1040 lines
48 KiB
Markdown
1040 lines
48 KiB
Markdown
---
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created_at: '2016-11-27T03:45:17.000Z'
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title: 'Effective learning: Rules of formulating knowledge (1999)'
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url: https://www.supermemo.com/en/articles/20rules
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author: misiti3780
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points: 130
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story_text:
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comment_text:
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num_comments: 35
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story_id:
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story_title:
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story_url:
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parent_id:
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created_at_i: 1480218317
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_tags:
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- story
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- author_misiti3780
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- story_13047576
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objectID: '13047576'
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year: 1999
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---
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1. **Do not learn if you do not understand**
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Trying to learn things you do not understand may seem like an utmost
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nonsense. Still, an amazing proportion of students commit the
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offence of learning without comprehension. Very often they have no
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other choice\! The quality of many textbooks or lecture scripts is
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deplorable while examination deadlines are unmovable.
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If you are not a speaker of German, it is still possible to learn a
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history textbook in German. The book can be crammed word for word.
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However, the time needed for such "blind learning" is astronomical.
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Even more important: The value of such knowledge is negligible. If
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you cram a German book on history, you will still know nothing of
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history.
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The German history book example is an extreme. However, the
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materials you learn may often seem well structured and you may tend
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to blame yourself for lack of comprehension. Soon you may pollute
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your learning process with a great deal of useless material that
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treacherously makes you believe "it will be useful some day".
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2. **Learn before you memorize**
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Before you proceed with memorizing individual facts and rules, you
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need to **build an overall picture of the learned knowledge**. Only
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when individual pieces fit to build a single coherent structure,
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will you be able to dramatically reduce the learning time. This is
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closely related to the problem comprehension mentioned in [Rule 1:
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Do not learn if you do not
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understand](#Do%20not%20learn%20if%20you%20do%20not%20understand). A
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single separated piece of your picture is like a single German word
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in the textbook of history.
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Do not start from memorizing loosely related facts\! First read a
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chapter in your book that puts them together (e.g. the principles of
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the internal combustion engine). Only then proceed with learning
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using individual questions and answers (e.g. What moves the pistons
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in the internal combustion engine?), etc.
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3. **Build upon the basics**
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The picture of the learned whole (as discussed in [Rule 2: Learn
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before you memorize](#Learn%20before%20you%20memorize)) does not
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have to be complete to the last detail. Just the opposite, the
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simpler the picture the better. The shorter the initial chapter of
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your book the better. Simple models are easier to comprehend and
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encompass. You can always build upon them later on.
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Do not neglect the basics. Memorizing seemingly obvious things is
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not a waste of time\! Basics may also appear volatile and the cost
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of memorizing easy things is little. Better err on the safe side.
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Remember that usually you spend 50% of your time repeating just 3-5%
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of the learned material \[[source](../../articles/theory.htm)\]\!
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Basics are usually easy to retain and take a microscopic proportion
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of your time. However, each memory lapse on basics can cost you
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dearly\!
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4. **Stick to the minimum information principle**
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The material you learn must be formulated in as simple way as it is
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- **Simple is easy**
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By definition, simple material is easy to remember. This comes
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from the fact that its simplicity makes is easy for the brain to
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process it always in the same way. Imagine a labyrinth. When
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making a repetition of a piece of material, your brain is
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running through a labyrinth (you can view a neural network as a
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tangle of paths). While running through the labyrinth, the brain
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leaves a track on the walls. If it can run in only one unique
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way, the path is continuous and easy to follow. If there are
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many combinations, each run may leave a different trace that
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will interfere with other traces making it difficult to find the
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exit. The same happens on the cellular level with different
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synaptic connections being activated at each repetition of
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complex material
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<!-- end list -->
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- **Repetitions of simple items are easier to schedule**
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I assume you will make repetitions of the learned material using
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optimum inter-repetition intervals (as in
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[SuperMemo](../../english/smintro.htm)). If you consider an item
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that is composed of two sub-items, you will need to make
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repetitions that are frequent enough to keep the more difficult
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item in memory. If you split the complex item into sub-items,
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each can be repeated at its own pace saving your time. Very
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often, inexperienced students create items that could easily be
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split into **ten or more** simpler sub-items\! Although the
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number of items increases, the number of repetitions of each
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item will usually be small enough to greatly outweigh the cost
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of (1) forgetting the complex item again and again, (2)
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repeating it in excessively short intervals or (3) actually
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remembering it only in part\!
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Here is a striking example:
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**Ill-formulated knowledge - Complex and wordy**
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Q: What are the characteristics of the Dead Sea?
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A: Salt lake located on the border between Israel and Jordan. Its
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shoreline is the lowest point on the Earth's surface, averaging 396
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m below sea level. It is 74 km long. It is seven times as salty (30%
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by volume) as the ocean. Its density keeps swimmers afloat. Only
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simple organisms can live in its saline waters
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**Well-formulated knowledge - Simple and specific**
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Q: Where is the Dead Sea located?
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A: **on the border between Israel and Jordan**
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Q: What is the lowest point on the Earth's surface?
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A: **The Dead Sea shoreline**
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Q: What is the average level on which the Dead Sea is located?
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A: **400 meters** (below sea level)
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Q: How long is the Dead Sea?
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A: **70 km**
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Q: How much saltier is the Dead Sea than the oceans?
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A: **7 times**
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Q: What is the volume content of salt in the Dead Sea?
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A: **30%**
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Q: Why can the Dead Sea keep swimmers afloat?
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A: **due to high salt content**
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Q: Why is the Dead Sea called Dead?
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A: **because only simple organisms can live in it**
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Q: Why only simple organisms can live in the Dead Sea?
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A: **because of high salt content**
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You might want to experiment and try to learn two subjects using the
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two above approaches and see for yourself what advantage is brought
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by minimum information principle. This is particularly visible in
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the long perspective, i.e. **the longer the time you need to
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remember knowledge, the more you benefit from simplifying your
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items**\!
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Note in the example above how short the questions are. Note also
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that the answers are even shorter\! We want a minimum amount of
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information to be retrieved from memory in a single repetition\!
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**We want answer to be as short as imaginably possible**\!
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You will notice that the knowledge learned in the ill-structured
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example is not entirely equivalent to the well-structured
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formulation. For example, although you will remember why the Dead
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Sea can keep swimmers afloat, you may forget that it at all has such
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a characteristic in the first place\! Additionally, rounding 396 to
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400 and 74 to 70 produces some loss of information. These can be
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remedied by adding more questions or making the present ones more
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precise.
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You will also lose the ability to fluently recite the description of
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the Dead Sea when called up to the blackboard by your teachers. I
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bet, however, that shining in front of the class is not your
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ultimate goal in learning. To see how to cope with recitations and
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poems, read further (section devoted to
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[enumerations](#Enumerations))
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5. **Cloze deletion is easy and effective**
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Cloze deletion is a sentence with its parts missing and replaced by
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three dots. Cloze deletion exercise is an exercise that uses cloze
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deletion to ask the student to fill in the gaps marked with the
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three dots. For example, Bill ...\[name\] was the second US
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president to go through impeachment.
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If you are a beginner and if you find it difficult to stick to the
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minimum information principle, use cloze deletion\! If you are an
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advanced user, you will also like cloze deletion. It is a quick and
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effective method of converting textbook knowledge into knowledge
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that can be subject to learning based on spaced repetition. Cloze
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deletion makes the core of the fast reading and learning technique
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called [*incremental reading*](../../help/read.htm).
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**Ill-formulated knowledge - Complex and wordy**
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Q: What was the history of the Kaleida company?
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A: Kaleida, funded to the tune of $40 million by Apple Computer and
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IBM in 1991. Hyped as a red-hot startup, Kaleida's mission was to
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create a multimedia programming language It finally produced one,
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called Script X. But it took three years. Meanwhile, companies such
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as Macromedia and Asymetrix had snapped up all the business. Kaleida
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closed in 1995
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**Well-formulated knowledge - Simple cloze deletion**
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Q: Kaleida was funded to the tune of ...(amount) by Apple Computer
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and IBM in 1991
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A: $40 million
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Q: Kaleida was funded to the tune of $40 million by ...(companies)
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in 1991
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A: Apple and IBM
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Q: Kaleida was funded to the tune of $40 million by Apple Computer
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and IBM in ... (year)
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A: 1991
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Q: ...(company) mission was to create a multimedia programming
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language. It finally produced one, called Script X. But it took
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three years
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A: Kaleida's
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Q: Kaleida's mission was to create a ... It finally produced one,
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called Script X. But it took three years
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A: multimedia programming language
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Q: Kaleida's mission was to create a multimedia programming
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language. It finally produced one, called ... But it took three
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years
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A: Script X
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Q: Kaleida's mission was to create a multimedia programming
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language. It finally produced one, called Script X. But it took
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...(time)
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A: three years
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Q: Kaleida's mission was to create a multimedia programming
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language: Script X. But it took three years. Meanwhile, companies
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such as ... had snapped up all the business
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A: Macromedia/Asymetrix
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Q: Kaleida's mission was to create Script X. But it took three
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years. Meanwhile, companies such as Macromedia and Asymetrix had
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snapped up all the business. Kaleida closed in ...(year)
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A: 1995
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**Optional: SuperMemo Recipe:**
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**SuperMemo 2002**
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**[SuperMemo 2000](/articles/soft/sm10.htm)**
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**[SuperMemo 98/99](../../archive/1998/sm98.htm)**
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Creating *cloze deletions* in new SuperMemos:
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select the keyword that is to be replaced with tree dots and press
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*Alt+Z*
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Generating a cloze deletions from texts placed in the clipboard in
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SuperMemo 2000:
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1. Press *Ctrl+Alt+N* to paste the text to SuperMemo
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2. Select the part that is to be replaced with three dots
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3. Right-click to open the [component
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menu](../../help/compmenu.htm) and select **Reading : Remember
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cloze** (or click one of cloze icons on the reading toolbar)
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Cloze deletions in SuperMemo 98/99:
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1. Press Ctrl+A to add a standard question-and-answer item
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2. Paste the text into the question field. This will create the
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outline of your items
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3. Press Ctrl+Alt+U to **Duplicate** the element
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4. Select the part that is to be replaced with three dots
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5. Cut the selection to the clipboard (e.g. with Shift+Del)
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6. Type in three dots (optionally, add the explanation in
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parentheses as in above examples)
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7. Press Ctrl+T to save the question field and move to the answer
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field
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8. Paste the text cut in Step 5 (e.g. with Shift+Ins or Ctrl+V).
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Your first item is ready
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9. Press PgUp **** to go back to the outline item created in Step 2
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10. Goto Step 3 and continue adding new items
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6. **Use imagery**
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Visual cortex is that part of the brain in which visual stimuli are
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interpreted. It has been very well developed in the course of
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evolution and that is why we say one picture is worth a thousand
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words. Indeed if you look at the number of details kept in a picture
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and the easiness with which your memory can retain them, you will
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notice that our verbal processing power is greatly inferior as
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compared with the visual processing power. The same refers to
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memory. A graphic representation of information is usually far less
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volatile.
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Usually it takes much less time to formulate a simple
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question-and-answer pair than to find or produce a neat graphic
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image. This is why you will probably always have to weigh up cost
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and profits in using graphics in your learning material.
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Well-employed images will greatly reduce your learning time in areas
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such as anatomy, geography, geometry, chemistry, history, and many
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more.
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The power of imagery explains why the concept of Tony Buzan's mind
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maps is so popular. A mind map is an abstract picture in which
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connections between its components reflect the logical connections
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between individual concepts.
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**Less beneficial formulation**
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Q: What African country is located between Kenya, Zambia and
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Mozambique?
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A: Tanzania
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**More effective formulation**
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Q: What African country is marked white on the map?
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![Tanzania](http://supermemo.com/images/tanzania.gif)
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A: Tanzania
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7. **Use mnemonic techniques**
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Mnemonic techniques are various techniques that make remembering
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easier. They are often amazingly effective. For most students, a
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picture of a 10-year-old memorizing a sequence of 50 playing cards
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verges on discovering a young genius. It is very surprising then to
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find out how easy it is to learn the techniques that make it
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possible with a dose of training. These techniques are available to
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everyone and do not require any special skills\!
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Before you start believing that mastering such techniques will
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provide you with an eternal solution to the problem of forgetting,
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be warned that the true bottleneck towards long-lasting and useful
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memories is not in quickly memorizing knowledge\! This is indeed the
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easier part. The bottleneck lies in retaining memories for months,
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years or for lifetime\! To accomplish the latter you will need
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[SuperMemo](../../english/smintro.htm) and the compliance with the
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20 rules presented herein.
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There have been dozens of books written about mnemonic techniques.
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Probably those written by Tony Buzan are most popular and respected.
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You can search the web for keywords such as: mind maps, peg lists,
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mnemonic techniques, etc.
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Experience shows that with a dose of training you will need to
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consciously apply mnemonic techniques in only 1-5% of your items.
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With time, using mnemonic techniques will become automatic\!
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Exemplary mind map:
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![](http://supermemo.com/images/mindmap.jpg)
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(Six Steps mind map generated in [Mind
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Manager 3.5](http://www.mindman.com), imported to SuperMemo 2004,
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courtesy of John England, [TeamLink
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Australia](http://www.team-link.org))
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8. **Graphic deletion is as good as cloze deletion**
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Graphic deletion works like [cloze deletion](#Cloze%20deletion) but
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instead of a missing phrase it uses a missing image component. For
|
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example, when learning anatomy, you might present a complex
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illustration. Only a small part of it would be missing. The
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student's job is to name the missing area. The same illustration can
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be used to formulate 10-20 items\! Each item can ask about a
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specific subcomponent of the image. Graphic deletion works great in
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learning geography\!
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Exemplary graphic deletion:
|
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![](http://supermemo.com/images/element.jpg)
|
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**[SuperMemo 2000/2002](/articles/soft/sm10.htm)** **SuperMemo 99**
|
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This is how you can quickly generate graphic deletion using a
|
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picture from the clipboard:
|
||
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1. Press *Shift+Ins* to paste the picture to SuperMemo
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2. Press *Ctrl+Shift+M* and choose *Occlusion* template to apply
|
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graphic deletion template
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3. SuperMemo 2000 only: Choose *Ctrl+Shift+F2* to impose and detach
|
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the *Occlusion* template
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4. Fill out the fields and place the occlusion rectangle to cover
|
||
the appropriate part of the picture (use *Alt+click* twice to
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||
set the rectangle in the dragging mode)
|
||
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In SuperMemo 99 you will need a few more steps:
|
||
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1. Create an item containing the following components:
|
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- question text: What is the name of the area covered with the
|
||
red rectangle?
|
||
- empty answer text (click
|
||
[**Answer**](../../help/compmenu.htm) on the [component
|
||
menu](../../help/compmenu.htm))
|
||
- your illustration (use [**Import
|
||
file**](../../help/compmenu.htm#Import_file) on the image
|
||
component menu)
|
||
- red rectangle component (choose red color with
|
||
**[Color](../../help/compmenu.htm#Color)** on the rectangle
|
||
component menu)
|
||
2. Choose [**Duplicate**](../../help/elmenu.htm#Duplicate) on the
|
||
element menu (e.g. by pressing
|
||
[Ctrl+Alt+U](../../help/shortcuts.htm))
|
||
3. Ctrl+click the rectangle component twice to place it in the
|
||
dragging mode
|
||
4. Drag and size the red rectangle to cover the area in question
|
||
5. Type in the answer in the answer field
|
||
6. Press PgUp to go back to the original element created in Step 1
|
||
7. Go to Step 2 to add generate more graphic deletions
|
||
|
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Note that you could also paint covering rectangles or circles on the
|
||
original image but this would greatly increase the size of your
|
||
collection. The above method makes sure that you reuse the same
|
||
image many times in all items of the same template. For example, the
|
||
collection Brain Anatomy available from \> SuperMemo Library and on
|
||
*SuperMemo MegaMix* CD-ROM uses the above technique
|
||
|
||
A more detailed recipe for creating occlusion tests is presented in:
|
||
[Flow of knowledge](/articles/flow.htm)
|
||
|
||
9. **Avoid sets**
|
||
|
||
A [set](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Set) is a collection of
|
||
objects. For example, a set of fruits might be an apple, a pear and
|
||
a peach. A classic example of an item that is difficult to learn is
|
||
an item that asks for the list of the members of a set. For example:
|
||
What countries belong to the European Union? You should avoid such
|
||
items whenever possible due to the high cost of retaining memories
|
||
based on sets. If sets are absolutely necessary, you should always
|
||
try to convert them into [enumerations](#Enumerations). Enumerations
|
||
are ordered lists of members (for example, the alphabetical list of
|
||
the members of the EU). Enumerations are also hard to remember and
|
||
should be avoided. However, the great advantage of enumerations over
|
||
sets is that they are ordered and they force the brain to list them
|
||
always in the same order. An ordered list of countries contains more
|
||
information than the set of countries that can be listed in any
|
||
order. Paradoxically, despite containing more information,
|
||
enumerations are easier to remember. The reason for this has been
|
||
discussed earlier in the context of the [minimum information
|
||
principle](#minimum%20information%20principle): **you should always
|
||
try to make sure your brain works in the exactly same way at each
|
||
repetition**. In the case of sets, listing members in varying order
|
||
at each repetition has a disastrous effect on memory. It is nearly
|
||
impossible to memorize sets containing more than five members
|
||
without the use of mnemonic techniques, enumeration, grouping, etc.
|
||
Despite this claim, you will often succeed due to subconsciously
|
||
mastered techniques that help you go around this problem. Those
|
||
techniques, however, will fail you all too often. For that reason:
|
||
**Avoid sets\!** If you need them badly, convert them into
|
||
enumerations and use [techniques for dealing with
|
||
enumerations](#Enumerations)
|
||
|
||
**Ill-formulated knowledge - Sets are unacceptable\!**
|
||
|
||
Q:What countries belong to the European Union (2002)?
|
||
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||
A: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece,
|
||
Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain,
|
||
Sweden, and the United Kingdom
|
||
|
||
**Well-formulated knowledge - Converting a set into a meaningful
|
||
listing**
|
||
|
||
Q: Which country hosted a meeting to consider the creation of a
|
||
European Community of Defence in 1951?
|
||
A: France
|
||
|
||
Q: Which countries apart from France joined the European Coal and
|
||
Steel Community in 1952?
|
||
A: Germany, Italy and the Benelux
|
||
|
||
Q: What countries make up the Benelux?
|
||
A: Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands
|
||
|
||
Q: Whose membership did Charles de Gaulle oppose in the 1960s?
|
||
A: that of UK
|
||
|
||
Q: Which countries joined the EEC along the UK in 1973?
|
||
A: Ireland and Denmark
|
||
|
||
Q: Which country joined the EEC in 1981?
|
||
A: Greece
|
||
|
||
Q: Which countries joined the EEC in 1986?
|
||
A: Spain and Portugal
|
||
|
||
Q: Which countries joined the EU in 1995?
|
||
A: Austria, Sweden and Finland
|
||
|
||
Q: What was the historic course of expansion of the European Union
|
||
membership?
|
||
A: (1) France and (2) Germany, Italy and the Benelux, (3) UK and (4)
|
||
Ireland and Denmark, (5) Greece, (6) Spain and Portugal and (7)
|
||
Austria, Sweden and Finland
|
||
|
||
Note that in the example above, we converted a 15-member set into 9
|
||
items, five of which are 2-3 member sets, and one is a six member
|
||
enumeration. Put it to your SuperMemo, and see how easy it is to
|
||
generate the list of the European Union members using the historic
|
||
timeline\! Note the tricks used with France and the UK. They joined
|
||
the union in the company of others but have been listed as separate
|
||
items to simplify the learning process. Note also that the sum of
|
||
information included in this well-formulated approach is far greater
|
||
than that of the original set. Thus along simplicity, we gained some
|
||
useful knowledge. All individual items effectively comply with the
|
||
[minimum information
|
||
principle](#minimum%20information%20principle)\! You could go
|
||
further by trying to split the Germany-Italy-Benelux set or using
|
||
mnemonic techniques to memorize the final seven-member enumeration
|
||
(i.e. the last of the questions above). However, you should take
|
||
those steps only if you have any problems with retaining the
|
||
proposed set in memory.
|
||
|
||
10. **Avoid enumerations**
|
||
|
||
Enumerations are also an example of classic items that are hard to
|
||
learn. They are still far more acceptable than sets. Avoid
|
||
enumerations wherever you can. If you cannot avoid them, deal with
|
||
them using [cloze deletions](#Cloze%20deletion) (overlapping cloze
|
||
deletions if possible). Learning the alphabet can be a good example
|
||
of an overlapping cloze deletion:
|
||
|
||
**Hard to learn item**
|
||
|
||
Q: What is the sequence of letters in the alphabet?
|
||
|
||
A: abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
|
||
|
||
**Easy to learn items**
|
||
|
||
Q: What three letters does the alphabet begin with?
|
||
A: ABC
|
||
|
||
Q: Fill out the missing letters of the alphabet A ... ... ... E
|
||
A: B, C, D
|
||
|
||
Q: Fill out the missing letters of the alphabet B ... ... ... F
|
||
A: C, D, E
|
||
|
||
Q: Fill out the missing letters of the alphabet C ... ... ... G
|
||
A: D, E, F
|
||
|
||
The above items will make learning the alphabet much faster. The
|
||
greatest advantage of the above approach is that is it easier for
|
||
psychological reasons: the student does not have to stop repetitions
|
||
to recite the whole sequence and can only focus on a small part of
|
||
the learned material. Still it is recommended that he recite the
|
||
whole alphabet **after** making the repetition. However, once all
|
||
individual pieces are well remembered, reciting the whole should be
|
||
a pleasant and speedy action that produces little frustration.
|
||
The cloze deletion used above is an overlapping cloze deletion, i.e.
|
||
the same parts of the enumeration are strengthened in memory using
|
||
different items (for example, the sequence C-D will be needed to
|
||
recall the second and the third item). This redundancy does not
|
||
contradict the [minimum information
|
||
principle](#minimum%20information%20principle) because **the extra
|
||
information is added in extra items**.
|
||
|
||
You can also deal with enumerations by using grouping like in the
|
||
case of sets (see the [European Union example](#EEC)) but cloze
|
||
deletions should be simpler and should suffice in most cases.
|
||
Learning poems is an example of learning enumerations (all words and
|
||
sentences have to be uttered in a predefined sequence); however, due
|
||
to strong semantic connections, the rhyme and the rhythm, it may
|
||
often be possible to effectively remember poems without using cloze
|
||
deletion and without the frustration of forgetting small
|
||
subcomponents again and again. However, once you notice you stumble
|
||
with your poem, you should dismember it using cloze deletion and
|
||
thus make sure that the learning is fast, easy, effective and
|
||
pleasurable
|
||
|
||
**A poem that is hard to remember**
|
||
|
||
Q: The credit belongs ... ([Teddy
|
||
Roosevelt](http://www.dropbears.com/b/broughsbooks/qtroosevelt.htm))
|
||
|
||
A: The credit belongs to the man who's actually in the arena, whose
|
||
face is marred by dust and sweat; a man who knows the great
|
||
enthusiasm and the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy
|
||
cause, who in the end knows the triumph of high achievement, so that
|
||
his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know
|
||
neither victory nor defeat
|
||
|
||
**A poem split into easy items**
|
||
|
||
Q: The credit belongs ... ([Teddy
|
||
Roosevelt](http://www.dropbears.com/b/broughsbooks/qtroosevelt.htm))
|
||
A: to the man who's actually in the arena
|
||
|
||
Q: The credit belongs to the man who's actually in the arena ...
|
||
A: whose face is marred by dust and sweat (a man who knows the great
|
||
enthusiasm)
|
||
|
||
Q: whose face is marred by dust and sweat ... (The credit belongs)
|
||
A: a man who knows the great enthusiasm and the great devotions (who
|
||
spends himself in a worthy cause)
|
||
|
||
Q: a man who knows the great enthusiasm and the great devotions ...
|
||
(The credit belongs)
|
||
A: who spends himself in a worthy cause (who in the end knows the
|
||
triumph of high achievement)
|
||
|
||
Q: who spends himself in a worthy cause ... (The credit belongs)
|
||
A: who in the end knows the triumph of high achievement (so that his
|
||
place shall never be), etc. etc.
|
||
|
||
Does it all sound artificial? It does\! But you will never know how
|
||
effective this approach is until you try it by yourself\!
|
||
|
||
11. **Combat interference**
|
||
|
||
When you learn about similar things you often confuse them. For
|
||
example, you may have problems distinguishing between the meanings
|
||
of the words historic and historical. This will even be more visible
|
||
if you memorize lots of numbers, e.g. optimum dosages of drugs in
|
||
pharmacotherapy. If knowledge of one item makes it harder to
|
||
remember another item, we have a case of **memory interference**.
|
||
You can often remember an item for years with straight excellent
|
||
grades until ... you memorize another item that makes it nearly
|
||
impossible to remember either\! For example, if you learn geography
|
||
and you memorize that the country located between Venezuela,
|
||
Suriname and Brazil is Guyana, you are likely to easily recall this
|
||
fact for years with just a couple of repetitions. However, once you
|
||
add similar items asking about the location of all these countries,
|
||
and French Guyana, and Colombia and more, you will suddenly notice
|
||
strong memory interference and you may experience unexpected
|
||
forgetting. In simple terms: you will get confused about what is
|
||
what.
|
||
|
||
Interference is probably the single greatest cause of forgetting in
|
||
collections of an experienced user of SuperMemo. You can never be
|
||
sure when it strikes, and the only hermetic procedure against it is
|
||
to **detect and eliminate**. In other words, in many cases it may be
|
||
impossible to predict interference at the moment of formulating
|
||
knowledge. Interference can also occur between remotely related
|
||
items like Guyana, Guyard and Guyenne, as well as Guyana, kayman and
|
||
... aspirin. It may work differently for you and for your colleague.
|
||
It very hard to predict.
|
||
|
||
Still you should do your best to prevent interference before it
|
||
takes its toll. This will make your learning process less stressful
|
||
and mentally bearable. Here are some tips:
|
||
|
||
- make items as unambiguous as possible
|
||
|
||
- stick to the [minimum information
|
||
principle](#minimum%20information%20principle) (many of the
|
||
remaining rules in this text are based on avoiding
|
||
interference\!)
|
||
|
||
- eliminate interference as soon as you spot it, i.e. before it
|
||
becomes your obsession (e.g. as soon as you see the word
|
||
**inept** you think "I know the meanings of **inept** and
|
||
**inapt** but I will never know which is which\!")
|
||
|
||
- **[View](../../help/view.htm) : **Other browsers :**
|
||
[Leeches](../../help/leech.htm)** (*Shift+*F3) to regularly
|
||
review and **eliminate** most difficult items
|
||
|
||
in SuperMemo useF3) to regularly review andmost difficult items
|
||
|
||
- read more: [Memory
|
||
interference](../../english/ol/ks.htm#Univocality)
|
||
|
||
12. **Optimize wording**
|
||
|
||
The wording of your items must be optimized to make sure that in
|
||
minimum time the right bulb in your brain lights up. This will
|
||
reduce error rates, increase specificity, reduce response time, and
|
||
help your concentration.
|
||
|
||
**Less optimum item: cloze deletion that is too wordy**
|
||
|
||
Q: Aldus invented desktop publishing in 1985 with PageMaker. Aldus
|
||
had little competition for years, and so failed to improve. Then
|
||
Denver-based ... blew past. PageMaker, now owned by Adobe, remains
|
||
No. 2
|
||
A: Quark
|
||
|
||
**Better item: fewer words will speed up learning**
|
||
|
||
Q: Aldus invented desktop publishing in 1985 with PageMaker but
|
||
failed to improve. Then ... blew past (PageMaker remains No. 2)
|
||
A: Quark
|
||
|
||
**Or better:**
|
||
|
||
Q: Aldus invented desktop publishing with PageMaker but failed to
|
||
improve. It was soon outdistanced by ...
|
||
A: Quark
|
||
|
||
**Or better:**
|
||
|
||
Q: PageMaker failed to improve and was outdistanced by ...
|
||
A: Quark
|
||
|
||
**Or better:**
|
||
|
||
Q: PageMaker lost ground to ...
|
||
A: Quark
|
||
|
||
Note that the loss of information content in this item is
|
||
inconsequential. During repetition you are only supposed to learn
|
||
the name: Quark. You should not hope that the trailing messages on
|
||
the ownership of PageMaker and the year of its development will
|
||
somehow trickle to your memory as a side effect. You should decide
|
||
if the other pieces of information are important to you and if so,
|
||
store them in separate items (perhaps reusing the above text,
|
||
employing cloze deletion again and optimizing the wording in a new
|
||
way). Otherwise the redundant information will only slow down your
|
||
learning process\!
|
||
|
||
13. **Refer to other memories**
|
||
|
||
Referring to other memories can place your item in a better context,
|
||
simplify wording, and reduce interference. In the example below,
|
||
using the words humble and supplicant helps the student focus on the
|
||
word shamelessly and thus strengthen the correct semantics. Better
|
||
focus helps eliminating interference. Secondly, the use of the words
|
||
humble and supplicant makes it possible to avoid interference of
|
||
cringing with these words themselves. Finally, the proposed wording
|
||
is shorter and more specific. Naturally, the rules
|
||
[basics-to-details](#Build%20upon%20the%20basics) and [do not learn
|
||
what you do not
|
||
understand](#Do%20not%20learn%20if%20you%20do%20not%20understand)
|
||
require that the words humble and supplicant be learned beforehand
|
||
(or at least at the same time)
|
||
|
||
**Item subject to strong interference**
|
||
|
||
Q: derog: adj: shamelessly conscious of one's failings and asking in
|
||
a begging way
|
||
A: cringing
|
||
|
||
**Item that uses interfering memories to amplify the correct
|
||
meaning**
|
||
|
||
Q: derog: adj: shamelessly humble and supplicant
|
||
A: cringing
|
||
|
||
14. **Personalize and provide examples**
|
||
|
||
One of the most effective ways of enhancing memories is to provide
|
||
them with a link to your personal life. In the example below you
|
||
will save time if you use a personal reference rather than trying to
|
||
paint a picture that would aptly illustrate the question
|
||
|
||
**Harder item**
|
||
|
||
Q: What is the name of a soft bed without arms or back?
|
||
A: divan
|
||
|
||
**Easier item**
|
||
|
||
Q: What is the name of a soft bed without arms or back? (like the
|
||
one at Robert's parents)
|
||
A: divan
|
||
|
||
If you remember exactly what kind of soft bed can be found in
|
||
Robert's parents' apartment you will save time by not having to dig
|
||
exactly into the semantics of the definition and/or looking for an
|
||
appropriate graphic illustration for the piece of furniture in
|
||
question. Personalized examples are very resistant to
|
||
[interference](#Interference) and can greatly reduce your learning
|
||
time
|
||
|
||
15. **Rely on emotional states**
|
||
|
||
If you can illustrate your items with examples that are vivid or
|
||
even shocking, you are likely to enhance retrieval (as long as you
|
||
do not overuse same tools and fall victim of interference\!). Your
|
||
items may assume bizarre form; however, as long as they are produced
|
||
for your private consumption, the end justifies the means. Use
|
||
objects that evoke very specific and strong emotions: love, sex,
|
||
war, your late relative, object of your infatuation, Linda Tripp,
|
||
Nelson Mandela, etc. It is well known that emotional states can
|
||
facilitate recall; however, you should make sure that you are not
|
||
deprived of the said emotional clues at the moment when you need to
|
||
retrieve a given memory in a real-life situation
|
||
|
||
**Harder item**
|
||
|
||
Q: a light and joking conversation
|
||
A: banter
|
||
|
||
**Easier item**
|
||
|
||
Q: a light and joking conversation (e.g. Mandela and de Klerk in
|
||
1992)
|
||
A: banter
|
||
|
||
If you have vivid and positive memories related to the meetings
|
||
between Nelson Mandela and F.W. de Klerk, you are likely to quickly
|
||
grasp the meaning of the definition of banter. Without the example
|
||
you might struggle with interference from words such as badinage or
|
||
even chat. There is no risk of irrelevant emotional state in this
|
||
example as the state helps to define the semantics of the learned
|
||
concept\! A well-thought example can often reduce your learning time
|
||
several times\! I have recorded examples in which an item without an
|
||
example was forgotten 20 times within one year, while the same item
|
||
with a subtle interference-busting example was not forgotten even
|
||
once in ten repetitions spread over five years. This is roughly
|
||
equivalent to **25-fold saving in time in the period of 20 years**\!
|
||
Such examples are not rare\! They are most effectively handled with
|
||
the all the preceding rules targeted on
|
||
[simplicity](#minimum%20information%20principle) and against the
|
||
[interference](#Interference)
|
||
|
||
16. **Context cuessimplify wording**
|
||
|
||
You can use [categories](../../help/categs.htm) in [SuperMemo
|
||
2000/2002](/articles/soft/sm10.htm), provide different branches of
|
||
knowledge with a different look (different
|
||
[template](../../help/templates.htm)), use reference labels (*Title,
|
||
Author, Date,* etc.) and clearly label subcategories (e.g. with
|
||
strings such as chem for chemistry, math for mathematics, etc.).
|
||
This will help you simplify the wording of your items as you will be
|
||
relieved from the need to specify the context of your question. In
|
||
the example below, the well-defined prefix bioch: saves you a lot of
|
||
typing and a lot of reading while still making sure you do not
|
||
confuse the abbreviation GRE with Graduate Record Examination. Note
|
||
that in the recommended case, you process the item starting from the
|
||
label bioch which puts your brain immediately in the right context.
|
||
While processing the lesser optimum case, you will waste precious
|
||
milliseconds on flashing the standard meaning of GRE and ... what is
|
||
worse ... you will light up the wrong areas of your brain that will
|
||
now perhaps be prone to interference\!
|
||
|
||
**Wordy item can cause accidental lapses through interference**
|
||
|
||
Q: What does GRE stand for in biochemistry?
|
||
A: glucocorticoid response element
|
||
|
||
**Context-labeled items increase success rate**
|
||
|
||
Q: bioch: GRE
|
||
A: glucocorticoid response element
|
||
|
||
17. **Redundancydoes not contradict minimum information principle**
|
||
|
||
**Redundancy** in simple terms is more information than needed or
|
||
duplicate information, etc. Redundancy does not have to contradict
|
||
the [minimum information
|
||
principle](#minimum%20information%20principle) and may even be
|
||
welcome. The problem of redundancy is too wide for this short text.
|
||
Here are some examples that are only to illustrate that minimum
|
||
information principle cannot be understood as minimum number of
|
||
characters or bits in your collections or even items:
|
||
|
||
- **passive and active approach**: if you learn a foreign
|
||
language, e.g. Esperanto, you will often build word pairs such
|
||
as phone-telefono, language-lingvo, hope-esperanto, etc. These
|
||
pairs require active recall of the foreign word. Active recall
|
||
does not, however, guarantee passive recognition and you may
|
||
fail with telefono-phone, lingvo-language, or esperanto-hope.
|
||
Adding new elements with swapped questions and answers may in
|
||
some cases be redundant but it does not contradict the minimum
|
||
information principle\! Your items are still as simple as
|
||
possible. You just get more of them**Duplicate** (Ctrl+Alt+D)
|
||
and **Swap** (Ctrl+Shift+S)
|
||
|
||
In [SuperMemo 2000/2002](/articles/soft/sm10.htm) , you can
|
||
quickly generate swapped word-pair items with(Ctrl+Alt+D)
|
||
and(Ctrl+Shift+S)
|
||
|
||
- **reasoning cues**: you will often want to boost your reasoning
|
||
ability by asking about a solution to the problem. Instead of
|
||
just memorizing the answer you would like to quickly follow the
|
||
reasoning steps (e.g. solve a simple mathematical equation) and
|
||
generate the answer. In such a case, providing the hint on the
|
||
reasoning steps in the answer will only serve helping you always
|
||
follow the right path at repetitions
|
||
|
||
- **derivation steps**: in more complex problems to solve,
|
||
memorizing individual derivation steps is always highly
|
||
recommended (e.g. solving complex mathematical problems). It is
|
||
not cramming\! It is making sure that the brain can always
|
||
follow the fastest path while solving the problem. For more on
|
||
boosting creativity and intelligence read: [Roots of genius and
|
||
creativity](http://supermemo.com/articles/genius.htm), as well
|
||
as more specific: [Derivation, reasoning and
|
||
intelligence](../../english/ol/ks.htm#Intelligence)
|
||
|
||
- **multiple semantic representation**: very often the same
|
||
knowledge can be represented and viewed from different angles.
|
||
Memorizing different representations of the same fact or rule is
|
||
recommended in cases where a given memory is of high value. This
|
||
will increase the expected recall rate (beyond that specified
|
||
with the [forgetting index](../../help/fi.htm))\!
|
||
|
||
- **flexible repetition**: if there are many valid responses to
|
||
the same question make sure that your representation makes it
|
||
possible to identify the equivalence and reward you with good
|
||
grades by providing just one of the equivalent choices. For
|
||
example, if you learn a language, it rarely make sense to learn
|
||
all synonyms that meet a definition of a concept. It is more
|
||
adequate to consider a single synonym as the sufficient answer
|
||
(e.g. a mark made by ink spilt on sth = blot/blob/blotch)
|
||
|
||
- [more](../../english/ol/ks.htm#Redundancy)
|
||
|
||
18. **Provide sources**
|
||
|
||
Except for well-tested and proven knowledge (such as 2+2=4), it is
|
||
highly recommended that you include sources from which you have
|
||
gathered your knowledge. In real-life situation you will often be
|
||
confronted with challenges to your knowledge. Sources can come to
|
||
your rescue. You will also find that facts and figures differ
|
||
depending on the source. You can really be surprised how frivolously
|
||
reputable information agencies publish figures that are drastically
|
||
different from other equally reputable sources. Without SuperMemo,
|
||
those discrepancies are often difficult to notice: before you
|
||
encounter the new fact, the old one is often long forgotten. With
|
||
sources provided, you will be able to make more educated choices on
|
||
which pieces of information are more reliable. Adding reliability
|
||
labels may also be helpful (e.g. *Watch out\!, Other sources
|
||
differ\!*, etc.). Sources should accompany your items but should not
|
||
be part of the learned knowledge (unless it is critical for you to
|
||
be able to recall the source whenever asked).
|
||
|
||
19. **Provide**
|
||
|
||
Knowledge can be relatively stable (basic math, anatomy, taxonomy,
|
||
physical geography, etc.) and highly volatile (economic indicators,
|
||
high-tech knowledge, personal statistics, etc.). It is important
|
||
that you provide your items with time stamping or other tags
|
||
indicating the degree of obsolescence. In case of statistical
|
||
figures, you might stamp them with the year they have been
|
||
collected. When learning software applications, it is enough you
|
||
stamp the item with the software version. Once you have newer
|
||
figures you can update your items. Unfortunately, in most cases you
|
||
will have to re-memorize knowledge that became outdated. Date
|
||
stamping is useful in editing and verifying your knowledge; however,
|
||
you will rarely want to memorize stamping itself. If you would like
|
||
to remember the changes of a given figure in time (e.g. GNP figures
|
||
over a number of years), the date stamping becomes the learned
|
||
knowledge itself.
|
||
|
||
20. **Prioritize**
|
||
|
||
You will always face far more knowledge that you will be able to
|
||
master. That is why prioritizing is critical for building quality
|
||
knowledge in the long-term. The way you prioritize will affect the
|
||
way your knowledge slots in. This will also affect the speed of
|
||
learning (e.g. see: [learn basics
|
||
first](#Build%20upon%20the%20basics)). There are many stages at
|
||
which prioritizing will take place; only few are relevant to
|
||
knowledge representation, but all are important:
|
||
|
||
1. **Prioritizing sources** - there will always be a number of
|
||
sources of your knowledge. If you are still at student years:
|
||
these will most likely be books and notes pertaining to
|
||
different subjects. Otherwise you will probably rely more on
|
||
journals, Internet, TV, newspapers, encyclopedias, dictionaries,
|
||
etc. It is always worth being aware what is the optimum
|
||
proportion of time devoted to those varied sources. As you
|
||
progress with learning, you will quickly develop a good sense of
|
||
which learning slots bring better results and which might be
|
||
extended at the cost of others
|
||
2. **Extracting knowledge** - unless you are about to pass an
|
||
important exam, it nearly never makes sense to memorize whole
|
||
books or whole articles. You will need to extract those parts
|
||
that are most likely to impact the quality of your knowledge.
|
||
You can do it by (1) marking paragraphs in a book or journal,
|
||
(2) pasting relevant web pages to SuperMemo, (3) pasting
|
||
relevant passages to SuperMemo, (4) typing facts and figures
|
||
directly to SuperMemo notes, etc. You will need some experience
|
||
before you can accurately measure how much knowledge you can
|
||
indeed transfer to your brain and what degree of detail you can
|
||
feasibly master. Your best way to prioritize the flow of
|
||
knowledge into your memory is to use [incremental
|
||
reading](../../help/read.htm) tools
|
||
3. **Transferring knowledge to SuperMemo** - you may try to stick
|
||
with the 20 rules of formulating knowledge at the moment of
|
||
introducing your material to SuperMemo. However, you can also
|
||
literally transfer your notes or import whole files and later
|
||
use the mechanisms provided by SuperMemo to determine the order
|
||
of processing the imported material. Probably the best criterion
|
||
for choosing between formulating or just importing is the time
|
||
needed for accurately formulating the item or items. If
|
||
formulation requires more knowledge, more time, comparing with
|
||
other sources, etc. you can just import. Otherwise, if you
|
||
believe that formulating an accurate item is a matter of
|
||
seconds, formulate it
|
||
4. **Formulating items** - make sure that explanatory or optional
|
||
components of the answer are placed in the parentheses so that
|
||
your attention is focused on the most important part of the
|
||
item. The parts in the parentheses can be read after the
|
||
repetition to strengthen the memory in its context
|
||
5. **Using forgetting index** - you can use the [forgetting
|
||
index](../../help/fi.htm) to prioritize pending items. The
|
||
sequence of repetitions will naturally be determined by
|
||
SuperMemo; however, you can request higher retention level for
|
||
items that are more important and lower retention level for
|
||
items of lower priority
|
||
6. **Learning** - the process of prioritizing does not end with the
|
||
onset of repetitions. Here are the tools you can use to continue
|
||
setting your priorities while the learning process is under way:
|
||
1. **Remember** (Ctrl+M) - re-memorize items of high priority
|
||
that have changed or which are extremely important to your
|
||
knowledge at a given moment. If you choose
|
||
[Ctrl+M](../../help/shortcuts.htm) you will be able to
|
||
determine the next interval for the currently reviewed item
|
||
(its repetition counter will be reset to zero). It is
|
||
recommended that you always re-memorize items whose content
|
||
has changed significantly
|
||
2. **Reschedule** (*Ctrl+J*) - manually schedule the date of
|
||
the next repetition
|
||
3. **Execute repetition** (*Ctrl+Shift+R*) - manually execute a
|
||
repetition even before the repetition's due date (e.g. when
|
||
reviewing particularly important material)
|
||
4. **Forget** (Ctrl+R) - remove the current item from the
|
||
learning process and place it at the end of the [pending
|
||
queue](../../help/g.htm#pending_queue)
|
||
5. **Dismiss** (Ctrl+D) **** - ignore the current item in the
|
||
learning process altogether
|
||
6. **Delete** (Ctrl+Shift+Del) - remove the current item from
|
||
your collection
|
||
7. Change the forgetting index of memorized items or change the
|
||
ordinal of pending items (Ctrl+Shift+P)
|