How to improve your How to improve your memory: Mnemonic memory: Mnemonic

DevicesDevices

Why do we need MEMORY?

Memory is the diary that we all carry about with us. ~Oscar Wilde

Memory is the primary and fundamental power, without which there could be no other intellectual operation. ~Samuel Johnson

What if you couldn’t create new memories? Amnesia patient: Clive Wearing

How do you use your memory everyday? “National Memory Championship” – “Memoriad”

http://usamemorychampionship.com/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vsYCSmBcM0&feature=related

How can I improve my How can I improve my memory?memory?

Most popular answer: Mnemonic devicesMost popular answer: Mnemonic devices

MnemonicsMnemonics Tricks and strategies to help memory!Tricks and strategies to help memory!

RepetitionRepetition ChunkingChunking First letter techniqueFirst letter technique RhymingRhyming VisualizationVisualization KeywordKeyword LinkLink Method of LociMethod of Loci PegwordPegword Self-reference effectSelf-reference effect

Learn the following list by ONLY Learn the following list by ONLY readingreading;; go through list as many go through list as many

times as possibletimes as possible Horse – TableHorse – Table Island – HatIsland – Hat Door – NoteDoor – Note Bear – AppleBear – Apple Clock – MoonClock – Moon Building – DogBuilding – Dog River – TableRiver – Table Road - PaperRoad - Paper

Basket – CloudBasket – Cloud Ring – ShipRing – Ship Snow – WindowSnow – Window Pencil – HammerPencil – Hammer Bread – CarBread – Car Meat – EnvelopeMeat – Envelope Box – GardenBox – Garden Book - CupBook - Cup

Recall as many as possibleRecall as many as possible

Horse –Horse – Island –Island – Door – Door – Bear – Bear – Clock – Clock – Building – Building – River – River – Road - Road -

Basket – Basket – Ring – Ring – Snow – Snow – Pencil – Pencil – Bread – Bread – Meat – Meat – Box – Box – Book –Book –

AnswersAnswers

Horse – TableHorse – Table Island – HatIsland – Hat Door – NoteDoor – Note Bear – AppleBear – Apple Clock – MoonClock – Moon Building – DogBuilding – Dog River – TableRiver – Table Road - PaperRoad - Paper

Basket – CloudBasket – Cloud Ring – ShipRing – Ship Snow – WindowSnow – Window Pencil – HammerPencil – Hammer Bread – CarBread – Car Meat – EnvelopeMeat – Envelope Box – GardenBox – Garden Book - CupBook - Cup

Repetition techniqueRepetition technique

RepetitionRepetition Forces you to pay attentionForces you to pay attention Visual and verbal memory for materialVisual and verbal memory for material

Spacing effectSpacing effect Distributed practiceDistributed practice is best for delayed test is best for delayed test Massed practice ok for immediate testMassed practice ok for immediate test

Why?Why? Time to consolidate infoTime to consolidate info Only concentrate for so long Only concentrate for so long Study under different conditions/settingsStudy under different conditions/settings

ChunkingChunking

Short-term memory capacity limitShort-term memory capacity limit Magic number 7 +/- 2Magic number 7 +/- 2 Memory spanMemory span

Remember: 7 0 4 8 6 4 2 3 2 1 8 9Remember: 7 0 4 8 6 4 2 3 2 1 8 9 Or remember: 704 864 23 21 89Or remember: 704 864 23 21 89 Remember 7 +/- 2 CHUNKSRemember 7 +/- 2 CHUNKS Why helpful?Why helpful?

Increase capacity by Increase capacity by groupinggrouping informationinformation

Gives meaning to random informationGives meaning to random information

First-letter techniqueFirst-letter technique

Acronym:Acronym: ROY G BIV: colors of the rainbowROY G BIV: colors of the rainbow HOMES: great lakes HOMES: great lakes PRICE: InjuryPRICE: Injury

Acrostic: first letter of each word of Acrostic: first letter of each word of sentence is cuesentence is cue Music notes: Every Good Boy Deserves FunMusic notes: Every Good Boy Deserves Fun 12 cranial nerves: OOO To Touch And Feel…12 cranial nerves: OOO To Touch And Feel…

Why helpful?Why helpful? Letters act as cueLetters act as cue ChunkingChunking

Rhyming techniqueRhyming technique

When did Columbus discover America?When did Columbus discover America? ““In fourteen hundred ninety-two, Columbus In fourteen hundred ninety-two, Columbus

sailed the ocean blue”sailed the ocean blue” ““ii before before ee except after except after cc; or when ; or when

sounded like sounded like aa, as in neighbor and , as in neighbor and weigh”weigh”

““Thirty days has September, April, Thirty days has September, April, June, and November”June, and November”

ABC’s song (rhyming and chunking)ABC’s song (rhyming and chunking) Why helpful?Why helpful?

Dual-coding hypothesisDual-coding hypothesis

Dual-codingDual-coding 2 cues: verbal and visual2 cues: verbal and visual

VisualizationVisualization Picture superiority effectPicture superiority effect

Effective visualizationEffective visualization InteractionInteraction VividnessVividness BizzarenessBizzareness

“HOMES”

Learn the following list by creating Learn the following list by creating a mental image of two items in a mental image of two items in

vivid interactionvivid interaction Bird – FruitBird – Fruit Rain – RockRain – Rock Dress – MoneyDress – Money House – MountainHouse – Mountain Cow – FlowerCow – Flower Corn – GateCorn – Gate Roof – NestRoof – Nest Baby – HairBaby – Hair

Ice – TrainIce – Train Fence – LetterFence – Letter Egg – ChairEgg – Chair Book – WaterBook – Water Coat – GlassCoat – Glass Candy – SignCandy – Sign Rabbit – PaintRabbit – Paint Hammer - BookHammer - Book

RecallRecall

Bird – Bird – Rain – Rain – Dress – Dress – House – House – Cow – Cow – Corn – Corn – Roof – Roof – Baby – Baby –

Ice – Ice – Fence – Fence – Egg – Egg – Book – Book – Coat – Coat – Candy – Candy – Rabbit – Rabbit – Hammer - Hammer -

AnswersAnswers

Bird – FruitBird – Fruit Rain – RockRain – Rock Dress – MoneyDress – Money House – MountainHouse – Mountain Cow – FlowerCow – Flower Corn – GateCorn – Gate Roof – NestRoof – Nest Baby – HairBaby – Hair

Ice – TrainIce – Train Fence – LetterFence – Letter Egg – ChairEgg – Chair Book – WaterBook – Water Coat – GlassCoat – Glass Candy – SignCandy – Sign Rabbit – PaintRabbit – Paint Hammer - BookHammer - Book

Image–name mnemonic

Use to remember name with face Think of vivid word that sounds like name Link word with person’s appearance

Example Rodney Flanery Image: Football player with rod in his knee,

so benched and wearing flannel to stay warm

Create one for your own name!

Link mnemonicLink mnemonic

Chaining or Link systemChaining or Link system First: form visual image for each itemFirst: form visual image for each item Second: associate image with next imageSecond: associate image with next image Important to SEE associationsImportant to SEE associations

Narrative techniqueNarrative technique Form a story using items you want to Form a story using items you want to

rememberremember

Appropriate for serial learningAppropriate for serial learning Problem: if forget one item then next items Problem: if forget one item then next items

may be inaccessible toomay be inaccessible too

Method of LociMethod of Loci

““In the first place”In the first place”

1. Memorize familiar locations in 1. Memorize familiar locations in natural ordernatural order

2. Create visual image of word with 2. Create visual image of word with each locationeach location

3. Recall: take a “mental walk”3. Recall: take a “mental walk”

Peg-word techniquePeg-word technique

First: use memorized First: use memorized concrete nounsconcrete nouns

Rhyming words with Rhyming words with numbers helps to numbers helps to remember wordsremember words

Second: create visual image Second: create visual image of target word with peg-of target word with peg-word word

Similar to Loci: objects Similar to Loci: objects instead of locationsinstead of locations

Problem: limited # peg-Problem: limited # peg-words words

QuestionsQuestions

What tricks and strategies do you What tricks and strategies do you use to memorize information?use to memorize information?

You go to a party and meet lots of You go to a party and meet lots of new people. You would like to be new people. You would like to be able to remember their face and able to remember their face and name. How do you do it?name. How do you do it?

Questions, continued…

Why do these techniques work to improve memory? What do they share in common?

Which of these techniques could you realistically use to help you study for exams?

Why wouldn’t you use some of them?

Why mnemonics workWhy mnemonics work AttentionAttention

Ensure encodingEnsure encoding RepetitionRepetition Retrieval cuesRetrieval cues Dual-coding cuesDual-coding cues

Verbal and visual representationsVerbal and visual representations OrganizationOrganization

““chunks”chunks” Notice relationships and differencesNotice relationships and differences

Use existing knowledgeUse existing knowledge ElaborationElaboration

Think about Think about meaning meaning and make distinctiveand make distinctive GenerationGeneration

Your ideas makes it personalYour ideas makes it personal

Limitations of MnemonicsLimitations of Mnemonics

TimeTime How to deal with abstract material?How to deal with abstract material? Learning vs. retentionLearning vs. retention Creative abilityCreative ability InterferenceInterference Doesn’t help memory in generalDoesn’t help memory in general Does not help understanding of Does not help understanding of

materialmaterial Need to practice mnemonics!Need to practice mnemonics!