You’resubtractingadayfromSunday,whichbringsyoutoSaturday.So,for1975,youcanuse thesamenumberas1974andsimplypushyouransweraheadoneday.You’llbecorrect! If foranyreason itwouldhelpyou toknow

the day of theweek for the current and the following year, you’d know bothautomatically—except for leap years.Anotherway is to use the same numberandconsiderthedigitstorepresentMondays.Again,you’llbecorrect!Thereisawaytokeepusingthesamenumberintoaleapyear,like1976,but

we don’t want to take the space to explain that here. You can work it outyourselfifyoustudythenumbersforotheryearsthatarelistedbelow.Youcansimplymemorizethenewnumbereachyear.Oryoucanusethesamenumberfor three years (the third year, you’d push your answer forward two days, orconsider each digit to represent Tuesdays), memorize the new one for a leapyear,thenmemorizeanewone,whichyoucanuseforthreemoreyears.Herearethenumbersupto1983.

Beforeleavingthisidea,weekdayswithinyears,there’sanotherwaytohandle

it.MakeupaSubstituteWordforeachmonth,andassociatethattoaPegWordthattellsyouthefirstSunday.ForJanuary,apictureofajanitormightserveastheSubstitute.Fortheyear1974,seeagiganticshoebeingajanitor.February?Fiborfob,andassociateittoMa.ForMarch,seeyourMamarching.Youmayfeel that thismethod is faster, ormore definite.The choice is yours.Here’s asuggestionortwofortheremainingmonths:

April—ape,fool(AprilFool),orshowers(Aprilshowers)May—MaypoleJune—bride,orchewin’

July—jewel,orfirecracker(July4)August—gustofwindSeptember—scepter,orsippedOctober—octopus,oroboeNovember—ember,newmember,orturkey(Thanksgiving)December—Christmastree

Whatevermethodyouuse,knowingthedayoftheweekafuturedatefallson

is easy, and it’s fun. Test yourself now—look at the twelve-digit number for1983andsayoutloud,almostinstantly,thedayoftheweekyourbirthdayfallsoninthatyear.

15ANNIVERSARIES,THEZODIAC,HISTORICALDATES

The same basic idea that is used for remembering a day and hour works forrememberingamonthandday.AnydatethatfallswithinthefirsttendaysofthefirstninemonthsoftheyearbreaksdowntoabasicPegWord.ThedateMay4wouldtransposeto54(lure)—5thmonth,4thday.March8transposestomovie,August10tofuse,January6todish,September3tobum,andJuly4tocar.Anydaypast the10th,andanymonthpastSeptember, transpose toa three-

digitnumber.Inmostcases,whatyou’ddoismakeupawordtorepresentthatthree-digit number. For example, October 8 could transpose to toss off (10thmonth,8thday);December3todenim;andsoon.But takeanother lookat that last example.Denim transposes to123,which

couldrepresentthe12thmonth,3rdday.Itcouldalso,however,representthe1stmonth,23rdday.Thereare,asusual,waystosolvetheproblem.Theoneweuseissimplyto

put a zero in frontof any single-digit date.December3, a single-digit date, isthereforerepresentedbythedigits1203,not123.Now there can be no confusion; the digits 123 can represent only the 1st

month (January), 23rd day.November 7 transposes to 1107, not 117, because117representsJanuary17.Allyouneeddoisthinkupawordorphraseforanythree-orfour-digitnumberordate.You’ll find, ifyouapply this idea, that thezero isn’talwaysnecessary.You

could transposeMay4 to504 (loser, laser),but since54couldonly representMay4,youmightjustaswelluselure.You’llhavetodecidewhethertoalwaysuse the zero for single-digit dates, or to use that zero only in those instanceswhereit’sneededtoavoidconfusion.So.Anydatecanbemadetangiblebyfirstbreakingitdowntotwo,three,or

fourdigitsand thencomingupwithawordorphrase to represent thosedigitsphonetically.Onceyouunderstandthat,allyouhavetodoinordertorememberaperson’sbirthdayorweddinganniversaryistoassociatethewordorphrasetothatperson.Onewaytodothisistoassociatethewordorphrasetothepersonphysically.

Forexample,picturingyourwifeasapianotunerwouldhelpyoutoremember

thatherbirthdayisJanuary24.(Thiswouldn’tconfuseyouintothinkingthatthedateisDecember4;thatwouldtransposeto1204,anddancercouldrepresentitphonetically.)OryoucanassociatethewordorphrasetoaSubstituteWordfortheperson’s

name. To remember that Mr. Gordon’s birthday is April 3, associate ram togarden.Mr.Pukczyva’sbirthdayisMarch2—seeahockeypuckshiveringasitshines,insteadofthemoon,inthesky.Once you’ve visualized the silly picture,whenever you think of the person,

you’llberemindedofthedate.(We’reassumingthatifyoucareenoughaboutsomeonetowanttorememberthebirthdayoranniversary,thenyoudothinkofthatpersoneverysooften.)If you think you’ll have trouble remembering whether it’s a birthday or

anniversarydate,putsomethingintothepicturetorepresent thecorrectone.Acakewithcandlesonitwoulddoforabirthday.Any dates can be remembered by using this basic idea. We’ll discuss

historicaldates inamoment,but firstwe’d like toshowyouhowtoapply theideatothesignsofthezodiac.Somanypeopleareinterestedinastrologythesedays that it sometimes seemseveryone is askingeveryoneelsewhat sign theywerebornunder.Andmanypeoplehearabirthdateandthenfinditdifficulttoremember the sign for that date. But as you’ll see, dates can be associated tootherinformation—anyinformation.Hereare thesignsof thezodiac, thedatespreads,andsomesuggestions for

changingthosedatesintotangiblepictures:

Ifyouwant to rememberall the signs, simplyLink them.Eithermakeupa

SubstituteWordforthesign,or,ifyouknowthemeanings,usethem—theyallcanbepictured.ForAries,youcanusearrows,airE’s,orsimplypicturearam.Atthispointyoushouldbeabletoworkthisouteasilyforyourself.Ifyoudon’tknowthemeaningsofthesigns,associateonetotheother—sign

tomeaning.Mostof themareobvious,ofcourse;but ifyouhad toyoucould,say,associategem(Gemini)totwins.To remember the sign and date spread in each case, associate a Substitute

Word for the sign, or itsmeaning (seeAries-ramexample above), to a phrasethatwillgiveyouthevitaldates.Forinstance,asillypictureofaramsuckingagiganticmintasitrunsgivesyouboththesignandthedatespread.Apictureofa cornwearing a cap, or agoat living in your home as a tenant and alwaystotingthingsup(toteup)tellsyouthatCapricornsarebornbetweenDecember21andJanuary19.As usual, you can put anything you like into your association. If you see a

picture of a bull (Taurus or tore ass) being a runt (small bull) and verystubbornlybreakingagigantic lens,youhaveareminderof thesign, thedatespread,andoneofthecharacteristicsofTauruspeople—stubbornness.*

Now for historical dates. Again, you already have the necessary basicknowledge. All you have to do is transpose the intangible date to a tangiblepictureandassociatethatpicturetotheevent.We’ll start with one you already know—the date of the signing of the

Declaration of Independence. AKaiser (if you’re using the zero in front ofsingledigits)oracar (7thmonth,4thday,July4)signingtheDeclarationandreceivingplentyofcash(’76)forsigningitwilltellyoutheeventandthedate.The assumption is that you’d know the century digits, but you can put areminderintotheassociationifyoulike.Takecashwoulddoit.Usually,itisn’tnecessarytoputthecenturyfiguresintotheassociation.You

probablyknowthatthegreatChicagofireoccurredinthe1800’s.Soapictureofa cot (’71) starting a great fire tells you that the date is 1871.Napoleonwascrownedemperorin1804;pictureamanwithhishandinhisjacket(Napoleon)wearingalargecrown—it’ssoheavy,itmakeshisheadsore(’04).(Ifyoulike,youcanpictureadoveflyingoutofthecrown,toremindyouof18.)TheTitanicsank in theyear1912.Picturea large sheetof tin sinking;or, ifyouwant thecenturyfigures,seeitsinkinginatub.HavingusedthestatesandthePresidentsasexamplesearlier,we’llcontinue

usingthemnow—youcanincludeapicturetorepresentanydateinanyofyouroriginal associations.Perhapsyouwant to remember theyear inwhicha statewasadmitted to theUnion.Nothingcouldbesimpler. Indianawasadmitted in1816; get dish or dove dish into your original association. You can’t talk(Kentucky) because there’s a dog bone in your throat—this picture wouldremindyouthatKentuckywasadmittedtotheUnionin1792.PresidentGrantwasbornonApril27,1822.Picturealargepieceofgranite

(SubstituteWord forGrant, oruserant) puttingaring (427=April 27)on anun’s(’22)finger.Ifyouseethissillypicturetakingplaceonaship, thatwillhelpyourememberthatPresidentGrantwasinauguratedin1869.WilliamShakespeare’sbaptismwasrecordedonApril26,1564.Seeyourself

shaking a spear in a tall jar (1564) on a ranch (April 26). If you want torememberonly themonthandyear,rattle jar,orretailchair (4-1564)wouldsuffice.Ifyoualreadyknowthecentury,rasherorreacherwouldremindyouofApril,’64.ThefirstmantostepontothemoonwasNeilArmstrong,andhediditonJuly

20,1969.Apictureofamanwithastrongarm(orjustastrongmusculararm)holdinghundredsofcans(720,July20)wouldtellyouthemonthandday.Seetheman(orthearm)comingoutofaship,andyouhaveareminderoftheyear.Ifyouwanttorememberthemonthandyearonly,associatetheSubstituteWordforArmstrongtoketchup(7-’69).

Ifyou formedanassociationofastevedoredressed in lace andwrestlingabear,itwouldhelpyourememberthatRobertLouisStevenson(stevedore)wasbornin1850(lace)anddiedin1894(bear).Now you can remember any date by changing it to a tangible picture and

associating that to the person, place, or event. Again, once you’ve used thememorized information a few times and it hasbecomeknowledge, the systemhasserveditspurpose—theridiculouspicturesfadebecauseyounolongerneedthem.

*C.f.HarryLorayne.

16THEALPHABETANDPICTURINGLETTERS

HL:Arteriosclerosis!

JL:Aceeiiloorrrssst!

HL:Soyou’vebeenalphabetizingwordssinceyouwereeightyearsold—itstillamazesme.What’sthestory,Jerry?

JL:I’mscrewy.No,seriously,IbasicallyusetheSubstituteWordsystem.Whenaword isalphabetized itbecomesanonsenseword,soIassociateaSubstitutethoughtforthenonsensewordtotheregularword.“Telephone”alphabetizedis“eeehlnopt,” so my original picture was eel napped on a telephone. Thatdoesn’tgivemealltheletters,butitdoesgivemethenonsenseword.I’llknowthattherearethreee’s,andthattherehastobeanhintheresomewhere.

•

Mostpeopledon’tknowthealphabetaswellastheythinktheydo.Fewpeopleknowthenumericalpositionsoftheletters.Notthatit’sofgreatimportance,butit is interesting that people use these twenty-six letters all their lives and stilldon’tknow,instantly,thenumericalpositionof,say,PorK,orM.We’regoingtoshowyouhowtopictureletters.Butfirst,here’saquickway

of learning thenumericalpositionsofall the letters. It’snot justanexercise—knowing them can be important if you need an extra Peg list of words, orpictures. Once you know the numerical positions and can picture each letter,you’llautomaticallyhaveatwenty-six-wordPeglist.We’reassumingthatyouknowthebasicPegWordsfrom1to26.Now,you

needthe“adjective”idea.Makeupaphrasethatconsistsoftwowords—thefirstwordisanadjectivethatbeginswiththeletterwhosepositionyouwanttoknow;thesecondisthePegWordthattellsyouthatposition.Lookatthesephrases:

Awfultie

BraveNoahCuteMaDeliciousrye

Each phrase gives you the two things you need, the letter and its position.

“Deliciousrye”tellsyouthat theletterD(first letterofdelicious) is thefourthletter (rye) of the alphabet.You’re better offmaking up your own adjectives,becausetheonesyouthinkofwillbeeasierforyoutoremember.Herearejustafew suggestions: jagged toes, kind tot, plastic dish, vivacious nun, X-rayedNero,zigzagnotch.Whenyou’vemadeupall thephrases,goover themonceor twice.Here, it

isn’tnecessarytoformaridiculousassociation—thelogicalaspectofthephrasewillbeamemoryaid.Beforelong,ifyouthinkP,thephrase“plasticdish”willcome to mind and you’ll know that P is the 16th letter of the alphabet. Andbefore much longer, you won’t need the phrase—you’ll simply know thenumericalpositions.That’sallthereistoit!Now.To visualize each letter of the alphabet—tomake each letter tangible

andmeaningfulinyourmind—makeupawordthatsoundsliketheletter.ThisisanoffshootoftheSubstituteWordsystem.TheletterA,forinstance,cannotbepictured,butyoucanpictureanape.AndsayingtheletterAoutloudalmosthas to remindyouof ape, because ape sounds likeA.You canmakeup yourownAlphabetWords,oryoucanusethelistthatfollows.

1.A—ape2.B—bean3.C—sea4.D—dean5.E—eel6.F—half,oreffort7.G—jeans,orgee8.H—ache,age,oritch9.I—eye10.J—jay(bird)11.K—cake,orcane12.L—el(elevatedtrain),elf13.M—ham,hem,oremperor14.N—hen,orend15.O—eau(water),orold

16.P—pea17.Q—cue(stick)18.R—hour(clock),orart19.S—esscurve,orass20.T—tea21.U—ewe22.V—veal23.W—Waterloo(Napoleon)24.X—eggs,exit,orXray25.Y—wine26.Z—zebra

We usedbean for B only because you already knowbee as the basic Peg

Wordfornumber9.Being able to picture any letter is important if you ever have tomemorize

anything that contains letters—formulas and equations, style numbers, stocksymbols,whatever.Now,ifforsomereasonyouwantedtorememberalicensenumber,say,146A29C4L,youcouldLinktorchtoape,apetoknob,knobtosea,seatorye,andryetoelevatedtrain.Ifyouknowthenumericalpositionofeveryletterandthealphabetword,you

alsohavethattwenty-six-wordPegListwementioned.IfyouknowthatNisthe14thletter,anythingassociatedtohenisthe14thitem.Anythingassociatedtopeaisthe16thitem,anythingassociatedtoesscurveisthe19thitem,andsoon.Now you can memorize two lists of items—by number, and in and out of

order—atthesametime.UsethebasicPegWordsforonelistandtheAlphabetWordsfortheother.Thefactthateachlettercanbepicturedcanbeusefultoyouinmanyareas.If

you’re one of themany peoplewho have trouble spelling theword insurancebecause you’re never sure whether it’s -ance or -ence, picture an ape sellinginsuranceandyou’llalwaysrememberthat insurance isspelledwithana.Thewordaudible is spelledwith an i (it’s not “audable”). Form a silly picture ofyour eye making sounds—it’s audible—to remind you of the i. The wordgrammar isoftenmisspelled“grammer.”Pictureanape speakingwithperfectgrammar,andyou’llrememberthata.Thereareotherwaystohandleletters.Forexample,ifallthestylenumbersof

anycompany’sproductsconsistofaletterfollowedbydigits, thenawordthatbeginswiththelettersolvesthememoryproblem.ForA41,usearid;forB12,button;forC915,capital;forR92,robin;andsoon.Eachwordwouldthenbeassociated,ofcourse,totheproductitrepresents.

Finally, a nonearthshaking piece of information: If you form a Link fromzebra towine toeggs toWaterloo,allthewaytoape,you’llbeabletorecitethealphabetbackward!

17STARTYOURCHILDREN

JL:My son and daughter—Jeff’s nine, Julie’s eight—can remember things insequenceandbynumber,quicklyandeasily.Andthey’rehavingaball.

HL:WhenmysonBobbyturnedfivethisyear,Itriedhimontenitems,withtheLink.Firsttimeout,herememberedthem—nohesitation,forwardandbackward—andhethoughtitwashilarious!Notlongago,ItriedthePegonachildren’sTVshow—theaverageageofthe

studio audiencewas seven—and the kids remembered ten items in and out oforder,bynumber.

JL:Beforemydaughterwasawareofthesystems,shehadtroubletellingherlefthandfromherright.I’daskher,“Whichisyourrighthand,Julie?”She’dstandup and start reciting thePledge ofAllegiance, putting her right handover herheart.Thenshe’draisethathandandsay,“Thisone,Daddy!”

•

Very young children have no trouble using their imagination and formingridiculouspictures.Theynotonlydoiteasily,theythinkit’slotsoffun.Ifyouhave children, acquaint them with some of the ideas in this book; you canharness that lively imagination and help them sharpen their sense ofconcentration—withouttheirrealizingwhatyou’redoing,ofcourse.MakeagameoutoftheLinksystem.Duringanautomobiletrip,seewhocan

rememberalistofitemsfaster,orwhocanrememberthemostitems.Itisfun—andthechildrenarelearningausefulskillatthesametime.Ifyouwant toplay thegameof remembering itemsbynumberwithachild

who’stooyoungtolearnthephoneticalphabet, there’sawaytoteachhimtenPeg Words almost instantly. They’re easy to learn—they rhyme with thenumbers,andmostofthemcomefromasongyourchildrenprobablyknow.

1.one—run2.two—shoe

3.three—tree4.four—pour5.five—hive(picturebees)6.six—sticks7.seven—heaven8.eight—gate9.nine—sign10.ten—hen

Someofthewordsfromthesonghavebeenchangedtowordsthatareeasier

for a child to picture. Teach the youngster to picture the item running, for 1(run);beingpouredoutofsomething,for4(pour);inthesky,for7(heaven);andsoon.The number-word rhymes make it easy for a child to learn the words in

minutes.Oncehehasbeentestedonthem,andknowsthem,hecanbetaughttoassociate (don’t use that word; the children won’t know what you’re talkingabout)anyitemtoanyofthesePegs.Ifyoumentionbananafornumber6,thechildwillthinksticksand,perhaps,seeabunchofbananastiedlikeabunchofsticks.Givehimasuggestionortwothefirstfewtimes.Here’sanotherway touse theLinkasagame.Placeeightor so itemsona

tray and cover them with a cloth. First remove the cloth for a short time (aminuteor so), then replace it andhaveeveryone try to list all the items.Eachplayerreceivesonepointforeachitemlistedcorrectly; themoreaplayerlists,thebetterhisscore.Or you can show the items for a moment, then remove a couple of them

withoutlettingtheplayersseewhichoneshavebeenremoved.Youexposethetrayofitemsagainfortensecondsorso.Thefirstplayerwhocorrectlyliststhemissing itemswins. Both these games are fun for children and teach them tostart using some important mental powers—observation, memory, andconcentration.TheyalsoworkasincentivesforthechildtotrytoapplyasimpleLink.YoucanalsostarthelpingthechildtorememberwordsthroughtheSubstitute

Wordsystem.Whenfive-year-oldBobbyLoraynekeptsaying“caterlipper”forcaterpillar,hewastoldtopictureacatchasingthecrawlingthingupapillar(orpillow).Itworked!Surelyeveryparenthasusedsomethingofthissortatonetimeoranother.But

now you can take it much further. Use SubstituteWords, with the child, forEnglishorforeignwords.It’samazinghowwellthesystemworkswithchildren.Here’sanothergamethatchildrenenjoy.Inthisone,pairsoflettersarecalled

orwritten,andeachpairisassignedahidingplace.Forexample,PNiscalled,and the hiding place is the fish tank; FX is hidden in the TV set; CP in thewindow;TR in the flowerpot, and soon.Thechildwho remembers themostpairsofletterswins.Tellthechildtothinkofawordthatbeginsandendswiththevitallettersand

thenassociate,inasillyway,thatword(orthing)tothehidingplace.Thechildmightpictureagiganticpinswimminginthefishtank,afoxjumpingoutoftheTVscreen,agiganticcupcrashingthroughawindow,andtaroverflowingfrom,andruining,aflowerpot.Anywordcanbeusedthatwillremindthechildoftheletters.Ifthelettersare

BN,bin is fine—butbonewould still help the child remember them.ForTR,tireortreewouldalsodo.The game encourages the child to think of letters and words and get them

right,helpshismemory,and is fun toplay.Children love towin; they’ll learnjustbecausetheywanttoplayandwin.You can take this particular game a step further by using two letters plus a

number from 1 to 10. Use the ten rhyming Pegs for this. If you call PT andnumber5,hiddeninthekitchensink,thechildmightseearidiculouspictureofhimself turning the faucet in the kitchen sink, and millions of pits and bees(hive-five)comingoutofit.There’s an old game inwhich each player adds an item to a list. The first

playermight say, “I’m going to Indianapolis to get a bottle.”The next playersays, “I’m going to Indianapolis to get a bottle and a desk.” The third playersays,“I’mgoing to Indianapolis togetabottle,adesk,anda fish.”Thegamecan be playedwith any number of players, each ofwhommust repeat all theitemscorrectlyandaddoneitem.Iftherearefourplayers,thefirstperson’sturncomesupagainafter the fourthperson.Thefirstplayerwhomissesan itemis“out”; the last person “in”wins.The application of theLink to this old gamegives it a new dimension.With a little thought, any game can be changed ormademorechallengingbyusingsuchmemorysystemsas theLink,SubstituteWords,andPegWords.Startingyoungchildrenoffonsomeoftheprinciplesofatrainedmemoryis

one of themost useful things you can do for them. Imagine how helpful thesystems can be to them for play, in school (most schoolwork is based onmemory),and,later,sociallyandprofessionally.

18SPORTS

JL:Notjustanyprofessionalbasketballplayer,regardlessofhisabilities,couldplayfortheNewYorkKnickerbockers.TheKnickswinchampionshipsbecausewe’reateaminthetruesenseoftheword—thefiveplayersontheflooratanygiventimeplayforthegoodofallandnotforthemselves.That’sreallytheonlywaytokeepwinninginprobasketball.

HL:You’reasmartteam,too—intelligencemustbeafactor.

JL:Sureit is.Thebasic intelligenceofourplayers,andtheirbasketballsavvy,are actually more important than most people realize. We’re not anoverpoweringtypeofteam,sowehavetodependonotherassets—likeplayingunselfishly, playing intelligently, and generally outthinking our opponents. Inorderforustowinconsistently,thefivemenonthefloorhavetothinkandactalmost as one person. This means that each player must know what histeammates are going to do in almost every situation. A good part of this isknowing theplayswe’llbe running—ifaplay is calledandoneor twoof theplayersdon’trememberit,theresultscanbedisastrous.

HL:Howoftendotheplaysgetcalled?

JL:Weattempttorunabasicplayeverytimewecomedownthefloor,unlesswehaveanobviousbreakaway situation thatwill lead to aneasybasket.Thisstrategy gives us much more consistency—and leaves us in better defensivebalanceifwemisstheshotandtheotherteamreboundstheball.

HL: You’re really saying that none of you can perform well unless youremembertheplayswell.Iknowhowyourememberthem—butwhataboutyourteammates?

JL:Fundamentally,theotherplayersuserotememory.Weallgooverandovertheplaysthroughouttheyear,tomakesureeverybodyknowsthem.AndfortheKnicks,that’smaybeatotaloffortyplaysandoptions.

HL:Howwelldoesthemethodwork?

JL:Thismayseemhardtobelieve,butI’veneverplayedonabasketballteamatanylevel includingtheprofessional levelwithoutat leastoneplayerforgettingseveraloftheplaysallthewaythroughtheseason.Manytimes,thereareseveralplayerswhodon’trememberthem.Atsomecrucialpointinagame,thecoachwilltelltheplayersduringatime-

outwhatplayhewantstorun,whyit’simportantthateachplayerknowexactlywhathisassignmentisandcarryitout.So.Webreak,wedon’ttakethreeorfoursteps out on the floor, and a player taps me on the shoulder—he knows Iremember all the plays—and says, “What are we doing? What play are wecalling?”Andthathashappened,anddoeshappen,overandoveragain.

HL:Obviously, those players aren’t very aware. And just as obviously, sincetheyturntoyouwhentheyforget,thesystemsworkforyouinbasketball.

JL: I use them to remember all our plays. And any player could use them torememberwhathe’ssupposedtododuringanyparticularplay.

•

For obvious reasons, we’ll begin our discussion of memory in sports withbasketball.First,aplaywe’lldesignateplaynumber6.Mostplaysinbasketballarecalledoutbynumber,and it’sa simplematter toassociate thatplay to thebasicPegWord.Thediagramonthefollowingpageshowswhatplaynumber6mightlooklike

afteracoachhasexplainedit:Ifyou ignoreall thearrows,dashes,and lines in thediagram,you’ll see the

basic positioning of a team.C is center; LF and LG are left forward and leftguard;RFandRGarerightforwardandrightguard.Now.Adotted line ( ) is a passmadewith theball; a solid

line( )isthedirectioninwhichtheplayermoves;thesolidshortlines( )arepicksorblocksbyoneoftheplayers.RGstartswiththeball.Hepasses it toLGwho, in turn,passes it toLF.LF

then passes the ball to C. If you follow the dotted lines and arrows, you canfollowtheball’sprogressasitisbeingpassed.AssoonasLFpassestheballtoC,hestartstomovetowardthemiddleofthe

court.Atthesametime,LGstartstomovetowardtheendofthecourt.BothLFandLGarealsomovingtowardC.Now,LFmomentarilystopstopickorblock

LG’s opponent and then continues to themiddle of the court where he picksRF’sopponentasRFmovestowardthemiddleofthecourttojoinLF.LF then turnsandmoves toward thebasketafterhepicks forRF.Whileall

thisisgoingon,LG(ifhehasn’tgottentheballfromC,forashot)circlesunderthebasket andback toward themiddleof the floor.RGmovesaway from theactioninordertokeephisopponentfrominterferingwiththeplay.Chasseveraloptionsduringthisplay.ThefirstistopasstheballtoLGwhen

LFpicks forhim.Thesecondoption is topass toRFwhenLFpicks forhim.ThethirdistopasstheballtoLFashemovestothebasketafterhehaspickedforRF.Finally, ifnoneof theseoptions isavailable,Ccan turnandshoot theballhimself.

In this one basic play, you can see that there are several options for

(hopefully)goodopenshotsduringitsexecution.Eachplayerhasspecificdutiestoremember:

C—Gettobasicposition.ReceiveballfromLF.PassballtoLG,RF,orLF.Ifplaydoesn’twork,shoot.

LF—ReceiveballfromLG.PassballtoC.MovetowardCandpickforLG.MovetowardmiddleandpickforRF.Movetobasket.

LG—ReceivepassfromRG.PasstoLF.MoveoffLF’spick,tothebasket.Ifnoshotdevelops,circlebackunderbaskettooriginalposition.

RF—MoveoffthepickbyLFtocenteroffloor.LookforpassfromCandshootifopen.RG—PasstoLG.Moveawayfromplay.

Itwouldbeasimple task foreachplayer toLink,orassociate,hisduties to

shoe(6).Allheneeddoismakeupafewstandardstorepresentthepositions.Anywordscontaining theproper letterswoulddo.Ccouldbecore(pictureanapplecore.Itbeginswithc,andalsomeanscenter);LFcouldbeleaf;RFcouldberoof;LGcouldbelog;RGcouldberug.Thebestwaytomemorizetheplaydescribedaboveistouseonepicture;no

Linkisnecessaryforsoshortaplay.Ccouldpictureashoemovingtoabasicposition. (Hecouldsimplysee itmoving tohisbasicposition,orhecouldputbase, sick, or both, into the picture.)A leaf throws a ball to the shoe and theshoelooksaroundatalog,asteeple(roof),andagiganticleaf,tryingtodecidewhichonetothrowitto.Itcan’tdecide,soitshootsitself!CheckbacktoC’sdutiesforthisplay,andyou’llseethatthissillypicturewill

quicklyremindthecenterofthem.Whenhe’sonthefloorandaplayerorcoachcalls“Six,”he’llinstantlyknowwhathehastodo.(Bearinmindthatthisisalltheplayersneed—reminders.)LFmightpictureashoereceivingaballfromalog;theshoethrowstheballat

anapplecoreashemovestowardthatcore,andpicksupalogandaroof;heplacesashoeintoabasket.(Weconsiderthistobeonepicture.ALinkwouldworkaswell:shoetologtocoretopicktologtorooftoshoetobasket.)LG:ashoecatchesaballthrownbyarugandimmediatelythrowsittoaleaf;

itpicksuptheleafasitmovestowardabasketincircles.RF: a shoemoves off apick held by a leaf; itmoves to themiddle of the

floor;anapplecoremakesapassattheshoe;theshoeshoots.RG:ashoethrowsaballtoalog,thenmovesoutofsight.TheplayerwouldformassociationsorLinksliketheseinordertooriginally

rememberall the teamplays.Aftera fewuses, thepictureswill fadeasusual;he’llsimplyknowtheplays.

Infootball,theplaysaremorecomplicatedbecausethereareelevenmenonateam. But a play still involves each man’s remembering what he himself issupposedtododuringanycalledplay.Theexceptionwouldbethequarterback,whoshouldprettymuchbeawareofwhateachofhisteammatesissupposedtodo,andwherethey’resupposedtobe.Tohelphimoriginallymemorizetheplay,hisLinkswouldbeabitmoreinvolved.ThesamekindofassociationsorLinkswillhelpanyplayertobeOriginally

Awareofhisduties.Thisiswhatadiagramofplaynumber14,the“dive-option”play,mightlooklikeonacoach’sblackboard:

Herearethebasicdutiesofthethreekeymeninthisparticularplay:

QB (quarterback)—Openpivot, ride theFB, read firstmanoutside tackleforhandoff,optiontheendmanonthelineofscrimmage.

FB(fullback)—Diveovertheguard,meshwiththeQB.Ifballisreceived,runtodaylight;ifnot,fakethroughlineandblock.

TB(tailback)—Takecounterstepandrunoptioncoursemaintaining7-yardrelationshipwithQB.

Originally,eachplayermighthaveformedaLink,startingeitherwithadive

—ifthequarterbacksimplycalledfor“diveoption”inthehuddle—orwithtire,iftheplaywascalledbynumber.Aplayermightsimplyneedtoknowthatplay14isthedive-optionplay.Inthatcase,hewouldoriginallyhaveassociatedtiretodive.

QB’sLinkcouldbe:Atire(ordive)isopeningaballetdancer’s(Substitutethoughtforpivot)costume;anemptycostumeisridingonagiganticwatchfob(FB);agiganticfobisreadingahand(handoff)that’sthrowingfishingtackleoutside;thehandistryingtodecide(option)whoisthelast(end)maninaline(ofscrimmage).TheFB’sLink:Atiredivesoveraguardrail,intoamess(mesh)ofquarters

(QB); itgrabsaquarter and runs towarda light—itdrops thequarter (doesn’treceivetheball)ontoafakelineofblocks.TheTB’sLink:Atirestepsonacounter(orsomeonestepsonacounterin

ordertodive)andrunsupachin(option)tomeethisrelation,agiganticcow(7-yardrelationship);thecowisgivingquartersinsteadofmilk.

Inbaseball,abattermustrememberthatthesignalfor,say,hitandrun,isthecoach rubbing his elbow. He’d simply picture an elbow hitting someone andrunningaway.Eachday,theplayerhastorememberthatday’s“key”signal,thesignalthatmeans,“IfIdothis,thenthenextsignisreallytobefollowed.”Ifthecoachdoesn’tusethe“key,”theplayerignoresanyothersignal.So.Theplayercould simplyassociate akey towhatever thekey signal is for thatday.Theremight also be a “wipeout” signal, a sign thatmeans, “Ignore the signal I justgave you.” Same thing; the player would associate wipe or wipeout to thesignal.Oneannounceratatrotterstrackusedthesystemsforyearstohelphimcall

theraces.Heneededtoknowhorses’names,jockeys’names,horses’numbers,and colors for every race. He associated all the information to each horse’snumber,startingaLinkwiththenumber.Heusedastandardforeverycolor—abull might represent red, an orange could represent orange, a banana couldrepresentyellow,grass could representgreen, agrape could represent purple,andsoon.Inthisway,evencolorscanbepictured.

We’vebeenusingexamplesfromtheparticipant’spointofview.Butifyou’reasportsfan,youcanapplythesameideastowhateverinformationorstatisticsyouwant to remember.BabeRuth’s career home-run record is 714. Picture agiganticbaby playing aguitar athome; or, the home is in thegutter. See agreen iceberg that’smaimed, and that picture will help you remember thatHankGreenberghit331homersinhiscareer.Whowastheworld’sheavyweightboxingchampin1936?You’llremember

JamesBraddockifyouassociatematch(36)to,perhaps,haddockorbaddock.Associatemummy tocarnival orcarnear to remindyou thatPrimoCarnerawastheheavyweightchampin1933.Pictureabearusingalawnmowertotell

youthatMaxBaerwasthe1934champ.InwhatyearwasthefamousDempsey-Firpofight?Associatedampseaand

fir pole toname—1923. If youwant to remember the exact date, usebuttername:9-14-23.Asyoucansee,thememorysystemscanbeappliedjustaseasilytosportsas

toanythingelse.

19THESTOCKMARKET

HL:Muchoftheinformationpeopleinthemarketneedtoknow,suchasstocksymbols, is purely and simply a memory problem. A student of mine oncewantedtoleavehismenialjobandobtainapositionwithabrokeragehouse.HeusedtheSubstituteWordandAlphabetWordsystemtomemorizethesymbolofeverystocktradedontheNewYorkStockExchange—about1,600atthetime.He applied for the job, and foundhe hadplenty of competition.During the

interview,hehanded the stockexchange listings tohispotential employerandaskedhimtocalloffanycompanyorsymbol.Whicheverwascalled,henameditscounterpartinstantly—withoutmissingaone.

JL:Iassumehegotthejob.

HL:Theinterviewertoldhim,“Therearepeoplewho’vebeenworkinghereforyears,andnotoneof themknowsall thesymbols—you’rehired!”Today, thatformerstudentofmineisco-ownerofhisowncompanyintheput-and-callarea.

JL:I’llrememberthatwhenI’moverthehillforbasketball!

•

People involved in the stock market (clients and brokers) must be able torememberagreatdealofinformation,includingnamesofcompanies,theirstocksymbols, and, of course, prices.You should know how to handle prices now.Make up a word or phrase for the price, then associate it to the name of thestock. That’s easy enough. The only additional problem involved is that ofhandlingthefractions.Thisproblemiseasilysolvedifyouchangeallfractionstoeighths,whichis

the common denominator of stock market price fractions. You’d be dealing,then,with:1/8,2/8(¼;),3/8,4/8(½;),5/8,6/8(¾;),and7/8.The pattern you follow, basically, is to make up a word that tells you the

dollars—a word whose last single consonant sound tells you the number ofeighths (the fraction).For a stock selling at 29½;, picture thewordnapper or

nipper and you’ve got that price. The first two consonant sounds can onlyrepresent 29, the final consonant sound r (4) reminds you of the number ofeighths—4,inthisexample,andyouknowthat4/8is½;.Youmay bewondering howyouwould know thatnipper represents 29½;,

not294.Well, ifyouaren’tknowledgeableenough toknowthatastock that’sbeen fluctuating around $29 can’t be selling at $294 you shouldn’t be in thestockmarket!So,yourknowledgeof themarketplusyourcommonsensetellsyou the difference. If you had associated, say, racket to a gigantic telephone(AT&T),you’dknowthatracketrepresents471/8,not471.Asusual,thereareothermethodsyoucanuse.Ifyoulike,youcanalwaysuse

aphrase to represent aprice; the firstword for thedollars, followedbyaPegWordtotellyouthenumberofeighths.Thatway,29½;couldtransposetoknobryeorniprye,and47⅛;toracktieorrocktie.Thismethodleavesyouwithnodecisionstomake.Ofcourse,youmaynotcareaboutthefractionsatall;youmayonlyneedto

know the price in dollars. Just forget about the fractions and use a word torepresentonlydollars.Whichevermethod you decide to usewill work. Associate theword to the

companynamebyusingaSubstituteWordorthoughttorepresentthecompany—telephone would certainly remind you of AT&T. A car saluting a generalmightbeyourSubstitutethoughtforGeneralMotors.Atinybottleofsoda(minisoda)wearing aminers’ hat could remind you ofMinnesotaMining; spare ahand would do for Sperry Rand; polar hurt for Polaroid;Mack roar E forMcCroryCorporation;andsoon.So.AnassociationofaMacktruckroaringatanE(oreel)that’ssittingona

melonwouldremindyouthatMcCrorystockwassellingat35¼;.Whataboutrememberingstocksymbols?Thestockbrokerhasamachineon

his desk that will give him current prices pretty quickly—if he punches thecorrectsymbol.Abrokerwhocouldinstantlyrecallanystocksymbolheneededtoknowwouldhaveanadvantage.Now,youprobablydon’twantorneed to remember all the symbols.But if

youwanttoremembersomeofthem,it’seasy.Justmakeupawordorphrasetorepresentthelettersofthesymbol.Thereare

twowaystodothis—youcanuseawordthatremindsyouoftheletters,oryoucanusetheAlphabetWords.Forexample,thesymbolforPittwayCorporationisPRY. You might see a gigantic pit prying its way out of something—theassociationgivesyou the twopiecesof informationyouneed, thenameof thecompany and its symbol. Associating Pittway to a pea on a clock (hour)drinkingwinewouldaccomplishthesamething.

Pictureapolly(parrot)beingaMatoaplum,andyouhaveareminderthatthesymbolforPolymerCorporationisPLM.ThesymbolforShawIndustries isSHX;youmightpicturemillionsofeggs

(X)cominguponashore—yousay“Sh”tothem.Whateverreminderyouthinkofwillwork;youcouldhaveused“shucks”toremindyouofSHX.Anass(S)scratchinganitch(H)withanexit(X)signwouldalsodo.Picture a hen and an eel eating a ham on a new mountain to help you

rememberthatthesymbolforNewmontMiningisNEM.Ifyoureallythinkit’snecessary,includesomethinginthepicturetoremindyouofmining.

You can form an association that includes the name of the company, thesymbol, theaveragepriceof thestock(or thepriceyoupaid), thenameof thetopexecutiveofthecompany—whateveryoulike.The point is that now you canpicture letters. Picturing either theAlphabet

Words, or a word that begins and ends with or contains the vital letters, istantamounttopicturingtheletters.The same ideas can be used wherever you find it necessary to remember

lettersinconjunctionwithanythingelse.

20POLITICS

JL: It’s too bad we can’t drop the names of some politicians who use oursystems.HL:Theywouldn’tallowit—andyoucan’tblamethem.They’dneverbeabletogetbywithsittinginfrontofacongressionalorSenatecommitteeandsaying,“Idon’tremember”!

•

It’s obvious that being able to remember names and faces is an asset to anypolitician, just as it is to businessmen. But a politician should be able torememberagreatmanyother things—certainlyheshouldhaveall thepoliticalinformation,atleastforhishomestate,athisfingertips.Mostofthisinformationisstatisticalandinvolvesnamesandnumbers.Thesystems,ofcourse,applytobothareas.Mostpeopledonotknowthenamesof their representativesandsenators. If

you’re among them, simply make up a Substitute Word to represent senator—tore(picturetearing),centaur,orcenturywoulddo.The senators from Nevada (elected in 1970) are Bible and Cannon. See

yourselftearingagiganticbibleandgettingshotbyacannon foryourcrime.Thatdoesit.Ifyou’renotfromNevada,butstillwanttoknowwhoitssenatorsare,getaSubstituteWordforthestateintothepicture.Youcantakeitfurther.Ifyouwant to rememberpartyaffiliations,makeupa standard to representeachmajorparty.Obviously,youcanuseanelephant(R)oradonkey(D),sincethosearethepartysymbols.Or,usedean(D)andhour(R),theAlphabetWords,ordamforDemocratandpubforRepublican.Inthisexample,ifyou’reusingtheAlphabetWordsforyourstandard,you’dgetwhateveryoupicturefordeanintotheassociationwithBibleandCannon,bothofwhomareDemocrats.Many people have trouble remembering which symbol belongs to which

party. They’re reminded of the donkey and elephant symbols during nationalconventions,butashorttimeaftertheelectionthey’renolongersure.(It’sratherlike trying to remember last year’s Academy Award winners.) One fastassociationof,say,elephanttopub—andyou’llalwaysknowthattheelephant

is the symbol of the Republican party and, of course, the donkey is theDemocraticsymbol.Thesenators fromOhio(all theseexamplesareasof1970records)areTaft

and Saxbe.Youmight see adaft (Taft) centaur playing a saxophone. That’sprobablyallyouneedtoremindyouofSaxbe,butifyoulike,youcanseeabeecoming out of the saxophone. They’re both Republicans, so you can getelephant,hour,orpubintothepictureforeachname.Suppose you want to remember how many representatives your state has.

UsingOhioagainastheexample,ithas24representatives—7Democratsand17Republicans.Oneeasywaytoapplythesystemtosuchinformationistoalwaysuse aword that endswith ad or an r forDemocrat andRepublican—awordwhose first consonant sound or sounds tell you how many Democrats andRepublicansthereare.Good,goad,orcodwouldmean7Democraticrepresentatives;tiger,dagger,

ortickerwouldtellyouthatthereare17Republicanrepresentatives.Ofcourse,ifallyouwant toknow is the totalnumberof representatives, justuseawordthatbeginsorendswithr.Onceyoudecidewhereyou’llplace thevital letter,alwaysuseitthatwayandthewordwillworkforyou.ThewordrunnerwouldworkforOhioifyou’replacingtherfirst.Thenextconsonantsoundorsoundsgivesyouthenumberofrepresentatives.You’d be surprised to see how easily you can remember the number of

representatives from each state thisway.Once you’vemade up theword thattells you the number, just associate that to yourSubstituteWord for the state.Tryafew:NewYork has 41 representatives. Associatenew cork or the Empire State

Buildingtoroaredorreared.Oklahomahas6representatives.Associatehomertorashorroach.Alabamahas8representatives.Associatealbumtorooforrave.Nebraskahas3representatives.Associatenewbrasscartoroomorram.Texashas43representatives.Associatetaxistorearmorrear’em.Pennsylvaniahas27representatives.Associatepenciltorinkorring.Tennesseehas9representatives.Associatetennistoropeorripe.Kentuckyhas7representatives.Associatecan’ttalktoragorrug.Massachusettshas12 representatives.See amasschewing something that’s

rotten.IncludingOhio (high or “oh,hi” torunner), youhave ten examples.Form

the associations, then test yourself—you’ll probably know the number ofrepresentativesfromeachofthosetenstates.If you’re involved (or just interested) in national politics, youmight find it

useful toknowthenumberof registeredDemocraticvoters inparticularstates.Noproblem; justasyoucould remember thepopulationof, say,Tennesseebyassociatingtennistomabannertouch’er,ormoppin’redchair(3,924,164),you can associate a state to the number that represents the Democratic (orRepublican, or both) registered voters. If you formed an association of anewbrasscardeliveringamessagetoanewnail,itwouldhelpyourememberthatthereare306,225registeredDemocratsinNebraska.Getmylovejailerintothepicture,alongwitheitherpub,elephant,orhour,andyou’llknowthatthereare358,654 registered Republicans. If all you need to remember is the totalregistration,makeupaphrasetorepresent664,879andassociateittoNebraska.At thispointyoushouldhavenodifficulty inworkingoutamethod tohelp

you remember thenumberof state senators and/or assemblymen inyour state.NewYork State’s state senate consists of 57 senators—25Democrats and 32Republicans. Associatedenial (D, 25) andRoman (R, 32) to your SubstituteWord for state senate. If you’re doing thiswithmore than one state, get yourSubstituteWord or phrase for New York into the picture. Associate decked,ducat,ducked(D,71)andrakeup,recoup,orragpie(R,79)toaSubstituteWordforassembly,andyou’llknowtheaffiliationbreakdownofassemblymen.ForCalifornia:statesenate,21Democrats(donut)and19Republicans(retap,orretape);stateassembly,43Democrats(dreamordrum)and37Republicans(remakeorroomkey).Inaquickcheckweaskedtwenty-fivepeople,fromeighteendifferentstates,

if they knew how many electoral votes their home states controlled in apresidentialelection.Notonepersonknew!Andafewofthemwereinvolvedinpolitics.Allthat’snecessaryistoassociateastatetoaone-ortwo-digitnumber.If you’re remembering other information as well, get a word into your

associationorLink that tellsyou the twothingsyouwant toknow:1) that it’selectoral votes you’re remembering, 2) howmanyvotes.Either start thewordwithane forelectoralorend itwithane,oran-el.Oklahomahas8electoralvotes;elforfuel,accordingtothepatternyouintendtouse,wouldgiveyouthatinformation.Let’s assume you decide to start eachwordwith an e. For some two-digit

numbers, there may not be a word to fit. For example, Pennsylvania has 27electoralvotes.Findingaword that startswithe andwhose consonant soundsonly represent 27 may be difficult if not impossible. Simply use a word likeenclose—as was the case when we discussed letter-exchange telephonenumbers. Since you know that no state has electoral votes comprising threedigits (the largest isCalifornia,with 45), you’d simply ignore the sounds thatfollowenc.

If you’re familiarwithour systems,you’ll seewhenyou sit downwith anymemory problem that you can easily patternize the problem so that one oranotherofthesystemsapplies.Associatemixagain toendandyou’llknowthatMichiganhas21electoral

votes.Sassycantoegg(Kansas,7);hightoenlarge(Ohio,25);whizcontoedit(Wisconsin,11);washtoebb(Washington,9);potatotoear(Idaho,4);caliphtoearly(California,45);andsoon.Allthesuggestionsinthischapterhavebeenjustthat—suggestions.Theway

youpatternizeanymemoryproblemisuptoyou.And,usually,themethodyouselecttohandleanymemoryproblemwillbethebestforyou.

21THEARTS

Bynow,youshouldrealizethatthesystemsareapplicabletojustaboutanykindofmemoryproblem.And,asyou’velearned,mostmemoryproblemsbasicallybreak down to entities of two. If you’d like to gain some knowledge of art,literature,ormusic,youmightwanttolearnandassociateartistandperiod,titleofpaintingandartist,literaryworkandauthor,orpieceofmusicandcomposer.IfyouwantedtorememberthatMarcelDuchampwasofthedadaistschoolof

painting, youwould associate a SubstituteWord or phrase for Duchamp to aSubstitutethoughtfordada.Seeingatoechompingonababycryingforitsdadamightdoitforyou.Or,youcouldusetwochampsorduechampstoremindyouofDuchamp.BraqueandPicassowerecubists.Seeyourselfbreakingwitharock(Braque)

agiganticcubewithapickax(Picasso).MonetandRenoirwereimpressionists.Youmightpictureoldmoney(Monet)

being renewed (Renoir) to appear as an impressionist (one who doesimpersonationsorimpressions).Ofcourse,foreachofthelasttwoexamples,youcouldassociateoneartistat

a time to the school or period. You’d simply associate first Braque and thenPicassotocubism.Rembrandtwasahumanist.Youmightpicturearambrandingahuman.VanGoghandCézannewerepostimpressionists.Onepictureofavangoing

topressapostandseizeAnnwoulddoit.Or,usetwoseparateassociations;avangoestopressapost,andapostthat’spressingclothes(ironing)seesAnn.EdvardMunch(pronouncedMuhnk)wasanexpressionist.Picturethis:You’re

tryingtoexpressyourselftoamonk.Daliisasurrealist.Pictureadollthat’s“surereal.”Daliisoftenconsidered

tobeasuperrealist,soyoucanseethatdollbeingrealandeatingsoup.Anexampleofanonobjectivepainter isKandinsky.Youmight formasilly

associationofcandy skiing and throwingobjects at anun; orcandid ski tononobjective.Jackson Pollock’s work is considered abstract-expressionist, or action

painting.Pictureagiganticpolelockedinaroomwhereitobstructs(abstract)

all expression and action. Or, a pole with a lock on it is being very active(running)andobstructingexpresstrains.Rauschenberg is a pop artist; picture a roach on an iceberg drinking soda

pop.Rousseauwas of the primitive school of painting.Associate a trousseau or

Ruthsewtoprimitive(seeRuthsewingprimitiveclothes).OneofRousseau’swell-known paintings is “The Dream.” Get something into your picture torepresentdream,andyou’llberemindedofthat,too.Mondrianwasaconstructivist;perhapsyou’dliketorememberthatoneofhis

paintings is titled “Broadway Boogie-Woogie.” Picture aman dryin’ a hugeconstructionashedancestheboogie-woogieonBroadway.Picturingalotofbluepoles(colorblue,orsadblue)thatarelockedupwill

remindyouthatPollockpainted“BluePoles.”Seeagiganticdollsittingonaflyinghorse(Pegasus)toremindyouthatDali

did “Pegasus in Flight.” If you didn’t know the name of themythicalwingedhorse,youcoulduseapeaingaysauceforPegasus.Botticellipaintedthe“BirthofVenus.”Perhapsyou’dpicturethebottomofa

cello(Botticelli)givingbirthtoaladywithoutarms(Venus).SelectyourownSubstitute Words, of course. Bottle sell E, bought a cello, or bought jellywould also remindyouofBotticelli, andweanus or theplanetwould remindyou of Venus. Botticelli also painted “Calumny.” Associate your SubstitutethoughtforBotticellitocolumnknee.

Inmusicappreciation,theapproachisbasicallythesame.Nowthatyouhavetheidea,youwon’tneedsomanyexamplesofwaystoassociatecomposerandcomposition.Schönberg’s“ViolinConcerto”:Aconwho’sstolenaviolinbangsitagainsta

chaironashinyiceberg.Wagner’sTannhäuser:Someonecrashesawagonintoatownhouse.Wagner

alsocomposedLohengrin.AssociateyourSubstitutethoughtforWagnertolowandgrinorlonegrin.Associate straw win ski to pet rush car and a bird on fire to help you

rememberthatStravinskycomposed“Petrouchka”and“Firebird.”Getwriteoffspring into the picture, and you’ll also remember that he composed “Rite ofSpring.” You can, of course, form a Link starting with the composer andincludingasmanyofhisworksasyouwanttoremember.Thesamemethod,ofcourse,worksforpaintings.Picture arose growingout of yourknee andputting a largeO on a totem

pole,andyou’llrememberthatRossiniwrote“LargoalFactotum.”Picturethat

rosegettingitshaircutbyabarberwhoiscivil(orjustbarber)toremindyouthatRossiniwroteTheBarberofSeville.Liszt wrote “La Campanella”; see a list camping on Ella. Picture that list

beingverygrandandmarchingwithacrowonamattorememberthathealsowrote“GrandeMarcheChromatique.”Grieg’sPeerGynt: see yourselfpeering (with a squint, if you like) into a

creek.Brahms’s“HungarianDances”:Picturebrahma bulls (orbarearms)doing

Hungariandances, ordancing even though they’rehungry. The “HungarianDances”werewrittenaspianoduets;youcanseethedancingbeingdoneontwopianos.Associatethebullsorbarearmstolead,bestleader,orjustbestleadertoremindyouthatBrahmswrotethe“Liebeslieder”waltzes.Debussy’s“LaMer”:YoumightseeaDbeingbusy(orbossy)toallama.

You can associate a book title to its author just as you associated artists toperiodsandpaintings,orcompositionstotheircomposers.The InvisibleMan waswritten byRalph Ellison. The author’s last name is

usuallyallyouneed,butyoucanputbothnamesintoyourpictureifyouwantto.Youmightpicturealarge,rough(Ralph)letterLbeingyourson(Lisson),andfading(becominginvisible).ForTheMagic Barrel, written by BernardMalamud: See yourselfmailing

mud in a barrel that’s performingmagic tricks. For a reminder of the firstname,getburnhardintoyourpicture.ForDanglingMan(SaulBellow):Seeyourselfbellowingatadanglingman.

Or,seeyourselfbelowadanglingman.ForRabbitRun(JohnUpdike):Picturearabbitruningupadike.ForCatcherintheRye(J.D.Salinger):Abaseballcatcherissailin’ajawin

ryewhiskey.ForThePower and theGlory (GrahamGreene): Picture agraham cracker

turninggreenasitusesallitspowertoliftanAmericanflag(OldGlory).One of Robert Lowell’s best-known poems is “Skunk Hour”; if you see a

letterL sinking low and sniffingaclock (hour) that smells likeaskunk, youshouldn’thaveanytroublerememberingit.To remind you that T. S. Eliot wrote “TheWaste Land,” youmight see a

giganticcupoftea(T)drivinganesscurve(S)aroundahugelotthat’sawasteland.Picture a burro eating a naked person for lunch, and you’ll know that

WilliamBurroughswroteTheNakedLunch.Seeagigantic flywithgold inkallover itbeing the lordof theother flies,

andyouwon’tforgetthatWilliamGoldingwroteLordoftheFlies.

Andsoon.Theonlyreasonwe’veincludedsomanyexamplesisforyouruse,ifyou like, as adrill or test.Youcan, asusual, includeany information in anassociation:dates,namesofcharacters,plot,theme,whatever.Itdoesn’tmatterhow difficult the material seems to be; so long as you can come up withSubstituteWordsorphrases, you’ll find it easier to remember.Where a lotofinformationisinvolved,formaLink.Forexample:One of Euripides’ plays isAlcestis. First, associateyou ripD’s toAl says

this. The setting of the play is outside the palace at Pherae. Start a Link—associate Al says this to a fairy outside apalace. The characters areApollo,Death, the chorus (the old men of Pherae), Alcestis, Admetus, Eumelus,Heracles,Pheres,amanservant.YoumightcontinueyourLinkthisway:fairytoapplelowtodies(Death)tochorusofoldmentoAlsaysthistoaddmytoestoyoumailustohairykeystoferriestoservant.Howyouusethesystems—andwhatyouapplythemto—hastobeuptoyou,

of course. If you’re interested in the arts and want to remember all sorts ofinformation, the systemswill be invaluable time-savers. If you’re not that art-mindedbutyouwouldliketoremembercertainnames,titles,andperiods—whynot? Memorize whatever facts you like, and you’ll be able to “talk” artknowledgeably.

22MUSICFORBEGINNERS

HL:IwasabouttosaymusicisGreektome,butthat’snottrue.IknowsomeGreek, and I know absolutely nothing about music—I can’t sing “HappyBirthday” on key. I’ve found it difficult to getmusicalmemory examples forstudents.Iaskprofessionalmusicians,andit’shardforthemtobringtheirmindsbacktothebeginning,whenmemorywasimportant.

JL: I knowwhat youmean, because I don’t know the first thing aboutmusiceither.AndI’msureitwouldbehardforaprofessionalbasketballplayertosetdownthefundamentalsofthegameforabeginner.

HL:Right.Aprofessionalperformsbyinstinct.Ifhehadtostoptoremember,he’d be in trouble. But at the beginning, when he’s first learning thefundamentals,memorymustcomeintoplay.

•

Thischapter isdedicatedtoall thosechildren—andadults—whonever learnedthe fundamentals ofmusic because learning them involved somuch drudgeryand boredom. Music teachers and professional musicians tell us that mostbeginnerswhogiveupmusicdosobecauseof thememorychores—theydropoutbeforemusicbecomesfun.Whetheryouteachthesememoryideastoachildor use themyourself, you’ll see that theymake the study ofmusic easierandmore fun at the beginning. Although we’ll be touching on only a fewfundamentals,you’llalsoseethattheideascanbeappliedtothemall.Toplayabasic,three-notechord,youhavetoremembertwonotesalongwith

thenoteyouwanttoplay.Thereareonlysevenbasicnotestoremember.Thismay not seem like much of a problem, but it is something you must know(remember)atthebeginning.Everyfundamentalisbasicallyamemoryproblem,hencetheclichéamongsomemusicteachers:Atthebeginning,youlearn“rotetonote.”So,althoughthememoryproblemmayneverbediscussed,it’sthereallthesame.Let’sstartwithpiano.Weassumeherethatyou’refamiliarwiththepatternof

black and white keys on the piano keyboard; that you know the keyboard isdividedintooctaves,eachbeginningandendingwithC,andsoon.First,youneedtoknowthesevenbasic(white)notesonthekeyboard—easy

to remember because they’re alphabetized: CDEFGAB. But rememberingwhere,say,Fisonthekeyboardisamemoryproblematthebeginning.Itmustbe,ormemoryaidslikethefollowingonewouldn’thavebeendevised:

AlltheGandAkeysArebetweentheblackthrees

And’tweenthetwosarealltheD’s;Thenontherightsideofthethrees

WillbefoundtheB’sandC’s;Butontheleftsideofthethrees

ArealltheF’sandalltheE’s.Abetterwaywouldbetoassignnumberstokeys.MiddleCisatthecenterof

thekeyboard.Inthisdiagram,we’venumberedtheblackkeysaswellbutwill,forthemoment,useonlywhole(white)notesasexamples.Allyouhavetodonowistoassociateanote(letter)toanumber,andyou’ll

rememberwhichkeytohit for thatnote.Picturehalf (AlphabetWordforF)ashoe,andyou’llknowthatFisthekeynumbered6onthekeyboard.Or,makeupawordthatstartswiththenoteandendswiththenumber;fishforF,damforD, and so on. Chords can be remembered the same way; picture the sea(AlphabetWord)withagigantictealeafonit,andyou’llknowthatplayingkeys1,5,and8givesyouaCchord.

Trythismethodwiththeotherwhitenotes,andyou’llsoonknowthem—the

numbersandassociationswillfadefromyourmind.Onceyoudoknowthepositionofthenotes,there’saneasywaytomemorize

chords.ToplayaCchord,you’dhavetoremembertoplayC,E,andG.We’regoingtolistthemostcommonmajorchords,alongwithsuggestionstohelpyouremembereachofthem.Inthelist,you’llnoticethesymbol#forsharp;F#isF-sharp.(Sharpinganotemakesithigher,butnotashighasthenexthighestnote—F# is higher than F, but not quite a G.) Now. To remember these chordseasily,youformaridiculousassociationforeach—butyou’llalsoneedtoaddastandardtoremindyouofsharp.Aknife,orcutting,willdo.Herearethesevenbasicmajorchords:

C—CEG

Associateocean(sea=C)toegg(eggwillremindyouofEG).

D—DF#A

Dean,half(F)aknife(#),ape.(Adean,holdinghalfaknife,fightsanape.)

E—EG#B

Eel,jeanscutbyaknife,bean.Or,anegg(EG)beingcut(#)byabean.

F—F

F—FAC Picturehalfaface.Or,halfanapegoesintothesea.

G—GBD

Seeapairofjeansgoingbad.

A—AC#E

Anacewithaknife,cuttinganeel.Or,anapejumpsintoaseafullofknivestocatchaneel.

B—BD#F#

Abedbeingcutbyhalfaknife.Or,agiganticbeanisbeingcutbyadeanwithhalfaknife.Or,agiganticbeanisdeaf;ithasaknifestuckintoeachear.

Onceyouknow themajorchords,youalmostautomaticallyknow the sharp

andflatchords.Inwriting,amajornoteisflattedbyaddingtheflatsymbol(b)toit,whichlowersitslightly—BbislowerthanBbutnotquiteanA.Asharpnoteisflattedbysimplyremovingthesharpsymbol.Amajornoteissharpedbyadding thesharpsymbol,andasharpnote issharpedbyaddinganothersharp.Thesymbolforadoublesharpis .So.IfyoualreadyknowthataDchordisDF#A,aD-flatchordisDbFAb

(you’ve flattedeach note); aD-sharpchord is (you’ve sharpedeachnote).Musicianshavetoldusthatoursystemscomeinhandyforrememberingchordprogressions.Onceyouknowhowtopictureachord,youcanformaLinkto remindyouof theprogression (sequence)ofchords foranypieceofmusic.Amateurswhoplayfortheirownandothers’entertainment—often“byear,”orwithoutreadingmusic—findthesystemsparticularlyuseful.One student who played piano in a nightclub lounge years ago had an

interesting gimmick.Wheneverany published song titlewas called, he’d playthe song. There are many thousands of songs, and he knew them all—all heneededwasa reminderof the first fouror sonotes.Onceheplayed those,hisfingers automatically played the rest of the melody. His memory problem—“How do I associate the title of a song to the first few notes?”—had beensolved by assigning a number to each note on the staff. One glance at thefollowingdiagramwillmakethisclear:

Once you familiarize yourself with the notes, locations, and numbers, the

solution is obvious.Any four noteswill transpose to a four-digit number; anyseven notes will transpose to a seven-digit number. And—you already knowhowtomemorizenumbers.Thefirstsevennotesof“MaryHadaLittleLamb,”playedinthekeyofC,are

EDCDEEE. Look at the diagram, and you’ll see that these notes transpose to3212333.Anassociationofalambonamountainwouldremindyouofthefirstfournotes.Ifyouneededareminderofallseven,youmightseethatlambonamountain,singing“MyMammy.”Anywordsthatgiveyouthepropernumbersphoneticallywilldo.Theassociationwillremindyouofthetwothingsyouneedtoknow—thetitle

andthefirstfewnotes.Onemoreexample:Thefirstsevennotesof“BegintheBeguine” are CDEGEDE, and they transpose to 1235323. Picture a tinmulebeginningsomething,andyouhaveyourreminderofthefirstfournotes.(Abeedrinkinggin,abiginn,orbeakinwouldalsoremindyouofthesongtitle.)Torememberthefirstsevennotes,youmightusetinmulemyname.Asusual, it is the idea that’s important,not theKeyWordyouselector the

phraseyoumakeupforthenumbers.IftheKeyWordremindsyouofthetitleandthewordorphrasefitsphonetically,thesystemwillwork.If you’re at all familiar with the music staff, knowing which number

representswhichnoteisamatterofafewmoments’concentration.Ifyouneedsomehelp, apply the systems.An association ofAlphabetWord toPegWordwill do it instantly.Associate sea to tie, dean toNoah, eel toMa, half to rye,jeanstolaw,apetoshoe,andbeantocow.Todistinguishtheoctaves,youmightthenassociateseatohive,deantobay,eeltotease,halftotote,andseatoton.(You’dknowthat thewords thatarenotbasicPegWords represent thehigheroctavenotes.)

Ifyou’ve readup to thispoint, andunderstandhow the systemsapply, thenyou obviously know more about music than we do, and you’ll be able topatternizetheideastofityourparticularproblem.

Onabasicbeginner’s(six-string)guitartherearetwelvefrets.Whilelearningthefundamentals,you’drarelygopastthethirdfret.Inplayingaparticularnote,thebasicmemoryproblemwouldbetoknow,orremember,whichfingerpresseswhich string atwhich fret. This diagram shows the notes for open strings (nofingerpressingdownonanystring):

ToproduceahighC,you’dpressyourfirstfingeronthesecond(B)stringat

thefirstfret.Alwaysthinkinthatorder:finger,string,fret.Anassociationofsea(C)totentwouldgiveyoutheinformation.Youdon’treallyneedthelastdigit—atthebeginning,thefingerandfretdigitsarethesame—sotinwouldsuffice.You’dknowthatthefirstdigittellsyoufingerandfret.ToplayahighG,you’dpressyourthirdfingeronthefirststringatthethird

fret; see a pair of jeans (G) being a doormat. For low C: third finger, fifthstring,thirdfret;associatelowseatomule.FormiddleE:secondfinger,fourthstring,secondfret;associateeeltoNero.As usual, there’s another way to handle it; for low C, you could simply

associateseatocamel;or,youcouldjustthinkcamel.Thefirstlettertellsyouthenote,andthenexttwoconsonantsoundstellyoufingerandstring.Allthatremainsisforyoutodecideonastandardpictureforhigh,low,andmiddle,andyou’reonyourway.(Ifyouknowthestringsbynote,youcanusethelettertorepresentthestring;forhighC,associateseatotub—firstfinger,Bstring.)

Thesameideacanbeappliedtotheviolin;it’seveneasierbecausetherearenofrets,andthereareonlyfourstrings.IfyouwanttorememberthattoproduceanFnoteyouhavetoplaceyoursecondfingeronthesecondstring(atthetopofthe violin neck; as your fingers move down the neck, different notes areproduced),associatehalforefforttonun.ToproduceaBnote,thefirstfingerisplacedonthethirdstring;associatebeantotomb.Or,aswiththeguitar,useonewordorphrasetotellyounote,finger,andstring:fineinnorfannin’forF,andbet’imorbeat’emforB.There’s no reasonwhy the systems shouldn’twork for any instrument. For

example, a beginner on the trumpetwould have to rememberwhich valves topushdownforwhichnote.Sincethereareonlythreevalves,thenotewouldbeassociatedtoawordthatrepresents,say,12,13,23,123,etc.Ofcourse,anyinstrumentbecomesmorecomplicatedasyouprogress.Witha

trumpet,thepropermethodofblowingisalsoessential.Whatwe’vetriedtodointhischapteristoshowyouhowthesystemscanmakethefundamentalseasierto grasp. That way, you get to the excitement—and the fun—of playing amusicalinstrumentsooner.

23READING

Thetermspeed-readingisacommonone,yetitreallydoesn’tmeanwhatitsays—notthewayit’sbeingusedtoday.Peoplewhosaythey“speed-read”arenotreallyreading, they’re“idea-culling.”Andwhensomeone tellsyouhis readingspeed is, say, 1,500words perminute, remember this: Authorities on readinghaveeffectivelydemonstratedthatitisphysiologicallyimpossibletoreadmorethan800wordsaminute!Themisconceptiongoesdeeper.Whenwe’veaskedpeoplewhoclaim tobe

abletoreadthousandsofwordsperminutewhethertheyrememberwhatthey’veread, there’s usually a moment of slightly embarrassed silence. And, slowreadingisusuallyamemoryproblem.Mostoften, it isregression that slowsyoudown.Theveryslowreadersare

horizontal regressors. That is, by the time they get to the end of a sentence,they’veforgottenorhaven’tgraspedwhatwasatthebeginningofthatsentence—so their eyes must go back, horizontally, to the beginning. The verticalregressorsarealittlebetteroff.They’rethereaderswhowillgettothethirdorfourth paragraph and forget what was in the first—their eyes must go back,vertically,tothatfirstparagraph.Don’t misunderstand; there are ways to reasonably improve your reading

speed.But,inouropinion,thereisonlyonewaytoreadbetter,faster,andmoreeffectively—and that is to readatyournormal rateof speedandrememberasyou read.Thegoal is tobe able to read anymaterial onlyonce, andknow it!Eventually,achievingthisgoalwillalsoincreaseyour“normal”readingspeed.ToparaphraseeducatorMortimerJ.Adler:Whenitcomes toreadingmaterial,thepointisnothowfastyoucangetthroughthematerial,buthowmuchofthematerialcangetthroughtoyou.Younowhavethenecessaryknowledgetorememberanyreadingmaterial,as

you read. The facts in reading material are usually sequential, so you wouldapply,basically, theLinksystemofmemory.Withinanyreadingmaterial,youmaycomeacrossnames,wordsyou’renotfamiliarwith,numbers,letters,facts,concepts,whatever.None of these need hang you up, because you’ve learnedhowtomemorizethem.YouknowtheSubstituteWordsystem,whichwillhelp

yourememberthenames,words,facts,andconcepts.YouareawareoftheKeyWordor thought idea,which,alongwith theLink,willhelpyou tokeep thesethingsinsequence.Youknowhowtopicturenumbersandletters,andthattakescareofrememberingthemasyouread.Allyouhave todo is apply the systemsyou’ve learned to readingmaterial.

Let’sassumeyouwanttorememberthefactsinanewsitemlikethisone:

Inthehistoryofrailroading,fewtrackshavebeenlaidfasterthanthoseoftheTanzamRailwayinZambia.Atthismoment,itismovingfromtheportofDaresSalaamtoZambia’scopperbelt.The1,162-milelineisbeingbuiltbyChineselaborers,with the helpof a $402-million loan fromChina.Already completedare21tunnelsand200bridges.Theentirelineisexpectedtobecompletedabout18monthsaheadofschedule.ThisnewsitemisaboutZambiaanditsrailway,soyoushouldstarttheLink

witha“heading”picture,aSubstitute thought thatwill remindyouofZambia.Theoneweusediszombie.Sambehere,somebehere,Sambee,orSambeawouldalldoaswell.Theoneyouthinkofyourselfisusuallybestforyou,butwe’llassumeyou’reusingzombietostartyourLinkforZambia.BeforegoingintotheLink,wewant tobesureyourealizethatalthoughwe

need a lot of words to describe them, the silly pictures are formed as fast asthought. All right then. Picture a zombiewalking very fast along a railroadtrack;thesunissohotthatittans’im.Thissillypicturewillremindyouofthefirst few facts:You’re readingaboutZambia, the railway tracksarebeing laidveryquickly,and the railway is theTanzamRailway.Beforeyoucontinue,besuretoseethatridiculouspicture.Now, to continue theLink:There is salami (Dar esSalaam) falling on the

zombie’scopperbelt.Seeasillypictureofmillionsofpiecesofsalamifallingonthezombie’scopperbelt.SalamiisprobablyenoughtoremindyouofDaresSalaambut, if you like, you can see yourself pointing to the huge salami andsaying, “There is salami.” You can also put in an association for port—portwinewoulddo.Mostimportantisthatyouactuallyseethepicture.Seethezombie’scopperbelt(orthesalami,sinceeitheronecanbeconsidered

asbeingthelastthinginyourmind)turningintoatautchainthatstretchesformiles.Thispictureremindsyouofthenextfact:tautchaintransposesto1,162,andthepicturetellsyouthattherailwaywillbe1,162mileslong.Youmayhavethoughtofdudchain, tightchin,ordidshine,butwe’llassumeyou’reusingtautchain.Continuing:YoumightpicturemanyChinesepeople(picturetheslantedeyes,

orseethemwithshinyknees)laboringtoholdupthattautchain.Eachoneis

getting a gigantic raisin (402) from a giant Chinese man. This silly picturereminds you thatChinese laborers are building the railwaywith the help of a$402-millionloanfromChina.Forthenextfewfacts:Seeagiganticraisinrunningthroughatunnelasitties

aknot(21)orthrowsanet(again,21)aroundthebridgeofitstwonoses(200).This will remind you that 21 tunnels and 200 bridges have already beencompleted. See that picture. (Remember that if you think up your own sillypictures,you’remoreOriginallyAwareof the information. Just trying to formtheassociations ishalf thebattle—you’reconcentratingon thematerialasyouneverhavebefore.)Finally,seeagiganticdove(18)flyingaheadoftheraisin—therailwayisexpectedtobecompleted18monthsaheadofschedule.

Afastreview:Thatdove,whichisthelastthinginyourmind,isflyingaheadof the raisin (18months ahead of schedule) that is running through a tunnel,tyingaknotaroundthebridgeofitsnoses(21tunnelsand200bridgeshavebeencompleted);agigantic raisin isbeinggivenor loaned toChinese laborersbyagiantChineseman(therailwayisbeingbuiltbyChineselaborerswiththehelpofa$402-millionloanfromChina);manyChineselaborersareholdingupmilesof taut chain (the railway is 1,162 miles long); the taut chain comes from azombie’scopperbeltuponwhichsalamiisfalling(therailwayrunsfromDaresSalaamtoZambia’scopperbelt);thezombieiswalkingquicklyalongatrackasthesuntans’im(trackfortheTanzamRailwayinZambiaisbeinglaidquickly).

Ifyou’vereallytriedtoseethepicturesclearly,youshouldbeabletofill inthefollowingblanks:

Whatcountryisbeingdiscussed?_____.Whatisthenameoftherailway?_____.Therailwayismovingfromport_____to_____’s_____belt.Therailwaywillbe_____mileslong.Itisbeingbuiltby_____laborers,withthehelpofa$_____loanfrom_____.Alreadycompletedare_____tunnelsand200_____.Thelineisexpectedtobecompleted_____monthsaheadofschedule.

Even though you’ve made a Link, which is used to remember things insequence,you’llknowanyfactwithouthavingtogothroughtheentireLink.TrytoanswerthesewithoutgoingovertheLinkinyourmind:

Howlongwillthecompletedrailwaybe?_____miles.

WhatisthenameofZambia’srailway?_____.HowmanymillionsdidChinaloanZambia?$_____.

Thefirstfewtimesyouapplythesystemstotechnicalreadingmaterial,theywillslowdownyourreadingrate.Ontheotherhand,youwon’thavetospendtime going over the material again and again. And as you apply the system,you’llseethatyou’lleventuallybereadingclosetoyournormalrateofspeed—and reading thematerialonlyonce.Andasyourproficiency increases, sowillyour“normal”readingspeed.In our example, every fact from the news item was included in the Link.

Obviously,whenyou’redoingthisonyourownyou’llbeselective—you’llLinkonlywhatyoufeelyouneedtoremember.Theideaisapplicabletoanykindofreadingmaterial—andthemoretechnical

the material, the more useful the ideas. As you read, you can remember thenames, places, and events of a historical novel, the names and applications ofnew drugs in amedicalmagazine, the style numbers and prices in a businessreport,thenamesandlegalprecedentsinalawjournal.Anything!

Ifyouwish,youcanevenremember thepagenumberonwhichaparticularfactorquoteappears.SimplyassociateaKeyWordfromthefactorquotetothePegWord that represents that pagenumber. If youhavenoPegWord for thepagenumber,makeoneup—itwillworkjustaswell.Thisideacanbeusedtoremember,say,biblicalorShakespeareanquotes.Theassociationwillhelpyourememberboth the fact and thepagenumber—and, ifyou like, thebook title.Youcanassociatechaptertitles,sectionheadings,orfactstopagenumbers.Youcan,forparticularintentsandpurposes,effectivelymemorizeanentirebookthisway!

24THEMEMORYGRAPH

The Memory Graph will help you remember locations, as well as otherinformation.Theideaisbasedontheletter/numbercombinationsoftenusedtohelpyoupinpointanylocationonamap.Therearelettersdowntheleftsideofthemap,andnumbersacrossthetop;whenyoulookattheguideforaparticularcity, youmay see “C4” next to that city. If you look across rowC and downcolumn4,you’llfindthecorrectvicinityforthecity.There is a way to pinpoint locations in your mind; a way to make them

tangible.Althoughtheideamaybeextendedtoanylengths,we’lluseahundredlocationsasanexample.Lookatthegraphonthenextpage.Obviously,ifyoucanpicture“C4,”makethelocationdefiniteinyourmind,

that picturewill always refer to that particular spot—the box that falls at C4.Anythingassociatedtothatboxwillbelongatthatlocation.Thewaytomakeallthelocationstangibleistopatternizethem:Awordwill

representeachlocation;eachwordwillbeginwiththevitalletter,andtheverynextconsonantsound(anysoundsthatfollowaredisregarded)willbethesoundthatrepresentsthevitalnumber.Inthispattern,thewordAtecanrepresentonlyA1—itbeginswitha,andthefollowingconsonantsoundist(1).ThewordCarcouldrepresentonlylocationC4;itbeginswithac,andthersoundrepresents4.ThewordImpalerepresentsI3(thesoundsafterthemareignored).Thessoundrepresents 10 in every case.All thevital (location)wordsgivenbelowcanbepictured,ofcourse,so that theycanbeassociated toother information.Takealookatthelist.

Thepatternmakestheseassociationseasytoremember.Gooverthemafew

times, and you’ll knowmost of them.Once you know thewords, you have ahandytoolwithwhichtosolveanylocationmemoryproblem.AllyouhavetodoistosuperimposetheinformationontotheMemoryGraph,thenassociatethevitalwordtotheinformationthatfallsintothatbox,orlocation.Oneofourstudents,apostofficeemployee,wanted to remember thename,

approximate location, and zip code of every post office station inManhattan!Afterlearningthe

MemoryGraphidea,hememorizedallthatinformationwithouttoomucheffort.Just so that you’ll see how the idea is applied, here’s theway he laid out thegraph:

He could have extended the graph to, say, 17—but, as you can see, it isn’t

necessary.Thewayit’slaidout,heknewthatH,I,Jupto3belongedtotheleftofthegraph,andthatH,I,Jfrom7to10belongedtotherightofthegraph.(Inotherwords,theTrinity,ChurchStreet,etc.,stationsaresouthoftheVillageandPrince stations; the Hamilton Grange and College stations are north of theManhattanville and Morningside stations.) Some of the stations are listed inmorethanoneboxtoshowthattheycoveramoreextensivearea.HealsoknewthateveryzipcodeinManhattanbeginswith100,sohehadto

rememberonlythelasttwodigits.Knowingallthis,youcanseethataridiculouspicture of, say, a gigantic tire (14) that ate an entire village gives all thenecessary information.Ate givesyou the location (A1), tire givesyou the zipcode(10014),andvillagetellsyouthenameofthestation.The picture of a nun (10022) eating mush (36th Street Station) from a

giganticDish(D6)tellsyouallyouwanttoknow.(ThereasonfornotusingthePegWordmatchfor36thStreetistoavoidpossibleconfusion—youmightusethattorepresent10036,ifyouwerememorizingthischart.)ForA5,thestudentusedthispicture:Manyclocks(times)weredrinkingAle

(A5)bythelightofagiganticmatch(10036).SoyouseethatanassociationofaSubstituteWordorthoughtforthenameofthestation,thevitalwordforthelocation,andthePegWordforthezipcodenumberareallyouneed.Oncetheassociationsaremade,allthenecessaryinformationisatyourfingertips.

Actually, this isasimplifiedexample.Thestudentalsowanted torememberthe street boundaries for some of the stations. He put them into the properlocationsandincludedthemintheassociationorLink.Forexample,thenorth-southboundariesoftheCollegeStationare134thand144thstreets.Heincludedtimer and tearer in his original picture to remind him of this. The east-westboundaries areSt.Nicholas andLenoxavenues; apictureofSantaClaus (St.Nick)ornickelsandleanoxwouldremindyouofthat.Any information can beLinked to the vital (location)word.And the entire

blocofinformationcanbeputonthegraphinanywayyoulike—thewaythattellsyouwhatyouwanttoknow.Forthisexample,thestudentcouldhavelistedH,I,JstationsinF,G,HandkeptIandJempty.Itwouldn’thavematteredatall. Virtually the same information could have been condensed into a 4 × 4MemoryGraph,likethis:

Inthiscase,hecouldhaveusedaLinkof,say,Ate totrainatteaandsash

(Trinity,06)tochurchsack(07)tovillageandtiretoshellseaandtot—orhecouldhavemade separate associationsofAte to eachSubstituteWord.Eithermethodwillwork.

Any tabular material can be placed on a Memory Graph. Any schematicproblem,anylocationproblem,canbesolvedthisway.Ifyouwanttorememberthe layout (location)of thevital partsof adissectedanimal,write them in the

properboxes,makeyourassociations,andyou’llknowthelayout.Allyouhavetodoisgooveryourvitalwords—you’llknowwhereeachpartbelongs.You can learn the approximate location of all the states thisway.A 3 × 3

MemoryGraphwilltellyouthenorthwestern(A1),western(B1),southwestern(C1), north-central (A2), central (B2), south-central (C2), northeastern (A3),eastern (B3),andsoutheastern (C3)states.Lookatamap, list thestates in theproper squares, form your Links (vital words to states)—and it’s done. Ofcourse,youcouldpinpointthelocationsmorepreciselybyusingalargergraph.Thesame ideaworks forcitiesofstates,citiesofcountries, streetsofcities,

countries of continents, rivers of countries, and soon.You’duse theMemoryGraph only if you wanted to know locations; otherwise, simple Links wouldsuffice.Many people have memorized the entire periodic table of the elements

(chemistry,physics)bysuperimposingitontoaMemoryGraph.The Memory Graph also enables you to do a fantastic number-memory

demonstration.Layouta10×10graphandthentrytothinkupawordthatthevital word for each square would logically remind you of. Use words thatcontain four consonant sounds, and try not to have any repeats of four-digitnumbers.Someexamples:Ate(A1)mightlogicallymakeyouthinkofburped(9491);anAwning(A2)isasunshade(0261);youAim(A3)rifles(4850);anAvenue (A8) is a street (0141); theAce (A10) of clubs (7590); aBell (B5)rings(4270);Comb(C3)abaldhead(9511);aDish(D6)iscracked(7471);anEddy (E1) is awhirlpool (4595);Enter (E2)meanscomeon in (7322); aFur(F4)-bearinganimal(9427);Fake(F7)meansnotreal(2145);Fib(F9)andfibbing (8927);Gale (G5) and storm (0143);Hill (H5) andmountain (3212);Huff (H8) and puff (2198); Italy (I1) and spaghetti (0971); (y)Ipe (I9) andscream(0743);Jet(J1)andairplane(4952).Afteryou’vedonethisforallthevitalwords,gooverthemafewtimesuntil

eachvitalwordautomaticallyremindsyouofthesecondaryword.ThenlayoutaMemoryGraphwithonly theproper four-digit number in each square.Nowyou can have someone call any letter/number combination—youwill instantly(aftersomepractice)namethefour-digitnumberin thatsquare!IfI1 iscalled,that shouldmake you think of Italy; Italymakes you think of spaghetti, andspaghetticanonlybe0971.IfA3iscalled,you’dthinkofAim;aimremindsyouofrifles,andthat tellsyouthenumber4850.Themoreoftenyouperformthisfeat,theeasieritwillbeforyou.Afterawhileyouwon’thavetothinkaboutitanymore;whenyouheara letter/numberyou’llalmostautomaticallyknow thefour-digitnumber.Youcanchangeanyof thevitalwords,ofcourse—as longas thewordyou

selectfitsthepattern.This 400-digit (100 four-digit numbers) feat is virtually impossible to do

withoutthesystem.It’satoughonetotop.Youmayfeel,however,thatsomeofthestuntsyou’llbelearningdotopit.

25POTPOURRI

Duringoneofourclasses,agentlemansaidhehadamemoryproblemthatwasdrivinghimcrazy.Theentireclassleanedforwardtohearthisproblem.“Idineoutquitealot,”saidtheman,“andwheneverI’mreadytoleavetherestaurant,Ialwayshavetospendtimesearchingthroughallmypocketsformycoatcheck!”There were a few snickers, yet the man was serious. His search for the coatcheckannoyedhim,embarrassedhim,andwastedhistime—tohimitwasabigproblem.Wementionithereonlytomakethepointthatthesystemsreallydoapplyto

anything.We told theman tonumberhispockets:number1, left front trouserpocket;number2, rightfrontpocket;number3, left rear;number4, rightrear;number 5, left outside jacket pocket; number 6, right outside jacket pocket;numbers7and8,insidejacketpockets.Now,eachpocketcouldbepictured.Wetoldhimtoformafastassociationof

thecoatchecktothePegWordrepresentingthecorrectpocket—atthemomentheput thecheck into thepocket. If thecoatcheckwasassociated torye,he’dknowwheneverheneededthecheckthatitwasinhisrightreartrouserpocket.Ifyou’rewonderinghowhe’d remember that the left front trouserpocket is

number1,etc.—he’dknow,sincehenumberedthem.Or,hecouldsimplyseeatie in the left front trouserpocket, a longgraybeard (Noah) inhis right frontpocket,andsoon.Theprinciple,ofcourse, is the sameonediscussed in theabsentmindedness

chapter. The association would force him to think—for a moment, at thatmoment—aboutwhichpocketwasinvolved.Anotherwaytodesignatespecificpocketswouldbetomakeupawordthattellsyouthepocket.Forexample,fortrouser pockets: leaf (left front), roof (right front), lure (left rear), roar orrower(rightrear).Forthejacketpockets,youmightusejewel(jacketleft)andjar(jacketright).Therearemanywaystopatternizemostproblems.

•

HL:It’san“unimportant”problem,butitmatterstome.Ilovebooks.Iwouldn’tdreamofdog-earingapagetotellmewhereIstoppedreading.Andbookmarks

alwaysseemtofallout.So,IformaninstantassociationasIclosethebook.Ilookatthepagenumber,andifit’spage125I’llseethebookgoingthroughatunnel.ThenexttimeIpickupthatbook,Iknowwhichpagetoturnto.SinceIsometimes readmore thanonebookat a time, it’s evenmorehelpful—Ido itwitheachbook,addingapictureforthetitletotheassociation.JL: This really is unimportant—I’m always counting things and rememberingthem.It’sscrewy,butithelpskeepmymindoccupied.Imaycountthecracksonabasketballfloor,orthenumberofpeopleinthestandswho’rewearingred,thetiles on a ceiling, the number of steps on a stairway. I’ve even counted andremembered the painted strips of white highway lines—I’m sure you’ll bethrilled toknow that there are132brokenwhite linespermileonmostmajorhighways in forty-seven of the fifty states.Whenever I return to a basketballcourt, stairway, highway—I’ll still know the number of cracks, steps, andstripes.This symbol, , in one of the shorthand methods, means

progress. Look at that symbol—what does it remind you of? Use a littleimagination,anditlookslikeahook,acane,acandycane,orthesideviewofabobsled.Onceyou“see”something,associateittoprogress.Ifitlookedlikeahooktoyou,seeyourselfpullingonagiganticheavyhook;finally,youmoveit—you’remakingprogress.Theassociationgivesyouthetwothingsyouneed,theshapeofthesymbolanditsmeaning.Theideacanbetakentoanylengths.InaChinesedialect,thisisthesymbol

thatmeansdragoninEnglish:

It’spronounced lohn,whichisprettyclose to“loan.”Weworkedoutasilly

picture,orstory,thatmadeitpossibletovisualizethecharactersmakingupthesymbol:Someoneasksyoufora loan;you’resoangryat thisrequest thatyou

pushone-fifth( )oftheamountrequested,usingastick(—),ontoaladder(

). The ladder is so tall that when you climb it you see a cup of tea being

sippedby azebra on anelevated train—the tea spills onto the zebra .The“spilled”tearemindsyouthattheTisonitsside.Thezebrayells,“Ma!”(whichremindsyouofthethreeshortlines).TheletterL(eltrain)isenoughtoremindyouofThismayseem time-consuming,but trymemorizingmanyChinesesymbols

byrote—you’llrecognizethesillypicturestoryfortheshortcutitreallyis.

•

HL:WhenIwasaprivateintheU.S.Infantry,Ifoundthatatthetime,1943,theSignalCorps scheduled threemonths for trainees just tomemorize theMorseCode symbols—another three months was allowed for sending and receivingpractice.IfinallytalkedtothecolonelinchargeandboastedthatIcouldteachthetraineestorememberthesymbols—“inlessthananhour.”IwasallreadytoexplainthesimplesystemIknewwoulddothetrick,butInevergotthechance.“Whatinblazes,”heaskedjustbeforehethrewmeout,“wouldwedowiththemenfortherestofthethreemonths!”

•

We’vetouchedonChinesecharactersandshorthandsymbolstoshowyouthatthe systemsapply to abstracts.Well,what could seemmoreabstract thandotsanddashes?Yetifyoupatternizetheproblem,it’seasilysolved.Here’sasimpleformula:R=dot(•).T(orD)=dash(-).Onceyouhavethat

inmind,youcanpictureeachsymbol. isthesymbolforA.There’snowaytopicture ,butaccordingtotheformula isRT;thewordRaTcanbepicturedand,withinthispattern,ratcanrepresentonly andnothingelse.The symbol for B is , and the word terror would tell you the symbol

(doubler’sand t’sdocounthere).Thesymbol representsCin theMorse(orContinental)Code;thewordtorture,tartar,ortraitorwouldrepresentthesymbol.Youcanmakeupyourownwordsorphrases.Herearejustafewsuggestions

forthetoughones:

Onceyou’vemadeup thewordsandphrases,youhave toassociate themtotheir letters.Oneway is simply to associate the symbolword to theAlphabetWord.Pictureanape (A)fightingwitharat( ),andyouhavethetwothingsyouneed—letterandsymbol.ForB,youmightpictureagiganticbean (B) interror( ).Perhaps the simplestway is touse the adjective idea.Awful rat,Big terror,

Crueltorture,etc.Onceyouconcentrateon“flatreartire,”howcouldyouforgetthat is theMorseCodesymbol forF?“Flat” is theadjective that tellsyouthatFistheletter,and“reartire”tellsyouthesymbol.Soyousee,noinformationistooabstractforthesystems.Ifthematerialcan

bewrittenorverbalized,thesystemscanbeappliedinoneformoranother.

Ata racetrack,airport, shoppingcenter,etc., ifyouforgetwhereyourcar isparked you can always wait until everyone else has driven away—the carremaining is yours! Perhaps you’d prefer to associate the car’s location (rownumberandletter,usually)toyourcar.Ifyou’reparkingitinthestreet,associatethecartothenearestaddress,orto

the nearest cross streets. If you park near 57th Street and SeventhAvenue inNew York City, see a low cake driving your car; for 23rd Street and ThirdAvenue,seeanewmummyinyourcar.Ifyouparknear401FifthAvenue,seeyour car taking a rest on a hill; and so on. You know the principle—you’reforcingyourself to thinkof the locationat thatmoment,and locking it inwiththesillyassociation.You can remember a person’s address in the same way. Just as you can

associateyourcartoanaddress,associatetheperson(orSubstituteWordfortheperson’s name) to the address. If youwanted to remember thatHarryCooperlivesat401FifthAvenue,youcouldpictureahairy(chicken)cooptakingarestonahill,andyou’dhavetheaddress.Youcanrememberanyformulaorequationbyapplying theLinkandusing

standards to represent the things that appear regularly. AnAmerican flag canrepresenttheequal(=)sign(Americansareallequal);aminerormynahbirdcanrepresenttheminus(-)sign;applausecanrepresenttheplus(+)sign,atreecanrepresentthesquareroot( )sign,andsoon.Theformulaforfindingtheareaofaregularpolygonis:

Start your Link with a SubstituteWord for polygon; perhaps a parrot (polly)

that’sgone (disappeared).Associate that to aquarter (¼;) kneelin’ (nl2) on acot (cotangent) near a hen that’s being attacked from above (over) bydoves(180/n)Ifyouwantedto,youcouldseethequarterthat’skneelin’lookingup, to remind you that the superscript 2 is written near the top of the nl. Ofcourse,youcouldhaveusedhen, elevated train, andNoah to representnl2; oryoucouldmakeupastandardSubstituteWordforsquared.Seeaphosphorous(glowing)hamrecitingapoem(HamPoem)tohelpyou

rememberthattheformulaforphosphorousacidisH3Po3.AssociatepyreVicorpie rudeVic toComeHearSam orCombHairSome to remind you of theformulaforpyruvicacid:C3H4O3.

Whenyoudriveintoagasstationtoaskdirections,thefirstthingyouusuallyhear is,“Youcan’tmiss it.”Then,youknowyou’re in trouble!Butyoudon’thave to be—you can use the Link to remember directions. First, you need astandardforrightandleft.Youmightuseapunch(rightuppercut)andtheredCommunistflag(left).Then,formaLinkasyouhearthedirections.Ifyou’retoldtogotothe2ndlight,immediatelypictureNoah(manwithlong

beard).Makearightturn:You’repunching(right)Noahinthemouth.Gotothe4thlight:You’repunchingagiganticbottleofrye.Turnleft:Agiganticbottleofryeiswavingaredflag(left).Andsoon.Tryit—youwon’tget lostnearlyasoften.

Many computer codes are really simple number codes. For a particularbusiness, thedigit1mayrepresent“male,”thedigit2mayrepresent“female,”thedigit3may represent“earnsover$8,000.” Ifacomputeroperatorpunchesonewrongdigit,itcouldcostthecompanyalotofmoneytostraightenouttheerror.Anassociationofdigit(PegWord)towhatthatdigitrepresentssolvestheproblem.AnassociationofMa tofacesSuemightbeall theoperatorneedstorememberthatdigitandfact.

Areyouadieter?Ifyouare,it’seasiertokeeptrackofwhatyou’resupposedtoeatifyouknowhowmanycalories(orcarbohydrates,orboth)arecontainedincertainquantitiesofparticularfoods.Ifyouassociateafriedeggtodisease,you’ll always remember that a fried egg contains 100 calories. Associatingmayonnaise tobonewill remindyouthata tablespoonofmayonnaisecontains92calories,andsoon.

Thereisnolimit to theexampleswecouldinclude.If theproblemisoneofmemory,thesystemsapply.Theycanhelpyourememberanythingyouwantto

remember.

26LOOK,I’MAGENIUS!

HL:Renée and Iwere flying toWashington, and Iwas tired—I’ddone sevenappearances in a five-day period. I said to my wife, “I hope it’s a smallaudience.”Ithadbecomearunninggagwithus,becauseIalwaysrememberedeverynameintheaudience,andsometimesIdidn’treallyfeellikeworkingveryhard.Atourhotel,RenéewenttocheckouttheroomwhereI’dbeappearing,andI

took a nap.When I woke up she toldme, “Relax, Harry—it’s really a smallaudience.”When Iwent to the room to startmeeting thepeople formyperformance, I

sawwhat shemeant. Iwasappearing for agroupcalled“TheLittlePeopleofAmerica”—itwasanassociationofmidgets!JL:That’sasmallaudience,allright.HL:Therewereaboutthreehundredofthem,andit’sthefirsttimeinmylife—I’mfivefeetsix—thatIeverfeltlikeGulliver.JL:ToobadIwasn’twithyou—they’dhavecomeuptomykneecap.HL:There’sapunchlinetothestory.Theyallhadspecialstoolsattheirtables,sotheycouldreachthefood.Imetthemallduringdinner,andafterthedessert,Iwasintroduced.Ialwaysbeginbyaskingthe“few”peopleI’vemettostandup.Well,theyallstoodup—andtheyalldisappeared!Iwasstaringataroomfulofwhitetablecloths.JL:Youmean,whentheystooduptheywereallbelowtablelevel!HL:That’s it. They started to peek over the tabletops, andwe all laughed forsomething like fiveminutes. Finally, one of them called out, “You really areamazing, Mr. Lorayne. That’s the first time anyone’s ever made a wholeaudiencedisappear!”

•

Youmaynotbeabletomakeanentireaudiencedisappear,buttherearemany“amazing”featsyoucanperform,usingthesystemsyou’velearnedinthisbook.Take the “missing-card” stunt described in the card chapter—it actually

derivesfroma“missing-number”stunt,which, ifperformedwithnumbers,has

thesameeffect.Havesomeonenumberapaperfrom1to50,or100.Tellhimtocircle any five numbers. Then ask him to call all the remaining numbers andcrossthemoutasthey’recalled.He’stodothishaphazardly,andasquicklyashelikes.Youcanbeacrosstheroomwhilethisisdone;youdon’t,ofcourse,lookat

thepaper.Whenallbutthecirclednumbershavebeencrossedout,youtellyourfriendwhich numbers he circled! The principle is exactly the same as for the“missing”cards;exceptforthisyoumutilatethebasicPegWordforeachcallednumber.Whenhe’sfinished,gooverthePegWordsmentally(from1to50,or1to 100), and any one that’s not mutilated in your mind has to be a circlednumber.IfyouknowthePegWordswell,andyourfriendcrossesoutandcallsthenumbersquickly,thisisanimpressivememorydemonstration.

IfyouknowtheCardWords,trythisforagroupofatleasteightpeople:Letsomeone shuffle a deck of cards. Then spread the deck face up, and, as youapproachonepersonatatime,leteachonetakeanytwocards.Aseachpersontakesthetwocards,youformaridiculouspicturebetweenthetwoCardWords.For instance,onepersonmay take the10Cand the7S.Seeasillypictureofalargecasewearingsocks.Anotherpersontakesthe3CandtheAH;seeyourselfcombingyourhairwithahat,oryou’rewearingagiganticcomb insteadofahat.Theideaistodothisquicklywitheachperson’stwocards.When all the people have two cards each (you can do this stuntwith up to

twenty-six people, of course, but it’s just as effectivewith ten or fifteen), askeachonetorememberhisorhercardsandtoholdthemfacedown.Younowhaveachoiceofeffects.Youcanhaveanybodycalloutoneoftheir

cards—youinstantlynametheotherone.Easy,ofcourse; ifsomeonecalls the10C,youthinkofcase.Thatshouldmakeyouthinkofsock(7S).Or,youcanhaveonememberoftheaudiencecollectallthepairsofcardsand

shufflethemthoroughly.Now,makeitlooklikeamind-readingstunt;spreadthecardsfaceupandletanyonetakeoutoneofhiscards.Askhimtothinkofhissecondcard.Then,withagreatshowofconcentration,removeitandhandittohim.Samething; ifheremoves the3Cyou’ll immediately thinkofcomb,andthatmakesyouthinkofhat.So,youremovetheAH.Youcan take this idea tomany lengths.Asonefinalexample,youcan take

onecardfromeachperson,andmixthem.Holdthemfacedownanddistributethem, haphazardly, one card to each member of your audience. Each personholdshistwocardsfaceup.Now,ifyouknowthepeoplebyname(whichyoushould, ifyou’veappliedwhatyoulearnedinthesectiononnamesandfaces),youcanamaze thembyrapidlygiving instructionsuntileachpersonagainhas

his original pair. Something like this: “All right, Sally, give that eight ofdiamondstoJim.Jim,yougiveyourkingofheartstoAl.Sally,takethefourofspadesfromHarryandgiveittoSueinexchangeforhersixofclubs.…”Onceyou’ve associated the pairs of cards originally taken by each person, you canperformmanydifferentcard-memoryfeats.

Anothercard-orientedmemorystunt:Letasmanypeopleasyouliketakeonecard.Eachpersonquicklycallshisorhercard,plusanysillyhidingplace.Forexample,someonemaysay,“Thefourofdiamonds,undertheashtray.”Allyouhave todo is toassociate theCardWord to thehidingplace. In thiscase,youmight see a gigantic ashtray being a door. Do this with each call. Now, ifsomeonecallsacard,youcaninstantlytellwhereit’shidden.Ifsomeonecallsahidingplace,youcanjustasinstantlytellwhichcardishiddenthere.

LetterapaperfromAtoZ.Askyouraudiencetocalloutanyletter,followedby a three-digit number to bewritten next to that letter. If someone calls theletterLandthenumber489,formanassociationofanelfonaroofflyingup.TheletterPiscalled,plusthenumber541;seeagiganticpeabeingcaughtwitha lariat, or a gigantic pea being lured. Once every letter has been given anumber,ifyou’vemadegoodclearassociationsyoushouldknowthenumberifaletteriscalled,andviceversa.Thisisimpressivebecauseyou’rerememberingentitiesthatmostpeoplecan’tremember—lettersandnumbers.YoumustknowyourAlphabetWords,andyouhave tobeable tomakeup

wordsorphrasesforthree-digitnumbersquickly.YourbasicPegWordsandthe“couplingidea”canhelpyouwiththis.Makeupawordthatcancoupleeasilywithanotherword,oneforeachdigitfrom0to9.Here’sasuggestionforeach:0—hose;1—wet;2—on;3—my;4—hairy;5—ill;6—ashy;7—hack;8—wave;9—happy.Decideon theword, andhow topicture it.Onceyou’vedone that, youcan

instantly remembera three-digitnumber: If017 iscalled,you’dpicturea tack(PegWord for 17)wearinghose. If 191 is called, see awet bat. Here’s oneexampleforeach“coupling”word.For236,pictureyourselfputtingamatchonsomething; for619,seea tub turning toash as itburns; for752, seeyourselfhackingalionwithanax;for847,seeagiganticrockwavingatyou;for972,seeagiganticcoinlaughing(happy).Use the same kind of picture with any PegWord. In other words, for any

three-digitnumberstartingwith7,you’dalwaysseethePegWord(forthelasttwodigits)beinghackedwithanax;foranynumberthatstartswitha4,seethePegWordcoveredwithhair,andsoon.

NowyouseethatifL-489iscalled,youcanpictureahairywatchfobonanelf; forP-541,you’dassociate an ill rod (fishingor curtain,whicheveryou’reusing) to apea. This letter-number stunt, incidentally, is just as impressive ifdonewithhalfthealphabet,AtoM.

Areallyimpressivememoryfeatistomemorizethehighlightsofeverypageinanentiremagazine.SimplyassociatethePegWordforeachpagenumbertothe outstanding stories or photographs on that page. If themagazine containsmorethanahundredpages,makeupPegWordstofit.Once you’ve made your associations, you should be able to rattle off the

highlights for any page number called.You’ll even know the positions of thephotos, without making an effort to remember them. Each association willconjure up a mental picture of that entire page. It’s the closest thing to aphotographicmemory—tryit,andyou’llsee!

Ifyouhaveafriendorrelativewhohaslearnedthephoneticalphabetandwhoiswillingtosithomeatthetelephonewhileyou’reouthavingagoodtime,youcan perform a fascinating demonstration in “thought transference.” Tell youraudience that you know someone who can actually read thoughts frommilesaway.Give the audience the “medium’s” phone number before you begin thedemonstration.Now, have someone write any three-digit number on a large piece of

cardboard—“Make it difficult,” you say. “Don’t repeat any digits.” Everyonelooksat thenumberandconcentrateson it.Asksomeone todial the telephonenumber you gave before the three-digit number was even thought of. As thepersonreachesfor thephone,yousay,“Oh,andaskforMr.Jones.”WhenthepersonaskstospeakwithMr.Jones,Mr.Joneswilltellhimthathe’sthinkingofthenumber620,andhe’llbecorrect!How?Becauseof thename,Jones!Youwill have made up any name that codes the three digits (via the phoneticalphabet)toyourassistant!The reason you tell your audience to “make it difficult” and not repeat any

digitsisbecauseit’seasiertocomeupwithanamethatway.It’seasytocomeupwithalegitimate-soundingnameinanycase;“Lorayne”wouldcode542and“Lucas” would code 570, but the name you use need not contain only threeconsonantsounds.Sinceyourassistantknows thatyou’llalwaysask for threedigits,heor she

willignoreanyconsonantsoundafterthefirstthree.So,ifhehearssomeoneaskforMr.Cooperberg,heknowsthatthethreedigitsare794—heignores“berg.”The nameBentavagnia codes 921. There is no three-digit number that should

cause any trouble. And you have plenty of time to think of a name whileeveryoneelseisconcentratingonthenumber.The“medium”shouldnotblurtoutthenumber.Itshouldbegivenhesitantly,

asifheorshewerereallyreceivingthenumberviamentaltelepathy.Hemightgivethelastdigitfirst,thenthefirst,andfinallythecenterdigit—we’llleavetheshowmanshiptoyou.The same idea can be usedwith playing cards. If you tell amember of the

audience to call and ask for Mr. Sanders, that codes the 2S. The first letteralways tells the suit, and the next consonant sound tells the value. The nameHaggettwouldcodethe7H,Cavanaughthe8C,andsoon.Youcan’t,ofcourse,repeateitherofthesedemonstrationsforthesamepeople

—you’dhavetotellthemtoasktospeaktoadifferent“medium,”whichwouldlooksuspicious.Ifyou’reaskedtorepeatthestunt,claimmentalfatigue!We’ve just shownyouhow touse the systems toperforma few“amazing”

feats.Ifyou’velearnedandappliedthesystemsthroughoutthebook,youmustrealize that there is reallyno limit to the feats you canperform,providedyouenjoy doing them and have a willing audience. Just use your imagination toapplyonesystemoranothertowhateverfeatyouthinkwillseemamazing.It’sfun—foryou,andforthosewatchingyou!

27FINALLY

We live in theeraof the“informationexplosion.”Eachyear,anextraordinaryamountofnewtechnicalknowledgeandinformationcomestolight,andyouaregoingtohavetoremembersomeofit.In using many examples throughout the book, we’ve tried to keep them

general.Hopefully,someofthemarethingsyou’dliketorememberrightnow.But it’s not important whether or not any particular example helps youremembersomethingyouneedtoknow;what’simportantisthatyougrasptheidea.Thenyoucanapplytheideatothethingsyoudoneedtoremember.Thisisnotthekindofbooktoreadlikeanovel.Anovelisthekindofbookto

readlikeanovel!Ifyou’vesimplyreadthroughthebook,noddingyourheadinunderstandingbutwithoutstoppingtotry,learn,andapply,youshouldgobacktothebeginning,thebasics.Dothethingsyou’retoldtodoasyouread—reallylearnthosebasics.Thetimeyouspenddoingitwillsaveyouenormousblocksoftimeinthefuture.Then start applying the ideas.That’s really theonlyway they canwork for

you.

FORMywifeRenéeandmysonRobertHARRYLORAYNE

MysonJeffandmydaughterJulieJERRYLUCAS

ByHarryLorayne

HarryLorayne’sPage-a-MinuteMemoryBookTheMemoryBook